December 21, 2001
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The World Is Yours
The world is seriously messed up. Living in a state of blissful ignorance is the only alternative to waking up every morning and having to think what trigger happy military official is contemplating at the moment. In every region of the world, reams and reams of problems exist and I fear things are going to get worse. Perhaps this fear is fueled by my desire to uncover more information and the access to it via the Internet. In China, even though Big Brother keeps a close watch on many of the major Internet sites (I can't get onto CNN.com and some other major news sites), many small ones slip through the Great Firewall of China. For an interesting read, try http://www.debka.com.
I'm not a political studies major, but I do have interests in world politics and economics. It just sickens me what goes on in the world, and makes me realize how blessed we are to be living where we are. People have their problems, but they pale in comparison to what real problems are. I guess you could argue that it is all relative, but that is a seriously fukked up argument. Nukes are what scare me the most. No time in history have more nations had access to nukes. Nations that have unstable regimes with all the money they need to buy a couple nukes on the black market all of a sudden have bargaining power. Some think that they won't use them, but I am seriously willing to bet you right now, that before the end of next year, someone is going to drop a nuke. The U.S. knows this too, I think that's one of the reasons they pulled out of the ABM Treaty. What do radical extremists have to lose anyway? Many are so rooted in their religion that when you believe you are dying for a greater cause anything goes.
In Star Trek TNG's First Contact, I think it was said best when Picard talked about how First Contact changed human mentality and brought them together striving for the betterment of human kind. Perhaps a utopian view, but how I hope that there will be day like that, sooner than later. I'm only 23 (going on 24 hint hint), there is so much more world for me to see, so much more in life to experience, so many more people's lives to touch... I hope I'm not right about the nukes.
I think I'm going to forfeit my chess game, I'll have to shamefully admit that I have lost. New year, new start... That biatch!
Comments (6)
Si you are such a geek...even through all this serious world politics/WW3 talk, you still gotta drop the Star Trek reference. Hahaha. You're opening that comic book shop with Ken when you get back aren't you?
Doesn't this remind you of that paper I was writing in the summer? The one that evaluated freedom of press in China? Anyway, admist all the partying and picking up chicks, definitely seize the moments that you are in China to explore and discover the secrets behind one of the world's powerful countries. What you experience there will definitely surpass anything I read in my textbooks. =)
Hehe... The "Great Firewall of China"...
My friend was working in Singapore this summer and she had the same problem with accessing some sites too.
Hmmm... giving up on your chess game? Ahh... oh well, better luck with your next one!
I hope China doesn't block porn, otherwise you're seriously fucked!
I enjoy reading your entries so keep writing!
Christmas in Shanghai is probably a lot like Christmas in Seoul, i.e., not festive, but hope you have a very merry Christmas anyways!
hah... I heard about that. They might raid the computers and like arrest you sending you to the latrines in Chinese Siberia for thought reform.
Oh...and Ziyi is mine! I got dibs on her cuz i saw crouching tiger first!
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