Today is my 31st birthday, and that means it's time for my annual birthday blog post, giving my readers an update on my life!
Within the last 12 months there has been some changes in my life!
1) Professional Changes
Last year, at this time, I was working 2 positions in the education systems. I was working a part-time para-professional tutor (PPT) position (2-3 times a week) at Niu Valley Middle School (NVMS). On the other days, I continued working as a substitute teacher!
I am no longer working the tutor position at NVMS. However, I'm currently working the same position at Palolo Elementary School (PES). I'm still eligible to continue working as a substitute teacher on the other days I'm not at PES.
While I do enjoy my work as a PPT and a substitute teacher, I only get paid for the days I'm able to work! While that works out great during the school year, it's totally non-revenue during school vacations!
Let's put it this way - I spent 7 weeks during the summer as totally unemployed! Toward the last month of the summer vacation, I did some temporary labor work for Labor Ready, basically as a legal day-laborer!
-----
I also re-applied to work at Macy's!
A year ago, I had absolute zero-experience with retail work!
Wanting some extra-income during last year's winter vacation, I applied and got hired for a holiday seasonal job at Kahala Mall! I was a recovery associate, meaning that I fold clothes, put stuff away, and assisted customers. It was a fun job, but it was only temporary.
At the end of January 2011, I had my exit interview! I was also informed that Macy's headquarters had eliminated all recovery associate positions!
In the summer, I did apply again for various jobs within the Macy's organization. I got hired for part-time sales associate position at a different Macy's store! Now, this time, I'm working the cash register!
2) Finally starting on my Master's!
I want to continue working in the school system, but I'm tired of the non-paid vacations associated with being a PPT and a substitute teacher. I want a job within the system that comes with a higher salary and benefits! It's also time that I take on a job with more responsibilities!
So, I'm about to started my Masters degree program at the University of Phoenix! This program will be in Elementary Education. My goal is to eventually become a full-time elementary teacher, hopefully with upper-elementary students!
This program involves 1 night-class a week! That might sound easy, but it also involves writing papers and doing research.
And doing all this with while still being employed in my current jobs.
But in order to get ahead in life, sacrifices need to be made! You don't get something for nothing!
But if everything goes to plan, in a few years, I'll get my master's and will be working as a full-time teacher! I'll be getting paid better than I do now, and also have vacation benefits! :)
3) Another sign I'm getting old
I'm starting to lose hair. I got a mini-bald spot, and you can see my hair thinning up front!
I still got my hair long, but that's because I won't be able to do so much longer.
My older brothers already lost their hair!
It's gotta be from the European side of the family.
Hair-loss is said to be inherited from the mother's side of the family tree!
And my mother's side of the family has more European DNA than my father's side.
While my mother is Puerto Rican (with Spanish and native DNA), she's also Portuguese and German. A lot lighter skin than me! Her brothers all experience hair-loss!
My father has some European DNA from his father, a Mexican soldier with Spanish ancestry! But my father's mother is purely of Native Mexican ancestry (Zapotec tribe to be more specific). And my dad has no sign of hair loss! More evidence of hair-loss being inherited from the mom's side! After all, there isn't much hair loss if your mom isn't of European ancestry!
My dad did once said "too much shampoo can bring hair loss, just use regular soap on your hair". Well, don't mind getting rid of my chest and back hairs (more inheritance from the European DNA) so I decided to experiment with using shampoo on my body hair, and use regular soap on my head hairs!
The way things are working out, "shampoo vs regular soap" got nothing to do with it! I'm stuck with European hair traits (ie too much on the front & back, but not enough on top). My father just happened to have less European DNA than me!
Enjoy my long hair while it lasts!
4) Birthdays vs the Party Poopers
I've recently heard a former classmate say something like "Who celebrates their 31st birthday!? Seriously though, I'm not much of a birthday person past thirty........... I'm also not sure if I'm up for celebrating birthdays anymore, other than for, you know, kids"
Well, that guy is entitled to his opinion!
Here's mine!
Birthdays are a reminder to celebrate life!
If you want to spend your birthday home alone, wallowing in self-pity, grievances and insecurities, you have the right to do so! I also have the right to think that's very pathetic!
Look, anyone who read my more personal blog posts knows I didn't always have it easy! (see http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2010/10/my-first-3-decades-of-life.html for examples) But I also realize other people have it worse!
Look, even in Haiti, with all its disasters, poverty and violence, people still find the time to celebrate fesitivites. Most of the greatest US party jams comes from the urban ghettos. The Israelis don't stop partying, even though nearly all of them have been traumatized by terrorism!
If they can celebrate life, WHAT IS YOUR EXCUSE FOR ALWAYS ACTING LIKE A PROFESSIONAL VICTIM?
WHAT IS YOUR EXCUSE FOR YOUR "EVERYTHING SUCKS" ATTITUDE?
WHAT IS YOUR EXCUSE FOR BEING AN ENERGY VAMPIRE? (meaning someone who sucks up everyone else's energy by constantly having long depressing conversations about the negative things in life!Or even worse, constantly asking YOU about your problems!)
WHAT IS YOUR EXCUSE FOR NOT CELEBRATING LIFE AT LEAST ONCE A YEAR?
==
Also, that guy's attitude of "I'm also not sure if I'm up for celebrating birthdays anymore, other than for, you know, kids" shows that he has an attitude of "birthdays are for kids".
Well, ever notice that kids (even though they don't have much control of life) ARE NOT ASHAMED TO ENJOY LIFE? That they can play around and smile at ease?
Too many adults have been so traumatized (or at least irritated) by so much of their life, that they forget to celebrate the joys that life can bring!
A few friends, great food, fun activities are what birthdays are all about! That's what life should be about!
Birthdays are a reminder to celebrate! Even if they happen to be an odd # birthday like 31!
So yeah, you can be all cynical about life!
As for me, I AM READY TO PARTY! :)
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Thursday, September 22, 2011
My letter to Congress on the Food & Drug Administration (FDA)
I do use several online services to send e-mails to Congress and other organizations. Though I rarely do post those letters to my blog, though I think I should do so more often.
This is a letter I sent via Downsize DC (http://downsizedc.org/) on the Food & Drug Administration and it's approval policies on medications. I wrote that the FDA should be more of an advisory agency instead of being the over-managing agency it is now.
============
==============
This is a letter I sent via Downsize DC (http://downsizedc.org/) on the Food & Drug Administration and it's approval policies on medications. I wrote that the FDA should be more of an advisory agency instead of being the over-managing agency it is now.
============
Make the FDA advisory, not mandatory.
I want to control what medicines I use.
I DON'T want the government to micro-manage those choices!
While I do believe there's a place for the FDA, the FDA should make advisory recommendations only. It should NOT have the power to mandate which drugs I can buy, and which I cannot.
* If pharmaceutical companies value the FDA seal of approval, then they can pay the FDA to evaluate their drugs.
* If consumers value FDA approval, then they can decide to only buy FDA-approved medications.
If the FDA's seal of approval is really so valuable, then it does NOT need to be mandatory. No coercion is necessary. Instead, the FDA should be able to sell its services through voluntary means, just like Underwriter's Laboratory does.
Consumers and doctors should be free to consult available science, and make their own decisions about which treatments to try.
All human beings are unique. Treatments that might be dangerous for one person, could be the only possible solution for another. There is zero chance that one-size-fits-all dictates can possibly account for the vastness of human variability. Patients and doctors must have the flexibility to deal with individual human uniqueness.
The FDA should serve, not rule. And Congress should do the same. Stop trying to rule me. Instead, serve me. You can do this now by introducing legislation to make the FDA advisory, NOT mandatory.
Pablo Wegesend
==============
Sunday, September 11, 2011
9/11 - 10 years later
Today, it's been 10 years since the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were attacked by hijacked planes.
1) Me on 9/11/2001
The common question that will be asked will probably be "where were you on 9/11?"
I was at University of Hawaii that time, living at the dorms!
Because of the time difference between NY and Hawaii, I was asleep when the attacks happened!
I first found out about it when my mom called me at 5:45. She mentioned that the World Trade Center blew up. At the moment, I was thinking it would've been similar to the bombing that occurred in the World Trade Center in 1993.
Only when I listened to the radio (the TV in my dorm room was screwed up at the time), when I found out it was actually airplanes that hit the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania.
Later that morning, I was in the cafeteria, when a student was concerned that a class I had with him was going to be cancelled. He also fear that Pearl Harbor might get hit again.
I had 2 classes that day. In the 1st class, the professor mentioned about the 9/11 attacks, then went on with the lesson of the day. I think it was the appropriate way to deal with it.
Acknowledge what happen, but don't let it stop everything.The 2nd class that day, the teacher just cut it short.
In that semester, I was working at the UH dorms, both the Lokelani and Lehua buildings. Coincidentally, 9/11/2001 was the 1st day I was working at the Lehua building. Hectic circumstances.
3 days after the 9/11 attacks, I was hanging out with a long-time friend. We were talking about the week's events, plus all the racist hate crimes committed against Arab Americans occurring in the mainland. Then the friend said that I better shave (at that point I didn't shave for a whole week) or someone might look at me the wrong way. (Though I am Latino, some have said I look like I'm from the Middle East, especially if I didn't shave) Needless to say, I shaved my face that night (though I kept my infamous mustache).
2) American unity after 9/11
After the 9/11 attacks, there was a big wave of patriotism. There were American flags on everyday! Tons of new flags were bought! Same for any merchandise with the USA flag on it!
It was like the stories our grandparents told us about how the nation came together during World War 2! After all the divisiveness and bitterness surrounding the Vietnam War, there was a feeling like Americans would never go back to the unity expressed during World War 2! But it happened right after 9/11!
Of course, some Radical Left wing writers and professors basically blamed America for being attacked! They got a whole bunch of hate coming at them that they didn't see coming! It was like those Radical Left wing writers and professors were stuck in 1968! But we had no patience with those whose minds were stuck in 1968!
This isn't the Vietnam War where we just but in to someone else's conflicts! Those who attacked us were based in Afghanistan! Our involvement there is totally different than our involvement in Vietnam! Most Americans understood, and those Radical Left wingers stuck in 1968 got the ridicule they deserve!
---
However, American unity seemed to decline since 9/11.
Part of it was disagreement over whether the US troops should've gone into Iraq! Iraq had zero involvement in 9/11, just like China has zero involvement in Pearl Harbor! Many felt it was a distraction from the war in Afghanistan! However, there were concerns that Iraq might still want to retaliate against the USA over our defending Kuwait from Iraqi troops back in 1991!
Other factors also caused the decline in American unity! Part of it was the anger over the slow action taken after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans! Part of it was the economic decline since the 2008 stock market crash! Part of was just war fatigue and 9/11 fatigue!
3) Anti-Muslim paranoia in Europe and North America
While the Radical Muslims have a very dangerous agenda, I still think there is too much anti-Muslim paranoia out there!
In Europe, where there are many immigrants from Muslim countries, many native Europeans are paranoid about a "Muslim takeover".
This fear has inspired Norway's white supremacist Anders Breivik to go on a shooting spree earlier this year, against those he felt were too tolerant on non-white immigrants.
Here, Gary Younge sets the record straight
http://www.thenation.com/article/162270/europes-homegrown-terrorists
[my note: that reminds me: when Sarah Palin ran for VP, she was mocked for being from a state with "hardly any black people", nevermind the same was true about "the 1st black president"! But yet, some fear a "Muslim takeover of Norway", when their presence is VERY TINY, even tinier than the presence of African-descendants in Alaska]
[When I posted a link to that article on facebook, a right-winger on my list mentioned some mullah saying
"we will take over Europe because we breed like mosquitoes."
My response was : yeah, but from the 3% they are today? 3%! Some mullah talks about "breeding like mosquitoes" but it's all talk! As the article said, even the Muslim birth-rate WITHIN Europe has been declining! So much for "breeding like mosquitoes"! And even if the jihadis in Europe do have many kids, let's remember, a lot of kids either rebel or ignore their parents! ]
More from Younge's article:
[in other words, most terrorism in Europe has more to do with folks like the IRA who want Northern Ireland to separate from the UK. Or the Basque separatists who want their land to be separate from Spain. And similar folks in other European nations]
=======
And on the Muslim population in the USA, Steve Chapman sets the record straight!
http://reason.com/archives/2011/09/08/who-really-kept-us-safe-after
(skipped paragraphs,)
In other words, despite the fear-mongering from the likes of Jerry Coffee, Michelle Maglalang Malkin, Pamela Geller and other losers, the amount of US Muslims involved in terrorism is VERY TINY!
The ones most likely to kill you are those of the same race as you! And since, most of the US population is of European ancestry, most of them are in danger of being killed by another European-American, NOT by some North African or Middle Eastern dude screaming jihad!
But it's just easier to scare people about those from a different culture!
-------
Last year, there was a debate over having a mosque being built near Ground Zero.
People claimed having a mosque near Ground Zero is "an insult" to the victims. That's bull-stuff!
For one thing, some of the victims were Muslims. In fact, in BOTH the World Trade Center AND the Pentagon, there was a prayer room for Muslim employees!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/11/nyregion/11religion.html
Did that surprise you? If you're over 18 years old and that article surprised you, then you are an EXTREMELY ignorant person!
A mosque near Ground Zero is only an insult to extremely ignorant people who think in stereotypes!
It is NOT an insult to the victims! The people who were working and visiting the World Trade Center on 9/11/2001 were of many faiths! There were Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, and yes, Muslims!
If that shocks you, you are mega-ignorant! Are you really that lacking in brains that you didn't know there were employees within World Trade Center that are from Islamic cultures? Are you really that lacking in brains that you really thought only Christians, Jews and atheists were employed in the World Trade Center?
New York is an immigrant city, where people come from all over the world! Even Muslim countries! Get over it already!
4) The Decline of Islamic terrorism
After the last 10 years of the War on Terror, it seems to me that radical Muslim terrorism has been in serious decline!
Part of that is Al Quaida being chased off their bases in Afghanistan, drone attacks in Pakistan and Yemen, crackdowns on terror cells worldwide. And off course, Osama bin Laden being killed and dumped in the ocean!
But also, many in the Muslim countries are turning more of their anger at their own country's leaders. Already, the dictators of 3 North African countries have been chased out of power this year! And there are increasing anti-dictator protests in Syria, Yemen, Bahrain, and Iran! In all those cases, the protesters are less concerned about past interference from the US, Europe or Israel. They're more concerned about their everyday reality, which has less to do with foreign powers and more to do with their national leadership!
Some are concerned about radical Muslims taking advantage of the chaos that comes with the transfer of power when a dictator loses power. But every country has such chaotic transitions.
Do you think the USA transition to freedom was easy? Even though the Founding Fathers were writing beautiful words about freedom, it was followed by multiple decades of conflict over whether slavery should exist in the USA! It took a bloody civil war to resolve the issue! And even that was followed by a century or racist segregation! It was only in the 1960's that all racial groups had their official civil rights intact! That didn't stop all unofficial racism that continued!
I dont' write that stuff to bash the USA! In fact today, the USA is WAY AHEAD OF MOST OF THE WORLD when it comes to personal freedom, religious freedom, economic freedom and racial integration! I mentioned USA's stuggles over slavery to point that the transition to a freer, more liberalized society in the Muslim world WILL NOT BE EASY! There will be decades of conflict with ultra-conservative Muslims and the more Westernized liberals! We have to give them time to get their act together! We can't do it for them, real change has to come from within!
5) Soulja Boy's insult to the troops
Today's anniversary of 9/11 gives it very bad timing for Soulja Boy's controversial lyrics.
While Soulja Boy couldn't be destroyed by rap rivals like Ice-T, Soulja Boy destroyed himself with his lyrics to "Let's Be Real".
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2011/09/06/soulja-boy-apologizes-after-members-armed-forces-slam-his-anti-military-song/#ixzz1XOWi2ZO3
In that song, most likely just meant to be a freestyle in which rappers just say whatever rhymes comes to mind, regardless of whether it makes sense, Soulja Boy said "F**k the FBI and the army troops ... fighting for what? Be your own man "
Yep, this being the anniversary year of 9/11, and 10 years of the War on Terror, Soulja Boy really screwed it up this time!
And real soldier tells "soulja boy" off at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsSTKqzrIYk&feature=share
And he told DeAndre Way (Soulja Boy's real name) to "change his name".
I always thought it was bizzarre for DeAndre Way to call himself a "soulja boy" since he's NEVER been in the military! You want soldier status (even if you mispell soldier as "soulja)? It has to be earned! It's NOT earned by swagger and boastful lyrics! It's earned by fighting real battles in real dangerous conditions where real death is a risk! Verbal battles with other rappers don't count! Real battles with real bullets and real explosives in Iraq and Afghanistan count!
1) Me on 9/11/2001
The common question that will be asked will probably be "where were you on 9/11?"
I was at University of Hawaii that time, living at the dorms!
Because of the time difference between NY and Hawaii, I was asleep when the attacks happened!
I first found out about it when my mom called me at 5:45. She mentioned that the World Trade Center blew up. At the moment, I was thinking it would've been similar to the bombing that occurred in the World Trade Center in 1993.
Only when I listened to the radio (the TV in my dorm room was screwed up at the time), when I found out it was actually airplanes that hit the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in Pennsylvania.
Later that morning, I was in the cafeteria, when a student was concerned that a class I had with him was going to be cancelled. He also fear that Pearl Harbor might get hit again.
I had 2 classes that day. In the 1st class, the professor mentioned about the 9/11 attacks, then went on with the lesson of the day. I think it was the appropriate way to deal with it.
Acknowledge what happen, but don't let it stop everything.The 2nd class that day, the teacher just cut it short.
In that semester, I was working at the UH dorms, both the Lokelani and Lehua buildings. Coincidentally, 9/11/2001 was the 1st day I was working at the Lehua building. Hectic circumstances.
3 days after the 9/11 attacks, I was hanging out with a long-time friend. We were talking about the week's events, plus all the racist hate crimes committed against Arab Americans occurring in the mainland. Then the friend said that I better shave (at that point I didn't shave for a whole week) or someone might look at me the wrong way. (Though I am Latino, some have said I look like I'm from the Middle East, especially if I didn't shave) Needless to say, I shaved my face that night (though I kept my infamous mustache).
2) American unity after 9/11
After the 9/11 attacks, there was a big wave of patriotism. There were American flags on everyday! Tons of new flags were bought! Same for any merchandise with the USA flag on it!
It was like the stories our grandparents told us about how the nation came together during World War 2! After all the divisiveness and bitterness surrounding the Vietnam War, there was a feeling like Americans would never go back to the unity expressed during World War 2! But it happened right after 9/11!
Of course, some Radical Left wing writers and professors basically blamed America for being attacked! They got a whole bunch of hate coming at them that they didn't see coming! It was like those Radical Left wing writers and professors were stuck in 1968! But we had no patience with those whose minds were stuck in 1968!
This isn't the Vietnam War where we just but in to someone else's conflicts! Those who attacked us were based in Afghanistan! Our involvement there is totally different than our involvement in Vietnam! Most Americans understood, and those Radical Left wingers stuck in 1968 got the ridicule they deserve!
---
However, American unity seemed to decline since 9/11.
Part of it was disagreement over whether the US troops should've gone into Iraq! Iraq had zero involvement in 9/11, just like China has zero involvement in Pearl Harbor! Many felt it was a distraction from the war in Afghanistan! However, there were concerns that Iraq might still want to retaliate against the USA over our defending Kuwait from Iraqi troops back in 1991!
Other factors also caused the decline in American unity! Part of it was the anger over the slow action taken after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans! Part of it was the economic decline since the 2008 stock market crash! Part of was just war fatigue and 9/11 fatigue!
3) Anti-Muslim paranoia in Europe and North America
While the Radical Muslims have a very dangerous agenda, I still think there is too much anti-Muslim paranoia out there!
In Europe, where there are many immigrants from Muslim countries, many native Europeans are paranoid about a "Muslim takeover".
This fear has inspired Norway's white supremacist Anders Breivik to go on a shooting spree earlier this year, against those he felt were too tolerant on non-white immigrants.
Here, Gary Younge sets the record straight
http://www.thenation.com/article/162270/europes-homegrown-terrorists
The general framing goes like this. Europe is being overrun by Muslims and other non-white immigrants, who are outbreeding non-Muslims at a terrifying rate. Unwilling to integrate culturally and unable to compete intellectually, Muslim populations have become hotbeds of terrorist sympathy and activity. Their presence threatens not only security but the liberal consensus regarding women’s rights and gay rights that Western Europe has so painstakingly established; and overall, this state of affairs represents a fracturing of society that is losing its common values. This has been allowed to happen in the name of not offending specific ethnic groups, otherwise known as multiculturalism.
One could spend all day ripping these arguments to shreds, but for now let’s just deal with the facts.
There have been predictions that the Muslim population of Europe will almost double by 2015 (Oner Taspiner, the Brookings Institution); double by 2020 (Don Melvin, the Associated Press); and be 20 percent of the continent by 2050 (Esther Pan, Council on Foreign Relations). Republican presidential hopeful Rick Santorum told Sarah Posner of Religion Dispatches: “The number I heard is every 32 years the population, the European population of Europe will be reduced by 50 percent. That’s how bad their birthrates are. This is in many respects a dying continent from the standpoint of European-Europeans.”
This is nonsense. The projections are way off. While Muslims in Europe do have higher birthrates than non-Muslims, their birthrates are falling. A Pew Forum study, published in January 2011, forecast an increase of Muslims in European population from 6 percent in 2010 to 8 percent in 2030.
The Norwegian terrorist Breivik feared a Muslim takeover. But Muslims make up 3 percent of Norway. Black Americans have a greater presence in Alaska.
[my note: that reminds me: when Sarah Palin ran for VP, she was mocked for being from a state with "hardly any black people", nevermind the same was true about "the 1st black president"! But yet, some fear a "Muslim takeover of Norway", when their presence is VERY TINY, even tinier than the presence of African-descendants in Alaska]
[When I posted a link to that article on facebook, a right-winger on my list mentioned some mullah saying
"we will take over Europe because we breed like mosquitoes."
My response was : yeah, but from the 3% they are today? 3%! Some mullah talks about "breeding like mosquitoes" but it's all talk! As the article said, even the Muslim birth-rate WITHIN Europe has been declining! So much for "breeding like mosquitoes"! And even if the jihadis in Europe do have many kids, let's remember, a lot of kids either rebel or ignore their parents! ]
More from Younge's article:
Nor do immigrants struggle to integrate. In Britain, Asian Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus all marry outside of their own groups at the same rates as whites. For most ethnic minorities in Britain, roughly half or more of their friends are white. Only 20 percent of those born in Britain have friends only from their own group. According to a Pew Research Center survey, the principal concerns of Muslims in France, Germany and Spain are unemployment and Islamic extremism.
In most of Europe the official politics of multiculturalism that the likes of Breivik and more mainstream politicians rail against—a liberal, state-led policy of encouraging and supporting cultural difference at the expense of national cohesion—is an absolute fiction. Last year German chancellor Angela Merkel claimed the “multikulti” experiment had failed. Earlier this year, British Prime Minister David Cameron said the same thing. The truth is that neither country ever tried such an experiment. “We never had a policy of multiculturalism,” explains Mekonnen Mesghena, head of migration and intercultural management at the Heinrich Böll Foundation. “We had a policy of denial: denial of immigration and of diversity. Now it’s like we are waking up from a long trance.”
The real object of their ire is the existence of “other”—meaning non-white—cultures and races in Europe: the fact of “other” cultures, not the promotion of them. The single greatest obstacle to integration in most of Europe is not Islam or multiculturalism but racism and the economic and academic disadvantage that comes with it.
And, finally, Muslims are nowhere near the greatest terrorist threat. According to Europol, between 2006 and 2008 only .4 percent of terrorist plots (including attempts and fully executed attacks) in Europe were from Islamists. The lion’s share (85 percent) were related to separatism. That doesn’t mean there isn’t a problem. But it’s not on the scale or of the nature that those first out of the gate on Friday claimed it was. Put bluntly, if you have to assume anything when a bomb goes off in Europe, think region, not religion.
[in other words, most terrorism in Europe has more to do with folks like the IRA who want Northern Ireland to separate from the UK. Or the Basque separatists who want their land to be separate from Spain. And similar folks in other European nations]
=======
And on the Muslim population in the USA, Steve Chapman sets the record straight!
http://reason.com/archives/2011/09/08/who-really-kept-us-safe-after
This surprising record has been attributed to excellent work by the FBI, CIA, and otherlaw enforcement agencies, the war in Afghanistan, and the Bush administration's aggressive treatment of suspected terrorists. But on the list of those deserving credit, the first is a group hardly anyone would have predicted: American Muslims.
(skipped paragraphs,)
There are too many targets to secure them all. It would have been a simple task for a handful of minimally trained volunteers to keep us in a constant state of fear.
But the volunteers, with rare exceptions, didn't come forward. Charles Kurzman, a sociologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, writes in Foreign Policy magazine that "approximately a dozen people in the country were convicted in the five years after 9/11 for having links with al-Qaida" and "fewer than 40 Muslim Americans planned or carried out acts of domestic terrorism."
That may sound like a lot, until you remember that there are 15,000 murders a year in this country. A report from the Rand Corp., a national security think tank, noted that of 83 terrorist attacks that took place between 9/11 and the end of 2009, only three "were clearly connected with the jihadist cause." Three!
We hear a lot of allegations of radical American imams preaching jihad. If so, they are not getting through. The simple fact is that most American Muslims don't sympathize with religious extremism and almost none are willing to practice it.
And why should they be? According to a recent poll by the Pew Research Center, "They are overwhelmingly satisfied with the way things are going in their lives (82 percent) and continue to rate their communities very positively as places to live (79 percent excellent or good)."
In other words, despite the fear-mongering from the likes of Jerry Coffee, Michelle Maglalang Malkin, Pamela Geller and other losers, the amount of US Muslims involved in terrorism is VERY TINY!
The ones most likely to kill you are those of the same race as you! And since, most of the US population is of European ancestry, most of them are in danger of being killed by another European-American, NOT by some North African or Middle Eastern dude screaming jihad!
But it's just easier to scare people about those from a different culture!
-------
Last year, there was a debate over having a mosque being built near Ground Zero.
People claimed having a mosque near Ground Zero is "an insult" to the victims. That's bull-stuff!
For one thing, some of the victims were Muslims. In fact, in BOTH the World Trade Center AND the Pentagon, there was a prayer room for Muslim employees!
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/11/nyregion/11religion.html
Did that surprise you? If you're over 18 years old and that article surprised you, then you are an EXTREMELY ignorant person!
A mosque near Ground Zero is only an insult to extremely ignorant people who think in stereotypes!
It is NOT an insult to the victims! The people who were working and visiting the World Trade Center on 9/11/2001 were of many faiths! There were Christians, Jews, Hindus, Buddhists, atheists, and yes, Muslims!
If that shocks you, you are mega-ignorant! Are you really that lacking in brains that you didn't know there were employees within World Trade Center that are from Islamic cultures? Are you really that lacking in brains that you really thought only Christians, Jews and atheists were employed in the World Trade Center?
New York is an immigrant city, where people come from all over the world! Even Muslim countries! Get over it already!
4) The Decline of Islamic terrorism
After the last 10 years of the War on Terror, it seems to me that radical Muslim terrorism has been in serious decline!
Part of that is Al Quaida being chased off their bases in Afghanistan, drone attacks in Pakistan and Yemen, crackdowns on terror cells worldwide. And off course, Osama bin Laden being killed and dumped in the ocean!
But also, many in the Muslim countries are turning more of their anger at their own country's leaders. Already, the dictators of 3 North African countries have been chased out of power this year! And there are increasing anti-dictator protests in Syria, Yemen, Bahrain, and Iran! In all those cases, the protesters are less concerned about past interference from the US, Europe or Israel. They're more concerned about their everyday reality, which has less to do with foreign powers and more to do with their national leadership!
Some are concerned about radical Muslims taking advantage of the chaos that comes with the transfer of power when a dictator loses power. But every country has such chaotic transitions.
Do you think the USA transition to freedom was easy? Even though the Founding Fathers were writing beautiful words about freedom, it was followed by multiple decades of conflict over whether slavery should exist in the USA! It took a bloody civil war to resolve the issue! And even that was followed by a century or racist segregation! It was only in the 1960's that all racial groups had their official civil rights intact! That didn't stop all unofficial racism that continued!
I dont' write that stuff to bash the USA! In fact today, the USA is WAY AHEAD OF MOST OF THE WORLD when it comes to personal freedom, religious freedom, economic freedom and racial integration! I mentioned USA's stuggles over slavery to point that the transition to a freer, more liberalized society in the Muslim world WILL NOT BE EASY! There will be decades of conflict with ultra-conservative Muslims and the more Westernized liberals! We have to give them time to get their act together! We can't do it for them, real change has to come from within!
5) Soulja Boy's insult to the troops
Today's anniversary of 9/11 gives it very bad timing for Soulja Boy's controversial lyrics.
While Soulja Boy couldn't be destroyed by rap rivals like Ice-T, Soulja Boy destroyed himself with his lyrics to "Let's Be Real".
http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2011/09/06/soulja-boy-apologizes-after-members-armed-forces-slam-his-anti-military-song/#ixzz1XOWi2ZO3
In that song, most likely just meant to be a freestyle in which rappers just say whatever rhymes comes to mind, regardless of whether it makes sense, Soulja Boy said "F**k the FBI and the army troops ... fighting for what? Be your own man "
Yep, this being the anniversary year of 9/11, and 10 years of the War on Terror, Soulja Boy really screwed it up this time!
And real soldier tells "soulja boy" off at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsSTKqzrIYk&feature=share
And he told DeAndre Way (Soulja Boy's real name) to "change his name".
I always thought it was bizzarre for DeAndre Way to call himself a "soulja boy" since he's NEVER been in the military! You want soldier status (even if you mispell soldier as "soulja)? It has to be earned! It's NOT earned by swagger and boastful lyrics! It's earned by fighting real battles in real dangerous conditions where real death is a risk! Verbal battles with other rappers don't count! Real battles with real bullets and real explosives in Iraq and Afghanistan count!
Thursday, September 08, 2011
The Police Can't Protect You Everytime - the UK edition
While people tell you "you don't need a gun to defend yourself, just call the police", I have exposed several incidents in which the police were NOWHERE TO BE FOUND during moments of mass chaos.
In one blog post, I mentioned how the police either did nothing or were too overwhelmed during mass shooting sprees and riots.
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2008/12/police-cant-protect-you-everytime.html
And earlier this year, i mentioned about the infamous shooting spree in Norway, where it took MORE THAN AN HOUR for the police to arrive at a camp where the shooter was killing children! MORE THAN AN HOUR!
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2011/07/police-cant-protect-you-everytime.html
Not only that, most of Norway's police were UNARMED! That's right, the police were DEFENSELESS against an armed suspect! Norway's police force isn't much of a police force!
Now, the riots that took place in the UK last month shows more evidence that the police aren't always out to protect you!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2024412/London-riots-Police-soft-looters-ordered-stand-observe.html
Police were ordered to 'stand and observe' rioters as they laid waste to London's streets instead of confronting them, it was claimed today.
Read that again people! The police were REQUIRED to STAND AND OBSERVE RIOTERS!
That's right, if you were getting viciously attacked, or if your home and workplace is being vandalized, the police could be ordered to STAND AND OBSERVE!
A police that stands and observe is TOTALLY WORTHLESS! But that's how the police acted at the begginning of the London riots!
More from that article
Scotland Yard insiders have revealed teams were frustrated at their inability to wade in and arrest troublemakers while they looted and burnt out shops.
They had apparently been told to try and contain any violence but not to haul away offenders who would instead be identified through video footage later, according to The Times.
It was only on Monday night, when the riots escalated still further, that tactics changed and armoured vehicles called Jankels were used to disperse the crowds.
On Tuesday night, some 16,000 officers also flooded London's streets - almost triple the previous night's deployment - and they were finally given the green light to confront the gangs.
(skipped paragraphs)
The police's tactics have led to much public criticism from residents and business owners, who are bemused at the 'soft' approach when their livelihoods are being ruined.
Eye witnesses have told of ranks of police standing by while mobs of youths rampaged and stole from shop fronts and terrorised residents.
Not only were the police not allowed to stop looters and vandals, civilians aren't even allowed to defend themselves BY ALL MEANS NECCESSARY!
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100100323/if-british-shopkeepers-had-the-right-to-bear-arms-vicious-thugs-would-think-twice-before-looting/
During the Los Angeles riots in 1992, many store owners in the south central part of the city defended their property against marauding gangs with their own weapons, and succeeded in protecting their livelihoods and thousands of jobs that depended on them. And across the country, Americans admired their bravery, thankful for the Second Amendment to the US Constitution which protects their right to keep and bear arms, and thereby defend themselves, their families and their property. In contrast in London in 2011, shopkeepers were left at the mercy of feral, brutal thugs acting with impunity across whole swathes of the capital as the police were overwhelmed. If they had the right to bear arms and defend their stores with force, it would have been a very different story, and brutal looters would have met firm resistance.
Britain’s gun laws are among the most draconian in the world, yet the nation has some of the highest levels of violent crime and burglary in the West, and there is no shortage of gun crime in major cities such as London and Manchester. While criminal gangs are often able to acquire firearms on the black market, ordinary law-abiding British citizens are barred from owning guns for self-defence.
The riots in London, the West Midlands and the North West should prompt a renewed debate in Britain over the right to bear arms by private citizens. The shocking scenes of looting across the country are a reminder that the police cannot always be relied upon to protect homes and businesses during a period of widespread social disorder. The defence of life and property can never be entrusted solely to the state, not least when there is a complete breakdown in law and order. As we have seen this week in Britain, when individuals are barred from defending their own property from mobs of vicious thugs, sheer anarchy and terror reins.
=======
Even though it was hard for the law-abiding citizens of the UK to get guns to defend themselves, some store owners did resort to baseball bats to defend their property against looters
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/aug/09/london-riots-fighting-neighbourhoods
When the rioters came to attack the premises of Kurdish and Turkish businesses in Hackney's Stoke Newington High Street and Kingsland Road on Monday night, the owners were waiting for them.
"It was between about nine and 10 at night," said Yilmaz Karagoz, sitting in his coffee shop next to a jeweller's shop that has been shuttered since Sunday when the rioting began and a pharmacy that closed a day after.
"There were a lot of them. We came out of our shops but the police asked us to do nothing. But the police did not do anything so, as more came, we chased them off ourselves." The staff from a local kebab restaurant ran at the attackers, doner knives in their hands. "I don't think they will be coming back," Karagoz said.
On Green Street in East Ham a similar-sized group of rioters was chased away by several hundred Asian residents. And in Bethnal Green local shopkeepers came out to defend their property.
Tuesday night there were further reports of communities taking steps to defend themselves. Dozens of men were guarding the main Sikh temple in Southall, west London.
Around 200 people were walking around the centre of Eltham, south-east London, following rumours that the area was going to be the latest place to be hit by disturbances. The group, predominantly men, had been congregating in pubs since the rumours began to circulate in mid-afternoon. "This is a white working-class area and we are here to protect our community," said one man. In Enfield, north London, about 70 men were seen chasing a group of youths.
Further anecdotal evidence also suggested that in other cities hit by Monday night's violence, communities were also remaining vigilant. On Amazon sales of baseball bats and truncheons rocketed overnight. Sales of one aluminium bat increased 65-fold in a day, albeit from low initial sales, while a truncheon jumped from a sales rank of 5,973 to 136.
(skipped paragraphs)
When the trouble came, hairdressers, sales assistants and butchers were among the scores of Turkish and Kurdish workers who stood outside their businesses in Green Lanes, Haringey, from 8pm having been warned by police to expect trouble.
The Guardian filmed others – some armed with baseball bats – on guard outside shops and restaurants in Kingsland Road, only a mile away from Hackney's burning high street. Three workers from Re-Style Hairdressers were among those out in Green Lanes, after word spread that an attack was imminent at about 4pm.
"I was here with my brother and my boss waiting for them until about midnight," said 16-year-old Huseyin Beytar. "If some guy ever breaks a window in this street, all the Turkish Kurdish people come down to protect the shops. We're like a family."
"We have to do things for ourselves," said Huseyin. "We have to look after each other. If they come here tonight there will be a fight, a big fight."
"We were outside ready and expecting them," said the manager of Turkish Food Market, who asked not to be named.
"But I felt very panicky because we are not safe from either the rioters or police.
"We put all of our efforts into this shop. It took 20 years to get it like this. But we do not know about our rights."I'm scared that the police and the government will attack us if we defend our businesses.
"We are being squeezed between the two."
I agree with those store owners with the baseball bats! Those who try to vandalize and loot those stores deserve to get their heads bashed by those people they're trying to victimize.
But using a baseball bat requires you to get near the person you're trying to hit. You don't need to get close to someone if you got a gun. You could just aim at a distance! That distance factor makes gun much more effective in defending stores than baseball bats!
=======
Now, I'm NOT advocating that we just get rid of the police, nor am I saying using guns in self-defense is as easy as it looks on TV!
But most criminals pick on the defenseless. They overwhelming majority of criminals are NOT interested in a fair fight! In most cases, most of them run like cowards if you just point a gun at them!
We need the police to investigate crimes and prevent crime. But they're humans, and they're flawed as the rest of us!
In an emergency, you're on your own in the crucial first few minutes! 911 can help, but help will arrive in minutes! Someone can brutally physically damage you IN SECONDS!
In one blog post, I mentioned how the police either did nothing or were too overwhelmed during mass shooting sprees and riots.
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2008/12/police-cant-protect-you-everytime.html
And earlier this year, i mentioned about the infamous shooting spree in Norway, where it took MORE THAN AN HOUR for the police to arrive at a camp where the shooter was killing children! MORE THAN AN HOUR!
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2011/07/police-cant-protect-you-everytime.html
Not only that, most of Norway's police were UNARMED! That's right, the police were DEFENSELESS against an armed suspect! Norway's police force isn't much of a police force!
Now, the riots that took place in the UK last month shows more evidence that the police aren't always out to protect you!
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2024412/London-riots-Police-soft-looters-ordered-stand-observe.html
Police were ordered to 'stand and observe' rioters as they laid waste to London's streets instead of confronting them, it was claimed today.
Read that again people! The police were REQUIRED to STAND AND OBSERVE RIOTERS!
That's right, if you were getting viciously attacked, or if your home and workplace is being vandalized, the police could be ordered to STAND AND OBSERVE!
A police that stands and observe is TOTALLY WORTHLESS! But that's how the police acted at the begginning of the London riots!
More from that article
Scotland Yard insiders have revealed teams were frustrated at their inability to wade in and arrest troublemakers while they looted and burnt out shops.
They had apparently been told to try and contain any violence but not to haul away offenders who would instead be identified through video footage later, according to The Times.
It was only on Monday night, when the riots escalated still further, that tactics changed and armoured vehicles called Jankels were used to disperse the crowds.
On Tuesday night, some 16,000 officers also flooded London's streets - almost triple the previous night's deployment - and they were finally given the green light to confront the gangs.
(skipped paragraphs)
The police's tactics have led to much public criticism from residents and business owners, who are bemused at the 'soft' approach when their livelihoods are being ruined.
Eye witnesses have told of ranks of police standing by while mobs of youths rampaged and stole from shop fronts and terrorised residents.
Not only were the police not allowed to stop looters and vandals, civilians aren't even allowed to defend themselves BY ALL MEANS NECCESSARY!
http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100100323/if-british-shopkeepers-had-the-right-to-bear-arms-vicious-thugs-would-think-twice-before-looting/
During the Los Angeles riots in 1992, many store owners in the south central part of the city defended their property against marauding gangs with their own weapons, and succeeded in protecting their livelihoods and thousands of jobs that depended on them. And across the country, Americans admired their bravery, thankful for the Second Amendment to the US Constitution which protects their right to keep and bear arms, and thereby defend themselves, their families and their property. In contrast in London in 2011, shopkeepers were left at the mercy of feral, brutal thugs acting with impunity across whole swathes of the capital as the police were overwhelmed. If they had the right to bear arms and defend their stores with force, it would have been a very different story, and brutal looters would have met firm resistance.
Britain’s gun laws are among the most draconian in the world, yet the nation has some of the highest levels of violent crime and burglary in the West, and there is no shortage of gun crime in major cities such as London and Manchester. While criminal gangs are often able to acquire firearms on the black market, ordinary law-abiding British citizens are barred from owning guns for self-defence.
The riots in London, the West Midlands and the North West should prompt a renewed debate in Britain over the right to bear arms by private citizens. The shocking scenes of looting across the country are a reminder that the police cannot always be relied upon to protect homes and businesses during a period of widespread social disorder. The defence of life and property can never be entrusted solely to the state, not least when there is a complete breakdown in law and order. As we have seen this week in Britain, when individuals are barred from defending their own property from mobs of vicious thugs, sheer anarchy and terror reins.
=======
Even though it was hard for the law-abiding citizens of the UK to get guns to defend themselves, some store owners did resort to baseball bats to defend their property against looters
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/aug/09/london-riots-fighting-neighbourhoods
When the rioters came to attack the premises of Kurdish and Turkish businesses in Hackney's Stoke Newington High Street and Kingsland Road on Monday night, the owners were waiting for them.
"It was between about nine and 10 at night," said Yilmaz Karagoz, sitting in his coffee shop next to a jeweller's shop that has been shuttered since Sunday when the rioting began and a pharmacy that closed a day after.
"There were a lot of them. We came out of our shops but the police asked us to do nothing. But the police did not do anything so, as more came, we chased them off ourselves." The staff from a local kebab restaurant ran at the attackers, doner knives in their hands. "I don't think they will be coming back," Karagoz said.
On Green Street in East Ham a similar-sized group of rioters was chased away by several hundred Asian residents. And in Bethnal Green local shopkeepers came out to defend their property.
Tuesday night there were further reports of communities taking steps to defend themselves. Dozens of men were guarding the main Sikh temple in Southall, west London.
Around 200 people were walking around the centre of Eltham, south-east London, following rumours that the area was going to be the latest place to be hit by disturbances. The group, predominantly men, had been congregating in pubs since the rumours began to circulate in mid-afternoon. "This is a white working-class area and we are here to protect our community," said one man. In Enfield, north London, about 70 men were seen chasing a group of youths.
Further anecdotal evidence also suggested that in other cities hit by Monday night's violence, communities were also remaining vigilant. On Amazon sales of baseball bats and truncheons rocketed overnight. Sales of one aluminium bat increased 65-fold in a day, albeit from low initial sales, while a truncheon jumped from a sales rank of 5,973 to 136.
(skipped paragraphs)
When the trouble came, hairdressers, sales assistants and butchers were among the scores of Turkish and Kurdish workers who stood outside their businesses in Green Lanes, Haringey, from 8pm having been warned by police to expect trouble.
The Guardian filmed others – some armed with baseball bats – on guard outside shops and restaurants in Kingsland Road, only a mile away from Hackney's burning high street. Three workers from Re-Style Hairdressers were among those out in Green Lanes, after word spread that an attack was imminent at about 4pm.
"I was here with my brother and my boss waiting for them until about midnight," said 16-year-old Huseyin Beytar. "If some guy ever breaks a window in this street, all the Turkish Kurdish people come down to protect the shops. We're like a family."
"We have to do things for ourselves," said Huseyin. "We have to look after each other. If they come here tonight there will be a fight, a big fight."
"We were outside ready and expecting them," said the manager of Turkish Food Market, who asked not to be named.
"But I felt very panicky because we are not safe from either the rioters or police.
"We put all of our efforts into this shop. It took 20 years to get it like this. But we do not know about our rights."I'm scared that the police and the government will attack us if we defend our businesses.
"We are being squeezed between the two."
I agree with those store owners with the baseball bats! Those who try to vandalize and loot those stores deserve to get their heads bashed by those people they're trying to victimize.
But using a baseball bat requires you to get near the person you're trying to hit. You don't need to get close to someone if you got a gun. You could just aim at a distance! That distance factor makes gun much more effective in defending stores than baseball bats!
=======
Now, I'm NOT advocating that we just get rid of the police, nor am I saying using guns in self-defense is as easy as it looks on TV!
But most criminals pick on the defenseless. They overwhelming majority of criminals are NOT interested in a fair fight! In most cases, most of them run like cowards if you just point a gun at them!
We need the police to investigate crimes and prevent crime. But they're humans, and they're flawed as the rest of us!
In an emergency, you're on your own in the crucial first few minutes! 911 can help, but help will arrive in minutes! Someone can brutally physically damage you IN SECONDS!
Monday, August 15, 2011
The End of Border's Books
This summer, Border's Books and Music has announced that it will be shutting down operations.
This has been a big downfall for what used to be the biggest bookstore company in existence. It was once a company that was feared due to draining away business from smaller bookstores.
But sometimes, even the mighty fall down, due to inside and outside influences.
Some have criticized the way the company's management has run things.
But a bigger factor is from outside competition. For one, Barnes & Nobles is still in business, and is now the biggest bookstore out there!
There is Amazon, an online company which can ship hard to find books straight to your house!
There are e-books, which some people find more convenient. (though I rather read from a paper than a computer screen, and I usually print stuff that I see online, so I can easily read while on the bus)
There has been less interest in reading books by a younger generation who can easily find tons of information on the internet!
And there's the US economy which has been declining the last few years. People have less money to spend these days!
All those things add up!
-------
Also, just like I did whenever I visited Tower Records, I didn't always go there to buy something! Whereas at Towers, I was mostly there for the listening stations (remember, that was before YouTube came out and re-released hard-to-find classics), I usually went to Borders just to read the books. Many times, I just went there just to look at books that have been publicized, just so I can see if they lived up to the hype! Or I found books I didn't hear about earlier, but they were very interesting, sometimes I even bought them!
Some have criticized people like me who go to stores just to check out stuff, but not buy them! But you have to inspect such stuff before you spend hard-earned money on them!
I have only limited amount to spend with luxury items, and limited space to store them! I did buy CD's at Towers and I did buy books at Border's. But I was very picky with what I buy! It has to be very valuable before I spent my hard-earned dollars on them!
But even when I didn't buy anything during the visit, I did learn a lot of things just reading those books I didn't buy! I also have valuable memories just reading on various topics during my visits, and I did have some valuable memories seeing people I knew when I visited Border's!
Now, they will only be memories!
I will miss Border's and I truly gave thanks to all those who worked at Border's for their valuable services throughout all those years!
===
PS: My goodbye post on Tower Records can be viewed at http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2006/12/end-of-era-tower-records-will-soon-be.html
This has been a big downfall for what used to be the biggest bookstore company in existence. It was once a company that was feared due to draining away business from smaller bookstores.
But sometimes, even the mighty fall down, due to inside and outside influences.
Some have criticized the way the company's management has run things.
But a bigger factor is from outside competition. For one, Barnes & Nobles is still in business, and is now the biggest bookstore out there!
There is Amazon, an online company which can ship hard to find books straight to your house!
There are e-books, which some people find more convenient. (though I rather read from a paper than a computer screen, and I usually print stuff that I see online, so I can easily read while on the bus)
There has been less interest in reading books by a younger generation who can easily find tons of information on the internet!
And there's the US economy which has been declining the last few years. People have less money to spend these days!
All those things add up!
-------
Also, just like I did whenever I visited Tower Records, I didn't always go there to buy something! Whereas at Towers, I was mostly there for the listening stations (remember, that was before YouTube came out and re-released hard-to-find classics), I usually went to Borders just to read the books. Many times, I just went there just to look at books that have been publicized, just so I can see if they lived up to the hype! Or I found books I didn't hear about earlier, but they were very interesting, sometimes I even bought them!
Some have criticized people like me who go to stores just to check out stuff, but not buy them! But you have to inspect such stuff before you spend hard-earned money on them!
I have only limited amount to spend with luxury items, and limited space to store them! I did buy CD's at Towers and I did buy books at Border's. But I was very picky with what I buy! It has to be very valuable before I spent my hard-earned dollars on them!
But even when I didn't buy anything during the visit, I did learn a lot of things just reading those books I didn't buy! I also have valuable memories just reading on various topics during my visits, and I did have some valuable memories seeing people I knew when I visited Border's!
Now, they will only be memories!
I will miss Border's and I truly gave thanks to all those who worked at Border's for their valuable services throughout all those years!
===
PS: My goodbye post on Tower Records can be viewed at http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2006/12/end-of-era-tower-records-will-soon-be.html
Saturday, July 30, 2011
Facebook and Pop Culture is GREAT for the world!
Even in 2011, there are still a few people who say stuff like "facebook is a waste of time", "there's nothing positive about it", "your facebook friends aren't real", blah,blah, blah, blah!
And 99% of those people have NEVER used facebook! They didn't even give it a chance! Yet, they're just Soooooooooo certain it's all bad!
Just like one of my uncles who I mentioned in my unusually short blog post from May 2011
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-debate-with-facebook-hating-uncle.html
That blog post totally disprove this bull-waste about "facebook making us more isolated". Also, because of facebook, I made peace with someone accused of talking trash behind my back, I finally told off another jerk from the old days with comebacks I wish I thought off back in the days, I apologize to another classmate I disrespected, and much, much more! I wouldn't have had the chance to do those things without facebook, because we would've never come into contact post-school-days if it wasn't for facebook.
I also had birthday guest and was a birthday guest for one classmate that I wouldn't have re-united with if it wasn't for facebook! I bet it happened to millions worldwide!
--------
But there's more benefits by facebook then just meeting former classmates!
For one thing, it can gave you info that save lives
But hey, don't you just call your doctor for that?
Well, doctors aren't perfect people, and sometimes they miss some serious warning signs. Deborah Copaken Kogan had that experience concerning her son, and it turned out when she shared photos of her sick son, her facebook friends told her that her son's illness was more serious than her doctor made it out to be!
http://www.slate.com/id/2297933/?gt1=38001
(skipped paragraphs)
-----------
Again, this was from http://www.slate.com/id/2297933/?gt1=38001
Show that article to any loser who thinks facebook is all negative!
Because of the people Ms Kogan was in contact via facebook, she gained important information that her all-so-expert doctor overlooked! Even if her facebook friends might've made the wrong guess, it would've inspired Ms Kogan to get 2nd or even 3rd opinions from different doctors, that could save her child's life!
The more people you're in contact with, the more information you have access to! And facebook makes very easy to contact a lot of people all at once via updates!
----
Facebook doesn't just save one live, it can even be the road to peace, something that could save millions of lives!
The following link is about how facebook has allowed Israelis and Palestinians to communicate with each other. Remember, those 2 groups live really segregated lives, with security measures making it hard to interact with each other, even though they live a few miles from each other.
From New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/world/middleeast/10mideast.html
(skipped paragraphs)
(skipped paragraphs)
---
So much for this nonsense about "facebook keeping us isolated". Facebook and other social networks allow for a social bridge between groups that have been traditionally divided! Younger people who are ready to ignore the bigoted attitudes of their family can go online and interact with those of other cultural groups. They can find out the other groups aren't as scary as the stereotypes make them out to be!
While face-to-face communication is great, online social networks can create social interaction when face-to-face interaction is impossible!
Online social networks are still a new thing! If it can encourage Israelis and Palestinians to interact with each other in 2011, imagine what that can mean for the peace process in the future! It could also mean other people of rival ethnic groups can communicate with each other online, learning each other's side of the story, learning how their life is!
Look, 4 decades ago, most people couldn't imagine an African-American president of the USA! Today, it's reality! Sports, entertainment and other media forms gave exposure of African-American role models to millions of Americans who don't live around that many African-Americans! It's hard to be an anti-black racist if your favorite team has an African-American star, or if the song that makes you dance is sung by an African-American! It will also be harder for the younger generation to be anti-Latino with Dora on the TV and Pitbull on the radio!
And pop culture doesn't just unite cultures in the US! Bollywood films have both Muslim and Hindu stars, often appearing in the same films. It also has bridged the divides between India & Pakistan!
From Shikha Dalmia
http://reason.com/archives/2011/07/27/bollywood-vs-jihad
Bollywood has done MORE to counter-act against the Muslim fanatics than all the US military power in the world! Bollywood has done MORE to counter-act against the Muslim fanatics than ALL of the FoxNews/right-wing talk radio/Islamophobic blogs COMBINED!
And pop culture also did MORE to counter-act communist propaganda in Cold War era Eastern Europe than all the nuclear weapons in the world!
On Bollywood's influence in bridging the divides between India and Pakistan, even during times when Pakistani government banned Indian films.
True changes within the cultures has to come from within! Invasions from foreign powers can only do so much!
And just like how movies, TV sports and music has given star-power to the African-Americans in the US, Bollywood has done the same for the Muslim minority in India!
--------
On pop culture's influence in collapsing the communist power in Eastern Europe
From John Stossell
http://reason.com/archives/2011/07/28/what-we-dont-know-can-hurt-us/print
And Stossel said this!
AMEN TO THAT!
As the internet age moves along, people can chose to be exposed to more cultures, more ideas, more information more options. Through social networks, they can interact with people they usually don't have much of a chance to interact face-to-face! They can be exposed to more information that can even save the life of their loved ones! They can be exposed to information about other cultures, and learn not to fear them! This can lead to fewer rivalries, more unity, and more lives saved through peace!
Those who want to remain in the old days, and hate on the internet, facebook or pop culture can continue to live in misery and ignorance! The rest of the world has moved on!
And 99% of those people have NEVER used facebook! They didn't even give it a chance! Yet, they're just Soooooooooo certain it's all bad!
Just like one of my uncles who I mentioned in my unusually short blog post from May 2011
http://pablowegesend.blogspot.com/2011/05/my-debate-with-facebook-hating-uncle.html
That blog post totally disprove this bull-waste about "facebook making us more isolated". Also, because of facebook, I made peace with someone accused of talking trash behind my back, I finally told off another jerk from the old days with comebacks I wish I thought off back in the days, I apologize to another classmate I disrespected, and much, much more! I wouldn't have had the chance to do those things without facebook, because we would've never come into contact post-school-days if it wasn't for facebook.
I also had birthday guest and was a birthday guest for one classmate that I wouldn't have re-united with if it wasn't for facebook! I bet it happened to millions worldwide!
--------
But there's more benefits by facebook then just meeting former classmates!
For one thing, it can gave you info that save lives
But hey, don't you just call your doctor for that?
Well, doctors aren't perfect people, and sometimes they miss some serious warning signs. Deborah Copaken Kogan had that experience concerning her son, and it turned out when she shared photos of her sick son, her facebook friends told her that her son's illness was more serious than her doctor made it out to be!
http://www.slate.com/id/2297933/?gt1=38001
While Paul, in his normal state of denial, dressed for work, I snapped a dozen iPhone photos of Leo from various angles to send to our family doctor via MMS, the least frightening of which I posted on Facebook so as not to alarm my (Facebook friend) mother. "Swelling worse," I typed, "especially eyes and chin. Fever still crazy high. Poor baby." Was I consciously trying to find an answer out there in the hive mind? No, but some subconscious part of me must have been wondering whether one of my hundreds of "friends" might be privy to some expertise on the befuddling Nutty Professor syndrome that had my child in its grips.
Ten minutes later, I received a call on my cell phone from Stephanie, a film actress and former neighbor. "I hope you'll excuse me for butting in," she said, "But you have to get to the hospital. Now." Her son Max had had the exact same symptoms, and was hospitalized for Kawasaki disease, a rare and sometimes fatal auto-immune disorder that attacks the coronary arteries surrounding the heart. "The longer you wait," she said, "the worse the damage."
(skipped paragraphs)
My cousin Emily, a pediatric cardiologist who often has to deal with the fallout from untreated Kawasaki, also called after seeing the photo, urging me to go to the hospital. "The damage begins as early as five days after the onset of symptoms," she said. At this point, we were well into day three or perhaps even day four, depending on when the symptoms had begun. I wasn't sure. I'd spent all day Saturday working on my book, and my husband doesn't notice rashes and fevers.
I called my family doctor and told him I was heading to the hospital. "I just have a Spidey sense," I said, "that he's really sick." Not a lie, but not the whole truth, either, though what was I going to say? Three of my Facebook friends think my kid has an extremely rare childhood auto-immune disorder which I just read about on Wikipedia, and since they all contacted me after I posted a photo of him on my wall, I'm going? It seemed … wrong! Reactionary. And yet as much as I wanted to be my usual mellow self, the immediacy of the Facebook feedback was enough to push me out the door.
From the hallway in triage, I finally called our family doctor. Admitted what I'd done—furtively filling in the reason-for-visit blank on the hospital form with "possible Kawasaki disease"—and why I'd done it. "You know what?" he said, "I was actually just thinking it could be Kawasaki disease. Makes total sense. Bravo, Facebook."
Over the next three weeks, as Leo was treated, released, retreated, and rereleased for, yes, first Kawasaki disease and then the Kawasaki-triggered liver disease from which he's still recovering, Facebook transformed from my son's inadvertent lifesaver to the most valuable tool in my arsenal: to keep family and friends abreast of his ever-mutating condition without having to steal time and emotional energy away from him; to pepper both Beth, the pediatrician, and Emily, the pediatric cardiologist, with an endless series of random questions with which I was too embarrassed to bother my own doctors; to feel connected—profoundly connected—to the human race while living, breathing, eating and sleeping in the isolating, fluorescent-lit bubble of a children's hospital ward, where any potential humans I might have "friended" on our floor were too distraught over the fates of their own children to make any room in their hearts for strangers.
-----------
Again, this was from http://www.slate.com/id/2297933/?gt1=38001
Show that article to any loser who thinks facebook is all negative!
Because of the people Ms Kogan was in contact via facebook, she gained important information that her all-so-expert doctor overlooked! Even if her facebook friends might've made the wrong guess, it would've inspired Ms Kogan to get 2nd or even 3rd opinions from different doctors, that could save her child's life!
The more people you're in contact with, the more information you have access to! And facebook makes very easy to contact a lot of people all at once via updates!
----
Facebook doesn't just save one live, it can even be the road to peace, something that could save millions of lives!
The following link is about how facebook has allowed Israelis and Palestinians to communicate with each other. Remember, those 2 groups live really segregated lives, with security measures making it hard to interact with each other, even though they live a few miles from each other.
From New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/10/world/middleeast/10mideast.html
Moad Arqoub, a Palestinian graduate student, was bouncing around the Internet the other day and came across a site that surprised and attracted him. It was a Facebook page where Israelis and Palestinians and other Arabs were talking about everything at once: the prospects of peace, of course, but also soccer, photography and music.
“I joined immediately because right now, without a peace process and with Israelis and Palestinians physically separated, it is really important for us to be interacting without barriers,” Mr. Arqoub said as he sat at an outdoor cafe in this Palestinian city.
It has been nearly two years since Israeli and Palestinian leaders have negotiated their peoples’ future and, with the region in turmoil and prospects for peace dim, interaction between Israelis and Palestinians is increasingly limited to Israeli military checkpoints in the West Bank.
But over the past month, the Facebook page has surprised those involved by the enthusiasm it has generated, suggesting that the Facebook-driven revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt may offer guidance for coexistence efforts as well.
(skipped paragraphs)
But most interesting so far have been the interactions online. At a time when Arabs generally shun contact with Israelis, those on the site speak openly about their desire to learn more about one another.
“This is my first contact with Israelis,” said Lyth Sharif, an 18-year-old Palestinian student at Birzeit University in the West Bank who comes from Dura, a town near Hebron. “A friend of mine told me about it, and I think it’s cool. I joined a few days ago. It helps me understand the difference between Israel and the occupation.”
Unlike members of his parents’ generation who worked in Israel, learned some Hebrew and watched Israeli television, Mr. Sharif has never set foot inside Israel or Jerusalem, a result of the security barrier and Israeli regulations.
Mr. Arqoub, who is 29, knows Israel better. As a youth he sneaked into Israel and worked for a family he grew to love. Later he was imprisoned by the Israelis for two years without explanation, he said. But he rejected bitterness.
Salah al-Ayan, a Palestinian Authority official and a friend of Mr. Savir’s who is helping with the site, said the lack of interaction today between Israelis and Palestinians about ordinary things was alarming.
“Believe me, they don’t know each other at all,” he said in his Ramallah office. “Our goal is to start by talking about art and sports. Since Israelis and Palestinians don’t meet face to face anymore, this is a virtual place to meet. I was happy when I saw that some Palestinians had voted for Israeli photos in the contest.”
(skipped paragraphs)
He said: “I asked one Egyptian why he had contacted me and why he was taking part in this, and he said: ‘After the revolution, everything is permitted. I want to see what Israelis are like.’ ”
Nimrod Ben Ze’ev, a 25-year-old student of Middle Eastern studies at Tel Aviv University, said much of the interaction on the site was still rather wooden — what he called “a peace dialogue mentality.” But he is optimistic.
---
So much for this nonsense about "facebook keeping us isolated". Facebook and other social networks allow for a social bridge between groups that have been traditionally divided! Younger people who are ready to ignore the bigoted attitudes of their family can go online and interact with those of other cultural groups. They can find out the other groups aren't as scary as the stereotypes make them out to be!
While face-to-face communication is great, online social networks can create social interaction when face-to-face interaction is impossible!
Online social networks are still a new thing! If it can encourage Israelis and Palestinians to interact with each other in 2011, imagine what that can mean for the peace process in the future! It could also mean other people of rival ethnic groups can communicate with each other online, learning each other's side of the story, learning how their life is!
Look, 4 decades ago, most people couldn't imagine an African-American president of the USA! Today, it's reality! Sports, entertainment and other media forms gave exposure of African-American role models to millions of Americans who don't live around that many African-Americans! It's hard to be an anti-black racist if your favorite team has an African-American star, or if the song that makes you dance is sung by an African-American! It will also be harder for the younger generation to be anti-Latino with Dora on the TV and Pitbull on the radio!
And pop culture doesn't just unite cultures in the US! Bollywood films have both Muslim and Hindu stars, often appearing in the same films. It also has bridged the divides between India & Pakistan!
From Shikha Dalmia
http://reason.com/archives/2011/07/27/bollywood-vs-jihad
India is a country riven with religious, linguistic, socioeconomic, and regional clashes. But the battle that split the country in two last year concerned a far more basic, existential question: Munni or Sheila?
These are the screen names of the sex sirens who danced and lip-synced in Bollywood’s two biggest hit songs not just of 2010 but likely in the Indian film industry’s entire 112-year history: “Munni Badnam Hui,” from the blockbuster Dabangg, and “Sheila Ki Jawani,” from Tees Maar Khan.
Bollywood has done MORE to counter-act against the Muslim fanatics than all the US military power in the world! Bollywood has done MORE to counter-act against the Muslim fanatics than ALL of the FoxNews/right-wing talk radio/Islamophobic blogs COMBINED!
Islamic fundamentalists have long worried about the threat that Bollywood poses to their puritanical demands. Of late, they have even taken to making videos—rap videos, no less—condemning Bollywood movies as being the product of an infidel culture trying to brainwash Muslims against their own religious values and duties. They have ample reason to be worried: About 3 billion people, or half the planet, watches Bollywood, and many of them live in the Islamic world. By depicting assimilated, modernized Muslims, Bollywood—without even trying—deromanticizes and thereby disarms fanatical Islam. If you can have Munni and Sheila in this world, why on earth would you want to strap bombs to your waist and blow yourself up for the sake of 72 theoretical virgins?
For a decade now, America has been fighting the scourge of Islamist terrorism by deploying its considerable hard power.
Washington has launched wars in two allegedly hostile countries, launched drone attacks in allegedly friendly countries, tortured countless terror suspects, and unleashed Transportation Security Administration inspectors to grope and fondle its own citizens. But with the debt and deficit spiraling out of control and with civil libertarians up in arms over the loss of liberties for a war that has no conceivable end, American hard power is arguably maxed out.
And pop culture also did MORE to counter-act communist propaganda in Cold War era Eastern Europe than all the nuclear weapons in the world!
Not that hard power is all it’s cracked up to be anyway. It is widely recognized that the West won the Cold War in at least some significant part because its music and culture won the hearts and minds of Eastern Bloc youth. But the kind of Western soft power that proved so crucial in bringing down the Soviet empire—jazz, Hollywood, the Beatles—is arguably less relevant in the struggle against fundamentalist Islam. American culture, despite its alleged ubiquity, doesn’t have the same resonance in Eastern countries that don’t share the West’s ethnic, religious, and cultural background. While hip hop and heavy metal have helped inspire some of the street protesters demanding more freedoms across the Middle East and northern Africa, outside of the hardcore early adopters these cultural subgenres remain more voyeuristic than aspirational. Their popularity arguably stems more from a curiosity about how exotic people in alien countries live than from an inclination to emulate them.
On Bollywood's influence in bridging the divides between India and Pakistan, even during times when Pakistani government banned Indian films.
The Muslim country most in the grip of Bollywood mania is Pakistan, India’s cultural twin in every respect but religion. The more aggressively that Pakistani authorities have tried to purge it from their soil, the more Bollywood’s popularity has grown. During the country’s four-decade-long ban on Indian movies, Pakistanis watched them via satellite dishes and smuggled VHS tapes. When the ban was finally lifted in 2008, the Bollywood scene in Pakistan exploded. Not only have Bollywood movies been playing to packed houses, but Indian movie stars are treated like demigods, despite Islam’s taboo against idol worship. The latest fad among Pakistan’s urban nouveau riche is Bollywood theme weddings in which the bride and groom dress in outfits worn by a particular movie’s stars and hold their wedding reception in elaborate tents constructed to resemble movie sets.
True changes within the cultures has to come from within! Invasions from foreign powers can only do so much!
It’s hard to emulate—and adulate—a cultural form while simultaneously rejecting its message. And Bollywood’s message is profoundly at odds with the strictures of Islamic extremism. At the simplest level, women who don Bollywood outfits, even when adapted for more modest sensibilities, are resisting the Islamic strictures that would shroud them in a burqa. At a deeper level, Bollywood movies offer a compromise between tradition and modernity that resonates with ordinary Muslims while subverting Islamist designs.
Take romantic movies. You might have expected Hollywood’s more sexually explicit romances to pose a bigger threat to puritanical Shariah law than Bollywood’s tamer approach. You’d be wrong. Both Hollywood and Bollywood idealize true love that conquers all. But the obstacles that Hollywood couples face—previous lovers, infidelity, commitment phobia, baggage from broken marriages—have little to do with the concerns of people in traditional Muslim countries. They can relate far more with Bollywood’s paramours, whose chief impediment is familial objections, given that arranged marriage is still a revered institution in that part of the world.
And just like how movies, TV sports and music has given star-power to the African-Americans in the US, Bollywood has done the same for the Muslim minority in India!
There is another key reason for Bollywood’s appeal to the Islamic world. Since its inception, some of the Indian film industry’s biggest stars, both male and female, have been Muslims. Currently, the three highest grossing male leads are Muslims, all with the recognizably Muslim surname Khan. Bollywood’s most respected music composer—A.R. Rahman, who won an Oscar for the score of Slumdog Millionaire—is also a Muslim, as are many of Bollywood’s best lyricists and screenwriters.(skipped paragraphs)
The best Sufi music these days is arguably coming not from the Mideast but from the Indian subcontinent, thanks in no small part to Bollywood Muslims. By showcasing these artists and their work, the Indian film industry demonstrates to Muslims everywhere that adapting to modernity does not require them to abandon their faith and traditions. In fact, it can be a vehicle for preserving and promoting them.
--------
On pop culture's influence in collapsing the communist power in Eastern Europe
From John Stossell
http://reason.com/archives/2011/07/28/what-we-dont-know-can-hurt-us/print
I told him that I thought that the Soviet Union collapsed because the Soviets spent so much trying to keep pace with Ronald Reagan's military buildup
On the contrary, Russell said, "it collapsed from within. ... People simply walked away from the ideology of communism. And that began especially when American popular culture—jazz and rock and roll—began infiltrating those countries after World War II."
I demanded evidence.
"American soldiers brought jazz during World War II to the eastern front. Soviet soldiers brought it back. Eastern European soldiers brought it and spread it across those countries. ... Stalin was hysterical about this."
The authorities were particularly concerned about young people performing and enjoying sensual music.
"Any regime at all depends on social order to maintain its power. Social order and sensuality, pleasures of the body, are often at odds. Stalin and his commissars understood that."
American authorities 30 years earlier also feared the sensuality of black music, said Russell, attacking it "as primitive jungle music that was bringing down American youth. Stalin and his commissars across Eastern Europe said exactly the same things with the same words later."
Then rock and roll came.
"That was even more threatening," Russell said. "By the 1980s, disco and rock were enormously popular throughout the communist world."
The communists realized they had to relax the rules or risk losing everything, but it was too late. One of the most amazing and significant spectacles was Bruce Springsteen's concert in East Germany in 1988, when a crowd of 160,000 people who lived behind the Iron Curtain sang "Born in the USA."
And Stossel said this!
People want choices, and you can't indoctrinate that out of them.
AMEN TO THAT!
As the internet age moves along, people can chose to be exposed to more cultures, more ideas, more information more options. Through social networks, they can interact with people they usually don't have much of a chance to interact face-to-face! They can be exposed to more information that can even save the life of their loved ones! They can be exposed to information about other cultures, and learn not to fear them! This can lead to fewer rivalries, more unity, and more lives saved through peace!
Those who want to remain in the old days, and hate on the internet, facebook or pop culture can continue to live in misery and ignorance! The rest of the world has moved on!
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Women's World Cup (and other related topics)
Earlier this month, Germany had hosted the Women's World Cup!
Germany was favored to win it all in front of the home crowd!
But as we all know, it wasn't meant to be.
They lost to the eventual champion - Japan.
Japan was the sentimental favorite, due to the tragedies that country faced from the earthquakes and tsunamis on March 11th of this year.
http://www.staradvertiser.com/sports/20110718_Lifting_Cup__country.html
All tournament long the teammates poignantly reminded the world they were playing for their battered country, still reeling from the devastation of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Did they ever.
They held the gleaming trophy high above their smiling faces as confetti swirled around the podium, flecking their hair with gold.
"Before we went to the match tonight we had some commentary on television and we heard comments on the situation in Japan," coach Norio Sasaki said. "We wanted to use this opportunity to thank the people back home for the support that has been given."
This was Japan's first appearance in the final of a major tournament, and they had not beaten the Americans in their first 25 meetings, including a pair of 2-0 losses in warm-up games a month before the World Cup. But the Nadeshiko pushed ahead, playing inspired soccer and hoping their success could provide even a small emotional lift to their nation, where nearly 23,000 people died or were reported missing.
After each game, the team unfurled a banner saying, "To our Friends Around the World — Thank You for Your Support." On Sunday, they did it before the match and afterward they had a new sign to display: Champion — the first Asian country to win this title.
--------
In the championship game, Japan played the USA - a country they have never beaten in women's soccer in all of the previous 25 times they played!
The first half of the game was filled with close calls, but no goals.
However, things heated up near the end of regulation time! USA scored first! Japan answered back with their own goal.
Now for over-time. USA scored! Then Japan scored again!
The game can't go on for ever, but there needs to be a winner for the championship game!
So, it was on for the penalty kicks. While Abby Wambach scored a goal for the USA, most of her team-mates missed! Now, it was time for Saki Kumagi to score! She made it, and now Japan are the world champions!
----------
It was the first time an Asian team won the Women's World Cup!
There has been a common stereotype that "East Asians are at a disadvantage in sports due to their lack of height". But soccer is more about speed, ball-handling, and team-work than size! Sweden's team was very tall, but that meant nothing when playing against smaller-sized Japan.
On the men's side, South Korea and Japan have been the only Asian teams that have a consistent record of success in international competition. They usually make all the Men's World Cup tournaments, and South Korea even came close to making it to championship game back in 2002.
The Japan's women's team will most likely inspire more Asian teams (men's and women's) to excel in international competition!
After all, East Asian teams already do well in baseball and softball, and China has had some success in basketball!
Future shall be brighter for other Asian teams to step up and prosper in the big stages of sports!
----
USA's women's soccer team did very well, except for the 1st round game against Sweden, and except for the championship game against Japan.
However, it has been seen as a disappointment to many Americans, since the last time the USA won the Women's World Cup was in 1999. That was the legendary game against China, that took place at the Rose Bowl. It was also the game in which Brandy Chastain scored the penalty kick, and most of us remember what happened after that!
Well, there's always the next tournament!
---------
After every other World Cup (men's and women's) there has been a debate over how popular soccer will be!
Soccer has been growing in popularity, but this is a slow process. These things take time!
Some say that soccer hasn't been popular because "the low scoring game isn't exciting". But it sure is more exciting than baseball, in which 1/2 the game is just waiting for something to happen!
It's got nothing to do with "low scoring" and everything to do with habits!
Most people just don't have the time to follow every sport that's out there! So people just follow the sports they grew up watching! In the USA, it's tackle football, basketball and baseball.
Since most of us don't have time to follow every sport, and we just follow the sports we grew up watching, many US Americans aren't going to spend much time following soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, cricket, rugby, water polo or the other sports. Nothing personal, but most people just follow the hype and those sports just don't have the level of media hype that is given to tackle football, basketball and baseball!
However, I do think soccer will grow in popularity in the USA, just not to level of tackle football and basketball.
The growth factors include the increasing Latino population. That is true with my family, with my Mexican father being a big fan of soccer! He loves to watch international matches! He loves to watch teams not only from Mexico, but also from England, Spain, Italy and even the US's own Major League Soccer. Growing up in that household got me interested in following the World Cups, probably a lot more than those growing up in non-Latino households that focus more on tackle football, baseball and basketball.
Also, with the many cable channels out there, many Americans are exposed to games showing professional teams from England, Spain and other games. You even see US Americans wearing jerseys from foreign teams like Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and FC Barcelona!
Interest in women's professional teams will also face a slow growth. It took a few decades for college women's basketball to have the popularity it has now! The WNBA has also gained some increased popularity! It will also take some time for people's habits to go towards watching women's pro teams in softball and soccer too!
----
And with anything dealing with women's sports, there is the usual whining about women athletes who posed for sexual photos.
The Nation's Dave Zirin is a good example of that whining
http://www.edgeofsports.com/2011-07-18-636/index.html
Yes, it’s been a marvelous month for soccer but any assessment of this triumph would be incomplete without taking stock of the raunch culture that stalked the tournament’s every step. In the sporting context, “raunch culture” is when women athletes buy into the idea that it’s somehow empowering to display their naked bodies for men’s magazines. These great athletes put themselves before the photographers’ lens in positions both seductive and prone. They claim that they are not only promoting their sport but also proving to the world that their attractiveness and (straight) sexuality is not to be questioned. After posing for their country’s edition of Playboy, five players were kicked off the German under-20 World Cup team. Player Kristina Gessat made plain her motivation, saying, "With these photos, we want to disprove the cliché that all female footballers are butch.”
Here is my response :
sex & sports
Dave Zirin,
I respect the athletic talents of any athlete, male or female, who can win on the big stage!
But I'm tired of you & the Radical Feminists who go ballistic when female athletes pose nude!
(by the way, I haven't heard you or the Radical Feminists complain about the covers of Dennis Rodman's book, or the male soccer stars posing in their undies in a well-known fashion magazine around the same type as the Men's World Cup!)
Look, women, like men, are multi-dimensional people. Even the athletes.
So yeah, a female athlete can have a serious side, a fun side, a risk-taking side, a vulnerable side, an intellectual side, a spiritual side, a compassionate side and a (oh my god.......nooooooooooh!) a sexual side too!
It's unrealistic for you and the Radical Feminists to expect female athletes to act asexual just because they're athletes!
I'm NOT saying we should force female athletes to pose for sexual photos! However, if they CHOSE to do so, either 1) lighten up and enjoy the ride or 2) ignore it and get a life!
Oh yeah, by the way, if you're wondering why many young women don't call themselves "feminists", IT IS NOT a desire to be oppressed! It is because TOO MANY WHO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES AS FEMINISTS are the same ones who go ballistic when a female athlete pose for sexual photos!
The reality is that many young women would LOVE to be the female athlete who poses for sexual photos. It's got nothing to do with patriarchy or capitalism or whatever! Most young women love to see themselves as tough and sexually attractive. Those female athletes represent that!
You want a world in which women don't want to pose for sexual photos? You might as well start a genetic engineering project, because your Radical Feminist rhetoric will NEVER over-ride evolution, will NEVER over-ride women's desire for an image of "tough and attractive".
If feminism is about "respecting people's choice regardless of gender" THEN START RESPECTING women athletes who pose for sexual photos! They're just doing something fun on the side! You shouldn't expect them to be serious all the time! Lighten up!
Sincerely,
Pablo Wegesend
----
Well, anyways, I'm looking forward to next Women's World Cup in 2015, which will take place in Canada! Hopefully, the USA can win in it's northern neighbor's territory!
Germany was favored to win it all in front of the home crowd!
But as we all know, it wasn't meant to be.
They lost to the eventual champion - Japan.
Japan was the sentimental favorite, due to the tragedies that country faced from the earthquakes and tsunamis on March 11th of this year.
http://www.staradvertiser.com/sports/20110718_Lifting_Cup__country.html
All tournament long the teammates poignantly reminded the world they were playing for their battered country, still reeling from the devastation of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
Did they ever.
They held the gleaming trophy high above their smiling faces as confetti swirled around the podium, flecking their hair with gold.
"Before we went to the match tonight we had some commentary on television and we heard comments on the situation in Japan," coach Norio Sasaki said. "We wanted to use this opportunity to thank the people back home for the support that has been given."
This was Japan's first appearance in the final of a major tournament, and they had not beaten the Americans in their first 25 meetings, including a pair of 2-0 losses in warm-up games a month before the World Cup. But the Nadeshiko pushed ahead, playing inspired soccer and hoping their success could provide even a small emotional lift to their nation, where nearly 23,000 people died or were reported missing.
After each game, the team unfurled a banner saying, "To our Friends Around the World — Thank You for Your Support." On Sunday, they did it before the match and afterward they had a new sign to display: Champion — the first Asian country to win this title.
--------
In the championship game, Japan played the USA - a country they have never beaten in women's soccer in all of the previous 25 times they played!
The first half of the game was filled with close calls, but no goals.
However, things heated up near the end of regulation time! USA scored first! Japan answered back with their own goal.
Now for over-time. USA scored! Then Japan scored again!
The game can't go on for ever, but there needs to be a winner for the championship game!
So, it was on for the penalty kicks. While Abby Wambach scored a goal for the USA, most of her team-mates missed! Now, it was time for Saki Kumagi to score! She made it, and now Japan are the world champions!
----------
It was the first time an Asian team won the Women's World Cup!
There has been a common stereotype that "East Asians are at a disadvantage in sports due to their lack of height". But soccer is more about speed, ball-handling, and team-work than size! Sweden's team was very tall, but that meant nothing when playing against smaller-sized Japan.
On the men's side, South Korea and Japan have been the only Asian teams that have a consistent record of success in international competition. They usually make all the Men's World Cup tournaments, and South Korea even came close to making it to championship game back in 2002.
The Japan's women's team will most likely inspire more Asian teams (men's and women's) to excel in international competition!
After all, East Asian teams already do well in baseball and softball, and China has had some success in basketball!
Future shall be brighter for other Asian teams to step up and prosper in the big stages of sports!
----
USA's women's soccer team did very well, except for the 1st round game against Sweden, and except for the championship game against Japan.
However, it has been seen as a disappointment to many Americans, since the last time the USA won the Women's World Cup was in 1999. That was the legendary game against China, that took place at the Rose Bowl. It was also the game in which Brandy Chastain scored the penalty kick, and most of us remember what happened after that!
Well, there's always the next tournament!
---------
After every other World Cup (men's and women's) there has been a debate over how popular soccer will be!
Soccer has been growing in popularity, but this is a slow process. These things take time!
Some say that soccer hasn't been popular because "the low scoring game isn't exciting". But it sure is more exciting than baseball, in which 1/2 the game is just waiting for something to happen!
It's got nothing to do with "low scoring" and everything to do with habits!
Most people just don't have the time to follow every sport that's out there! So people just follow the sports they grew up watching! In the USA, it's tackle football, basketball and baseball.
Since most of us don't have time to follow every sport, and we just follow the sports we grew up watching, many US Americans aren't going to spend much time following soccer, lacrosse, field hockey, cricket, rugby, water polo or the other sports. Nothing personal, but most people just follow the hype and those sports just don't have the level of media hype that is given to tackle football, basketball and baseball!
However, I do think soccer will grow in popularity in the USA, just not to level of tackle football and basketball.
The growth factors include the increasing Latino population. That is true with my family, with my Mexican father being a big fan of soccer! He loves to watch international matches! He loves to watch teams not only from Mexico, but also from England, Spain, Italy and even the US's own Major League Soccer. Growing up in that household got me interested in following the World Cups, probably a lot more than those growing up in non-Latino households that focus more on tackle football, baseball and basketball.
Also, with the many cable channels out there, many Americans are exposed to games showing professional teams from England, Spain and other games. You even see US Americans wearing jerseys from foreign teams like Manchester United, Real Madrid, AC Milan and FC Barcelona!
Interest in women's professional teams will also face a slow growth. It took a few decades for college women's basketball to have the popularity it has now! The WNBA has also gained some increased popularity! It will also take some time for people's habits to go towards watching women's pro teams in softball and soccer too!
----
And with anything dealing with women's sports, there is the usual whining about women athletes who posed for sexual photos.
The Nation's Dave Zirin is a good example of that whining
http://www.edgeofsports.com/2011-07-18-636/index.html
Yes, it’s been a marvelous month for soccer but any assessment of this triumph would be incomplete without taking stock of the raunch culture that stalked the tournament’s every step. In the sporting context, “raunch culture” is when women athletes buy into the idea that it’s somehow empowering to display their naked bodies for men’s magazines. These great athletes put themselves before the photographers’ lens in positions both seductive and prone. They claim that they are not only promoting their sport but also proving to the world that their attractiveness and (straight) sexuality is not to be questioned. After posing for their country’s edition of Playboy, five players were kicked off the German under-20 World Cup team. Player Kristina Gessat made plain her motivation, saying, "With these photos, we want to disprove the cliché that all female footballers are butch.”
Here is my response :
sex & sports
Dave Zirin,
I respect the athletic talents of any athlete, male or female, who can win on the big stage!
But I'm tired of you & the Radical Feminists who go ballistic when female athletes pose nude!
(by the way, I haven't heard you or the Radical Feminists complain about the covers of Dennis Rodman's book, or the male soccer stars posing in their undies in a well-known fashion magazine around the same type as the Men's World Cup!)
Look, women, like men, are multi-dimensional people. Even the athletes.
So yeah, a female athlete can have a serious side, a fun side, a risk-taking side, a vulnerable side, an intellectual side, a spiritual side, a compassionate side and a (oh my god.......nooooooooooh!) a sexual side too!
It's unrealistic for you and the Radical Feminists to expect female athletes to act asexual just because they're athletes!
I'm NOT saying we should force female athletes to pose for sexual photos! However, if they CHOSE to do so, either 1) lighten up and enjoy the ride or 2) ignore it and get a life!
Oh yeah, by the way, if you're wondering why many young women don't call themselves "feminists", IT IS NOT a desire to be oppressed! It is because TOO MANY WHO IDENTIFY THEMSELVES AS FEMINISTS are the same ones who go ballistic when a female athlete pose for sexual photos!
The reality is that many young women would LOVE to be the female athlete who poses for sexual photos. It's got nothing to do with patriarchy or capitalism or whatever! Most young women love to see themselves as tough and sexually attractive. Those female athletes represent that!
You want a world in which women don't want to pose for sexual photos? You might as well start a genetic engineering project, because your Radical Feminist rhetoric will NEVER over-ride evolution, will NEVER over-ride women's desire for an image of "tough and attractive".
If feminism is about "respecting people's choice regardless of gender" THEN START RESPECTING women athletes who pose for sexual photos! They're just doing something fun on the side! You shouldn't expect them to be serious all the time! Lighten up!
Sincerely,
Pablo Wegesend
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Well, anyways, I'm looking forward to next Women's World Cup in 2015, which will take place in Canada! Hopefully, the USA can win in it's northern neighbor's territory!
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