Wednesday, February 15, 2012

M.I.A. and the Impossibility of selling out
I think that the term "selling out" is overused, because when it boils down to the bare facts, most celebrities, musicians, actors, etc., eventually sell out. Sure, a few people are passionate about a philanthropic cause, and that is alright, but most of the famous people sell out. They do not stay true to what they originally wanted to accomplish in life. M.I.A. is prime example because she was out of the spotlight for about three years, and then came back with Madonna and Nicki Minaj with a new song, and scandalously got her way back into the spotlight by "flipping the bird"on live television, during the most watched program of the year. I feel that that is selling out. The article is a mix of fact, and opinion because the author uses examples from past instances to present his case on why this could be considered a "sell out". Overall the author presented his case well, and was not bias in referring to anything outside the realm of the article.

Wiesel objects to Romney about posthumous proxy baptism
This article is mostly fact with possibly some opinion mixed in. The aspect about this article that interests me is that a former Nobel Peace Prize winner is objecting to who could be the next president of the United States. The issue of posthumous proxy baptism has been going on since 1995 and many have had problems with the ritualistic ceremony. I agree with the fact that mormons should not be performing ritualistic ceremonies on the dead. Especially those who are not even of there religion; to me, it is offensive, and inconsiderate to think that the family as a whole would want them to perform a ceremony, based on the grounds that someone in their family feels it is necessary to do the ceremony. One concept that this article makes me think about is the fact that people take religion extremely seriously. I understand if people need to believe that there is a higher power above them, and I am fine with that, and many other aspects of religion, the problem I have is that people feel that their own is superior to another, and to me, it causes many rifts and problems between not only families, but communities.

Person of Interest: Jeremy Lin
The final article is about a basketball star in the making.  An Asian-American named Jeremy Lin.  He has taken the not only the basketball world, but the entire world by storm, based on his statistics and his nationality.  I agree with the fact Jeremy Lin has made the Knicks not only the hottest ticket in town, but in teh basketball world.  This article is mostly fact related, but more based on the statistics of the situation.  Also, there is some opinion, mostly about how great he is, and how he will revolutize the hapless New York Knicks.  I think that this article is capturing the success of a "star in the making", and that is what most writers are doing at the moment because he is attracting that type of attention.  Overall, I would recommend this article to anyone who has an interest in sports, let alone basketball.  Jeremy Lin has captured the hearts and minds of many around the world, and maybe not just for the week, but for the season. 

4 comments:

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  2. Hey John, your opinion on Nicki Minaj was one I hadn't thought about. I don't know if I agree with the fact that she sold out just because she hadn't been in the spotlight for three years and decides to play at the superbowl, you have to think about the fact that it's an honor to appear on the superbowl the single most watched thing on television. However artists sell out every year, what Nicki Minaj to me may not have been selling out if you think that the reason is her appearing in the superbowl but that's just my oppinion.

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  3. First, I can barely read the black font. I kept having to highlight it to see what you wrote. Overall I agree with a lot of what you wrote. I really like how you took different facts from the article about the basketball player Jeremy Lin. It really helped the reader follow what you were trying to say. I also agree with what you said about Nicki Minaj, the fact that she most likely sold out because she was not in the spotlight for such a long time. But I also agree with what Drew is saying, it IS a great honor to be asked to perform at the superbowl. Then again only one artist actually sang at the superbowl this year so they could have just asked her because they knew she would be able to put on a cool looking show.

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  4. John, I agree with almost all of your post regarding famous artists selling out. I do disagree with your first point which was that most actors and artists will sell out at some point. I don't think it is fair to say most will sell out because there are many who haven't and will not and for you to say that would be creating a stereotype.

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