Final

Samuel Khokhlan

Journalism, Mr.Kefor

January 20th

Modern Day Discrimination?

                Driving is one of the most common things we as people do in our everyday lives. Pretty early on we learn to operate on the roads and although most of us are adequate drivers insurance is necessary for all of us. Insurance is expensive: but why in our modern day society, where equality is what everyone is all about are men paying more for insurance from the very beginning? Shouldn’t we all be treated as individuals and not be stereotyped by the labels of society? Insurance companies think not. Are they wrong to think this way, or is it in fact discrimination? That’s exactly what we’re going to explore.

            Stereotypes are one thing but number don’t lie. A National Department of Transportation study entitled "Sex of Drivers Involved in Crashes 2000-2009" found that male drivers were involved in some 18 million more accidents than female drivers during the same time frame. Not only do men get into more car accidents, but men also are more commonly involved in speeding, alcohol and other major accidents, whereas women are more likely to be in a fender bender here and there. The bigger the accident the less insurance companies like you. "Insurance companies see men as a bigger risk, they don’t like that." (Loose 1). Loose is basically saying that if you're male you need to suck it up. Men have been paying higher insurance premiums for the last half a century and that’s how it's going to be.

            "But if a man and a woman living in the same city with the same profile shop for car insurance, the woman would likely receive a lower auto insurance quote."(Roberts-Grey 1). It seems like pretty simple logic right? You drive recklessly and you pay more for insurance. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, more than 70% of the people involved in fatal car crashes in 2009 were men. But this only makes sense, considering that approximately 65% of road drivers are in fact men. More male drivers equals more male car accidents right? If you take all the male and female crashes and compare them to the total amount of crashes on the road you'll see something quite interesting. Male crashes compared to female crashes are at an almost 1:1 ratio. Although, even with this amazing piece of information it does not change the fact that men are still involved in much more reckless driving then women. According to a study by Quality Planning, a San Francisco company that validates policyholder information for auto insurers, male drivers are also cited for reckless driving 3.4 times more than women are. 3.4 times doesn't seem anything like a 1:1 Ratio. If men are that much more reckless I'm surprised insurance companies haven't found a way to get more money out of us!

            According to a Accurate auto investigation annual reporting does not take into account the fact that men drive more miles than women, on average and therefore are "exposed" to traffic situations more often. Why are men being charged so much for insurance then? Well, their younger less experienced male brethren are to blame for that. Males under the age of 25 are seen as "high risk" because of their frequent involvement in car accidents, speeding, and road rage. This statement applies to my life completely. Before even having my license for 6 months I managed to wrap myself around a pole, and take out a mail box. Both on separate occasions and entirely due to speeding. "Men of any age group are far more likely to be driving while intoxicated, to speed, to drive recklessly, and to flout the law. They also tend to drive cars that give them psychological boost to commit these violations more often."(AAI 1).

             Male car choice seems to play a large role in high insurance rates as well. Whereas females are more likely to drive a safe, fuel efficient cars. Men are more likely to drive a racecar type vehicle. I personally can attest to this. Being an owner of a Bmw 335xi I cannot lie when I say that is speed far more now than I did when I drove my vw jetta. Going from 150 bhp (Horsepower) to 306 fuel guzzling horses under the hood of your car not only gives you an ego boost but quite a heavy foot as well. Luckily I am yet to get pulled over, but I find myself driving over 100mph on the highway quite frequently. BAD HABIT. Woman, and mothers in particular drive vehicles for child transportation, (minivans), which gives them a little less of a "rush" compared to what most men drive. When you're moving kids around from one place to another, chances are you're not going to put the family tree on the line for a quick thrill.

            So basically, men pay for more insurance not because they get into more car accidents, speed more, get more citations etc.. Those all apply, but mostly because of the types of car accidents they are getting into. Whereas women are playing bumper cars, men are more inclined to drink a beer or two and wrap themselves around a tree, or maybe a nice aluminum pole. If men got into the same types of accidents as women, their insurance rates wouldn’t be nearly as high. Although, even if men didn't get into as many reckless incidents it doesn’t change the fact that we speed, and overall are less rational on the roads. With all the stated, is it fair? Is it discrimination for men to pay more for auto insurance even though they are statistically "worse" drivers? My personal answer is yes. In a society where everything is about equality and treating people as equals it seems that car insurance companies haven't caught up with the pack. Drivers should be charged based on their driving history not gender. Sure, men may be more likely to speed statistically.. but if a man has no speeding tickets why are you going to charge him more for something he might do? I don’t see people going to jail for maybe in the future committing a felony.  This logic is flawed and is simply a way for big business to get more money out of the common man.

   

CITATIONS

Loose, Terence. "Auto Insurance Article." Yahoo! Auto Insurance. Yahoo, n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.

"Are Car Insurers Unfair to Men?" MSNMoney. Msn, n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.

"Get Your Quote." Accurate Auto Insurance RSS. Accurate Auto Insurance, n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2014.

My pet peeves

Pet Peeves In (no particular Order)

1.       Closed minded people: Oh you don’t like my techno music? That’s really great. Thanks for sharing that opinion with me. People who declare something is “stupid” or “bad” simply because they do not have the boldness to try new things get on my nerves. I mean I’m happy you enjoy dressing, acting, looking, and listening to all the same things you and everyone else do.. But please, for the sake of my IQ not dropping from your tremendous ignorance, just keep your opinions to yourself.

2.       Lifted Trucks: It’s not so much the trucks themselves rather than the people who drive them. I mean it’s cool that your vehicle can hardly go faster than 90 mph.. but please stay out of the left lane where me and all the other individuals who drive normally and don’t hog the road go. Its awesome that you spent 3k on a lift kit that raises your truck almost as high as your ego but your probably not going to convince me that getting 6mpg is a good choice for me.

3.       People besides me who tweet too much: If I go onto your twitter and I see that you posted 12 things within the last 30 minutes then you really need to reevaluate some things in your life. Oh you’re going to chipotle? That’s cool, no one cares. I do NOT need to know every single meticulous detail about your life. Thanks though ill pass. This doesn’t apply to me.

4.       Skinny guys who wear tank tops: Okay this one needs clarification. If you’re going to the gym or beach and decide to wear a sleeveless that’s fine. What gets me is that one guy who posts the instagram selfie captioned “On my Grind” with him flexing his 12 inch cannons in the mirror. You’re trying to get big? That’s great, go for it. But please for god’s sake can you please refrain from making everyone stare at your 125 lb “Swole” body. Thanks spaghetti arms.

5.       Overly sarcastic people: Sarcasm is a very effective tool in dealing with some people. But when im trying to have a conversation with you and you can keep from sarcastically answering a single question is when I get mad.

6.       Attention seekers:  I absolutely despise people who go out of their way to get attention.  Sorry, but I will not like your shirtless instagram photo which is a clear cry for attention that says nothing short of “Hey I’m a d-bag who has low self-esteem, please like this photo so I can feel better about myself.”

7.       Suburban Rednecks: You live in a $250,000 house, drive a Hyundai, and listen to Lil-wayne, and country. Occasionally going mudding and sitting in your friends “sick” lifted truck doesn’t make you a redneck. I’m sure you’ve gone to every country fest you could get to. But living in Massachusetts hardly classifies you as a redneck.

8.       People with clammy hands: WASH YOUR HANDS. I understand that some people have cold and sweaty hands at times. But when it gets to the point where I use the equipment at the gym after you and can still feel the greasy sweat all over the handles… You need to get a grip, literally.. How do you hold thing with such greasy hands!?

9.       Modern Hippies: This one applies mostly to the 14 year old freshman females who I follow on twitter. I absolutely do not care about your opinion on modern topics such as Gay right and Abortion. Please stop retweeting things about marijuana and how we need to treat the world with honor and extreme care. You’re not going to change any ones minds about anything. Chill.

10.    Feminists: I’m really glad you feel strongly about your fellow women and rights. But I am truly shocked that you can legitimately believe that women are completely capable of absolutely anything a man can do. Simple fact, it’s not true. We are genetically different and made for different things. I as a man cannot give someone the same love a child needs that a mother can provide… So please stop trying to argue that a woman can offer the same guidance a man gives to his family/children. 

Mirin?

Samuel Khokhlan

Album Review

TWO DOOR CINEMA CLUB

           

            Two door Cinema Club are a Northern Irish indie rock band from Bangor and Donaghadee, and County Down. The band was formed in 2007 by Alex Trimble, Sam Halliday, and Kevin Baird. The band first started to gain attention in 2008 with the release of their  EP entitled Four Words to Stand, in which many websites gave them attention. Their "Big Break" was in 2010 with the release of their album Tourist History.

            "Tourist History" was a big success for the group. It was widely accepted and had very few negative ratings. Their new age sounds, which included use of three guitars with two leads, were a nice change to the alternative rock scene. The Album gained popularity quickly and was used in several movies including "Chalet Girl" and "Soul Surfer". Hollister, Abercrombie and several other large name brand stores also feature their music in their play lists.

            Tourist History is a great album hands down. Several songs caught my attention when listening to the album. "Something good can work" is probably one of my favorite songs on the album. It’s a nice laid back tune which simply allows you to enjoy a nice mix of lyrics and melody. Although their sound is different and new, it seems at time to be overused.

            The albums song flow is not anything special in my opinion. One thing the group should have utilized, in my opinion, is this aspect of the album. No story is being told in particular. It seems as if they just made a bunch of happy sounding songs.. threw them together and called it a day. Although this isn't a horrible thing, especially because of their unique sound. Many people like to listen to music simply because of the happy feeling, or happy aura it has around it. But for many listeners who seek a deeper message through music, this was lacking.

            Overall.. I would give the album a 7.8/10. I enjoyed the music, thought it was well written. Their sound is great and the vocals are nice. Much of the music sounds very similar to itself, and there was a lack of depth in the music. If you're ever feeling down and would like a quick lift.. Definitely check out Two Door Cinema Club.. You won't regret it.

           

Album reviews

Rolling Stone: star rating

Community: star r

"I wake up/Check my phone/Jump in my whip/And off I go," Jake Bugg sings on "Kingpin." It's a song about the lush life of a drug dealer with a steelback giddyap that connects Eddie Cochran to the Smiths' "What Difference Does It Make?" And that knack for yoking today's restless energy to yesterday's jangle is what makes the 19-year-old U.K. chart-topper likable. Bugg's debut was at its best giving '62 Dylan and Buddy Holly a cocky Oasis charge, and the Bugg Man backed it up by calling fellow roots lovers Mumford & Sons "posh farmers with banjos." Dude has balls as big as Rickenbackers.

On Bugg's second album, Rick Rubin oversees an expanding sonic palette and a tougher sound; the punk-fired "What Doesn't Kill You" and grungy country rock of "All Your Reasons" push up against MacDougal Street serenades like "Pine Trees," an alienated epistle that could've been cut in a winter cabin. At times his folkier moments can be a touch too comfy. He's best when he pushes at the confines of his throwback sound: "Kitchen Table" stretches out with soul-jazz keyboard tickle and real-life post-breakup lyrics that don't try to play the London tough guy or woodsy troubadour: "I've not been seeing you for some time now and still you choose to hold my hate/But after how I handled it you're hardly to blame." It's just a 19-year-old kid, being honest.

By Mike Powell

November 18, 2013 THE WANTED - WORD OF MOUTH

The Wanted are a boy band with a man's disposition: They drink, they get into arguments, and they tend to see women as passive creatures waiting around in heels to be redeemed or get their hearts broken. They cloak their casual misogyny in trying to look sensitive, alternating rakish club pop like "Walks Like Rihanna" with post-Coldplay ballads in which everyone gets a chance to brood. In either case, the sound is big and lead-footed, using gang choruses to remind you to have fun and string sections when things stiffen and get sad. The truth? The promise that they're gonna pour their love all over you is twice as charming – and half as creepy – as the one that they're gonna keep you safe.

2/5 stars

Various Artists

New Orleans Funk 3: The Original Sound of Funk Soul Jazz

7

New Orleans music has gotten its due in recent years, thanks to everything from archival MP3 blogs (Home of the Groove is excellent) to Treme. Here, expert excavators at U.K. label Soul Jazz focus on NOLA's visionary nutters. Soul shouter Eldridge Holmes explains the "good way to make whoopee," a sitar creases Lee Dorsey's "What You Want," and although she's "in a world of trouble" with her man, Betty Harris sounds as merry as a funeral parade.

Polica

Shulamith 3/5 stars

 Joe Gross

November 18, 2013

On some level, Poliça – led by singer Channy Leaneagh and producer Ryan Olson – couldn't sound more like they were from Minneapolis. On their second album, the followup to 2012's buzzy Give You the Ghost, these kids blend distant, white-on-white melodic minimalism with early-Prince electro burp-'n-grind. Leaneagh gets into bad love on the surprisingly rock "Very Cruel" and complicated love on the thunderous "Matty," while, on "Tiff," Bon Iver main man/fellow Midwesterner/Kanye collaborator Justin Vernon shows up to backstop lines like "Have the bullet/ He has the gun." Apparently, America's Portishead can be found skinny-dipping in Lake Minnetonka.

Daughtry

Baptized

19/RCA

 Chuck Eddy

November 19, 2013

Seven years after he placed on American Idol, Chris Daughtry and his band are opening up their would-be grunge to more nuance: folk instruments and synths, smoother high notes tempering Daughtry's bellow, "boom-b'boom" vocal-bass hook lightening the gender war in "Battleships." The sound on Baptized somehow links U2 to Rascal Flatts, adding Springsteen stances in "Wild Heart." More unexpectedly, there's also a banjo shuffle where Daughtry chooses Van Halen over Van Hagar, catalogs some of his other heroes and wonders who wrote Hole's songs. "Long Live Rock & Roll," it's called – a defense, perhaps, against anybody claiming guys like him helped kill it.

The Flaming Lips

Peace Sword

Warner Bros.

By Joe Gross

November 18, 2013

This six-song EP sounds like a warm cocoon shedding itself. The title track – a very Lips-ish slice of made-of-stars melody and Wayne Coyne's voice multitracked to infinity – was written for the film version of the classic science-fiction novel Ender's Game. But since no prog act worth its stash turns down a chance to be inspired by sci-fi, the Lips secreted five more clouds – tunes "inspired by" the movie, including the vaguely martial "If They Move, Shoot 'Em" and the wonderfully titled 10-minute "Assassin Beetle – the Dream Is Ending." Also, the lyrics may have plot spoilers: In the immortal words of Public Enemy, consider yourself...warned!

News stories

News stories

                Rooster stabs man to death at a cock fight. He got stabbed by a sharp blade attached to the rooster. Jose Luis Ochoa was only 35 years old when he died. He was declared dead 2 hours after the incident. Reports KTLA "an autopsy concluded Ochoa died of an accidental 'sharp force injury' to his right calf." According to the Bakersfield Californian, Jose Luis Ochoa was fined $370 for cock fighting the year before his death.

            Man impersonates a sheriff to get a discount on doughnuts. Charles T. "Chuck" Barry was seen on surveillance video displaying his fake badge and firearm, Pasco Sheriff's Office said. When Barry was not allowed to get this discount he said “See I am a cop!” and then he held up his firearms. According to a jail official, he was released on a $5,150 bond.

            Colombian man Sergio Estevez sets world record for most coffee beans eaten in one hour. On November 6^th the Guinness World council recorded Sergio’s amazing record. He ate 14.3 pounds of Colombian coffee beans. Sergio has been features on Colombian talk show “La gente hablar en voz alta.” He’s being honored locally and was awarded a prize of 10,000 Pesos. Equivalent to about $800. He will be featured in the 2014 issue of the Guinness World record book.

            A burglar was scared off by a skilled ax-thrower she grabbed the axe she keeps next to her bed when she felt a man trying to take he watch off in her sleep. She chased the man out of her house and off her property. "I would’ve gotten him right in the spine or the back of his head," she said. "I hit what I aim for." 22 year old Nicholas Illoa, was arrested for burglary.

Pathos ethos and logos

My Article is about the benefits of exercise for everyday people.

Pathos: "Exercise can help prevent excess weight gain or help maintain weight loss. When you engage in physical activity, you burn calories" Weight loss is an emotional thing for people because it ties in so closely with self esteem and confidence.
 Ethos: "Our team has gone into intense research to identify the most beneficial reasons that you should start to exercise." Theyre a team of highly specialised doctors and researchers. 
Logos: "Losing weight in the best thing you can do. Not only is it good for your health, it will make you a more functional human being!" They show you the logic in weight loss

Ken ross reponse

Banning social and digital interaction through the internet in a child's bedroom is pretty ridiculous. If your child reaches the point of having to be limited then the real problem does not lie with the child, but the parent. Children should be taught that there is a balance between using phones and other digital devices and when you shouldn't use them. When parents fail to teach their children this, then addiction occurs. I believe children should not be put onto a strict regiment when it comes to internet and digital interaction. Instead they should be taught that it is a privilege to do those things. When we make children have a time limit on the things they enjoy to do, they will take every opportunity to do those things behind our backs. In the long term, this creates sneaky children.