6. Crocodiles 2024

 “People hate helping others, but love to correct them.”  A profound piece of advice I randomly encountered on the internet, possibly providing the best life-hack I’ve ever learned. If you are stuck on a certain task and want genuine advice, you simply cannot ask the question and expect an answer. You will have to answer your own question, but in an entirely incorrect way. So remotely wrong to the point where these people will have no choice but to show off how much more control and knowledge they have over you, all out of genuine shock for your cluelessness.  There, you’ll have your answer, crystal clear. Unfortunately, that is the reality we are forced to endure. There will be times where we end up being the know-it-all, as there will be times where we become the questioning.  And in more times than we think, we have no choice but to appear powerless to others in order for things to go the way we want them to. Because well, we can’t just ask for advice or power and...

Music and Spreading a Movement When was the last time you went on a run or worked out? How many of these times were you listening to music? most of the time right? Music has a profound impact on its listeners. As David Goggins famously says “Music is cheating.”  Music has been a powerful tool to help influence and motivate ourselves for causes—whether it be physical or mental but also a movement as a whole. Especially protest songs.  I am sure everyone is familiar with the Black Lives Matter movement which began in 2013 and gained large tailwinds in 2014 and the years after. These years were plagued by the appalling deaths of “Trayon Martin, Michael Brown, Eric Garner, and Rekia Boyd” and sadly followed by multiple more African Americans ( Source ). Following these deaths were large uproars from the American community which morphed the Black Lives Matter movement.  Source One such tool used was music. Hip-hop artists and rapper J. Cole released a single following the deat...

We all know at least a few iconic ads and ad slogans. Nike’s “Just Do It.” Toyota’s “Let’s Go Places.” The gecko from Geico (“15 minutes can save you 15% or more on car insurance”). McDonald’s little jingle. You get the point; there are an endless multitude of iconic and memorable ads. There’s no doubt that good advertising works. It’s why companies spend millions of dollars on advertising every year. But that isn’t necessarily a good thing.  For one, advertising is in part responsible for our culture of overconsumption. After all, advertising convinces us that we need things even when we don’t. Then, there’s the instances when advertising is used to promote harmful products. Perhaps the most notorious example is cigarettes. Before the harms of cigarettes became widely known, before cigarette advertising became strictly regulated, cigarettes were advertised everywhere in ways that are highly concerning to us now. For example, the advertisements for cigarettes featuring babies or th...

In the difficult journey of adolescence, a prying and all-too-common struggle for us is recognizing our self-worth. With the pressures of school, fitting in, and trying to figure out who we really are, we quickly lose our confidence, making room in our mind for insecurities and negative self-talk.  Being a teenager is hard. Everyone seems to have an opinion about us, and it's easy to let those external voices drown out our own beliefs. However, the most important opinion about ourselves is the one we hold within. Confidence, which stems from self-worth, is a kind of superpower. When we carry ourselves with assurance, it not only earns us respect but also shapes how others see us. People tend to believe what we say about ourselves, and projecting confidence becomes a tool to influence how we are perceived. The way we feel about ourselves reflects in the way others treat us. Living with a strong sense of self-worth is not only about looking good or being popular. It is a mindset that...

Does being in a position of power at work, with friends, or in a romantic relationship create happiness? While many of us may think no, a 2013 psychology study suggests otherwise. Yona Kifler and colleagues from the University of Tel Aviv found that on average over 16% of those in power felt more satisfied with their life. They observed that this trend was most conspicuous in the workplace, where high-ranking employees felt 26% happier than “powerless employees.”   The Wall Street Journal On the other hand, the power-happiness association was almost nonexistent in friendship and romantic relationships . The researchers reasoned that people feel more authentic and congruent to their desires when in power, which in turn, elevates levels of happiness. But because familial and friendly relationships are associated with a sense of community rather than hierarchy, power is “less important” in these circumstances. Kifler’s study reveals a crucial reality about human nature: we like to fl...

The internet. What is it? Does it “uplift” society? Or does it “deteriorate” the minds of its users? Regardless of how a person uses the internet, it is safe to say it is a central part of society. Being the key to free access to an infinite library of information, the internet takes up more of our attention every year. This attention has become the currency of the modern era, from monetization through ads to employment productivity in large companies. However, since attention equates to money in the contemporary economy, people struggle to hold onto their attention as it is stolen by apps meticulously designed to do so-- this strips away their control over their lives. We see this every day, people binge Netflix shows on the weekend, causing them to have a night of poor sleep on Sundays before their work week begins, Gen Z consumes averages of four to six hours of screen time on their phones, and the drop in productivity experienced by the dwindling of people's attention span due ...

Picture this situation:  You are exhausted after finishing a large amount of work.  You decide to take a break.  You pick up your phone and open Youtube or Instagram. Sound familiar? From what I have seen, this is a common occurrence in the lives of many students. Scrolling through social media is an addicting option for students because it allows them to be entertained with no effort.  With this popularity, social media is powerful. It heavily impacts the perspective of many students as it is often their only source of news. Adolescents learn about the ongoing events in their world through the posts that they see on social media.  I can speak from experience on this. I usually do not pay attention to the news, except when I see something interesting on social media. Just yesterday, I saw a video about protesters throwing food on the Mona Lisa. I would have been oblivious to this ongoing situation if this video had not shown up on my social media.  This may...

Overlooked Pinterest      Countless things that surround us in our daily lives have an influence on us. Our families, home life, school, social media, etc. One of the things that influence us, whether we notice it or not, are tv shows. Throughout the nation, people all over the world watch tv shows selected to their liking. But as we connect cornea to screen we become encapsulated and unconsciously immersed into the lives and charisma of the characters, living vicariously through them.       But when we turn the tv off, our life of drama and adventure die as our characters fade away and reveal an empty screen, right? Wrong.       Our vicarious living actually lives on, through a newfound persona, and character. This facade is unconscious and remarkably resembles the personalities we see in our tv shows. These adaptations are dynamic and dependent upon the show you are currently watching. This also applies to movies, plays, and musi...

America was founded on the promise of power to the people. No longer would a monarch or merely an elite few rule over the masses. Instead, America would be a democracy exemplifying the ideals of liberty and equality. Of course, even from its inception, this was not exactly true; in the beginning, the right to vote was limited to only a select few — more than before, certainly, but far from a true democracy where power was truly vested in the masses. Image from  CalMatters America has come a long way since. Largely through the efforts of civil rights activists, suffragettes, and other activists, many marginalized groups who previously did not have voting rights gained enfranchisement over the years. So, now that the majority of citizens in the United States do have voting rights, does the power lie with the people? Well, kind of. As previously mentioned, America has undoubtedly progressed from its founding days, when mostly only white men with property could vote. But America is sti...

I apologize to all of you new blog cohorts in advance. Reading these next 8 blogs that consistently reach the 500 word-limit may seem like such a chore and could create a new inconvenience for you for the next couple of months. But while I may have the ability to make my disarrayed ideas come to life in the form of a mini essay, you actually have more power over my writing than you think. You have the power to interpret my words into an entirely different meaning. Or the power to critique my writing. Or even the power to add new ideas and perspectives, further developing my writing. This relationship we will form as fellow cohorts represents quite a common use of power in the real world.  Unfortunately, so many people are under the belief that they have so much control over others. They take advantage of this raw power and will do everything they can to make sure that you know who is in charge. That you feel helpless. The victim of their power. They choose to ignore the truth and t...

What is power? Power, a term embedded in the fabric of our society, goes beyond the textbook definitions we encounter in our academic journeys. While the basics define power as the ability to influence or control, its true essence extends far beyond these conventional boundaries, tapping into something much deeper within our humanity. At its surface, power is often associated with authority, dominance, and control—visible in political structures and economic systems. But as we navigate the complexities of human relationships, we uncover a more profound and transformative force: the power of love . Love, universally recognized as a deep affection, possesses a unique power that shapes individuals and societies. Unlike traditional power dynamics, the power of love doesn't rely on coercion but instead thrives in its ability to inspire, connect, and uplift. Within personal connections, the power of love fosters understanding, compassion, and empathy, creating meaningful bonds and unity ...

What is the line between diplomacy and war? Diplomacy has guided foreign and domestic relations for centuries, but when it fails war is likely to ensue. Take the Civil War, for example. This fight over slavery was the deadliest war in American history with a death toll of 600,000. Yet the North and South were able to resume relations, despite their ferocious disagreement about slavery. This can be attributed to the remarkable diplomacy and willingness to compromise shown by both Union and Confederate leaders. Ulysses S. Grant pushed for conditions that held the Confederate states responsible, but did not alienate them. Slavery was abolished forever, but the respect with which both sides viewed each other never faltered.  Before diplomacy, war was the first and only option. One side won and the other lost; there was no in-between. Through war, we have lost whole populations, religions, and beliefs. They shaped the modern world. Just imagine the state of the United States without the...

 My family and I went on a ten-day-long vacation to Costa Rica during winter break. During this time, we visited numerous locations in the tropical country. Due to this constant changing of location, we were required to travel in vans--a lot. Costa Rica's national language is Spanish--the same language I spent three years learning. Since I was the only one who could remotely understand and speak the language, I was the medium of communication between my parents and our driver. Did the years of honing my ability to understand the intricacies of the linguistic arts of Spanish help me converse with native speakers? Yes--to an extent. Although I had not practiced the language for around seven months, I could hold casual conversations at a slow rate. However, whenever a native speaker spoke at their accustomed tempo, I found myself constantly asking them if they could repeat themselves--often not understanding them after their reiteration. Despite my lack of fluency, my little understan...

Power in the Hands of Another          Are our lives truly ours? Or are they portrayed as such in order to conceal the fact that they truly aren't?      History can answer this question better than anyone. For centuries, time after time, historical events showcase and prove to us that the power over our lives lies in the hands of a higher authority. The Great Depression is a great example of this. Caused by the Stock Market Crash of 1929 , the Depression was kickstarted by higher interest rates, overprodction of agriculture, and overinflated shares. This era took a great toll on the nation's lives as unemployment rates and reduced incomes due to bank failures held an immense amount of power over the way people could survive.  Inflation Stock Illustrations      During this time of economic devastation, a substantial amount of the government's money was enlisted towards the support of the aftermath of World War I. With the increa...

 Who is Considered an Artist? My father this Friday noticed our school’s three day weekend which prompted him to subsequently recommend we watch one of his favorite movies: The Last Vermeer . The film is based on a true story. The story took place after World War Two in the Netherlands where allied officials and local military were working on tracking down Natzi spies and rebuilding the country from the wreckage caused by the war efforts. Captain Joseph, the protagonist of the film, was tasked by the allied army to locate stolen paintings from the Natzis and uncover the network of informants which supplied Hitler with his massive art collection. Captain Joseph began his investigation through a note which mentioned a certain Han Van Meegeren sold a newly discovered Vermeer painting for 1.6 million Dutch guilders, a record setting amount in 1945. Meegeren was taken into custody where he was accused of colluding with the enemy by supplying Natzi's invaluable Dutch art.  Source Fa...

A few years ago, I read Animal Farm by George Orwell. Although the book seemed unexciting at first, it quickly became a captivating story that highlighted an inherent property of power. In the book, the animals on the farm rebel against their human owners and establish their own rule. They create a class hierarchy based on the “reputation” of each species. In particular, the pigs, who are considered the smartest, give the orders and are excused from working.  However, as time passes, the pigs increasingly abuse their power, eventually becoming exactly like the humans that they hated—living in the house, eating human food, drinking human drinks, etc. The situation on the farm comes full circle: the other animals are forced to live in difficult conditions like before, but instead of humans ruling over them, it is now the pigs.  The story interested me because it was a wonderful use of symbolism to illustrate how power can corrupt people and make them greedy. The pigs, who were ...