Celso Grecco sounds like a name straight out of a comic book and his money-making businessman turned philanthropist persona does too. According to “A Stock Exchange for Do-Gooders” Celso Grecco is in actuality, a do-gooder himself. While money was a former priority for Greeco, wealth was never one for Christopher McCandless; all he wanted was adventure.

So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of a man’s living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences, and hence there is no greater joy than to have an endlessly changing horizon, for each day to have a new and different sun.
— Christopher McCandless

Into the Wild is a novel made movie that uncovers the life of Christopher McCandless a.k.a Alexander Supertramp. He was a man driven by resentment and the memories his parents had scarred him with as a child. He rebelled as a nonconformist, burning money and living a nomadic life with Alaska as his only real destination.

The story of Christopher McCandless as depicted through the vision of Sean Penn (director of Into the Wild) opened my eyes. Nature was captured in its truest form; it is dangerous, unappreciated and beautiful. The audience gets a good look at nature (the wild) across America through the adventures of Christopher McCandless. One thing that caught my eye was how Sean Penn depicted the city of Los Angeles as the “wild.” The movie did not focus on the landscape of Los Angeles, but rather the nature of the poor on the streets and the rich drinking their wine.

While parts of America could offer beautiful sunsets and lakes for Christopher McCandless to fill his journal with, Los Angeles offered him a bed he refused to take. It opened my eyes to the kind of society we are through the eyes of others; we are the wild, not the life surrounding us.

I would never want to live in a society with nothing to offer humanity; Christopher McCandless did, so he left to find a “new and different sun.”

Alicia Coffman pours her heart out in “Hopelessly Devoted.” She reveals her somewhat over-the-top obsession for Hollywood heartthrobs like Devon Sawa (and I couldn’t agree with her more), but when it comes to famed heartthrobs, Chris Brown takes the cake. He does it with his charm, almost effortless dance moves, and the list goes on. Sometimes fixations over unattainable crushes like Alicia’s Devon Sawa and my Chris Brown can be unhealthy, but “Hopelessly Devoted” shows the upside to such an obsession as it tells the story of how the writer found her true passion (to write) in false passions (like the Devon Sawa’s of this world).

Passion is a positive obsession. Obsession is a negative passion.
- Paul Carvel

Though I would like to classify my admiration for Chris Brown as a positive obsession, I cannot. My other fixation (besides Chris Brown): my sister’s toffee cookies. Dictionary.com defines passion as a strong or extravagant fondness, enthusiasm, or desire for anything. My most current passion: owning a successful bakery with my two sisters. I found my true passion in tiny bite-size fixations.

Someone can waste years trying to appease an obsession (just like Alicia) and never attain an objective as simple as a reply to a letter yet something as significant as a prospective passion can find that person inadvertently.

Now I’m just fixated on how ironic that is.

The notion of pirates from the Caribbean is thrilling (especially when they’re as attractive as Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom) but the reality of the escalating presence of bona fide pirates is just daunting. “Sea Pirates Bloody Growth” reveals an alarming quandary that has been far too prolonged. Probably the most chilling part of the situation is the fact that these pirates have skills comparable to military men.

Pirates have also increased their tactical sophistication, often surrounding a target ship with several boats and firing machine guns and antitank missiles to force it to stop. As Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Tony Tan recently warned, “piracy is entering a new phase; recent attacks have been conducted with almost military precision. The perpetrators are well-trained, have well laid out plans.”

-excerpt from “Terrorism Goes to Sea”

Piracy seemed to be motivated by the dawn of international arms trading while the pervasiveness of the problem is enthused by the ongoing growth of cargo ships transporting our material goods. Maybe the scariest actuality of this problem is really our own involvement in the bloody growth of sea pirates. We contribute to our individual fears in the way humanity makes the accessibility of weapons so effortless as well as the manner in which we buy and buy. Now that’s scary.

“To Feed a Hungry Soul” stirs the pot to conjure up the question can God exist in a bowl of soup? While this article focuses on food as an approach to religious pursuits, I will concentrate on its evolution in our culture brought about by diverse backgrounds.

America loves to eat, and as an American I do too. We eat food for that extra oomph in our step, just as the English do. Like the French, we have begun to appreciate food for their appetizing tastes. Americans have also begun to perceive food as an art, tending to eat first with their eyes. Initially food was a mere source of energy. Nowadays, it is like a pastime practiced by those who cook it as well as those who eat it. Evidently, other cultures have influenced American cuisine and the way we perceive it. The following quote illustrates that idea in a humorous way.

I don’t think America will have really made it until we have our own salad dressing. Until then we’re stuck behind the French, Italians, Russians and Caesarians.
-Pat McNelis

And as for God existing in a bowl of soup, I think it is just as possible as homemade cookies being a piece of heaven.

Finally, it is summer. Your plans probably include visits to Disneyland and Universal Studios minus the agony of religion homework as a daily obligation. After reading “The Crucifixion and Ice Cream,” the idea of studying religion at a theme park seems to be only one plane ticket away to Orlando, Florida.

It is a living, biblical museum that takes you 7000 miles away and 2000 years back in time to the land of the Bible. Its combination of sights, sounds, and tastes will stimulate your senses and blend together to create a spectacular new experience.
-excerpt from the official website of the Holy Land Experience

Instead of Cinderella’s castle, the Holy Land Experience theme park is home to the reproduction of Herod’s Temple. This atypical vacation site exhibits replicas of some of the most famous places mentioned in the Bible, such as Jesus’ tomb. Tourists can also watch a simulation of the crucifixion as they enjoy their over-priced churros and ice creams.

Not surprisingly, the park has stirred some controversy. The park blends ideas from Christianity as well as Judaism. Despite the park’s effort to create a purely enjoyable environment, a spirit of Christian supersessionism is still prevalent.

I don’t know what is stranger: the irony that there is animosity brewing between people at a religious park or the entire actuality of the Holy Land Experience.