Thoughts and Comments: 

June 03 2015

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Blog Post #6: Banned- BMO Field Adventures feat. the Selfie Stick

June 03, 2015

"Hey, Kola? Dzeko? Kompany? Can I get a selfie?" 

sel·fie

ˈselfē/

noun

informal

1. a photograph that one has taken of oneself, typically one taken with a smartphone or webcam and shared via social media.

   "occasional selfies are acceptable, but posting a new picture of yourself everyday isn't necessary"

1. (via Google)

   
   

Ah, selfies. The newest and most popular form of pictures nowadays. Selfies have become such a natural thing in society these days. I see people taking selfies in the most random places, its quite strange yet normal at the same time. But of course, whats a selfie without a selfie stick? 

Recently, on Tuesday May 26th, I payed a visit to BMO Field to watch the English Premier League team Manchester City's open practice ahead of their game versus Toronto FC on Wednesday May 27th. I remember waiting in line fifteen minutes prior to the gates opening, excited to see a bunch of my favourite players for the outstanding price of zero dollars! At 5:30, the gates opened and the line was moving forward. I remember my cousin's bag being checked for a water bottle, and a certain question we got asked by the security woman. 

Do you have a selfie stick? 

I wanted to laugh when the women asked us that question. Do I have a selfie stick? Why would I have a selfie stick? And why would it even be a problem if I supposedly did have a selfie stick? These questions ran through my mind as I stepped into the familiar stadium and took my seat. Whats so wrong with carrying a selfie stick? Its very efficient for group selfies, I thought. 

I dismissed the idea quickly, enjoying seeing 2010 World Cup winners like David Silva and Jesús Navas warming up on the pitch. It was also amazing to see Belgian international and captain Vincent Kompany, and French international Samir Nasri, and so many more great players. EPL top goal scorer Sergio "Kun" Aguero was missing, but overall I had a great time and took lots of selfies with my cousin. 

When the practice ended, I was still stunned that I saw these players for free. I was replaying the whole situation in my mind, when the selfie stick wandered back into my mind. I decided to ask my cousin why that lady asked us that. We went to a game back in October at BMO Field; we never got asked if we had one, and I'm pretty sure those things existed back then. She responded with the topic of safety. 

I was kind of confused when she said that. What were people going to do? Throw the selfie stick at the players? Apparently, the answer is yes. The selfie stick is seen as a weapon. EPL team Tottenham Hotspur were the first team to ban selfie sticks from White Hart Lane, followed by third place Arsenal banning them from the Emirates Stadium. BMO Field, home of Toronto FC, joined in too. Its quite dumb that people would use a selfie stick as a weapon. They're practically asking to get arrested! 

But not all people use these sticks as a weapon, in fact, I've never even heard a case about someone doing so. 

Selfie sticks add enjoyment to a situation and help us capture our memories better. I think that its reasonable for places like stadiums to ban selfie sticks from being used. Its clear that they're just trying to protect the public and the players from this stick that can potentially be used as a weapon, but it seriously hasn't done harm to society, so it really shouldn't be banned. 

But what do you think? Be sure to leave your view on things down in the comments! 

Blog Post #5: Communication Gone Wild 

June 03, 2015

In an ever developing society, technology is bound to grow and become more advanced. With technology like Siri and self-driving cars, should we be relieved of this helpful technology, or scared out of our minds? 

Technology is a powerful thing, and the changes it brings has such a huge impact of society. We have things like Siri that answer our questions when we ask. Need to know the weather? Siri is there with your answer in a couple of seconds. Need to make a call? Siri can do that too! Or maybe you want to know the current score for that game you can't watch because you're stuck doing units. Ask Siri and you shall receive. Things like Siri and Google Voice are things that come in handy when we have our hands full, which is quite useful. It makes it quite efficient for communicators to, well, communicate. 

Advanced intelligence is a powerful thing. We can access things on the internet just by reciting a simple word to things like Siri and Microsoft Cortana. Its quite scary, if you think about it. This artificial women knows more than an average human does! If we've established things like Siri and Cortana already, imagine what technology will be like in a few years. Imagine what else these voice activated apps can do! I mean, they can already reserve you a table at a restaurant if you ask them to. Advanced intelligence is so amazing yet scary in the same way. 

With technology only advancing, the way we think about communication will most definitely change. Will we find it scary as advanced intelligence will be able to the same things we can do? Or will we still find it efficient? I mean, we already have self-driving cars. But is that really a good thing? What if theres a malfunction with the design and the car crashes? I personally think we should fear this ever-so-growing technology. A lot of car models are actually being recalled nowadays due to malfunctions and errors in the designs. 

But on the other side of things, this technology is so useful and efficient! So question: Is this advanced intelligence absolutely amazing or scary? I think its a bit of both. 

What do you think, though? Leave a comment down below! 

Blog Post #4: Can a Truck Make You More Handsome? 

June 03, 2015

According to a bunch of random people, including children and guys with beards, truck guys are superior to car guys. Chevrolet launched this commercial in order to persuade men to buy their trucks because, apparently, they make you more handsome, dependable, rugged, etc. 

Ok, so I won't lie; this commercial made me laugh. 

According to the children, the truck guy looks more "Ba-bam!" According to the rich housewives, the car guy is the guy who your "mom wants you to marry", while the truck guy is "the one you'll ditch him for and runaway with". The reactions were pretty funny, getting a good laugh out of me. 

Ok, but, on personal level, I don't really care that much about cars; as long as it gets me to the location I'm good. But I guess 'young single women' seem to have a different view... Apparently this truck guy is 'sexier'. How? I don't know! I think that its the fact that the car guy was standing next to your basic average car. I'm pretty sure if that car guy was standing next to a Lamborghini, Maserati, or Ferrari, the truck man would've been in the dust! Which brings us exactly to what this post is about; how can a truck/car make you a better person? Ok, fine; it would be kind of cool if a guy owned a Lamborghini, but it doesn't necessarily mean hes more dependable or handsome. 

We all know that if this commercial was about women instead of men, social media would be fired up. Women seem to get more attention when it comes to stereotypes. Men, not so much. Its weird to hear this come from a girl, but hey; men have feelings too! By calling a car guy less 'rugged' than truck guys, its like calling a more lean girl less 'attractive' than a girl on the slim side. Despite making a pretty and funny convincing ad, Chevrolet has managed to make a commercial that catergorizes men based on what type of car they drive. 

Burger King launched an ad in which they said basically said you're only a true man when you eat a burger. Apparently if a guy is vegan, it makes him less of a man. I find these commercials so ignorant. They are disrespectful in every single way. I am not surprised that many people oppose these commercials because they are stereotypical commercials, including myself. But what about you? 

Have your say in the comments!