YouTube Stars!

Here is popular Guest Blogger Emma Samuelson with a discussion of some of the very hot topics in today's world!

Emma is a recent college graduate from California who writes her own songs, sings and plays guitar. Check out the excellent music and ASL videos on her YouTube channel! In Emma's own words, "I am a spiritual person and I love music, listening to it, creating it, and everything about it." Her love of music is obvious in her videos!

Please use this link to see a list of ALL guest blog posts by Emma Samuelson.

Now, let's see what Emma's thoughts are, on Privilege. Have you thought about this yourself? Is there something about who you are, which you have no control over, that affects your life? Is there something that should be done to reduce inequality in the world? Can we achieve Social Justice? Is it right to allow the capitalist system to make some people very wealthy if their innovation helps us all? What can we do about violence in Syria and around the world and should the United States get involved? What can you do, personally, to improve the world?

Continue on. Read Emma's thoughts on these matters. Watch the videos she mentions. Think.

The Awareness of Privilege

Privilege. It’s something we come across everyday in our own lives, but sometimes it’s hard to recognize for those that have a lot of it. I, personally, have become much more aware of my privilege since turning 18. It’s not like I wasn’t aware I was privileged growing up, but as I stepped into adulthood and attended a San Francisco college that focuses on social justice amidst the Black Lives Matter movement and ever-growing gentrification… I became hyper aware of my own privilege.

As a middle class white woman, I stand in a very privileged spot. I had the privilege of getting a free education K-12, I had the privilege of being sent to a private, Jesuit college, and I have the privilege of still being a dependent on my parents bill as I turn 22. I am eternally grateful for my education and my parents for making this a possibility for me. I recognize that the opportunity for this kind of education is slim for many people in our world, a sad truth I think about a lot as a recent college graduate.

This is the big stuff… education, financial stability, and a web of support. However, privilege is not just the big stuff. Privilege is having clean water, it’s having access to food, it’s having a bed. These are the things we need to think about.



In the current state of the world, many people are becoming more and more aware of just how privilege affects their daily lives. Sometimes, I just take a moment to be grateful that I have shoes to put on that day. Little reminders like this can be a great lesson in how to recognize your own privilege and a lesson in how to be grateful for it.

Despite these little helpful reminders, sometimes privilege is totally overlooked. People casually listen to stories on the radio and in the news about millions of people losing their homes, their country, and even their loved ones due to injustice… sometimes a reminder is not enough. In the real world right now, thousands of Syrians are displaced and being forced into refugee status, they have lost so much and yet countries like the United States are not doing enough to help. People in general are not doing enough. If it’s hard to imagine something like this happening in your country, it won’t be after watching this Save The Children PSA. This video documents a young girl’s life day by day for a year as she is impacted by a civil war (simulating Syria’s events).



This is real, and it can be difficult to absorb but I believe it is important. It is vital to understand your privilege, to understand that you have so many advantages in your daily life. Regardless of where you stand, everyone is affected by privilege and everyone deals with it.

In the United States, media, film and television generally reinforce stereotypes of different races, ethnicities, classes, genders and ages. However, even though many of these stereotypes and controlling images of people are not true, they still are somewhat honest in how people are treated in our society. I do not agree with any of the stereotypes I see portrayed in film and television, but I have seen scenes in television shows that I have experienced in real life.

This is where awareness totally changes the game. For example, I am aware that a lot of people in our society view LGBT people as sinners, as deviants, as 'unnatural people making poor choices’… but I have also seen real people treat real LGBT people like that is the truth. As a bisexual woman, I have been harassed, bullied and degraded because of that part of my identity… and I see the same thing happening to my fellow LGBT people on television. It makes me feel like the media understands what I go through, but at the same time it reinforces that truth. I do not want to live in a world where people are treated differently based on their identities, I want to live in a world of equality, of justice, a world where everyone has opportunity, where privilege doesn’t separate us.

Awareness can change everything, it can help us come together and let go of inequality. Buzzfeed contributed to this awareness, and had people do an activity based on self-identified privilege. Although reading about it and watching videos is helpful in understanding your privilege, doing something like what Buzzfeed did really puts it into perspective.



Anyone can have a difficult time discussing privilege. It is not an easy topic, but it can open the doors for more deeper conversations about our society and how we want to evolve. Doing an activity like this is a powerful way to look at privilege, it can open your eyes to just how much you can be grateful for. It can shift your consciousness from your individual world to the global need for change. It can dramatically reduce your record of complaining. It can lead to new friendships, new opportunities, and new ways of giving back and supporting the evolution of the world. Regardless of where your final position is, awareness can lead to action, and action can lead to change. Check your privilege, every single day.

Labels: Black Lives Matter, bullying, Buzzfeed, clean water, Cyber Bully, education, Emma Samuelson, emmalane94, feminism, gender, inequality, LGBT, privilege, race, refugee, religion, social justice, stereotypes, Syria, War

posted by KennyCrane at 3/16/2016 05:19:00 PM 1 Comments

Here's a little video from FaceBook! This is aimed at girls, but really it's something that could benefit anyone. This is a valuable way to spend 4 minutes of your life. Watch this short video and implement the suggestions, and your confidence will improve!

The three points are:

1. Know that you have choices. Choose to think of yourself as a winner, stand up straight and smile. You can do this!

2. Know that you can improve! Whatever your abilities are now, they can get better through study and practice, it just takes some time!

3. Know that you will sometimes fail, and that's okay! Things that give the most confidence take time to achieve, and each failure is something to learn from, which will bring you one step closer to success!

Now watch the video because it goes into more details, and in different words than my summary above. Best wishes in all you do!

Labels: confidence, education, girls, success, TED

posted by KennyCrane at 10/25/2015 06:21:00 PM 0 Comments

Germany vs USA

As an introduction, here's what their About page says: "Germany vs USA explores the contrasts and joys of two unlikely friends, Jim and Alex, as they learn more about each other's cultures, languages, and the greater friendship between Europe and America. Insightful, whimsical, educational and always genuine (not to mention unscripted) the show aims to bring a slice-of-life perspective to viewers around the world." And now, Anna's article!

Alex and Jim met at the Goethe Institute in Schwäbisch Hall, Germany, where Alex was interning and Jim was taking a german language course. Soon they became friends and founded a language software company and their first youtube channel: walkaboutlanguages. They also started podcasting those episodes on iTunes, making it into the top five educational programs with their healthy mix of information and entertainment. Their rapidly thriving show Germany vs USA and with it their channel had to be shutdown at the peak of its bloom, however, due to irreconcilable differences with the third founder, regarding copyright. Despite the fall-back, they believed in themselves and the concept of the show and bounced back with ardour and creativity, producing exhilarating episodes from different cities of both countries, on their new channel: AlexandJim.

Germany vs USA is a bridge between language and culture addressing a broad range of fascinating topics. It's educational without being too overloaded with information. The episodes are topical and have a freshness and unpredictability to them, which comes from being unscripted. Jim and Alex are knowledgeable, their arguments are smart and well thought through, always backed up with a versatile b-roll, of maps, music, pop up texts and pictures, so it never gets boring. Over the years, they have managed to preserve constant quality with their broadcasts. The show is a bit like Trail Mix, sweet and healthy in an an enjoyable, non-overpowering way and very memorable. I would also compare it a little bit to a Kinder Surprise Eggs (Kinderüberaschungs-Eier) but if they contained a much higher percentage of awesome one-piece collectibles. The episodes they film outside, often in topic relevant locations to the installments, like forests, trains, boats or cafes are especially interesting to watch since they are more likely to have unexpected surprises in them.

Alex, being German represents the arguments for Germany, often wearing striped tops or shirts with logos and sitting on the left on the screen. Jim, on the right, likes to wear caps and speaks for USA. Their arguments are supported by the typically German or American visuals like candy or beer. They are not always from the countries, moreover, they show a range of what is typically consumed there. You can see a little bit of a sneak peak in their catchy intro, with the melodious song 'How s the Wather' by "Come On Go With Us".'Their mascot, Hugo the Frog, who sits next to Jim, is their executive producer, keeping a close eye on the happenings. If you're wondering why there's a football in every episode, it's because their microphone is hidden in it. You have to agree it looks so much better than having a regular microphone stand between them. Both of them get eager about football (which you can see in some of the episodes) and Jim often spends his weekends playing pickup football. I love it most when one of them learns a new fact about the other ones country he never heard of' says Julian Reineke, a viewer of the show. ' Every once in a while they disagree over a difference of how they were raised, and it makes me laugh as much as they do over it. If we were all the same, it would be boring. They have good hearts and they tackle everyday issues without bias. I've learned more than I ever would have thought I could from a simple discussion between friends.' Nancy Reiss (47), another viewer points out in the interactive Germany vs USA Facebook group.

Germany vs USA is watched by a wide range of people who can also contribute by suggesting topics or sharing videos and articles which suit the topics of discussion. 'They're fun but they also deal with things that aren't covered in something like a school class, the little everyday stuff that make up a culture.' Holly Furgason (52) points out. 'The videos are so much fun to watch and remind me of my time in the US, the experiences I had and the discussions with my friends there. They just bring back good memories to me' adds leprechaunishable (25).

Interview!

Alex would make a great presenter for a Children's Educational Channel but I could also see their show lighten up the boulevard and reality trash possessed TV stations, so I decided to ask them a few questions regarding the future of the show.

1. What are the future plans for Germany vs USA; do you have any goals you want to achieve in the near future?
Answer: . We have been involved with GvU for over 5 years now. Initially, our goals were very lighthearted. We wanted to share. We truly love one another’s culture and are very close friends from very different backgrounds. It made for a great platform. Now that we see the community grow, we feel that we owe it to them to have more focused goals. That is one reason why we have been releasing episodes for more than a year without a break. Our next step is to branch out and give the community a larger platform to enjoy GvU. We want to provide them with an opportunity to share their experiences and stories. That is what makes traveling and culture so wonderful. The new. We hope to accomplish that in 2015.

2. If a TV station offered you a format, provided they would leave you with the same liberty you have in producing the episodes, would you consider it or do you guys want to keep it limited to YouTube?
Answer: The initial response is absolutely! Though, we have both been involved in projects where external factors led us into directions we didn’t want to go. Even though that was never the intention. So, I think if the situation was correct we would consider it. But do people still have TV?

3. How much research and preparation does each episode take (I assume it varies but roughly)
Answer: It does vary. We like to be slightly prepared but not over researched. We won’t talk about an experience if we haven’t had it. And we don’t like to discuss our knowledge or thoughts before we shoot. We try to really pull from an authentic conversational circumstance. A lot of times we are talking for close to an hour, if not over, and then have to cut it way down.

I did not know they filmed this long but I'm glad because what they end up selecting is wonderful. Last but not least, 'they show differences you only recognize if you know both cultures and countries well, not so as a mere tourist. They also represent both sides as being friends. It is a very nice, informing and non-aggressive way to teach about cultural differences.' Kauderwelsch77 (39) points out. We wish them best of luck with the show and hope that the love and dedication that is put into each episode, pays off.

Labels: AlexandJim, anaconda, Annaconda1984, education, GermanyvsUSA, interview

posted by KennyCrane at 11/10/2014 05:22:00 AM 1 Comments

Last week, Malala Yousafzai gave a short but important speech at the U.N. Malala is a 16 year old girl from Pakistan who was shot in the face by a member of the Taliban because she dared to speak out in favor of education for all children, both boys and girls. She believes that "the pen is mightier than the sword" and that the terrorists who shot her and killed teachers and blasted schools are afraid of her and the changes that are happening in society. Please watch this amazing speech and think about what Malala is saying. You can read more about Malala here. Think about if you want to stand with Malala and stand up for woman's and children's rights. Watch her inspiring speech right here:

Everyone should watch this heartfelt speech. It is inspiring and gives us hope for a better world tomorrow. Please consider clicking the Share button below, and share this on FaceBook, Twitter, and whatever social networks you are on. Thanks!

Labels: children, education, inspiration, inspire, Malala, Malala Yousafzai, Pakistan, rights, speech, UN, woman, Yousafzai

posted by KennyCrane at 7/20/2013 05:04:00 AM 1 Comments