Fantastic conclusion.
National Defense Authorization Act
I have been meaning to write about this for weeks, but I never got around to it, but here it is. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, which I shall call the NDAA for the rest of this post. For those of you who do not know what it is, the NDAA is an annual bill that sets the budgets and expenditures for the Department of Defense. It was signed into law on December 31, 2011 by President Obama.
I will now direct your attention to Title X, Subtitle D, “Counter Terrorism”. This portion of the bill is highly controversial, most especially sections 1021 and 1022, which deals with the detention of persons the government believes could be involved in terrorism. This implies that American citizens could be held prisoner on American soil based on the suspicion that they could be involved in terrorism.
Section 1021 is the section that deals with indefinite detention without trial. Of course, we know of the 5th and 6th Amendments, which protect the right to due process of law and a fair and speedy trial by jury. But when drafting the bill, the Senate rejected a proposed amendment that would have explicitly forbidden the indefinite detention of an American citizen without a trial. So if you, a citizen of these great United States of America, should be unfortunate enough to come under suspicion of terrorism, then you can be detained indefinitely, your 5th and 6th Amendment rights suspended.
Just think about it for a second and what powers this law gives to the government. Just think about it.
The more I think about it the more upset I get. This illegal, gross violation of the Constitution should not be condoned by the Supreme Court or the American people. The second you condone the fact that the government can invalidate your constitutional rights is the same second you condone the fact that the government can take your freedom.
This kid, Firoz Gill, who I do not personally know, went to my old school. At least until he went missing.
I don’t know if he ran away or if he was kidnapped, but for his and his loved ones’ sake, I hope he simply ran away.
I know you guys don’t think it can happen to you or to anybody you know, but it can. Even in a seemingly safe suburb when you are walking to school dreading that test you have first period. Be careful. Do not give someone the chance to take you. For all you guys out there who think that you can just fight the kidnapper off, Firoz was 6’1”. Not exactly a small kid.
On his Facebook Wall, you see posts from all his friends, telling them about worried calls from his dad, wondering where he is.
Please do not let this happen to you.
***Update*** Firoz was found not long after this was posted. He was alright and found in a neighboring city.
Stand By Me - How I Met Your Mother
Racism and Discrimination
You know, I see a lot of media attention given to racism and discrimination. Like that one British lady on the tram. I never really thought that discrimination existed. But now I realize that that’s because I grew up in the Bay Area. I cannot say how lucky I am to have grown up there. At my old school, whites were a minority and homosexuals might as well have been trees for all we cared. Everybody was different, but equal.
I thought everywhere was like that until I moved down to Irvine. While there is not a lot of racism, I do notice some anti-gay sentiments. It honestly does not make sense to me. What do you care if someone is gay as long as they are not sexually harassing you? It is just so odd to me. I mean, are they really all that different?
Applying for College
Applying for college is hard work, as I am sure some of you know. The hardest part is all these essays. I mean, think about it. You are supposed to tell this college what they need to know about you in 2000 characters. And some things, you have not even really thought about, like what you would do if you had no chance of failing, or even why you are going to college. Honestly, the hardest essay for me to write is one of the Stanford essays: What matters to you and why?
Seems simple, right? Wrong. Just think about it for a second. You have to talk about the thing that matters the most to you and why for 2000 characters. The obvious thing would be to say your family. But why? Well, because they’re your family and you love them. Yes, well I am sure the admissions officers at Stanford could already figure that out without you telling them. But apart from the normal th
Sorry guys. I had an idea and left my post unfinished.
And my idea is that I figured out what matters the most to me. I feel stupid, and ironically so, because it is knowledge.
RIP Mike Greer
Mike Greer was one of the campus supervisors at my old high school. He recently died from a heart attack. He was also assistant soccer coach when I was a freshman. He was a good man. Wherever he is, I hope he knows about the lives he has touched, even if in small ways. Maybe a smile, or not giving someone detention for being late, or volunteering time to coach a sport. Your kindness will be missed. There are not many like you.
RIP Mike Greer.
