Film Hunger

Hunger was a great film, being that I didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I did. I found myself following this moving deeply, and that is because there was no music. So every time someone threw a punch, or spat, or said something it wasn’t drowned out with music. The plot itself was good enough to follow. From what I gathered these prisoners wanted to be treated as prisoners of war, and not like the typical prisoner. I didn’t find myself siding with either side because both of the sides were following orders. The scene where the guard was outside smoking a cigarette had a strong impact. I remembered thinking what must he be thinking. His wife had to fear for her safety and worry every time her husband left the house. He has to be in fear for his life twenty four seven, and was expected to continue to abuse these prisoners. He didn’t seem to get any enjoyment out of what he was doing. So it was hard for me to categories him as a villain. On the other side the leading character could have been seen as the villain as well. He was leading these men to death in starvation. He, however sacrificed himself for the cause, and that makes it difficult to place him as the villain as well.

The most gripping scene was the scene when the prisoners were all brought out of their cells and beaten, along with the scene where they prisoners were shaven and washed very brutally. Since there was no music every noise was more gripping, every noise was clearer and crisper. It was very effective in getting one to think about how we view violence, and the aesthetic of the film. Over all I completely enjoyed this film.

A Cabin in the Woods Film

Joss Whedon is one of my favorite directors, so when I watched cabin in the woods, my expectation were extremely high. This was the first major film that I have seen by the Buffy the Vampire Slayers creator and director and he nailed it. He did a great job meshing the stereotypical characters of a classic horror film with the twist and turns that I expected. I know that he owns his own monster makeup company so I expected that the ghost and monsters in this film would not disappoint. The film itself was great as well. I enjoyed every moment of it even though I knew what was about to happen at all times. He played on the typical horror film, where the black guy dies first, where there is a slutty girl who wants to have sex, and then there is the girl who really didn’t want to go in the first place. One of my favorite moments in the film was when they got to the gas station and the gas station attendant is a creepy old man. This reminded me very much of the cartoon Scooby doo. He pretty much warns them that they shouldn’t continue on their trip but of course they don’t listen. The twist came when the audience finds out that the whole trip is part of a monitored and controlled game in which these teen are sacrificed for a God. I loved that Joss Whedon keep that Latin essence that was throughout every season of Buffy. I also love that the teens were basically allowed to choose their own death, but no matter how they choose they still were to die. Of course as with Buffy there is a deeper meaning to this movie. It talks about the topic of control, who has and who should have it. It forces the characters to choose between chaos of order and control. Knowing Whedon, I knew they would choose chaos.

Film City of Life and Death

From what I was able to watch of the City of Life and Death I like. I was interested in the film because it was like a live battle of Call of Duty. The action was plentiful and realistic. I also liked the mixture of emotion on both the Japanese side of things as well as the emotion on the Chinese side. When the Japanese soldiers killed the children, they showed emotion. Something that I didn’t image would be portrayed in this type of film; I was expecting no feeling any mercy, which is short of a stereotypical image associated with Asians.  Unfortunately I wasn’t able to see the conclusion of the film so I will focus on the first fighting scene. As I said it really reminded me Call of Duty, a small group of people trying to ward off a whole army. They had kids that helped them reload and scavenge for weapons on the ground. And both the Japanese and the Chinese soldiers were fighting for their lives, and at that moment it had nothing to do the actual conflict between the two countries. For a foreign film it was shot well, besides the captions I wasn’t even able to tell it wasn’t an American made film, the action from the beginning was just that good. The film was interesting enough from the beginning, enough for me to want to watch the rest of it on my own time, and I completely dislike captioned films. I didn’t have too much knowledge of the conflict, and that would probably be my one wish for the film. There was a German man in the film so I would assume that it has something to do with world war two, but I’ve never been well with dates and history. Still it looked to be interesting. I will finish it sooner or later.

first paper work cited.

Alexander, Michelle. "The New Jim Crow." Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law. Version Vol 9:1. (2011)  <http://moritzlaw.osu.edu/osjcl/Articles/Volume9

Elk, Milk, and Bob Sloan. "The Hidden History of ALEC and Prison Labor" The Nation. (Aug. 1, 2011.):  http://www.thenation.com/article/162478/hidden-history-alec-and-prison-labor#.

Mauer, Marc, and Tracy Huling. "The Sentencing Project." Sentencing Project. (Oct 1995): <http://www.sentencingproject.org/doc/publications/rd_youngblack_5yrslater.pdf

Gomorrah Film

When watching Gomorrah I found myself very aware that I was watching a movie. I found it hard to connect with the characters. This was a true gansta film, yet it didn’t seem as if it was. The whole time I kept thinking that this isn’t more of a documentary than a movie, and to be honest I really wasn’t interested in it. I find that ironic because all of the elements were there. There was violence, a motive, and even women. Still I found it very difficult to connect with any of the characters. While I sat and though about the movie I realized what was missing. I lacked the ability to humanize the movie because the concept of the movie was foreign. They were in a place I had never been before and no one’s background story was set up for the viewers, and the movie didn’t follow a specific character. It jumped from place to place, from story to story never allowing the viewer to get comfortable. In a way I felt that this was a deliberate approach the director decided to go. Whether or not he was successful or not is unclear to me because not only did I not enjoy the movie, I won’t go home and give this anymore though that I am now. It didn’t make a lasting impression on me. What I will think about is the fact that I truly didn’t care about that movie, and with the ideals that were discussed in the film, that concerns me. These were serious topics. Ruthless murders, children being force to fight one another, poverty. But for some reason that didn’t strike me at the time that I was watching the film. I don’t know if this says more about me or about the ineffectiveness of the film itself but it is something to think about.     

Film Bamboozeld

Bamboozled was probably the most influential movie I’ve seen in a long time. It reminded me of what is continuously happening today. At first I didn’t want to respond to this film because of my anger. However it is important for me to respond. Everything about that film is true today. The overall theme to me was “dance for the white man”. What we consider progress, as a race, has been very short of Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech. What I felt spike lee was trying to do was make use aware that we are still being used by White people, the scene where they showed the athletes on the wall is explaining my point. Looked at my “niggers” excuse my language. Look at my pawns, and this is still very evident today, success is defined by the different races differently. To an African American who grew up in poverty a multimillion dollar contract could be viewed as successful, but to a white man a new talented black man on the team could be considered success. Although this is specific to sports, this can be applied to any aspect of life. The idea is still dance nigger dance. Play ball, sell units, make me money and I will love you. A personal example is me at my job. Im very aware that I fill a quota at my job. There are two black people and we both understand that we are here in a specific job and when were up were praised, and when were down were hounded on. We understand that the idea that we aren’t where we think we are today as a race is very real. With do the right thing spike lee was trying to address that we as a race weren’t were we are supposed to be, and with bamboozled he was fed up. I am fed up, and that is why it was very difficult for me to respond to this paper.

Assignment 8 History of the People

Howard Zinn's take on American history is spot on. His idea is to tell history from the mouth of those who are living it. He challenges ideas of government that oppresses people period, in all shapes forms, and fashions. He was courageous in speaking out, and using his voice. He set an example of what we should try to be in our everyday lives. Howard Zinn, in my opinion, had a characteristic that is lost on a lot of people today. He had, again to me, "a don't drink the Kool-Aid" type of mentality that is evident through his track record. Ironically this is something we do every single day in different forms. Just a few days ago I was told to drink the Kool-Aid, to buy into the system, and do not question it. It goes against my nature, and what people like Zinn do is allow you to say "hey he's an average person just like me, if he can speak out, I can", and that can be very dangerous to a lot of people. If indeed he was targeted by the FBI I certainly understand why. He disrupts the system, and forces people to wonder, if there is a serious power that wants this man gone maybe the system needs a little disrupting. It is extremely difficult to do so because we are all used to the "norm" and getting by, by being abnormal is more difficult that just shutting up, and drinking the Kool-Aid.

Howard Zinn is to be applauded in his attempt to wake people up, his attempt to show people that they are the voice of the government, and that the government should not make you feel afraid to voice your opinion. If I look at an example I saw today. After watching the third and final debate I, like many other college students who would be voting in this year election, took to face book only to see responses from people beckoning for people to stop talking about it. It made me wonder if people knew that this is what face book is for, voicing your opinion. How could people truly be so unaware of a platform for exactly that, when they in fact do the very thing the platform is designed for? The only difference is instead of using it to discuss the debate, or other actual issue, they would rather harp about some "bullshit" that is completely meaningless. Zinn is a great example of how we should use our voice, but unfortunately we tend to fall short of that characteristic that he possessed. 

Short Bus (Film)

Shortbus was, and will remain, one of the only movies that made me feel completely and utterly uncomfortable. I consider myself a very open minded person. I have been accused of being gay in the pass. I have had gay friends, I have served with gay members of the military, and I have gay family members. The fact that I really and truly felt uncomfortable and truly disgusted makes me feel very angry at myself. I always used to tell my gay friends “look I don’t care what you do that brings you happiness” but from this film I realized that I’m only okay with it if I don’t see it.

There were a lot of other conflicts taking place in this film, but the gay issue was the only one that struck me. The emotion was so raw and obviously the sex was real. It took the idea of gay people, and gay sex out of your mind and it put it in front of you and forced you to deal with it. It made you deal with the questions are you homophobic, if so then why? Something I can’t answer right now. Me personally, I would have to conclude that I am, but I don’t like it. I don’t like gay sex, and I feel I should apologize for it. However I realized that what gay people do in the bedroom doesn’t make those people a bad people and I stand behind that. I feel for the fact that some would rather choose death than to live gay. I feel for the fact that some don’t feel like Americans, and aren’t perceived as Americans. The film inflames a struggle in me to come to turns with my homophobia and to help other people see that it’s is an issue. In order to do that I myself have to believe that it really isn’t an issue. Love is love and happiness is happiness, no matter who shares it. That is the beginning of coming to turns with gay relationships. Everyone deserves to be happy.

The Say (revised)

The first thing I noticed about the writing is that once again assumptions are made. The writer just tends to believe that we, the reader, agree with what he is saying. When Rush off says "we understand that we will be subjected to certain forms of influence" he is making an assumption that we will all agree that in some way we will be influenced. Whether or not this is true is irrelevant, he is still using it as a tool to persuade people. The argument pertaining to shopping for shoes is completely invalid for me. This could be because of a disciplined budget or because of lack of funds but still it’s not true. The next couple of paragraphs all I could say was no. No I haven’t. No I don’t. The salesman didn't get me to pay more than what I had planned. Once reading it all the way through I can understand that this was meant to be persuasive, however because I couldn't relate to the character it was lost on me. The techniques he described and use do work. Writing and media can all be persuasive. It gives proof to the idea that we (humans) don't think enough on our own. I can agree, but also disagree. When he spoke of responsive reading in churches, I actually believe it depends on your mind state. I participate in responsive reading, but I don't necessarily feel I am participating in the service. It’s more so the structure. I guess you can say it’s going with the flow. I can choose not to participate and I don't believe I am doomed for it. I am very spiritual in my own way, and who is to say that my way is incorrect? I choose to focus on how I can positively impact my society, and better myself as an individual. I may watch TV and see a commercial for longhorn steak house and thin hmmm, I’m hungry. Was I just brainwashed or persuaded? To me it depends on how you look at it. I may not have money for longhorns, but I may have a rib eye in the freezer. I'm sure I brought that steak long before I saw this commercial, so I cooked the steak, satisfy my hungry and go on about my business. If the idea of the commercial was to get me to go get 50 dollar loan to go to longhorns, it didn't work. If the idea was to remind me that I had a steak in the freezer that if I don’t eat soon it my get freezer burnt then hey that works for me. 

Assignment 1 (revised) For Beginners

Taking into consideration that the author of this reading may be a firm believer in the evolutionary theory of creation as opposed the religious theory, I kept an open mind about the reading. However convincing his science may be to him, it seems there is a lot of assumption in this work. To me science shares a lot with the idea of faith, the substance of things hopeful, and evidence of things unseen. Air, something we know is there, but until magnified we can't see it. And even then we can't be completely sure of what we are looking at. In the case of words, his argument was correct in saying that words invoke responses automatically. However I feel that he was playing on a much simpler mind. The world is filled with stuff to purposely distract us from what is going on or what’s really true. When I think of terrorism, I don’t think of Islamic or Muslim people. I think of the act of imposing terror on anyone. Maybe that’s because of the military training I received in the navy, or maybe it's because I am an African American. I've seen and am well aware of the injustices suffer by my ancestors at the hands of America. Why couldn't that happen anywhere at any time? If you believe that everything can be explained of has an answer, then you’re not very bright in my opinion. However if you believe that all things don’t have an answer, then you share something in common with religious people. I agree with his brainwashed theory. Whether we want to believe it or not we are all brain washed. The challenge lies in undo what we are lead to believe is true from a young age. Challenge ideas and formulate your own opinion. This reading seemed as if it were trying to persuade me. I’ve always been one to challenge authority of the validity of what someone is telling me. My father always allowed me to challenge him as long as I had my “stuff together”. This is an idea I have taken forward and incorporated in my daily life.

Film Lady Vengeance

My focus point for Lady Vengeance is the idea of justified vengeance. I once heard a saying that went; if you shoot my dog I’m going to kill your cat. My father used to tell me you don't start fights, you finish them. He also so said you protect yourself and yours. Keeping that in mind, I have also adopted a moral responsibility to other. I FEEL morally obligated to help others, even if a see a two on one fighting situation. I may not know the reason behind the brawl, but I feel compelled to make it fair. This however conflicts with my religious views, and so does this idea of vengeance. The Bible says, and I’m paraphrasing, "revenge is mine....The lord will repay". I truly believe in my faith with all my heart. I believed I should try to live righteous, and Christ like. However, I am fully aware that I fall short of the lord’s glory and lifestyle. So upon putting myself into the situation of the parents I can say I would have wanted to kill the one responsible for these horrific murders. I can also say I would have fallen to my knees, and prayed to God that I could find the strength to face the person responsible for killing my loved one, find the strength to forgive them, and still have a WILL to live. I would be perplexed because killing the person would jeopardize my spot in the afterlife, but allowing the bastard to live wouldn't allow me to live with myself. In this situation one would pray, but in the situation in the movie the parents had little time to reflect on the repercussion their actions would have had. I may also add that I would have been "satisfied" knowing that he died even if it wasn't at my own hand. Still, this does conflict with religious views. I know that wishing death on him would not have been Christ like. Vengeance is widely accepted on all levels. For example if you beat me up, I’m going to come back to fight you again; if you then beat me up a second time I’m just going to chalk that up as a loss. But still the idea is vengeful. Think of crimes like rape or torture or pedophilia. All of these acts instantly enact thoughts of vengeance. You hurt me, I’ll hurt you is as simple as the idea of turning the other cheek. In some cases even more simple, but the idea of vengeance is so deeply embedded in our mind that it simply becomes a reaction that doesn’t take a lot of effort to be provoked. It would take more effort to stop, pray, and forgive. That is why forgiveness isn’t given enough. We shouldn’t seek revenge because it’s easy; we should seek forgiveness because it’s right. 

Film Pans Labyrinth

Choosing to focus on the aesthetics of Pan's Labyrinth was difficult because the movie itself was enjoyable. But I was able to focus on the child like atmospherics the movie had, although it was clearly for adults. I was able to understand Ofelia animosity towards her father in law. First off when a child loses a father and a new person comes into the picture, the new person can’t force his way into the child's life. It was evident that the Captain had no interest in Ofelia, only her mother and his unborn son. Really the Captain only cared about his son. Nevertheless I can understand her want to get away from that atmosphere, which is why she wondered into the labyrinth anyway. Upon meeting what she believed to be a fairy she was instantly trusting, and not at all apprehensive, thus proving that we are watching a child in a film for adults. As adults our first thought is to kill the bug, whatever type it may be, and we wouldn't have been in the labyrinth anyway. That being said, because none of the adults saw the magical things happening around them, we may conclude that everything that is happening could all be in Ofelia's head. She could be using this imaginary world to deal with what is really going on in her life. A new father, house, and brother although it did seem that she was excited about her brother. What would really make me feel that this was imaginary was the ending. If, to me, she was indeed a princess of an unseen world, than she shouldn't have died. Her dying and Mercedes crying over her dead body is what brings us back to reality. That is when we say "wait did she die or did she make it to her kingdom?" When she did make it back home we say the king, her father, and what looked to be like her mother and her brother waiting for her. This is where we question if that is real or is that just her version of heaven.

Eng281 Intro to Films- Top Ten Movie List

Number 1- Training Day

Number 2- New Jack City

Number 3-King

Number 4- Passion of the Christ

Number 5- The Pursuit of Happiness

Number 6- Gone With The Wind

Number 7- Ali

Number 8- Ray

Number 9- Man on Fire

Number 10-Men of Honor

Bonus- Cinderella and Dream Girls

Eng 281 Intro to Film- Fight Club

What’s your identity? Do you have one? This film to me was about finding out if you even have an identity. It touched bases on a world that is defined on what you wear, and materialistic values and views. Are we really happy, or are we happy because THEY told us were happy. Do we feel validated by name brand clothes? Do we like what we like because we were told we like it? There is a conflict in us today about our individuality. We live in a world where being a true individual is suppressed and looked down upon. The film shows that but there is a deeper underlying level of this. In the film people who are stuck in their lives searching for an identity. They find Tyler and follow him into project mayhem. Tyler to me effectively became like a Shepherd. The people searching for an identity became like lost sheep being herded by Tyler. They thought they found something concrete and real but in the end they were easily lead showing no sense of self awareness and or individualism. That is something we face today still. We are looking and trying to define ourselves in material possession. Tyler says in the film "it’s only when we've lost everything, are we free to do anything." That could hold true, except no one wants to lose everything. I believe people would rather, knowingly, live with conflicting identity issue rather than take a chance and truly find themselves. We are comfortable being similar to everyone, and why wouldn’t we be. You are criticized and outcast for going against the grain. We are taught to stay inside the lines and allow someone much smarter than us to do our thinking for us. There are images and advertisements all around us to tell us how we feel and what we should look like. The ethic behind this film is that of self identity and awareness. Whether or not we have it.

Assignment#5 You Framed Me

The information I read about the spread, deception, and manipulation of information was utterly unnerving. While reading about the type of work the Rendon Group performs, I became frighten. To know that the information you hear and rely on can be fabricated at the will and command at the government, of anyone for that matter is simply scary. However after analyzing and meditating on the information I realized that it was framed to do exactly that. While reading I became lost in the text. I began to share the information I read putting my twist on what I felt it to mean. I completely gave into the text. While I thought about what I learned about framing and what I leaned in reading this information I began to feel more comfortable. This article claims to give reason behind the War on Iraq and how the American people were manipulated by information that was itself, manipulated. The Rendon Group supposedly alters information to frame a certain event or person. It framed our view of the war, of Saddam Hussein and effectively gave our government the support of the people to do what they felt was necessary. Framing our perception, they claimed not in those exact words, is crucial to completing an objective. In other words, doing our thinking for us and leading us to believe that we came to the conclusion on our own. Literally using false information and resources to achieve a result. The methods are used in the article as well. Questions I had to ask myself were; how does the author feel about what the Rendon Group does? Is there a reason there are quotes in the article like “It was not just bad intelligence -- it was an orchestrated effort,” (Sam Gardner). Was this article trying to frame my opinion of the Rendon Group? How do I personally feel about the type of work the Group does? Framing is literally everywhere. Forming your own opinions based on education, research, and knowledge is the only way to ensure that your opinion is truly yours.

Work Cited

BAMFORD, JAMES. "The Man Who Sold the War (John Rendon) by James Bamford." Phil Taylor's Web Site. N.p., 17 Nov. 2005. Web. 3 Sept. 2012. <http://ics-www.leeds.ac.uk/papers/vp01.cfm?outfit=pmt&folder=2053&paper=2539>.

Assignment#4 My Political Views

My political views can pretty much be summed up into one statement. Those who have the ability to do something for the greater good of someone else, have the RESPONSIBILITY to do so. This is not a complicated concept. This simply is Morally right. In my opinion we were not put on this earth to be selfish and inwardly thinking. This isn't about charity or handouts, it about doing something good for your fellow man and feeling good about it. If you add that with the idea of understanding or consideration for opposing views, you get a pretty compassionate considering society that will take positives from both sides and reach a happy medium. The understanding allows us to get a basic feel for opposing views. I wouldn't give my politics a name but I am considered a libertarian. I based my views on my view of my religion. I am considered a Christian, but to Christian I probably am a bad Christian. But name me one perfect Christian. Name me one perfect any religious person. The only perfect person I know is Jesus and they laughed at him. So basing my ideas on the fact that my God is forgiving, I am forgiving. My god is considerate and compassionate, so I strive to be like that as well. I realize and accept that I will fall short of His example, but I am willing to work on what is wrong. This is simply an idea. One that if kept in mind when making decisions, there would probably be a positive outcome. This isn't what I feel everyone should be like as far as the religious reasoning behind it, but the concept of it is what is important here. Take where I got it from away and apply it to all regions of the world and see the outcome. Positivity and progress is what should be driving, motivating factors.  

Assignment#3 Age of Enlightment

The age of enlightenment holds some of my favorite philosophers, one being Voltaire. He became one of the greatest thinkers and writers of satire comedy of his time. Wikipedia’s age of enlightenment pretty much sums up what that period was about. It provides time periods and enlightened thinkers for all countries. Its shows how enlightenment helped form North America. The enlightenment focused on humanitarianism and human rights. According to Wikipedia, the goals on the age of enlightenment can’t be describes in one page. Enlightenment also placed an emphasis on science. Schools and colleges focused on science and astronomy. The Academy of Science was founded in 1666 in Paris. With this new enlightenment came debate, healthy debate. Society began to question and debate one another leading to new understanding. Now new studies show that there may be a history of Freemasonic presence in the enlightenment which may have played an important role in the movement itself. Montesquieu and Voltaire were both enlighten thinkers and they have ties to the Freemason. But there are arguments saying that the Mason did not act as a group, meaning they did not coordinate with one another. This is true of Voltaire and Montesquieu as they engaged in public debate often. They also disagreed with each other’s philosophy at time. Lodges of the Freemason originated in English and Scottish stone masonic guilds and they expanded in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. They had a communal understanding of liberty and equality. According to Wikipedia these understanding or ideas spread around the world and there are hints of conspiracy that lead to the French Revolution. In my opinion this Wikipedia page sums up everything important that one may need to know about the age of enlightenment. The fact that almost anyone can post on Wikipedia hurts its credibility but I do have some former knowledge of the subject from previous classes.  

Assignment#2- They Say

The first thing i noticed about the writing is that once again assumptions are made. The writer just tends to believe that we, the reader, agree with what he is saying. When Rushkoff says "we understand that we will be subjected to certain forms of influence" he is making an assumption that we will all agree that in some way we will be influenced. Whether or not this is true is irrelevant, he is still using it as a tool to persuade people. The argument pertaining to shopping for shoes is completely invalid for me. This could be because of a disciplined budget or because of lack of funds but still it’s not true. The next couple of paragraphs all i could say was no. No i haven’t. No i don’t. The salesman didn't get me to pay more than what i had planned. Once reading it all the way through i can understand that this was meant to be persuasive, however because i couldn't relate to the character it was lost on me. The techniques he described and use do work. Writing and media can all be persuasive. It gives proof to the idea that we (humans) don't think enough on our own. I can agree, but also disagree. When he spoke of responsive reading in churches, i actually believe it depends on your mind state. I participate in responsive reading, but i don't necessarily feel i am participating in the service. It’s more so the structure. I guess you can say it’s going with the flow. I can choose not to participate and i don't believe i am doomed for it. I am very spiritual in my own way, and who is to say that my way is incorrect? I choose to focus on how i can positively impact my society, and better myself as an individual. I may watch TV and see a commercial for longhorn steak house and thin hmmm, I’m hungry. Was i just brainwashed or persuaded? To me it depends on how you look at it. I may not have money for longhorns, but i may have a rib eye in the freezer. I'm sure i brought that steak long before i saw this commercial, so i cooked the steak, satisfy my hungry and go on about my business. If the idea of the commercial was to get me to go get 50 dollar loan to go to longhorns, it didn't worked. If the idea was to remind me that i had steak in the freezer that if i don’t eat soon it my get freezer burnt then hey that works for me. 

Assignment #1 For Beginners

Taking into consideration that the author of this reading may be a firm believer in the evolutionary theory of creation as opposed the the religious theory, i keep an open mind about the reading. However convincing his science may be to him, it seems there is a lot of assumption in this work. To me science shares a lot with the idea of faith,the substance of things hopeful, and evidence of things unseen. Air, something we know is there, but until magnified we can't see it. And even then we can't be completly sure of what we are looking at. In the case of words, his arguement was correct in saying the they invoke responses automatically. However i feel that he was playing on a much simpler mind. The world is filled with stuff to purposely distract us from what is going on or whats really true. When i think of terrorism, i dont think of islamic or muslim people. I think of the act of imposing terror on anyone. Maybe thats because of the military training i recieved in the navy, or maybe it's because i am an African American. I've seen and am well aware of the injustices suffer by my ansestoers at the hands of america. Why couldn't that happen anywhere at any time. If you believe that everything can be explained of has an answer, then your not very bright in my opinion. However if you believe that all things dont have an answer, then you share something in common with religious people. I agree with his brainwashed theory. Whether we want to believe it or not we are all brain washed. The challenge lies in undo what we are lead to believe is true from a young age. Challenge ideas and formulate your own opinion. This reading seemed as if it were trying to persuade me. Didn’t work.