Is Nuclear Worth It?

I am kind of split on the documentary The Atomic States of America. First off, I found it rather boring and you should be really interested in nuclear reactors and their impacts if you are going to watch it. But I'm not going to sit here and review the film. I'm going to explain why I am split on the issues discussed.

The documentary discusses multiple cases in which nuclear reactors leaked either in small, controlled amounts or large amounts that forced the reactor to be shut down. The most significant nuclear reactor accident in the U.S. was that at Three Mile Island involving a nuclear meltdown of the reactor core. This is what led to the stopping of nuclear growth in the U.S.

However, this was not the only accident that occurred in the U.S. It was just the most widely known. The film interviews individuals from communities located around nuclear reactors, and they all tell a very similar story of high death rates related to cancer. In many of these small towns, they figured out that there had been a leak at the local reactor that had managed to deposit radiation into the wells systems. These problems were not made known to the public very well, however, due to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission. 

The U.S.NRC is supposed to regulate the nuclear reactors in our country; but instead, they seem to help hide some of the accidental leaks at certain plants. This is what led to the large number of individuals with cancer and/or dying in communities located nearby the reactors. 

I can understand why many individuals would see the countries idea to bring back the building of new nuclear reactors as a bad thing, but I'm also in the STEM area of study myself and see the benefits of using nuclear energy. Nuclear energy has the potential to help us solve most of our energy needs if we could simply perfect our use of the atom. With further research and today's technology, I do believe that bringing back nuclear energy to what was intended could be beneficial. What do you think? Is it worth the risks to continue experimenting to better the economy?

What Does Remorse Look Like?

This is the question asked by the sister of one teenage killer in the film Lost for Life. Lost for Life ventures into the controversial question of whether or not teenage murderers should be sentenced to mandatory life without parole. It provides interviews with several of these teens, their family members, and others related to this issue.

The teenage killers interviewed in the film are now in there twenties and thirties. While watching the film I noticed some similarities between these individuals. All but one individual, whom was in a gang, appeared to have some mental issue of some kind. Two men carried weight of sexual abuse as children, and another had a stutter that suggested some intellectual disability.

My question is, can these men, and women out there, learn from their time in prison and be reintroduced into society? The National Organization of Victims of Juvenile Lifers thinks not, believing their loved ones murderers should have to serve a life sentence for the life they took. However, I cannot say I agree that these individuals should never be reintroduced into society. I believe that if an individual would like to apply for parole, then they should be required to undergo a thorough psych evaluation by a professional to determine whether they do feel remorse for the crimes they committed and whether they are believed to be a harm to society.

The man above was part of the murder of a high school friend. In the film, he has taken responsibility for his actions and shows clear signs of remorse by hurting himself to take away the pain he feels when he thinks of what he did to his friend. I believe this man could use mental health expertise more than prison at this point. Although he has accepted what happened, his accomplice in the crime still denies any wrong doing on his part and keeps a smug look on his face during the interview. Unlike the man above, I think that if this individual were let back out on the street he would probably kill again because he cannot even see why he belongs in prison.

I believe that mandatory life without parole is uncalled for. Though I don't deny that life without parole should still be a punishment, it should just be made so that one can apply for parole later down the road. That's my opinion on the subject, and I want to know yours. Leave a comment below telling me how you feel about the justice system in relation to juveniles.

Your Favorite Urban Legends Revealed

This week I watched another interesting film called Killer Legends. This documentary researched the truth behind four of the most popular urban legends, including the Killer Clown, Candy Man, the Hook, and the idea that someone has broken in and killed the babysitter.

I didn't really consider the babysitter one an urban legend myself, though the film did provide numerous scary movie examples that were based on this exact story. With research, Joshua Zeman and Rachel Mills travel to Columbia, Missouri where the babysitter murder story came to life in the 1950's.

Those creepy calls you always hear in the movies may not hold true to the actual incident, but there was one case in which a babysitter, Janett Christman, was found murdered after having tried to call the cops for help. The cops could not trace the call at this time, and therefore could not help the teenage girl. A man was later charged for her death and another young girl.

My personal favorite urban legend was the story of the escaped convict with a hook for a hand. I thought this was so creepy. The idea that you would have been this crazed murderer's next victims had you not heard of the escape on the radio and demanded to leave Lovers Lane. What's crazy is the first idea of the "Hook" came from a Dear Abby column warning teenagers about sex. 

Through their investigation, Joshua and Rachel found out about a series of murders occurring on Lovers Lanes in Texarkana. They believe that this could be where the Hook legend stems from even though no actual hook was involved in the murders. 

If you are interested in urban legends and want to find out about the truth behind the Candy Man and Killer Clowns also, pull up Killer Legends on your Netflix account and watch it. And be sure to leave a comment telling me what you think about the babysitter and hook legends discussed a little bit above. 

Dear Zachary Documentary

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father is a very touching documentary and the best that I have watched so far. It tells an amazing story that involves tragedy, hate, love, and hope. The movie trailer can be accessed at YouTube and the movie itself on Netflix.

The documentary tells the awful tale of the murder and aftermath of Andrew Bagby, an individual who seemed to be an amazing person. You can see this in the number of people interviewed as friends of Andrew's for the documentary.

Andrew, a doctor, was found shot five times by his crazy ex-girlfriend Dr. Shirley Turner. Kate and David Bagby, Andrew's parents, were devastated by their loss and considered suicide as an option for a period of time. That all changed when they found out that Shirley was carrying their unborn grandson, the only piece left of Andrew. A long custody battle over baby Zachary begins between the Bagby's  and Shirley.

The Bagby's won custody over Zachary while Shirley was in jail, but Shirley managed to get released and with her release was granted primary custody over Andrew's son. Although Kate and David were still allowed regular visitation rights, they feared for their grandson's life. Below is a photo of the couple with their grandchild, happy to hold the only piece they have left of their son.

The Bagby's were faced with other difficult times that I will not mention because I believe it is worth watching the film. However, I will mention what they did as an effect of what they experienced. The couple pushed for reform in the judicial system by not letting people accused of murder out on bail. They also wished to improve the social services system as well because Shirley, an accused murderer, was still allowed custody of her newborn baby.

One example of their work is the Dr. Andrew David Bagby Scholarship. This scholarship is awarded to individuals who want to practice as a family physician like Andrew.

I encourage you to watch Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Dad and let me know what you thought of it. What did you think of what I didn't want to mention in this post? Were you surprised by anything that happened?

Life in a Cult

Last night I decided to watch the documentary I Escaped A Cult. When I hear the word cult, I immediately think of devil worshiping and animal sacrifices. However, that is not what these cults were, if fact, they were founded in Christianity instead of devil worship. The documentary interviews three individuals about life before and after escaping a cult, two being mother and daughter.

The film begins with an interview of Brent Jeffs, a former Fundamental Church of Jesus Christ of Ladder Day Saints (FLDS) member. He tells of how his uncle and the cult prophet, Warren Jeffs, sexually abused him as a young child and how he felt he had no where to turn. Warren had instilled in him the fear that he would burn in hell if he ever spoke a word of the abuse to anyone. His overwhelming fear of God prevented him from saying anything for a long time, but today he has a book out, Lost Boy, describing his life in the cult with more detail.

The second story is told by Maura Shmierer and her daughter, both of whom were part of the Aggressive Christianity Missions Training Corps (ACMTC) cult. The ACMTC was "God's army" and the leaders, Lila and James Green, believed strongly in physical abuse to create obedient followers. The sad thing is, the members abused their own children because the leaders said so because God spoke through them and wanted this.

Both of these cults relied on their member's fear of God to establish control over them. It's crazy to think how controlling an individual's fear can be, but these stories are proof that fear is a great controlling mechanism and the leaders of these cults knew that.

What do you think? Could the fear of God force you to abuse your own children or keep you from confiding in anyone the hell that you are going through internally as well as physically?

Tiny Living

Imagine living in a house that is half the size of the average college dorm room; including shower, toilet, sink, and small stove. I for one cannot imagine such a lifestyle, but one man decided to try it out for himself.

In Tiny: A Story About Living Small, Christopher Smith sets out on a mission to build his very own tiny house in the hopes of finally establishing a home. He starts the process with the mind set that this will be a quick build only taking a few months. A few months slowly turned into a year and more money than I think he initially thought. The movie follows Christopher and his girlfriend and also contains interviews with a couple other tiny house owners.

I first heard of tiny houses on the TV show Tiny House Nation, and I was intrigued by the idea of such small living conditions. It's amazing what one can do with 200 square feet. The people building these tiny homes are very creative and good at manipulating the space in a way so that it doesn't feel, or even look in some cases, cramped.

Although tiny houses is often defined as having 200 square feet or less, the range of small houses can range from 140 to 4,000 square feet. For more details about living small or tiny, you can look at the Small House Society whose mission it is to promote awareness of the benefits of living in smaller homes.

Leave a comment below letting me know what you think about living tiny. Would you do it? Do you think you could do it?

What is Plastic Paradise?

Have you ever heard of Plastic Paradise? It's a supposed island that's twice the size of Texas and made of plastic garbage that has accumulated in the Pacific Ocean. I had never heard of such a thing until I watched Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. 

Apparently, this "paradise" is a real thing. It's located on a small island halfway between the east coast of Japan and the west coast of the United States and is property of the Unites States government. How could an island, overrun with trash, have never been heard of before this documentary? Below is the trailer for Plastic Paradise: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch; warning, there is a small scene of a dissected bird.

As you can see from the video above, the amount of plastic we use and what we do with it is out of control. Do you drink from plastic water bottles regularly? After you drink it and dispose of it, you have no way of knowing where that plastic bottle is going. All that seems to be for sure is that it's harming the environment in some way, shape, or form because plastic cannot be broken down completely. It can only be broken down into smaller pieces which are more likely to be eaten by and harm animals. The Environmental Cleanup Coalition is working to clean up our world's oceans in an effort to preserve marine wildlife. However, it is going to take a lot more to clean up the earth.

The most efficient way to clean up the plastic problem is to stop it at its core. As long as plastic products are continuing to be produced, the problem is only going to increase, and we may see more and more animal species disappear because of it. Below is a picture of a fish that was filleted and found to have plastic in it's stomach. 

It's a disturbing thought that even the fish, a common food choice by many individuals, are ingesting small pieces of plastics. This is especially scary when you consider the carcinogens within plastics that are now throughout the fish you had intended to eat for dinner. The Mayo Clinic advises that people should stay away from products that could possibly contain BPA, a common carcinogen found in plastics. 

What do you think? Is it worth trying to encourage the plastic companies to stop producing plastic and find a more Eco-friendly product? Or is it a waste of time considering the dependence the human society has on plastic items? 

Miss Representation: Media's Influential Abilities

I would not consider myself a self proclaimed feminist. However, the documentary Miss Representation makes one reconsider just how differently women are viewed in society. I for one was astonished and didn't realize how completely clueless I was about this inequality. Some of the ways powerful women in society are disrespected are infuriating.

The film focuses a lot on the media and its impact on the way society views women, as well as men. One hears the same old argument about how media creates this unattainable look that every woman is after but never will achieve and how this affects the male ideals. Men expect women to look like those they see on advertisements and in commercials, even though majority of these women have had Photoshop and other special effects to help alter any "flaws."

This same old argument also emphasized something else though. In these same advertisements where women are portrayed as an object of appeal, men are being portrayed as these powerful, masculine individuals. This enforces an idea to boys early on that they must be masculine and assert a sort of dominance over women. You see this idea being introduced when a boy is told not to cry because it isn't manly. This lack of emotion is helping create a barrier between the male and female population. 

In politics, men are portrayed as these strong, put together individuals; so when a woman in politics is seen showing any type of emotion or compassion it is seen as over emotional and sensitive. Because of this display of emotions, powerful women are viewed as unable to handle a critical situation. In reality, all this proves is that men are simply emotionally constipated. 

This leaves me with a question. If women are viewed in such a negative light because they are not afraid to show how passionate they are about something, then how is the female population supposed to advance in powerful positions? The fight for women to achieve respect, by the majority of the male population, is going to be hard, so it's up to the women today to begin changing the misconception that the male must be dominant. Even though it would appear easier to let society continue on its current path, I believe it could lead to a better nation if action is taken.  

Miss Representation also argues that violence on video games and TV leads to violence in real life, specifically relating the idea of male dominance to rape. Studies have been done again and again proving a correlation between the two by organizations such as the American Psychological Association and the American Medical Association. Even though multiple studies have agreed on this relationship between violence on television and violence in real life, nothing has been done by the government to regulate such violent programs.  

By eliminating these violent media types, there is the hope that crime rate would go down and as part of that the rape rate and level of dominance asserted by some men.

Feel free to leave a comment below discussing the points made in the film Miss Representation. 

A Glance at the Leading Meat Industries

This week I decided to watch the 2008 controversial documentary Food, Inc. This documentary led to a change in the way many Americans view the food they eat and buy in stores.

The documentary covers issues ranging from Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and patents on seeds for producing crops to the meat industries that Americans receive 80% of their meat and poultry from. I chose to focus this post on the way meat industries put our favorite proteins on our plates.

Have you ever wondered where the chicken you’re eating came from? Or maybe why chicken breasts today are so much larger than those from 50 years ago? 

Our society wants more and more lean, white meat; so chicken breeders have been forced to select birds that will produce the largest amount of meat in the smallest amount of time. By selecting and breeding the chickens that display these characteristics, we are hurting the chickens. With the increased amount of breast tissue, some chickens cannot even walk. Nutrients discusses some of the other health issues we are beginning to see in today’s altered chickens. Do you think we should continue to selectively choose which chickens are bred in order to achieve the largest chicken possible? 

In Food, Inc., one Perdue chicken grower allowed for her chicken pens to be filmed so that the world could see the awful treatment of the chickens. Below, you witness the harsh living conditions of chickens living back-to-back with no room to move and the capture of these same chickens as they are loaded onto trucks for butchering. The scary thing is, chances are, the chickens you see below, were something that ended up on your dinner plate. 

Although this post has focused on the treatment of chickens, this does not mean that cows and pigs are treated any better. Many facilities keep large amounts of cattle in relatively small, dirty pens as you can see below. No animal should have to live in the conditions that the big name meat industries, like Perdue, Smithfield, and Tyson, are putting them through. 

Please leave a comment about whether you agree or disagree with the government's efforts to put enough meat on the table for every American family. 

Should SeaWorld be Forced to Shut Down?

While bored over winter break, I was scrolling through Netflix when I found something called Blackfish. It’s a documentary that begins with the whale attack of a trainer at SeaWorld in 2010, but it uncovers so much more that made me question whether I ever want to visit SeaWorld.

In the film, SeaWorld participates in the capturing of killer whales to be brought back for training and entertainment at its facilities. In order to capture these whales, bombs and nets are used to herd these very intelligent mammals as seen below. This video displays both the intelligence of the whales and the brutal measures SeaWorld officials took to obtain them. When you here the crying from both offspring and family, it is heart wrenching.

As previously mentioned, the documentary begins with the attack of a well-known whale trainer. This whale trainer was attacked by one of the largest, if not the largest, male orca named Tilikum. When this happened, it seemed like a one-time occurrence in SeaWorld’s history; however, this was actually the third time such an incident occurred with Tilikum. Tilikum had previously killed, or is suspected to have killed, at least two additional people; but SeaWorld had managed to keep these incidents seemingly in the dark until the production of this film.

 Based on these actions, I believe that SeaWorld should be required to shut down because of all the questions that arise from Blackfish. It makes you wonder if other possible deaths may have occurred without the knowledge of the public.

If SeaWorld was to be shut down, the whales that live there would need to be humanely put down. This is a sad thought, but I say this because of the killer whale’s dependence upon its family as its main source of socialization. The whales that SeaWorld has on display are unable to be released back into the oceans because of their lack of a family and their need to be social. Unless the whale’s original family can be located, the whale would live a life of solitude in the ocean which is not good for such a social animal. However, some individuals, like the Whales and Dolphin Conservation (WDC), believe that whales that have been held in captivity do have the ability to be returned to the ocean. 

Leave a comment below if you have anything to say or questions in regards to the Blackfish documentary.