Extra Credit Four: King Corn

(1.5 hours)

                When two friends discovered that humans today have a shorter lifespan than our previous generation, they decided to find out why. Ian Cheney's and Curt Ellis' analysis led them to discover that our hair tells the story of what we (physically) are, and when they had their hair tested, the majority of the carbon originated from corn. This led them to rent one acre of corn in Greene, Iowa, arguably the nation's largest corn producer, and track its progress throughout one growing season - to find out where this product ended up and what makes this crop so prevalent within our lives.

                In 1973, Earl Butz, the Secretary of Agriculture, decided that what our country needed was an increased production of corn. Previously, farmers had been paid by the government for not producing corn, which kept prices high by limiting the amount of the grain produced. The farmers before 1973 also ate the product that they produced, which isn't so much the story today. When Butz reformed the agriculture policy, subsidy payments were granted from the government to farmers who grew corn, so the more corn, the better. This led to an overproduction of cheap corn, which is having a large impact on our health as a society.

                Since farmers wanted to produce corn on levels never before seen, genetic modification allowed corn to yield greater numbers. The amount was so great that one acre of land could now produce 5 tons of food. The corn grown now doesn't necessarily produce more corn heads per plant, but allows the plants to tolerate living closer together. Also, the injection of ammonia fertilizer into the ground allows corn to grow at tremendous rates. However, most of the corn that is actually being grown cannot be eaten right away - it must be processed first. As noted in the documentary, 32% of corn production is either exported or goes to ethanol production; over 50% of corn is fed to animals; the rest is put into our food.

                Americans demand cheap food. Since corn fed cows are cheaper to raise than cows that graze on grass, they get fatter quicker and can be sold for less. With this in mind, a typical steak that a grass fed cow would have contained 1.3 grams of saturated fat, as opposed to a corn fed cow, which would contain over 9 grams of saturated fat. Corn also feeds the sweetener industry. High fructose corn syrup is popular and dominant within many of our foods and drinks, and since it is cheap to produce and sell, the market likes it. Nutritionists, though, blame corn syrups as a main source of "empty calories" within our society, and is responsible for many health risks, most commonly obesity and diabetes.

                It is incredible that if you are under age 30, you have probably only eaten corn-fed beef and sodas sweetened with high fructose corn syrup. The corn industry is having adverse effects on the American population, all of which began as a political and economic desire to have something cost less. Being that this industry is less than 40 years old, we may not be aware of its complete impact on human health. Is this going to affect our economy when the "corn-fed" generation of Americans need health care on a scale never before seen?

Cheney, Ian, and Curt Ellis. "King Corn." Hulu. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://www.hulu.com/watch/255609>.

Extra Credit Three: Inventing David Geffen - Hour Two

                We begin the second hour of the documentary by learning that Geffen's record company, Asylum, merged with Elektra Records. At this point in time, the record company had a tremendous impact in the sales of records, thus having an economic impact within the industry. He coordinated the tour of Bob Dylan and The Band, both of whom were on his label, which he deemed the "highlight of his career." At this time also, he was in a short-lived relationship with Cher, and upon ending, David was incredibly unhappy which led him to go on to his next endeavor: film.

                In 1974, Geffen became the vice chairman of Warner Brothers Pictures. Well known for being brutally honest, he did work there and eventually got fired because he got his "higher-ups" angry, which was something he was not used to. Just two years later, David was falsely diagnosed with bladder cancer. This led him to start his own company, Geffen Records, which signed artists like John Lennon, Neil Young, and later on, Aerosmith and Guns 'n' Roses. He also began Geffen Films, which debuted its presence with Risky Business. David critiqued his filmed in order to make them successful, and even Stephen Spielberg noted, "[his films] are great movies." With the death of his close friend Michael Bennett in the early 1980's, David donated much of his earnings to AIDS research. In the mid-1990's, David sold his record company for 750 million dollars and by 1995, he was a billionaire. Instead of retiring, he thought "work was more fun," and on that note, founded DreamWorks with Stephen Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg. He received one billion dollars in capital (for the company) in a week's time, from which he borrowed from J.P. Morgan. DreamWorks produced many films, most notably Saving Private Ryan, A Beautiful Mind, and Shrek, all of which were very successful.

                David Geffen is known for having incredible power within Hollywood and within show business, which has influenced politics, including the 2008 presidential race. David was once a great supporter of Bill Clinton, but when Clinton kept "don't ask, don't tell," Geffen felt betrayed because he promised to do something else. He became a supporter of Obama when he was running against Hilary in 2008, and at the Democratic National Convention, Geffen called Obama and said, "you're going to be president." The media took notice of his incredible influence within politics and fox news headlined, "Don't mess with David Geffen."

                David Geffen has had a profound influence on the culture and economics of show business. He made artists and actors successful by recognizing their talent. When he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, he is noted by saying, "I have no talent, but to recognize it in others." 

"David left Brooklyn... but Brooklyn didn't leave him."

"Inventing David Geffen." American Masters. PBS, n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/david-geffen/film-inventing-david-geffen/2361/>.

Extra Credit Two: Inventing David Geffen - Hour One

"Show business... It doesn't happen to guys from Brooklyn" - Martin Davidson

                In the music industry, David Geffen is a name many are familiar with. He is known as the man who defined music and motion picture culture. He shaped the modern record business and influenced rock and roll. Who exactly is he though, and how did he become such a big name in show business?

                Geffen grew up in the 1950's and 1960's, in Brooklyn, New York. He moved to California, a place he had always dreamed of going to, as soon as he graduated high school. He got fired from dozens of jobs before getting the best advice of his life, when a the casting director of a film told him "you can be an agent and know absolutely nothing." Later, he went back to New York and began working in the mail-room of the William Morris Agency where he eventually became an agent, and would go out and look for talent. He signed artists, most notably Laura Nyro, of whom Geffen was very fond of. He eventually quit the agency and started a managing company and began managing Laura. The two sold the publishing for Laura's songs for 4 million dollars (which was very much in the 1960's). When asked by his mother what exactly it was that he did for a living as a manager, David would reply, "I'm their manager. I advise them on their careers." David then went on to partner with Elliot Roberts, who, at the time, was managing Crosby, Stills, and Nash, Joanie Mitchell, and Neil Young. The two "meshed perfectly," and they had younger artists in the industry wanting to be with them. This led them to create their own record label, Asylum Records. Laura Nyro, David's desired first signee, signed with Columbia Records, which shocked and upset David. David was a business man, however, and he was going to be successful.

                Asylum Records has the desire to make the best possible environment for artists financially and emotionally. He would say to an artist, "just worry about the music, I'll take care of everything else." Asylum was deemed "the voice of the 1970's" and had successful records produced. Unusually, Asylum reflected David's own personal musical tastes. He wouldn't drop an artist from the label if they didn't sell records. He had people that he thought deserved to have their music marketed.

                David went on to sell Asylum records, like a "commodity," which upset and disappointed many who felt like he betrayed them, because artists felt like they were now owned by a corporation. David, however, got tired of always being there for everyone's problems and thought, "who is showing up for me?" Joanie Mitchell, in particular, wrote a song about David, which shows how his business and economic impact on the artists influenced the music, thus impacting culture.

                The late 1960's and the decade of the 1970's was a time frame in which David Geffen was part of the music scene. He was out on Sunset Boulevard, in Los Angeles, which was the known as the "street of music" and deemed a center to emotional and spiritual lives of those involved. It was noted as the place of a "culture revolution" through music. 

"Inventing David Geffen." American Masters. PBS, n.d. Web. 28 Nov. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/episodes/david-geffen/film-inventing-david-geffen/2361/>.

Extra Credit One: Contestant No. 2

                How far will one go to pursue their dreams? For Duah Fares, this is a question she must have pondered countless times. Duah is a 17 year old Arab Israeli. She lives in the seemingly modern state of Israel and wears clothing that we, in the United States, would deem "normal." Duah is a member of the Druze community - an offshoot of Islam. Druze women are expected to behave in a traditional manner, to behave modestly, to stay within the Druze village, and to marry within Druze. Duah is well aware of her religion and very aware that women who "step out of line" are subject to violence.

                Throughout the documentary, we learn about Duah's desire to model. She chooses to compete in the Miss Israel pageant, in which the winner will go on to the Miss Universe pageant and will likely have the opportunity to model in a place like Paris or Milan. She really believes that she has the skill and desire win the competition. However, as we see throughout the documentary, it becomes known to us that she receives threats on her well being. These threats come about because it is well known that if she makes it though the entire pageant, she will have to wear a bathing suit, which upsets members of her culture. "Ultimately, it's my life," says Duah, in contemplating whether she should quit the contest or go on, possibly putting her life in danger.

                In Duah's family, we can see a very strong correlation between religion and culture and the influence it has on their lives. The Druze religion has very strict rules about women and their behavior. It confuses me, however, that even though Duah's father was arrested for robbing two stores in trying to get extra money for her in support of the Miss Israel pageant, the Druze society did not reject him. On the other hand, it was a possibility that Duah was going to wear a bathing suit, and she was receiving death threats from those within her community. If she did end up taking part in the contest, she would have had to wear the "revealing clothing," thus bringing what Druze religion leaders deemed disgrace to her family and her people. Her participation was so controversial in the community that the sheikhs, who are the Druze leaders, got involved, saying that she must withdraw. Once her mother was told this, she had to get her daughter out of the competition, even though she, personally, would have liked to see her daughter compete and be happy. The conservative religion and culture ultimately won in the end because of the profound impact it has on its members.

                When Duah had to partake in events leading up to the Miss Israel pageant, before her withdrawal, she was being guarded. Three people were arrested when it was discovered that they were plotting to murder her. We are not told, though, if any more government action was taken against the three individuals or if any of the people sending threats were tried in Israeli court.

                We can see a changing dynamic within the younger generation of Druze by taking notice to what Duah tells her mother. She says that many people from her generation would not be bothered if she was to wear a bathing suit. Her mother, however, tells her that the elders would be upset, and rhetorically asks, "is it okay to please the younger generation [of Druze] and upset the older generation?"

                It has been well known that in the traditional world religion has had a very heavy influence on life and culture of those in a particular time and place. As we can see, those societies which still hold traditional aspects, like the Druze, can have a great impact on those of this particular branch of Islam. From what we know about Duah, we can infer that her generation of Druze is more open minded to modernizing the "rules" of her religion. For now, though, we know that Duah Fares' dream was crushed due to the presence of religion and its influence on her life. 

"Contestant No. 2." Wide Angle. PBS, n.d. Web. 26 Nov. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/wnet/wideangle/episodes/contestant-no-2/full-episode/5334/>.

Blog Two: College, Inc.

                What makes education more special than the everyday items that we purchase? For Michael Clifford, John Sperling, and countless others who have obtained success by asking this question, a new type of industry has emerged within our nation, one with immense consequences on our economy and politics.

                Michael Clifford is deemed an "educational entrepreneur," because he invests capital in failing universities, and sells shares of these schools to investors. His rescued schools then become "for-profit" colleges. John Sperling, of whom Clifford formerly apprenticed for, believed he could "mass produce" education, thus running a school more like a corporation rather than a traditional university. Sperling is the founder of the University of Phoenix, a booming for-profit school with over a 500,000 students enrolled.

                What exactly are "for-profit" schools? In comparison to traditional universities, for-profits sell shares to investors, as opposed to raising money from alumni and other donations. The majority of their courses offered are available online. Their calendar differs than that of the norm, so opposed to having semesters, classes are constantly starting every few weeks.  The University of Phoenix, for example, only offer short term contracts to teachers to keep costs of education low. Campuses are generally built near highways (for easy access and convenience) and are separated by roughly a 20 minute drive. For-profits are seen as the "open doors" to those who were shut out of traditional education. Many students want to increase their job prospects by going back to school, because it is incredibly difficult to sustain a "good" living-wage job with only a high school or associate's degree. Higher education is the answer to many people who need to obtain knowledge. For-profit schools are taking full advantage of this situation.

                For-profit schools are enrolling students into their systems at incredibly high rates. With these schools in place, they are constantly having to add students to keep revenue coming in. It has been determined that about 25 percent of revenue of any given for-profit is spent on advertising, while only 10 to 20 percent is spent on their faculty. These schools rely on "sales people," or recruiters, to keep enrollment rates up. There are many issues with this, however, because recruiters use sales-like phone calls with high pressure tactics to convince potential students that "a college degree can solve all of their problems." Many of the students who enroll in for-profit schools are generally from low socioeconomic backgrounds, mainly because it is their only option. However, because of this population, the majority of these students have to take out loans to pay for their education, which is having a tremendous impact on the economy and political sector of our nation.

                A for-profit tuition is expensive. The costs are about five to six times that of a community college. The students that enroll at for-profits generally have to take out many federal loans. Out of all of the students obtaining higher education, only 10 percent are from for-profit schools. However, these students make up around half of all the students who are at default with their loans - and these numbers only include a two year period from "graduation," which does not include the big picture of debt, so the percentages are actually higher than shown. Because of the student population and its large growth, there is much concern in Washington and on Wall Street that many of these students are going to fail to pay back their loans and that the government will then become responsible for them.  Congress sees the danger in this. The concern parallels that of the crisis in 2008 with the housing market collapse: people were buying houses that they couldn't afford, much like students who are taking out loans that they probably won't have the ability to pay back. This critical factor raises the question: are for-profit schools setting up students for failure?

                What steps is the government (and Wall Street, for that matter) taking to ensure that no economic crisis occurs? Congress has imposed a gainful employment test, which is a test to figure out whether for-profits are training students well enough for their intended degree. The for-profit schools dislike the regulations, but as Jack Welch (better known as the former and very successful CEO of General Electric and the founder of the business school at Strayer University) puts it, "you can't be afraid to go into a business because of regulation risk." This regulation is also expected to make education stocks fall, so lobbyists are trying to fight them in Washington. President Obama, on the other hand, has a goal that our nation will have the highest amount of people who have a college education by the year 2020. Therefore, Obama will need the for-profit sector to meet his goal. However, many students are now finding (upon completion of their degree) that their education is unsatisfactory for the work that they have to do and are finding it troubling to get a job, which then causes them to fail to pay back their debt. Some students faced with this dilemma (of realizing that their school lacked credentials or the accreditation they needed) are filing lawsuits against their school. Even if they won their case, the government would not be able to take back the debt of the student.

                With all of this said, are for-profit schools becoming "too big to fail," like many of the banks on Wall Street? Is our country adopting a culture of apathy towards its future? Our nation's population has gained an attitude of "buy now, pay later (even if I can't pay later)" to meet all of its needs, as we have clearly seen throughout history (resulting in Great Depression of 1929 and the 2008 housing market collapse, for example). Should we worry about the "fast-food-ization" of education (the very essence of making a slowly-gained and traditional education worthless)? Are these for-profit schools making education lose value and reducing the quality of a college degree? We may be able to answer yes, but who is to say what holds value or not? Only time will be able to allow us to find concrete answers to these potential obstacles that for-profit schools have induced.

 
"College, Inc." Frontline. PBS, n.d. Web. 25 Nov. 2012. <http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/collegeinc/view/>.