Link to article
Nicholas D. Kristof details in his op-ed how while Occupy Wall Street successfully shines a spotlight on an issue in America, the solution lies not in alterations to the payment of taxes, but rather in going to the root of the problem; education. By instituting programs to ensure that underprivelaged people have a better education, they're more likely to graduate school, get a job, get their own house, etc.
He does a good job of nabbing everybody's attention with a clear, progressive thesis that starts off with Occupy Wall Street (which everybody by this point has most likely heard of) and steers into a proposition of action that's described with detail while still being concise, and is well-backed by evidence of similar successful attempts at what he's proposing.
Thursday, October 20, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Sound and Fury
Sound and Fury is a documentary about two families with deaf children. Both families are considering a cochlear implant for their deaf child to help them hear; one family is deaf, while the other one is hearing. (but the parents of both families are related, so the hearing one knows sign language)
In the end of the film, the deaf family decides to not get the implant for their child because they want their kid to experience all that deaf culture has to offer, and instead enrolls her in a deaf school. Meanwhile, the hearing family gets an implant for their child.
Both families present decent arguments for their side. The deaf family believes that their child should have a chance to explore deaf culture, and perhaps when they're older they should have a chance to choose whether they want an implant or not. Since they're both decently successful people, they don't believe their daughter would be unable to succeed in life with deafness. They see deafness as an identity, not a handicap.
Meanwhile, the hearing family really wants their child to be able to have every opportunity to succeed. By implanting the child at a very young age (their child was 11 months old) the child has a headstart in picking up on language.
While I'm not part of the deaf discourse, it seems to me like the deaf family resents the hearing world, and wants to seclude themselves. While they are able to make enough money to live a decently happy life, even the father admits at one point that he thinks his deafness prevents him from being able to really ascend up the corporate ladder. They are pressured from hearing family members to give their child an implant, and being able to return to their secluded world makes them calm and serene.
Meanwhile, the hearing family wants their child to be able to choose whatever they want in life, and not be limited in their interaction with the vast majority of people.
In the end of the film, the deaf family decides to not get the implant for their child because they want their kid to experience all that deaf culture has to offer, and instead enrolls her in a deaf school. Meanwhile, the hearing family gets an implant for their child.
Both families present decent arguments for their side. The deaf family believes that their child should have a chance to explore deaf culture, and perhaps when they're older they should have a chance to choose whether they want an implant or not. Since they're both decently successful people, they don't believe their daughter would be unable to succeed in life with deafness. They see deafness as an identity, not a handicap.
Meanwhile, the hearing family really wants their child to be able to have every opportunity to succeed. By implanting the child at a very young age (their child was 11 months old) the child has a headstart in picking up on language.
While I'm not part of the deaf discourse, it seems to me like the deaf family resents the hearing world, and wants to seclude themselves. While they are able to make enough money to live a decently happy life, even the father admits at one point that he thinks his deafness prevents him from being able to really ascend up the corporate ladder. They are pressured from hearing family members to give their child an implant, and being able to return to their secluded world makes them calm and serene.
Meanwhile, the hearing family wants their child to be able to choose whatever they want in life, and not be limited in their interaction with the vast majority of people.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Fear of Stinging Insects
As I'm sure plenty of people know, I'm not a particularly big fan of the various organisms that share this world with me, and bugs are definitely something I'm not a big fan of.
But man, do I hate stinging insects.
Perhaps a little back-story would do as my best explanation as to why these abominations freak me out more than the average person.
Back in elementary school, like most kids, I rode the bus. Now, buses aren't exactly vacuum-sealed capsules, so now and then bugs can get in. Yes, including bugs like Wasps.
I spot this odd creature flying around, and ask the person sitting next to me what it is. They explain to me that it's a bug that can sting you, but they only do it if you make them angry. In my youth, I relished a challenge. I immediately proceeded to start trash-talking this little guy, and soon enough, I made him mad; he swooped down towards me, and all I could do was quickly grab my backpack and put it between me and this exotic fighter jet. I spent the next 15 minutes of the bus ride holding completely still in fear as the wasp crawled around on my back pack, and even inches away from my face at several points, until we finally got to the school, the bus driver shooed the wasp off of me and killed it with his hat.
That fear transferred itself to pretty much any kind of insect capable of such an act, be it bees, yellow jackets, you name it. My fear only intensified throughout my life, such as in middle school when a yellow jacket crawled down my shirt and stung me in the back of the neck, and I discovered the not-so-fun way that when a yellow jacket stings you, it releases a chemical that attracts other resident yellow jackets to come out of hiding like a buzzing cavalry and try to sting whatever's been marked.
While I've come to conquer my fear enough to at least be able to sit still when one's near me, I still get that nervous feeling whenever I hear that dreadful low buzz.
But man, do I hate stinging insects.
Perhaps a little back-story would do as my best explanation as to why these abominations freak me out more than the average person.
Back in elementary school, like most kids, I rode the bus. Now, buses aren't exactly vacuum-sealed capsules, so now and then bugs can get in. Yes, including bugs like Wasps.
I spot this odd creature flying around, and ask the person sitting next to me what it is. They explain to me that it's a bug that can sting you, but they only do it if you make them angry. In my youth, I relished a challenge. I immediately proceeded to start trash-talking this little guy, and soon enough, I made him mad; he swooped down towards me, and all I could do was quickly grab my backpack and put it between me and this exotic fighter jet. I spent the next 15 minutes of the bus ride holding completely still in fear as the wasp crawled around on my back pack, and even inches away from my face at several points, until we finally got to the school, the bus driver shooed the wasp off of me and killed it with his hat.
That fear transferred itself to pretty much any kind of insect capable of such an act, be it bees, yellow jackets, you name it. My fear only intensified throughout my life, such as in middle school when a yellow jacket crawled down my shirt and stung me in the back of the neck, and I discovered the not-so-fun way that when a yellow jacket stings you, it releases a chemical that attracts other resident yellow jackets to come out of hiding like a buzzing cavalry and try to sting whatever's been marked.
While I've come to conquer my fear enough to at least be able to sit still when one's near me, I still get that nervous feeling whenever I hear that dreadful low buzz.
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