What defines an "adult"?

*While I do support what I am blogging about, I do not in any way condone underage drinking.*

In America, you are given rights primarily based on your age. When someone turns 15, in the state of Georgia, they can apply for a driving permit. When they are 16, they can take a road test to receive a drivers license. The next year, when someone turns 17, they can see R-rated movies and buy "mature" video games. When someone becomes an adult, they have full US rights, the ability to adopt a child, vote, live completely independently, join the military, buy a gun, buy a can of chewing tobacco, etc. The question that always ponders my mind is why there is one right left out of becoming an adult: The ability to purchase and consume alcoholic beverages. Why is it that someone has to have additional years of adulthood before they can drink? An 18 year old citizen in America could own multiple guns, fight in war, live independently, but not be able to drink a beer? Now I know that statistics show that raising the drinking age from 18 to 21 saves lives, but I see this as a foolish argument because if the government passes legislation to outlaw anything for a certain group, obviously not as many are going to misuse the given substance. 

When someone turns 18, they must register for Selective Service within 30 days of their birthday. They could be sent to war, which puts them at risk of injury and unfortunately the case sometimes, fatality, but still aren't allowed to drink one beer. Something doesn't add up. Every adult citizen should have equal rights in America, so saying that an adult who is allowed to consume the highly addictive nicotine and able to adopt a child doesn't have the same rights as another is absurd. When people become adults, when they turn 18, they need to learn how to handle responsibility, and one of the biggest forms of proving yourself responsible is to not abuse alcohol. 

Although this legislation will most likely never change, I believe that if the government has the ability to force someone to go to war, they should be able to drink one beer. Like I said before, I do not condone underage drinking, people still need to follow the laws; I just think the laws are flawed. 

2013: What a year

The year 2013 was not just filled with big sports games, political controversies, and new scientific discoveries, but it was absorbed with both exciting and depressing stories to say the least. There are many events to choose from that shaped the world to what it is today, but two main stories stand out:

The Boston Bombing
The Financial Bull Market

These two stories are almost polar opposites. One represents a dark and depressing terrorist attack that traumatized millions and one stands for economic success and opportunity. Both of these events are important, but the one that shocked the world the most was The Boston Bombing, so i'm going to explain it first.

Everyone knows the devastating stories about young people who committed wicked and disgusting crimes toward the people of America. Most of these young adult or teenager mass murders were school shootings. Columbine was carried out by some high schoolers who weren't "understood." The sandy hook shooter was just a teenager when he killed many innocent citizens. It is scary to think how people at such a young age can negatively influence society. The same goes for one of the most important events of the whole year.

It took one day. One day for Americans and other people around the world to be traumatized by news stories and photos reporting the Boston Bombing. It was especially dramatic for young adults and teenagers because it was the first "big thing" that happened and shocked America since they have been alive. It was a terrorist attack, and truly did bring terror to many. The Tsarnaev brothers destroyed the innocence of much of the American youth, and affected the world in such a negative way, that it is one of the most important events of the year.


Even though 2013 had many controversial events and issues, for some the year brought great opportunity and success. The stock market rallying and the economy finally inching it's way back was one of the most important stories of the year. The market index increased 29%, biggest comeback since 1979. Some of my friends and I are avid stock traders, and we have certainly witnessed first hand the surge especially in the 4th quarter into 2014. Another exciting fact is that all of the companies that represent the S&P 500 (the 500 largest companies) were worth $3.7 trillion more in 2013 than 2012. Thats a 32.6% gain in one year! You don't have to be an analyst like Bud Fox to tell that those numbers are good! What does this mean? It means that the economy is slowly but surely recovering, more jobs are being created, and big companies are expanding, investing, and spending their dollars in the future of America.

Some may say that the market is overvalued, and that there is an economic crash sometime in the near future because stocks performed exceptionally well (especially in 4th Quarter of 2013), interest rates are getting higher, and banks are starting to take large risks again after their downfall in 2008. Although the market experienced a slight drop in the first couple weeks of January, I expect markets to continue to take the bull surge from 2013. 2013 was a great year in the finance world with new economic heights not seen for many years. Now the question is: Will Blue Horseshoe love the markets in 2014? The question remains unanswered.

The AP Curriculum

One of the biggest decisions upon entrance of each grade in high school, particularly Junior year, is the choice whether or not to take AP classes. A mindset is put on us, highschoolers, that in order to get into a college of prestigious and well known rank, AP classes need to fill up our schedule. Why are AP classes so important? Is it because they create a rigorous transcript? Or, Is it because if we spend every minute of our free time studying, we might have a possibility of excelling on the test, which will give us college credits, while we are in high school. The media has focused deeply on whether AP classes truly help kids, or are just a waste of time in NPR's article "AP Classes are one of America's 'Great Frauds', and AJC's AP Classes: Making kids smarter or College Board richer?. It is undeniable that these classes destroy the social lives of those who take them, and an extreme stress creator that don't even have a benefit in the process of education.

We are in high school, why would college level classes be offered anyway? Unless we are super geniuses, it doesn't make sense to be offered college classes while in high school. The whole point of high school academics is to have a strong base of knowledge when in college. We are supposed to be getting prepared FOR college, we aren't in college. Plus, these classes aren't even beneficial. The number of times I hear my fellow students complain about the rigor of AP courses is off the chart. Sure, school is supposed to be challenging (if it wasn't, we wouldn't learn anything), but the fact that 2 SEMESTERS WORTH OF A CHALLENGING CLASS IS JUST TO PREPARE YOU FOR ONE TEST is ridiculous. Shouldn't we be spending the countless hours of preparing for ONE exam periodically building our strength in that course, instead of focusing on ONE test. Why is it that we are graded on the same material that will be on this "final test" (that barely anyone excels in anyway) at the beginning of the year? We, instead, should be periodically learning new information that will help us with our future, instead of being graded on the final exam in the first week of school.

I understand that it is not the teacher's fault, nor the school administration's fault. They need to offer AP courses to be considered "competitive". But what still really pisses me off is that we are tested and graded the same way the "prestigious AP board" will grade us in 8 months, in the first couple weeks of school. This is not an efficient way of teaching, and while few might excel in this ridiculous style of learning, the many sane ones find it difficult.

As Anne Frank said in her diary, " People can tell you to keep your mouth shut, but that doesn't stop you from having your own opinion." The only way for things to change is to share your opinions, so if you agree with me, please continue to inform. 

Snakes are Scary

I don't have too many legitimate fears, so thinking about something frightening to write about was difficult. Heights don't scare me, neither does being in closed spaces nor being trapped. Monsters, haunted houses, and ghosts are all fake, so they don't scare me one bit. As I browsed the internet, I was still pondering about this hard task in the back of my head when it hit me. There, right before my eyes, was an article about the 10 most vicious snakes who have the deadliest venom. This horrified me. Something about the slimy scales that run throughout their bodies when they sliver around on the ground gives me nightmares. When encountered, they face you eye to eye, and unpredictably jolt at a terrifying speed faster than the speed of light. I soon remembered some stories of my childhood that horrified me, and created a dislike of this particular animal type forever.

                                           Just look at this disgusting joke of an animal ^

The first time I directly encountered a snake was an instructional snake training activity at camp. It was about 10 years ago, my six year old self got dropped off at High Meadows Day Summer Camp, and boy I wish I would have known what I was getting into. I was excited, and was curious of the activities I would participate in before lunch; Was it swimming, arts and crafts, sports? No, it was much different than those innocent activities. I walked into the first activity which was in the nature center, and I saw a tall man with some sort of leather rope around his arms. I reached down to feel the texture of this rope, but I was mistaken. I felt a scaly, gross substance on my fingertips, and the snake used it's ripped neck muscles to turn in my direction, and started to stare me down. This is what I consider the end of my innocent, youthful childhood. I flew back, and ran into the bathroom crying, never wanting to see a snake again. Before that day at camp I was a child, and after I saw the snake- a man. Of course it was foolish to think I would never have to lay my eyes on such a hideous monster for the rest of my life, but whenever the time comes, I try my best to avoid that slimy beast.

I have now accepted my fear of snakes, and live curious, happy, and reptile free. As I grew older the tables slowly started to turn, and now I like to think that snakes are afraid of me.

Current Event: Apple's Gold Standard

While there is civil war in Syria, extreme government "shutdowns" in the US, and controversy over Miley Cyrus's music video, there is only one current event that really catches my eye: The release of the iPhone 5s. No, this may not be "breaking news" or an "urgent story", but Apple's innovation is certainty compelling. Since Apple Inc. was founded by Steve Jobs in 1976, this company has thrived from the saying "think different". Whether it was one of the "crazy" computers, or the ability to listen to music portably and electronically, Apple has created a movement that always seems to draw followers. Ever since the iPhone was released in 2007, the backbone of this company was held together by marketing genius, Steve Jobs, who knew what people were looking for. Unfortunately, Steve Jobs passed away only a few years after this innovative telephone, but Apple attempted to hold on to the same way of success prior to Jobs's death.
In August, 2013, Apple announced that they would be releasing a gold iPhone. The reaction from Apple users were cheerful and excited. But why were they so excited? How does Apple create such an excitement and anticipation for it's users to always be looking for the "next big thing"? Well, since Apple was founded, it was always releasing products that were new to users. It tends to be that people want something new and innovative. If I walk down West Wing Hall at Galloway, I can see almost every student either holding, talking, or texting on their iPhone. Apple's success comes not perfecting it's current market, but creating and revolutionizing a new one. It is humorous because I know how Apple's marketing strategy operates, yet I still pre-ordered the gold iPhone as well as millions of others around the world.  Next they will be releasing the silver, bronze, and diamond iPhone. 

Thoughts on Education

Education, throughout my life, has put me through times good and bad. Whether I failed a test, got a perfect score on a paper, or was up until 3:00 am working on a project, I have learned that education is not something that comes easy. I have always been fascinated by people who have a "dream" of being a doctor or lawyer, yet do not go the extra mile to study subjects other than the ones taught in school. Jim Rohn said, "Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune." This directly demonstrates my strong opinion that getting straight A's without learning and educating yourself about what you want to do in the future is pointless. Often times I see and hear about people who were successful in high school and college, but didn't become successful in the corporate world because they did not prepare themselves on what to do after school. I want to go to finance school and eventually work in the financial services industry. Whether I will become a stock broker, hedge fund manager, or investment banker, I know that I want to work with money. Yesterday, I just sold some shares that I bought in a company a couple of months ago. Of course I can't name the company, but the profit margin I made wasn't massive, although it was something. When I heard, "Self-education will make you a fortune", I knew that I wanted to live up to that remarkable saying. There are no stock market classes that are available for me to take at Galloway currently. No teacher has taught me how to diversify a portfolio. My father set up an account for me, but he told me that I was on my own with my own saved up money. "Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune." I have not gotten magnificent grades in any class I have taken in high school so far, but I have learned a tremendous amount about what I am interested in doing after my "formal schooling" is complete.
I will work hard in school, but I will educate myself on what I will be doing for the rest of my life a little bit more. You have teachers to show you the basics of what every educated person should know, but you have your own will power to teach yourself what 99% of the world doesn't. Create your own dream, not someone else's.

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