The following video is a press conference held by the current San Diego mayor, Jerry Sanders. In the video Jerry reveals that he has changed his mind about a City Council resolution that will allow same-sex marriages. As a Republican he was initially against the resolution but he has decided to "lead with [his] heart" and "to take a stand on behalf of equality and social justice." I think what Jerry did was an amazing act and I wish more people would come to the same realization. I am not gay but I do support the gay community in gaining equal rights. I find it appaling that in our society we still have groups of people treated as somehow less worthy than us "normal" people. Anyways, watch the video:
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Sleep
Sleep has always been a subject that has deeply interested me. So much of ongoing research is focused on living organisms in their awake state and so little is focused on sleep. We spend roughly a third of our life asleep and yet we don't usually even stop to think about it. For most of us, it's just what we do when we're tired. Many theories abound for why we sleep but still to this day there is no central unifying theory. Some scientists think we sleep to give our body time to repair. Others think we sleep to dream. Regardless of why, one thing still remains--we all must sleep.
For my senior project in high school I chose to research the topic of lucid dreaming. For those of you unaware of what lucid dreaming is, it's basically being aware while you dream. It is a skill like any other and can be improved through constant effort and proper training. I have had moderate success learning to lucid dream but I lack the willpower to fully grasp the skill. Instead, I prefer to let my dreams take me wherever they may. I live every day of my awake life making decisions and I like that when I sleep, I no longer need to.
For my senior project in high school I chose to research the topic of lucid dreaming. For those of you unaware of what lucid dreaming is, it's basically being aware while you dream. It is a skill like any other and can be improved through constant effort and proper training. I have had moderate success learning to lucid dream but I lack the willpower to fully grasp the skill. Instead, I prefer to let my dreams take me wherever they may. I live every day of my awake life making decisions and I like that when I sleep, I no longer need to.
Thursday, September 6, 2007
Little Sisters
No, not the biological kind. This post is about little sisters of fraternities. For those of you who don't know what little sisters are, they are defined by my fraternity as:
I was raised in a family where men and women were equals. Also, I was taught to be respectful to everyone at all times, especially women. When I first came to Southern Miss and looked at the fraternities, I was very disappointed about how they treated women. It was not until I met the members of my current fraternity that I came to respect what a fraternity could be. One of the main goals of my fraternity is to be "men of class."
The first time I visited the Pi Kapp house I was unintentionally introduced to their attitude towards women. It was a normal weekday afternoon and a few members of the fraternity were sitting around the common room talking to me. The door opened and in walked a girl. Without any hesitation every guy in the room stood up, except me. I had no idea what was going on but I followed along so I would not bring any attention to myself. Each of the guys acknowledged the girl with either a smile or simple "hey" and then sat back down. It was at that moment that my entire view about fraternities changed. A simple sign of respect made me realize that fraternities weren't all bad.
Anyways, to the point of this post. Instead of little sisters, my chapter has what we call Rose Court. It is composed of many different girls who have established themselves as friends of the fraternity--similar to how the guys establish themselves as brothers. Granted there is a very fine line between our Rose Court and other fraternity's little sisters, but it is a very distinct line. When some fraternities bring their little sisters in to the fraternity, they haze them. The severity of the hazing varies but, regardless, it is rarely respectful. We, on the other hand, pick up our Rose Court in a limousine, sing to them our song (The Rose of Pi Kappa Phi), take them to dinner and then bring them back to our house for a party. For both Rose Court and the members of the fraternity it is a fun night.
I have a female friend at Southern Miss who is in a sorority on campus. She has spent much of her time at a particular fraternity hoping to one day get picked up as a little sister. This week she got what she wanted. You would think she would be happy but when I talked to her the day it was to happen, she wasn't. She told me she was scared. Alcohol poisoning, accidentally getting hurt and "lots of other things they make [them] do" were reasons she gave me for being scared.
I really don't know what to think about the entire situation.
"A group of women who exist to serve a fraternity chapter's members. Too often exploited and poorly respected. Outlawed by Pi Kappa Phi and most other national fraternities."
I was raised in a family where men and women were equals. Also, I was taught to be respectful to everyone at all times, especially women. When I first came to Southern Miss and looked at the fraternities, I was very disappointed about how they treated women. It was not until I met the members of my current fraternity that I came to respect what a fraternity could be. One of the main goals of my fraternity is to be "men of class."
The first time I visited the Pi Kapp house I was unintentionally introduced to their attitude towards women. It was a normal weekday afternoon and a few members of the fraternity were sitting around the common room talking to me. The door opened and in walked a girl. Without any hesitation every guy in the room stood up, except me. I had no idea what was going on but I followed along so I would not bring any attention to myself. Each of the guys acknowledged the girl with either a smile or simple "hey" and then sat back down. It was at that moment that my entire view about fraternities changed. A simple sign of respect made me realize that fraternities weren't all bad.
Anyways, to the point of this post. Instead of little sisters, my chapter has what we call Rose Court. It is composed of many different girls who have established themselves as friends of the fraternity--similar to how the guys establish themselves as brothers. Granted there is a very fine line between our Rose Court and other fraternity's little sisters, but it is a very distinct line. When some fraternities bring their little sisters in to the fraternity, they haze them. The severity of the hazing varies but, regardless, it is rarely respectful. We, on the other hand, pick up our Rose Court in a limousine, sing to them our song (The Rose of Pi Kappa Phi), take them to dinner and then bring them back to our house for a party. For both Rose Court and the members of the fraternity it is a fun night.
I have a female friend at Southern Miss who is in a sorority on campus. She has spent much of her time at a particular fraternity hoping to one day get picked up as a little sister. This week she got what she wanted. You would think she would be happy but when I talked to her the day it was to happen, she wasn't. She told me she was scared. Alcohol poisoning, accidentally getting hurt and "lots of other things they make [them] do" were reasons she gave me for being scared.
I really don't know what to think about the entire situation.
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