Laughter: Motive for Murder

A few days ago, when my mom and I were watching the news, we listened in utter disbelief as the anchors described a horrible incident that had occurred at the home of an Indiana man on Friday. After this Khanji Fairley's home in Gary was burglarized, he made quite a scene. Many people, including 13-year-old Kobe Jones, gathered along the front of lawn of their infuriated neighbor. As the burglarized man vented his anger about the break-in, Jones began to laugh at his neighbor's attitude. However, this pushed Fairley to his breaking point. He snatched up his rifle and immediately aimed it at the 13-year-old. In a few split seconds, Kobe Jones, having been shot 9 times, lay dead upon the lawn.

13-year-old Kobe Jones

This terrible tragedy shouldn't have even taken place. Kobe Jones, only 13 years old, is supposed to have his whole life ahead of him. Instead, his life has been stolen away from him because he laughed. It seems pretty to evident to me that Jones' laughter simply pushed Fairley over the edge, but the man's crime is in no way justifiable. It took four days, but murder charges have just been filed against the Indiana man. Killing a 13-year-old boy for laughing is inexcusable. Unlike murder, laughter is no crime. Fairley shot Kobe Jones nine times; his crime was no accident.

 I think this horrific incident supports reasons for needing more gun control across America. Mentally unstable people, along with people who have trouble controlling their anger (like this Gary man), shouldn't have such easy access to guns. It turns out Khanji Fairley had just been released from Kane County Jail when he discovered his burglarized home. He obviously had trouble with the law in the past and shouldn't have had access to a gun. Unfortunately, criminals like Fairley can be found all across Gary as crimes takes place very frequently throughout the city. In fact, the city has been having so much trouble with crime lately that it has been known as "Scary Gary". It definitely needs more gun control. In the past 50 years, Gary has lost over half its population. Sadly, Kobe Jones has now been added to that list of people lost.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas...Already

When I walked into Macy's with a few of my friends this weekend, I noticed a very strange sight: about fifteen Christmas trees adorned with ornaments, garlands, and lights filled up the lower level of the department store. Christmas in October? Although I love Christmas, I think people should focus a little more on the holidays that come first, like Halloween and Thanksgiving.

However, Macy's is doing exactly the opposite. This week, Macy's announced that its department stores will open at 6 pm on Thanksgiving day, two hours earlier than the 8 pm opening last year.  6 pm is right around dinnertime for many families. If many people want to get to Macy's as soon as the doors open, they will have to skip their Thanksgiving feast with family, probably the most special part of the Thanksgiving holiday. Macy's is overlooking the Thanksgiving holiday in order to focus on its Christmas sales, instead of simply allowing everyone to enjoy the holiday and wait until Black Friday to shop for gifts. In fact, Black Friday may be "facing extinction" as more and more stores, like Macy's, open on Thanksgiving day.

By opening doors on Thanksgiving, many employees are forced to work instead of enjoying the holiday. TJ Maxx, which will open its stores at 7 am on Black Friday, strongly opposes opening on Thanksgiving day. Doreen Thompson, a spokeswoman for the store, claims, "We consider ourselves an associate-friendly company, and we are pleased to give our associates the time to enjoy the Thanksgiving holiday with family and friends." I completely agree with TJ Maxx's decision to stay closed on Thanksgiving. It should be a time to celebrate the holiday, not focus on the next holiday which will come 28 days later. Sales most likely won't even increase since they will just "displace sales that would otherwise have been rung up on Black Friday or later in the season." People should not skip over Thanksgiving to move straight to Christmas shopping. Stores should leave Black Friday for the sales, not the Thanksgiving holiday itself. 

Facts Replaced by Fiction at Disney's Epcot

Whenever I babysit my six and four-year-old neighbors, they love talking on and on about the new Disney movie, Frozen. I don't blame them; I think that Frozen should be considered one of Disney's best animated movies of the 21st century. In fact, Frozen earned $1.2 billion dollars in theaters worldwide, becoming the highest grossing animated motion picture of all time. I've been waiting for months to hear about the first Frozen themed attractions to appear inside the magical lands of Walt Disney World. This news has finally arrived. A new Frozen-based ride, set in the fictional village of Arendelle, will replace the "Maelstrom" ride in the Norway section of World Showcase in Epcot. However, "Maesltrom" was meant to teach riders about the real country of Norway, something that the new attraction won't be able to truly present. 

Although I feel that it's about time for a Frozen ride to appear in Disney World, I don't think placing the attraction inside the Norway section of Epcot is the best decision. I rode on "Maelstrom" many times in the past, in which I traveled on a viking ship through the lands of Norway while passing by numerous waterfalls, trolls, and polar bears. Disney wonderfully incorporated real aspects of Norway's culture into the visuals and audio throughout the ride. They even included a video at the end of "Maelstrom" focusing on Norwegian history. "Maelstrom" was never my favorite ride, but I thought it served its purpose: to teach others about the country of Norway in a fairly entertaining way. Now this Norwegian ride will be replaced by a new attraction set in a fictional village. The Norway section of Epcot simply isn't the right part of the park for this Frozen ride. Janice Goeppner, a woman from Chicago who has attended Walt Disney World many times, claims that the World Showcase area of Epcot "is a place about real countries." I happen to agree with Janice; the fictional land of Arendelle just doesn't fit into the World Showcase section of the park.

To me, it makes the most sense to set up a Frozen ride inside Magic Kingdom, where most of the attractions targeting younger children are placed. Then, throughout the ride, Disney wouldn't have to focus so much on the similarities between the American-created Arendelle and the real country of Norway. Maybe Disney hopes to attract more people to the World Showcase in Epcot, using a Frozen ride as the solution? After all, Epcot almost never experiences Magic Kingdom's levels of congestion. I just hope Walt Disney World utilizes this space in the Norway section effectively and attempts to teach people at least a little about the Norwegian nation. As for the "Maelstrom" ride, it seems like it's time for people to "let it go".

Racism Is A Reality

Youtube videos rarely cause me to cover my mouth in disbelief, to continuously mutter "What?!", and to feel completely disgusted by the world we live in. Yet, I recently viewed a video that caused me to react in that exact fashion. A dash cam video (watch below or through this link) from a patrol car of a South Carolina trooper, Sean Groubert, was released this past week, and I really struggled to comprehend its content. I couldn't believe my eyes! In the video, the trooper pulls up next to an unarmed black man, Levar Jones, at a gas station. Groubert immediately yells at the man, screaming for him to pull out his license. Jones reaches for his wallet inside the car, but that action seems like a "crime'' to the trooper. Firing shots left and right, Groubert claims Jones was trying to lunge back into his car to headfirst to avoid the trooper. Yet, unarmed Levar Jones only continues to shout "Why did you shoot me?" as he kneels in agony, unable to regain feeling in one of his legs.

I don't regret taking three minutes to watch this dash cam video, despite its slightly graphic nature. This video showed me the truth. It allowed me to fully grasp the idea that racism is still prevalent throughout our nation, even if many people try to argue that it is no longer an issue. In fact, African Americans are "three times more likely to be stopped and searched by the police than whites, more than three times more likely to be handcuffed, [and] almost three times more likely to be arrested." This shooting of Levar Jones, just like the shootings of Michael Brown and Trayvon Martin, didn't need to occur. Somehow, we need to end these shootings. Somehow, we need to end racism. 

War in Vietnam Now a War in Housing

I recently watched Jacob's Ladder and Full Metal Jacket, two horrifying yet incredibly powerful movies depicting the Vietnam War. Before viewing these films, I hadn't truly understood the pain, the fear, the utter terror that soldiers faced during the war. Although only films, both Jacob's Ladder and Full Metal Jacket allow viewers to get a glimpse into the horrendous experiences real-life soldiers endured in Vietnam. Sadly, now I have a better understanding as to why over 150,000 Vietnam veterans have committed suicide since the end of the war. To this day, many veterans struggle to make normal lives for themselves, with over 50,000 remaining homeless. We need to make a strong effort as a society to decrease that number. 

Fortunately, $4 billion has been put into an initiative to end Veteran homelessness by the Obama administration. In the past 4 years, about 51,000 veterans have gained access to housing. However, approximately 50,000 remain homeless, and lowering this homeless rate may not be very simple. Many veterans often choose to live homeless lifestyles, desiring to stay as far away from people as possible. We all need to make a great attempt to change their outlooks on homes in order to provide them with the lifestyles they truly deserve. Veterans desperately need therapy and care before they will be completely willing to gain new housing. They have witnessed too many atrocities throughout their lives to still be suffering without proper care and housing. No one should prefer to live without a home.

13 Years Have Passed, Her Determination Never Waned

This past Thursday, people all across the nation remembered the 2,977 victims who lost their lives during the terrorist attacks performed by Al Qaeda on September 11th, 2001. All across social media, people expressed their grief in response to the 13th anniversary of this tragedy. Yet, as I scrolled through Facebook this weekend, I surprisingly came across a beautiful story about a woman who views 9/11 as a time of hope each year. The story truly touched my heart and restored my trust in humanity.

For the past 13 years, Elizabeth Stringer Keefe has held onto a wedding photograph (on the left) she received from a friend who discovered the image among the debris at Ground Zero. As September 11th rolls around each year, Stringer Keefe posts the photograph across all of her social media accounts in hopes of finding the owner of the picture. Fred Mahe used to have this photo of him at his friends' wedding tacked up along his office walls on the 77th floor of the World Trade Center. He never expected to view the image again. However, due to Elizabeth Stringer Keefe's persistence and hope each year, Mahe finally caught a glimpse of the image online. It will be returned to him very shortly.

I happen to agree with Mahe, who claimed that Stringer Keefe represented "the best of humanity." Although 9/11 tends to be regarded as a time of tragedy, Stringer Keefe has viewed it as an opportunity for the past 13 years. She has used social media as a tool instead of a weapon. Stringer Keefe never knew Fred Mahe personally, yet she went out of her way to return his photograph. If we all learned how to act a little more like Elizabeth Stringer Keefe, our world would definitely be a happier place.

Book to Movie to Profit

A few days ago, my friend and I decided to watch If I Stay, a beloved novel by Gayle Forman transformed into film. As we sat quietly in the theaters awaiting the opening scene of the movie, a trailer for The Maze Runner flashed onto the screen. Another amazing book was being turned into a movie? My mind exploded with excitement, enthusiasm, and curiosity. I couldn’t wait for September 19^th, The Maze Runner’s release date.

As the trailer came to an end, I began to think closely about how many book-to-movie films had been released this year. In just the past five months, I had watched Divergent, The Fault in Our Stars, and The Giver, all film adaptions of popular books. Yet, over two dozen more of these books-turned-movies will be coming to theaters between September and November. One of the most highly anticipated motion pictures of 2014, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1, will arrive on November 21^st. After all, Hunger Games: Catching Fire earned $864,565,663 in the box office last year. Many other literature-based thrillers similar to The Hunger Games hope to achieve comparable numbers in the box office.

 Will this book-to-movie craze continue on for years to come? Since our society has become so reliant on technology, I hope that we don't only resort to watching movie adaptations of incredible pieces of literature. Much of the magic we spot on screen originates within the books themselves. Nevertheless, I wonder whether these novel-based motion pictures will affect authors' writing choices. In the end, maybe it is all about getting onto the big screen.