There are two choices to every scenario, to stay or to walk away. But will either of the options really make a difference? Everyday I come across that one fork in the road asking myself what I should do and does it really matter.

Blindsided by my ignorance I took the choice to "stand" like the Omelas in Ursula K. Le Guin's book, in a situation where my favor was held higher than the effects that it had on others. For years I have been painting my face with cosmetic brands such as L’Oreal and Lancôme, making myself look better without having consideration of how they make these products. The mascara and powder I wore everyday that was supposed to make me look and feel better about myself, ironically me feel even worse after reading about it. After coming across an article discussing the cruelty of animal testing used to produce these cosmetics I choose to "walk away" making the simple decisions in picking out a new set of makeup from brands that do not test on animals such as Benefit and Urban Decay. Knowing that walking away will not stop the current issue, I still believe not promoting materials that were tested on animals as cruelly as they do means something in the long run.

What Media Potrays

Watch enough brutality on TV and you come to believe you are living in a cruel and gloomy world in which you feel vulnerable and insecure. In his research over three decades Gerbner found that people who watch a lot of TV are more likely than others to believe their neighborhoods are unsafe, to assume that crime rates are rising, and to overestimate their own odds of becoming a victim. They also buy more locks, alarms, and- you guessed it- guns, in hopes of protecting themselves. 'They may accept and even welcome,' Gerbner reports, 'repressive measures such as more jails, capital punishment, harsher sentences- measures that have never reduced crime but never fail to get votes- if that promises to relieve their anxieties. That is the deeper dilemma of violence-laden television.'"

In the exert from the book The Culture of Fear, author Barry Glassner compares the fear spread by media to how it affects us in how we live our everyday lives. Media portraying the dark side of communities around us make us question our safety and our will to walk around without having a constant reminder in the back of our mind bringing up all the stories we have heard and watched on television. Similar to carrying a weight on your back, this constant thought of fear drags us down, rethinking our security. Not only does this mentally corrupt us, but also financially. Those who are contaminated with the over violent scenes which are spread throughout the news, influence the need for reassurance. Media through television is a powerful thing; causing people to be more than willing to spend everything they have on guns, locks, alarm systems, and etc.… Gordimer's short story, “Once Upon a Time” represents ironic ways how people are willing to go out on a limb for security systems in  time of feeling unsafe in there own home, which eventually bites them in the end.

To me this picture represents more power than a thousand words. I choose this image because it is one that speaks to me, demonstrating equality, unity, and a sense of warmth simply reaching out and giving someone a hand to hold. This picture demonstrates the hardships that a child in Africa goes through living with a constant hunger inside them, reaching out to someone and soon feeling a sense and love and relief knowing someone cares.Conveying such a powerful message, this image finally gives me hope. Hope that knowing there are people out there simply help each other regardless of what gender, race, or culture, leaving one hand out to hold onto,  giving one faith that days will be brighter, instantly overpowering all the bad ones.