Several years ago a study was conducted on the top 100 sitcoms (half hour comedy TV shows) of all time. As a class you can name many of them without looking at the list below. The researcher found something very interesting when he divided the list between “prior to Cheers” (1982) and those that came after 1982. All of the shows that came before Cheers …
The Impact of Violence in the Media
This and my next post (on reality TV) focuses on the relationship between television/movies/music and our culture. I will be asking you the question, “Does what we watch influence our thoughts, actions or viewpoints?” Before you answer, I want to share a few stories with you. Caution: This first story is very disturbing. Teachers please watch ahead of time to decide if this is appropriate …
New Year’s Resolutions…Good Idea or Waste of Time?
At the beginning of each year, roughly 45% of Americans make new year’s resolutions. Most of these resolutions pertain to health (lose weight), happiness (enjoy life more) or a new skill (learn a new language). Most are sincere when they make them, but only 8% of Americans are successful at changing their new resolutions into reality. Another 38% of Americans swear off the …
Lance Armstrong Deserves No Credit for Coming Clean
Sometime this week, Oprah Winfrey will interview Lance Armstrong and he is expected to guardedly admit that he used performance enhancing drugs during his tenure of winning 7 Tour de France titles. This confession will contradict his denials over the past decade to the contrary. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juVzHD7NEgk (before interview) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biIvT_r-DQg (part 1 of interview – watch first 5 minutes) Author’s Perspective: Lance Armstrong has a …
Students Choose Holding Hands As Punishment for Fighting
Two male students got into a fight at Westood High School in Mesa, Arizona. The principal decided to give these students an option – either get suspended or hold hands for one hour in front of other students. Both students chose to hold hands and forgo the suspension. Sounds innocent enough. However, during the one hour punishment, fellow students laughed at them, mocked them and called them names. Students took pictures and placed …
A Season of Giving
Andre Johnson, a wide receiver, for the Houston Texans, took 12 kids on an 80 second shopping spree at Toys R Us this week. These kids were chosen by Child Protective Services because they had especially difficult circumstances of abuse and neglect. Each child was given a cart and 80 seconds to gather as many toys as they could… and could …
Black Friday should stay on Friday!
Only in America… do we set aside the fourth Thursday in November for the sole purpose of getting together with family and friends to give thanks for the many blessings in our lives. A wonderful day of reflection, family and traditions. And, on the very next day, we put all that aside to get up before dawn for the pure excitement of finding the best deals on new stuff… and …
Leaders Acting Like Leaders: How Refreshing
For those who don’t know, Chris Christie is the Governor of New Jersey. Early in 2012, republicans literally begged Christie to run for President of the United States. He repeatedly refused, saying that he was not ready to be president and he did not want to abandon his state of New Jersey http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W24-CB6nn2k. He gave the opening keynote address at the …
93-year-old man’s last duty – voting!
One of the questions in the week 3 ethical dilemma is, “If you knew you were going to die before the end of the semester, what one thing would you like to do before you die?” Not one student ever said, “I’d like to vote.” Yet, Frank Tanabe, a 93-year-old World War II Veteran, diagnosed with inoperable cancer, made a …
Bullying…Just Plain Mean
When Whitney found out she was nominated for homecoming queen, she was surprised… giddy… elated. When she logged on to Facebook later that day, she discovered that her nomination was a joke and she felt humiliated… devastated… suicidal. It’s difficult to believe that this story could occur, particularly in a small town within my home state of Michigan. It stands to reason …