I spend a solid 62.5% of my time daily on it. Considering that sleeping is only 29.2% and eating is a mere 8.3%, education is clearly my life right now. Upon analysis, the human body yields no outstanding strength, razor teeth and claws, or lightning speed. Incredibly, we are apparently the fruit of thousands of years of evolution and perched at the pinnacle of the global food chain.
Our one power, the defining characteristic of the Homo Sapiens Sapiens, is the mind.
Education is extremely important.
Yet a devastating problem in several countries is that people do not receive a sufficient education. More prosperous nations, like ours, give money and aid to these poor countries in hopes of improving the situation. It will surely help, but as the saying goes, "Give a man a fish, and he's fed for a day. Teach a man to fish, and he can teach other men to fish, feeding them all for the rest of their lives." Free schools for the poor all over the world help destitute children to learn and eventually prosper. No Child Left Behind also attempts to spread the knowledge and give a substantial, if not equal, opportunity. So let's give everyone in the world, people of all nationalities, races, and genders, an education, and that foundation will sustain humanity better than a donation.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Sanctions Bad
The United States and the United Nations put sanctions on misled countries in order to attempt to direct them to the right path. The act is analogous to taking away an errant child's food until it behaves.
1) Sanctions by the United States are unjustified. If a country's government is faulty, another nation has no right to interfere with its national sovereignty. It may criticize policies, but actions to change them must remain within the compass of the nation itself and the United Nations. Controlling and coercing another nation, whether through military or economic means, is only a loose or preliminary form of imperialism or colonialism. The United States cannot make decisions for the rest of the world any more than any other country could for the United States. If there is a problem so severe that it must be changed through economic sanctions, then the United Nations should have the jurisdiction to enforce a change.
2) Sanctions cause damage to the innocent. Since sanctions are often simply restrictions of trade and commerce with the chosen country, the people who supposedly are being oppressed or wronged in that country are then subjected to depleted supplies that can only further worsen their situation. Regardless of whether the policy is ultimately changed, sanctions are detrimental to the society. Additionally, sanctions on a country can cause related nations to suffer enormously, depending on the scope of the sanction.
3) UN sanctions are often unable to be enforced. The whole purpose of sanctioning is to enforce a change in law, but in international sanctions there must also be enforcement of the sanctions themselves. However, there is no non-military method of enforcement beyond mere political scorn, so the purportedly non-military tool of sanctioning often requires force to be effective.
4) Sanctions simply have a low rate of achievement. Sanctioning or subjecting a nation to external force in any case can frequently result in favor of the faulty government for which the sanction was intended. An excellent example of this phenomenon is Fidel Castro in Cuba. Known to the rest of the world as a scoundrel and a plague on society, he has nevertheless been able to blame the rampant poverty on neighboring and sanctioning nations, causing the population to rally around him. In Iraq, Sudan, and Myanmar(Burma) have hurt these nations potentially even more than the cause of the sanctions.
Although changes could(should) be made to sanctioning, currently they are an overestimated and detrimental tool for Civil Liberties.
http://globalpolicy.igc.org/security/sanction/anlysis2.htm
http://www.antiwar.com/eland/?articleid=10070
1) Sanctions by the United States are unjustified. If a country's government is faulty, another nation has no right to interfere with its national sovereignty. It may criticize policies, but actions to change them must remain within the compass of the nation itself and the United Nations. Controlling and coercing another nation, whether through military or economic means, is only a loose or preliminary form of imperialism or colonialism. The United States cannot make decisions for the rest of the world any more than any other country could for the United States. If there is a problem so severe that it must be changed through economic sanctions, then the United Nations should have the jurisdiction to enforce a change.
2) Sanctions cause damage to the innocent. Since sanctions are often simply restrictions of trade and commerce with the chosen country, the people who supposedly are being oppressed or wronged in that country are then subjected to depleted supplies that can only further worsen their situation. Regardless of whether the policy is ultimately changed, sanctions are detrimental to the society. Additionally, sanctions on a country can cause related nations to suffer enormously, depending on the scope of the sanction.
3) UN sanctions are often unable to be enforced. The whole purpose of sanctioning is to enforce a change in law, but in international sanctions there must also be enforcement of the sanctions themselves. However, there is no non-military method of enforcement beyond mere political scorn, so the purportedly non-military tool of sanctioning often requires force to be effective.
4) Sanctions simply have a low rate of achievement. Sanctioning or subjecting a nation to external force in any case can frequently result in favor of the faulty government for which the sanction was intended. An excellent example of this phenomenon is Fidel Castro in Cuba. Known to the rest of the world as a scoundrel and a plague on society, he has nevertheless been able to blame the rampant poverty on neighboring and sanctioning nations, causing the population to rally around him. In Iraq, Sudan, and Myanmar(Burma) have hurt these nations potentially even more than the cause of the sanctions.
Although changes could(should) be made to sanctioning, currently they are an overestimated and detrimental tool for Civil Liberties.
http://globalpolicy.igc.org/security/sanction/anlysis2.htm
http://www.antiwar.com/eland/?articleid=10070
Smile
:] People say I smile a lot. They sometimes ask me why.
=D I don't see any reason not to.
:) It makes the recipient richer without making the giver poorer.
=P It takes a moment but can last a lifetime.
;) Someone might fall in love with it.
:] Everyone smiles in the same language.
=D It's contagious. There are lots of beneficial corollaries to this:
:) It's better to spread joy with a smile than sorrow with a frown.
=P If you're sad, give someone a smile. You may get it back with interest.
;) "Wear a smile and have friends; wear a scowl and have wrinkles." ~George Eliot
S M I L E
:] =D :) =P ;)
=D I don't see any reason not to.
:) It makes the recipient richer without making the giver poorer.
=P It takes a moment but can last a lifetime.
;) Someone might fall in love with it.
:] Everyone smiles in the same language.
=D It's contagious. There are lots of beneficial corollaries to this:
:) It's better to spread joy with a smile than sorrow with a frown.
=P If you're sad, give someone a smile. You may get it back with interest.
;) "Wear a smile and have friends; wear a scowl and have wrinkles." ~George Eliot
S M I L E
:] =D :) =P ;)
Machines R Us
We use machines to make life easier. We control them. It's terrifying to imagine what might happen if they start to control us...
"Oh no! My laptop broke! All my stuff was on it!"
"We're going camping? Cool! Can I bring my DS?"
"Sorry, gotta go. My favorite show is on"
"Oh no! My laptop broke! All my stuff was on it!"
"We're going camping? Cool! Can I bring my DS?"
"Sorry, gotta go. My favorite show is on"
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