Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros – Desert Song

Réalisateur: Benjamin Kutsko & Cory Marrero

ALBUM: Up From Below

Note très personnelle du blogueur: La première partie dure pratiquement sept minutes, la deuxième frôle neuf minutes et il reste encore dix parties à être créé. Est-ce trop? Il faut dire que chaque clip amène un bloc légo de plus à l’histoire qui sera complète au bout de ces douze parties.

Si le concept représente une tâche énorme, sachez qu’ils sont plusieurs réalisateurs à se relayer derrière la caméra. Pour celui-ci, c’est le duo Kutsko & Marrero. C’est la boîte de L.A. The Masses dont je vous parlais il y a quelques jours, qui produit l’immense projet.

Voici la première partie, la première chanson…

I am sure that many people are wondering what Mubarak is playing at after the hysterical and embarrassing theatrics that the Egyptian media arsenal has treated us to for the past week (and which intensified alarmingly following the defeat of the Egyptian national team in the play-off in Sudan). I certainly have been wondering what he could possibly hope to achieve from this masquerade. Initially, I read the analyses which interpreted it all as a carefully crafted plan to propel Gamal Mubarak into his father’s presidential spot, which he has been warming-up for his son for the past 30-odd years, keeping Egypt under the longest emergency state rule in modern history. This coup would make little Gamal the legitimate heir to the, erm, republic. I read these analyses without much conviction because it all seemed so surreal, so far-fetched, so desperate. To me, it was simply a football match which could not possibly sustain all the political accoutrements that were being slammed upon it.  How could anyone get to become president by manipulating the masses rapture which will be unleashed by qualifying to the World Cup? Are the masses really so stupid? And why would a dictator really care about legitimacy anyway when they can simply shove their wishes down their people’s throats? But the more time passed, and the louder the insults heaped on Algeria by the highest officials in Egypt, the more these hypotheses made sense. Algeria did not play into the Mubarak plan, Algeria ruined it for Gamal, Algeria is evil. What now, plan A failed and there is no plan Z because plan A was believed to be fail-safe. The best course of action was deemed to be that of ‘damage minimization’ it seems, attention must be deflected from the defeat at all cost and by all means. People’s fury must be directed away lest they start blaming the system which resulted or at least contributed to this misery. An enemy is needed, what better enemy than the Nemesis ‘Algeria’? Well, it’s either Algeria or the corrupt Mubarak dynasty, not much of a choice really eh.

Still doubtful? Well, you shouldn’t be because anyone who has been following recent events will not have failed to notice that the Egyptian narrative is almost exactly a carbon-copy of the Algerian narrative which followed the violent events that Algerian supporters experienced in Cairo. For example, the Algerian national team bus was pelted soon after they arrived in Cairo and the Egyptians claim the bus of their team was subjected to the same treatment in Sudan (however, unlike their Algerian counterparts, they have failed to produce any serious proof). In fact, FIFA has started disciplinary proceedings against Egypt following the Cairo incident but no similar actions have been initiated against Algeria or Sudan. Another example, Algerian fans reported that they have been humiliated, abused and beaten up (there was even one officially recorded case involving an Algerian fan who was stabbed by an Egyptian supporter) following the match in Cairo. The Egyptians produced a multitude of hear-say stories and phone calls to TV programmes all relating similar stories of humiliation, stabbings and ‘bloodbaths’ which took place in Sudan following the play-off match. All without a shred of evidence of course, and not only that, Sudanese officials and a number of Egyptian journalists who attended the events denied the rumours. However, the Egyptian histrionics continued regardless.

But now, the Egyptian have started to realize they have gone beyond the point of no return, and worse, they have reached a cul-de-sac. The masses’ furor is still raging and it shows no sign of appeasement, even after the torrent of abuse that was heaped on the Algerian enemy. Gamal is no more popular than he was before although his elder brother Alaa did register a slight increase in popularity after calling in a sports programme on telly and delivering this gem: ‘If you offend my dignity, I will beat you on the head’ (which of course refers to everything Algerian). None of the Arab brotherhood nor the international community took notice of the Egyptian self-made tragedy. So Egypt is starting to feel silly, plan Z backfired it seems because Algeria again messed up everything by not giving into the shameless provocations of the Egyptian side. So what now? If I were Mubarak, I would be a bit pissed off not knowing what would be best to do next. I suppose he could start putting people in jail as usual (Egypt is still under emergency law rule after all), and then maybe kill a few Algerians or maybe put them on trial. I don’t know really, it’s a toughie that one. What is clear is that the repercussions of this stupid political move will possibly take years to mend from the perspectives of the peoples of Egypt and Algeria.

Love is an interesting thing.

I just finished talking to my girlfriend and realized — what makes me feel the way I do about her?
I wasn’t sure. I’m thinking too much, as usual, but I think the question is valid. How and why do we fall in love? Why do we become so in deep with someone that we love them more than anything else in the world?
I think the answer is different. I fell in love with this girl because of her kindness and personality and it sort of expanded from there. Now I love her not only for her kindness. I love her hair, her eyes, her beauty, her knowledge of the Internet, her smile, her name… but not everyone falls for all of that. Love is confusing. We surrender everything for one person and trust them unconditionally. Nothing else on this planet works that way, but unconditional love seems to cause that sense of trust that can’t be done any other way.
To a logical individual, love shouldn’t work. And it does anyways. I find that strange. And at the same time, I see love going beautifully every day I see my girlfriend. I know how it happens, I just don’t know how it works…
Life is weird.
See you tomorrow.

~mike

Health- Die slow

Réalisateur: ??

ALBUM: Get Color

Note très personnelle du blogueur: J’ai trouvé le montage assez fou, mais pour le reste je ne suis pas certain de savoir où le clip veut vraiment s’en aller.

As always, Shannon Hale’s Books of Bayern do not cease to impress me. The series continues with Razo’s younger sister, Rin, who has always felt isolated from her family. Rin has a special connection with the trees that no one understands; they seem to calm her instantly. But lately, the trees have not been “speaking” to her. When her older brother Razo comes with his girlfriend (or beau, I suppose. I’m not sure what they would call her in that point in time.), Dasha, she sets out with them to see the city, and find who “Rin” truly is.

Shannon Hale’s use of magic as “languages” brings you even closer to the characters, as you discover with them what their true potentials are: whether it be water speaking, animal speaking, or fire speaking. I always find her books refreshing from the typical stories out there, and I look forward to other books she may write.

To reserve Shannon Hale’s Forest Born, click on the picture

~Lindsay

M- Est-ce que c’est ça ?

Réalisateur: Stéphane Berla

ALBUM: Mister Mystère

Note très personnelle du blogueur: Un beau clip qui explique enfin la mécanique du coup de foudre!

I had this installed in Jan of this year and within a couple of days was regreting the move from Sky. I had been with Sky for approx 8 years with zero problems and had even upgraded to their HD box.

The virgin box looks quite slick and fit’s in nicely under my TV but I have to say the sky box looks more sleek and stylish.

The menu system on the virgin box is appalling ,with clunky menu on black background that looks far to busy and is difficult to navigate through, the menus are laid out with little thought to the user and with the horrendous lag that can happen is a real pain to use.

V+ works fine but again lag plays a big part slowing the whole experience down. On demand is a nice feature but is such a chore to trawl through to find what you want and when you do start watching a series they kindly pull the plug half way through watching so really it’s only on demand when they say.

HD content was at the start zero, I took the service thinking there would be lot’s of great HD content, how wrong could I have been, from the start it was BBC trailers and that’s it, they have added over the last few months but nowhere near the content Sky puts out.

Picture quality was very poor and again I questioned this with the so called engineers who botched my install, and there pearl of wisdom was to downscale to 720p, Sky broadcast at 1080i and the quality was far superior.

In all I have been disappointed with the whole virgin service, from installation, picture quality, V+ Box, content, It’s a shame as they could have a decent service but I will be returning to Sky after the contract is up.

Smiddy rating: S

Monday, November 30, 2009

With things like this going on the now Political Correct Armed Forces it a wonder anyone vlunteers to serve and defend our Country!

Posted by Jax Hawk on Monday, November 30, 2009 10:58:56 AM

The following story is almost unbelievedable in a time of war. It is though some Nazi high Command general had been captured after he killed thousands of American soldiers in an ambush and burned their bodies in a large bonfire that was still smoldering when he was captured. The small group of Rangers that captured him was so enraged that they rough him up before he was turned over to the prisoner of war camp.

When they returned to their unit no citation or medals were forthcoming, but charges of brutality were brought against the unit and they were tried and court martialed!
If this had happened the morale of the fighting men who learned about this heinous and wrong headed charge would have a grave affect on the fighting capability of the men and women trying hard to defeat the Nazi’s. We might have lost the war!

Now comes this story from Fox News about a group of Navy Seals. The most highly trained and dedicated unit in the Service that I am proud to have served a very long time ago.

These brave men put their own lives on the line every time they go on a mission. They do things that no other unit can do and it takes dedication and a heroic effort to just become a Navy Seal!

“Navy SEALs had secretly captured one of the most wanted terrorists in Iraq — the alleged mastermind of the murder and mutilation of four Blackwater USA security guards in Fallujah in 2004. And three of the SEALs who captured him are now facing criminal charges!.

The three, all members of the Navy’s elite commando unit, have refused non-judicial punishment — called an admiral’s mast — and have requested a trial by court-martial.

Ahmed Hashim Abed, whom the military code-named “Objective Amber,” told investigators he was punched by his captors — and he had the bloody lip to prove it.
Now, instead of being lauded for bringing to justice a high-value target, three of the SEAL commandos, all enlisted, face assault charges and have retained lawyers.

Matthew McCabe, a Special Operations Petty Officer Second Class (SO-2), is facing three charges: dereliction of performance of duty for willfully failing to safeguard a detainee, making a false official statement, and assault.

Pettty Officer Jonathan Keefe, SO-2, is facing charges of dereliction of performance of duty and making a false official statement.

Petty Officer Julio Huertas, SO-1, faces those same charges and an additional charge of impediment of an investigation.
The three SEALs will be arraigned separately on Dec. 7!

The official handwritten statement from one of the three witnesses [was] given on Sept. 3, hours after Abed was captured and still being held at the SEAL base at Camp Baharia. He was later taken to a cell in the U.S.-operated Green Zone in Baghdad. . . .

The detainee was turned over to Iraqi authorities, to whom he made the abuse complaints. He was then returned to American custody. The SEAL leader reported the charge up the chain of command, and an investigation ensued. (you will notice that he complained about abuse while he was in the custody of Iraqi’s, could they have done the “fat lip” is my question?)

The source said intelligence briefings provided to the SEALs stated that “Objective Amber” planned the 2004 Fallujah ambush, and “they had been tracking this guy for some time.”

The Fallujah atrocity came to symbolize the brutality of the enemy in Iraq and the degree to which a homegrown insurgency was extending its grip over Iraq.

Blackwater agents were transporting supplies for a catering company when they were ambushed and killed by gunfire and grenades. Insurgents burned the bodies and dragged them through the city. They hanged two of the bodies on a bridge over the Euphrates River for the world press to photograph.

Intelligence sources identified Abed as the ringleader, but he had evaded capture until September.

The military is sensitive to charges of detainee abuse highlighted in the Abu Ghraib prison scandal. The Navy charged four SEALs with abuse in 2004 in connection with detainee treatment.
They are sensitive because I believe political pressure and negative press about the Iraq war has made them have “rabbit ears”!
If we were’t so “sensitive,” perhaps less American troops would die. The world is laughing at this ridiculous treatment of our own men. Why would anyone want to serve if this is what they get in return? Catch a terrorist murderer and get court martialed?

If you’re looking for a true story that showcases both American heroism and Afghani humanity, Marcus Luttrell’s Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10 (Little, Brown, $24.99), written with Patrick Robinson, may be the book for you.

Travis Sturgill

One question comes to mind that stands out above the rest: Was it worth it?

My response: It was definitely worth it.

As a child, I never had the desire to go to college. School was nothing but a place to socialize and I did only the minimum amount of work I needed to squeak by with average grades.

A few days after graduating from high school, I joined the Marines, and spent the following four years shooting things with a machine gun, exploring the world and praying the end of my enlistment would arrive.

When I finally did get out, the original plans I had for my post-Marine Corps life fell through, and I decided to enroll at Jefferson Community and Technical College to rake in the GI Bill money while I figured out what I wanted to do.

After my first year at JCTC, I still had no idea what I wanted to study or what career path I wanted to pursue, but I knew that going to school was one of the best decisions I had made.

One day, during my second semester, one of my English teachers said some kind words regarding a paper I had written. After she mentioned journalism, I knew it was exactly what I wanted to get my degree in.

I had initially planned to go to Western Kentucky University after I graduated from JCTC, but the idea of living with a bunch of eleventeen-year-olds on or near the campus wasn’t appealing at all.

Thankfully, IU Southeast was right across the river.

The educational experience here has been better than the one at a community college. Most of the professors here know what they’re talking about and honestly want to help you — even if some of them occasionally let their personal viewpoints dilute the material.

What’s more, the old adage, “You get out of it what you put into it,” is true at our school, as well as anything else we do in life.

Our school, and definitely the journalism program, doesn’t have the resources or funding that Bloomington or other comparable schools enjoy, yet that doesn’t affect the learning process or the knowledge shared by our professors.

We do more with less, and I wouldn’t want it any other way. Nothing worth having will ever be easy.

A lifelong friend and fellow IUS student once told me we really are gaining knowledge while we are in school, even if we don’t realize it.

He recently had a conversation with an old high school friend of his, who had dropped out of college after the first year.

During the course of the conversation, my friend was talking about a concept he had picked up during the four years he had been in school that made perfect sense to him. It was completely comprehensible, yet the other guy had no clue what or why he was talking about it.

That was when he realized that getting an education gives you a different outlook on the world, and it allowed him to think differently about important subjects or issues that have an impact on his life.

He called me shortly after that and said, “You know, we really are learning here, man.”

He’s right.

Almost every week, something new I’m learning ties in with something else I had learned in a previous semester.

After the two or more bits of information are molded together, I find myself overcome with a feeling of satisfaction and understanding.

I’ve often complained about taking general education classes that I thought had nothing to do with what I was studying. In my ignorance, I didn’t realize that, as an aspiring journalist, having knowledge about a multitude of subjects only benefits me and will allow me to better execute my responsibilities when writing a news story.

Even if you’re not a journalism major, general education classes can only help you. Initially, we don’t see the point, but in the end, it all makes sense.

Even if you graduate and feel like you didn’t learn a thing, you can still say you’ve completed something you started.

Our education is something that can never be taken away and it’s something that can never do us harm.

The endless doors and opportunities that will be opened cannot be purchased, and it’s our duty as successful graduates to take advantage of them.

For me, IU Southeast has been the second chapter of my life since graduating from high school.

Both experiences were different and, as the passage of time provides nostalgic snapshots of the previous years, I know they were not wasted.

—30—

By TRAVIS STURGILL
Editor
trsturgi@ius.edu

Amy Faulhaber

Nearing the end of 17 years of education, the last four years spent in college have been some of the most wearisome and rewarding.

The thought of finally washing my hands of school is is a most frightening and exhilarating sensation.

There are things I will miss dearly and things that if I never have to do again, it’ll be too soon.

I will not miss the sudden rush of terror at the announcement of a pop quiz, or the dull ache in my stomach when I realize a mistake I made on a test that I just turned in.

I won’t miss professors that think they’re too lofty to sympathize or connect with their students.

I won’t miss the insufferable know-it-all classmates who, whenever they open their mouths, prove how little they understand.

I will not miss feeling like a zombie after studying for hours on end, missing out on fun because I’m up to my eyeballs in assignments, or, most of all, my hour-plus commute, which could be reduced to 30 minutes were it not for the bedevilment of my life — the Kennedy Bridge.

However, the sufferings I’ve endured at the hands of my education pale in comparison to the people and experiences that have made it all worthwhile.

There have been professors like Jim St. Clair, professor of journalism, whose patience and understanding make him deserving of canonization.

There have been professors dedicated to providing students with real-life experience, like Ron Allman, associate professor of journalism.

These professors have toughened my skin and sharpened my skills, so I feel like I can kick tail and take names once this is all over.

There have been professors I’ve started out hating, and ended up loving.

There have been professors who have opened my mind to new ways of thinking, that have been delightfully deranged and that make me smile every time I think about them.

These tireless souls are the true servants and leaders of our campus. As a student body we would be bettered for showing them how much they mean to us, and that we couldn’t do this without them.

There have also been my peers — the good, the bad and the ugly.

Many of them have made my college experience something I could possibly look fondly on — after a few months of rest and recuperation.

One of the best things I’ve learned through college is you don’t have to agree with someone to thoroughly enjoy their company.

One of the biggest shockers on entering a university is rapidly realizing that not everyone agrees with you.

Unfortunately, many students let that keep them from making friends, and they’ve missed out on so much.

If you limit yourself to associating only with people who are your carbon philosophical, political and lifestyle copy, life becomes a little more boring, and we all know that shouldn’t be encouraged.

So, there have been the cherished friends in every capacity — the yin to my yang — the last-second lifesavers who’ve got my back before a test, the pranksters, the fellow sufferers, the playful antagonists and the one-semester-wonders that casually come into my life and make it a little brighter before we go our separate ways.

The question, however, is after all of this, what happens now? With all of this build-up, I feel like a magician’s lovely assistant as the climax of the act approaches.

With the grand finale of my college career nearly upon me, my knees begin to shake ever so slightly, and my palms moisten as I step forward on the stage.

Though I’ve prepared and practiced for this, the thought of it all coming to that pivotal moment makes my head feel light.

Will I remember what I’ve rehearsed, what I’ve prepared for, what others have taught me so I can pull this off?

Still, I hold my head high, hit my mark and strike my pose. The moment arrives — time to prove that it’s all sunk in.

The prestige, the grand reveal, for all the world to see and be the judge of its value, and every eye is on me waiting to succeed or fail.

It doesn’t have to be real for them to be convinced, and if I can dazzle them with enough hocus-pocus, it will all be worth it.

With any luck, I won’t just disappear.

—30—

By AMY FAULHABER
Editor
amfaulha@ius.edu

Eric McGuffin

In the Patriots’ game against the Indianapolis Colts, the Patriots dominated the majority of the game, leading 31-14 with 14:18 remaining in the game.

I know one should never count out Colts quarterback, Peyton Manning, but I thought this one made history.

The Colts quickly answered with a touchdown and eventually found themselves trailing by a score of 34-28 with a little more than two minutes left in the game.

Following a touchdown run by Colts running back, Joseph Addai, to cut the lead to six, the Patriots took over on their own 20-yard line. Following three plays, they found themselves staring at fourth-and-2 from their own 28-yard line.

Then the big call of the game came.

The call was for the Patriots to go for it on fourth down and risk the chance of giving the ball to the NFL’s arguably best quarterback with a short field and plenty of time to operate.

Well, the Patriots did not make the fourth down and Manning led the Colts to the end zone to complete the 37th fourth quarter comeback in his career.

While I am not a fan of either team, I laughed to myself as I saw Kevin Faulk get stopped short of the first-down marker. Belichick had this coming to him.

Belichick is an amazing football coach who led the Patriots to three Super Bowl victories, but I really don’t like him.

He has always come across as cocky and arrogant, and he did once again in the press conference following the Indianapolis-New England game.

While I understand that if the Patriots get the first down they win the game, this was the worst call I have seen in all of my years watching football.

The only reaction Belichick had when asked about his bone-headed call was, “I thought we could get the yard.”

He repeatedly said how he felt confident his team would get the yard, although they actually needed two yards.

He also took a shot at the officials by saying he did not see any way that they did not get the yard following Faulk’s catch.

I was not surprised to see this brashness out to Belichick.

He makes a habit of not releasing information to the media, but people are so enamored with him that he never gets the criticism he deserves — until now.

In the days following the game, people were not talking about “Belichick the genius” like they usually do. Instead, they were talking about “Belichick the bone-head,” who made a terrible decision and cost his team a game which they had dominated for three quarters.

It could not have happened to a better person.

By ERIC MCGUFFIN
Editor
demcguff@ius.edu

Don’t laugh, yes you……stop it. I know it leans a little but I couldn’t find my cake leveler. I baked a buttermilk spice cake with cream cheese frosting for Thanksgiving. There were so many mistakes with this cake I don’t even know where to begin. First, you shouldn’t try this recipe unless you have a stand mixer….I don’t. You will also need a few extra hands to pour the oil and drizzle the buttermilk while mixing, plan ahead for this. If you do it yourself (like me) then you may accidentally pour some of the oil into the vent holes of your hand mixer and freak out when it starts smoking and sets off the smoke alarms. Make sure  your cake will fit into your cake box before frosting or transporting it could be a problem. Don’t worry if it looks funny, it will still taste delicious. You can find the recipe I used here.

My second contribution this Thanksgiving is something I always bake around the holidays. Challah is a traditional Jewish bread served with the sabbath meals and at the holidays. My family is a blended family of Christian and Jewish faiths so I have always tried to incorporate a little of both in the food. Because I have never found the proper pan to cook this in, the dough relaxes and doesn’t retain that tight braided look of most challahs. I kind of like it this way. I love making bread because of the suspense. You never know if it’s good until you cut it open. This was a good one.

As for other oops, there was plenty. I made baked beans that wouldn’t get done. 4 hours in the oven and 1 1/2 desperate hours on the stove top and they still weren’t done. These were the toughest navy beans I had ever seen. We had to leave so they went as is. Tasted good but a crunchier texture…lol. The stuffing with turkey gravy came out okay, no drama until I picked it up or I should say I tried to pick it up and the aluminum foil pan collapsed and I burnt my wrist saving it. Still it was a good day, good food (lumpias, calamari, ham and garlic shrimp with green beans casserole…yum!) but most of all good company. Hope you had a good Thanksgiving too.

The Court did not release any new opinions this morning.  Next opportunity for new opinions comes a week from today.

We are beginning to assemble our initial statistical analysis of the civil opinions in the Court’s term so far, using the Court’s break in oral argument to focus on the statistics.  Look for its release in the next few weeks.

I just realized, “we make friends as we go…we learn a few stuff, we teach a few stuff…As we go on with our life, things change, priorities change, we change and they change…but there are very few of those, who would stay n mean the same to you… and for whom u wud stay and mean the same! I am lucky to have not one, not two but 3 of them and they are lucky to have me too ” 

This was something I wrote first thing in the morning on Saturday………updated it on facebook…don’t ask me why! 

I wrote I just realized but what I meant by that, its not something new, its not something that I never felt before…but its something that I felt it once again…reassuringly happy  

I used to feel bad before, if one of my friends [not best friends] say that I don’t know much of them…I used to feel, I should have known them enough and all that…now, I don’t…. its not because I love them less, but its because I should respect their feelings too. 

At college, we make friends, friends for life we say! No matter what, we would say to each other, we will stay together, and whenever you need help, we will stand by you and support you! I don’t know about you guys, but I felt we could stay and keep our promises…and I still feel that! 

There were few friends of mine, who used to try to make me understand that it’s not possible, once we are out, we’ll get on with our own life and forget everything! I never agreed and I would never agree! Nothing wrong on their side, I suppose, its just the perspective…for me, if you think you cant, you never will!! It’s about understanding and respecting each other’s space and priorities…and it’s about security that no matter what you would stay n mean the same for them…. 

 Two reasons, one, I never believed in that…two, I have proof now that we wont! It’s been 2 years since we left college and my 3 best friends are the same to me still! We live in 3 different time zones; we don’t speak that often now since we are too busy with work and everything…but touchwood, we exactly know how each others life is! We never missed an important and essential phone call and we are all always there to share happiness when one achieves something, and frustration when one of us is having tough time at office. In 2yrs time, we would be married, and step into an all new world………I am sure, however, we will give each other space and time to settle down…but we will stay with each other and share the same feeling…I am sure the other 3 agree 100% with me and have the same if not more confidence! 

I feel, all this is because we understand each other very well…we have a similar background and up bringing and at the end of the day, we all respect parents and they are most valuable than anyone else in life…So we would not feel bad that one of us dint do something because she had something sudden [not necessarily imp] at home! We would surely ask her to compensate for it but never take it as a serious stuff and nag her. We all are completely different from each other personality wise, but we respect those differences!! We know as we move ahead with life, each one of us will face different circumstances, we surely share that with each other to make everyone aware of how is it in that part of world!

And above all, WE NEVER PLANNED TO DO ALL THIS! IT CAME NATURALLY AND THIS I THINK IS GOD’S GIIFT! AND THIS IS PROBABLY CALLED UNCONDITIONAL LOVE! 

This post is dedicated to those 3 friends of my life – renu, sam and plava…and of course myself for being

1)       Such an awesome foursome

2)      For teaching one another how to be more accepting, loving and respectful

3)      For learning how to respect differences and how to see the similarities

4)      For being happy souls and for inspiring others to be happy

5)      For making each other believe in oneself and allow to grow into the persons we are now!

6)      For just being there!

Love You Loads!

Yours lovingly,

Ramya

Oh don’t go away that soon…I have more to say…as I updated this status message, I soon got a comment saying “ Ramya, hand raised”. There I sat thinking, oh yeah! How could I miss?

 Yes, I am more blessed than you think I am…There are 3 more friends in my life, whom I considered as friends when I did not know how to spell it. 12 years passed before we spoke to one another again …… lost and found like we joke…. I remembered them very well all through these years but not once did I expect them to find me again searching! I was sooo glad and jumping with joy when I saw the scrap…. one more reason to love orkut: P

And here I am, feeling more blessed, feeling happier and feeling luckier to have my childhood friends back Thank you, Jay, Vinay and Anila  

This is a post of celebration of friendship and the true meaning of it ……I dedicate it to us – me, jay vinay and anila another awesome foursome I say!

Love

Me

rah-rah-ah-ah-ah

roma roma-ma

ga-ga, oh-la-la

wow that sound is definitely stuck in my head XD

i know i havent posted for more than a week and i really dont have an excuse other that im quite a lazy person XD

but writing helps me to release? is that the right word? but yeah. and im not a particularly artistic or inspired person but i do have my moments

unfortunately nothing has very much inspired me today but i kind sort of feel a spark coming on

there’s a phrase that particularly appeals to me in the bad romance lyrics by lady gaga and that is “I want your love, I dont wanna be friends’”

I feel as though it spoke to me, like it’s trying to remind me of all the heart breaks I’ve endured so far and although most people might agree that time erases heart breaks, I really hope for the opposite.

To me, I feel as though that memories should always be kept with us forever, both good and bad. I’m always terrified when i forget something especially with past relationships because I feel if the only parts that I can remember are the happy ones, I’m not sure if I’ve made them up. Which sounds a bit strange I suppose but I know that sometimes if you believe in your fantasies enough you can actually delude yourself into thinking that they have actually happened.

So I take the good with the bad even though it hurts a lot sometimes but hey all this is part of life and the amazing experiences that everyone is sure to enjoy in their lifetime

So sometimes, remembering everything is not such a bad thing

The new war that El Salvador faces is that of gang violence. The rising amount of youth that are joining up to these so called “families” is alarming. Most documentary makers that have had the guts to enter into that particular war zone in El Salvador have time and time again heard from the horse’s mouth the reason for why so many of the youth of El Salvador join these gangs. The primary reason is that they are looking for a family. They are looking to be accepted, loved and cared for.

Many of the kids who join these gangs have either lost a parent, in particular their father, or their parents are illegally living and working in the USA. Many of these kids for one reason or another run away from the family who were looking after them while their parents left to seek a better life in the US.

The irony is that the parents took risks to illegally enter the US to work and make money to better the life of their families back in El Salvador and their children are the ones who now are making hell on earth both in the US and in El Salvador.

The gang members are often far too uneducated, backward thinking and so entrenched in their erroneous belief that somehow gang violence and activities is going to better their life and El Salvador’s. These gangs do not realise that all their activity and action is doing is impeding economic growth and causing a brain drain on the country. Gang members often do not think of the cause and effect of their actions. The gang mentality is a mentality of cyclical revenge and it can only end in death.

Many gang members claim that they want respect, they do not want to be oppressed, they want to have money and power. They don’t realise that their way is the wrong way; their way will never bring them to a place of peace and prosperity. Most of these gang members are nothing but drug addicts, drug sellers and murderers. These gangs are large and well organised but they never reach the heights of life that they aspire to live, or if they do its short lived because they too are killed.  

How did MS13 and 18 Street get to El Salvador? The answer is easy: deportation from the US. In the video below “killing to belong” gang members cite “white oppression on Hispanics” as the reason why their gangs started. Entire families illegally entered the US over the past decades running away from poverty and desperation only to find life in the US worse as they were no longer in their homeland. Their children have little education; their children fall into the wrong company and adopt the bitterness and hatefulness of those that preceded them in the gangs. More often than not the gang members have no real idea why they truly feel all that hate and anger, its usually because they are just told “that’s how this gang works” and that’s it. When these young people and adults are caught committing crimes in the US the US government in the 90’s adopted the easy solution of getting rid of the problem by transfer it somewhere else… El Salvador. Now this problem has rapidly spread not only in the US but into other central American countries.

There have been many methods tried and tested in El Salvador to try and eliminate gang violence. None have yet to be proven as fruitful as what is known as ‘sombra negra’. The term ‘sombra negra’ translates to black shadow. The Sombra Negra were death squad groups  that emerged in the 1990’s who target criminals and gang members for vigilante justice. The gangs emerged in greater number after the US deported large numbers of criminals and gang members and upon arriving in El Salvador were deemed to be free men. At the risk of sounding like I am lowering myself to the gang member’s standard I will admit that this has been the only known effective method that has in the past controlled the aggravated violence perpetrated by these street gangs. Other anti-gang policies failed to even make a dent into the problem.

In the 90’s and early 00’s the governments of central America and El Salvador tried to introduced the unsubstantial plans of ‘Mano Dura’ and ‘Super Mano Dura’ or Iron Fist and Super Iron fist plans. These plans had all fairies and lights but not guts and did little to curb gang violence and activities. Perhaps sombra negra is the answer, for now.

A great article on El Salvador’s gangs is located here.

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