Showing posts with label words. Show all posts
Showing posts with label words. Show all posts
Friday, April 17, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Revising Russian History
This is a small portion of the whitewashing of Russian History that portrays the Soviet Union's innumerable crimes as rational acts. And even when the crimes are acknowledged, major political figures in Russia are quick to compare Russia's actions to those of the west. Point out the horrible treatment of Russian Jews (which was so bad many of them fled westward to Nazi Germany), and they'll point out the American government's treatment of Blacks. Ask about the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact with Nazi Germany (which led Germany and Russia dividing Eastern Europe), and they'll bring up Neville Chamberlain's appeasement policy where Britain abandoned their ally Czechslovakia to the Nazi power. Ask about the invasion of Estonia, and they'll point out America's involvement in numerous Central and South American revolutions.
What bothers me is that this is not irrational. The Russians have a point, they have no more atrocities in their history than any other modern country. And yes, Russia is whitewashing their past to erase any feelings of guilt, but they're doing this to establish a greater national identity to be proud in. And the above-linked textbook isn't used for college classes, because the national government isn't involved in textbook regulation for college classes. So at worse it's being used to teach high school students. And I remember a lot of fallacies in my high school history books, like the idea that the civil war was fought over slavery. You want to talk about whitewashing history? That's just fucking absurd. At least Stalin did modernize his country, even if not all of his actions were rational.
The part about the textbooks I first read in The New Cold War. I can't recommend the book highly enough if you want to learn more about Russia's political climate. It's a damn fine primer that assumes you have no prior knowledge of the subject. I have one major complaint with the book so far: It's Russophobic. Rather than trying to understand why Putin and Russia would do the things they do, it far too often condemns them. The Russian mindset is neither eastern nor western, and it would do the author some good to examine it. But other than that, read this book.
EDIT: I found this link, which establishes further relevance for Russia's importance in the modern world. They're making a power play, people.
PS) I'm on a Russia kick today.
What bothers me is that this is not irrational. The Russians have a point, they have no more atrocities in their history than any other modern country. And yes, Russia is whitewashing their past to erase any feelings of guilt, but they're doing this to establish a greater national identity to be proud in. And the above-linked textbook isn't used for college classes, because the national government isn't involved in textbook regulation for college classes. So at worse it's being used to teach high school students. And I remember a lot of fallacies in my high school history books, like the idea that the civil war was fought over slavery. You want to talk about whitewashing history? That's just fucking absurd. At least Stalin did modernize his country, even if not all of his actions were rational.
The part about the textbooks I first read in The New Cold War. I can't recommend the book highly enough if you want to learn more about Russia's political climate. It's a damn fine primer that assumes you have no prior knowledge of the subject. I have one major complaint with the book so far: It's Russophobic. Rather than trying to understand why Putin and Russia would do the things they do, it far too often condemns them. The Russian mindset is neither eastern nor western, and it would do the author some good to examine it. But other than that, read this book.
EDIT: I found this link, which establishes further relevance for Russia's importance in the modern world. They're making a power play, people.
PS) I'm on a Russia kick today.
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
The Future
I swear that one post singularity day, i will invite all of you to my sprawling moonbase, built with the funds from 1 unimaginably lucky stock market investment and the proceeds from selling subscriptions to a vast porn oddities library. We will create musics, dance ridiculously, argue, and antagonize Alan for hours. With the exterior walls set to full transparency after an amazing all-nighter; gathered together in the central hall i will play this video on 15 oversize holo-screens in the golden glow as the sun crests the earthline.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Thursday, July 24, 2008
January 1, 2001: The Onion
Smoking in Beijing
This nation is definitely part of the modern age, fully fit to host the olympics! Check this out.
And here are my three favorite paragraphs.
"Health care workers are not exactly the best role models: more than half of all Chinese medical professionals smoke, and a 2004 government survey of 3,600 doctors found that 30 percent did not know that smoking could lead to heart disease and circulation problems. (Unlike cigarettes in much of the world, Chinese brands carry no health warning on labels, although that is scheduled to change in 2011.)
Smoking with one hand and wielding a pair of chopsticks with the other, Li Na, 26, a secretary, was unapologetic as her 2-year-old son sat next to her at a restaurant here enveloped in a bluish haze. “If you overprotect your children, they don’t build their immunity,” she explained. “Breathing a little smoke when they are small makes them stronger.”
At wedding parties, the bride often passes out Double Happiness brand cigarettes to guests, a tradition meant to enhance her fertility. Mourners at Chinese funerals are generously plied with smokes, and a handful burned at the grave site is meant to satisfy the craving of the deceased."
Italics are my own.
And here are my three favorite paragraphs.
"Health care workers are not exactly the best role models: more than half of all Chinese medical professionals smoke, and a 2004 government survey of 3,600 doctors found that 30 percent did not know that smoking could lead to heart disease and circulation problems. (Unlike cigarettes in much of the world, Chinese brands carry no health warning on labels, although that is scheduled to change in 2011.)
Smoking with one hand and wielding a pair of chopsticks with the other, Li Na, 26, a secretary, was unapologetic as her 2-year-old son sat next to her at a restaurant here enveloped in a bluish haze. “If you overprotect your children, they don’t build their immunity,” she explained. “Breathing a little smoke when they are small makes them stronger.”
At wedding parties, the bride often passes out Double Happiness brand cigarettes to guests, a tradition meant to enhance her fertility. Mourners at Chinese funerals are generously plied with smokes, and a handful burned at the grave site is meant to satisfy the craving of the deceased."
Italics are my own.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
