Cellphones in the Courtroom

           

Cellphones have become a big part in our day to day to lives. They have transformed from something used to only speak on the phone to something that we depend our social and personal lives on. Cellphones used to be bigger than a brick and now there have been phones that are as small as a credit card. They were originally created to connect people from far away places. They can be used internationally and locally. Now, cellphones connect people who even live in the same household. A cellphone gives an individual the ability to find information quickly and effectively. Since cellphones have become such an integrated part of our life they have also become very intrusive. Cellphone use during dinnertime has become a common sight to see; just like using a cellphone while you’re on the toilet has also become something everyone likes to do. During social occasions, individuals like to turn to their cellphones to avoid awkward situations. In one case that sent someone to jail for using a cellphone, was Mr. Benjamin Kohler.

            Mr. Benjamin Kohler was sent to jail for two days for using his cellphone during jury duty. Now, jury duty is something that can be long, boring, and unwanted. Many people who receive a summons for jury duty try to avoid it like the plague; a necessary evil you may call it. Although I don’t believe that using a cellphone during jury duty should have enough reason to send someone to jail. No one was put in danger. It was an action that although ill conceived did not affect anyone. Kohler could have received an emergency text from a friend or family member, which is maybe why he pulled his phone out. No one knows anything about Kohler’s personal life; he could have been going through something or needed to see his phone about a serious and urgent matter. Lets not forget that Kohler was forced to be in that courtroom. The judge didn’t question Kohler about why he pulled his phone out. I’m sure any juror member would know how important it is to hear everything about a case.

            Sending someone to jail for using a cellphone in a courtroom should not be punishable by law. I believe that the judge who sent Kohler to jail was taking advantage of all of the power that he had. No one should be able to do whatever he or she want regardless of which position in power they are in. The judge should not be allowed to send someone to jail on a whim. The judge doesn’t know anything about Kohler’s personal life. Kohler most likely has a job he has to go to or a family to provide for. Maybe he had an exam to take or a paper to submit. Those two days in jail could have caused Kohler a lot more trouble than it was worth. “Teaching someone a lesson” should not be something that the judge has power to do; if Kohler needs to be taught a lesson than his mother, not a stranger who thinks he can treat anyone badly, should reprimand him. I understand why the judge was upset over Kohler’s actions because jury duty is something that should be taken seriously; jurors are responsible for making decisions about a defendant’s future. Jurors should not let themselves become distracted because they are an important part of the case. The court is counting on jurors to be unbiased, responsible, and focused on the case they were summoned for. A courtroom requires that all of those who are present be respectable. I wouldn’t want to be a defendant with a juror who is paying attention to their cellphone. It can cause the case to be misconstrued.

            As important as jury duty is for the defendant and the prosecutor, no one should have to go to jail because they were on their cellphone. Hopefully this jail time, doesn’t end up on Mr. Kohler’s record; a simple mistake like that could ruin his entire life. Like Kohler, we are only human and simple mistakes like that shouldn’t affect the rest of our lives. Instead of acting quickly and hastily, the judge should have sat down with someone and talked about the decision he was making over Kohler’s actions. Its important to think about the consequences our actions has on the rest of our lives. Judges are not perfect; they are just as human and flawed as the rest of the world. Jailing a juror for using his cellphone in a courtroom is not an action punishable by law and Mr. Kohler should have never been sent to jail.

My Smartphone, My Life

Technology has become so advanced in the past 30 years that even cellphones can give an exact location of where you are in the world. On Apples smartphones, called iPhones, there is an app, which can give you the exact location of another person. Many would say that apps like those are intrusive and they reveal too much personal information. Most individuals would agree that smartphones enhance our lives by allowing us to have so much information at the touch of a button. Smartphones enable us to keep in touch with relatives that live far away and they allow us to be up to date on current events.

Although I would agree that smartphones give us access to a lot of information, I don’t agree with how intrusive they can in our day-to-day life. A few months ago there was a mass shooting in San Bernardino at the Inland Regional center. The shooters, who were husband and wife, orchestrated the entire attack. As the FBI was investigating the shooter’s background, they obtained iPhones, which belonged to them. Apple iPhones are equipped with high security encryption programs so that iPhone users information cannot be stolen. It was made to protect the owner of the phone so that their identity doesn’t get stolen or jeopardized. Because of this the FBI could not gain access to the information inside the iPhone. It was a crucial step for the FBI because they wanted to get all of the information they could about these people so that they can have insight as to how this attack came to be. The FBI was unsuccessful in hacking the iPhone so they contacted Apple to “unlock” it for them. This caused there to be a dispute between the FBI and Apple on the issue of how much privacy can citizens actually have. In a country where we are supposed to be free, how can we be “free” is the government is watching our every move and invading our privacy? It wouldn’t be fair for anyone for the government to enlist the help of big companies like Apple to hack electronic devices? There is a reason why Apple encrypts so much of our information because we are supposed to have privacy when it comes to our personal information. Apple stands by their promise to never undermine the privacy of their customers. In a case like this, its difficult to decide how much is too much. Should the government have the ability to know every detail of our lives? I don’t believe that the government should have this power over us. If Apple complied with the FBI and their demands,  “it would require writing new software that would be "a master key, capable of opening hundreds of millions of locks. Cook's argument was that if the FBI could access this iPhone, nothing would stop them from doing it to many others” (Kharpul). Protecting the interest of all the consumers is far more important than hacking one person iPhone.

On the other hand, many would argue that in this case it is reasonable of the FBI to be able to hack a terrorist’s iPhone. Who cares about the privacy of this one person if they killed so many innocent people? I would agree that the FBI should be able to have access to this iPhone in this case because so many other lives could be at risk. If the FBI has good intentions when it comes to protecting the interest of the American people than yes, they should have the ability to go through someone’s phone. Although this is true, Apple or any other company shouldn’t give the government this much power over our personal lives. Smartphones hold so much personal information that it is a device, which should be protected at all costs.  No matter what the situation is, we have our rights as American citizens to have privacy.

 Kharpul, Arjun. "Apple vs FBI: All You Need to Know." CNBC. 29 Mar. 2016. Web. 17 Apr. 2016. 

Find Your Greatness

                  The company Nike is a company that wants its buyers to “Just Do It”. Their very popular slogan conveys a motivational emotion in which they hope that whatever athletic event an individual wants to do that they should do it regardless of their situation. Nike strives to motivate people into running faster and harder. They sell athletic clothing, shoes, and accessories in order to equip their customers with the right kind of gear in order to perform better. It is one of the most successful athletic clothing brands in the world. Most, if not every, citizen of the Unite States knows who Nike is based on their slogan and their signature checkmark.

                  In 2012, Nike released a commercial showing a overweight and young man running on a rural dirt road. His name is Nathan and he is 12 years old. The narrator, who is Tom Hardy, is speaking and he is telling the viewer that greatness comes from within. Greatness can be achieved by anyone. even Nathan. He is from a small town in Ohio where not many people are considered “great” or even considered to be able to achieve “greatness”. Yet Nike wants its viewers to know this fact. The company wants to change the way that their customers and viewers think of themselves and the way they think about other people. Anyone, like Nathan, can become a marathon runner or a baseball player. No matter where you come from or who you are, you can achieve greatness.

                  When I first watched this video it made me cry. The reason why it made me cry is because of the young man in the video who is actually making an effort into becoming a healthier individual. Even though he is obese, life in a small town, with probably no support from anyone, Nathan is making a difference in his own life. Most adolescents like Nathan, who live and come from a small town, live a life of obesity. They don’t get educated on the effects the food, which they’re eating, has on them; which is why Nathan is in the situation that he is in. It made me feel emotional because Nathan is running on a lonely looking road by himself, which is why I believe that he doesn’t have support from anyone. It made me feel going for a run because if Nathan can get up in the morning and motivate himself enough to change his lifestyle, than I can too.

#LikeAGirl

Always is a brand that sells tampon, pads, liners, and other feminine products meant for a woman’s menstrual cycle. They have many commercials to sell their products including commercials that empower and inspire women. They show women playing sports, going on dates, and just living their lives as normal as possible. The company attempts to shatter stereotypes that are associated with women who are on their menstrual cycle. Instead of showing a women who is constantly laying in bed because she is on her period, Always shows women who can do anything at anytime regardless what time of the month it is. Their most recent commercial which was broadcasted during the SuperBowl asks girls and young adult women what its like to be a girl. Many of the young adult women are asked to run like a girl. They responded by running while flailing their hands and making comments about how their hair will get ruined. When the girls were asked to run like a girl they ran like any human being would run. They put all of their power into the run instead of portaying a stereotype that has been created for girls.

                    The brand, Always, strives to shatter the image that society holds for women. Society sees women as futile, weak, and emotional human beings and compared to men, we are seen as the weaker species of homo sapiens. Our anatomy makes us “weaker” solely because we have less testosterone and the anatomy between a man and a woman is different. Of course, men and women aren’t equal one has qualities that the other doesn’t have yet why does society put woman down for being who they are? Men have always been revered for their masculinity as is they are able to withstand anything the world throws at them. Women are seen as needing a man to provide for them and to protect them. All of these statements add to the social stigma that concerns women and young girls like the ones displayed in this commercial. Always strives to end the negative connotation that the phrase “like a girl” has.

                    Because this commercial was aired during the SuperBowl its intended audience was the entire country. They want men, women, and children to change the way they look and think about girls and what its like to be a girl. The perspective that men and women have on women needs to change. Women need to be seen as equal to men even if our anatomies don’t exactly match up. In order for the ad to carry on after its short stint, Always displayed a “tag” on their commercial. Whenever someone posts something with the “tag” #LikeAGirl on social media outlets like Twitter and Instagram, Always wants people to be aware that acting #LikeAGirl means a lot more than painting your nails and brushing your hair. Using that tag will remind people that girls are not frail beings but something more than the sterotypes that portray them.

Female Rights

According to Google, the definition of feminism is the advocacy of women's rights on the grounds of political, social, and economic equality to men. The feminist movement has come to rise in the past 50 years due to more women going to college, chasing careers instead of chasing men. Women are becoming more aware of wage gaps, high leadership positions, and rights over abortion. 100 years ago women were fighting for the right to vote, which was a right only men had. So, its hard to imagine that in the year 2016 women have positions in political leadership or let alone get paid the same amount as men.

Wage gaps between men and women are quite staggering as women only make 78 cents to the dollar that men make. Its outrageous that because of your anatomy and genitalia and by doing the same jobs you would get paid less than a man. Even if a man and a woman have the same educational background and work experience it doesn’t entirely close the gap. There have been achievements in women gaining more education over the past 50 years. There are now more women than men in college at the moment. The reason why so many women are in college and graduating is because of access to birth control and pushing off marriage. Birth control has given women the ability to push off having children so that they can focus on their careers instead. Abortion has allowed women who didn’t plan on getting pregnant by terminating the unwanted pregnancy. Abortion and birth control have given women the freedom to have sex, enjoy it, and live their lives as they have planned.

Another reason as to why there is such a large wage gap between men and women is that women aren’t picked for higher leadership position that women are. The argument as to why women shouldn’t be in leadership positions is that they are too emotional and cannot make rational decisions when they are on their period. It’s true that women are more “emotional” during their menses but it doesn’t mean that they cannot separate their work lives and personal lives. The only reason women are seen as more emotional is because its socially acceptable for women to show their emotions as opposed to men. Men are supposed to be macho and masculine; they are to be tough and invincible. Women are seen as the weaker species.