Swine Flu

As the recession continues, people in the U.S. are faced with another rapidly spreading problem: the Swine Flu. It seems that the cases have spread from Mexico. Many cases have been reported in the U.S., including many students in New York who recently returned from a trip to Mexico. Today officials from the Obama administration said that deaths are a likely result from this flu and that vaccines are weeks or even months away.

GM Cuts Four Brands

Today I read that General Motors will be cutting Pontiac, Saab, Hummer, and Saturn. I have loved cars my whole life, especially GM cars. I was very disappointed to hear this news today, particularly because one of my personal cars is a Pontiac. GM had to cut back as much as possible to continue to recieve help from the government. GM will continue with four brands: Chevrolet, Buick, Cadillac, and GMC. In the summer and during other school breaks I work at my family's autobody shop. Since I am around cars so much, it will be strange for the production of these cars to stop.

Graphic Novels

Recently in class we began to study grapic novels. One of the discussion questions we talked about was if we considered graphic novels, or comics, to be literature. I feel that it depends on the individual work. A story such as Maus by Art Spiegelman should be considered literature because it accurately depicts historical events. The drawings only add to the story because they show actions and emotions in a way that would not be possible in a regular novel. An example of this is how Jewish people are drawn as mice while the Nazis are cats. The Sunday comics in comparison should probably not be considered literature. They do not involve the higher level of thinking that Maus does. They are mainly intended for entertainment than to tell a complex story.