Taking a moment to appreciate my right to write whatever the crap I want...

I was just having yet another moment of realizing how lucky I am to be able to write whatever I want on my blog.  I'm grateful to live in a country where so much is open to us.  It's also a blessing that the (albeit oft-times annoying) press can expose corruption without fear of severe censorship.

Our journalists have it easy:

"While working for mostly local outlets in seemingly peaceful times, [many journalists have] lost their lives as they plied their trade to expose corruption and other wrongdoings.

On a recent assignment in Iraq, a UNTV crew from my Department captured on video the plight of a journalist who was doing just that, although, luckily, with a much happier ending. Amina Al-Thahabi, an Iraqi television reporter, took two bullets from a revolver and two from a Kalashnikov. Despite the attack, she was not intimidated. She told our interviewer that her next project is making a documentary about the freedom of speech. A mother of two, she says she is working hard to make sure all the Iraqis get the information they need."

   --Huffington Post, May 3, 2010  by Kiyotaka Akasaka, UN Under-Secretary-General for Comm. & Public Info.

With stories like that, I hope that I'm not the only one that appreciates freedoms of the press & speech that we enjoy here.
Just saying.

K, bye.

Defending Madonna? What the...? (RANDOM COMBO INCLUDED!)

Gypsy (roma tigan rrom tzigane) (Roman / Romania)
Originally uploaded by adypellegrino

Yes. You read the title right. I find myself in the awkward position that I have struggled to imagine ever happening... defending Madonna. She apparently got crazy boos and jeers at a recent concert of hers in Romania. She has Roma dancers (also known as Gypsies) in her concerts. Their music and dancing is very popular in Eastern and Southern Europe, THEY, however, are NOT. Just after the crowd received the dancing of these Roma with cheers and applause, Madonna felt it necessary to bring up the struggles of the Gypsy people of these countries. According to Yahoo! she said, "It has been brought to my attention ... that there is a lot of discrimination against Romanies and Gypsies in general in Eastern Europe. It made me feel very sad." Apparently there were some that were cheering about what she said, but the loudest sentiment in the roughly 60,000-strong crowd was a negative one. The Roma have long been a people that has been openly discriminated and has struggled to get all the rights due to them in Italy, Romania and some other nearby nations. I am always glad when celebrities use their fame for some good, even if it's someone as creepy as Madonna. Way to go, Madonna. (Eew, that still feels weird.)

Anyway, on a much lighter note, I'm planning on doing something I haven't been able to do in months due to the lack of Photoshop... a RANDOM COMBO! Coming right up!

Sources:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/odibusmacsimus/2455520805/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/brooklyn_museum/2488968515/

The BK Pharaoh


The BK Pharaoh was recently discovered in southern Egypt amidst the largest Egyptian archaeological disclosure in over 50 years. This unprecedented chunk of ruined monument proves an incredible link between our modern world and the ancient Egyptian world exists. Burger King has not released any statement on the monumental discovery and generally keeps very secret the goings-on of their corporate headquarters. However, Gary Hodgkins of Fakeville, Alabama had some information from the inside that he finally felt justified in spreading. He was recently fired from BK headquarters, but had signed a non-disclosure document restricting his ability to share information of the ancient traditions hidden in the burger empire. He has informed us that Burger King's uppermost leaders participate in "interesting clandestine activities involving fry-pyramids." He was reluctant to name any names, but it seems that Burger King's leaders have amongst them a person still referred to as Pharaoh. It seems that ancient Egypt has lived on through many other secretive organizations and now has a home in BK. Now that's a Whopper of a revelation for archaeologists, businessmen, and the world alike.

Hadizatou Mani

85357726WM008_HILLARY_CLINT
Originally uploaded by hc1026

The world is so diverse. Yeah, I complain about not being able to find a job that I want, or about having to take a hard test like the LSAT, or about not getting enough relaxation time, (haha, I get PLENTY of that)... but there are still people who are slaves even today! I was reading the 2009 version of Time Magazine's "100: The World's Most Influential People," and I came across a woman named Hadizatou Mani. In order to be a member of the UN, a nation must submit their law to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights's stipulations. One of which says: "No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms."
--Article 4, Universal Declaration of Human Rights. So I was surprised to learn that the nation of Niger, that was admitted to the UN in 1960, only criminalized slavery in 2003! Hadizatou Mani was still held captive by her owner until 2005. He was NOT good news at all. Fortunately for Nigeriens (not Nigerians) she demanded justice and sued her country and won her case in 2008. Good thing there are people like her that do something about it, but how sad is it that slavery isn't dead? I hate when I find myself so caught up in my extremely small problems, and I fail to remember that there are people out there with REAL problems, and that are more than justified in complaining. Just another reality-check for Jeff. K, bye.

Random Cool Sites:

Here are some hyperlinks to random/cool things on the world wide web!

A site for the civil rights conscious.

A cool site for the insanely bored and feeling slightly artsy.

A site for the obnoxious.

A site for the bored.

A site for the curious.


Just a few. The end. Bye.