A Web of Brands Essay

The essay, â€Å"A Web of Brands† by Naomi Klein focused on the relationship between clothing manufacturers in Toronto, Canada during the 1930’s and the clothing manufacturers in Jakarta during the 1980’s. The responsibilities for the web brands were accounted for cheap labor and the need for money of young Jakartans in order to survive. The need for cheap labor and the use of young adults resulted the people to take jobs far from their country. When Klein wrote about global coincidence. He also stated that there was a noteworthy alignment of two or more events that have no evident causal connections. These were seen when he spoke with the Kaho workers about working and living in a clothing factory. The ironic part was the fact that the factory where the London Fog Clothing in Jakarta was made, was the same manufacturer that Klein’s apartment building used in making the clothes during the 1930’s before the operation was finally moved to Jakarta. The purpose of the introduction was to paint a picture of Toronto during the 1930’s when clothing manufacturers still existed in town. Since the factories have now been moved to Jakarta, nothing much were left, but signs and loft apartments. Klein repeats the word â€Å"abysmal† twice in his essay with great detail because of the horrible condition that the Kaho workers endured during their days at work and at home. â€Å"Abysmal† usually connotes the feeling of being extremely or hopelessly negative, with the notion of having severe conditions. Postindustrial, on the other hand, is defined as a society wherein an economic transition occurred from being a manufacturing based economy to a service based economy. Furthermore, â€Å"limbo† is defined as the state of being disregarded or forgotten. Being required by rules is the definition for â€Å"compulsory†. Receiving something, such as money, either given or received as payment is connoted for compensation. Recourse, on the other hand, is defined as the act of turning to someone for assistance. Moreover, charades is defined as the acting out of a phrase by an individual for others to guess. Tenacious is then defined as being good at remembering. For euphoric, it is defined as the imparting of great feeling of well-being. Lastly, manic is defined as the state of high excitement and activity found in bipolar disease and is occasionally incorporated with other mental illnesses. The connection I had with logos was a very good question. I do not buy things merrily just because of the logo they carry. I buy goods, such as clothing, cars, electronics, and food for the reasonable price they have and not because of the brand/logo. For once, I bought two Champion t-shirts for the price of one, as compared to a Nike shirt, where I have to pay for a full price. I have always believed in bargain shopping and not in logo shopping. In the essay â€Å"Live free and Starve† by Chitra Divakaruni, the thesis is stated when Divakaruni writes â€Å"the liberals passed the bill†. Third world counties were names given to nations that were underdeveloped economically during the 20th century. The name Third World arose during the Cold War refering to nations that did not belong to the First and Second World countries. While there is debate over the appropriateness of the term, and no alternative is without detractors, the term is one embraced by many. As Americans, we are at the top of the pyramid, having moved up by satisfying all needs required at each level. When Divakaruni wrote about the Maslow pyramid, her purpose was to show that even if Americans were at the top, it is difficult to satisfy the needs of each level. The third world countries were not priviledge to have the opportunities Americans or other first and second world countries have, such as excellent education, decent jobs, and proper shelter to live in. The effect of the last paragraph and the rhetorical questions Divakaruni had was a strategy on how people will be educated and survive when the bill passes. By doing this, Divakaruni brings up some very good points as to how the people will survive once the bill is passed. The metaphor that Divakaruni used when writing about children laborers means that if the children stop working, their families will not have any money to survive. For short, the childreen need to work in order to financially support their families. The most basic cause of a large, poor family is survival. This can also be attributed to all of the family members being required to work in order to provide food and pay the bills. Although a large population of poor families exist in the United States, reasons may be attributed to the fact that Americans are sending good jobs to other countries in order to acquire cheaper labor, instead of keeping the jobs in the country to lessen poverty. Moving on, the essay â€Å"Drugs† by Gore Vidal is not outdated in terms of views regarding drugs in the United States. In this regard, what Vidal wrote about the government is true up to this day. Vidal appears to anticipate the response of the audience in the sixth paragraph of the essay. When Vidal asked questions within the paragraph, he gave anticipated answers to what the readers might say or think. The function of the rhetorical questions within the essay was a way for the public to ask themselves the same question while reading. By doing this, Vidal made the readers view the current situation with drugs in our country. Exhortation means a communication intended to urge or persuade the recipients to take some action. GNP, on the other hand, means Gross National Product. Mainliners is a slang term; referring to a principal and easily accessible vein, usually in the arm or leg, into which a drug can be injected. Furthermore, â€Å"perennially† means in a perennial manner repeatedly. Curtailed means to cut short or reduce. With the underestimated phrase, Vidal meant that he was not doing anything on his own, accepting what Homer gave him, but making it even worse. I am in favor of legalizing non-narcotic drugs. I have been to Amsterdam and the Netherlands. I have seen the possibility of how the United States could legalize these drugs. Amsterdam is a pleasant place to visit with wonderful people who live by. The country has positively allowed the legalization of non-narcotic drugs. Cafes, where drugs were available, where open for sale to the busy public. The selling of drugs is only monitored by the owner, who in turn, was carefully monitored by the Amsterdam government. I spent eleven weeks in Amsterdam, but I saw no dealers nor addicts. What I saw was a guy in the cafe being neglected with the drug, for he was already high. I believe that the legalization of the non-narcotic drugs in the United States would work in the country. If the Europeans were able to handle it, the Americans can. The essay, â€Å"Safe Sex Lies† by Meghan Daum, the awareness for AIDS became a pop culture, especially to people who did not believe that it can happen to them. Therefore, it has taken on the power of a myth that this belief on one’s social status can avoid transmission of HIV. There are two types of â€Å"Safe Sex Lies† discussed in the Daum’s essay. The first was â€Å"you do not know where they has been† and the second is â€Å"they did not tell me that he was shooting drugs†. These two examples of the lies about safe sex make the average person look ignorant. The effect of Daum’s confession is focused on the fact that no one has a perfect life. Repeated tests makes a person feel more at ease about the aids situation. People need to be more cautious with what they are doing, especially when it comes to having sex with their partners, whom they know little about. Children of the 20th century have been repeatedly told about the aids virus. As we all know, kids believe almost everything they hear on the radio or see on television. The effect of the word â€Å"those† in the first paragraph is a sarcastic meaning for all the needles and condoms that Daum had seen in her lifetime. The effect of the informal language that Daum used in her essay was effective for the essay. By writing the essay in an informal manner, the reader easily comprehends what is being said, receiving the points easily. Writing the essay in an informal manner was a good decision from the writer’s end, resulting in more queries about the said AIDS virus. I feel that handing out packets of condoms to kids these days is a bad idea. They are given the impression that engaging in pre-marital sex is alright. Sex should not be rushed, it has to wait either after marriage, or when both are mature enough to handle the consequences that come with it. Nowadays, what all the kids see on television is someone blowing up a condom. After such deed, they do not know the harsh realities that come with it, when broken. This is no joke, be cautious and aware of what you are doing.