For my research proposal I will be examining the hypothesis of the American Mafia’s involvement in the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. While there are many theories to why JFK was assassinated one theory that stands out the most would be the Chicago Family and Santo Trafficante Jr, of the former Havana Mob, ordering the hit as retribution on the Kennedy Brothers crackdown on organized crime
From analyzing events in American history during the 1950’s-60’s there can be evidence collected that would support the motive for why the hit was placed as well as events that took place after the assassination to hide the involvement of organized crime. While it was well known that the Kennedy family was involved with the National Crime syndicate from the days of Joseph P Kennedy’s Bootleg operations, it was John’s own involvement in Cuba and the relationships he made there that would cause his demise. There are many studies into why President Kennedy was assassinated, the theory that organized crime had been involved has the strongest backing and would make for a excellent research topic due to the uncertainty of who really was involved in the assassination of Kennedy.
0:00-0:09: A young girl, lonely, scared and afraid hesitantly glances left and right looking for something while standing at a bus stop. Perhaps the bus or even a car to pick her up.
0:09-0:23: The young girl nervously watches each car pass by her as she hesitantly continues to look left and right.
0:23-0:36: The young girl continuously pulls her hair out of the way of her face, seeming frustrated.
0:36-0:45: She looks extremely upset as her eyes begin to tear up. she looks left, right, and up at the lights as if she has given up and turns left to begin to walk.
0:45-1:03: She is very hesitant about her decision, stops in her tracks and turns back around facing the bus stop. she cannot decide what to do, if what she is searching for will ever come or if she will give up.
1:03-1:23: She continues to pace back and forth, frustrated. She is no longer concerned about her hair in her face, and begins to cry in maybe fear or anger or even sadness. Then the screen cuts black.
1:23-1:32: The young girl opens her eyes, sitting down somewhere. on her left there is a young boy with orange hair next to her as he greets her.
1:32-1:45: After all of the young girl’s frustration, the young boy seemed to cure any frustration, or anger that the young girl had. When she was alone and at her lowest, all she needed was someone there for her, which the young boy was there to do.
While at beach wasting the day away with a hand full of sand, the wind quickly carries it through the slips of the fingers, and away with the wind before there was ever the opportunity to glance at it. This in the eyes of many is the harsh concept of money. What is money and the concept behind it? This is a major question for everyone around the world. As the famous “Stone Money” story stated, money is an item worth value for trade. In order to further explain the concept of money, we will look into how the US currency differs from the Yap’s and the public’s faith in the value of currency.
Between the United States and the Yap’s, each had a similarity with the concept of money. Each used a significant item for value for trade, but what makes an item valuable? Each nation has its own unique and interesting way of trading currency. The Yap’s may have had the most intriguing of them all, giant carved stone. With the hard work and labor to create such an item it therefore had significant value. These stones had huge structures that soon raised questions on how each individual would possess such an item, or even transport it. Quickly enough, the Yap’s soon stopped the transportation of huge stones and rather turned it into property. An individual could leave the stone wherever, knowing that he is the sole owner of that stone. This concept works hand-in-hand with the system of US currency. In today’s society, we have bank accounts with simply a number and as we spend “money”, the simple digits switch around. Although that money is not currently one our person, we still own it. With such an influence, the US adapted this similar concept.
How much faith does one have in the value of currency? After the gold standard was eliminated, the only faith we have in currency is the faith in our government and their power to manipulate us into believing such a thing. The US dollar bill is nothing more than a thing worthless piece of paper labeled by a number, but yet again it is suppose to be worth a whole lot more. How is something so worthless able to be traded for a new car, a laptop, or even education on how our faith in money could be distraught? We work days on end to earn such a thing but yet we are still seeking the faith behind this concept. The only reason we believe this concept is because it is the ONLY true way to make a living. We are forced upon believing that such a worthless piece of paper isn’t so worthless after all. The public’s faith in the value of currency is only present because it is the only trading system that we are able to engage in.
Cows and Chips:
The beach is often a popular vacation destination on the East Coast. One of the many popular activities for children on the beach is building sand castles, but how long do those sand castles last? The cool, calm waves creep up and wash away each and every sand castle before we know it. They come and go just as quick as money does. We slave to build a sand castle that is something worth while just to see it dissappear shortly after and we are left to build it again. This is the same way with money. We work extremely hard to earn something that we instantly spend and we are left to continue working to earn more money. This in the eyes of many is the harsh concept of money. Many questions that arise is what is money and the concept behind it? This is a major question for everyone around the world. As the famous “Stone Money” story stated, money is an item worth value for trade. In order to further explain the concept of money, we will look into how the US currency differs from the Yap’s and the public’s faith in the value of currency.
In the first fourteen seconds of “Word Pictures,” a PSA produced by the Ad Council in 1989, eleven static images are individually shown on screen, each one of them visually portraying a different hand drawn word or phrase in the form of a photograph. They are shown in these photos exactly as they were drawn on paper; in crayon and spelled out in somewhat crudely formed bubble letters, intentionally depicted in this manner in order to imply that they were created by young children. I copied all eleven messages below exactly as they can be seen within the actual ad, grammatical errors and all.
“DUMMY,” “PAThetic,” “BraT,” “Stupid,” “JERK,” “moron,” “CLUMSY,” “IdioT,” “I WISH YOU WERE NEVER BORN,” “I hate you,” and “Youre Disgusting,”
All of the above are particularly negative and insulting, included in this PSA to indicate that the children who drew them on paper must be surrounded by such hurtful language fairly often in order for it to stick so vibrantly in their minds.
(0:14 – 0:19)
The next five seconds of “Word Pictures” are also composed of photographs, this time depicting typical drawings instead of bubble letter messages. The first of the three photos shows a simple drawing of a little boy, illustrated with an expression of despair and tears streaming down his face, indicating he was drawn to personify the sadness felt by the same child who created him. The second drawing is of a dark haired little girl, also with tears streaming and a frown on her face, accompanied by the words “I am sad” written near her mouth. The final drawing depicted in this segment is also of a crying, dark haired young girl. I believe the Ad Council’s purpose in including these three pictures of crying children was to visually connect the messages from the first eleven seconds of the ad to how young people who are the subjects of such hurtful language might actually feel. The observable crying in the drawings as well as the little message saying “I am sad” in the second of the three are included to imply that kids who hear things like “I wish you were never born” generally tend to feel upset and unhappy. I know I would!
(0:19 – 0:21)
These three seconds of the PSA show another photo of a drawing, this one a crude picture of a man that has the word “Daddy” written on his shoulder. It is evident that this drawing was also done of a child, and that the man depicted doesn’t inspire too much happiness in his son or daughter. The drawing indicates to the audience of “Word Pictures” that “Daddy” may not be very kind to or patient with his child; the way the man in the picture is drawn shows him yelling with his arms raised above his head and mouth wide open. Also, instead of a static image, these three seconds of the ad actually zoom in on the open mouth of the man in the picture.
(0:21 – 0:25)
For this last segment of the PSA everything on the screen goes dark, and the only visual stimuli are the messages “stop using words that hurt” and “start using words that help” written in white. The darkness on the screen comes from zooming in on “Daddy’s” mouth in the segment before for effect, done so in this manner to tell the audience that parents, like the drawing previously depicted to represent a child’s father, say things to their kids like “I hate you” and “you’re disgusting” that can really hurt them and bring down their self esteem. Based off of the visual evidence provided in “Word Pictures,” a viewer of the ad would conclude that it is most likely advocating for the better treatment of children in our society, and for parents to stop using language around them that can make them cry or feel upset because doing so really has an impact on people of a young age. (0:26 – 0:30) – nothing happens visually within this segment of the PSA that supports the message it’s trying to convey
To me the idea of stone money is strange but curiosity provoking at the least. These huge stones hold value but cannot be moved, transferred, or even hold a practical value. I cannot feed my family with the stone or use it for shelter but to some they were valuable. The same system used by a group of un-civilized tribesman over a hundred years ago bares a striking resemblance to what we use today in modern society; is it not? We walk around exchanging pieces of paper that can easily be ripped or destroyed for goods of value and necessity. It is true that the monetary system we use today is working and has worked for a period of time, but is it really the best way to sustain a economically diverse and often times unpredictable society? After reading the article by Milton Friedman “The Island of Stone Money” and listening to the in class lecture I have a new perspective on money and am starting to ask myself these kinds of questions.
Our belief in money is slowly turning into, in a sense, the same sort of values and beliefs religion is based upon. Being that money in today’s society is basically as abstract and meaningless as trading goods in a video game it is taken on faith that transactions online that produce X amount of zeros come with equal value in reality. For fear of losing the value of their “money” the French asked the federal reserve to convert the dollar value of their assets into gold. Once the U.S. had done this the French were content with leaving those same assets in a foreign territory. Who really keeps track of all this virtual money today? How is the U.S. over 13 trillion dollars in debt if that amount of actual currency doesn’t even exist? We determine the value of labor and distribution of products by dollar signs but the government cant guarantee that the money you hold today will posses any value tomorrow. As we create more and more physical currency to match the demands of the public the value the world perceives our money at and the value the government says its worth is ever changing. Decreasing actually. This is the basic premise behind inflation; price of goods increasing and value of the dollar decreasing.
Behind all the smoke and mirrors our government puts up for us I believe there is a direct answer as to what the permanence of our current monetary system is. At the rate we a currently traveling now there is no way any rational person could say that the current system we have can be sustained. In our lifetimes and for a couple generations maybe but every great empire history has shown us has its fall. We need to be thinking about the future, if we don’t who will?
Works Cited
Friedman, Milton. “The Island of Stone Money.” Diss. Hoover Institution, Stanford University , 1991.
0:01 The advertisement opens with a group of three men in the woods, one is standing still looking up with a perplexed look on his face. The other two are seen walking out from a path carrying some wood presumably to start a fire. As the two men approach their friend they stop close to him, with a proud/accomplished expression on their face they drop the sticks in a pile where some had already been placed. At this point the two seem to be done with their task and look ready to start the fire.
0:02-0:03 The camera angle then changes to beneath the mans shoulders who was staring upwards. The view is of his head and of the multiple branches that are seen swaying in the breeze above.
0:04-0:07 The camera then goes back to the man’s face who was seen staring up. He is looking at his friends and can be seen saying something to them as his head nods in one direction perhaps signaling them to move to a different location. Camera then pans out onto all of them and the two who got the wood seem to have a disgruntled look on their face.
0:08-0:10 The agitated looks of the two men quickly turn to a face of apprehension. Their vision shifts away from their friend to something behind him not seen on camera. Noticing his friends gaze the man turns around slowly and is met by an imposing figure. A huge creature with brown fur is standing within inches of the man.
0:11-0:16 The next shot is of Smokey the bear towering over the man looking down on him. There is a brief pause making the moment even more dramatic. Smokey then closes his eyes and leans in to hug the man who is in complete shock. The camera angles to just the mans face pressed against the bears furry body. His nervous expression then slowly turns into relief as he puts his arms around Smokey.
0:17-0:30 Smokey then turns and slowly walks back into the forrest, with the camera behind the men watching him walk away. It then returns to a full body shot of all of the men. Their body language seems to still be in awe as they are all very still. After a brief moment one man says something short probably to break the silence and put what just happened into perspective. Just as Smokey is seen leaving the view of the camera the one man in the middle awkwardly waves bye.
If someone had asked me several days ago what I thought money was, I would have regurgitated some textbook definition like “money is a form of currency to be exchanged for goods and/or services.” The reality is that most people, including myself, fail to consider the true logic and science behind the concept of currency.
The idea of trading things in exchange for other things has been around since the beginning of time because we’re simply a greedy species. How many times has someone asked you for something and one of your thoughts is “what am I getting out of this?” When America’s economy was first established, it was a small farming economy run by the colonies and over seen by Great Britain. Now, we have the nominally largest economy in the world. Most history books will tell you that our economy was built by hard-working Americans in hope of building a better life. In reality, our economy was built on faith. Banknotes were introduced in 1861 as a way to help finance the civil war. Basically a place holder for things of intrinsic value, they served as an investment in the U.S. Government to help support the war effort. These investments were made in good faith that the banknotes could be exchanged for their worth in something of real tangible value i.e. gold, silver, copper, etc.
Most countries have their own form of monetary system, some more exotic than others. Perhaps one of the most intriguing examples I’ve been introduced to is that of the island of Yap. The Yapese people trade coins of their own design. The coins vary in size, ranging from seven centimeters to nearly four meters in diameter. The larger of the bunch are often too heavy to move so they stay in one place for the long durations of time. Much like our economy, that of the Yapese people is built on faith. Rather than physically hand over their coins in exchange for the things they want, they simply transfer ownership. When a coin is too large to move, it remains stationary but everyone is made aware of who owns that coin. The coin itself has no value. Take the coin from the island of Yap and you’ve simply got a big rock. However, that’s where the faith of the Yapese comes into play. On the island, the great boulders of limestone are considered valuable because they are hard to come by and once cleaned and polished they’re quite beautiful. They hold value because people want them and that’s really all any financial system boils down to.
Modern currency was invented because it is far easier to regulate than just trading goods and services, which usually have immediate benefits but the value varies depending on the people involved. Common currency is also far more universal. If you can only exchange a certain item or service but no one wants it then you’re going to have a very difficult time generating any revenue. However, if the currency you use is more widely accepted you’ll be able to market to a wider audience.
My question is simply who gets to decide what has value and what doesn’t? The inhabitants of Yap found these large chunks of limestone and so admired and wanted after these rare pieces that it became their currency, regardless of what the rock itself can do for anyone. American dollar bills are representative of precious metals and other valuables but why are those the things we consider valuable? What good is a chunk of gold when I’m sick or hungry? It can’t help me unless I exchange it for something else. Now we must ask ourselves, “How different are we from the Yapese from anyone else?” This produces a “which came first” conversation. Do we want money because it’s valuable or is it valuable because we want it?
Frankly, I don’t know enough about how these systems are developed to form a firm opinion on how it’s all carried out. However, I do know I’ll have some new thoughts the next time I swipe my debit card or go fishing for spare dollar bills in the bottom of my bag.
An older style, dark vehicle is driving through a parking lot.
A group of friends are hanging in a dark parking lot surrounding their vehicles.
A man with dark hair and glasses is grabbing a blonde woman’s face as she is looking away from him. The mans eyes appear to be closed as if he is going in for a kiss, But the woman is looking away from him.
The picture pans out and there is another young man with a beer bottle in his hand. In the background, the 2 individuals from the previous scene are kissing.
The man with the beer ducks down and slides into the drivers seat of his car.
Two males are laughing, looking at one another from over the top of the car. They are standing on opposite sides. wearing leather jackets. looks like an older generation.
The driver hands his open beer bottle to the lady in the passenger seat. The people in the back are all drinking while in the car with no seat belt on.
Man in the back seat leans up and grabs the drivers shoulder with a concerned look on his face. Appears to be talking to him.
Man leans back and puts his are around the girl next to him. Appears to be his girlfriend.
The driver missed the ignition hole with the key next to the skinny brown steering wheel.
Driver turns the silver, older looking key.
Flash of light and every individual in the car turns into a skeleton.
A skeleton hand and a human hand are shaking whith the words, “drinking and driving can kill a friendship”.
0.01 to 0.05 : The ads open with whole family sitting in the car and two little kids are fighting for bag of chips and one girl have headphone and listening to music look like they trying to leave for trip . they are 3 kids and both parents sitting in the car and car on the home drive way . they didn’t leave yet . i think they are waiting for something . before they go to somewhere .
0.05 to 0.10 : Dad has seat belt on and he just looked on front mirror to see who is wearing seat belt on . kids open the chips packet and chips fall all over the car . a teenage girl chewing bubblegum . mom looked at kids too thru front mirror . she told loud to kids something and the cheese puff chips fly in the air because kids ripped the bag .
0.10 to 0.15 dad look at the mirror and think in his head something really deep . he didn’t said something but he was waiting for some kind of sound to happen . he kind of scared thinking about something .
0.15 to 0.20 kids are arguing and fighting about puff chips and then mom looked at back told them to not to fight and they stop fighting with each other now . the camera flip now and the kids stay quiet and mom looking at kids .
0.20 to 0.25 mom told the kids to buckle up and they did and dad look at back and smile . i think that’s what he was waiting for them to do so they can leave the home . dad take long deep breath after they buckle up .
0.26 to 0.30 they finally drive their car and leave the home .
Conclusion: drive when u hear the seat belt sound . its safety for u and everyone and you will saved from ticket . you don’t know when what’s going to happen .
[0:00] The opening sense is a young boy getting into the driver seat of an older car. The boy is wearing a a dark blue t-shirt and jeans. He is Caucasian and has short dark hair. He looks clean and well kept. When getting into this older car, something similar to an 1989 ford Lincoln, he has his cell phone in his hand it and looks as if he is texting someone. His cell phone looks to be some type of smart phone.
[0:01- 0:03] The boy takes his right hand and reaches across his body for the buckle and buckles himself. This entire time he does not take his eyes off his phone, which is in his left hand.
[0:04-0:05] The boy is now adjusting the rear view mirror with his right hand but never looks up from his phone which continues to be in his left hand to see where he is adjusting the mirror. He moves the mirror about twice.
[0:06-0:07] the boy now takes his right hand and reaches for the keys which are in the ignition and starts the car turning the keys forward. He continues to look only at his phone in his left hand.
[0:08-0:09] The boy reaches up for the shifter which is places behind the steering wheel on the right side. He pulls it down and puts the car into gear. He continues to look at the phone in his left hand the entire time.
[0:10] The boys right hand now transitions onto the top of the steering wheel and he lends back into a comfortable position while still viewing his phone.
[0:11] The still image of the boy in the car in a laid back position with his right hand on the top of the steering wheel and his head slanted downwards towards his phone in his left hand fades slowly to the background. Big red letters that spell the word STOP in all capital letters appear across the screen.
[0:12-0:14] An image of an iguana appears the screen. The iguana’s eyes are moving all around looking in multiple different directions . The words Can you do this? Appear along the bottom of the screen in white.
[0:15-0:16] the camera goes back to the boy in the car but is now zoomed in on the boy’s face. The camera shows from his chest up. The phone is now in his right hand held up higher in front of his face. His left hand is on the steering wheel. He is attempting to move his eyes around the same way the iguana was from the previous screen. The boy has a strange smirk on his face but also expresses a sense of confusion.
[0:17] the screen is the same as the prior one except for the word No? in white appears on the bottom of the screen.
[0:18] The boy now looks completely away from his phone and shrugs his shoulders. The grin is still on his face and the word No? is still on the screen. He also now turns his head to face the camera on the right side of his body.
[0:19] The camera slowly fades out showing the majority of the car and the boy through the passenger side window. The boy takes the phone which is in his right hand and tosses it up and it lands in the passenger seat. He then looks forward as if he is about to drive.
[0:20] the car drives out of the screen from the left to right.
[0:21] the screen now shows a picture of the woods with a short wooden fence along the side of the road appears and the words Then DON’T text and drive. Appear in the front of the screen. The letter are in white and the only letters in capital are DON’T and the T in then.
[0:22] The screen fades to black.
[0:23- 0:26] the words Keep both EYEs on the road. Appear on the black screen. They are in a blueish, greenish colored collage fading from one to the other. The word EYES is in all caps.
[0:27-0:29] the screen now transitions into the same black screen with yellow dash marks going through the bottom of the screen. It makes it look almost like a road. In the middle of the screen “STOPTEXTSSTOPWRECKS.ORG” appears. The letters are all in caps and STOP is in yellow while the rest is in white. On the left side of the dash marks the words project yellow light area with a traffic sign and below that Ad councils symbol appears. On the right side of the dash marks appears NOYS in blue and under that is NHTSA with a symbol along that in the beginning.
Rowan Counterintuitive 