So I've Been Thinking...: Who's the bigger fan?

This was published in the April 9th issue of the Kishwaukee Kaleidoscope.

I'm pretty sure I've loved Harry Potter my entire life. I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone when I was in first grade and I was hooked instantly. Ever since then Harry, all of his friends, and his enemies have been a huge part of my life. I've read all of the books several times over. I waited in line at midnight for most of them. I've seen all of the movies on their opening weekends, and have spent many hours joyfully debating with my friends over the books finer details. Being a Harry Potter fan has given me a sense of fellowship with others all over the world who share my love for the books. However, I've found that the fandom has a dark side that, until recently, I didn't really notice.
   Last summer I got myself a tumblr. I thought it was the greatest thing I had ever done. I wasted so many hours searching through tumblr for all the things that I love and am passionate about. Harry Potter was of course one of those things. I posted numerous fan written stories and art that had been based on the books. I read character analysis that people had written for college classes about Draco and Harry that caused me to have revelations about the book that previously never would have occurred to me.
   Tumblr also showed me the dark side of the fandom. I can't tell you how many fights I've read on tumblr between fans trying to prove that no one knows more about the book than they do. I was shocked to discover that the books I thought had brought the world together through mutual love were also tearing people apart. Why couldn't we all just learn from each other the way I had learned from so many other fans?
     Then Pottermore was announced. I waited anxiously to sign up. I was one of the lucky million fans who got to be a beta tester for Pottermore. I got on my tumblr so I could share my excitement, but instead I saw something even more sad than fights between fans. I saw fans sending death threats to J.K. Rowling and the company building Pottermore. Words cannot describe how terrible and shameful that is. Fans were threatening to kill? Over a website?
   The reason I'm saying all of this now is because this gross behavior isn't just happening in the Harry Potter Fandom. Other popular series like Twilight and The Hunger Games are beginning to see similar behavior from their fans. I'm here to tell you that it isn't okay. Instead of fighting with other fans take a step back and listen to them. You might actually be able to learn something from them. Who knows, maybe they will learn something from you too.

So I've Been Thinking...: Politicians' mothers should be ashamed

Published in the February 20th issue of the Kishwaukee Kaleidoscope.

               As Election Day gets closer the campaigns for president are getting much more intense. Politicians are spending more and more money to tell us that they know best and we should vote for them. They buy commercials and take long trips to make big speeches telling us why they are the best choice. I, however, wouldn’t vote for any of my current options for president, and there are three simple reasons why.
              When I was a little kid my mother taught me three rules to live by, that I am now convinced that politician’s mothers never taught them. My mom always told me that if I didn’t have anything nice to say that I shouldn’t say anything at all. I guess that politician’s mothers never taught their children this rule, because every time I turn on the news I hear about the latest fight going on between candidates as they throw mud at one another in an effort to make themselves look better. To me, it just looks like immature children squabbling at recess.

My mother also used to tell me that you should never make promises you can’t keep, which always seemed like a good policy to me. Apparently this is just being naïve to the politicians, who constantly make ridiculous promises that they could never keep, even if they really wanted to. Again, every time I turn on the television I hear another ridiculous promise made by some politician that I so desperately want to believe in because it would make this country a better place. Then I remember why my mom told me not to make promises I couldn’t keep. In the end, when the promise is eventually broken, everyone gets hurt.

When I would get in fights with my little sister, my mom would yell at us to find a compromise. As a very young child I learned what that meant and how to get to one so that my little sister and I could play together happily. This must just be another life lesson that politician’s mothers skipped since all you see political parties do is fight with one another. Neither one will give an inch to the other, since that might mean defeat. They spend so much time arguing that they can’t even pass a budget to keep the country running. A room full of adults can’t accomplish what my sister and I did as small children.

Am I simplifying this too far? No, I don’t think I am. Why shouldn’t I expect out of the leaders of my country the same behavior my mother expected out of me in elementary school?