49) Day In The Life of Your Son

Welcome to another crazy addition of the ranting YOMcast, where we explore the vestige of the once great American middle class, economic admissions on Meet the Press by David Gregory and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, the hypocrisy of gay anti-gay politicians, listen to some Bubblegum Crises, marvel at India's newest cheap computer tablet, wait anxiously on a movie about Facebook, and look at Youtube's ambitious "Life in a Day" project.

48) Amerika

One of my favorite games ever, Fallout 3, hosts a giant, talking robot soldier in the finale, sporting a full arsenal of eye lasers and backpack nuclear grenades. His name is Liberty Prime, and his charm comes from the 60's anti-communist lines he delivers in the heat of battle. It's somewhat comforting to hear a forty foot tall nuclear robot say "Better dead, than red!" when things are blowing up around you. In case you're curious, his soundboard is here.

The robot was built in this alternate timeline world to combat communist China, but nuclear Armageddon cut those plans short, stranding Liberty Prime inside a bunker under the Pentagon. His appearance as your ally is a liberating comfort that ushers you into a satisfying ending to the game.

But more importantly, Liberty Prime is the game's personification of American anti-communist fears. Even today, communism carries a negative connotation, perpetrated by the victorious and democratic United States after the Cold War. Marx and Engels' legacy has been driven to a slow and painful death, the last embers flickering out in this modern world.

That said, we can still remember the resounding echoes of the Red Scares, or the rampant fears created by McCarthy in the past century by those that were there.

This all leads up to the story of my grandmother. She's no Liberty Prime, but she knows how to blow your head off with a rifle. Born during World War Two, she's survived the Japanese invasion of China, the Chinese Civil War, and the Cultural Revolution of Mao. Hardly a soft-spoken woman in old age, she continues to have the loudest voice in the entire room. People often regret making her angry.

She's worked as a farmer, an assembly worker in a radio factory, and no doubt many other occupations she's never mentioned. These days she lives in the United States, residing in a comfortable apartment in Oakland, California.

Like any other sagacious grandparent, she likes to impose on us her stories of experience, hardship, and secret. She hardly ever mentions anything about Communism, and I've always found it odd that her struggles for money in China never came up as a true complaint. Besides, back then you could be shot for celebrating Mao's death.

As I listen to her complain about the United States and its injustices, I can't help but think that she envies her old life back in China. Of course, she came over here for a reason, but old age and finances might prevent her from going back. I'm sure there's much more to her hypocritical complaints, but it probably justifies her being terrified during the recent Oscar Grant riots, which reached to a block from her building.

She doesn't have alot of time left, maybe a decade or two, and I can't help but think that another memory of communism will die with her, whether its a good memory or a bad one. This extends to my family on both sides, many of whom still reside in China.

I can't tell you whether or not communism is good or bad, but everyday we lose another impression of it with the death of the old. Books can only tell you so much about what it was like. We can't truly relive their memories, so I guess it really won't matter in the long run.

However, Communism is an idea, and some ideas can never die.

Who knows? Maybe when I die, democracy will die with me.

47) Scr(ew)ooge's Paradise

By nature, America is always economically associated with capitalism. Everyone knows that the biggest manufacturers will sell there, eager to make a quick penny over the most devoted of consumers. No product is too ridiculous, for someone, somewhere, will buy it.

Capitalism and consumerism is such a vital core of American life that it controls everything, from food to clothing. Starbucks, McDonald's and Nike are some example brands alot of people cannot live without. Most people can't realize just how valuable and nostalgic local businesses are these days.

The American dollar holds such value that it cannot be labeled unnecessary. As the United States grew, not only did we lose the concept of "money isn't everything", but we also lost the value of what money means to a human being. A government gets to decide that value.

It's logical to assume that the American lack of frugality is founded in the deep nationalism set by Uncle Sam. Spending defines alot of what it means to be an American, provided that you don't immediately go bankrupt afterward. After World War Two, what else could suburbia do?

This is all further reinforced by a natural hate of socialism and communism by America at large, who have an ironic audacity to complain about civil rights. Not the same you say? In America, what would you rather take: A million dollars, or fair treatment?

Truth is, you'd want both, and that's why consumerism is smiling at you. Granted, not everyone is driven by blind greed, but often there is a consensus of "more is better". Can't say the death of Crassus is something to be admired.

Charities try to upset the sad imbalance for the poor, giving money to those who can't make it on their own. It is a glimmer of hope that requires a sympathy and guilt shock when humanitarian agencies have to advertise images of dying children to get your attention.

So think, my friend, the next time you are stuck in a precarious situation of greed, given the American status quo. Which is more important to you: money or ethics?

And no, you can't have both.

46) Independence Galore

I've been working on my summer assignments for AP Government, so might as well post my opinions on here:

A failing economy, an oil spill crises, and a seemingly never-ending war are just a few things the American people have to deal with on a daily basis. The anger and disappointment in the U.S. government’s quick resolution to these issues is growing more apparent by the day. There are so many discontent citizens willing to turn to new and radical ways to satisfy their understandable desires for change. This is why President Obama was elected. Everyone believed he could solve our problems on a tight schedule, and we reeled in disgust when his administration disproved the apparent myth that they could make us happy and content.

This is why it’s no surprise that the seemingly ageless rule of Democrats and Republicans of the past century is coming to a possible end. With the current situation worse than anybody could have ever predicted, people are tired of the endless debate and bipartisan horseplay present in the Senate. They demand results now, because for some Americans, lives are literally on the line. The tide is turning for Independent candidates to work in Washington, unrestrained by political assumptions and party stereotypes.

The new generation requires a change ready to match the magnitude of their problems. Hope rests behind people like Charlie Crist, Eliot Cutler, Tim Cahill, or Lincoln Chafee. Whether they’re running for Governor or the Senate seems irrelevant; as long as they gain a voice in the higher authority of the United States, that’s all that matters. Could whole states turn away from their political benefactors for the sake of change? Only time will tell.

Soon we shall see whether this trend can gain enough momentum to sustain itself past infancy. If the people demand it, then the current government shall truly be afraid of its constituents. My hopes lie in the possible prospect of an Independent president. This dream may be centuries away from reality in American history, but we must not forget that even our nation’s first president had certain dislike of bitter partisanship. This may all be the start of a new era in American politics.

45) Me and Lunar GERTY

In June of 2009, there was a science fiction movie called Moon, directed by Duncan Jones, starring Sam Rockwell and Kevin Spacey. It made its debut at Sundance, and has received several nominations and awards since.

It is the story of a man named Sam Bell, who, in the near future, works alone on the moon for a company named Lunar industries. He spends his days with monotonous work, driving and monitoring harvesters that collect helium-3 for power supplies back on Earth.

With more than enough time for recreational model building, Sam amuses himself with week old broadcasts, occasional live talks with his family back home, and ranting at the base AI smiley face named GERTY.

As the movie wears on, you get to see Sam toil on in his depression, loneliness, and paranoia as he struggles through his three year contract in order to get back home.

I'm not going to ruin the movie for you, because even if you hate watching halfway through, the twist ending makes it all worth it.

Reflecting back on Sam's lunar life makes me think alot about my own tumultuous path. Because writing this at four in the morning, gripped by insomnia, has given me the perspective clarity I've seeked for so long.

Every once in a while, if the conditions are just right, the moon casts a pale blue light into my room, straight onto my bed. I can't fall asleep unless it's pitch black, so the light blinds me into insomnia. The window curtains don't do much.

Tonight is one of those nights. It seems a bit too much to try and move my bed into another position, but then again, the prospect of sleep has never been so attractive.

Maybe that's why I associate with Sam so much. We share a common hate of the moon, and we'd both like an AI companion named GERTY who sports a yellow smiley face.

The real reason why I loved the movie, felt so much emotion for Sam, is because I feel like him. Lonely, apathetic, and self-loathing, no one's ever given me a real reason to carry on, not even with the prospect of false hope. We're both trapped in a world of isolation, so eager to escape our confinement, yet so scared of change at the same time. We're waiting for that one event to spur us into action, to push us over the edge.

Sam finds the courage to liberate himself in the movie, and in the end, is satisfied with what he becomes. This is because he chose his path, not because he yielded to circumstance. He created his destiny.

I may believe in fate, but its important to understand that you only hold that belief for as long as you believe you are powerless to control your future. Nobody blames you for being scared to face the unknown.

But even as I stare into that pale faced moon, I can't ever sleep in peace. And I'm not willing to move the bed either.

Who knows? Maybe one day I might end up like Sam, working on the surface of the moon, pained by eternal solitude.

At least I'll have GERTY.

44) Friday Night Special

A music hour brought to you by your resident high schooler.

Tracklist:

1) Ke$ha Just Wants to Have Fun (Ke$ha vs. Cyndi Lauper) - c.h.a.o.s. Productions
2) Papa Was a Ghost (Deadmau5 vs. The Temptations) - DJ Tripp
3) Somebody Told Me to Feel Good (Gorillaz vs. The Killers) - Aggro1
4) Virgin O' Riley (Madonna vs. The Who) - Go Home Productions
5) Don't Let it Be in Anger (The Beatles vs. Oasis) - DJ Y Alias JY
6) Just Stop Believin' (Journey vs. Lady GaGa) - DJ Tripp
7) When You Were a Starlight (The Killers vs. Muse) - team9
8) 4 Minutes (Jacques Lu Cont Remix) - Stuart Price
9) Ray Of Electro-Light (Pance Party vs. Madonna) - Ambulance (Jeffrey Tice)
10) Pea Proof (Black Eyed Peas vs. La Roux) - DJ Divide & Kreate
11) Shut Up And Take Me Out (The Ting Tings vs. Franz Ferdinand vs. Aretha Franklin vs. MARRS) - DJ Y Alias JY
12) Mr. Brightside (Jacques Lu Cont Remix) - Stuart Price
13) Human (Jacques Lu Cont Remix) - Stuart Price

43) Marquis de Sade

With every dark time in humanity, there is always a darker person willing to push the limits on societal evil. Whether it is mass murder, the invention of more devious torture devices, or the easier violation of ethics, someone in every century is there to break bounds.

Of course, there are the majority who call these people heretics, while the solemn few are brave enough to call these people heroes, pioneers of their time.

People call the Marquis de Sade a genius, only because he was the most innovative sexual deviant of his time. Unrestrained by religion, law, or morality, his collective thirty-two years in insane asylums can attest to the fact that his 120 Days of Sodom is still widely unparalleled in terms of brutality and violence.

The lasting legacy of the Marquis? We derive the word "sadism" from his name.

But whether you're the biggest pervert of the eighteenth century, or just a small time Issei Sagawa, the barriers of evil continue to be broken.

Just early today before this post, Ronnie Lee Gardner was executed by firing squad for his crimes on 12:20:25 a.m. MDT. Many believe death by firing squad falls under the cruel and unusual punishments clause in the eighth amendment of the United States Constitution.

The worst part? Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff advertised the death with updates on Twitter, stating when he gave the order to kill and where to watch his live press conference afterward. As Mashable puts it: "A Tweet Too Far?"

But the real focus of this post, the real shocker, lies in a pediatric urologist at Cornell: Dix Poppas. He "specializes" in female genital cutting.

The original post at the bioethics forum starts off by introducing a comparative story: Tuskegee airmen who did not receive medication for their syphilis for four decades. This is to emphasize the dehumanizing, scientized language of modern medicine of what Martha Solomon says: “can obscure and deemphasize any ethical, non-scientific perspective.”

But back to Poppas. What exactly does he do? First of all, he operates on little girls. Girls that are no older than six years old. He cuts their "oversized" clitorises, then stitches up the glans for the purpose of "nerve sparing." It's for sensitivity issues.

Alice Dreger and Ellen K. Feder from the original article elaborates:

Here more specifically is, apparently, what is happening: At annual visits after the surgery, while a parent watches, Poppas touches the daughter’s surgically shortened clitoris with a cotton-tip applicator and/or with a “vibratory device,” and the girl is asked to report to Poppas how strongly she feels him touching her clitoris. Using the vibrator, he also touches her on her inner thigh, her labia minora, and the introitus of her vagina, asking her to report, on a scale of 0 (no sensation) to 5 (maximum), how strongly she feels the touch. Yang, Felsen, and Poppas also report a “capillary perfusion testing,” which means a physician or nurse pushes a finger nail on the girl’s clitoris to see if the blood goes away and comes back, a sign of healthy tissue. Poppas has indicated in this article and elsewhere that ideally he seeks to conduct annual exams with these girls. He intends to chart the development of their sexual sensation over time.

And as if that wasn't enough:

Many have told us that the genital displays involved in the follow-up exams were more traumatic than any other part of the experience. Indeed, when I once asked a group of women with androgen insensitivity syndrome what they wanted me to work on primarily in my advocacy work, they said stopping the exams, particularly those in which med students, residents, and fellows parade through to check out the surgeon's handiwork.

So not only does the dear doctor get away with it, he also lets other people watch. Might as well start cutting off every male penis and stitch up those results.

All in the name of science? Perhaps, but it's clear that Poppas does not understand the damage he's doing to these girls. Is it some sick sexual perversion he possess? I don't know.

Just remember that when you sleep tonight, someone, somewhere, is eager to prove humanity's inner evil.

42) Home of the Brave

Writing your congressman/senator or appearing at town hall meetings is a political exercise many young students go through to understand the American democratic process. It is the point of inspiration for many aspiring students that wish to succeed in government someday.

However, the public and the media often forget that these figureheads of government are still human. We hold these idols to a high expectation of leadership and heroism, destined to make change for the better.

We understand the high profile world that these representatives are embroiled in. We see stories of their sexual escapades, their sudden lapses of intelligence, or their public outbursts of politically incorrect statements.

The media that paints this image always exposes the drama that runs through their lives. Most recently, CBS scored a hit with their series The Good Wife, which explores a lawyer's tumultuous life after her husband's political career goes awry with infidelity.

Everywhere you go, there's always someone who loves to expose the government and its puppets for what they really are: manipulative control freaks who are irreparably corrupted and ethically ignorant in the name of representation and control.

So when some students catch a congressman at a bad time and film him, there are bound to be interesting results:

(Alternate link if the above doesn't work for you)

It's a hot debate as to who's right or wrong here, even though it's obvious that the students can play the harassment card.

I call it a debate for several reasons:

1) The senator will issue a public apology and get away with it. There is a 0.0001% that he will resign as a result of this video.

2) The students will lose a harassment lawsuit against the congressman, should they choose to file one.

3) Public exposure to the video will be minimal at best.

My thoughts?

I've always been a fan of the theory that the American government is always decades behind the societal changes that occur in the United States and in the world. This is why it took so long to elect an African American president, or why the ethnic minorities in Congress are grossly unrepresentative of the public at large.

It allows this hypothesis to be drawn: The ruled and the rulers are separate entities that shall never coexist peacefully.

While Washington D.C. is steeped in centuries old tradition of cutthroat politics, the public is utilizing technology to share ideas on how they want things to be done.

It's the friction between the two halves of this America that make the system a miraculous display of continuous function for fear of anarchy.

As we delve into tougher times, more personal sacrifices are required to keep the American machine running. This requires the superhuman strength that we expect from the politicians that hit students on the streets. It's time for the media myths of leadership to take fruition.

All the while, the public can continue to lose themselves in watching another season of reality shows and Youtube memes, oblivious to the problems that they don't have to deal with. Leave it to the politicians, they say.

Who knows? Maybe America has earned its dishonorable death.

41) Summer of Dance

A summer starting YOMcast about the Gulf of Mexico's hazardous oil spill, with a link for a live video of the leaky pipe, the Obama administration's questionable response, first day of FIFA South Africa, the cliche surge of movies, and a hat tip to Mr. Sutherland and his first podcast.

Semester 2: Final

In analyzing my writing, evidence suggests my composition abilities have improved little over the past semester. While I realize my weaknesses, formulating and enacting solutions to this has been a difficult endeavor.

When using my first post on this blog as a reference point, my syntax and composition have morphed into marginal gains when it comes to expressing meaning in my posts. Although I have developed and changed my style in different ways, there are several reasons as to why I believe there has been little improvement.

To start, the only major change that has occurred on this blog is the podcasts (which I've named YOMcasts) that I've started doing. Although they don't include actual writing, I feel that they illustrate my point better. This is because you're hearing my style and tone through sound rather than actually reading words. I've been debating whether these podcasts help my writing abilities by allowing me to think more about how I express myself.

With podcasts, I often rehearse my speeches to prevent fractured expression. This is because I'm self-conscious enough to care a lot about what others might think of me over the internet. This is why I go to great pains to take certain positions on issues.

With the first YOMcast, I was not rehearsing, which explains a lot of my stuttering. Later prevention of this has helped me try and improve my public speaking skills, along with composition improvisation. Most importantly, it has shown me that how you say things are more important than what you actually say.

Many parallels with this can be drawn to my writing. While it's not the actual composition of words, it is the actual style with which I convey ideas. There is a difference between saying "That was a horrible movie," and saying "That movie made me want to vomit and gouge out my eyes."

I have seen this in my own writing. Take this in context:

Perhaps where I'm going with this is that school seems utterly pointless at an early age.

Compared to this:

...especially in high school, when students are forced to do assignments they do not see the reward in. Day after day, the modern student must struggle against a cause they have no standing reason to believe in.

The major difference between the two is that the second one develops the same point with detail. Podcasting had taught me to be more clear and precise because the audience might not understand your point if you are being too vague. I make the second sentence convey more meaning not only with more words, but with more emotion.

This is the style I've learned to develop. I bring all of this up to understand whether I've actually improved my writing skills. What I've come to question is whether these podcasts are just a subconscious laziness factor that I've developed in trying to avoid improving my writing.

So the question stands: Have I been improving or stalling?

One thing is clear: I have changed the way in which people can understand me on this blog. Trying to analyze whether I've improved, is a inner philosophical semantics question I've yet to fully work out. I can't concretely say I've "improved", but I'm siding with evidence to the contrary. If anything, I realize the dilemma present.

With all of this in mind, I can say without a doubt there have been posts in which I have surprised myself in terms of subject matter. In keeping with my volatile attitude, there are many subjects I never imagined I would be writing about. Looking back at these posts drudges up feelings of shame, guilt, or happiness.

As evident by post labeling and tagging, I've covered a wide variety of subjects ranging from personal stories to politics. This all depends on the mood I'm in according to the day on which I write the post. Like many other blogs, sometimes it is easy to tell whether the author has had a good or bad day.

YOM is no exception. I'm not afraid to admit that I sometimes regret the subject matter I chose to write about given the free write option. My bad days of depression and teen angst bleed through in posts about myself and my struggles.

I rarely talk about my brother, mostly because of the pain it brings up. But this post that appeared gives a rather impersonal and uncomfortable exploration behind my seventeenth birthday. You can't get more in-depth than this.

I'm rather surprised that I would mention a dead sibling at all, but I speak of it freely and openly. Although I regret the subject matter involving my brother, I don't regret writing that post. I have surprised myself in posting it, but I'm even more surprised at the feelings of closure it has given me on the matter.

Maybe that's why I can talk about it so freely. Or perhaps it's because of the eye-opening statistics on Google Analytics. If the numbers are right, I get very little visitors, and most of them are just not willing to leave a comment. This I can understand, for I hesitate to leave comments on the blogs I read. I only leave words if I know the author in person.

It's the prospect of not standing in the spotlight that's given me the freedom to try these varied and surprising topics. Knowing that nobody's paying attention makes it easier to write things you wouldn't otherwise share.

I've tried topics I never imagined I'd touch. My original guideline of writing about games, education, and society has expanded to include fictional stories, religion, and government. I can only hope to become even more varied in my topic choices. Most importantly, I hope I can continue to surprise myself and learn more.

It's been a long road since my first semester final, and in that time, I've tackled alot of life's problems using this this blog. I can only continue to do so with more writing. Writer's block might be a problem, but I think I'm going to keep trudging on, even after the school year ends. I can only hope others do the same.

Finally, if there's anything I've learned from this past year of posts, it's that I finally and truly understand what YOM means to me.