Life for a Black person in America, from Chris Rock

Saw this post about Chris Rock's race-relations campaigning and couldn't help but share my favourite take-aways:

There’s like three or four black people in my neighbourhood in Alpine. It’s me, Gary Sheffield, Mary J. Blige, and Patrick Ewing. Hall of Famer, Hall of Famer, greatest R&B singer of all-time, decent comedian. Who lives next to me? What’s the white man next to me? He’s a dentist. He didn’t invent anything. He’s just a dentist.

…

Just when you let Jackie Robinson in baseball, that doesn’t mean it’s equal. Baseball, statistically, isn’t equal almost until the 70s. And, you know, and why do I say the 70s? ‘Cause that’s when you started to see bad black baseball players. The true, true equality is to be able to suck like the white man. That’s really Martin Luther King’s dream coming true: it’s guys sucking. I watch the Oscars, okay these are the people that made the good movies, what about the people that made the bad movies? That’s most of the industry. I want to be like that. Not that I want to be bad, but I want a license to be bad and come back… and learn.

I also really liked this bit on gendered-race-relations:

The thing the black culture's missing, it's not the comedian thing, somebody will be that guy. The real question is, when are one of these black girls going to get their Streisand on? It's like 'Yo, I'm really about to set it off, I'm writing a movie, I'm directing a movie, I'm star of the movie. I can't wait to meet her. I can't wait to work with her. I can't wait until I meet the female Tyler Perry, that's going to be the next level.

Where in the world is Vladimir Putin?

 

Courtesy of Ted McCagg/The Monkey Cage

50th Anniversary of the first march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama

Of the several "50th Anniversary's" occurring this year, the remembrance of the bravery and commitment of the roughly 600 Alabama citizens and supporters who crossed the Edmund Pettus Bridge, despite high levels of violence, in peaceful pursuit of basic human dignity is extremely important and deservedly commemorated. The marches from Selma to Montgomery were one giant step in a long march towards freedom for people suffering around the world. 

Indeed my own brief confusion about today's news coverage stems from the fact that the phrase "Bloody Sunday" is more often attributed to a very different display of violence in Northern Ireland. Different, yes, and yet also a circumstance of citizens desperately seeking freedom from fear and access to equal rights and human dignity. Citizens who were inspired by the people of Alabama and across America.

This link will take you to the pre-prepared transcript of President Obama's speech in Selma earlier today, which I believe he delivered quite well. CNN: President Obama's remarks at #Selma50

We should never forget the struggle of those who have fought for the freedoms we have come to enjoy, or even demand, and we should never forget that this struggle is ongoing.

Some excerpts:

"We do a disservice to the cause of justice by intimating that bias and discrimination are immutable, that racial division is inherent to America. If you think nothing's changed in the past 50 years, ask somebody who lived through the Selma or Chicago or Los Angeles of the 1950s. Ask the female CEO who once might have been assigned to the secretarial pool if nothing's changed. Ask your gay friend if it's easier to be out and proud in America now than it was thirty years ago. To deny this progress, this hard-won progress --- our progress --- would be to rob us of our own agency, our own capacity, our responsibility to do what we can to make America better."
...
"We know the march is not yet over. We know the race is not yet won. We know that reaching that blessed destination where we are judged, all of us, by the content of our character requires admitting as much, facing up to the truth. "We are capable of bearing a great burden," James Baldwin once wrote, "once we discover that the burden is reality and arrive where reality is.""

#Selma50

The Spocked Fiver

As ridiculously hipster as this is:
I've owned a "Spocked" Fiver since "before they were cool."
I received this 5$ bill while working at DQ in Carlyle. Back in around 2005-6, I think. Props to the individual who first coloured my hero on to the Sir. Laurier that graced this old-style fiver. It was in my wallet for many years before being moved into a box of odds and ends for safe-keeping. As you can see, because it is the old paper-style bill, the ink has seeped into the bill over time.
I had forgotten about it until suddenly the Spocked Canadian Five became an internet sensation.
Canadians can be fantastic people, can't they!?

To see one example of the recent trend: http://sourcefed.com/canadians-awesomely-commemorate-leonard-nimoy-by-spocking-their-5-bills/

Everything looks a little different from the outside looking in...

A snap-shot of world headlines:

• Iranian backed Iraqi soldiers press to take back Tikrit from the Islamic State (IS). Iraqi's and the world react to IS demolishing the archaeological site of Nimrud.
• North Korea (DPRK) launched two nuclear missiles in to the Sea of Japan, Japan has lodged a formal UN complaint - this is not the DPRK's first act of this kind in response to US-South Korean military exercises in the region.
• The death of Russian opposition leader and former Kremlin official, Boris Nemtsov highlights the growing dissent and crackdown between the current Russian government and their people.
• American politics are split over Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's visit to Congress calling out President Obama's efforts to work with Iran on their Nuclear policy.
• The Conservative Party of Canada is under fire (and rightly so) for publishing fear-mongering images regarding IS threats to Canada while seeking to stir up support for Bill-C51, a bill that could put Canadian freedoms at risk.

I recently read something that I would like to share in response to all of this news and conflict:

“From out there on the Moon, international politics look so petty. You want to grab a politician by the scruff of the neck and drag him a quarter of a million miles out and say, ‘Look at that, you son of a bitch.’”

Edgar Mitchel, Astronaut, 1974.

Let's be realistic about the politicisation of this issue. This is an blatant act of fear-mongering and should not be the public face of a governing party.

Post by Conservative Party of Canada - Parti conservateur du Canada.

Here is the original article: "West Edmonton Mall named in Al-Shabaab Video as Possible Target"

The quote in full is as follows:

"If just a handful of mujahedeen fighters could bring Kenya to a complete standstill for nearly a week, then imagine what a dedicated mujahedeen in the West could do to the American or Jewish-owned shopping centres across the world," ...
"What if such an attack was to occur in the Mall of America in Minnesota, or the West Edmonton Mall in Canada, or in London's Oxford Street, or any of the hundred or so Jewish-owned Westfield shopping centres dotted right across the western world?"

The question becomes, is this threat of attack coming from a real initiative to cause terrorist havoc in the named developed centres? Or is this an attempt to build upon a nation's already flourishing fear tactics?

Always be open to new possiblities

Bill Nye, after reviewing facts on GMO Foods, happily changes his stance in order to forward research in a positive and productive manner.
This is how we should all react to science that challenges our commonly held beliefs. Not with fear, but with an eagerness to understand more.

 

I have to admit, as annoying as the whole The Dress thing was over the weekend - it was great to see so many people getting really excited about science.

Krugman: Walmart's move to raise pay is a very big deal. It will likely lead to raises for millions of other workers. http://t.co/bkpnkZNai5
— Steven Greenhouse (@greenhousenyt) March 2, 2015

I just can't even begin with this one. In the words of John Stewart: "In their mind the opposite of bad isn’t good — the opposite of bad is conservative, the opposite of wrong isn't right... well, ok... but you get my point!"

Post by The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe.

Post by Samantha 'Pockets' Twietmeyer.

Post by Samantha 'Pockets' Twietmeyer.

Tim Minchin's 9 Life Lessons

Musician and Comedian, Tim Minchin, was recently awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Western Australia. He also gave this speech:

[I have edited the speech for emphasis and length. A lot of the hilarity has been removed. Please, please, PLEASE check out the full speech here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=yoEezZD71sc It is fantastic and you won't regret a second of it.]

...
Arts degrees are awesome and they help you find meaning where there is none. And let me assure you, there is none. Don’t go looking for it. Searching for meaning is like looking for a rhyme scheme in a cookbook. You won’t find it and you’ll bugger up your soufflé… I’m not an inspirational speaker. I’ve never lost a limb on a mountainside, metaphorically or otherwise, and I’m certainly not here to give career advice because, well, I’ve never really had what most people would consider a job. However I have had large groups of people listening to what I say for a quite a few years now and it has given me an inflated sense of self-importance. So I will now, at the ripe old age of 37.9, bestow upon you 9 life lessons.

1. You don’t have to have a dream. I advocate passionate dedication to the pursuit of short term goals… you never know where you might end up. Just be aware then ext worthy pursuit will probably appear in your periphery. Which is why you should be careful of long term dreams; if you focus too far in front of you, you won’t see the shiny thing out the corner of your eye.
2. Don’t seek happiness. Happiness is like an orgasm, if you think about it too much it goes away. Keep busy and aim to make someone else happy and you might get some as a side-effect.
3. Remember, it’s all luck. You are lucky to be here. You are incalculably lucky to be born… Understanding that you can’t truly take credit for your success, nor truly blame others for their failures will humble you and make you more compassionate.
4. Exercise! You think, therefore you are. But also you jog, therefore you sleep, therefore you’re not overwhelmed by existential angst. You can’t be Kant and you don’t want to be. Play a sport, do yoga, pump iron, whatever, but take care of your body. You’re going to need it… This long luxurious life ahead of you is going to make you depressed. But don’t despair; there is an inverse correlation between depression and exercise. Do it, run my beautiful intellectuals, run.
5. Be hard on your opinions. We must think critically, and not just about the ideas of others. Be hard on your beliefs. Be intellectually rigorous. Identify your biases, your prejudices, your privileges. Most of society’s arguments are kept alive by a failure to acknowledge new ones.
   By the way… please don’t make the mistake of thinking the arts and sciences are at odds with one-another. That is a recent, stupid, and damaging idea. You don’t have to be “unscientific” to make beautiful art and to write beautiful things. Science is not a body of knowledge nor a belief system. It’s just a term that describes human kind’s incremental acquisition of understanding through observation. Science is awesome. The arts and sciences need to work together to improve how knowledge is communicated.
6. Be a teacher… Teachers are the most admirable and important people in the world. You don’t have to do it forever, but if you’re in doubt about what to do be an amazing teacher… Even if you’re not a teacher, be a teacher. Share your ideas. Don’t take for granted your education. Rejoice in what you learn and spray it.
7. Define yourself by what you love. We have a tendency to define ourselves in opposition to stuff… but try to also express your passion for things you love. Be demonstrative and generous in your praise of those you admire. Send thank you cards and give standing ovations. Be “pro-“ stuff not just “anti-” stuff.
8. Respect people with less power than you. I have in the past made important decisions about people I work with, agents and producers, big decisions based largely on how they treat the wait staff in the restaurants we’re having the meeting in. I don’t care if you’re the most powerful cat in the room, I will judge you on how you treat the least powerful.
9. Don’t rush. You don’t need to already know what you’re going to do with the rest of your life… Don’t panic. Most people I know who were sure of their career path at 20 are having mid-life crises now.
   
   Life is meaningless. [This is] not a flippant assertion. I think it’s absurd, the idea of seeking meaning in the set of circumstances that happen to exist after 13.8 billion years worth of unguided events. Leave it to humans to think the universe has a purpose for them. However, I’m no nihilist, I’m not even a cynic, I am actually rather romantic. And here’s my idea of romance. You will soon be dead. Life will sometimes seem long and tough, and god it’s tiring, and you will sometimes be happy and sometimes sad, and then you’ll be old, and then you’ll be dead. There is only one sensible thing to do with this empty existence. And that is: Fill It… And in my opinion, until I change it, life is best filled by learning as much as you can about as much as you can, taking pride in whatever you’re doing, having compassion, sharing ideas, running, being enthusiastic, and then there’s wine and travel and love and sex and art and kids and giving and mountain climbing, but you know all that stuff already. It’s an incredibly exciting thing, this one meaningless life of yours. Good luck, and thank-you for indulging me.

- Tim Minchin 

Once again, for the full effect and enjoyment of this speech, watch the video:

A couple things I was reminded of this morning:

(1) People find exotic women attractive.
(2) Right-wing Americans are ignorant jack-asses.

Proof:

(1) Exotic Women:

Miss America, Nina Davuluri, is a 24-year-old of Indian descent.

Quote: “I’m so happy this organization has embraced diversity...I’m thankful there are children watching at home who can finally relate to a new Miss America.”

This is her:

   

So pretty.

This rule goes for all women as long as they are seen as exotic at the time. As a blonde caucasian I can attest to blending in quite well at a Canada day parade and yet exuding apparently stupefying attractiveness when in various foreign countries; ie: Cuba, Egypt, Italy, Greece, etc.

(2) Right-Wing Ignoramuses:

This was the gist of the twitterverse shortly after she was crowned:

- You have got to be kidding me... We have a black president, now Miss America is an ARAB. Maybe this world is really coming to an end

- Are you serious??!!! The Arab wins??!!! This is miss AMERICA!!! Not miss Arabia!!! Miss Kansas is in the army and is a country girl!!! C'mon

- I thought this was Miss America, not Miss Arab.

- Fox News host Todd Starnes tweeted: "The liberal Miss America judges won't say this - but Miss Kansas lost because she actually represented American values."

This hate is ridiculous. I'll allow for the random idiocy of people with lower IQs who just want to be heard no matter what filth spews from their mouths - but I still can't fathom the success of Fox News when these are their representatives. It really worries me.
 
Mercifully:

Miss Davuluri responded in an interview: “I have to rise above that, I always viewed myself as first and foremost American.” Because she's awesome and a reason to credit the whole Miss America thing with a little bit of class decision-making.

Also, the twitterverse is always brightened by a silver lining in these occasions. The aforementioned ignoramuses were shut down by the more lovely, supportive, and sane side of the internet by late Sunday evening. Proving that while one segment of America has lost their humanity, a much larger segment is helping them find it again.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2013/09/16/miss-america-2013-nina-davuluri_n_3933666.html

25 Random Questions

Yay! One whole year since my last post. I'm making it easy for me - 25 questions already decided and my answers.

Courtesy of randomquestions.net.

1. What is the model and make of your car?
   Volkswagen Golf-City
2. Will you vote in the coming election?
   I just voted in the civic election in my city. Yes I will always vote. But I'm Canadian so... upcoming? Probably not.
3. Which is the most beautiful city in the world?
   Impossible to say. I have traveled many cities and they all have absolutely beautiful parts and absolutely terrible parts. Even Naples, which, once you climbed as high out of the trash city as possible, had its own hidden beauty.
   
4. Have you ever seen any of the big five African animals?
   Lions and Leapords and Elephants, Oh My! I don't think I've ever seen a Rhino or a Cape Buffalo. Then again, maybe I have and I don't remember...
   
5. What is your dream vacation destination?
   I still haven't made it to Egypt or Germany. They're both pretty high on my list. But in my dreams I see a lonely beach stretching out into blue water with absolutely no one around.
6. What type of reader are you?
   I don't read so much as I devour. Largely sci-fi/fantasy. Mostly fiction.
7. What is your favorite mode of transport and why?
   I love to walk/run. Unfortunately it's often difficult to manage when laden with bags and boxes. Then I love my car.
   
8. Have you ever been betrayed by someone you trusted?
   I will say yes - but it's not as if those betrayals led to distress, sadness, or jail.
9. Do you believe in love at first sight?
   Nope. But I'm still hoping for it!
   
10. Have you ever committed a serious crime?
    2 Words: Plausible Deniability
11. Will you rather die or get imprisoned for 100 years?
    I enjoy that this question is a "will" instead of a "would." Also, it would definitely depend on the prison.
12. Which football team do you support and why?
    Man-U!! (Totally a sheep in that regard).
13. Would you rather give or receive?
    Give. Christmas is the only time of year I love going shopping.
14. Do you believe in luck or fate?
    Luck. And hard work.
15. Does patience pay?
    Most of the time - yes. But when the light turns amber, take that left turn!
16. What was your favorite subject in high school?
    English.
17. What is the career you wanted to pursue but didn’t?
    Architecture.
18. Will you rather be slim or obese?
    Are we talking "slim-fit" or "slim-anorexic" here? Slim I guess, but I like a bit of meat on my bones and padding for the winter months.
19. Will you rather be tall or short?
    I like my height. Tall.
20. Can you live without access to the internet?
    I have done it, so yes. But I certainly wouldn't recommend it.
21. Can money buy happiness?
    Nope.
22. Education vs wealth? Which one will you rather have?
    Education hands down. Ignorance and wealth are the two blights on our society.
23. What is the biggest factor that influences the decisions you make?
    My parents. Their choices, experiences, and advice.
24. Which team sport do you watch most?
    Depends where I am. In Ireland it was Rugby. In Saskatchewan it's Rider Football.
25. What will you do to please someone you love?
    Support them when they need it. Scold them when they deserve it.

Election Season! AKA An Exercise in Insanity

I was planning on blogging more during the election to try and give a little campaign insight.

What I found was that the only campaign insight that I have to deliver to the fine people who are wandering around the streets of Saskatchewan amused or bemused by the orange and green displays of party affiliation is that campaigns redefine insanity.

Don't get me wrong, I love my job.

I love my party (go NDP!). I love the debate with other parties (ok Sask Party, I'll listen to what you have to say... if I have to...)***

I enjoy that issues that are faced by many of the citizens of Saskatchewan are being brought to the public in a more meaningful way than the appearance of angry agitators with an axe to grind.

I also enjoy the crazy paper-flying-everywhere, fast-talking, java-infused, red-eyed office I have come to call home.

I don't mind that I could not find myself a minute of time to blog my personal thoughts about any of this while campaigning for the hearts and minds of Saskatchewan's people. It is just non-stop. As it should be.

On the other hand my twitter's been working overtime :) 

So what I will say is that for those of you who are not aware - campaign's are super hard work. There are so many little and big people at work in the great machine. In the case of the NDP the volunteers and donations are THE MOST important factors in any of our success. Without them we'd probably be campaign-less as they are the people with the signs, knocking on the doors when the candidate can not, handing out the information, and funding our media campaign to get out the message. 

For some reason, the administration assistant of the Party Office is expected to complete the ridiculously unrealistic job of somehow knowing everything that each of these random individuals across our province are up to currently and have been up to in campaigns past, as well as every intricate detail of the platform and of course be the point of contact for every constituency's campaign office to reach the central campaign.

Who would want such an impossible position, I do not know. 

But it's mine. And despite everything, 

I love it.

*** I'm kidding about the reluctance to talk with the Sask Party folks - that's what I want to do. A strong government has strong opposition - otherwise how would the other voices be heard. I may not agree with the political perspective of the Sask Party but I'm certain they genuinely want to do good for Saskatchewan and would expect them to show my ideas the same respect I show them... but perhaps I'm just naive to expect that during an election season.

PS: GET OUT AND VOTE NOVEMBER 7TH!!!!

No Man is an Island

For those of you today who are thinking on the tragic loss of talented singer Amy Winehouse or a close friend or loved one who has been lost in the past day; 
For those of you who are horror-struck by the loss of 91 lives in Oslo; 
and,
For those of you who are unable to forget the hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children lost each day in Africa and around the world from starvation, sanitation, war, and violence, think on these immortal words from poet John Donne: 

No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thine own
Or of thine friend's were.
Each man's death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.
Therefore, send not to know
For whom the bell tolls,
It tolls for thee.

In other words, every life lost in this earth is a loss to the world and thus a loss to you. Every individual death diminishes you and I because we are all part of the whole.
No one today should be playing the greater-than, less-than game with the tragedies being suffered by the world because each loss is equal at the individual level. 
Mourn as you will, but keep in mind:
 (1) The hatred and fear of difference that led to the shooting and bombing in Oslo is ever-present in your own society. You can best serve the victims of the tragedy by fighting that fear and hatred in your own communities and in your own homes.
 (2) The addiction that ultimately claimed the life of Amy Winehouse claims lives each and every day around the world and is a societal problem as much as it is an individual's problem. Look around at the ignorance surrounding addiction in your own society and think on the situation that leads to drug-use and eventual overdose.
 (3) The world's consumption that fuels our economic growth also fuels violence against nature and our fellow man. The resource-rich continent of Africa has suffered generations of this abuse. Because people are so poor and ill-equipped they cannot find clean water or grow food. They cannot afford drugs to tame rampant disease. What little resources there are to be had are the spoils of warring factions that abuse and murder their people. These issues are present at home as well in the people who become victims of poverty in our own society.

No man is an island...
... Send not to know for whom the bell tolls.
It tolls for thee. 

Canada's East-West Politics

Basically, the City of Edmonton and the Province of Alberta spent $3.5 million dollars on their bid to host the 2017 World's Fair (Expo), but in the fall of 2010, the Federal Government withdrew their support citing a lack of security initiatives in the budget. The Feds had been asked to chip in about $706 million to assist the Expo's $2.3 billion budget.

Why are we talking about this now?? Well, a fact-finding mission to uncover the details of the reports as they addressed this issue last fall revealed that the government's initial view of the proposal was that it was "solid, comprehensive and professional." Of course it is likely true that security concerns were not budgeted for properly, and the lessons of security frmo the G8, G20, and Olympics held in the nation in recent years only serve to embolden the point. But the comment that stood out in the documents uncovered was the warning that: "An anchor in Western Canada could lead to a request for a largescale expenditure in Eastern Canada."

Yes, the old east versus west question. Thus, the headlines read: "Ottawa killed Expo bid over eastern jealousy." And, "Envy kills bid for Expo 1017."

And truthfully there is some merit in blaming the green-eyed-monster for the final decision. We'll ignore for now that the decision came when the notion of a possible Federal election in the coming months was not completely out of the question and thus it played well into drumming Eastern support. Instead, let's look at the reasoning for hosting the Expo.

1. Canada's already done it twice, Montreal 1967 and Vancouver 1986.
2. Montreal has been compared to Edmonton's bid because it fell on Canada's 100th birthday year and 2017 will be Canada's 150th. In 1967, Montreal became a focal point for Canadians to celebrate the 100th anniversary and as yet there is no equivalent for 2017.
3. 2017 is almost 6 years away, plenty of time to organize a better budget for security concerns and fundraise the necessary mony required for the multi-billion dollar project.
4. Expos are nationally and internationally supported events. They bring in massive tourism and deliver investment and devleopment opportunities for businesses and companies across the country.
5. Expos put countries on the world map for a significant amount of time. Some even leave lasting impressions years later (i.e. the Crystal Palace, the Eiffel Tower, the Space Needle).

The oddest thing for me as a political junkie is that this appears to be a standard case of the West getting ditched for the gain of a few votes in th East - except that we're supposed to have a conservative, west-supporting government in power. We're supposed to be pulling through the economic crisis A-OK because our government is so fiscally responsible. We're supposed to be coming together as a country. But all three of these notions have been negated by the recent report, (which states that the country's economy is in a fragile state - notice that this is only mentioned when it befits a federal decision because otherwise we're going strong!).

Also, the concern that a billion dollar expenditure in the West would result in cries from the East is actually a little immature. The Expo would bring benefit nationally and would be a source of pride for all the provinces no matter where it was held. The financial burden to the city of Edmonton alone should be enough to discourage jealous cries from the East. One good example of this is the fact that Montreal supported the bid.

Still, I will allow that the government made a reasonable decision if they are willing to admit that the national debt deserves attention and a billion dollars (which over six years is $170 million per year) could go well to handling that issue.

CTV Edmonton: Feds liked Edmonton's bid, but still pulled support
CBC: Ottawa killed Expo bid over eastern jealousy
Montreal Gazette: Envy kills bid for Expo 2017

Arendtianism?

I really like my random quote of the day today. It's from Hannah Arendt (who is most notable in my field for being the author of the Eichman in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil).

It goes:

"Forgiveness is the key to action and freedom."

Take a breath and quickly move past the "uh... duh" knee-jerk response you just had. I know it, I thought it too. I thought, "what a great sentiment, of course forgiveness is the key to action and freedom! Nice to see someone is publicizing the notion." And then I proceeded to move on.
But then I didn't move on. No, I stopped to ponder my "ya, and birds fly and the sky's blue" reaction to the simple statement.

If you break it down, "forgiveness" becomes more than a checked off box on the list of life. What is forgiveness? How do you show forgiveness? How do you receive forgiveness? Is it in the possession of the forgiver to give or can it be earned by the one who needs it? More than all of this, how important really is it to forgive and be forgiven?

If you check with the many sects religious faith you'll probably find out that it is God's gift, Him alone can show it and give it, and you must show Him love and repentance to get it. It is the all-important feature of the Christian faith as it is literally the "key" to heavens gate.

But we're not going to go with that cop-out. No, we're pondering forgiveness in Hannah Arendt's world, where "men, not Man, live on the earth and inhabit the world." (A central thought from her work, The Human Condition." This makes the idea a whole bucket-load of complicated because it comes down to the interactions of two individuals. Two people who may have completely different opinions about right and wrong, circumstances and events, and what forgiveness is and is not.

If it is the "key" to action and the "key" to freedom, then it must be pretty important. It must have some practical use. It must be understandable. (It must have a guide book, down-loadable free from Google docs.)

No such luck. (Maybe I'm spelling it wrong?)

No, I'm sure you'll find no such guide-book exists. (But it's Google. Everything exists on Google.)

I think you'll find this is not that easy to... (See?! Here, I found a definition for forgiveness: "compassionate feelings that support a willingness to forgive.")

OK, well what does it mean to forgive? Does it explain that? (OK, wait, wait! How about this one: "Forgiveness is typically defined as the process of concluding resentment, indignation or anger as a result of a perceived offense, difference or mistake, and/or ceasing to demand punishment or restitution." Sounds basic enough.)

Uh, well actually that's not bad. But it's not quite setting the parameters for forgiveness. For example, should the other individual see themselves as needing to be forgiven, or is that not a requirement? Or, can one truly forgive just by "ceasing to demand punishment" or do they have to no longer feel anger as well. And where in all this does the saying "forgive but never forget" fit?

A really great test case would be Arendt's work on Adolf Eichmann. He did not feel he needed to be forgiven because he did not perceive his own actions to be in offense. Could the Jewish public holding him to account for his crimes have forgiven him without delivering corporal punishment when he did not seek their forgiveness? Is it possible to come to terms as an individual regardless of the 'other'?
(Hold on, the Google instant just froze... how do you spell Eichmann?)

[headdesk].

My personal response to these questions would be that I hope people can learn to forgive with or without the showing of repentance of the perpetrator or opposing 'other' because I too believe forgiveness to be the key to freedom. Only after you forgive as an individual can you move on to the next stage of your journey in life and let go of the past. One must be able to forgive in order to function in life or they would be dragged down by all the little gremlins that scratch and scrape at the edges. Grudges and acts of vengeance are the roadblocks, the weight on our shoulders that can grow too heavy to bear if we're not careful.

I also understand that there is a part of the individual that needs to receive forgiveness from time to time. This is where things get a whole lot more complicated. Requiring forgiveness means having to somehow earn that forgiveness from another individual. One who may not see the world as you do. One who may not see forgiveness as so very important in life. Yet without this forgiveness you might develop your own weights that prevent you from moving forward, taking action, and being free. In this more than ever can the inter-play of the human condition be seen.

I say, don't blanket the words of Hannah Arendt with a generalized "well everyone knows that already but show me someone who's successfully lived it."Don't worry, I won't retort with obvious examples from Gandhi to Martin Luther King, Jr. What I will do is urge you to quit looking to other examples and find it in your own life. Where has forgiveness helped, or its lack of presence hindered, your journey of life, your freedom?

The Sci-Fi Guide to Dissertation Writing

The Sci-Fi Guide to Dissertation Writing

By:  To Do: Dissertation


For all you dissertation writing sci-fi fans out there, I know these quotes have probably already brought you encouragement.  For everyone else, consider the following motivational statements from famous science fiction texts:

“Roads? Where we’re going we don’t need roads.” (Doc Brown, Back to the Future)
No matter how many papers you’ve written, writing a long manuscript like the dissertation will test your writing and thinking skills in new ways.  There will be no road map for how to proceed.  There won’t even by any roads to mark your path.  The whole point of your dissertation is that it is uncharted territory.

“Do or do not.  There is no try.” (Yoda, Empire Strikes Back)
The bottom line is that you are going to have to write your dissertation in the end.  No one else can do it for you.  Stop procrastinating.  Stop feeling sorry for yourself.  Just write it.  Sit down.  Pick up a pen.  Power up your computer.  Start stringing some words together.  You’ll finish it faster than you think.

“Life? Don’t talk to me about life!” (Marvin the Paranoid Android, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy)
The dissertation doesn’t have to be isolating if you don’t want it to be, but there may be times that you choose to isolate yourself so that you can forge ahead.  If you do choose to focus on your dissertation at the expense of some other aspects of your life, just remember that your dissertation won’t last forever.

“To boldly go where no one has gone before.” (Star Trek)
Take pride in the uniqueness of your dissertation.  You are creating a new path in the academic wilderness.  Or, if you prefer, the academic galaxy.  Have courage, be bold, and trust your instincts.  You are the best person to be working on your project – no one can write it like you can!

“There is no spoon.” (Neo, The Matrix)
Whatever you thought the dissertation was – it’s not.  Think beyond the words on the page, the degree, and the hoop-jumping.  You dissertation is so much more than that.  Once you give up your preconceived notions, including all those fears and anxieties, you’ll succeed.

Discover Monaghan! Or don't. No one will really care.

Anyone visiting Ireland should definitely check out this video on YouTube and then go check out the town of Monaghan!!! (Or don't, whatever.)

Discover Monaghan - The Fun ENDS Here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2H13TtWLZTA

And while you're at it, enjoy my play-by-play facebook chat conversation with the creator of "Discover Monaghan," eviltoaster3 (AKA Stephen). My comments = bold ; His responses = ((italics))


--- Begin Film ---

a duck!

the church!

a dump or truck site or something!
((Ah great, live commentary. This should prove to be amusing.))

it IS the little town on the way to Dublin!
((I think that sentence would be much much better if you had of capitalised the the instead of the is.))

I like the looks of the mental hospital - could be cozy
((And apparently, that should be mental institution...))

ah - in need of some politically correct correction are we?

MY town has a hole in the ground too!
((Yeah but that's probably from a meteor or explosion or something. That one is from someone's wise idea to build an underground carpark and then go bankrupt halfway through it.))

why is the roundabout 'magic'?
((I actually have no idea, hence the inverted commas.))

ah the ole waterless swimming hole
((It's closed because the roof was caving in. No joke.))

--- Brief interruption for trip to Mason's for drinking and debauchery.
Good Times!
End of Interruption!! ---

From Monaghan's gift shop of used bottles to "should you injure yourself" = nice segue!
(( Well you see, there's been controversy here about our hospital continuously losing services for years now and I've been informed that one of the alternative hospitals I mentioned is getting closed as well. ))

Classy is defined by a bar named the "lost and found"
(( Lost and Found closed and moved 5 miles over the border so they could sell drink cheaper. Ironically, it actually was the best pub here and it probably was the classiest too. ))


aaaaand creepy ending - who's that wacko sitting on the church steps anyway?!
(( No one has gotten what the end references. It's a bit of an obscure movie but still...and I suppose I am a bit of a wacko. ))


-- End Film --


P.S. Can't wait till my parents get here for our Ireland road trip - absolutely spending time in Monaghan!!!! I'll let you know when :):)
(( Yes the offer to come here still stands although I'm surprised you would after watching that video. ))

(( P.S. If you really want to show your love then you should post the video to your page or blog or something!! ))

Done and done!