Link to episode –>  http://www.cbs.com/shows/how_i_met_your_mother/playlist

The reactions to this very, to put it simply, messed up episode were very angry and blunt. And honestly, the members of the audience who were offended by the statements that were made during the episode had every right to be angry. The number of people enraged by the episode’s crude stereotypes and racial tributes, forced the creators to publicly apologize.

Sources:

http://ideas.time.com/2014/01/17/dear-how-i-met-your-mother-asian-is-not-a-costume/

http://www.cnn.com/2014/01/15/showbiz/how-i-met-your-mother-controversy/

http://www.usmagazine.com/entertainment/news/how-i-met-your-mother-creators-apologize-for-racist-asian-episode-2014161

(Will write more on this at a later time/date)

Challenger

The Challenger Disaster happened on January 28, 1986 (a year after my sister was born). 73 seconds into its flight, its broke into pieces, leading to the death of its seven crew members. One of them including Ellison Onizuka. Onizuka was born in Hawaii in 1946 and was Asian American.

Paull Shin

He was born in Korea in 1935 and orphaned by the age of four. He came to America in 1954. He knew little English and had little education from Korea but still completed his GED in 18 months. He went on to earn degress from Brigham Young University, University of Pittsburgh, and University of Washington. He later became the first Korean American to be elected to Washington State legislative.

WWII Stragglers

The WWII stragglers were Japanese soldiers that didn’t know the war ending and continued fighting for years after the fact.

HIMYM

I watch How I Met Your mother often and I completely love the show. This past week, they aired an episode in which Marshal told the tales of him traveling to China to learn the ways of the slap to give Barney the most painful slap of his life. Honestly, when I first watched it, nothing fazed me. But in class when Chico asked us to research HIMYM I knew exactly what they were speaking of.

I don’t know why it did’t faze me. It could be a few things. I guess I also assume best intentions and I knew they didn’t intentionally  mean to hurt anyone’s feelings. Maybe it’s because there are so many things, TO THIS DAY of people doing black face, and ‘wiggers’ and ‘wangsters’ that I’m numb to all of it. Maybe it’s because I make fun of myself all the time, I believe in laughing at yourself and finding the humor in stereotypes. Maybe I’m completely wrong, a lot of things just don’t get under my skin I guess.

I’m not saying this makes it right. I understand why people might be upset. I can just see both sides.

My name is Stacey,but, everyone calls me Raven because it my native name and the one that prefer except a pet name that my husband calls me. Which means I am not telling what that is.
I am studying to be a historian of World War II with an emphasis on the Holocaust and the recovery of stolen artworks of that period. My life revolves around some of the darkest periods in the 20th century and tends to be rather depressing with the exception of the resistance. I am hoping to attend grad school next year in England so I can be closer to home and my mouldering books in the library.
I have varied interests that include music, the study of murder and serial killers, books, Dr. Who,Star Trek,movies and gaming both virtual and board. I sing too.
I speak Dutch poorly,however, I understand and read it fairly well.
In the off-season I live in fabulous Antwerp,Belgium hence the reason for speaking Dutch. At the moment trying to keep up with the Dutch so don’t forget and sound like an idiot when I go home.
As far as to why I am in this class…seemed like the thing to do since I know next to nothing about a population of folks that I grew up around here in the Pacific-Northwest plus it looked interesting.

Washington state Senator Paull Shin’s story is one that I feel would inspire anyone to continue to reach for their goals no matter the cards they were dealt. Shin who was born in Korea, was orphaned at a young age, and came to America after being adopted by a U.S. soldier during the Korean War. Shin would go on to earn a PhD from the University of Washington even though he wasn’t able to read until he was in his teenage years. In 1992 he was elected to the Washington state House of Representatives becoming the first Korean American to be elected to the Washington State Legislature. His presence as an immigrant who had made it to a position in the political arena inspired many other immigrants to follow their dreams whether it involved earning a seat in political office or just improving their lives in their adopted country. Unfortanatly Shin had to resign his post, now in the Washington State Senate, on January 7th due to being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. However state Senator Shin without a doubt has made an impact on many lives through his work in office, and through his inspiring story of triumph even when the odds were stacked against him.

The moment when the viewer can connect to a movie on an emotional level, that is the moment that movie artists should strive for. If the creator is not crying while they make their piece, then (more often than not) neither will the audience when they view the piece.

This will be the second time that I have seen this movie, and this is the second time that it has grabbed me by the heartstrings and dragged me into a state of raw emotion. Did I cry? No. This does not mean that I was not touched by it. The statement of being an outcast because of background; truly hit me in more ways than one. The journey to find where you belong is long and difficult, some people never even find what they are searching for. For others, the journey comes full circle.

(More to come later)

“If you repeat something enough times, it becomes a part of you”

I’m 17, and this worries me. I don’t like the idea of being who I am five years from now. I’m clumsy and shy and I have no idea what I’m doing after graduation. All three schools that I applied to could reject me? What then? I’m not like the smart kids at my school. I just get by. I don’t want my habits to be a part of me. I don’t even know who ‘me’ is.

I don’t get how girls like Stephanie have everything. Like seriously? Three honors classes, a cheerleader and she has time for a boyfriend? She’s like every parents dream. Perfect. Or the guys on the academic decathlon team? I mean, I heard they’re like drug dealers and hired a hooker when they went to Vegas. It could all be bullshit but what if it isn’t? How are they balancing all of this? I’m barely managing my classes and they’re over here living the high school dream!

One of them is named Ben and he’s ridiculously cute but it’s obvious he’s in love with Stephanie. Told you she’s perfect, has a boyfriend and still has guys drooling over her. I don’t blame him for liking her though, he seems to be going places in his life. He’s the kind of guy that’ll get accepted to all the schools he applies for. It’s no wonder he wants a girl like her.

I wonder what I’d have to repeat to be like them? To be that smart and that cool at the same time? I mean, I heard Derek pulled a gun on a guy at a party and him and Ben and Virgil and Han all jumped him! I don’t think I want to do all that…I don’t think I could ever physically hurt someone. But shit, what do I have to do to get invited to these parties? I’d like to see all of this first hand, from the crowd. I want to be the person that already knows what happened before Monday morning.

I don’t know. I guess I just want to be apart of something…anything.

I do not like this movie. Not in the least. It takes stereotypes and blows them completely out of proportion! It is utterly ridiculous. I am so angry right now, I can hardly even fathom the correct words to express my discontent with this movie. So I will express my emotions through a series of GIFs.

When Ben started doing drugs. —>

When they made a reference to Fast and the Furious.—>

When they buried Steve’s body after killing him.—>

And lastly, (this one is my favorite) Stephanie kisses Ben in the end and doesn’t regret her decision. Nor does Ben ever tell her that he had a hand in her “missing” boyfriend’s death.

And yet, none of these GIFs are as ridiculous as that movie. I haven’t been this flustered by a class assignment since I’ve had to read The Nature of College by James J. Farrell.

Ok, now that I have expressed my disdain for that abomination to media, I can calmly analyze the movie. Though the movie was really, over the top, there were a few truths woven through the lies. Never judge a book by it’s cover, the contents might surprise you. The main characters fit the stererotype of overachieving asian kid, which is usually paired up with being a “goody two-shoes”. However, in reality each one of them were the farthest from good.

Breaking the cycle. Which cycle did Steve mean? The cycle of school life? The cycle of hollow success?  Or just the cycle of stereotypes? This cycle, this routine; this is what drives each character. To do something out of the norm, to mix things up. To change the everyday into something that gets the adrenaline pumping.

(Forgive my lack of transitions, I tend to quickly write down my thoughts which jump quite frequently.)

Then there are so many questions that were left unanswered. What happened to Virgil? Did anyone ever find out about Steve’s death? Is this Han the same character as in the Fast and Furious series? Does Ben ever tell Stephanie that he had a part in Steve’s murder? Do all of them get away with everything? We may never know.

Too tell the truth, I don’t like this movie because I didn’t get what it wanted to express to us.

It was interesting to see the words that Ben was memorising  one a day such as punctilious, temerity, quixotic, temperance, and inextricable. These words show the change of  Ben’s thought, which is getting more violent as latter. Before Ben does something bad with his friends, he was good at study and basketball and had a job.

Catharsis: the process of releasing, and thereby providing relief from, strong or repressed emotions.

Quixotic: exceedingly idealistic; unrealistic and impractical.

Don Quixote

Temerity: excessive confidence or boldness; audacity

Daric, put that gun down. You and Virgil shouldn’t have guns

How did Google link my favorite movie to an image search of Better Luck Tomorrow…. Betty.

So that was a lot of media. I was just experimenting with visuals that represent the connections between the words Ben studied to the movie, my knowledge, and my life. I also added a picture to connect the word quixotic to the story of Don Quixote. If you do not know the story, it was a Spanish novel written in the beginning of the 17th century during the Spanish Golden Age. It is an influential work that tells the story of an hidalgo, Spanish nobility, that ventures out into the world to bring back chivalry after growing obsessed with reading chivalric novels. The tale follows this man, who takes on the name Don Quixote, and his self-appointed sire as they encounter life and it’s trials through the lens of a knight. Needless to say, this pursuit of chivalry and medieval romance was idealistic and impractical. The word quixotic comes from the traits of Don Quixote; much like Freudian can be a way to describe someones views if they resemble those of Sigmund Freud. Only connect…