Archive for the ‘Politics and Leadership’ Category

“The Rape Thing”? Are You High?!

Posted: November 2, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership, Reflections
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I decide to see what’s new in the world before I go to bed and what am I greeted with? Another politician has said something about abortion that’s not only ignorant, but sounds like he’s trivializing the victim’s needs. John Koster, a GOP candidate for the Washington State House of Representatives, said that he only supports abortion when a woman’s life is in danger, and then said “Incest is so rare…but the whole rape thing?…how does putting more violence on a woman’s body and taking an innocent life make it all better?”

What is he smoking?

And his spokespeople may be saying that this guy takes rape seriously, but calling rape a “thing”? That’s not taking it seriously. And violence on a woman’s body? How would you know? Did you ask women if they think abortion is violent? Or did you never consider that maybe carrying the product of a rape to term is a form of violence in itself, it’s so traumatizing to women?

Honestly, I’m getting really tired of male politicians saying these things about women’s bodies and rape and abortion. “Legitimate rape”; “God intended it”; “the rape thing”. When are these men going to realize that saying this sort of stuff is asking for trouble? Really, learn your lessons already.

This brings up another topic I’d like to mention: colleges and rape. I’ve also recently read some articles about how colleges try to cover up rapes and blame the victims…told from the perspectives of the victims themselves. In every case, victims were told by the college administrators and people who worked for them things that confused me.

For example, one doctor asked why a victim didn’t report her rape for months. Apparently to the doctor it didn’t seem logical. Hello? Since when does anyone do anything that makes sense when they’ve just been traumatized and put into deep shock? And asking why a girl is saying she was raped when before the incident she liked the guy and wanted to sleep with him? Well, let’s see…um…he was charming at the coffee shop, but when I told him I wasn’t comfortable doing that after the third date and he just pressed on…are you kidding me?!

I love higher education. I wish everyone had a shot at it. But it’s also, unfortunately, big business. And no business wants the nickname “Rape University”. Now, some colleges do rape prevention, treatment and prosecution better than others. I couldn’t find any statistics for OSU, but I’ve seen posters in several buildings and my dorm about what constitutes healthy relationships and what doesn’t. I’ve also seen classes hosted inside dorms instructing girls on how to prevent being attacked and how to defend one’s self when being attacked. And the Wexner Medical Center has a Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Unit, so that’s definitely a good sign. And I don’t know how often the disciplinary board takes on sexual misconduct cases, but our student code of conduct defines sexual misconduct as tightly as most police officers do. Got to give them credit for that.

Some colleges however, don’t excell in this capacity. On the contrary, they’ll do anything to make their problems go away, even if it means making the victims suffer. Amherst College is a pretty bad offender. There’s even an article about it, which links to another girl’s experience prior to the article (http://acvoice.com/2012/10/23/surviving-at-amherst-college/). I must say, it’s disheartening to see schools put their reputations before their students. If they’d just prosecute these cases for what they are–rape, and not by any other name–then there reputations wouldn’t suffer, they’d grow with the knowledge that the school does not tolerate rape or any other form of sexual assault or misconduct.

So to the politicians and schools, do us all a favor. Stop belittling what women go through. Help them get the services and closure they need. Get educated on the facts. Don’t try to make the problem go away or insist it’s not as big as people think. And certainly don’t say women should live with what happened to them because of a fetus that’s nervous system is underdeveloped is in their uterus or that because of alcohol or they came forward after a certain amount of time they can’t be helped.

Rape is rape. It’s that simple. Preventing it and bringing justice for the victims should not be.

Background Noise Spurs My Writing

Posted: October 22, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership, Progress Report, short story, Writing
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I’ve been stuck on a piece of Dodi Li for the past couple of days, a spot that leads into the climax and ultimately resolves the conflict of the story. Earlier I flashed on a scene from a show I’d been watching, where a captain in a police precinct had a talk show on his TV because it made great background noise to help him with his work. I thought, “The debate is on tonight. Why not hear the candidates’ positions on foreign policy while seeing if I can get a few hundred words into a short story?”

Well, I set up shop in the TV lounge of my dorm about twenty minutes before the debates, I turned on the TV to MSNBC, and you know what? I’m learning a lot about the candidates and their beliefs, and I’ve gotten at least 500 words written down on Dodi Li. Talk about effective!

It’s great when you realize a distraction can help you get the results you want for your work, like that one segment from The Big Bang Theory (still can’t embed it, so I’ll leave the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O1WpE5ntqbQ). Plenty of people feel that distractions detract from your work, but in actuality, they can really help.

Now if you don’t mind, I have to see if I can wrap up Dodi Li while hearing President Obama’s policy on China. Have a good night.

Oh, and before I forget, I changed the doctor and the detective from Dodi Li into male characters. I think that works better: the two adult males, supposedly smarter and more rational, end up getting shown up by a child and a succubus, aka a spiritual, feeling woman. I think it sends a better message than two or three women in leadership positions getting shown up by a demoness, right?

Races Change With Time

Posted: October 19, 2012 in Politics and Leadership, Reflections
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I often look at this election and the past one and I think to myself, “I wonder if President Obama’s mother had any inkling of what her son would become when he was born.” And then I think to myself, “What if someone else had any idea what Barack Obama would grow up to be?” And then this leads me to the strange fantasy where a bunch of people living in the United States had a sudden prophetic vision of the 2008 Presidential Election. Some of these people would’ve (predictably) acted with fear and hate; others might’ve cried with joy; and others might’ve been curious as to what might the future hold.

In 2007 and 2008, we had a serious candidate for the White House with more melatonin in his skin than others past. Yet even if the difference was literally only skin-deep, it caused a wave. Every pundit in the media was speculating on what it would mean if an African-American won or lost the race at this point in the election, while also discussing who whites, blacks, and everyone in between would gravitate to, as if everything depended on it. Some people truly felt it did; one time in class we were having a discussion on the race and a friend said he’d heard someone called a racist because that person supported another candidate.

As much as I hate to admit it, race plays a factor in these elections, and in 2008 they played a bigger role than usual, it seemed. Personally, I was more concerned with how the economy might either collapse or grow again depending on which candidate was elected, but people were only seeing the race in terms of what it meant for civil rights and the gap that still existed between whites and minorities.

Do they have a point? Yes, actually; when the President was born, it was 1961 and the civil rights movement wasn’t at its peak yet. African-Americans, Latinos, and Asian-Americans from all walks of life would’ve found it hard to believe that a baby born that year would grow up to achieve the highest office in our country, especially when they themselves were treated as second-class citizens. After all, they were still trying to get a chance to vote safely and desegregate public areas.

But a lot had changed between then and 2008. Segregation is no longer legal (though some places will try to boot out minorities under false pretenses); minorities can vote without worrying about the reprecussions to themselves (if voter ID laws don’t get in the way); and a dark skin tone is not something to be deplored anymore, but something to be admired and proud of (at least in most circles). Much had still to be done, but when the President took office it felt like another step in the right direction.

And in 2012? Well thankfully the role of race has died down a little bit. In fact, “race” pertains less to the candidates and how their race plays into their prospects of winning the election and more into “How can we get the black vote?” or “How can we win minorities over to us?” I must say, I prefer this role than the role played in 2008, though I would rather race didn’t play any role at all in elections and politics at all.

Oh well. Maybe in 2016 or 2020, if this great nation known as the United States is still going strong, the role of race will be even more diminished than it is now. I can hope anyway. I’m looking forward to the day when our nation could care less about race because we’re so mixed anyway it doesn’t matter.

I’ll keep my fingers crossed, anyway.

The President Reassured Me Tonight

Posted: October 16, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership, Social Activism
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Thanks President Obama. You did a lot to set me at ease tonight.

This evening, the local Obama for America office and my campus group Buckeyes for Obama hosted an event at the local movie theater next to campus. You can guess the event: the second Presidential debate, hosted  by Hofstra University in New York (aka the school named after a spell from Harry Potter) and done town hall style, where undecided voters get to ask the questions to the candidates.

Well of course I’d gone. I support the President, I hadn’t seen any of the debates yet, and I wanted to see at least part of one. And around 10:15p, I decided I’d heard enough and I should head home. As I was leaving, the moderator called up a woman named Nina Gonzales to ask her question, and I stopped to listen.

The question was on gun control, particularly on military-grade firearms and assault rifles.

And like that, I had to listen.

Now as many of you know, during the summer there were a lot of incidents of gun violence where innocent people lost lives, particularly in Aurora, Colorado and in Oak Creek, Wisconsin. Now at the time of the former, both President Obama and Governor Romney said they were going to follow previous gun control policies and stay along those lines.

It certainly helps.

Meaning they weren’t going to do a thing. And of course I was upset by this statement, having written several posts in the wake of those shootings asking for stricter gun control on assault rifles and laws against selling to those with criminal histories and/or serious mental health issues from the federal government.

But tonight, President Obama reassured me. He said he was going to push for stricter laws on assault rifles and try to keep guns out of the hands who shouldn’t. He would also take steps to help cut down on the other factors that create gun violence, including improving education so people don’t resort to crime and making health care more affordable so that people with mental health disorders can afford their medication.

Now I’m not going to go into what Governor Romney said, mainly because he contradicted himself and because he said something I found absolutely ridiculous (*cough cough” “marriage” *cough cough*). But I am going to tell you that that gun control question was the one question I’d been hoping to hear tonight, and I did get to hear it. And it made me so happy to hear the candidate I’m supporting give the answer I’d been hoping to hear.

Good luck to you, Mr. President. Good luck to you.

President Obama At Ohio State

Posted: October 9, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership
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Isn’t that the most winning smile? Too bad I didn’t take it with my own camera.

Unfortunately, I have no photos. Well, I do, but they were taken from a great distance with a camera that’s better suited for close-range shots. So all I have are some grainy images that are a little shaky. So, instead of showing you those, I decided to go with a stock photo from Google Images (above).

Okay, so President Obama’s speech at OSU. I’m assuming you wanted to know the details, since you’re reading this post. Well, I got into line around 1, which extended around Thompson Library, across the street to Lazenby Hall, around the corner from that, and heading back to whatever’s beyond that. I entered line around the driveway for delivery trucks into Lazenby. There I saw a few friends whom I allowed to cut in line, and the usual pro-life protesters who always look like they just got back from a hunting party or tailgating. Around 2 the line started moving, and I bought a decorative press pass from a vendor.

When we got to the Oval, where the speech would take place, we were halfway between Orton Hall, where Obama would be speaking, and University Hall, which was where everybody was entering and getting their bags checked. In short, I was in the middle of the crowd, which is why I got bad photos. In addition, everybody kept moving around, so at times I was getting squished by people saying “Excuse me” and shoving me and everyone else around them. Plus the weather decided to be like early September, so I’m a little sunburned.

But besides that, everything was great. First Mayor Michael Coleman of Columbus came on and gave a little warm-up speech. Then we had the Pledge of Alliegance and the National Anthem. Some students, including one I knew from volunteering, made some speeches on how Obama’s policies were helping them get the education they needed. Senators John Glenn and Sherrod Brown also made speeches, which I thought were very good, though I thought Senator Brown said something that might come back to haunt him later: “If you’re here at this rally, it shows you are more knowledgeable about politics than your friends or family.” That’s paraphrased for brevity’s sake, but you can see why some might have a problem with that statement.

And then will.i.am, one of the Black Eyed Peas. showed up and started DJ-ing for the whole crowd, using his songs and others. It was an awesome time, awesome enough that we forgave him for DJ-ing from a small blue tent where no one from the audience could see him. After that, President Obama came out!

He stood up there, told us how important Ohio was, and how because of the auto bailout, 1 in 8 Ohio jobs were now automotive-related jobs. He also spoke about other policies of his that had benefited the American people, backed up his sayings with statistics, used examples from people he’d met on the campaign trail, and compared his plan for the future with Mitt Romney’s plan. He also brought up Big Bird, which got plenty of laughs from the audience (I swear, Governor Romney is never going to live that down).

All in all, it was a pretty good day. I may have stood for several hours, which brought up back pain, but I feel inspired and I’m so glad I voted about a week before the rally. And I bet a lot of other people felt inspired too, because after the rally there were buses that could take you to vote early, which many people got on (of course, they may have gotten on just because will.i.am was supposed to be DJ-ing there too, but I’m an optimist).

So that’s my day. And if you’re American and registered to vote, I urge you to do so, no matter who you’re supporting this election (though you know who I hope will win the election). Your vote counts, despite what you may think about voting in masses, and when you make your voice heard, you get the right to complain whenever something happens in Washington you don’t like.

Happy 30 days or so till Election Day, everybody.

President Obama’s Coming to OSU

Posted: October 9, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership
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Did you know the name Barack means “lightning” in Hebrew? So that means the President is “Lightning Obama”. Why do people say his name would be “Baruch” if he were Jewish?

Yes, President Barack Obama is coming to OSU today. This will be his third time visiting Ohio State in the past couple of months, so I’m super-excited that he’s coming this time. Why, you ask? Because this time I’ll actually going to be able to see and hear him speak! The first time I was working, so no way I could go; the second time I didn’t even know he was on campus, which I blame on lack of advertising; but the third time, it’s less than a month from election day and will.i.am’s supposed to open the darn thing, and no one’s sure if he’s giving a speech or a free concert. You bet I found out about it and that I got a ticket!

I don’t know what my readers’ political beliefs are or if you guys even like Obama, but I’ll tell everyone about it after the rally. They’re allowing cameras, so you bet I’ll be taking photos up the wazoo!

Hope to have good news later. Talk to you soon.

“The Innocence of Muslims” Makes Me Sick

Posted: September 13, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership
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Everyone who reads my blog knows I believe that Muslims and the terrorists who claim to be Muslims are two totally separate things, that you can’t be a Muslim or a believer in Allah and kill for the sake of Allah. Which is why I was sickened when a man named Nakoula Basseley Nakoula (or Sam Becile; this guy’s got so many identities it’s hard to keep up) made a movie called “The Innocence of Muslims”, which portrays Mohammed as nutcase from illegitimate parentage who created a cult that likes to kill people, especially Christians, and dehumanize women. and then released a 14-minute trailer on YouTube! I watched five minutes of that video, and I felt nauseated.

The video has caused a wide reaction, the east of which has been rioting up and down the Middle East, where portrayal of Muhammed (not to mention portrayal of Muhammed in such a gross fashion) is generally considered an insult. People at American embassies have died because the riots have gotten out of hand, and some have made use of the video to try and make political gains in elections.

What do I think? I think the man who made this movie and reportedly decieved the actors into thinking they were making an entirely different movie, is a monster. He’s abused free speech, caused a huge amount of anguish and rage, and God bless the lawyer who can find a way to get this man in prison for what he’s done. This isn’t art or free expression he’s made; it’s just hate-speech, similar to the movie Der Juden as made by the Nazis.

Now, I know I don’t usually take such upfront, angry stances on issues; I try to couch my messages in terms that won’t be considered incendiary. But this time, I take exception. Whoever made this film, whoever you really are, I hope they can find a way to put you in jail for what you’ve caused. It’s senseless, gruesome, and it’s totally inaccurate.

And to all Muslims out there, I hope you don’t let this blatant insult to your religion bother you. This one man, a man who stomps on America’s values and acts decidely un-American, is a monster, and he will answer for what he’s done, either in the courts or by some Divine Intervention. When that happens, I hope we can all move on.

Share your thoughts with me on this. I’m curious to know if you feel how I feel.

Watching the President Gives Me Hope

Posted: September 7, 2012 in Living and Life, Politics and Leadership, Social Activism
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A wonderful image that speaks for itself.

This evening I went to a watch party close to campus to see President Obama accept his party’s nominations. We heard Eva Longoria, Jill and Joe Biden, Charlie Crest, John Kerry and several other people speak, telling us about what the President Obama’s done for the nation, too many to list here. And finally, when the man of the hour appeared, all I could do was feel like I was about to burst from a single emotion.

That emotion, my friends, was hope.

Yes, I feel hopeful. Amid the screaming, the clapping, the chanting of “USA!” and “Four more years!” and “Yes, We Can!” and others, I was hopeful. Obama spent nearly fifty minutes speaking about his beliefs and his plans in the future, and all of us, those of us listening at the convention, those watching at home, and me, one of nearly a hundred people crowded into a gourmet restaurant, were one in our hopes for this single man.

I support the President on many issues: as a student who needs financial aid and works in the financial aid office part-time at his university, I feel secure in my education knowing that the President is doing his utmost to protect mine and others’ educations and access to higher learning; as a supporter of Israel and of peace, I think the President’s approach to the Middle East, while at times at odds with Israel’s plans, is a vision that includes all parties working together and compromising, not one side getting everything while others are left in the cold; as a human being and as someone with LGBT friends and family, I’m happy my President supports my friends and families and doesn’t think they’re causing a degeneration in American values; as a young man coming from a family that’s at least 78% female, I’m glad my President doesn’t want to mess with my family’s right to make choices about their health; as a student on his parent’s medical insurance, I’m happy my President is defending my basic right to healthcare, not making it more expensive; as a grandson, I’m happy my President is looking out for people like my grandparents, who can afford medical services with his help; and most of all, as a future member of the work force, I’m excited that the President is protecting working and middle-class families and helping them keep their taxes low and their jobs secure.

Now, I know some more conservative bloggers will disagree with me on several points. But I’m hopeful. I’m confident. I’m optimistic. And I’m looking forward to casting my vote in my first presidential election. Because Obama’s been there for me, so I’m going to be there for him.

We’re Having the Wrong Debates

Posted: August 29, 2012 in Politics and Leadership, Social Activism
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I’m reading the news online, and I see that at the Republican National Convention, the GOP has decided to make banning abortion and gay marriage part of its platforms. Now, anyone who knows me knows I have problems with the GOP, but I think we’re talking about the wrong sort of problems. Abortion is not causing a rise in crime, and gay marriage is not contributing to the number of pedophiles or murderers out there, despite conservative beliefs to the contrary.

No, we should not be having a debate about abortion, gay marriage, women’s rights, debates we’ve been having for years and have heard the same old arguments about, only to see more people accept most of those topics as something positive and that should be allowed by law. No, if you ask me, there’s a far more serious problem, and somehow it’s not getting any voice in this election season.

Aurora. The Madison Sikh Temple. The Empire State Building. Within two months, we had three major shootings that were talked about all over the news in America. Plus Texas A&M had it’s own little scare, though that only got about a day’s worth of news before people moved on. And earlier this week a kid got shot on the first day of school by another student. And over the years, we’ve seen tragic shootings: Columbine, Virginia Tech, stop me any time.

The point is, there’s a violence by gun epidemic in this nation, and it’s not being talked about. Now, I know people want guns to hunt with or use for sport. They want guns for self-defense in their homes. But I don’t think it’s necessary for ordinary citizens to carry guns outside the house, and on university campuses too–that’s what the police are for! I don’t think you should be able to buy a military-grade assault or sniper rifle in any gun shop or even some supermarkets unless there’s a zombie apocalypse happening in your neighborhood. And I don’t think people should go into gun shops and buy said weapons and nothing should be done to check if these consumers have criminal records or mental illness of any sort.

And yet nothing’s getting done. No talk. Maybe banning moviegoers from wearing masks in the theater, but I’d only worry that a mask might signal a murder if I’m watching a slasher film. Nope, nothing’s getting talked about and nothing’s getting done.

I’m urging the politicians in this election, please talk about reasonable gun control laws. Don’t let yourselves be silenced because overly-vocal opponents will shout that you’re trying to take away Second-Amendment rights. You should be doing something, because we’ve had three major shootings these past two months, the latest in a long line of horrible shootings. How many more before people realize that not talking about this problem won’t make it go away?

Please talk about it. For the sake of the victims, and for those who might be saved by reasonable gun control laws.

The Horrors of Rape: What Todd Akin Doesn’t Get

Posted: August 20, 2012 in Politics and Leadership, Reflections, Scary Stuff, Writing
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Rape.

This one word can send terror through a person’s system. In some ways it is worse than murder, for after the deed is done, the victim still suffers horribly from the experience, sometimes for life. 1 in 5 women on college campuses will be the victim of a sexual assault, and every year 32,o00 rape victims are impregnated by friends, boyfriends, husbands, acquaintances, stalkers, fathers, brothers, total strangers, coworkers, you name it. Rape is the perversion of sexual intercourse, turning something beautiful and great into a nightmare, a travesty of psychological anguish. Our culture is fascinated by it as we are repulsed by it, as can be seen by the enduring popularity of Law & Order: Special Vitctims Unit, and by the constant stories in the media of rapists and their victims.

Earlier this week, Representative Todd Akin, a Republican running for a Senate seat in Missouri, said that “legitimate rape” victims “rarely get pregnant”. Immediately, this caused a firestorm: Mitt Romney immediately distanced himself from Akin, saying that victims of rape should be able to get abortions; President Obama was quoted as saying “rape is rape” and that “men should not be making decisions about women’s health”; and across the nation, thousands of rape victims railed against Akin, questioning him and his definiton of rape.

Personally, I find Mr. Akin’s comments to be very upsetting. Although the number of adult male rape victims are still relatively low (yes, they do exist, and there may be more victims than reported due to fears that men will lose their “masculinity” if it becomes known they were raped), men should know that rape is a horrible thing, it cannot be classified as “legitimate” or “illegitimate”, and any type or rape can get a girl pregnant. As a politician, Mr. Akin should be doubly aware of this fact.

I’ve taken a Women and Gender Studies course, I’ve watched shows and read novels where women have been brutally raped, and in my novel Reborn City, my main character Zahara comes very close to being raped herself. Every time I think of rape, every time I read or watch a scene involving a rape, and the one time I wrote about Zahara’s near rape, I could almost feel the terror, the shock of being violated, the urge to end the pain and the constant fear that it could happen again. It is a powerful, mind-numbing force, and it cannot be taken lightly under any circumstances.

I hope Mr. Akin and others learn that rape is not something to be talked about like it can be classified or screened for authenticity, but an act that destroys lives as surely as murder destroys lives, and for women who become pregnant from rape, carrying that child to term can be an ordeal only imaginable, like a cancer that eventually morphs into a constant reminder of one person’s cruelty to another. To Mr. Akin, I feel sorry that you do not understand the tragedy of rape and hope you learn about it, because rape and the pregnancices that can result are very serious matters. And to women everywhere: if, God forbid, you should be raped, I hope Mr. Akin’s comments do not stop you from getting the help you need, and especially if you become pregnant because of your rape.

And if you are worried you are alone in the world because of what you went through, know this: you have at least one friend here with you. I may be hidden by the anonymous Internet, but I’m here for you across the blogosphere.

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