Wow, time has flied so fast!
It was 15 years ago when I started this blog.
I wrote about the circumstances that led me to start this blog on my one-decade anniversary blog post which you can read at
https://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2013/10/1-decade-anniversary-of-this-blog.html
Anyways, lots of things have changed in those 15 years!
Back then, things like YouTube, facebook, twitter didn't even exist yet! But now, they're the center of many news reports and basically the center of mainstream life!
Back then, the word "viral" still focused on diseases! The word now refers to anything widely shared on YouTube, facebook and twitter (as I mentioned, didn't exist yet when I started my blog).
My blog was basically something I shared with friends.
I was also thinking, just in case I become a celebrity, my blog is my one-stop shop for people to hear my side of the story!
I'm still not a real celebrity [ still working on it 😉 ] but you never know when it's going to come! In this age of "viral", people become celebrities when they least expect it! At least with my blog, people don't have to guess how I really think about things, they can just refer to my blog!
And now that we have facebook and twitter, I could use those tools to advertise my blog post and bring it to a larger audience.
And with facebook, long-lost classmates/friends/co-worker can be updated on how I think about things! And yes, they read my blog posts!
And with YouTube, I have another way to speak to the world. I could speak to people who aren't interested in reading long blog posts but are willing to watch a video!
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Also within the 15-year time-frame, my life circumstances and some opinions do change.
Back in 2003, I was 23 years old and still an undergraduate student at UH-Manoa. This "real world" that older people talk about? What is that?
Since then, I've started working different jobs in very different work environments, with the main one being a substitute teacher (that one started in 2005). That means I had serious role model responsibilities, for which I really had to mature! Some perspectives, attitudes and behaviors had to change!
Which was why some former classmates were shocked when I no longer had the same attitudes and opinions that I had when I was a student in high school.
So yes, you might notice that some blog posts from 2003 and the few following years will have opinions that are different from what I express in recent years.
Part of that is growth & maturity, but part of that is also the changing world around us.
Back in 2003, we were only a few years after 9/11 so the trauma was still recent. Also, the president was George W. Bush, who while pursuing an aggressive foreign policy, also advocated for a more lenient immigration policy. Because I was appreciative of his advocacy of a more lenient immigration policy, I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt! For that, I was accused by some of being "conservative" even though I was more of a semi-libertarian even though I was a product of various government programs. As you could tell, it's hard to put a label on my socio-political viewpoints.
Fast forward 15 years, and we now have Donald Trump as president. Whereas Bush wanted a more lenient immigration policy, Trump's opening statement of his campaign demanded a stricter immigration policy and demonized Latin American immigrants with some weasel words said afterwards. Racists felt empowered by Trumps' rantings. Abusive immigration enforcement has increased! Also, add that Trump has been exposed as a sexual predator, and that doesn't bother his supporters at all!
Needless to say, I have become more pessimistic about USA's direction over the past 15 years.
I have become a supporter of Hawaii's independence. Totally different from back when I had USA flag pin on my shirt after 9/11.
Some opinions stayed the same over the years. I still believe people should be judged as individuals instead of as members of groups (ie. race, gender, etc). I still want more lenient laws on marijuana, gambling and prostitution and I still want more harsh punishment for violent criminals. I still have the same opinion on abortion & gun policy. I still think capitalism is a great though imperfect economic system.
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Some people might ask "why you put so much stuff on your blog, aren't you worried about how people might react?"
What do you mean "so much stuff"?
Actually, there's so much stuff I was planning to blog about, but haven't had the time to add it to my blog!
Of course I think of how people are going to react. Everyone does!
But you have to take risks in life! You can't satisfy everyone!
If you're not telling your story, someone else who don't have your best interests at heart will tell the world your story from their point of view.
That's not something you want to risk in a "viral" world, where people have their 15-minutes of fame when they least expect it!
People can write what they want about me, I can still write my side of the story!
