Music in Protest - Vietnam and WWI

Today in class the Vietnam group presented their perilous times project on civil rights, and much of their presentation was focused on rallies and peaceful protests. This got me thinking, how else, do people protest and raise awareness about wars? Which brigns us to what I want to talk about...music. There are alot of songs out right now protesting the War on Terror, but one of my favorite songs is by Billy Joel, and it is called Goodnight Saigon. It was released in 1983, after the war, but still got people thinking about the mistakes of the past, and that is a start. The fact that it wasn't released during the war doesn't matter all that much, it raised public awareness about the horrors of the war, and educated many on the subject. In 8th grade, we had a school wide presentation on Vietnam, delivered by an ex- Washburne teacher who called in airstrikes in Vietnam for the US Air Force. He played this song for us, and it really struck me, I went home and looked up the song and researched the war  for a bit. The main point he made is that Vietnam is a war that is sometimes forgotten (we barely touched on it in our 8th grade U.S history class), and that one day there will be no veterans left. He said that there were only 3 World War I veterans left alive at the time, and that one day that would be the case for Vietnam vets. I guess what I'm trying to say is that music can be very moving and effective in anti-war efforts and education, when done well. Another very good song by The Dropkick Murphys, is called The Green Fields of France. The line that strikes me in this song is, " It all happened again, and again, and again." I think the point that The Dropkick Murphys are trying to make is that war is preventable, and we can prevent it, we just have to learn from the past. Also see Sting's Russians, which is a grim reminder of what could have been (nuclear armageadon), and also makes the point that we need to learn from the past, or maybe one day the fears of the Cold War era might become a devestating reality. "There's no such thing as a winnable war" is  a line that strikes a chord with me, and it is really true, and it is something that more people should realize.
- Please watch these three videos, the music combined with the pictures is very moving and thoughtful.
-What lines strike you in these songs? Are there any other good songs like these?

The Right to Hang a Pair of Bear Arms

The right to bear arms (the second amendment) has been one of the most controversial amendments to the consitution. A humorous look at this issue, courtesy of Family Guy, can be found here, (be warned the site is in Swedish). But in all seriousness, this is an issue worth discussing, because it has been a hot button topic ever since the second amendment was ratified in 1791. The text of the 2nd amendment literally says, "A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." A full text and footnotes can be found at this legal site. My opinion is that people should be allowed to bear arms, but in regulation. People should be allowed to have handguns, not automatic weapons. Hunters can have rifles and shotguns, but chances are, no matter who you are, you don't need an M16. Also, tests and safety exams should be more rigorous, the Gov't should make sure that anyone who wants to own a gun knows how to safely use and maintain it.

3 Strikes and You're OUT!

Awhile ago, in American Studies class, we touched on the topic of the '3 strike law' that is in several U.S states, including California. My opinion on this subject is that this is NOT the way to go, it isn't fair that if someone robs a conveinance store three times they can be given the same sentence as a murderer or drug runner. It also doesnt seem practical  or cost effectiveto keep so many people in prison for so long. According to the site I linked to, Californians spend 6.1 billion a year on their jails and penal systems, and the number of Californians in jail has increased sevenfold in just 20 years. To me, that just seems ridiculous and against the old saying 'Land of the Free'.

When is Enough Enough?

All this talk of civil liberties being violated by government and authoritarian powers got me thinking, "Who else in power is abbusing it." Then, I remembered an individual who was mentioned in class, John Burge, a Chicago Police detective in the 70s who was accused and abusing and torturing suspects. This is a scary thought, I know... cops are supposed to 'serve and protect' right, and nearly all of the time that is the case, but sometimes people abuse power, and do terrible things that they are for the common good. One account tells of Burge tracking down a suspect who shot 2 officers restlessly for 5 days, and  finally found himself attacking his door with lockpicks, which are rarely used by policemen. Then, he captured and tortured the suspect. This is a chilling story, and makes me think, "When will people in power stop being corrupt and truly look out for the common good?" When is enough enough?

Freedom of Press?

In a Sun Times article we were given in class yesterday, to give us some backstory on the first amendment and certain rights. And in this article it defined freedom of the press as, " access to information independent of the government, and political leaders." While this is techinacally true, by definition, many news sources are accused of being highly supportive or against a certain political view. For example Fox is accused of being highly conservative, wheras the Chicago Tribune, the NY Times, and MSNBC are called out as being overly liberal, and CNN of supporting the Republican Party. Some people even claim that mock news sources like Stephen Coldbert and John Stewart are biased in what they show and who they make fun of. Which begs the question, are we ever going to see a newspaper or network that gives us the facts, and nothing else, free of any prejudice or bias?

Grades, Grades, Grades

We were discussing something in class today that particularly struck a chord with me. We were talking about grades and how important they are at a competitive school like New Trier. Which got me thinking, why do people worry about grades so much? Isn't the point of school to learn as much as possible, so why don't kids focus on that? I try my best to make school not about the letters and percentages, but with constant pressure to perform well in school from parents, and the desire to get into a good school, it can be easy to forget what is important. I also thought, how would school be different if there were no grades given out, if it was truly about what you got out of the experience in knowledge and life-skills. Would that make kids work harder? What do you think?

Turtles