Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
My rant is indeed fairly late, but it was intentional this time; I knew that, if I did it on time, I'd just end up doing a second rant for this rally, so I decided to wait and do only one rant because I'm cheap like that.
Last night was the training for today. This rally took place at the Allentown Fairgrounds. The area was quite empty since only volunteers and staff on the Kerry-Edwards campaign were there, so parking and seating weren't issues. Once situated, we were told some basic guidelines: the day of the rally, no drinking beforehand (not a problem for me) and no talking to the press. This last restriction was somewhat puzzling, but Kerry's staff explained it was to make sure everyone "kept on message," which also meant no "I Hate Bush" t-shirt or anything like that.
After covering the basics, all the volunteers were split into different groups simply based on where we were sitting. As it turned out, I ended up in "Counter-Protester". Done laughing hysterically yet? Take your time... Now? Ok, let me explain; it's not what it sounds like. The job of the Counter-Protester Team was to drown out any protesters (i.e. Bush supporters) that might infiltrate the event. For example, if someone with a Bush-Cheney sign got into the event (which was unlikely since people weren't allowed to bring their own signs into the event), we were supposed to stand up with our own signs and cover up the protesters until they were taken out (this was a ticketed event, so we were allowed to deny access or kick out anyone we wanted for any reason); if a group of people got up, we would have banners saying things like "Pennsylvania Loves Kerry!" to hide the whole group. And, if, heaven forbid, someone charged the stage, those near the stage were supposed to circle the person/people and move towards the exit, forcing the person/people, in an indirect way, to leave the event. Finally, if things got physical (a situation we were supposed to avoid at all costs), police and Secret Service were everywhere, so we would get their attention one way or another, and the troublemakers would be thrown out.
As it actually happened, I was involved in none of the above. Instead, some of the Counter-Protesters got to monitor the lines of people going through security for the event, make sure they didn't have any pins or other objects which would set off the metal detectors, and also have them turn their shirts inside-out if they had any negative/offensive messages (shows you how much is controlled at these rallies). We were also told to keep any eye out for possible Bush supporters, but I never found any. According to what I heard from some of the other volunteers, at the designated protesting area, Lehigh's College Republicans were there, but none of them (to our disappointment; the friend I carpooled with really wanted to kick someone out :-P ) attempted to get into the event, and there was only about twenty protesters total.
About half-an-hour before Kerry arrived, almost everyone had gotten through the gates, so my compatriots and I finally went in. As volunteers, we were able to wave our credentials around to get almost right next to the stage (maybe 8 people away from it). Then, at 6:30 pm, about 3 hours after the gates opened, Kerry took the stage. The energy in the air was enormous. While I was skeptical, he really delivered an excellent speech, and I agreed with most of the content. Additionally, it wasn't as hollow as I expected it to be; it had a fair amount of specific policy details (mostly, undoing changes which the Bush administration has made to the government). The theme for this rally was, as in the past, A Stronger America, and his catchphrase (which I hadn't heard before) was W stands for "Wrong Choices, Wrong Direction, and Wrong Leadership,” which was cheesy but quite agreeable with my own view of the Bush administration and signifies a change in Kerry's campaign: he's fighting back.
Friday, September 10, 2004
Sunday, August 29, 2004
A Sophomore At Last
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
Because of what I have going on this semester, I have a feeling I won't be on any sort of regular schedule with my rants anymore, but I'm going to at least attempt it. If things don't work out, the "Kinda Weekly" descriptor will be officially cast off.
The title of my rant comes from an inside joke with my high school friends. During my Bennett years (so close, but sometimes they feel so far away), until maybe my senior year, I was a fairly short person. For mostly that reason, I was given the title of "honorary freshman" by my Kingdom friends (if you don't know about the Kingdom, feel free to ask me), meaning I was a freshman throughout high school. Here at Lehigh, the Kingdom does not rule, and my title is not recognized. So, finally, after four years of high school and one year of college, I am a sophomore.
I think that anecdote nicely describes my feelings about college now. Many of my senior friends from last year are either gone or out of club positions but still taking classes, creating a power vacuum which has been filled by myself and other upperclassmen. Thus, I have much more responsibility, but I also have fewer people to turn to for guidance. Additionally, instead of being in a dorm with a bunch of rowdy freshmen, I'm now in a suite (Lehigh calls it an apartment, but that's somewhat misleading) with three incredible roommates. Plus, all of my teachers this semester seem exceptional, whereas I had a couple of disappointing comp. sci. professors last year.
Possibly for these reasons and possibly because of this summer, I feel like a major transition has occurred, like I finally have rid myself of the "freshman" stigma of my life and have fully embraced this new "sophomore" stage. Obviously, I still retain much that was developed during my freshmen years (friends, principles, skills, personality), but my life has moved into a different area where there are different experiences and challenges than I have had before. Maybe they have always been there, waiting to be taken up, and I have only now decided to engage them. Whatever the case, it's an exciting yet frightening time, as most unfamiliar encounters are. More opportunities exist for me than ever before, so I can potentially achieve much more; of course, that means there are also more chances to fail. Being the nervous person I am, I tend to focus on the latter, so stress levels have been high recently. Am I up for the challenge?
You'd better believe it. :-) Wish me luck, and I wish you all the same in your current endeavors.
Because of what I have going on this semester, I have a feeling I won't be on any sort of regular schedule with my rants anymore, but I'm going to at least attempt it. If things don't work out, the "Kinda Weekly" descriptor will be officially cast off.
The title of my rant comes from an inside joke with my high school friends. During my Bennett years (so close, but sometimes they feel so far away), until maybe my senior year, I was a fairly short person. For mostly that reason, I was given the title of "honorary freshman" by my Kingdom friends (if you don't know about the Kingdom, feel free to ask me), meaning I was a freshman throughout high school. Here at Lehigh, the Kingdom does not rule, and my title is not recognized. So, finally, after four years of high school and one year of college, I am a sophomore.
I think that anecdote nicely describes my feelings about college now. Many of my senior friends from last year are either gone or out of club positions but still taking classes, creating a power vacuum which has been filled by myself and other upperclassmen. Thus, I have much more responsibility, but I also have fewer people to turn to for guidance. Additionally, instead of being in a dorm with a bunch of rowdy freshmen, I'm now in a suite (Lehigh calls it an apartment, but that's somewhat misleading) with three incredible roommates. Plus, all of my teachers this semester seem exceptional, whereas I had a couple of disappointing comp. sci. professors last year.
Possibly for these reasons and possibly because of this summer, I feel like a major transition has occurred, like I finally have rid myself of the "freshman" stigma of my life and have fully embraced this new "sophomore" stage. Obviously, I still retain much that was developed during my freshmen years (friends, principles, skills, personality), but my life has moved into a different area where there are different experiences and challenges than I have had before. Maybe they have always been there, waiting to be taken up, and I have only now decided to engage them. Whatever the case, it's an exciting yet frightening time, as most unfamiliar encounters are. More opportunities exist for me than ever before, so I can potentially achieve much more; of course, that means there are also more chances to fail. Being the nervous person I am, I tend to focus on the latter, so stress levels have been high recently. Am I up for the challenge?
You'd better believe it. :-) Wish me luck, and I wish you all the same in your current endeavors.
Sunday, August 01, 2004
Summer Break: Epilogue
Jay's Kinda Monthly Rant:
Well, it's August 1st, which means that I have exactly 2 weeks left in my summer break. And, surprisingly, I'm not angry or sad about that. As I've said before, I've done much more this summer than I ever expected, so I'm not sorry to see it end. After what will have been 10 weeks of 8 hours per weekday work when all is said and done, I'm ready to go back to the refuge from the real world which is college.
And that's one facet of myself that has troubled me this summer: a desire to escape reality. Quite frankly, much of what I see in today's world frustrates and repulses me: the war in Iraq, the rhetoric from both the Bush and Kerry campaigns, the sensationalist media (not that that's a particularly recent development), the steady decline of morals in our society (including a few of my close friends, although I'm not a saint either), etc. While I still at least glance at the headlines each day, I've tried to escape what I perceive as a gloomy world in a number of typical ways: being as socially active as possible, computer games (my longtime companion and solace, mock it if you will), Comedy Central (humor always helps), the Internet, and music, to name a few.
However, recently, some of my friends have actually exacerbated my depression (at least that's what I'm calling my dark mood, in lieu of a better term). Many of them take regular jabs at my liberal beliefs, assaulting them with soulless statistics (which can easily be distorted and manipulated) or ignorant beliefs (there are still people who insist that Hussein and 9/11 are related) that just inflame my frustration. In addition, I find that I say things when I'm with my friends that I wouldn't have said if I simply took a few seconds to think about my words before uttering them; these words give people false impressions of me that haunt me for weeks later. So, while I generally have fun with my friends when I spend time with them, it's a double-edged sword in some ways.
For that reason, I'm actually seriously considering isolating myself from them a little bit. For example, tomorrow, Doom 3 comes out. I reserved a copy, so I'll be getting it the same day. Tomorrow, there is also something social I could do. So, since tomorrow is a Monday and I have work for most of the day, it's a choice between devoting several hours to a game that I've been eagerly awaiting for a number of weeks or sacrificing that time so I can be with my friends. Right now, as bad as I feel about it, I'm leaning towards the game. In the end, I think it will depend on what my friends plan on doing (of course, we don't have a plan yet), but I believe the game is going to win out for a number of reasons: games are simpler than people; this particular game is one that, for the full experience, should be given a number of uninterrupted hours in order to get fully immersed in its atmosphere; and missing one social event so that I can play a game will honestly not devastate me or make me a terrible person. Still, something is not right when a game is more appealing to me than my friends.
And guilt plagues me this summer as well. From an outsider's perspective, there is absolutely no reason why I should be complaining about my life. I've got an incredible job, I'm going out with my friends often, I'm on the right track academically, and my future looks bright. So, the fact that I'm not satisfied with my life causes me to feel like I'm ungrateful for all the great opportunities and privileges I've had in my life, and that's the last thing I want to be. So, there's guilt from that in addition to guilt from the amount of money I earn at my job (almost more than some people make in a whole year), but I've rationalized that (good ol' rationalization) by telling myself I'll use the money for worthy causes (probably a cop-out).
I have hope that Time will heal these ails; in a month or so, they should seem insignificant. At least, I hope...
Well, it's August 1st, which means that I have exactly 2 weeks left in my summer break. And, surprisingly, I'm not angry or sad about that. As I've said before, I've done much more this summer than I ever expected, so I'm not sorry to see it end. After what will have been 10 weeks of 8 hours per weekday work when all is said and done, I'm ready to go back to the refuge from the real world which is college.
And that's one facet of myself that has troubled me this summer: a desire to escape reality. Quite frankly, much of what I see in today's world frustrates and repulses me: the war in Iraq, the rhetoric from both the Bush and Kerry campaigns, the sensationalist media (not that that's a particularly recent development), the steady decline of morals in our society (including a few of my close friends, although I'm not a saint either), etc. While I still at least glance at the headlines each day, I've tried to escape what I perceive as a gloomy world in a number of typical ways: being as socially active as possible, computer games (my longtime companion and solace, mock it if you will), Comedy Central (humor always helps), the Internet, and music, to name a few.
However, recently, some of my friends have actually exacerbated my depression (at least that's what I'm calling my dark mood, in lieu of a better term). Many of them take regular jabs at my liberal beliefs, assaulting them with soulless statistics (which can easily be distorted and manipulated) or ignorant beliefs (there are still people who insist that Hussein and 9/11 are related) that just inflame my frustration. In addition, I find that I say things when I'm with my friends that I wouldn't have said if I simply took a few seconds to think about my words before uttering them; these words give people false impressions of me that haunt me for weeks later. So, while I generally have fun with my friends when I spend time with them, it's a double-edged sword in some ways.
For that reason, I'm actually seriously considering isolating myself from them a little bit. For example, tomorrow, Doom 3 comes out. I reserved a copy, so I'll be getting it the same day. Tomorrow, there is also something social I could do. So, since tomorrow is a Monday and I have work for most of the day, it's a choice between devoting several hours to a game that I've been eagerly awaiting for a number of weeks or sacrificing that time so I can be with my friends. Right now, as bad as I feel about it, I'm leaning towards the game. In the end, I think it will depend on what my friends plan on doing (of course, we don't have a plan yet), but I believe the game is going to win out for a number of reasons: games are simpler than people; this particular game is one that, for the full experience, should be given a number of uninterrupted hours in order to get fully immersed in its atmosphere; and missing one social event so that I can play a game will honestly not devastate me or make me a terrible person. Still, something is not right when a game is more appealing to me than my friends.
And guilt plagues me this summer as well. From an outsider's perspective, there is absolutely no reason why I should be complaining about my life. I've got an incredible job, I'm going out with my friends often, I'm on the right track academically, and my future looks bright. So, the fact that I'm not satisfied with my life causes me to feel like I'm ungrateful for all the great opportunities and privileges I've had in my life, and that's the last thing I want to be. So, there's guilt from that in addition to guilt from the amount of money I earn at my job (almost more than some people make in a whole year), but I've rationalized that (good ol' rationalization) by telling myself I'll use the money for worthy causes (probably a cop-out).
I have hope that Time will heal these ails; in a month or so, they should seem insignificant. At least, I hope...
Thursday, July 15, 2004
Summer Break: Part Deux
Jay's Kinda Monthly Rant:
Yeah, about that rant I was supposed to do back in June... Honestly, since work lasts from 8-5 every weekday, I haven't felt like spending the (relatively, compared to last summer) little free time I have on a rant. Let me reassure you that my brain hasn't simply stopped functioning this summer, and so I haven't had any material for rants. While in many aspects, this has been my best summer ever, it has also been one of lots of introspection, soul searching, and all that good stuff. Do I feel like talking about it? Not tonight, but maybe some weekend in the near future when I have more time. I'll try to do another rant before I go back to college and go back on a "Kinda Weekly" schedule, but no promises; these rants come secondary to life.
Speaking of life, the job hinted at above, if you don't already know, is an internship in the Information Technology department of Perdue. The last two weeks, Perdue sent me on a business trip to some of their facilities in Virginia and North Carolina, which was very informative and fairly productive (as productive as this job allows me to be, anyway, considering it mostly involves following people around, listening, and asking questions). In addition, the trip had an almost unreal aspect to it, which I would like to describe in some detail, but, unfortunately, I have to leave for a movie party in about half-an-hour, so I have not the time. Maybe I'll do a real rant this weekend, if I can fit it into my somewhat hectic and frantic summer (once again, comparatively to last summer); I've never been this socially active or sacrificed 40 hours a week for work before, and both of these milestones are occurring in the same summer. So, real rant later, movie party now. Basically, this was just to assure my readers (the three of you are great) that neither I nor my subprofile are dead. And there was much rejoicing...
Yeah, about that rant I was supposed to do back in June... Honestly, since work lasts from 8-5 every weekday, I haven't felt like spending the (relatively, compared to last summer) little free time I have on a rant. Let me reassure you that my brain hasn't simply stopped functioning this summer, and so I haven't had any material for rants. While in many aspects, this has been my best summer ever, it has also been one of lots of introspection, soul searching, and all that good stuff. Do I feel like talking about it? Not tonight, but maybe some weekend in the near future when I have more time. I'll try to do another rant before I go back to college and go back on a "Kinda Weekly" schedule, but no promises; these rants come secondary to life.
Speaking of life, the job hinted at above, if you don't already know, is an internship in the Information Technology department of Perdue. The last two weeks, Perdue sent me on a business trip to some of their facilities in Virginia and North Carolina, which was very informative and fairly productive (as productive as this job allows me to be, anyway, considering it mostly involves following people around, listening, and asking questions). In addition, the trip had an almost unreal aspect to it, which I would like to describe in some detail, but, unfortunately, I have to leave for a movie party in about half-an-hour, so I have not the time. Maybe I'll do a real rant this weekend, if I can fit it into my somewhat hectic and frantic summer (once again, comparatively to last summer); I've never been this socially active or sacrificed 40 hours a week for work before, and both of these milestones are occurring in the same summer. So, real rant later, movie party now. Basically, this was just to assure my readers (the three of you are great) that neither I nor my subprofile are dead. And there was much rejoicing...
Monday, May 17, 2004
Summer Break
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
I actually could talk about something, but it's late, and I really don't feel like spending the time it takes to write a quality rant (about an hour or so). Instead, I'm going to announce that my rants are changing from a "Kinda Weekly" schedule to a "Kinda Monthly" one. I am implementing this change for three reasons: 1) It's the summer, so I can actually converse with mySalisbury Salisbury
I doubt this change will bother anyone, but I figured I would announce it for those who might care to know. Until June 5th, I'm going to available most of the time, so, those of you inSalisbury
I actually could talk about something, but it's late, and I really don't feel like spending the time it takes to write a quality rant (about an hour or so). Instead, I'm going to announce that my rants are changing from a "Kinda Weekly" schedule to a "Kinda Monthly" one. I am implementing this change for three reasons: 1) It's the summer, so I can actually converse with my
I doubt this change will bother anyone, but I figured I would announce it for those who might care to know. Until June 5th, I'm going to available most of the time, so, those of you in
Sunday, May 09, 2004
Homeward Bound (Soon)
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
I don't have anything in particular to talk about this week, so this rant is just going to be an amalgamation of different topics.
My last exam is tomorrow, so I'll be leaving school on Tuesday. I'll be driving home in my new car, the Mazda 6i. In one of my previous rants, I mentioned I was leaning towards the Jetta, but the 6i won me over because of the way it handles (I actually drove the 6, but the 6i should be similar), its dashboard, and its cheaper price as compared to a similarly configured Jetta. The 6i has only a V-4 (the V-6 was too expensive), but the 6i's V-4 is supposed to be pretty good, and, to be honest with myself, I don't need a V-6. Even further, I don't need most of the extra features that are coming with the 6i, but a lot of them were a package deal which couldn't be altered. For example, I'm not a fan of spoilers, but it was part of the package, so my car is going to have a spoiler on it. Of course, I'm not going to complain, because I'm lucky to even have a car. I'm kind of nervous about having to drive it home from Lehigh (for those who don't know, driving is a source of anxiety for me, mostly only when I'm in an unfamiliar area), but I'll have my Mom as navigator, so it shouldn't be too bad.
Over the past couple of days, in between exams (most recent one was on Thursday), I watched all of the excellent anime series Evangelion. While watching it, I was trying to decide whether Cowboy Bebop or Evangelion was the more enjoyable series; by the end of Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop won out. The last episodes of Evangelion weren't bad, but I realized I enjoy the playful tone of Cowboy Bebop more than the extremely somber, pensive, and austere tone that Evangelion adopts near the end. Maybe it's because Evangelion is, beneath all of the heavy philosophical overtones, still a cartoon; maybe it's because that's just my type of personality. Regardless, both series are worth checking out if you haven't seen either one, even if you're generally not a fan of anime (if that's the case, you probably just haven't seen the right series).
Friday night, I saw the movie Van Helsing. While not a terrible movie, it was much worse than it should have been, given the awesome concept. I can't give any specific criticisms without spoiling the movie, so I'll just state some general problems I had with it: The dialogue is sub-par, at best, meaning the characters all have weak or one-dimensional personalities. The attempts at comedic relief are fairly abysmal and far too frequent, taking away any serious sense of tension that the movie might have been trying to create. The plot is too predictable, along with the outcomes of the fights. Every time I expected a surprise, I was disappointed. However, the special effects were quite impressive and nearly seamless. In addition, the alternate takes on the classic monsters aren't bad. So, monster-movie fans won't be completely let-down, but you'll still come out of the movie frustrated at all the potential which was wasted.
That's about it. All of you who are my friends from back home, please inform me somehow (e-mail or IM work) of when you'll be back, so I can start figuring out when and what we'll be doing for our first summer "reunion." See you guys soon.
I don't have anything in particular to talk about this week, so this rant is just going to be an amalgamation of different topics.
My last exam is tomorrow, so I'll be leaving school on Tuesday. I'll be driving home in my new car, the Mazda 6i. In one of my previous rants, I mentioned I was leaning towards the Jetta, but the 6i won me over because of the way it handles (I actually drove the 6, but the 6i should be similar), its dashboard, and its cheaper price as compared to a similarly configured Jetta. The 6i has only a V-4 (the V-6 was too expensive), but the 6i's V-4 is supposed to be pretty good, and, to be honest with myself, I don't need a V-6. Even further, I don't need most of the extra features that are coming with the 6i, but a lot of them were a package deal which couldn't be altered. For example, I'm not a fan of spoilers, but it was part of the package, so my car is going to have a spoiler on it. Of course, I'm not going to complain, because I'm lucky to even have a car. I'm kind of nervous about having to drive it home from Lehigh (for those who don't know, driving is a source of anxiety for me, mostly only when I'm in an unfamiliar area), but I'll have my Mom as navigator, so it shouldn't be too bad.
Over the past couple of days, in between exams (most recent one was on Thursday), I watched all of the excellent anime series Evangelion. While watching it, I was trying to decide whether Cowboy Bebop or Evangelion was the more enjoyable series; by the end of Evangelion, Cowboy Bebop won out. The last episodes of Evangelion weren't bad, but I realized I enjoy the playful tone of Cowboy Bebop more than the extremely somber, pensive, and austere tone that Evangelion adopts near the end. Maybe it's because Evangelion is, beneath all of the heavy philosophical overtones, still a cartoon; maybe it's because that's just my type of personality. Regardless, both series are worth checking out if you haven't seen either one, even if you're generally not a fan of anime (if that's the case, you probably just haven't seen the right series).
Friday night, I saw the movie Van Helsing. While not a terrible movie, it was much worse than it should have been, given the awesome concept. I can't give any specific criticisms without spoiling the movie, so I'll just state some general problems I had with it: The dialogue is sub-par, at best, meaning the characters all have weak or one-dimensional personalities. The attempts at comedic relief are fairly abysmal and far too frequent, taking away any serious sense of tension that the movie might have been trying to create. The plot is too predictable, along with the outcomes of the fights. Every time I expected a surprise, I was disappointed. However, the special effects were quite impressive and nearly seamless. In addition, the alternate takes on the classic monsters aren't bad. So, monster-movie fans won't be completely let-down, but you'll still come out of the movie frustrated at all the potential which was wasted.
That's about it. All of you who are my friends from back home, please inform me somehow (e-mail or IM work) of when you'll be back, so I can start figuring out when and what we'll be doing for our first summer "reunion." See you guys soon.
Saturday, May 01, 2004
Abortion = Murder?
If you've been reading my regular profile recently, you know a lot has been going on (two job offers accepted, cool prank accomplished, Ninja Burger), but I'd like to use this space tonight to describe the March for Women's Lives that I participated in last Sunday and my thoughts on the touchy topic of abortion. And, yes, it is a Friday night, and I'm not out anywhere; sue me.
I was at the major rally (the current estimate of people who attended is over a million) in Washington, DC this past weekend; it was covered in most of the mass media but basically it was a show of support for the principle that abortion should be an option for women and not illegal. While I did (and do) support this principle, I was mainly there because I had never participated in such a rally and wanted to experience it for myself, not just watch it on TV as many others did. During the ride back from the rally, I knew I had made the right decision.
My description of the rally probably won't do justice to the grandeur of it, but I do have pictures which I will upload to my webspace as soon as I get them developed. Everyone in the march (and I'm not exaggerating when I say everyone) had a sign or two, some with radical slogans like "Abort Bush" and others with more benign ones such as "It's your choice... not theirs" and "Keep abortion legal." A couple of people had paper-maché caricatures of Bush, and some had buckets and drums of various sorts to beat on during the march, one couple even striking up a military march rhythm to really make it sound like this was a war. The speakers were generally eloquent and convincing (at least to those like me who were already fairly convinced) in their expressions of why abortion should be kept legal. Often, the speakers also took the opportunity to bash the Bush administration, something which, while I mostly agreed with their allegations against the administration, I didn't appreciate because I felt it took the focus off the central issue of abortion and turned it into a partisan rally, which it wasn't meant to be.
The march itself was, in a word, surreal, as many of the momentous occasions in one's life are. Cheers and chants coalesced into a sweeping aural current. However, anti-abortionists were on the sidelines, quoting Bible passages, conveying apocalyptic warnings of fire and brimstone, holding up signs with pictures of aborted fetuses or mutilated infants and the singular word "Murder" emblazoned on them, or ones telling us to use adoption instead of abortion.
I only have limited space remaining, so I'm going to briefly address the most important charge of murder, as it's the basis for the moral and religious objections to abortion. Are abortions a form of murder? No, because murders have several characteristics which an abortion doesn't: murders are brutal, normally done remorselessly (if the testimonials I've heard serve as any indicator, abortions are taken very seriously and regretted by most mothers who choose it), morally unjustifiable, and committed for selfish reasons (except when abortion is irresponsibly used as another form of birth control, it is normally for either the health of the mother or to prevent the suffering a child would have to go through in life if it were to be born). In my belief, those who abuse abortions will suffer at least in this life, and there are too many scenarios where I could see a legitimate reason for an abortion that I can't deny women that option, especially since I'm of the position that the government shouldn't impose morals except for those necessary to maintain order and to ensure one's full potential in life. Who among us is worthy to determine the proper course of action for one's private moral decisions? Thus, I leave that responsibility to the individual. IM me if you want to discuss my experience at the march or this complex issue even further; I'm out of room.
Oh, and exams start for me next week. Eep!
I was at the major rally (the current estimate of people who attended is over a million) in Washington, DC this past weekend; it was covered in most of the mass media but basically it was a show of support for the principle that abortion should be an option for women and not illegal. While I did (and do) support this principle, I was mainly there because I had never participated in such a rally and wanted to experience it for myself, not just watch it on TV as many others did. During the ride back from the rally, I knew I had made the right decision.
My description of the rally probably won't do justice to the grandeur of it, but I do have pictures which I will upload to my webspace as soon as I get them developed. Everyone in the march (and I'm not exaggerating when I say everyone) had a sign or two, some with radical slogans like "Abort Bush" and others with more benign ones such as "It's your choice... not theirs" and "Keep abortion legal." A couple of people had paper-maché caricatures of Bush, and some had buckets and drums of various sorts to beat on during the march, one couple even striking up a military march rhythm to really make it sound like this was a war. The speakers were generally eloquent and convincing (at least to those like me who were already fairly convinced) in their expressions of why abortion should be kept legal. Often, the speakers also took the opportunity to bash the Bush administration, something which, while I mostly agreed with their allegations against the administration, I didn't appreciate because I felt it took the focus off the central issue of abortion and turned it into a partisan rally, which it wasn't meant to be.
The march itself was, in a word, surreal, as many of the momentous occasions in one's life are. Cheers and chants coalesced into a sweeping aural current. However, anti-abortionists were on the sidelines, quoting Bible passages, conveying apocalyptic warnings of fire and brimstone, holding up signs with pictures of aborted fetuses or mutilated infants and the singular word "Murder" emblazoned on them, or ones telling us to use adoption instead of abortion.
I only have limited space remaining, so I'm going to briefly address the most important charge of murder, as it's the basis for the moral and religious objections to abortion. Are abortions a form of murder? No, because murders have several characteristics which an abortion doesn't: murders are brutal, normally done remorselessly (if the testimonials I've heard serve as any indicator, abortions are taken very seriously and regretted by most mothers who choose it), morally unjustifiable, and committed for selfish reasons (except when abortion is irresponsibly used as another form of birth control, it is normally for either the health of the mother or to prevent the suffering a child would have to go through in life if it were to be born). In my belief, those who abuse abortions will suffer at least in this life, and there are too many scenarios where I could see a legitimate reason for an abortion that I can't deny women that option, especially since I'm of the position that the government shouldn't impose morals except for those necessary to maintain order and to ensure one's full potential in life. Who among us is worthy to determine the proper course of action for one's private moral decisions? Thus, I leave that responsibility to the individual. IM me if you want to discuss my experience at the march or this complex issue even further; I'm out of room.
Oh, and exams start for me next week. Eep!
Tuesday, April 20, 2004
Well... Crap
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
I'm actually updating early for once because of recent events.
Last night, I screwed up, big time. As of last night, I became secretary of the Gaming Club, meaning that I was allowed to send out e-mails on behalf of the club. I had actually been given access to the Gaming Club e-mail account a few days before yesterday, but the only important thing I used it for was to write the weekly e-mail about what we were doing Monday night (Mondays are our general meetings) with the outgoing president and secretary and the incoming president. However, after the Gaming Club meeting, at which we used a Dreamcast to simulate the NES and spent the night playing classic games like "Bad Dudes", I did something which was an embarrassment to me and to the club.
Shortly before the Gaming Club meeting, the outgoing president had his secretary access the e-mail account so that he could send out one last e-mail. While I thought he wasn't allowed to do this, technically, until the meeting that evening, they still held their positions in the Gaming Club. Initially, it was not the fact that they had accessed the e-mail account which made me get mad (it was partially my fault for not changing the account password as I had been told to do); it was the content of the e-mail which aroused my ire. In it, they called for select members of the Gaming Club (this fiasco fortunately did not affect the whole club) to conquer the Anime Club.
In the e-mail, it was explained that almost all of the positions of the Anime Club had no candidates, meaning that the Gaming Club could finally take it over. Even though I knew there was a silly feud between the two clubs, I jumped to the conclusion that they meant to or would nullify the Anime Club because they would win election (by default) and then simply ignore their positions, allowing the Anime Club to fade away. At Bennett High, I had seen the dramatic changes that officers in a club who took their positions seriously could effect, so I was angry at what seemed to be a joke gone too far.
Naturally, being the easily impassioned person I am and wanting to chastise the outgoing president and secretary for this perceived abuse of power, I took about an hour to write a lengthy, caustic, and indignant e-mail (I tend to be melodramatic about these things) to the people who had received the other e-mail, explaining that the outgoing president's e-mail should be ignored and attacking him for using the e-mail account for his own selfish purposes. Shortly afterwards, I received a couple of angry e-mails (I wasn't on IM at the time because of an earlier, unrelated incident), one even telling me that I was the one guilty of abusing power. At the time, I didn't see anything wrong with what I had done: what's wrong with reprimanding two people for using the e-mail account irresponsibly?
Then, someone involved in this "joke" called me and proceeded to explain the e-mail to me. Apparently, although the e-mail had a very flippant tone, it actually had very serious intentions to reform the Anime Club. In years past (and this is the part I didn't know), the Gaming Club had indeed plotted to, when the time was ripe, "conquer" the Anime Club; but, what they meant by that was they wanted to take over its offices so that they could reform it, possibly even joining it with the Gaming Club. Recently, the Anime Club had been plagued by bad leadership, and many in the Gaming Club wanted to change that. However, their e-mail had been written hastily, and the writers assumed that the people they sent it to would understand the pure intent behind all of the jokes. Clearly, I didn't get the joke.
Friday, April 16, 2004
No Rant Today
Jay's Kinda Weekly (Non-)Rant:
No rant today, folks. The only reason I'm posting is to assure everyone (and I know you all were very worried... ok, not really, but I like to tell myself that :-P) that I'm getting back on a weekly schedule. However, tonight, I'm going to see the movies "The Punisher" and "Kill Bill Vol. 2", both out in theaters today, and I have some things I want to do before then. I may or may not post my reactions tomorrow. Hope everyone has as awesome a weekend as I'm going to have (if both movies are good, anyway).
No rant today, folks. The only reason I'm posting is to assure everyone (and I know you all were very worried... ok, not really, but I like to tell myself that :-P) that I'm getting back on a weekly schedule. However, tonight, I'm going to see the movies "The Punisher" and "Kill Bill Vol. 2", both out in theaters today, and I have some things I want to do before then. I may or may not post my reactions tomorrow. Hope everyone has as awesome a weekend as I'm going to have (if both movies are good, anyway).
Friday, April 09, 2004
Ponderings and Puzzlings
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
I was trying really hard to get back onto a weekly schedule and missed it by a day. Then again, my rants have never been on a regular schedule. Guess that's why all of these rants are qualified with the phrase "kinda weekly".
Ever since my European History recitation today, I've been busy thinking. For example, in class today, the topic was Nazi propaganda. Towards the end of class, our recitation leader posed the question to each of us to the effect of, "Do you believe that you're susceptible to and affected by advertisements?", drawing a parallel between modern advertising methods and those of the Nazis. Now, while one's initial reaction (including mine) might be a defensive, "No, of course not! I'm too smart for that!", I think it would be fairly naïve to believe that. Whether we realize it or not, ads can shape our thinking dramatically. Our recitation leader gave the example of McDonald's billboards; he passes one on his commute back home every day and often thinks, "Hmm, I'm hungry. I wonder if there's a place to eat around here." when he sees it and then realizes, "Oh, there's a McDonald's here. How convenient!" So, he knows that the billboard is doing this to him, yet it works on him anyway. The question is, why is a well-educated person still vulnerable to these advertising techniques that the person recognizes and treats as an ad? The short answer, although I'm trying to avoid oversimplifying it, is that humans have basic needs, such as food, which these ads appeal to directly. As one is going home past one of these signs, one is already hungry, and this ad brings that desire to the surface and provides an easy solution that will satisfy that desire. We may even be resistant to the particular solution which is presented, but it is the most readily available and promises instant gratification.
Thinking about advertising then led me to question whether my political and world views are simply a result of an absorption of influences around me or rather one of sincere, honest reflection and consideration. Now, while it is impossible in my present situation to consider ideas in a vacuum, it is better that I'm not because, otherwise, my already ingrained views would never be challenged, and my views would never have the opportunity to adapt and change. However, even people who are exposed to new ideas, no matter how solid the logic or extensive the evidence is behind them, can easily reject or refuse to accept them. Am I doing that? I like to believe that I'm open-minded; I try to go to see guest lecturers whenever I can, regardless of the speaker's political affiliation or differing views from my own. Even if I am doing that (which I make an effort to do as much as possible), it is quite possible that I'm still only absorbing those ideas to which I already subscribe, and I just block out the rest.
The reason I don't believe that is the case is because I'm not arrogant enough to think that I already know about every nuance of every issue; there are still many areas for which I don't have an established opinion. Thus, if some new notion comes to my attention, I should be able to give it the consideration it deserves. Those ideas to which I've already been exposed got the same treatment as the new ones to which I'm now being exposed, albeit with a more limited knowledge base for the older ideas. At the same time, I do re-examine my established views occasionally, such as when I read the latest issue of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy, a publication of the College Republicans, in order to expose them to my current and more expanded knowledge. Thus, overall, I think I have a fairly healthy set of views, and I like to believe that, because of the way I process ideas, those which I take up as my own are solid ones. Considering how much I'm analyzing myself now, I'm not worried about being an inert individual; those who don't go through this process occasionally concern me.
I was trying really hard to get back onto a weekly schedule and missed it by a day. Then again, my rants have never been on a regular schedule. Guess that's why all of these rants are qualified with the phrase "kinda weekly".
Ever since my European History recitation today, I've been busy thinking. For example, in class today, the topic was Nazi propaganda. Towards the end of class, our recitation leader posed the question to each of us to the effect of, "Do you believe that you're susceptible to and affected by advertisements?", drawing a parallel between modern advertising methods and those of the Nazis. Now, while one's initial reaction (including mine) might be a defensive, "No, of course not! I'm too smart for that!", I think it would be fairly naïve to believe that. Whether we realize it or not, ads can shape our thinking dramatically. Our recitation leader gave the example of McDonald's billboards; he passes one on his commute back home every day and often thinks, "Hmm, I'm hungry. I wonder if there's a place to eat around here." when he sees it and then realizes, "Oh, there's a McDonald's here. How convenient!" So, he knows that the billboard is doing this to him, yet it works on him anyway. The question is, why is a well-educated person still vulnerable to these advertising techniques that the person recognizes and treats as an ad? The short answer, although I'm trying to avoid oversimplifying it, is that humans have basic needs, such as food, which these ads appeal to directly. As one is going home past one of these signs, one is already hungry, and this ad brings that desire to the surface and provides an easy solution that will satisfy that desire. We may even be resistant to the particular solution which is presented, but it is the most readily available and promises instant gratification.
Thinking about advertising then led me to question whether my political and world views are simply a result of an absorption of influences around me or rather one of sincere, honest reflection and consideration. Now, while it is impossible in my present situation to consider ideas in a vacuum, it is better that I'm not because, otherwise, my already ingrained views would never be challenged, and my views would never have the opportunity to adapt and change. However, even people who are exposed to new ideas, no matter how solid the logic or extensive the evidence is behind them, can easily reject or refuse to accept them. Am I doing that? I like to believe that I'm open-minded; I try to go to see guest lecturers whenever I can, regardless of the speaker's political affiliation or differing views from my own. Even if I am doing that (which I make an effort to do as much as possible), it is quite possible that I'm still only absorbing those ideas to which I already subscribe, and I just block out the rest.
The reason I don't believe that is the case is because I'm not arrogant enough to think that I already know about every nuance of every issue; there are still many areas for which I don't have an established opinion. Thus, if some new notion comes to my attention, I should be able to give it the consideration it deserves. Those ideas to which I've already been exposed got the same treatment as the new ones to which I'm now being exposed, albeit with a more limited knowledge base for the older ideas. At the same time, I do re-examine my established views occasionally, such as when I read the latest issue of the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy, a publication of the College Republicans, in order to expose them to my current and more expanded knowledge. Thus, overall, I think I have a fairly healthy set of views, and I like to believe that, because of the way I process ideas, those which I take up as my own are solid ones. Considering how much I'm analyzing myself now, I'm not worried about being an inert individual; those who don't go through this process occasionally concern me.
Thursday, April 01, 2004
April Fool's Day Shenanigans
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
Well, I really intended to get back on a regular schedule with my rants, but I screwed up. Anyway, some things happened yesterday and today that I can't resist talking about, thus the new rant.
Recently, all of my Gaming Club friends have gotten into a website-based game called Kings of Chaos (do a search for it if you're interested). The basic gist of it is you build up an army by posting a web link in a highly visible place (such as a profile, but there are rules about where you can and can't put it). When a person clicks the link and then the number it tells the user to click, the person who's raising the army gets another soldier. In addition, you get gold periodically every day which can be spent to upgrade and fortify your army. That's about the extent of my knowledge since I don't actually play it. My refusal to play is the direct cause of the subsequent shenanigans.
Basically, this whole debacle began with my college friend, Adam, who was one of the first people to make everyone else in the Gaming Club aware of the online game. Then, as others began signing up, people began trying to recruit officers for their armies (officers being players who are subordinate to the "general"; officers also give the general a boost in men and gold, I believe). Adam was the first one (on March 15, to be specific) who tried to make me an officer under him and then, three or four days ago, the president of the Gaming Club, Taylor, followed by my future roommate, Hans (I may have Taylor and Hans backwards). Not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings and not wanting to start my own army because I wasn't interested in the game, I refused to participate in the game. I was badgered by people (especially Taylor) for a couple of days and expressed my desire to just be left alone about the game. As Hans pointed out, these proceedings paralleled my housing search where both Adam's group and Hans's group tried to get me to live with them next year (they both needed a fourth), so, while this was amusing initially, I quickly became exasperated with it. Then, the unthinkable happened.
Last night, at11:40 pm , I got an e-mail saying the following:
Hello shadowbat [shadowbat being the name of one of my D&D characters],
Thank you for signing up to play Kings of Chaos.
Not remembering ever signing up for Kings of Chaos, I quickly logged into this account to find "shadowbat" was under another Gaming Club friend of mine called Kara who was under... Hans. Since Kara had only joined that day and since Hans had been bugging me about joining, I decided that my vengeance for this outrage would be directed towards him (I've now come to the conclusion that it was a joint effort, though as to just how deep the rabbit hole goes, I'm not going to speculate). And, conveniently, the next day happened to be April Fool's Day. The perfect circumstances. Now, I just had to think of how I would exact my revenge.
The opportunity practically fell into my lap. I was in Hans's apartment, about to get dinner, when I decided to go check out his computer. As it turned out, he was gone, leaving the computer unguarded and giving me an easy way to mess with him. After getting on (through methods I won't reveal, in case he doesn't know), I proceeded to change his wallpaper, screensaver, and away message, each with messages to the effect of "Shadowbat was here." As icing on the cake, I made a quick program (as he's in my comp. sci. class and had the same text editor/compiler as I did) which printed to the screen in an infinite loop, "Shadowbat's revenge!" Ah, revenge is sweet indeed. Too bad I couldn't stick around to see the look on his face. According to my sources, he took it well. Guess I'll find out in comp. sci. class tomorrow. Hopefully, I haven't just started an infinite loop of my own making, this one involving retaliations. Hans, if you're reading this, I hope you're not mad at me, and I hope for a truce.
Well, I really intended to get back on a regular schedule with my rants, but I screwed up. Anyway, some things happened yesterday and today that I can't resist talking about, thus the new rant.
Recently, all of my Gaming Club friends have gotten into a website-based game called Kings of Chaos (do a search for it if you're interested). The basic gist of it is you build up an army by posting a web link in a highly visible place (such as a profile, but there are rules about where you can and can't put it). When a person clicks the link and then the number it tells the user to click, the person who's raising the army gets another soldier. In addition, you get gold periodically every day which can be spent to upgrade and fortify your army. That's about the extent of my knowledge since I don't actually play it. My refusal to play is the direct cause of the subsequent shenanigans.
Basically, this whole debacle began with my college friend, Adam, who was one of the first people to make everyone else in the Gaming Club aware of the online game. Then, as others began signing up, people began trying to recruit officers for their armies (officers being players who are subordinate to the "general"; officers also give the general a boost in men and gold, I believe). Adam was the first one (on March 15, to be specific) who tried to make me an officer under him and then, three or four days ago, the president of the Gaming Club, Taylor, followed by my future roommate, Hans (I may have Taylor and Hans backwards). Not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings and not wanting to start my own army because I wasn't interested in the game, I refused to participate in the game. I was badgered by people (especially Taylor) for a couple of days and expressed my desire to just be left alone about the game. As Hans pointed out, these proceedings paralleled my housing search where both Adam's group and Hans's group tried to get me to live with them next year (they both needed a fourth), so, while this was amusing initially, I quickly became exasperated with it. Then, the unthinkable happened.
Last night, at
Hello shadowbat [shadowbat being the name of one of my D&D characters],
Thank you for signing up to play Kings of Chaos.
Not remembering ever signing up for Kings of Chaos, I quickly logged into this account to find "shadowbat" was under another Gaming Club friend of mine called Kara who was under... Hans. Since Kara had only joined that day and since Hans had been bugging me about joining, I decided that my vengeance for this outrage would be directed towards him (I've now come to the conclusion that it was a joint effort, though as to just how deep the rabbit hole goes, I'm not going to speculate). And, conveniently, the next day happened to be April Fool's Day. The perfect circumstances. Now, I just had to think of how I would exact my revenge.
The opportunity practically fell into my lap. I was in Hans's apartment, about to get dinner, when I decided to go check out his computer. As it turned out, he was gone, leaving the computer unguarded and giving me an easy way to mess with him. After getting on (through methods I won't reveal, in case he doesn't know), I proceeded to change his wallpaper, screensaver, and away message, each with messages to the effect of "Shadowbat was here." As icing on the cake, I made a quick program (as he's in my comp. sci. class and had the same text editor/compiler as I did) which printed to the screen in an infinite loop, "Shadowbat's revenge!" Ah, revenge is sweet indeed. Too bad I couldn't stick around to see the look on his face. According to my sources, he took it well. Guess I'll find out in comp. sci. class tomorrow. Hopefully, I haven't just started an infinite loop of my own making, this one involving retaliations. Hans, if you're reading this, I hope you're not mad at me, and I hope for a truce.
Thursday, March 18, 2004
Spring Break!!! Wait... Is That Snow?
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
The rumors of my profile's demise have been greatly exaggerated...
Basically, with spring break and exams, I haven't had a long enough of a pause in activities to update my profile until now. Spring break was great, though far too short. One week is not nearly enough time to do all the things you want to during a break: visit friends, catch up on homework which you're behind on, visit your alma mater, run various errands, and, finally, rest. However, I can truthfully claim that I accomplished three of those objectives... and no, rest was not one of them... and neither was catching up on homework. To those of you who I saw, it was great seeing all of you. To those of you who I missed, it was probably because our breaks didn't coincide; if that wasn't the case, and I simply forgot you... well, I'm still not remembering you, so you're clearly not important to me. :-P
So, I got back to Lehigh this past Sunday and have quickly gotten back into the routine here. I had to: I had an exam today which I was frantically preparing for up until the hour of it. However, I think it went fairly well, but I'm not going to make any predictions so as to not jinx the results. Now, I don't have another exam for two weeks, so I can calm down a bit, maybe even relax if I'm lucky. Tonight, I plan on watching some Adult Swim (no, that's not a codename for porno... if you made that mistake, you're not worthy to know the truth) with the apartment crew, which should be a step in the right direction. In other news, my initiation into the prestigious Kappa Kappa Kappa goes well, and Big O is awesome, regardless of what anyone says, although one of its main naysayers is a recent convert (there is still time for the rest of you)...
Some promising news about this summer: During break, Perdue interviewed me for a possible internship at their offices. If I'm selected, they would rotate me through the various departments within IT, giving me a full tour of it to see what area interests me the most. They warned me it might involve shift work, although so did catering (though catering didn't go past a certain time in the evening). Regardless, at least this opportunity is computer-related. In addition, the student tech support group here at Lehigh, called WIRED, is in the process of interviewing, which I'll be doing next week. Thus, this summer is looking much better on the job front than last summer. No offense to my fellow caterers, but it was a low-paying, manual labor job that was only enjoyable because I managed to cajole some friends to work there with me, and I made some new friends there as well.
I just had an unsettling experience a few minutes ago as I was going to the laundry room to move clothes from the washers to the dryers. I was passing one of the rooms on my floor and heard from within a room someone say, with no panic in his voice, "Ow, my crotch." Ah, college...
Well, there's currently about 4 inches of snow on the grass here (though not on the streets, they got those cleaned up fairly quickly) from two days ago and, tonight, we're supposed to get another 6 inches or so. So much for spring (and what's up with spring break occurring at the beginning of March?). Will it be enough to cancel school? Normally, I would say it won't be, but the snow is supposed to hit pretty late this night and continue into the morning. So, the administration might err on the side of caution and cancel classes since they won't have much time to clean it up before classes begin. Still, we haven't gotten that lucky yet, and rumor has it that the person responsible for such judgments has a reputation for avoiding cancellations at all costs, so I'm not going to count on it. A day off would be quite refreshing after the hectic nature of the past five days (especially today). Oh well; if luck isn't on my side tonight, the weekend is a mere two days away. Have a great weekend, everybody.
The rumors of my profile's demise have been greatly exaggerated...
Basically, with spring break and exams, I haven't had a long enough of a pause in activities to update my profile until now. Spring break was great, though far too short. One week is not nearly enough time to do all the things you want to during a break: visit friends, catch up on homework which you're behind on, visit your alma mater, run various errands, and, finally, rest. However, I can truthfully claim that I accomplished three of those objectives... and no, rest was not one of them... and neither was catching up on homework. To those of you who I saw, it was great seeing all of you. To those of you who I missed, it was probably because our breaks didn't coincide; if that wasn't the case, and I simply forgot you... well, I'm still not remembering you, so you're clearly not important to me. :-P
So, I got back to Lehigh this past Sunday and have quickly gotten back into the routine here. I had to: I had an exam today which I was frantically preparing for up until the hour of it. However, I think it went fairly well, but I'm not going to make any predictions so as to not jinx the results. Now, I don't have another exam for two weeks, so I can calm down a bit, maybe even relax if I'm lucky. Tonight, I plan on watching some Adult Swim (no, that's not a codename for porno... if you made that mistake, you're not worthy to know the truth) with the apartment crew, which should be a step in the right direction. In other news, my initiation into the prestigious Kappa Kappa Kappa goes well, and Big O is awesome, regardless of what anyone says, although one of its main naysayers is a recent convert (there is still time for the rest of you)...
Some promising news about this summer: During break, Perdue interviewed me for a possible internship at their offices. If I'm selected, they would rotate me through the various departments within IT, giving me a full tour of it to see what area interests me the most. They warned me it might involve shift work, although so did catering (though catering didn't go past a certain time in the evening). Regardless, at least this opportunity is computer-related. In addition, the student tech support group here at Lehigh, called WIRED, is in the process of interviewing, which I'll be doing next week. Thus, this summer is looking much better on the job front than last summer. No offense to my fellow caterers, but it was a low-paying, manual labor job that was only enjoyable because I managed to cajole some friends to work there with me, and I made some new friends there as well.
I just had an unsettling experience a few minutes ago as I was going to the laundry room to move clothes from the washers to the dryers. I was passing one of the rooms on my floor and heard from within a room someone say, with no panic in his voice, "Ow, my crotch." Ah, college...
Well, there's currently about 4 inches of snow on the grass here (though not on the streets, they got those cleaned up fairly quickly) from two days ago and, tonight, we're supposed to get another 6 inches or so. So much for spring (and what's up with spring break occurring at the beginning of March?). Will it be enough to cancel school? Normally, I would say it won't be, but the snow is supposed to hit pretty late this night and continue into the morning. So, the administration might err on the side of caution and cancel classes since they won't have much time to clean it up before classes begin. Still, we haven't gotten that lucky yet, and rumor has it that the person responsible for such judgments has a reputation for avoiding cancellations at all costs, so I'm not going to count on it. A day off would be quite refreshing after the hectic nature of the past five days (especially today). Oh well; if luck isn't on my side tonight, the weekend is a mere two days away. Have a great weekend, everybody.
Wednesday, February 18, 2004
Thoughts
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
As a follow-up to my previous rant, I wrote that article for the Democrats newsletter about the Maginnes controversy (read my last rant if you're lost). The newsletter hasn't been published yet, but the editor of the newsletter told me that he would try to change it as little as possible. So, I went ahead and uploaded the unedited article onto my webspace. Here it is, if you're interested: http://www.lehigh.edu/~jmsc/maginnes.doc
Recently, and by recently I mean last night and, to some extent, this morning, my mind has been captivated by thoughts of the past. I knew that fixating on the past wouldn't change it and that, instead, I should be learning from it and moving on, yet I couldn't stop thinking about it. I knew that I should have been concentrating on the future or, even better, the present, focusing on the here and now, but I couldn't. Why was I unable to stop thinking about events that already occurred and which I can't do anything about now? Answer: regrets.
I have tried to live my life without them, but I have found out just how hard a proposition that is. For me, my regrets are too significant to just be forgotten and relegated to history. For example, I regret not having been more active socially in middle school and high school. As I've said before, adjusting to college socially has been the hardest part of the experience; even with my solid base of friends established here, I find myself eating more meals alone than I would like. I came into college with the advantage of CMST, a summer camp I attended for seven summers that took place on a college campus, and it has certainly helped me deal with the extra independence that comes with college life.
However, I'm still socially awkward: At the Dean's List Reception I attended last night, I was introduced by some of my friends to new people and found myself having trouble conducting a conversation with these people. Part of that difficulty might be attributable to the large amount of people in a small room, creating a lot of noise and a need to raise one's voice over everyone else’s. Regardless, it reminded me of my acute lack of social experience. If I had been more involved socially when I was younger, I would have come into college with that experience, more prepared to deal with and meet new people.
Other regrets: Never going on a date, a big factor in why I'm still single, I'm terrified of the prospect now; never going to prom, a regret compounded further by the thought that, if I had asked the person I'd intended on asking and she had assented, a relationship might have started, and my first regret would have been taken care of (wishful thinking, perhaps); not spending more time with my friends, people I dearly miss now.
In an attempt to avoid confronting these regrets, I went to my normal source of solace last night: computer games. While it provided temporary retreat, the thoughts just became even more nagging when I had finished. Once again, I have turned to my profile to help with my struggle, to express my thoughts, put them out in the open where I can better deal with them. These regrets have also made me think of my friends, not just because one of my regrets involves them but also because I’m wondering whether anyone else is having similar thoughts. In addition, I realize it's been a while since I've heard from some of you. Thus, those of you I haven't talked to recently and have visited my profile in the last month or so, expect to get an IM from me sometime soon. I want to know how some of you are doing and what's going on in your lives. I have exams coming up soon (first one is on Thursday), so I'll probably be messaging people on Friday, during the weekend, or whenever else I can spare. Look out, everyone, because I'm coming for you! :-P
As a follow-up to my previous rant, I wrote that article for the Democrats newsletter about the Maginnes controversy (read my last rant if you're lost). The newsletter hasn't been published yet, but the editor of the newsletter told me that he would try to change it as little as possible. So, I went ahead and uploaded the unedited article onto my webspace. Here it is, if you're interested: http://www.lehigh.edu/~jmsc/maginnes.doc
Recently, and by recently I mean last night and, to some extent, this morning, my mind has been captivated by thoughts of the past. I knew that fixating on the past wouldn't change it and that, instead, I should be learning from it and moving on, yet I couldn't stop thinking about it. I knew that I should have been concentrating on the future or, even better, the present, focusing on the here and now, but I couldn't. Why was I unable to stop thinking about events that already occurred and which I can't do anything about now? Answer: regrets.
I have tried to live my life without them, but I have found out just how hard a proposition that is. For me, my regrets are too significant to just be forgotten and relegated to history. For example, I regret not having been more active socially in middle school and high school. As I've said before, adjusting to college socially has been the hardest part of the experience; even with my solid base of friends established here, I find myself eating more meals alone than I would like. I came into college with the advantage of CMST, a summer camp I attended for seven summers that took place on a college campus, and it has certainly helped me deal with the extra independence that comes with college life.
However, I'm still socially awkward: At the Dean's List Reception I attended last night, I was introduced by some of my friends to new people and found myself having trouble conducting a conversation with these people. Part of that difficulty might be attributable to the large amount of people in a small room, creating a lot of noise and a need to raise one's voice over everyone else’s. Regardless, it reminded me of my acute lack of social experience. If I had been more involved socially when I was younger, I would have come into college with that experience, more prepared to deal with and meet new people.
Other regrets: Never going on a date, a big factor in why I'm still single, I'm terrified of the prospect now; never going to prom, a regret compounded further by the thought that, if I had asked the person I'd intended on asking and she had assented, a relationship might have started, and my first regret would have been taken care of (wishful thinking, perhaps); not spending more time with my friends, people I dearly miss now.
In an attempt to avoid confronting these regrets, I went to my normal source of solace last night: computer games. While it provided temporary retreat, the thoughts just became even more nagging when I had finished. Once again, I have turned to my profile to help with my struggle, to express my thoughts, put them out in the open where I can better deal with them. These regrets have also made me think of my friends, not just because one of my regrets involves them but also because I’m wondering whether anyone else is having similar thoughts. In addition, I realize it's been a while since I've heard from some of you. Thus, those of you I haven't talked to recently and have visited my profile in the last month or so, expect to get an IM from me sometime soon. I want to know how some of you are doing and what's going on in your lives. I have exams coming up soon (first one is on Thursday), so I'll probably be messaging people on Friday, during the weekend, or whenever else I can spare. Look out, everyone, because I'm coming for you! :-P
Thursday, February 12, 2004
Controversy at Lehigh
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
I don't know how many of you watch the Fox News Channel. If you do, then you'll know what I'm about to talk about. If not, there was a decent article done on the matter by Lehigh's school newspaper here: http://www.bw.lehigh.edu/story.asp?ID=17115 Read that, and then come back here.
Done? Ok, let's continue. As the article says, the College Republicans at Lehigh are mounting a media campaign to try and pressure the administration to move the artwork from the Maginnes Gallery (the department that contains such majors as political science, international relations, history, etc.) to theZoellner Art Center
Anyway, back to Fox News. About half-an-hour ago, on The O'Reilly Factor, Bill O'Reilly interviewed the presidents of the College Democrats and the College Republicans. From the very beginning, "Mr. No-Spin Zone" spun the issue, calling it (and this is from the summary on his website) "grossly offensive" and charging that the "conservatives [are] under attack on college campuses". As so many have, he was interpreting the art literally, contrary to what the artist intended. Then, when he interviewed the two, Neal (the College Repubs. president) was given significantly more time than Mike (the College Dems. president) and, on the website, it only mentions Neal. When Mike tried to explain that it was a metaphor, Bill responded sarcastically (not verbatim, but close), "Oh, metaphor! I see. Well, obviously, you're much smarter thanme.
So, I'm pretty angry about this (though a lot better than during and after the segment, at which point I was jumping around and shaking my fist at the TV), which is why I wrote this up: to vent. Also, if any of you actually did see the show, I hope I gave you a different and, I believe, clearer perspective of the situation here at Lehigh. If I end up writing the article, I'll post it on my webspace and put the link in my next rant.
I don't know how many of you watch the Fox News Channel. If you do, then you'll know what I'm about to talk about. If not, there was a decent article done on the matter by Lehigh's school newspaper here: http://www.bw.lehigh.edu/story.asp?ID=17115 Read that, and then come back here.
Done? Ok, let's continue. As the article says, the College Republicans at Lehigh are mounting a media campaign to try and pressure the administration to move the artwork from the Maginnes Gallery (the department that contains such majors as political science, international relations, history, etc.) to the
Anyway, back to Fox News. About half-an-hour ago, on The O'Reilly Factor, Bill O'Reilly interviewed the presidents of the College Democrats and the College Republicans. From the very beginning, "Mr. No-Spin Zone" spun the issue, calling it (and this is from the summary on his website) "grossly offensive" and charging that the "conservatives [are] under attack on college campuses". As so many have, he was interpreting the art literally, contrary to what the artist intended. Then, when he interviewed the two, Neal (the College Repubs. president) was given significantly more time than Mike (the College Dems. president) and, on the website, it only mentions Neal. When Mike tried to explain that it was a metaphor, Bill responded sarcastically (not verbatim, but close), "Oh, metaphor! I see. Well, obviously, you're much smarter than
So, I'm pretty angry about this (though a lot better than during and after the segment, at which point I was jumping around and shaking my fist at the TV), which is why I wrote this up: to vent. Also, if any of you actually did see the show, I hope I gave you a different and, I believe, clearer perspective of the situation here at Lehigh. If I end up writing the article, I'll post it on my webspace and put the link in my next rant.
Sunday, February 01, 2004
Sunday, Sunday, Sunday!
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
As some may have noticed, I haven't exactly been keeping up on my rants. Well, turns out I have a bit of free time, so I figured I would try to get back on track with my rants.
All right, looking at the scoreboard of people who appreciate me, it looks like ecronzero is in the lead with 16 visits to my profile, closely followed by janetweiss9 with 15 visits. Everyone else, [Triumph the Insult Comic Dog's voice]YOU SUCK![/Triumph]
So, what have I been up to? Well, getting back into the routine of college for one thing. Surprisingly, I've been spending very little time in my room, which is very different from last semester. I've been spending most of my time in the apartment of the three guys I'll be living with next year. We've been playing a lot of video games, most recently Dragonball Z Budokai 2 (a decent amount of fun, but not great) and Mario Kart: Double Dash (a lot of fun, but powersliding sucks now). Sometimes, I've been doing stuff like that with them for so long that my roommate actually gets back to the dorm before I do, and he starts worrying about where I am.
Still, he's probably out of the room more than I am, since he's going through the pledging process for his fraternity. Very secretive, very hush-hush. Apparently, the university has a broad definition of hazing that includes simple things like "memorizing." Now, I wouldn't consider the act of memorizing to be hazing, but I suppose that what the fraternity would do if you screw up the memorization could be hazing. Regardless, I'm still almost certain that some of what the fraternity does to the pledges would be actual hazing, but I may never know because the pledges are virtually sworn to secrecy. As long as he doesn't get hurt or come back really drunk every night, then I'm ok with it. And if he does come back drunk, I'll just retreat to my "second home," aka the place I'm living next year.
I'm really liking my classes this semester. When I chose them, I found that I only had to pick one comp. sci. class in order to stay on track with my intended major. Beyond that, I had freedom to pick whatever classes I wanted. Thus, my other three classes are two international relations classes (one is an intro class, the other is on theMiddle East ) and a European history class (from 1648 to present day). The ironic thing is that the worst one is my comp. sci. class because it's basically a review of what I did last semester. I thought Lehigh was supposed to have a good reputation for comp. sci.? Then again, I also thought Lehigh wasn't a massive party school, so it appears there's a lot about Lehigh about which I was mistaken. Anyway, I still like all my teachers, and I don't really mind any of my classes; it's just that my comp. sci. class is really boring. Here's hoping the comp. sci. classes improve in future semesters.
The main complaint about my classes (and it's a relatively minor one) is the reading: I have ten textbooks (five of them are for one class), of which I have to read from at least six of them each week, and I have to read the New York Times every day (for the same class which has five textbooks). However, this is actually a good thing because it gives me a tangible sense of learning and of progress. Plus, I know it's good for me, as a citizen, to read a newspaper every day, so it's good that I'm getting in this habit early. Unfortunately, I've been pushing off a lot of reading, but I'm catching up on that as I type this (alternating between typing this up and reading). Speaking of which, I should focus on that, so I'm going to stop here. I'd say that was more than an adequate update. Hope everything is going well for all of you out there. Keep in touch.
As some may have noticed, I haven't exactly been keeping up on my rants. Well, turns out I have a bit of free time, so I figured I would try to get back on track with my rants.
All right, looking at the scoreboard of people who appreciate me, it looks like ecronzero is in the lead with 16 visits to my profile, closely followed by janetweiss9 with 15 visits. Everyone else, [Triumph the Insult Comic Dog's voice]YOU SUCK![/Triumph]
So, what have I been up to? Well, getting back into the routine of college for one thing. Surprisingly, I've been spending very little time in my room, which is very different from last semester. I've been spending most of my time in the apartment of the three guys I'll be living with next year. We've been playing a lot of video games, most recently Dragonball Z Budokai 2 (a decent amount of fun, but not great) and Mario Kart: Double Dash (a lot of fun, but powersliding sucks now). Sometimes, I've been doing stuff like that with them for so long that my roommate actually gets back to the dorm before I do, and he starts worrying about where I am.
Still, he's probably out of the room more than I am, since he's going through the pledging process for his fraternity. Very secretive, very hush-hush. Apparently, the university has a broad definition of hazing that includes simple things like "memorizing." Now, I wouldn't consider the act of memorizing to be hazing, but I suppose that what the fraternity would do if you screw up the memorization could be hazing. Regardless, I'm still almost certain that some of what the fraternity does to the pledges would be actual hazing, but I may never know because the pledges are virtually sworn to secrecy. As long as he doesn't get hurt or come back really drunk every night, then I'm ok with it. And if he does come back drunk, I'll just retreat to my "second home," aka the place I'm living next year.
I'm really liking my classes this semester. When I chose them, I found that I only had to pick one comp. sci. class in order to stay on track with my intended major. Beyond that, I had freedom to pick whatever classes I wanted. Thus, my other three classes are two international relations classes (one is an intro class, the other is on the
The main complaint about my classes (and it's a relatively minor one) is the reading: I have ten textbooks (five of them are for one class), of which I have to read from at least six of them each week, and I have to read the New York Times every day (for the same class which has five textbooks). However, this is actually a good thing because it gives me a tangible sense of learning and of progress. Plus, I know it's good for me, as a citizen, to read a newspaper every day, so it's good that I'm getting in this habit early. Unfortunately, I've been pushing off a lot of reading, but I'm catching up on that as I type this (alternating between typing this up and reading). Speaking of which, I should focus on that, so I'm going to stop here. I'd say that was more than an adequate update. Hope everything is going well for all of you out there. Keep in touch.
Tuesday, January 13, 2004
Quicky
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
Just a few things I wanted to mention.
I'm getting a car! Well, not today, but this summer. Yesterday, I was out test driving some various cars, and I've got my choice narrowed down to three: the VW New Beetle, the VW Jetta, and the Mazda 6. My brother is probably getting the 6, and I don't really want to have the same type of car as he will have, so it's probably going to either be the Beetle or the Jetta, and I'm leaning towards the Jetta right now. I really want to like the Beetle because I love its look and size, but I wasn't very impressed by it when I was driving it. Regardless, I'm getting some kind of car, which is a good thing. However, before you think I'm spoiled (which I am a little bit, I'll admit, I've been lucky in life), I will, over time, be paying my parents back for a fair amount of it, though not the full price. So I'm not getting it for free. But I am getting it for a much reduced price, for which I'm grateful to my parents. Thanks, guys!
To end (yeah, I know, it's short, but don't be surprised, read the subject!), I took a silly little poll that determines what level of Hell I should go to, according to Dante's Inferno. Didn't quite make it to Purgatory but close:
The Dante's Inferno Test has sent you to the First Level of Hell - Limbo!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
Level | Score
Purgatory | High
Level 1 - Limbo | High
Level 2 | Low
Level 3 | Low
Level 4 | Very Low
Level 5 | Low
Level 6 - The City of Dis | Very Low
Level 7 | Low
Level 8- the Malebolge | Moderate
Level 9 - Cocytus | Very Low
Level descriptions: http://www.4degreez.com/misc/dante-inferno-information.html
Take the test: http://www.4degreez.com/misc/dante-inferno-test.mv
I was surprised I got a moderate score in the Level 8 section because, reading the description, it doesn't sound, from my perspective, a place I belong in. I've never read Dante's Divine Comedy, but it's a big thing among D&D players because D&D has a whole hierarchy of planes and realms, and I find it really interesting. Someone who has that book should give it to me sometime. That's an order! I'll find out who you are, I have ways. :-)
Just a few things I wanted to mention.
I'm getting a car! Well, not today, but this summer. Yesterday, I was out test driving some various cars, and I've got my choice narrowed down to three: the VW New Beetle, the VW Jetta, and the Mazda 6. My brother is probably getting the 6, and I don't really want to have the same type of car as he will have, so it's probably going to either be the Beetle or the Jetta, and I'm leaning towards the Jetta right now. I really want to like the Beetle because I love its look and size, but I wasn't very impressed by it when I was driving it. Regardless, I'm getting some kind of car, which is a good thing. However, before you think I'm spoiled (which I am a little bit, I'll admit, I've been lucky in life), I will, over time, be paying my parents back for a fair amount of it, though not the full price. So I'm not getting it for free. But I am getting it for a much reduced price, for which I'm grateful to my parents. Thanks, guys!
To end (yeah, I know, it's short, but don't be surprised, read the subject!), I took a silly little poll that determines what level of Hell I should go to, according to Dante's Inferno. Didn't quite make it to Purgatory but close:
The Dante's Inferno Test has sent you to the First Level of Hell - Limbo!
Here is how you matched up against all the levels:
Level | Score
Purgatory | High
Level 1 - Limbo | High
Level 2 | Low
Level 3 | Low
Level 4 | Very Low
Level 5 | Low
Level 6 - The City of Dis | Very Low
Level 7 | Low
Level 8- the Malebolge | Moderate
Level 9 - Cocytus | Very Low
Level descriptions: http://www.4degreez.com/misc/dante-inferno-information.html
Take the test: http://www.4degreez.com/misc/dante-inferno-test.mv
I was surprised I got a moderate score in the Level 8 section because, reading the description, it doesn't sound, from my perspective, a place I belong in. I've never read Dante's Divine Comedy, but it's a big thing among D&D players because D&D has a whole hierarchy of planes and realms, and I find it really interesting. Someone who has that book should give it to me sometime. That's an order! I'll find out who you are, I have ways. :-)
Sunday, January 04, 2004
A Long Overdue Update
Jay's Kinda Weekly Rant:
Ah... break. Spent a week in Florida to see relatives during Christmas, I've been back in Salisbury for a little less than a week, and I'll be here for about the next two weeks. I've seen a lot of my friends during break but still have some more to see. Sometime this week, I'll be visiting Bennett again to check up on my high school friends and a few teachers. If any of you want to do something with me, call, IM, or e-mail me.
What, you were expecting more? Sorry, that's it. Nothing to rant about for now. Continue to have a good break!
Ah... break. Spent a week in Florida to see relatives during Christmas, I've been back in Salisbury for a little less than a week, and I'll be here for about the next two weeks. I've seen a lot of my friends during break but still have some more to see. Sometime this week, I'll be visiting Bennett again to check up on my high school friends and a few teachers. If any of you want to do something with me, call, IM, or e-mail me.
What, you were expecting more? Sorry, that's it. Nothing to rant about for now. Continue to have a good break!
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