There's no point in living if you can't feel the life

Change of Plans?

2009-09-17T05:38:57Z

OK, so I was so hell bent on going straight to law school that I never even thought that it might be a better idea to work for a year and THEN go. Maybe that would give me the opportunity to explore my career opportunities before I jump headfirst into studying for three more long years. Maybe I can work at a law firm for a year or something to get a better understanding of the litigation process. That way, my letters of recommendation can come from a professor from college AND a lawyer who I've worked for. It's making a lot more sense, but I guess I'll have to wait until I get my LSAT scores before I make a decision.

The majority of my stress is coming from me wondering what I'm going to do after I graduate. After high school it's so easy, I KNEW I was going to college and that was that. Now there are so many options, and I'm not sure if I want to go straight from one school to another. Maybe a year off would be good for me. I can relax a bit, learn about myself, and finalize what I'm going to do for the rest of my life.

Both my parents have PhDs and they hold me to the highest of standards. I want to succeed. I honestly don't care about the money as long as I'm doing something I love. If I can afford to pay rent, eat, and transportation then I'm satisfied.

Shakespeare Meets College: A Love Story

2009-09-15T03:19:24Z

I am absolutely exhausted right now. So much has happened, and yet there's so much still to come that it's incredibly tiresome to think about.

Firstly, I am happy to announce that I was cast in my college's main stage production of The Tempest as Stephano, the drunken butler who washes ashore and dreams of ruling the island. I also have a few smaller background roles (as does mostly everyone else in the cast) which will be very physical and involve lots of singing, rhythm, and dancing. While I'm absolutely THRILLED to be in this production I'm also a bit apprehensive with how much time it will take up. Each rehearsal is 3-4 hours long and when I'm not there I'm either in class, in meetings, or studying. This doesn't leave me with too much idle time to spend sitting around or napping, which of course is concerning because I value my downtime very much. It's going to take a lot of time management, self-discipline, and determination to come out of this unscathed.

Secondly, I'm PRAYING that my economics independent study goes through. Originally I planned to look at the entertainment industry's impact on the US economy over the last decade, but I quickly realized that the scope of my study would be HUGE and maybe it would be a good idea to narrow it down. So, I discussed a few ideas with my lovely theater adviser Professor Hoffman and she suggested I look into the acting and writing unions to maybe do a study on their impact to the entertainment industry. I could look at how the unions work within the larger industry, and then compare it to other industries and how their unions differ. I could even refer to the Writer's Union strike of a year ago as an example of when unions and the industry butt heads. I think this will narrow down the scope of my study and help me focus on something specific.

Lastly, In between all the insanity of classes, theater, class council, student activities council, and a supposed social life, I also have to take the LSATs in December and apply to law schools. Remember when senior year in high school meant being the big man on campus, getting into college, and relaxing with friends? This is so different and it's waaaaaayyyy more frustrating and tiresome. I'm hoping that I graduate in one piece.

Life is about to get pretty spicy. As long as I don't get sleep deprived, I think I'll be OK.

Poltical and Social Thoughts

2009-09-02T06:13:03Z

I've often written about politics in this journal, but obviously like anything else my views tend to evolve with time. When I was a teenager I was very conservative -low taxes, no government intervention, strict punishments for petty crimes- but over the years (granted not many seeing as I'm 21, but a few) I've grown a little. However, while the idea of socialism seems so idealistic and peaceful, I don't see it materializing in reality.

Socialism, as "liberal progressives" describe it, is a system where everyone is taxed equally and treated equally. This is also based on the assumption that everyone is born equally. While I'd love to be unoffensive, I must admit that people are NOT born equally. For example, my identical twin cousins Emma and Kate (2 very intelligent and beautiful teenagers I must admit) are not EQUAL. Their strengths and weaknesses are different from each other and they lead two different lives (even though they're still more similar then they let on). Not everyone thinks analytically, not everyone is musically talented, and not everyone can take up a sport and master it in a matter of days, but there are people who CAN. We are not equal, so how can we expect to be treated equally?

Women pull the "be a MAN" card a lot, and while I sometimes think this is unfair, I have to consider the truth: there are things men are naturally better at then women (on average, like anything else there are ALWAYS statistical outliers). The male brain is bigger than the female equivalent, but the female brain has more gray matter evening out the difference in size. Women tend to be more compassionate and right-brain thinkers, whereas men tend to be more direct and analytical. Neither is better than the other in the sense of intelligence, but the strengths are in contrast to each others.

So back to my political thoughts, I believe in equal treatment of all people but also being able to be flexible with those who differ from the norm. Just because someone is different than me doesn't make me any better than them. Not everyone is born with the same intellectual capacity as others, and there are those that exceed in certain areas, so who are we to deny them special treatment to develop their talents to benefit humankind?

I think it's possible to fund programs that are well-managed without excessive amounts of money. Throwing money at a problem won't solve it. Reorganizing programs with good intentions but are mismanaged is the key to solving our financial crisis. Our problem is creating these gigantic, nationwide programs that aim to solve all our social problems but instead create a black hole for our hard-earned tax dollars. That's why I just can't get behind the idea of socialism, at least not right now. I think the intention is pure, but the execution is flawed.

Hopefully someday we can live in a world where everyone can receive quality, affordable health care from the day we're born until the day we die. Hopefully someday children can get a great education without paying obscene amounts of money. Hopefully we can feel safe walking down a city street at night and not worry about corrupt police officers taking bribes instead of protecting their citizens. I truly hope this is our future, but let's take these programs step-by-step without assuming more funding will increase their effectiveness.

I'm a libertarian to a point- I still believe that overtaxing American citizens is not the solution and that regulations on drugs, alcohol, and petty crimes are a bit out of control. But I also think that transparency in business and politics is crucial to ensure that people aren't cheating other out of liberty or money. People need to know what happens with their money, what their elected officials are doing, and everything in between. This starts with auditing the Fed, businesses being taxed as BUSINESSES and not citizens, and people taking responsibility for their actions.

With these thoughts, I'm off to bed. I love hearing the opinions of others (as long as it's given in a productive manner) even when they are the complete opposite of mine. I'd honestly hate a world where everyone agrees with me because we'd never get anything done.

Good night, sweet dreams, Seacrest Out.

Back To School Again, Almost

2009-08-26T08:30:39Z

It's that time of the year again, where signs in department stores claim jaw-dropping savings, kids buy new backpacks, and parents can't wait to get their kids out of the house and back into school after a tumultuous fun-filled summer.

It will be my senior year at Connecticut College, and after graduation I plan on attending law school, preferably at UCLA or NYU. I can't believe my years as a college student are winding down. I still remember my mom leaving on my first day of orientation and me thinking "now what" I feel like that's how I'm going to feel on my last day, too. After taking that last final exam and realizing that I am now in the 'real world.'

If I don't do the law school route that I currently want to, maybe I'll apply to the Peace Corps, or maybe Teach For America. Whatever I end up doing will make me happy, and if it doesn't I'll find something else that does.

This post isn't really a revelation or of much importance. It's moreso just an outlet for what's been going through my brain.

Until next time...

My Second Wind

2009-08-21T05:24:00Z

OK, I'll admit, I've let this journal go without regular updates for too long! After watching Julie and Julia I've gained some inspiration to keep this piece of work moving forward, even if it means talking about mundane, everyday occurrences. I figure that if I keep writing on a regular basis, my journal will naturally head in a direction that I can work with. Maybe my topic will turn to comedic happenings in college, maybe it will be things that piss me off, but writing helps me get through the day and this is the perfect medium for it, regardless of content!

To be perfectly honest, whether this journal gets readers or not is beyond my concern. I'm writing here for me, for my own creative energy to have an outlet. Also because I have too much spare time and instead of playing The Sims 2 endlessly I need to utilize it constructively.

So, this is it! I have embarked on another journey, to where I have no idea but the destination is of less importance than the path taken.

Bon Voyage!

The impending BART strike is such bullshit

2009-08-17T01:16:37Z

Everyone has been talking about the impending BART strike all week long. I wondered if the numbers being thrown around were true. "They make an average of 90K with benefits," and other similar claims. The Contra Costa paper was nice enough to post a salary database, so I put a pie chart together with that data. Below is a breakdown of what percentage of BART employees are in each pay range. It surprised me and I thought I would share it with all of you. The chart represents the data for approximately 3,200 employees' salary information.

Did you know that janitors working for BART make, on average, $98K per year with full benefits? What does the average nurse make... maybe $40K if they've worked for a while? So a janitor should make over TWICE that of a medical professional because they have a union backing them up claiming to champion their "rights."

This strike is ridiculous. I guess everyone wants their "free lunch."

Vagina Monologues poster

2009-03-03T06:43:31Z

I'm the PR Committee Chair for the "Vagina Monologues" being performed at my school, and I finally finished the poster design.

What do you think?

Learn Me a Book- My Score is 32

2009-02-20T08:41:20Z

The BBC reckons most people will have only read 6 of the 100 books here. I've read 32, how bout you?

Instructions:
1) Look at the list and put an 'X' after those you have read.
2) Add a '+' to the ones you LOVE.
3) Star (*) those you plan on reading.
4) Add a '-' to those you did not love at all.
5) Tally your total number of Xs at the bottom.

1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien X
3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling X+
5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee X+
6 The Bible X+
7 Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens
11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott X
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller X+
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare X+
15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien X+
17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulk
18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger X+
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger*
20 Middlemarch - George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald X
23 Bleak House - Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace - Leo Tolstoy*
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy - Douglas Adams X+
26 Brideshead Revisited - Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment - Fyodor Dostoevsky*
28 Grapes of Wrath - John Steinbeck X
29 Alice in Wonderland - Lewis Carroll X
30 The Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame*
31 Anna Karenina - Leo Tolstoy*
32 David Copperfield - Charles Dickens*
33 Chronicles of Narnia - CS Lewis X+
34 Emma - Jane Austen*
35 Persuasion - Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe - CS Lewis X+
37 The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini*
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin - Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden*
40 Winnie the Pooh - AA Milne X+
41 Animal Farm - George Orwel X+
42 The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown X
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney - John Irving
45 The Woman in White - Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables - LM Montgomery X
47 Far From The Madding Crowd - Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale - Margaret Atwood *
49 Lord of the Flies - William Golding X
50 Atonement - Ian McEwan*
51 Life of Pi - Yann Martel
52 Dune - Frank Herbert X
53 Cold Comfort Farm - Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility - Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy - Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities - Charles Dickens*
58 Brave New World - Aldous Huxley X
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men - John Steinbeck X+
62 Lolita - Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History - Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold X
65 Count of Monte Cristo - Alexandre Dumas*
66 On The Road - Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure - Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary - Helen Fielding X
69 Midnight’s Children - Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick - Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist - Charles Dickens X
72 Dracula - Bram Stoker*
73 The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett X
74 Notes From A Small Island - Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses - James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons - Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal - Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair - William Makepeace Thackeray*
80 Possession - AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol - Charles Dickens X+
82 Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple - Alice Walker*
84 The Remains of the Day - Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary - Gustave Flaubert*
86 A Fine Balance - Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web - EB White X
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven - Mitch Album
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle*
90 The Faraway Tree Collection - Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince - Antoine De Saint-Exupery X+
93 The Wasp Factory - Iain Banks
94 Watership Down - Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces - John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice - Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers - Alexandre Dumas*
98 Hamlet - William Shakespeare X+
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Roald Dahl X
100 Les Miserables - Victor Hugo*

25 Random Facts About Me

2009-02-01T23:32:22Z

If you're tagged in this note, you should tag 25 of your closest friends to find out 25 new things about them you may have never known!

1. I drink tap water and think it's silly to buy bottled water when you have perfectly good water coming out of your faucet.
2. I rarely put lotion on my skin. Mostly out of laziness.
3. The organic movement makes me angry only because those who follow it consider themselves elite to those who don't. I'll eat whatever I damn please, be it riddled with pesticides or otherwise!
4. When I was 4 my parents had a dinner party and I pooped in my toy box. They discovered it a day later.
5. My favorite food is a tie between grilled cheese sandwiches and macaroni and cheese. This has remained unchanged ever since I can remember.
6. I think nerdy guys are sexy.
7. I still listen to 90s pop before going out on Saturday nights.
8. I can crack my wrists on command. It's pretty gross, and probably not the best for my joints.
9. Whenever I think about yelling "I hate you!" to my parents when I was really little and in a fight, I get extremely upset because it's so completely untrue. I love my parents more then I love myself.
10. I still pick my nose. Sometimes a tissue just doesn't give me the same satisfaction.
11. I got my period for the first time on a 8-hour car ride back from visiting my cousins in Irvine. I remember getting the worst cramps EVER and thinking I needed Pepto-Bismal because I thought it was a bad stomach ache.
12. My fondest memory is spending 2 weeks of the summer in North Carolina with my entire family as a child. The water was warm, the beach was peaceful, and the memories are timeless. I hope to return to Figure Eight Island someday with my children. I even lost my first tooth there! I was terrified the tooth fairy wouldn't find me since I was so far away from home. She found me =)
13. I don't like fish or any type of seafood. I attribute this to when I was in my mom's womb. She usually loves seafood, but when she was pregnant with me the thought of it made her queasy. I think this impacted my taste because I HATE it even after trying it time and time again.
14. I peed outside the economics lab during finals week last semester. I didn't want to go all the way to the bathroom in the nearest dorm and I REALLY had to go so I popped a squat right outside the door. Thank GOD no one saw.
15. I call my brother a lot, more than I call home.
16. I believe in psychics and mediums, but am unwilling to pay such a high price for a reading.
17. At summer camp one year I laughed so hard I peed myself and had to sneak away from campfire to change my pants. No one ever found out!
18. I can hold my bladder longer then anyone I've ever met. I must have a bladder of steel or something because the thing is SOLID.
19. I can only fall asleep on my side in the fetal position with a pillow between my knees.
20. I dream every single night and can usually remember them the next morning.
21. When I was in 3rd grade I had warts all over my hands and knees. I took this disgusting tasting medicine for 3 months and all of a sudden one day they all vanished.
22. I've always secretly wanted to shave my head and just wear a different wig each day. I will probably NEVER do this but the thought of it is intriguing.
23. My parents' nickname for me is "Mud Hen." Never really understood why, but I still think it's hilarious.
24. My feet are gross and I hate them.
25. The best part about growing up where I did was being able to go over to my neighbor's house everyday to play with Kirsten and Kelsey. They moved when I was 10 and it sucked. I'm still friends with Kirsten to this day!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T15:04:24Z

Another year past. Thank FREAKING God.

Everyone keeps saying "This is the worst Christmas ever!" because of the recession and such, but I have to disagree. The worst Christmas has GOT to be during the Revolutionary War when Washington attacked the English Christmas morning. THAT had to suck balls.

So take it in context- at least you're not being surprise attacked by colonialists.

Merry Christmas!

Bipartisan Cabinet?

2008-11-24T16:17:10Z

Lots of names are being tossed around as President Elect Obama chooses who he wants in his cabinet and White House staff, but every single one is a Democrat. What happened to including both parties? What happened to a bipartisan cabinet and trying to cross party lines in order to find compromise? I can only hope we see this in the coming weeks, because an entirely left-wing cabinet doesn't leave much room for other opinions. We don't find solutions by adhering to the extremes- moderation is the key.

Come on, Obama, I believe in you. Please please PLEASE choose your advisors and cabinet members wisely and not based on your own personal Democratic opinions. Represent AMERICA! ALL OF IT! Not just the coasts....

Britney's New Album

2008-11-19T08:03:34Z

Love it. Already have it pre-ordered (although it's easy to illegally download, so that'll do until the actual album comes out).

You should buy it. Best song on the album- "If You Seek Amy"

That is all. Nothing special, just saying ;)

Ron Paul hits the nail on the head.... again

2008-09-25T23:48:46Z

I'm so glad SOMEONE has the courage to say what has to be said. People are blaming the "free market" for our current economic woes, when it was actually the government INVOLVEMENT with lending money via the Federal Reserve that buried the hatchet. Here is an email I received (as did many Ron Paul supporters) which is in response to the President's take on the crisis. I hope you take the time to read it, because he makes some very compelling arguments, most of which I personally agree with.

Dear Friends:

The financial meltdown the economists of the Austrian School predicted has arrived.

We are in this crisis because of an excess of artificially created credit at the hands of the Federal Reserve System. The solution being proposed? More artificial credit by the Federal Reserve. No liquidation of bad debt and malinvestment is to be allowed. By doing more of the same, we will only continue and intensify the distortions in our economy - all the capital misallocation, all the malinvestment - and prevent the market's attempt to re-establish rational pricing of houses and other assets.

Last night the president addressed the nation about the financial crisis. There is no point in going through his remarks line by line, since I'd only be repeating what I've been saying over and over - not just for the past several days, but for years and even decades.

Still, at least a few observations are necessary.

The president assures us that his administration "is working with Congress to address the root cause behind much of the instability in our markets." Care to take a guess at whether the Federal Reserve and its money creation spree were even mentioned?

We are told that "low interest rates" led to excessive borrowing, but we are not told how these low interest rates came about. They were a deliberate policy of the Federal Reserve. As always, artificially low interest rates distort the market. Entrepreneurs engage in malinvestments - investments that do not make sense in light of current resource availability, that occur in more temporally remote stages of the capital structure than the pattern of consumer demand can support, and that would not have been made at all if the interest rate had been permitted to tell the truth instead of being toyed with by the Fed.

Not a word about any of that, of course, because Americans might then discover how the great wise men in Washington caused this great debacle. Better to keep scapegoating the mortgage industry or "wildcat capitalism" (as if we actually have a pure free market!).

Speaking about Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the president said: "Because these companies were chartered by Congress, many believed they were guaranteed by the federal government. This allowed them to borrow enormous sums of money, fuel the market for questionable investments, and put our financial system at risk."

Doesn't that prove the foolishness of chartering Fannie and Freddie in the first place? Doesn't that suggest that maybe, just maybe, government may have contributed to this mess? And of course, by bailing out Fannie and Freddie, hasn't the federal government shown that the "many" who "believed they were guaranteed by the federal government" were in fact correct?

Then come the scare tactics. If we don't give dictatorial powers to the Treasury Secretary "the stock market would drop even more, which would reduce the value of your retirement account. The value of your home could plummet." Left unsaid, naturally, is that with the bailout and all the money and credit that must be produced out of thin air to fund it, the value of your retirement account will drop anyway, because the value of the dollar will suffer a precipitous decline. As for home prices, they are obviously much too high, and supply and demand cannot equilibrate if government insists on propping them up.

It's the same destructive strategy that government tried during the Great Depression: prop up prices at all costs. The Depression went on for over a decade. On the other hand, when liquidation was allowed to occur in the equally devastating downturn of 1921, the economy recovered within less than a year.

The president also tells us that Senators McCain and Obama will join him at the White House today in order to figure out how to get the bipartisan bailout passed. The two senators would do their country much more good if they stayed on the campaign trail debating who the bigger celebrity is, or whatever it is that occupies their attention these days.

F.A. Hayek won the Nobel Prize for showing how central banks' manipulation of interest rates creates the boom-bust cycle with which we are sadly familiar. In 1932, in the depths of the Great Depression, he described the foolish policies being pursued in his day - and which are being proposed, just as destructively, in our own:

Instead of furthering the inevitable liquidation of the maladjustments brought about by the boom during the last three years, all conceivable means have been used to prevent that readjustment from taking place; and one of these means, which has been repeatedly tried though without success, from the earliest to the most recent stages of depression, has been this deliberate policy of credit expansion.

To combat the depression by a forced credit expansion is to attempt to cure the evil by the very means which brought it about; because we are suffering from a misdirection of production, we want to create further misdirection - a procedure that can only lead to a much more severe crisis as soon as the credit expansion comes to an end... It is probably to this experiment, together with the attempts to prevent liquidation once the crisis had come, that we owe the exceptional severity and duration of the depression.

The only thing we learn from history, I am afraid, is that we do not learn from history.

The very people who have spent the past several years assuring us that the economy is fundamentally sound, and who themselves foolishly cheered the extension of all these novel kinds of mortgages, are the ones who now claim to be the experts who will restore prosperity! Just how spectacularly wrong, how utterly without a clue, does someone have to be before his expert status is called into question?

Oh, and did you notice that the bailout is now being called a "rescue plan"? I guess "bailout" wasn't sitting too well with the American people.

The very people who with somber faces tell us of their deep concern for the spread of democracy around the world are the ones most insistent on forcing a bill through Congress that the American people overwhelmingly oppose. The very fact that some of you seem to think you're supposed to have a voice in all this actually seems to annoy them.

I continue to urge you to contact your representatives and give them a piece of your mind. I myself am doing everything I can to promote the correct point of view on the crisis. Be sure also to educate yourselves on these subjects - the Campaign for Liberty blog is an excellent place to start. Read the posts, ask questions in the comment section, and learn.

H.G. Wells once said that civilization was in a race between education and catastrophe. Let us learn the truth and spread it as far and wide as our circumstances allow. For the truth is the greatest weapon we have.

In liberty,

Ron Paul

GIF EXPLOSION

2008-08-23T01:15:52Z

These are my new obsession

Former NASA Astronaut Says Aliens EXIST!

2008-07-24T20:23:59Z

Former NASA astronaut and moon-walker Dr. Edgar Mitchell — a veteran of the Apollo 14 mission — claims aliens exist.

He says extraterrestrials have visited Earth on several occasions — but the alien contact has been repeatedly covered up by governments for six decades.

Mitchell, 77, said during a radio interview in Birmingham, England, that sources at NASA who had had contact with aliens described the beings as "little people who look strange to us."

He said supposedly real-life ET's were similar to the traditional image of a "small gray" — short, slight frame, large eyes and large head.

Mitchell also claimed human technology is "not nearly as sophisticated" as the aliens' and "had they been hostile," he warned "we would be been gone by now."

source

Tommy Girl is going to flip a shit

We Have Become Targets

2008-07-16T18:21:56Z

Last night our neighbors down the street had their cars broken into. My brother also had his wallet stolen and the people around the block had THEIR cars broken into. I can't help but feel guilty for all of this because it was my party a few weeks ago that sparked all this criminal activity. The worst part about it is that I know the thieves at MY party were invited by someone who knows MY friends.

How fucking low can you go? You can't work hard enough to buy your own stuff so you have to go steal someone else's? Pathetic. Are you too stupid to get a good job and make your own money? Any retard on the street can steal a wallet. Enjoy a life of mediocrity, assholes.

Thanks to the recent happenings, the Los Altos police as well as the county sheriff will be running extra patrols in our neighborhood, probably for the rest of the year. They realize that we are specifically being targetted, and they look forward to catching the scum that are doing this to our neighborhood.

I understand if you have a problem with me, you steal from me. Fine, I can't say I agree with it but at least I'm the only one affected. But the people you stole from are a good family with young kids. They don't deserve this. Don't bring whatever beef you have with me or my brother out to an innocent family. That's disgusting.

All I can say is that you should steer clear of my neighborhood. Everyone is watching and I know of a few families who are now installing security cameras (including my own). You will be caught, but you better PRAY it's not by me.

As Trendy as Obama is Currently....

2008-07-11T21:24:15Z

.... I think I like McCain better. I'm ignoring the rhetoric and superficial image and basing this opinion on their policies. McCain is an advocate for an individual's rights and is pushing for a smaller, less intrusive overall government.

Plus, Obama's economic policies are extremely lacking. He wants to raise minimum wage, increase unemployment benefits, AND increase taxes. Major inflation and deficits, much? As an economics major, I think this policy would essentially be financial suicide. If minimum wage increases, fewer businesses would be willing to hire workers. Unemployment would rise due to the slower pace of new jobs so more people will register for unemployment. They THEN become financial burdens to the federal government and all those extra benefits will need to get funded from SOMEWHERE. Any guesses as to where he's planning on getting that money? That's right. YOU. He covers this up by claiming he's going to give tax rebates to middle class families, which is all fine and good until you realize that he's taking more of their money in federal income taxes anyways, so it's more of a cover than anything else. He also doesn't want senior citizens making less than $50,000 per year to pay ANY income tax. By doing so, he would need to make up for that loss of revenue somewhere else. Any guesses as to where that extra money is coming from? That's right, YOU!

So while his policies seem socially progressive and moral on the outside, once you dig beneath the surface you see how flawed they truly are. It begs one to ask: "Where's the beef?" Obama's utopian view of how America will be saddens me, not because I don't wish America could be like that, but because it won't be like that under his policies. Numbers don't lie, sweethearts.

Behind his inspirational speeches and message of hope, there's really not that much to back it up. As much as I like the guy, I'm just not sure I would feel comfortable voting for him.

And that's my political shbeal for today.

Some Prefer Needles

2008-07-10T18:37:54Z

It's widely known that China has been in overhaul preparing for the Olympics next month, but we never seem to focus on the individual citizens doing their part to get ready for the festivities.

Also preparing was Dr. Wei Sheng, the Chinese man who holds the Guinness Book record of sticking 1,790 needles in his head at one time. In June he stuck himself with 2,008 pins in the Olympic design and colors. [Daily Telegraph (London), 6-3-08]

Now THERE'S a Patriot! No, honestly I had no idea he held the record. I didn't know there WAS a record. In fact I don't think he deserves the title of record holder at all. Dethrone him! Off with his head (needles and all)!

There's only one other person in the world who has had more needles stuck in them and that person is AMY WINEHOUSE. Someone should congradulate her. Just don't get too close.... you'll be high for a month.

Take this, environmentalist greenhouse gas-holes

2008-07-09T19:04:46Z

HIGHER CO2 LEVELS MAY BE GOOD FOR PLANTS

The dangerous rise in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere may be troubling scientists and world leaders but it could prove to be a boon for plants, German researchers said Tuesday.

Increasing exposure to carbon dioxide appears to boost crop yields, Hans-Joachim Weigel of the Johann Heinrich von Thuenen Institute for rural areas, forestry and fisheries in the central city of Brunswick told AFP.

"Output increased by about 10 percent for barley, beets and wheat" when the plants were subjected to higher levels of carbon dioxide, Weigel said.

The Thuenen Institute, which has been monitoring the phenomenon in fields since 1999, trains CO2 jets on the plants so the gas reaches 550 parts per million in the air around them -- the level expected in the atmosphere by 2050.

Weigel said the studies have indicated that while greater CO2 exposure appears to spur growth, it can also undermine the quality of the produce.

He said the next step in the study would be to evaluate the effect of higher temperatures on plant growth -- which scientists cite as another consequence of higher CO2 emissions in the atmosphere.

Weigel said that while the institute's findings may prove surprising to some, they are not intended to undermine the drive to slash CO2 emissions.

"This research is not intended as an argument for doing nothing to curb the rise of CO2 levels," he said. "It is to find out what the effects would be."

Other studies have presented a more mixed picture about the impact of higher CO2 levels on plants, and there is uncertainty about its effects on soil fertility and which plants benefit most from more CO2.

Gotta love those German scientists

This video is seriously the best thing I have ever seen in my LIFE

2008-06-24T00:30:05Z

My Aztec Horoscope

2008-06-15T07:00:25Z

My birth date: March 29, 1988

Deer: You are a person who follows your own instincts and feelings -- which may mean doing what you want to do, when you want to. You have no hesitation about speaking your mind on controversial subjects, and you are generally quite knowledgeable about such matters. Mentally, you combine a powerful intuition with good reasoning abilities and are not easily convinced or swayed from your intellectual positions. To others, you appear dominating, but you don't really want to dominate. You simply know what you know well and tend to be quite inflexible at times.

Deer is a sign of participation in the community. Those born under this day-sign are often deeply involved with family traditions, and in some cases, socio-political traditions. Your need for the security of close relationships with others is at the base of this tendency. Partnership appeals to you, and yet you have a difficult time of it because your need for freedom creates conflicts and leads to unconventional relationships.

Your strong instincts come into play when you sense that your "territory" is being invaded. You have concern for your personal space, as well as that of the community you are a part of, and if you feel someone or something is degrading your environment, you will act immediately. In extreme cases, this instinctive concern of yours could lead you into power struggles and "turf-wars."

You are a very sensual person. On one level, food and eating are probably very important to you. Your aesthetic sensibilities are usually strong and you may be an artist, musician, poet or writer, or at least be interested in the arts. You have a strong sense of rhythm and enjoy dancing and other sensual body movements, including sex, for example. In fact, your strong sex drive may be part of your problem in maintaining stable relationships.

You are really a very complex person who has both traditional and unconventional qualities. You are concerned with family and social integrity, yet you will take risks in intimate matters that could destabilize your social life. You tend to be a generous person and have display strong feelings for animals and plants, but will not hesitate to blast someone who you feel is stepping into your territory. However, you are probably also, in spite of all your weirdness, a pillar of your society.

This is the sixth day of the 13-day period beginning with 1-Wind. Beneath your surface personality, you are strongly motivated towards communication with others. For some, this may lead to a life of teaching or performing. You are a carrier of ideas, a person with a message to get across, and you will always be instinctively drawn towards activities that will meet that need. You are an extremely mental person, almost too clever. You very much have a struggle between your need for freedom versus your need for community and relationship.

This goes out to my Israeli friends and fellow cat lovers ^_^

2008-06-12T00:13:28Z

this story is really touching and proves that even when you're at war, it's possible to have love in your heart =)

The Cat who Crossed the Border
By Amir Kidon, August 2006

An unusual sight was seen a few days ago, with the exit of Paratrooper Brigade forces from Lebanon: one of the brigade reserve soldiers was carrying, along with all his heavy equipment and weapon, a white kitten. "On the way back to Israeli territory we passed through the village of Kauzer," said the soldier, "and all of a sudden I saw a kitten coming out of one of the houses. After a few seconds I realized it is wounded and that its hearing has been hurt. I picked it up and carried it for six kilometers, until we reached Israeli territory. I decided it deserves a better future. After all, it is not its fault that war broke out." The first thing the cat and its new owner did after having crossed the border into Israeli territory was to share IDF military canned meat. The cat was named Kauzer by its new owner.

Summer Workout Plan. I promise I'll stick to it this time! Maybe!

2008-05-27T03:00:19Z

I started a new workout regiment. Let's pray that I actually stick to it.

Focus on my core and abs
More muscle toning for my shoulders and back
Variety of cardio: swimming, sprints, biking
More stretching and flexibility training

I think that should be sufficient. I'm hoping to be in pretty good shape by the time volleyball season rolls around so I'm not vomitting up my LIFE when we're doing sprints. WORD.

maddypwnsj00 @ 2008-05-21T22:13:00

2008-05-22T05:14:36Z

Dear Hilary Clinton

WITHDRAW FROM THE PRESIDENTIAL RACE PLEASE

Love,

Bill Clinton
and me
and everyone else

My final paper

2008-05-12T19:27:41Z

I'm really proud of this paper so I decided to post it. WOO HOO! Feedback is encouraged, but not required ;-)

I warn you.... it's kindof a long paper. 11 pages double spaced. Nonetheless, ENJOY

Gender Equality in China: A Comparative Analysis of the Past and Present
By Madeleine Baldwin

The examination of gender equality in China over the past century is particularly interesting because of the two seemingly opposite constructions of a woman that attempted to achieve it. On the one hand is the revolutionary woman of the Cultural Revolution who is masculinized and void of physical indications of traditional femininity. On the other hand is the hyper-sexualized modern woman who is seen on magazine covers and television as an embodiment of lust and glamour. Both constructions seek to liberate women from the patriarchal subordination they have suffered through for generations and yet do so in very distinct and unique ways. The state plays a crucial role in gender equality implicating measures and forming organizations that give women more rights and personal freedom. Throughout Mao’s Cultural Revolution and in modern China, the state promotes its gender ideal with the hopes that it will not only provide equality between men and women, but that it will also benefit China as a whole. Were women equal to men during the Cultural Revolution? Are they equal to men now? Which method addressed the issues that matter the most? What is in stake for women in the future?

The Chinese Communist Party put women’s liberation into the nationalist context by declaring that Chinese women must be strong if the entire nation wanted to be strong. For Chairman Mao Zedong, the inequality of women was rooted in their patriarchal subordinate roles in the domestic domain. If the border between public and private spheres was eliminated, those traditional roles would no longer exist. The socialization of the private sphere and the mobilization of women into the workforce was the key to liberating them from patriarchal oppression.

One of the main promises made by the Chinese Communist Party was to raise the status of women in society. During the height of Chairman Mao Zedong’s reign, the entire construction of the female transformed from the frail, foot-bound woman of Imperial China to the strong, empowered peasant worker dedicated to the communist cause. The enemies of the Communist Party were the bourgeoisie and anyone who harbored their ideologies. Femininity was viewed as a bourgeois ideal and therefore considered detrimental to the revolution. The erasure of this view of women would, for Mao, allow women to devote themselves to the communist cause without the constraints of oppressive Confucian ideals.

This new ideal of a liberated communist woman was also seen as the solution to the oppressive double burden within the domestic sphere. Women are expected to not only maintain the household and raise the children, but to also have a job outside the home. This division of labor in society oppresses women. They become isolated in the home and restricted in how they can participate in the revolutionary struggle. A woman who has to spend a large potion of her life raising her children and doing housework isn't free to fully contribute to society. Until this oppressive division of labor was addressed, women were unable to be truly liberated.

"Under capitalism, the female half of the human race suffers under a double yoke ... they are, firstly, in an inferior position because the law denies them equality with men, and secondly, and this is most important, they are ‘in domestic slavery,’ they are ‘domestic slaves,’ crushed by the most petty, most menial, most arduous, and most stultifying work of the kitchen, and by isolated domestic, family economy in general." –Chairman Mao Zedong

The double burden would be eliminated once the domestic sphere ceased to exist independently of the public sphere. Childcare would be socialized and women’s time and effort could be geared towards helping the Communist Party instead of raising children and running the household.

Spider Eaters is the perfect example of how the public sphere merged with the private sphere, especially with disillusioned youth eager to dedicate themselves to the cause. Spider Eaters by Rae Yang is the memoir of a young woman who is coming of age during the Cultural Revolution. The main character, Rae herself, joins the Red Guard so that she can take an active role in spreading reform. She is passionate about communism and eager to make a difference.

One reoccurring theme in Spider Eaters is the absence of sexual desire or identity. Chairman Mao declared sexuality taboo and bourgeois- “men and women were expected to be revolutionary comrades, not lovers.” Romantic passion was replaced with passion for the communist cause. When Rae gets excited or aroused, it is from her enthusiasm for the revolution. Her determination to fight for Chairman Mao and the communist cause replaces her need for sexual attraction or desire. In one chapter, Rae describes her dream hero. He is completely dedicated to the communist cause and willing to sacrifice himself for it. She is drawn to him because he is her vision of the perfect revolutionary and therefore, the perfect man.

“A hero, like a bright star, came into being in my dreams… He is, of course, a revolutionary hero… His strength comes from the ordinary peasants who have been driven by families and the bullying of local tyrants to desperation. For them, he is their only hope… he does not want to live for himself. He was born for the salvation of millions who are living in deep water, hot fire. (Rae Yang, The Hero In My Dreams, Spider Eaters, Page 103-105)”

Rae Yang again reinforces the taboo of sexuality during the Cultural Revolution when the Red Guards confront a man they believe to be a counterrevolutionary spy. He mocks their chastity by dropping his pants and exposing himself. They are so horrified by this that they react by beating him to death. The idea of any form of sexuality is considered counterrevolutionary to the Red Guards.

“I could not tell who hated him more. The female Red Guards hated him because he had insulted all of us. The male Red Guards hated him too, because he was a scum of their sex. By exposing himself, he had exposed all of them. They were stripped. They were shamed. This time, they beat him hard. No mercy on him. He did not deserve it. He was a bad egg! (Rae Yang, Red Guards Had No Sex, Spider Eaters, Page 138)”

Sexuality, for Mao, reinforced the feudal patriarchal roles of women. By expressing femininity and sexuality, women were being bourgeois. Displays of sexuality were not only considered crude and shameful, they were also seen as anti-Mao and counterrevolutionary.

The portrait of the ideal revolutionary woman was promoted by the state through propaganda, most notably in posters. In these posters women are muscular and wearing loose-fitting clothes that prevent their curves from showing. They were shown as citizens committed to the revolution. The message in these propaganda campaigns was that the emancipation of women was key to the success of the nation. They portrayed women taking part in jobs usually associated with men, showing that women were just as capable as men in difficult labor. Mao described this vision by saying “women hold up half the sky.”

Under the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China, women enjoyed the same rights as men. Three major contributions to the women’s liberation movement issued by the state were the Marriage Law of 1950 which gave women the freedom to divorce, the Election Law of PRC 1953 which gave women the same voting rights as men, and the right for women to possess or inherit property equal to men.

Organizations were established through the government and in the private sector to help Chinese women rise above their oppressive past. The All-China Women's Federation (ACWF) was established in 1949 in order to promote gender equality and protect women’s interests and rights. The ACWF is comprised of national and local committees, each with specific focuses and goals. These serve to link the government directly with Chinese women and their concerns. The ACWF sponsors a number of programs and activities for the aid and promotion of women’s equality.

Although much progress had been made on the road to gender equality through the measures and oversight of Chairman Mao, China still had a long way to go. Despite the empowering message of equality the Community Party professed, women were rarely seen in positions of power and still experienced gender discrimination in the workplace. In fact, the government leaders with the majority of the power in the Communist Party were men. In addition, as women joined in labor traditionally associated with men, men were not encouraged to share the burden of housework. This created further inequality in the domestic sphere that went unaddressed by the Communist Party. The double burden continued to exist. By repressing sexuality, women were forced to hide their bodies and be ashamed of their desires. They had no medium to express themselves sexually.

Although gender erasure during the Cultural Revolution did not solve the gender equality issue, it did have a profound impact on Chinese society. Women gained legal equality and were able to enter the workforce alongside men. However, Mao mistook gender sameness with gender equality, two very separate ideas. This notion limited the scope which feminism and reform could be pursued. Gender sameness was successful in promoting that “men can do what men can do” but it completely ignored issues in the domestic sector. Traditional biases against women still existed in the home and there were few places women could address them. They were still expected to raise the children and maintain the household while simultaneously working outside the home providing financially.

The Cultural Revolution showed that although equality was given through legality, emphasizing equal rights and treatment for men and women through laws, it is crucial to move beyond the rhetoric of rights now. Equality, at the basic level, is freedom from systematic subordination because of gender. The traditional patriarchal roles women played are based on a male-dominated society and need to be changed. This is beyond the scope of mere laws and measures. A transformation of the way people think needs to happen before equality can take place.

After 1978, the Chinese Communist Party changed its approach towards women’s liberation, rejecting much of Mao’s philosophy. Gone is the gender neutral ideal of a woman replaced by an ultra-sexualized modern independent woman. Sexuality is no longer a social taboo, femininity for women is embraced, and women are experiencing more personal freedom than they ever did before in history. The media now plays a crucial role in the public portrayal of women, especially in magazines and on television. The divorce rate has skyrocketed, the number of women in the workforce has increased, and opportunities for women in China are growing each day.

The divorce rate in China has skyrocketed since the end of Mao’s regime. Since the 1970s, the divorce rate has nearly quadrupled. With new attitudes towards women and a growing sense of personal freedom, women are finding it easier to exit volatile or unhealthy relationships. They no longer are forced to endure physically or emotionally abusive relationships and are making the decision to stand up for themselves. As of 2006 according to China Daily, seventy percent of divorces were initiated by the wife, showing that women are taking control of their future and refusing to be subordinate to their husbands.

In the last 20 years, following the dissipation of the Cultural Revolution, sexuality is making a return to Chinese society. Some have coined this movement the “sexual revolution.” The state no longer controls personal sexual behavior, and this reduction has led to a society with freer sexual expression. Globalization and the increasing influence of the West also contribute to this modern phenomenon.

An example of the sexual culture in China today is the novel Shanghai Baby by Wei Hui. The story revolves around a young Chinese writer, Nikki who is known as ‘Coco’ to her friends, who is driven by her sexuality and individuality. The central theme to the novel is the issue of female independence and sexuality. Coco finds herself involved with multiple men in all roads of life- her impotent artist boyfriend Tian Tian and the brash German businessman Mark, to name a few.

“Late one night, I had an erotic dream. In it, I became entangled, naked, with a man wearing dark glasses. Both sets of four limps entangled like an octopus, embracing and dancing, the man’s golden body hair glistening so provocatively that my body itched all over. (Wei Hui, Shanghai Baby, Chapter 3: I Have a Dream, Page 25)”

She borders on the verge of being completely selfish, and yet her insights are very profound. Her sexuality plays a central role in her self-identity. She is a clear example of the emerging sexually-driven culture present in China today. She demonstrates how women in modern China can now explore their sexuality and find empowerment through their femininity.

In the book Popular China, the portrait of the ideal modern Chinese woman is described in detail:
“She is intelligent, sharp-witted, well-informed, knowledgeable, well-spoken and has good taste; she is independent, self-respecting, and conscious of women’s equality; she is principled but gentle, with a good sense of humor, and easy to get along with. She is understanding, generous, and sensitive to the feelings of others, but not suspicious… While she may be attractive to men, her attraction is based on personality, not beauty. Her life is well-balanced; love is never her only concern. (Page 151, Chapter 6: Chinese and Lifestyle Magazines, Popular China)”

The modern Chinese woman is sexual, fashionable, and graceful. She wears makeup, skin-bearing clothes, and does not hide her sexuality. She is educated, cultured, and independent. She also has a great white-collar job with a good income so that she is financially independent and able to buy what she wants.

The modern ideal of a woman in China can be seen on the cover of magazines geared towards women. These magazines share a concentration on domestic topics such as self-beautification and fashion. This genre of women’s publications is the most widely sought after in China today. They are powerful promoters of the new sexualized woman thanks to their vast distribution. China now has its own Vogue, Elle, Cosmopolitan, and Vanity Fair who all constantly endorse a sexually emancipated, glamorous woman as the ideal. As more women in China read these types of publications, more will seek to embody this modern construction of a woman.

The newly developed market economy in China has opened up a space for women to express their thoughts freely through literature, debate, and general discussion. The emergence of a women’s sphere in Chinese society has drastically contributed to women’s emancipation and has shed light on the concerns and problems women face that would normally not be brought forward. This sphere allows women as a group to develop an identity through self-awareness and self-development. It is important for women to identify as a group; only once they are equal within their own gender can they become equal with men.

The modern woman has more opportunities available to her than women under Mao. Each year, more women are in higher education, entering the workforce, and gaining financial independence.

“’Women hold up half the sky,’ said Mao Zedong. And indeed, they now account for 45% of China's workforce and 40% of positions in government. So the Chinese leadership was within its rights last week to boast of the progress women have made under Communist Party rule. (The long road to equality for Chinese women, Kent Ewing, Asia Times)”
However, despite the obvious steps forward in the battle for equality, China still has a long way to go. Women are more likely to be impoverished and unemployed than men. Women are also more likely to be laid off, paid less, and discriminated against specifically because of their gender. The countries most powerful legislative body, The National People’s Congress, is less than a quarter female and there are no women on the powerful Standing Committee of the Politburo.

There are other drawbacks to the modern construction of a woman. Just as the new market economy has opened up more opportunities for women, it has also done much to exploit them. It is powered by supply and demand, and unfortunately women can be treated as a capital good that is bought and sold. Women become objectified through sex trafficking, prostitution, and even the mass media. Prostitution has reemerged in society, mostly involving women who are impoverished or unemployed.

"Prostitution ... has taken off absolutely everywhere. The average county seat has a red light district. Commercial sex is an omnipresent feature of Chinese life." -James Farrer, author of Opening Up: Youth Sex Culture and Market Reform in Shanghai.

The portrait of the sexualized woman can be found on billboards, in film, and all over magazines. Some argue that this glamorized, sexual construction of a woman is constructed by the male sphere, and therefore based on their wants instead of that of women. Women are still put in the subordinate role, subjecting themselves to what men want. Mayfair Yang states that where as in the Cultural Revolution male power displaced the female, the post-Mao era male power is seen as defining “the female by encouraging her to evaluate herself in her reflection in the male” (Mayfair Yang, Page 49 ).

While both the ideologies of the Cultural Revolution and modern China made important progress for the liberation of women from patterns of systematic subordination, both are still ridden with fundamental flaws. While they seek to influence women to become more involved in the public sphere and independent, women are still seen as the weaker sex. The double-burden of the domestic and economic spheres also continues to plague women and needs to be seriously addressed in order to achieve equality between men and women. Purely "equal to men" means absolutely equal in every sphere. Women and men should have the same pay, same job opportunities, and also the same social responsibility. China is currently undergoing a period of enormous personal and sexual emancipation where women are gaining power and voicing their opinions more than ever. A more equal distribution of power between the sexes is emerging in politics, business, and in day-to-day life painting an optimistic picture for the future of women’s equality. Once the hierarchy of gender is destroyed and sexuality is embraced, men and women will finally be seen as equals.