Graffiti and Vandalism...

Graffiti means different things to different the people who do it. Some people graffiti their name or area code as a sign they were at that specific place, or to show where they come from. Some people graffiti stupid stuff about other people and to be honest it doesn’t need to written on walls in public. But as well as graffiti being an untidy look for a community, it can also be very creative and interesting art. For example, shop stores use graffiti on their shutters to attract attention and for advertisement. I think graffiti’s only a bad thing when it shouldn’t be somewhere. Other than that I personally think it’s good art.

Vandalism on the other hand, I don’t see the point of it. People, for fun or out of anger, just break and damage public things. For example (very commonly) bus shelters or buses. I think it’s wrong. In my opinion you wouldn’t want someone doing that to your belongings. And even worse is that so much money is spent to provide these things for us, and it’s just abused.

Infidelity...

There are way too many different words for infidelity: cheating, bit on the side, playing away from home, affair, unfaithful, adultery etc. But in the end it’s all the same. Cheating on your partner whether your married or boyfriend/girlfriend, is usually classed as going behind your partners back with another person. But different people have different opinions on this. For example some individuals would class kissing someone else as cheating, whereas others would say that sleeping with someone else is cheating.

So really I think it depends on the individual. In my opinion if someone feels the needs to cheat then they aren’t happy in their current relationship. So therefore to do the right thing you should end that relationship. But I think people like the security of having their partner to come home to, but also want to have the excitement of sneaking around with someone else. Some people want to end the relationship with their partner but don’t to spare their feelings. Either way I think once someone is caught up in an affair it’s going to be difficult to get out of it.

A lot of marriages these days are breaking down and families are being torn apart. But for parents I think it’s even worse as they are also affecting their children’s lives as well. Divorce is an easy thing for people to do and I think it’s quite scary how many families are broken and split.

Drugs...

We’ve probably all taken some sort of drug in our lives. Legally we are only allowed to have drugs that may be prescribed to us by a doctor. But so many people take other drugs such as cannabis, heroin, ecstasy etc.
People choose to take drugs for different reasons. Some people like to experiment or try something new, but for others it has become a bad habit. Like smoking, taking drugs is also addictive so people end up getting hooked on them. I think drugs are something that’s very harmful to the individual taking them and to others around too, which is the reason they are illegal.
But just like all things that are illegal, people still do them. And for the ones who get caught there’s a consequence. A lot of people die because they’re too hooked on drugs and can’t stop. For some people it’s the other way around and their bodies are so used to the drugs that they feel they have to take them. Drugs ruin so many people’s lives that in my opinion it’s not even worth taking them in the first place.

Violence...

Violence is something that is a part of our everyday lives. Somehow, somewhere, a violent incident takes place, shocking half the country and the feds. At least, it used to. For some reason violence no longer comes as a shock to us. We’re used to it.

Not long ago was gun crime almost unheard of. Now, though, we have these kinds of knife and gun crimes where innocent people are killed, just for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. How many times this year have you heard that someone has been shot? Or stabbed? For no apparent reason? There are too many people carrying guns and knives around with them for ‘protection’. These guns and knives usually end up as the weapons of many killers, intentionally or not, and most of the time they are not stopped. The real question is why- why do people feel the need to go out with a gun or a knife?

Some people say that the streets just aren’t safe anymore, and a knife is only for defence, something that won’t even be used. However, isn’t bringing a knife onto the streets making them even less safe? Having a weapon provides the potential for danger, the potential for a murder. If no one carried knives with them, then no one would be stabbed, would they? The logic is simple, yet unrealistic to most people.

Gun crime and knife crime will continue to rise- so how are we meant to stop it? The answer isn’t as simple as the logic. I don’t know the answer and probably never will. Now these kinds of crime are something that we’re going to have to deal with, until people start to realise that they do not have the right to take away a life.

Life shouldn’t be about ‘an eye for an eye’; life should be more about forgiveness and less about revenge.

Kids (The Movie)...

Well to start off, I don't really think that the content of this film was shocking. I think it's more the fact that it was put so blatently out there on the big screen. Most films wouldn't show kids so young taking drugs, fighting, having sex etc. But when your watching it, you realise that all the things happening in the film are true. It's all being done in reality just like they show.
In this day and age children and young people know and do a lot more things then they would have say 10yrs ago. The society is changing and the things the government and schools teach children is becoming ridiculous.

Throughout the film there were a lot of elements of 'being bad' shown. These included smoking, violence, sex, drugs, alcohol and they were all being done while underage, making it illegal.

Lying...

Lies, lies, lies... they're everywhere you look. At home, at work, in the paper, even on T.V. So it's no wonder people find it so easy to do. Sometimes they can literally just flow out of your mouth, almost like an instinct to protect yourself.
I think it's just as easy for males and females to lie. And we've all told some sort of lie in our life.

We can tell a small white lie which we don't think is that bad. Or you can take it to the extreme and tell a major lie, which usually then results in having to tell even more lies to cover up the first lie.
Sometimes we lie to someone so we don't hurt their feelings, sometimes to get ourselves out of something we don't want to do, but does that mean its ok?

Everyone believes different things. Being a christian, it's wrong to lie and it's classed as a sin. But as humans we all sin.
I think even if we try our best not to lie, we would probably do it in some form, one way or another.

Stealing...

When you hear that someone robbed something, you automatically think it's bad. It's a thought that just comes naturally to you, because something in your conscience tells you that it is. Most people have stolen something, and yes I have too.
Stealing is basically taking something that doesn't belong to you, whether it's physical or metaphorical. A physical example- jacking a phone or some money. A metaphorical example, which most people don't think of as stealing- taking the credit for something you haven't done.
Sometimes people steal for what they think is apparently a 'good' reason. A 'good' reason being that they stole money to buy medicine that they were in dire need of. Ok, so that doesn't really happen, nevertheless it is still a good excuse for stealing.
Sometimes people steal to fit in with their friends, or a particular crowd, where stealing is the norm. However, do they ever stop to ask themselves: are these people worth it? Sometimes all it takes is a moment to stop and think. Kind of like when you're crossing the road- simple :)
And sometimes people are brought up in that sort of environment, where stealing isn't seen as something particularly 'wrong' as such, but more a way of getting by. But even so, everybody still has a choice to break out from that routine. And yes, it is hard to do that, but making choices vary difficulty. Some are easy and some are hard, but in the end, it's something you have to learn to live with- making decisions.
Stealing is wrong, it's not something that can be justified. Just make the right decision, whether that be in breaking out from a routine or not stealing that sweet you think no one can see you're going to take. Just don't steal. Simples ;)

Piercings and Tattoos...

Piercings and tattoos are so common today that I don’t think it’s a weird thing.
Tattoos have been around for such a long time and have many different meanings. A lot of people have tattoos that are personal to them. Other people have tattoos just because they like them or because they want to fit in. Some people have their whole bodies covered and some people just have something small. Tattoos are a lot more common in women now than they were in the past. It’s not looked down upon as much as it may have been before.

Piercings aren’t frowned upon as they are so normal in this day and age. They don’t really have a meaning or purpose; we just have them to look good. Ear piercings are probably the most common. But there are loads of other pointless body piercings that people have. Men also have piercings a lot more than they would have in the past.

Alcohol...

People drink for loads of different reasons. We drink to relax and have a good time, just on occasions or maybe to escape reality. But because alcohol is something that we have all around the world, it's not exactly easy to get away from it.
Drinking alcohol like wines and champagne are seen as a norm for classier events such as a wedding or a high society party etc. So it’s not really seen as doing anything wrong or abnormal.
The only time that drinking alcohol is really a bad thing is when you’re doing it illegally. For example, underage drinking or drinking and driving. I think most people under the age limit for drinking have still at least tried it, as they tend to do with a lot of other things. Some kids will try it to be cool and some just try it out of curiosity. It can also make you feel older and more grown up.
But in this country we are beginning to see more and more problems with things like binge drinking on the news all the time. To be honest I don't know why so many people have to drink themselves legless, but it happens. And I doubt the efforts of the government are going to change how much the population drink...

Smoking...

I think most people know someone who smokes or has smoked in the past. Nowadays smoking isn’t something that is surprising, because so many people do it it just seems a normal thing.
But there are plenty of different reasons that people choose to smoke and a big reason for school kids is peer pressure. Kids used to try and smoke out of the toilet windows or round the back of the gym in my school, so they wouldn’t get caught. To be honest they must have been pretty desperate. But you see it all the time in schools today and no matter how hard the teachers try to stop them, they always find a way! A lot of kids do it so they can fit in, and avoid being bullied. Even if they don’t like it they will still join in. Also if you start smoking at a young age then you’re probably more likely to continue. Also social smoking is quite common too. If you’re out with mates and they go out for a fag its likely you’ll go with them.
But in contrast to all the other reasons there are to smoke, some people just like smoking. Some people don’t want to stop because they enjoy it. And fair enough if that’s the case, we all have free will. It’s an individual’s personal choice to smoke or not smoke.
Having a smoking addiction can’t be solved by sticking a square patch on your arm, or chewing a piece of gum. Somehow I think it’s going to take a lot more than that! But it can be done with lots of hard work and ambition :)