Name:V. Country:United States State:New York Metro:Long Island Birthday:4/20/1987 Gender:Male
Interests:Cars...basketball, whiffle ball!! kickball!! weerd... i need to grow up.. Expertise:Guitar, Cars, Racing, Martial Arts, Eating (9lbs of food in 1 meal! beat that!), and i'm definatly an expert at sleeping Occupation:Engineering Industry:Other
A few weeks ago I drove down to school to pack up the remainder of my college career. After rolling up the mattress on my bed, I was greeted, to my surprise, by a simple black shoebox, taped shut and covered in dust. (I tend to have a habit of hiding things under my bed and never retrieving them.) Refusing to let the excitement of a newly discovered treasure subside, I put down the sponge which I was using to scrub the walls, and found a semi clear corner in the room to peek inside the box. What I had found, was an artifact from an event a few years ago; the prayer tent.
When I was a sophomore in college, a few of us got together and decided it would be great to set up a gathering place of sorts where people from all over campus can come and ask for prayer. I've never been a big fan of intrusive evangelism, so this type of outreach was right up my alley. As it turned out, the event was a great success, and hundreds of people showed up to write down a prayer on the white board and the sixty or so feet of blank wall.
What had slipped my sponge like memory though was the fact that people had originally written their prayers on the back of fliers and index cards. Being ever so human; shy and prideful of our personal struggles, these little pieces of paper carrying hope and sometimes despair, had been dropped inside of a black, plainly marked shoebox.
As I began to read through these prayer requests in my empty yet somehow filthy room, I was filled with a myriad of thoughts. Before I dive into the deep end of my pool of thoughts, I'd like to share a few of these. I realize there's a certain intrusiveness with sharing other people's prayer requests, however they are anonymous and I think they are common prayers who all lift up at one time or another.
As I read through these note cards I realized something so simple, yet profound. I realized that despite our vast expanse of difference, we are all so similar in our struggles and suffering. I realized that the cries for help, the pleas for a hand to reach out, and the ever fading glimmer of hope that rode on these wings of ink and paper sounded so much like my own. I thought for a long time about what this really means in the big picture. I thought that if we could all understand this simple little fact, and remember it in all the coming days, then we can together make the world just that much better to live in. I thought that if we could comprehend just how much our common petitions and pleas bounded us together, then we could be that helping hand in someone else’s prayers.
I sat there, on that dull, grey, carpeted floor thinking for a long time.
In the end, I realized that we as a race may never quite grasp this common bond that we share. I realized that we as children are callow, and will inevitably find weakness in the needs of others while forgetting our very own appeals. I realized that sometimes, big ideas about the big picture may just end up being a very big rocking chair. You spend a whole lot of time moving, but never really get anywhere.
You can't change the world by trying the change the world, you can control what you do, and hope to make the world a little bit better each day.
I realized most importantly that day that you and I are the same, even if we hate each other. I realized that even if we're from worlds apart, speak different languages, call God by some other name, or maybe even if we've never met, we are still bound by our most private fears and desires.
I think in the end, prayer may not be as lonely an act as it's made out to be, but rather our prayers are all interconnected and shared.
So tonight, say a little prayer and don't be shy, because somewhere out there, someone is doing the same.
In the late 1800s two scientists were in a heated race to obtain the coldest substance possible. At an unfathomable temperature of -252 degrees Celsius, James Dewar, a British scientist was able to liquefy hydrogen. Upon completely his lifelong goal of liquefying the last known gas, and creating the coldest substance known to man, Dewar expected a myriad of accolades and awards. However, just as he had reached a seemingly unreachable goal, a new, more challenging, and eventually colder gas was discovered; Helium. Dewar would eventually be bested by his rival Heike Onnes who was able to liquefy Helium at a temperature of -272 degrees Celsius; one degree above absolute zero. Heike would go on to win the Nobel prize for his work, while Dewar would slowly fade into the pages of history. Science is one of those things that we think we understand, and in our naive understanding, we come to believe that if we reach the goal that is set, then our lives will be filled with happiness and rewards. But in science, as a British physicist once said, is hardly a game where the goals are set. Instead, in the pursuit of science, the goal posts are ever changing. In this aspect, the pursuit of science is much like the journey through life. We make believe, with the limited information we've gathered during our years on earth, that we are setting goals which will bring lasting recognition and joy. Only to find that goal posts have moved once we reach the original destination.
Twelve days ago I circled the last answer on an exam in my college career. Eight days ago I received the final grade on my undergraduate transcript. Three days ago, I officially walked into the pages of history as a graduate of PSU. Tomorrow, I will be leaving PSU and write the first lines of the next chapter of my life. After tomorrow, words like "going back" will be replaced with "going to" in front of nouns such as "State College" or "Penn State". Home will no longer be the various shacks, bunkers, and holes in the wall I’ve come to known for the past few years. My meals will no longer be concluded with sight of a sword wielding roommate washing the dishes.
It's hard to believe that all the things I’ve grown accustom to finally are slowly coming to an end. It would be criminal to say that these past four years have gone by just as planned. So much has happened, so much has changed, that it's hard to see what once was four years ago as anything more than a surreal memory. How many friends have come and gone, how many laughs shared and tears shed. I came to college with a simply goal to become an engineer, but I had no idea where I wanted to be once I graduated.
Now, after fighting against so many odds; from difficult classes and an apocalyptical gpa to a small group leader who tried to knock me down and tell others that I'd never make it through the engineering program or lead an a capella group, I've finally made it.
And for what? It's great to finally graduate, to see my mom so proud and happy. It's great to finally be able to get a great paying job and satisfy my unusually expensive hobbies.
All these things really are great, but as these temporary moments come and pass, I'm left with the stark realization that I've just discovered Helium, and the goal post has suddenly moved further than it was four years ago. Four years ago, it was simply a matter of making it through school and finishing a set of prescribed courses four years from that point. Now, four years later, those prescribed courses are gone, success is no longer measured in exams and projects, and as John Stewart has said, all of life's courses are electives.
So then, where do I go from here? I recently tried to apply for a job with the United Nations engineering department, only to find out that their previous experience requirements are through the roof. I looked into both World Vision and the Red Cross, but they had no need for a Civil Engineer like me. As the previous pattern would suggest, I have really no desire to sit at a desk somewhere and accumulate wealth for some self serving cause. I think it's great to make money and buy lots of things, like electronics, camera lenses, car parts, and delicious mouth watering food. But when it comes down to it, I'd be willing to make a fraction of what I can in return for the chance to be a part of something bigger. I'm a firm believer that it's each of our responsibility to leave the places we go better than when we came. If everyone pitched in to fix a little bit of what they saw could be better, then maybe we'd all be a little bit less wealthy and a bit more tired, but as a whole, we'd all be a lot happier. Time is too valuable to waste on simple self serving needs. Even a 60 year career will eventually come to pass as quickly as these four years spent at school. After thinking about it for a long time, and digging through all the layers of socially acceptable norms standards, I'm going to choose my life's elective in the field of humanitarian studies with a side of General science and Arts.
A bit of a side reflection, I actually have no idea what the original topic of his random post midnight rambling was able. It's getting a bit late and my mind is no longer making logical or rational thought links.
So, before this page of letters and spaces progresses to a state more incoherent than it is now, I'd like to leave you with this question.
What's your life's elective?
Finally, I believe merit should be given where it is due, so, to my fellow graduates of 2009, congratulations to you all. Here is to all the hard work put out, all the hard classes and tedious professors endured, and all the personal challenges, defining moments, and irreplaceable bonds experiences throughout these short few years. To my Penn Staters, it has been a pleasure walking through the halls of happy valley, through all the ups and especially the downs.
And so, as it has become customary for me to close these reflections, as I have been doing for the past 6 years, I leave you with this...
As Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day said almost two decades ago, I hope you had the time of your life.
In a vote of 142 to 4 by the united stations general assembly, the UN demanded that Israel abide by a crease fire resolution. Out of the 4 nations that voted against the resolution for a crease fire, one nation was so obscure 99% of the world can't put it on a map (Nauru), and the other, Venezuela, voted against the resolution because it did not think the terms were strong enough to force the Israelis into a sustainable cease fire. The other two nations? you guessed it, Israel and the United States.
If you don't know the history of the area, heres a short lesson in terms of policies and how the separate states formed http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israel,_Palestinians,_and_the_United_Nations
The Israeli assault into Gaza has been one of the most ridiculous incidences in recent history, but historically speaking, it happens all the time. A quick glance into the past 60 years of Israeli, Palestinian, and United Nations exchanges shows that Israel has given the other two parties the short end of the stick for quite some time. It appears that due to the backing of the United States, Israel disregards all other nations and forges on in any path it feels like without much consideration for the aftermath.
Take for example the most recent invasion into Gaza. I agree that Israel has a responsibility to its people to protect them from rockets fire, however a full on invasion in the mist of peace treaties has accomplished nothing but create more problems. For one thing the Israelis are trying to fight an enemy who does not congregate in large groups like a conventional army, but gather in small groups scattered throughout the region. Furthermore, they are bound together by a common ideal and mindset rather than a nation. As long as a small group still survives then their values will survive as well. You can destroy their streets, their homes, their leadership, and their city, but you can't destroy their ideals with violence because that's what set them there in the first place. In yesterdays New York Times a Israeli military official was quoted as saying they went in hoping to topple Hamas and for the Palestinian Authority to take over regardless of the damage to the area. However, as the article continued to state, the invasion has only caused a greater hate for the Palestinian Authority because they are sleeping with the enemy and instead has bred a new generation of anti-Israel extremists.
In the paper, one Israeli General was also quoted as saying Israel is dealing with terrorists, and they are going to get all of them with brute force down to the last one, just like America is doing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Excellent, I always thought of the U.S. as a world leader in setting new trends. It use to be automobiles, computers, fast food chains. Today it's invading weaker, smaller areas of the world and punishing the masses for the crimes of the few.
Here's an interesting idea, crimes are highest in a population when the population is poor. Look at all the war torn areas around the world, the people live in terrible conditions and they are usually displaced, homeless, or in terrible condition. If this is an accepted fact in dealing with urban populations even within a domestic setting such as inner cities, why does this idea not applicable on a world stage? Small civil war nations certainly fit the bill, and in this case so does the Gaza strip. A large settlement of displaced people are placed into a small area with limited resources and utilities should be expected to revolt against those who are keeping them there. There's a great idea, if Israel and the United States spend more of the money they do on military technology in the area and put it towards infrastructure or even aid for the strip, because they wouldn't be as angry at you for displacing them in the first place. But it seems like that task is left to the United Nations to do which they build more Merkava tanks instead.
Another thing thats been pissing me off during this whole conflict. Israel did not allow reporters or the media to enter Gaza strip to see what was going on in terms of destruction and civilian injuries. When they finally did, the reporters were escorted by the army and were only allowed to enter certain areas that the military deemed acceptable. Hey, you know what that sounds like?! the whole China Tibet incident from last year. When rioting started in the region China sent in it's military to control the area and refused to let reporters in until they escorted them in later on. For some reason the world lashed out at China saying it was doing so many wrong things by not letting reports and the media access to the area and then for only allowing them the escorted path. But here we see Israel doing the same exact thing and not a single bandwagon jumping college student or celebrity is expressing their outrage. Here's the best part, China didn't even bomb them or use artillery fire against the Tibetans.
Finally, I hate it when people just bandwagon causes or ideas without even bother to learn what they are talking about. this is a fine example of what I am talking about.
There's no problem expressing your opinions if you actually bothered to read a bit or do some research before hand, but then you just on the wagon you look like a complete idiot. I've found that this is something that Americans do so often. With this war in Gaza, with the Presidency, even with their normal social activities.
In the end, nothing good came out of their conflict. Israel went into Gaza saying they wanted Hamas to pay for firing rockets into its territory. In the years to come Hamas will make Israel pay for killing all those women and children, provided it will be to a much lesser degree since they don't have tanks or an airforce or the best trained military in the world.
Seems a bit excessive doesn't it Israel? But then again, you did learn from the U.S.
I'm not a big optimist when it comes to people. In fact, more often than not I think people are the biggest disappointments in the world. People cheat and lie, dodge responsibilities and are selfish beyond belief. Most of the time I agree with the message The Lord of the Flies was trying to put across; humans are inherently evil, and if you put a bunch of so called "innocent" children on a deserted island they will kill the fat one and rape a wild boar.
With that said, I also believe that somewhere beneath the hateful and self-serving nature of humanity, there exists sparks of light. Flickers of a hope that could turn the world into a better place. I'm no pillar of white light by any means, I hate as much as the next person, and there have been plenty of moments in my life that I've wished ill on people I disliked. I've had my share of stealing and cheating, moments of inconsideration and selfishness. But when it comes to certain issues I can't help but feel a need to be just.
Human Trafficking
Human trafficking
is defined by the United Nations as " the acquisition of people by improper means such as force, fraud or deception, with the aim of exploiting them." It is also considered a crime against humanity. I don't know what it is, but this is apparently one world issue I just can't seem to get over. I'm not a humanitarian, if I were I would certainly be the evilest humanitarian ever. In fact, I would almost go as far as to say I hate organizations like amnesty international because I feel like they do nothing but get into other countries faces about how they can't run their nation and do nothing but protest a single, tunnel visioned cause without coming up with solutions that address not only the problem they are protesting but also the collateral damage that would occur in order to right whatever wrong they seem to see, but I digress. I don't care much for racism or fascist governments causing civil war, but there's just something about taking a person against their will and selling them off to someone to have sex with that really makes me angry. There are organizations out there that try to rectify this form of modern slavery. Groups like the UN counter trafficking unit and ZOE Children's Homes rescue people sold off and help them try to rebuild their lives. I spend a lot of free time looking through organizations like these trying to see if there's any way to get out there and take some action on my own. However most of the time these groups have to go through a lot of bureaucratic red tape to achieve their goals, which in turn makes the majority of the work they do, well, paperwork. I don't think there's anything wrong with following the rules and getting things done, after all, they are trying to catch lawbreakers. But I can't help but feel like it's so...inefficient, and for that matter ineffective. There has to be something else that could be done, something that bypasses all that time consuming logistical stuff and just gets the job done; rescues those who have been enslaved, give the traffickers what they deserve, and discourage others from doing the same.
So far, the only conclusion, and effective way of getting this done is by doing it as a criminal vigilante. I'm not batman, and I know superheros don't really exist. But I think it would work very well. I know it sounds a little crazy, and no, it's not because of the movies I've seen that suddenly gave me this idea, I've had it for a while now.
Is it wrong? If making the world a better place meant breaking the rules then can what you're doing still be categorized as being just and fair? I know superheros aren't real, I don't want to be a superhero, I just want to be someone who makes the world a little better, by fighting for those who can't fight for themselves.
I had started this entry with the full intent of blogging something about what friendship means in this day and age and in my life. I was going to write about how it's about equal investment and returns. That it means being dependable and reliable and the whole nine yards.
Then I put my head down on my desk to think for a few moments.
After some thinking, I came to the conclusion that there is no point. The people in my life that know how to be good friends already are, and the ones that don't, well they don't really matter much I suppose, not anymore. I remember a while back I had a rant about how with some people I always had to be the one to call them out and plan things to do. I think in the end I had somehow convinced myself that some people are just followers and some are just leaders, and that's just the way things are. Maybe it was a gesture of childish disbelief back then, but now I think some people are well, to put it nicely, "just who they are".
Much like last semester, and the one before that, I think I've learned to weed out the lukewarm in my life more and more. It started with meaningless activities and unnecessary events, maybe it's time to go through my phone and free up some memory in my contacts list. It makes sense, after all, the people that never return calls or messages, the ones that can only reply to event invitations but never give any out, I don't really need their contact info anymore and I'm sure they've written mine off as well.
Life is much like a computer, every once in a while you need to defragment the system and run disk cleanup, otherwise all that useless data will just be holding you back and wasting your valuable resources and time, preventing you from working at your highest efficiency.
Is it fair? I think so. If others don't treat you with the same respect why should you treat them any different. Is it right? Part of me wants to say that it's not, that people should be invested in heavily and the return figures thrown out without any review. That I should keep in touch with people just in case they need me for something so I can be there to help. I suppose I like to be dependable and reliable. The other part of me? well it says F* that.
In any case, I'm sure after this little housekeeping session my contact list will be much shorter and much easier to navigate through.
