Gender Roles in Jersey Shore and Guys with Kids

Politics in the Sporting World

I was one of the millions of American’s who never noticed the politics involved in the hundreds of sporting events I have scene in my life. However, with what I have been exposed too I am okay with.

            Although the thought of the political world and world of sports colliding, I do believe they can coexist to an extent. It is acceptable for politics to be displayed in the form of patriotism. Having pride in our country and showing appreciation to our armed forces, brings people together for a positive cause. It adds to the bond everyone at the game already has, the love for the game and appreciation for a team; it brings them closer.           

            However, I don’t believe the promotion of war through sports with a negative connotation is not a fair argument. I don’t agree with the promotion of war in any means, but I believe the competitiveness of sports and the dedication to win draws several common metaphors to war. The same metaphors can be used for taking a college course, eating a meal, and board games.

            Politics can coexist with the world of sports, as long as it is the kind of politics discussed previously in this essay. In other countries the promotion of a type of extreme government leader is promoted and campaigning takes place out in the open—that is where I draw the line. Politics have existed in every aspect of any society and they always will but in America, as long as patriotism and appreciation for our military is displayed and promoted (to a subtle extent) it is fine with me.

Wii shall overcome, but Wii should be careful too

It’s hard to grasp the concept that playing video games could help change the world. While to some it may seem unfathomable and some completely agree; I understand the possibilities but I approach those potential ideas with complete caution. The article “Wii Shall Overcome,” does a great job of showing Jane McGonigal’s vision and pointing out the definite flaws or side effects her idea’s have.

Personally, while I understand how video games can give one the feeling of accomplishment, I feel that creating a worldwide video game so everyone can have that feeling is very dangerous. I don’t say that because not everyone deserves to have that feeling of accomplishment but rather everyone in the world deserves to have that feeling from real world accomplishments (A point the article discusses).

And while video games have raised several thousands of dollars for causes, (A great accomplishment) that money was sent to people who then used it in reality to make real things happen. That is where I feel the world can come together—a world where we can balance the use of video games and reality to accomplish great worldly feats (At least till a 1000-year-long game exists).

As time goes on society needs to open up to the idea that video games can benefit society tremendously and create a smaller world for all of us. If utilized correctly the possibilities are endless—if handled with caution. We must not allow us to become satisfied with virtual accomplishments over the one’s in the real world that are a little harder to achieve.

Questioning Gender: A slippery slope

When is questioning someone’s athletic ability go too far? I believe it went to far in the case of Caster Semenya after her gold metal performance in 2008. I say this because not only do they question whether or not she was using performance enhancing drugs but when they questioned her gender—that is taking it too far.

            I can understand how her more masculine appearance than the other women she competed against can make you take a second look but that is no reason to force a gender test. The fact that the results were never shared was a step in the right direction; however, by then the damage had already been done. The question I raise and address is: Where is the line drawn when it comes to questioning one’s athletic feats?

            For example, although no one questions Lebron James’ gender, his physic and ability are far more advance than any other athlete in the NBA make it seem as if he is almost genetically superior. If we can question a female’s gender because of her superiority on the track—can we question the genetics and DNA of male athletes? Can we question if Lebron James is a superhuman. And can we test is he is a form of an avatar?           

            My point is very simple. Caster Semenya is a woman and women stereotypically are not the dominant athlete most people think of them as; that isn’t an excuse for society to take away from their accomplishments and degrade the person and question their gender. We cannot afford to do so because it is a slippery slope. Soon we will be questioning everyone’s accomplishments and if they pass the drug tests we will find ways to alter their image of athletic superiority.

            Who knows maybe Lebron James will be placed in a league against robots if we allow society to continue down the wrong path.

My ACCEPTABLE parasocial relationship

I’ve been holding off this post awhile because I didn’t want to admit it. I have a parasocial relationship with Wiz Khalifa. Well, at least I used too in high school.

            I used to talk with my friends about what he had done the night before at some concert or what he tweeted. I acted like I hung out with him backstage or on his tour bus. I felt like I was not only his biggest fan but also his best friend or a member of his posse.

            However, I feel having parasocial relationships are acceptable in this day and age. With Facebook, Twitter, the other social networks, and YouTube celebrities are using those outlets to create these relationships in the hopes of becoming famous.

            For example, many rap artist have a cameraman filming everything they do, the video is edited, and uploaded to YouTube in a timely manner. The video makes you feel as if you are there and the artist is just hanging out with you. It has been a successful and proven method to jump-start their career to stardom.

            Many rap magazines, such as XXL, write articles about their fans having such a strong bond with the artist and how they haven’t seen movements with fans like that of rappers of this generation. Each fan has a parasocial relationship with the artist. That may be a creepy thought; millions of people think they are best friends with one person whom they never met, but it’s what they intend to do, create this false relationship and profit. These relationships should be embraced, just not taken too far. We should appreciate these celebrities letting us get a personal, inside view. No generation before ours has had the opportunity to see people through this light. Therefore they should be remain acceptable to a certain degree.

Tupac: The pursuit of masculinity BY Michael Leffler

There is a Tupac in all of us, no matter your ethnicity. That’s partially why his legend, his music, his messages will never die. There is a side of Tupac that everyone can relate with; if not the gangster mentality, than the love and appreciation for women, if not than the idolism of our mothers and their sacrifice, than the passion for the community, and the list goes on.

However, I feel Tupac became a victim of what the article described  “hypermaculinity.” This concept is something every man deals with one time or another, no matter who you are or where you are from. Reflecting on everything Tupac did both positive and negative in his lifetime, one thing was always common, no matter what perspective he displayed that day; the concept of hypermasculinity was always displayed.

One role Tupac played was Bishop, in the 1992 film Juice, always comes to mind when I think of Tupac Shakur. This is because he was playing the role of a young man in the inner city whose crew wants to gain respect, power and happiness (which is referred to as juice). However, his character Bishop cannot stop pursuing the power and respect and goes to extremes even killing to maintain the feeling of empowerment and the gangster attitude.

This comes to mind because Tupac was essentially acting a role that eventually became almost a mirror image of himself a year later. However, unlike the movie, I feel like Tupac’s rise to fame made him feel like he needed to assert his masculinity at the same pace. His over the top antics and his hypermasculinity almost seemed like an act as his fame grew.

Don’t get me wrong Tupac wasn’t fake he was one of the realest people in hip-hop’s culture. Tupac himself acknowledged his hypermasculinity as a way to get paid, thus making it seem like an act. He was incredibly smart, he knew he would have to put on a show overreact to the “East Coast/ West coast beef” as a way to maximize profit which was he ultimate goal. East Coast Rapper and rival Biggie even spoke to cameras in an interview that he asked Tupac backstage at an award show why he was doing what he was doing, he answered that he was just making money and walked away.

Tupac knew that hypermasculinity would sell; everyone wants to be the man. He portrayed himself as the man and people to this day people dress like Tupac, sing his lyrics, compared other rappers to him, get Thug Life tattooed on their skin.

Tupac accomplished his goal he made an impact, changed the world and left his mark forever. I even feel like Tupac acknowledge and foreshadowed his own death because he knew he would have to continue displaying his hypermaculinity and that he could never stop, until it would take his life. Which on September 13, 1996 it did. I also believe it may have been his goal for people to recognize this and hopefully learn from it and not become victims of their own masculinity.