“Wolfpack” bullying

So I just read the following article about Teddy Molina, who was a high school freshman at Flour Bluff High School in Corpus Christi, Texas. Teddy committed suicide with a hunting rifle after enduring bullying since he was in junior high. Teddy was not gay. Teddy did not have a disability. What Teddy did have was a different look. A look the led a “wolf pack” of kids to relentlessly bully him until Teddy could not take it anymore. See Teddy was half Korean and half Hispanic. I look at his picture and I say to myself, “What a sweet looking young man”. It is sad that the school allowed this and that no one intervened. Teddy tried to downplay the bullying but in the end, his soul was torn apart by the wolf pack. I don’t know anything about the latter’s family but I hope they are severely disappointed in their child’s actions which led to a beautiful boy killing himself just because he looked different. Last night, I heard about a husband and wife who got into a physical altercation because the husband did not want his wife to have any contact with her adult children from a previous relationship. WHY? Because the husband did not like that one of the mother’s adult daughter married a black man and had a mixed child together. I just cringe at that husband’s line of thinking. In my opinion, mixed children like Teddy, are truly blessed. They get the best of both worlds. While I am 100% Korean, I know with certainty that when I finally do have a child, he/she will be a gorgeous blend of beautifulness. Which is why this story about Teddy Molina upsets me so much. Young people will continue to commit suicide, it can not be eradicated but what I (and you) can do is teach your own children someday the power of acceptance so that the future generation does not partake in this kind of behavior just because a kid looks different. I know I don’t want my children to read another story like Teddy’s.

You can read the article at the link below:

http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/04/10/11118720-family-bullying-by-wolf-pack-led-to-texas-teens-suicide?lite

The decline of R-E-S-P-E-C-T

So it’s been a while since I’ve posted anything. Call it writers block or just being busy with work but nothing has seemed to peak my interest. That is until I just came across another article about a boy who killed himself after being bullied. 12 year old Joel Morales from East Harlem hanged himself  after kids teased him about his intelligence, height  and his deceased father. What surprises me is who teaches children to be this cruel? You will often hear the tagline, “Kids will be kids” but this is not a case of “Kids will be kids”, I for one as a young kid NEVER teased any schoolmate. I certainly did not chase or throw sticks and pipes at another kid which is what happened to Joel too. What it boils down to is bad parenting. I was very fortunate to have a father who taught us to be respectful of everyone and maybe that was because my sisters and I looked different too (we were four Koreans growing up in a an all white population); regardless of what my ethnicity is or where I grew up, this behavior by kids is unacceptable. The sad truth is, bullying will never end because we have too many parents out there who are kids themselves. We have kids who are having kids, adults who want to be kids again, and adults who never learned anything about respect or diversity before having kids. I am getting very fed up with people’s lack of respect and the decline in morality in this country. Everyone knows it is NOT RIGHT to call people names based on their appearance and everyone including kids knows not to talk about someone’s dead parent! It all boils down to parenting and teaching your kids respect. So if you have a child, please teach them respect or learn it yourself because in the end you are contributing to what is a much larger social issue than most people realize. 

You can read Joel’s story here 

SONG OF THE WEEK: Karmin’s “Broken Hearted”

Happy Friday the 13th everyone! So every week I will try to post a song of the week and with the weekend almost here, today is perfect time to recommend a song. This week, I have been obsessed with Karmin’s “Broken Hearted”. For those of you who are from Boston, you may have heard of Karmin – a duo consisting of Amy Heidemann and Nick Noonan. Heidermann and Noonan are Berklee alum who made their big break with their remix of Chris Brown’s “Look At Me Now”. Amy kills it on that track! Well fast-forward to today and Karmin is releasing their album Hello on May 8th and “Broken Hearted” is the second single from it.

Now don’t let the title fool you, it may sound depressing but the song is anything but depressing, I assure you! It has a great beat and Amy’s quirky vocals are the perfect blend for a fun, carefree song. Although Amy sings about not wanting a man to leave her broken hearted (something us girls constantly fear when we meet someone we really like) but after listening to the song, I feel nothing but pure happiness. You may ask how is that possible but go ahead and take a listen here but if you like it, please buy the single at Amazon or iTunes! Karmin also gets brownie points from me because not only do Amy and I share the same name (mine is spelled with an “i”) but Amy is from Nebraska, which is also my home State! Enjoy the song and have a safe but fun weekend. Cheerio!!

Britney has that X-Factor

So the rumor mill today is that Britney Spears will be a judge on Simon Cowell’s X-     Factor. After the 1st season here in the U.S. did not go over too well (i.e. the firing of Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger), Simon needs the 2nd season to really take off for it to be a success. Spears is reportedly going to get paid $15 million for the judging gig, making her pretty much the highest paid female judge on television, if the deal goes through. Other female judging cohorts like Christina and J-Lo (Sorry, i still have to call her that) each earned around 10 million and 12 million respectively for their gigs. I know there are a lot of people out there who dislike Brit Brit but one can not deny that she will attract viewers and Cowell knows that. For those of you that remember, when Britney was making her “comeback” in 2008, it was Simon who had her on X-Factor in Britain. I personally think this is a smart move for Britney since as we all know, her performances are just not what they used to be. With that said, Britney can still run circles around most of us, including me and she’s popped out two kids! I think most of us expect to see the 19 year old Britney who stripped to “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction” or the 24 year old giving it her all on the spectacular Onyx Hotel Tour. In my opinion, the Onyx Tour was her last great tour where you could actually see that Britney loved performing but then 3 years later, Britney was married (twice) and had two little boys. I can see how her life goals changed, it became about her children yet people around her wouldn’t let her just slip away from the limelight and what ensued in 2007 was her infamous catastrophic meltdown.

Although Britney has released two studio albums and went on tour for each of them (Circus, Femme Fatale), it is clear , Britney needs a steady, scheduled gig without the demands of a world tour. She has been in the game long enough to give advice to young performers who idolized her performances. Being an artist isn’t just about singing ability but its about have that X factor and we all know Britney has it. For those who say Britney can’t sing, I wouldn’t argue that. She is not a strong vocalist and has never tried to pass off as one. She is a better singer than your average joe’s though. Not everyone who is a “singer” needs to have the pipes of say Mariah. I am a huge Britney fan and I listen to her songs when I feel like getting ready to go out. They’re fun, sexy, and care-free. Music snobs need to lighten up when they bash someone who has sold over 100 million albums worldwide. Anyway, back to the X-Factor, I hope this deal works out because I would love to see the advice she gives to the contestants. I think it would be sweet and genuine. The only thing I pray for is a good hair and clothing stylist for Britney because Lord knows she is not known for her weave or fashion sense!

Walking Dead Fix

With the Walking Dead off the air until the third season kicks off in the Fall, I know I need my zombie fix. I love love love this show. Not just for the superb action and makeup job done on walkers but because it really makes you think hard about what you would do in a similar situation. While I am pretty sure a zombie apocalypse is never going to happen, another catastrophic event could occur that would leave us all in a vulnerable state. So i am writing today because it was just confirmed that Lauren Cohen AKA Maggie AKA Glenn’s love interest, was signed on for Season 3. I for one am very happy to hear she will be back. But that leads me to beg the writers of the show to KILL OFF Lori and Carl. Towards the end of Season 2, those two characters became very annoying. I won’t go into why because I don’t feel like getting upset today but I am sure anyone else who watches the show agrees with me! So who would YOU like to see have their skin torn into or body disemboweled (like ***SPOILER ALERT**** poor Dale) in Season 3?