Only In Florida

This is sickening:

A 22-year-old mother from Jacksonville, Florida, has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder for shaking her 3-month-old son to death after his crying interrupted her FarmVille game.

For a fucking farmville game? Are you fucking kidding me? These are hte type of people I was talking about when I said we need to get rid of this welfare society. We can't afford to keep idiots like this in our gene pool. C'mon America! Get the fuck with it. This is just fucking disgraceful. A fucking kid died because of this dumb bitch.

Race In America

I don’t know if you guys have read Joel Stein’s recent satirist piece on his hometown, Edison, New Jersey, and the burgeoning Indian population there. The article has been put into the public spotlight, at least in the Indian-American community, and journalists, such as CNN’s Rahul Parikh, have vilified Stein for the piece, calling it racist and insulting. This response has forced Stein to add a note to the end of his article claiming that he meant the article as a piece of humor and that he wanted to raise the issue of immigration.

If the article reveals one thing, it is that we are still hypersensitive on issues of race. We see comedians talking about their race and lambasting stereotypes about their people and their culture, and everyone laughs. As soon as someone else makes comments about their race and their culture, it’s not funny. People become defensive.

My dad watches Russell Peters, a comic, whose material relies heavily on exploiting Indian stereotypes. He loves it. However, as soon as someone else makes a joke about him or Indian people, he gets defensive. Heck, even I have made a joke about him or Indian people, and he has lectured me about it. This to me is symptomatic of how people of different races and cultures feel in general. People assume that jokes that involve their race are meant to be insulting.

Then, how is it okay to laugh at comics who are making jokes about their race and their experiences with race? To use my dad again, he often watches Chris Rock specials. He laughs hysterically. To me, his stance on this issue is hypocritical. How is it okay to laugh at someone else, if someone can’t laugh at you? This, to me, is the main issue in this article.

Joel Stein is not only someone who is making light of the presence of a large Indian population in India, he is also not Indian. As a result, many of his observations are being taken as having racially charged motivation. He may have meant to raise an issue such as immigration, but he did not express this sentiment in the right way. I am aware that he was trying to infuse humor into the piece, but it lacked the tact to raise an issue.

Personally, I saw the humor in his article. I found it funny. However, I did not see how it would raise questions about immigration on its own. Perhaps, if he had added his note before the critical response or better written his piece, the article could have led conversations in that direction, but given that he has already received a hostile response, it will head towards issues of race.

In all likelihood, not much will be made of this article. It will not become an issue pushed more than it already has been. Perhaps, it should be though. Perhaps, we should push the issue of race back in the national spotlight. Perhaps, something like this would help shape people’s perceptions about race. In the last couple weeks, the issue of race has been put into the public spotlight. We’ve seen it rear its head in the Lebron James free agency, the Tea Party movement, and now this article.

The issue of race was not solved in the Civil Rights movement. We do not live in a cosmopolitan society. Racism is still prevalent, and many policies, ideologies, and actions are shaped heavily by racist thought and perception. It doesn’t help that we live in a society that is hell-bent on being politically correct. By masking our real feelings on issues such as race, we are keeping them in our subconscious rather than in the open. Only by discussing these sentiments can we move towards a peaceful society.

Defining The New America

Back at commencement, at the University of Michigan, Barack Obama expressed his distaste for partisan politics. He told us that it was important to put aside differences and work together for the greater good. His frustrations were clearly symptomatic of the direction of his administration. It has been tough for the President to accomplish his objectives. The continuous oscillation between right and left has not been quelled by Obama's historic election, but perhaps heightened. The problem with this is that we're not making any progress; we are moving from wing to wing instead of forward.

I've been reading about fascism this week and there are some values that I found significant. The nationalistic spirit and the ability to engage people is an essential part of fascism. Also, there was a sense of machismo, at least in italian fascism. There was a strong sense from Mussolini that a weak Lira conveyed a weak Italy to the world. America used to have that masculine snarl to it. That seems to have disappeared. Obviously, the racial aspect of fascism, uniting a race against others, is not something that is just. Nor is genocide. It's not something that would work in the US anyway. Look at Franco and Spain; if anything, fascism divided that country. The idea to unite a people of a nation has significant value to me.

I've noticed is that people take a lot of pride in this country, but there are a lot of tangible things that we do not have anymore. Our manufacturing isn't leading the world anymore. Our technology, our products, they're not the best. We still have intangible rights to be proud of like the freedom of expression which we will always have. However, we need to do better to ensure that people can hold grasp onto these tangible things that instill pride in our nation. In order to do this, we need to provide an environment of success.

The United States is an open nation, a nation that believes in competition and free markets. This is why I get weary when people mention tariffs, quotas, or taxes. Outsourcing doesn't really bother me. If you can coordinate your business where you can have employees half way across the planet, more power to you. Efficiency is important. The costs of hiring are straining our businesses and we need to provide ways to ease this burden. Businesses, particularly those in technical or specialized fields, are looking for candidates with specific qualifications. Truth is that we're not providing our businesses with these candidates, so they have to resort to hiring foreign workers. These foreign workers cost money because they need to be sponsored for their working Visas. This hampers small and medium businesses in particular. The costs of sponsoring these workers and keeping them in the US adds up. This is a more prevalent problem.

Quite simply, we need to provide a better educational system such that our workers are more competitive. We need to provide the technical backgrounds. While the amount of technical knowledge that a person needs has increased, the educational system has not changed much at all. We need to reform education and provide more stringent requirements through out the schooling process. We need to build the workers of tomorrow. We have been greatly surpassed by foreign powers such as India and China because they invest heavily in their human capital. The US needs to give the same kind of investment to education.

Another of my pet peeves is people complaining about the increased cost of healthcare in this country. Have people stopped and thought "may be it isn't the drug company or insurance company's fault?" No, because everyone needs someone to blame. Well, I'm not afraid to point the finger. It's all of our fault. We're exercising less and eating poorly. This is why I call this country a nation of fat cats. We have become complacent. We need to be healthier as a nation. This means exercise, diet, and hygiene. If we take care of ourselves, we take care of our health. The healthier we are, the less we're spending on healthcare and insurance. It's as simple as that.

These are a couple dilemmas that have really struck a cord with me recently. I don't think it would be hard to change. The problem is that the leadership in this country needs to come out and convey this to the public. I'm a blunt and straight forward person. I want to get to the point and I want to share the point. I'll do it myself if I have to.

I have been getting upset about Spain a lot recently. Much of this stems from the fact that my favorite player, who I believe is deserving of starting playing time, is not getting into games. I've tried to trace back to what make Cesc Fabregas different and what is the cause of his absence from Spain's line. I'll start from where I trace back farthest then work my way back to surface claims.

1. Squad Selection: Vicente del Bosque made a huge error in leaving out Marcos Senna. I understand that Senna is getting old and has struggled with fitness, but he's two years removed from being named the player of the Euro 2008 tournament that Spain won. Because Senna isn't in the line up, Spain has been forced to play two holding midfielders. This has been counterproductive because it is taking away a creative force that could potentially lead Spain to scoring more goals. Sergio Busquets just cannot cut it as a holding midfielder because he's slow and weak. Xabi Alonso doesn't have the size or physicality, though he can tackle with the best of them. I haven't seen enough of Javier Martinez to make a judgement about him. Bottom line is that not one of those players can cope alone with playing the holding role.

2. The Barcelona factor: Xavi and Iniesta have a great partnership at Barcelona. However, both of them are very passive in their movements. Iniesta is perhaps a bit more aggressive on and off the ball, but both of them don't make strong moves to receive the ball unless the ball is near them. Obviously, having come through La Masia, both of them possess the skills any Barcelona player would have, but they are missing an element which Fabregas has gained from playing in England.

Cesc is a far more aggressive player in England because he's had the benefit of being the sole focal point of Arsenal's attack. He has the touch and the vision of Xavi, but since he is the primary playmaker, he is always looking to get the ball to his feet. This means he's always supporting whoever has the ball and looking to make a play or pass to the forwards to put them in an advantageous scoring position. Additionally, he's not afraid to make the forward run. Far too often, Ineista and Xavi play it safe. Cesc isn't afraid to make the run through the line of defense to get a scoring opportunity. He's excels at this.

I hate to come back to this as well, but statistically, Cesc was more impactful than Iniesta and Xavi COMBINED. Cesc had a direct impact on 36 of Arsenal's goals this season, while Xavi and Ineista combined for only 31 of Barcelona's goals. That alone should widen your eyes.

3. The Winger factor: del Bosque has tried to use David Silva and Jesus Navas to get out wide. I do not disagree with this strategy. I just disagree with having one winger in the game. I just don't think either of those players can be as effective if they're the only winger in the game. For a winger to be truly effective, you need to have two wingers to stretch out the defense. del Bosque is struggling between formations and tactical strategies. I think it's not intelligent to say "just play." It is important to make tactical changes so that you can be as effective as possible.

Cesc's aggression can better fit the playing style of Xavi and Iniesta or any other midfielder. He can be the link that Spain needs to get their killer forwards into scoring positions. He's proven all year that he can do it at Arsenal where he is undoubtedly the man. I think the more Cesc plays, the more he will prove that he is worthy of being in the line up. Perhaps, del Bosque has already made up his mind though. I don't blame him. I'm very opinionated about this and I know Spain has a plethora of talent that no other team in the world can boast. He has his own opinion on what best benefits the team. I know Cesc was a huge factor in Spain's Euro 2008 triumph, and I believe he will be a huge factor if they do go on to hoist the World Cup in 2010.

Education in America

Apparently, the gap between students and athletes is increasing in terms of school spending:

As colleges across the country spend increasingly more on athletic programs — a median $84,446 per athlete in 2008, up almost 38% from 2005 — academic spending hasn’t changed proportionally — a median $13,349 per student, up about 20% over the same period, according to a report released today by the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

Over 18 months, the athletic reform commission compiled data on college sports finances and found that at institutions belonging to major athletics conferences, median spending per athlete ranged from four to almost 11 times more than median spending on students for educational purposes. In 2008, median per capita athletics spending for Football Bowl Subdivision conference institutions was $84,446, compared to a median $13,349 per capita for academic spending.

This is distressing because some of us are paying a king's ransom to get our college education and we're not getting the education we deserve. If we are spending x number of dollars on our education, schools should be spending x number of dollars to educate us. Now, one might say schools are a business. I disagree. We have schools to increase our human capital. As people become more educated, our country accumulates more human capital. If we're not investing in human capital, we're going to fall behind the likes of India, China and the like who have stronger educational programs.

We need to invest more in math and sciences to develop stronger science based workers. We aren't just devoting more resource to workers of other countries because they are cheaper. It is also because we are not producing workers of the same technical capabilities. Our educational system has been the same for such a long time. Now, college and universities are forced to cram more information in their curricula than ever before. Students need to get advanced degrees just to advance their careers rather than supplement them. If we start educating stronger in middle school and high school, we can give our students the necessary background to thrive in the world working environment.

We are no longer leading the world. We are actually behind and we need to catch up. Reforming our educational policies and strengthening that system will go a long way in leading the road back. However, if we continue to cut programs, we might follow the path of our auto industry. Except no one is going to bail out the United States of America.

Donate To The Gulf?

Okay, this isn't a natural disaster. This is a man made disaster. Oil is biodegradable. It will go away. Yes, it's a cause, but I don't think people should solicit money for it. It was BP's fault. They should be picking up the check for EVERYTHING. They should be fined more than what they've been fined. Hell, Limewire was fined more than BP was. Let's get things right here. Their line of defense on this issue has been atrocious. They should have been more proactive than reactive. This is like Toyota with some throttle problems. The US needs to take a stand on this.

But back to the matter at hand: people donating to this pisses me off. People shouldn't donate to this. BP should refund everyone that donates to this. This isn't an earthquake. This isn't a typhoon. This isn't a tsunami. Let's get that clear. This was man made. The men responsible for this disaster should be held responsible for the check. It's embarrassing that people are trying to donate to this cause. Let BP do it. BP should do it. I saw someone on Twitter trying to get other people to donate. It just set me off.

Another Rant

To continue on what I already have said and to continue to praise David Cameron and Nick Clegg, it's just so novel to me that two parties of such differing view points are working together in order to pursue a great issue: the rectification of their country. I keep hearing the Democrats and Republicans arguing on different issues like financial reform, and it isn't about working together to get something done. It's about which side gets the most out of each decision that lawmakers make. The fighting between Democrats and Republicans is its own civil war. There are no dead bodies, but there is severe disagreement between two groups of people. Neither of these groups have America at heart. It's about what they can do for themselves and their constituencies. It's about their agenda and helping whoever can help them. It's not about America, and sadly, this is what politics have been in America.

The Party Problem

Yesterday, I was talking about why I like David Cameron. He saw that his party was losing popularity and appeal, and that changes were necessary to reform his party. In order to do this, he chose to have the party adapt policies or stances that would attract new segments of the British population. The idea to change the parties stances seems to have gone over the heads of party leaders in the United States. Republicans and Democrats are hellbent on creating a partisan society. It's all about allegiances to the party and not about making the right decisions on getting things done. This stems widely from the fact that both parties have taken opposite stances on pretty much everything, and the only thing they have ended up agreeing on is their love for America. The problem is this partisanship makes it so they can't help America.

I wanted to focus on the Republican Party because I think they could be the more likable party if they decided to make some reforms. This is because I hate a lot of the social initiatives like healthcare, welfare, and other government institutions that the Democrats have created. I believe decisions should be made on what's right. I believe whatever helps America should be what is done. I also think that America has gone soft. It's not that we have too many people, but rather we've just become a fat cat nation. I'm not just talking about weight, we have become too complacent in our status as the leading nation in the world, so now we're struggling to get the wheels moving again. We need to become more competitive as a nation. I attribute a lot of this to the fact that we've gone against basic biological principles, namely Darwin's survival of the fittest. The strong should survive and the weak should die out. If you're saving the weak, it's not the strong that are paying the price, it's everyone. I could go on and on, but the main point is that the Republican Party's policies go more along these lines than the Democrats.

My main problem with the Republican Party is their leadership. Their leadership is more focused on creating partisanship through fear mongering than they are trying to do what's right. The policies are what dictate a party's appeal, and the policies of the Republican Party are archaic. To alienate certain demographics is just asinine. Their stance against many civil rights movements as well as religious and moral overtures in shaping these policies more than turns me off to policies they have right like the economy and taxes. Morals do have their place in politics, but religion should not be used to shape it. We should not be using religion to form opinions on abortion. We should not use religion to create prejudices against people. That's not the American way. They have no way in politics. They may shape your personal decisions on certain issues, but they have no place on the national stage. They need to ease off on imbuing religion into politics. They need to make wholesale changes to reach wider demographics not to get more people to vote for them but also to better America.

If the Republican truly care about America like the Tories care about Britain, they will be willing to compromise some of their policies because of their love for their country. They should be wanting to better America because as great as America is, there are things that need to be fixed. I find it hard to believe that the Republicans truly love America if they are so willing to divide it. The welfare of the nation should always be the number one priority. It always amazes me how individuals consider their own beliefs before those that will improve welfare of the nation. It's about time someone started to put more belief in America, the American People, and the American Idea.

I Hate Bureaucracy

So I spent most of the mornings waiting in lines. I've ranted about waiting in lines, but what is the cause of all these lines? It's called bureaucracy.

Bureaucracy wastes so much time. We want to know why the productivity in this country has gone down, I attribute it greatly to bureaucracy. How the fuck is anyone supposed to get anything done when they have to wait in lines for...ever? This is the case in a lot of place, the registry of motor vehicles, the courts, even now the airports.

I don't think we should be made to wait for things. We have things to do. I'm not talking about me, I have nothing to do, but other people have shit to do. How are people supposed to make ends meet when they can't put in their hours because they're stuck in line?

I was at the RMV today. It was the worst. It wasn't just the lines that killed me, it was the people who were there. The place smelled like stale urine. It was disgusting. I know Massachusetts recently had a water ban, but that doesn't excuse people from taking showers. The place fucking wreaked.

Additionally, I didn't feel comfortable there. There were too many immigrants, too many poor people, too many obese people. We need to segregate our RMVs. I did not feel safe in the RMV. It had nothing to do with race, there were people of all races there. It was just the culmination of all the factors. I'm a minority, but I don't feel like a minority most of the time I'm in public. When I was in the RMV, I felt like a minority. That's not right.

This is America: where no one should feel like a minority.