Student Success Statement

"Many think that the short term gain will be worth the long term pain, but it isn't. In addition, using steroids is cheating, and there is nothing worse in sports than a cheater. Don't do it."

- George Mitchell

Reflection:

I can definitely relate this to my past experiences. I think about this all the time, in regard to my weight, I read a similar quote, "Overeat and feel good right now, or eat healthy and get the body of your dreams to feel good later". I think that the foundation of both quotes is the same. The short term gain is not worth the long term pain. Take obesity, for example. An overweight person will feel good after a large, unhealthy meal, but later they'll think back and wonder why they can't manage to lose weight. Meanwhile, if someone who's overweight holds back just a bit, endures a little, they'll see results. I definitely refer to these types of quotes on a daily basis, when I feel the urge to violate my principles, I remember why I set them in the first place.

"When I do good, I feel good. When I do bad, I feel bad."

- Abraham Lincoln

Reflection:

I know this not from directly doing something considered "bad" but because when I go do exercise, I feel satisfied afterward that I did something that benefits me emotionally and physically, since it's also a distraction. When I decide to be lazy and not work out, I feel bad and self-conscious after, because I know I'm going against my own personal morales, and instead of advancing and improving physically, now I'm deteriorating both mentally and physically.

Student Success Statement

"It may make a difference to all eternity whether we do right or wrong today."

-James Freeman Clark

Reflection:

This statement conveys a very powerful message and enforces the idea that an individual can change the course of destiny itself based on whatever small choice he makes today. It's kind of what like the "domino effect", where knocking one domino over triggers a whole chain of events that wouldn't have happened otherwise. The same goes for something often called the "butterfly effect" (this is usually in reference to book to movie adaptations where by omitting or adding an event that didn't occur in the original story can have dire consequences on the plotline later on). This can also apply to the idea of disrupting a time continuum where going to the past and making an event that didn't happen occur can mess up the future. I brought up these examples because these emphasize the importance of a single decision. You never know if cheating on that one small quiz will lead to cheating on an important exam or getting into a lawsuit and having that on your record for your life. What you do today, affects who you are tomorrow.

Student Success Statement

"He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed."

-Proverbs 13:20

Reflection:

This is a basic fact of life. The people who surround you (even if you're of a strong will) inevitably influence you, and whatever preconceived morals you may have had before meeting these people may gradually fade away. The important thing is to always surround yourself with people's whose goals mirror your own, so that your initial resolve will be strengthened as opposed to weakened. I'm not saying it's not okay to talk to people who would generally be the "rejects of society" due to their types of lifestyles, but that one should draw a line, and know which side they stand on.

Reggie Bush

Bush was a football player who won several college football honors awards and the sport's most prestigious individual honor, the Heisman Trophy. However, accusations and suspicions that he was receiving extra benefits that led to an investigation of the USC football program that also led to severe sanctions against USC, including a two-year ban and the losing recognition of wins from the 2004–05 championship season, after that, Bush forfeited his Heisman Trophy voluntarily.

Reggie Bush was responsible for numerous violations.
His disobedience made him lose any shot at future recognition in sports because of the fact that he violated regulations and accepted gifts, and money, while he was with the Trojans.
Now, here's what I think:
I think that he was wrong in doing all that. Had he just had a bit more patience, he could've achieved so much more. Instead, he was impatient and lost it all.
Although I know that I've talked a lot about how much I dislike obedience, I agree with the fact that he should've just followed the rules. He wasn't doing anyone any good by accepting those gifts, and he was only sabotaging himself by doing so. Reggie Bush's actions were stupid and misguided, and now he'll never accomplish his goals. He knew that what he was doing was wrong, yet he still did it. It makes me wonder, it truly makes me wonder, what kind of idiots this future generation will have with examples like these.

9/11 Memorial

                On September 11^th, 2001, one of the biggest tragedies in the history of the Unites States occurred. The Twin Tours in the World Trade Center were ruthlessly destroyed by a terrorist group led by none other than Osama Bin Laden. In the chaos that followed, more than 3,000 families suffered the deaths of loved ones. From the rubble that remained afterward, only about 300 people were rescued. And Thus, the day that we all remember as 9/11, became a grim reminder of the sadness evoked by that particular day, the day where someone lost their spouse, or their fiancé, or their father, or their mother, or their child, or their friend. A day that we would be careless to forget.

                At 8:45 AM Tuesday morning, September 11, a commercial jet crashed into one of the twin towers, leaving a burning hole in the top floors. This first crash instantly trapped many people in the top floors, obliterating any chance of evacuation, meanwhile, hundreds others in the area of the impact, died immediately. What initially appeared to be an accident, was only worsened when 18 minutes later, a second plane crashed into the World Trade Center. This time, a massive explosion occurred that brought on the collapse of one of the twin towers, causing remains and debris to fall onto the streets of New York City.

 

                The attackers were learned to be Islamic terrorists from Saudi Arabia, and several other Arab nations. This event was actually reportedly financed by the fugitive Osama Bin Laden’s terrorist organization. Some of the terrorists had taken flying classes in the US for over a year, while others smuggled box-cutter knives into the planes and managed to take control of the planes, which had been set for the route of California. Since these jets had enough fuel for the transcontinental journey, they were ideal for the mission these terrorists had.

 

                There came more planes. And unrivaled acts of bravery from passengers that prevented a fourth plane crash into an important area. 9/11 brought out America's worst fears and amplified them, leading even the president to (years later) direct an assassination intended for the person who endorsed the whole incident. The impact of 9/11 still affects every one of us, people who weren't even involved, thirteen years later.

Reflection:
Prior to writing this, I watched a video based on the phone calls and voicemails people sent to their loved ones in their time of crisis. It is unbelievably painful to watch these documentaries, unbelievably horrifying and difficult to watch without shedding a tear. I feel so dead after seeing what happened. I don't think that I can ever look at 9/11 the same way ever again. And I just hope, I hope that I never have to endure the same pain that so many families coped with and still cope with.