How Big the World Really is: An Argument for Global Understanding
So while having dinner with my mom and brother (which is a story in and of itself) I asked my younger brother "Don't you ever feel the urge to just see the world? You don't even understand how big the world really is!" and he replied "I know how big the world really is." But I know he doesn't.
It's no secret that my brother and I are completely different people. But when I look at the world, I see that there is so much I don't even know that I don't know (care of Pochahontas.) David I think see the world, presumes he understands it based on what he has seen on TV and learned in school. I just cannot wrap my head around the fact he has no drive explore the world, and never stop learning and seeing new things! I've seen the world, and I'm not one of those people who must now immerse themselves completely in another culture. Not that there is anything inherently wrong with that, I just love my own culture, but I want to respect other cultures and know of them.
I'm getting off course. This train of thought started the other day while I was road tripping in Washington D.C. and I saw a class field trip from China that were probably in like 4th, 5th grade. WHAAaaaaaaaaaa-- I live in America and it took me until 8th grade to get to D.C.! These kids are visiting the National Capital of their key economic rival at that young an age! Imagine for a second if in addition to every 8th grade class going to D.C., every 10th grade class visited Beijing. Or Paris. Or Egypt. Or Israel. We could construct an entire culture that would better understand the world, our allies and our competitors.
America is the great melting pot nation, but lately it seems we have forgotten that and instead taken the mantle of "we're always right, we always know best, and we don't care about anyone else." In my current city, the schools have a International program that I admit I don't completely understand. But it does something to teach about International cultures, and is in some way related to the United Nations. (Crazy conservatives are trying desperately to defund it, claiming it is an effort to indoctrinate children into communism or something?) Even this little effort to better understand other countries is being attack by the under educated and misinformed.
My drive in life is to better myself, and the rest of humanity... in a way that basically leads it to one day be the world of Star Trek. (Screw you if you roll your eyes, the world of Star Trek is awesome.) I hope, through teaching and politics and whatever fields I interact with, that I can help people to better understand the world around them so they can also work to better themselves and humanity, and not just care about their own well being.
Song of the Day: "We Are Never Getting Back Together" by Taylor Swift. Okay, I don't like passing judgements on songs RIGHT after I hear them ever since I mocked Bad Romance back in 2009... but come on, Taylor! This song isn't even a song, you're not singing, you're just speaking to this weird rhythm. You're singtalking is what your doing. And where is the content? There is no plot, you just stretched a single idea into a song. I miss songs that had whole narratives.
Website of the Day: This place uses wonderful Star Trek language to describe an Arts center! Love it! The Getty Center of Los Angeles.
It's no secret that my brother and I are completely different people. But when I look at the world, I see that there is so much I don't even know that I don't know (care of Pochahontas.) David I think see the world, presumes he understands it based on what he has seen on TV and learned in school. I just cannot wrap my head around the fact he has no drive explore the world, and never stop learning and seeing new things! I've seen the world, and I'm not one of those people who must now immerse themselves completely in another culture. Not that there is anything inherently wrong with that, I just love my own culture, but I want to respect other cultures and know of them.
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| (See, there they are. I snuck a picture while they were taking a class picture.) |
I'm getting off course. This train of thought started the other day while I was road tripping in Washington D.C. and I saw a class field trip from China that were probably in like 4th, 5th grade. WHAAaaaaaaaaaa-- I live in America and it took me until 8th grade to get to D.C.! These kids are visiting the National Capital of their key economic rival at that young an age! Imagine for a second if in addition to every 8th grade class going to D.C., every 10th grade class visited Beijing. Or Paris. Or Egypt. Or Israel. We could construct an entire culture that would better understand the world, our allies and our competitors.
America is the great melting pot nation, but lately it seems we have forgotten that and instead taken the mantle of "we're always right, we always know best, and we don't care about anyone else." In my current city, the schools have a International program that I admit I don't completely understand. But it does something to teach about International cultures, and is in some way related to the United Nations. (Crazy conservatives are trying desperately to defund it, claiming it is an effort to indoctrinate children into communism or something?) Even this little effort to better understand other countries is being attack by the under educated and misinformed.
My drive in life is to better myself, and the rest of humanity... in a way that basically leads it to one day be the world of Star Trek. (Screw you if you roll your eyes, the world of Star Trek is awesome.) I hope, through teaching and politics and whatever fields I interact with, that I can help people to better understand the world around them so they can also work to better themselves and humanity, and not just care about their own well being.
Song of the Day: "We Are Never Getting Back Together" by Taylor Swift. Okay, I don't like passing judgements on songs RIGHT after I hear them ever since I mocked Bad Romance back in 2009... but come on, Taylor! This song isn't even a song, you're not singing, you're just speaking to this weird rhythm. You're singtalking is what your doing. And where is the content? There is no plot, you just stretched a single idea into a song. I miss songs that had whole narratives.
Website of the Day: This place uses wonderful Star Trek language to describe an Arts center! Love it! The Getty Center of Los Angeles.
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