[Train Tracks.]

Well I have never had them though I did come close - had to visit the orthodontist but he said not to worry. tbh i would really like them just to neaten up my teeth a bit - they arent bad but it would be nice.

 

I also want my teeth whitened like Simon Cowell lol - i envy his teeth.

 

Dont they like file them down though to a thread them cap it with a fake tooth for celebs with 'perfect' teeth ?

 

 

Some people get veneers on their teeth. They are porcelain and only put on the front of the teeth. I've only heard good things about them, but I haven't researched them much. I think this is what you're referring to .

 

I've never heard of them filing down for veneers, but maybe they do. That sounds more like a crown though.

[Train Tracks.]

Considering this was March..I suppose I'm a little late.

 

I had braces for a year and a half. I found them really painful whenever I got them tightened. I just ate a lot of mashed potatoes and soft breads. I've heard chewing gum helps work out the soreness but I've never tried this.

 

If they start cutting up your mouth you should be able to ask your ortho for some wax. Futhermore, they can be extra careful to make sure there are no lose ends if they know you are having issues.

 

 

Hope you're doing well with your braces!

[Children Growing Up Too Fast]

I think there are several different causes with the media being one. Another, as mentioned above, is the hyper connectedness of the modern world with the Internet, texting, smart phones etc.

 

Also, each generation becomes just a little more jade, a little more desensitized than the one before it. Just look at the last 20 years as an example. When the Simpsons first came out it was considered very edgy for it's time. But in time it was surpassed by Beavis and Butthead. Then that was supplanted by South Park which has outright cursing and sacrilege. Society became desensitized by The Simpsons then it took a little more to shock people and more until look at where we are now.

 

Parents have also become more of friends to their children instead of parents. Look at Lindsay Lohan's mom as a perfect example. She wanted to be her daughter's friend instead of her mother. She used her daughter's fame to get into the coolest L.A. clubs instead of steering her daughter passed the pitfalls of fame.

 

And parents as well as teachers aren't allowed to discipline anymore. I know growing up I got spanked. I wasn't beaten or abused and I don't have deep seated issues with my parents because of it. But I do know the difference between right and wrong and I respect others and their property. My parents did a good job of bringing me up. And since we've taken corporal punishment out of the schools kids have gotten uncontrollable.

 

But it didn't just start with this generation. It's been going on. Look at the adults of today. They grew up far quicker than their parents. They had gotten drunk, had sex and done drugs way younger than their parents did or maybe their parents never did some of those things. So it would seem that they grew up faster than their parents. But really they just became more jaded than their parents; not grown up. They never matured. That's why we have a society of adults who are overgrown children, who are trying so desperately to cling to their youth and turn their children into mini-me versions of themselves. Hanging with your four year old son like he's your buddy and listening to the White Stripes together is not age appropriate for your child. Children need their parents not friends.

 

Just look at an old show like Leave It To Beaver. The father on that show was a Man. Now compare him to a father of today. They are just overgrown frat boys.

 

 

I love this post, I feel it really expresses my opinions well.

 

Unfortunately, I think children are getting these "GROW UP" messages from all directions. The media is obviously a huge participant, which overly sexual lyrics and inappropriate shows for children. They have lots of Nick and Disney programs that show children defying, being rude, getting involved in romance,etc and while the actor/actresses may be 14 or 15, the children watching it are as young as 5. Furthermore, they get it in music that is considered popular and good, such as Rihanna's new song that was stated above. I know a lot of parents who play this to their children without a thought. When children go to school they have other children talking about the same music and tv shows. These tv shows become reality, not because they are how children are, but because they have conditioned kids to believe this how they are suppose to act.

 

As Dude stated, a lot of parents try to be their child's friend instead of their parent. They do not punish their child and let them have way too much freedom. This, combined with the traditional family structure has fallen apart for a huge portion of families means these children may have less people to look up to as role models and more time to spend with their media.

 

 

One thing I find really crazy is that children are growing up faster, but older adults perceive younger adults as "kids" much longer than in the past. Someone who is 23 can still be referred to as a "kid" or "young person" by someone who is in their 40s. A lot of people don't consider 18 to be an adult and while I have trouble turning to an 18 year old and saying, "You're an adult, do as you please"..I think it was better a couple of decades ago when younger adults didn't have the same stigma. We are conditioning people to grow up faster, but then condoning the defiant, teenage phase longer.

 

It's a very sad cycle, but the positive is that since we are realizing this we can work to change the next generation.

[All things paranormal]

Ghosts

I, personally, do not believe in ghosts. If ghosts existed they would have to take up some form of mass, which they don't. Furthermore, if they didn't take up actual space and were just "pure energy" they would have to get their energy source from something...which they can't. They have no body and therefore cannot have any sustenance to create energy.

 

Most scientists relate paranormal experiences to high levels of electromagnetism, which makes sense because this is all around us (the sun, the earth, tvs, radios,etc). Most areas that people associate as being haunted have a high level of electromagnetism. Taking this, even if ghost used electromagnetism to communicate (lights/sounds/etc) they would have to have energy because nothing can be done if there is no energy. Again, we're back to the fact that they have no way of gaining energy so this kind of dispels the ghost idea for me.

 

Witchcraft

Witchcraft, obviously, exists. It really depends on how you are referring to it. As a religion it's as valid as any other and I have no problem with people who chose to believe this way.

 

If you're referring to the witchcraft in fantasy novels or someone sitting in their basement lighting candles, then no, I don't believe in that whatsoever.

 

If you're referring to witch doctors, then they some validity with natural cures. They also have been crazy extremist.

 

 

UFOs

 

Considering the acronym UFO just stands for "Unidentified Flying Object", I definitely believe in this. There are a lot of things that are UFOs.

 

Moving to the actual tangent of aliens, I don't think we are alone in the universe. There is a wide range of what an alien could be classified as, anywhere from cells from another planet to a functioning "animal", if you will. The full animal seems less likely based on what we know of other planets, but the beauty of idea of aliens is that their body/cell structure and needs could (and probably would) be drastically different from our own. I'm honestly not sure we'll find this answer in our lifetime, but the prospect is exciting.

 

Sixth Sense/Psychics/Clairvoyance

 

I put these together, I feel they go hand in hand.

 

I agree and disagree with these. The typical definition of a sixth sense/clairvoyance/etc is being able to know something about a person without using physical senses. I disagree with this, however, I think that many people mistake their own snap judgements as having a sixth sense. The human senses are amazing and that combined with our brain and how fast it functions...we look at someone and immediately have knowledge about them before they have said anything to us. Humans are made to survive and we have a number of instincts to "size" others up. Most people don't notice that our brain has all ready picked up on a person's troubles/personality/vocal tone/mannerisms/appearance and given vibes or warnings back to us in seconds. In this perspective, I consider this to be a sense all it's own, just not the paranormal kind.

 

This is a bit of a tangent away, but another example of how humans are programmed to survive is The Third Man or The Angel Effect. This sometimes occurs when people are in life threatening situations people feel there is someone speaking and/or guiding them to where they need to be to get through their trials. They often feel that someone is just right behind their shoulder. It has now been discovered that there is a nerve in the brain that when stimulated this feeling occurs (whether in a dangerous situation or not). I think it's really amazing how our bodies have so many different aspects to them just to help us survive, and yet we can still be so fragile.