'Tiz the season to be trampled?

Oftentimes I think we all see news stories that make us twist our heads to the side like a confused dog and go "argh?" For some it's gang violence, others it's mothers killing children, for me its the mayhem and chaos surround by....shopping for the holidays. Please explain this to me, because I just don't get it. Why do people whip themselves into a frenzy to by the crap that Walmart sells for a dollar less than it usually does? What even fuels this motivation? Will our families not love us if we don't heap upon them gobs of stuff they will ultimately throw away or toss in storage?

At what point can we honestly ask ourselves how long we can maintain the consumerism paradigm that American society lives by? It has absolutely ruined our culture! The quest for things has put our families in thousands of dollars of debt, which then traps them in a cycle of limited options and wasted dollars on interest payments. It has destroyed our value systems as we leave our children at home by themselves or with immigrant nannies while parents work themselves to death and are never home so they can heap toys, private schools, vacations, and big houses on their kids, when all they really want is their parent's attention. It has put our planet on a downward spiral as it struggles to maintain its delicate balance of life while we plunder it to meet our ever growing demands for more crap. More energy. More food. More, more, more. And apparently, it is stripping us of our humanity. I can't think of what other conclusion I should come to when a 34 year old Walmart employee gets trampled to death as hundreds of people stampede into the store at 6 AM in a desperate frenzy to buy....I dunno, more stuff?

Let's use our current economic and environmental crisis to stop and re-evaluate, shall we? What really matters in life are the friends, family, and companions we share our time with. Instead, why not skip all the stress and worry that comes with buying people presents we can't really afford anyway, and instead focus on giving your loved ones something infinitely more valuable, your time. And, as an alternative to buying things people won't use or appreciate for long, why not visit the Wildlife Adoption Center and adopt a wild animal for each person on your shopping list? The money goes to rescue operations for wildlife and your loved ones will each get a cool kit that includes a picture, certificate, plush toy, and reusable gift bag. You can enter WILD15 to get a 15% discount on your adoptions at checkout.

Happy Holidays everyone (That's right Bill O'Reilly, I said Happy Holidays, not Merry Christmas), 'tis the season to be trampled!

Buona notte equo orso polare...

In 50 years, we probably won't have any polar bears left due to climate change.

The human side of politics

Politics may sound abstract or perhaps like a rich man's game, but there is a very human side to it all. Political decisions may be made by a few people dressed in suits, but these policies affect our communities. Bad policies kill, or make families poor, seperate parents from their children, and send our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, or moms and dads to foreign lands to protect resources. Although we covered a lot this quarter, from energy and the environment, to using the threat of terrorism to control people, to the mainstream media influencing the outcome of our elections, to the financial crisis and the war on drugs, we weren't able to cover everything.

That's were you come in. For your final blog, please watch one of three Frontline reports on abortion clinics, health care systems, or the Darfur tradgedy and write a short report answering the following questions:

Paragraph 1. Summarize the issue. What is the problem, according to Frontline? Who are the people and/ or groups involved?

Paragraph 2. What are your feelings on the matter? What did you learn from the news report about the issue you did not know already? Did your opinion change at all from this information?

Paragraph 3. Why is this issue important? How does policy affect this issue? What is the solution in your opinion?

Paragraph 4. Finally, apply what you have learned about group dynamics and teamwork to solve big problems and explain HOW you would organize a grassroots movement to address this issue in your community. (I actually want you to lay out a general plan.)

That's it! You have come a long way and learned a lot (despite your best efforts not to!) so give yourself a pat on the back. I bitched at you a lot, but you guys stuck it out and did a great job. Happy Holidays and remember, yes we can!

How to steal an election....

In February 2003 David Brock published his book "Blinded by the Right: The Conscience of an Ex-Conservative" and in it, he chronicled the ideology and methodology of the current conservative movement that has dominated this country's political landscape since Regan came to power in 1980. Brock's tale deals mainly with his role as a media hitman, who published stories in a right-wing rag called the American Spectator. After working for the movement for 15 years, he finally came to realize that the people involved were not trying to save the world from moral decay or from terrorists, but rather were so corrupt, they would break laws and lie to stay in power. After Brock published his book and revealed the details of the Arkansas Project in the film The Hunting of the President, he started a non profit organization called Media Matters for America to chronicle the lies and inconsistencies that are aired in the mainsteam media.

The political and media communities are well aware of the news organizations that are maintained and funded by Richard Melon Scaife, which includes the Spectator and the Washington Times. Richard Melon Scaife is a right wing billionaire who uses his money and power to spread his message and ideas through the media, so the publications he owns are filled with "journalists" who support the conservative agenda by either hunting down or making up stories about liberal polititains they want to bring down. Scaife also funds a think tank that pretends to be a research organization called The Heritage Foundation.

The next character you should be familiar with is Rupert Murdoch. He is another right wing billionaire who owns the Fox News Network. In the film "Outfoxed" Robert Greenwald does a brilliant job of outling the Fox strategy as a mouth piece for the conservative movement and how the network manipulates its audience. Murdoch owns a massive quanitity of TV stations, radio stations, and newspapers so he has no problem saturating the public with his version of events and his political opinions. Although Fox news has long been powerful, they acheived their biggest coup-de-tat in the 2000 election by playing a MAJOR role in helping George W. Bush come to power despite the fact that he did not win the popular vote.



How did the media helped the Republicans steal the election in 2000, starting with the public execution of President William Jefferson Clinton's personal reputation and ending with the Supreme Court appointing George Walker Bush as the 43rd president of the United States?

I Heart Keith Olbermann

Give me Liberty, or give me....Security?

"No man thinks more highly than I do of the patriotism, as well as abilities, of the very worthy gentlemen who have just addressed the House. But different men often see the same subject in different lights; and, therefore, I hope it will not be thought disrespectful to those gentlemen if, entertaining as I do opinions of a character very opposite to theirs, I shall speak forth my sentiments freely and without reserve. This is no time for ceremony. The questing before the House is one of awful moment to this country. For my own part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery; and in proportion to the magnitude of the subject ought to be the freedom of the debate. It is only in this way that we can hope to arrive at truth, and fulfill the great responsibility which we hold to God and our country. Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the Majesty of Heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings."

"Mr. President, it is natural to man to indulge in the illusions of hope. We are apt to shut our eyes against a painful truth, and listen to the song of that siren till she transforms us into beasts. Is this the part of wise men, engaged in a great and arduous struggle for liberty? Are we disposed to be of the number of those who, having eyes, see not, and, having ears, hear not, the things which so nearly concern their temporal salvation? For my part, whatever anguish of spirit it may cost, I am willing to know the whole truth; to know the worst, and to provide for it."

"They tell us, sir, that we are weak; unable to cope with so formidable an adversary. But when shall we be stronger? Will it be the next week, or the next year? Will it be when we are totally disarmed, and when a British guard shall be stationed in every house? Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance by lying supinely on our backs and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot? Sir, we are not weak if we make a proper use of those means which the God of nature hath placed in our power. The millions of people, armed in the holy cause of liberty, and in such a country as that which we possess, are invincible by any force which our enemy can send against us. Besides, sir, we shall not fight our battles alone. There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations, and who will raise up friends to fight our battles for us. The battle, sir, is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave. Besides, sir, we have no election. If we were base enough to desire it, it is now too late to retire from the contest. There is no retreat but in submission and slavery! Our chains are forged! Their clanking may be heard on the plains of Boston! The war is inevitable--and let it come! I repeat it, sir, let it come."

"It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace-- but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!" ~Patrick Henry, March 23, 1775

This speech was given on the floor of the assembly when the members of the various colonies were trying to decide if they should really go to war against England, which was at the time the most powerful military force in the world. I draw a parallel to this speech for our present times because it addresses a very important issue.

In a democratic society, there will always be opportunities for people to do us harm. You cannot have total freedom and total security. The more freedom you have, the easier it is to plot and carry out secret schemes. However, the more "security" you have, the more liberty you must give up, the less privacy you will have, and the less personal decisions you will be able to make about what to do in your own life, with your own body, and in your own beliefs.

So a balance must be struck and vigorously maintained by the people between security and liberty. As a country, we must say "give me liberty or give me death!", because we are not willing to accept the chains of slavery, which in our modern society are made of fear. Fighting the war on terror means we are willing to battle the forces who wish to terrorize and take away our personal freedoms that make life worth living. Fighting the war on terror does mean send troops to Arab countries to murder civilians. It means that citizens of democratic countries must battle against any group, organization, or individuals that try to take away our constitutional rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

Weigh in on the debate and tell us where you think the balance should be? What liberties, freedoms, and privacy are you not willing to give up for the illusion of security? What rights, privacy, and liberties do you feel are a fair and effective trade for some security? What must we do as a society to ensure that the War on Terror does not take these precious rights away?

Vote NO on Prop 8!

Friends and Family,

I hope you are all doing well. I am writing to you to vote YES ON 8. Voting yes on 8 will protect the institution of marriage between a man and a woman. Every vote is important. Thank you for your support!

Sincerely,

Brian Chang




Brian,

What are you talking about? Marriage is a civic contract between two people who wish to share their assets and obligations. It affords them valuable legal protection in case one of the partners dies or gets really sick. It enables them to share health benefits and attend teacher parent conferences and lower their tax burden. This has nothing to do with forcing the church to endorse gay unions or marry them under their religious customs. Gays have been getting married for 6 months now and from what I can see, the fabric of our society appears to be in tact.

Are you really telling me that you support writing discrimination into our state constitution and denying people the right to all of these legal protections that heterosexual couples have access too? Constitutional amendments have historically been about granting more rights and obliterating discrimination as our society evolves in their attitudes and acceptance of individuality.

Less than 50 years ago it was illegal for people to marry if they were not the same race. The same argument was used then, that the sanctity of marriage would be destroyed if blacks and whites were allowed to marry. If you fell in love with a white woman 40 or 50 years ago, you would not have been allowed to marry her. Are you telling me that was a good law?

We need to evolve past all this nonsense. Gay members of the community do not deserve this hatred and discrimination. That want the same things as everyone else: a family, the right to be married to the person they love, the right to celebrate their feelings and their commitment to one another in front of their friends and family, and the right to all the same legal and tax rights as anyone else. If they have to pay taxes, they should have the exact same tax shelters as heterosexuals.

I must say, I am disappointed in you for encouraging prejudice and support treating a minority group differently. I hope you reconsider your vote on Prop 8. I'm sorry for dressing you down, but it had to be done. If you really feel like something would be fundamentally different about your own marriage because a gay couple can get married too, you might want to ask yourself why.

Jacqueline

Waiting to exhale....

At present I am sitting here contemplating what will happen 5 days from now...and I can't breathe. So very much is at stake, that I feel, divided as we are, that the entire nation understands this. We are standing at the edge of a precipice. We have a choice now, we can let our fear cloud our judgment as it has done so often in the past, or we can be brave, close our eyes and step forward with a new leader, a new vision, and try a new way of doing things with the part of us that wants to be afraid no longer.

As Micheal Moore quoted George Orwell at the end of his film Fahrenheit 9/11, there was never meant to be a victory with the war, that it needs to go on perpetually to keep the body politic (that's us) frightened, desperate, and distracted.

I think of my favorite poem by Dylan Thomas:

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

And you, my father, there on the sad height,
Curse, bless me now with your fierce tears, I pray.
Do not go gentle into that good night.
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

So what will our choice be? Will we decide to wipe the cobweb from our eyes? Have we lost enough, suffered enough, that we can no longer turn the other cheek and tell ourselves what happens doesn't affect us? There is no way to know. All I can for the time being is wait to exhale.

How do you feel in the days leading up to this historic election? How does the War on Terror affect who you will vote for?

What will it take to address global warming?

Global warming is a unique challenge that must be dealt with by the current generations, all of them. The predictions of scientists and have consistently been shortened from 200 years from now, to 100 - 150 years from now, to a mere 50-70 years from now. That means that many of the horrible predictions will come true before my life comes to an end (assuming I don't drink myself to death at some wine bar first) and it will definitely come to pass in the prime of my student's lives and the prime of my generation's children's lives. This calamity cannot be ignored and the predictions are to life altering to "wait and see if it's true". Furthermore, many of the "canary in the coal mines" that scientists have recommended we watch out for are starting to die right now.

For this assignment, I would like you to consider the information you were exposed to in "An Inconvenient Truth" with President Al Gore and "The Eleventh Hour" produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, including interviews from my personal hero Thom Hartmann. Also, watch the Frontline Episode called "Heat" online and think about the issues that derailed real change and actually dealing with this problem for the last 50 years. Finally, review your chapter on Leadership in your textbook and reflect on what we discussed about types of leadership and what leader fits what type of task or situation best.

For your post, please respond to the following:

What type of leader it will take to get us out of this mess? Apply the principles of a transformational leader and analyze the three essential skills a transformational leaders must possess and explain why they are needed. What specifically does that mean a transformational leader needs to do to get people to change and stop the personal behavior and lifestyle that is killing our planet?

Start by looking at what actually needs to happen, then look at specifically what the leader needs to do to motivate the masses. The consider what does the community need to do to function as team to address this massive issue?

Your post must include citations of where you got your information in order to be graded. I will not accept posts without them.

Please post your response to this question no later than October 31st, 2008.

How did we get in this financial mess?

According to just about every talking head, including the president of the United States of America, the U.S. of A. is looking down the long barrell of a shot gun, a barrell not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930's when a quarter of the workforce was unemployed, buisnesses, banks, and farms were closing daily, the Midwest was sufficating in an ecological distaster refered to as the "Dust Bowl", and millions of American were homeless, starving, and squating in shanty towns.

So what is wrong with the economy and how did we get into this mess?

To begin with, view this short film about the causes of the great depression from the Discovery Channel.
http://videos.howstuffworks.com/hsw/13433-american-history-causes-of-the-great-depression-video.htm

Here is also this short clip that you gives you a real sense of the misery that pervailed during those 11 years (Oct 1929-December, 1941).

Next, view this 60 Minutes news report that does an excellent job summarizing the sub lending practices and greed that are now currently rotting our financial market from the inside out.

Watch CBS Videos Online

Finally, review the previous blog entry that gives a brief run down on the War on Drugs, which has been a money sucking waste of time that individual states and the federal government have been pissing away billions on for 30 years. You should also refer to the notes you took on the episode of Freedom Files: War on Drugs that we watched in class.

Consider how people factor into this scenario. Is this crisis a failure on the part of people to work together to prevent another Great Depression, or is this crisis a result of people working together for the prupose of individual enrichment at the expense of the domestic and global community?

Your task is to construct a thoughtful position on the interconnectedness of domestic policy(policies that regulate markets and private sectors and policies that determine what and where the various state and federal governments funnel tax dollars), the state of the US economy, and the individual priorities of the American people.

Is the War on Drugs a worthwhile cause?

My students put together marvelous podcasts for their final projects in Criminal Justice Administration and Organization during the Summer 2008 quarter at the ITT Tech campus in Culver City, CA.

The assignment required students to select an issue, research the original problem that caused the community to get involved and demand a remedy, the process the community went through to create and pass a law to remedy said problem, what the law entails, and what is necessary to actually administer the law. From there, the student was required to discuss the success or failure of this law for systemic or administrative reasons. Finally, the student needed to cover the consequences of the law, which of course is a systemic question. They could also have discussed the philosophical problems with the law, as some laws are just a bad idea from conception.

Ultimately this was to be a case study on the humanity behind ideology. We dream up these ideas on how to fix society, but we often do not think through the logistics, or the reality, of the situation. For example, prohibiting minors from drinking sounds good in theory, but what are the logistical realities of making it happen? And once a system is put in place, what does it actually do to a society?


Jose Vasquez explores this law and discovers whether we accomplished our mission of reducing teen deaths in car accidents and what it really takes to police this issue. Good work Jose!

The War on Drugs is a good case in point. We don't want people to use certain substances that are physically harmful, but the laws that have been passed in the name of the War on Drugs has resulted in much human misery. Millions have been jailed, our corrections facilities are bursting at the seams, we have pissed away billions of dollars collectively on passing legislation, rounding up and jailing offenders, and maintaining them in correctional facilities thereafter. There are also costs for probation and parole and an increase on our welfare budget as the families left behind struggle to make ends meet with the loss of a wage earner. And of course, we cannot ignore the fact that people's rights have been disastrously violated when these multi-jurisdictional task forces that have to justify their budgets each year storm into minority communities and round up citizens by the truck full. This has happened more than once.


Adriana Cervantes's podcast attempts to grapple with a portion of this issue and she did a fantastic job. Bravo Adriana!

War on Drug Resources:
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/drugs/cron/
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/drugs/video/
http://www.salon.com/news/special/drug_war/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/walter-cronkite/telling-the-truth-about-t_b_16605.html
http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/story/17438347/how_america_lost_the_war_on_drugs

Are wine enthusiasts a sub culture or just snobs?

The students at ITT Technical Institute in Torrance, CA attempt to answer that question.

Their first step was to discuss what a sub-culture really is. According the merriam-webster.com online dictionary a sub-culture is defined as:

"an ethnic, regional, economic, or social group exhibiting characteristic patterns of behavior sufficient to distinguish it from others within an embracing culture or society."

Their second step was to discuss the perceptions they already had about what wine enthusiasts were like. For the most part, the students felt that wine lovers were predominately white, upper-middle class, college educated, cat owners!

Once we had some preconceived notions to work with, we saddled up and took a visit to the San Antonio Winery in Los Angeles, CA. There the students were given a tour of the facilities, told about the process of making wine, and given a history of the Italian family that opened the winery almost 100 years ago. I gave the students a brief lecture about the process of wine tasting and sent them to the tasting bar to mingle with the winos and try tasting wine for themselves. As a supplemental assignment, students were also encouraged to watch Sideways, a comedy about a die hard wine enthusiast.

So now the final product is at hand. Were the students right? Are wine lovers just white, yuppie snobs? Do these folks really constitute their own unique sub culture? Or were the students pleasantly suprised to find out they are just another crowd of drunks? Stay tuned...their papers are due here at this blog on August 20, 2008.

Students: In order to submit your essay, hit the reply button and paste the text of your essay in the reply box.