Writing Prompt: Video Games

 

The Dangers of Video Games By: Amari Dixon 

I love playing video games, especially with my brother Akeel and my dad. For this blog post, I am going to talk about my favorite video games and also about if they should be a sport. Video games are great and fun to do with your friends and family. You are guaranteed to have a great time with your loved ones. First of all, even though video games are great. It is still wise that you should take a break once and a while. For example, my dad gives me two hours of game time then I go do something else like reading playing with other stuff like legos with my brother (he never plays with me anymore), or going outside in the front or back yard. 

What I am saying is, you can't play games all day. You should take breaks. Sometimes games even remind you that you need a break. If the game even says so you should do it. Now there are some games like GTA or other first-person shooter games that should be played when you are 15-16+ like a teenager. Still, these games can be bad for your mental health and can hurt the brain, so teenagers or older people should play these games. According to the New York Times Studies show that people (mainly American boys) youngsters who develop a gaming habit can become slightly more aggressive — as measured by clashes with peers at least over a period of a year or two playing these games. 

Some studies looked at self-reports of hitting or pushing, and some looked at peer or teacher ratings on aggressive behaviors. Other studies looked at how likely an individual was to subject others to an unpleasant exposure to hot sauce or a loud noise after playing violent video games. In Addition, during a study with 210 college students, they played either a violent game or a nonviolent video game. A short time later, the students who played the violent video game punished an opponent (received a noise blast with varying intensity) for a longer period of time than did students who had played the nonviolent video game.

Also, did you know that 60% of middle school boys and 40% of middle school girls who played at least one Mature-rated (M-rated) game hit or beat up someone, compared with 39% of boys and 14% of girls who did not play M-rated games? See, video games cause violence in young kids. I think that you should only play these games when you are a teen (16-17) or an adult. This is because these M-rated or violent games can really be bad for your kids and hurt their minds.   

Citations 

Gonchar, Michael. "Do Violent Video Games Make People More Violent in Real
     Life?" ["Do Violent Video Games Make People More Violent in Real Life?"].
     Do Violent Video Games Make People More Violent in Real Life?, 13 Feb.
     2013, pp. 1-2, archive.nytimes.com/learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/02/13/

     do-violent-video-games-make-people-more-violent-in-real-life/.  

MLA (9th ed.):

ProCon.org, "Video Games." ProCon.org. 8 June 2021, videogames.procon.org

Should Video Games Be Considered a Sport? - Belal Alawini

Should Video Games Be Considered a Sport?

    A debate that has been ongoing for some time now is whether or not video games should be considered a sport. There is evidence on both sides of this dispute that supports each argument. There is much more evidence to support that it is than the opposite, so I think that video games should ultimately be considered a sport.

    The Marlin Chronicle, a student newsletter for the Virginia Wesleyan University, provides many different points supporting the claim that video games are sports. The article compares video games to another sport: chess. Chess is recognized to be a sport by the International Olympic Committee. Chess requires the same physical exertion as video games do: little to none. The two instead focus on mental exertion, as they both employ strategy. Certain Video games also require fast reflexes. The strategic aspects of video games and most other sports are also similar. I will compare video gaming and basketball. They both have teams going up against each other consisting of around 4-5 players. They both have coaches to coordinate and train their respective team. And of course, they both have commentators. These are two other professional sports that both share various aspects of video gaming.

    Maryville University has an article about the similarities and differences between video games and other sports. The first similarity is the competitiveness of sports. All sports are known for being competitive, and video games are no exception. Every Esports video game is two teams or individuals competing against each other. It also takes lots of practice and skill to perfect a sport, and the same applies to video games. Video games also have sets of rules and equipment.

There may be some evidence supporting the claim that video games, like there is no physical exertion, but most evidence points towards the claim that they should, and I completely agree. I have watched reports myself, and it feels just like any other sport.

-Belal Alawini

 Reputable Sources: 

https://marlinchronicle.vwu.edu/are-video-games-a-sport/ 

https://online.maryville.edu/blog/esports-vs-sports/

What Should Spotify Do About Joe Rogan

What Should Spotify Do About Joe Rogan?

The Joe Rogan Experience is the most popular podcast in the world, hosted by Joe Rogan. He brings in millions of viewers and is a big revenue source for Spotify. His unique guests make the podcast special, but it can also make things controversial. Spotify has been put in an awkward position, because the general public wants them to do something about some of his wilder episodes and guests, but at the same time they shouldn't limit speech of someone expressing their ideas and someone who probably brings in millions of dollars for them per year.

The first thing to dissect is what Joe Rogan said to cause an uproar. The fact is that Joe Rogan himself wasn't anything more than an enabler of his guest, Dr. Robert Malone. Dr. Malone, a man with much experience with mRNA technology like vaccines, stated that taking a vaccine after having contracted Covid-19 in the past puts you at a higher risk than people who had Covid-19 and didn't take the vaccine after. For the most part, this is pure misinformation, and even the CDC explains that people who have Covid-19 will be safer getting the vaccine after they recover from the virus than people who don't get the vaccine after being sick. 

Looking at it from the other side of the table, Dr. Malone could've been referring to an unstable moment for the body after it has fought off the virus where it has a very weak immune system. Even if this is true, the way he presented this information leads the general public to believe that they shouldn't take the vaccine at all after they get Covid-19, and it also allows for viral video clips to be made to spread this misinformation. 

As for what Spotify should do, it's a very odd scenario. Of course cancel culture was quick to jump on this and even professionals who want to help have tried to pressure Spotify into handling this. While this episode is a dangerous piece of misinformation, completely removing it would be morally wrong. However, Spotify's current plan to just label podcasts as misinformation is not effective enough as many viewers will hear/see the clip of Dr. Malone outside of Spotify. 

One idea for what they could do is putting a live disclaimer on the video of his podcast while dangerous misinformation is being spread, like misinformation about Covid-19. This is only necessary for big podcasters like Joe Rogan, because they have the biggest and farthest impact, and narrowing it to only big podcasters requires less moderation and time. Another thing they could do is stopping it at the source. Encouraging these podcasters to not spread dangerous misinformation would make Spotify a much safer space. This could be done calmly by a simple, yet stern message to these podcasters, or a harsher method by having a financial punishment like removing their revenue for the episode. In the case of Joe Rogan, who is rumored to have a 100 million dollar deal with Spotify, they could add a clause in his contract stopping him from spreading misinformation, and costs him millions if he breaches the contract.

https://www.npr.org/2022/01/21/1074442185/joe-rogan-doctor-covid-podcast-spotify-misinformation

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/02/02/actual-joe-rogan-coronavirus-misinformation/

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/faq.html#:~:text=Vaccination%20helps%20protect%20you%20even,ve%20already%20had%20COVID%2D19.

Can You Separate Art From the Artist

 Can You Separate Art From The Artist

By Ellie Rosch

An example of a bad artist making good art is a band called McCafferty. They have many popular songs such as Trees, Alligator Skin Boots, Dead-Bird, and Bottom. They had had some controversy in the past with encouraging heavy topics such as alcoholism i and using the f-slur in their songs. None of it compares though to when lead guitarist, Even Graham, came out with multiple allegations against Nick Hartkop, a band member, including domestic abuse, racism, animal abuse, homophobia, financial issues, emotional and physical abuse to band members, and violent threats. This behavior is horrible and should never happen and the band lost many followers before eventually breaking up when Nick promised to never make music again. This promise did not hold and Nick still makes music to this day. Everyone knows what he did after copious amounts of proof were given, but his music is good, and still makes money.

Another example is Robert Crowe who is an actor most famous for his role in Gladiator. He would repeatedly say he had the irresistible urge to beat people up and had to be pulled of set multiple times because he was actually punching the extras. The director would make him apologize before returning to set. He has since said he didn't like his experience because he hated the script and the directors but he should have been professional instead of wanting to take his anger out on the cast. Despite this I think the movie is excellent and while the script wasn't the best, the acting was good. It's just weird to know that some of the movie, especially the fighting and anger, wasn't acting.

Probably the most famous example of this is Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling. J.K. Rowling has said publicly and online many questionable things about the transgender community and didn't add any racial variation to her series, but despite this many people still read and love her books. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando was made by Universal Studios, who has always supported the LGBTQ community. Everyone knows that J.K. Rowling is not the best person when it comes to talking about controversial topics, but she still has millions of dollars from Harry Potter and people love and support the fandom to this day.

People now won't admit to being a fan of McCafferty because being a fan looks like you support Nick's abuse. I admit that I like his songs, but now I can't actively seek them out. It just feels so much more real when Nick sings the f-slur and you know that he means it. Or when I watch Gladiator knowing that the anger and aggression that you see on screen is real can be scary sometimes. Harry Potter never brings up the trans community or racial problems, but knowing J.K. Rowling's view on those topics makes it harder for me to pick up Harry Potter. Personally I feel like I can't separate the art from the artist completely.  I won't actively boycott something because who made it did something awful; I might feel guilty but that won't stop me from enjoying what has been created. But no matter what, allegations against the artist will always be in the back of my mind while enjoying what they have created. 

What it means to be “Normal” in society.

Alana Santiago 

Convenience Store Woman by Sakaya Murata touches on topics such as autism, conformity, role of women, and fulfilment. Conformity is the theme I’d like to focus on owing to the fact that it is a common theme amongst the characters of Convenience Store Woman. The novel portrays the pressure to conform with social expectations, particularly within a Japanese culture. 

The main character of the novel and our protagonist, Keiko faces pressure from family and friends to lead a “normal” life. A normal life for her kin entails marriage, having children, and pursuing a traditional career. Keiko’s failure to conform to these expectations leads her to feeling like an outcast. 

 Keiko strives to adhere to the established routines and expectations of her job, using it as a means to fit in and meet societal norms. Her dedication to her work and her role within the store is her way of conforming.

Keiko works at the convenience store as a way to mimic what she perceives as a normal life. For 18 years, she has spent her days neatly stocking the product on the shelves, listening to the foot traffic of the store during the lunch rush and hearing the echo of the bell atop the door. She uses the stores’ rigid structure to set her own behavior.

 Keiko’s surroundings have an effect on her disposition as new colleagues and managers come in and out through the years. She imitates her colleagues’ speech patterns, tweaking her voice ever so slightly; she finds it easier to fit in this way, but when she meets up with old friends, former store workers, they mention that she’s changed, new and different. 

As Keiko’s non-conformity becomes increasingly evident, it creates tension with those around her who expect her to conform to traditional roles. This conflict is essential to the novel, highlighting the struggle to balance personal identity and societal expectations. The issue of conforming isn’t new to Keiko, even as a young child she learned how to blend in with her peers.

The novel Convenience Store Woman ultimately questions the price of conformity and sacrifices one might make to fit into society’s predefined roles. It challenges the notion that there is only one “right” way to live and raises important questions about individuality and authenticity in a world that values conventionality and conformity. 

My experience reading The Hidden Kingdom - Belal Alawini

 Describe a character you find especially fascinating. How does the book make the character

come to life? What makes the character complex or unique?

    The Wings of Fire series showcases a different protagonist/perspective in each book. In the Hidden Kingdom, We see the perspective of Glory. It was prophesized that 5 dragons would stop an ongoing war. Those 5 dragons are meant to be Glory and her friends. However, Glory is not one of the dragons in the prophecy. She is a replacement for one of the five that died before they hatched. Glory is a Rainwing, and they have a reputation for being lazy. Her whole life, Glory is told that she is lazy and useless. This shapes her character and gives her a reason to prove herself. This makes her a unique character in the story, as we see her perspective on how she was treated, and how she feels.

    Glory is part of a prophecy that she was never meant to be in. She wished she could have been raised in her own home, the rainforest, instead of trying to stop a war that she isn't meant to stop. This is shown by a passage in the novel. "...Webs had decided to replace it with a RainWing. It was his fault Glory had been forced to grow up under a mountain, far from her home and family, learning about a prophecy that didn't even have a place for her in it"(Sutherland 40). This passage shows that Glory feels that she doesn't belong with her friends, and that she misses the family she never knew. She also feels resentment to her guardians for abducting her from the RainWings.

    On numerous occasions, Glory questions the meaning of her life. She was meant to be raised by her family, but she was abducted by Webs, one of the people responsible for carrying out the prophecy. She was raised just like the other dragonets of the prophecy, but she wasn't one of them. She wonders who she is, and what she is meant to do in the world. This is shown by another passage: "If she was meant to save the world, then why hadn't the prophecy called for a RainWing? And if she wasn't necessary for this big grand destiny, then what was the point of her life at all?"(Sutherland 40). This passage shows that Glory is trying to find the meaning of her life, and what her destiny is.

        Glory also speculates about her family and her parents a lot. Growing up, she never had a family other than the 4 dragonets. She didn't know anyone from her tribe. Her and her friends always dreamed about what their parents would be like. She hoped that her parents weren't lazy like everyone said RainWings were. This is proven in a passage: "Both Clay and Tsunami had been disappointed. Maybe parent dragons were always disappointing...especially when you'd spent years dreaming about what they might be like"(Sutherland 53). Unfortunately, she is ultimately disappointed because the RainWings don't keep track of who laid which eggs.

-Belal Alawini