Summon the Ancients-Society's Decay

I walk amongst the scum of the earth
Back stabbing liars and hypocrites
I refuse to settle this
Last time I try to do this
I am enslaved
With all of them 

Fake politicians guide us 
They determine the disease 
I will terminate this
 I will not ties
Bringing these eyes upon mankind 

Fix this race 
Tell these lies
This is not the same
society is wasting
 I will watch society decay

This is not the way it should be
everyone just is a two faced thief
I've watched this so many times
This will all crumble before us
Bitter hearts will beat the same in this hell
This all could be avoided
I'll see your face in hell

Today, someone correcting my essay asked me if "gesticulation" was a real word.  I was flabbergasted.  That was my favorite word in middle school, maybe even in 6th grade!  And a high school senior was asking me if it even existed.  It would have been okay if he didn't know what it meant, but the fact that it wasn't even familiar to him shocked me.

People have been praising the new revised version of the SAT because now that students don't have to study "weird" words, they can put more effort into the other sections and have less stress.  But even though you might not use those words in regular conversations, the fact that you have an expanded vocabulary might come in handy in college or writing formal letters.  Now that people don't have to study "weird" words (oh come on, words such as "spew" and "spur" are considered SAT words.  Everyone should know them by the time they have to take the test), there might be a general decline in the quality of writing people can expect.

Now, I'm not saying that my vocabulary is amazing or anything ( in fact, that was my weakest section of all).  I'm merely saying that if society starts to undermine the importance of a strong vocabulary, we might as well use Newspeak.  In fact, in the book 1984 by George Orwell, it states that "the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought", and that "in the end we shall make thoughtcrime literally impossible, because there will be no words in which to express it".  You learn to associate certain words with your experiences, but without those words, the value of those experiences disappear.  Without the means of expressing your reactions, the stimuli is rendered obsolete.


This is part of a song called I Ain't Got (A Good Enough Vocabulary): http://www.songsforteaching.com/fillyourhead/iaintgot.htm

Part of the lyrics are below:

She's so loquacious, tenacious, sagacious-but not too spacious
She's inscrutable, beautiful-it's irrefutable.
Never meek with us, obseqious, salutary when she speaks with us.
Munificent, beneficent, yeah she's magnificent

But she won't go out with me-because
I ain't got a good enough vocabulary
No-no-no she ain't got time for me-because
I ain't got a good enough vocabulary

Fear Factory-Scapegoat

He has not confessed
He has made no statement
Charges of murder
Have been accepted against him

Judges have decimated
Meanings of our laws
Already guilty?
Something has a flaw

Wrongly accused
Blindly confused
Open your eyes
Try to realize

Don't you know
You can't see
Too damn blind
To judge me!

Wrongly accused
Blindly confused
Open your eyes
Try to realize

Don't you know
You can't see
Too damn blind
To judge me!

Laws are meant to follow
But they've misled you
Conceal their meaning
So they can suit you
Misjudged by the system
No one every knows
Adding injury to insult
No one ever knows
No one
No one knows
No one
No one
No one knows...

Judges have decimated
Meanings of our laws
Already guilty?
Something has a flaw

Wrongly accused
Blindly confused
Open your eyes
Wake up, realize!

Scapegoat
Scapegoat
Scapegoat
Scape, goat
Scape, goat

How much government intervention are you okay with?  What's your line?  Has it already been drawn?

We had this discussion in class today comparing 1984 to modern America.  Though citizens value their free speech and numerous other rights, how much freedom do they actually have?  How do they know they aren't being watched right now through their cell phones or their computers?

For me, I'm okay with government screening everyone in airports and other public transportation.  However, they should not screen every conversation and household to protect citizens because it violates basic rights.  Even if family members were killed and the government desperately wants to capture the criminals, I would not support this notion.  

Before the Holocaust, Germany was starving from World War I.  Hitler hoped to keep the German citizens safe, and put his anger on a tangible scapegoat: the Jews.  The Germans couldn't blame human nature, as there would be no way to fix the situation.  Prejudice may also express anger:  when things go wrong, finding someone to blame can provide a target for one's anger.  In the late 1600s, New England settlers, after suffering devastating losses at the hands of Native Americans and their French allies, lashed out by hanging people as witches.  Following 9/11, some outraged people lashed out at innocent Arab-Americans. Philip Zimbardo once said "Fear and anger create aggression, and aggression against citizens of different ethnicity or race creates racism and, in turn, new forms of terrorism" (my psychology class was fortunate enough to hear his speech at Chapman University about heroism).  

What's This?(Nightmare Before Christmas)-Danny Elfman Jack

What's this? What's this?

There's color everywhere

What's this?

There's white things in the air

What's this?

I can't believe my eyes

I must be dreaming

Wake up, Jack, this isn't fair

What's this?

What's this? What's this?

There's something very wrong

What's this?

There's people singing songs

What's this?

The streets are lined with

Little creatures laughing

Everybody seems so happy

Have I possibly gone daffy?

What is this?

What's this?

There's children throwing snowballs

Instead of throwing heads

They're busy building toys

And absolutely no one's dead

There's frost on every window

Oh, I can't believe my eyes

And in my bones I feel the warmth

That's coming from inside

Oh, look

What's this?

They're hanging mistletoe, they kiss

Why that looks so unique, inspired

They're gathering around to hear a story

Roasting chestnuts on a fire

What's this?

What's this?

In here they've got a little tree, how queer

And who would ever think

And why?

They're covering it with tiny little things

They've got electric lights on strings

And there's a smile on everyone

So, now, correct me if I'm wrong

This looks like fun

This looks like fun

Oh, could it be I got my wish?

What's this?

Oh my, what now?

The children are asleep

But look, there's nothing underneath

No ghouls, no witches here to scream and scare them

Oh ensnare them, only little cozy things

Secure inside their dreamland

What's this?

The monsters are all missing

And the nightmares can't be found

And in their place there seems to be

Good feeling all around

Instead of screams, I swear

I can hear music in the air

The smell of cakes and pies

Are absolutely everywhere

The sights, the sounds

They're everywhere and all around

I've never felt so good before

This empty place inside of me is filling up

I simply cannot get enough

I want it, oh, I want it

Oh, I want it for my own

I've got to know

I've got to know

What is this place that I have found?

What is this?

Christmas Town? Hmm...

Instead of answering questions that the teacher asked us, we were told to generate our own questions based on Frankenstein.  The challenge was that it couldn't include anything about style analysis.  Sounds easy, right?  Wrong.  Style analysis includes anything from themes, comparisons, organization, unusual , and even specific details.  That covered so many of the potential questions I came up with. In addition, they all had to be open-ended questions, that could lead to further discussion.  However, this experiment really helped me to understand how teachers feel while writing up tests.  It's almost as bad as taking the tests...

Why has asking become so difficult? It's not because curiosity, the thirst for knowledge, is less prevalent.  The problem is that people don't know how to voice their questions.  I have noticed in Socratic seminars or brawls that many people have ideas that they want to declare, and confuses that with questions they want to ask.  Instead of asking questions that are likely to enhance the discussion, most people only bring details that they want to point out.  When someone asks a question, most people just continually add on to a previous commentator's ideas.  Not many people are willing to be the first to move on from the topic.  Instead, the conversation goes round and round in circles.  In extreme cases, some classes will talk about some ducks for forty minutes.  

Begin your question with the traditional interrogatory words: who, what, where, why, when, how.  A concise, clear question is an important contribution in its own right. This link might help readers better understand the book they're reading, and help stimulate discussions:

http://www.englishcompanion.com/assignments/thinking/askingquestions.htm

Black Veil Brides-Knives and Pens

Alone at last we can sin and fight.
And I've lost all faith in this blurring light,
(Stay right here we can change our plight.
Storming through this despite what's right.)

One final fight for this tonight.
Whoa-oh-oh
With knives and pens we made our plight.

Lay your heart down, the end's in sight.
Conscience begs for you to do what's right.
(Everyday it's still the same dull knife,
Stab right through and justify your pride.)

One final fight for this tonight.
Whoa-oh-oh
With knives and pens we made our plight.
Whoa-oh-oh

Well I can't go on without your love that you lost, you never held on.
(We tried our best. Turn out the light. Turn out the light!)

One final fight for this tonight.
Whoa-oh-oh
With knives and pens we made our plight.
Whoa-oh-oh

Well I can't go on without your love that you lost, you never held on.
(We tried our best. Turn out the light. Turn out the light!)

I just recently finished A Boy Called It(child abuse), and it strongly reminded me of A Million Little Pieces(drug abuse).  However, A Boy Called It was labeled nonfiction, while A Million Little Pieces was classified as fiction.  I understand why it is fiction, as the author exaggerated a lot even though it was based on his own personal experience.  For example, he only got one or two teeth fixed without drugs to alleviate the pain, but in his book, he described this scene so gruesomely that I felt like I had a horrible toothache.  

Therefore, I think A Boy Called It should also be placed under fiction.  Though it is also based on a true story, I feel that parts of it are exaggerate.  I understand that it was probably traumatizing him, and that it was brave of him and necessary to write this book to spread awareness about the severity of child abuse.  However, the extent of the abuse seems excessive, and the whole book was about the abuse he suffered rather than trying to explain his mother's behavior or even introduce her as a character.  

After I finished the first book, I was frustrated that it was placed under nonfiction, and looked up the author.  There are many criticisms of him, calling him a child-abuse entrepreneur, even coining the term "Pelzermania".  Some say that as Pelzer progressed from the first book to the third book, he vilifies his mother more and more and his abuse becomes even more gory, so I am currently reading the second book, The Lost Boy.  

Sylosis-Blind Desperation

Fall into this nightmare we've built

Ripping ourselves from within

With a desperate cry

With the taste of sweat on my tongue

(Blind!)

Blind from this state that we're in

Blinded like moths to the flame

With a desperate cry

With the taste of fears we create

Failure!

Learn! 

Driven by what we achieve

Draining ourselves from within

And a desperate cry

From the promise of starting again

Die! 

Broken from where we have failed

Never returning again

With a desperate cry

With the sense of a life thrown away

In this fire we burn

Back to the light we return

I hear the dying screams

I sense the end is near

With a final exhalation

My soul is reborn in fire

This fire will burn

In this fire we'll burn

A sense of life is thrown away

We learn to fall and run away

A sense of life is thrown away

In this fire we'll burn

In this fire we'll burn

Back to the light we return

When people are desperate, it is easier to manipulate them.  In Hamlet, for example, Claudius was able to use Laertes in his plot to kill Hamlet, as Laertes was desperate for revenge after his father's and sister's deaths.  It was perfect for Claudius, who wanted to get rid of Hamlet without dirtying his own hands.  

When people are desperate, they are willing to do many things that they normally wouldn't, and even if they know they will regret their actions.  

Jason & The Long Road To Love-Pray For You

I haven't been to church since I don't remember when

Things were goin' great 'til they fell apart again

So I listened to the preacher as he told me what to do

He said you can't go hatin' others who have done wrong to you

Sometimes we get angry, but we must not condemn

Let the good Lord do His job and you just pray for them

I pray your brakes go out runnin' down a hill

I pray a flowerpot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the head like I'd like to

I pray your birthday comes and nobody calls

I pray you're flyin' high when your engine stalls

I pray all your dreams never come true

Just know wherever you are honey, I pray for you

I'm really glad I found my way to church

'Cause I'm already feelin' better and I thank God for the words

Yeah I'm goin' take the high road

And do what the preacher told me to do

You keep messin' up and I'll keep prayin' for you

I pray your tire blows out at 110

I pray you pass out drunk with your best friend and wake up with his and her tattoos

I pray your brakes go out runnin' down a hill

I pray a flowerpot falls from a window sill and knocks you in the head like I'd like to

I pray your birthday comes and nobody calls

I pray you're flyin' high when your engine stalls

I pray all your dreams never come true

Just know wherever you are, near or far, in your house or in your car,

wherever you are honey, I pray for you.

I pray for you

I have been reading Hamlet recently, and for those of you who have not already read the book, Hamlet is more of an analyst and as a prince, he is careful and clever.  Even though Hamlet knows that his uncle killed his father and married his mother, he waits for the perfect time to seek his revenge.  Rather than rashly going to murder his uncle for his greed and villainy, Hamlet patiently waits to drive out the snake in the end.  

In this song, he is using a holy method (praying) to cover up and excuse his malicious thoughts and intents.  Hamlet's uncle, Claudius, may have done something completely unmoral and corrupt, but Hamlet understands that he should first be subtle about this new knowledge before actually acting on it.


This relates to our daily life; even if you are frustrated or angry, it doesn't mean that rash behavior is acceptable.  Sometimes we have to step back a bit and not act on our emotions immediately.  It's okay to dislike someone and wish that karma ruins them, but there's no need to physically harm them in any way.  Mentally attacking them is better than physically attacking them (though by no means am I telling you to curse everyone who you dislike...).   As the lyrics say "Sometimes we get angry, but we must not condemn", we have to realize that other people might not be having a good day, so we can't just automatically classify them as rude or mean or disgusting, and then condemn them.  And besides, thinking about the evil ways you can get back at them will brighten up your mood without actually doing anything to them.  

Linkin Park-Numb

I'm tired of being what you want me to be
Feeling so faithless lost under the surface
Don't know what you're expecting of me
Put under the pressure of walking in your shoes

(Caught in the undertow just caught in the undertone)

Every step that I take is another mistake to you

(Caught in the undertow just caught in the undertone)

I've become so numb I can't feel you there
Become so tired so much more aware

I'm becoming this all I want to do

Is be more like me and be less like you

Can't you see that you're smothering me
Holding too tightly afraid to lose control
Cause everything that you thought I would be

Has fallen apart right in front of you

(Caught in the undertow just caught in the undertone)

Every step that I take is another mistake to you

(Caught in the undertow just caught in the undertone)

And every second I waste is more than I can take

I've become so numb I can't feel you there
Become so tired so much more aware

I'm becoming this all I want to do

Is be more like me and be less like you

And I know 
I may end up failing too
But I know
You were just like me with someone disappointed in you

I've become so numb I can't feel you there

Become so tired so much more aware

I'm becoming this all I want to do

Is be more like me and be less like you

I've become so numb I can't feel you there

I'm tired of being what you want me to be

I've become so numb I can't feel you there

I'm tired of being what you want me to be

Everyone has someone's expectations piled on them, be it a parent, a teacher, or themselves.  This is caused mostly by competition, peer pressure, and the struggle for a sense of belonging.  

For me, my sister was considered the genius in the family.  I remember how she was always playing games on the computer, but somehow always received A's in every single class she took.  And she took more AP classes than me (I'm taking five AP tests this year).  All of the parents knew her to be smart, polite, and overall a good girl with a rebellious younger sister.  Now, she's in UCSD for her fourth year, even though she could have graduated in three.  The only B she ever received was because she slept in and skipped classes too much.  

My mother says it'll be difficult to enter even UCSD with my grades.  Even though I know it's true, it still hurts.  It's not like I didn't put any effort into school (though I am somewhat of a gamer...)  I still study for tests and do my homework, but I haven't gotten straight A's since middle school.  My parents have basically given up on me, though they try to hide it by saying that there are plenty of colleges that will accept me based on my high SAT and AP scores.

Most people underestimate their own abilities. They tend to remember their failures more vividly than their successes, and for this reason they have unrealistically low expectations about what they are capable of. Those individuals who distinguish themselves through great accomplishments are usually no more talented than the average person: they simply set higher standards for themselves, since they have higher expectations about what they can do.

It reminds me of an essay prompt that I've been given before (the one posted below is different but similar enough): 

Assignment:

Do highly accomplished people achieve more than others mainly because they expect more of themselves? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.


What do you think? Do high expectations allow people to soar higher and accomplish more, or is it a cause of a higher chance of depression?

Matthew West-Hello, My Name Is

Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh


Hello, my name is regret
I’m pretty sure we have met
Every single day of your life
I’m the whisper inside
That won’t let you forget

Hello, my name is defeat
I know you recognize me
Just when you think you can win
I’ll drag you right back down again
‘Til you’ve lost all belief

Oh, these are the voices. Oh, these are the lies
And I have believed them for the very last time

Hello, my name is child of the one true King
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh
I’ve been saved, I’ve been changed, I have been set free
"Amazing Grace" is the song I sing
Hello, my name is child of the one true King

Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh

Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh

I am no longer defined
By all the wreckage behind
The one who makes all things new
Has proven it’s true
Just take a look at my life

Hello, my name is child of the one true King
I've been saved, I've been changed, I have been set free
"Amazing Grace" is the song I sing
Hello, my name is child of the one true King

Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),

What love the Father has lavished upon us 
that we should be called His children
I am a child of the one true King

What love the Father has lavished upon us 
that we should be called His children

Hello, my name is child of the one true King
I've been saved, I've been changed, I have been set free
"Amazing Grace" is the song I sing
Hello, my name is child of the one true King

Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh

I am a child of the one true King

Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh (ah oh),
Whoa oh ah oh ah oh oh...

As I was reading The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, this song was stuck in my head.  It works perfectly in my opinion.  I don't want to spoil the book too much (and I definitely recommend it), so I'll try my best to find the right combination between explaining the correlations and keeping it ambiguous.  

In The Kite Runner, Amir regrets his childhood mistakes and decisions, and tries to forget about it.  In fact, he lives as an insomniac for fifteen years, constantly haunted by his past. Little details bring him back to the day where he used Hassan's loyalty and lied to him, when he watched Hassan get sexually abused, and when he lied to kick Hassan out of the house.  Therefore,  regret is "the whisper inside that won't let [him] forget".  

Amir had also believed that his father loved Hassan more than him, and had continually attempted to vie for his father's affections.  He always felt defeated, because he was not like his father and he was painfully aware that his father was disappointed in him when he cried or didn't stand up for himself or others.  Even after his relationship with his father became better, Amir realized it was because of Hassan.  

And when Amir realized that those he trusted the most had lied to him the most, he was heartbroken.  His whole life had been a mass of small lies to cover up a large one.  "Oh, these are the lies/ And I have believed them for the very last time".  

However, he is suddenly forced to remember everything and given a second chance to forgive himself and wash away his guilt.  Because of the ordeals he goes through, he starts praying again, realizing that there is a God.  Everything that Amir left behind in Afghanistan (his regrets, his fears, his insercurities) are finally resolved, and thus he has been saved, changed, and set free.  

Panic! At the Disco-This is Gospel

This is gospel for the fallen ones

Locked away in permanent slumber

Assembling their philosophies

From pieces of broken memories

Oh, this is the beat of my heart, this is the beat of my heart [x2]

The gnashing teeth and criminal tongues conspire against the odds

But they haven't seen the best of us yet

If you love me let me go

If you love me let me go

'Cause words are knives and often leave scars

The fear of falling apart

And truth be told, I never was yours

The fear, the fear of falling apart

Oh, this is the beat of my heart, this is the beat of my heart [x2]

Don't try to sleep through the end of the world

Bury me alive

'Cause I won't give up without a fight

If you love me let me go

If you love me let me go

'Cause words are knives and often leave scars

The fear of falling apart

And truth be told, I never was yours

The fear, the fear of falling apart

Oh, the fear of falling apart

Oh, the fear, the fear of falling apart

[x4]

Oh (This is the beat of my heart)

The fear of falling apart

Panic! at the Disco is an American rock band that formed in 2004.  I  found out about them in 2008 with "I Write Sins Not Tragedies", released in 2006.  I still listen to Panic! after five years because they are that amazing.  

"This is Gospel" is part of the album titled Too Weird to Live, Too Rare to Die!, which will be released this October (the music video of "This is Gospel" was released on August 12th).  So far, the songs "This is Gospel" and "Miss Jackson" have been released.  

Some may interpret these lyrics to be about Ryan Ross and Jon Walker leaving the band, while other fans argue that the song is about how P!ATD has grown throughout the years and changed their style of music.  I don’t agree with either of these views.  Ross and Walker both left in 2009, and the song was finally released in 2013. 

If you look at the album as a whole, their new record is very much about the virtues of vice, being a fault, defect, or shortcoming.  Brendon Urie has stated in an interview that “This is Gospel” is basically about “trying to break free from the burdens that sit on your shoulders that you feel weigh you down at times”.  Because of this, I think the lyrics are about the difference between conforming and not conforming.  “This is gospel for the fallen ones/Locked away in permanent slumber” would refer to the dead who were deprived of liberty. Gospel is the belief of something or absolute truth.  “Assembling their philosophies/from pieces and broken memories” would refer to how they took their examples from the past and questioned society.  Those victims had been silenced because they saw how the world was falling apart, and became part of the vicious cycle. 

The next phrase is “Oh, this is the beat of my heart, this is the beat of my heart”.  At this part the beat starts to go faster, imitating an excited heartbeat. “The gnashing teeth and criminal tongues conspire against the odds” further supports my view that these people were considered “criminals” and were forced to hide in order to protect themselves.  However, they stayed firm in their beliefs and continued to pass knowledge on despite the obstacles.   And so, “they haven’t seen the best of us yet”. 

"If you love me let me go" refers to how a society should love their citizens and not want to let them die or be restrained.  “And truth be told I never was yours” exemplifies the strength of a single human mind refusing to be subdued and controlled. “The fear of falling apart” is one of the greatest fears known to human, and yet Urie wants his listeners to speak their minds and don’t conform to society.

“This is gospel for the vagabonds/ Never-do-wells and insufferable bastards” is again referring to those who were shunned because they caused trouble by not conforming.  An apostasy is a total desertion of or departure from ones' religion, principles, party, cause,
 etc. The lyrics “Confessing their apostasies” shows how they aren’t afraid to stand up for their beliefs, even if they are “led away by imperfect impostors”.  The word “impostors” symbolizes how the ones who captured the dissenters don’t know what they believe in, and just blindly follow the leader. 

“Don’t try to sleep through the end of the world/ Bury me alive/ ‘Cause I won’t give up without a fight” is Brendon Urie’s message to the people.  It shows the overall tone of the song: no matter what, be an individual.  Don’t be afraid to speak out, and don’t let your freedom of speech be taken away from you.    

P!ATD  is performing at the Hollywood Bowl along with Thirty Seconds to Mars on October 12th.  Get your tickets here http://bit.ly/MARSbowl13!!  If you can't make it then, you can find other tour dates and other information on their official website http:/www.panicatthedisco.com.