Emma Comments on Thought Provoking Videos

Guest Blogger Emma Samuelson is back with her second post! Emma is a singer-songwriter from California who writes her own songs, sings and plays guitar. Check out the excellent music 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!

Emma's first post for YouTubeStars was a review of some videos about Comedian Bill Hicks. In this post, Emma does something similar to what her friend and fellow guest blogger, Kayleigh Levitt recently did in this post on Thought Provoking Videos.

If you would also like to write for us, and get paid, please write to Kenny!

Emma tells us about three videos on what gets us motivated, the state of the environment, and a Free Hugs campaign. See what she has to say and watch the videos she discusses!


But first, The News!

This week's Featured Video on our Top 100 and Top 200 Charts is a beautiful performance of the classic Christmas song, "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire", by 11 year old Tina! Visit her YouTube channel for more great music videos. This video is featured in our YouTube Christmas 2011 playlist and is our way of wishing a Merry Christmas to kids from 1 to 92! Enjoy the Holiday Season!

We have a NEW Featured Video every week on our YouTube Top 100 Chart. If you missed any of our Previously Featured Videos, you can still watch them here.

Check out our Top 100 and Top 200 Charts of the Most Subscribed YouTube Channels every week! Go and Bookmark the Top 100 YouTube Chart at YTChart.com right now!

Now, here are Emma's Comments on Thought Provoking Videos.



In the current of life, there is a constant flow of information, opinions and issues that provoke our thoughts. Whether it be an environmental disaster, struggling with income, or simply deciding what to eat for a meal, it's all here for us to think about. You could take any person in the world, and have them watch a video, read an essay, or be told a story, and the information they have received will be traveling through their train of thought, initiating feeling and opinion. Thinking and analyzing our thoughts is what makes us human. It's our basic, yet extremely complex biological feature that has created countries, economies and governments. Simultaneously, it's also what has created music, film, and art. It all began with a single thought.

So what's something currently flowing through our world that is provoking our thoughts?

Work. Working in a career, in school, or just working to solve a problem is something that is present in everyone's life. But, what is our motivation to work? Why are we working? Dan Pink gives us insight on what he believes to be the answer. In this video, RSAnimate illustrates and outlines Pink's speech at the RSA (Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, their website: www.thersa.org) about motivation, the 'Rewards System', and how thinking affects working and having a job. With the clever and brilliant illustrations RSAnimate brings to this speech, viewers take a look at what is going on within the economy and workforce, as Pink examines what people are doing and why they are doing it.






Currently, we are discovering, that after hundreds of years of utilizing the earth's natural resources, we are beginning to see depletion of these resources take a toll on something much larger than our society. Mother Earth herself is suffering the consequences for our benefit. Now, when you are eating a nice and juicy hamburger from a local fast food joint, what are you thinking about? Do you think about the animals that were raised to provide you this meal? Or what about the trees that were cut down to become your wrapper, napkins and soda cup? Many would probably answer: "No, I was thinking about my burger."

Although it isn't an option to destroy all fast food restaurants and force everyone in the world to recycle, buy a hybrid vehicle, and only purchase organic food, it is possible to provoke their thought about the possibilities of doing those things.

This video shows Mother Earth in her prime, as she inhales, water is abundant and plentiful, creating beauty among nature. But as she exhales, the water is sucked away, leaving the earth as a dry, unlivable habitat that is causing casualty among species. We are taken on a journey, through the world of majestic landscapes, diverse species, and colors unimaginable. But what do we want? Technology, money, sex, luxury… resulting in the over production and destruction of Mother Earth. This means that we are sacrificing the very nature of what gave us life.

At the end of the video, there are various people shown that helped to protect and preserve the environment. Sadly, all these individuals were killed fighting for their cause. So the next time you're sitting there, eating a burger, on your cell phone, or throwing a bottle in the trash, stop for a moment, and think. Think about the people who gave their lives to save the world you might be taking for granted.






If you saw a man stand on the street, smile, and hold up a sign that read "Free Hugs", what would you think? What would you do? Would you hug him? Would you make a judgment and continue on your way? Well, this was put to the test.

In this video, a man walks around with his "Free Hugs" sign and no expectations. At first, many people have questioning looks, and he is clearly avoided by most that are walking by. What were all these people thinking as they saw this casual, normal individual on the street hold up this sign? Was he even being serious?

Eventually, a small elderly woman looks up at the man, so he gets to his knees, and they embrace. At this moment, it seemed as if a huge lock had found it's key, and love was open. All of a sudden, various people embraced this man with enthusiasm and love, some even took the sign themselves and tried it on for size, creating a chain of connection between the people who released fear, and embraced love. This man opened up the possibility to connect to other human beings in the simplest form: physical touch. Towards the end of the video, local officers make the man aware that what he is doing is banned, and he will not be allowed to continue his "Free Hugs". At this juncture, the man creates a petition, for which he reaches his goal of 10,000 signatures to allow "Free Hugs". The connection continued. Provoking our thoughts is what makes us have impulses, make actions, and decide on how we feel about everything in our world. Thinking is a revolutionary art that cannot be mastered, and it leads to the opening of society's mind, allowing knowledge to be accessed. All actions start with a thought, and this mans' was a great one.