The Opposite of Tidy (Blog Post #6)

This WordItOut image shows the different text that was used in the book, The Opposite of Tidy, by Carrie Mac. Each word represents something that has happened throughout the course of the book. For example the word "sleeping," in the book Junie's mother always sleeps on her armchair, it's like her bed. Another word is "illness," Junie's mother has an illness for hoarding, she's a hoarder. Which makes life really hard for Junie, because she has to cope with her mother all alone. Her father had left them for another women, that's why the word "Women:" is in the above image, because it's a big matter. Names that are shown in the above are, Wade and Tabitha. Wade is Junie's boyfriend, and Tabitha is her best friend. Junie feels the need to hide her identity because of the state she lives in. She is embarrassed to introduce her boyfriend to her mother.
This is why the social issue for this book is family/friends relationships, because Junie finds it difficult to keep up with everything.

The Opposite of Tidy (Blog Post #5)

The drawing above shows two sides. The novel, The Opposite of Tidy, is based upon two sides where a family is separated and has to go through many struggles. On the left side, it's Junie and her hoarder mother. Junie's mother has a disorder of hoarding, and so Junie has to go through many obstacles alone without her father, who is shown on the left side. Junie's father is shown on the left side with a women because he left Junie and her mother for another women. He couldn't take it anymore living under a roof with his hoarder wife and her junk, so he left her with the women who was suppose to help Junie's mother get well. Therefore you can see the social issue, family relationships, in the drawing above.

The Opposite of Tidy (Blog Post #4)

 

This quote relates to the book, The Opposite of Tidy by Carrie Mac, because in the book, Mr. Rawley, the father of the main character, Junie, betrays Junie and her mother by cheating on her mother for a women who was supposed to help Junie’s mother with her disorder. Mr. Rawley, couldn’t deal with his wife because of her hoarding disorder, he had enough of her. This is why he made the decision of moving on, and leaving his wife.

The quote tells you that betrayal can come from your friends and loved ones as well. In the book this is exactly what happens. Not only does Mrs. Rawley feels betrayed, but Junie as well. This is why she hates her father’s girlfriend. Junie feels betrayed because her father left her with her mother who is in a horrible condition, and therefore feels hatred towards her father.

 

Today's Police - Brutal or Not?

There are handcuffed teenagers beaten bloody with guns. Unarmed people who are shot and killed, cops firing guns carelessly into busy streets.

It is likely to say, today’s police men and women are brutal. Although there are some polices who are not cruel, but many of them are truly vicious. Constantly on the news you hear cases where police men and women are shooting unarmed people or even children. There are many true stories about the way prisoners are treated.

In Florida, some prison guards forced a prisoner to stand in a shower stall, and then blasted scalding hot water on him until his skin began to shrivel away from his body and he died.  Another prisoner said he begged for his life before collapsing in the shower. This reality shows what police men and women do not only to prisoners but other people as well. When police get caught treating people this way they always say, “I thought he had a gun.”

These police officers most of the time are hardly ever punished. Another example where a police men killed a person was in Ferguson, Missouri. An unarmed teenage boy was shot multiple times by a police officer. The teenage boy died on the spot. Later on, the grand jury decided to not indict the police officer. The U.S Department of Justice said they found evidence proving that the police officer shot the teenager in self-defence. Although, when you think back, we know that the boy was unarmed so why did the police officer feel the need to defend himself? It doesn’t make any sense as to why the grand jury decided to make this decision, except for coming to a conclusion that they might have done this to encourage it for monetary gain. This shows that its system is screwed up because they (the government) allow it.

There are police men and women out in the world who are taking advantages of their positions by shooting and killing people and just being very cruel and brutal. Some people feel that these police officers are getting out of hand. The public feels that today’s police officers are brutal and this opinion should not be ignored, because one day it might be them who’s shot by an armed police officer “accidently.”

 

                                                                             ~ Coldmirror

  

Good Qualities in a Leader

The most important quality a leader should have is equality. I say equality because no one wants to have a leader that makes their own decisions. A leader should listen and understand their group members, and take ideas into consideration. A leader should treat each and every person equally. Evidence from the book, Ender's Game, that supports this thought is in chapter 9, when Peter wants to become a leader, Valentine doesn't believe that he has good leadership skills because of his personality. Peter is rude, arrogant, and a bully, equality doesn't fit his personality. Peter is very convincing and forces people to do things, and if they don't listen he threatens to kill them. For example, in chapter 9 of the book, when Peter asks Valentine to be his partner in becoming a leader, Valentine doesn't really want to do anything with him, so Peter threatens to kill her, so gives in. Which is not a good quality. This is why I believe that equality is a good quality every leader should posses.

The Boy In Striped Pajamas

Retell:

The movie The Boy in the Striped Pajamas, is about a boy named Bruno, who is the son of a Nazi commander. Bruno is coerced to move from his old home in Berlin where all his friends lived, to a new place where there was no one living except for them (well that’s what Bruno thought at first). Bruno was a young boy who loved explore. One day, Bruno goes into a forest that was near their new home, and he continues to go deeper into the forest. Bruno then comes upon a fence, and behind the fence he sees a boy, who looked like Bruno’s age, wearing striped pajamas. He had no shoes. The two boys quickly become friends and they a lot about each other and discover how different their lives are. Bruno constantly visits Shmuel, the boy in stripped pajamas, and he also brings food for the boy to eat. Bruno would also bring some of his toys so that they can both play. One day, Shmuel tells Bruno that his father is missing. Bruno then decides to help his friend find his father, but to get past the fence Bruno needed to wear the stripped pajamas and needed a shovel to dig up a hole to get through. Shmuel brings Bruno striped pajamas, and Bruno brings a shovel from home. Once Bruno got past the fence, the two boys went looking for Shmuel’s father. The boys accidentally end up with a group of people going into the gas chambers, and that was the end of them.

Relate:

This movie, the boy in striped pajamas, relates to the event that happened in Rwanda. The country was going through poverty because of social, economic, and political issues. This caused the nation to fall apart, because of the Hutu, an ethnic group. The Hutu’s began to blame the other group Tutsi for causing trouble in their nation. Later on, a Hutu president was killed, this sparked commotion in the nation. The Hutu’s rioted, blaming the Tutsi for murdering the president. Genocides began to take place, the Hutu’s executed the Tutsi inhabitants in large numbers.

This event relates to the movie because mass murder of a specific ethnic group took place in both scenarios’. In the movie, Jewish people are killed in gas chambers, because they were accused for the difficulties that was taking place in the country at the time. The same thing happened to the Tutsi population, they were also executed.

Reflect:

After watching the movie, I felt a deep pang of anger. It was really heartbreaking to see the two boys die. The movie made me realize the importance of a child's innocence that may lead them to do drastic things, and how unbearable damages could corrupt a young ones’ mind. Shumel, had went through a lot of hardships. Even Bruno, though he was not a child soldier or anything like that, he had seen a lot at a young age. This shows that certain events can change a person greatly.

 

The Opposite Of Tidy (Blog Post #3)

The song by We The Kings – Sad Song – is about love and being there unconditionally for one another. This relates to the social issue family/friend relationships, in the book The Opposite of Tidy, by Carrie Mac, because throughout the book the main character, Junie, feels lost. Without her father’s support she doesn’t know how to deal with her mother who is a compulsive hoarder. Junie’s father had left Junie and her mother, with the women who was supposed to help Junie’s mother with her disorder, but ended up breaking the family. Along came a boy in Junie’s life. She was a sad girl at one point and then became the happiest girl. She felt loved and belonged. With her new boyfriend she was happy all the time. But there were a lot of lies that she had told him, she lied about her identity. Junie was embarrassed that if she told her boyfriend about her mother he wouldn’t want to stay with her that is why she felt that she needed to lie to him. Throughout the book, the lies keep piling on, but then one day everything is revealed. Junie’s boyfriend finds out about her lies, and so he leaves her. Junie feels heartbroken. Not only because of losing her boyfriend but also the fact that her mother’s disorder is getting bad every day. This is where the song Sad Song comes in. In the song it says, “Without you, I feel broke. Like I’m half of a whole. Without you, I’ve got no hand to hold. Without you, I feel torn. Like a sail in a storm. Without you, I'm just a sad song.”

The lyrics of this song really relates to how Junie feels in the book.

 

The Opposite of Tidy (Blog Post #2)

A Reason To Leave

I remember the time that we were all together once,

But the next thing you know,

You leave for another women.

I once thought we were a happy family,

Who was there for each other when we needed company.

But I guess "happily ever after" really is a fantasy,

And all this time I thought that we were your top priority.

Why did you have to leave us?

What is the reason for you to leave?

 

We were torn apart like wasted paper,

We were clueless without your light.

What is it you see in That Women,

That you don't find in us?

Were we not good enough for you?

Is that your reason to leave?

 

We waited days and nights,

For you to change your mind.

We stayed up till 1,

Hoping that you will come.

But you never turned back once.

I though I loved you, and you loved us,

But I guess I was wrong,

I never thought this would happen to us.

I see others happier than us,

Did you find happiness being with her?

Is that the reason for you to leave?

The Opposite of Tidy (Blog Post #1)

The following link, is a report on the social issues that affect children and their family.

 "Report on Social Issues Affecting Children And Families"

 

 A big topic that was discussed upon was about divorce. The reason I chose this report is because divorce is major thing that was brought up in the book, The Opposite of Tidy, and this report discusses mostly on how children are affected by divorce and what they go through. It talks about how divorce has a major impact on children in many ways. For example children may feel as if they are the cause of the divorce, they may feel rejected, and not loved. They also may feel that they are alone. Some children may be disloyal to their father’s or mother’s new spouse.

The same thing happens in the book, The Opposite of Tidy, Junie sometimes feels rejected throughout the book because her parents don’t really look after her that well. She feels alone at times, and not loved. Junie also is disloyal towards her father’s ‘girlfriend.’

In conclusion, the report really relates to my book, and the social issue that is shown in the book.

 

Chronicle Times

Life of the Sniper; A Soldier’s Story

By Mehvish Chandiwala

June 1920

 

It is June and in the Dublin streets that has become a battlefield in Ireland’s struggle for independence. The Republicans and the Free Staters are waging war. In the middle of it all a sniper, who was alongside the Republicans, fought in the war.

 

The sniper has the face of an average student, but was concealed under a soldier’s uniform. His life revolves around fighting for his country.

 

When the sniper was asked about what happened yesterday in the battlefield he said, “I did my best out there. I shot an enemy, and an informer.” From the sniper’s appearance, he was shot and his arm was wrapped around a dressing. “I was shot by the enemy, but the good thing was that I wasn’t killed,” the sniper explained.

 

The sniper had informed about the conditions in the battlefield, he said that it was scary, dreadful. “The most remorseful thing I had done on the battlefield, was that I had killed my own brother,” the sniper explained with tears in his eyes. “He was on the other side of the roof I was on,and I shot him. I went up to him not knowing it was my brother, but when I

looked at the man’s face, I was just appalled.”

 

The sniper also explained how he had to fake his death to fool the enemy. “I had to do something,” the sniper says, “Or else in the morning I would have been killed. That’s why I came up with a plan to trick the enemy into thinking I was dead.

 

         It was clear that the sniper had went through a lot of emotions and obstacles. With the war still going on, and now that his brother is dead, the sniper feels remorseful for what he did.

The Opposite Of Tidy by Carrie Mac

"The Sniper" Short Story by Liam O'Flaherty

Summary

It was twilight at Dublin, and the sniper lay on a rooftop, watching and hearing the sounds of guns firing across. The Republicans and the Free Staters were waging a civil war. The sniper decided to take a risk of lighting a cigarette, right then a bullet hit itself on the roof. More bullets came whizzing past him, and this time he saw a flash, his enemy was on the other side of the roof. An armored car came rolling onto the street, and an informant, a women, ran to the car and pointed at the sniper's position to the men in the car. Right then, the sniper killed the man and the women by shooting them. Just then, a bullet hit the sniper, it came from the enemy that was on the other side of the roof. The sniper was in deep pain, he wasn't able to hold his rifle either. He quickly tended to his wound by using his field dressing. The sniper thought of a plan to kill his enemy, because he didn't want to be found in the morning on the rooftop. When the enemy shot towards him, he faked his death by letting the rifle and his hat fall to the ground. The enemy thought that he was dead. Then the sniper steadied himself and shot the enemy that was on the opposite of the rooftop. The man fell to the ground with a cry. The sniper felt guilty. The sniper decided to leave the rooftop and report to his commander, but he was feeling really curious to know who the enemy was. The sniper went over to the body, and turned the dead body, and found out that he had shot his brother.

The Theme

The main idea or theme that's portrayed in the short story "The Sniper" is that war changes not only individual people but the society which they live in. For example in the story the two brothers chose differently. The sniper tries to kill his enemy, who is on the other side of the rooftop. When he does shoot the enemy, he is torn with the thoughts of what the war had done to him, especially when he realizes that he  has killed his own brother. It was portrayed in the story that the sniper was a student, and the war made him a killer. If the sniper's brother had the chance he wouldn't have done any different. This is what war does to people.

Child Soldier

     Connections I can draw between the text and my learning is that as time is developing children are going through tough times, whether it's about child abuse or children being influenced in the most horrific way. Children don't really have a clue about what they witness, but they try to follow the steps of what they are being shown to or told to do. When someone tells a child to do something, they are truly powerless, they do what they were ordered to do, without knowing the consequences.
     A connection I can draw between the text and my own life is that I play video games that may involve violence, but now saying that I am 15 years old, I have the understanding to determine what is right and what is wrong. While on the other hand, my brother, for example, was playing a video game that involved some violence. After a while, he put away the game and started playing with LEGO blocks, and he made a gun out of those blocks. he then goes up to me and says "hands up, or I'll shoot you." This shows how quick kids can catch up with what they see. The information sinks into them and makes them want to do those things. They are being influenced by the media.
     In the article "Teaching Kids to Kill," similarities that was found was that in all the concepts it revolved around how children are being influenced by the media. It was about how bad media can have a negative effect on children's actions.
Differences in the article that were found was that one concept talks about how children think it's a laughing matter when they see violence, another paragraph says role models, such as sergeants, are used to influence young, impressionable teenagers. So the real question is what is right? Should one laugh when they see people brought to their knees? And is it right  to influence kids to do something dreadful?


     A position I would challenge or argue with in the text, is that are role models really role models? Would one really call themselves a role model if they make innocent children into a soldier? In the text it says role models, such as sergeants are used to influence young, impressionable teenagers. Though this isn't only happening in military, it's happening in the media today. The media are providing children with role models, not just in movies and TV shows,  but also media celebrities. Some people find the need to follow the steps of these so called 'role models,' thinking what they are doing is perfectly fine, when really it's not. So why do they call them role models when they're surely not.


     Key concepts or ideas I believe are important and worth holding on to from the text is that innocent children are being influenced to do things that are truly unbearable to see or hear. All this is the fault of the people behind in the media. The ones who are making the violent video games, movies, videos, etc.


     Changes in action that are suggested in the text for everyone is that "we must work against child abuse, racism, poverty and children's access to guns, and in rebuilding our families, but we must also take on the producers of media violence." The solution strategy is, "education, legislation, litigation." Violence is no game, and it's no fun. Violence kills.
"An educated and informed society can and must find it's way home from the dark and lonely place to which it has traveled."

Fears South Sudan Conflict Could Spark Regional War

News Article "Fears South Sudan Conflict Could Spark Regional War"

       The news article "Fears South Sudan Conflict Could Spark Regional War," is about the different interest and aspects that define the ongoing war in South Sudan, which people are fearing that this may lead to a regional war in the young country. Regional leaders of East Africa, are the focus point of this whole conflict. The leaders different interest are leading to a conflict, which can lead to a war as well.

       A text to world connection you can make with this article is the Cold War. The Cold War was the name given to the relationship between America and USSR, Soviet Union. The Cold War was to take control of international affairs for decades, and so many major crisis occurred. This was a conflict of different beliefs and ideology. It was capitalism versus communism.

       This connection helps extend my understanding of the repetition in war. People don't learn from other peoples' mistakes. All the war and conflict is continued on, not thinking of the negative effects that could lead after the war or during the war too. People think that they should fight for what they believe in. It is true, but you should know your limits, because what your doing can also upset other people as well. Instead of sparking a war by a conflict, you should negotiate the negative and positive effects of the decisions your making.