#25 Belonging

As lame as it sounds, I identify really well with the people I work with. We are all working together to achieve the same goal and make the store money so I guess that is part of it. But I also enjoy that I work with people of all ages, me being the youngest so you learn more things about each other and life itself. For example, I’d talk about a class I’m taking and they would be like “when I was in high school…” and the story would lead on from there. A lot of us enjoy the same TV shows and have other things in common. Even though most of them have kids and mortgages and I have neither, I still find it easy to fit in, as I slowly loose the "new girl" status.

#23 Oscar Pistorius

I don’t think he should have been able to compete. As rude as sounds, the Olympics are for able bodied people, and the Paralympics are for those who are not. From what I understand he competed in both. I don’t that was fair at all. He should have been only allowed to compete in the Paralympics. As far as the advantages go for him against a normal runner I don’t think there are many because I’m sure there are things that he has to worry about that we don’t. People are only looking at how he doesn’t get shin splits and what not. This is why I think he should only be allowed to compete in the Paralympics and end all this controversy.

#24 lions, zebras, tigers oh my

I think we can apply the lessons of the zebra in IDCI by coming together instead of social separation we all think is necessary to survive the hallways of high school. We could accomplish so much more if we weren’t worried about being seen with someone “uncool”. For example, stair climb was such a huge success this year because we all came together to raise money. Everyone got on that bus sitting beside people they don’t even know, to come and cheer and support IDCI for a good cause. If we could have that much enthusiasm and support for everything our school did we would go down in history. I’m sure a little friendly competition added to this as well… but we can pretend it didn’t.

#22 Petraus

I have very strong opinions on this subject. In my opinion I think that a person with bad morals cannot be a good leader. I think that a person’s morals and the way thy act outside of their job affects the decisions being made and how they do their job. The head of the CIA is a very important position and I think that having a good sense of right or wrong is needed for this person to succeed and keep America safe. This scandal also sets a bad example for young Americans who look up to Mr. Petraus may be discouraged. This also gives the allies of the United States a bad look about the CIA and its reliability in international affairs which require the utmost secrecy.

#21 Lance Armstrong

I’m a bit of a fence sitter when it comes to this one. On my right hand I say used all these drugs, lied to everyone for so long, ran all these campaigns saying he wouldn’t do that, and how it’s all about hard work, all the while running livestrong and being a hero to most with cancer leaving them with the mentality that “I can do anything if I work hard enough, just look at Lance.” But then on my left hand I think if they were all doping, then he was just the best at doping. He still had to work hard to win that many times. He still had to beat cancer and he still donated a huge amount of money to help stop cancer and to help all these people that look up to him. No he may not be the most fantastic, Nelson Mandela/ Ghandi/God but we can’t strip him of the good that came out of his wins. He may not deserve those metals, but as far as I can tell neither does anyone else in those races.

#18 Me Mentality

My favourite part of that was “the gap between the principle and the practice is impossible to miss” because it really is. The gap is getting bigger and bigger every day. Practice what you preach. Otherwise why preach, if you’re not listening to yourself why would you expect others to? I think it’s a very big deal that only 10% stopped. It really shows how were just caught up in our own lives, going day to day to look after ourselves and our families we forget all about caring for other people and even the planet. I’m no ecowarrior but when I think about how much I was every day it disgusts me. It also disgusts me the judgemental comments that go through my head as I’m at school or watching TV. I really start to wonder how I got this bad. I really hate when people use the word “gay” instead of stupid, but I use the expression “that’s retarded”. Now tell me that isn’t the exact same thing, I’m such a hypocrite as a sit here and tell the people who didn’t stop to help the shabby old man that they in fact are hypocrites. I think that was a bit of self-realization right there…

#17 Amanda Todd

I have yet to decide how I feel about all this. On one hand I want to say she was a slut and she did this to herself. It was her choice to send nudes, that was her terrible decision and she has to live with the consequences. When she could deal with them anymore she gave up. She made those videos for attention. She wanted people to know about her and what she had done. She wanted pity but instead she got bullied. Where on the other hand I am thinking, she was young and stupid and we all make mistakes it just terrible that this mistake will follow her as long as she makes it a big deal in her life. We all make mistakes and no one is perfect but it’s how you handle the mistakes and learn from them that make you who you are. Amanda Todd chose wrongly and she suffered for that reason. People are mean yes, but no I do not feel bad for her or anyone else in situations similar. I tried to post Hannah Montanas "Noboy's Perfect" song to this blog but it didn't work out... feel free to youtube it while reading this.