"Greats"

If you are a movie buff and are looking for a movie with a great underlying theme, here are a few to consider:

















If you've seen any of these, leave us your opinion in a comment!

Professor DiFabio is...

...thrilled by the content of Social Networking Debate Blogs!

Yes, this is my status update for you ;)

Instead of writing my own blog, I've decided that I will recap some of the greats from your pieces. I'm pretty sure I couldn't have said it better than these students...

from Ali's "Internet Predators and Internet Safety"

When it comes to the topic of social networking, my opinion is very obvious… everyone should be able to use them with proper supervision and safe surfing. The social networking sites work as a great tool for those who utilize them for what they are really for: networking. Even though these predators are a reality, there are ways to prevent them from harming you or your family; it just takes a little bit of common sense and safe surfing. Social networking sites are important to our society and they should NOT be limited.

from John M's "Social Networking Sites"

Social networking sites such as MySpace and Facebook have become a significant part of today's society. Sites like these have become a primary source of communication for many people and a way to reconnect with old friends. Basically they are a great way to keep in touch with people who aren't important enough to warrant a phone call or face to face interaction.

from Pearlie's "Practicing safe 'Net: Social Networking Sites and the Blame Game"

I was not very sheltered as a child, hoewever, one thing my mother made sure I always had plenty of was common sense. If we teach our children right from wrong, and arm them with the tools they need to protect themselves online and in the real world, we would be able to finally stop this silly blame game.

from David's "Social Networking"

A child molester under a false name and valid email address can easily setup an account, a child of 12 can pose as 18 with just a click of a button. Although technology has added security to social networks anything short of facial recognition or fingerprint verification still leaves room for dishonesty. Much like a burglar adapts to new security features in a home, in the same way someone who wants to do bad things on the internet will find away to do it.

from Kyle's "The Responsibility in Social Networking"

My family life is what has most influenced my opinion on this matter. I have a younger sister and try to stay very aware of how she "markets" herself. If I found out that she was putting pictures up of herself that others could pray on I would be disappointed in her not the website. I use most of these sites and I see how easy it would be for a predator to use them towards their advantage, but I also see how easy it is to keep them from being able to use your personal page. Either way you look at it YOU are responsible for what YOU post, the website does not force you to use their website.

from John D's "The Evils of Social Networking"

If you cut yourself with a knife, who do you blame? The knife? Probably not. If you poke yourself with a needle, do you sue the needle for being too sharp? Hey, you might win! But again, probably not. If you find out that your child is the victim of an internet predator, who do you blame? Suddenly, it's far more serious. Obviously, the predator is to blame, but who else is guilty? The predator would not have reached your child if not for the internet. Clearly, the internet should be held responsible, right? Well, not exactly. The internet is a tool. Much like the knife, if you don't use it right, you might get cut. So who is to blame? The child? Maybe, but then the child really can't be expected to know any better, especially if they are very young. In the end, the responsiblity falls on the parents.

from Shelia's "Online Networking"

MySpace and Facebook have opened up doors to lots of friendships and even relationships. However, they have also been the root of many cases of sexual assults. Many a times people who are not as sensible to these kinds of attacks are the one's who become the victims, whereas; someone who is more knowledgable as to not talk to strangers or untrustworthy characters is a lot less at risk.

Keep up the fantastic work!

"Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?"

If I had to create a bumper sticker that modeled my philosophy for life, it would be "can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?"

Stupid, I know. I'm a mom, sue me. But, the thing is, everyone on Sesame Street is happy all the time. Even if they fight, cry, feel scared, are unsure of themselves - someone is always there to help them figure it out or make them feel better.

Everybody has a place to live. Apartments are just as good as trash cans.

Everybody eats food - and it's healthy but yummy so nobody is fat. And even if they are a little fat, it's okay because people accept each other for who they are. Families are diverse.

It doesn't matter if you live with your mom, your gradma, am adopted parent, a monster, or a snuffleupagus, you have a family that loves you.

Color isn't an issue. Red monsters befriend orange monsters. Ethnicity isn't an issue. Grouches rommate with worms. Money isn't an issue. The only reason anyone talks about it is to learn to count, otherwise, everything is free.

On top of everything else, there is learning. The best learning takes place via singing and dancing. Even the haters end up enjoying their education because something new is always being presented in a manner which makes everyone ecstatic.

On days when I'm really angry, and many of those times it might be about nothing at all or something so unjustified it's embarrasing, I remind myself that there are places and people in the world that find the best in life. They sing and dance and love each other. They eat, drink, be merry. They live, laugh, love. Call it whatever you wish but the truth is that life is too short for us to be anything but content. If you don't like something about your life, well then go out and change it!

"Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street" is a call for action. It's a request that you find the silver lining in every cloud and face every situation with a smile. Such a simple message, such a hard thing to do.

At some point today, when my 2-year old has hit me in the face and told me "stop it mommy" for the tenth time, when my husband has opened a string cheese and left the wrapper on the counter because that's where he thinks trash goes, when my mother has called me to tell me that if I take my kid to McDonald's one more time I'm going to hell, I'll take a deep breath and remember that everything on Sesame Street is wonderful. And it can be in my house too, if I let it.