Brown v. the Board of Education

If you are not familiar with it, Brown v. the Board of Education was a landmark case in the civil rights movement, which abolished racial segregation in school.

The quote that I wanted to share that relates directly to this case comes from Linda Brown (the daughter of Oliver Brown, the main plaintiff in the case):

. . . like I say, we lived in an integrated neighborhood and I had all of these s of different nationalities. And so when I found out that day that I might be able to go to their school, I was just thrilled, you know. And I remember walking over to Sumner School with my dad that day and going up the steps of the school and the school looked so big to a smaller child. And I remember going inside and my dad spoke with someone and then he went into the inner office with the principal and they left me out . . . to sit outside with the secretary. And while he was in the inner office, I could hear voices and hear his voice raised, you know, as the conversation went on. And then he immediately came out of the office, took me by the hand and we walked home from the school. I just couldn't understand what was happening because I was so sure that I was going to go to school with Mona and Guinevere, Wanda, and all of my s...

What was the racial segregation really about, besides pure selfish pride. And although racial segregation is not as rampant today, why do some in today's society feel that we need to uphold our own selfish endeavors? Why can we not accept the simple, yet powerful outlook of Linda Brown, and outlook where nothing of that kind matters and we are judged on who we really are?

What are your thoughts?

Technological Advances and How They Relate to Society

I came across the following article online the other day, and it fascinated me. Not only is this a massive advancement in the field of medicine, but it caused me to reflect on our discussions in socratic regarding society.

Through our discussions, we seem to have come up many times with the statement that there can be no such thing as a perfect society. I agree with this, to the extent that humans, by nature, are not perfect. However, I believe that it is possible to strive for that idea of “perfectness”.

This statement, of course refers back to the principle that everyone has a differing opinion on what the idea of “perfectness” is. Each of us has a set of guidelines and morals which govern our behaviors, and as a result two individuals might come up with conflicting ideas of what is perfect. This also refers back to the statement that everything that we do is based on one driving moral, which for most is based of a selfish desire (whether it be self-preservation, self-satisfaction, etc.) So referring back to the article, did the scientists who created this new advancement do it for selfish purposes (self gain) or for the betterment of society? Of course we cannot know the thoughts and motivations behind the decisions of others but it is evident that even if they were based off a selfish motive, the application of the product can serve to better others.

So is everything that an individual does based off of a selfish desire? I would say absolutely not. Although many times we are able to link actions that are seemingly selfless to a selfish desire, I believe that this is not always the case. For example, some would argue that people complete acts of service so they can get the “warm fuzzies” that come from doing it. Although this can be true, I think that there will always be people who find that getting those good feelings are only a signifier that they have done something beneficial rather then serving only for that purpose.

So although society seems to be on an ever lowering standard of selfishness, I believe that there will always be those who are able to be above that standard.

What are your thoughts?

Article:

" A snakebite antivenom has been developed that is more powerful than conventional antidotes and works even when it is unclear exactly what species of snake has bitten the victim.
Snakebites kill tens of thousands of people each year, yet supplies of traditional antivenom are drying up. The inventors of the new antidote hope it will be taken up in the poor countries where it is most needed.
Snake venom contains a complex tail of tissue-destroying enzymes. The only antidote till now has been the antibody-rich serum extracted from the of horses after they have been injected with venom milked from snakes.
In recent years, big companies have stopped making antivenom as it is increasingly unprofitable: the serum needs to be purified to meet stringent safety standards, animal rights activists object because the horses suffer, and most of the people who need the product can't afford it. Serum against African snakes is now especially scarce.

Simon Wagstaff and colleagues at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine in the UK have now made a serum without using snake venom. Instead, they started with the DNA of the carpet viper, which is responsible for the majority of snakebite s in west Africa, and looked for the genes that are active when the snake is refilling its venom sacs.
A dozen of these genes code for metalloprotease enzymes that destroy vessels and cause haemorrhaging. From these genes they created a “consensus” sequence that resembles as closely as possible all the different genes.
From this generic gene they took seven DNA stretches that code for parts of the outside of the protein molecules and should therefore elicit antibody responses in the body, and joined these together to make a single strand.
Sure enough, when they injected this synthetic DNA into mice, the animals made antibodies to these parts of the protein. When serum extracted from these animals was tested on other mice it was more powerful than classic serum against carpet viper venom, but also against other west African vipers, and even a viper from north Africa."

UVU Write Now! Workshop

Last Saturday, I attended the Write Now! workshop at UVU. It was a very interesting program, and I learned about many new forms of writing, including technical communication. Technical communication has to do with combining graphic design and writing to create a work that persuades an individual or group to do something. Part of this workshop was to create your own piece of technical communication, persuading someone to go to prom with you. I paired up with Lizzie Leake and we came up with this (I'm not sure how anyone could be persuaded not to go after being presented with this):

Haiku

As a result of the discussion of Asian poetry from last week, I decided to post a haiku. Tell me what you think:

A coyote stalks
Through canyon moonlight looking,
Silently walking

Thoughts on Islam project

Although our Islam projects were relatively a while ago, here are some thoughts that I had on mine:

Although Islamic culture has always interested me, I had not previously studied the details of the culture and religion. It was very interesting to be able to study some those aspects through personal experience, namely the fasting for Ramadan and abstaining from pork and pork products.

Throughout the Islamic calendar month of Ramadan, Muslims fast each day from dawn to dusk. The principle of fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam (Sawm). For part of my project I decided to fast for a few days, by the standards of the Ramadan fast. Fasting from dawn to dusk was not quite as difficult as I previously imagined, although I can’t even comprehend trying to fast throughout the entire month. I did, however, gain some insight into the positive side of fasting.

Fasting, in that way, becomes a disciplinary tool for both your body (abstention from food/drink) and your mind. It can also become a useful tool for managing your anger. During this fasting period, Muslims are also expected to put more effort into refraining from impatience. This can be a very difficult thing to accomplish in normal circumstances, and is only magnified by hunger and thirst. Being able to fast throughout the entire month is a vast testament of their religious devotion.

The other component of my project was abstaining from pork and pork products. Abstaining form pork is outlined in the Qu'ran: "Forbidden to you for (food) are: meat, and the flesh of the swine and that which hath been invoked the name other than Allah.” It is also a medically sound principle. Pigs are often times carriers of parasites and diseases because of their indifference to their food source.

Refraining from pork in and of itself was very difficult because I did have to abstain from common things such as pork roast for Sunday dinner, and bacon for breakfast. This gave me some insight (on a smaller scale) into what Muslims deal with every day. The abstention of pork products, however, was not very cumbersome. This is because lard, which showed up in many foods (Oreos, Twinkies, Hostess pies, etc.) is no longer used because of its high concentration of fat.

In conclusion, this project was very beneficial to me in learning and experiencing at least a small portion of the Islamic culture. It was fascinating to be able to gain the additional insight into the beliefs in the Islamic faith, and I am eager to share my experiences with others.

Childhood Memories

For a bellwrite from last week, we were asked to write about different aspects of our neighborhood. This really caused me to reflect again to my childhood as I grew up in the same neighborhood. One thing that jumped immediately into my mind was the legacy of Mrs. Eager. As our neighborhood is circular formation, there is a hill which marks the center. On top of this hill sits a quaint Victorian-styled house. But inside those walls lived a monster of inconceivable proportions.

I never personally saw Mrs. Eager throughout my childhood and even to this day. Throughout the day, she stayed in her house with all the curtains drawn. Whenever she went out, she drove directly out of her garage in her car with tinted windows. However, we got to be very well acquainted with her arm. Every morning as the paper was delivered (directly onto her front doorstep), the door would creek open and her arm would snake out and retrieve it.

So to this day almost no one has witnessed a sighting of Mrs. Eager, and those who have do not often speak on it.

Today in socratic, we got into a discussion about whether or not religious texts such as the Qur'an should be taught and discussed in the classroom.

In my personal opinion, these texts should be taught because they help us to better understand and explore other religions and cultures. In today's world it is absolutely essential to be able to understand other cultures and peoples. If we do not, be become ignorant to the world around us. There are so many situations in history where a lack of understanding towards a nation/people has led to major conflict.

What are your thoughts?

Twisted Fairytale (Revised)

“Bibbity, bobbity, boo!” Ever since I signed on with the fairy godmother and her travelling sales show, those three words have become the bane of my existence. You see, I’m a shoe. A pair of glass slippers to be exact, not that being made of glass makes being a shoe any more pleasant.

Anyway, in those days there wasn’t a lot of work for two small glass shoes, so I did the only thing that I could do. I signed on with The Fairy Godmother’s Travelling Magical Services (and Affordable Magical Products), which ended up being one of the biggest mistakes I’d ever make. The fairy godmother would pack up her wagon with her magical products every Friday night, and head out looking for a beautiful princess or wretched maiden to cater her magical services to.

As soon as she found one (which wasn’t usually too difficult, they all seemed to end up sobbing in the same place), she would smack the lever on the side of the wagon. Up from the wagon flew streamers and fireworks, just in case you missed the fluorescent lettering that blared “The Fairy Godmother’s Travelling Magical Services (and Affordable Magical Products).” Then she’d bound up onto the auctioneer’s stand that popped out of the wagon’s floor (not an easy feat when taking into account the large stature of the fairy godmother), her muumuu flapping wildly in the breeze. She would then begin to yell out to the poor maid who would sit frozen in confusion.

“Hello, folks!” she would yell. “And welcome to the greatest deal of your life. Today we’re having a special on beautiful ball gowns, two for one; and you’ll also get a free pair of glass slippers, courtesy of . . .” She’d pause for exactly two seconds and then whisper in a thoughtful voice, “. . . your fairy godmother.” Then she’d launch into a speech of dizzying speed: “We also have mice that turn to horses, mice that turn to coachmen, pumpkins that turn to carriages, poison apples, sedative spinning needles, broomsticks in the latest styles, magical mirrors, and . . .” She’d stop for a quick gasp, “and . . . a monkey named Abu!”

After a few more minutes of relentless sales-pitching, the poor young maid would be so confused that she’d stumble up to the wagon, the fairy godmother would swindle her into buying some bogus magical product, and then we’d be on our way to the next town before that maid could say fat fairy godmothers. It was always of utmost importance that we get out of town before midnight.

You see, that was the great scam of the fairy godmother. She’d swindle you into purchasing her products for ridiculous amounts, and then at the last stroke of midnight, they’d all turn back into what they really were: beautiful ball gown to shabby rags, refined coachmen to mice, carriages to pumpkins (this can get messy). She is still considered the greatest con-artist of the middle ages.

Now this was just perfect for the fairy godmother, but every time she made a deal, we ended up with the dirty work. And by dirty work, I mean it literally. You see, the godmother seemed to have a knack for finding maidens with . . . shall we say . . . odiferous feet. Usually at the end of the long, grueling, and stinky day, it was all I could do to stumble back in and find my place among the other glass slippers (the fairy godmother bought most of her supplies in bulk from Costco).

By this time, I was sure that I had become pro at “stinky.” That was until that fateful night. It started out like the rest: we embarked in the fairy godmother’s sales wagon and headed to the sobbing maiden hot spot. Sure enough, we heard the sounds of a maiden sobbing (go figure). The fairy godmother drove silently into the clearing, taking extra precautions so as not to run over any small dwarves (that’s another story). She then silenced the horse’s stride, and slammed down the lever.

As the maiden gave a startled shriek, the godmother went through her standard sales spiel, and, as usual, the maiden confusedly stumbled up with a bewildered look on her face. She then was swindled into buying some things, which unfortunately included me. As I was placed into the hands of the fair maid, I braced myself for what was to come. As I realized later, nothing could have prepared me.

I held my breath apprehensively as I was lifted towards her foot. As I was placed on her foot, a sickening sludge smeared my glass, preventing me from seeing. I gasped as the horrendous slime encased my interior. As I gasped, a nauseating stench filled my nostrils (or lack thereof). It smelled as though this fair maid had bathed her feet in a tub of limburger and then, just for an added touch, marinated them in garlic. As if this wasn’t enough, she had a large bunion on each big toe. This was not in the contract.

I frantically swiped at my smudged glass just in time to watch the godmother’s wagon disappear into the wooded night. Now I was stuck with this smelly-footed sister for the night. Fortunately, she had also ordered one of the pumpkin carriages. At least she wouldn’t be working up any more of a sweat from walking anywhere. Unfortunately, this didn’t aid the stinky situation at hand. Then it got worse. When we reached her destination, I saw that it was a ballroom. Just thinking about that maiden dancing around all night in a sweltering room worked me into a sweat (which didn’t help the situation any).

That entire night was mostly a daze for me as I drifted in and out of consciousness. Each time the maiden took a step, that wonderful smell would again be forced into my nostrils, and both of those beautiful bunions would burrow into my sides. On and on she danced, with no perceivable end in sight. That was until the first stroke of midnight (saved by the bell!). Apparently twelve was her curfew, so she lit off through the dancing hall: squish squash squish. I had no idea up till that point that glass slippers could make a sound like that.

There was also someone in hot pursuit of her. “Wait, stop! I love you,” he exclaimed. (She could only pray that her shoes stayed on).

As she ran, those bunions which were causing me so much grief finally started to pain her as well. So off came the shoe and, just to throw her pursuer off track, she chucked it in his direction with a powerful throw and a perfect arc. I felt my left half rush through the air and land with a smack onto the poor guy’s temple. Fortunately for him, he was out cold, giving me the chance to air out before he could take a whiff.

My right half was still squishing painfully along in an uneven manner, and just when it seemed that I could stand it no longer, she made it home. She flew through the door just as the clock struck midnight, and there was her stepmother, facing the wall. “What am I going to do with you Cinderella,” she inquired in an exasperated tone, “First it was the mice, and now . . .” Just then she turned around and the full scent of the exposed foot smacked her in the face. “OH!” she exclaimed, continuing her speech with a hand clamped down on her nose. “Cinderella, go to your room this instant and please stay there.”

I have to wonder why people are so hard on the stepmother for being so short with Cinderella. Believe me, if you had smelled those feet you would have been too.

As soon as Cinderella had flown up to her room in a torrent of tears, flocks of mice came pouring out of the walls. She picked one up and set it delicately on her leg. “Oh mouse,” she began with a sigh. “Tell me the truth, do my feet . . . smell?” She daintily took me off (I cannot begin to explain the relief), and the mouse scampered onto her foot. Taking a deep whiff, the mouse responded “Oh, no, Cinderelli, just like a rose!” (I learned later that talking mice have no sense of smell whatsoever.) This answer seemed to content her, however, and she took off the ball gown (which had since turned back into rags) and fell deeply asleep.

Meanwhile, the prince had been discovered out cold on the floor, and the castle was in a state of chaos. He was taken back to his room, and was revived to a state of semi-consciousness. “Oh prince,” cried the steward. “Who did this to you?” From his clouded consciousness, the prince responded “The maid.” With that the guards took hold of the maidservant and began to drag her off. “Not that maid,” the prince said irritably, rubbing his temples tenderly.

So the maid was reinstated to her former position, and was given raise. I was given a thorough showering of Febreeze. The next morning the prince awoke, determined to find the beautiful maid (now you know which one) with the incredible throw. Mercifully, he had never had the opportunity to smell me, or his resolutions may have been somewhat different.

The prince set forth his proclamation, stating that whichever maiden’s foot fit the shoe, hers would be the hand which he would take in marriage. So the prince’s steward set off in search of the fitting foot (somehow, the thought of looking at all the maidens’ feet in the land didn’t seem too appetizing to the prince). He searched throughout that kingdom for the entire day looking at feet big and small, young and old, sweet-smelling and . . . otherwise. But no foot fit.

Finally he came to the house of Cinderella.

Now you’ve heard of Cinderella’s stepsisters; they, like her stepmother, have been judged unfairly. In addition to having to live with Cinderella’s lack of foot hygiene, they also had to deal with the title of the “ugly” stepsisters. Unfortunately, the godmother’s glass slippers have an automatic sizing feature, causing them to fit the original wearer’s (Cinderella) feet only. So the steward prepared to leave, empty-handed.

“Are there any other young maidens in this household?” he asked. Wanting to shield him from Cinderella’s unpleasant foot odor, and with only the best intentions, her stepmother responded: “Oh no!” Just then, Cinderella came rushing down the stairs (her mouse henchmen must have told her; they seemed to be everywhere). Her stepsisters shrieked in and ran from the room. Her stepmother tried to shield the young steward, but it was too late. The stench of her exposed feet smacked his unprotected nose, and he was out cold. But as we all know, the slipper was an exact fit, and she was taken back to the castle (although the coach driver requested that she place her feet out the window).

Well, as for Cinderella and the prince, it turns out that he had no sense of smell, so they were happily married (but for the sake of the castle staff, a top notch podiatrist was summoned). As for me, as soon as I could, I left the castle, and went immediately into retirement. I don’t know if there are maidens out there with feet worse off than Cinderella’s, but I’m not willing to find out.

As for the moral of the story, here it is: Beauty is only skin deep, but sniff before you leap.

Music

Music is all around us. Even if a person is not a musician, they still create music through their speech and actions. Music makes us feel. In many aspects, music is a defining factor in who we are.

For me, personally, music is a huge aspect of my life. In fact, music is my life. I have played the piano for ten years now, and the flute for five, and I have definitely seen the power that music has in my life. Being able to express my feelings through music, and being able to connect with an audience emotionally is an incredible experience, and is rarely found anywhere else.

I love classical music. The intricacies of the melodies is absolutely incredible to listen to. And whether it be Dvorac, Debussey, Haydn, or Prokofiev, each composer and piece of music has their own unique melodic and emotional qualities. Having the opportunity of playing in an orchestra has only heightened my admiration and love for this branch of music. The fact that a massive group of musicians, each with their own part, can come together and form these incredible orchestral pieces as a whole is amazing.

Question:

What kind of music do you enjoy? Be sure to explain why.

(Correction on post below)

Hey, sorry about this but the last line of the post below is supposed to read, "I could have caught".

911 on the Run

A few years ago, my cousin Chante underwent a shoulder surgery. Because of the immense pain, she was prescribed Loretab for a period of about two weeks. It was placed in the cupboard, and nothing particularly special ensued it. That was until my aunt walked into the kitchen and saw a man rifling through the cupboard.

Apparently, for some reason or another, he was aware that there was prescription medication located in that cupboard. As soon as he realized that my aunt was there, he lit off through the door. Without even thinking, my aunt grabbed the phone with conviction and headed out in pursuit. She then continued to chase him with a ferocity that I had never heard of in my aunt prior, and at the same time managed to type 9-1-1 into the keypad.

"Hello," answered the voice on the other side (you know the one which seems to be completely involved with every word you're saying). "A man broke into my house, and now I'm chasing him!" responded my aunt triumphantly. " Please stop running ma'am," the tranquil voice replied.

Finally, after much persuasion, the dispatcher managed to get my aunt to stop. As she came to a halt, she saw the intruder turn the corner and disappear into the tangle of streets. That was the last she saw of him. Although the police did show up, they were painfully late. And as my aunt often laments, "I could have could him, if the police would have let me!"

I already had it!

About a year ago, my mother was at one of my school functions (a performance I believe). She spotted a fellow school mom that she knew and went up to talk with her. This lady, we'll call her Mrs. Green for the story's sake, had been pregnant the last time my mother had met with her.

A few minutes into their conversation, my mother stopped and exclaimed, "OH! When is your baby due?" Mrs. Green looked up with a disgruntled look, and murmured with a steel edge: "I already had it!

Black and White

My sister is serving a two-year mission for the LDS church in Ukraine. From the letters that she has written home, it is apparent the devastating condition of families there. The majority of the male population are severe alcoholics, and feel it is their duty to discipline their wives abusively. There is also a lack of education which affects many. I wanted to share this section from a letter sent recently:

". . . We then met with our investigator Angelica. A man was helping her clear away her movie stand as we approached, and began to speak with us. I could barely understand his words; he was very drunk, and his heavily-slurred speech fell from a mouth of rotting teeth. He left me little personal space and attempted to put his arm around me once. He was a man without morals and without direction--a man who will search for happiness in all the wrong places and end up dying in his 50's as a result of alcoholism. Then I saw this man's granddaughter--a sweet little 3-year-old with curls and big, eyes--clinging in complete trust to what should have been the hand of a loving grandfather and was instead the hand of this pitifully-degraded man who had become utterly and hopelessly entangled in the snares of the devil. Pure innocence and complete degradation stood, hand-in-hand."


This applies so well, not only to illustrate the kind of situation occurring in Ukraine, but also to us. Rarely do we see a tangible example of this stark contrast, but it always exists.

Pied Beauty

I was recently reading one of my favorite poems by Gerard Manly Hopkins entitled, "Pied Beauty". It is a beautiful poem praising God and his creations. From what I have read about Hopkins, his poetry created a massive struggle because of his religious position as a priest. He believed that publishing his poetry would create egotism which would be a sin. My question is, how could he possibly be focusing on himself when his works were so focused on praising God?

Pied Beauty:

GLORY be to God for dappled things—
For skies of couple-colour as a brinded cow;
For rose-moles all in stipple upon trout that swim;
Fresh-firecoal chestnut-falls; finches’ wings;
Landscape plotted and pieced—fold, fallow, and plough;	5
And áll trádes, their gear and tackle and trim.
All things counter, original, spare, strange;
Whatever is fickle, freckled (who knows how?)
With swift, slow; sweet, sour; adazzle, dim;
He fathers-forth whose beauty is past change:	10
Praise him.

Why bother with Socratic Seminar?

World History: It is essential in today's world to know and understand the world and it's history. When we learn the history of a country and the idea behind their conflicts (i.e. Gaza strip, Middle East) we can understand the ideas, and hopefully try to become part of the solution. Also, the world is where we live! To be able to participate actively in it, we need to be educated about it.

Literature: Literature has been a major part of the world for centuries. Through it we can understand better history/historical events, learn/create new ideas, and just plain old enjoy it. We can also expand our vocabulary significantly be reading.

Language Arts: Language arts is extremely important because it is the study of our language. How can we communicate without learning grammar, being able to spell (although those two seem to be disappearing through texting) and really, being able to speak well.

Geography: Geography is extremely important because it helps to further explain historical events/conflicts, as geographical features (land, lakes, rivers, etc.) have been a source of conflict for millennia. It is also just a good idea to know where things are.