Politics and Life of a High Schooler
Saturday, March 20, 2004
A Rare Connection
What does today have to do with a day which was 19 months ago, almost to the day? Outside of being alive on both of these days, there is only one similarity which I see, and this similarity is unique to these two days. If any of you know the answer to that, then you have been stalking me for way to long, and you have been spending too much money doing so.
If you were expecting to discover the answer to that question here, then I appologize, because you will not. But the similarity is striking nonetheless, and what to make of it, I know not. Enough of this rant, however, because I see no logical way of continuing it.
What is that feeling, when your chest is about to explode? When you are only inches away from all of your desires, but the feeling is so strong, you can not handle the pressure. And there is no way, which I have yet learned, of fulfilling the feeling, the desire, no matter how minimal the distance becomes. What feeling is it? It is my strong suspicion that this "feeling" (I am not even positive that "feeling" is the word to describe what it is, for I think what I am speaking of actually lies somewhere in the gray area between "feeling" and "desire") has no name or title. Another fault of our language we speak in. But then again, who wants perfection? I don't, at least.
Well, thats enough of my random procrastination for now I guess.
Bored
Hello "Blog" readers. Just a quick little check-in. I have not written much lately because I simply do not have a lot to say. I could give you all daily little glimpses into my life, but I do not really want this to turn into "Alex's Journal". My life isn't exiting enough to have a daily journal that would be worth reading.
However, quick monthly glimpses are acceptable. I'm mentally preparing to take my first full length practice SAT right now, it is scheduled to begin in 7 minutes. That means I am listening to relatively bad music from seventh grade. You know you were a cool kid when the song two after "Unforgiven 2" by Metallica is "Come on Over" by Shania Twain. You know you are still a cool kid when you are actually listening to both songs in succession. My history paper and make-up math are likely to take up every second of this weekend, and during the week, it is finally the Crew season. The down side is, absolutely no down time anymore. Ooh, I must have been a really cool kid back then: another Shania Twain song just came on. Score!
Ok, that is all I have time for, maybe I'll write more later
JMAL
Thursday, March 11, 2004
Support for the Reason We Are Here
Seriously folks, what is with all this anti-French sentiment in our country? It is getting wicked old really fast. And let us not forget the great lack of intelligence required to actually say that supporting the French is "Un-American".
We shall begin at the beginning. Who is the single greatest American hero or leader of all time? There would surely be large disagreement on this question, but I doubt that anyone would forget our first president, Mr. George Washington, when making their list of the top contenders. Where did Mr. Washington get all his original notoriety from? As all of the APUSH students would surely tell you, Washington started, albeit accidentally, the French-Indian War, and became known due to his actions during this war. Granted, being on the opposing side of a war is not usually something used to gain support for a cause, but my point is, without the French, America would be without its most notable leader.
Let us move forward a little less than a decade into history. The year is 1775. A battle occurs in the small towns of Lexington and Concord as the beginning of one of the most important wars in history. This war is the American War for Independence, and it would have been won by the British were it not for our allies the French. Without the French, the treasonous document signed in 1776 would have been nothing more than that, treason, and its signers likely would have been killed for their troubles. No more Jefferson. No more Hancock. No Yorktown. We would all still be referring to one another as "ol' chap" and Lexington and Concord would be nothing more than footnotes in our textbooks. All this is thanks to the French, and certainly could not have been achieved without their help.
Now, to the next indicator of French relevance to our lives. Without the Twin Towers, what would you say is the greatest American monument still standing? What is the next likely terrorist target? Some would say the white house, others the Empire State Building, and I have a feeling that most people with large model train collections would point to the Golden Gate Bridge (I'm not exactly sure why I get that feeling). However, for me at least, the most important American monument still standing would be the Statue of Liberty. She greeted all immigrants who came from Europe, which is the vast majority of Americans, and she is symbolic in her constant standing tall, watching over the world. Would anyone like to venture a guess as to who built the Statue of Liberty? If you said that it was a gift from the French, you would be correct.
So, without the French, America would be colonies lacking independence, without one of our greatest monuments. Without the French, America never would have been able to show its strength during the world wars, and thereby gain the prominence and importance it holds in the world today (I do see the obvious counter-argument to that point, but I do not feel it is entirely relevant, and will therefore not discuss it at this point in time). America is what it is today because of the French, and all the French bashing has really got to stop.
Wait, I forgot. France was against the United States in its one hundred percent voluntary war against Iraq. France thought that we should fight diplomatically first, and with bombs second, as Bush promised he would before the congress gave him the powers to go to war. France thought that, since there was no imminent threat, America shouldn't waste French lives on an elective war. I apologize. I had forgotten that war was a good thing, and I let logic grab a hold of me. Forget the first several paragraphs of this little essay. DOWN WITH THE FRENCH!! FRENCH PEOPLE SUCK!! EITHER YOU ARE WITH BUSH OR YOU ARE WITH THE TERRORISTS!! (for all those who didn't catch it, those last three sentences were sarcastic)
America, lets grow up. Lets go back to calling them "French Fries," because frankly, "Freedom Fries" just sounds dumb. If you want to change what we call "French Toast," then lets go back to what they were called before WW1, "German Toast," because in actuality, there is nothing French about French Toast. It was originally a German food, and they changed the name when the USA went to war with Germany. I encourage people to go visit France again, I'm told it is a beautiful place to visit. There is no logic to the anti-French sentiment, it is a fundamental principal in America that you have the right to, and are encouraged to, dissent when you disagree. And it isn't even France that those who oppose the French are actually opposing, it is just the majority of their congress that they oppose.
So my call to all Americans is to support dissent, it is what separates us all from the totalitarian states we so strongly oppose. It is time to grow up and forgive the French, and even to ask them to forgive us for our arrogance.
Hope the political readers were satisfied with my political rant. I'm sorry for the recent lag in "Blog" updates, but I have not been feeling wonderfully lately. And with the crew season nearly upon us, entries will remain a little harder to come by. I will try nonetheless though to keep this up to date. 'til next time
JMAL
Sunday, March 07, 2004
The Value of Silence
I go to write, but nothing comes to mind. The motivation is there, as are the feelings, but there are no words which are adequate. I rarely make it past the fourth line of a poem anymore without throwing away the paper it was born unto. And the poems which do formulate, which survive into adulthood, are long, sad, emotional rants. It is as though there is a sadness fighting from the inside at my glee, attacking it tirelessly, just itching to get out. This battle from within is tiring me out, at a time when I can ill afford to be lacking energy. I fear that these poems, all of which are atypical of my usual format, are leading to some frightening culmination, the nature of which I do not know. But why are my poems of happiness exhausted so quickly, when just the other day I wrote a more sorrowful one which was two full pages? Multiple times, of late, I have gone to write an entry here and deleted it very soon after I had begun it.
It is this "speach" which we all insist on interacting through. I would much prefer silence, but on that thought I am near alone in the world. Our language is so lacking in so many ways, that it is almost impossible to have your words be interpreted in the manner in which they are meant. If we assume that twenty people read this "Blog" entry, the it is safe to assume that there will likely be no less than twenty-one completely different interpretations of it. You all will have the same general idea of what I am meaning, but no two of you will understand it in the same way, or emphasize in your mind the same passages.
Of course, it would be silly, and even counterproductive, to want to do away with language altogether, for it is required for certian genres of situations. However, the notion that many people have, that silences are "akward" or in some way bad, I disagree with. So much more can be accomplished with a silent glance, so much more can be understood and learned, than with an hour's conversation. But since much of the world, especially those of us in our adolescence, fear silence, it is hard to accomplish much with them. Only when both parties understand what gains can be made through eye contact can silence reach its true potential.
My recomendation to all readers of this entry is to give silence its fair chance. Do not say to the person you are with, "ok, lets be quiet now, and see what we can learn," but if there is a lul in the conversation, don't be so quick to end it. Much can be gained from what is spoken with silence. Our language, like all languages, has many lackings, so you would be mistaken to assume that the only way to interact is through the spoken word, and that speach is how to solve all misunderstandings.
To all of my "Blog" readers who were hoping for a political entry, I appologize if you were disappointed. This was, at least, a philosophical entry for you to enjoy.
Monday, March 01, 2004
A Page Out of Your Book
If you change everything else, so that it is the exact same as before, will the one thing you want to change, but don't have the ability to change on your own, go back in response? I hope so. And we will soon see...
It may also be time for some story-telling.
