Forbidden Article

after working on this piece for MONTHS changing it numerous times to THEIR specifications, the "administration" flat out said that [he] did not like it and now it will NOT appear in the coming magazine. you might have guessed that the "I am angry..." note/poem I wrote is in reference to this situation. this is the final result of the article. Please read it

Definition Dating

-From holding hands to wedding bells

We all know teenagers date, but do we truly understand the purpose of dating? Even though not all of us have gone out on a real date, it is safe to say that most are familiar with the subject. However, one’s familiarity with a subject does not mean that most understand what they are doing or even why they are doing it.  Some date strictly for the purpose of marriage, while others take it lightly, dating for the sole purpose of meeting some personal, internal need. The following statement demonstrates what many people believe to be true about dating. “Dating should be less about matching outward circumstances than meeting your inner necessity.” It seems as time goes on, teenagers are not looking for a serious relationship, but rather look at dating as a sport, the more people you date, the cooler you are. There has been a significant evolution of this ritual, but its purpose has been misconstrued, and therefore, it is essential to evaluate the changing trends in dating, but more importantly, define the practice in biblical terms.

“In the early 1900s, love and romantic feelings became more important in choosing a partner” (history of dating & courtship ehow.com). In the 1950s, family was a huge part of the dating culture. Both sets of parents were very involved in the couples’ lives and their approval meant everything. In those days, parents were stricter and set clearly established rules for their children, especially when it came to dating, whereas today, many parents never even discipline their kids because they are too concerned with being their “friend”. Not to say all parents are like this, in fact there are still many that do establish those rules. In addition to the importance of family, church also played a key role in relationships. If you look around today, people have strayed quite far from how dating used to be practiced, which was more conservative, and focused more on community, thereby reducing the opportunity for temptation. Group dates were common and the family was actively involved. When asked if he noticed any changes in the practice of dating over the years, after being with his wife for over 30 years, Mr. Williams, the leader of a home Bible study for Calvary Chapel Moreno Valley, had this to say: “It definitely has gotten worse, and what I mean is the freedom people think they have without consequences. However, there are always consequences; you will reap what you sow.” In Galatians 6:7 it says, “do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” In today’s culture, people seem very lax about staying pure, and think that they can do whatever they want. Sexually transmitted diseases did not come from married monogamous couples but rather, STDs were born in the bed of fornication. In 1 Corinthians 10:8 it says: “We should not commit sexual immorality, as some of them did-and in one day twenty-three thousand of them died.”

Brandon Williams, currently in a meaningful relationship, heading toward marriage, and one of Mr. Williams’ sons, was asked what the restrictions should be with dating, after talking about how most people share experiences with multiple partners, he replied “It’s no longer special, it’s no longer sacred, which marriage is supposed to be.” If you continually go out and even kiss a bunch of people, once you finally find the person you want to marry, the kiss you share with them will not be as special or significant. Marriage, as made clear in the Bible is a sacred union between a man and a woman. “The man who finds a wife finds a treasure and receives favor from the LORD.” Proverbs 18:22

What is considered socially acceptable in our society is clearly depicted in the TV shows, movies, advertisements and by the behavior of the people we revere, (i.e. celebrities). Instead of taking guidance from the wise, we look to celebrities and the media to learn how to behave. As written in the book of Proverbs, chapter one verse five, “A wise man will hear and increase learning, and a man of understanding will attain wise counsel.” It is important to listen to those around you who are wise, as they will lead you in the right direction. It is crucial to distinguish good advice from bad. If someone is telling you things which go against what everyone else is telling you, especially the Bible, do not take their advice to heart. Surround yourselves with uplifting and wise people. Mr. Williams advises to “heed some of that wisdom, listen to what people have to say, don’t run around with your eyes closed, ears plugged up, screaming at the top of your lungs.”

A question you may have is “how do I know when the person is the one I am meant to be with?” Well, dear friends, talk to God about it and focus on what is truly important, do they love God, how do they treat you, do you have anything in common? If they are the one, God will surely show you, and things will just begin to line up. Do not stay with the person if you have found, that after an ample amount of time, you are not in love, you would only be wasting their time and yours, by being with someone you do not love may make you and them miss out on meeting “the one”. Do not rush, trust in God to lead you to the right person, if you desperately look for a relationship that is what you will find, a desperate relationship that will end in heartbreak. Keeping God centered in your relationship is crucial to make it a successful one. Mr. Williams, father of seven, married for 32 years, met his wife after church at a small service called an “after glow.” Once they met, they had an instant spiritual connection and they continued to go to church together, every Sunday since then. John Williams, a son of Mr. Williams who has been with his wife for 7 years and now has two kids said, “Try to keep God centered on your relationship now, because if you don’t then by the time you are ready to get married later, it’s only going to be harder to keep Him in your relationship if He was never there. You are going to grow together in many ways and if you leave Him out then nothing you say will have anything to do with Him.. Just bring Him in to everything you do”.  

Going into this topic, we knew that we were going to learn a few new things; however, we did not expect to find out how much we really did not know. Needing to have family approval to enter into a relationship seems foreign today, however that was the way it was in the 1950s. Most people do not consider dating in high school as a dangerous activity, but it really is. In high school, most people have yet to figure out who they are, and are not mature enough to handle their own problems let alone someone else’s. Dating solely for marriage seems to be a lost cause, along with the thought of respecting one’s future spouse by saving all of who they are for them. Out off all this newfound knowledge, we learned that the center focus was still the same: Christ. God needs to be in the center of every relationship, be it romantic, between friends, or within the family. Out of all our relationships, the most important one is the one we have with Christ, our True Love.

Cisco helping Chinese spies???

A group of Falun Gong members has filed a lawsuit against Cisco. They accused Cisco of aiding the Chinese government with censorship of its citizens, including groups like the Falun Gong. "The lawsuit accuses Cisco of aggressively marketing and customizing its products for the system...with the understanding that the technology would be used for spying on dissident groups such as the Falun Gong." Cisco denies these claims, stating that they sell the same products to all nations; they did not make specific programs for China and that they do not operate outside of U.S. regulations. In the lawsuit, they name the top executives of Cisco, and they have the name of the alleged project (Golden Shield Project) that Cisco helped create. This program manipulates the content the people are searching, monitors their activity and can block things that the government does not like.
If Cisco did help the Chinese government monitor and repress its citizens, they should come out and admit their wrong doing. As we all know though, no company would do that. People would rather fight than take responsibility for their actions. Something that I would like to know, is where did this group get their information of where they got the program from. How did they come to the conclusion of Cisco? In the actual article, it mentions that because of the Golden Shield Project, some of the practitioners in their group have disappeared, been murdered, etc. Does the Chinese government recognize these claims? What is being done about the control of the government? Yes, taking down a provider of spy equipment is part of the battle, but a small part at that. These people are focusing on the wrong people.

Ban on Soda "Caramel"

There are two versions, other than the sugar caramel, that are approved to color certain products, which produce compounds shown to cause cancer in animals. The Center for Science in the Public Interest is petitioning the FDA to ban the caramels which contain ammonia, which are used to color dark-colored soft drinks. Coca-Cola Co, said that their caramel does not cause cancer. PepsiCo Inc made a call to the American Beverage Association, while Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc was not available to comment at the time of contact. Obesity is still a greater health threat from soda, but the chemical reaction between sugar and ammonia can form carcinogens and could cause someone to develop cancer The American Beverage Association responded, saying that CSPI's claim was a "scare tactic" and accused them of having no evidence that the compounds in caramel coloring actually cause cancer in humans.

This piece is journalism because it shows both sides of the argument and it allows for further research. Giving someone an opportunity to do something on their own helps them become self governing so long as they have enough information to guide them along the way. This article teaches about the dangers of drinking dark soda and if you take it further, hopefully it conveys a message of: be careful of what you put into your body.

To connect the Core Biblical Truth, Evangelism (social science) which states “God has specific directions concerning man’s relationship to both Himself and his fellow man”. If the caramel does cause cancer, and the people who produce it know, then that is going against God’s directions on man’s relationship with one another. Philippians 2:4 (NIV) “Not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” Instead of focusing on how to make a profit, they should consider the welfare of their consumers. However, if the people at CSPI are publically accusing companies of using cancer causing chemicals and they are wrong, then they would be going against God. Proverbs 12:22 (NIV) “The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in people who are trustworthy.” They should make sure to tell the truth and not be judgmental. If they unintentionally wronged the companies, they should make sure people know the truth and they made a mistake. It is important to have all the facts and to think of others before yourself.

Google vs Microsoft

Microsoft and Google have been going back and fourth fighting about who has the better search engine. Recently, Google has made a claim that the Bing results are copied from Google. They came to this conclusion by having "engineers [insert] a “honeypot” result as the top result for specific search queries". This was put in place December 17-31 and the results from Bing for those queries were identical to those from Google. Not only was Bing called out for foul play, but Google was too! Bing accused Google of using click fraud. What is next for these two search engines? Who will come out on top?  Search Engine Land has been keeping tabs on the fight and will continue to do so until one of them wins.
The purpose of journalism is to give the people information to help them become self governing. So how does this article/subject help the readers become self governing? Is this piece even journalism? It presents both sides of the argument and no obvious bias toward one side or the other; it ends off on a light note. However, it does not give the reader any useful knowledge, whether the Bing and Google searches are the same does not have a huge impact on society as a whole. I would say, that this article, according to the standards presented in class, is not "journalism"
Concerning the Core Biblical Truth of Revelation, pertaining to Language Arts, which states: "a society built on Truth reflects the true value of the individual. God reveals Himself through the order of His creation." If a society built on truth reflects the true value of the individual, how does it look for Bing to copy results from Google? Also, how does it look for Google to use click fraud to gain the upper hand? Although very uncommon, the fact still remains, that it is important...better yet, necessary for we as a people to maintain our integrity and honor by competing fairly. One should win because of their hard work and because they earn it, not because of any tricks, cheating, blackmail, bribery, etc. As Christians, we should be an example to others, even if people are being underhanded or playing dirty, we need to stand tall, because God reveals Himself through us and we should have a foundation of truth.