Abra Cadabra...ugh...

    

Abra Cadabra...brisingr...stupefy...or any other variation of magic words. Those are just a few of the more well known to us. Magic; witches and wizards and all manner of magical creatures. Magic is one of the biggest things in the world right now whether it’s people excited over the prospect of a new Harry Potter movie or a new episode of Wizards of Waverly Place, magic is everywhere and all generations are getting excited about it.

     Ok so maybe this liking of Magic has not been relegated to the past few years. There have always been some people interested in Magic in real life like tarot cards and stuff but a big bang has occurred in the world of Magic. It happened around the time that J.K. Rowling released her first book “Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.”

“Would you like to reserve a copy of the next Harry Potter book.”

“People have been sitting in line for days waiting for the next installment in the Harry potter series.”

At first of course only children were interested in her books but as the second came out and the parents of children started looking at what their kids were reading. When they did it showed an explosion in the amount of people interested in the ideas of Magic. Soon other examples of it started popping up everywhere. Everyone in my generation has either read the books or seen the movies, frequently both, but as soon as the generation of kids and the generation of parents was hooked on Magic other companies got the idea.

There was soon a great increase in the number of fantasy novels written and sold. The Magic franchise had just started and it was a long way from stopping. Multiple games; online, computer, and game station games were soon released based in multiple magical worlds with all different kinds of powers, creatures, and main characters. Some of them were even the game equivalents of the more popular Harry Potter franchise. Even older Magic worlds became popular again and were made into movies for multiple generations to enjoy; “The Lord of the Rings” a prime example. Theme parks have been created, one of the most popular costumes to wear at Halloween are the trappings of a witch or wizard and nearly every child plays that they are able to perform Magic.

Wizards of Waverly Place, one of the newest jumps in the presence and popularity of Magic. A way to introduce the newest preteen and teenage generation to Magic while the previous generation continues to live off of the next installment in Harry Potter.

If you ask anybody nowadays from the generations hit the hardest by this upsurge in magic if they wish that Magic was real you will usually get a resounding yes. Magic’s impact on our lives is growing even today. With the explosion of Magic, spells, and worlds where it exists so does the idea of Magic Creatures rise in popularity. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, etc. all are Magic creatures that were brought along by this upsurge in the popularity of Magic and they have grown to include their own t.v. shows, popular novels and movies. So many of the things in our culture that we take for granted as being there because they are were created by this upsurge and continued popularity of the ideal of Magic. So with a flick and a swish I present,

‘Finite Incatatem’

Mainstream Rap: A Rapper’s Quick Rise & Even Quicker Fall

It’s become a way of life to scroll through the iTunes store searching for an artist you like, a song you heard on the radio, or an album everyone’s been talking about. But how many times do you pay your 99¢, turn the speakers up loud and wait for the disappointment? Don’t worry we’ve all gone through it. The anticipation, the hype, the expectations, are all blown out of proportion by societies beloved media. Haven’t you had enough? Isn’t it time to say, “F#*k iTunes” and go against the grain. As a fan of rap, I’ve gone through this more than I’ve wanted too.

“I don't like anything in the mainstream and they don't like me.”

Bill Hicks

The late comedian and musician Bill Hicks is right. I’m tired of this mainstream bullshit. My Weezy albums no longer sound the same, knowing MTV and VH1 are overlooking his greatests works that he purposely disperses free.

Drake was great, before he got on stage at the VMA’s. Lil Wayne may be doing something about by dropping new underground mixtapes even while he’s behind bars. We all appreciate the work rappers put into their music, but to really understand their efforts, listen to the stuff they wrote when they didn’t have dollar signs in their eyes.

http://www.myvido1.com/wVWhmTkV0dwEGMKd0UqNWP_drake-2010-mtv-vma-performance-fancy-ft-

Wiz Khalifa, he’s my boy. I’ll never forget when he was at Floyd’s in the summer of ’09.

“C’mon lets go to the concert!”

“Who the hell is Weez Kalifa?”

“Wiz Khalifa, asshole! And he sang this.”

Scrolling through my iPod playing my friends a few of his songs from his underground mixtape Flight School and watching their faces change with confusion made me realize how mainstream was ruining rap. The walk to Floyd’s was the loneliest walk I’d probably ever taken, but that didn’t stop me from enjoying the show. What it did do, was cause me to stand up against MTV’s #1 single or scroll through the charts to downloads the hottest rap song. Instead I went underground, something Wiz Khalifa, like Weezy, encourages. The two of them drop mixtapes like they get tattoos.

With my “F#*k iTunes” attitude embedded deep into my mind, I decided it was time to stand up and do something, whether it made an impact or not. Searching underground music forums like wegotitfirst.com or mediazoneja.com, listening to DJ’s and artists no one even thought about listening to until they were plastered all over the billboards with their names all shiny and bright. I’m proud to say I’ve never paid a cent for a song in my life because mixtapes are FREE! I’ll still be supportive when you decide to forget the time they scrolled through my iPod and responded with “This is shit!” or “Who’s Tinnie Tempah?” but now claim Khalifa has always been your favourite rapper. Music is music and everyone is passionate on different levels when it comes to their favourite artist or song.

VS

My argument may seem to lack support, but look at this way. What was better? No Ceilings, Lil Wayne’s most downloaded mixtape, or his highly anticipated, yet highly flammable and burnable studio album The Rebirth? Society may not have cared that The Rebirth flopped, because it’s Lil Wayne, but from the perspective of someone who’s listened to Weezy since the 16 yr old dropped “Tha Block Is Hot” it hurt to see the effect mainstream had on ‘the best rapper alive’. Mainstream is a trap for a rapper's demise.

It's not anything to completely change your iTunes library, but mainstream isn't for everyone. Except Lady Gaga, without mainstream Gaga, or 'GooGoo' as I like to refer to hear as, would have no way of inspiring this new line of meat accessories for women made by Onch Movement. Yea I'm not joking. I just find it sad that the media, which seems to be reflecting society in a completely different way to how I see it, controls the rise and demise of artists, specifically when it comes to rap.

It's AJersey Nation

Open curtain
Start scene

Cue Jersey Shore intro music

The Jersey Shore has taken over the nation, whether we want to admit it or not. 

Heck yes it has!!

Gawddd I hate those guido weirdos.

Oh please, what do you know?

People, please, calm down. Now moving on…

Some girls watch it to see The Situation or Pauly D shirtless. Some guys watch it for the cat fights between the girls of the house. Some people watch it so they can reassure themselves that while they might have messed up relationships, at least they’re not as dysfunctional as Sammi and Ronnie. Some people watch it to feel better about their lives in general. Haters can hate but no matter which way you slice it, America is hooked.

I don’t think that anyone, MTV and the Jersey Shore cast included, predicted just how huge the show would get. When I first saw the ads promoting the first season of the Jersey Shore I thought it looked like a stupid show and was certain it would be a flop. The only reason I started watching the show was because my old roommate knew some people from her old high school on the show. The episode was so outrageous that it had me hooked. From them on, I’m not necessarily proud to say, I’ve been an avid Jersey Shore follower. 

So how do we know that Jersey Shore's gotten larger than life?

Cue Backstreet Boys "Larger Than Life" soundtrack

Seriously, with the music?

BSB is classic! Shut up!

Long time celebs are using the Jersey Shore cast to launch themselves back into the spotlight and television shows that have been around for years are doing spoofs on the characters. Think I'm kidding? Here are some examples:

1. Enrique Iglesias. He's good looking and has a sexy accent. That being said, he kind of fell off the face of the earth in the music industry, at least in America. He teamed up with the Jersey Shore cast and his hit single "I Like It" has topped charts since the premier of Jersey Shore: Miami. 
2.  During the holiday season the cast had the opportunity to appear on Jimmy Kimmel doing a spoof on A Christmas Story.
3. Producers of Jackass 3D are using the cast in order to promote their new movie

Enrique? He's soooo dreamy.

He's aiight. Pitbull is better.
Jackass 3D, though? Niceee.

What else is the Jersey Shore involved in?

1. They have a soundtrack for the first season of their show and will probably have a second one.
2. Snooki is writing a dictionary that is dedicated to all guido/guidette/Jersey words.
3. They have a commercial promoting the new Wii Dance game.
4. There are even Halloween costumes dedicated to the cast members, complete with accessories. 

Snooki poof wig, anyone?

 

Ladies, we've got ourselves a Situation

 Insert "Mike the Situation" costume

 

Needless to say...  

 

The show and the cast have definitely made an impact on American culture. Italian Americans have taken over and people want to be them. 

 

Gym, Tan, Laundry!

 

I told you the show was awesome!

 

I guess the shows alright...

 

God Bless the Jersey Nation!!

 

 Cue Jersey SHore intro music

Run credits

End scene

Close curtain

 

 

 

The Social Network: A (Semi)True Facebook Story

It started out as a way for college students to keep up with each other, but today Facebook is a communication power house. With more than 500 million active users world wide Facebook provides people and companies with an online social epicenter.

Companies use the site to build relationships with their customers.

Lets talk about why you should love our brand!

Moms use it to keep in touch with their kids and reconnect with their high school friends.

Hi honey how are you?

College students use it to share viral videos and plan their social lives.

Dude where's the party tonight?

Grandparents even use it to see the latest pictures of their grandchildren.

WOW even the old folks use it!

It has become the ideal forum for all types of social interaction. However, most people still don't know the whole story of how Facebook was created. The recently released film entitled The Social Network sheds some light into the shadowy past of this new media super power.

The film tells the story of how Harvard social outcast and computer nerd, Mark Zuckerberg, became founder of Facebook and one of the world's youngest billionaires. According to the film it all started because Zuckerburg was feeling lonely after a break up and wanted to rise his social standing.

However By Zuckerburg's account, and that of many others, most of the film is not true.

The movie depicts Eacebook as being founded on a series of betrayals.The filmmakers do their best to make you feel sorry for the people betrayed in Facebook's rise to fame, but you don't leave the theater hating Zuckerburg.

You just question his motives.

One thing the film certainly got right was the fact that after Facebook took off and became wildly successful Zuckerburg as called into court to face two different trials over the authenticity of the site and his ownership of the idea.

Below is an excellent excerpt from the film where Zuckerburg calls the prosecution out for his clients bullshit!

I hope that part of the movie is true!

In the weeks since the film was released there has been much speculation over how Facebook and Zuckerburg will react. Here is an Saturday Night Live sketch about the media attention and speculation.

Of course he created it because of a girl, why do men do anything!?!

Reality... Errr... Fabricated Television

Reality TV. If you've watched it, and since you're a person living in America in the 21st century you probably have, you know that it’s hardly reality. I don't know about you, but exciting events in my life don't tend to happen all jumbled up into the course of a week and separated cleanly into several episodes... But for whatever reason the “real world” is infatuated with it. Accoring to Jonmonkey.com in 2000, Survivor aired to 27 million viewers and since that time period shows such as Joe Millionaire, Survivor II and American Idol consistently beat out popular shows in the same time slot including Friends and other network favorites like CSI. Sensationalized reality is much more appealing than both dramatic television shows that feature actors and "real" reality. Shows like Jersey Shore, The Real Housewives and American Idol are just a few of the instant hit reality television shows that are a massive part of today's culture. 

This video clip from reality TV show "The Amazing Race" has nearly one million hits on YouTube.

It started in 1999 with Big Brother. Viewers were glued to the TV as they watched this entirely new concept of seeing real people, not paid actors, live their daily lives in a house together through the watchful lenses of hidden cameras. The events that happened were sensational and exciting and it made it even more so because it was REAL PEOPLE were experiencing them.

In my family, the show that we watched with religious commitment was Survivor. We were enticed by the strategy, crazy tasks and harsh conditions that the contestants have to learn to deal with. We each rooted for our favorite characters, there were always those contestants that were portrayed as the underdog good-doers and the evil cheaters. My dad's ultimate aspiration was to submit his very own audition tape and become the next soul survivor. It was far from our reality, but I think part of the reason for its immense popularity was because we, along with many other viewers, were able to put ourselves into the situations in the show and live vicariously through the contestants. 

That's just it isn't it? The reason we like reality TV so much and the reason for its massive popularity is because we are able to live vicariously through the "characters" in these shows. It is every singer's dream to be the next American Idol. Most of us probably even have a friend or family member that has tried out for the show. Aspiring dancers dream of landing a spot on So You Think You Can Dance and talented hopefuls of all sorts covet a spot on America's Got Talent. And the people on these shows aren't so far out of reach like other shows that have paid actors playing the lead roles. These people, even though they are portrayed in sensational ways, in our view are our peers. 

Even though we might not be able to relate to the insanely lavish lifestyles of The Real Housewives, we are able to put ourselves into their shoes much easier than the beautiful actresses in Desperate Housewives. Whatever the reason, reality TV is an extremely popular trend in pop culture today and it doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon! That’s all I’ve got, I need to catch the next episode of ANTM…

The kids are watching WHAT? Really, they're watching it?

So much scandal these days on the television. It almost terrifies me to think of the poison being dumped into the kids' minds. I see shows like Hannah Montannah, and The Secret Life of the American Teenager, and it's just a tragedy to me that people actually support garbage like that.

Keenan and Kel was so much cooler.

Still, it seems as though I'm not the only one who's concerned about what the kids are watching. Shows intended for even younger audiences have recently made some hot headlines. The show Sesame Street recently caught some heat for the segment they created with Katy Perry. The short clip was deemed "too racy," and was never aired.

My first thought on the matter was "duh." Producers should have known better than to put her boobs all over a kid's show (and family nework, for that matter). But then I started investigating the other side of the argument, and made some interesting discoveries. Sesame Street executives claim they use celebrities among one of their methods to interest parents.

Fair enough, what Dad wouldn't enjoy a 3-minute cleavage exhibition.

"We use parodies and celebrity segments to interest adults in the show because we know that a child learns best when co-viewing with a parent or care-giver."

Most of the kids watching Sesame Street aren't even likely to notice. At the age of 3 or 4, I'd say it's safe to say that kids don't make the same erotic connection with boobs as aduts do.

"Who cares if kids are looking at boobs - boobs feed babies, alright?"

Parents also seem to be upset about the new Miley Cyrus video, because she's allegedly a "role model" for young girls. I'm wondering if they're just noticing she's bad at that...

such a slut.

All this got me thinking about what I used to watch when I was younger. Did it really influence me so much, that we should legitimately worry about these five-year-olds becoming strippers? Something inside me is telling me "no," and that side loves Ren and Stimpy and oldschool Mariah Carey videos. So, these moms are worried about their kids seeing too much cleavage? I think my mom had more reason to be concerned over Ren and Stimpy. Man, that show has it all: brains, guts, crude language, violence, name-calling. Overall, it was pretty disturbing (but still AWESOME)

As a young kid, I never really took it seriously. The face-value entertainment is all I really took from it. I wasn't learning my life lessons from Ren and Stimpy - that's what my parents were for.

I used to watch MTV for hours, waiting for them to play Always Be My Baby, and I vividly remember watching Madonna's Like a Virgin video.

I didn't start acting or dressing like them. This could be because my mother wouldn't allow it, or I understood the boundaries of being "grown up." Despite my early exposure to "mature" TV content, I turned out alright. I highly doubt that episode of Sesame Street would turn any healthy, functional child into a booby-crazed maniac.

I do believe that TV influences children's interests, but i think people give too much credit to its power to directly manipulate the behavior and development of children. If you really believe otherwise, send the kids outside to play.

Mobile phones, what would we do without these?

Midnight text messages, early morning phones calls, the world can never be separated from

their mobile phones. whether it is an urgent text message that needs to be sent or just a friendly phone call to brighten up someones day, many people feel like they can't last without their mobile phone. They need some way to find

out the latest gossip from their friends or check their status on Facebook, but is this healthy?

People tend to reply on the piece of technology to keep them alive during the day.

Waiting for a text message from a special someone can seem like a lifetime when you really want to hear from someone, or

waiting to hear from your friend about what the plans are for your night.

This dependence that people have on a small piece of technology can only be unhealthy. The way that people can't even go a day without their phones and some how send thousands of texts a month

takes away from the fact that life is so short and you should live for the moment.

Having the latest mobile phone is also a necessity for some people.

Having

the new iPhone or the new Blackberry so you can BBM all of your friends has taken over peoples lives. Instead of sitting in a class that your parents have paid for learning, it is clear that many students are glued on their phones talking to numerous friends.

People can go hours without talking but being in the same room as someone, because they are on their phones, being unsociable.

The younger generation of today needs to go back in time and figure out that mobile phones don't need to be the center of our attention.

Talking and laughing with people is what makes

he driver of a car is using one. The mobile phone can be so deadly to peoples social life or their actual life, yet people still can't prize themselves away. The younger generation feel

like they aren't cool if they aren't sending a text in class or while sat at the lunch table with all their friends. Everyone needs to be able to find a way to communicate and be sociable without the excessive use of the mobile phone. memories not a few texts messages on your phone. Or is it? Does the mobile phone add to the making of these memories as a way of communicating how to get the memories? Many people have become wrapped up in these small computers and at times happen to ignore friends or family because of an important text messages sent. Does the world need to

be reliant on something so small and useless? Can we not find something better to do with our time than be updating our were abouts on our phones for everyone to see?

Mobile phones are also the cause of so many, some fatal accidents because for instance when people text or call on their phones, we can see that only bad things can occur as their attention isn't fully on their driving. The general public, especially the younger generation today need to understand that mobile phones can be of use, but can also have other affects that are negative, over use is one of those, and we need to be able to separate business with the social aspect of life and understand, we don't need to constantly be on these devices to be "cool".