How To Deal With A Dictator

First and formost, before I address the topic of how to deal with a dictator, we need to find out what a dictator really is. A dictator is a person who has gained power to a country by force, and usually oppresses the citizens. By oppressing the citizens, the dictator takes away the peoples rights and is obviously feared, but supreme. Examples of dictators both from the past and currently are Julius Caesar of Ancient Rome and Kim Jong Un from North Korea.

Those two men are different, yet similar in many ways. In one way, Julius Caesar had fickle audience and the Romans practically worshipped him. Caesar was strong in a military area, and so his power grew from the military, to the senate, and on it's way to a dictatorship. Caesar was very arrogant, from that he disregarded laws agreed by the senate and made his own rules. On the other hand, Kim Jong Un had taken leadership from his deceased father, Kim Jong Il. Kim Jong Un, a twenty-something year old, had to take over the country of North Korea with its almost-famine and nuclear weapons. Kim Jong Un and Julius Caesar have at least one thing in common: they eliminate people in their way. Literally, as Julius Caesar got rid of Flavius and Marullus for taking down decor, Kim Jong Un would sentence "enemies of the state" to a concentration camp, along with their children and grandchildren.

Now, onto the subject of how to deal with a dictator. Believe it or not, there are several ways to get rid of a dictator. For example: Assassination  rebellion, protests, military force, raising awareness, and economic embargoes and sanctions. The cold truth is that most plans to overthrow a dictator end off sour. If you wanted to assassinate a dictator, the dictators followers might seek vengeance and throw the country into a civil war (Julius Caesar). Rebellions may not work, because in most cases is goes into a full out war where civilians might be killed, and yet protests can grow into riots or rebellions as well which wouldn't end well. Military force, however, is almost always used. When allied countries go against other allied countries, it's almost World War II again. As previously stated, most dictators would get rid of "enemies of the state", so they wouldn't be very happy with people spreading that they were hurting the country, rather than helping it. Economic embargoes and sanctions, however, would actually work. If you took the situation of current North Korea (crazy nuclear threats, almost famine, and young dictator) and took away their resources, where would that leave them? They would be cut off from oil, which they would desperately need. At the end, there is no one way to deal with a dictator, because it always depends on the situation, and the cause and effect.

Making the Invisible Visible: HIV Discrimination

The issue that we are facing is discrimination against victims of HIV/AIDS. Around the world, there is a belief that HIV is an STD only passed around by homosexual men, drug users, and sex workers. But really, that isn't true. This stereotype came about with the beginning of the disease, whose first victims were a part of those shamed communities. Though the stigma is worldwide, there is still a big problem in Malaysia itself. As Malaysia is an islamic country, the majority of the population feels that homosexuality is a sin, so they would especially frown upon people with a  disease marked as "homosexually transmitted". So far, I've seen pretty negligent people, and that surprised me. It goes to the point that people believe only members of the LGBT community receive HIV/AIDS, which is complete and utter foolishness. Some believe that it is a "homosexual problem", such as the prime minister's wife, Rosmah Mansor. Having learned about this (and still learning), this issue makes me feel sympathetic towards the people who have gotten HIV. They never wanted the disease in the first place, and some people didn't even make bad decisions (drugs, unprotected sex, etc.), and contracted it anyways. In the end, what we really can do is raise awareness. It would contribute to the end of the stigma against the victims of HIV/AIDS, which is what we want to do.

Assassinations and What Not

Assassinations, let's face it, have been around for almost since the dawn of time and space. Okay, maybe not that far back, but probably when we became at least a little civilized. I'm talking about post cave man, of course, though no one would be too sure. Obviously, when someone doesn't like someone, they try their best to take them out. A too well known example of this is with politics. I mean, which political party hasn't tried to take their opponent out? Most of them, I'm sure. So when someone you don't like is a leader of thousands or millions or whatever fits the description, you try your best to exterminate them. This thinking leads to that assassinations occur because people (leaders, celebrities, role models, etc.) are seen as threats and so some people want to eliminate them. Honestly, I don't think assassinations are justifiable. Most of them happened a long time ago, and so we wouldn't know which side of the story was right. We always put the person who was assassinated in the right side. Most of the time, it seems right. Like Martin Luther King Jr., for example. He was assassinated for having different ideas than other people, and so he had to be killed. In my opinion, you can't just kill someone for disagreeing with you. I think that people assassinated others because they didn't want ideas opposing their beliefs to spread among the people. In conclusion, I do believe that assassinations are wrong and totally not justifiable.  

In Blistering Burkas: The Limited Women of the Middle East

Being The Difference

Throughout South Africa, there are thousands of disabled children. In most cases, these children are treated unfairly and shoved aside because they are disabled and people believe that they can’t do anything. From this, those kids are forced into a state of mind that they aren’t worth it and they are helpless. A girl named Chaeli Mycroft proved this wrong. From the day she was born, Chaeli was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, a disease that makes her wheelchair bound. At the age of seven, Chaeli decided to change her life and achieve independence by raising money to receive a motorized wheelchair. From that point, she had already accomplished fighting for her own equality and started spreading the word that disabled children have rights and they aren’t worthless; thus starting the Chaeli Campaign.   

All around the world, people aren’t being treated as equals, whether their race, religion, culture or anything else that defines “different”. Like these people, Chaeli has struggled through her disability, which separated her from everyone else. Chaeli is diagnosed with cerebral palsy, which restricted her to a wheelchair for her life.  “Chaeli understands her impact as a role model and says, ‘I got used to helping and am willing to help. I am an inspiration to other kids. Through what I have done, they see that they must not to be a victim’." (3) Even though she is disabled, Chaeli doesn’t give up and believes that even though she is different to everyone else, she can do whatever she sets her mind to and people won’t bring her down. The Chaeli Campaign, a foundation that Chaeli, her sister, and three of their friends created helps 3,000 kids with disabilities in South Africa every year. “The wheelchair brought Chaeli so much freedom and independence that she also wanted to give this independence to other children with disabilities.” (1) Chaeli makes sure that disabled children have the privilege of going to school, having motorized wheelchairs and more tools that will help them reach their goals like others who aren’t in their position. Chaeli has definitely proved to the world that disabled children can make a difference.

Chaeli is fighting for the belief that disabled children can do as much as people without any disabilities can. Like any person, Chaeli knows that its hard to believe in yourself, but she believed in herself anyways. She was determined and ambitious, and from just selling flower pots and postcards, she is leading a whole campaign which aids people in her condition. “But where others see limitations, she sees possibilities; with her positive attitude, she is an inspiration to many.” (2) She needs to spread the message to children that being disabled does not make you weak, but it makes you want to survive anymore. Chaeli believes that if you strive for being like everyone else, you won’t be you, and being yourself is key. Chaeli travels all around South Africa and not only provides services to disabled children, but to also helps them realize that they aren’t alone and they can do as much as others can. “This can do mentality also characterizes Chaeli in her day to day life she goes to a mainstream school and experiences how challenging this can be. On a daily basis she has to prove that she is as bright as any other student all she requires is just a little more assistance. Chaeli fights against discrimination of disabled people by showing what she can do instead of what she cannot do.She has changed many lives and has encouraged many other children to think beyond their disabilities.” (1) Even people that are abled have the difficulty of believing in themselves, so imagine how hard it might be for disabled children? Chaeli understands and has gone through the same thing. Even knowing that someone that is disabled and has made such a difference in the world can do it, that you are able to do it as well.

For all that work, Chaeli has finally made others realize that disabled children are just normal kids, and that they have the same claims as well. Chaeli has been a total inspiration to disabled children, by taking matters in her own hands to make a difference. She has taught all of us that even if you are disabled, or from whatever race you are from, or just how you look like, you are equal to any other person. You can do anything and that your family and friends will help you complete your goal. That is what Chaeli teaches us, and that is why she is such an inspiration to anyone who feels like disabled children do.

Sources used:

1. "Children's Peace Prize winner Chaeli Mycroft in South ... - YouTube." 2012. 1 Nov. 2012 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24zQ13hQfKI>
2. "Winners of the International Childrens's Peace Prize - KidsRights." 2011. 1 Nov. 2012 <http://www.kidsrights.org/InternationalChildrensPeacePrize/Winners.aspx>

"SA Career Focus: Chaeli Mycroft." 2011. 1 Nov. 2012 <http://www.sacareerfocus.co.za/displayArticle.php?id=215>

Our Ironic World

In the dystopian short story, the author Kurt Vonnegut Jr. leaves behind some traces of irony, hinting a commentary about our present world. Some may believe that this is utopia,  but really it's neither utopia or dystopia. There are great things and terrible things in the world, and all those shades of grey. But really, we can't label anything without knowing the full picture. One example would be quite obvious, in the beginning of the story. This is when two of the characters, Hazel and George discuss about the old world (the story takes place in 2081). "“You been so tired lately--kind of wore out,” said Hazel. “If there was just some way we could make a little hole in the bottom of the bag, and just take out a few of them lead balls. just a few.” “Two years in prison and two thousand dollars fine for every ball I took out,” said George. “I don’t call that a bargain.” “If you could just take a few out when you came home from work,” said Hazel. “1 mean you don’t compete with anybody around here. You just sIt around.” . “If I tried to get away with it,"’ said George, “then other people’d get away  it-and pretty soon We’d be right back to the dark ages I again, with everybody  against everybody else. You Wouldn't like that, would you?” “I’d hate it,” said Hazel. “There you are,” said George. “The minute people start cheating on laws, what do you think happens to society?” If Hazel hadn’t been able to come up with an answer to this question, George couldn't  have supplied one. A siren was going off in his head.“Reckon it’d fall all apart,” said Hazel. " (Page 132-133). Vonnegut was explaining clearly what he thought of the world. It's true though; everyone's competing. We all compete with exams, sports, music, etc. It's just life right now is all about who can do it better and faster and who is left in the dust. Vonnegut shows that like there are bad things about the world, and that might lead to our downfall. However, what George doesn't mention is the wonderful things in the world. Making a comparison, I have concluded that what George says about the world and the handicaps are both the same. The handicaps limit people to their least level of potential, hiding their talents, and the quote shows that George is only limiting to the negatives, and nothing of the positives. In that way, both are similar, and what I believe Vonnegut was trying to get across was showcase your talents, never let they dry out or be hidden. You would realize everything you could have had if they were taken away. It's definetely worth fighting for. 

Fighting for Who I Am

Where I'm From

I am from the roly-poly’s down the hills
I am from the rock game that was never played.
From the “Go tell it over the mountain” and “Hey can you get me the...?”
I am from ginger ale, and swirly stairs that never ended.
From riding my bike in the basement to the five minutes to midnight.

I am from baguettes, high waisted jeans, and stolen carrots.
From the new snow and the mouse-y game.
I am from the ice cream in the town square.
From the never ending Britney Spears’ songs.

From Aang, Rose Tyler, Thalia, and Fred Weasley.
I am from Ash and Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern.
I am from the scalene triangle and sideburns guy.
From “peasant” and from “choti”
I am from those never ending autumn days that are slightly remembered

For I am but just a branch
Still growing towards the sky
The mighty tree that once held the memories of the past
Next to it another tree bloom of the next generation
Is where I’ll be
With only the glimmer of the past
And a future that is sure to come

List Poem

Black, newly cut and layered hair pulled back by a brown headband.
A reminder messily written on the right hand.
Right hand nails plain and left hand nails polished but disfigured.
Tiny part of a side fringe overtaking the thin headband.
Two, very used hair ties on the right arm, one blue, one brown.
Tired eyes from staying up late at night, reading.
A purple watch with a part sticking out.
Loose, one size too big, faded shirt hanging around.
Comfortable, legal, dark blue shorts with a weird panther face snarling.
Slightly dirty, dark, moss green converse.
Socks loosely unattached to the feet.
iPod with earphones stuffed into the left pocket.
The face is make-upless, as usual.
Large, brown eyes and long eyelashes behind red glasses for horrifying vision.

Just one look at Radhi.
 

      A person's identity is definitely worth fighting for. But why? It's because the identity is what makes  a person different.  People everyday keep on changing and changing, but they are still their own person. If anyone loses their personal identity, they are just forced to be either empty or a copy of someone else. An identity is just the way of telling people apart, and if you lose it, you will never be different, it's what sets everyone apart. 

-Radhi