Ashton and Demi's Fight on Human Trafficking

Back in 2008 I believe, I was taking a sociology course at the University of Central Florida when I first learned that slavery still exists today.  I was shocked, then overwhelmed with disgust and anger, and immediately felt it was my duty to do something about it.  I decided it was my responsibility to inform others about what was happening.  I created a online forum on myspace and invited all my friends and family and made it public so that others may join.  I rented the Lifetime movie, Human Trafficking and watched with friends.  I joined the Polaris Project to stay informed as to was the government is doing and I relayed that information online as well.  I did everything I thought I could do and I learned that I did educate quite a few people and that continued to spread.  For a young college student, I did okay.  Although, I always feel I could have done more and I always feel that I still can do more.

There are many different forms of enslavement but the one that infuriated me the most was that of sex trafficking.  Britney Spears' song "I'm a slave for you", was a big hit and made the term "sex slave" seem sexy and playful.  I do not believe that Britney condones sex slavery nor do I blame her song for enticing the sex trafficking industry to boom.  I mention her because she was and may possibly still be an influential person in our society.  Being a celebrity comes with all kinds of advantages, one of which is the ability to have followers.  I condone Demi Moore and husband Ashton Kutcher for starting up the "Real Men Dont Buy Girls" campaign.  Spreading the word is one thing, but relaying an influential message under such celebrity influences is powerful.  I only hope that people continue to listen and spread the word and make a difference.  I have high hopes for the cause now that this "power couple" has taken on the project.  I wish them well and plan to see how I can get invloved in this because the fight against Human Trafficking and the exploitation of women and children matters to me.  If one takes the moment to learn about it, I can guarantee you that it will matter to you.  This is something that affects everybody personally.

Ashton and Demi went on Piers Morgan's show on CNN to discuss how they are using social media to spread the word.  Ashton states it is important to go through social networking channels because the majority of human trafficking that goes on begins online, "so why not take it to the source?" I have included two links below.  One titled, Andrea prefers a Real Man, which is a commercial for the campaign where one may be a part of personally.  I still find it very neat to see technology create such a bridge and unite people. You will see a message with my full name and next to Eva Longoria; she then personally says "Andrea prefers a real man, do you?" with a picture of my facebook default.  Its one way to put your face and your message out there with so many others in a unique way.  There are many other commercials to choose from with many other celebrities to chose from.  The second link you will see below is of a clip of Ashton and Demi discussing their campaign with Piers Morgan.

Andrea prefers a Real Man
http://cnn.com/video/?/video/world/2011/04/14/piers.kutcher.moore.trafficking.cnn

Bottom line, one can easily see how influential the entertainment world and powerful social media is today.  So much so that it is a great marketing tool that should not be overlooked. 

Limitless

Last week I saw the movie Limitless.  This film was directed by Neil Burger and stars Bradley Cooper, Robert De Niro, and Abbie Cornish.  In the film, a writer discovers a top secret drug that enables him use all of his brain and seems to give him super human abilities.   We all use just a small protion of our brain; imagine if we could use all of it.  Well, that's the idea and a very good idea may I add.  What made this movie a hit is the very well written story line, the amazing visual effects, and fine acting.  This film ran with the plot and left no details unraveled.  I can honestly say it satisfied the audience's appetite for a good story.


There are many scenes or explanations throughout the movie that would make sense if we were to use all of our brain.  I dont want to give away all the details but the film did make me think about our society and our culture and how we preceive others.  Is it true that only the most intelligent are the survivors and the most powerful? It does make sense that the more we know, the more we can acheive and conquor.  This is no secret but what the film suggests will make you think and understand what it is I am trying to say and what I am really questioning.  Like I said before, I do not want to give anything away. 


I believe a good story or show is one that makes you think about the world we live in and how we relate to others as well as being able to transport the audience and fully envolve them.  That is what I believe this movie did and why it did so well with both critics and audience.  The idea alone was brilliant and they way in which it was told was very well done.

A Night of Laughs

Sometime last week I was on my facebook and on my notification feed I noticed one of my "friends", Orlando Improv Comedy Club, ask if anyone has ever been hyptnotized.  I simply responded "no, but I am curious".  I then got a message from the Improv thanking me for participating and offered me eight free tickets to the show to see commedian and hyptnotis, J Medicine Hat.  I could not pass up eight free tickets to see a show with friends. With money being tight these days, its limited the social life of many.

So there we were last Saturday night, there were six of us who made the drive to Pointe Orlando to see the show.   I believe most of us have seen a comedy show and maybe a few of us have seen a hyptnotis, but are we able to believe?  The reason I ask this is because although we may have seen someone get hyptnotized with our own eyes, and although we may know its a science that has been used in medicine and other theraputic treatments, and we are laughing hysterically at show, we still question if what we are seeing is real.

J Medicine Hat, was a funny guy.  Like all comedians, he stated a lot of truths and a lot of stereotypes that we all know are true and we find that to be comical.  Reality never fails to be entertaining, nor does fantasy, nor does mystery.  This show had a bit of all three and with the help of food and drinks, this show was indeed a success.  What I found to be the best part of the show is the people who left questioning it all;  these people were the audience and even those who participated in the hypnosis.  I believe that if a show makes one think, its done its job in fully entertaining like a good film or a good book.