Materialism is a matter of luxury.  People can’t afford things they need in their lives, but still they find a way to pay for their luxuries.  Whatever happened to as long as we’re healthy?  That is not and option anymore, now it’s not enough to be healthy.  Now you need, Nike shoes, Coach purses, Armani clothe, Channel sunglasses.  It’s never enough.  People go out of their way to follow a trend.  It’s surprising now a day how flexible people get when the word money comes around.  Materialism has really taken over the country.

            Today everything is needs versus wants, unfortunately the wants has a higher vote in our greedy nation and society.  People just got to have what they want.  Unfortunately it got to the point were people kill for their materialistic desires.  Pride has overcome principles in ways that hurts me to think about.  People are prioritizing on things that they won’t be able to take or be remembered by once they’re gone from this world. 

            Advertising definitely has a great affect on the materialistic growth on the United States.  Imagine how much easier it would be it there weren’t anyone telling you what is better for you to use, and why you should pay more for it.  It would be a lot more of an individual choice.  Materialism is rather society making the choice for you then you making the choice for yourself.  The advertisement show that you a less of a person if you are not using the product that they are promoting.  Which for the people’s vulnerable minds, it works perfect.  For people who believe that a simple human being is more special because he or she is on television, it’s very easy to make them believe that if you don’t use the same deodorant they do you are so much less.

            What you wear, how you wear it, and the reason why you buy what you buy tells a lot about you, although some people already lost their won identity because they follow so much trend and advertisement that they are no longer an individual.  Little do we know we are only one more form of advertisement.  Foolish expensive choices we make are only one more way to promote what really doesn’t make a difference if we use it or not.  We make the trend, if it doesn’t catch, it’s not a trend. 

            Another thing that amazes me is how easily people get rid of things that are in perfectly good use.  Not only the society became materialists but also compulsive buyers, if something breaks, even if it’s something simple, or you can still use it, we still buy it new.  It’s so hard for people to walk into the mall and leave empty handed.  Buying has become so much more of a pleasing hobby than a necessity.   Even through an economic crisis, with no money, people still manage to find a way to support their luxuries, and afford what they don’t need.

            In conclusion, yes, the United States is definitely a materialistic country.  I say the tendency in to get worse before it gets better, if it ever gets better.  From their childhood they already grow up learning the difference from what’s defined as good and bad.  From childhood they are judged buy what they were, were they live, and even what they eat.  People have learned to want always the best, and their foolish minds always believe that that’s the most expensive.  You could have the two same exact shirt, but their always going to buy the designers one.  All they are doing is paying for the tag, paying for their pride and their ego, paying for their luxuries, and paying for a much worse world in which to raise our kids in, which is a fantasy world, where nothing really matters but the selfishness of a human being.  I say only the future will show, lets hope it won’t be to late!

ESSAY 3 - THE INTERNET (2) -- Do you ever make personal information available online? If so, how confident are you of its security? Do you take steps to protect your privacy?

Personal information has become something a little more common on the internet.  I myself put a lot of things about my life on my network websites (such as FaceBook, Myspace, Orkut, and Fotolog).  The information I make available on those sites though are not personal enough to endanger my life, or cause me harm in anyway, at least I believe so.  On there people can get to know a little of what I like, my aim, maybe even my mobile number, the city and state I live in, but never things like my address, or social security number, which I hope nobody is stupid enough to make that personal.

            I am very careful with who I let have access to my page.  Even though I am not that innocent to think there are not other ways for people to look at my profile.  But I make sure that the stranger cannot stalk me, use my credit card, or even harm any of my friends.  The internet is a highly dangerous networking to evil.  It could be used for but just as much as for good.  I never get in to those chats, but if I ever did I would probably make up a whole new life.  I would not want some people I do not know, knowing all about me. 

            I am very confident about my security online.  The only thing that sometimes scares me a little is buying thing online.  I just find it hard to believe that there is NO WAY someone can hack in to your bank account, or get your credit card information while you are using it online.  Although it is a risk I on the couple of times I bought things online, and on the many times I logged into my bank account.
            The steps I take to protect my privacy are simple; I do not accept just anyone that I do not know to my profiles.  Strangers that want to add me for no reason at all are no appealing to my privacy protection.  Second when I can go to the bank to do what I have to do, I definitely opt for it.  I do not post online were I am going to be and what I am going to be doing at any time.  Also, keep my job information to myself.  Nobody, but the people I actually talk to and are my friends, need to know were I work.  Specially, no one needs to know my income.

            One thing that I make very personal on the internet is pictures.  I love them and try to put as many as I can.  Especially having so many friends and family I like them to see what is going on in my life.  I also believe that you can tell a lot about a person from their pictures, so I guess it gets a little more personal.  I do try to make them as private as possible though, but now a day there are ways around every private setting online.  I know I am doing my part, and if anything happens to me because of lack of internet privacy, it wont be my fault;  because I cant just stop totally putting things online, and letting people ho are looking at it with the right eye without seeing and keeping in touch just because I think someone might see it. 

            Bottom line is, personal information is available online, in my opinion for everyone.  The real question would be how personal.  How far can you get with that information?  How well can you know me with it?  Personalities are very well expressed online.  Even with fake identification.  The internet is never going to be fully secure.  There is always going to be someone who knows a way around something.  With that in mind, I am never one hundred percent sure about any security online, but it is definitely a risk I want to take.  In my own terms of course!

 

Over the years my book reading habits have changed radically. Now that I stop to think about it it is pretty interesting to go through it. When I started reading I would read all the time, every book I saw was interesting and every sign on the street was just a highlight in my day. Just could not get enough of it. When I got a little older I found out about this comic book in Brazil, I loved it, I would buy it every time it came out. As time went by teachers started asking for me to read books for projects and tests. That’s when I found out books were way beyond just written stories.
I’m very proud of my book reading habits, first because I actually have one and second because it has evolved during the years. I went from comic books, to little cute stories, to autobiographies, and so on. I find it really interesting how much I have learned even from stories that are fictional. Books have been a very applicable entertaining method in my life for about 15 years, almost as a habit. I am always reading a book, I finish one, I already have another one in mind that I want to read.
My favorite author is actually Brazilian, her name is Valeria Piassa, she wrote my all time favorite book that is an autobiography, she is a girl who contracted aids when she as fifteen, and had to learn to live with it. I loved it! I also like Meg Cabot, Marian Keyes, and Pedro Bandeira (another Brazilian author). Most of my favorite authors are Brazilian, and some of them I like, but haven’t read more than one book they wrote. I like reading autobiographies, romances, humor, and a little of mystery never did anyone bad.
I like pleasing stories, that I can either relate, or feel that has a meaning. I don’t like reading with no purpose. I like stories that have me wondering what happens next, and that makes sense. Your probably thinking everybody wants books with stories that make sense, but that’s not true, for some people it does not even have to be a story, it can just be a book about something specific (like animals, or a certain specific topic they like).
Now a days television is ruining the whole magic of books. Instead of picturing what is happening and making your own scenery, having a story in your head. Television makes it all very easy; I like to call it the lazy book. It is a story but you do not really need to use your mind, do any effort for it. It is all there, ready to watch, no imagination necessary. The latest generation is getting very much like that, everything in hand, so easy; no wonder obesity percentage is growing. Now a days there is no need for effort in anything, sot even to use your mind.
Even bed time stories are being ruined for “watch a little television before going to sleep”. Books are fading away, and that is just like a treasure being buried. Kids now a days have no appreciation for books. It is in the little things such as books reading habits that you can actually preview what the world is going to be like fifteen or twenty years from now. It seems really small, but it ends up having a bigger effect then anyone can imagine.
I know my reading habits are going to remain, and be passed on, because I know the effect it had on me. Like I said, its also a habit, having a night stand book, that you read at least a chapter before going to sleep, unless your too curious, then you just have read more. There are many good, diferent authors in the world and they each write about so many diferenct things. I’m sure there is at least one book in the world that every person world be interested in reading, for it is a very broad selection. If one says they don’t have a reading habit, they either haven’t found that one book that has hooked them to this amazing experience, or the laziness of this century has contaminated their mind as deeply as that, but don’t worry, THERE IS ALWAYS HOPE!