Date: 8/27/08
Time: 4:57 pm
Place: At Work
It's Okay To Cry...
You look around,
day in day out
There is always pain,
without a doubt People fight and die everyday
Children, bloody and bruised, never play
Parents hooked on drugs and fights
Reminded all day about the hurtful nights
Words are thrown,
fists are swung
Loved ones die when they are way too young
Blood and tears, they are too well known
The things we learn, the things we are shown
Some give up and some move on
The joy was here but now is gone
How did it come to start?
When will it finally end?
Physical cuts heal,
but emotional ones never mend
So next time you see hurt in someone's eye
Don't forget to remind them that it'sokay to cry...
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Monday, August 25, 2008
Exited!
Date: 8/25/08
Time: 10:12pm
Place: my living room
OMG! it is the end of the session already. I am so exited for so many different reasons. It is my grandmother's 60th B-day and my baby brother's first birthday all on the same day. They share a birthday. We are havin a big party for my baby brothers birthday this saturday. I love parties so I think I am more exited then my mom. I went today and bought all the decorations for the party and I bought him his outfit for the party. Yeayyyyyy!!!
Other than that this week is a bit stressful because I have finals and papers to finish and I want to do really good. Hopefully I can get all A's for all the three classes I am taking this semester.
Then in two weeks is my birthday. Yeayyyyy. My friends and I are planning to go to the Hurricane Harbor water park at Six Flags if the weather is nice, if its chilly by then I guess we can go to the amusement park. If the weather is horrible then I guess I can have my bday at the club and have a blast anyays.
Time: 10:12pm
Place: my living room
OMG! it is the end of the session already. I am so exited for so many different reasons. It is my grandmother's 60th B-day and my baby brother's first birthday all on the same day. They share a birthday. We are havin a big party for my baby brothers birthday this saturday. I love parties so I think I am more exited then my mom. I went today and bought all the decorations for the party and I bought him his outfit for the party. Yeayyyyyy!!!
Other than that this week is a bit stressful because I have finals and papers to finish and I want to do really good. Hopefully I can get all A's for all the three classes I am taking this semester.
Then in two weeks is my birthday. Yeayyyyy. My friends and I are planning to go to the Hurricane Harbor water park at Six Flags if the weather is nice, if its chilly by then I guess we can go to the amusement park. If the weather is horrible then I guess I can have my bday at the club and have a blast anyays.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Rock and Roll
Date: 8/13/08
Time: 11:40 pm
Place: My couch
As I was doing research for a paper in my other class I went accross this article of Rock and Roll and I just had to share. Hope you like.
The massive popularity and worldwide scope of rock and roll resulted in a powerful level of social impact. Far beyond simply a musical style, rock and roll influenced daily life, fashion, attitudes, and language in a way few other social developments have equalled. The social impact is large and rock stars are loved worldwide and often performances of several artists in diverse arts and cultures are scaled to and appreciated as being close to that of a "rock star".
Rock and rebellion
As the original generations of rock and roll fans matured, the music became an accepted and deeply interwoven thread in popular culture. Beginning in the early 1970s, rock songs and acts began to be used in a few television commercials; within a decade this practice became widespread. Starting in the 1980s rock music was often featured in film and television program soundtracks.
Just as jazz lost its ability to offend, so did rock. While mainstream rock music was no longer able to shock or offend, new forms of music, particularly the punk scene in the late-1970s and rap and hip-hop in the late-1980s as well as some pop acts, emerged to fill this role.
Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll
The rock and roll lifestyle was popularly associated with sex and drugs. Many of rock and roll's early stars (as well as their jazz and blues counterparts) were known as hard-drinking, hard-living characters. During the 1960s a decadent lifestyle of many stars became more publicly known, aided by the growth of the underground rock press which documented such excesses, often in exploitative fashion. Musicians had always attracted attention from the opposite sex; groupies (girls who followed musicians) spent time with and often did sexual favors for band members, appeared in the 1960s. While some rock groups eschewed such attention in favor of long-term relationships, other groups and artists did little to discourage it, and many tales (both true and exaggerated) of sexual escapades became part of rock music legacy during the heyday of the rock era. As the heyday was over rock lost a lot of its connection with sex while Rap, R&B and later on Pop have far more sexual content in their songs than rock and have also took over the idea of artists being sex symbols.
Drugs were often a big part of the rock music lifestyle. In the 1960s, psychedelic music arose; some musicians encouraged and intended listeners of psychedelic music to be under the influence of LSD or other hallucinogenic drugs as enhancements to the listening experience. Jerry Garcia of the rock band Grateful Dead said "For some people, taking LSD and going to Grateful Dead show functions like a rite of passage.... we don't have a product to sell; but we do have a mechanism that works."
The popularity and promotion of recreational drug use by musicians may have influenced use of drugs and the perception of acceptability of drug use among the youth of the period. When the Beatles, once marketed as clean-cut youths, started publicly acknowledging using Cannabis, many fans followed. Journalist Al Aronowitz wrote "...whatever the Beatles did was acceptable, especially for young people. Pretty soon everybody was smoking it, and it seemed to be all right." The relationship of rock music to the hippie and counterculture movements, which espoused use of marijuana and other drugs, is complex and intertwined, and it is not always clear in which direction influence flowed. What is clear is that by the end of the 1960s, drugs and rock music were part of a common youth scene and that both some rock musicians and some rock fans were experimenting with many types of drugs.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s however, much of the rock and roll cachet associated with drug use dissipated as rock music suffered a series of drug-related deaths, including the 27 Club member deaths of Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison. Although some amount of drug use remained common among rock musicians, a greater respect for the dangers of drug consumption was observed, and many anti-drug songs became part of the rock lexicon, notably "The Needle and the Damage Done" by Neil Young (1972).
Many rock musicians, including John Lennon, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, Steven Tyler, Scott Weiland, Sly Stone, Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, Kurt Cobain, Anthony Kiedis,Dave Mustaine, and others, have acknowledged battling addictions to many substances including cocaine and heroin; many of these have successfully undergone drug rehabilitation programs, but others have died. In the early 1980s, along with the rise of the band Minor Threat, the straight edge lifestyle became popular, especially with young adults. The straight edge philosophy of abstinence from recreational drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and sex became associated with hardcore punk music through the years, and both remain popular with youth today. Many rock stars who suffered from drugs and quit or those who were close to drug abusers that died have supported rehabs and have raised awareness about the danger of drugs.
The lessons of the excesses of the earlier eras were sometimes ignored; some early punk rock was vociferous about promoting the abuse of drugs. Late 1970s acts such as The Stranglers, The Psychedelic Furs, and The Only Ones reflected their use of heroin in their lyrics in a fashion that sometimes seemed to cross over into advocacy. Later bands such as Guns N' Roses, Jane's Addiction, Primal Scream and Ministry movement of the 1980s were associated with a resurgence in abuse of heroin and other hard drugs. During the early 90s and even before so, Christian influences came into play as many Christian bands and older musicians who became born again frowned upon the rock 'n' roll life style of the 60s and 70s. More recently, it has mainly been rap and hip hop, (and a few electronica) acts which have been glamorizing and promoting drug use in songs, although a few current rock acts like The Libertines and Brian Jonestown Massacre have been as well. However, the lifestyle of most rock stars nowadays falls within the social norm. An example of this trend would be the formerly drug-abusing Red Hot Chili Peppers, who have since cleaned up their act.
Rock and fashion
Rock music and fashion have been inextricably linked. The tough, leather-clad image of early rockers such as Gene Vincent influenced a generation of young people on both sides of the ocean. A cultural war broke out in the mid-1960s in the UK over the rivalry between the "Mods" (who favored high-fashion, expensive styles) and the "Rockers" (who wore T-shirts and leather); followers of each style had their favored musical acts, who eagerly fed into the conflict by releasing records praising one style and disparaging another (the Mods versus Rockers controversy would form the backdrop for The Who's rock opera Quadrophenia).
Rock musicians were early adopters of hippie fashion and introduced such styles as the Nehru jacket; bands such as the Beatles had custom-made clothing that influenced much of '60s style. As rock music genres became more segmented, what an artist wore became as important as the music itself in defining the artist's intent and relationship to the audience. The Glam rock of the 1970s brought fashion to new heights of importance in rock music with the "glitter" image of artists like T. Rex and Alice Cooper being widely influential. Some artists who had been active in the late 1960s such as David Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop also adopted a glam-influenced look. In the late 1970s, Disco acts helped bring flashy urban styles to the mainstream, while New Wave groups began wearing mock-conservative attire (including suit jackets and skinny ties) in an attempt to be as unlike mainstream rockers (who still favored blue jeans and hippie-influenced clothes) as possible.
In the early 90s, the popularity of grunge brought in a fashion of its own. Grunge musicians and fans wore torn jeans, old shoes, flannel shirts, backwards baseball hats, and grew their hair against the clean-cut image that was popular at the time as well as heavily commercialized pop music culture.
Musicians continue to be fashion icons; pop-culture magazines such as Rolling Stone often include fashion layouts featuring musicians as models.
The "Sell Out" dilemma
Main article: Selling out
Rock musicians and fans have consistently struggled with the paradox of "selling out" -- to be considered "authentic", rock music must keep a certain distance from the commercial world and its constructs; however it is widely believed that certain compromises must be made in order to become successful and to make music available to the public. This dilemma has created friction between musicians and fans, with some bands going to great lengths to avoid the appearance of "selling out" (while still finding ways to make a lucrative living).
If a performer first comes to public attention with one style, any further stylistic development may be seen as selling out to long-time fans. On the other hand, managers and producers may progressively take more control of the artist, as happened, for instance, in Elvis Presley's swift transition in species from "The Hillbilly Cat" to "your teddy bear".
It can be difficult to define the difference between seeking a wider audience and selling out. Ray Charles left behind his classic formulation of rhythm and blues to sing country music, pop songs, and soft-drink commercials. In the process, he went from a niche audience to worldwide fame. In the end, it is a moral judgement made by the artist, the management, and the audience.
Saving the world
"Love and peace were very common themes in rock music during the 60s and 70s. Rock musicians have often attempted to address social issues directly as commentary or as calls to action. During the Vietnam War the first rock protest songs were heard, inspired by the songs of folk musicians such as Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan, which ranged from abstract evocations of peace Peter, Paul, and Mary's "If I Had a Hammer" to blunt anti-establishment diatribes Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young's "Ohio". Other musicians, notably John Lennon and Yoko Ono, were vocal in their anti-war sentiment both in their music and in public statements.
Famous rock musicians have adopted causes ranging from the environment (Marvin Gaye's "Mercy Mercy Me (the Ecology)" and the anti-apartheid movement (Peter Gabriel's "Biko"), to violence in Northern Ireland (U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday") and worldwide economic policy (The Dead Kennedys' "Kill the Poor"). Another notable protest song is Patti Smith's recording "People Have the Power." On occasion this involvement would go beyond simple songwriting and take the form of sometimes-spectacular concerts or televised events, often raising money for charity and awareness of global issues." ((c) merinews 2007)
Rock and roll as social activism reached a milestone in the Live Aid concerts, held July 13, 1985, which were an outgrowth of the 1984 charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and became the largest musical concert in history with performers on two main stages, one in London, England and the other in Philadelphia, USA (plus some other acts performing in other countries) and televised worldwide. The concert lasted 16 hours and featured nearly everybody who was in the forefront of rock and pop in 1985. The charity event raised millions of dollars towards famine relief in Africa.
Live Aid became a model for many other fund-raising and consciousness-raising efforts, including the Farm Aid concerts benefiting family farmers in North America, and televised performances benefiting victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Live Aid itself was reprised in 2005 with the Live 8 concert raising awareness of global economic policy. Environmental issues have also been a common theme, the greatest example being Live Earth.
Time: 11:40 pm
Place: My couch
As I was doing research for a paper in my other class I went accross this article of Rock and Roll and I just had to share. Hope you like.
The massive popularity and worldwide scope of rock and roll resulted in a powerful level of social impact. Far beyond simply a musical style, rock and roll influenced daily life, fashion, attitudes, and language in a way few other social developments have equalled. The social impact is large and rock stars are loved worldwide and often performances of several artists in diverse arts and cultures are scaled to and appreciated as being close to that of a "rock star".
Rock and rebellion
As the original generations of rock and roll fans matured, the music became an accepted and deeply interwoven thread in popular culture. Beginning in the early 1970s, rock songs and acts began to be used in a few television commercials; within a decade this practice became widespread. Starting in the 1980s rock music was often featured in film and television program soundtracks.
Just as jazz lost its ability to offend, so did rock. While mainstream rock music was no longer able to shock or offend, new forms of music, particularly the punk scene in the late-1970s and rap and hip-hop in the late-1980s as well as some pop acts, emerged to fill this role.
Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll
The rock and roll lifestyle was popularly associated with sex and drugs. Many of rock and roll's early stars (as well as their jazz and blues counterparts) were known as hard-drinking, hard-living characters. During the 1960s a decadent lifestyle of many stars became more publicly known, aided by the growth of the underground rock press which documented such excesses, often in exploitative fashion. Musicians had always attracted attention from the opposite sex; groupies (girls who followed musicians) spent time with and often did sexual favors for band members, appeared in the 1960s. While some rock groups eschewed such attention in favor of long-term relationships, other groups and artists did little to discourage it, and many tales (both true and exaggerated) of sexual escapades became part of rock music legacy during the heyday of the rock era. As the heyday was over rock lost a lot of its connection with sex while Rap, R&B and later on Pop have far more sexual content in their songs than rock and have also took over the idea of artists being sex symbols.
Drugs were often a big part of the rock music lifestyle. In the 1960s, psychedelic music arose; some musicians encouraged and intended listeners of psychedelic music to be under the influence of LSD or other hallucinogenic drugs as enhancements to the listening experience. Jerry Garcia of the rock band Grateful Dead said "For some people, taking LSD and going to Grateful Dead show functions like a rite of passage.... we don't have a product to sell; but we do have a mechanism that works."
The popularity and promotion of recreational drug use by musicians may have influenced use of drugs and the perception of acceptability of drug use among the youth of the period. When the Beatles, once marketed as clean-cut youths, started publicly acknowledging using Cannabis, many fans followed. Journalist Al Aronowitz wrote "...whatever the Beatles did was acceptable, especially for young people. Pretty soon everybody was smoking it, and it seemed to be all right." The relationship of rock music to the hippie and counterculture movements, which espoused use of marijuana and other drugs, is complex and intertwined, and it is not always clear in which direction influence flowed. What is clear is that by the end of the 1960s, drugs and rock music were part of a common youth scene and that both some rock musicians and some rock fans were experimenting with many types of drugs.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s however, much of the rock and roll cachet associated with drug use dissipated as rock music suffered a series of drug-related deaths, including the 27 Club member deaths of Brian Jones, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison. Although some amount of drug use remained common among rock musicians, a greater respect for the dangers of drug consumption was observed, and many anti-drug songs became part of the rock lexicon, notably "The Needle and the Damage Done" by Neil Young (1972).
Many rock musicians, including John Lennon, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, Steven Tyler, Scott Weiland, Sly Stone, Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, Kurt Cobain, Anthony Kiedis,Dave Mustaine, and others, have acknowledged battling addictions to many substances including cocaine and heroin; many of these have successfully undergone drug rehabilitation programs, but others have died. In the early 1980s, along with the rise of the band Minor Threat, the straight edge lifestyle became popular, especially with young adults. The straight edge philosophy of abstinence from recreational drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and sex became associated with hardcore punk music through the years, and both remain popular with youth today. Many rock stars who suffered from drugs and quit or those who were close to drug abusers that died have supported rehabs and have raised awareness about the danger of drugs.
The lessons of the excesses of the earlier eras were sometimes ignored; some early punk rock was vociferous about promoting the abuse of drugs. Late 1970s acts such as The Stranglers, The Psychedelic Furs, and The Only Ones reflected their use of heroin in their lyrics in a fashion that sometimes seemed to cross over into advocacy. Later bands such as Guns N' Roses, Jane's Addiction, Primal Scream and Ministry movement of the 1980s were associated with a resurgence in abuse of heroin and other hard drugs. During the early 90s and even before so, Christian influences came into play as many Christian bands and older musicians who became born again frowned upon the rock 'n' roll life style of the 60s and 70s. More recently, it has mainly been rap and hip hop, (and a few electronica) acts which have been glamorizing and promoting drug use in songs, although a few current rock acts like The Libertines and Brian Jonestown Massacre have been as well. However, the lifestyle of most rock stars nowadays falls within the social norm. An example of this trend would be the formerly drug-abusing Red Hot Chili Peppers, who have since cleaned up their act.
Rock and fashion
Rock music and fashion have been inextricably linked. The tough, leather-clad image of early rockers such as Gene Vincent influenced a generation of young people on both sides of the ocean. A cultural war broke out in the mid-1960s in the UK over the rivalry between the "Mods" (who favored high-fashion, expensive styles) and the "Rockers" (who wore T-shirts and leather); followers of each style had their favored musical acts, who eagerly fed into the conflict by releasing records praising one style and disparaging another (the Mods versus Rockers controversy would form the backdrop for The Who's rock opera Quadrophenia).
Rock musicians were early adopters of hippie fashion and introduced such styles as the Nehru jacket; bands such as the Beatles had custom-made clothing that influenced much of '60s style. As rock music genres became more segmented, what an artist wore became as important as the music itself in defining the artist's intent and relationship to the audience. The Glam rock of the 1970s brought fashion to new heights of importance in rock music with the "glitter" image of artists like T. Rex and Alice Cooper being widely influential. Some artists who had been active in the late 1960s such as David Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop also adopted a glam-influenced look. In the late 1970s, Disco acts helped bring flashy urban styles to the mainstream, while New Wave groups began wearing mock-conservative attire (including suit jackets and skinny ties) in an attempt to be as unlike mainstream rockers (who still favored blue jeans and hippie-influenced clothes) as possible.
In the early 90s, the popularity of grunge brought in a fashion of its own. Grunge musicians and fans wore torn jeans, old shoes, flannel shirts, backwards baseball hats, and grew their hair against the clean-cut image that was popular at the time as well as heavily commercialized pop music culture.
Musicians continue to be fashion icons; pop-culture magazines such as Rolling Stone often include fashion layouts featuring musicians as models.
The "Sell Out" dilemma
Main article: Selling out
Rock musicians and fans have consistently struggled with the paradox of "selling out" -- to be considered "authentic", rock music must keep a certain distance from the commercial world and its constructs; however it is widely believed that certain compromises must be made in order to become successful and to make music available to the public. This dilemma has created friction between musicians and fans, with some bands going to great lengths to avoid the appearance of "selling out" (while still finding ways to make a lucrative living).
If a performer first comes to public attention with one style, any further stylistic development may be seen as selling out to long-time fans. On the other hand, managers and producers may progressively take more control of the artist, as happened, for instance, in Elvis Presley's swift transition in species from "The Hillbilly Cat" to "your teddy bear".
It can be difficult to define the difference between seeking a wider audience and selling out. Ray Charles left behind his classic formulation of rhythm and blues to sing country music, pop songs, and soft-drink commercials. In the process, he went from a niche audience to worldwide fame. In the end, it is a moral judgement made by the artist, the management, and the audience.
Saving the world
"Love and peace were very common themes in rock music during the 60s and 70s. Rock musicians have often attempted to address social issues directly as commentary or as calls to action. During the Vietnam War the first rock protest songs were heard, inspired by the songs of folk musicians such as Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan, which ranged from abstract evocations of peace Peter, Paul, and Mary's "If I Had a Hammer" to blunt anti-establishment diatribes Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young's "Ohio". Other musicians, notably John Lennon and Yoko Ono, were vocal in their anti-war sentiment both in their music and in public statements.
Famous rock musicians have adopted causes ranging from the environment (Marvin Gaye's "Mercy Mercy Me (the Ecology)" and the anti-apartheid movement (Peter Gabriel's "Biko"), to violence in Northern Ireland (U2's "Sunday Bloody Sunday") and worldwide economic policy (The Dead Kennedys' "Kill the Poor"). Another notable protest song is Patti Smith's recording "People Have the Power." On occasion this involvement would go beyond simple songwriting and take the form of sometimes-spectacular concerts or televised events, often raising money for charity and awareness of global issues." ((c) merinews 2007)
Rock and roll as social activism reached a milestone in the Live Aid concerts, held July 13, 1985, which were an outgrowth of the 1984 charity single "Do They Know It's Christmas?" and became the largest musical concert in history with performers on two main stages, one in London, England and the other in Philadelphia, USA (plus some other acts performing in other countries) and televised worldwide. The concert lasted 16 hours and featured nearly everybody who was in the forefront of rock and pop in 1985. The charity event raised millions of dollars towards famine relief in Africa.
Live Aid became a model for many other fund-raising and consciousness-raising efforts, including the Farm Aid concerts benefiting family farmers in North America, and televised performances benefiting victims of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Live Aid itself was reprised in 2005 with the Live 8 concert raising awareness of global economic policy. Environmental issues have also been a common theme, the greatest example being Live Earth.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
"Frustrated"
Date: 8/12/08
Time: 11:49am
Place: At work
OMG!! Today is not a good day for me. I am enraged. I went to a job interview this morning and they made me feel like an idiot and on top of that they made me loose my time. Urrfff. I am so mad. I hate when non-profit organizations who are in desparate need for personnel want to be so selective and picky. This is my second interview and they made me meet with four people so far. I am so disapointed. I have the skills and the potential for this position but for some reason they want to question the amount of experience I posses and meanwhile they hire people with no backgroubd whatsoever in the field. Don't you think that 6 months of experience is way better than nothing. Gosh I live so far from this place that it takes me 2 hours to get there for them to be wasting my time.
I hate the process of everything. Seriously why do you need to Interview with like 6 different people for a position that maybe only one of those would be your supervisor.
Time: 11:49am
Place: At work
OMG!! Today is not a good day for me. I am enraged. I went to a job interview this morning and they made me feel like an idiot and on top of that they made me loose my time. Urrfff. I am so mad. I hate when non-profit organizations who are in desparate need for personnel want to be so selective and picky. This is my second interview and they made me meet with four people so far. I am so disapointed. I have the skills and the potential for this position but for some reason they want to question the amount of experience I posses and meanwhile they hire people with no backgroubd whatsoever in the field. Don't you think that 6 months of experience is way better than nothing. Gosh I live so far from this place that it takes me 2 hours to get there for them to be wasting my time.
I hate the process of everything. Seriously why do you need to Interview with like 6 different people for a position that maybe only one of those would be your supervisor.
Sunday, August 10, 2008
In Search of the American Dream
Date: 8/10/08
Time: 5:49pm
Place: My couch
In Search of the American Dream
The Twentieth Century was an era of many changes and advances. Of all the major events that happened during this century, the one thing that my family was involved in was in the pursuit of the American Dream or migration. My entire family originates from the Dominican Republic. My great grandmother decided that she wanted to migrate to the United States along with all her family in order to give her descendants the opportunity to have the most options available to them to become whatever they wanted in a country that was fair and prosperous. This all began in the 1980’s when she was the first one to get on a plane and leave all her family behind to start the foundation of a new beginning. She came to an unknown country, with different customs, food and different everything. She came to New York, where she had no friends or family. She found the way to get a job and a place to live in the meantime until she was to be reunited with all her family. Soon after she was here maybe a year or two after she started to bring her children from youngest to eldest. Then when my grandmother was here she did the same with all her (4) children. Then it was my moms turn and no doubt she brought my brother and me as well. By the year 1989 the entire family was reunited.
Now looking at the migration as a historical event, since the beginning of the 1900s, many people where migrating to other places in the hope to find a better place to settle in. Some where leaving because they wanted the freedom to express and practice their religious beliefs. Others where leaving because they where not in accordance with the form of government from their original countries. For many more reasons as well but in the long run it was the same reason, they wanted a better life.
Time: 5:49pm
Place: My couch
In Search of the American Dream
The Twentieth Century was an era of many changes and advances. Of all the major events that happened during this century, the one thing that my family was involved in was in the pursuit of the American Dream or migration. My entire family originates from the Dominican Republic. My great grandmother decided that she wanted to migrate to the United States along with all her family in order to give her descendants the opportunity to have the most options available to them to become whatever they wanted in a country that was fair and prosperous. This all began in the 1980’s when she was the first one to get on a plane and leave all her family behind to start the foundation of a new beginning. She came to an unknown country, with different customs, food and different everything. She came to New York, where she had no friends or family. She found the way to get a job and a place to live in the meantime until she was to be reunited with all her family. Soon after she was here maybe a year or two after she started to bring her children from youngest to eldest. Then when my grandmother was here she did the same with all her (4) children. Then it was my moms turn and no doubt she brought my brother and me as well. By the year 1989 the entire family was reunited.
Now looking at the migration as a historical event, since the beginning of the 1900s, many people where migrating to other places in the hope to find a better place to settle in. Some where leaving because they wanted the freedom to express and practice their religious beliefs. Others where leaving because they where not in accordance with the form of government from their original countries. For many more reasons as well but in the long run it was the same reason, they wanted a better life.
Friday, August 8, 2008
Professional Liability
Date: 8/8/08
Place: Kitchen
Time: 7:07pm
Many actions we take during our lives have the potential to create harm to others and, in turn, trigger consequences. Problems may arise through our personal activities, including recreation and hobbies. They may also occur while performing our jobs. There is a particular danger of loss accompanied by legal ramifications when a job has a higher, expert status. When a party has a certain level of expertise, there is a higher expectation regarding job performance. And that means that there is a greater chance that someone will be unhappy if the performance fails to match or exceed expectations.
Professionals, such as doctors, allied health professionals, lawyers and accountants, have long been held highly accountable for the consequences of their decisions. While such professions are the most prominent, many other occupations face an exposure to liability loss that needs special protection, including but not limited to pharmacists, architects, engineers, opticians, insurance and expert consultants. I have decided to focus on the medical assistant.
One of the most important employment benefits is good malpractice and professional liability insurance. Every medical assistant should be encouraged to make sure they have adequate insurance coverage when working in a medical office, walk in clinic, or any other treatment facility. Even though medical assistants are dependent practitioners and work under the supervision of the physician, and the physician is responsible for their actions, it does not absolve them from risk of individual liability. It is not enough to accept insurance under the employer’s policy as a rider, and assume this is adequate protection in case of a lawsuit. Medical assistants should insist on their own personal policy, either through their employer or on their own. The reason is simple: Each healthcare provider is responsible for his or her own negligent acts, since malpractice is defined as "the negligent act of a person with specialized training and education." This is not to say, that medical assistants go out there and act irresponsible, doing rush jobs, and incompetent work. Mistakes, accidents, oversights, injuries, no matter how skilled and careful, can happen even to the very best. They usually occur when least expected and inadvertently cause harm to a patient! The requirements for a successful suit in negligence include: 1. A duty requiring a person to conform to a standard of conduct that protects others from unreasonable risk of harm. 2. A breach of that duty (i.e., the person's failure to conform to the standard of conduct.) 3. A causal connection between the breach of the duty and the resulting injury. 4. A resulting injury or damage which results in measurable physical, emotional or economic harm. It is not true that medical assistants are not being sued! Respondent superior is a long established doctrine that applies when a "master" acts through the "servant" to accomplish the master's task. The actions of the servant are imputed to the master. If the servant acts negligently, the servant is directly responsible for the negligence, while the master is vicariously liable for the servant's actions. Tort or negligence law imposes a minimum level of due care on all persons in their interactions with others, including people who choose to volunteer. Negligence is generally considered to be doing something that a person of ordinary prudence would not have done under similar circumstances. Public education is a two-edged sword. As more patients, their friends, and malpractice lawyers become aware of the role of the medial assistant, they also see a potential malpractice target if they believe they have received a poor standard of care. Injured patients, either on their own, or encouraged by others, wind up taking recourse to the courts. Situations involving injuries or damages that generations ago would have been ignored by the injured person are now regularly the basis for lawsuits. Liability is a major risk for professionals such as medical assistants. Current legal assumption of medical malpractice dictates that as many people as possible will be named in a suit. This can and does include medical assistants as well. Regardless whether a medical assistant is covered under the employer’s policy, he or she may still be liable for his or her own negligence and may still be liable for all or part of a plaintiff’s award or settlement. In some cases the employee may have to compensate the employer who has paid damages to the claimant. A medical assistant can either assume that liability him or herself or buy an insurance policy to transfer that risk. Insurance companies accept the transfer of risk in exchange for the payment of premiums. Therefore, whether as a student on externship or as a professional medical assistant working under a physician, they must get their own malpractice and professional liability insurance as soon as possible! It is really worth the cost and effort, and regarding cost, it doesn't cost much at all! Should medical assistants ever decide to volunteer, or work at a part-time position, or even do private duty, since many medical assistants have a background as former home health aides or CNAs, in additional to their full-time position, an individual policy covers you for their duties in both positions and circumstances. If they accept a position and then decide they want to take a position elsewhere, their individual coverage follows them to their new position, even if the previous employer paid the premiums for the coverage. However, realize that the previous employer may request reimbursement. There even is a way to eliminate gaps in coverage by requesting prior acts coverage. This gives the insured retroactive coverage to cover those events that may have already occurred but have not yet been reported. I bet most of us didn't even know that! How much you pay for your insurance premium depends on your responsibilities, the location of your practice setting and the limits of liability you choose. If the employer insists that the assistant is to be covered under their policy (rider) and they can't afford to purchase their own personal policy, they should ask the employer for a copy of the certificate of insurance for your analysis. Here is a checklist of items to use when analyzing the employer’s policy: 1. Are you listed by name on your employer’s policy? 2. Are legal costs included in the limits of liability, or will they be paid in addition to policy limits? 3. If a malpractice claim is filed against you, will this professional liability policy pay legal fees and court costs in addition to your policy limit, even if you are not liable for the charges brought against you? 4. If you decide to change employers and are covered under a claims-made policy, will your former employer be responsible for paying the cost of the tail coverage? 5. Is policy available in all 50 states? If you answered NO to any of these questions, investigate purchasing your own individual policy through one of the many malpractice and professional liability programs available
Place: Kitchen
Time: 7:07pm
Many actions we take during our lives have the potential to create harm to others and, in turn, trigger consequences. Problems may arise through our personal activities, including recreation and hobbies. They may also occur while performing our jobs. There is a particular danger of loss accompanied by legal ramifications when a job has a higher, expert status. When a party has a certain level of expertise, there is a higher expectation regarding job performance. And that means that there is a greater chance that someone will be unhappy if the performance fails to match or exceed expectations.
Professionals, such as doctors, allied health professionals, lawyers and accountants, have long been held highly accountable for the consequences of their decisions. While such professions are the most prominent, many other occupations face an exposure to liability loss that needs special protection, including but not limited to pharmacists, architects, engineers, opticians, insurance and expert consultants. I have decided to focus on the medical assistant.
One of the most important employment benefits is good malpractice and professional liability insurance. Every medical assistant should be encouraged to make sure they have adequate insurance coverage when working in a medical office, walk in clinic, or any other treatment facility. Even though medical assistants are dependent practitioners and work under the supervision of the physician, and the physician is responsible for their actions, it does not absolve them from risk of individual liability. It is not enough to accept insurance under the employer’s policy as a rider, and assume this is adequate protection in case of a lawsuit. Medical assistants should insist on their own personal policy, either through their employer or on their own. The reason is simple: Each healthcare provider is responsible for his or her own negligent acts, since malpractice is defined as "the negligent act of a person with specialized training and education." This is not to say, that medical assistants go out there and act irresponsible, doing rush jobs, and incompetent work. Mistakes, accidents, oversights, injuries, no matter how skilled and careful, can happen even to the very best. They usually occur when least expected and inadvertently cause harm to a patient! The requirements for a successful suit in negligence include: 1. A duty requiring a person to conform to a standard of conduct that protects others from unreasonable risk of harm. 2. A breach of that duty (i.e., the person's failure to conform to the standard of conduct.) 3. A causal connection between the breach of the duty and the resulting injury. 4. A resulting injury or damage which results in measurable physical, emotional or economic harm. It is not true that medical assistants are not being sued! Respondent superior is a long established doctrine that applies when a "master" acts through the "servant" to accomplish the master's task. The actions of the servant are imputed to the master. If the servant acts negligently, the servant is directly responsible for the negligence, while the master is vicariously liable for the servant's actions. Tort or negligence law imposes a minimum level of due care on all persons in their interactions with others, including people who choose to volunteer. Negligence is generally considered to be doing something that a person of ordinary prudence would not have done under similar circumstances. Public education is a two-edged sword. As more patients, their friends, and malpractice lawyers become aware of the role of the medial assistant, they also see a potential malpractice target if they believe they have received a poor standard of care. Injured patients, either on their own, or encouraged by others, wind up taking recourse to the courts. Situations involving injuries or damages that generations ago would have been ignored by the injured person are now regularly the basis for lawsuits. Liability is a major risk for professionals such as medical assistants. Current legal assumption of medical malpractice dictates that as many people as possible will be named in a suit. This can and does include medical assistants as well. Regardless whether a medical assistant is covered under the employer’s policy, he or she may still be liable for his or her own negligence and may still be liable for all or part of a plaintiff’s award or settlement. In some cases the employee may have to compensate the employer who has paid damages to the claimant. A medical assistant can either assume that liability him or herself or buy an insurance policy to transfer that risk. Insurance companies accept the transfer of risk in exchange for the payment of premiums. Therefore, whether as a student on externship or as a professional medical assistant working under a physician, they must get their own malpractice and professional liability insurance as soon as possible! It is really worth the cost and effort, and regarding cost, it doesn't cost much at all! Should medical assistants ever decide to volunteer, or work at a part-time position, or even do private duty, since many medical assistants have a background as former home health aides or CNAs, in additional to their full-time position, an individual policy covers you for their duties in both positions and circumstances. If they accept a position and then decide they want to take a position elsewhere, their individual coverage follows them to their new position, even if the previous employer paid the premiums for the coverage. However, realize that the previous employer may request reimbursement. There even is a way to eliminate gaps in coverage by requesting prior acts coverage. This gives the insured retroactive coverage to cover those events that may have already occurred but have not yet been reported. I bet most of us didn't even know that! How much you pay for your insurance premium depends on your responsibilities, the location of your practice setting and the limits of liability you choose. If the employer insists that the assistant is to be covered under their policy (rider) and they can't afford to purchase their own personal policy, they should ask the employer for a copy of the certificate of insurance for your analysis. Here is a checklist of items to use when analyzing the employer’s policy: 1. Are you listed by name on your employer’s policy? 2. Are legal costs included in the limits of liability, or will they be paid in addition to policy limits? 3. If a malpractice claim is filed against you, will this professional liability policy pay legal fees and court costs in addition to your policy limit, even if you are not liable for the charges brought against you? 4. If you decide to change employers and are covered under a claims-made policy, will your former employer be responsible for paying the cost of the tail coverage? 5. Is policy available in all 50 states? If you answered NO to any of these questions, investigate purchasing your own individual policy through one of the many malpractice and professional liability programs available
Thursday, August 7, 2008
I the world as I know it ended tomorrow!
Date: 8/7/08
Time: 6:12pm
Place: My Couch
If the world as I know it ends tomorrow, I think I be devasted. To be in a state where the first thing for me to do is find out where my children are, where is my grandmother and where is my husband because those are the 4 most important elements in my life. If they are ok, then we together can get through any hardship. We can create a new world in which to live ans stay together. But really if the world as I know it ended tomorrow I have no idea what it would be like, wether we would be dead or alive, or just wether there are laws and a government to set rules and regulations. How chaotic will this world be a society without rules. It would be dirty, full of crime, drugs and so many things could go wroong. But honestly my biggest fear is wether I have my babies with me. If I have them I can adapt and to anything and make the best of what is.
It's really, really hard to think about the end of the world when I know for a fact that I am not ready for it to end. For me it has just started. I have so many goals that I want to accomplish.
Why does the world have to end anyway?
Time: 6:12pm
Place: My Couch
If the world as I know it ends tomorrow, I think I be devasted. To be in a state where the first thing for me to do is find out where my children are, where is my grandmother and where is my husband because those are the 4 most important elements in my life. If they are ok, then we together can get through any hardship. We can create a new world in which to live ans stay together. But really if the world as I know it ended tomorrow I have no idea what it would be like, wether we would be dead or alive, or just wether there are laws and a government to set rules and regulations. How chaotic will this world be a society without rules. It would be dirty, full of crime, drugs and so many things could go wroong. But honestly my biggest fear is wether I have my babies with me. If I have them I can adapt and to anything and make the best of what is.
It's really, really hard to think about the end of the world when I know for a fact that I am not ready for it to end. For me it has just started. I have so many goals that I want to accomplish.
Why does the world have to end anyway?
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