Bullying Awareness

With the month of October being "Bullying Prevention Awareness Month", theres been a lot of talk lately about how bullying is a major trend that has been growing in the United States. This is leading many people to look for ways to try to prevent it.

In honor of the youth who have taken their lives due to bullying, October 20 is now known as Spirit Day where people can participate and wear the color purple in order to show awareness. Spirit Day was started by a young girl named Brittany McMillan who wanted to recognize all who have committed suicide because of this major issue that is a problem all over the United States.


Bullying has taken a new level and is able to reach a person in the comfort of their own home now. This new level is by the use of cyber bullying. With all these new social networks, it is now a lot easier for many to bully others as well. "I am ashamed of doing it but when I was in high school I did make fun of a couple of people. It was a lot easier to do it online too because you're not in front of the person" Jiovan De la Torre, a San Diego State University student said.

California was recently named one of the worst states to live in when trying to avoid bullying. This makes many worry about what is going on in the schools in which their children are attending. "It seems like all I hear on the news is how some child has killed themself because of the way people treated them at school. It is really sad and it makes me so scared to send my own son to school everyday" said Martha Martinez, a mother of a student at Eastlake Elementary.

With celebrities including Queen Latifah, Lady Gaga and Chris Colfer that are speaking up against bullying and the creation of days like Spirit Day, there seems to be a lot of inspiration for many to spread the word of Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. Brianne Butcher, a student at Southwestern College, has organized an event in Chula Vista to bring awareness to bullying with "Friendly Water Fight Against Bullying". This event will take place on Sunday, November 27 at 3pm. No specific location has been set yet, but she plans to let her followers know soon. There will be a donation box at the event and all proceeds will go to The Pacer Center's Teens Against Bullying.

Bullying Awareness Month

With the passing of October being "Bullying Prevention Awareness Month", theres been a lot of talk about how bullying is a major trend that has been growing in the United States, which is leading many people to look for ways to try to prevent it.

In honor of the youth who have taken their lives due to bullying, October 20 is now known as Spirit Day where people can participate and wear the color purple in order to show awareness. Spirit Day was started by a young girl named Brittany McMillan who wanted to recognize the many who have committed suicide because of this major issue that seems to be a problem all over the United States.

California was recently named one of the worst states to live in when trying to avoid bullying, which makes many worry about what is going on in the schools in which their children are attending. "It seems like all I hear on the news is how some child has killed themself because of the way people treated them at school. It is really sad and it makes me so scared to send my own son to school everyday" said Martha Martinez, a mother of a student at Eastlake Elementary.

Bullying has taken a new level and is able to reach a person in the comfort of their own home by the use of cyber bullying. With all these new social networks, it is now a lot easier for many to bully others as well. "I am ashamed of doing it but when I was in high school I did make fun of a couple of people. It was a lot easier to do it online too because you're not in front of the person" Jiovan De la Torre, a San Diego State University student said.

With days like Spirit Day and even celebrities including Queen Latifah, Lady Gaga and Chris Colfer that are speaking up against bullying, it seems to be inspiring many to spread the word of Bullying Prevention Awareness Month. Brianne Butcher, a student at Southwestern College, has organized an event in Chula Vista to bring awareness to bullying with "Friendly Water Fight Against Bullying". This event will take place on Sunday, November 27 at 3pm. No specific location has been set yet, but she plans to let her followers know soon. There will be a donation box at the event and all proceeds will go to The Pacer Center's Teens Against Bullying.

First Steps of Bullying Story

          In regards to my bullying story, I have been searching for the right people to interview. I am planning on going to the nearby Eastlake High School to get some quotes from certain staff members and students that will help me with my story regarding this issue. So far I have already planned an interview with the Cheer Advisor for the school, Robert Blas. After I receive more information from him, I will be able to try to schedule an interview with a student who has been bullied and an actual bully.
          I have also scheduled an interview with Brianne Butcher who is making a fundraiser called Friendly Water Fight Against Bullying scheduled for November 27. This fundraiser's purpose is to bring bullying awareness and raise money to donate to The Pacer's Center Teens Against Bullying.
          I am also doing my research trying to find out statistics on bullying that is happening around Chula Vista. My story is going to include these statistics, quotes from all points of view from the interviews, and some information about the fundraiser that is coming up. I also want to include that October is Domestic Abuse Awareness month and some information on Spirit Day which just past on October 20.

Occupy San Diego Still Standing

After originally starting as Occupy Wall Street in New York City, the protestors of Occupy San Diego are still standing strong in front of the Civic Center in downtown after a good couple of weeks of fighting for their demands.

Occupy Wall Street started as one group of protestors wanting their demands to be met by the city of New York concerning unemployment and the nation’s economical stand point, but soon moved quickly across the globe and now stands as far as Europe and Asia.

Occupy San Diego has already had a large group of an estimated 1500 protestors march down Market Street and then occupy the space in front of the Civic center which is right in the middle of San Diego City Hall.

The police did step in and take down tents from the protestors on October 14 and have notified them to not put them back up, but it seems that it has not shaken them up and they still refuse to leave.

“I feel that the protestors are ruining the beauty of downtown” said Jaime Ricodi, a 34 year-old bank teller.

It is unclear if the City of San Diego is planning on making changes for the future, but Caroline Ledesma, the San Diego Mayor’s Assistant feels that our nations economic stand point will bounce back in time. “Personally, I think the protests are just supporting the freedom of speech. All in all, we live in a great country with a lot of opportunity. Our economic future will definitely come back up.

Economic Lead

With the economy being the number one topic in our nation, people are looking around for answers on what is going on and what our future is set to look like. This is where Ben Bernanke, the Chairman of The Federal Reserve comes in.

The economy is at an all time low, the unemployment rate is at an all time high, and according to Ben Bernanke, it may take another four to five years for the unemployment rate to get back to normal. Recently the U.S. has lost around 8 and a half million jobs which is resulting in many outbursts and protests through out the nation. Like many, Bernanke wishes he had seen this crisis coming but now he says, "We can only address issues if we think about it now."

Occupy San Diego

Many different groups full of protestors were spread through out the heart of downtown San Diego in front of the Civic Theatre late Thursday afternoon to make sure their statement was heard in the name of Occupy San Diego.

After many meetings that occurred at the Children's Park discussing what is happening in Wall Street and the economical struggle that the nation is going through, an estimated amount of 1500 people marched through Market Street which eventually lead up to the stay in front of the civic center.

Winston Tecolote, a 35 year-old gardener, explained how he had been staying and making the Civic Center his home since last Saturday afternoon. "I don't know how much longer I will be here and this whole protest will last but I guess we all will just have to wait and see. All I know is that a lot of people are really pissed off."

A dance competition called World of Dance is scheduled to be presented at the Civic Theatre Saturday, October 15. Many were starting to prepare for Friday morning because word was spreading that the police was going to take action and start taking down tents because of the showcase.

"It will be a sad sad thing if the police try to push us away from what is now our home. We are all here to be heard and to educate others on this world wide problem. I have not had any sleep in the past 33 hours because I am determined to teach others about finance and the monitary policy" said Michael Rodriguez, a 23 year-old entrepreneur.

Many had the need to educate the people of downtown San Diego because they felt that the media is not doing their job. Michael Rodriguez explained how the only media attention they had gotten in he past few days was because of someone had tried to jump off of a three story building. "The media is controlled by the government. They don't care about what we have to say."

"What is going on with Wall Street and our economy is affecting so many people. It put my Mom out of a job and who knows what the future holds for the youth, but our voices need to be heard and whether the police take down our tents or not, we all need to stay strong and stand our ground." 

The Internet

          There are so many sites on the Internet filled with valuable information as well as non-valuable information. While a lot of people use the Internet for social networking, many now use it to find out their daily news.
          Topics like the weather, is something that most people use the internet in order to find out. The use of the Internet is fast and easy. If someone would want to know what the weather is going to be like for the day, they would be able to hop on and find out at whatever time they like. Not only do they get to find out their local weather, but if one was to go on vacation, the Internet is the perfect place to find out what the weather will be like for wherever they are going. People don't have to wait for their local news to be on anymore.
          It seems like now in days everyone is moving in such a fast pace and the Internet is the most convenient place to get information. The Internet is now able to tag along with everyone with the invention of smart phones. Phone apps come in handy for many as well. People are able to download apps that give them specific information for whatever it is they may be in search for.
          In "Internet a tope source of local info: Pew report," an article written by Suzzane Choney, a survey is used to back up her information on how the Internet is the main source for many news topics. Something that is very agreeable from her article was the fact that many use social networking sites in order to find out breaking news. Once one person finds something out, many others will soon know as soon as that person hits the "update status" button. News on the Internet travels very fast.
          The television and newspapers are still put to good use. Some do not resort to the Internet as their source of information, but when you look at numbers, the majority does.