June 21st, 2007
Last summer, Dan and Yukiko Murray visited our house while on a brief trip to the United States. Haley and Yukiko were having a conversation about obtaining a driver’s license in Japan, and Yukiko produced hers as she explained the process.
Haley looked at the intricately adorned card and inspected the Japanese characters below Yukiko’s picture.
“Is this where it tells the person’s eye and hair color?” Haley asked.
“Um…they’re all the same,” replied Yukiko.
I had never really thought about that before. Every Japanese citizen has the same hair and eye color. What if the United States were like that? What would the authorities print a driver’s license? While it might save on ink at the DMV, I just can’t get my mind around the idea of living in a country like that.
January 18th, 2007
I’ve decided that it was time that I learn to play chess. I’ve known the rules for years, but I’ve never really been successful. Lately, I’ve been reading a few books on the subject as well as studying some games, and I’m starting to become more proficient.
I think chess is warping my mind, though. Lately, I’ve been looking out at my classroom, and seeing the desks as a chess grid and my students as pieces. In the midst of my lecture, my mind will wander, and I’ll ask myself what I would do if I were in the chess situation that presents itself in front of me. (It might be an interesting study to try to understand how my brain classifies students–who are pawns, power pieces, etc.) It’s no wonder that Bobby Fischer has seemingly lost control of his brilliance. This rudimentary game can turn one’s mind on its head.
At any rate, if any of you are interested in playing, I play at games.yahoo.com. Let me know, and we could set up a play date!
November 13th, 2006
I promise….but something just jumped out at me.
Everyone seems to be giddy about Rummy’s resignation, even I was, until I realized that I don’t know exactly what he’s done that has made him so hated. Many portray him as maelevolent, a diabolical schemer who is promoting his own agenda and somehow advancing secretive Imperialist causes.
I decided that I’d do some research to find out it the common perception of Rumsfeld was legitimate. Some have tried to pin Abu Gharib on him, but the only legitimate crticism of him seems to be that he has complelely underestimated the insurgency in Iraq. According to Rummy’s critics, he has chosen to walk and the sunny side and operate the offensive in Iraq as if the insurgency doesn’t really exist. His critics, mostly liberal or moderate types, say that he is ignoring or renaming a civil war that is occurring in occupied Iraq.
So what should he have done as the cheif civilian officer at the Pentagon? Rum’s critics almost universally say that he should have deployed many more troops than he has, and that he should have equipped them with a much better arsenal than they currently have. Perhaps these critics are correct…..
Then I saw this article. Many of the same people who want Rummy out are now advocating further troop reduction. How can this be? If he’s done a bad job in underestimating the terror in Iraq, how does reduced troop levels help reverse the ill that he’s done? Maybe I’m missing something, but it seems to me that if deploying too few troops is doing a bad job, then in order to do a good job, one must do the opposite.
Does this seem like hypocrisy to any one else?
November 7th, 2006
Calling oneself a good American citizen and electing not to vote is a bit like calling oneself a good parent while neither praising nor punishing one’s children.
August 22nd, 2006
Whenever I attend family gatherings, I still feel unqualified to sit at the “adults” table. I don’t feel like I have much to add to “adult” conversation, and I feel a bit more comfortable sitting with the kids When will this end? I own a car, I have an “adult ” career, I have a good portion of gray hair, and I can even grow a beard (sort of).
I’ve been thinking aoout how American culture defines maturity, and just a few things popped to mind. In my thinking, adults…
1.sleep at night and stay awake from the early morning hours (6 AM) until the evening. They may allow a nap once in a while, but they rarely sleep past 8 AM.
2.live on their own. paying the rent or mortgage for themselves and/or their family. It seems that in today’s culture that is not a prerequisite for adulthood, but in my mind, that’s the archetype.
3.have career ambitions. Children don’t think about the future, but mature people should, and do.
4.worry about things other than themselves. `nuff said,
5.are people who are older than me.
What can you think of? In your mind, what makes a person an adult? I’m not comfortable with simply stating that once a person is 18 or 21, they are mature…I know too many exceptions to that rule. So, ideas?
