NPR has been reporting that the Chinese government is being very secretive about the Olympic torch reaching Mount Everest's summit. I heard on the radio that reporters were told that if they wanted to be present for the event, they had to get to Everest without any time to acclimate. The secrecy of the Chinese government does not surprise me since I lived in china before I attended CSUMB.
I spent nine months living in Beijing China and it was like no other place I have ever visited. I felt very safe wherever I went because nearly the entire city is gated with guards and police everywhere. I suppose it is not as oppressive as it once was during Mau’s time but speaking your thoughts in public is simply not something done casually. Watching the nightly news is also a shock since there is rarely any bad new reported. I know how many Americans wish the nightly news was happier but there is a high cost.
Have any of you ever felt unsafe to speak your mind? If you censored yourself, how did it feel?

Are they whispering in your ear?

This morning on my way to class I was listening to a discussion on NPR about the controversy over Barack Obama calling Midwesterners “bitter”. of course they are bitter- so am I! the economy is falling apart and thousands of people are losing their homes. Just drive along any neighborhood and look for the dead lawns… its very sad.
Getting back to my thought…What I really wanted to talk about is how all this coverage over what Obama said is unusually fishy. The NPR host said that “polls” (I don’t know which ones- nothing new) show that the American public is not phased over what Obama said yet the press is treating it like the white water scandal. Is the media trying to manipulate us? Sure looks like it. Kinda makes you think about what we covered in class today… Are the big media conglomerates threatened by Obama? Hmmmm…

You can write whatever you want. But is it right?

I look at the last time I posted and it has been a long time. I find things that I want to post and then I think twice about it because I don’t want to offend my fellow classmates. But the same thing isn’t true for some of you. Even though we see each other two times a week in class, some of you fail to recognize the diversity of the classroom or just don’t care. Outside of class I don’t get enjoyment out of reading blogs, articles, watching fox news when what is being discussed is how there is something wrong with my ethnicity, my class or my other characteristics. I pay for this education! Be aware that not everyone agrees with you. And if you hate someone because you have been wronged do not generalize and hate whole groups. Where do we draw the line? Isn’t this a free speech and Responsibility class? Just remember that there is one person in your class who has been affected by your negative posts- Me! If you don’t care then you miss the point of classes like this.