Sign of progress

One of the things we did in my English class this semester was watch American History X and write a reactionary essay about it. American History X is a movie about a neo Nazi American who realizes his mistakes and tries to prevent his brother from going down the same path as him. The movie was disturbing, to put it mildly. I found some of the things that were said revolting and some scenes too explicit. However, the story was good and the leads, Edward Norton and Edward Furlong play their parts brilliantly.

I watched this in a mixed class with people from different races. We watched it together, a movie about race relations, about how blacks were ones treated in America and even had a discussion about it afterwards. To me, this was a sign of how much America has progressed since the movement of Martin Luther King.

My country is in the midst of an ethnic conflict and my hope is that one day Sri Lankans would be able to sit together and watch a movie about horrors perpetrated during the war and have a civil discussion about it, just like we did that day.

Privacy? What privacy?

Ive been working on a paper on Internet privacy for one of my classes. What Ive found is that there is no such thing as Internet privacy. Frankly, that shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone and it wasn't a surprise to me either. What was a surprise though was the extent to which Internet privacy is lacking. By lacking I mean close to non existent.

There are companies not only tracking, but gathering information about us. We are being watched, our search habits tracked and then being attacked by companies wanting to sell their products. A marketing technique that is being used more and more. Juvenile convicts who can legally request the courts to purge their records after some time are finding that people have got hold of their records and are selling it for profit, effectively negating the purpose behind purging their records.

It gets worse. Yahoo has already handed over search records to the government and Google has been requested to do so too. Uncle Sam is watching emails for specific words and listening in on phone calls. This invasion of privacy and the lack of legislation to stop it has evolved into microtargetting, and there seems to be no end in sight.

The potential this has to get blown out of control (if it already isn't) is huge. Anonymity of bloggers could be blown, individuals living non mainstream lifestyles could be exposed to discrimination, and what happens to the freedom of speech that is such a big part of America?

The extent of this invasion of privacy is scary and the only thing giving me comfort is the lobbyists who are working with government representatives to do something about it. I'm finding that the land of the free is not that free after all. Some one is always watching, and some one always knows.

"So, hows it been so far?"

"Hows it been so far?" This is a question I'm asked every time some one learns that I'm an international student. One word: super awesome (to use an American expression). Yes, that's two words cause its been that great.

I came here not knowing what to expect. Being Islamic (as Americans call it) and looking it, I was nervous to say the least. However, that was unnecessary. Every one I have met has been so great. I went to the bank the other day, and the lady was so helpful. When she found out that I was an international student, she took me through the whole procedure of how things are done and how the system works and different aspects of my account. No, I'm not stupid. Just like I would go pick a pillow back home and be done with it in seconds (refer posting: "Discoveries abound"), having a bank account just isn't a big deal. I don't need to have an account back home to have a life.

Everyone here is so open minded and not at all judgemental. My first semester is coming to an end and I haven't had one incident of discrimination of any sort. I have met the nicest people and continue to do so. They respect differences and ask questions. Ive met southerners (no they are not slow) and northerners (no they are not snobbish) and all kinds of people who are stereotyped to be one way or another. The only thing I know about all of them is that they are all nice. I have no other word for it.

I'm looking forward to my next semester......

Discoveries abound

I have been discovering things ever since I got here. When I went shopping for my dorm room, I discovered that there was more than one type of pillow. I had to choose between a pillow for people who sleep on their stomachs, sides, on their back, back and sides and so on. I stood there and pondered which pillow would best suit me, whereas back home I would have just bought the first pillow that came to my hand, as there wouldn't have been such a wide choice. Ive already blogged about the Disney channel, Adult Swim, Family Man and South Park. There have also been people like Bill Maher and Bill O Riley. The fact that it is possible for these two men who are complete opposites on the political spectrum to have their own shows is one of the things that I like about America. I have also discovered You Tube and the reliance of this country on credit cards, and that you cannot park your car in an empty car park outside a bank at night but with a permit, you can ride a horse carriage down the street. Oh, and i will not forget anytime soon the first time my cousin saw my handkerchief and asked me what it was because, as I discovered, they don't use handkerchiefs in America. Then there was the first time I went looking for my dorm room and climbed up to what I thought was the third floor, but turned out to be the fourth floor because in America the first floor is what I previously knew as the ground floor. That story really cracked some people up.

One of the more interesting things I have discovered is Helicopter parents. Not so much the concept, but the term. The concept is somewhat familiar, though back home I rarely encountered it. When I got here, I encountered so much of it, that I mentioned it to some one who drew my attention to the term Helicopter parents. So I looked it up, and found two articles (among many) that gave me an insight: Helicopter parents' lead to spoiled, unhappy children and What Are The Latest Accessories College Students Are Bringing To School? Their Parents!

I was told that helicopter parenting was a serious problem faced by college administrators and that increasingly children are being sheltered from the "real world". I thought this was incredulous and was finding it hard to believe. It struck home the other day though, when time.com quoted President H W Bush as saying: "My son is an honest man" in defence of his son at a leadership conference in the UAE. Apparently, the current president was facing "harsh criticism".

Helicopter parents in college I can understand, but this is the President of the most powerful country in the world! The leader of the "free world"! But when President Bush faces the "real world", we find pop hovering above him, and as usual, coming to his rescue. I wonder whether it will work this time though. This time the mess is too big even for Senior and his pals to clean up. That is not to say that they aren't trying. There is a lot being made of the fact that the old guard is back at the White House, trying to fix the mess that is Iraq.

I have heard President Bush talk about his legacy and how history will judge him. He still has two years, but it increasingly looks like history will judge his legacy to be the creation of a right royal pickle in Iraq. A mess left for some one else to clean up.

The magic of Disney

I was at a friends apartment the other day, doing some laundry. To while away the time, I turned on the TV and flipped the channels until I found something I might like. The channel I happened to stop at was the Disney channel which was airing back to back episodes of The Suite Life of Zach and Cody. I normally would not watch the Disney channel, but it was either this or some movie on Lifetime that I really wasn't in the mood for.

The two main characters had changed since I last remembered watching them. They had grown and gotten new hairstyles and the humor had branched out a little, but the show was fundamentally the same. As I watched, I realized that this was the first time since i had arrived on campus that I was watching something that didn't have any foul language or contain any racist or sexist remarks. This to me was a big deal.

Since I have got here, I have discovered Adult Swim and shows like Family Guy and South Park. I remember vividly the first time I watched South Park. I was utterly disgusted and turned of the TV after about ten minutes.

Family Guy on the other hand I can watch, though it still gets unbearable sometimes. Anyway, I know now which channel I can switch to when it all gets too much. This to me is the magic of Disney.

There is a word for people like you

I just read an article about a new ceasefire that has been put in place in the Palestinian territory. The Palestinians have agreed to stop attacks on Israeli targets and Israel has agreed to withdraw its forces and stop its incursions into Palestinian territory. I wonder if this is just another chapter in the long saga of Israeli occupation and Palestinian Intifada. History compels me to think so and my reaction is to scoff at this - another lame duck attempt at "peace".

These attempts will not carry any weight unless the U.S puts its full weight behind efforts to resolve this problem and makes a genuine attempt, rather than be one sided in its policy and put a stamp of approval on everything the Israeli's do.

The Palestinians on the other hand must lay down arms. Armed struggle does not work. I site the Mahatma and Nelson Mandela, both of who insisted on peaceful protest, and ultimately were heard. The Palestinians would do good to take a page out of their book.

The catalyst for change though will be other nations in the Middle East. I am referring to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait and other nations considered to be "moderate". I think its pathetic that the populations in these countries rush to the streets to protest, burn effigies and issue death threats over a cartoon in some paper about Prophet Mohammad (SA) or what His Holiness Pope Benedict said in a speech, but do not seem to care about continued loss of life in Palestine and Israel.

Here is my view: the cartoon or the Pope's comments are not killing any one. Your reaction to them is. Further, your reaction is reinforcing the wide perception that Islam is a violent religion. I feel angry when I hear of another incursion into Palestine or another suicide attack in Israel. I feel angry when I see the attitude of the U.S or the inaction of the U.N and the spineless rulers in Middle Eastern countries towards this conflict. What angers me the most though is watching you fall over yourselves to protest nonsensical things that are not even a big deal until you make them a big deal; while you do nothing to resolve a conflict that seems to have no end in sight - a conflict that has caused and continues to cause the most damage to Islam's image.

Here in America they have a word for people like you: Pussies.

Thanksgiving - My First

Yesterday was Thanksgiving, my first since Ive been in America. As the day approached, the excitement around me got palpable. I had no idea what all the excitement was about, I mean after all, its just another meal right?

I was excited too, not about thanksgiving, but the long break. I hadn't had a significant break since I got here and coming from a country which loves holidays, I am used to having quite a few. So the day finally arrived and I was to join the PM's and RA's who hadn't gone home for the holidays.

I was impressed by the amount of preparation that went into this meal. I had never heard of much of what was being prepared, let alone eaten it. We watched the Macy's Parade (which I think is an absurd waste of money) while people trickled in. The atmosphere was very relaxed and I was enjoying myself. When the table was laid, we settled down to the meal.

During the meal, I couldn't help realizing that I have done this before. Not Thanksgiving; but friends and family sitting down for a meal in a relaxed way, enjoying each others company and not discussing this professor or that class or running of to finish a paper or make it in time to a lecture. Thanksgiving really has no significance to me in the sense of celebrating the new harvest or the war with the Native Indians. However, coming from a large family and tight knit community, we have many gatherings of this sort, and that's one of the things I have missed since Ive been here. So Ive decided that the significance of Thanksgiving for me will be just that - a gathering to put a brakes on life to celebrate each others company over a meal.

“An Inconvenient Truth”

The U.S had its midterm elections recently, and there were many issues brought up during the election that I would like to comment on, but in this post, I want to focus on an issue that wasn't an issue at all – Global Warming. There is ample evidence that shows a direct correlation between the emission of greenhouse gases and global warming. The bottom line is that if the level of emission is not reduced, the world is heading for serious trouble.

President Bush has consistently resisted pressure to do something about the greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. He has refused to sign the Kyoto Protocol and failed to support any initiatives aimed at reducing the emission of greenhouse gases. To the contrary, he supports drilling for oil in Alaska which would drastically affect the reserve.

All this comes from a self proclaimed man of God who is said to let his religious views influence the decisions he makes. This is a president that did more than any other president to get Evangelicals to vote for him, promising to uphold family values, promote religion and work to ban gay marriage because it is morally wrong.

My view is that a man of God who does nothing to protect the environment created by God is no man of God. Not only does he fail to protect the environment, but he actively partakes in its destruction! I don't think it is in any way moral! How can it be? Is it protecting family values when you don't look after the beauty created by God so that your children can appreciate it? How is this morally acceptable by any standards? Gay marriage is morally wrong because God meant marriage to be between a man and a woman only, but destructing the natural ecosystems created by God so that animals are able to sustain themselves is OK? Doesn't it bother anyone that fresh air is increasingly in the decline and that God didn't mean it to be this way, just like he didn't mean for people of the same sex to get married.

The first thing I think a man of God should be doing is protecting the environment, and the Democrats seem to be doing this better than Mr. Bush ever has. Mind you, the Democrats, according to Mr. Bush, have no moral values.

Does any one else see the irony, or is this just a different view?

Altman who?

I logged on to msn.com today and right there is a headline that says "Altman dies". So I'm thinking, "who is this guy?." I find out that he was a director who, among other movies, directed the movie MASH. I announce this to the people around me and they go "oh no".

In the mean time, i find out that the Nepalese government and rebels have finally signed a peace deal after about six months of ceasefire, which they called for after overthrowing the monarch, who sacked the government after members of his family were killed in a bloodbath inside the royal palace. No one seems to know about this and nor do they care.

So i I blog about it, and celebrate on my own that another terrorist war has ended with a peace deal while people here mourn the death of Robert Altman. No disrespect to Mr. Altman whatsoever and may he rest in peace, but is no one else celebrating the peace deal?

I guess its just a different view.

Opening thoughts

So here I am, taking in everything happening around me. I am trying to at least, to the best of my ability. There is so much to take in, I'm struggling. I have all these thoughts about these things, random and unrelated to each other but important to me none the less. I wanna put my thoughts in order, talk to someone about them. I want to do something with these thoughts and hence this blog.

Here, is Jacksonville, Florida. I am at university, majoring in Political Science. Some people call it politics but i don't like that, you know, cause Political Science just sounds smarter. I am a Sri Lankan, plain and simple. A Sri Lankan in a foreign country with different views of things and a different way of looking at things and perceiving them. That explains why i choose to call my blog "A Different View".

I don't know what I will blog about. I guess Ill take it as it comes. What I do know though, is that it is my blog and I will blog for me and me only. There will be random comments on various things and whatever else i feel like blogging about.

I'm looking at it as a journey. Lets see where this takes me....

uboy