Riverdale/ Degrassi/ pregnancy on TV

May 11, 2018 Riverdale: I saw the episode Chapt. 34: Judgement Night.  Spoiler alert:

It was crazy. 

-Fangs from the Serpents died
-Midge's mom admitted to shooting Fangs

-Veronica and her mom Hermione almost get killed by Pa Pa Poutine's son
-Hermione shoots and kills Pa Pa Poutine's son
-Veronica's guard Andre is killed

-Archie and his jock friends are stuck at Pop Tate's diner and almost get killed by gang Ghoulies.  However, Archie throws Molotov cocktail at them.
Then former Sheriff Keller, Fred Andrews and FP comes with.  Keller shoots shot gun in the air

-Betty confronts her dad who admits he is the Black Hood who shot Fred, and killed Miss. Grundy
Dad Herald starts choking mom and Betty knocks him out.  He recorded his confession.
Dad is arrested.

-Toni gets kidnapped by Penny, who was a Serpent and now works for the Ghoulies.

-Jughead sacrifices himself to get beaten up by the Ghoulies so the Serpents won't get hurt

Aug. 2, 2018 The pilot: When I first heard about this show coming out, I had low expectations.  I read these comics when I was in elementary school.  Also I'm in my early 30s so I thought I was too old to be watching it.

I have been watching Degrassi: The Next Generation from like 2005 to 2014.  I only stopped by fall 2014 because I was in the Office Assistant program at MacEwan and was working part-time.  I could watch it on YouTube when I have time when school is over.  However, I didn't watch it.  



"A subversive take on Archie and his friends, exploring small town life, the darkness and weirdness bubbling beneath Riverdale's wholesome facade."

Pros: 

1. All the actors look like their comic book characters.  The actors are good.

Luke Perry from 90210 is here as Archie's dad.  Molly Ringwald as Archie's mom does make a small part in the show.

Skeet Ulrich here as Jughead's dad.

Martin Cummins in Sheriff Keller.  I didn't recognize him at first until I was like: "Isn't he the bad guy Ames White on Dark Angel season 2?"  (In 2001-2002).  I was right.

2. The murder mystery of Jason Blossom is good.

3. It was shot in Vancouver.

4. The dialogue:

Archie's dad Fred: The decisions you're making now, they have consequences, they will form you are, and who you will become.  Whatever you decide, be confident enough in them that you don't have to lie.

I will put that in my inspirational quotes.

5. There is good writing.  It deals with death, suicide, and sexual harassment.  

There is also some adult and serious stuff like solving a murder in the 1st season.

In the second season there is a serial killer.

The characters are in real and present danger simply because they live in this town.

Cons:

1. This is a mild con.

Comparisons: 

A character looks like he or she died by accident, when it was really murder:

Spoiler alert: It looks like Jason died in an accident, when it was really murder.  It has been done before.

2. Another mild con:

Spoiler alert: 

A student is hooking up with a teacher.  

That has been done in lots of teen shows like 90210 (reboot) and Pretty Little Liars.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5420376/?ref_=nv_sr_1

Jan. 7, 2017 "Degrassi heats up": Today I found this article by Victoria Ahearn in the Edmonton Journal:

The esteemed Canadian teen-TV franchise Degrassi is tackling the subject of abortion again, given that it’s “a very important time to be telling this story,” says series cocreator Linda Schuyler.

In the third season of Degrassi: Next Class, Amanda Arcuri’s 16-year-old character Lola Pacini decides to have an abortion and viewers get a unique perspective — from inside the procedure room with her.

“We’re constantly reading the stats and keeping apprised as to what’s happening and also have our finger on the pulse of some of the scary right-wing thinking that’s out there,” says Schuyler, who is also an executive producer for the show.

“We’re very much influenced by what’s going on in the world, there’s no question. When this season comes on air, in the very first episode, we (also), see that Degras- si is welcoming Syrian refugees.”

The entire third season is now available in Canada on the Family Channel app and on Netflix in the U.S. and around the world. The season makes its Canadian broadcast premiere on Family Channel on Monday.

This is the fourth time a Degrassi character has had an abortion. The previous characters were Erica Farrell of Degrassi High, Tessa Campanelli of School’s Out! and Manny Santos of Degrassi: The Next Generation.

“We’ve also done an equal number of stories of kids who get pregnant and make different choices,” says Schuyler.

“So it’s not like we are advocating, ‘Get pregnant, get an abortion.’ But we really felt that it was very important, particularly in this day and age when the abortion debate is coming back on the main stage, that we wanted to demystify it.

“Our message is not: ‘Use abor- tion as birth control.’ Far from it,” she adds. “But we also want to respect the dignity and the rights of a young woman to be able to make her own informed choices.”

In the episode #IRegretNothing, Lola finds out she’s pregnant and decides to have an abortion after researching her options for a couple of weeks.

When a counsellor at the clinic stresses that she can take more time to think about her options, Lola insists she wants to go through with it. Cameras then show her lying on the examination table and chatting with the doctor in the procedure room as he preps the equipment.

“I think that it will help a lot of teenagers realize that, ‘Hey, it’s OK if I do this because it is my body and I can be strong after this, I’ll get through this, I have lots of people supporting me,’” says Arcuri.

Lola isn’t haunted by her decision, as is often the case in abortion storylines. Instead, she tells a friend that it wasn’t a difficult choice for her and that she doesn’t feel sad or regretful.

“Some girls will have an emotion and cry for days after and some will feel strong and feel liberated and feel like it wasn’t a big deal. And I think it’s a good way to tell a story — that people react differently, Lola’s reaction is justified, it’s normal, it’s OK,” says Arcuri.

“I’m happy that the writers gave me this opportunity to portray it and help young girls.”

Lola also doesn’t tell the father about her abortion beforehand. Arcuri says it speaks to a woman’s right to make a decision about her own body, but she adds that it might make some viewers angry.

“It was also very scary to think about portraying this with all the controversy that’s going on and how many people have different views on this specific topic,” she says.

“I wanted to get it right and to prepare myself for any backlash or anything that happens.”

The new season picks up right after the Season 2 cliffhanger, which involved a tragic bus crash. The new season will also see an influx of Syrian refugees to Degrassi.

But the abortion storyline will likely be among the most discussed, says Schuyler: “It is a subject matter, out of all — I think we’re up to 525 episodes of Degrassi now — and no question, it’s the first, if not the second, most divisive topic that we talk about.”

https://www.pressreader.com/canada/calgary-herald/20170107/282316794718889

Oct. 6, 2018 Teen pregnancy, pregnancy, and abortions on TV:

90210: In the 2008 reboot, Adriana gets pregnant.  It's an American show so they can't have her have an abortion.  She was going to, but then she was too far along in the pregnancy.

It was predictable (at least to me) that she gives the baby up for adoption.  This is a TV show about rich teenagers having fun, and having a baby and raising it, is not fun.

Gossip Girl: It looks Blair was pregnant, but she wasn't.  She was going to have an abortion.  It's the same, it's a show about rich teenagers having fun and having a baby and raising it, is not fun.

Secret Life of the American Teenager: I knew Amy was going to have the kid and raise it as her own.  How else do you expect the show to go on for a long time?

This is a TV show that's not about rich teenagers having fun.  It was a bad show because of the writing.  I only watched it so I can read funny comments about it on twop.com.

Desperate Housewives: It looks like Gaby got pregnant.  I, my co-worker/ friend Meghan at the Clothing Store #1, and someone on Fametracker Forums said Gaby seemed pro-choice.

However, Gaby miscarried.

Scandal: I saw the pilot and never watched it again.  I read somewhere that a character got pregnant and got an abortion.  It wasn't really a big deal.

Oct. 10, 2018 Clueless: There was a teen pregnancy episode of this teen sitcom that's based on the movie.  I wrote about this before.  It was where a honors student tutors the cast like Cher, Dionne, and Amber for the SATs.  The Tutor was sick and kept throwing up.

Then she admits she may be pregnant and they all go shopping at the store for a pregnancy test.


Cher: We can't buy this.
Amber: I have a friend who has this plan that whenever she has to buy something embarrassing, she goes to the store, buys a whole bunch of stuff and this one thing will just be another item.  

Dionne: That is the most stupidest thing I have ever heard.
Amber: Oh what?  Are you dissing me?  I mean, are you dissing my friend?
Cher: Let's go with Amber's plan.

My opinion: I was 13 yrs old and in gr. 8, and I thought that was a good plan if I or any of my friends, or teen viewers got into this situation.

You can implement this plan if you're buying anything embarrassing.

If I remember correctly, the Tutor was going to have the kid.

There was a PSA at the end of the episode where the cast says to use protection like condoms and birth control pills. 

Comedy comparisons: I wrote about this before:

A character goes to the store to buy a bunch of stuff to get one item:

The Simpsons: This episode came out a yr before the Clueless ep.  The family stays at Flanders beach house and Homer wants to buy some illegal fireworks.  He buys a bunch of stuff and the Hindu store clerk sells him one.

My week:

Oct. 7, 2018 Chance the Rapper donates $1 million:

There’s a good chance that Chance The Rapper loves Chicago.

The rapper, whose real name is Chancelor Bennett, announced on Thursday that he is donating $1 million to improve mental health services in his hometown.

Chance said he will give six mental health providers in the area $100,000 via his charity, SocialWorks. In addition, his new initiative, “My State of Mind,” aims to connect people with treatment, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The rapper didn’t specify how his charity was spending the remaining $400,000.

“We want to change the way that mental health resources are being accessed,” Chance said. “We need a new space where people can get information on how they feel, on where to go and a network for us to interact and review our mental health spaces, and create a community of people helping people.”

Applications for the grants will be accepted starting in January. 

Meanwhile, Chance also announced his charity is giving $100,000 each to 20 Chicago schools, according to WLS TV. 

That makes a total of 40 schools that have or will receive donations from his charity.

“We will be upping the game in terms of equity, in terms of what is rightfully yours. Principals, teachers, we got your back,” he said.

https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/chance-the-rapper-100000-mental_us_5bb7d97ae4b01470d0517813

Driver miraculously escapes as gas-carrying truck explodes on highway:

https://www.msn.com/en-ca/video/wonder/truck-explodes-on-highway/vi-BBO2zrE?ocid=spartandhp

Veggie patty: I tried the ones by Kirkland Signature.  It was hard to cut.  It didn't really taste like anything.

I then tried the one at Subway.  It didn't really taste like anything.

In the box:

My blog: I have a blog and I have been posting my own writing from 2008-Aug. 2014.  Then in Sept. 2014- present, I have mainly been putting up news articles.

I was to be discovered on my blog and be a TV writer and producer.

I could be like Niel Pasricha who wrote The Book of Awesome and it started from a blog. 

Out of the box:

Put up some dancing videos: How about I put up some videos of me dancing?  There could be 100 videos of me dancing to 100 different songs.

I could be discovered and be a backup dancer for a pop singer.  Or at least become a dance teacher.

I could be like Taylor Hatala:

https://www.famousbirthdays.com/people/taylor-hatala.html

Oct. 8, 2018 The Dollar Tree on Jasper Gates closed down: I was on the bus and it drove by there.

https://locations.dollartreecanada.com/ab/edmonton/40184/

Winter: Today I shoveled snow.  In Sept. it snowed, but it melted fast so I didn't shovel.

Oct. 9, 2018 Work: Yesterday my boss from my 2nd restaurant job asked if I can work.  I can work from 9am-11:15am and she says that's fine.  I went to work.

Then I went to my other job that was close by and worked for a few hours.

The highlight of the week:

Job interviews: I attended 2 this week.

Riverdale: The season 3 premiere was average.

Blindspot: The season 4 premiere was good.

"Gender-balanced board"/ "Gender diversity and inclusion require strong advocates"

 Mar. 9, 2018 "Eight tools to help build a gender-balanced board": Today I found this article by Beatrix Dart and Ekta Mendhi in the Globe and Mail:

Beatrix Dart is a professor of strategic management and the executive director of the Initiative for Women in Business at the Rotman School of Management.

Ekta Mendhi is senior director of corporate strategy at CIBC. She serves as the co-chair of Women in Capital Markets' Women in Leadership Network. They co-founded and co-chair the Canadian Gender and Good Governance Alliance.

Board composition and gender diversity are on the radars of most CEOs and board chairs today. At the end of 2017, only two of the S&P/TSX 60 companies had no women on their boards, and almost half of the companies report they have specific gender-diversity targets in place.

 However, that picture changes dramatically when we look at all of the more than 1,400 companies listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (about 65 per cent of these have a market cap of less than $1-billion). Here, women hold only 14 per cent of board seats, and 39 per cent of issuers have not a single woman on their board.

New research regularly reaffirms the business case. For companies who want to take action, the Canadian Gender and Good Governance Alliance has curated practical tools that can help organizations of all sizes achieve gender diversity on their boards.

1. Conduct a regular formal board evaluation: Formal board evaluation processes – ideally administered by an independent governance committee or an unbiased board chair – are an effective way to optimize board renewal and encourage diversity. 

Board evaluations provide an opportunity to assess the board's approach to gender diversity and identify improvements that need to be made. For example: Are diversity objectives clearly stated? Which processes are in place to achieve the targets? And does our board director nomination process identify high-quality women with the skill set and cultural fit that we need to be effective as a team?

2. Use a board competency matrix: Skills or competency matrices have been in use for many years but have not significantly led to an increase in the number of women on boards.

 Part of the problem is that the skills prioritized by nominating committees often have a built-in focus on positions. For example, public issuers often seek board members who have experience as the chief executive officer of another public issuer. Given that the proportion of women CEOs in TSX-listed companies has stagnated at approximately 5 per cent for the last decade, this criterion narrows down the pool of female candidates dramatically. 

Interestingly, many boards indicate that the characteristics that make their directors effective in the boardroom have little to do with these typical résumé markers. Instead, they indicate that success as a board director rests more with attributes and behaviour, such as being a great consensus builder, or asking the tough questions when necessary.

3. Set term and/or age limits: A disciplined approach to board renewal remains the most fundamental condition for refreshing board composition and creating an opportunity to increase the number of women on boards. Without vacancies, adding women is difficult. 

Term limits are often considered a leading governance practice based in part on the view that after a certain period of time directors risk losing their independence from management. Age limits in Canada typically range between 72 and 75 years. Both types of limits force boards to prepare for turnover in a planned and meaningful way.

4. Adopt a gender diversity policy: Regulators now require publicly traded non-venture issuers to disclose whether they have a gender diversity policy. Large institutional investors are considering gender diversity an important corporate responsibility factor when evaluating a potential investment opportunity. Responsible investment policies are increasingly adding gender diversity as a key criterion in decision-making, and public companies with all-male boards have been increasingly challenged at shareholder meetings. 

While only 35 per cent of issuers have a gender diversity policy, those that did had almost twice as many women (19 per cent) on their boards compared to 10 per cent average female representation without a policy. You can find a customizable policy template as part of the Director's Playbook at www.cggga.ca.

5. Expand the scope of your candidate search: The question "where can I find the female board members I would like to bring to our organization?" seems to be one of the bigger hurdles. There is a tendency to identify candidates from familiar networks such as former colleagues.

 However, this often leads to a narrow and homogeneous candidate pool in both skills and gender. There are ways to broaden the search and use a network approach to identify the best women candidates.

6. Leverage board-ready lists: Look to organizations such as the Institute for Corporate Directors, Catalyst, and Women in Capital Markets that have lists of highly qualified and accredited board candidates from across a wide variety of industries and leadership roles, who have declared an interest in serving on boards.

7. Engage a search firm: Look for search firms that demonstrate success in identifying and engaging outstanding women candidates to boards in your industry. Probe for examples of where search firms have been successful in both identifying and, more importantly, securing high-quality women candidates for their client boards. Be sure to ask the search firm about how they cultivate their own evergreen list of up-and-coming female board talent.

8. Maintain an evergreen list of candidates: When a board only seeks potential nominees at the time of a planned vacancy, it risks being ill-prepared for an unexpected turnover. 

Rushing to fill an unplanned vacancy creates an increased risk of not being able to find the ideal candidate. We recommend maintaining a roster of potential board nominees who have been identified because they possess the skills, character and demographic characteristics the board needs at a given point in time or anticipates needing in the future.

We believe that organizations experience the greatest benefits of diversity when they have between 40 per cent and 60 per cent female representation at all levels, and this is true of corporate boards as well. It is good for all of us when corporate Canada represents the best of us.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/eight-tools-to-help-companies-build-a-gender-balanced-board/article38240382/

"Gender diversity and inclusion require strong advocates": Today I found this article by Luc Villeneuve in the Globe and Mail:

Canadian country leader and general manager at Red Hat, Inc., a global leader in open source.

Years ago, when I attended my first industry women's luncheon, I looked around and realized I was one of two men. Instead of feeling out of place, I felt incredibly welcomed in the gender diversity and inclusion community when the host and many attendees came over to thank me for taking the time to listen, support and understand their important work. After this meeting I became a strong advocate.

The recent media stories about unwanted behaviour in the workplace spanning various industries, and the subsequent social-media movements this has spawned, have amplified what can be done when we all come together as a community and lend our talents to guide change As Deloitte declared last year in their study Outcomes over Optics: Building Inclusive Organizations, what Canada needs is more courageous business leaders to move beyond "colourful window dressing" to take decisive action.

I work in the open source software industry and have seen first-hand the impact of bringing diverse minds together for the greater good. Open source was established around the ethos of sharing and collaboration to develop, test and openly share software code that anyone is able to use.

 Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Netflix are just a few of the corporate giants created using open source. Open source is rooted in the belief that the more we collaborate, the more voices join the conversation and the more diverse we are, the better we are able to innovate and meet new challenges.

If you aren't engaged in the gender diversity and inclusion community, I challenge you to make 2018 the year of solid outcomes and sharing successes. Here's how I've been collaborating to drive change.

Leverage your unique talents – One of my strengths is as a connector. I am leveraging my networks to attract the best diverse talent, but I'm also continually bringing together groups of experts. I just hosted my second annual Women + Leadership thought leadership event where we brought together tech and gender diversity leaders in Canada from Microsoft, HPE, Catalyst Canada, Ryerson University and more to share stories about unleashing their power. 

Men and women shared the stage to speak candidly, which generated lively and thoughtful discussions on stage and in the audience. The main audience takeaway was that we all want to work together.

Step up as an ally – I often find myself in the position of being an ally, and I am committed to helping guide positive change for underrepresented and minority communities. Being an ally is all about showing vulnerability, confronting your own prejudices and dealing with discomfort to be an understanding and open-minded friend. 

Red Hat has created resources for associates who want to be better allies, as part of our D+I Communities program. These materials were adapted from expert resources, including a concept developed by the Human Rights Campaign, an advocacy group that works for the LGBT community to ensure their rights and safety at work, home and in the community.

Review your HR foundation – A number of leaders, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, have proclaimed that "systemic problems" are at the heart of unwanted behaviours. 

An organization's foundational processes – compensation, hiring, promotions, performance assessments and development – guide the way our organizations operate and need to be continually reviewed. I'm working with my HR experts to review all of our processes to make them more fair and transparent to help eliminate systemic biases that can be barriers to success.

Be a brave champion for others – Dr. Imogen Coe, Ph.D., dean, faculty of science, Ryerson University, is an inspiration in leveraging influence to enable everyone to contribute and be heard. "I have been a vocal advocate on behalf of equal representation for women in various situations," says Dr. Coe. 

"Some men have contacted me privately to say they agree with my statements. I ask them to speak up publicly and be active visible allies so that the burden of the work in support of equal representation and gender equity does not always fall to one person, and importantly, not on the shoulders of those who are members of the under-represented group."

Lend your voice to engage the community – I have chosen LinkedIn to regularly share my views and this has led to opportunities to speak on panels, be part of gender-diversity academic case studies and help broker introductions to other experts. 

There are numerous innovative social movements where leaders share examples of how they are supporting women. #GoSponsorher, co-founded by Deloitte, McKinsey and Catalyst, challenges senior leaders to post a photo on social media with women they are sponsoring along with the hashtag to encourage others to take action.

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/careers/leadership-lab/gender-diversity-and-inclusion-require-a-strong-community-of-leaders-sharing-talents/article38206137/