Fashion?? What

     For as long as I can remember, I've always been really confused by popular advertisements for clothes. They don't ever really seem to make sense to me. Is the model supposed to be a representation of me or someone I want to be? Or is it an objective clothing display? No one knows. Mysterious.

     If the model is intended to be me or an improved version of myself, then why are they so over the top and unrealistic? Perhaps they are images of an impossible to obtain style or status that I am expected to desire. I used to wear Calvin Klein, and I never looked like this:

     This post is going to be an examination of ads and the desires I am expected to have as a consumer. In other words, there's going to be a LOT of pictures. (I will probably also joke and make satirical comments about ads because they're so outlandish)

Where am I going? Where am I? What am I supposed to be doing in this image? So many questions, so little answers.

I'm not swimming. Why

No swim again, explain

WHY I NO SWIM

This is dastardly and outrageous

I'm apparently a member of a gay barbershop quartet attending a bachelor party? Why else would I be wearing those clothes and standing in a group of four similar-looking men?

The starving artist drama club group meets on Tuesdays. Only on Tuesdays. That guy closest to the viewer kind of looks like Robert Pattinson. I'm gonna be that guy. That's me, looking really moody and angry at my mom.

Don't I have stuff to do???

Ah yes, whenever I put on these clothes I too find myself suspended in time and space, lost in a world of dimensionless-ness.

We've got cool safari hats and fans because it's 2tropical5us in the wild rainforests of downtown Paris.

     This form of media, as I have hopefully revealed above, is sort of ridiculous. Ads, which are kind of supposed to be snapshots of daily life, have little meaning or realism. I definitely don't want to be the kind of person who wears swimwear and doesn't go swimming. I don't want to be the kind of person who doesn't swim at every possible opportunity, period. Anyways, while I may not understand fashion ads, they are still nice to look at. Sometimes.

Let's Talk Loaded Language: Abort Mission

Loaded language is one of those fun persuasive tools that plays on the emotions and values of the audience in order to skew opinions in favor or against an issue. If something is described as "pro-" then by definition it must be positive, correct? Not really. Our brains see or hear pro and go "Whoa, this guy's gotta be good," or "This is positive". What about "anti-"? This word really gets under our skins. Anti means against, and if somebody's against something, then that means they don’t like that thing, and if someone doesn't like something, something's gotta be wrong with it. Right? Nope.

            What this is leading up to is a discussion of the language used in two separate articles on the same subject: Should it be legal (or allowed) for women to have abortions in the US? One article declares itself pro-choice, the other pro-life.

            But what is abortion? Both sides define it and redefine it so many times that it can be hard to remember what it actually is.

            Abortion, n.: the deliberate termination of a human pregnancy, most often performed during the first 28 weeks of pregnancy.

            Thank you, Google. This definition is pretty cut and dry. Where's all that rhetoric typically used to defend or attack abortion? Don't worry, that's the subject of this post.

If this image cannot be read, it says "ABORTION: Never an easy choice, sometimes the right choice, and always a woman's choice".

            The pro-choice article, written by Thamiel Rosenkreuz, notes "FIVE PRO-CHOICE ARGUMENTS TO SHUT UP ANTI-CHOICE RIGHT-WINGERS". Wow, that's… That's pretty upfront. The rest of the article is executed in a similar tone. He vehemently attacks "anti-choice" supporters, referring to them as "homophobic" and claiming that "They just want to use pregnancy to punish women". What? That's like saying that teachers give their students low grades because they don't want them to go to college. Pro-life activists have a secret hidden agenda that wants to punish women? Of course, Rosenkreuz. That must be why there are so many women (with children) that support pregnancy and giving birth. And all pro-life supporters must be religious, or at least "there’s so much religious overlap that this works on most of them". Sorry to burst your bubble, dude, but while religious groups like the Catholic Church may value life so much as to oppose abortion, they don't compose the entirety of the pro-life group, and your argument won't work on them. Rosenkreuz also claims that the pro-life supporters are also "armed with misinformation". I find it interesting that he claims this, as a substantial amount of vocal women on this issue have either had abortions and regretted them, or considered them and been glad they did not go through with it. While I agree that a substantial amount of pro-life supporters are just spouting slogans without regard for the women they speak for, I don't agree with Rosenkreuz's choices of language. His entire article is one vast, negative ocean. There is no visible positive or even neutral concept of pro-life supporters, which gives me the idea that this article is a piece of propaganda against "right-wingers". Rosenkreuz's diction is attempting to portray pro-lifers as uninformed, cruel, religious freaks.

http://www.ifyouonlynews.com/religion/five-pro-choice-arguments-to-shut-up-anti-choice-right-wingers/

            The pro-life article, authored by Kristi Burton Brown, lists "10 reasons not to have an abortion". I was enjoying the peaceful vibe until I read "We do not erase a rape by killing a child". Uh… We're not attempting to erase that event. That's not the reason why those women get abortions. That line portrays all pregnancies as right or necessary to sustain. They aren't. That's a total 180 from what we're trying to accomplish, which is a normal life for those women. It is not their responsibility to keep something that is hurting them or a relic of something that did hurt them. If they do keep the baby and raise it as their own, more power to them. But expecting a victim of rape to give birth? That's insensitive and inhumane. It places more value on the baby's life, which is not yet final, than the woman's. This concept has been perpetuated throughout the article. The list also describes abortion as "discriminatory, inhuman, and cruel". This language is definitively slanted, to get a negative feeling. Pregnancy is described positively, however, referring to it as a "great gift" that parents are blessed with. Abortion becomes the choice that is demonized under any circumstances, without consideration of the need of women. Yes, Brown, I know that you don't feel like it is a right to kill your child. But your body is your own, and other women's bodies are their own. Brown's article, while less spitfire and brimstone than Rosenkreuz's, still negatively skews the opposite side. It attempts to criminalize and turn women away from abortion, assuming that they will feel a specific feeling that Brown prescribes and have a straightforward situation.

http://liveactionnews.org/10-reasons-not-to-have-an-abortion/

            Since both Rosenkreuz and Brown play to extremes (both of which are extremely negative), they don't really affect the population of opposite believers very much. In the comments, most of the people are strict supporters of that viewpoint presented in the article. They don't tend to leave their comfort zone, for fear of being unable to truly defend themselves from the opposite side. That's why they fail. A barrage negatives will not prove a point. Something has to be good, right, and pleasing for people to believe. Otherwise, it can be too much to swallow or denied immediately.

            Regardless of language, the issue is what it is. It is an ongoing discussion over two conflicting value systems. When it comes down to it, neither side is ethical. As was mentioned in the Pro-Life article, just because abortion is legal, permissible, and/or perceived as necessary for a woman, doesn't mean it's right. It still involves forcefully removing a child from the womb, which can cause it pain. That is undeniable. But requiring women to have children that they do not want or will not care for isn't right either. Women can die in childbirth, or give birth to a baby that will not survive. How is this okay? Neither extreme is right, and the only way to fix this is to sift past the language and really look the issue in the eye. Until then, outspoken members of both parties will do anything they can to shift the crowd in their favor.

The Media and Me

Media is one of those words that has strong connotation but not necessarily an equally well-known denotation. So, let's start off with a condensed definition.

           

            Media- mediums of mass communication, such as television, radio, newspapers, the internet, etc., regarded collectively

     Thanks, Google. Now that I have established a baseline of understanding of media, I can fully answer this question: What is my relationship with media, and what types of media do I consume?

     My number one form of media would have to be the internet. That's where I read all my webcomics, listen to the majority of my music, and watch Netflix. I can also indulge in reading, online games, and Youtube.

     I consume an almost outrageous amount of webcomics. I currently follow about 26 individual comics, most of which are updated by different authors. In total, I have consumed approximately 40+ webcomics, many of which I continue to consume. For a time, I even had a complex mental update schedule, which I would consult each day to read the comics with new content. For example, Wednesday morning meant that Love Not Found, by Gina Biggs, had updated for the second time that week. Tuesdays and Fridays were update days for This is NOT Fiction, by Nicole Mannino. I worked off of this schedule until it became too much for me to remember. But this is only an example of my intense interest in certain types of media.

Love Not Found, by Gina Biggs, is a super fun read set on another planet, after the concept of touch has become taboo.

This is NOT Fiction is a hilarious comic that I can't even really summarize except for exclamations like "TRIANGLE PRINCE" and "lil circle baby". I guess you could say it's a romance?? (P.S: this is the latest chapter; it started just a few days ago)

     I consume a lot of music, mainly through the platforms of Pandora and Youtube. Youtube was how I became introduced to a lot of my favorite artists of today, like Panic! at the Disco, The 1975, Oceanlab, and Vocaloids. Pandora has been a great source of inspiration to me as well, giving me lots of different influences that I may never have sought out myself. I think it's a testament to my appreciation of this type of media that I'm actually listening to it right now.

Brendon Urie, the face of Panic! at the Disco, otherwise known as a super cool band with sick tunes. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8l9N7aRYew 

This link leads to a song by Vocaloid Luka Megurine, called "Just Be Friends".  The original music video has been taken down, so I apologize for the quality of the video. The song, however, is still top notch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0vZrRuyqQK4 

This link leads to a different song by Luka, named "Double Lariat". The accompanying animation is cute and interesting, and adds to the meaning of the song.

     Despite not having a lot of time for Netflix and other online streaming television providers, I consider this one of my favorite types of media. If I have time to relax, I'll probably start up a movie or the next episode of one of my favorite television shows, like Criminal Minds. I'm not really a season a day type of person, but I can watch about 10-12 episodes in a single sitting if I really put my nose to the grindstone.

Aaron Hotchner, from Criminal Minds. He may look disturbingly similar to Sam the Eagle from the Muppets, but don't let that put you off. #eyebrowsonfleek

"Stay in your lane dave" is literally every interaction David Rossi has in the show. I'm not kidding. This guy needs to take a class in staying in his lane.

     The internet has so many things to read: editorials, articles, novels, short stories, poetry, manga, fanfictions. I could spend hours just diving into the wide world of literature on the web. Of course, a substantial amount of it is poorly written, and many online authors neglect to update or continue their works, but still, there is a clear abundance of content to dive into and enjoy (which I frequently do).

     Online games are the bee's knees. Of course, I am not as engrossed in these as a few of my friends are (I'll go on Steam at 5 something in the morning and one of my friends will be playing an MMORPG), but I can still get behind a good online session or mini-game on Facebook. My favorite online game would have to be Team Fortress 2, but I don't have as much time to play it as I'd like.

This is Scout, a playable character in Team Fortress 2. This screencap is from a video called "Meet the Scout" by Valve.

     Sometimes, after a long day, all I want to do is relax and laugh at something. The more I get into my intense classes, the more I appreciate silly Youtube videos from groups like CollegeHumor, Buzzfeed, the Yogscast, and Game Grumps. My favorite things to watch/listen to are tabletop games, because they tend to be creative and engaging, and they give me inspiration and ideas for games to play myself.

 Barry is best Game Grump.

My boi Dan Avidan, also a Game Grump (but not so Grump).

     I also listen to the radio on occasion, but my father usually has it on spa music. On occasion, my mom will set the station to more hip music (wow I'm so in with the kids), but mostly my parents leave it off.

     I don't partake much in other media, like newspapers or magazines or social media like Instagram. I use Snapchat sometimes, and Facebook even less. Up until age 7 I lived in a pop culture vacuum; my parents frequently joked that my sister and I lived in a cave because of how little we knew about icons like Lady Gaga or Michael Jackson, or movies existing outside of the Disney realm or action flicks my father would watch. I'd say that my relationship with media, while deep, is not one of dependence. I appreciate the flow of thoughts and ideas that media contains. This blog is sort of a way of giving back to the media. Here, have some content, some inspiration, some ideas; it's almost a recompense for the media I've consumed.

     With this blog, I hope to explore my relationship with media, and establish new dimensions to that relationship. Thus begins my media journal, chronicling stories of the media and me.