Superman is Mine!

Title: Cheque that bought Superman rights sold for super price.

Subject: Cheque that bought the rights for the Superman character sold.

Web Address: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-17737531

Date: 17 April

Author: Unknown

Summary:

The cheque used to buy the Superman comic character from its original creators had been sold in an online auction for 160 thousand pounds. Superman was bought back then for only 130 dollars, even though later on it turned out that Superman had created a billion-dollar industry. Superman started the whole concept of a superhero. This makes Superman so special and that is why the sale for the rights is an important moment in superhero-history. The original creators of Superman still want their rights to the hero back, because he now is worth lots of money and they do not get any of it because of their 130-dollar deal.

 
Reaction:

It does not really seem fair that you do not get any of the money that is made from your character. You put in a lot of effort to create it and you should get credit for that. However, if you sell your character, it is officially not longer yours. It does not make sense to try to get it back once the character had become popular, after all, if you yourself thought your character would make a lot of money you would not have sold it. Even when considering all the history behind it, it does still feel a little silly to me to pay thousand and thousands of pounds for a cheque. 

There is Sugar in my Juice!

Title: Sugar warning for 'healthy' soft drinks.

Subject: Estimating the amount of sugar in drinks.

Web Address: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-17731052

Date: April 16

Author: Unknown

Summary:

A research by Glasgow University shows that people overestimate the amount of sugar in certain drinks. Because these drinks are considered healthy, such as fruit drinks and smoothies, people think they do not contain a lot of sugar. When asked to estimate the amount of sugar in these drinks they were of by multiple teaspoons. The problem is that this way people consume a lot more sugar than they think. Prof Naveed Sattar explains that this is a problem for people who are on a diet, people who are obese or at risk of becoming obese. For these people it would be sensible to replace these sugary drinks with water or diet drinks.

Reaction:

When you are on a diet it is obviously important to watch what you eat and drink. However, I feel like people are focusing too much on calorie intake and the amount of sugar in food and drinks. Your body needs certain vitamins. Just because fruit drinks have more sugar content than you would think does not mean they are not healthy. I do not think that this is the reason people are obese. It might be useful for people who are very overweight to watch their sugar intake through drinks, but I also believe that for most people a glass of apple juice will not do any harm. 

No Anti-Gay Buses in London

Title: Anti-gay adverts on London buses blocked by Boris Johnson

Subject: Advertisements claiming gay-conversions will not be on London buses.

Web Address: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/apr/12/anti-gay-adverts-boris-johnson

Date: April 12

Author: Hélène Mulholland

Summary:

A Christian group was planning on posting advertisements on London buses that claim that being gay is curable with therapy. The mayor, Boris Johnson, has made sure this will not happen. He says that the claim the advert makes is an illusion, which should not be driven around on London buses. The ads would state 'Not gay! Ex-gay, post-gay and proud. Get over it!' The group that made these adverts says they had gone through the normal system to get your ad on a bus and it had only been pulled at the last minute.

Reaction:

People have the right to voice their opinions. This is something most people agree on. However, certain opinions can be insulting or can even hurt people. It is offensive to claim that being gay can be cured. I know some people really believe this is true, but all the scientific evidence tells us you do not pick your own sexual preference. Even if you truly believe in something like this without any evidence, advertising it in the middle of the city is probably not the way to get people to agree with you. However, if a city wants some sort of censorship for their advertisements, they should make them clear beforehand to everyone. 

- Anouk

The Scream for Sale

Title: Edvard Munch's The Scream comes to London

Subject: One of the famous paintings “The Scream” is for sale.

Web Address: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2012/apr/12/edvard-munch-scream-london

Date: April 12

Author: Mark Brown

Summary:

One of the four original pieces of Edvard Munch’s The Scream will be for sale next month. Munch painted four versions of The Scream, but the other three are all in museums, so this is the only one for sale. It is the first time that this piece of art is for public display in the United Kingdom. It is hard to predict for how much this work will sell. Specialists estimate it to be worth 80 million dollar, but it could be a lot more. The piece will be sold on May 2 at Sotheby’s in New York.

Reaction:

The Scream is an amazing work of art, all four of them. To have one of the originals as part of your own collection is a dream come through. The idea that someone will actually buy this piece and take it home is crazy, but also wonderful. I do like art to be in museums, where everyone can enjoy it, but it also feels strangely surreal and terrific that every once in a while you can buy famous and beautiful art just for you. It is a shame I do not have 80 million dollar. 

- Anouk