Midterm

I thought that the midterms today went very well.I liked the idea of how we picked our order and the coin toss was a nice twist.It seemed like everyone was a bit nervous but once they got up there everyone did a great job.The political group was one of my favorites with Arnold Schwarzenegger's accent.The blog groups organized their information in different ways to present which was also well done.Everyone made valid points on their topic and had done research and was able to inform the class thoroughly.

Liberty to Speak Out About Food

“In times of great change the power shifts from all things big and goes back to the small. The power waivers in that which has become conglomerated, that which was built upon the old. Power reverts back to the individual. All truth can then only be found with the individual. Such it is in this time of greatest change in all history.” -Pila of Hawaii

One’s liberty to exercise freedom of speech is only as powerful as those who put it into use. Many food industries will not exercise this use of freedom of speech because they want to leave the American Population in the dark. That is why we, as a country, must speak out against putting these chemicals and food-like substances in our mouths.

Barbara Kowalcyk has devoted herself to passing “Kevin’s Law”, a law giving the USDA the ability and power to shut down plants that repeatedly produce meat containing E-coli and other deadly pathogens. After her 2-year-old son died from eating a hamburger that was tainted with E-coli, this became her life long mission. Kevin’s Law has yet to pass because the beef industry has such tight control of Congress. Only through people like Barbara who speak out against large industries, are we using our liberty of freedom of speech and changing the world the way we want it to be changed.

As a nation, we are naïve and are taking advantage of our Freedom of Speech rights. It seems that we do not care about the health and diet of our country. We as a nation must exercise our freedom of speech in order to see change. We need to know what is going into our foods, and only then will we stop putting the chemically produced, pesticide filled garbage in our mouths.

Here is a link to an article about Kevin's Law.

If only looking away could make things better...

Freedom of speech... Use it, or lose it.

The freedoms afforded us have been achieved through the blood, sweat and tears of those persons with restless and eager spirit, those impatient and those unwilling to settle for less, those disrespectful and arrogant souls who believe they are worth more than what they are currently getting, those who don’t care what you think… as long as what you think is that they are only here to serve you; to suffer all of their days so that you may prosper while they struggle. Those people have my respect because they know what they are fighting for. They are awake and involved and they are aware that waiting patiently and quietly for equality will get them nowhere. Shock and awe… Sometimes it takes a bit of shaking things up in order to bring about change. Just because we’re real good at telling our children to be fair and share, doesn’t make up for the real example we’re setting through both our actions and our inaction.
I see the trouble our country is in, hell… the trouble our world is in. We didn’t get here overnight and we won’t recover anytime soon.
I have not been sheltered from the troubles that have afflicted our world and even so, I have never been more concerned than I am now. My biggest concern is that our response time, in regards to the emergency outreach to those who need our help the most, is pathetic. We go about our lives, happy in the thought that we have been unscathed; as we watch our neighbors lose their jobs to outsourcing and their homes to greedy bankers and their lives to healthcare that is solely in it for an unseemly-profit. Our country is in trouble and we may just be saved long enough to be sacrificed last. I can hear the cries now… why doesn’t anyone care? How can they watch me suffer and do nothing to help?
I have always found it a curious thing, how adults are so good at telling children about the importance of treating others well. Even when I was a child, I saw the hypocrisy in what adults say versus what they do/and do not do. It is hard for me to believe that any child is oblivious to that double standard, and that is even more disheartening because without a decent example to lead them, there is little reason to expect that they will be any different.
I say this in the spirit of embracing my right to freedom of speech, and in the hope that if it doesn’t lend itself to change, that it just pisses you off.

"Restriction of free thought and free speech is the most dangerous of all subversions. It is the one un-American act that could most easily defeat us."
-- William O. Douglas, Former United States Supreme Court Associate Justice

Below is a copy of a blog that I found extremely interesting that seemed to really address the controversies that surround Freedom of Speech. A link to the actual blog and orginal article is at the bottom of this blog.

September 28, 2009
Another Controversy at Tufts: Racism or Free Speech?
Earlier this year I wrote about an incident at Tufts University in which a drunk White student used racial slurs in harassing a group of Korean American students. As Inside Higher Education reports, Tufts is now dealing with a new controversy regarding its Asian American students, but this time it involves two groups of Asian Americans on opposite sides:



Two weeks ago, In-Goo Kwak, a freshman studying international relations and an immigrant from South Korea, put up a series of posters around his dormitory parodying the campaign poster of Alice Pang, another freshman of Asian descent who was running for the Tufts Community Union Senate. Kwak was not actually running for a student government position, but posted the parody next to Pang’s at the encouragement of his dorm mates. who thought he was right to poke fun at the air of political correctness he perceived on the campus.

Pang’s poster included the campaign slogan, “small person, big ideas,” with the exclamation “hurrah!” next to her portrait. Kwak’s parody poster looks strikingly similar in design to Pang’s and includes the slogan “squinty eyes, big vision.” Next to Kwak’s portrait is the word “kimchi!” — a traditional Korean dish. Additionally, where Pang’s poster read “vote on Thursday,” Kwak’s said, “Prease vote me! I work reary hard!” in deliberately broken English. . . .

Linell Yugawa [Director of Tufts' Asian American Center] sent an e-mail to the entire Tufts community denouncing Kwak’s parody. . . .

“Many Asian/Asian Americans and individuals of other racial backgrounds have been angered, hurt, and offended by these posters,” Yugawa wrote . . . “The posters not only mocked an authorized campaign poster, but used negative and racist stereotypes that correlate with the discrimination and dehumanization of Asians. These posters go beyond affecting one individual or group, but offend all who have an understanding of how racist stereotypes impact our lives.

“Some may argue that we need to ‘lighten up’ and/or ‘reclaim’ the stereotypes and words that have harmed us and our communities. While it is one thing to mutually engage in this type of conversation, it is another to post stereotypical and racist language that is open to interpretation and hurtful to many.”

There seems to be a few different issues here. According to Kwak (the student who put up the parody poster), the main issue here is freedom of speech and his right to criticize what he perceives to be political correctness gone overboard. My response is, yes he has the freedom to criticize what he perceives to be political correctness. But along with that, other students have the same freedom to denounce him as ignorant and I agree with those criticisms against Kwak.

It is a tricky situation in that yes, to a certain degree, one strategy for us as Asian Americans to fight back against the prejudice and discrimination that we’ve experienced through the years is to appropriate the stereotypes and reclaim the derogatory slurs that have been used against us and to turn them around for our own purposes. Other cultural minorities groups have been successful in doing this, such as Mexican Americans reclaiming the term “Chicano” and gay Americans reclaiming the term “queer.”

However, this does not mean that Asian Americans should start going around spouting stereotypes left and right. Such an effort to reclaim derogatory slurs needs to be focused, coordinated, and consensual. Unfortunately, Kwak’s effort in the form of his parody poster were none of those.

Instead, as Director Yugawa noted, his effort made fun of another Asian American student and used offensive stereotypes that rekindled very painful memories for many Asian Americans. Instead of uniting other Asian Americans as allies in the fight against anti-Asian racism, he alienated them.

The lesson here is that Asian Americans have a right to criticize what they believe to be political correctness and even to try to reclaim offensive historical caricatures. But in the process of doing so, if they use demeaning stereotypes against other Asian Americans, they should be prepared to accept the criticisms and denouncements that will inevitably follow. Ultimately, freedom of speech goes both ways


Read more

The Pursuit of Happiness

The don't ask don't tell policy takes away our soilders rights to speak out and be honest.The Bill of rights gives us the freedom of speech yet our men and women in the army who are serving our country have gotton that right taken away from them.Personally I'm not sure how happiness can be reached if we are not able to be honest with those close to us.How can you pursue happiness when you are asked to to avoid the truth and hide yourself? When one of your most valuable right such as your freedom of speech is taken away, that can only further you from happiness.

Freedom to Speak About Food?

What does freedom of speech entitle? It gives people the right to speak about facts and their beliefs. Many say that knowledge is power. If one has the right to speak freely about what they know, should they? In the documentary, "Food Inc.", people go behind the curtain and find out more about what they are consuming whether they know it or not. Many people in the meat and dairy industries have not been able to speak out about the chemicals, pesticides, and harsh treatment of the animals they work with and slaughter. Freedom of speech must be put in use if it is to remain one of our liberties. If one has the liberty to better society and inform their fellow citizens of what is being put into their food that may be causing their body and health harm, I believe that it is their job to do so.

Here is information from PBS about secrets food companies may not be telling us.

Free to say... whatever?

Freedom of speech is a basic right, simply because... Well, let’s just face it... no matter what democracy means to you, no one wants to give up their freedom to speak. Should we ever give it up or have it taken from us, we will know then what it means to be without democracy. We run into problems with freedom of speech, but only when someone else says something that offends us. Whether we like it or not, that is going to happen. To do away with someone else’s right is to do away with your own. There are laws against defaming one’s character, but the legal expense can easily reach tens of thousands of dollars. The average person cannot afford such a defense. So, instead of helping; this defamatory law works against the majority of people who fall into the category of not being rich. How does it hurt? When “big money,” knows it can do what it wants and get away with it, because you cannot point out any wrong doing without being accused of defamation, then that law serves tyranny. I don’t want to leave you thinking that you don’t have freedom of speech. There are clever ways to say what you mean to say, while protecting yourself and your freedoms at the same time. Please visit the site: (Defamation law and free speech) for more information about how to protect yourself from lawsuits and keep your freedom. Currently, there are (and there always will be) issues that cause concern and even a great deal of pain to so many. One particular freedom of speech court case has made its way to the Supreme Court after a U.S. appeals court overturned a five million dollar award because the award violated the First Amendment’s free speech rights. I do not see that a decision has come back from the Supreme Court, as of yet, but I suspect that they will uphold the appeal court’s decision. I am of course, speaking of the case against the pastor, Fred Phelps, of the Westboro Baptist Church in Topeka, Kansas, for protesting at private funerals held for service men because of "America's tolerance for gays and lesbians" in the U.S. military. Talk about kicking someone while he's down! Personally, I find it sickening how we treat one another so badly. One might suggest that the problem here is that these people of faith have lost their way and do not represent the true religious ways. I can’t even go there... I do not believe that religion can provide the answer in this case. Live and let live. My answer; I have to go back to my original plea... that we simply treat others the way we want to be treated. Is that just too simple to understand? I hope not.

The Thing We Call Freedom of Speech

So our 5th Amendment right is to freedom of speech, Right? So now I guess this is where I get to have my say so in the freedom of knowing I can say whatever I want to. This picture up here is a picture off of the a website to "The WestBoro Church." You may hate what I have to say but I get to do it anyways. I am sorry but to have these children up here with signs like this is one of the dumbest things I have ever seen. I don't see how people, don't see by having our children involved in things like this, the hate cycle just goes, and goes, and goes. It really pisses me off to see that you have to use children to try and get your bull sh** message across. For this "So called church" (I'm sorry I never read in the bible that god pretty much hates everyone but these assholes) to go to a funeral and put up signs saying "GOD HATES FAGS" and whatever else they put up is just crazy. I don't see how they don't see that a family member's have just lost a love one and that being hard in itself, you have to add to the stress of this and act like a complete jerk. ( Well in nicer words than I would like to use since this is for a class project ) Here is the link to these dumb ass people so you can see for your self I am not making this up. Please click here

Friends O' Mine - The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

Some bad deeds need not be punished.

"Power without law is tyranny;
Law without power is meaningless"

What is power without law? Is it tyranny? Power with law can be tyranny, too.

Power without law… if used for purposes that benefit those who are eligible to benefit, then yes, without law, power can still be useful.

Law without power is meaningless?
Very TRUE!


Applying the quote above to the 1962 film, starring John Wayne and Jimmy Stewart, “Who Shot Liberty Valance?” there is a lot to consider…

Liberty Valance was a gunman employed by the local cattle cartel, directed to keep the town in line so that the barons could monopolize the local resources to insure their beef industry. He used his power to intimidate and abuse others. He definitely enjoyed dishing it out and he did so without the power of the law behind him. In this case, yes… Power without law is tyranny, because the man was a tyrant! But, what if he were Sherriff? Could he still intimidate and abuse people? Of course he could! So, I cannot go along with the absolute that says as long as the law is behind you, no one will call you tyrannical. I do, however; feel that law without power is meaningless. We have laws because we understand that just knowing right from wrong, does not ensure that everyone will always make the right choice. We realize that in order to promote that our civil liberties are not trespassed upon; we must deter those who would otherwise trespass upon us. How else do you deter someone from doing what they know is wrong, but to uphold a penalty? Absolutely, I feel that law without power is MEANINGLESS! By the way, it is just as true that upholding the law some of the time leads people to think that breaking the law might just be worth it. The penalty should be case specific and not biased, but the law must still be upheld and without laxity.
Did Tom Doniphon shoot Liberty Valance because he was in love with Hallie and would have done anything for her, even though she was married to Ransom Stoddard, as some people have suggested? Did he do so, as a favor (that he knew would not be acknowledged) for a woman he loved because he thought that her husband being killed in a shootout would be too much for her? I think not. If he loved her that much, he probably would have let her husband die so that he could “pick up the pieces.” No… People do strange things for love, but murdering someone for love unrequited, would be a rare thing, I think. The probability that Doniphon shot and killed Liberty, was likely because he was sick of his bullying ways, which were not limited to his interactions with Ransom. Face it, he did everyone a favor, himself included. That is why, Ransom held onto the truth, of who shot Liberty Valance, until after Doniphon was dead; so that Doniphon could not be prosecuted for doing the right thing in that situation. Speaking of “law without power is meaningless,” Ransom built a very successful political career on the people’s belief that he had and was not afraid to use, his power. And what did the reporter do? He threw away his notes from his meeting with Ransom. Even he knew that some bad deeds need not be punished, which proves that there exists the opinion, that special circumstances can and do apply. Yes, it was just a movie, but I maintain that art does tend to imitate life… with flair! It is through art that we are able to tell of things that would not be received in the same way if they were spoken in a crowd of strangers; certainly not in the reality of day to day life. Hooray, for art!
Like the song says…The point of a gun was the only law that a man like Liberty understood….The man who shot Liberty Valance, he was the bravest of them all!

Law Without Power is Not Meaningless

"Power without law is tyranny;
Law without power is meaningless"

I disagree with this quote. Power without law can indeed be considered tyranny. However, law without power isn't necessarily meaningless. Without law there is disorder. Just by existing, law creates order and therefore is meaningful. Even with law and power there can still be tyranny. If I had to choose a character to do without, I must then choose John Wayne, unfortunately.

The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance

In the movie Stewart's character couldn't do much because he had law without power.Wayne's character had power without law.This quote "Power without law is tyranny; Law without power is meaningless" explains the problems that wayne and stewart's characters had.This movie showed how important it is to have a good balance of law and power.We also see examples of why its important everyday.There are many laws that wouldn't be followed by us on a daily basis if there was no power behind it.But in my opinion if one character had to be choosen over the other I would pick Wayne's character because more could be done with his power and authority.

"Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it; and this I know, my Lords, that where law ends tyranny begins!"

(William Pitt, 1st Earl of Chatham, speaking in the House of Lords, January 9, 1770; cited from John Almon Anecdotes of the Life of the Right Hon. William Pitt, Earl of Chatham (London: J. S. Jordan, 1792) vol. 2, p. 21.)

If I had to choose between power or law similar to John Wayne and James Stewart's characters in "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance", I do not believe that it would be possible. I believe one is synonomous with the other. Law is necessary and in order to enforce law power is necessary. However, like the quote above states, too much power corrupts and without law tranny begins.

"Power without law is tyranny; Law without power is meaningless"

Law and power go hand in hand. In a government without law, those who hold power decide everything. In the film "The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance" John Wayne's character is an authority figure in a small town without an enforced law. John uses his gun as a power and sign of authority. This town would otherwise be in complete chaos. James Stewart's character is a man of the law who has little power. He tries, in many circumstances, to make laws and rules enforced. Because he does not have a gun, his power is meaningless. In order to gain respect and authority, one must have a balance of law and power under their belt.

Democracy Is Like Communism

Democracy is like communism. They both work, in theory. A democracy becomes less efficient with a larger population. And with a larger population comes more unintelligent/uninformed voters. This is, perhaps, a bigger issue than whether a person has the capacity for good or evil. Misinformed voters leads to incompetent politicians being elected. Whether by environment or choice or many other factors, most Americans are grossly misinformed.

Democracy is necessary

"The capacity of people for good makes democracy desirable; their capacity for evil makes democracy necessary." I agree with this quote because people want a good outcome and to go towards future success.Therefore knowing that they intend good they desire democracy so their voice can be heard.But people can also go towards bad decisions that will do more harm than good which is why democracy in necessary.Power can corrupt just about anyone so having democracy will limit the corruption.Having majority rule will increase the chance of a better outcome.