Born free generation

?It is not for nothing that the born free youth in 2013 has been named the â€Å"me generation†. Today’s people growing up are materialistic, self indulged and obsessed with themselves. This essay will explore that 19 years after the first the first democratic elections in South Africa, the young people of today are little different from their counterparts else where in the world. My argument will show that this is somewhat ironic because politically inspired school pupils were the catalysts for one of the most important resistances against the apartheid government. In 1976 the National Party attempted to modify the education act and insist that Afrikaans be the medium of instruction for Bantu education. On the 16th of June politicised and angry young teenagers poured into the streets of Soweto equipped with suitcases and stones. They confronted heavily armed policemen and the might of the South African military with the determination to express their outrage at yet another political injustice. Hector Peterson lost his life on this day and his limp body became emblematic of a politicised youth determined to make South Africa a democratic country. When President’s Kennedy, Nixon and Johnson involved the United States of America in a war across the globe, to minimise the influence of communism, young people in America took to the streets and protested vigorously across the land. Indeed, this event characterised popular culture to such an extent that protest music became a genre popular worldwide. Singers such as Bob Dylan, Joan Baez and Peter, Paul and Mary voiced the objections of the â€Å"Love Generation†. Music in fact became the medium for political resistance in South Africa as well; Johnny Klegg became the â€Å"white Zulu† and his anthropologist wrote resistance songs, which young people in South Africa promoted with much vigour and enthusiasm. Stephanie Powers too became a voice of political decent and her raspy voice with songs like â€Å"Last night when we were young† energised disco techs in which young South African’s danced the night away. However, 19 years after the demise of Apartheid, young South Africans are no longer interested in political and social protest music, in fact the pop genre has never enjoyed such wide spirit support in this country. Justin Bieber’s concert in Cape Town and Gauteng enjoyed unprecedented popularity and support. The columnist for the Sunday times exclaimed on the 14th of may that the hysterical behaviour of so many young girls was reason for great concern in fact anyone attending this concert could not have failed to be struck by one of the great ironies of one of the great â€Å"Musical bonanza† in Soweto, a bowl of poverty and deprivation. In fact, a sensitive appreciation of these ironies can be little other then down right embarrassing. However, if this were limited to one outing only, young people’s self indulgence and narcissism might be forgiven however, Johannesburg Stadium has been the host to Lady Gaga, The Red Hot Chilli Pepper and U2, in each case promoters smile at ticket sales and the amount of money made from each outing. Furthermore, it would be a little naive to believe that this is a characteristic only displayed by the youth of South Africa. Young people worldwide it would appear are pleasure seeking and selfish and are all too willing to emulate and worship celebrity culture. Charlotte Metcalfe in her article, â€Å"Where are all the role models, the real heroines we once revered† satirises adolescent hero worship of figures such as Cheryl Cole

Alcoholic anonymous meeting Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Alcoholic anonymous meeting - Essay Example Bob Smith in Akron, in the year 1935. The program developed, involves Twelve Step spiritual and character development process which aids in the stabilization as well as growth of the alcohol addict. According to Ohio, "primary purpose is to stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety". Individuals belonging to such a self-help group can benefit themselves by learning and adopting diverse skills to build confidence and make amendments in behaviour which enable them to perform well in their social environment. Such an approach not only tapers their alcohol dependence but also enables them to motivate other new members of the group to overcome such awful inclination (AA Better Known as Alcoholic Anonymous; Wormer et al, 2007). Alcoholics Anonymous group offers independence concerning to group membership. One can attend the meeting weekly or as per his/her wish. The group does not possess any red-tape attitude, on the other hand acquaintance and friendships developed in the group do not have any bindings. This is one of the major reasons why such groups are emerging as the most preferred groups to overcome their addiction quandary (Wormer et al, 2007). The group members interact with each other, confess in front of the group that they seek a solution to the problem of alcohol addiction. The group members utilize their previous experiences to tackle the situation by asking all the details of the addiction trouble, the cause of distress, issues that paved the way for alcohol addiction. Members express their gratitude and formulate a plan to overcome their problem and support other individuals or the group members in tackling the situation (Wormer et al, 2007). Spiritualism is the sole motive that incites self renewal attitude in the person. The environment provided to the new comer is congenial and motivating. Group members discuss their personal stories of revival in details and then the session is open for

Why woman should not ever have an Abortion Essay

Why woman should not ever have an Abortion - Essay Example God condemns abortion. The reason abortion is prohibited is not just the fact that it is murder, but also because of a whole range of consequences that it causes. In many cases, abortion poses risk to the life of the mother. Even if the mother survives the initial risk, she is quite susceptible to bearing the huge burden of guilt of having killed her own child. Many mothers experience many negative emotional and psychological effects of abortion for a long time in their life. Owing to the fact that life starts at conception, every abortion results in the killing of a human being. To make it even worse, that human being cannot even speak for his/her rights, he/she does not even know about any rights, and is in the most innocent form. The moment a child starts developing inside the mother’s womb, the mother’s body does not remain just her body, but also becomes a home shared by her child. All these points lead to the conclusion that abortion should be