http://www.wired.com/science/planetearth/magazine/15-08/ff_pollution
Beijing, the chosen grounds for the summer 2008 olympics, is filled with smog and pollution. It isn't uncommon for the air to be so polluted that citizens are warned not to go outside without face masks. The very young and old are warned of going outside into the smog even with masks. This article sums up the problem: Beijing was chosen under the pretense that it would change its ways and become an ecological city. yeah right. A few of the new stadiums and facilities employ green energy systems: rain-catching systems and solar panels, but it's all just for show. As skyscrapers go up on every street corner and thousands of cars are put on the street everyday, carbon emissions are continuing to skyrocket. What a terrible place for the olympics. It may have been a good idea in 2002, when Beijing was decided to be the location. Who knows, maybe it could have sparked an interest in the people and government there to change their ways (not that it would have changed ours) but it didn't. It failed, and now thousands of athletes are going to be running, cycling, and swimming in pollution. I guess we had better get used to the idea of breathing in smog, most "liberal" and "green" people I know aren't willing to make any changes in their lives either. Driving a car is too convenient and remembering to turn the house lights off is too much of an inconvenience.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
1.2 million murdered
http://www.opinion.co.uk/Newsroom_details.aspx?NewsId=78
This isn't a new article, but I came across it while searching for the number of Iraqi casualties. I was and still am shocked at the number. I thought the number killed was reaching 1 million, maybe 800 or 900 thousand. According to this study, the number may be even higher, at 1.4 million. I think it is inhuman when US media only covers US deaths. What is 3 or 4 thousand compared to this?
This isn't a new article, but I came across it while searching for the number of Iraqi casualties. I was and still am shocked at the number. I thought the number killed was reaching 1 million, maybe 800 or 900 thousand. According to this study, the number may be even higher, at 1.4 million. I think it is inhuman when US media only covers US deaths. What is 3 or 4 thousand compared to this?
stressed out students
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/29/education/29stress.html?_r=1&oref=slogin
The principle of Needham High School, Paul Richards, has been getting heat in the form of hate mail and mockery for trying to reduce the stress of his students. After four Needham students committed suicide, the school district began its search for reducing stress. The Stress Reduction Committee isn't lowering expectations for students, it is finding healthy, realistic opportunities and goals for students to aim for. Instead of packing on an unhealthy schedule of strictly AP classes, sports teams, and student groups, the committee is aiming to reduce the workload of struggling students. The school isn't publishing where seniors are going to college in the yearbook because it has caused students in the past to lie, ashamed at the state schools they were about to attend. Yoga and relaxation classes are being taught as well.
The principle of Needham High School, Paul Richards, has been getting heat in the form of hate mail and mockery for trying to reduce the stress of his students. After four Needham students committed suicide, the school district began its search for reducing stress. The Stress Reduction Committee isn't lowering expectations for students, it is finding healthy, realistic opportunities and goals for students to aim for. Instead of packing on an unhealthy schedule of strictly AP classes, sports teams, and student groups, the committee is aiming to reduce the workload of struggling students. The school isn't publishing where seniors are going to college in the yearbook because it has caused students in the past to lie, ashamed at the state schools they were about to attend. Yoga and relaxation classes are being taught as well.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Suicide
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/14/world/asia/14china.html?pagewanted=2&ref=world
This story is a perfect example of how we are killing ourselves and the planet in order to make a quick buck. China's huge Lake Tai has become so polluted from the chemical factories surrounding it that the 2 million local inhabitants can no longer drink from it, which is there main water source. The government, which is being controlled by corporations and money (4/5 of local tax revenue comes from chemical plants), is more focused on throwing environmentalists behind bars than solving the problem. It's easy to look at China and say "wow, what a backwards communist country," when in fact we are just as messed up as them. While we complain about them not caring about pollution or the environment, our population-which is 4.5 times smaller than China's-uses more energy. We're all killing ourselves.
kennett
This story is a perfect example of how we are killing ourselves and the planet in order to make a quick buck. China's huge Lake Tai has become so polluted from the chemical factories surrounding it that the 2 million local inhabitants can no longer drink from it, which is there main water source. The government, which is being controlled by corporations and money (4/5 of local tax revenue comes from chemical plants), is more focused on throwing environmentalists behind bars than solving the problem. It's easy to look at China and say "wow, what a backwards communist country," when in fact we are just as messed up as them. While we complain about them not caring about pollution or the environment, our population-which is 4.5 times smaller than China's-uses more energy. We're all killing ourselves.
kennett
Myanmar profits
I read this article a few weeks and saved it to write about later.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/world/asia/01cnd-asia.html?hp
While the monks of Myanmar are being thrown in jail and run over by tanks, the surrounding countries are looking away. Thailand doesn't see anything wrong with a military dictatorship beating down peaceful protesters. Especially when you consider that they wouldn't be able to see anything if they did oppose Myanmar's actions; they'd be left blind in the dark. Myanmar supplies 20% of Thailand's electricity needs with exports of natural gas.
Among other friendly neighbors that only have the best intentions for Myanmar are: China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and India. They all profit from Myanmar's hardwoods, other exports, and the market of its 50 million people. In fact, China and Russia have been so grateful of the hard working Myanmarians that they have soled them the weapons that the military government is using against its people. Russia even sold Myanmar its very own nuclear test reactor. What better way to reward such a responsible and successful government than the beginning technology to create nuclear weapons? Profit always prevails.
kennett
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/world/asia/01cnd-asia.html?hp
While the monks of Myanmar are being thrown in jail and run over by tanks, the surrounding countries are looking away. Thailand doesn't see anything wrong with a military dictatorship beating down peaceful protesters. Especially when you consider that they wouldn't be able to see anything if they did oppose Myanmar's actions; they'd be left blind in the dark. Myanmar supplies 20% of Thailand's electricity needs with exports of natural gas.
Among other friendly neighbors that only have the best intentions for Myanmar are: China, Malaysia, Singapore, South Korea, and India. They all profit from Myanmar's hardwoods, other exports, and the market of its 50 million people. In fact, China and Russia have been so grateful of the hard working Myanmarians that they have soled them the weapons that the military government is using against its people. Russia even sold Myanmar its very own nuclear test reactor. What better way to reward such a responsible and successful government than the beginning technology to create nuclear weapons? Profit always prevails.
kennett
17 innocent deaths????
All of the news about the Blackwater shootings/murders that have been going on for the past few weeks are a sign that Americans are finally getting fed up with the war. Obviously innocent people have been getting killed over the last 5 years. There aren't 900,000+ dead "terrorists" thanks to the US military. I guess US citizens are pretty stupid. Who do they think the US army/private contractors have been killing all these years? People's ignorance on this matter astounds me. In fact, most of my friends don't have a clue about how many Iraqis we've killed, or that there are even private contractors in Iraq. I have never supported the war or "supported the troops." Why would I support people who are murdering innocent people in the name of profit for oil companies and Halibuton? Although, I can't wait for all the great action movies that are sure to spring up in a few years depicting the bravery of the righteous christian Americans fighting for good against the evil of the dark-skinned heathenous terrorists. It should be good.
Giuliani
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/15/us/politics/15giuliani.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&hp
I was stunned while reading this article, finding it strange that such a "liberal" newspaper would show a republican in a good light. But, just like the article describes how a city of liberals continued to vote for a republican, the liberal paper did him justice as well, painting him in a good light. Although, I felt like there might have been a hint of sarcasm in the writer's words.
Giuliani, one of the top republican candidates running for office in 2008, has been using his city, New York, as an example of how he took something evil, corrupt, and vile into something good. Crime was up, along with prostitution, porno shops, and drugs. LIke the homeless, he threw all that out of his city. Some "rural" republican candidates (if there is such a thing as a rural/farm boy presidential candidate) have been accusing him as a big city spender, too focused on the needs and wants of big cities.
I personally hope Giuliani wins the republican candidacy because I think he will do terrible in the overall election, therefore letting the democrats win.
I was stunned while reading this article, finding it strange that such a "liberal" newspaper would show a republican in a good light. But, just like the article describes how a city of liberals continued to vote for a republican, the liberal paper did him justice as well, painting him in a good light. Although, I felt like there might have been a hint of sarcasm in the writer's words.
Giuliani, one of the top republican candidates running for office in 2008, has been using his city, New York, as an example of how he took something evil, corrupt, and vile into something good. Crime was up, along with prostitution, porno shops, and drugs. LIke the homeless, he threw all that out of his city. Some "rural" republican candidates (if there is such a thing as a rural/farm boy presidential candidate) have been accusing him as a big city spender, too focused on the needs and wants of big cities.
I personally hope Giuliani wins the republican candidacy because I think he will do terrible in the overall election, therefore letting the democrats win.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Frustration
Today I did a lot of reading for one of my journalism classes (communication theory and criticism with Carl Bybee) about how uneven our society is, economically, and how crummy our education system is. I already knew a lot of what the articles were about, but every time I read this kind of stuff I get a little more frustrated. One statistic: the richest 225 people in the world (worth $1 trillion) have the same amount of wealth as the poorest 2.5 billion people. Another statistic: 1% of the US' richest people control 40% of the nation's wealth; the next richest 19% control 45% of the wealth, and the poorest 80% of the population controls a mere 15%. Usually I don't believe statistics are great in arguments and they can almost never stand alone without explaining why they are important, but in this case they work. I was disgusted. These economic "gap-crisis" articles tied in to the education articles. The rich get the tax cuts, the poor get poorer, and the nation cuts social programs like education so that the masses can continue to dumb down. Finally the poor have nothing to look forward to but dying and going to a magical place up in the clouds. I know this has been going on for thousands of years all over the world, but it just pisses me off. What's the point of studying history when we continue to keep making the same planned "mistakes"?
After reading all this sickening information, I went to the class and Professor Bybee lectured on the monster that capitalism is and the terrors that it has inflicted on our society, sucking the life out of 99.999% of Americans, trampling the third world countries, and polluting the world. He didn't actually say that, but basically throughout the entire class I could feel my blood pressure rising. This is usually the stuff I like to talk about, things that interest me. I should feel motivated to DO something about it, but lately it has just been pissing me off to the point where I don't want to have anything to do with this damn country. Apparently Dick Cheney hasn't been getting my suggestions that I keep sending him via email.
And to top the day off (it was already a stressful day and all this political stuff just made it that much worse) I went home to read the Oregonian. After reading the 2 articles about Blackwater, the budget cuts to children's mental health care, the unsuccessful and tempered protesters calling for impeachment (and the pannzy democrats in office that don't want to upset the republicans), and the logging companies contributing hundreds of thousands of dollars to fight measure 49 and finish turning the world into a parking lot, I decided to skip to the food section. Food always makes me happy, so I began reading about pies and I felt a whole lot better. This was also after I went into the kitchen and smashed a mug on the floor to let out some steam. This is why I don't know if I'll be able to be a good journalist. The more I learn the more angry I get. And the only "activist" thing I can think of doing in my rage is to go down W 11th and throw some rocks at Wall Mart. I see why Americans would rather read People magazine than something intelligent. Ignorance is bliss. And besides, I'm really interested to find out what Paris Hilton is up to these days...
After reading all this sickening information, I went to the class and Professor Bybee lectured on the monster that capitalism is and the terrors that it has inflicted on our society, sucking the life out of 99.999% of Americans, trampling the third world countries, and polluting the world. He didn't actually say that, but basically throughout the entire class I could feel my blood pressure rising. This is usually the stuff I like to talk about, things that interest me. I should feel motivated to DO something about it, but lately it has just been pissing me off to the point where I don't want to have anything to do with this damn country. Apparently Dick Cheney hasn't been getting my suggestions that I keep sending him via email.
And to top the day off (it was already a stressful day and all this political stuff just made it that much worse) I went home to read the Oregonian. After reading the 2 articles about Blackwater, the budget cuts to children's mental health care, the unsuccessful and tempered protesters calling for impeachment (and the pannzy democrats in office that don't want to upset the republicans), and the logging companies contributing hundreds of thousands of dollars to fight measure 49 and finish turning the world into a parking lot, I decided to skip to the food section. Food always makes me happy, so I began reading about pies and I felt a whole lot better. This was also after I went into the kitchen and smashed a mug on the floor to let out some steam. This is why I don't know if I'll be able to be a good journalist. The more I learn the more angry I get. And the only "activist" thing I can think of doing in my rage is to go down W 11th and throw some rocks at Wall Mart. I see why Americans would rather read People magazine than something intelligent. Ignorance is bliss. And besides, I'm really interested to find out what Paris Hilton is up to these days...
Monday, October 1, 2007
$$Myanmar$$
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/02/world/asia/01cnd-asia.html?hp
article idea for this week.
article idea for this week.
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