Are you actually serious?
Right before I decided I would go to bed tonight I browsed on over to the Daily Collegian. What a FUCKING MISTAKE. I just read the biggest piece of shit article I have ever come into contact with. This trumps all:
It is in a category of stupid of its own.
I am really shaken up by this one.
I actually feel like challenging this kid to a cage match, Mankind-style. Here it is:
Peaceful Middle East relations cheaper than war
When the story about Abdul Rahman, a man who faced death for rejecting Islam and converting to Christianity, broke for the first time, I skimmed right by it.
Religious intolerance and inhumane treatment in the Middle East is not really a new or fascinating topic. Obviously this story has received a lot coverage because it happened in Afghanistan, where the U.S. supposedly ended a horrendous theocratic government and replaced it with something better.
President Bush has found building new utopian democracies a little tougher then he thought. I know, a Bush being surprised by a policy failure in the Middle East is nothing new or fascinating either. The Bush administration will never be good at nation-building because it put the cart in front of the horse. The administration's mantra since it gave up on the first two rationales for Iraq was that we'd bring democracy to the Middle East and it will be some kind of shining beacon.
The outcome was inevitable. Democratic elections in Palestine gave us Hamas, Iraq's varying sects vie for votes in power in a de facto civil war and Afghanistan uses Sharia law. Changing the government's structure is no way to change the hearts and minds of people living in the Middle East. All this does is shuffle around the upper classes.
If we want to see peace in the Middle East, or an even loftier goal of a universal suffrage and religious tolerance, we're going to have to reach past the governments and communicate with everyone in the Middle East. So far we've only tried to do this with bombs and bullets, which rarely make any friends. What we need to do is take a lesson from our ancient ancestors.
During the Middle Ages, Europe was at war basically all the time. When they wanted to make peace they would sign a treaty and then seal the pact with a marriage, the idea being warring entities would be tied by blood.
Now I'm not proposing that we ship every woman in America off to Saudi Arabia. Granted there are times, usually in shoe stores, when I'm quite tempted to do so. I'm proposing that we start engaging in a real cultural exchange with the Middle East. We should be encouraging Americans to go there and people from the Middle East to come here. We should offer tuition credits to Middle Eastern students who want to study here. We should also be using funding to encourage kids to spend the semesters abroad in the Middle East.
We should take some of the money we have earmarked for our next war in Iran, and start using it to fund initiatives to improve cultural norms in the Middle East. Want to build an international school? Here's a pile of cash. Want to open an independent radio station or newspaper? Here's a pile of cash. With funding tied to upholding modern standards of freedom of religion and freedom of speech, we could give moderate and progressive voices the funding and shelter that their current regimes could never provide.
These plans won't be cheap. They'll cost us both in increased foreign aid and possibly through retaliatory oil price increases.
But in the end it will be cheaper than waging war after war across the Middle East, because those will never end. Every war we wage fuels imperialist fears and creates terrorist
s from the "collateral damage." Our other option is to withdraw from the Middle East, leaving another section of the world in the hands of tyrants and despots.
Our best option is to start taking the war for the hearts and minds of the Arab world seriously. We used to talk about it, but that talked died out when we discovered that it directly conflicted with maintaining a military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have to start taking the cultural aspect of this war seriously now or we really are going to be in for the Pentagon's newest buzzword. A "long war" indeed.
Ben Praster
I have responded by writing this "Letter to the Editor" that I just sent in. Here it is:
I have never in my time here at State College read a more infuriating article printed in the Collegian. Ben Praster seems to have everything figured out but in reality he understands nothing about the culture or religion of the Middle East. The Middle East is not interested in "talking" or "sharing" with the West. As more and more countries fall victim to Muslim tyranny, more and more options for peace are wiped away. To even suggest that sending our students to the Middle East to study abroad is absurd. The Islamic theocracies of Afghanistan, Iran etc. are not interested in expanding their "culture" unless it involves killing Americans or anyone else who isn't interested in becoming a Muslim. Praster's idea of dropping "piles of cash" for "indepentdent radio stations or newspapers" or "international schools" lacks any rational thought. He is suggesting that we spend money to fund independent radio stations in vicious theocracies that would surely use them to push the ever famous Muslim agenda of "kill all infidels". Mohammad said it best, "I was ordered to fight the people until they believe in Allah and His Messenger." The Muslim nations must ask themselves what can they do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them. This sort of diplomacy that Ben Praster is suggesting is the same hippie thought that would have had us stand back and fund radio stations and semester abroads for Nazi Germany whilst Hitler raped the land and killed off the entire Jewish population. Surprisingly enough, Praster says we should save the money we are going to inevitably spend fighting a war in Iran to fund these diplomatic projects. That's funny to me, especially since the President of Iran is intent on killing all the Jews in Jerusalem. But, sure, let's just send him some money for a radio station so he has something to occupy his time, instead of genocide through nuclear armament. http://DoctorAwkward.blogspot.com
I will publicly shit my pants if they run it (no, I won't, but that would be fucking funny). I don't really have anything else to say. I mean, I do but I am so f/n uncharacteristicly tired right now that I can't do it. Comment it up bitches!!! (and I mean that endearingly).
- Gay Activist Articles
- Gay Pride Articles
- Biology of Gays
- Muslim Tolerance
- Bush is responsible for (insert any disaster) article
- Penn State is Segregated Articles (which I will be writing about tomorrow)
- Smoking Bans Articles
- Feminism Articles
- Pro-Vegan Articles
It is in a category of stupid of its own. I am really shaken up by this one.
I actually feel like challenging this kid to a cage match, Mankind-style. Here it is:
Peaceful Middle East relations cheaper than war
When the story about Abdul Rahman, a man who faced death for rejecting Islam and converting to Christianity, broke for the first time, I skimmed right by it.
Religious intolerance and inhumane treatment in the Middle East is not really a new or fascinating topic. Obviously this story has received a lot coverage because it happened in Afghanistan, where the U.S. supposedly ended a horrendous theocratic government and replaced it with something better.
President Bush has found building new utopian democracies a little tougher then he thought. I know, a Bush being surprised by a policy failure in the Middle East is nothing new or fascinating either. The Bush administration will never be good at nation-building because it put the cart in front of the horse. The administration's mantra since it gave up on the first two rationales for Iraq was that we'd bring democracy to the Middle East and it will be some kind of shining beacon.
The outcome was inevitable. Democratic elections in Palestine gave us Hamas, Iraq's varying sects vie for votes in power in a de facto civil war and Afghanistan uses Sharia law. Changing the government's structure is no way to change the hearts and minds of people living in the Middle East. All this does is shuffle around the upper classes.
If we want to see peace in the Middle East, or an even loftier goal of a universal suffrage and religious tolerance, we're going to have to reach past the governments and communicate with everyone in the Middle East. So far we've only tried to do this with bombs and bullets, which rarely make any friends. What we need to do is take a lesson from our ancient ancestors.
During the Middle Ages, Europe was at war basically all the time. When they wanted to make peace they would sign a treaty and then seal the pact with a marriage, the idea being warring entities would be tied by blood.
Now I'm not proposing that we ship every woman in America off to Saudi Arabia. Granted there are times, usually in shoe stores, when I'm quite tempted to do so. I'm proposing that we start engaging in a real cultural exchange with the Middle East. We should be encouraging Americans to go there and people from the Middle East to come here. We should offer tuition credits to Middle Eastern students who want to study here. We should also be using funding to encourage kids to spend the semesters abroad in the Middle East.
We should take some of the money we have earmarked for our next war in Iran, and start using it to fund initiatives to improve cultural norms in the Middle East. Want to build an international school? Here's a pile of cash. Want to open an independent radio station or newspaper? Here's a pile of cash. With funding tied to upholding modern standards of freedom of religion and freedom of speech, we could give moderate and progressive voices the funding and shelter that their current regimes could never provide.
These plans won't be cheap. They'll cost us both in increased foreign aid and possibly through retaliatory oil price increases.
But in the end it will be cheaper than waging war after war across the Middle East, because those will never end. Every war we wage fuels imperialist fears and creates terrorist
s from the "collateral damage." Our other option is to withdraw from the Middle East, leaving another section of the world in the hands of tyrants and despots.Our best option is to start taking the war for the hearts and minds of the Arab world seriously. We used to talk about it, but that talked died out when we discovered that it directly conflicted with maintaining a military presence in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have to start taking the cultural aspect of this war seriously now or we really are going to be in for the Pentagon's newest buzzword. A "long war" indeed.
Ben Praster
I have responded by writing this "Letter to the Editor" that I just sent in. Here it is:
I have never in my time here at State College read a more infuriating article printed in the Collegian. Ben Praster seems to have everything figured out but in reality he understands nothing about the culture or religion of the Middle East. The Middle East is not interested in "talking" or "sharing" with the West. As more and more countries fall victim to Muslim tyranny, more and more options for peace are wiped away. To even suggest that sending our students to the Middle East to study abroad is absurd. The Islamic theocracies of Afghanistan, Iran etc. are not interested in expanding their "culture" unless it involves killing Americans or anyone else who isn't interested in becoming a Muslim. Praster's idea of dropping "piles of cash" for "indepentdent radio stations or newspapers" or "international schools" lacks any rational thought. He is suggesting that we spend money to fund independent radio stations in vicious theocracies that would surely use them to push the ever famous Muslim agenda of "kill all infidels". Mohammad said it best, "I was ordered to fight the people until they believe in Allah and His Messenger." The Muslim nations must ask themselves what can they do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them. This sort of diplomacy that Ben Praster is suggesting is the same hippie thought that would have had us stand back and fund radio stations and semester abroads for Nazi Germany whilst Hitler raped the land and killed off the entire Jewish population. Surprisingly enough, Praster says we should save the money we are going to inevitably spend fighting a war in Iran to fund these diplomatic projects. That's funny to me, especially since the President of Iran is intent on killing all the Jews in Jerusalem. But, sure, let's just send him some money for a radio station so he has something to occupy his time, instead of genocide through nuclear armament. http://DoctorAwkward.blogspot.com
I will publicly shit my pants if they run it (no, I won't, but that would be fucking funny). I don't really have anything else to say. I mean, I do but I am so f/n uncharacteristicly tired right now that I can't do it. Comment it up bitches!!! (and I mean that endearingly).
written by DrAwkwArD at 1:25 AM
10 Comments:
The Daily Collegian's staff are a bunch of morons. I don't take anything they say seriously. They obviously hate Bush, and they think members of YAF are facist. I remember during the election the Collegian ran a fully page ad that if Bush got re-elected there would be a draft!!!!!! Still waiting for that one to happen. These "kids" obviously have no idea about war, politics, and MiddleEast politics. And i'm not saying that just because they don't agree with me. I say that because they just open their mouth w/ out thinking or in ignorance. You listen to these "kids" talk and you wonder where they get their ideas from. Oh well, off to class!!!!!
hmmm, don't rip into the collegian, sure many of the articles are poorly researched but no one is making you read them, furthermore, it is a proven statistic that college students are way more liberal than conservative, so, obviously the collegian will be slanted left. you can choose to get on staff and write some articles from your stance, or you can stop bitchin, suck it up and not read them. (that was directed to psuconservative, who, i assume has to be in his 60's if he is calling college students kids.) As far as the Doctor, nicely written response, i see you used some lines from the clip i sent you. i actually tend to agree with YOU more than the collegian on this one, isn't that crazy.
"it is a proven statistic that college students are way more liberal than conservative,"
Therefore we must bow down to the liberals on campus and let them feed us this liberal garbage, because we all know college students tend to be liberal, so just let it go. That's the most pathetic response to why the collegian is bias.
Maybe just maybe college "kids" don't think for themselves and whatever the prof says most be correct. Why would college "kids" want to formulate their own opinion anyways that takes too much time, energy, and research?
I need more time for drinking and sex!! And who cares I'm not hurting anyone.
And we wonder why society is getting crappier and crappier. Oh wait it must be Bush, or no maybe Halliburton, that's it!!!
Alex, the disgust over the Daily Collegian is clearly a cause of it's "secret" bias. It is unfair that a University funded newspaper, that is the ONLY for students, to be so one-sided. If, however, The Daily Collegian would come right out and proclaim their liberal bias, there would be no problem, at least not from me. The problem stems from the fact that the expect people to consider them a respectable and fair source of news, when the opposite is actually true. I write my articles to the Daily Collegian because it is such a liberal outfit. I got a call today from the Collegian to confirm my article, so, maybe "we'll" get printed. As for the clip you sent me Alex, it was just so full of good points that it fueled my response. Thanks again for finding it.
Dr.Awkward
And one more thing I don't read the Collegian I was responding the article Dr. awkward posted. And journalists are suppose to be objective whether you are lib/ conseravtive it doesn't matter. Now I know no one is 100% objective, but come the Collegian doesn't come close. Don't pretend to be objective when you don't even try!!!!!!
Drawkward, i just recently noticed thats a palindrome, i was impressed. Anyway, i have nothing against you, because YOU, unlike our friends psuconservative here, do something, you write your opinion and send it off. You don't just bitch and moan about it being one sided, by providing your views and hoping to get them printed you are providing the other side. I have no problem with that. My problem comes when people are condescending and dont offer solutions, but instead just bitch and moan. Isn't that what the conservatives say that the liberals do with Bush? a lot of bitching and moaning but no clear alternative? no action? i challenge psuconservative to not call college students "kids" since he, himself, probably fits into that category, and do something about the "collegian's obvious bias."
Yes Alex it is a palindrome. I figured I was weird enough to be worth of it, haha. Nonetheless, I understand fully your disgust with the lethargic politics. I have that problem with nearly EVERY liberal I come into contact with who speak out against every little thing they disagree with yet offer nothing but emotionally disgraceful diplomacy. I think though, that if the readers here at least forward their opinions on to us it is a step in the right direction, whether left or right is up to that individual client. I see often that many people don't have a forum to express those opinions or feelings. Some people don't have many friends, like me, who don't have any interest in politics (my friends back home have HUGE intrests in politics but when I am up here at PSU I am stranded in silence). I hope that this forum provides those voiceless people with that friend to confide in or that friend to belligerently yell at for not simply understanding. Thats why I hope the word spreads about this quaint waiting room, so that we may all engage in the discussion of what, why, when and how.
Thanks for posting,
Dr.AwkwArD
The discussion and debate of the politcal and social issues of today are not only important for the growth of America as a whole, but that open discussion is what separates us from the those we are debating about. Alex and psuconservative may not agree, ever, but please don't resort to banter. Either present your idea peacefully or just agree to disagree. The thing that bothers me most is when arguing a particular point one steps away from the issue at hand and takes a stab at the person themself. In responce to your discussion I would like to say that firstly: the Daily Collegian Staff are not morons. They certainly do not adhere to the principles of journalism but than neither do most of all media outlets. Secondly can either of you support anything you said with information. What are the statistics of the college student politcal tendencies? And after you get these statistics ask yourself where you got them... Make sure it's a reliable source. With the internet today anybody and everybody will post just about anything. Reliability is key. And finally, who has the solutions? Obviously nobody can be certain how specific changes or not changes will affect the country, positively or negatively but I don't understand how one person can critize a policy or person without and a solution or even an idea of how to fix the problem. For example... Nobody like illegal immigration. I think that is clear. But what do we do about it. It's being debated today about what we should do. So what should we do? I personally don't have a original solution but at least ideas are being passed around.
As a final note/advise I'd like to give... the war in Iraq, whether you agree with why we are there or not... WE ARE THERE. We have soldiers dying every day and we need to support them. I'm not saying there weren't any mistakes but we have what we have and we must deal with it. Will we be better off after the smoke settles? Maybe... But as in all situations, if you don't take what you've learned through your mistakes and successes you will never grow as a country or as a person.
Glad to hear you're such a loyal Collegian reader.
Just wanted to let you know that your editorial got printed today - check it out: http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2006/04/04-07-06tdc/04-07-06dops-letter-08.asp
Keep reading. By the way, we're not as bad as you say we are.
However happy I am that my article got printed, Daily Collegian Person, I am just as pissed that you truncated the whole point of it.
"He is suggesting that we spend money to fund independent radio stations in vicious theocracies that would surely use them to push the ever famous Muslim agenda of "kill all infidels". Mohammad said it best, "I was ordered to fight the people until they believe in Allah and His Messenger." The Muslim nations must ask themselves what can they do for humankind, before they demand that humankind respect them. This sort of diplomacy that Ben Praster is suggesting is the same hippie thought that would have had us stand back and fund radio stations and semester abroads for Nazi Germany whilst Hitler raped the land and killed off the entire Jewish population."
Why even run my article if you are going to bastardize, dumb-down and politically correct what I said. You ripped apart the article and now the end that IS printed seems to have no correlation with the begining. I would much rather you not print it. At least contact me and tell me that you are editing my article so that I can retract it.
This just goes to show you, people in the waiting room, that even with the small drive to get your opinion out there, the censors and the people who make the decisions will always have the final say. This is precisely what discourages people, Alex.
Maybe you thought it was hate speech, maybe you thought it was over the top or maybe you just didn't agree but this isn't about agreeing or about hate. This is about real people, real events that are happening in our world right now. The Muslim tyranny is going on right now and it needs to be dealt with. Penn State needs to know that Islam is NOT a peaceful religion, and with this kind of censorship, that will never happen. Calm as hindu cows we will be if we are kept ignorant, Daily Collegian.
I suppose it is true; Oceania has always been at war with EastAsia.
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