Think of the Polar Bears, Man!

I was reading Time magazine today at school. I bought it at a staggering 10 dollars, but it was worth it - it was the 'Year In Review' issue.

One of the saddest things I saw in the entire thing was a polar bear forlornly looking at the water as it perched on top of a floating piece of tiny ice.

It's hard especially for me because I just love fast cars. I can't help it. I love the sound of a BMW straight-six growling under throttle. I love the sound of a well-executed downshift. I love the smell of burning brakes and tires. But then I end up looking at the MPG stats for the car. 10/12 MPG City/Hwy? Jesus. I know it's a Ferarri. I know what Al Gore told me. But there are some things that I can't help but feel torn about.

I think that we all have a problem with facing reality of the world around us sometimes. The world is heating up, the air is getting more polluted, Iran's meddling with Iraq, and Hugo Chavez just got more power. What a mess. But...there are tests at school. Broken relationships and new love interests. A Chem lab coming up. So what deserves priority here?

I personally do feel a bit hopeless. I wish I could have voted, I wish I could give blood, I wish I could do something besides study for Alg.

It's strange, though, because priorities can be very elusive. Why haven't we ratified Kyoto, for one? Why aren't we spending more time and money on alternative methods of energy? Everyone can make promises. I promised that I would do a bunch of clubs this year. I ended up swimming and visiting Chess Club once in a while. Bush promised that we'd take care of the global warming situation, yet it's only very recently that we've started plans to do that.

The problem lies in pointing fingers at people. Is the polar bear on that sliver of ice because of a bunch of people who drive Porsches? Or is it all of our faults? I read about a ridiculous lawsuit targeting GM, Ford, Toyota and the other big auto companies for causing global warming. What? That's like saying all street crime is due to a few black dudes from Compton. Yes, I'm sure the car companies aren't helping, and I'm pretty sure there have been a few black guys from Compton who mugged somebody, but to blame a far-spanning problem on such a small cause doesn't even make sense.

The answer probably has to do with balance.

Yeah, that chem test is coming up, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't read about the Middle East. I personally do think everyone should be thinking about these things.

So maybe I will drive my Porsche.

But I'll feel better with the new solar panels on my (hypothetical) roof.

I just hope the bears will be alright.

This I Believe...

For a homework assignment we were told to write about three of NPR's This I Believe short essays. The three I picked were Just Like Pastrami, All the Joy the World Contains, and The Right to Be Fully American .

Just Like Pastrami dealt with how a good life is "marbled" like the meat - how everything is interconnected and well-mixed as opposed to just layed and piled on. I found this metaphor extremely interesting because we often deal with the fact that our personal relationships and family life and school life conflict instead of being harmoniously woven. Mr. Schulman, the author of the piece, discusses the fact that you can never separate the different aspects of life and expect it to be perfect.
The second piece, All the Joy the World Contains (by Jimmie Dale Gilmore) talked about Jimmie's experience with a life of finding something to believe in, which lead to him jumping from states of inspiration to cynicism. He talks about how after the drugs, sex, and the rock lifestyle, he only found solace in being genuinely interested in others' welfare. I found this extremely insightful, if not quite as metaphoric as the Pastrami piece. Here's a man who hit rock bottom, but found something that was worth believing in. It made me think about how sometimes, we all need something to believe in, even if it may be nothing to another person.
My favorite piece was The Right to Be Fully American, by Yasir Billoo. Yasir is a Pakistani Muslim who immigrated here. It made me really think about the "politics" of our culture - many of us say that we treat everyone with the same respect, but is that really true? Noone can deny (well, maybe the FAA might...) that those 'random' security checks at the airport are just slightly biased in many cases. Yasir had dealt with both his religion and his nationality here, even though he is an American citizen (and a lawyer, no less). The piece made me think about how anyone can be an American, but Americans can't necessarily be, say, Italian.

Edit;

I think that racism probably is caused by either a) Ignorance or b) fear.

Usually it's a combination of both. America's conflicts with the middle east prevent us from being closer to the truth of the matter of things such as Islam - what we know, we basically only see on the TV. Usually they are negative images - Hamas militants blowing up markets, firefights, etc. Just as Germans and Japanese were prosecuted during WWII, many of us are subtly prejudiced against Arabs. And to make matters worse, many people are ignorant of the difference between Arabs, Kurds, Pakistanis, etc. What would you be more afraid of in a dark alleyway? A white guy with glasses, or a black guy with a bandana on? Never mind that the white guy could chop off your limb and eat your flesh, you'd probably be more worried about the black guy mugging you. Why is this? It's not like we see the color black and go *ding!* "That is dangerous". It's because of our preconceptions of black people - on Cops you see them running, on the news you see them getting jailed for drive bys, etc. Fear is also related - just as we might be afraid of being mugged by the black dude, we're also wary of people from the Middle East because of, well, 9/11. Fear can control us - just look at the government's color-coded system, one of the greatest examples of something stupid that money was wasted on. There was absolutely no basis for the color code system, yet we were all frozen in our seats because we were in the Red. 9/11 also scared the crap out of us, prompting us to throw reason out the door and not question the war on Iraq.

So that's the reason why I think racism exists.

Commonplace

I was listening to some music today, and I realized that some of the stuff I listen to has a lot of significant messages in them. No offense, but mainstream music these days doesn't exactly try to tell us much. It also doesn't help that people insist on spelling the word 'tasty' as 't-a-s-t-e-y' (haha, just kidding...well, not really.)

So what then? I'm not being uptight, I do recognize that some music is for fun...but it can't all be that way, right? I was listening to Thrice, which is a rock/experimental band, and some of their lyrics from the song Cold Cash and Colder Hearts stuck out to me. Here they are:

"They are sick, they are poor
And they die by the thousands and we look away
They are wolves at the door
And they're not gonna move us or get in our way
'Cause we don't have the time
Here at the top of the world
Feeling alright
Here at the top of the world
We hold our own by keeping our hearts cold."

The song ends with the verse
"They are no one
They are nowhere
They are not our problem
Not worth saving
Nonexistent if we keep our hearts cold

They are no one
They are nowhere"

This is the part with the indecipherable screaming. I found this song to be especially fitting with the things we have been discussing in class and via our blogs. Obviously, a way to help relieve world poverty is right in front of us, but the majority of the United States has not contributed and, to be honest, do not care. It shows a lot of hypocrisy to croon at Oprah's work in Africa on TV and then immediately turn a blind eye as soon as we recieve a new iPod. It reaches a new low, of course, when you see the kind of spoiled, ignorant kids on TV a capitalist system has inadvertently supported- a maddening example being MTV's classy My Super Sweet Sixteen. Congrats, you forced your father into buying you a $75,000 Range Rover in which you'll be riding in alone (key word here being "alone").

The example continues with one of my favorite bands, Rage Against the Machine. I'm sorry if this particular musical example is a bit too "leftist" for your taste; however, RATM does not care about political affiliation (they have said that they do not belong to the right or the left; they do not agree with either side and are in more of a socialist position). So if you're a fan of Bush, just hold on. They dislike Al Gore too.

RATM has a song, titled "Sleep Now in the Fire", which was filmed on Wall Street even though it was an illegal act. This lead to the director of the video, Michael Moore, almost being arrested, along with the members of RATM being escorted off the premises. The song parodies how ignorant American people can be. It's really not a joke - CNN had a reporter out on the streets, asking questions about the Middle East. Can you guess some of the responses?

CNN: What do you think about the Hezbollah situation right now?
Woman: I dunno...who cares about those towelheads, anyway?

CNN: Do you think Bush was justified in invading Iraq?
Man: Of course he was! Weren't like, Saddam going to nuke L.A. or somethin'?

And it goes on.

The song's lyrics are a bit cryptic:

"The world is my expense
The cost of my desire
Jesus blessed me with its future
And I protect it with fire
So raise your fists
And march around
Don't dare take what you need
I'll jail and bury those committed
And smother the rest in greed
Crawl with me into tomorrow
Or I'll drag you to your grave
I'm deep inside your children
They'll betray you in my name"

It's told from the point of view of the hypothetical "Man". I think all of you will get the basic meaning of it.

Finally, in order to please some of the non-rock fans, I've found a song from one of my favorite, and most talented rap artists around today - Mos Def. He is an absolutely brilliant lyricist and has really, really good flow. Talib Kweli is also a brilliant rapper. Both of them don't constantly stray towards the kind of crap that some other mainstream rappers talk about, and it's truly refreshing. Here is a song by Talib Kweli, titled "Get By", which is about the harsh realities of the day-to-day for many people. Another song is by Mos Def, named "Katrina Klap", in which he discusses the government's pathetic reaction to Katrina.

I think that it's important to get involved in the events of our nation in any way possible, whether it be by protesting Guantanamo or listening to music with a message. And how can you not have strong opinions sometimes? When someone like Amadou Diallo gets murdered by policemen, how can people just sit there and not react? 41 shots! For Chrissake!

Water Buffaloes v. Killing Babies.

4 Generations is a short video about how an American living in China, Robert Thompson, helped set up a gift of a water buffalo to a family in a small Chinese village. They picked one water buffalo and one family that seemed to need it most. It ended up going to a family with a great-grandmother, grandmother, father, and daughter.

The first difference that I was aware of between Singer's essay and this video was the immediate emotional response. Unlike the essay, in which I was skeptical and a bit annoyed, to be honest, this short video was very moving. This is the sort of thing that just might inspire us to help out people in need around the world. Again, unlike Singer's essay, this video did not point fingers and try to guilt-trip us into compliance - instead, it highlighted the greatest aspects of human kindness. Instead of showing the consequences, it showed the rewards.

There was none of the forced logic that made me raise an eyebrow to the Singer Solution to World Poverty. While the essay told us that in order to lead morally correct lives, we needed to donate all the money that we didn't absolutely need (which is rubbish), the video showed us that we had the ability to change a life in a positive manner. The best part, for me, was the lack of pretenciousness. There were no statistics, twisting logic, questioning of our morality, or "clever" analogies. It was just the documentation of the action. This was the most powerful bit, because unlike Singer's theoretical argument, they actually went out and helped a family. Because of this, there was never a time where I questioned what Robert Thompson was trying to do. Singer's essay left me feeling jaded and wondering whether Singer was a hypocrite (after all, there was no evidence of him donating $200).

So, in essence, 4 Generations is everything the Singer Solution isn't, but should have been. There's an analogy in all of this, somewhere. The closest one seems to involve my favorite institution to rag on, PETA. Singer's method of changing the world is basically the same as PETA's. He makes us feel like we're killing African babies by eating an expensive dessert, just like PETA makes us feel like we're lining up baby cows and beating them with police batons whenever we consume veal (strangely enough, both of them involve delicious food). I don't know if it's just me, but I would rather see PETA advertising puppies getting new homes, and cattle roaming freely in the fields than to see cattle flopping around on the blood-stained floor of a slaughterhouse. Yes, it's the same message, but with two hugely different executions.

I'm sure both the Singer Solution and 4 Gen. had the same well-meaning intentions in mind. But in this world of apathetic materialists, it's all about how we convince people. And while guilt may work in police confessions, I have a feeling that seeing the joy a water buffalo can bring to a family might help us get involved a little bit better.

World Poverty

I found Peter Singer's article very interesting.

He makes some extremely good points which make a lot of sense. And yes, the only way to really live a morally correct life is to live without any luxuries. Zero.

The problem is that basically, that will lead to a (theoretically) communist state for all first-world nations.

Think about it.

Whether you are a middle-class family living in North Carolina, or your name starts with 'D' and ends with 'Onald Trump', you will be giving all the luxuries you have (the Donald would have to give a massive amount of money away, it seems). Everyone would basically be living in the same conditions, unless, of course, you are below the average even at this point. And while this makes for saving hundreds of thousands of lives in third-world countries, it also demolishes what we've known as life since...well, what seems to be forever.

It's not exactly impressive human progress.

Oh, sure, it's moral progress.

Peter Singer tells us near the end of the paper, "That's right: I'm saying that you shouldn't buy that new car, take that cruise, redecorate the house or get that pricey new suit. After all, a $1000 suit could save five children's lives." Of course, a untold point is that this would still destroy our economy, our culture, and it would also have a massive effect on our infrastructure (again, tied to the economy). It'd be a mess. People cannot be attached to this idea of giving infinitely. It's impossible. Bono and Oprah might have donated loads of money, but you don't see Bono selling his very valuable estate or his Maserati. He goes on to say that we should at least know what we are not leading "a morally decent life".

It's pretty easy to judge from behind a pen (keyboard?). While we should be aware of the repercussions of our actions (or inaction, to be more accurate), there is no reason to feel guilty. Did I stick the muzzle of a well-oiled AK-47 at the head of a child in Namibia and pull the trigger? Of course not. I just ate a steak. And it's this kind of thinking that can be toxic. It is almost akin to the way that the PETA describes life: "A boy is a dog is a rat." Eating a dry-aged steak is like letting a kid get run over by a train? What the hell is going on here?

It's the same thing with global warming - yes, we're causing it. Yes, we can solve it...but I'll be damned if you don't think I'm gonna be driving a fast car in the near future. Although group thinking can be extremely dangerous in the long run (Nazi Germany, as mentioned in the essay?), there's no doubt in my mind that someone high up (e.g. our administration?) needs to be addressing these things (both world poverty as well as global warming). Yeah, I do feel bad that we're destroying the earth. But does that mean everyone should go buy a Prius? God, no!

Our government's not listening, for one (poor Al Gore). We could be creating more opportunities to integrate solar power, wind power, biofuels, etc. Even a Public Service Announcement would help! The exact same applies to world poverty. Do you think most people are going to care after a long day at work? You're a fantastic optimist if you said 'yes' to that question.

Again, it is the same with genocide. I'm sure many people enjoyed the chapel, bought the shirts. I thought that it was all a bit ridiculous. Yes, you're contributing to help feed some of the refugees. Save Darfur? Not happening. Unless you go in there with a fireteam of Delta Force operators and kill a few warlords, it is not happening. Feeding someone and stopping genocide are two different things. Does that mean I shouldn't buy a shirt? Of course not, it's for a good cause. But just because you didn't, it doesn't mean you're killing hundreds of refugees. The bottom line is, we need to get inspired somehow. Throw out some of the aforementioned PSAs. Create programs. Make us feel like dirtbags. But until then, we don't have many choices, nor do we really have any reasons to take action. Until something happens, the general message seems to be:

Have you bought a Prius, or donated $200?

Join the revolution, friend. Leave those yuppie gas-guzzling bourgeoisie pigs behind.

With this in mind, please, if you can, give that $200. It'll help alot.

But don't cry about it when you're eating at Alan Wong's.

Does that sound a bit heartless? Well...maybe it is. But if you're not gonna finish that plate of 30 dollar foie gras because you think you're destroying a child in Africa...you might as well give it to me.

The Beginning

This is the first post.


I like blogs because they allow people to rant about anything at all without seeming insane. I sort of forgot what else to put in this first post.