In January 2011, the world started to witness and experience a catastrophic series of revolutions in the Arab world known as the Arab Spring. The series of revolutions and acts of rebellion started in Tunisia and branched out to countries like Libya, Syria, Yemen, Bahrain and other countries in the Arab World. In Libya, the main reason for protest involved the Libyan people who were against long-time Libyan Dictator Muammar Gaddafi. Protests began in Libya on February 2011, causing chaos and destruction within the nation until October 2011 when Gaddafi was killed, thereby officially having Libya liberated by the NTC. The uprising in Libya was a mass public reaction by the people, thinking and openly showing their hate and negative feelings towards Gaddafi, who has dictated the nation for over 40 years. The philosophies of known political theorists Thomas Hobbes and John Locke can be easily applied to this case study, a case study that involves and looks at rebellion in a dictatorship, and how both work differently and together. In one corner, you have Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679) who wrote Leviathan in 1651. In Leviathan, Hobbes states that power is key, that a leader must gain his power through force of any kind. Hobbes also dabbles into human nature, explaining how we humans are very selfish and are willing to do anything to earn power of any sort, even if it means killing other people. In the other corner, you have The Father of Classical Liberalism, otherwise known as John Locke (1632-1704), writer of the book Two Treaties of Government, who believes that there is no one order or one sole figure of authority when it comes to political power, and that power should be shared between the people and the government. If that sharing connection of power were to be broken, people then have the right rebel and start a revolution. Looking at the events of the Libyan uprising, it is clearly visible to see that the Libyan uprising can be easily connected with the theories of John Locke.
In February 2011, the stir of Libyan uprising started with a human rights campaigner who was arrested, the arrest sparked controversy which then lead to violent protests in the eastern city of Benghazi. The violence spread to other cities, authorities responded by attacking protesters with aircraft's, Gaddafi responded saying he will not quit and will remain in power. Gaddafi continued to fight back against protesters by arresting and killing them, and using high amounts of police and military force. The protesters can be seen as going against the main values and points of Hobbes thesis in Leviathan. In Leviathan, we look into the element of the true dark nature of humans, much like Joesph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, which tells the story of how we are truly evil. In this case, the mass amount of killing and rioting can be seen as a path towards Hobbes, Gaddafi is being greedy with his power and is taking serious levels of measurement to keep his power, by continuously pushing the protesters and freedom fighters to the ground as they question, challenge and go against him and his Hobbes like attitude towards power. Although, the peoples dislike of living under a ruthless dictator like Gaddafi can be seen as more of a Lockeian case. Gaddafi has spent years on end killing and torturing the Libyan people, when applying this to Locke, you realize that the fine line of sharing power between the government and the people has been broken. After years of Gaddafi flaunting his power everywhere, the people finally had enough, so the people took a stand and followed their right to a revolution. Locke says that no two people have authority over each other, one person may expand his power and authority to another party (in this case the general public), and when that expansion is broken, people will wonder whats going on and will revolt, resulting in violence, riots, death and destruction. Basically take all of that and match it with the case in Libya, a simple equation if you may... people's dislike towards Gaddafi, breaking the line of shared power = protest and right to a revolution. The end result of Gaddafi being overthrown and killed proves that there is and should be a social contract between the people and the government, and if that contract gets destroyed or is not properly followed, people rights will be lost and violated and they will revolt as they have a right to if it were the case. This proves that the situation in Libya is well connected with the works and theories of John Locke.
As the riots and protests continued in Libya, Gaddafi still refused to surrender. The rebels plan involved taking over the entire nation, city by city, with their final mark being Tripoli, Libya's capital. The plan was continuously thwarted by opposing pro-regime forces. In relation to Hobbes, this case shows that it can be mandatory to use force against people to enhance a power that can strengthen the minds of others, much like those who support Gaddafi and have formed the pro-regime resistance that is fighting back against the rebels. The ideals and philosophies of Gaddafi managed to be instilled in the minds of many in Libya while others are still against him. Gaddafi now knows that at least some portion of the public are behind him during all of this. But, in relation to Locke, it all roots back to the idea of social contract, if any person has their rights violated, the role of government is questioned and possibly leads to revolution. The old social contract between the Libyan people and the government is worth nothing now, the people demand for a new one that follows the rights and needs of today rather than living in the past which lacks those rights. That's what Gaddafi is trying to do, keep the people in the past and follow the old ways, while the majority are against that and want change. This proves that the situation in Libya is well connected with the works and theories of John Locke.
And so, the Libyan revolution saw the fall of a very old regime. Although this case can be applied to that of Thomas Hobbes, you have issues within the case such as protests and war among people that can easily be applied to John Locke. Therefor, the Libyan uprising can easily be applied to that of John Locke and his idea that ties all of these cases together, the idea of a social contract and what happens when that contract is broken, as opposed to Thomas Hobbes and his idea of doing anything to gain power.
Sources
Books
Hobbes, Thomas. Leviathan. 1651. Print.
Locke, John. Two Treatises of Government. 1690. Print.
Web Document
"Libya." The Guardian . Guardian News and Media Limited, 10 June 2012. Web. 10 Jun 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/libya>.
"Libya Profile." BBC News Africa . BBC, 22 May 2012. Web. 2 Jun 2012. <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13755445>.
"Libya protests - as they happened ." The Guardian News Blog. Guardian News and Media Limited, 20 February 2011. Web. 1 Jun 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/feb/20/libya-protests?INTCMP=SRCH>.
"Libya - Revolution and Aftermath." The New York Times. The New York Times Company, 14 May 2012. Web. 30 May 2012. <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/libya/index.html>.
"The World Factbook: Africa: Libya." CIA - The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency, 29 May 2012. Web. 2 Jun 2012. <https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ly.html>.
Tuesday 5 June 2012
Monday 4 June 2012
Thomas Mulcair: The NDP's new Machiavellian Prince
Thomas Joesph "Tom" Mulcair born on October 24, 1954 in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. Graduate of McGill University in 1977 with degrees in common and civil law. Lawyer, university professor and now politician.
A brief profile on the NDP's new leader who has some big shoes to fill as the leader of Canada's Leader of the Official Opposition, and the shoes of the legendary and deceased Jack Layton.
A brief profile on the NDP's new leader who has some big shoes to fill as the leader of Canada's Leader of the Official Opposition, and the shoes of the legendary and deceased Jack Layton.
The NDP legacy that Mulcair must continue can be applied to the works of Italian philosopher and contributor to political science, Niccolo Machiavelli and his popular political guide known as "The Prince". The Prince, in some ways, acts as the bible for all modern day politicians, with "The Prince" politicians will learn to rule and rise with power in an efficient and authoritarian manner. With Mr. Mulcair having to be new to the world of political leaders, I feel that "The Prince" will do well in terms of guiding Mr. Mulcair if he were to read, or at least apply one or two of Machiavelli's words of political wisdom. Here are a few examples from "The Prince" that can apply to a "new prince" like Mulcair who is new to being in power, "The Prince" can help Mulcair run the NDP Party efficiently during his time on the NDP throne.
Chapter XVIII: Point 5 - How a Prince Should Keep His Word
"How praiseworthy it is for a prince to keep his word and to live by integrity and not deceit...."
The NDP have much to offer in terms of political change, things they would do if they were in power. When Thomas Mulcair was running, he had a solid platform that satisfied and kept NDP followers happy, a platform that can be followed in order to make the changes that can help Canada today. Some of the following issues that Mulcair touches on with this platform include:
- Improvement on family health services
- Looking into the climate change issue
- More of a leadership role in the country
- More involvement on the international stage
These issues also branch out into further issues and things that Mulcair and the NDP would change. The following platform was written by former NDP leader Jack Layton who has done a tremendous job in getting the NDP far in their political legacy. Many Canadians admired Layton for his dedication and hard work, which are a good reflection of a man who remains loyal and keeps his word. With Mulcair replacing Layton as NDP leader, he must follow the similar path in terms of dealing and communicating with the people. Machiavelli states that a prince who honors his word is generally praised by others. With much to learn as a new leader, Mulcair as the NDP's new prince must live up to those expectations that were left by Layton, to fulfill the wishes of the people. Layton was considered to be a people person which made more Canadians trust in him and what he stood for as the NDP's leader. Also a prince should present the appearance of being a compassionate, trustworthy, kind, guileless, and pious ruler. Although it is hard and almost impossible to fulfill those wishes all the time, as long as a prince acts that way and at least shows some of those qualities towards the people, people will virtue you as a prince. Mulcair must present that image in order to communicate and present himself well to Canadians, it is those virtues of courage, devotion, trust, kindness and other positive qualities that a prince must use to attract the minds of the general public in order to have a unit of public support. In conclusion, Mulcair must follow the same attitude and idea that Layton followed which will ensure the trust of many as he continues to promote the NDP platform which he'll use to the best of his extent to create change in Canada, change that will ensure that the vast majority of people will remain safe under NDP rule.
Chapter XIX: Point 6 - On Avoiding Being Despised and Hated
"...should concentrate upon on avoiding those things which make him hated and despised..."
The last thing you need to be when in power is to be hated and despised, a prince should avoid that. Point 6 connects well with point 5, due to the fact that the way you act as a prince in terms of trust and being a people person reflects on whether you will be hated or not. Whether you will be hated or not depends on your actions and how you communicate with the general public. Machiavelli states that a prince should not be frivolous, cowardly or posses any negative quality that will reflect on how the people will see the prince in terms of attitude and actions. With Mulcair being the NDP's new leader, on all front's he's stepping into the large shoes of the NDP that were once worn by Jack Layton. Sometimes for a new prince, it is hard to live up to the previous prince, especially if the previous has done an amazing job for a long time, putting the party in a good position. Mulcair must be careful at the beginning stage of becoming a new leader, careful that he doesn't make any mistake(s) that could have his supporters, NDP supporters, hate him for life. Mulcair must continue to lead the NDP as the opposing party fighting against Stephen Harper, in order to do so, he must stick to his goal of changing Canada and helping fellow Canadians. All positive actions needed to gain more support, and to remain not despised and hated by Canadians abroad.
Chapter XXII: Point 9 - On the Prince's Private Advisers
"The choice of advisers is of no little import to a prince..."
As the new leader of the NDP, Mulcair must ensure himself that his "advisers" do their duty. By advisers, I mean other members of the NDP party, such as the Members of Parliament who represent the NDP party all around Canada. Technically, their only private to the point where they remain loyal to the party they represent and the values and morals that symbolizes the party and its actions, and how Canadians perceive them; thereby, making them public advisers in some way. Machiavelli states that "...the first error he (a Prince) makes is made in his choice of advisers", by applying this to Canadian politics, you can argue that in the case for Mulcair, he must make sure that the MP's that represent the NDP in different parts of Canada represent in an efficient manner to further influence Canadians abroad to encourage change in their government. Machiavelli also says that "... there is this way which never fails" furthering that paragraph with the idea that if the prince's advisers think more about themselves and not the prince, concerns themselves with their own interests, that type of adviser is considered unfit to be an adviser, thereby never to be trusted. Mulcair must be careful in the choice of NDP MP's in Canada and make sure they do their part in completing the deeds for the NDP and for Mulcair, thereby earning the trust of Mulcair and remain as a vital member in the NDP. Sometimes there can be the scare or potential risk of turning back on the party, public scandals (personal and political) and putting your own deeds first. As the NDP's new leader, Mulcair must make sure that the following risks do not happen. Those risks can be prevented by creating new/maintaining strong relationships with the MP's, which can ensure good relationships among members within the party and realize that their duty is to put the work of NDP first over their own needs, wants, and possibly deeds. In conclusion, in order to maintain an efficient party, you need people within that party who are committed, trustworthy, reliable and honorable if you are a man of power, in Machiavelli's sense... a prince, and in Mulcair's sense... the new leader of the opposing party in Canada, that being the NDP.
The following three Machiavellian lessons which are vital when looking into a new modern day Machiavellian Prince are: "How a Prince Should Keep His Word", "On Avoiding Being Despised or Hated" and finally "On the Princes Private Advisers". Thomas Mulcair acts as a perfect example of a new Machiavellian prince, being the new NDP leader since the end of March 2012. Although the NDP are not in control of Canada's government, with Thomas Mulcair as the new NDP prince, he must use Machiavellian teachings to continue to influence NDP supporters and Canadians abroad to vote NDP and make Mulcair our new leader. Mulcair also has to the big shoes of former NDP leader Jack Layton to fill, as Layton lead the legacy that took the NDP many places, Mulcair must use and apply Machiavelli to continue the NDP's success and further their road to political destiny. This grand example shows how Machiavelli can be applied to any new "prince" whether their old and have been in power for years, or is new to the political game and has many years of leading to come.
Sources:
Layton, Jack. "NDP Platform: My Commitment to you, Leadership you can Trust to give your Family a Break." www.ndp.ca. New Democratic Party, n.d. Web. 1 Jun 2012. <http://www.ndp.ca/platform>.
Machiavelli , Niccolo . The Prince. 1532. 58-78. Print.
Chapter XXII: Point 9 - On the Prince's Private Advisers
"The choice of advisers is of no little import to a prince..."
As the new leader of the NDP, Mulcair must ensure himself that his "advisers" do their duty. By advisers, I mean other members of the NDP party, such as the Members of Parliament who represent the NDP party all around Canada. Technically, their only private to the point where they remain loyal to the party they represent and the values and morals that symbolizes the party and its actions, and how Canadians perceive them; thereby, making them public advisers in some way. Machiavelli states that "...the first error he (a Prince) makes is made in his choice of advisers", by applying this to Canadian politics, you can argue that in the case for Mulcair, he must make sure that the MP's that represent the NDP in different parts of Canada represent in an efficient manner to further influence Canadians abroad to encourage change in their government. Machiavelli also says that "... there is this way which never fails" furthering that paragraph with the idea that if the prince's advisers think more about themselves and not the prince, concerns themselves with their own interests, that type of adviser is considered unfit to be an adviser, thereby never to be trusted. Mulcair must be careful in the choice of NDP MP's in Canada and make sure they do their part in completing the deeds for the NDP and for Mulcair, thereby earning the trust of Mulcair and remain as a vital member in the NDP. Sometimes there can be the scare or potential risk of turning back on the party, public scandals (personal and political) and putting your own deeds first. As the NDP's new leader, Mulcair must make sure that the following risks do not happen. Those risks can be prevented by creating new/maintaining strong relationships with the MP's, which can ensure good relationships among members within the party and realize that their duty is to put the work of NDP first over their own needs, wants, and possibly deeds. In conclusion, in order to maintain an efficient party, you need people within that party who are committed, trustworthy, reliable and honorable if you are a man of power, in Machiavelli's sense... a prince, and in Mulcair's sense... the new leader of the opposing party in Canada, that being the NDP.
The following three Machiavellian lessons which are vital when looking into a new modern day Machiavellian Prince are: "How a Prince Should Keep His Word", "On Avoiding Being Despised or Hated" and finally "On the Princes Private Advisers". Thomas Mulcair acts as a perfect example of a new Machiavellian prince, being the new NDP leader since the end of March 2012. Although the NDP are not in control of Canada's government, with Thomas Mulcair as the new NDP prince, he must use Machiavellian teachings to continue to influence NDP supporters and Canadians abroad to vote NDP and make Mulcair our new leader. Mulcair also has to the big shoes of former NDP leader Jack Layton to fill, as Layton lead the legacy that took the NDP many places, Mulcair must use and apply Machiavelli to continue the NDP's success and further their road to political destiny. This grand example shows how Machiavelli can be applied to any new "prince" whether their old and have been in power for years, or is new to the political game and has many years of leading to come.
Sources:
Layton, Jack. "NDP Platform: My Commitment to you, Leadership you can Trust to give your Family a Break." www.ndp.ca. New Democratic Party, n.d. Web. 1 Jun 2012. <http://www.ndp.ca/platform>.
Machiavelli , Niccolo . The Prince. 1532. 58-78. Print.
Monday 9 January 2012
The Horror
Hey, whats up everybody? I know its been a while since my last entry, I've been busy, what with having two weeks of holidays, doing nothing but the obvious... spend time with family, partying, eating sushi with friends, watching shit tons of movies (both in theatres and at home), and playing countless hours on my PS3 (especially Infamous 2, that game is pretty fucking addictive). Now i'm back, after a relaxing two-week holiday.
To be honest, I spent a good chunk of my holidays walking (part of my exercise routine). Walking helps me think about things, things in my life, why I don't want to back to school, why I feel so empty. Don't get me wrong, I find high school to be stimulating in an educational sense, but in a social sense, its not fun. Its kind of sad really, when you think about it, I don't feel so enlightened when it comes to socializing, sometimes I wish I was like Henry David Thoreau and live in the forest, isolate myself from society. Or at least, in any other case, wear a mask to hide myself from people and attention (I dislike it when people look at me or make me the center of attention by putting me on the spot, that's why I suck when it comes to eye-contact).
The reason why I title this entry as "The Horror" is because that's what i'm talking about.... the horrors of high school. I mean don't get me wrong, its not like I don't have any friends at all, I do have friends, I would consider myself to be an ambivert, not an introvert, or an extrovert, but an ambivert... yes its an actual word, look it up you lazy fucks. Basically being an ambivert means that i'm in the middle, i'm both an extrovert and an introvert at the same time, I have both introverted and extroverted attitudes towards things, whether it be working by myself with nothing but quite (or with my IPod on), or the fact that I have a small number of close friends and a large number of acquaintance's, people I just know and say "hi" to on a daily basis, or just once in a while, friends on facebook that I hardly talk to (with the exception of asking about a certain class).
Sometimes I wish my life were more unrealistic, like a National Lampoon or American Pie movie, if there's anything that Van Wilder has thought me, its the mechanics on how to throw a bad-ass party, this and other things in those movies that I can relate to, minus all the sex that you hear about and see in those movies (the goal of loosing your virginity before you graduate is hilarious in movie form, though in reality, I find it to be very shallow). If my life was more like any of those movies, I would take out the sex-part, or in any case, make sure it doesn't happen to me, anyone else but me, choose the square next to me sitting by himself at the party to get his virginity lost, not me, lol.
Sometimes, and I say sometimes, I wish I would socialize more than I usually do, what I do is not enough. Maybe go to friends houses more, see people more, go to more party's, I wish, problem is that when those things do happen to me, I don't feel as happy as I should, i'm usually caught in a web, a web of confusion, all of these people around me, I don't feel normal, I feel tired and confused, which is pretty fucking sad when you think about it. Oh well, i don't know what to do, guess i'll live with it then.
All in all, its a mess, i'm tired everyday, I don't socialize as much as I should, girls still confuse me... that's right, if there's one thing in this world that confuses me the most, its girls. Anywho, socialization is fucking brutal for me, i don't know why, I try to be quite and quiet, its really hard. Sometimes I feel that i'm the wise one, yeah, the quiet yet wise man that walks around the hallways every lunch spitting simple yet wise words, it would be neat if I were some kind of philosopher at some point in my life.
I know when it comes to my writing, in this blog, I don't stick to one specific topic like most blogs. I branch-out to a wide array of topics, whether it be my travels, self-reflections on my life, plans for the future, observing the things around me, etc. I feel though I should be more open with my feelings when writing these entries, a touch to add to my experimental blog, of various topics.
Until that day....
HAUNTING YOUR PRESENCE 24/7!!!
To be honest, I spent a good chunk of my holidays walking (part of my exercise routine). Walking helps me think about things, things in my life, why I don't want to back to school, why I feel so empty. Don't get me wrong, I find high school to be stimulating in an educational sense, but in a social sense, its not fun. Its kind of sad really, when you think about it, I don't feel so enlightened when it comes to socializing, sometimes I wish I was like Henry David Thoreau and live in the forest, isolate myself from society. Or at least, in any other case, wear a mask to hide myself from people and attention (I dislike it when people look at me or make me the center of attention by putting me on the spot, that's why I suck when it comes to eye-contact).
The reason why I title this entry as "The Horror" is because that's what i'm talking about.... the horrors of high school. I mean don't get me wrong, its not like I don't have any friends at all, I do have friends, I would consider myself to be an ambivert, not an introvert, or an extrovert, but an ambivert... yes its an actual word, look it up you lazy fucks. Basically being an ambivert means that i'm in the middle, i'm both an extrovert and an introvert at the same time, I have both introverted and extroverted attitudes towards things, whether it be working by myself with nothing but quite (or with my IPod on), or the fact that I have a small number of close friends and a large number of acquaintance's, people I just know and say "hi" to on a daily basis, or just once in a while, friends on facebook that I hardly talk to (with the exception of asking about a certain class).
Sometimes I wish my life were more unrealistic, like a National Lampoon or American Pie movie, if there's anything that Van Wilder has thought me, its the mechanics on how to throw a bad-ass party, this and other things in those movies that I can relate to, minus all the sex that you hear about and see in those movies (the goal of loosing your virginity before you graduate is hilarious in movie form, though in reality, I find it to be very shallow). If my life was more like any of those movies, I would take out the sex-part, or in any case, make sure it doesn't happen to me, anyone else but me, choose the square next to me sitting by himself at the party to get his virginity lost, not me, lol.
Sometimes, and I say sometimes, I wish I would socialize more than I usually do, what I do is not enough. Maybe go to friends houses more, see people more, go to more party's, I wish, problem is that when those things do happen to me, I don't feel as happy as I should, i'm usually caught in a web, a web of confusion, all of these people around me, I don't feel normal, I feel tired and confused, which is pretty fucking sad when you think about it. Oh well, i don't know what to do, guess i'll live with it then.
All in all, its a mess, i'm tired everyday, I don't socialize as much as I should, girls still confuse me... that's right, if there's one thing in this world that confuses me the most, its girls. Anywho, socialization is fucking brutal for me, i don't know why, I try to be quite and quiet, its really hard. Sometimes I feel that i'm the wise one, yeah, the quiet yet wise man that walks around the hallways every lunch spitting simple yet wise words, it would be neat if I were some kind of philosopher at some point in my life.
I know when it comes to my writing, in this blog, I don't stick to one specific topic like most blogs. I branch-out to a wide array of topics, whether it be my travels, self-reflections on my life, plans for the future, observing the things around me, etc. I feel though I should be more open with my feelings when writing these entries, a touch to add to my experimental blog, of various topics.
Until that day....
HAUNTING YOUR PRESENCE 24/7!!!
Friday 9 December 2011
Nightmares
Nightmares, we all have them occasionally, they usually scare us no matter what, mine don't, I think my nightmares are becoming my reality. I always have this same nightmare, here it goes.
In my dream, I'm this lost puppy, who is found by some random, yet pretty, girl, she's this girl who I've never seen before, I didn't know this girl, she wasn't part of my life in anyway, most likely a projection of my imagination. She takes me to her home, giving me the same gestures any girl would to a small puppy "oh, you’re so cute, who's a good puppy?" So things seem great, being a puppy that's getting pampered by a hot girl, right? Wrong, in the evening she was getting ready for some party, after she got ready she told me "you know, it would be great to show you off to all my friends tonight". So then she put me in a cage, and took the cage (with me in it of course) and then we walked to the party which was a block away from her house, she just walked into the house, going into the living room and said "hey everyone, look what I found this afternoon". She then placed the caged puppy me in the middle of the living room floor, and guess what? Everyone I knew, every person from my school, my closest friends, acquaintances, people I see at school but don't talk or hang out with, friends of friends, all circling around me, hysterically laughing, pointing fingers at me. Then all of the sudden, I transform from a caged puppy to my normal human self, wearing ripped clothes, chained to a wooden board, and everyone started throwing tomatoes at me, but not just tomatoes, they started throwing cups filled with beer at me, the DJ thought it would be funny to throw his equipment at me, one girl had the drunk guts to even throw a whole bottle of Vodka at me. It then came to the point where I was drenched in my own blood and everyone's alcohol, and then that girl who found me as a lost puppy then had a lighter in her hand, turned it on, threw it to the ground, and set the whole house on fire, with everyone I knew running out of the party. I was too numb and weak to even feel the pain of being burned or to escape, I was just hanging there, chained to a wooden board, letting myself corrode until I was mere ash.
I've had three other renditions of this dream:
1. The burning of me happened on the dance floor of a school dance, it was Halloween, everyone one was dressed in weird costumes which I failed to even remember, while I was burning, they were all singing this drunken lullaby and circling around my burning corpse with cheer.
1. The burning of me happened on the dance floor of a school dance, it was Halloween, everyone one was dressed in weird costumes which I failed to even remember, while I was burning, they were all singing this drunken lullaby and circling around my burning corpse with cheer.
2. I was at an X-mas party, everyone laughed while I was a lost puppy, then transformed into the tortured man, whoopdy-dee, you get the point. Anyway, this time I was chained to a X-mas tree, most of me was attached to the tree by having pine needles stabbed to my back, while I was burning, people gather and sang "O Christmas Tree", then ten minutes later they were all singing and dancing to "Rockin Around the Christmas Tree" and "Sleigh Ride", a girl I knew asked the pretty dream girl "wait, why are we doing this?" the pretty girl then says "meh, I'm out of fun ideas, were out of eggnog and I'm too drunk to care". Guess I was too numb to care about my insides being burnt.
3. Where at a garden party, before prom, I'm at the bathroom fixing my hair, putting more cologne on, only to be kidnapped by these masked guys in white tuxedo's who take me to the dream girl. I say "what the fuck is going on?" she says "oh, you'll find out", she then sedates me. I wake up, only to be drenched in champagne, for some reason everyone is raising their glasses, then throws their drinks at me, dream girl gets a lighter, and the rest is self-explanatory.
Don't you understand? I've been corrupted by the things around me, the real horrors of high-school; they have now haunted my presence wherever I go. And no, to clarify things, I'm not being bullied, everyone has respect for me in my school, I like and respect all my peers, which is weird because a lot of those people I remember, they participated in the act of throwing objects at me in my dreams. Whenever I have this re-occurring nightmare, I wake up wanting to break a mirror/window, smearing the blood from my cuts onto my face, I want to pull my teeth out or gouge my eyes out (to remain blind from all of this) whenever I wake up from this nightmare, or when thinking about all of this during any other time of the day. Usually I don't have the tendency to cry when I have this nightmare, and the impulse to destroy and induce pain to myself only lasts for about 5 minutes, then everything is back to normal. It’s so weird, the effect that nightmares have on people, the fact that my nightmares are merely based on my surroundings, and then my dark conscience gives those surroundings, what I see, what I know, and turns them into the reality I never want to live. But then you think, from what you have seen in your nightmares, when it’s close to your life, you then ask yourself "Am I really this?" I started asking myself "Am I a target for punishment and torture?" "Am I a lost, confused, caged puppy?" I wish I knew the answer, I really do. I guess I can call myself a blood-thirsty animal, and if the demons disguised as people I know try to cage me or laugh at me during a party, I'll jump and have the angry impulse to tear someone’s head off, that's what they get for testing me.
So I guess it’s now a matter of wondering, why do I feel this way when I shouldn't? I shouldn't because I have a pretty normal life, I'm comfortable with myself, I respect others, people respect me, I have my own life goals and I do my own thing, I try not to conform to things that I'm uncomfortable with, people respect me for that (well, at least most people, some people still question my life choices, interests and values, that's fine, all the better to share).
I guess now it’s a matter of time for me to look into this; the mystery behind my somewhat fucked-up dream. I will use my newly developed skill of controlling my dreams (lucid dreaming) to find what needs to be fixed in my dream-verse to prevent these future nightmares.
Thursday 8 December 2011
Looking Back/Epic Hot Dogs/Future
Well, it’s another week of summer past, only two weeks left until school starts. I always enjoy school, this year will be interesting and worthwhile because this will be my final year of high school. I'm still wondering about the mysteries that wait for me this year. Having to be my final year of high school, I'm starting to look back at my past 3 years of high school, thinking to myself, saying "did I enjoy and live through school to the best extent?” I then said to myself, "ya, I did, could have done more but what I've done so far since the end of gr.11, was decent enough". I did what I could to be involved, and I’ll continue to do so, I've been to some of the school dances, school plays, parent teachers nights, sometimes I would even go with my parents for report card interviews with the teachers. Whenever I would stay home on those nights, I would worry if parents would bring pizza for my good work, or poison if I fucked up, or poisonous pizza if i'm doing "okay", shit it’s like that Simpsons episode all over again :P. No, even if I failed or did okay, my parents would never bring home poison, they're amazing parents, most of the time I think of them as my two best friends, I tell them a lot about my day, what I like and what’s going on with my friends and school. Going back to which school events I have attended, sadly I've only been to one Coffee House, but my friend Alex and I are thinking of starting a duo, I think it would be cool if it were a rap/hip-hop duo or even a full band, me on vocals and my limited piano skills (better practice), Alex on the guitar, and finding a bassist and a drummer. Although, sometimes I tend to feel depressed when I see happy people, I don't know why, I just do, is it because I have failed to accomplished what they have accomplished? Do they have something I don't have? The answer is still a mystery to me. I sort of feel that way during every X-mas assembly at school; The only parts that I enjoy are the parts that are put on by the teachers (i.e. they have a band and play kick-ass covers to other songs, funny skits, funny dances, etc), and the Friday Show special put on by Cougar Vision (news show at my school). The way I see it, I was talking to my counsellor about it after the holidays, it seems that the reason why the stuff at the Christmas assembly that actually relates to Christmas depresses me is that we hype and commercialize the hell out of one day, that's meant to be mostly about togetherness. That really in the end it becomes a huge let down, your expectations are not met after all the hype. Which is why I tend to feel that promoting Christmas in a X-mas assembly is depressing, watching school singing groups singing jolly X-mas songs or even students dancing to jolly X-mas songs, with their happy, blushing faces, depressing as the time my fish died when I was 9. Well, obviously they have to include Christmas in a X-mas holiday, what can I do? Nothing, just spend my holidays drowning myself in bottles of Coke, watching classic X-mas specials, sleeping and being with friends and family. I just wish people didn't a big fucking deal about Christmas, but in the end I can't destroy anything, others may want to disagree with me and enjoy their holidays. And besides, at least the assembly's have decent X-mas jokes, like the one with Santa Claus and Tiger Woods, and how at least Santa ends with 3 ho's, lol. Who knows, maybe I’ll invent my own holiday, a holiday of relaxation, doing all the holiday things that I enjoy as mentioned before, and possibly sleep my may throughout the entire holiday.
Moving on.....
My friend Alex and I were thinking of creating our own YouTube channel, similar to EpicMealTime, only instead, we'll specialize in a food that we both value... hot dogs. It may not seem like it, but you can be very creative with hot dogs, we were thinking that like every week, we would post a video of us making all types of hot dogs. To start off, we were thinking of following some of these recipes from this awesome website (http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/2009/07/international_hot_dogs). We also had an idea for a hot-dog to make around the time of Valentine’s Day, The Sexdog; a hot dog with honey, ginger and whipped-cream.... were using cool-whip, don't worry. Hopefully alongside with the band project, Alex and I can get this project running, for this project we need more of our friends, lots of money and a shit load of various ingredients, including lots of hot-dog wieners and buns, and also...girls, lots and lots of girls. If EpicMealTime can find hot girls on the street that are willing to gorge themselves in bacon wrapped food, then I’m sure it will be easy to find girls we know that are willing to eat lots of hot dogs.
Some ideas on what hot dogs we were thinking of making, for each episode we would make at least 20-30 of each hot dog we make.
And finally....
I know for the past little while since I created this blog, I have said that I'm going to post a new piece every Monday. So far, blogging had been good for me, it allows me to vent out my interests, both current and new, also some thoughts that I have on certain things, definitely not super personal stuff but some inner thoughts, only to allow myself to express myself to the people I know, and to a broader audience around the world, luckily people can easily find blogs by clicking the "next blog" button on the top right corner. I like how in blogging, it’s this whole community of people from all over the world, all walks of life expressing themselves in various ways, Blogger has done a good job of connecting all those people together and to share each other stories, life-experiences or whatever seems to be on someone’s mind, expressing it in text or through visuals. All legit reasons for why I’m continuing with blogging, even during the school year, but there will be changes. Because I will be busy with school (homework, Ultimate Frisbee, after school activities, etc), I may not be able to stick to a new blog post every Monday. Instead I will make a new blog-post, one for each week and post at anytime during the week, whether I post it during the day when I’m at school, or like late at night during the weekend. Either way, just thought I would let you know if you keep up with this blog and follow or read it on a daily/frequent basis. With the stories and events that I will experience this year at school and in my life, more interesting tales from yours truly will come. The future of my blog is known my friend, and it is bright.
Moving on.....
My friend Alex and I were thinking of creating our own YouTube channel, similar to EpicMealTime, only instead, we'll specialize in a food that we both value... hot dogs. It may not seem like it, but you can be very creative with hot dogs, we were thinking that like every week, we would post a video of us making all types of hot dogs. To start off, we were thinking of following some of these recipes from this awesome website (http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/2009/07/international_hot_dogs). We also had an idea for a hot-dog to make around the time of Valentine’s Day, The Sexdog; a hot dog with honey, ginger and whipped-cream.... were using cool-whip, don't worry. Hopefully alongside with the band project, Alex and I can get this project running, for this project we need more of our friends, lots of money and a shit load of various ingredients, including lots of hot-dog wieners and buns, and also...girls, lots and lots of girls. If EpicMealTime can find hot girls on the street that are willing to gorge themselves in bacon wrapped food, then I’m sure it will be easy to find girls we know that are willing to eat lots of hot dogs.
And finally....
I know for the past little while since I created this blog, I have said that I'm going to post a new piece every Monday. So far, blogging had been good for me, it allows me to vent out my interests, both current and new, also some thoughts that I have on certain things, definitely not super personal stuff but some inner thoughts, only to allow myself to express myself to the people I know, and to a broader audience around the world, luckily people can easily find blogs by clicking the "next blog" button on the top right corner. I like how in blogging, it’s this whole community of people from all over the world, all walks of life expressing themselves in various ways, Blogger has done a good job of connecting all those people together and to share each other stories, life-experiences or whatever seems to be on someone’s mind, expressing it in text or through visuals. All legit reasons for why I’m continuing with blogging, even during the school year, but there will be changes. Because I will be busy with school (homework, Ultimate Frisbee, after school activities, etc), I may not be able to stick to a new blog post every Monday. Instead I will make a new blog-post, one for each week and post at anytime during the week, whether I post it during the day when I’m at school, or like late at night during the weekend. Either way, just thought I would let you know if you keep up with this blog and follow or read it on a daily/frequent basis. With the stories and events that I will experience this year at school and in my life, more interesting tales from yours truly will come. The future of my blog is known my friend, and it is bright.
Friday 11 November 2011
Remembrance Day... Lest We Forget
Remembrance Day is one of the most important days in Canada. To me, and to other Canadians abroad, Remembrance Day is a day of honour, honouring those who go out on the front lines, and risk their lives to protect the people. I'm grateful for everything that Canadian soldiers have done to protect the people, fighting in previous wars, and dealing with current global issues. I love Canada, Canada is an amazing county that I'm proud to live in, and it’s a country that has been good to me and my family. While we busy ourselves with school and work and remain protected in this amazing country, Remembrance Day reminds us that while we have all this time in the world, the least we can do is take a small amount of time from our busy lives and remember, remember those who gave their lives to help protect this country, and remember those who still live today, that have done the same. Canada would not be the pristine picture we see today as a free and sovereign nation if we did not have our troops there to defend and risk their lives to help maintain the beauty of this nation. I along with other Canadians thank them for their courage.
While I continue to acknowledge the many Canadians that have sacrificed so much, both in history and now, I still continue to advocate for peace. Don't get me wrong, as mentioned before, I'm very grateful for what our troops have done. These previous wars in history, although interesting to read and learn about, made me realize that war is no longer the answer, and that things can be solved through peaceful, non-violent means (note: the only violence I’m okay with is media violence, basically violence that you see in TV shows, movies, comics and video games, also the violence that you read in books and the violence that you hear in music, because we all know that at least 90% of the violence you see in those forms of media are fake, and that parents should take the responsible initiative for when it comes to their children seeing, reading and hearing violence in the media). That's why I wear and believe in the White Poppy for Peace. It follows the same meanings that the Red Poppy follows, but in addition to that, the White Poppy also symbolizes that while were still thankful, we should learn now that were at an age where people of various backgrounds, including nations, are getting along without settling scores with war, violence and bloodshed. If we can do that as normal, regular people such as ourselves, then maybe we can influence that idea to stop current world conflicts, by using peace. What I love about Canada is that it’s a very multicultural country, and with that we are able to tolerate our differences and easily settle scores in very reasonable ways. I admire that the Canadian Military is doing so by building strong and friendly relations with the regular town folk of Afghanistan, and the Afghan military as well. I also admire the projects that the military has worked on, such as building schools and other important facilities to help give the happy town folk a better life, which is basically a regular life that we in North America are used to, but tend to take for granted (I learned not to take things for granted, for that, I'm grateful for many things). I admire the peacekeeping missions we conduct, a perfect way to build strong relations with other countries and the rulers of those countries. I know Canada has a good reputation for having good, stable relationships with many other countries. So to conclude this entry, I will say this:
I thank those who are dead, and those who are alive that managed to keep Canada safe and stable to this day. While I remain grateful, let’s not make war the first answer (or not an answer at all, only should it be used if all else fails). Instead continue to keep peace, fight for peace, help those countries in need by doing many things that will give the people of those countries a better life, and continue to build strong, sturdy relationships with the many countries that exist among us. Talking, settling negotiations in a peaceful manner is a good approach. Peace is the best answer, war is not.
I thank those who are dead, and those who are alive that managed to keep Canada safe and stable to this day. While I remain grateful, let’s not make war the first answer (or not an answer at all, only should it be used if all else fails). Instead continue to keep peace, fight for peace, help those countries in need by doing many things that will give the people of those countries a better life, and continue to build strong, sturdy relationships with the many countries that exist among us. Talking, settling negotiations in a peaceful manner is a good approach. Peace is the best answer, war is not.
Lest we forget...
Thursday 27 October 2011
WOAH! Hometown Madness!
Crazy stuff happening at the Gloucester Centre, in Ottawa, the rest will be explained in this article: http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/reported+dead+shooting+Gloucester+Centre/5612229/story.html
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