Nats reading response

In the Sunday times the 14^th of Oct their was an article in the “world on Sunday” called “Silent Witness, Monroe truth dies with Lawford” by John Edwards that questions the truth behind the conspiracy of Marilyn Monroe’s death. Was it suicide or Murder? A question that has still yet to be answered, but now the truth will never be known. Due to recently Patricia Kennedy Lawford died from Pneumonia in her home in Manhattan, she was the last person to know the secrets of Monroe’s death, but now the secret is possibly lost forever.

Patricia was married to Peter Lawford a long time friend of
Monroe who was the last person to see and speak her before she committed suicide, unless she was murdered? The article prompts many ideas about her death and it speaks of the affairs with both Jack and Bobby Kennedy that Monroe was going to go public about that night that she “died”.

The end of the affairs had destroyed Monroe, which led her to overdose on Vodka and pills in the
Lake Tahoe cabin after a conversation to Bobby Kennedy on the phone, questioning him about why he wanted to end it.

Monroe was found by Patricia and her husband, Lawford who revived her with the help of another of
Monroe’s lovers, Frank Sinatra. Who then flew her back to Los Angeles on his private jet. Once in LA, Lawford called his wife and Bobby Kennedy about Monroe continuous ranting about going public.  

The mystery thickens when it is revealed that Bobby Kennedy was seen by Lawford’s neighbour entering the house where Monroe was staying the night and consequently died, it also reveals of unregistered helicopter flight. The mystery continues to unfold as Lawford makes drunken phone calls to his wife, Patricia, she wasn’t the only Kennedy to know that Bobby was in LA, the president also knew. This to me raises the question about maybe it was a political cover-up. But what harm would come by
Monroe going public about the affair? Or did Monroe know something that she shouldn’t have know, something of value to the Kennedy family?

This article ends just like any conspiracy related article or story by saying “that the truth died with them. It will never be known”. This entices the reader to think about all angles they have been introduced to so they are able to come up with their own idea.

I found this article an interesting, it’s not something I would normally read but this sort of grabbed my attention. The last person who knew the truth has possibly died and taken the truth to the grave. It was a death full of scandal, politics, sex and drugs. It’s conspiracy that is still being researched today. For me the Kennedy’s are implicated some how in this conspiracy, but sadly no one will ever know the truth.

Green Street Hooligans

The controversial European footy movie directed by Lexi Alexander, has the perfect balance between anarchy and authority. It starts out in Harvard where Math Buckner played by Elijah Wood is kicked out after being framed for having cocaine in his room by his wealth well connected roommate. Having a Journalism major under his belt with no where to go he leaves to London to visit his younger sister who he hasn’t spoken to after she left after the death of their mother.

The reunion is cut short as Shannon’s husband Steve comes home, who was the former leader of the Green Street Elite (GSE) firm, the famous major, with a romantic date planned for them. This is where the other main character comes in to the picture, Pete (Charlie Hunnam), the GSE’s new leader and younger brother of Steve comes around and gets paid to take Matt to one “of their footy games”. The boisterous Pete takes Matt, a yank along to the game, a game that Matt has never seen and calls soccer. Pete warns Matt that the “Yank should never use the word soccer” this is where you begin to think that maybe its not a normal soccer match that you would watch on TV. Matt who is thrown into unfamiliar territory hides his Journalism major as one that firms hate more than each other are Journalists.

The match isn’t a typical game, its full of action and abuse between the firms and spectators. The firm GSE is loyal to the Westham football team who support the team on and off the field. With the game over matt heads home alone, while Pete and the boys head off to celebrate, Matt not realising he was being followed by the opposition firm, is jumped. The timid matt finds himself in his first fight, after taking several punches he stands up and fights. Instead of being horrified he feels bloodied but alive “once you find out your head is not made of glass, you become addicted (to the violence) you feel alive” as Matt says. Matt then finds himself in a continuous full blood war between the opposing firms. Its not about the fight, its about their reputations. The film portrays the two sides of the members of the firm. It shows the characters as normal members of society with good paying jobs, with Pete a schoolteacher and another a pilot and a banker.

Once the big final finally approaches BSE discovers that their team Westham have a home game playing their biggest rivals, Millwall. The Millwall Firm’s leader, Tommy Hatcher has a long-standing hatred for Pete’s family after Pete’s brother Steve, glassed Tommy and wants revenge.

After one the GSE members Bovver who dislikes Matt lies to the boys and tell them that Matt is a journalist selling his story to the paper. This splits the team and Pete shows his loyalty to Matt after Matt tells him he’s an ex-journalist but is Loyal to the firm and wouldn’t do that. Bovver is dismissed from the firm and heads over to Millwall and tells Tommy that Steve has rejoined the firm after promising to retire was at the pub. Tommy retaliates and launches an attack on GSE, which results in a brawl and fire. Steve is viciously attacked by Tommy and receives a broken bottle to his jugular and is rushed to emergency where he’s placed in intensive care. The members who arrive at the hospital after the brawl realise that Bovver had betrayed them and Pete decides its time to settle the score tomorrow at an abandoned wharf. When Shannon, arrives at the hospital and breaks down its where you as a viewer realise that the Firm’s loyalty to the teams also affects the families and that Shannon must leave to protect their son as they are now no longer safe.

Matt is forced to choose between leaving the country with his sister or the firm, but he feels he owes something to the firm so he joins the boys to settle the war for once and all. This is the biggest outback of violence in the film with people’s arms and legs being broken from having bits of wood and pipe swang at them. When Tommy arrives, looking for blood and Pete’s out for revenge. When Shannon arrives looking for Matt, Tommy turns his attention to her and try’s to attack her, but Pete infers resulting in Tommy ruthlessly attacking Pete, eventually killing him. Once both firms realise that Tommy is killing Pete they come together and pull him off Pete, but they are too late, Pete had already died. It took someone to die for all the firms to come together and realise that they had gone too far.

In the end Matt is out for his own revenge after having the confidence to stand up for himself, he hunts down his well connected and wealthy roommate who still has the cocaine habit, to get his ticket back into Harvard. Throughout the film you see Matt evolving and a finds place that his is accepted in, the GSE.

I loved this film, its full of action and owes a lot to the movie the Football Factory. Matt portrays the innocence that gets corrupted and Pete shows the dedication, anger, aggression and compassion that makes him different from everyone else. This movie is really good, so good that I even did a review on it as  you can obviously see.

The New World The novel the “New World” is apart of the Trilogy “the Doom spell” which is a three part fantasy series, which makes you believe that anything is possible if you have a little trust and faith in you and the world. The first book “the New World” tells the tales of a sister and brother from Earth, the “hope child” Rachael and the “destroyer of Magic” Eric who are taken from Earth to a mystical yet evil place called Iretha. With the help of the great wizard “Laspke” and the leader of the Rebellion group against the evil witch “Drawge”, Morpthen helps them to discover their full abilities and purpose of their magic. After being plucked from Earth by “Drawge”, Eric and Rachael first discover their magic on the planet where no one smiles and everything that can be used for evil is controlled; it’s a place full of sadness and death. All the people on the planet used to be children who are now slaves to the evil witch.  Rachael learns that she is able to shape shift and fly faster than any other creature and has a wide of spells at her beckoning call to help her defeat “Drawge” who wants to kill Rachael, after she discovers that she is more powerful than her. A power play between “Drawge” and Rachael appears here, but they also represent the conflict between good and evil that has been a battle for centuries everywhere.  

Eric who is kidnapped by the evil witch “Drawge” discovers that he has ability to destroy magic, so that the individual is unable to use that specific type of magic again. The evil witch ends up feeling threatened by Rachael so she tries to manipulate her to choose evil over good. This seems possible because Rachael’s character appears vulnerable and easy to manipulate, as she hasn’t shown any real inner strength, making it seem like she is weak and confused.  As the story develops you see Rachael grow and learns the truth about the battle between the witches and the wizard. With the help of Morpthen and the great wizard “Laspke” she defeats “Drawge” in the final battle, the climax. Rachael comes into contact with the “Doomspell” one of the most powerful spells throughout magic, which no one has been able to defeat, which Rachael manages to do so and then reverses on to the evil witch that destroys her for once and all. After Rachael destroys the evil witch everything on Iretha returns to its former glory, the sun reappears and the children’s innocence’s are returned and creatures and people are smiling for the first time in hundreds of years.  

At the end of the novel the Great Wizard “Laspke” returns, Rachael and Eric back home to Earth and Morpthen joins them as well to protect and help build their spells and strength. Once back on Earth “Laspke” warns Rachael of the greater battle and challenge still to come which entices you to read the next book in the trilogy.  

The book sounds Lame, but I enjoyed reading it. It presents you with a new fantasy world that you can’t understand yet see it being real, but the writer has described and it promotes imagery which makes you believe the place is real. The writer uses strong emotive language, which tunes in every sense you have in to feeling, seeing, smelling, believing and sometimes tasting what she is describing and talking about.

“You” The novel “You” is a detailed story of a 19 year old girl who committees a crime when she was a troubled youth and how the consequences both mentally and physically affects her life after she refuses to deal with her past and hides it in a closet. Throughout the story you are introduced to three different characters, Josie, Alex and Gemma, who you find out, are all the same people, portraying different emotions and relive the crime and the effects it has on them all. The character’s real name is Alex and after the tragic events from her childhood she ends up suffering from Schizophrenia and Depression. 

The events of her childhood follow the weak and damaged relationship of Alex’s mother and herself. The hardship begins when Alex’s mum marry’s a drunken and abusive man, Barry. Alex begins experiencing trouble at home and abuse at school. At the school Alex attends there has always been an issue of crime and disobedient from the attending students, the school reacts employs a new principal that believes in discipline and conformity that the students don’t agree with. At school things begin to feel like a prison and at home it’s a place of constant abuse both verbal and physical for Alex. She begins to feel worthless and rebels by dropping rocks off the town’s bridge above the freeway, attacking Barry with a paintball gun, as a joke and by smoking. Her rebellious actions of are matched with Barry trying to control her. On Christmas day he punishes her by destroying her skateboard and bans her from partaking in “Christmas”.  Later that month Alex and her mates are at the local bridge where a dare turns into a freak accident when Barry’s youngest kid falls off the bridge after Alex tries to help her get down. Alex is blamed by Barry for the freak accident and abused and attacked, while Alex’s mum stands back unable to help. This results in her moving into foster care with Moria and Frank, whom also look after another girl, Lara who is disabled.  

 Alex suffers from psychological problems such as voices in her head, hallucinations, and graphic nightmares, which leads to acts of self-mutilations. This prevents her from attending her uni courses and fulfilling her dream of becoming a Zoo Keeper, the one thing that keeps her stable. After Maria finds her cutting her wrists she is forced to talk about her nightmares and the freak accident. At this time in the story her nightmares are at their climax and shows the vivid details of the abuse and of the accident.  

The next day after Alex talks about the accident, Lara falls down the stairs. Before she is rushed to hospital she asks Alex to feed the ducks at the park, which is a ritual for the family every afternoon. Which Alex does after considers finding a sharp object to cut her wrists, ending her life for once and all. Once Alex arrives at the park she finds a sobbing young girl who had lost her parents. Alex is forced to take her to the police station, which is over the bridge. While she crosses the bridge she relives her past and the accident. This acts as the climax in the novel and helps her to understand that she doesn’t need to hide from her past or life and has suffered enough. As a reader, the beginning of the book sets out to make you have a negative response to Alex whom the reader thinks murdered an innocence 4 yr old child. As the book goes on you realise that yes the child was innocent 4 yr old but you learn that it was an accident, a freak accident. Alex is portrayed as the antagonist but as the story evolves you see her side of the story and perspective and you begin to feel sympathetic to her. This idea evolves as we learn about the abuse and neglect and depression she suffers from.

As a reader you begin to feel that she has suffered enough from the freak accident and is overwhelmed with guilt and is unable to live her life until she overcomes the guilt. The book for me was a pretty good read, it kept me interested because I wanted to know more about the accident and what the nightmares and hallucinations became of her and how it affected her everyday life. It showed me that when people make mistakes that they also go through a lot of pain and that there is many more people affected than you first think. It also makes you think about how much someone should suffer under the law after an accident when they may also endure psychological and life threaten effects

Last term our class viewed a presentation by RAC on road safety called “Road safety the Reality”. The speech was given to us by a young girl whom herself had been involved into a road accident. The fact that the speaker was a younger lady who had recently completed her course at Uni, made it easier for us to relate to her. She gave us information and statistics on road accidents and gave us helpful hints on road safety and buying a car.

The main four killers on the road are related to Speeding, Alcohol, Fatigue and lack of seatbelts.

• Over 4 people a year dies in Air transport.
• Over 29 people die in related homicides/suicide pre year
• Over 162 deaths a year on WA roads
• Over 855 deaths in the last 5 years have been on the road
• 179 deaths on the road in 2004
• 162 deaths on the road in 2005

Sadly the people at most risk is between 17-24 yrs old and males are at even greater risk. 1 out of 5 people are involved in car accidents as passengers or killed. They say that the reasons young teens are involved/causes crashes is because they are over-confident, inexperience, dare-devils and peer pressured to go faster or do dangerous manoeuvres at high speed and in dangerous conditions. People who don’t wear a seatbelt are 10 xs more likely to die in an accident.

Sadly every death or accident does huge damaged to the community, not just emotional but also economically. It cost 1.7 million dollars each time someone dies on the road; this cost includes road maintenance, funeral costs, insurance and other expenses.

Due to the increased amount of teens dying in car accidents the government has brought new laws such as the anti-hooning laws. They have recently brought in a new law that for the first 6 months of having your P-plates you can only have yourself and one other person in the car under the age of 21. The Government is hoping that by doing this their will be a minimised amount of teen deaths on the road.

When buying a car we were told to look out for rust on cars because the more rust the more likely they are going to crumble in a car accident. When buying a car it’s important to have anti-lock brakes, shatterproof glass, ESP to help minimise the dangers of car accidents.

This presentation was informative, simple language and had visual aid which helped keeps us focused on the presentation. Some aspects of the presentation made me think more about when I get my p-plates and the hazards I’m going to face on the road and it scared me.

The article by Mark White, “Ice Storms” purpose was to explain and describe the social effect it is having on our country, not only Crystal Meth but other recreational drugs, Marijuana aswel.

Ice Storm gains our interest by taking our weakness and desires, by using this technique such as talking about individual sexual desires, chocolate and cigarettes to gain our attention to continue on reading.

Cyrstal Meth is a drug that people in society are least educated about, where as other drugs such as Marijuana is most discussed and educated about. Although Cyrstal Meth is being used more regulary and rapidily then Marijuana.  Cyrstal Meth which has more serious side effects then Marijuana such as reduction of desire to breath, irregular heart beats, hullicinations, loss of consciousness and untentional self injury.

The Article also discusses the comparison of the Terrorist and Drug threat that is apparent in society today. The drug epidemic is becoming the second threat from Terrorism. Ice Storms explain how “meth” is being used more than Heroine and Marijuana. Police are unable to track and make any siginificant drugs bust in relation to Crystal Meth because they are unaware of who and where people manufacture it.

My response to this article was that is was very informative and explained terms and statistics present. It held my attention because it wasn’t an article that told me not to do it, it explored both sides of the story, including the side effects and back ground knowledge. This allowed me to be able to come to my own conclusion about Crystal Meth.

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