OMG! OSAMA BIN LADEN IS DEAD! YAY! :/

http://www.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/05/01/bin.laden.obit/index.html?on.cnn=1

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/may/02/osama-bin-laden-dead-obama?CMP=twt_fd

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/05/01/national/main20058777.shtml

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/05/u-s-forces-kill-osama-bin-laden/

And why his death doesn't really matter:

http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/05/01/why-bin-ladens-death-no-longer-really-matters/

For those who haven't heard, apparently OBL has been caught and killed in Pakistan (which depending on your perspective, may or may not be true, accurate, or even real). Naturally, the morons of Facebook and Twitter rejoice in his death, typing the same stupidity over and over again:

army wives: "This is fantastic news! Support the military! <3. I haven't seen my hubby for 2 years but I'm sure he isn't doing things like raping women and killing children indiscriminately. Keep them in your prayers because a well-outfitted soldier is going to need your thoughts, not some poor, little boy mistaken for as a terrorist in his own homeland."

tough guys rejected from the army: "FUCK YEAH! WE KILLED THAT SUMUVABITCH! I'm overcompensating on the internet to try and fit into the generic, "real" man stereotype that society perpetuates through movies and RL."

civilians: "About time we got him. Now we can go on with our daily lives being unaffected like we have been for the past 10 years. I actually don't care about politics but when some huge story like this hits the front pages of every MSM source in the US, then I just have to say something or I'll be considered unpatriotic."

Also, since this is a Peace Studies class, here is a video of Bin Laden's son calling for peace http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GY4wGpPbz0E

NYT article about "Three Cups of Tea"

I found a recent article from the New York times talking about the "Three Cups of Tea" that Kahlor refereed to in class. The article supposes that when things don't work out for those who want to do good and they appear as though they aren't do what they are supposed to, we vindictively project our lack of trying onto that person, which in turn, makes us feel better for not trying.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/01/opinion/01rakoff.html

Week 16: Oral history reflection/Final post

I'd like for you to reflect on your oral history project. What did you learn about peace from this individual? What does this individual have to offer to the world that is unique? Also, what do you have to offer to the world that is unique, perceptive, insightful? Do you believe that individuals have a responsibility to make use of these qualities or to contribute accordingly? Explain.

I learned from him that it is up to people to do kind acts regardless of what situation they are in or who they are with. He said that enacting revenge only continues the cycle of violence that is present throughout society. He says even if someone intentionally does you wrong, to not retaliate because it helps no one and only further these petty type of dilemmas. He gave advice and insight to anyone that asked for it. He lent an ear to listen to people's problems and helped them recover from whatever they were going through.

I can only offer insight into my own personal situations. Not everything is as it seems. Make sure you know the whole story of a situation before jumping in to rush judgment. It is easy for one to assume and stereotype or even mis-characterize another because it's easy to do. It takes virtually no work to vilify someone, especially if you haven't been in their position before. So rather than rush to anger about trivial events, perhaps it is best to be patient and try to understand the problems that other people are going through so that, if their is something that needs to be discussed or fixed, it can be done so under mutually beneficial circumstances.

I do believe people have some sort of responsibility to others if they have a quality or skill that can be helpful to those around them. However, sometimes other people can be demanding and put a strain on that person that is trying to help. So I understand if skilled people or people with helpful qualities don't accept a community position. But I think there is a point to where sometimes it is just necessary for that person to step in the the betterment of the community. So not everyone needs to contribute but I posit that if everyone did their best to help out someone else, violence in general would be down in all areas.

The "guardians from Plato and Kant - PHIL2200

I found a clip from a pretty corny and weird sci-fi show called "The Event". I noticed that as in class we were talking about elites which may help or hurt society, this show delved into the story of a man who worked behind the scenes and tried to kill the VP as well as manipulate certain outcomes through his economic resources from various scenarios. He speaks of "taking care of mankind", painting himself as an angel, yet you see how he is willing to kill and maim for that purpose. It is implied over a series of episodes that he is older than his human body appears to be, making references to thousands of years and, in this case, breaking an ancient pot just found by an archaeologist because he knew there was a scroll inside (according to the episode, the same cave where the Dead Sea scrolls were found). Also, later in the same episode he speaks to a trained but rogue intel agent and points to the sky as he says "them" when he responds to a question of who he is protecting the world from.

Concept of historical Guardians - The Event S01E15

Week 15 - Chapter 11

Although stereotypes they don't represent or even describe the majority of a primary characteristic group (race, age, gender), they turn people into pathetic puppets, just waiting to agree with or follow someone with the same beliefs. The other day I went to the license tag office and was a spectator to a pretty horrible situation. I was sitting in my car in the parking lot waiting for friend to help them out with getting their tag. While I waited a few cars started leaving to drive out off the lot. There was a gold Caddy and a red F-150 behind it. I'm not sure what happened but before each pulled out onto the road, the white guy from the F-150 began yelling slurs and insults. He yelled (and I could hear from my car about half a block down), "What the fuck are you doing? Fuck you nigger... I'm gonna fuck your mother in the ass!" To say I was shocked is to understate what was said. After they both drove of, I kinda sat there just pondering "Nothing , especially something petty done in a tag office parking lot, deserves those kinds of insults." I was just realizing how I've never seen true hatred of another person, and here goes some douchebag yelling racial obscenities at a guy who probably didn't even know what was going on. It really is disheartening.

On a similar note, the media is adept at using race as a "hot button" issue. It doesn't surprise me anymore if anyone would actually become a racist based on the news cycle. It is ludicrous to say this entire country suffers from blatant discrimination when sometimes the reasons for a certain situations are due to "natural" reasons. For example, men are likely to earn more than women because more are aggressive in their work place, ask for more raises, are at risk in more job areas, and are usually more experienced in their field of work. That is not to say women are less able to work as hard, it just so happens that men's natural traits allow them to flourish in the work place. So it's "an economic versus a nature" dilemma, not necessarily a sex discrimination one.

Week 14 - Teaching Presentations

I decided to join Jason and Josh's group about relativism and absolutism.

Week 13 - Intended Major

1) My intended major(s) is/are: Computer Science and Information Security. I have only added InfoSec as a major since attending KSU. Well, I've always liked the idea of understanding and implementing complex technical skills to build programs and secure data.

2) The four type of professional experience that can help me in my studies are:

-job shadows (where one follows around someone already in a job position that you want so that one may experience the intricacies and nuances of a real world job.)

-internships (a short-term hands-on experience which lets one maintain their study time while also working usually part-time for a company they wish to apply to and so one gets a feel for how juggling responsibilities and keeping focus will feel like)

-co-ops (basically one semester, one will study and be able to concentrate on academic responsibilities, and the next semester, one can essentially, "intern" for that period of time, allowing one to be devoted to their work) and

-volunteering (a position which one devotes time to an organization, simply because one wishes to, not because they will receive payment).

I believe an internship would be my best option. It would allow me to continue learning at school while experiencing the life of a job at a company. If I still wish to apply to that company, I can; but if I do not, then an internship will allow me to find out if that environment is right. The next best would be a co-op. It woiuld allow my to concentrate on my studies for a limited time, then be able to devote my attention full-time to a temp job position.

Week 12 - Life Challenges

Week 11 - A Class Divided

1) I was very surprised by the students' reactions. At the beginning of the video, the kids seem like nice, normal people. But halfway through the "experiment", best friends are nemeses and people who didn't like each other from the start now had allies in those of the same eye color.

2) It proves human nature isn't as resilient to this type of conditioning as people thought. Many of us think this conditioning is horrid and outside of the realm of possibilities affecting us but the reality is that most of us could be made to believe something that isn't true solely because it has been repeated over and over by others. It also goes to show how malleable children's minds are and that adults need to be careful as to what teachings are introduced into their child's education.

3) Well, this experiment would obviously vary from city to city but taking metro-Atlanta as a possibility, I think this experiment would be less effective considering the amount of diversity. Growing up I had all types of friends: black, Asian, Hispanic, white, and even Indian. So from a young age, that type of "diversity = equality" thinking had been instilled in me from a young age. I don't think that experiment would take much hold in the more urban areas of a city simply because kids are more likely to be exposed to different cultures early on and learn to accept those cultures growing up.

Week 10: GALILEO

The author, James, Heft, basically gives a general overview of Christian history and goes on to show the attitude of a sizable group within the church, as well as the papal authority. What the author describes is a pendulum of Church (and the populace's) doctrine. He states that Christians, in the first century did not want to join the Roman Army, but then later on, joined in on the Crusades, and as a final swing, most Christians (particularly) Catholics, have embraced the idea that even more limited war and rules for those wars are needed to usher in peace.

Heft lists the Popes who have tried to push the Church into a "peace" era but notes that Pope John Paul II, like the Enlightenment philosophers, changed the perception of peace by linking war action to an affront on the rights of every human being involved. John Paul II drastically moved the "just war" theory in a new direction by exposing the sins of the Church from centuries ago, also imploring that relations between factions continue to exist even after armed conflict has ruined the countries involved. Heft says mainline Protestants has endorsed John Paul II's ideas of restrictive warfare and forgiving aftermath but somehow a good number of evangelical churches actually support preemptive war and do not share the same talk of peace that Jesus himself gave to his disciples.

Heft, James. "Religion, World Order, and Peace: Christianity, War, and Peacemaking." Cross Currents60.3 (2010): 328. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 17 Mar. 2011.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/50958853/Religion-World-Order-And-Peace-Christian

Week 9: Spring Break

Week 8: PSA assignment

1) I'll be working with Kyle and Julie on a topic in the topic. Not sure which one though. We were thinking about a PowerPoint presentation or something visual.

2) To be honest, I haven't been keeping up with the book. I'll be sure to begin finishing the book this week.

Edit: I thought I had published this post but I had actually saved it. :/