Week 6: West Bank Story, Waiting For Superman, and GLBT

Lady Gaga supports GLBT and is an activist. Before I get to GLBT, let's see these films:

West Bank Story is a parody of "Romeo and Juliet". It's a humorous short film. So, there are two different restaurants. One is Kosher King, owned by Israelis, and one is Hummus Hut, owned by Palestinians. Just like Romeo and Juliet, David and Fantima quickly fall in love. The story continues with Israelis and Palestinians fighting one another. David and Fantima tries to calm them down throughout the film. The Israelis tried to build a wall separating the restaurants, but then a fire started in Hummut Hut, and then it quickly spread to Kosher King, burning both restaurants to the ground. Towards the end of the film, the two sides come together to feed the people of both Palestine and Israel.

I felt this film was short and to the point. It's also hilarious. The fight between the two restaurants represent how Israelis and Palestinians fight each other almost everyday. I LOLed when the Israeli's restaurant caught on fire from Hummut Hut.

Waiting For Superman is a documentary about the American public school system. It's about how bad the public school system is in some areas. Like in Washington D.C., the nation's capitol, people have to enter their kids into "lotteries". If you don't get picked, you don't get enrolled in the somewhat decent school. You have to go to a crap school. Part of the problem is that there are a lot of bad teachers, and they can't get fired. The Teacher's Union contracts with the schools forbid the principals firing their teachers. Kids who grow up in bad neighborhoods where crimes are frequent usually don't do well in schools. Bad teachers, bad neighborhoods, and the Teacher's Union in general causes problems for the public school system.

I felt....not indifferent, but close to it. You might call it ignorance, but I simply feel neutral about this topic because it looks like things are going to stay the same way. Areas that have poor schools are going to stay that way, and areas that have good schools are also going to stay that way. There's nothing we can do about it. We know how to fix it, but will we ever take the initiative?

About GLBT, or LGBT. It stands for Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transexual. So, there are GLBT groups that support the law that passed requiring schools to give lessons to their students on GLBT. There are numerous people who support this. Elton John, a famous singer, supports GLBT. Lady Gaga supports GLBT. I believe Born This Way and Alejandro (songs) are about her supporting GLBT. Here's two stories:

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/archives/2011/07/03/2003507306

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/pentagon-to-lift-gay-ban/story-e6frg6so-1226099662983