I pledge allegiance to the SWAG! (by anon)

I am writing this to defend all men and to define what swag really is. I read a blog post about how swag is negative, and how swag won’t get you anywhere in life. Well that statement is partially true but not completely.

See swag can’t be categorized into one specific thing. There are different types of swag, and everyone has their own individual swag.

See the word ‘swag’ is just a new way of describing how one carries oneself. So rather than saying “Oh he carries himself like a man, he handles his business”. Now you just say “Oh he has grown man swag”.

See the swagger you highlighted in your post was what I call young immature swag. That’s the type of swag you will find in high school and with immature guys in college. So I will admit the guys you speak of exist.  But here are some examples of the other swags that exist.

Laid Back Swag

You got laid back swag, which is where someone seems to be always composed and poised. Don’t let many things affect them or throw them off their game.

Ladies man/Player Swag

Then there’s ladies’ man swag or AKA player swag. That’s the swag where you do treat women well and you always know how to say the right things to make women smile. To totally complete this type of swag you always keep a lot of them because they love you ;)

Businessman Swag

Then you got the businessman swag. I categorize myself with the businessman swag. Those are the men who dress real clean, have high ambition, work hard at everything they do in life.

Gentleman Swag

And finally you have the gentleman swag. This is the swag you were asking for and begging for. See gentleman swag is the guy who opens doors for the ladies, or allows them to skip them in line because she is a female.

You see in this day and age we live in everything’s swag.  So what you must remember is when you see chivalry on campus it’s not just a guy being a gentleman. It is a guy being swagged out with gentleman’s swag.  So like Young Jeezy said in his song “I pledge allegiance to the swag.”

Cause of death: Online dating (by anon)

Online dating has blown up in popularity over the years.  It has come a long way from what it used to be and is still sometimes considered to be.  A haven for desperate freaks.  Though this stigma still comes up in thought and conversation from time to time it has been proven time and time again false.  Much like the irrational fear of airplanes crashing when we all know that the probability of crashing your car is more likely.  I am not saying everyone should not fear online dating but at least take an honest look at it.  After all it is a legitimate business worth over $4 billion dollars.  A number like that makes me think that maybe college isn't the best life pursuit.  After all, most of us go to college to make a lot of money so we can impress that 'man/woman of our dreams'.

It is not a secret that as a nation we have become more and more dormant creatures since before the creation of Myspace the original social network.  Today, so many people have countless online profiles.  In fact, you are in the minority if you do not have at least one.  Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, and so many more.  But why do we feel that we need these outlets?  After all so many people before our generation never used the internet to meet and stay connected with friends or even to date.  They would have to travel to meet, send letters and wait days for a reply, or even call a house phone to talk to someone.  Now, we can push a couple of buttons and in seconds we can connect with total strangers and long lost friends.  Is this convenience killing our society as we know it?  And more importantly is online dating a potential assassin to romance as we know it?

Online dating sites are set up fairly simple.  You register as a member and in most cases you are able to sign up for free.  You then create a profile that accurately describes you and upload a recent photo of yourself.  From here the site does the hard work of searching for your mate for you.  The sites are designed to match you up with people who have compatible profiles to yours.  You then are suggested these potential partners and pursue a date from there on.  This sounds like it is simple and would work fairly well, right?  I do not think so.  As we know, people are self conscious of their true selves and often will stretch the content of their profile to make them sound better than they really are.  It is partially due to this that mismatches are made on the sites. 

On these sites we are also bombarded by options.  This is nice in the sense that we get choices but maybe we are given too many choices and the laws of location should not be stretched through the interweb.  What I mean by this is, maybe we simply should date more local and by what our social circles offer and not what some site offers.  This is because if we have too many choices to have is it not a risk that people are given even less of a chance to be your partner than in real life?  After all, the site says these people could be your Mr. or Mrs. Perfect so why waste your time on someone who messes up or seems to not be just that?

Another big problem I seem to have with online dating is the fact that you have to pay for a chance at love?  I understand the company needs to make money but they cannot guarantee you find a mate so why am I guaranteeing them my money?  Besides the fact, I have Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking sites at my free disposal and I could easily use them as a dating service if I so chose to.  So why even bother with this online dating craze?

After all,  my potential mates are flooding my inbox I couldn't possibly make a choice and if I do then there is little mystery about this person because I can just read the main discussion points and icebreakers off of their profile.  I have to pay to talk to them and pay for the dates with them anyways, later on?  This sounds like a scam if you ask me.  Prove me wrong!

Regular exams right before FINAL EXAMS! (by anon)

I am posting on this Critically Pissed Blog because one thing that has really pissed me off was this issue! My last semester along with this semester has been hell for me when coming down to the end of the semester and time for Final Exams! I don’t know if it is just bad luck, since my roommates never face this issue, but most of the classes I am taking are always try to push in another regular exam right before the Final Exam! I find this to be pointless as well as stupid! To this day I still cannot figure out why some classes do this because not only does it cause more stress on the students, but it is so time consuming! For example, last year for my biology and chemistry class, I had to take a regular exam probably like 3 days before taking my Final Exam! This year I have to take a chemistry exam, than the Final Exam for the class 3 days after! I believe that this is one of the most stupid things ever! I don’t understand why they cannot just wait and add everything on the Final Exam instead of trying to push in another exam right before the Final Exam. As I mentioned above, this creates a tremendous amount of stress on the students because they are basically studying twice as hard, once for the regular exam and then another for the Final Exam. It would make more sense if a student just focused on one Final Exam instead of having two to worry about, let along all the other Final Exams a student has to go through. I believe all this stress can affect the outcome of the exam results and most likely not in a good way. If students were to focus on one exam, I am positive that there test results will be better than having to focus on two exams! This gives students more time to study for the Final Exam and all the other exams. I don’t know why professors decide to do this, but they should definitely change this because it is unfair and time consuming, like students don’t have other Final Exams to study for. In conclusion, PROFESSORS NEED TO STOP PUSHING IN REGULAR EXAMS DURING THE END OF THE SEMESTER, ESPECIALLY IF IT IS ONLY LIKE A FEW DAYS BEFORE THE FINAL EXAM!

You old fogie professors...USE D2L! (by anon)

I'm sick of these old time professors who do not have D2L!

It is 2012, it should be a priority for these teachers to learn the ways of the technology that help young students. Isn't there job to teach and better students? It's bad enough that most of the Math teachers can't speak a lick of English. But not having D2L is unacceptable.

This semester I am taking a diversity course, and the teacher doesn't have D2L OR a syllabus. Kids these days are going to miss classes due to illness, appointments, other priorities, etc. So D2L is a necessity to have for the class. It allows students to contact their professor and other students in their class if they have questions. It also allows them to see their grade whenever they want. Majority of professors use D2L and use it well.

D2L is easy to find articles, handouts, and other such things that students need to study with. It's also a good way for professors to send messages to the whole class without having to email every single student. I don't know why the University would not make this mandatory for all classes to help, because it betters THEIR students, and isn't that what the University's goal is? It is a tool for students that is very beneficiary.

Just weeks ago I was working on my book report for a class and it ended up being a different book that I had to do, because the teacher had changed the book on a day that I had missed. Now this could have been easily resolved if the teacher had D2L and I could just go on D2L and see what the book was that I had to do.

Now these old professors would probably say that it's the student's job to know all this stuff, and to show up to every class. But come on this is the 21st century!!! Plus D2L is beneficial to the teachers too, it makes it easier to respond and reach out to their students.

In conclusion, I believe that D2L should be necessary to use in every Whitewater class!

Janesville and Walworth Street Scream Disaster (by anon)

On the corner of Janesville and Walworth Street in Whitewater, there’s a two way stop – except from 7:00am to 8:00am and 3:00pm to 4:00pm, it turns into a four way stop for students walking to and from the university.  Most of the citizens know of the changes of the stop signs but those who don’t know of the changes is extremely dangerous.  Although people should always look for stop signs when they’re driving; many people will not double check if a two way turned into a four way if they do not pass through the intersection during the times of the changes.  Therefore, when people do drive during the hour that the intersection changes, they will not be looking for a stop sign and this causes many car accidents.  The town of Whitewater should change the two way stop into a permanent four way stop.  By changing the intersection into a four way will be safer for drivers and for students walking to school.

A note to self (by anon)

A: I’ve come so far in my life and in my growth.  I’m embarrassed at my youth and the former self I was.  Foolish in beliefs.  Foolish in thought.  I wish I could have talked some sense into myself so long ago.

B: Why hello.

A: Who are you?

B: Your old self.

A: That cannot be!

B: Well, it’s true.  It can be.  So it is.  It’s very simple really.

A: I don’t see how.  But I’ll roll with it…It is so great to see you again!  It’s been many years since I’ve seen you in the mirror.  You look the same.  You haven’t aged a bit.

B: I wouldn’t, now, would I?

A: No, I suppose not.  In any case, since you might poof off at any moment, let me talk some sense into you.  Those beliefs you have about science, religion, and relationships, you must change them.  Reorientate yourself!  Things are not as they seem.  There is not one way to the world, and there certainly isn’t the solution to relationships you have fancied yourself to find.  Your beliefs need to change so that I can live better, sooner.  It took me much too long to change them and you are still a ways off from changing, so please change now.

B: That’s ballsy.  You don’t even know me.

A: Of course I know you!  You are me.

B: Hardly!  I don’t even recognize you.  You must think of the world as plural and unanswerable.  Those are not my beliefs.  That is not my worldview.  How can you expect to know me when your mind is fundamentally different than mine?  If your beliefs are not my beliefs, then you cannot be me and I cannot be you.  We are two different people.  “You” could never have been “me!”  That’s purely logical.

A: Craziness!  Yes, I am you!  I am you but grown up.  There’s a perfect line from when you are to when I am.  Therefore, we are certainly the same person.

B: No no no!  You can draw whatever lines you want, but that doesn’t change the fact that your mind is different than my mind, which necessarily means that you cannot be me.  We can only be the same if we have the same mind.

A: But think of the consequences of…

B: Yes, such a view.  That would mean that with every change of mind, you make yourself different from your past selves.  And that means that they are not you, thus they could never be YOU.  You only exist in the present.

A: So I was never you?

B: Bingo.  You were never me.  So there’s no use in trying to change my beliefs as if that would affect you somehow.  We’re completely different people.  Just stay in the present and leave the past alone.

A: And my future selves?

C: We haven’t the slightest clue who you are either.  Don’t bother us with your stupid philosophy.

A: That was harsher than I was expecting.  Does this mean that I, as myself, only exist in this present moment only to be superseded by future selves who are not me?

B:  You got it.

A: But if that is really true, how can we possibly have this conversation if moments of time have passed and presumably our minds have changed at least a little in the process?

B: Why hello.  I’m sorry.  Are you talking to me?  Who are you?  You look a lot like me.  Are we the same person?

A: Hi.  No.  I’m sorry.  We can’t be.  Wait.  I forgot what I was saying.  Who am I?

What the hell is the truth anyways? Does it even matter? (by anon)

What the hell is the truth anyways? Does it even matter? People are so fucking concerned with other people’s beliefs. Do they believe in someone factual? Do they believe in something that can be proved- like science? Or are they spiritual? People judge so many people on the sole aspect of what they believe in. God? Buddha? Allah? A ghost? A tree? An imaginary friend?

I’m asking DOES IT MATTER?

The answer, in my humble opinion is ‘no’. Why can’t people just let others be happy? If I told someone I just met that I believe in my all-powerful imaginary friend, I wish they’d look me in the eye and say “that’s cool.” Who cares if it’s REAL or if it’s TRUE? If it makes you happy, then go for it.

You want the truth? Then here it is: There is a very high possibility that we will never be able to prove any sort of “God” existence. The truth is we could all be living in our own heads and I could be writing this for a professor that I made up in my mind for him to post on a website that doesn’t exist for you people to read- if YOU even exist. We might never know. And some people are deathly afraid of that possibility so they defend their beliefs with their lives and throw out any other way of thinking. Why be afraid? Maybe your God exists for you, but my imaginary friend is the truest thing I have in my life. WHO CARES? If your God makes you happy and if he inspires you to be a good person and get out of bed in the morning to make the world a little bit of a better place that it was when you went to bed the night before, then GO YOUR GOD!  But if I believe in something completely different or nothing at all but I still strive to make people smile and do good deeds, then get off my back! There are a lot of good people out there who don’t believe in any sort of God. And there are good people who do. I say, if they’re happy and they’re good people, then let them be! Let them be god damn it. If it makes you happy, do it. Don’t do something or believe in something if it doesn’t make you happy and if it doesn’t inspire you. And vice versa. If it makes someone else happy, GOOD FOR THEM. Jest accept peoples beliefs, even if they’re different. Accept and respect. 

Infatuated with Swag? (by anon)

Allow me to provide a quick disclaimer for any men who are about to read this fuming post: it’s about you (and in “you” I mean men, not “you” personally). By no means do I mean to generalize each and every single one of “you” into one giant category, I know you are not all like this, but for the purposes of being critically pissed and having the opportunity to vent about it – don’t mind if I do.

What happened to chivalry?  Don’t recognize that word – well that’s exactly my point. Chivalry: the days of gentlemen, of opening doors for women (for anyone for that matter), being respectful toward woman, and having more than “swag.” That is fantastic that you have memorized a series of women-belong-in-the-kitchen jokes, but have yet to memorize your student identification number. It is also fantastic that you consider yourself to have “swag”, but tell me, in all honesty, where that will get you in life?  Having “swag” won’t pay your future bills, it won’t earn you the trust of future employers, and you most-certainly can’t list it on your future resume (and if for some God-forsaken reason you do, may you be publically humiliated for it). So tell me again, what does having “swag” do for a man that being chivalrous doesn’t?  From now on consider SWAG to mean: she-wants-a-gentleman.