Taylor kidd

The Truman Show was way better than I expected, when I first heard the title I thought it was going to some stupid old movie. And as soon as I saw Jim Carrey I’m sure I actually rolled my eyes, anticipating it to be a meaningless comedy. But this movie was so good and I plan on watching it again, I actually want to show it to my brother this weekend. It was funny but also reminded me of a psychological thriller / horror movie in a lot of ways because of how thought provoking it was. It opens many doors to thoughts and conversations we probably wouldn’t be having. I agree with both reviews in them saying that this wasn’t what you expect from a Jim Carrey movie. Michael Wilmington said that The Truman Show was “a Jim Carrey movie for people who wouldn’t ordinarily go to a Jim Carrey movie.” Also I think that the movie could be quite jarring not only in thinking about social media and how it can affect us but also thinking about how much us, as a society relate to Truman. We are all b...

I read a story about how regular life would be impacted after Trumpcare replaces The Affordable Care Act (ACA). During the first year alone 15 million people would lose healthcare. “The percent of people without insurance was between 20 and 25 percent before the ACA, and now it’s somewhere around 3 to 4 percent” says one administrator in West Virginia. I think that this new health care legislation is going to have a very negative impact on most people, I also think it’s silly that we don’t just follow other countries lead and provide free / affordable healthcare for everyone. Also something I was surprised to know is that under ACA more people are going to the doctors for preventative care than before and also that now under ACA doctors are able to diagnose cancer in earlier stages than they were previously.

I read a story, which I found quite amusing, in which an elderly woman threw coins into the engine of a plane as she was boarding. She did this while praying for luck and a good flight. The flight was in Shanghai and the Buddhist woman is 80 years old, she threw nine coins, which caused a five hour delay to the flight, after questioning no charges are being presented to the elderly woman.  

I read a story about how Time, the magazine, has requested publically for President Trump to remove fake magazines from multiple of his business properties. The fake cover is dated march 1 st 2009, and is reportedly in at least five of his properties including the golf courses. I found this really amusing especially since he has rambled so much about not trusting “fake news” but then is super hypocritical by then creating, literal, fake news.

It’s kind of alarming how much more violence has become acceptable.   I have pretty young parents, my mom was in high school, and so I grew up with super chill parents and have been watching horror films since I was super little. But because I think that because of movies and video games trying to become more and more shocking we have sort of become desensitized to violence in film. When reviewing A Fistful of Dollars, Bosley Crowther seemed very alarmed by the minor violence displayed in the movie. He seemed to think that it was an “engrossingly morbid, violent film” with I think is quite strange because to be it was barely gruesome at all. It’s crazy to think how much the standards have changed but if you think about it so many things, almost everything, has changed since 1967

I read an article about an apartment building fire in London. The fire started around one in the morning on Wednesday. Seventeen people died, but that count has continued to rise, and at least seventy eight people have been taken to six different hospitals. The London police still do not know the cause of the fire. The apartment building had twenty floors and only one main staircase. They doubt there will be any more found survivors.

Even though we thought that 2017 would already be the future of flying car and cyborgs, I feel that we are still pretty far from that, and that maybe that isn’t even the direction we are going to go with our technological advances. I think that in the next few years, let’s say ten, that we will make more practical advances that robot-people. My guess is that video games and virtual reality will merge even more, like a common gaming council in most homes, right next to the Play Station and Xbox controllers there would be a VR headset. I also think that we as a society are starting to become more aware of the impact we have on climate change. So I think clean energy will become more accessible to most homes / buildings. I also think that a thing that we’ve been trying to find some sort of breakthrough for is cancer research and the cure for cancer, so I wouldn’t be surprised if within the next ten through twenty years we found some breakthrough in the way of cancer research. There ar...

I read an article about the shooting during a GOP baseball practice. It happened early this morning, in Alexandria Virginia. Five people were sent to the hospital. The only details the police are able to confirm are the number of people with injuries and that the suspect was one of the five taken to the hospital. One person at the scene said that the shooter asked about their political views and once they shared their views the shooter opened fire.

I agree with what Jordan Peele is saying, when he says he believes that “the scariest thing to me is humanity”. Because humans are powerful creatures and people can do terrible things to other people. I think that there is a general fear of change or of something being different, even when / if the change is for the better. People also tend to believe that their opinion is the right one, that’s why it is their opinion. We then get so caught up in defending ourselves, defending our opinion that we can’t listen to other opinions to better our own. We would rather protect ourselves from judgment by placing the blame, placing that judgement upon someone else. I think that racism comes from the fear of being the odd one out, nobody wants to be the strange one, so they make someone else the ‘weird’ person. All discrimination comes from the fear of differences and then the fear of accepting those differences. Just think if you accept the difference you and someone else has and realize tha...

I read a story about how French photographer Mathias Depardon was arrested in Turkey a month ago while working for National Geographic. He was taking photos for National Geographic near the border of Syria. He was arrested and held for a month, and just released this week. He had no charges against him when he was released and has been living and working in Turkey for five years. I thought the article was interesting, I also think it is strange that despite living and working in Turkey he was arrested while doing his job but not charged with any crime.

I whole heartedly disagree with almost everything she had to say. I also don’t necessarily agree that everything she said is a bad thing, I think that she, and many others have assumed that different must mean negative. I was actually talking to my great grandma about this like a month ago and her parents said the things said to my generation about the internet to her generation about digital cameras and television (when she was in college). So I don’t think that this is a new concept, thinking negatively about the younger generation. The judgment comes from a misunderstanding or lack of any understanding of them, as does most judgement. “Our idea of standing up for something we believe in means going on Facebook and posting a status with your opinion” I really disagree with this one, I’ve been to four protest/marches this year (an anti-trump rally, the march for science, the women’s march, and pride) and can confirm that a huge majority of the people at those were young people; most...

I read a story about the testimony of James Comey yesterday. He was testifying against claims of corruption against the FBI. He was fired by president trump with little to no explanation as to why. He was fired amongst claims of the FBI being “poorly led”. At the time that he was fired from his position as the head of the FBI he was currently investigating any ties between, trumps win of the 2016 election and Russia.

Give some consideration to the film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid by reading this review of the film by James Berardinelli. Then I'd like you to respond to the article by briefly sharing something you agree, disagree, or partly agree with. Quote the article once and then share your opinion. This article should be 300 words. Even though I’m not someone who generally likes western movies I genuinely enjoyed Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. I thought it was really funny, and way better than I had anticipated when you had mentioned the movie we would be watching was a western. I agree with the review in him saying that it had “…replaces the often somber mood with one that is airy and, at times, almost comedic.”, because from what I know of westerns none of them are funny, intentionally any way. Before we started the movie I had this preconceived notion that it was going to predictable and boring. I spent a lot of time with my great grandparents when I was little, and my ...

I do think that we have reached a place in society where we've stopped doing regular things because we aren't good at them. “The rest of us simply do what we are going to do for the rest of the game: watch, listen, and enjoy as someone else demonstrates skill and courage.” As a society we have made a decision that because I’m good at this, this and this, that I shouldn’t bother trying to do other things because I’m not ‘good’ at them.   It is sort of sad to think that the only time people are willing to sing, is along with the radio or very quietly to a baby. I’ve been in choir since 7 th grade and I know many people who refuse to join choir or sing in general because they ‘can’t sing’ but everyone can sing, not well, but if it makes you feel good or better or you’re having a good time then it doesn’t really matter if you ‘can’ sing.

"Many people have strong opinions about Rapid City, the Black Hills, or South Dakota--particularly teenagers on the verge of graduating high school. Please write a reflective article describing for us your own opinion about Rapid City, the Black Hills, or South Dakota. It is a good place to live? To grow up? To visit? This post should reach 300 words." I was born in Rapid City and have lived her my entire life, my mom has also lived here most of her life. I personally really love Rapid City, in my opinion it has a smaller town vibe despite it not being very small anymore. I've traveled throughout the Midwest and the Black Hills are very unique. What makes the Black Hills unique is the landscape and climate. The Black Hills and Rapid City have a very specific small town feel. Despite not being a huge town rapid doesn't really miss out, we have touristy things, shopping and all sorts of restaurants. The Black Hills have not only 'hills' but also the badlands....

On June first President trump announced his, and our, withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement. The Paris climate agreement was an agreement addressing climate change, signed by 195 countries. The only countries not under this agreement were Syria and Nicaragua, and now The United States. Under the agreement The United States vowed to reduce our carbon emissions by 26 to 28 percent in a decade.  The decision undoes years of progress in the way of green energy and reduced carbon emissions, it also puts over a million clean energy jobs at risk. The withdrawal also raises tensions amongst its allies and damages our economy.

"A very famous ancient Greek saying gives the advice that a person should "Know thyself." Since famous philosophers like Socrates and Plato thought this saying was so important, take some time for that pursuit. Who are you? Please write an explanation of who you are in at least 300 words. Something to keep in mind: This is your chance to give a profile of who you are. To make us believe you and truly understand what you mean, supply us with evidence of your claims. In other words, make sure you give us examples of how you are the way you say you are" Hello I'm Taylor Jean Kidd, I'm sixteen but I will be seventeen pretty soon, on the fifth of July. I live in rapid city, obviously, I've lived here my whole life. I have five younger half-siblings and live with my mom, step dad, younger sister Cadence and grandma. I have three sisters and two brothers, in order of age they are: Gavin 15, Cadence 10, Camber 6, Teagan Jayne 2 and Eloise who is less than a...