Passion Blog: I’m keeping it the same as last semester, which is having a blog about music (upcoming artists, indie bands, etc.) This blog talks about the background of each artist, the style/genre of the music, descriptions of their quirky musical distinctions from other artists, as well as explanations of the meanings of some of their songs. I keep each entry factual, but I also occasionally add my own personal opinions about the artists in each post.
Civic Issues Blog: One possible idea for this blog is about rehabilitation for either addiction or mental illness. Mental illness has always been a difficult topic of discussion, yet is becoming increasingly easier to talk about in this modern day and age. Rehabilitation and the rights a patient has is a very interesting topic to me as many people with illnesses do not receive the proper care they have a right to, and are taken advantage of. I have researched mental illness with the 1930s and the horrifying medical procedures that a lot of people went through just because they were seen as different from the rest of society. Rehabilitation is a serious topic that could prevent future relapses, aid people suffering from mental illnesses, and that has the ability to change people’s lives if used correctly.
Another possible idea for this blog is examining the rise of mental illness among youth and teenagers over the past couple of years. I got this idea through my sociology class last year as I found out that youth suicide rates have spiked significantly in recent years. Girls as young as 12 to 15 also have extremely high rates of self harm comparing to the rates of past generations. Why is this spike happening? Are more people just getting diagnosed? What are the proper treatments to fix this issue? Along with these increases in mental illness, I would also examine the use of prescription drugs (or more so the over-prescription of drugs) and compare these rates.
“This I Believe” Podcast: One idea for this podcast is the power of music. I believe that music has the ability to change a person and is essential to life. Music brings me so many feelings that I just cannot describe. But, I feel these sensations inside of myself, deep down rumbling in my lungs, brooding in my stomach. Music has changed me, and keeps on changing me every day. It has been a comfort when I needed it the most, it has supported me and motivated me to pursue the greatest moments in life.
Another idea for this podcast is talking about the constant need for change. I believe in pushing myself to grow and to never be comfortable with a sort of stable routine. I believe that some people get stuck in their lives, and eventually they lose their motivation to seek out new experiences and refuse to explore. I believe in a controlled chaos, one where there is always something to learn from or become a better person because of a change in one’s life.
I think all of your ideas are good! I think that your “I believe” topic on music would be really good for you because you like it so much and enjoy blogging about it already. I also like your civic issue of mental illness because of it being such a hot topic right now and the attention it needs. All really great and excited to see what you come up with this semester!
I love all of these topics! I’m excited to read your passion blogs! Though both of your topics for your Civic issues are good, I, personally, would find your second topic a bit more relavent to read about. As for the “This I Believe” I think both topics would be very interesting to hear about!
These topics will definitely be interesting to read about. For the civic issues, I personally feel like the 2nd topic would be more interesting because it seems like a big gray area as it is newer. For the “This I Believe”, since you are doing music for your passion blog it might be easier for you to make this topic stand out.
These are great ideas! For your civic issues blog, I would love to see you write about increasing rates of mental illness among teenagers and youth — it is an imperative issue facing modern youth and needs to be addressed more. For your podcast, I like both of your ideas, but recommend you do the second one only because your passion blog is about music, so the controlled chaos style will help you branch out a bit and keep it fresh. Best of luck!