This October, U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips ordered the military to stop enforcing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, the law that has been used to discharge openly gay service members since 1993. The federal judge ruled that the policy was unconstitutional, and pushed for equal rights for gays in the military. However, while the Obama administration claims to favor an end to the law, their course of action for the future remains ambiguous.
Days after the federal judge’s ruling, the Obama administration filed a request for a stay on the policy. In other words, “don’t ask, don’t tell” will remain in practice. Individuals that oppose the policy, as well as the Log Cabin Republicans, the group that filed the lawsuit against the legislation, have expressed their disappointment but don’t seem surprised. While Obama campaigned against “don’t ask, don’t tell,” his attempts to change the policy have been considered insufficient, causing many to find his promises unconvincing.
Obama defended his position, stating that, while he agreed members should not have to lie about their sexual orientation, a change in policy would take time. He addressed the public, stating that his administration is moving in the “direction” of ending the policy. If Obama holds true to this claim, we can infer that at best, it will take several months to train service members and revise regulations to protect the rights of gay members in the military. However, his decision to hold the policy for now suggests any movement for change will face further delay.
While the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy underwent heated debate in Washington, riots broke out in Belgrade as anti-gay protestors sought to disrupt a gay pride march, the first since 2001. In the past, the city has experienced little success with gay pride marches: while the march came under attack by protestors in 2001, the scheduled march in 2009 was canceled due to public safety concerns.
Vincent Degert, head of the EU mission in Serbia, addressed a crowd of about 1,000 participants before the march. He stated the purpose of the march was to, “Celebrate the values of tolerance, freedom of expression and assembly.” However, despite his optimism, the government took precautions - CNN reported that about 1,000 gay pride participants were guarded by 5,000 police officers. While the march progressed, protestors confronted the heavily guarded participants, throwing rocks at armed police, intensifying the confrontation.
Protestors carried Serbian flags, linking nationalism with anti-gay views. Others were seen carrying religious icons, arguing that homosexuality goes against Serbian religious beliefs and family values. While Serbian government officials claim the riot was carried out by individuals that used the march as an excuse to act out in violence, it is clear that the march failed to demonstrate the “tolerance and freedom of expression” Dergert had hoped for.
As BBC reporter Mark Lowen stated, this is, “not the image Serbia wants the world to see. A successful gay parade was supposed to be an indication of how far this country has come from the ultranationalism and violence of the 1990s.” Nine years after its first march, Serbia has yet to prove to the international community that it has reached the desired stage of maturity and development. Rather, its recent riot has demonstrated the clash of opinions and inability to peacefully resolve issues. However, its attempt to continue with the march, despite great obstacles, suggests the country is taking steps towards protecting the interests of minority groups.
The struggles of both countries reveal steps towards change - while the U.S. strives to change its “don’t ask, don’t tell policy” and defend gay rights in the military, Serbia has taken measures to protect the rights of minority groups. Although the attempts of both countries have not been completely successful, they demonstrate hope for future progress and reform.
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell: Tolerance and Reform
Jewish New Year
For Orthodox Christians it’s Easter, for Catholics it’s Christmas, but what is the most important holiday for the Jews? New Year is the most significant event. According to the Gregorian calendar, the month of either September or October, also known as the Tishri month is welcoming the New Year. The Jewish New Year, however, has somewhat different customs from the traditional New Year most people around the world are used to.
Speaking of the Jewish New Year, I decided to interview one of my Jewish friends, Lacey Goldsher, who is a senior at the Hebrew High School of New England. I asked her to tell me more for their traditions for the new beginning in Jewish lives.
• How long do you celebrate New Year, or as you call it Rosh Hashanah?
It is a ten day long period during which almost every Jew is in high spirits and mood for the celebrations. Everything begins with the sundown of the first day and ends with the sundown of the tenth day.
• What does New Year mean to you and to the Jews in particular?
Our tradition speaks of a symbolic book in heaven which is said to have records of those who did good and bad deeds. On Rosh Hashanah, we must account to God for our behavior during the past year. We are given ten days before the New Year to show that we are sorry for any wrong doings we may have done. Personally, I perceive this day as a Day of Judgment.
What we are supposed to do is undo all wrong doings by performing good deeds and by thinking about how to live a better life in the future. If we are sincere, God is supposed to forgive us and he sets down and foretells each person's fate for the next year in the book.
• What was your New Year’s wish?
My biggest wish was probably a combination of three, important to me, concepts: good life, good health and prosperity. And I am more than sure that other Jews have similar, if not the same wish.
• How do celebrate your New Year?
In my family, it’s a tradition to send cards to each other with a message "May you be written down for a good year." We also exchange the same greetings the day before Rosh Hashanah, when we attend prayers at a local synagogue before returning home for a special New Year Eve meal.
The New Years Eve dinner has festival candles which are lit and the dining table is decorated with fresh fruit of the season, especially with grapes since our New Year is mostly in September. My mother prepares bread known as Challah and honey cake. Auspicious fruits dipped in honey are also served. The honey is supposed to symbolize sweet year. In my house, the main dish usually is a fish because it is a symbol of fruitfulness and plentitude. Other foods with a symbolic meaning may be served such as cooked tongue or other meat from the head of an animal to symbolize the “head” of the year.
• What else is special about the Jewish New Year beside the family dinner, the prayers and the card gifts?
A special service is held which ends in the blowing of the shofar. The shofar is a horn used for Jewish religious purposes. What usually happens is that 100 separate notes are blown on it. This is highly important ritual to the people who are too ill to attend the service try to find someone who will come to their place and will blow the shofar for them.
Learning a New Language
Language is the inheritance of a certain nation or region. The accent most often emphasizes the origin of the speaker. Then what is the reason, you may ask, as to why people choose to learn a non-native language? Some choose to learn a language because later they could have opportunities to study or work abroad. Others may choose to study a language because of the culture of a country they admire, by learning that specific language they feel closer to that particular culture.
Learning a language needs a painstaking work, and it can be understood only through experience: through conversation with the native speakers and reading books in the language. The first step to successfully learn a language is to have interest in it and the next step is to practice it through verbal and written communication. It takes time to “polish” a language. The best way to enrich one’s vocabulary is to read books, but what if one cannot make out a word of the text? The solution is to visit one of many internet sources that provide dictionaries. However instead of torturing oneself with lengthy books, it is better to visit online language-game sites. They can be found by automatic web search by only inserting the language’s name and games. The answer to the question “Why?”, is that teenagers and youngsters often find it hard to learn more than couple of new words per day.
Many people learn English, which has become a world-wide used language, at a young age. However, this does not mean that one language is easier than another. It solely depends on an individual, on one’s native tongue and languages learned in childhood. Languages have similarities, some less, others more. For example a Spaniard may find French easier then a Slavic speaking person because of grammar and vocabulary. To sum it up every language has its differences that make it unique. It may be structure, pronunciation of the words or intonations. Different languages make literature interesting. When reading out loud one can inspect the unique sounds of the language. It is considered to be an advantage to read a work with its original text, completely conveying author’s ideas and feelings.
Many children have parents who travel a lot, so they get to learn at least some basics of the language in a country they visit. The reason is because the local language makes it easier to socialize with others. The benefits of traveling are widening one’s cultural knowledge and socializing with people of different characters. However one may feel exhausted of constant environment change, feel insecurity and burden. To best way to get through that “newcomer” stage is to have patience. Staying in touch with people from the previous schools helps to gain confidence.
I come from a Slavic speaking country, but still found Macedonian enigmatic for the first month in Skopje. It was awkward when people spoke to me but I could not make out the meaning. I often used hands to express myself, some found it hard, some gave up from talking to me, but others seeing my will to communicate stayed patient. Eventually I started to see similarities between my language and Macedonian and not long after I started speaking. Even though I speak broken Macedonian, I am understood. In a year, I learned the basics that helped me a lot. It is never too late to learn a language and there are never too “many” languages to learn. All one needs is time.
A new technological boom!
They are all around us! All sorts of technological things like gadgets, gimmicks of all sorts, iProducts, and things that make you go “wow that’s-cool!” All these little things that make our lives easier, like the GPS in our cars, or the iPod you are probably listening to! (Apple took it even further with the iPhone, iTouch and iPad.) Things like audio books, auto tune plug-ins that can turn the worst of singers into nice vocals. There are also the gadgets that have no apparent use except that humanity can boast about their existence, such as glow-in-the-dark toilet paper, a clock that goes backwards, or a laptop that can fit in an envelope and nothing more.
So how did we move from ordinary items to extraordinary gadgets? Many techies and gadget lovers have noticed that people tend to improve a gadget gradually over time. Take the cell phone, for example. Its original purpose was to enable calls to be made without the need of it being plugged in. As the years passed, more and more functions were added. The first additions were basic things we take for granted, like the option to send a text message. Later, mundane things totally unrelated to communication were added, such as the ability to tell the time, date and to set a reminder on your to-do-list. Note how all 3 mentioned additions were available before their functions were added on the cell phone. You could tell the time with a watch, the date was marked on a calendar, and a notepad was used for writing down appointments or other important dates. The problem lay in that one had to take all 3 things into a bag when going out. Combining such functions into one device that can fit in your pocket is quite handy, don’t you think?
What inventors have been doing is so easy, even a hobo could do it. These so-called inventors merely combine already existing inventions into one tool instead of coming up with something new to make life easier. Let’s look at the iPhone for example. It is a phone: an invention previously invented. It has a touch screen which is also not new on the market. The iPhone can be enhanced with different applications, some of which require an internet connection to work with. Nothing new. So what made the iPhone such a popular toy? (Take note of the word “toy” due to the fact that 99% of the people who have bought the iPhone have done so for reasons other than simple communication.) The answer is simple – promotion. Apple Inc. has invested heavily in promoting their product by getting famous companies to make an iPhone application for their product. Facebook is an example of such an organization. By paying all sorts of companies to make the applications for their product, they increased the versatility of the iPhone, which is crucial for a gadget these days.
This new way of defining gadgets is quite interesting and beneficial. It makes life easier and more comfortable for the ones who can afford these gimmicks. However, we mustn’t forget the past, when the process of inventing was an art. Thomas Edison did not combine previous inventions. On the contrary, he experimented and invented the light bulb! He was truly an inventor, a word which has lost its original meaning. These days, technology has advanced so rapidly, that inventions are no longer made. Although Science progresses, there just aren’t any truly new things on the market!
Despite the lack of truly new things on the market, the new boom in technology has enabled lots of luxuries that our parents and, most definitely, grandparents did not posses. They barely had television, yet now we have flat-screen televisions with stereo surround sounds, and loads of channels to watch. Some people who are better off even have 3D televisions! Considering what the technology was 20 years ago, that is insane! The competition companies have amongst themselves supplies the market with better and cheaper products! And when you think of how in 10 years you will say, “Oh, 3D TV is so old man, check out the new
Interview with Ana Jakimska
In a thread posted online by a friend of mine, the newspaper editors agreed that we would make a new addition to our publication: I call it the Hall of Fame, but some disagree. In any case, this section is dedicated to the students who have left NOVA and gone on to have successful careers. Since there is a great deal of those, it was supposed to be difficult to choose a starting point. Not for me. I knew exactly who I’d like to interview: Ana Jakimska.
Being the newbie that I am, I don’t exactly know how things work around here. What I do know is that Ana was nice enough to send me a “welcome to NOVA note” as an Alumnus of the school. After that, we stayed in touch, exchanging the occasional “like” on Facebook, and when this opportunity presented itself, I seized it with both hands. I had heard Ana’s story and I viewed it as one worth sharing. And I knew I’d want to be the one to share it.
We met up in a café in a quiet part of the city. Apparently, the “Lee” café had been a place Ana often went to. In an attempt to begin my first interview as a pseudo-journalist, I asked her if she would prefer if we did the interview in English or in Macedonian. She quickly replied that Macedonian would be the better option for her. Not because she couldn’t speak the language really well, but because the entire heightened reality that we NOVA students live in, that makes Macedonians speak in English among each other outside of school, does not have its charming effect on her. Apparently, it seemed unnatural to do that.
Ana had heard the rumors about NOVA, but chose not to trust them, for she had also heard the incredible possibilities for students who actually wanted to make something out of their lives. One September morning brought her in front of the school, which actually began her story. Ana knew that she wanted to study literature from the very beginning. It is these classes that she cherished above all else. An incredible teacher supported her in all of the challenges she undertook and helped her achieve most of her goals. Still, I am convinced that even without that incentive Ana would have managed to become the impressive person she is today.
When I came to this school for an interview last June, I was asked how I had managed to see past the entire block of prejudice that surrounds the school. I said that I had had the chance to meet an impressive NOVA student. When I mentioned Ana’s name, the other person instantly replied: “Excellent! A marvelous student.” From what I gather, Ana had been involved in an underground publication whose content had been what I would now call “real”. It was aimed at the NOVA students and it was meant to scream an enormous wake-up call at them- to snap them out of the whole “high school illusion”.
However, an unfortunate combination of events rendered her unable to enter the University of Kansas. Therefore, she went to a one-year journalist school that was her “a safety-net school” and then enrolled in the Faculty of Philology in the Department of Comparative Literature at the University of Cyril and Methodius in Skopje. At first, she believed that student life would not be what she’d hoped it would be there after all of the effort she’d put into getting ahead. Still, the curriculum proved to be challenging and the professors pleasant. Students worked in small groups doing exactly what Ana had been hoping to do all her life. However, undertaking new challenges has always been the very core to Ana’s character, which is why she enrolled in the Faculty of Dramatic Arts. Although this discipline is similar to her previous endeavors, it is not exactly the same thing and the approach to a literary piece is extremely different. To me, Ana seems to have grabbed both disciplines and is trying to weave paths between them. For that I tip my hat to her.
I walked home from the interview thinking about her. The entire work she has accomplished up until now is incredible. The entire story that is her life is admirable. I couldn’t help but note that if I had been interviewing her in any of her college interviews I would have fought hardly to make sure she would attend my college. My friend says: “ There are people I like to call my Vorbild (German- role models). I try to shape my behavior according to their choices”. Even though I do not agree with her, I know that with every step I take in the future I will try to shape my conduct in accordance with Ana’s decisions. Successful, impressive, beloved - my own Vorbild.
Stories of a long gone anew
This is the story of Darren. God forbid it ends sadly.
“Good day to you, Darren.”- said Hannah in an obliging manner as he approached the desk. It read: NEW STUDENTS. With an exhausted smile, she found his schedule and handed a few neatly folded pieces of paper to him. “We missed you on Friday.”“I will tell you all about that, Ma’am, once I have the chance to. For now, I think it would be better if I got to class.”- Darren said, knowing that this wouldn’t come true: hypocrisy was a trait he’d picked up over the summer. He glanced at the schedule: it really was something different. Too little subjects. A bit too often. He’d cope.
The floors had been burnished and the trophy cupboards polished. Darren walked through the hallway quietly observing the city’s crème de la crème in its natural habitat. The girls were… a marvel. Dressed as though this were a fashion show, their perfumes mixed as a couple of them passed by, forcing Darren to turn his head. The guys, on the other hand, were busy looking at their ridiculously expensive cell phones and talking about the new cars their fathers had bought them. This was to be expected, for Darren had come prepared with a little bag of prejudice nicely whipped up by his friends.
Familiar faces passed by as he entered the classroom. With the ring of a bell he was to be found in the back of the classroom. The teacher, a bony-faced, pleasant woman addressed the class- a whole of eight students. She introduced herself and, as usual, wished the students good luck in the new academic year. They would need it. There would be days when they would want to cry and days when they would want to give up. Those would be the two possible choices.
Is it new starts that make us want to adapt? In that moment, Darren was aware of only one fact: another story in his life had begun. The story of sleepless nights, compromises and bloodthirsty competition.
God forbid it ends sadly.
A Track down Fidelity
With each beginning comes a new commitment we must sustain. Oftentimes, our actions say a lot about the kind of person we’ll become, and it is with care we must pursue these actions. Present day teenagers have been thrown into a pool of opportunity in which they are exposed to different paths and directions on the road to self-discovery. It is during these critical years that teenagers must try all they can to experience different fields of interest in order to determine their future roles and the dominant passion which will ultimately sway that decision. There are always two trails to follow, however. One may choose the man-made concrete road or the steep trail in the woods with the danger of an acute fall. It is precisely for that reason that this trail requires vigor to follow all the way through and finish what one begins. The irony of the situation lies in the expectations of the 21st century teenager. While they are constantly fed with information and possibilities, teenagers are simultaneously restricted by time to pursue all fields of interest. Yes, in an ideal world all interests could be satisfied. Yet it is the weight of responsibility that lies heavily upon young shoulders that hinders such a fulfillment. Not only does time play the role of an obstacle, but motivation as well— the commitment needed to pursue a interest or hobby all the way through. Society may partake in this as well given the dependence upon the group to act as a unit. The individual then suffers because of the fear to move outside the already established circle. Simple enough— you either go with friends or you don’t go at all. This shows how decisions alter the course of the future; a wrong turn does not give allowance to that which is meant to unfold. How many passions have we not pursued because of fear? How many decisions have we made for the sake of the group? Students are faced with obligatory academic and community proceedings whilst they furthermore desire to pursue their own courses. It is with strength they must pull through such tasks in order to keep such opportunities available. There is no choice once the chance for a new beginning is lost. The failure of college admittance for one hinders further development. It follows that the system is unfair on the human level to suppress the growth of an individual. For what is life but a scavenger hunt? A mystery concealing the meaning of our very beings? While one must at all times keep a wide mind open, it is through the critical teenage years that a majority of personalities and traits are shaped into long lasting forms. It is in the chosen trail that one’s future is embedded, hence demonstrating the endurance of all our efforts.
“Patience is bitter but its fruit is sweet,” Jean Jacques Rousseau, Émile
When new questions arise
Seven years ago human society set a milestone in its scientific history – the Human Genome Project had been finished and scientists had mapped and sequenced all the genes encoded by the genome of Homo Sapiens, our own species. The results of this international research, lead in parallel by state- funded international research team and by the private company Celera Genomics have asserted the existence of 20,000 to 25,000 human genes, their genetic markup and their respective functions. Researchers have also created a database of the most common genetic variation that distinguishes one person from another. Inevitably, this knowledge is bound to mark the beginning of new medical treatments; however, its social, political and environmental implications raise new and somewhat unusual questions.
For one, if less expensive, more effective and reliable techniques that sequence the human genome are devised, one’s medical chart would start to include one’s own genetic blueprint. Consequently, we would be able to read our genes and discover the anomalies in our DNA, thus learning which diseases we are predisposed to. With this valuable information, each of us would work at lowering the risk for disease, and similarly, disease treatment could be personalized for every individual. For the time being, this has only been done for Craig Venter, the owner of Celera Genomics, who already had his genome sequenced only to find himself predisposed to Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, and macular degeneration; he has been taking cholesterol-lowering drugs ever since. Additionally, gene therapy could turn from the dream that it is today to reality: in 30 years from now it would be commonplace to replace disease-causing genes with normally functioning ones. In that manner, we would be able to cure and prevent many (if not all) genetic disorders from the most benign ones like colorblindness to the lethal ones like Huntington’s disease. Moreover, genomic research may prove crucial to exploring programmed cell death, which causes aging and uncontrolled cell growth – cancer. Although these scientific breakthroughs would certainly mean saving more lives, the extra weight we would quite consciously and willingly put on nature’s shoulders would be immense. With population of nearly 7 billion, we are already facing major problems such as water deficit, pollution, and climate change. A dramatic increase in human population would disrupt our already precarious environmental balance, exacerbating all problems connected with overpopulation. Furthermore, if we learn to control the mechanisms that regulate cell death and aging, our society would have to limit human lifespan, rather than attempt to extend it.
With so much information on our genomes available to us, a genomic library would surely have to be set. Yet the challenge lies in deciding who, besides medical personnel, would be granted access to our personal genetic information, and to what extent. If, for instance, employers have access to a job applicant’s genome, they might base their hiring decision on the risk of this person to develop certain conditions. Similarly, an insurance company might offer different policies based on various genetic markups. Unless society imposes clear regulation and legislation regarding the usage and access to individual genomic information, carriers of abnormal genes might be stigmatized, and bio-piracy would be unrestrained.
Another tantalizing aspect of genetic research is that we, humans would overtake the role of nature. By replacing abnormal genes with gene therapy we would act directly on natural selection, narrowing down the gene pool and reducing variation. This would work perfectly if environmental factors on Earth were essentially stable; yet, this is not the case. Tremendous variation is hidden in every gene pool, and it can be expressed by selective pressures; in other words, populations are so diverse because some genes that are disadvantageous in one particular set of conditions, could turn out to be quite advantageous if the conditions (the environment) change. Nature has its way of preserving variation in humans with sexual reproduction, heterozygous advantage, random mutation, etc. Severely reducing variation could jeopardize the entire human race in the case of a sudden environmental change when the genes that we find useful and important today would turn to be disadvantageous.
Although important breakthroughs have been made, scientists still strive to understand all the interactions between genes themselves, genes and the non-coding DNA sequences, and finally, genes and the environment. In this respect, the 21st century might even unravel the answer to the everlasting question of nature vs. nurture. Or perhaps, with all the genetic information stored in computerized genomic libraries we will witness the birth of the first synthetic human, whose parent would be the computer itself? One is for sure: these new questions call for scientists across all disciplines to chart the new, unknown territories.
The Beginning of a Changed Life
Today’s War on Terror has cost the U.S. government an estimated three trillion dollars. People ask, “Where does all this money come from?” This answer is simple, tax dollars. Today’s economy is so far advanced that we can collect money from the people, and contribute most of it towards the war. However, the majority of people don’t pay much support to the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, this concept of people not caring for the war has affected the U.S. military’s morale. According to a member of the US Marine Corps “America is not at war; The Marine Corps is at war; America is at the mall.” This quote has become infamous among the military and is supported by many U.S. citizens. Possible reasons for this quote may be due to the ignorant attitude possessed by many Americans. They might buy a bumper sticker saying “support our troops” but that’s about it. Instead, they’re too busy going to the mall, acting as if there was no war going on. During WWII, people were rationing everything, first from tires, to automobiles, to food, all the way to clothing. It has come to my attention that Americans do not contribute support to the War on Terror because they are not required to sacrifice anything. College degrees are becoming more recommended and required in order to apply for high paying jobs. Despite the losses and victories of wars the U.S. has overcome, people are confused about the purpose of war. What new era of warfare has the U.S. come upon?
The American population becomes less and less supportive with each war they face. I believe that many do not care about the war, because they do not have to sacrifice anything. During WWII, people were buying war bonds, which were established ever since the Civil War, which were used for contributing money as support towards the war. Teenage boys at the age of seventeen and eighteen, just out of high school, were forced to be drafted into the U.S. army during WWII. Before they knew it, there were 16.3 million men and women serving for the nation’s military. Today, there is an estimated 2.5 million men and women working for the nation’s military. It’s easy to say that modern day nations are able to provide more than they were able to six decades ago. That’s how easy life has become for Americans today, they simply have too much money.
In addition to a substantial amount of money America has, high paying jobs in the U.S. are scarce. They used to say that you could get a job without a college degree. However, in today’s society, people need a college degree in order to get a good job to pay for their basic needs. Sure the business of fast food and cheap industry are becoming more popular where one does not a college degree, but the jobs provided by these businesses do not accommodate the basic need of a family. Before WWI and WWII, many people were unemployed, having no money to support themselves. However, with the beginning of WWI and WWII, factories required many workers, bringing thousands, even millions of jobs for people. During this time period, many jobs were filled, bringing upraise of morale to the people of the U.S. What about now? In the year of 2010, factories don’t need many workers; they don’t require thousands of people to complete their tasks. Instead, they require a dozen machines that can work nonstop without breaks and don’t require pay. Technology has become so advanced, that machines are taking the place of human labor in the workforce.
In addition to all these facts, I lastly believe that people are simply confused. Before the Korean War, Americans knew what we were fighting for. They wanted to defend their country and defeat the Axis Powers. They wanted to help out and support by volunteering as nurses or at the Red Cross. Men enlisted in the army to serve their country. After WWII however, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War and the War of Terror took place. During this time of warfare, interest in U.S military service seemed to have subsided. It is common nature for people to lose interest in something they are unfamiliar or confused about. In fact, I believe that during this time period, most American soldiers were ridiculed more than appreciated. War is a confusing thing, people are never too sure of the purpose. Soldiers just do what they are told, but does that make them responsible for all the problems and hatred towards America? Congress and high ranking officials should be blamed instead. They have not experienced a single day of warfare.
Overall, I believe new beginnings mean different things to different people. To some, it means moving to a new high school. To others, it means starting a new job. For soldiers, it means starting their whole life over. After soldiers return from war, their whole life is different. Maybe they can’t get a job, or can’t forget what they have been through. Perhaps they can’t forget the fact that they are forgotten patriots. What has happened to America? Why have we become something that we are not? I believe that Americans do not contribute support to the War on Terror because they are not required to sacrifice anything, jobs are not affected by warfare, and people are confused about the purpose of the war. Until the time comes that Americans directly suffer the consequences of such previous wars, the United States’ Armed Forces will not receive the support they deserve.
Tuesday, October 26, 2010
Pseudopsychology
According to Dr. Phil's personality test, others see me as fresh, lively, charming, amusing, practical, and always interesting; someone who's constantly in the center of attention, but is sufficiently well-balanced not to let it go to their head. They also see me as kind, considerate, and understanding; someone who'll always cheer them up and help them out. These results are based on a test that consists of ten questions, most of which have to do with unrelated habits and reactions. The answer choices are all fundametally different from each other, disallowing any ambiguities and grey areas. Yet Dr. Phil's Personality test is probably the most widely acclaimed test on the Internet, with millions of fans on Facebook and Twitter, despite the obvious fact that one can hardly tell a person's character from his or her sleeping position. In addition, drawing the conclusion that I automatically always enjoy being in the center of attention if I answer that when going to a party, I like to make a conspicuous entrance, is extremely rash and unsubstantiated. Dr. Phil's personality test is therefore a fairly common example of what is nowadays known as pseudopsychology – erroneous information dispersed as if it was proven by specialists.
Pseudopsychology has existed ever since people began speculating about consciousness thousands of years ago. For example, Artstotle thought that consciousness resides in the heart. Rene Descartes separated conscious thought from the physical flesh of the brain. But the two best known theories which are nowadays dismissed as pseudopsychology are the ancient Greek theory of humoralism (that a person's character depends on the amount of a certain bodily fluid which that person's body contains) and the ''science'' of phrenology (which is based on the concept that the brain is the organ of the mind, and that certain brain areas have localized, specific functions or modules).
There are several reasons why I think that pseudopsychology was, and has remained, so popular. In the past, psychology was very interconnected with philosophy, and some of the earliest theories (such as Aristotle's theory that consciousness resides in the heart) might have been an outcome more of philosophical discussions rather than psychological research. As centuries went by, people became more and more fascinated with the study of human behavior, and proportionally with real psychology, pseudopsychology developed. Bottom line, psychology is a science that studies human behavior, and human behavior can be easily manipulated. As a consequence, psychology as a science can be easily manipulated as well. The main reason why it is still present, even though by now the difference between the two is widely recognized, is that there are still many aspects of human behavior that are unexplainable. It is therefore very easy to construct a theory with no support because many people would believe in almost anything if it can explain something they don't understand. With the increasing popularization of mass culture, basically anyone can invent a ''theory'' about human behavior, and people would probably be so fascinated by it that they wouldn't care to verify it. Most often, pseudopsychologists intentionally target people who are in need of help, which is the reason why most pseudo-theories have to do with the subject of self-help. Also, due to the unpredictability and diversity of human behavior, it is easy to manipulate an aspect of behavior manifested in only a couple of people and pass it out as if it applies to all of humanity. Bottom line, as long as the stress of modern life is in its ascent, pseudopsychology will continue to have its loyal adherents. It is important to note that even the most educated people can fall prey to pseudopsychology; first of all because it is sometimes very difficult to distinguish real from fake evidence, and second of all because most people's instincts will lead them to believe anything that can even remotely convincingly explain something they have been wondering about or been unable to explain it themselves.
Ultimately, the thing that distinguishes pseudo from real psychology is the fact that when real psychologists are daring enough to construct a theory, they make sure to test the theory and provide tangible evidence for it. In short, the theory has to undergo the scientific method. It is oftentimes difficult, however, to collect data about human behavior in general because it is so unpredictable, diverse, and shaped by many social and cultural factors. That is why most psychologists are left with only speculations. The important thing is that real psychologists acknowledge the failures of psychology and do not try to disperse these speculations as theories, while pseudopsychologists do. Thus, a lot of times real psychological research is dismissed by the public because it pertains to something less ''fascinating'' than the findings of pseudopsychology.
It is obvious that psychology and pseudopsychology in the modern world are both proliferating with the same speed. Even though in some cases, such as horoscopes and personality tests, it is easy to distinguish one from the other, in some cases it is a lot more difficult to discern what is real and what is not. It is up to each individual to decide what to believe in while taking into consideration all the options.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
Waiting for Spring to Come
An icy forest exists. And there, the animals had fallen asleep for long winter. But not Erica, she was wide awake and waiting for spring. "When? When? When will it come?" she asked Brother. "Use your amazing eyes," Brother told her. "Come and tell me when you see it."
Erica went outside and went to the lake near the house. She was touching the cold water, looking for spring. Sadly, the lake was covered with ice. Then she made a sad face and said "I can see that spring is not here yet."
So Erica got back to the house. She took a piece of fur and a piece of wood and started analyzing them deeply. She fell asleep and dreamed of warm, sunny spring days.
Early in the morning, Erica went outside again, and this time she found a hole in the ice. She raced back to the house to tell her brother. "Brother, the ice is melting! I can see it. Is it spring now?"
"Use your ears now" Brother told her. "Come and tell me when you hear it."
Once again, Erica went to the lake near the house. She tried to listen through the hole in the ice, listening for spring, but she only heard the winter wind.
"Brrrr! That does not sound like spring." Erica repeated while going back to the house. And again, she had a dream of warm, sunny, spring days.
Late in the afternoon, Erica heard music. "Brother, the birds are singing a song! I can hear it. Is it spring now?"
"Use your nose this time,"Brother told her. "Come and tell me when you smell it."
Erica went to the lake one more time. There she found a tree and sat near it. She raised her head and sniffed.
"Ooooo! Something smells fresh and green. Smells like....mmmm", said Erica.
Near the water, she saw the appearance of many colorful flowers. Carefully, she looked at the trees that were getting green.
"Brother!", She called. "Spring is here!"
Brother smiled. "How do you know, Erica? Did you see it?"
"Yes, the ice and snow are gone. Spring looks green!"
"And did you hear it?"
"Yes! The birds are singing. Spring sounds like music!"
"Did you smell spring, Erica?" Brother asked.
"Yes! Spring smells fresh!"
Erica came closer and whispered in Brother's ear, "I know something else about spring, too," she said smiling.
"Hmmm," Brother said. "What could it be?"
Spring writes a story!
Light and Dark Suns
Colors change from light to gray
As they are lost in the shadows of dusk.
They are lost like tears in the rain;
The faces of trees lose their look,
As if their hair falls out as we try to grab them;
When the bright sun rises,
Darkness is forgotten, and brightness is remembered.
Shadows of darkness evaporate and disappear,
like a puddle on a sunny day;
They are replaced by the shadings of light;
It seems as if darkness hides from us, and cannot be found.
Light and dark both hide and appear;
Like a storm;
Bringing fear and chaos,
But also calmness and peace.
Harmony
Clouds- why do you disperse so?
You give way to a light that casts no shadow on this ground on which I lie.
The morning sunshine does not penetrate these shadows you have cast upon my heart- dear Clouds,
You sprinkle fairy dust upon a tiny piece of atmosphere in this universe
So sweet—
You turn each breath into the last, dear Spring;
Honey trickles through these walls of frost,
And they melt into a flower-
I know not of which kind;
T’is the kind from which this fairy dust is extracted
And enchants my soul into an eternal dance of smiles and giggles.
Oh, how you turn each gust of wind into song;
And the birds!
For, how they burst into a melody
That rests upon my windowsill each morn-
I know not if it’s a dream or a haze to which you trick our spirits.
You release these troubles so they might enter another universe and replace them by your melody.
The spring which runs down that mountain you’ve created
Becomes a fountain of dew;
A mere drop runs through the thirsty soil on which we stand
And gives birth to a tree.
I climb this tree with you dear Spring;
I climb for eternity.
And when the rain, snow and droughts come,
Your song guides me and my soul
Slips past the cracks in the frost and dances and drinks your honey
So that it might go a bit further.
You come and go as the wind blows
But these branches on which we rest
Contain traces of that fairy dust— dormant or not,
They insert a gleam into eyes that have so long been cast upon the ground
Spring Rain
Raindrops fall
musty with the stench of coffee beans mixed with deep thoughts.
Women stir their half –empty cups;
speaking fast,
speaking slow;
whispering.
Sinatra coos slow songs as men
watch people scurry through wet streets;
time to spare
time to kill
time to save.
Thick books with thin pages
lay open as the teenager drifts longingly
to sunny days,
to schooless days,
to better days.
The rain drips
and drips
and drips.
As we drown spending days
stuck in limbo,
dancing in limbo;
in raindrops that fall like the heavy beat of a heart.
Merciless.
Strewn across coffee tables,
T.S. Elliot
whispers secrets of what
the thunder said.
Notes in margins,
scratched in pencil.
Miserable at best as
I watch puddles on the coffee shop floor.
Rain drops dance down plastic umbrellas
Whispering.
Sunday, February 21, 2010
IRON LION ZION
February 6th, the BOB MARLEY DAY, is never celebrated solely by Rastafari practitioners. Over the years, the date of Marley’s birth came to be celebrated by all lovers of reggae music. Wearing Bob Marley t-shirts, distinctive red, gold and green hats or having their hairs dreaded, reggae fans all over the globe flock to cafes where they hear the familiar tunes of Marley’s hits. However, while humming along his laid-back tunes, many fail to notice the spiritual and religious shades of Marley’s lyrics. Namely, Bob Marley was one of the greatest proponents of the Rastafari movement, a monotheistic religious movement, or perhaps more accurately, an entire way of life, which developed in the 1930s among the poorest classes of Jamaicans. By spreading his music to a global audience, Marley had also spread the Rastafari ideology.
The Rastafari movement developed in the slums of Kingston, Jamaica, in the 1930s. As the Rastafari movement evolved from Chiristianity, the Rastas came to be monotheists and to believe in a sinular God they call Jah. They also healivly rely on the Book of Revelation from the Holy Bible. Furthermore, they have kept the belief in the Holly Trinity. However, they claim that the holy spirit is present within all humans, and that thus, all humans are equal. This is exemplified by their usage of the pronouns “I and I” instead of “you and me” to express equality of all before Jah. The Rastas worship Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia as their messiah, second to Jesus Christ. The name of the Rastafari movement is derived from the title that Selassie held before becoming an Ethiopian emperor - Ras=Head, Duke - and his given name - Tafari. This Ethiopian ruler was perhaps the only African ruler to be recognized by the European leaders at that time. Haile Selassie worked towards the modernization of Ethiopia and managed to bring the country to the League of Nations and the United Nations. He was the first black African to appear on the cover of Time Magazine in 1930. 5 years later, he was named Time magazine’s person of the year. More importantly, he worked for African unity and world peace. The Rastas believe that he would form and lead the perfect world they call ZION; Zion has come to mean the paradise of Rastas, a place they believe to be situated in Ethiopia. Moreover, this land is believed to be their promissed land. On the other hand, Rastas refer to the societies of whites as BABYLON, and percieve them as utterly corrupt.
Although the wearing of dreadlocks is not unique to this movement, Rastas dread their hair as a religious act. The dreadlocks came to signify the mane of the Lion of Judah (another name for Haile Selassie), and the Rastas’ symbolic rebelion against Babylon. Even so, many other groups such as the Sufi mystics and early Kenyans dreaded their hair as well. Furthermore, the 3 colors usually present on Rastafari hats and t-shirts, red, green, and gold, are also featured on the Ethiopian and the Jamaican flag. Red symbolizes the blood of Black Jamaican martyrs, green the lushness of the Ethiopian and Jamaican countryside, and gold the wealth of Africa. Another inherent aspect of the Rastafari movement has always been music; indeed, the world got closely acquainted to it through the several famous reggae artists. Another interesting aspect of Rastafari ideology is the role that ritual smoking of cannabis plays in their worship. This spiritual act is often accompined by study of the Bible; indeed, Rastas claim that smoking cannabis purifies thier souls and minds, and brings them closer to Jah. However, Rastas render cannabis as the only means for cleaning the mind and the soul; indeed, they feel that alcohol and other drugs destroy the mind. Interestingly, Rastas explain the illegality of canabis as another form of persecution of Babylon against them.
Over the years, the Rastafari movement has attracted followers from all over the globe. Rasta ideology has attracted not only black Africans, but also many others who feel passionate about the ideas of the movement. Therefore, Rasta communities are spranging up in various countries and are gaining much prominence. Of course, there is much more to Rasta way of life than described above; however, I hope my attempt to bring a few segments of their powerful ideology closer to all reggae and Bob Marley fans who did enjoy their resent celebration of February 6th, can be rendered a success.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
The Unseen Experience Of The American Civil War
The answer lies in the lives of the African American people. As it is widely known, with the colonization of America, migrating Europeans needed more workers. They chose to transport the Africans of that time to America, where they were enslaved. They worked hard for little money, and did not have any rights of their own. They could be bought and sold, as if they were mere objects, not people. Many families were separated and many people died in the blazing heat, cold winters, or from the excruciating workload. Some of these conditions are described in novels such as “Uncle Tom’s Cabin” by Harriet Beecher Stowe, which try to depict the conditions in which African Americans lived.
With the election of President Abraham Lincoln, the leader of the Republican Party, tensions rose rapidly in a couple of days. President Lincoln thought that African Americans should not be slaves and that they should posses rights of their own. The southern states (South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas, and later on Virginia, Arkansas, North Carolina and Tennessee) formed or joined The Confederacy. The Confederacy depended on slavery and thought that it couldn’t function properly without it. The other states, known as the Union, disapproved of the slavery as an institution in America. Soon, a war conflict erupted.
The war itself bore a great influence on the lives of the African American people. Those who sought refuge in the lands of The Union were set free, although at the beginning, some people thought they had to return the slaves to their former masters. These African Americans were lucky not to have to suffer the horrible fate of those who never felt freedom, never took a whip of air not controlled by their owner. They never felt the grass beneath their feet, knowing that they could do whatever pleased their hearts. They had to stay under the control of the people who owned them. In some cases, slaves were born slaves and died as slaves. Their treatment was rough, and they were often accused and tortured for crimes they never committed.
After the war, the African Americans were slaves no more, although it would take a long time and a lot of effort for them to gain rights of their own and be treated equally and with justice.
Rosa Parks - The Woman Who Changed A Nation
Parks talked a lot about her mother and grandmother. She explained why they inspired her throughout her life. Her grandmother faced more difficulties than Parks ever did—slaves were just freed at that time, and were still considered servants by many. Parks told reporters of how her grandmother had to work on a plantation as a child and how grueling her job was. Parks’ parents were not the perfect example of a happily married couple—they split up when Parks was a child. She stayed with her mother, who was a teacher, which motivated Parks to finish her schooling. These strong women taught Parks never to be afraid of anything, to always do the right thing. She stated that when she refused to give up her seat, she was not afraid; instead, she thought of the many people before her who had to suffer from similar humiliating situations, and of the ways her mother and grandmother taught her. That is what gave her strength to face the unknown.
Ever since she was a little girl, Parks was a faithful member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. Her family members taught her that whenever in doubt, Parks should read the Bible, for it holds all the answers she needed. So, at that fateful moment of her life, Parks thought of the almighty Lord and prayed that justice will prevail. She knew what happened to people who disobeyed the law, especially African Americans; nevertheless, she had faith that God will keep her safe and help her out of her problems.
More than anything, Parks stressed that the main reason why she refused to get up was that she was tired. She was tired of social injustice, of how she and her fellow African Americans were treated just because of the color of their skin. She hated prejudices, and rarely judged people. In one of her books, she speaks of an incident when her house was broken into and the robber forced Parks to give him all her money. Even then, she says, she tried not to judge the person, because she did not know what he had been through, and how much he needed her money. She just wanted all Americans to be treated the same, in all aspects of life. Parks knew that what she did would not change the way people saw African Americans all over the world, but she hoped at least someone would understand her message.
When she got on the bus on December 1, 1955, Rosa Parks never knew that what was about to happen would change the American nation forever. For what she did, many consider her to be the “mother of the modern-day civil rights movement.” Starting from the law about racial segregation on buses, many other laws followed suit and were changed. Today, the United States of America is still affected by racism, but the intensity of racism has been enormously reduced in the past fifty years. With an African American as their President, African Americans in the USA have the same rights as everyone else. Alas, there is still a lot more that can be done: there is still racial segregation in some high schools in Georgia, USA. It should cause everyone great lament to find out that such situations still exist in today’s world; that some people still think that one race is superior over another race. Clearly, there is still a lot of work to be done, but the future generations must continue what Rosa Parks left behind and let her legacy live on forever.
The Stereotypes in Sports
Whenever one thinks about their favorite athletes, a noticeable percentage of them will be African American. Due to the fact that roughly 76 percent of the NBA’s players are African American, we ponder about these statistics. Over the years, people have come up with prejudices that have developed into stereotypes. One such stereotype is that black people have a different physical structure then other races. We have come to believe that black people have extra muscles, tendons, ligaments, and sometimes bones in the legs that improve their physical performance. Extra muscles and tendons may explain why black basketball players perform showy and flashy dunks. Extra muscles may also explain how Spud Webb, a 1.68 meters tall African American basketball player with a vertical jump of 1.07m won the NBA dunk contest in 1986. How We now know, however, that all of this is false and that all humans have the same structure, regardless of skin color. The African-Americans agile bodies, however, may have something to do with their culture. Most African cultures include extensive running and hunting activities that require quick and agile bodies. These cultural traits may be linked to these players' performances.
Not only is it claimed that African Americans have more agile bodies, but it is also claimed that they have bestial behavior. Black people tend to be the fastest people on the planet today. They hold the most records, and Kenya holds about 40 percent of the world records when it comes to running. These feats of strength and speed are due to their day to day training and not due to any advantages over the other races when it comes to pure body performance. Once again, their talent may be linked to their culture – not just their ancestral culture, but their modern way of life as well. For example, they might play basketball regularly, go jogging every day, or practice various activities that increase their talent at these various sports. All these key physical activities may reasonably explain their incredible performance in sports.
Although African Americans are considered to be stronger and more agile than the rest, they are also infamous for cheating and being violent. Who do we think of when we think of cheating? Barry Bonds, Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Rafael Palmeiro. These players have either been suspended for, admitted using, or been suspected for using steroids. Steroids are drugs that give one a boost of physical strength and increase muscle mass significantly. They are illegal in the MLB and all other sports, and are considered the most used drug by baseball players. Using steroids is considered cheating, and not only are black athletes said to be cheaters, but they are also said to be violent. In the past years, during a basketball game with the Nuggets and Knicks, Carmelo Anthony has hammered Mandy Collins in the jaw due to a bad play. These actions are very violent, especially in a non-contact sport like basketball. In a more recent example, Gilbert Arenas of the Washington Wizards pulled out a gun on his teammate Javaris Crittenton in the team locker room over a gambling debt. This violent action shocked the whole world, considering the fact that they had firearms stored in their lockers. Their behavior was considered negative and was looked upon as violent. But the stereotype that black people are more violent or aggressive than the other races is untrue. It is in the human nature to judge a whole race based only on certain indvividuals, which is wrong.
The stereotypes about African American athletes have been around for centuries. Some stereotypes emphasize that black people have a different physical structure than others; others that they have bestial behaviors and are violent or unfair. These stereotypes are what make black athletes seem preeminent and infamous. And what we hear is what we believe. Even though we might be tempted to succumb to these stereotypes, we must remember that violent people are found in all races. And sooner or later, these stereotypes have to be forgotten and lost. We will never forget the amazing things black athletes have accomplished. We will never forget Michael Jordan dunking from the free throw line, or Jackie Robinson being the first African American baseball player in the MLB. African Americans have changed the world of sports significantly, and will continue to surprise us. Every now and then, however, a new stereotype is created, and will stick around for a while.
The Jewel of the Harlem Renaissance
“You should always respect what you are and your culture because if your art is going to mean anything, that is where it comes from.”While Bearden himself wanted people’s perception of his art to penetrate the surface, he simultaneously hoped the aesthetic perspective would be appreciated as well. This is a hard task seeing as all the things Bearden had accomplished – all the watercolor and oil paintings, all the collages, wall paintings, cover art, and even music and poetry – had been produced from the fervent nature of a figure so highly appreciated today. Bearden put his past, his culture, his periods of influence by old masters and at length his philosophies into everything he created. Whether it be music, poetry or art, Bearden’s various experiences trailed the very paintbrush his hand held. They trailed the very lines that his brush breathed into life. It is quite often that the past is in fact what gives shape to one such artist; an artist we are proud to speak of today.
Romare Bearden’s lifetime is one which spans various significant periods of time in history. Living between 1911-1988, Romare witnessed a number of changes in society: achievements, shifting mindsets, and above all, veins of cruelty. Living during the Harlem Renaissance in New York City, Bearden was at all times surrounded by prominent artists of all sorts. This period of “rebirth” enriched his experience as an artist and stimulated a new sense of racial pride. As a whole, the struggling artists of that period strove to communicate their unique cultural identity as well as their past experiences through different mediums.
It was an interesting life that he led, for it is often through a study of another being’s life that one begins reflecting on one’s own. Similarly, the study of another’s artwork is the stimulus behind the reflection on its symbolism and the meaning that it holds; only, however, if they correspond with the intentions of the artist.
Although he attended three different universities, finally graduating with a degree in education at NYU, Romare never stopped searching for new knowledge. He found tremendous inspiration while studying the works of earlier artists. This appreciation lay in the concrete analysis of the works of the old masters that his teacher, Grosz, had implemented in his education. Bearden’s watercolor paintings and oils portrayed an early form of Cubism; an avant-garde artistic movement that illustrated subjects in multiple, broken-up perspectives.
Bearden took to writing as an expression which enabled him to share and dwell more deeply into the significance of African-American art and culture. He found his passion in discussing the major artistic as well as social issues of the day and joined the Social Services Department in New York City. He was a man of action, a man who never gave up on enriching his life and the lives of others by gaining experiences which only contributed to his significant role in society. Bearden spread his influence through the various art organizations in which he took part. He became one of the founders of The Black Academy of Arts and Letters as well as The Studio Museum in Harlem. Romare also joined the Harlem Artists Guild, founded by Aaron Douglas, and explored a variety of techniques which shaped his artistic expression. Bearden’s past sneaked its way into his work as it was a pool consummated by rich experiences.
Bearden’s experience in the Social Services Department in New York City as well the part he played in WWII while fighting for the U.S. Army gave him firsthand knowledge of hardships ordinary people had to endure both in the city and worldwide. Such experiences urged Bearden to fall in deep contemplation about the presence of humanity within society. This resulted in a famous series of paintings called “The Passions of Christ”, of which perhaps the most renowned remains Golgotha. Through its vivid colors and abstract shapes, this painting portrays humanity at a period of time when there was none to be found. Such was the aftermath of Bearden’s experiences in a war-torn world that shaped the lives of thousands, including his own. In this way, the symbolism attached to the use of a name was passed down in the work of an artist.
Yet, this practice contradicts one of Beader's philosophies. Indeed, after studying philosophy at the Sorbonne in Paris, Bearden was prone to such thoughts as the purpose of art. Why must the preservation of African American culture be limited only to artistic expression? Such questions coincided with his period of collage-making during the 1960s. This was a time during which the mindset of Americans was rapidly undergoing significant changes. He incorporated his support of the Civil Rights Movement into his artwork, thus implementing socially conscious ideas. Romare’s collection, the Projections coincided with the “Civil Rights Act of 1964” that banned discrimination based on race, color, religion and national origin. Thus, Romare was able to promote social awareness outside the physical boundaries of a court of justice.
Born in the heart of Bearden and travelling through the very veins of the hand which held his brush, a fierce humane purpose paved the way for a man with a great mind in which originated a philosophy of peace.