Cosmetics Going Vegan

Tired of misleading cosmetic products? Are you over questioning the product make up of what you’re currently using? Well at Lush Cosmetics our top priority is to satisfy all our customers doubts, questions, and health necessities. All of our  products are conducted with ingredients so fresh that they even have an expiration date on them. To even further put your doubts to rest, there is even a picture at the bottom of your product of our employee who personally created your product specifically for you! We are an all vegetarian and Vegan company that does not add any preservatives to our products so we are 100% natural and organic.

At Lush we are completely against buying ingredients from companies that test their products on animals. Since we are a Vegan company we are do not condone any treatments and testings that can harm animals. Throughout modern science new non animal test methods have been discovered. One example is a 3 dimensional human skins models that fully replace the use of rabbits for skin irritation testing.

As sensitive as we are towards animals, we’re sensitive towards our clientele and hope to not only promise you a productive product, but a transformational experience within our stores as well. We hope that you love our products just as much as we love creating them for you!

Journal Entry #8

Since I was young I always loved to write. Writing used to be very therapeutic and I couldn’t wait to come to English class each day to read or write something new. When I entered high school my English teacher Ms. Jaffer was my inspiration and my idol. When I walked in to class on the first day of freshman year, I immediately knew that we were getting along. She was a young woman from Manhattan who dressed very bohemian and lived a very bohemian/artsy lifestyle. She was known for being the wacky English teacher but her class was always entertaining.
Right away she noticed my love for reading and writing and encouraged me. She would lend me books to read, tell me what movies I should watch and would always give me extra attention when it came to my writing. We grew extremely close and helped me through some hard times that I was going through in high school. She was someone that knew me so well, probably because she saw herself in me. This was something that she always told me. She was steared me in the right direction when I had no idea what I was doing. She inspired me to major in English when it came time to graduate and pick a career path.
Saying goodbye to her was one of the hardest things that I had to do bu ti was also extremely excited to start my life. Unfortunately, I realized how sheltered I was. My first year in college was extremely difficult and my experience with English professors and the English department was horrible. I had one professor who made me hate writing altogether. So I gave up and switched to a major that fit very well with my personality, communications.
Although I am very happy where I am now and love my new career path I realized that I miss writing. When I came into Professor Papaioannou’s English class my love for writing re ignited. I haven’t written in so long so I do realize that I am very rusty but she helped me get my messy writing skills somewhat together. I do realize that it does take time to become a great writer but all that matters to me is that the passion is there again.

Journal Entry #7

Every person, one time or another, has had their own Hero/Heroine, someone to look up to. For most it is usually some well known figure or a made up character in a movie. For me this was not the case. I chose Martha Gellhorn as my heroine. She is my female inspiration and a heroine who is a force to be reckoned with. I believe that she is most definitely under rated thus, causing me to write my journal entry about this wonderful and powerful woman. Surprisingly, presenting my project was not the most exciting part for me.
The London Daily Telegraph hailed Gellhorn as “one of the great war correspondents of the century; brave, fierce and wholly committed to the truth of a situation.” She was one of the first women to be acknowledged by male journalists as an equal, according to her obituary. Martha was first hired as a field investigator for the Federal Emergency Relief Administration, created by Franklin Roosevelt. She traveled with a photographer named Dorothea Lange to document the every day lives of the hungry and homeless people effected by The Great Depression. Her reports became part of the government files. Because of her great work, she became life long friends with Eleanor Roosevelt. She also travelled to Spain to cover the Spanish Civil War, Germany to report on the rise of Adolf Hitler and covered WWII from Finland, Hong Kong, Burma, Singapore, and Britain.
In between her great achievements she met and fell in love with one of my favorite writers, Ernest Hemingway. Although they shared a passion for writing and travel their relationship quickly became competitive. Due to the fact the she was a woman, she had some boundaries and Hemingway used that to his advantage. She wanted to go to Normandy to cover D Day but because she was a woman she was denied the credentials to do so and Hemingway soon took advantage of the opportunity. Naturally, their relationship came to a screeching halt after that and she took it upon herself to take the disguise of a nurse hiding in the lavatory of a hospital ship. Her response to this later on was: “I follor the war wherever I could reach it.”
After that she also worked for the Atlantic Monthly, covering the Vietnam War, The Six-Day war in the Middle East, and the Civil Wars in Central America and at age 81 she travelled to Panama to write on the U.S. invasion. She worked until she physically couldn’t do it anymore and when she no longer had her career she killed herself. Martha Gellhorn was an amazing woman who followed her dreams and never let anyone, not even the man that she loved, stand in her way. She was a woman ahead of her time and she inspires me to do the same.

Journal Entry #6

This semester I took a women’s Peace and Justice course with Professor Maxam. Although I am usually quiet in class, this one in particular gives you no other choice but to speak your mind and be active in your community. It encourages us to pick each others brains apart, thus causing friendships to arise.
I met Courtnie in the middle of the semester outside of class and immediately we became friends. We realized how different we are from each other but we always had so much to talk about. Although we have our differences, we both share a passion to help people. So, we decided to work together on a project that we had to do for class. Every Tuesday and Thursday we would meet after to class to discuss what we were going to do for our projects and a few weeks back she told me about a Relay For Life event that she did in her old school in Puerto Rico. This even was called Tree of Life.
Tree of Life is an event to cause Cancer awareness. Since there are different colors to represent different Cancers, people would choose those color ribbons, write a loved ones name on the ribbon in honor of them and hang them on to a tree. She explained that after the event the tree was filled with all different colored ribbons and illuminated the whole campus. She also told me that this was something that she wanted to do at Pace! So we figured out where we had to go and who we had to speak to and once we got the OK we ran around campus looking for a tree.
This Tree of Life event was not for any project in particular. It was something that we wanted to do from the kindness of our hearts. We both took our passion for helping and caring for other people and channeled that into our free time. We did not raise as much money as we would have hoped but we had so much fun. We conversed with people, learned about their struggles and the loved ones that they have lost and at the end of the day we brought a tree to life.
If it wasn’t for Maxam’s class I would have never met Courtnie and if I never have met Courtnie, the Tree of Life event would never have taken place. I believe this experience has helped me grow as a person completely. I opened my world to new experiences and friends and had a blast doing so. It is very rare that you find a class that can have such an impact and make life long friendships.

Journal Entry #5

They say, “good things come to those who wait”, but through my experience this saying does not apply. All my life I have never been a patient person so I was always told to relax and let things come to me. This has never been the case for my career. It has always been a dream of mine to become a singer/performer so being patient is not a characteristic one should have.
Since the age of 6 I had a dream set in my head to become a singer. Naturally at such a young age I believed that if you passionately dreamed about something that your fairy Godmother would eventually come down and grant you what you wanted. Unfortunately my life is not a Disney movie and I learned the hard way that things don’t come easily if you’re patient. As I grew up a little I realized that performing in my living room for my family would not help my dreams come true so I hastily took action. I started singing lessons and began going on audition after audition. I thought that right away I would get noticed and become a famous star. After 3 years of auditions things didn’t go my way and my face wasn’t on every billboard in New York City. This discouraged me and I eventually stopped working so hard at going for my dream. Family members and friends would tell me to be patient and of course “Good things come to those who wait.” So I waited and waited, and nothing happened.
One weekend I was staying at my uncle’s house in Brooklyn and I was telling him about my discouragement. With him being an actor he had plenty of good advice to give me. He told me to forget that cliché line that every one was telling me and to do the opposite. I had to not be patient and I had to fight very hard for what I wanted. In this entertainment industry nothing is handed to you and there are going to be people that are going to put me down but I should never give up. It is a long and strenuous ride and I had to take life and shape it into everything that I wanted to be. I should never wait for things to be handed to me.
After that weekend I saw life in a completely different way. My uncle ignited the flame that had gone out in my heart and the old me was back. I threw myself back into the competition. I am back to my old routine that consists of singing lessons, auditions, and tons of practice. I know now that I am going to be discouraged at times but I should never lie down and wait for things to happen. Through my long experience in dealing with my dreams I have learned that, in my case, good things do not come to those who wait. Good things come to the people who strive and never stop working for their goals and ambitions. I cannot afford to rest; I need to keep going until my dreams are accomplished. Hopefully all my hard work will pay off and after all of my goals are accomplished I can finally get to rest and have the rest of my life to be patient.

Legalizing Marijuana Debate

Eportfolio isearch for change final draft

Anjelica Rahaniotis
Professor P.
Isearch for Change
April 9th 2013
Legalization
Over the past few years there has been one major debate, to legalize or not to legalize marijuana. This debate brings up many questions involving safety, myths about the drug, and is it beneficial to our economy? Throughout my research I have come across plenty of articles involving different opinions from different people throughout the country. In order to see a change I believe we need to see all sides of the argument to start off.
The first argument that can be stated is that marijuana helps with certain chronic illnesses. Some illnesses include: Cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis C, ALS, Muscular Dystrophy, Crohn’s Disease, Alzheimer’s, and Multiple Sclerosis. Marijuana is
psychoactive because it stimulates certain brain receptors but it does not produce toxins that kill them (like alcohol), and it does not wear patients out as other drugs may. Also, some studies show that smoked marijuana is effective for patients in relieving nausea for cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. Smoking marijuana is helpful to Anorexic patients in that it gives them an appetite to eat. For Glaucoma patients, marijuana is effective in lowering pressure inside the eyeballs. However, the drug also drops blood pressure, and this could compromise blood flow to the optic nerve and can damage vision. On the other hand, if you have high blood pressure, smoking marijuana can help lower your levels. If marijuana were legal it would be easier for patients to obtain the drug to help them with pain or whatever reasons they need it for. Also, if people that are sick do not have the money to afford certain medications or annual visits to the doctor, having marijuana being easier to obtain can help them save money and time.
There are many myths about marijuana being a gateway drug. Some people believe that marijuana leads to use of cocaine, heroine, and methamphetamine. In 1999, Barry McCaffrey commissioned a major study on medical marijuana conducted by the Venerable Institute of Medicine. This study included an examination of marijuana’s potential lead to other drug use. Studies found that most drug users began with alcohol and nicotine before marijuana (usually before they are of legal age). There is no evidence that proves that the drug effects of marijuana are linked to the abuse of other illicit drugs. In 2006, the University of Pittsburgh released a more in depth study. Researchers in this group spent 12 years following a group of subjects from adolescence into adulthood and recorded them from the initiation and progression of their drug use. Evidence shows that an individual’s progression into illicit drugs does depend upon their individual tendencies and their environmental as well. Basically, people who have moved on from other drugs depends on many other factors than the fact that they started out smoking marijuana. It depends on their personalities, how they were raised and the environment that they were raised in. For this project I interviews two close friends. They both state their name, age, when they started smoking and their opinions on marijuana and their opinions on the legalization of marijuana. In the interview both girls state that they are frequent users and have never taken any other drugs besides marijuana nor do they have the desire to do so. Throughout both studies in 1999 and 2006 there is no evidence to prove that marijuana is the cause of other drug abuse. Also, the ratio for alcohol is generally between 4:1 and 10:1. Alcohol overdoses are responsible for approximately 5,000 casualties yearly, but, according to Dr. Paul Hornby, marijuana overdoses kill no one as far as any official reports.
On the other side of this argument, an article on CNBC’s website states all the counter arguments on to why marijuana should be illegal. The article begins to explain how most of the people, in favor of marijuana’s legalization, fail to understand that the greatest costs of marijuana are not related to its prohibition; they are the costs resulting from marijuana use itself. People also argue that the main cost of marijuana is through the criminal justice system but in fact, according to Caulkins & Sevigny (2005), the percentage of people in prison for marijuana use is less than one half of one percent. When conducting my interview, one of the girls used this fact as one of the reasons why marijuana should be legalized. When I explained that she was in fact wrong and told her the actual percentage, she was shocked. These are facts that people need to know about and research before they make an argument, so I found this extremely helpful. What I found interesting about the article is that it compares the legalization of marijuana to gambling. People for the legalization state that, just like gambling, the legalization can benefit from it and overlook how immoral it might be. On the other hand, the legalization of gambling did not decrease the amount of gamblers but it in fact increased the amount. In other words, legalizing marijuana will increase the number of users instead of stabilizing or reducing the amount. Although marijuana has not caused any deaths it has caused a major dependency. According to CNBC’s article, marijuana is currently the leading cause of substance dependence other than alcohol in the U.S. In 2008 two thirds of Americans were suffering from marijuana abuse and dependence. Marijuana does not harm your body and can very well help people deal with illness or anxiety but can dependency be its downfall? Also in my interview both girls state that they depend on marijuana to sleep every night. In return I asked if they saw that as a bad thing and if they can compare to sleeping pills. They argument, like I stated before, was that marijuana is natural unlike pills and does not harm your body so there is no harm in being dependant on something that is healthy.
In an article published on April 4th 2013 by the Pew Research Center, a national stud portrays that more than half (52%) say that marijuana should be made legal as opposed to only 45% say that it should not be legal. The amount of people for the legalization of marijuana has risen 11 points since 2010. Another survey done in March state that 1,501 adults believe that young adults are the people that are the most supportive of the legalization. Some believe that marijuana is the downfall of our generation. People stereotype marijuana users as either hippies, kids who have either dropped out of school or kids that are just lazy. Of course, there are many other stereotypes that come along with the use of marijuana but just like every other stereotypes, most of it is not true. Both of the women that I interviewed have stable jobs and live in a stable environment. They feel that they do work hard every day and deserve the freedom to use a natural substance, such as marijuana, to help them relax each night before they go to sleep.
Through my research I believe that this is a debate that constantly comes down to opinion. Both sides of the argument portray valid fact but one does not out rule the other. In my interview I also interviewed one of the girls mothers who is a nurse and is opposed to the legalization. She states that she does see how it helps people who are sick but does not think it should be use for recreational purposes. I interviewed everyone at the same time and I did this for a reason. I wanted everyone to discuss openly to each other their opinions and record their debate. Well, the debate went on for a half an hour and the result was to just agree to disagree.

Rough draft #2

Anjelica Rahaniotis
Professor P.
Isearch for Change
April 9th 2013
Legalization
Over the past few years there has been one major debate, to legalize or not to legalize marijuana. This debate brings up many questions involving safety, myths about the drug, and is it beneficial to our economy? Throughout my research I have come across plenty of articles involving different opinions from different people throughout the country. In order to see a change I believe we need to see all sides of the argument to start off. The first argument that can be stated is that marijuana helps with certain chronic illnesses. Some illnesses include: Cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis C, ALS, Muscular Dystrophy, Crohn’s Disease, Alzheimer’s, and Multiple Sclerosis. Marijuana is
psychoactive because it stimulates certain brain receptors but it does not produce toxins that kill them (like alcohol), and it does not wear patients out as other drugs may. Also, some studies show that smoked marijuana is effective for patients in relieving nausea for cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. Smoking marijuana is helpful to Anorexic patients in that it gives them an appetite to eat. For Glaucoma patients, marijuana is effective in lowering pressure inside the eyeballs. However, the drug also drops blood pressure, and this could compromise blood flow to the optic nerve and can damage vision.
On the other hand, if you have high blood pressure, smoking marijuana can help lower your levels. If marijuana were legal it would be easier for patients to obtain the drug to help them with pain or whatever reasons they need it for. Also, if people that are sick do not have the money to afford certain medications or annual visits to the doctor, having marijuana being easier to obtain can help them save money and time. There are many myths about marijuana being a gateway drug. Some people believe that marijuana leads to use of cocaine, heroine, and methamphetamine. In 1999, Barry McCaffrey commissioned a major study on medical marijuana conducted by the Venerable Institute of Medicine. This study included an examination of marijuana’s potential lead to other drug use. Studies found that most drug users began with alcohol and nicotine before marijuana (usually before they are of legal age). There is no evidence that proves that the drug effects of marijuana are linked to the abuse of other illicit drugs. In 2006, the University of Pittsburgh released a more in depth study. Researchers in this group spent 12 years following a group of subjects from adolescence into adulthood and recorded them from the initiation and progression of their drug use. Evidence shows that an individual’s progression into illicit drugs does depends upon their individual tendencies and their environmental as well. Throughout both studies in 1999 and 2006 there is no evidence to prove that marijuana is the cause of other drug abuse. Another study shows that when the Dutch partially legalized marijuana in the 70’s, other drug use substantially declined. Also, the ratio for alcohol is generally between 4:1 and 10:1. Alcohol overdoses are responsible for approximately 5,000 casualties yearly, but, according to Dr. Paul Hornby, marijuana overdoses kill no one as far as any official reports.
On the other side of this argument, an article on CNBC’s website states all the counter arguments on to why marijuana should be illegal. The article begins to explain how most of the people in favor of marijuana’s legalization fail to understand that the greatest costs of marijuana are not related to its prohibition; they are the costs resulting from marijuana use itself. People also argue that the main cost of marijuana is through the criminal justice system but in fact, according to Caulkins & Sevigny (2005), the percentage of people in prison for marijuana use is less than one half of one percent.
What I found interesting about the article is that it compares the legalization of marijuana to gambling. People for the legalization state that, just like gambling, the legalization can benefit from it and overlook how immoral it might be. On the other hand, the legalization of gambling did not decrease the amount of gamblers but it in fact increased the amount. Although marijuana has not caused any deaths it has caused a major dependency. According to CNBC’s article, marijuana is currently the leading cause of substance dependence other than alcohol in the U.S. In 2008 two thirds of Americans were suffering from marijuana abuse and dependence. Marijuana does not harm your body and can very well help people deal with illness or anxiety but can dependency be its downfall?
In an article published on April 4th 2013 by the Pew Research Center, a national stud portrays that more than half (52%) say that marijuana should be made legal as opposed to only 45% say that it should not be legal. The amount of people for the legalization of marijuana has risen 11 points since 2010. Another survey done in March state that 1,501 adults believe that young adults are the people that are the most supportive of the legalization. Adults can argue on whether this is a bad thing or not. Some believe that marijuana is the downfall of our generation. People stereotype marijuana users as either hippies, kids who have either dropped out of school or kids that are just lazy. Of course, there are many other stereotypes that come along with the use of marijuana but just like every other stereotypes, most of it is not true. I am a college student and have been around marijuana users and I can personally state that most of the stereotypes are a lie. Personally, I am not fond of marijuana but through my research I believe that this drug is in no way shape or form harmful. Marijuana is a naturally grown substance that relieves pain and stress without causing any harm nor does it produce unhealthy side effects. Evidently alcohol causes more damages and deaths to people than marijuana have ever done. If marijuana is less (or if at all) harmful than alcohol than why isn’t alcohol illegal?

Journal Entry #2

Anjelica Rahaniotis
Professor P.
April 11th 2013
Research Journal #2

Journal Entry #2

For my second research journal I used an article from CNBC’s website. This article is about why marijuana should not be legalized. Up to this point most of my research has been about why marijuana should be legalized so it is refreshing to see a new side to the argument.
I believe that this site is credible because it is from a major news stations website. Also, at the bottom of the article there is more than another full page just of citations from references that the author has used for this article.
The article begins to explain the reasons why people want marijuana to be legalized and basically shuts down the argument with facts about how it is invalid. For example, people argue about marijuana should be legalized because we are wasting money by housing people in jail who have been imprisoned due to marijuana related charges. Then the article states that less than one half of one percent of people are imprisoned due to marijuana. I like that they state both sides of the argument and uses that to their advantage to prove the other side wrong.
They also begin to explain how it is not the prohibition of marijuana that’s costing everyone money, but it is that fact that people in general are wasting their money on marijuana itself. The author believes that too many people are abusing the drug and wasting all their money on it and blaming it on the governments prohibition.
All in all, I believe this to be a great article for my research. It is an article that is clear in getting their point across without sounding ignorant. I am happy that I found this article and it has also inspired me with interview questions for my video.

 

http://www.cnbc.com/id/36267223

isearch rough draft

Anjelica Rahaniotis
Professor P.
Isearch for Change
April 9th 2013

Legalization

Over the past few years there has been one major debate, to legalize or not to legalize marijuana. This debate brings up many questions involving safety, myths about the drug, and is it beneficial to our economy? Throughout my research I have come across plenty of articles involving different opinions from different people through out the country. In order to see a change I believe we need to see all sides of the argument to start off.
The first argument that can be stated is that marijuana helps with certain chronic illnesses. Some illnesses include: Cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis C, ALS, Muscular Dystrophy, Crohn’s Disease, Alzheimer’s, and Multiple Sclerosis. Marijuana is psychoactive because it stimulates certain brain receptors but it does not produce toxins that kill them (like alcohol), and it does not wear patients out as other drugs may. Also, some studies show that smoked marijuana is effective for patients in relieving nausea for cancer patients who are undergoing chemotherapy. Smoking marijuana is helpful to Anorexic patients in that it gives them an appetite to eat. For Glaucoma patients, marijuana is effective in lowering pressure inside the eyeballs. However, the drug also drops blood pressure, and this could compromise blood flow to the optic nerve and can damage vision. On the other hand, if you have high blood pressure, smoking marijuana can help lower your levels. If marijuana were legal it would be easier for patients to obtain the drug to help them with pain or whatever reasons they need it for. Also, if people that are sick do not have the money to afford certain medications or annual visits to the doctor, having marijuana being easier to obtain can help them save money and time.
There are many myths about marijuana being a gateway drug. Some people believe that marijuana leads o use of cocaine, heroine, and methamphetamine. In 1999, Barry McCaffrey commissioned a major study on medical marijuana conducted by the Venerable Institute of Medicine. This study included an examination of marijuana’s potential lead to other drug use. Studies found that most drug users began with alcohol and nicotine before marijuana (usually before they are of legal age). There is no evidence that proves that the drug effects of marijuana are linked to the abuse of other illicit drugs. In 2006, the University of Pittsburgh released a more in depth study. Researchers in this group spent 12 years following a group of subjects from adolescence into adulthood and recorded them from the initiation and progression of their drug use. Evidence shows that an individual’s progression into illicit drugs does depends upon their individual tendencies and their environmental as well. Throughout both studies in 1999 and 2006 there is no evidence to prove that marijuana is the cause of other drug abuse. Another study shows that when the Dutch partially legalized marijuana in the 70’s, other drug use substantially declined. Also, the ratio for alcohol is generally between 4:1 and 10:1. Alcohol overdoses are responsible for approximately 5,000 casualties yearly, but marijuana overdoses kill no one as far as any official reports.
Personally, I am not fond of marijuana but through my research I believe that this drug is in no way shape or form harmful. Marijuana is a naturally grown substance that relieves pain and stress without causing any harm nor does it produce unhealthy side affects. Evidently alcohol causes more damages and deaths to people than marijuana has ever done. If marijuana is less (or if at all) harmful than alcohol than why isn’t alcohol illegal?