The article Joseph Kony On The Move As Manhunt Steps Up, UN Envoy Says by Louis Charbonneau told that finally Kony is beginning to be deeply pressured. Before, Kony stayed at one place for perhaps a few months, now he is moving almost daily. Joseph Kony is the leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army, one consisting of thousands of children, some who become sex slaves. Thousands of children have been killed during the three decades Kony has been operating. Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, and the Central Republic have joined together on a 5,000 strong manhunt to apprehend Kony. The pressure only increased when Khartoum is deciding whether to close its borders for Kony and Chad’s president agreed to try to capture Kony if he came into Chad. The recent Kony 2012 viral video has raised awareness about Kony, with over 80 million who now know about the atrocities. The authorities are closer to finding out where Kony is, because defectors and traces showed where he has been and how Kony feels.

My main question for this topic is: how are the millions that know about Kony going to help? Although they did put pressure on him, no DIRECT action has been done. I have that question because I really wonder how much is being done about Kony. The big message in this article is that something IS being done about Kony, and that slowly, but surely, the authorities are closer to Kony. Joseph Kony has killed thousands of children, used them as sex slaves, made them kill others, and has been doing this for 30 years. Why does this matter? He has abused children for decades, yet little has been done until now. The only problem is that there is someone else like Kony who is also charged for war crimes - General Bosco Ntagand. If Kony is captured, perhaps that will show an example on what everyone can accomplish, and capture other criminals.

If I was involved in this situation, I would first close borders to Kony around where we know he is. Then surround the area and silt through area by area, closer and closer to the center to find Kony – little chance for escape. At first, I foolishly thought that maybe Kony 2012 was fake. Now I realize how much effort has been put into the capture of this man, and how much that man has affected tens of thousands of lives. Our responsibility is to contribute in the search for Kony and prevent anything similar happen in our communities.

This article comes back to the issue of violence in Egypt. Unknown and armed individuals have again assaulted protesters for/against people in the upcoming elections. As said in the article, the Army must end attacks on protesters amid renewed violence. Amnesty International has renewed its call on the protection of the protesters – many have been killed because of the lack of protection. A group of armed people started fighting with the protesters. Guns, stones, and Molotov Cocktails were all used in the conflict. One was found dead, and over a hundred were injured. The authorities did very little until 1 o’clock – when the army had to intervene. One has been found with his throat cut. Overall, the Egyptian authorities say that about seven people were killed. No one knows who is responsible for the assaults. Both under Former President Mubarak and Egypt’s Supreme Council of Armed Forces protesters were attacked, and the intervention from the army always came too late.

A very interesting question puzzled me after I read the article. It is simply: Why did the authorities respond so lamely? The attacks happened many times, but no action was taken. Also, I see no purpose in the armed individuals creating violence – why are they attacking the protesters? Perhaps, the “unknown” are against the opinion of the protesters? I think that the main message of the article is to point out that the army must end the attacks and do something to prevent the violence to happen again. It matters because the government/army is not protecting its citizens, instead leaving the bloodshed to occur for a while.

If I was the army, I would’ve at least tried to put barriers and send out troops to monitor and limit the violence. Being a bystander of all the action like what the Egyptian army did is intolerable. If I was one of the protesters, I would’ve simply try to go away. All the gunfire and shotgun pellets can result in injury or damage. It is not worth risking your life for something like this. Once again, there is another article showing the irresponsibility that the government portrays to the world. As a person, I’m not much of an influence, as this matter goes up to the government. I cannot change their opinion. As a community, we sadly cannot do much either. Egypt is out of our grasp of influence. As a world though, we CAN change their opinions. The power of 7 billion people is simply overwhelming. Think about it.

In the article BP Oil Spill Aftermath: Eyeless Shrimp, Clawless Crabs and Fish with Oozing Sores by Casey Chan talks about the effects of the BP Oil spill two years later. When BP spilled the oil, the company didn’t use environmentally friendly chemicals to clean up the mess. What they used greatly harmed the environment and living species. The biggest effect was on fish. The mutations ranged from tumors, to lesions, and to even dying from within. The higher levels of nickel and vanadium only adds more evidence. There is also an effect on humans. Some of these effects are: headaches, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pains, chest pains, respiratory system damage, skin sensitization, hypertension, central nervous system depression, neurotoxic effects, cardiac arrhythmia and cardiovascular damage. The seafood shortages caused by the death of fish will affect the US a lot. 40% of the US seafood is in the Gulf of Mexico – the place of the spill. Poly-cyclic aromatic hydrocarbons are thought to be the cause of  the majority of problems. Lastly, the government has lost control of the situation.

At first, when I read the article, I simply could not believe it! It has been such a long time that I forgot about the after effects. The most shocking part is that the government has lost control.  Also, BP doesn’t take the blame…now what lying is that? If BP doesn’t take the blame, does it mean that the company doesn’t have to responsible for the seafood dying? I think that the biggest message in this article is that something has to be done about the spill. BP has tried to stop it, but only caused more environmental damage to seafood. Also, this matters. The food we eat may be contaminated, and can harm us too. 40% of the US seafood could be mutated or dead if nothing is done about the chemicals.

There is not much I can do though if i was in the situation. This problem is gigantic, and to stop it will be beyond my power. Even raising awareness would not be effective in taking away all the chemicals – a process which will surely cost billions. In this world, money and reputation means a lot, so the companies wouldn’t take the blame for such a horrific disaster. The responsibility of our community is to make sure that the companies take responsibility of their mistakes and do something about it which does not harm others. I can still relate the part about the pink masses over the fishes’ eyes and gills…it reminds me of the horror of Vietnamese restaurant aquariums.

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In the article “In South Sudan, Girls Are Given Away to Settle Family Feuds” by Tom Rhodes, many different human rights declared in 1948 by the UN are violated. As there is no jail system in South Sudan, a tradition is used to solve problems. When a someone kills another man, the killer has to give away one of his family’s girls to the victim’s family as compensation. The girl given away is then forced into slavery. The family often revenge the death of their family member by hitting and abusing the girl. Something which also commonly happens is that the girl is forced into marriage, and then is raped continuously in an attempt to produce a child to replace the dead family member. A factor of this mess could be the fact that after the civil war, the country is still underdeveloped – only 19% of people over the age of 15 are literate. No proper system to solve crime is in place, so the horrible traditions continue.

Many questions arose when I read the article. Are the countries which agreed on The Universal Declaration of Human Rights have to obey them? If so, is South Sudan part of the countries? This tradition goes against womens’ rights, freedom, right for no slavery, no torture or cruelty and many more rights! How come the government isn’t doing anything? Families lose the ones they love just because one of their own killed someone else. Lastly, my biggest questions are: “Who chooses who has to be given away?” Wouldn’t the man fight to keep his sister or relative with him instead of giving her away? The last one nags me so much that I can’t even imagine applying that situation here in Vietnam. If you don’t have a girl, do you have to give away your mother? I think the message the article is trying to get across is that there are many cruelties in this world, and that we can do something to help – it doesn’t have to be a specific human right in this article.

Frankly, this article doesn’t connect to me or my community. We don’t have any problems with women’s right, and no one is truly being abused and forced into slavery (except the occasional “Discipline Time” with your parents). If I was involved, it’s hard to know what I will do. Will I have the courage to stand up against the old tradition or will I simply follow it out of fear and simply sulk? I hope I’m brave enough. Living in a caring family, I wouldn’t bear see someone be given away as compensation, knowing that their life will be a living hell. I thought that womens’ rights were established long ago, but apparently not. Human rights are violated all the time, and this article shows a case where multiple rights are violated. Our community has the responsibility to prevent any cruelty mentioned in the article, and as a world, to live together in PEACE and to resolve all the suffering millions have to go through.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/17/opinion/blow-the-curious-case-of-trayvon-martin.html
The Curious Case of Trayvon Martin by Charles M. Blow

Trayvon Martin

Trayvon Martin’s case deserves lots of attention from the media.  The article hinted a lot about the racism in this murder (or possibly manslaughter). Most of all, I’m disgusted by the fact that Ge0rge is not even arrested. It’s obvious that he was the one in pursuit of the innocent teenager. So why isn’t he arrested? I think it has to do with Trayvon’s race. Even his family’s lawyers said that if Trayvon was the one who shot, he would be arrested immediately – clearly a show of racism. Some questions that haunt me are: Why did George follow Trayvon? What made Trayvon look so suspicious that George had to kill him? If I was a grown man, I would’ve not been taking out my gun a teen simply walks near your house, but does nothing.

‘Bully’ Documentary: Weinstein Company Loses Appeal Over R-Rating by Gary Susman

R Rating

 The main question to the MPAA is: Why did u rate R for the movie  ”Bully” ? Personally, I support the Weinstein Company it this argument. Bully is MEANT to be shown to teens, and by rating R, that exact audience the movie was made for is not allowed to watch. Although the movie does have a few instances of profanity, I doubt that deserves an R-rating! I saw many movies with many swear words, but they were never ranked above PG-13. That’s why the rating in the U.S confuses me. I seen many movies in Vietnam which are rated PG-13, which show lots of material higher than only a small swearing scene. Bully, only has only a few F-bombs, but it is essential for the movie, as it shows the bullying, a major problem for many students and schools. I think “Bully” will help bullies, teachers, and other kids to see what bullying can lead to (a kid committed suicide because of this). Lastly, the tally was only one vote short from the number needed to revert the decision of the rating.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/business/media/jeremy-lin-media-hype-stumbles-on-race.html

Media Hype for Lin Stumbles on Race by David Carr

Hollywood Reporter

Jeremy Lin’s recent success has petrified the world, and now all the newspapers, magazine, tabloids put him on their front page. The only problem is that the the front pages are filled with 72 sized font puns and superlatives. Because of his race, the racism still left in the American society leads them to use Jeremy’s race and last name for word play – Lincredible, Just Lin Time, Lin and a Prayer, and even Amasian. The fact that racism still lurks around disturbs me! As said in the article by Fox Sports colonist Jason Whitlock, Jeremy is getting attention because of his ethnicity, not his accomplishments. I think that many have a vision that all Asians are smart at math, play piano, and have straight As. Jeremy’s success actually comes from his talent and his hard work, not his “natural abilities”. Jeremy deserves to be where he is.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/12/sunday-review/messages-to-et.html?_r=1&ref=opinion

What Do You Say to an Alien? by Sam Roberts

Zombie Popcorn

Since the past few centuries, we wondered whether extraterrestrials exist. I believe they do, but the prospect of having a golden disc perfectly land in a planet with life on it is very slim. Additionally, the life there may be uni-cellular organisms – not capable of understanding our message. Even if intelligent species existed, doesn’t mean that they can interpret our technology, and how it is used. The record on Voyager may reach a place eventually, but that place may not even understand the message – a sad thought if that was the case. I’m sure than some Chuck Berry will only confuse the aliens more, and they may misinterpret the message (they may think that it is a violent sign). Now comes the what do we do if we meet aliens? Although the chances are low, we still need a protocol – never leave even small chances unnoticed. We need to make sure the aliens understand that we don’t want any belligerence between each other. If they are stronger than us, surely we want befriend them, or watch ourselves dissipate.

The next part of understanding the strangers is to understand where they came from. By pointing out familiar galactic objects in the sky, we can identify where they are located at. Communication between each other is going to be the hardest part of the relationship between humans and E.T. Although it has been, we have been communicating with whatever is in space! Apparently, our radio broadcasts have been escaping into space – for about 75 years. Travelling at speed of light, the first broadcast in 1936 has traveled over 700 trillion kilometers. Our nearest star, Alpha Centauri, is only 40 trillion kilometers away. If life is advanced enough and can understand our broadcasts  that star, then possibly our existence is already known!

As it said in the article, “Dialogue will be inter-generational”. If we talk through sending radio broadcasts, then it will take many years to send one message, then to wait for a response. This reminds me of the sky we see. The stars we see today may not even exist. Because it takes many years for light to reach our eyes, by the time does reach it,  the star could have changed. The only common language we share are physical principals. The laws of physics probably apply to everywhere in the universe, so by sharing using that, we can understand the E.T. better. If we do come across a signal, we DO need to inform the world, but we do need to consult on the reply. The WOW signal was thought to be a real alien broadcast, but it never repeated. Without consultation, our reply can be a waste. Lets hope that the aliens are friendly if we ever encounter them, unlike how they are portrayed in the movies…

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/world/middleeast/egyptian-forces-appear-to-end-siege-of-ministry.html?_r=1

Walls Prove No Barrier to Clashes on Streets of Cairo by David Kirkpatrick

fxnonstop

A long time ago, when I was still a child, I went on a vacation to Egypt. I went to Cairo, where it was very peaceful. Now, reading this article, it petrifies me on how everything can change so quickly.  I still remember walking around in the hot weather, then travelling where the Pyramids stand. Today, there is the protesting against the military rule. At first, I thought that the government had the upper hand in this battle. Apparently not. It must be out of control, as they have to put up walls to stop protesters from advancing. What confused me is how all this started. According to the article, a riot in a soccer match sparked the intensity of the current conflict. Perhaps the whole mess started from some a “spark”.

What I think is the most important part of the article is what the protesters had to go through. This is what the police did, stated in the article: “They filled several blocks with thick clouds of tear gas, and walked through the white smoke blasting fleeing protesters with rubber bullets and birdshot.” All of that, but the people kept on going!  The government planted over 25 barriers leading the protesters to  the Interior Ministry. For some reason, it is the protesters’ most despised target. That didn’t stop them either.  In the end, even when some people tried to stop the violence, the tension grew and the fighting resumed. This article showed how much the protesters fought for what they wanted, and how out of control the situation is.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2012/jan/29/apple-faces-boycott-worker-abuses
Apple hit by boycott call over worker abuses in China by Paul Harris

It is rare to find a person on the street which hasn’t heard of Apple. This company’s influence grasps millions of users, including me. I frankly never thought about how many people have to work long shifts and suffer so much making our iPhones or iPads. I actually thought that machines made the ingenious devices, but actually, humans assemble them. After reading the article of the week, I saw that all our Apple products come from the labor the workers in China had to endure, as it says “Assembled in China” on the products. This article also stirred a mixture of feelings and thoughts. The idea of a boycott may seem great, but who would give away their precious iSomething?’

My first reaction when reading the article was, how come the workers are abused in the first place?  Apple produces a lot of products, so the company should be aware of how their products are produced. As Apple is very rich, I think Apple can afford to change the way workers are treated. Daily Beast and Newsweek technology writer Dan Lyons said, “Ultimately the blame lies not with Apple and other electronic companies – but with us, the consumers…” A spark then lit in my brain. It is true. We spend so much money on Apple products that possibly workers have to work longer to meet the demand. Some say that the average time an Apple product lasts is 6 months, which then another product is bought. No surprise workers are abused.

“If you add up all the workers who have died to build your iPhone or iPad, the number is shockingly high,” said Peter Cohan, Forbes magazine columnist. I wonder about how many workers actually died making my iPod Nano. It strikes me that we are ignorant of the work done for us. Maybe a boycott will be effective, but the many question is, “Who would give away their device(s)?” They are expensive, and by giving away, we lose our music, mobile internet, calling, and most importantly, applications. Some of the disturbing events caused by our demand is four people killed by explosions and 137 workers injured by poisonous chemicals. I’m still confused why they have to meddle with poisonous chemicals.

The way the workers in China working for Apple are treated is absurd. Over 60 working hours per week, hard labor, and even deaths from explosions. I think that Apple needs to act now and fix this problem, or the company’s reputation will go down. Apple is great, with their innovative technology, and I hope they will prosper more by learning from their mistakes.