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Various religions have many things in common. One of the most common things is the tradition of marrying a person with the same religion.There are a lot of traditional families living in America trying to raise their children in old fashioned ways, some succeed and some don't. Cultural integration is a permanent surrounding no matter how the parents may try to seclude the children. While this isn't wrong, is it right to discourage marriage with someone who's of a different religion, and ethnicity?

Of course there are negatives to marrying someone of a different religion, there's the question of what religion the children will be taught. There are also different holidays, lots of arguments can be based on religion or can end in religion as a scapegoat to a couple's problems. Does true love overpower these negatives? Will this love last throughout the future or does love "go away with time", like the cranky married couples say? If it does go away the parents will have a resentful relationship with their children for the rest of their lives. There are so many questions to be asked in this case, it's impossible and frightening for the son or daughter to make a choice knowing they're devastating their family. The person can marry someone who their parents consent of but what if they're not happy and end up cheating with the one they love? Is that worth it or fair to their husband/wife?

Answer realistically, if it was you would you... ?
A. Marry the one you love even if your parents will disown you, or worse.
B. Marry the one your parents approve of and try to forget about the one you love.
or
C. Marry the one your parents approve of but due to incapability of letting go, cheat with the one you love.

My Long Lost Twin

http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=2912199&page=1

I was five years old when I met my twin. Shopping with my mommy in a Brighton fruit store I turned around and got startled by the mirror image in front of me. I remember this vividly, my mother than came near and almost screamed that I look just like the little girl in front of me. I still can't believe it. So there stood my mother and hers, wondering how this was possible.

There's an old myth that says everyone out there has a twin. Of course not all people really have a long lost "twin", but close enough. The striking similarity occurs because our brains pay attention to the facial structures but don't notice the slight differences. Finding your "doppelganger" can be draining because it gives you an uncertainty in who you are. Brunelle made it his specialty to photograph these people, as shown in the image above.

Have you met your doppelganger yet?

Conjoined Twins

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1058/is_26_117/ai_66035540/

In the article linked, an ethical and moral debate is shown. The parents of the conjoined twins want to leave their daughters' fate in G-d's hands while the Judge ordered that surgery is done to save one of their daughter's lives. They said they'd rather have both girls die than save one. Unfortunately for the parents, British law favors the child's interests. Yet if the surgery ends up killing one of the twins, the doctor is liable to be charged with assault and murder.

I don't understand how a doctor can be held responsible for an accidental death caused by a risky surgery. I think there's no telling who's right or wrong but of course it's more risky to avoid the surgery. Miracles can happen and sometimes doctors are wrong but having that much faith can kill both of their daughters. Of course this is a heart-wrenching decision and sacrificing one innocent life for another is horrible. What do you think should be done?

Aboriginals

I recently watched the movie Rabbit Proof Fence. It was about the nomadic people living in Australia. The settlers were threatened by the "half castes", people that were half white and half Aboriginal, so they made it their duty to find and steal them away from their families. Two sisters, Daisy and Molly and their cousin, Gracie made the journey home from the Moore River where they were held in captivity, back to Jigalong, but that journey wasn't easy. They had to hide from their seekers and walk along the rabbit proof fence for nine weeks, losing Gracie along the way.

The movie was very realistic and affective. I think Aboriginal people are very intriguing, they look African but not exactly, the tribe portrayed in the movie had a beautiful charcoal color and looked exotic. I was very angry at the people that were seeking the girls, especially when they ripped them away from their mothers' arms. What's ironic is that there were other aboriginals helping the settlers search for the half castes. Even more ironic the person that was causing this was the "protector" of Western Australian Aborigines, Mr. Neville.

I recommend this movie to everyone, it evokes emotions and shows true determination. The photo above is of Molly the older sister, her daughter, whose book was used to make the movie, and her sister Daisy.

Love at first sight?

People often say "It was love at first sight!" but was it really? I don't believe people can fall in love by just looking at someone. It takes time to fall in love, if you don't even know the person how can you truly know if you're in love? I believe in lust at first sight, but this physical attraction is completely opposite from love. Lust consists of physical longing for someone, yet love includes emotional and mental companionship that can't be limited to a physical relationship.


Yet there seems to be a psychological explanation for love at first sight. The explanation is that people fall in love at first sight with those that have something they lack and unconsciously desire. The article speaks of how the personality adds to this "love", but then how is it love at first sight if the personality is being uncovered? Maybe it's just a person's self persuasion that makes them believe they fell in love at first sight, or maybe the psychological reasoning is somehow an excuse for love, and not truly love. I don't mean to kill anyone's fantasies of love, I'm a dreamer myself, but can one really look into a stranger's eyes and fall instantly in love?


Below is the link to the article that takes a psychological approach to love at first sight.
http://ww.2knowmyself.com/psychology_of_falling_in_love/Does_loves_at_first_sight_really_exist

Pro-choice or Pro-life?

There's a continuing debate on the morality of abortion and whether it should be legal. There are those that are pro-choice and those that are pro-life. In Canada abortion is available to everyone, while in Nicaragua it's illegal. Whichever side, if any, wins wouldn't it be in some way unconstitutional? This debate has even led to violence.

I personally am pro-choice because I believe if the fetus hasn't developed to the point where it would be murder to get an abortion, then the parents should get to choose. Especially recently many teens are getting pregnant for whatever reason and aren't able to care for their babies. Isn't it better to prevent the babies' suffering than to have their mothers throw them in garbage cans, like previously done by many? I also understand abortion from a pro-life perspective, due to my religious beliefs. My strongest belief is pro-choice gives the person a chance to choose, so if a particular person is against abortion they can keep their baby either way, and if a person decides they're not ready for a child they can get an abortion.

Are you pro-choice or pro-life, or a little of both like me?

A Pro or Con?

This is a piece of Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem.

NATURE

A subtle chain of countless rings

The next unto the farthest brings;

The eye reads omens where it goes,

And speaks all languages the rose;

And, striving to be man, the worm

Mounts through all the spires of form.

This poem symbolizes how everything in nature is intertwined. Nature is international and surrounds us from every angle. We should enjoy an original relation to the universe and do our best to keep in tact with nature. Nature is trustworthy and strives even when other things don't. Changes keep occurring in the world, there are new men, new lands, new thoughts, but the sun rises everyday on its own.

Being in the 21st century, we take nature for granted. Ever since technology started taking over people have forgotten about the natural part of the world. Not just the visual of nature but the nature of doing things for ourselves, of walking instead of driving or hand washing instead of washing machines. Teenagers are effected most by technology, new gadgets are introduced daily and teens can't seem to live without them. Sure things are faster and easier, but is this more of a pro or con?

Do you have a messy room?

http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/shel_silverstein/poems/14818

This is a unique and cute poem by Shel Silverstein. Usually poems are known to have a deeper meaning but this one is plain and simple. I love poems that make you think and read in between the lines but I chose this one because it wasn't like the others. It was funny and spontaneous. Throughout reading it I thought there would be a lesson to keep your room clean but there really wasn't.

Poems are great for finding any kind of feelings within yourself. This poem brought a smile to my face while many others bring frowns. Those that bring frowns are just as good as those that bring smiles, they're just different. Overall I love poems, they're like paragraphs that are capable of fitting the meanings and themes of a whole novel. Hopefully this poem makes you smile, or even reminds you of yourself.

Like highlighters

After learning about Fauvism I realized it's probably my favorite type of art. The painting above is called Fauvism Flowers, by Karen Fields. You can tell it's Fauvism by the extreme colors and power of this painting. It caught my eye immediately, it's so pretty. My favorite thing about it is how the stems are composed of so many different colors but still give the effect of real stems.

This is a simple picture of flowers but yet it can still evoke feelings. Personally, it makes me feel happy and hurts my eyes a little. The colors excite me like a little kid in the candy store. Colors aren't this intense in reality, that's why I like Fauvism it's an escape from reality into a vibrant world of colors. I'd love to learn how to paint like this.

No InBetweens

As I watch channel 188 MTV hits, I noticed there's some Spanish music also. I don't think it's fair to put Spanish and American music but not songs in other languages. I'd understand if it was only American because it's an American channel but then why include Spanish music. Don't get me wrong I like all kinds of music but for some reason I feel like the channel should be either international or not at all. It would broaden every one's horizons.

People watching that channel only see what's in front of them, so why not show them what it's like outside the box? There would be so much more appreciation and love for other cultures and their music if people grew up with a truly eclectic surrounding of songs. It's not a problem if they don't understand the language because a touching song will touch you in any language. I myself listen to songs where I have no idea what they're saying but the way the song is sung affects me and allows me to love it. In my opinion it would be a good thing to open the minds of American people, especially because there are so many different ethnic groups we're surrounded by daily.


Below is just an example, a song in a language other than English and if you read the commentary you'll see different groups of people, like Spanish and Germans, loved this song. The name of the song is Prosti Za Liubov (Forgive for the Love).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CTWNH7UHhzQ&feature=related