Thursday, October 18, 2007
Rooks VanDellen Promotes Sexuality Series
Get Sex and Money! Flyers in the Rooks VanDellen residence hall boast such statements to advertise a chance for students to learn about sexuality and possibly win some cash this fall.
By attending selected events in Calvin’s Sexuality Series, RVD residents receive cards- one per event- that can each be entered for a chance to win a $75.00 shopping spree to the store of his or her choice.
RVD Resident ########## organized the “Get Carded” program, running late September to early November, to promote the series hosted by Calvin’s Student Life department.
“Get Carded” events already held include the theatrical performance of “Seven Passages: The Stories of Gay Christians” at the Grand Rapids Spectrum Theater, and the on-campus “Christian Vision for Marriage” lecture by David Gushee.
Resident Director Jen Russ notes that the requirement of attending an on-campus event for the mandatory freshman course, Prelude, increased attendance to Sexuality Series events, particularly the David Gushee lecture.
Ahram Cheon, a first year student who attended Gushee’s lecture for Prelude, feels that the talk on Christian marriage was geared toward adults, not students. In addition, she is skeptical of “Get Carded’s” promotional tactics. “I don’t like the whole bribery idea,” says Cheon.
Russ believes that the promotion has been effective so far. “People are going to what is a really good series on campus,” she says, “so just the fact that we’ve increased awareness that there is this thing called the Sexuality Series, I consider that a success.”
Over 40 entry cards have been already been completed for the drawing to be held November 2nd.
Upcoming chances to “get carded” include dating and singleness panels, composed of Calvin faculty, staff, and students, scheduled for October 25th and November 1st, respectively.
The “Get Carded” program is part of RVD’s 2007-2008 “Two Loves” series, focusing on what it means to love God and others in relation to faith formation, relationships, gender roles, the environment, substance use, and other topics.
Birth Control Prescribed at Maine Middle School
King Middle School in Portand, Maine recently approved a plan that allows students to obtain birth control prescriptions without contacting or consulting parents. Of the 12-member school board committee, only 2 people opposed the plan. At the school meeting, parents argued whether this new plan would increase sexual behavior among young teenagers. Pat Patterson, the medical director of School-Based Health Centers, said that “it has been shown, over and over again, that this does not increase sexual activity.” Some paretns feel that the plan violates their rights, while others think that the plan provides students with the proper care needed for their risky behavior. Richard Veilleux, a parent of a student who attends King Middle School, stated that “not every child is getting the guidance needed to keep them safe. This is about giving kids who are sexually active the tools that they need.” The principal of King Middle School, Mike McCarthy, said about 5 of the school’s 500 students had identified themselves as being sexually active. In addition to the birth control plan, students are able to recieve immunizations, physical checkups, and counseling for sexually transmitted diseases The National ######## of School-Based Health Care said that about 30 percent of the 1,700 school-based health centers in the United States provide birth control to students.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Freedom of F-ing Speech
In an article titled, “Student Editor Keeps His Job, But is Warned About Ethics,” Brian Stelter reports that Colorado State University almost fired a collegian editor-in-chief, David McSwane, for his use of vulgar in an opinion headline. Stelter writes that McSwane had approved “a vulgar four-letter word editorial about President Bush in a space that would usually run to hundreds of words.”
The issue: freedom of speech and press. Colorado State’s problem: violation of the paper’s code of ethics which states that “profane and vulgar words are not acceptable for opinion writing.”
Indeed, our society does hold its own taboos and mores when it comes to ethics; but, when it comes to what’s printed, I believe that the First Amendment stands.
However, I also understand that company’s and ############--newspapers included--got to great lengths to present themselves with a stance of respectability. Public relations staff would be out of work if company-to-consumer relations weren’t communicated with certain intent.
So what should Colorado State have done? Fire (or in this case, admonish) the communicator for his or her freedom of speech, press, even political protest? Or should the University have allowed it, respecting the first Amendment to a “T”, even when vulgarity is involved?
That’s not an easy question to answer. In scenario A, the action is simply unconstitutional; but scenario B could potentially lead to a newspaper filled with freedom of vulgarity. Who would read it?
After much consideration, I believe that CU made the right choice in their admonishing of the student editor. McSwane either signed or agreed to the code of ethics when he signed on to be editor. It’s too closely ########## with a major University for ethics not to play a part.
My question now is: what happens if papers like the NY Times run into this ethical problem?
Saturday, October 13, 2007
Free food for doctors…and summer interns
Drug companies give away lots of free things. So far I’ve come across magnetic scultpures, elaborate pens, lunch sacks, and notepads, all slathered with logos. Apparently, they give away food too.
Pharmaceutical representatives bring relatively elaborate lunches into clinics in order to give doctors time to hear about their product, or so the pitch goes. According to an article in Friday’s New York Times explains how a law that’s been in effect for two years in Minnesota limits the cost of food that drug reps can give to doctors. I’m from Minnesota, and I had a friend who worked in a clinic last summer, so I found this article to be particularly interesting.
My friend’s coworkers said that every breakfast and every lunch used to be provided by drug reps, but when the law went into effect, the reps from Minnesota couldn’t bring food in anymore. What the NYT article doesn’t mention is that the law only applied to Minnesota drug representatives. Since the clinic was an hour from the Iowa and South Dakota borders, those reps could still bring food in. The representatives from Minnesota “had to stand in the corner with pens. And so it’s not that hard to pick, pen or Panera Bread,” said my friend.
The rhetoric of the NYT article struck me. Although it’s supposed to be a straight news article, it seemed to me to be advocating a negative feeling toward drug representatives. The first rather lengthy paragraph relates how doctors say that they see sales people for the education, not the free food. The article then pointedly says, “Maybe doctors in Minnesota are different.” The article goes on to explain that since the law went into effect two years ago, “the number of visits that Minnesota primary care doctors accepted from drug sales representatives decreased at about twice the rate of the decline reported by primary care doctors nationwide.” The point seems to be that even though doctors say they aren’t influenced by free food, they are.
The second half of the article outlines another tactic used by sales representatives—asking doctors to give talks about drugs at dinners for nurses and other personnel, in an effort to influence the speakers, not the people who attend the dinners. The article ends with the line, “Still, nearly all said that they were not influenced by the money they earned giving the talks.” Since the article has just suggested that gifts do influence doctors, the obvious conclusion to be made here is that they are influenced by the money they make giving the talks. The author’s/editors rhetorical choice to include such a line at the end of the article makes for a strong argument against the monetary connections between doctors and drug reps, although it never overtly gives an argument.
British troops coming home as early as spring 2008
The British Prime Minister Gordon Brown announced Monday October 8 that he was planning on cutting British forces in Iraq by up to half by the spring of 2008. The announcement comes after Brown described the progress made in training Iraqi security forces in southern Iraq. The atmosphere, he said, was “calmer.”
President Bush has announced that American forces will be in Iraq until at least January 2009. The relationship between the new Prime Minister and the President is perhaps more distant than President Bush would like; former Prime Minister Tony Blair was Bush’s primary supporter in the Iraq war.
The number of troops to be sent home is around 2,500 and with more troop cuts looming later in 2008, the British forces will play a smaller and smaller role in the Iraq war. The opposition leader in Britain has accused Brown for playing politics, the troop cuts coinciding with a British general election. Brown stated that an election was unlikely in 2008, and has until 2010 to call one.
Personally, I think it is a good idea that Britain is preparing to withdraw troops from the Iraqi provinces it has been overseeing since the start of the war. While the Prime Minister might be pulling politics into the situation, I agree with his logic - slowly and safely hand security powers over to Iraqi forces and train them to secure their own areas. Giving power back to Iraqis makes the occupation of Iraq a little easier to live with, and that way they don’t feel “useless.”
I think the war has gone on long enough and that it is about time for a slow but substantial troop reduction. Good for you, Gordon Brown.
Weaving Reconciliation
A Rwandan woman’s weaving history began when she was 14; one day in 1994, she once again trekked to Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, to sell her baskets. This short trip to the market turned into a three-month-long deathly game of hide-and-seek; as the Hutu militia began its terror campaign in Rwanda, she fled to a church for refuge--but Hutu militants began killing those seeking refuge there. Pascasie Mukamurigo spent three months in a crouched position, moving from room to room to avoid the Hutu militants.
When she returned home, her husband and one of her children had been killed. She gathered other widowed friends together in a unique restorative community to support the orphans they took in; their weaving group, Avega (########### des Veuves du Genocide d’Avril), has morphed from a small-scale peace operation to a thriving business opportunity and international testament. Macy’s has incorporated Avega’s baskets into their sales, so that now these weavers can earn up to $206 dollars per year--more than the average Rwandan income.
From the hands of broken Rwandan women flows abundant beauty. I find it most interesting that Mukamurigo (whose husband and child were killed by Hutu militants) was the one to invite Hutu families who had participated in the mass killings to join the weaving group. Amid horrific circumstances, these women decided to end hatred and instead foster forgiveness, healing, and restoration.
Friday, October 12, 2007
Picky Eaters
Picky Eaters are partially due to genetics, states a study led by Dr. Lucy Cooke from the University College of London. It is often thought that kid’s dont like the cooking in general, but really to some aspect it is related to genes. In some homes, picky eaters have learned how to dictate what the rest of the family will eat, and this turns into brutal battlegrounds. Hugh Garvey, an editor of Bon Appetit magazine, states that training picky eaters is like “potty training. Eventually, they’re going to graduate from diapers. In the end, he’ll eat something green.” Before the age of about 2, children will eat just about anything and after this stage, the taste buds shut down, giving them more control over what they eat. New foods are a healthy part of a childs development. Mrs. Seinfeld, the actor’s wife, has wrote a new book titled “Deceptively Delicious” in which she has recipies on how to incorporate beets into pancakes, avacados in pudding and spinach in brownies. This seems like a helpful way for children to get the right nutrition but it isn’t teaching them to like the foods. This action might even lead to mistrust if the children find out, this may push them away from new foods even farther. Although it seems to be a huge issue, Harriet Worobey, a director o Nutritional Sciences Preschool says “ Unless it becomes a huge issue, it tends to be a little more fleeting than parents think.”
I believe that trying new foods is essential to a childs development, but by hiding foods in others is not teaching them anything. You have to take it one step at a time and not make a big deal out of it. Picky eating isn’t soley based on genetics so there has to be some way to over come it. Maybe the answer is time.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
Food for Thought
The New York Times article, “Indians Count on an Old Friend’s Appeal,” explains the potential of Tanka bars, a snack food composed of buffalo and berries. The bar has many possible benefits. For one, it is being considered a “step in bringing young Native Americans back to a healthier, traditional diet.” This is a real concern because the Native American population today is greatly affected by obesity and diabetes. Production of the Tanka bar is also thought to hold promise for the creation of more jobs on reservations. Perhaps the Tanka bar, based on a recipe for wasna (a food Plains Indians packed for long journeys), will be more than just a history lesson, and also cause positive changes in the present.
Wednesday, October 10, 2007
Sleeping downtown
Today the New York Times published an article that was both slightly humorous and slightly depressing to me. In Los Angeles today, city officials have decided not to enforce an ordinance that cause law enforcers to “sweep” the streets for homeless people sleeping on the side of the road. Since 1968, a law has been set barring lying down or sleeping at any point in public spaces; violation of this has been responded to with arrest. However a federal appeals court last year called the law “one of the most restrictive in the country.” This conclusion comes due to a lack of housing for homeless people in the area. The ACLU of Southern California sued the city, and as a result, the law will be in a sense put on “hold” for a while, until 1,250 units of low-cost housing are built. This is clearly an excellent approach to take to this issue. However my first reaction was simply a bit of shock regarding the original law. I can understand that it would be bothersome if you’re going shopping or for a walk and you have to dodge some homeless people sleeping in the road. However, its not really as if homeless people are nocturnal. They sleep at night, too. If the streets were cluttered; then sure, maybe something should be done about it. Otherwise I don’t understand why such a law would be made, because I’ve been around big cities, I’ve been to L.A., and I’ve not really seen an issue with overcrowded homeless people cause trouble by sleeping. I guess my point is that the city is making a good call here by building low-cost housing for these people.
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
Discrimination of Elderly Gays and Lesbians
Many elderly gays and lesbians are being discriminated against by other elderly residents in nursing homes and ######## living centers. Some have reported that the prejudice and discrimination has lead to depression and suicide. In one case, a gay man was isolated from other residents and given a room among those with severe disabilities. Because of this, he ended up hanging himeslf. Homosexuality among the elderly is seen as a crime and a mental illness. However, some new solutions have emerged. A nursing home and a housing community in Boston plans to build a complex unit and houses for the gay and lesbian elderly residents. Many gay and lesbian live in fear because of being discriminated against and they end up having to hide part of their identity. One doctor said that “There is something special about having to hide this part of your identity at a time when your entire identity is threatened. That’s a faster pathway to depression, failure to thrive and even premature death.”
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Infotainment
This week, I revisted an article in September 19th’s issue of the Times titled, “Stay Tune: Killer Bees, Hair Gel and Clashing Egos,” by Alessandra Stanley. The article reviews an up-and-coming newsroom sitcom starring Kelsey Grammar ("Frasier") and Patricia Heaton ("Everybody Loves Raymond").
I found it interesting how the presentation of unscripted reality is now the premise of a new Fox series. It’s all about info-tainment, Brad Edwards, recent former anchor for Wood TV 8 and winner of several Emmy’s for news writing, once told me. This show certainly proves him right. Of course, the stars weren’t out in ratings for the show by the time the show debuted, but the show’s premise has proved to be successful in the past. It turns info-taining TV into strictly entertaining TV.
This approach to entertainment could be seen in two different lights: a light tease at the business of news or a behind the scenes reality check on the “show” aspect of the news business. Sure, it could all be fun and games for a late night laugh; but, it could also be turning your view to what’s not seen on air. The show’s main characters are communicators by profession. What makes them purely entertaining is the fact that these communicators have major communication issues between them.
Stanley writes that “everyone is already in on the joke of local news and its weakness for preposterous sweeps-month killerbee stories, gel-coiffed news readers and weather bimbos.” What does this say about the people with the power to communcate? On one hand, it presents them as hypocrits: presenting gel-######## perfection in their presenting of reality while dealing with great imperfections in their own reality. However, imperfection is what it is to be human; perfection simply is not logical after a minute or two.
Overall, I feel uneasy about how entertaining news has to be in general. Our society likes a nice, crispy sugarcoat on reality. Perhaps it keeps us sane. But can’t we take the sugar coating off and be genuinely interested in what going on in the world? Or are we too inclined to turn the channel to something that gives us that laugh, even if it’s Fox’s new news show?
Teacher Assigns Homework to Parents
An article that really caught my attention deals with parents being given homework by a high school English teacher in Montclair NJ. Damien Frye, is giving ########### to the parents of all his freshman students. The requirement is an reading an article or book excerpt with posting comments in an online blog. The parents are warned their child’s grade could be lowered if they do not respond. Studies have proven parental involvement in a student’s education improves the quality of education. Thus, he is giving them homework to keep them more involved in their kids’ lives. Some parents enjoy the ########### because it adds a conversation topic. Others with less time find it a nuisance, occasionally responding they didn’t have time for the reading. I think this plan is a great idea. It allows parents to b more involved with their student’s education. Mr. Frye is fairly accepting when it comes to the ###########, parents can phone or email responses if blogging is difficult for them.
Friday, October 05, 2007
Immigrant Hunt: The New Wave of Racism
A review of the New York Times article:
Citizens Are Caught Up In Immigration Raids
I am deviating from my usual topic this week, because I thought this article was really interesting--and somewhat disturbing.
Federal agents and Suffolk County police are teaming up to enforce immigration laws; unfortunately, they keep rounding up U.S. citizens.
Peggy Delarosa-Delgado, a homeowner in Long Island, New York, has been a U.S. citizen since 1990; yet she and her family have suffered two terrorizing immigration raids that are part of anti-gang sweeps on Long Island. One Suffolk County police officer and over a dozen federal agents swarmed into her house before dawn last Thursday, rounding up her three children, aunt, and uncle in the living room and threatening a family friend with a gun before realizing they had made a mistake--the man they were looking for moved out several years ago. Ms. Delarosa-Delgado resents that her family being terrorized and treated like criminals. Though Suffolk County police commissioner Richard Dormer says these sweeps make the community safer, the county’s residents are upset over the immigration agents’ numerous rash mistakes.
Eberhard Muller, a farm owner in east Long Island, helped locate some of his workers’ family members who had been arrested during the raids. He said, “They accuse them of being gang ##########, which makes nonsense...Marvin Lopez is a librarian in his country, the sweetest person in the world. He works 14 hours a day, seven days a week. How is he able to be a gang member?”
The Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund filed a lawsuit last month in Manhattan objecting to the unlawful raids of Latino homes; the lawsuit claims that it violates the Fourth Amendment’s protection from unreasonable searches.
Is this really the way immigration law is moving? Aside from stripping U.S. citizens of their rights, we are creating an atmosphere in which the Latino population is categorized and persecuted; we should be careful not to ignite/perpetrate a new wave of racism in the U.S.
Thursday, October 04, 2007
Facebook Frenzy
Facebook, the popular social network online, has been undergoing major changes. Since this spring, more than 4,000 “applications” have covered the walls of facebook, allowing members to add programs and games to their page. Because of users interest in these applications, Facebook’s value has soared. These different applications are constantly being advertized to users asking them to add or accept a program to their page. Although this is a sort of advertisement, it is generally only promoting other Facebook applications. Due to the shift in Internet entrepreneurs interest toward internet advertising, the possibility of opening up Facebook to public advertisements is in the near future. Money is already being made off of programs such as iLike, which earns money for iTunes when users purchase concert tickets or songs. Although many dont see this form of advertising productive, many are looking forward to seeing what will come of it. Personally, as a Facebook user, i feel that all of the applications that have been added since spring are just a hinderance. By adding ads to the sites, i feel it will turn users away. It won’t be just a space to converse and keep in touch with friends anymore. It will be another open market where people all around us are asking for our money.
Mommy Makeover
I guess the saying “beauty’s only skin deep” isn’t relevant in today’s world. Many women today are undergoing cosmetic procedures after pregnancy to get back their hourglass figures. Better known as the “mommy makeover,” women pay $12,000 to $15,000 to have breast procedures, tummy tucks, and liposuction in place of their stretch marks and excess fat. Dr. David A. Stoker, a plastic surgeon, said that “Twenty years ago, a woman did not think she could do something about it and she covered up with discreet clothing, but now women don’t have to go on feeling self-conscious or resentful about their appearance.” However, some people think that this is absolutely absurd. Natasha Singer, writer of the article in the New York Times wrote, “These unforgiving standards are the offspring of pop culture and technology, a union that treats biological changes as if they were as optional as hair color.” I happen to feel the same way.
Things like this make people wonder if having children is even worth it. Any woman knows that pregnancy has its effects, but there are other ways to go about regaining a cute shape. After all, having a baby is supposed to be enjoyable not worrisome.