Too much focus on taking the perfect selfie?

Much of today's society spends time taking photos of useless things. There are people literally taking pictures of everything they come across just to make sure they don't forget the moment. But what is there to forget when there isn't anything being learned or no moment being lived through? You are only living through your photographs and not in the moment. I can recall several events where I viewed things for the first time in the photographs and I didn't remember actually seeing it with my own eyes. This is where today's technology and our obsession with capturing our every living moment goes too far; we also lessen the value of a photo. Too many teens today are focused more on getting the perfect selfie and in the process, are not enjoying the moment for what it is.

I do not, however, completely agree with Santag's argument. Yes, a photo does not capture the whole truth. But is it really meant to? A photograph can be left to our interpretation, and in that sense, it is a form of art. There is a story or meaning behind every piece of art and it doesn't always stare at you right in the face. 

Let's focus on a better today!

Many believe it is important to preserve the environment for a better tomorrow. But what's the use of that? Let's just focus on getting the most out of today and let tomorrow's people worry about tomorrow. Millions of people spend their time and money on things to help the environment and they probably won't even be alive to see the results! What a waste! We should invest our money into using all the resources we can get out of the earth in the present so mankind can live to its fullest potential. Technology is advancing anyway, right? The future will be able to find its own resources. Some people might say that we are all eventually going to be part of the future. Although this is true, as aforementioned, with advancements in science and technology, we should not have to worry. Scientists are working on it.
Recycling is time consuming anyway. You have to get a separate bin and everything and bins aren't free. If you're not worried about yourself, think about others! People at recycling centers have to sort through all the recyclables; that must cost them a lot of time. Also, think about how many poor children you could feed with the money you use to buy recycling bins. If we just threw everything away, it would be a lot easier for everyone. Everything would just be burned up and taken care of. There might be some gases released from that but it's not like it's that noticeable. Take a deep breath right now. Do you feel like your inhaling anything harmful? Chances are the answer is no. This is because the human body is very adaptive and we tend not to notice certain stimuli after a period of time. Scientific studies and facts prove this phenomenon.
If you're worried about the animals, then don't! Survival of the fittest! The best of the best will survive and evolve resulting in stronger future generations and it would be foolish not to help strengthen the future.
If you look at the big picture and take into account all the factors, helping to "save" the environment really isn't worth all the money and time. Our environment is fine the way it is.

"All good things are difficult to achieve; and all bad things are very easy to get."

-Confucius

Scientific advancements that yield positive results are difficult to achieve while the negative results just come along without any hints of their arrival. As mentioned in A Measure of Restraint, Marie Currie worked long and hard to discover radium and while the positive effects were difficult to achieve, the negative effects were quick to show themselves. This just goes to show how unpredictable science and nature really is. We may think we have the power and technology to do so much, but in reality, we are powerless in the face of nature. During storms and other natural disasters, our advanced technology can do nothing to save us. We have to surrender our power to nature and protect ourselves. If we try too hard to beat nature, we are almost asking it to fight back. For example, with genetic engineering, although there could be many benefits, one simple error could result in permanent damage as a "gene is potentially immortal" (Raymo). To what extent is it really okay to experiment with science? Mankind should be aware of that extent and approach science with a measure of restraint.

What can we do to solve the puzzling problem of child labor?

Once upon a time, many very young children would have to work long and hard hours in dangerous factories/conditions for little pay and with little safety just to produce goods for everyone else to enjoy. While most kids today are able to enjoy their youth fantasizing about unicorns and pink elephants without worries, many young children then were not even able to enjoy basic things like a good night's sleep. They were forced to work through the day and most of the night in conditions that could have been severely detrimental to their developing minds and bodies. Kelley utilizes powerful rhetoric to persuade the audience of women to become a part of her cause to end child labor through women's suffrage. She strongly uses pathos to evoke empathetic feelings from her audience. To rally support and appeal to the emotions of her audience, Kelley uses much of the following: strong imagery, compelling diction, statistics, repetition and parallel structure. For example, parallelism is used in the last paragraph to state that "they [children] spin, they stamp, they carry" and in the mean time, no one does anything to end it. We know this is wrong, so why don't we do anything? She allows the audience to reevaluate their actions or lack there of; by not doing anything to end child labor, Kelley states that they in fact are contributing to it. She offers a clear solution to this great problem: "enlist[ing] the workingmen voters..to [free] the children from toil" and the "right of petition." Kelley implies that this would not only free the young children from the burden of labor, but it would also "free their consciences" and make them better people overall and in the eyes of Jesus.

Sikh Americans and Public Space

After reading Black Men and Public Space, I felt an instant personal connection. I am a Sikh -part of the 5th largest religion in the world. Sikhism teaches truthful and peaceful living through service to humanity and meditation of God. Sikhs don't cut their as they consider it to be a natural part of being a human in the form we were created. Sikh men usually wear turbans and keep their beards. It is a part of our identity and a symbol of our faith. Although I do not wear a turban, much of my male family, relatives and friends do. I hear of their encounters, stories and the discrimination they face. This is all due to the lack of knowledge and awareness. Although awareness is being spread and many more people know about Sikhs than they did in the past, there are still countless people that do not know about Sikhism and mistake our identity for something threatening. Even though Sikhs had nothing to do with the events of 9/11, Sikhs have faced a lot of discrimination and our turbans and beards have been equated with terrorism. The first person shot after 9/11 was a Sikh male and there have been several other acts of racism and discrimination including one that occurred recently in 2012 in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.
Many Sikh males I know have experienced bullying and harassment due to their distinct appearance.They have been called terrorists, Osama bin Laden, etc. These are all stereotypical judgements similar to those Staples faces in his narrative. "Such episodes are not uncommon. Black men trade tales like this all the time."
It should be everyone's duty to learn about each other to rid of stereotypes and underserving discrimination.
"The main reasons to wear turban is to take care of the hair, promote equality, and preserve the Sikh identity. Sikhs do not cut their hair as a respect towards God"