Body Piercing

For this weeks analysis I chose to do some research on body piercing, which seems to be popular among people of all ages. “Body piercing is the practice of puncturing or cutting a part of the human body, creating an opening in which jewelry may be worn. Body piercing is a form of body modification. The word piercing can refer to the act or practice of body piercing, or to an opening in the body created by this act or practice. The cultural norms reflected in body piercing are various. They may include religion, spirituality, fashion, eroticism, conformism, or subcultural identification” (Wikipedia 2009). Egyptians, Greeks, and Roman have peirced their bodies for centuries (Hospital 1998). This type of peircing is a most recent delvelopement in the Western World. Body peircings have grown in popularity in about the last 10 years. Being a form of body art, like tattoos, piercings are a way in which an individual can express themselves. Maybe giving them the idividuality they might seek. Most employers do not allow employees to wear their body jewelery at work, exspecially those jobs that require working directly with the consumer. Although peircing has become popular it is still frowned upon by most conservitives. It may not be for every one but if you like it, go for it.

Hospital Boston. (n.d.). Body Piercing: A Guide for Teens. Retrieved April 30, 2009, from http://www.youngwomenshealth.org/body-piercing.html


Wikipedia. (2009). Body piercing - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved April 30, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_piercing

This article seems to me to be political. I have never been a comic book reader and this article is about a “Black Captain American” and what he represents.
The original Captain America was invented during WWII (p. 339). He was your everyday Joe before the experimental military serum turned him into a super soldier (p. 339). Captain American was the representation of the real world nationalist struggles (p. 339-340).
In 2003, Truth: Red, White, and Black was just another version of Captain America. This comic book hero was built on the Tuskegee syphilis experiment (p. 340). The editor of Marvel felt it was more likely that military scientists would have experimented on black bodies before The World put white males in danger (p. 340). Keep in mind that even tough Isaiah Bradley, the Black Captain American was created in 2003 the story goes back to the times of the first Captain America. There was no black hero’s in the comics of that time.
“The Black Captain America signifies a relationship to the state that addresses both an attachment to principles such as democracy and justice even as such rights were historically denied to black Americans” (p. 341). The melancholic patriotism that Truth’s Black Captain American represents affects a variety of citizens because of his racial disenfranchisement (p.343). The black Captain America is the hero that expresses ambivalences about U.S. politics (p. 342). For decades black characters in comics were seen as lesser citizens compared to the white heroism (p. 345). The black Captain America comic represented one’s identity or universe principles (p. 346). In Truth, black male citizens have different responses to the lack of access to the American Dream (p. 347). The black Captain America functions as a black nationalist’s hero (p. 357). Black Captain America steps out of the box and allows the black soldier to stand in for universal struggles (p. 353). “His invention into superhero rhetoric thus goes beyond mere inclusion of the rare black body into the superhero pantheon. He demonstrates how the specifics of the black experience can tell an audience something universal in a more pronounced way then a white body” (p. 353).
Black Captain America is viewed as the ideal black patriot, created be anger, wounded, and has a story that white America attempts to erase (p. 357). In black culture he has signified the complexities Captain America represents the broken version of The American Dream as African-Americans see it.
“In an era when the military is desperately trying to fill a volunteer army, Truth: Red, White, and Black seems a cautionary tale not only for African Americans but for all citizens. Produced in a time of war during which stories about soldiers’ inadequate gear and protection for combat and poor treatment after release continue to fill the media, Isaiah Bradley’s tragically wounded character seems an appropriate ‘‘Cap’’ for the twenty-first century. The African American patriot in Truth demonstrates the characteristics of many US soldier-citizens represented in the media today: melancholic, wounded, inadequately provided for by the nation, but when confronted with a representative of the establishment that failed to protect him” (p. 359).
The article was organized; it explained the comic book from the beginning to the end for those of us that have never read this particular comic. The main ideas were confusing. Although the meaning of the article was understood it was hard to understand the language and write this analysis in laymen terms.
The original Captain America comic left out the African American culture. So, Truth tried to bring it to it’s readers.



Reference
WANZO, R. (2009, April). Wearing Hero-Face: Black Citizens and Melancholic Patriotism in Truth: Red, White, and Black. Journal of Popular Culture, 42(2), 339-362. Retrieved April 4, 2009, doi:10.1111/j.1540-5931.2009.00683.x

Let's Get Hyped

Energy drinks are beverages like Red Bull, NOS, Venom, Monster, Rock Star, and Full Throttle, just to name a few. “The average 237 milliliter (8 fluid ounce) energy drink has about 80 mg of caffeine, with 480 mL (16 fl. oz.) drinks containing around 150 mg” (Wikipedia 2009). Is it just me or is that a lot of caffeine? These drinks are marketed to people 30 years old and younger (Brown 2008). Personally, I drink about 2 pots of coffee a day and I allow my kids to drink these energy drinks. However, this is the first time I have researched these drinks. Just this morning my daughter, 13 years old, wanted to stop at the local gas station to get one of these drinks on her way to school and that is the reason for this analysis. Are these drinks harmful to my kids? “Individual responses to caffeine vary, and these drinks should be treated carefully because of how powerful they are. Energy drinks' stimulating properties can boost the heart rate and blood pressure (sometimes to the point of palpitations), dehydrate the body, and, like other stimulants, prevent sleep” (Brown 2008). “Until 2008, France banned the popular energy drink Red Bull after the death of eighteen-year-old Irish athlete Ross Cooney, who died as a result of playing a basketball game after consuming four cans of the drink” (Wikipedia 2009). Now that is scary! How popular is this drink? “In the last five years, the market has grown from US$200 million to a projected US$1 billion in 2007. The segment currently controls almost 5% of the non-alcoholic beverage market in North America. While Red Bull controls 40% of total supermarket energy drink sales, followed by nearly 30% shared between two other large brands, Monster and Full Throttle, there is still 33% of the market being fought over by some 200 brands”(Agriculture 2008). The times are curtainly sticking to the fast and easy. What happened to eating healthly and getting enough rest so you are energized the next day?


Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada. (2008). The Energy Drink Segment in North America. Retrieved April 23, 2009, from http://www.ats.agr.gc.ca/us/4387_e.htm
Wikipedia. (2009) Energy drink. Retrieved April 23, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_drink
Brown University. (2008). Energy Drinks. Retrieved April 23, 2009, from http://www.brown.edu/Student_Services/Health_Services/Health_Education/atod/energydrinks.htm

What are you drinking?

“Today, consumers worldwide spend as much as 100 billion U.S. dollars on bottled water” (Museum n.d.) This amazes me. I am a tap water drinker myself. I do however buy bottle water on occasions such as sporting events with my kids only because it is fast and convienant not because I think it is better. As a matter of fact, tests show that bottle water is no different then most tap water. And when tested, the average person can not tell the difference between bottled and tap water.
“Average price of tap water in the U.S. is less than $.01 a gallon and the average price of bottled water in the U.S.is about $10 a gallon” (Museum n.d.). Are we paying more for bottle water then we are for fuel?
Although you may believe that bottle water is healthier do you really know what it takes to make it and what it is doing to the enviornment? Where does all that plastic go once the bottle is empty? Where does your bottle water come from? The video to the right is very much apart of this anaylisis. WARNING: There is cursing in the video.


Museum of Natural History. (n.d.). Water: H2O = Life. Retrieved April 16, 2009, from http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/water/?section=healthywater&page=healthywater_b

Do you know what your teenager is reading?

Whats poppn’ this week? How about a backwards clumsy teenage girl that finds herself among vampires and werewolves? Yes, I am talking about the Twilight saga. There are a total of 4 books, Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, and Breaking Dawn. Although these books are an easy read and geared toward teenage readers, I can tell you first hand they were quite entertaining. “There have been 25 million copies worldwide and 20 million of them have been sold in the USA alone” (WikiAnswers n.d.). It is almost impossible to walk into Wal-Mart or even Kroger without seeing a Twilight T-shirt, poster, book, or hats. Of course a bestseller like this has to be made into a movie. The movie was ok as far as books to movies go. How amazing would it be to have a boyfriend that sparkles like diamonds when he is in the sunlight? What’s more awesome then vampires that play Americas favorite past time game: baseball. While reading the book I could hear the crack of the bat hitting the ball, as thunder strikes the heavens and the swoosh of vampire feet running to catch a fly ball that was hit well into the woods. What teenage girl is not in love with Edward? Remember all the Star Trek fans, Trekies? I wonder what they will call the Twilight fans. Any ideas?

WikiAnswers (n.d.). How many books were sold of twilight. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2009, from http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_many_books_were_sold_of_twilight

Icon Analysis

What do the hula hoop, silly putty, and Bugs Bunny have in common? They are all icons. The hula hoop dates back to ancient Greece where it was used as a form of excersize (Wiki 2008). The hula hoop, for those that don’t know, is a large ring generally placed around the waist and by swiveling your hips the hoop goes round and round. Of course that is not the only way to play with the hoop but it is the basic way. As with the hula hoop, who doesn’t know what silly putty is? It has been around for 50 + years. Silly putty was created in 1943 in a scientist’s laboratory and introduced to the world in 1950 (Benny 2000). Silly putty is a gooey substance weighing one ounce, packed in a plastic egg (Benny 2000). You can stretch it, bounce it, and lift an image from the newspaper with it. The last of my chosen icons is Bugs Bunny. Not quite up there with Mickey mouse but a favorite none the less. “What’s up Doc?” is kind of like “Whatz poppn’”. Bug’s was “born” in 1940 and is still around today (Wiki 2009). Bug’s is a cartoon rabbit you can watch on television and even the movies. Bug’s is also the mascot for Warner Brothers (Wiki 2009).
I chose the hula hoop as an icon because prior to this assignment I had just bought one for my youngest daughter of 6 years. I chose the silly putty because I remember what an amazing thing this item was when I was a kid. Silly putty was, to me, better then sliced bread. Bugs Bunny really seemed like an icon to me just like Mickey Mouse.
These 3 icons have special meaning to me. As a young girl I played with the hula hoop and to this day I play with my girls using the hoop. Although, I no longer can make it go round and round my girls seem to get a laugh from it. And laughter from my children is an amazing, wonderful thing. I can remember sitting at the kitchen table waiting for my Papa to give me the comics from the Sunday morning paper. I would use the silly putty to lift the images then stretch them out of shape, and most of all sharing my joy with Papa. Again, on Sunday morning I would sit in the living room with my siblings, 1 sister and 4 brothers, watching Bugs Bunny. That was the one thing that we all agreed on.
Binney., & Smith. (2000.). Silly Putty History 101. Retrieved April 9, 2009, from
http://www.sillyputty.com/history
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (2009). Bugs Bunny. Retrieved April 9, 2009, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bugs_Bunny#History
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (2008.). Hula hoop. Retrieved April 9, 2009, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hula_hoop

What’s poppn’ today? How about the Wii made by Nintendo? Every house hold has one. If you don’t then your not up with the times. You couldn’t find this video game on the store shelves 2 ½ years ago. It was that popular. This game is definitely interactive. Wii sports offers bowling, tennis, golf, baseball, and boxing. The player, you, has to move the controller as if you were actually playing the game in real life. Wii also has a game called guitar hero in which you play the guitar with the game. Kids and adults love the Nintendo Wii. Although the graphics are simple the interaction and family fun are amazing. The basic Wii cost about $250 compared to the Xbox 360 for $300 to $400 and the Playstation 3 at $400 to $500 (Consumer report 2008).
Consumers had some things to say about the Wii.
“Awsome gaming console. Don’t doubt the Wii. Welcome to the next generation gaming world” (Cartman 2007).
“We recently joined the 21st century when our children received a Nintendo Wii. I debated for quite a while with myself if the Wii would be a good addition to our family. Were the kids too young? Would it take away from other activities? Would they be zombies staring at a screen unaware of their surroundings? Although it has only been a month I am happy to say that our Nintendo Wii has been a great addition to our household of two thirty-something’s and three kids” (mmcphee 2009).
My family is not immune to this craze. We started with the Nintendo 64 years ago and now we have a Wii. We also have had everything in between. Although you may need to save your pennies, the Wii is “what’s poppn’.
References
Cartman, E. (2007). White Wii Reviews. Epinions consumer product reviews of Nintendo Wii Console at Shopping.com. Retrieved April 5, 2009, from http://www.shopping.com/xPR-Nintendo-Wii
Consumer report.org. (2008, December 8). Best video-game consoles: Wii, Xbox, or PlayStation?: Consumer Reports Guide to Baby Products . Retrieved April 5, 2009, from http://blogs.consumerrepots.org/baby/2008/12/best-video- game.html?resultPageIndex=1&resultIndex=1&searchTerm=Wii
Mmcphee (2009). White Wii Reviews. Epinions consumer product reviews of Nintendo Wii Console at Shopping.com. Retrieved April 5, 2009, from http://www.shopping.com/xPR-Nintendo-Wii

To me popular culture means "Whaz poppn' now," the here, the now, whats in, whats not. It's all about your flavor. Feel me? Understanding pop culture is important where ever you are. For me, I must know the flavor of the people I am around. I am a waitress so I try to conform to the here and now for any particular customer. I would think that music is a HUGE "artifact". The word artifact sounds old doesn't it? However the music I am speaking of is the hip hop that my kids listen to.