In the news...

I've decided that, along with posts on liberty (or the lack thereof) around the world, I'm also going to do a weekly posting of things in the news that I find interesting and/or worthy of being aware of.

First -- girls that kick butt: Jessica Terry diagnosed herself with Crohn's disease in science class after doctors couldn't do it in labs for eight years. While the fact that she has Crohn's disease is awful (it's a disease that causes intense pain and can't be cured), it's pretty cool that she figured it out on her own.

Regardless of your opinion of America's war in Iraq, this is something to know: Al Qaeda fighters are relocating into the horn of Africa. Countries like Somalia and Yemen could end up being safehavens for Al Qaeda fighters attempting to escape dangers in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Reformist Mir Hossein Moussavi could win Iran's presidential election today. We'll see if that's true later on after polls close, but for now it's something I'm watching. If he does, it'll be the first time the incumbent president (the current one likes to pretend the Holocaust didn't happen) doesn't win a second term.

This man claimed to be a veteran of the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon and to have survived a roadside bomb as a Marine. He appeared for campaigns, he spoke on behalf of veterans, and he set up an alliance for veterans in Colorado. Now it's come out that none of that is true. He's being investigated for embezzlement charges in relation to the alliance he set up.

This is something that is actually really close to my heart, and I'm surprised I don't talk about it more: Young girls in Zimbabwe have begun turning to prostitution for food, school books, or simply attention. Now, they're also being targeted to become sex slaves during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

A man shot up the Holocaust Museum to express his opinion that the Holocaust apparently didn't exist (maybe he'd get along with the current president on Iran?).

In celebrity news, Hugh Grant has made an ass of himself again, Sonny and Cher's child Chastity will henceforth be known as Chaz -- she (he, now, I guess) is in the early stages of transition from female to male, Madonna won her adoption appeal in Malawi, Rihanna was served a subpoena to testify against Chris Brown, and Palin is crying foul against Letterman -- waaaaaahhh!'

Five things that make me happy today:
1. Cold hot chocolate (Buon Giornio's!)
2. Internet!
3. Going shopping with Mommy (and maybe Cyndi?)
4. Paychecks! (We got paid yesterday, I deposited it today.)
5. New music (Cyndi burned me a really good summer mix.)

"I'm gonna write another traveling song..."

(lyrics from "Another Traveling Song" by The Bright Eyes)

So, it seems like all I can talk about and think about recently is traveling. I'm so ridiculously excited for our trip (we leave in 10 days!) that it's all I can think about. But, I have good news! My passport finally got back (we sent it off to be renewed like a week ago, so that was quick!) so now I don't have to worry about whether or not I'll actually be able to go to Prague and Munich. I haven't quite finished that whole "deciding what we're doing in Munich" thing that I talked about, but I'll work on that. It'll probably happen the night before or so. (I'm good at procrastinating like that.) Plus, my mom mentioned she really wants to see mostly castles, so I'm thinking we'll be doing a lot of that, and because it's a girl's trip, there'll be lots of shopping! :]

In relation to traveling, but only in the way that it's something I'm taking with me to Prague and Munich -- my mom ordered me the Canon Rebel XSi today. That's it to the right. :) I'm really incredibly wonderfully excited about it. It's (of course) an early birthday present (my actual birthday is next month) but it's going to be SO worth not getting a present on the actual day because this camera is so freaking kick ass.

Five things I'm happy for:
1. Private swim lessons that pay me lots of money
2. The Tudors season two
3. Long drives at night with Cyndi
4. Open mic nights
5. Good music therapy after crappy bands at open mic nights :)

How're y'all doing?

Munich travel plans

For about three months now, my family has been planning a vacation to the Czech Republic and Germany for the end of June. Today, my mother informed me that it is actually going to be my responsibility to decide what we're going to do for the three days we're in Munich. I, however, have never really researched Munich, so I don't know what there is to do there, other than lots of castles to visit. Any suggestions?




Five things I'm happy for today
1. Canon EOS Rebel XSi
2. Chocolate shakes
3. Vacation planning
4. Sleeping in
5. Warm showers

Tiananmen Square Massacre

It just hit me in the past hour that today is the twentieth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre of 1989 (known in China as the June Fourth Incident or more colloquially as Six-four to eliminate confusion about two other massacres that occurred at Tiananmen Square). It was a protest that began in April of that year, after the death of Hu Yaobang, who was the "pro-democracy, pro-market, and anti-corruption" (Wikipedia) former Secretary General. The thousands of people that gathered at Tiananmen were originally only there to mourn Hu's death, but soon students and workers alike started impromptu speeches that requested government changes based on the reforms Hu had attempted to make before resigning from office. Because it was so impromptu, there was really no unified cause or leader to the protests, but by April 21, a sit-in had been staged and students were calling for official meetings with government representatives. On May 4, students in Beijing marched and demanded free press and open dialogue between the government and student-elected representatives. Demonstrations at Tiananmen continued to be well-organized and the students initiated a hunger strike by May of '89 that was supported even by people not involved in the protest. Mikhael Gorbachev (USSR) would be visiting China soon and the reform-minded protestors considered his policy of glastnost to be something that China could follow in order to be more democratic. In fact, at the beginning of the movement the central and local governments didn't have a lot of control over the media and reporting was free to say as it pleased for a rare moment in history.

On May 20, the government declared martial law, but entrance into the square was blocked by protestors and the demonstrations were able to continue. Citizens of Beijing (whether protesting or not) actively tried to stop the People's Liberation Army from entering the square, constructing roadblocks out of buses they burned as the PLA attempted to stop them using tear gas and rifles. Rickshaw drivers dared to cross the boundary between the PLA and the protestors and carried hundreds of wounded off to hospitals for treatment.

The final assault began a little after ten pm on June 3. Chinese soldiers shot into the crowds with rifles, and troops approached with bayonets. Protestors that attempted to take refuge in the buses were dragged out and beaten and even people that attempted to leave peacefully were assaulted by the soldiers. Leaders of the protest encouraged students to remain peaceful even in the face of the abuse and by early the next morning the square was cleared of all protestors.

The number of deaths at Tiananmen is highly debated and ranges from the "official" figure as 241 dead/7,000 wounded (including soldiers) to thousands as reported early by various groups (including the Soviet Union, NATO, and Amnesty International). Close to thousands seems more likely since at one point during these protests close to 1,000,000 people were gathered in Tiananmen square, and it seems strange that only a few hundred would have died in such a violent and unorganized suppression.

The Tank Man in the photo was immortalized by his defiant stand in front of the tanks as they left Tiananmen Square on June 5. He was hauled away by police after momentarily talking with one of the soldiers in the tanks and never seen again. The theory that he was executed for his stand led Time Magazine to declare him one of the 100 Most Influential People of the Twentieth Century, a list that also included FDR, Oprah Winfrey, Mohandas Gandhi, and Nelson Mandela.

The other photo is of the Goddess of Democracy, which was carved and erected by protestors toward the end of May when they realized how much international media coverage they were receiving. She stood as a symbol of the protest for viewers around the world as they watched the protestors stand up for freedom and democracy.

(Thanks Wikipedia and my World History professor for the knowledge. It's appreciated.)

thank you, world, for keeping me busy.

It's funny. I really want to write a blog post but I can't think of anything to talk about. Not because my life is boring or anything, but because I actually have too much going on -- I've been reading a lot of interesting stuff, I've been working a lot, I've been seeing a lot of my friends, I've been watching a lot of The Tudors with them (great show, by the way), I've been drinking coffee and writing a lot... There have been plenty of stories to tell recently, but at the end of each day, it's like I can't decide which one to focus on, like they're all jumping up and down like little kids screaming "pick me! pick me!" in the forefront of my mind, leading me to be totally overwhelmed and unable to focus on an one of them.

I guess I could just briefly mention a few of them. Then if any of you are confused or the allusion piques your interest, you can always comment/email/twitter me for further details.

Firstly, remember how I mentioned that Cyndi and I almost died? Well, later that day, Andy (the boyfriend) called me and I told him about it and his immediate reaction (other than, "I'm glad you're alive") was "Wow, a similar thing happened to me today too." He was going through an intersection and some guy ran his red light and turned left going decently fast. Andy managed to see him and slam on the breaks to save himself , but the car in the lane next to him didn't end up so lucky. The car slammed into the driver's side door and both drivers were taken to a hospital.

Also, my good friend Ryan (from the Renaissance Festival I attended) moved to Missouri a few days ago for an internship. I'm really happy for him because he's happy and this is what he wants to do with his life, but I miss him. And I'm ready for him to come back home.

Last night, I spent a lot of time going through my old myspace messages and blog posts and comments, and I stumbled headfirst into a swirling torrent of forgotten memories. From things like the first guy I was ever in a serious relationship with (who turned out to be a total jerk, by the way), to the first guy I fell in love with and, though I don't miss him, think of him often, to our mutual friends, many of whom I haven't seen in a year or so. I saw pictures of a boy who I should have treated better, if only we'd met at a better time for both of us. I read poetry I'd written throughout close to three years of high school. I found old blog posts that, all though they were vague to outsiders, I still remember every feeling I had burning inside me as I wrote them, whether they were anger, joy, fear, accomplishment, or loss. It was a strange feeling to read and see all those words and pictures and feel like they were me, but not really. Like it was someone else's life I was peeking into. It was intense and it left me feeling confused, overwhelmed, and wondering about old friends. So, I started investigating. I started seeing how many of them still update their myspaces, and I found that an overwhelming amount of them do and all of them have been going through some painful stuff since we last talked. Though not always direct in what they posted (many of my friends and I have always been the subtle type), there were obvious signs of masked pain that was churning just below the surface of their smiles. But the posts that were direct, that confronted their pain up front were some of the most raw emotional things I've read in my life. I wish I could reach out and give all of them a hug, but we're all far flung across the nation these days and my arms don't reach that far.

One of my friends started doing this in her posts, and I think I want to as well --
Five things I'm happy for today
1. Skype
2. My job
3. Starbucks
4. Good friends
5. Fast cars to get me to work on time