A Tax on Pop?

I think this is insane, I get that pop makes people fat and unhealthy, but taxing pop is not a way I would go. I don’t believe that taxing pop would be that answer. It seems to me like the New York Health Department definitely wants some change but I don’t think that this is the way to go. Maybe giving the people more choices like constantly advertising healthy food choices, or having a bigger healthier menu for restaurants and fast food places or even making laws that ban fast food from having more than a certain amount of carbohydrates or fat in their meals. Ideas like that would make a big difference.

In Mary Ward and many other high schools there is so much healthy food, I think it’s too much. I understand that the schools want their kids to eat and drink healthier but I can’t find any pop in the vending machines or any really good tasting food in the cafeteria because everything has gotten so healthy. I think that there should be some more choice, not a lot, but more.

I don’t think that the tax on pop would be a lot but why should New Yorkers even have to pay more for it? It’s not really the money that would make a person mad at this; it’s the fact that there is a tax on pop. The New York Health Department’s ads do have a slight effect on me but not as much to quit using pop. I think women who are trying to watch their weight would probably stop drinking pop or drink it scarcely. The campaign does work and would probably push people to stop drinking pop. Seeing ads like that do make me want to be healthier and I think that it’s the same effect on other people who see these ads. I think the video the New York Health Department released is a little to much and pretty disgusting. I think even if the tax doesn’t happen in America it will eventually happen in Canada. If it does I would still buy pop and chips but I would probably buy it more rarely.

Things Are Not Always What They Seem...

Photo shopped images gone wrong are hilarious. When images go a little too far you tend to wonder if there are any real pictures in the media. To me, no pictures of celebrities or anyone in magazines are real. Well sure it’s probably their face that’s there but so many things are added and taken away that it’s probably hard for a celebrity to notice themselves on a magazine anymore. I’m guessing no celebrity images are released to the media if they have not been retouched because what celebrity wants to have bags under their eyes and wrinkles? Stars want to look good all the time no matter what.

It doesn’t bother me when companies do this manipulation because they just want to sell their product. They’re in it for the money and their going to take what ever road gets them the most. I don’t really mind most of the images that are shown in the media but some images go to far when it’s not even cool or sexy, it’s just plain fake. I don’t think that it’s acceptable for companies to do that because it’s obviously fake and they portray it as real.

I like the new trend of not using Photoshop because it shows the real models and it portrays actual humans instead of fake models. Personally I like it but I don’t think that the companies will sell as many copies of the magazine compared to if it had photoshopped women on it. I don’t think that this new idea will stick because the media has gone too far with all the images that it’s not possible to go back. If the media didn’t do this to us, no one would care if there were non-photoshopped images in a magazine because it would be normal. But now if there were non-photoshopped images it wouldn’t be normal at all, it might even look bad. Hopefully in the future we can see the media getting rid of photoshop from their magazines and advertisments.

The Evolution of Games

I think that gaming has totally evolved from what it used to be. When my parents were growing up the only games that were available were Pong and Tetris. Now days there are so many different games and different gaming systems. Each game system releases a new version every few years because video games are always going to be in demand. I think parents should be a little scared because sometimes kids go crazy over games. There are some kids that just decided not to go to school because they wanted to stay at home and play games all day which is pretty stupid. Every couple of years Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo release another version of the Play Station or X-Box and they make millions. Almost every kid has 1 or more game systems. Gaming has become a very big market.

There are only a few games that are beneficial to you and most of them are from Nintendo. The games that do benefit you are games like Wii Fit, Dance Dance Revolution, word and math games on Nintendo DS, and some other educational games. The vast majority of people who play video games are kids and lets face it kids are not going to wanna play these educational games that deal with word problems and math. I think that the Wii Fit is good for kids but there aren’t enough games for kids like that. Most kids play shooting games for X-Box 360 and PS3.

I don’t think that the consumer is affected by the game unless he or she goes overboard and decides to play for a really long time. There has to be some priority when playing these games otherwise kids are going to get hooked on them and not do homework (units), or go to school. I think that these games are still games for now because their still fun and you get to have a fun time with it even if you’re working out. Eventually games might turn into something else but for now their just entertaining and fun for kids to enjoy.

Two Different Angles, One Big Company

As a person I find what Dove and Axe doing really weird and stupid because their owned by the same company but are going in different directions. In the end it’s just a big money making scheme because Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty is something that other companies haven’t done and it makes Dove a lot of money because Dove looks at things from a different angle. On the other hand Axe’s campaign is about women going crazy for men who use axe. These two companies have opposite views on things and I personally think that the reason for all this is because of money.

Most things big companies do are for money. I hate to think this but it seems like the reason or one of the big reasons that Dove started the “Campaign for Real Beauty” is because of money. Think about it, why would a company even care if your views were changed on things? Companies are just out to make money. It’s a business plan that has worked out so far and probably will keep going because it appeals to people, everyone wants to feel beautiful. That’s why the campaign is so successful so far.

To me the Axe ads don’t bother me, probably because I’m a guy. They probably bother some people but I find it funny and amusing. Obviously no one in their right mind would believe the ads but it has made more of an effort than other deodorant brands. The ads are basically a business plan like other ads, it’s not realistic that women would run after a man because he has sprayed axe on him. I think guys like to believe that this would happen.

I don’t think that the parent company has any responsibilities to their consumers because it’s a company, not a person. The way I see it, companies have one goal: to make money, and as much of it as possible. This parent company is doing that.

Bad Products. Smart Ads

A lot of ads in the 50’s and 60’s had cool designs and good messages but some of them were totally unbelievable. The idea’s for the ads seem so unrealistic but are smart at the same time. The ad itself seems like it makes sense even though it clearly doesn’t.

“Blow in her face and she’ll follow you anywhere”. It’s a smart quote but an obvious lie. No girl in her right mind would follow a guy just because he blew smoke in her face, she probably would just get mad. The text is what makes this add more intriguing and makes you want to buy those particular cigarettes. What also makes you want to buy the cigarette is the lady. She looks like she is really attracted to him because of the smoke. This ad tries to make it look like the same thing could happen if you smoke these cigarettes.

I think that selling tapeworms should be illegal even if they are sanitized because that’s just disgusting and probably will do more harm to you body than good. More people are overweight now then in the 50’s or 60’s but I don’t think that anyone would choose tapeworms to solve their problem. I find that “Eat! Eat! Eat! & always stay thin” is such a good slogan for this product but I don’t think that anyone with common sense would got for this. It just seems too risky and probably has side effects but the ad makes it look so easy and fun because they show a lot of food and a fairly thin woman.

I find this ad so direct and to the point. It’s basically saying that lard will make you happy. It’s so simple; the ad just shows a happy family and a slogan saying “They’re happy because they eat lard”. It might not necessarily be true but the happy family makes it look like you will be happy by eating this.

When I saw this ad I just started to laugh because just a few years ago we found out that cigarettes cause all kinds of problems including cancer and doctors know first hand the effects smoking in the long run. But back then everyone used to smoke and didn’t think that it was bad for them. The creators of the ad were really smart because everyone trusts and looks up to doctors say and if they smoke “Camels” cigarettes it must be the best kind right? WRONG! The ad kinda has a celebrity endorsement feel to it. If I was old enough to smoke and was in the 50’s I would defiantly smoke “Camels” cigarettes because it’s just such a good ad.

Google Street View. No Privacy?

Google Street View is a feature from Google that provides 360° horizontal and 290° vertical views from a row of positions along the street for many streets in the world. Google claims that the privacy of people is protected because they blur faces and license plates but some people still say that it’s not right because they never wanted to be photographed and put online. There have been a few pictures of some people nude or in a compromising position but usually Google takes them down almost immediately. There isn’t much cause to get mad because pictures like that get taken down fast. These photos are currently available for the United States, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, France, Italy, Mexico, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand.

There isn’t really a privacy problem with Google Street View but some people don’t want to be seen online for their own reasons which is actually a good point. I don’t find any way to change the circumstances because Google can’t just crop certain people from pictures, there’s nothing that Google can change. Google also gave everyone notice that they will be doing this so Google is not to be blamed. I think that even if someone was photographed doing something embarrassing or illegal it would be hard to identify that person with the face being blurred. I personally think that this is helpful and fun. If you are trying to get somewhere where you have never been you can look at the streets and the landmarks. It’s also better than the bird’s eye view Google gave before. Another benefit of Google Street View is that it is free. Usually this software would cost so much. I’m sure that it wasn’t free for Google so this is a good benefit. The people opposing Google Street View should look at the benefits of it instead of criticizing the minor flaws.