Wednesday 30 November 2005 at 10:54 pm
Part of the curriculum as a mentor is to provide articles and topics for my students to exercise critical thinking. One of these discussions went well. The topic encompassed how students of conservative political leaning felt like minorities in the classroom at the University level. The discussion that failed was on an article that claimed that much of global warming is caused by individual behaviors. After some pondering I realized that the latter topic failed to spark discourse because everyone agreed with it and felt like they had nothing to add to further the argument (which they did but I lack either the training or the basic skills needed to draw it out of them). What caused the political discussion to be so lively was because some of the students did not agree with many details and would debate/argue about the general concepts and the details within it. In order to create discussion I will bring in articles which advocate a point of view that contradicts my students liberal leanings, even if the liberal point of view is the goal I am going for.
My next attempt on Monday will probably involve the topic of videogame violence. I'll provide some short articles and letters to the editors I have collected covering both sides, but mostly those leaning to a more conservative point of view. Not only will this liven conversation, but this topic will also help bring some guys who are normally quiet and apathetic in class into the discussion.
Wednesday 30 November 2005 at 10:38 pm
I am worried that Travis and I are drifting apart. The honey-moon period is over, yet I still feel the spark is fading away. He doesn't say I love you when he leaves or when we end a phone conversation. The word feels like habit. It is my fear that he is realizing that I'm not good enough for him. I lack his intelligence and I am not as talented as him. I am certain if this is the case my
biggest fallacy are my sexual dysfunctions. I want us to work because I think we
complement each other well, but if our relationship does reach and end I know it will be because of my failures.
Thursday 17 November 2005 at 11:10 pm
Yesterday when I activated my favorite Instant Message program, trillian, I received this delightful message from AIM:
[16:50:06] AOL System Msg: AIM added a new AIM Bots group to your Buddy List.
[16:50:06] AOL System Msg: Send IMs to moviefone and shoppingbuddy for great holiday flicks and gift ideas. (To remove 'em, just right-click and delete! (Link: http://aimtoday.aol.com/aimbots/index.adp)Learn More)
Obviously these bots are run by AOL as a service, most likely a way for the corporation to make money from advertisers. The simple act of AOL modifying my buddy list makes me worrisome however. In the olden days (I remember the summer when everyone discovered the AIM client) the contact list was stored client side. While this kept the list secure it proved troublesome if one signed onto the service from another computer. AOL remedied this by storing the contact list both client and server side. Currently the list is stored only server side. I have not gone through the EULA of the AIM service, but I am sure the language allows AOL to view and modify the buddy list. This makes me wonder how private my information is.
As the Patriot Act rapes constitutional rights to privacy, big ISPs and other corporations simply roll over when the feds request information. If I were to be caught by the FBI in a political protest, would they be able to pull up my AIM buddy list and question all those I talk to? I highly recommend people switch to the www.jabber.org" title="Tagged external link: jabber">jabber instant message system which provides secure, encrypted messaging. The protocol also has tunneling to the other services such as AIM and Yahoo, allowing you to continue contact with the poor souls who have yet to be enlightened.
Saturday 12 November 2005 at 9:43 pm
On the Twelfth of November in the year Two Thousand and Five, I committed my final acts as a band geek. The Oregon Crusaders awards banquet was held, and I was in attendance. I was awarded a participation and the age out awards. The projector illuminated sideshows and videos of practices and performances upon the wall. A chasm reopened within my soul; a longing for the emotion and joy of being on the field. On my drive home the even that I longed for since my final performance.
I cried.
I will miss that thing only we can understand. From those who were with me for my first step, to those who stood by me as I took my final one, I thank you. It was an honor to perform with you.
A nine year chapter of my life finally concluded. Another has already begun.....
Thursday 10 November 2005 at 12:20 am
An odd dichotomy exists in America society on homosexuals. In politics and other realms of social discourse are the current views and conversations many are familiar with. Popular mainstream culture portrays a different social environment alluding of acceptance. Television series such as Queer as Folk, Boy Meets Boy, Queer Eye and Will & Grace are becoming increasingly common and popular. Simultaneously computer and console gaming, while becoming increasingly mainstream in the United States, still notoriously lack homosexual or even homoerotic themes. This can be attributed to to developers and publishers developing products that wont offend or alienate the target audience. Will homosexuality finally make an obvious appearance in western games? It already has.
Maxis's The Sims and The Sims 2 are fully populated by bisexual characters. Sadly in a fit of political correctness same sex pairs can only join in unions and have no desire for children; the term marriage is reserved only for heterosexual love birds. Fable: The Lost Chapters by Lionhead studios provide an almost excellent option for players. The Hero in [tt:Fable]] is allowed to marry and have sex, with men or women. I was first alerted to this option when I first checked the Hero statistics screen. One of the categories is [tt:Sexuality]]. Unlike the omnisexual Sims, not all of the male characters in the Fable universe are bisexual or heterosexual. Straight non-player characters respond with a polite “Thanks but no thanks,” or, “You should meet my cousin!” In a fit of homoseroticism my hero often runs around with no shirt on. This does nothing for gameplay but simply for my perverted amusement.
Tuesday 01 November 2005 at 3:52 pm
Am I distended to become a teacher? Mentoring at Grant dressed itself as a blessing, a salvation for my dying soul. My longing to teach began its propagation through my emotional fibers since I taught young pre-schoolers how to blow bubbles in a swimming pool. I knew of my limitations caused by seemingly tangled axons in the language centers of my brain, but I assumed that I would either conquer or compensate my chronic ability to properly speak. Perhaps Destiny decided to present my teaching opportunity to re-direct me. As my political-science major co-worker would say, I’ve lost legitimacy in the eyes of my students. Many of my lessons are bland and their meaning and point fail to conceptually materialize. The [tt:intelligent design]] debates, an activity which excited the students of the other mentors, failed to motivate my own. Subtle panic slips my mind off track in the classroom and I talk and ask question to lecture and direct discussion but I say nothing at all. I will give it more time before I redirect my energy and major, but I can’t help but wonder if I fooled myself to be something that I simply am unable to be.
