Saturday, April 25, 2009

The 'Boyle-ing" Point

What can you tell about a person by the way they look? This was the questions that A.B.L.E. started with as we waded into the global debate about the look, feel, and voice of Scottish singing sensation Susan Boyle. Why did the crowd initially laugh when she appeared on the stage? Should Ms. Boyle have a makeover? Should people in the words of Washington Post style writer, Robin Givhan, strive to be "the best version of yourself". What do adolescents hear in the conversations about Susan Boyle?

I think that Susan Boyle should just get a makeover. Why, because she really isn't that popular and the one thing that all up-and coming musical star needs is a cool fashion statement. Society puts a lot of emphasis on a women's looks. Probably because the people we call "society" are probably a bunch of guy who work in cubicles and are bored. So they make calculations and statments about women. Yes "we" treat people by the way they look and especially if they are what I call "Ugly". I think I myself and my followers do this because it makes me feel better about myself. I get a kick out of it and it secures me from boredom.

A. J.


Well after watching Susan Boyle, you learn a lot by the way people dress. You learn that you should not judge a person by their looks or how they dress. You never know what people hold on the inside. Susan looked like a normal British woman, but really she was a woman with an extraordinary voice, and a kind heart.

Anonymous

People were laughing because of how she looked. She looked like she could not sing, and a?little ditzy. She also wasn't the most attractive woman. The audience changed their reaction because she had a great voice. I don't think Susan should have a makeover. She should dress how she wants to. Its her style, it's her. Plus we are going to be so blown away by her voice when she starts singing we wont even care what she has on, just like on British Idol.

Anonymous

I don't know why society puts so much importance on a woman's looks. I guess because woman are SUPPOSE to always look good. That's just the image that people, society, and the media say you should look.

If the person is friendly, and we have a connection, we spark a conversation, then ok, im not just gonna talk to them, or not talk to them because their not attractive to me. You know what they say?"One man trash, Is another man treasure.

Anonymous

Susan Boyle shouldn't have a makeover because it will destroy the whole
purpose her fans love and admire her. Society places appearances first for
women because they believe women should always have beauty and sex appeal.
Thats just the way we think. In general i think we as a society treat better
looking people better than people we define as ugly because thats the way
people think. Movie Stars are "beautiful" Models Actors, Talk Show Hosts,
Rich People all look beautiful in our society because of the message they
send to people and the impression they give. When people look "ugly" they
give off the impression that they are a loser, or they have no ambition,
they don't know what they are what they are doing. That is frowned upon in
our society.**

ZZ

At times I can tell people's personality through Their clothes because if they wear bulky clothes, that means that they don't have that much self esteem. If they wear clothes that show off their skin, that means that they have good self esteem. I don't think she should get one if she doesn't want it. I think as long as she can sing, that she doesn't need a makeover. I don't think that people should judge other people by their looks . I think they should judge them by their personality.

K.S.


I think the reason why they laughed at Susan Boyle because of the way she dress and maybe she looked old. After they heard her sing i think they felt bad because they were talking about her and judging her by her appearance.
i do not think Susan Boyle needs a makeover, but she could use some tips on her hair and what she's wearing. So if she wanted to become a professional singer then she should think about her appearance and her fans.

D.P.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

The Hosea Project Conversation

"Our children are suffering for lack of knowledge." (Hosea 4:6)

Each week a group of the young men in the A.B.L.E. Program sit down together for an hour to talk about issues that are impacting their daily lives. Over the course of the school year we have discussed what life is like for young men living in Washington, DC., We discuss students' expecations about school, friendship, and most recently the biggest challenges they are facing and their views on 'Zero Tolerance' policies in schools. Below are two brief reflections about the on-going Hosea Project conversation:

My biggest upcoming challenge is going to be getting ready for the SAT and getting ready to prepare for colleges. Studying for the SAT is going to be a major challenge in my near future because it will determine which colleges I will even have a chance at getting into depending on what I get on it. I am applying to very prestigious colleges so it I will need toe try my best in the upcoming year because it is probably the of the most important years of my high school career. I do believe that boys and girls each respond to conflicts differently because everyone is there own person so they cannot all be the exact same. This in essence says that not even people within there own gender have the same reactions since no one is the same. The "zero tolerance" rules do not work because they are not enforced and I also believe there focus on what they should be enforced on is wrong. I believe that there should be no "zero tolerance" because they7 kids should be punished but while learning what mistake they made so they will not make it again. This alternative is much better because kids may learn their mistakes and they won't forfeit there education that school. These were my answers during our enlightening conversation that took place.

J.C.


The discussion that I had was a great one. We discussed the things that are the biggest challenges in you school right now and I said that the hardest thing was peer presure. Then we talked about how our schools have no tollerance for certian things such as; fighting, drugs, and cursing. When I spoke I said that my school is very strict I also said that my school has no tolerance for anything such as; fighting, cursing, writing on the walls, and drugs. Then we talked about mistakes we have made and things we wish that we could take back and I said that when I was in my last semester in middle school and I didn't do good and I was lazy and I didn't get accepted to the school that I wanted to and i couldn't go there.

R. Short

Growing Pains: A No-Win Situation


My biggest problem in school is that I get physically hurt every day. Being smart is a no-win situation. I feel as though as there is no point in learning if I have to take all this mess getting teased every day. Another problem is when th teacher asks who did what,the girls start acting like they didn't do anything,while the boys start laughing because they make jokes about it, being stupid. Another no-win situation when they blame it on you. If everybody looks at you. Once they look at you, it’s a losing vote when schools have zero tolerance you feel like you are restricted and you want to literally fight back. You question your power,like it’s a weak paper plate. My mom always says I have no power. I feel more and more rebellious,I’m definetely not going to accept having no power.


A. Langston Saunders