Crisis in Libya, Rising Fuel Prices

               So eight-three percent (83%) of the United States oil actually comes from right here in the United States, so I don’t quite understand why when the price of oil per barrel goes up in another country or there is a crisis overseas why we are gas prices are affected.  When I went to work yesterday the local gas station sign said $3.09, when I left to come from work last night I noticed a sign in the town that I worked at listed $3.38 (WOW).  At that point, my thoughts were, “What in the heck is taking place causing prices to rise like they just have?”  When I got back to my local gas station the sign said $3.15, so they had not yet increased prices that drastically yet, but this morning they had increased to $3.29.  

               I came home and turned on my television to discover the controversy now taking place in Libya affecting our gas prices.  It appears that things continue to spiral from the increasing gas prices at the pump, now the issues concerning Senate Bill 5 now making their way to the front end of headlines.  All I know is that I had to make a trip to the Port Columbus Airport last night to pick up my daughter and I had topped off my fuel tank which still had three-quarters of a tank and I it cost me $41.00, gas prices were at a whopping $3.49 last night!  I do own a Chevrolet Avalanche, but regardless of the size of the gas tank individuals are really going to feel a hurt in their wallets if fuel prices continue to climb as they are predicted to.

               On the other side of things, diesel fuel is skyrocketing as well.  My husband and I own and operate our own truck and although diesel fuel prices are increasing, the company that we are leased on with is slowly increasing the fuel surcharge that we receive in addition to the mileage.  When the fuel prices dropped they decreased the surcharge, but they are refusing to match the surcharges that they were previously paying for some reason.

               I certainly hope there may be some light at the end of the tunnel!!!!!

Icon Analysis

               The first icon I have chosen is “American Idol”; I have chosen this because I have been infatuated with this show from the moment it aired and it is hard to believe that we are now in the tenth season.  It symbolizes individuals pursuing their singing talents to become the next American Idol.  When you look at some of the talent that crosses that show it is just unreal.  I have to say that some of the talent that has been voted off, have become bigger stars than some of the Idols in a few of the seasons.

               The second icon that I decided to choose is the M & M’s Chocolate Candy.  Look at how far they have integrated over the years from just a plain M & M and now how many different kinds do we have to choose from now:  peanut butter, dark chocolate, pretzel?  What will they think of next?  Here’s a little of FYI for you:  I actually had to a statistics count in another class on candies and believe it or not, brown M & M’s DO NOT dominate the colors in the package, I found there were more orange and yellow M & M’s.

               I could not leave out the next icon, because it has become a permanent fixture in my house everywhere you look at that is the Mattel Hot Wheel.    Several years back, my husband became a collector of Hot Wheels and now we cannot pass the toy section of any store without looking for a new Hot Wheel.  Now we have Hot Wheels candy canes, lip balm, soap, cards; you name it we have it and it has never been opened.  The only time we open it is if we buy doubles and he gives them to little ones visiting.

American Idol Debate of Judge, Steven Tyler

               I honestly don’t know what all of the fuss is about.  I am a huge fan of American Idol and when they started making all of these changes to the show I wasn’t quite sure that I was really going to continue to watch it anymore.  When Paul Abdul left and they brought Ellen DeGeneres to the show, I thought this is just great, someone who has no singing experience judging a talent show.  I have to saw that I thought she actually did a pretty good job, but that didn’t last very long.

               Then last year when all of the buzz came about that both Ellen and now Simon Cowell were both leaving the show, I wondered just how in the world this show could possibly survive.  When I heard they were considering Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez for the show I thought what a combination, a rocker and pop gal?  But I have to say that when I started watching it and watching the actually vibes of both of them when someone with real talent is singing, it is a true inspiration.  American Idol has brought two very talented judges to the show that has had very successful careers in the industry to find the next idol. 

               When I began my search to decide what to write this blog about I typed in Steven Tyler’s name, not realizing that there is now all this hype about his flirtatious manner with the underage contestants of the show.  As we do with anyone else in the public eye, it seems like people have to find something to escalate out of control.  Just because he is a rock star, with the bad boy image doesn’t make him a bad person.  I couldn’t find anything negative on the internet about him other than all of this American Idol hype at the present time, he had never been in any trouble for messing with underage girls.  I really like the attitude that he is bringing to the show, he has livened it up A LOT. 

What Is Pop Culture and What Does It Mean To Me?

            Depending upon who you ask, Pop Culture can be described in many ways.  The definition found in our text, Profiles of Popular Culture a Reader, Browne, R.B. (2005), pg. 3, it is the system of attitudes, behavior patterns, beliefs, customs, and tastes that define the people of any society.  I just had a conversation with my son-in-law telling him that I had to finish working on my assignment in “pop” culture and when I used that particular term “pop”.  I ask him what it meant to him and his response was that pop culture related to music and the kinds of music that people listen to.  When individuals listen to a particular kind of music, they relate to a particular group of individuals.

               I don’t let others belief’s influence me in any way whatsoever; I am in individual who likes to form my own opinion.  I feel that in the career path that I have chosen, I have to keep an open mind when it comes to my own attitude, behavior pattern, beliefs, customs and tastes.  If I were to take only the word “culture” and define it, I consider it to mean the way an individual has grown up in society (i.e rich or poor; white, Hispanic, or black; East Coast or West Coast).  Then when I consider the word “popular”, I consider that to be what has become common in society to everyone.

   

               I chose to use the cover from the movie “The Conviction”.  This is a movie based on a true story, which a man is wrongfully convicted of a murder and spends 16 years in prison, while his sister pursues her GED, Undergraduate, and Law School to overturn his conviction.  The thing is because of the attitudes of this town, the behavior patterns involving the police and prosecution and man spent 16 years behind bars for a murder he never committed.

               So each individual defines popular culture in their own way:  maybe of their upbringing as a child, maybe because of what they hear on the television, but just in the little bit that I have read so far I have definitely learned that popular culture is very broad.