Destiny

Disregarding the fact that Tolkien made the decisions for all of the characters, I still believe that none of them have free will and that they all would have ended up in the same places regardless of what choices they make. Frodo was meant to be adopted by Bilbo to inherit and destroy the ring. Sam was meant to be found eavesdropping. The hobbits and Striders paths were meant to be crossed. They were meant to help the cause of destroying the ring.
In real life, we have to make decisions all the time. Most decisions are as easy as choosing between an apple and a banana for breakfast and we don't even think about how simple that decision was. I believe everything we do is also predetermined and we really don't have much choice like we would like to believe.
A famous Cognitive Psychologist named B.F. Skinner once said that "free will is an illusion". He of course was bashing Abraham Maslows idea of Humanism, which stresses the idea that humans are unique because they have free will. I don't think we are that special. If every other single creature on this planet has a predetermined destiny, then what makes us, an ape that happened to have lucky and favorable genetic mutations, have free will?
Case in point: "FREE WILL IS AN ILLUSION"

The Favre Year

The Jets didn't have the season General Manager Bill Parcells and Head Coach Eric Mangini had imagined with the New York Jets but it was still a success given Brett's age. He started all 16 games and amassed 3472 passing yards and 22 touchdowns with a 65.7 completion percentage. He also had 22 interceptions and was sacked 30 times. The Jets finished with 9 wins and 7 losses and missed the playoffs. Everyone thought that for sure this was Favre's very last season but yet again he skipped training camp and joined the Minnesota Vikings.
Serby goes on to talk about how disappointing the last two games of the season were for him to watch. If the Jets won both, they would have tied the New England Patriots and Miami Dolphins with a record of 11 wins and 5 losses, sending them to the playoffs and clinching the American Football Conference East Division. Unfortunately they choked against the likes of Seneca Wallace of the Seattle Seahawks and former Jet Chad Pennington of the Miami Dolphins. They finished 3rd and ended another upsetting Jet season that fanatics have become accustomed to.

the anticipation of Favre

Brett Favre is no doubt one of the best quarterbacks of all time, if not THE best. He was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 1991 and was later traded to the Green Bay Packers where he played the majority of his illustrious career. Lets look at some interesting facts about Favre. His first career pass was to himself. He is the all time leader in Touchdowns, passing yards, consecutive games played, passing attempts, completions, wins, and interceptions. With these Stats it was no wonder Serby had such high hopes for his Jets. The Jets did have a chance to draft him in 1991 but were beaten by the Atlanta Falcons, who traded up to beat the Jets by 1 pick, landing Favre.

"'If there's a guy who can change a team around and get a team to contend for a Super Bowl, it would be Brett," Dan Marino said."

Serby hoped that Brett Favre's previous season success (the year he took most of those records he now holds from Marino) could carry over and that he could lead the Jets to the Playoffs and Hopefully a Superbowl.
Another quote to show his enthusiasm for Favre's season is "you gotta be excited having one of the great quarterbacks of all time playing for your franchise." Although not everyone agreed with him. A lot of people said he was way beyond his prime and that the previous season was all a fluke. Only time would tell what kind of move signing Brett Favre will be for the Jets.

No Substitute for Sundays

Another book I am reading is "No Substitute for Sundays: Brett Favre and his year in the huddle with the New York Jets." The author, Steve Serby, is a diehard Jets fan. His opening chapter is all about how he watched  Joe Namath as a kid and how his love for the Jets grows. He then goes on to discuss how he went to various big Jets games and watched countless coaching changes (some that he agreed with, some that he hated) happen.
I am just getting to the point where he starts to talk about the high hopes he has in the upcoming season with Brett Favre. He is very optimistic and hopes he can be the one to return the Jets to their much needed glory that only Namath had brought them to. He could have been optimistic about anybody seeing how the Jets quarterbacks of the last decade had all played mediocre seasons and never got their teams very far. Also, he thought that Favre could handle the pressure of playing under the name of New York (seeing how the Jets technically play in East Rutherford New Jersey) unlike the other quarterbacks who had control of the team.

Predator

For class, I have decided to read a book called Predator by Patricia Cornwell. It is similar to The Curious Incident in that they are both murder mysteries. Predator has a lot of things going on so far and I'm barely 30 pages in. Someone has already been murdered with threats of more to come by the Hand of God (HOG). Also, there is a subplot between the main character and two males in the story.
Dr. Scarpetta used to date her boss, Marino, at the crime lab but then something happened between them and now he never gives her credit for the murders she solves and treats her like shes nothing. She is now romantically involved with one of the men that I think is going to be killed next and this causes a lot of problems for the Doctor.
The author has foreshadowed many events, for example, based on evidence provided I believe that Dr Scarpettas new boyfriend is going to die because HOG left a note saying that he will kill someone close to her and he is the only person that she has shown any closesness with. Also, I believe that Marino is going to try to get back with Dr. Scarpetta because she broke up with him and when they were alone, he spoke to her in a way that made me think he still loves her.

Holiday Season

Well it's that time of year again. I am excited to be with family again because its something I don't get to do much. I think many people look at this time of year and see it as special for the wrong reasons. To most, this time of the year is all about getting the best presents and the most money. I just want everyone in class to realize that there is more to the Holidays than that and to spread it to others to bring the real meaning back.

Spend some time with family, even if you don't particularly like them.

Be safe and have a Happy Holidays everyone.

Sherlock Homes

There were many ways that the book was related to the movie. One way that they were related was that they were both mysteries about murder. In Christopher's case, it was about a dog named Wellington who was murdered by Christopher's father. In the end, it ended up being about finding his mom. Whereas Sherlock Holmes is about catching a murderer, seeing him be hanged, and then somehow surviving after being pronounced dead. He must then catch him again and get justice for the women he sacrificed.
Another way in which they are related is that Christopher and Sherlock both have a couple "fights". First, Christopher punches a police officer. Then, he and father get into a little tussle that results in Christopher getting injured. For Sherlock, he fights with a guard while pursuing the murder the first time and goes through a kick-ass progression to knock him out. Then later, he jumps into the ring with a huge man and ends up tearing him apart leaving him with a lot of broken bones and a broken spirit.