#and also understand that a lot of what we are taught in the u.s. is propaganda

[peachesofteal]

do you have any advice for someone who just graduated and really wants to travel but is scared to by herself, especially now?

As someone who graduated high school and abandoned academic pursuits not once but twice to fuck off around the globe, I salute you. This is what I've got:

Do it by yourself.

Especially now is not a thing. You're fine.

Money. You'll need it. Don't ever spend the last of your cash. Keep an emergency fund.

Learn a little bit of Spanish, at least some. Some understanding of Spanish will also give you the barest of bones with Portuguese, Italian, and Romanian. Spanish is a language you can find almost anywhere in the world (on top of English)

Start small. Some people drink from the fire hose and I commend them, but if you're nervous about traveling alone, start in a westernized country. This will allow you to build comfortability while also navigating new places. It will build your confidence. On the flip side, don't insulate yourself. Don't use this to stay stagnant. A big part of traveling is getting outside your comfort zone. I support starting out in a westernized country if you're nervous but I don't support never getting beyond them.

Pay attention to visas and their processes. Don't show up somewhere expecting to be able to visit without doing any of the research. (if you're American) some Americans think their passport is some kind of golden ticket. It's not.

Make friends! This is one of the best parts, meeting and loving others from all over. It's really special. I made a lot of friends when I was traveling, and we often crashed each other's plans. Ended up traveling a lot of places with people I met along the way.

Push beyond your comfort zones. Some of the most amazing things I've seen and done have been in places that the u.s. and other countries have taught you to be intimidated by, or fear.

Take risks but calculate them. Think ahead. Be aware of your surroundings. The world is generally safer than most people would lead you to believe, but that doesn't mean you can just dance through life without a care in the world. Use your best judgement. I've fallen asleep on the job of being aware, and it's put me in some tricky situations.

Keep your dick in your pants (gn) or don't. Fall in love, I saw this so often. Be smart about it.

Never assume you have a right to spaces, things or experiences. Respect others. Learn and listen and know when to keep your mouth shut.

I chased summer for an entire year. 10/10 would recommend.

If I had to make recommendations (outside of your usual suspects): Croatia (maybe this is a usual suspect now idk), Morocco, Japan, Jordan, Argentina, Belgium (also probably a usual suspect), Brazil, Georgia. I regret not making it to many countries on the African continent, so consider that. Spain also, even though it's a commonly traveled place. Southern Spain to be specific.

Nike swoosh, just do it. Traveling and seeing the world is one of the greatest things. It changes you. It humbles you. It educates you. It gives you perspective other people could never dream of.

[lol-jackles]

Here's another article about the current contraction within Hollywood, this time focusing on the crew members. My question is, what will it take for Hollywood to break out of the current contraction, if it does, or is this the new normal?

.

Link.   There will be a new normal, this is probably the 3rd new normal in my lifetime. Due to the boom era that culminated during the streaming decade, peaking in 2015, a lot of people moved to L.A and got into the industry. Now it's the bust era and there's a surplus of crew and a shortage of projects. A lot of people are going to get weeded out. Only some will be able to stay in the industry, others who aren't working will find other work while they bide their time, move to another city with more projects (and not enough crew), or leave the industry altogether. Eventually we'll be back at something closer to equilibrium, but with lot less crew members in the industry in LA. That goes the same for actors, writers, and producers.

Back in 19'70s, legacy studios were going belly up because people moved out to the suburbs and stayed home to watch TV instead of going out to see movies. Same problem today, covid lockout taught people to wait for movies to leave the theater and show up on their streaming services 80 days later. During the '70s, independent films took off, including something called Star Wars. Soon blockbusters were in and small quirky arty films were out and the "Hollywood Renaissance" era began. In contrast the Japanese own film industry never won their battle against tv.

The current tv landscape also reminds me of the 1990s when network TV struggling to regain an audience in the age of cable, the VCR/DVD, and satellite TV. Then they discover The Bundle. The cable-tv bundle was very lucrative because companies were paid twice: first by cable distributors, which shelled out billions every year to have channels like ESPN available for their subscribers, and then by advertisers, which opened their wallets to promote products alongside the hottest shows. Now that era is gone due to cord cutting so they're figuring out a new bundling scheme with streaming services.

But the current problem today is also started back in the 1990s when tech nerds started to take over Hollywood, they didn't understand show business and why tv and film budgets exploded since the 90s. That problem came home to roost in the 2020s, resulting in slashing production budgets by 60%.

Excerpt from the article:

Even the shows and films shooting in L.A. now have slashed many departments, he added, noting sets that historically employed 20 hairstylists now have just two or three.

Orion said “9-1-1” was a “very hard show,” noting that crew member Rico Priem recently died in a car accident after pulling a 14-hour overnight shift. “We were all tired, it was a very terrible thing,” Orion said after noting that hours on sets are generally “brutal and relentless."

Outside of the U.S., several countries, including the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia, are offering cushy tax incentives for studios, where they can bypass unions and pay crews lower wages than in the States.

[lunarsilkscreen]

On Terrorists Cells

So I talked before how there's Trolls in the hacker community trying to sow Discord among nations (Not the App).

And this is important for the idea we have in America about decentralized terrorist cells.

This comes from our understanding of Gang-warfare. We may have also used similar tactics to throw decades worth of tea into the harbor called "Guerrilla-Tactics".

Yup, that concept is taught to us in elementary school. We know our historic warfare tactics better than our times-tables.

And the evidence we've had to go on at the time identified similar ideologies, speech patterns, and gang tactics that we're used to.

What this has resulted in in the "real-world". Is a conflation with unaffiliated cells, civil unrest, and multiple separate groups identified as parts of the same terrorist organization.

In corporate terms, we'd call this "A Conglomerate."

And it's led to mass recognition of Hamas, Al-Queda, ISIS, ISIL, the Iraq and Iranian militaries, and many more as parts of this same groups.

There were so many potential Paramilitaries that we had trouble seeing the forest for the trees.

With so many different governments for the various areas; our citizens had trouble telling the actual scale of the various conflicts.

Tiny; like football teams and city mayors going to war with each other.

Not the same as a conflict between, say, Ukraine and Russia. Which is closer to what we might call a civil war.

With all the history and all our perceptions; Russia is definitely a seemingly purposeful Bully. So we must consider exactly what this conflict is really about. If it's simply territory; the easiest solution is form conglomerations.

Which is where we as outsiders must make certain we don't make petty escalations the problem of neighboring Territories. "Neighbor Hoods" or "Towns" or "Cities".

And in the case of Migrant Tribes.... Like the Romani; we have to take care we don't tip the scale with our big elephant foot to someone else's Stag Beetle.

In America we caused attrocities to our own Migrant Tribes; what we refer to as "Native Americans" only because they were here before the white people.

If you're really having trouble on such a small scale; you can't stand a chance against our very large scales.

And this can apply to a lot of what America does; warfare can decimate local militia. Aid can destroy local businesses and disrupt small economies, which are inextricably linked to our global economy.

We've become masters of Guerrilla-Tactics from both sides. *We* should know better.

But we became fearful of our enemies; Germany, China, Russia, Mexico, tiny little ol Cuba.

When people were persecuted we found somebody in charge of the whole thing to arm so they could "Take care of themselves".

This brings me to Israel.

Knowing whatever I've told you already + your misconceptions, stereotypes, any added information.

What do you think of the situation?

Israel is the only tiny little places in the world with as much authority as a Nation like China or the U.S. despite still being in that "Mayor" mindset.

How can we expect such a small place to defend itself against the entire world?

It's just that tiny.

Our attention gave them authority over the other people around them; and other similar sized leaders; like Mayors. Became enemies.

Israel is a single State and not as United as our States are.

They need to understand that they are now responsible for the lives of all the people around them; especially ones outside their borders. The same kind of responsibility only we have known for quite some time.

No offense China. Our Unity is quite different from yours.

As Scary as it may seem; Israel has been chosen to lead a unification process, but abused it in fear for their own sovereignty.

Well, we can't go back on word now. But we must remember; they can be bullies to the Jews outside their borders, just like we can be to Mexico and Canada....and the whole world really.

Just because the Sun rises in Israel, doesn't mean it should set over Palestine.

And so we must be sensitive to what damages even our "Friendly Gestures" might cause.

So the question to Israel; is this *really* an "Us or Them" situation? Or are you exiling Jews as you've done before?

Strength is in uniting with your neighbors in beneficial ways for all.

But fear gets the best of us.

Fear for our God given Lives. If life is a gift, and we should be thankful for it. It's not in service to a single man.

Better understanding of your own local laws, even from "outsiders" is key.

But here's the thing that all men can understand;

Most laws can be boiled down into one Law; "Don't be a [big meanie]".

If you want to split them into ten; following the commandments might as well be good enough for any place in the world.

If you're not Religious you can replace [no God's before me] and [not to worship idols]

With [separation of church and state] (don't bring up religion because then they'll counter with theirs)

And [Celebrities are not the Law]. Politicians, people, whatever.

And "Stick to those rules before being told anything else is allowed."

You know; entrapment and all that.

Because; which laws aren't covered here? By these ten, even if you ignore the God part.

Just Remember; Taylor Swift fans comprise twice the population of Israel. That's the kind of difference in scale we need to take into account.

[brettesims]

A Humanitarian Rant:

Palestinians x Christ Consciousness

If someone told me that on a humanitarian level, they haven’t been affected by the last nine months I would be concerned. We are in heavy times, on a global level; however I always say that it is possible to have a light heart even during times of war.

Palestinians take this truth to a whole other level. In the bitterness and emotional apathy that has afflicted the world, Palestinians are somehow different. In this American (yes) an American Genocide (as Israel is just a U.S. puppet state), I have only found solace in the beauty and purity that is the Palestinian people. Different from other Arabs, due to their dire circumstance of occupation for 75 years, being completely ignored by most Arab nations out of greed, racism and due to lack of funding - their steadfast resilience shines bright. Their faith glows in the darkness of war.

I have found so much renewed joy, peace and strength in learning more about Palestinian culture. They truly walk with God and in this day and age, I think very few people can truly say that. I have only seen such strong and steadfast faith reflected during my trip to Ghana. But Palestinians have equal if not stronger faith due to the Zionist oppression they face daily.

The conscious community and spiritual community at large speak a lot about Christ Consciousness. But anyone in the "spiritual community" who speaks of Christ Consciousness, but never mentions Palestine or reverence for the Palestinian people (the actual people of Jesus' lineage) seem deeply fake to me now. This is the lineage that literally embodies Christ Consciousness.

I think people often misinterpret what Christ Consciousness even is. In my opinion it is actually just the understanding of presence and having steadfast faith in the here and now no matter what may come. This is what Jesus actually taught, although it has become warped by the multitudes. The present moment is the access point for all miracles. Even when facing death, Jesus taught his followers that it's possible to ground in the light and reality of the here and now, and in that light, eternal peace can always be found.

Until I started learning more about Palestinians and Palestinian history I am not quite sure I even fully understood Christ Consciousness (although respectfully, they are Muslim). I also didn't fully understand why the collective Fascist Governments where so threatened by any rising leader that expressed aspects of Christ Consciousness within their hearts.

I believe it's because Politicians and Zionists know the power that Christ Consciousness holds and brings to the collective. From Malcolm X, to LMK, Tupac, Biggie, and to Mohbad (an Afrobeats artists who was most recently murdered) - all these humans expressed attributes of Christ Consciousness. While differing in religions (some Muslim, some Christian) they all held levels of high frequency consciousness. They all also had knowledge of "The New World Order", and they all were taken from this world because of the strength they possessed.

Mohbad, who I wrote about most recently was taken out a month before the "War"/ Genocide on Gaza began and his #1 single was entitled: 'Peace'.

If such resilient community leaders were aloud to live their messages would spread like wildfire. Thus, they were all a threat to the Zionist regime.

Understanding, listening, and watching Palestinians dominate media, put Palestine on the map, and share their stories with little to no resources has really renewed my faith as a humanitarian. Their creative talents and use of basically the only weapon they have (their voice) - has inspired me to no end. It has reignited my light in new ways and enabled me to remain steadfast in my own cause under Zionist threat.

So, dear reader at 1am on a Thursday, I write this because the entire situation lays heavily on my chest. Living in a society amongst individuals who would rather ignore an actual holocaust than acknowledge personal implication makes me sick. I for one, am not going down in history as someone who remained silent in the face of oppression. I will always stand on the right side of history.

Above I posted a beautiful music video by a Palestinian born and Gaza raised artist names Saint Levant. He actually graduated from UC Santa Barbara making him a Cali boy as well. The creativity, faith, power of the Palestinian people never cease to amaze me.

So, I will just leave you with this food for thought:

Imagine being an elderly Palestinian person and having your home taken by Israel in 1948, during the first Genocide. Imagine either having to relocate (becoming an immigrant) or being in Palestine forced to live in a refugee camps in Gaza or The West Bank. Then imagine years going by and you witness on TV, Black Americans being freed from Apartheid (Jim Crow) and South Africans being freed from their Apartheid, hoping and assuming that your own freedom will inevitably come - only to face yet another repeat of the same horrific Genocide you narrowly escaped 75 years ago. How would you feel? What would you cling to to keep going? Palestinians choose to cling to their faith, and for right now it is the only force in the world that is on their side.

It is important that we are able to put ourselves in one another’s shoes, after all, thats humanity.

And so, on that note, another humanitarian rant over and out! Thank you for reading community - especially if you made it to the end!

I think silence is violence during these times. So no matter if you write, sing, dance, draw or paint, I think it is important to express what you feel during these times in some way. The deafening silence of people surrounding me about Genocide has been the most unnerving thing about the situation for me and I can only hope that more humans will be brave enough to choose the art of expression - no mater what it looks like for them.

~ B

[oldbutnotyetwise]

Unexpected Gifts

     I have said this before and it bears repeating here, every good thing that happens has some bad attached to it, and every bad thing that happens has some good attached.  

     As I am writing this I have crossed the one year anniversary since my diagnosis of ALS was confirmed at Sunnybrook Hospital.  Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, a rare neurological disease that affects motor neurons in the brain or spinal cord that affect voluntary muscle movement.  Think of it like when you go to sleep, except in my case parts of my body are going to sleep never to wake again.  I’ve lost the use of my legs, I’m losing the use of my left hand, and my ability to speak is being impaired.  Eventually the muscles that allow me to breath and swallow will stop working.  In some cases ALS also results in frontal lobe dementia, so your two options are having a healthy mind trapped inside a non-working body, or dementia where you still are trapped inside of a non-functioning body while you have no understanding of what is going on, or the burden you are placing on your caretakers.  

     So about now you should be saying, how can there be anything positive about having ALS?  What good can possibly come from this Death Sentence?  Well let’s ponder that question and see what we can come up with.

     When given a terminal diagnosis I had a rather drastic shift on my perception of time.  Prior to the diagnosis, I didn’t give time much thought, foolishly I thought that my time was almost like grains of sand on a large beach, almost endless.  Once I received my diagnosis suddenly time became like the water in a canteen, something not to be wasted or used foolishly.  So you are wondering why is this a good thing, well it is because I have been taught the lesson of Mindfulness.  When you have lots of something it is hard not to take it for granted.  When you have something that is limited and quickly running out then you appreciate it a lot more.  You suddenly realize what an amazing gift time is.  You suddenly have the wisdom not to waste your time on foolish things.  You don’t waste your time on bad books, bad movies or with people you don’t want to spend time with.  If you want to do something and you can, than you do, no longer putting things off for some day in the future because now you know that someday may not come.  I wish that I had learned this lesson about the value of time much earlier in my life, but am grateful that I did learn it eventually and in turn  have worked much harder at enjoying what remaining time that I have left. 

     Living in Canada, or in this case Ontario I have a government run Health Plan.  On top of this I also have a benefit plan from my workplace until I am 65.  I will spare you numerous sad stories of people in other provinces, or in the U.S. who were waiting for approval for the ALS drugs and after two years of waiting they finally get the letter advising they had been approved,,,,the day before they enter a Hospice.  People who live in remote areas of provinces where they are hours and hours away from the nearest ALS Clinic, or even any medical assistance.  We are now living just over an hour from the ALS Clinic at Sunnybrook Hospital in Toronto, generally accepted to probably be the best one in Canada.  I never really understood what a gift the pubic health care system was prior to this, but I do recognize how lucky I am in comparison to so many others.

     I would guess that my ALS medications probably cost somewhere between 200 and 300 thousand dollars a year.  My benefit plan is presently paying for my drugs, can you imagine not having coverage for drugs that could possibly help you?  Where you have to decide between selling or mortgaging your home and draining your bank accounts to buy your medications or choosing to go without.  Where medical decisions are based on dollar amounts instead of what is best for you?  I am grateful for the gift of a benefit plan that allows me to take these expensive drugs in the hope that they are helping me.

     I have met so many amazing people in the medical field since the first day I attended Sunnybrook.  The entire team at Sunnybrook who compassionately care for their hundreds of patients, knowing that everyone they are caring for will eventually lose their fight,  ALS remains undefeated.  As well the nurses, ALS Society, and Community Care Team who all make this horrible disease a little more tolerable.  I am grateful for the gift of all the caring people who work hard to look after me in such a kind, caring and compassionate way.

     A disease such as ALS is expensive.  The amount of medical or assistive equipment can be prohibitive, says the guy waiting for his $32,000 electric wheelchair.  The items we have around the house are a collection of things people have given or loaned us, we have purchased new or used, or that we have been reimbursed for through my benefit plan.  There is something called the ALS Loan Cupboard where people donate used medical equipment, let’s be honest, probably after their loved one dies.  I presently have a walker, electric lift chair and an electric hospital bed all loaned to me from the loan cupboard.  The list of medical equipment I require is constantly growing and already my life would be unbearable without it, so I am grateful for the gift of all this equipment that I have access to that helps me make it through my days.

     I will wholeheartedly acknowledge that I find myself surrounded by the best possible friends.  These are friends that take time out of their very busy lives to visit, or call, or email or set up video calls.  Somehow the whole world is going on at an extremely hectic pace while my life is coasting to a stop.  Most of the world continues on riding the merry go round of life, but a few people realize something important is going on and they are here for me.  Together we exchange old memories, share embraces, shed a few tears and just generally stand by each other.  When you are travelling a dark scary path and suddenly you find a trusted friend at your side you will notice your path becomes a lot less dark and scary.  I am grateful for the gift of dear, treasured friends.

     I have my dear sweet wife Robin here by my side from sun up to sun down working so very hard to look after me.  I don’t think anyone else has someone as amazing as her, and some people are forced to go through this nightmare alone, which I can’t even begin to imagine how impossibly hard that would be. I am grateful for the gift of my loving wife Robin.

   In Canada there is Medical Assistance In Dying, also known as MAID.  If you have a terminal illness, you can fill out a form, meet with a Physician who should agree with your decision and sign off on the form.  Then a minimum of three months later you meet with a second doctor go through the process again at which time you can select a day you want to end your life.  You can change your date or back out at any time, and yes if you are wondering it is a surreal experience going through this process.  I have friends travelling the same path as I am in the United States who would have to travel to another state to end their lives, as if this process isn’t difficult enough they have to travel to a strange place hundreds of miles away from their home and friends to end their suffering.  I am grateful for the gift of living somewhere that I am treated as kindly as a beloved pet who is allowed to leave this world when their struggle to live becomes too much for them.  Leaving this world in a kind compassionate manner, surrounded by loved ones, finally able to rest after fighting the good fight.  

     So I encourage you to always remember, every good thing that happens has bad attached, and very bad thing has good attached.  So next time something bad happens to you I encourage you to look for the good.  Yes you may have to look hard, yes it may be hard to find but I assure you it is there.  Then once you find those good things I encourage you to focus on them rather than the bad things, I think that will help make your journey a bit easier.

[redheadbigshoes]

Hey I don't want to start an argument or anything because it really isn't that serious but American Latinos didn't really have a choice to assimilate. They weren't allowed to speak Spanish in public, they were segregated and a lot of older generations carry that trauma on similar to how Indigenous Americans have. This causes a lot of (especially non white) Latinos to have identity issues because they're constantly told to speak Spanish and constantly ostracized by Latinos from Latin America who don't understand what it's like to live in the U.S as a poc. Tbh It's really interesting to me how white Latinos from Latin America will claim every American White Latino while not claiming any black or brown Latinos and dismissing them when they try to reconnect with their Indigenous half. I understand why Jenna Ortega and other actresses weren't taught Spanish. White Latinos are seen as superior to black and brown Latinos in the U.S and are rarely if ever treated with the same amount of disgust. As an American Latino I agree we can be really annoying but I don't understand why mostly white Latinos have an issue with American Latinos trying to claim their culture. There's just something weird to me about white Latinos trying to gatekeep the term "Latino" while not even trying to hear what non white American Latinos have to say. I guess I have a more personal take on this because I'm half Salvadoran half Mexican, and Central Americans are commonly looked down upon by other Latinos so much that many Salvadoran Americans lie about being Mexican because it's more accepted. Which is something I've personally experienced in the past few years with the newer president suddenly everyone wants to claim being half or full Salvadoran when they acted like it was a slur before. My Salvadoran family even has some identity issues because they ignore their Indigenous heritage in favor of being Mestizo. Now this is only my opinion as one American Latino I'm not their rrepresentative and you can have your opinions lol just wanted to give some context I guess.

If you checked my tags you’d see I imply I was talking mainly about American white Latinos.

Idk which white Latinos you interact with but most Brazilians don’t claim any white American Latino lol I’ve never seen that happening before.

I don’t disagree with you about how white Latinos are better treated than POC Latinos, I’ve never said otherwise 😃

It’s definitely not only white Latinos “having issues”, maybe this is just your experience. And based on my own opinion I have issues because when it comes to media outside Latin America American Latinos are definitely way more represented than us (and I say Latinos born and raised in LatAm in general). A lot of them like to speak over born and raised Latinos as if they’ve ever been here. A lot of them treat race just like Americans and are not willing to listen to how race and ethnicity are seen differently here because, just like most Americans, they think their views are universal. You implied white Latinos as if also talking about me so according to your (and I mean the American view of race and ethnicity) views I wouldn’t be white lol

I hope you can understand why I am so annoyed of this because it’s truly annoying how (talking about outside LatAm) we don’t seem to have much voice, and when we do we’re represented most of the time by American Latinos.

Not to mention how annoying some people (like I said in my other post, especially white people) treat being Latino as an aesthetic, and when it comes to actually getting in touch with LatAm culture and language they treat us as inferior.

[quotesfrommyreading]

How did we get to this point? The origin story of Taiwan most familiar to Americans begins in 1949, when Chiang Kai-shek’s nationalist forces, locked for years in a civil war with Mao Zedong’s Communists, were defeated. Along with much of his remaining army, Chiang fled to Taiwan and set up a government-in-exile called the Republic of China. That government was recognized by the United States. But within a few years of Richard Nixon’s 1972 Cold War opening to Beijing, the U.S. formally switched diplomatic recognition to the People’s Republic. Ever since, Taiwan’s status has been cloaked in ambiguity. The U.S. acknowledges Beijing’s claim to Taiwan without recognizing its sovereignty over the island. To help deter a Chinese effort to seize Taiwan by force, the U.S. has pledged to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself.

That origin story explains Taiwan’s curious geopolitical status, but it leaves a lot out. When Chiang fled to Taiwan—with roughly 2 million Chinese from the mainland—there were some 6 million people already living on an island that was just emerging from 50 years of Japanese rule. Most of the people living on the island when Chiang arrived could claim roots in Taiwan going back hundreds of years. They had their own languages and culture. So too did the island’s many Indigenous groups, such as the Amis, the Atayal, and the Paiwan. To subjugate the island, Chiang killed and imprisoned tens of thousands over decades—a period known as the White Terror. He set up a military dictatorship under the leadership of his Chinese nationalist Kuomintang Party (KMT) and, from this offshore platform, vowed to reclaim mainland China.

Taiwan is different now. With its broad boulevards, glass towers, military monuments, narrow side streets, night markets, and ample signs in English, Taipei today presents an ambience of blended cultures: Chinese, Japanese, Western, and distinctly Taiwanese. Bubble tea, a Taiwanese invention, is everywhere. But consider what it was like to grow up in the shadow of Taiwan’s postwar history, and you can better understand the profound ways in which younger generations have been remaking the island’s politics and identity.

Emily Y. Wu is a professional podcaster who blends a focus on youth culture with an urgent concern for Taiwan’s political present. (One of her shows is called Metalhead Politics.) She is among dozens of Taiwanese I spoke with during the past year, first on Zoom, then in person in Taipei. Wu was born under KMT martial law in 1984. Her family did not come over with Chiang; they had lived in Taiwan for generations. “Chiang Kai-shek brought China over,” she told me. “I grew up always knowing that there was this alternate history: It was Taiwanese history, which was not taught in school.” Students were taught Chinese history and geography under the presumption that the KMT would one day govern China again. Mandarin was spoken in class, and speaking Taiwanese was discouraged. Wu recalled Lesson 9 of her childhood textbook: “ ‘Hello teachers, hello students, we are Chinese!’ ”

But a movement for democracy was building. “We grew up hearing these names, knowing that there was a group of activists, scholars, lawyers that tried to imagine a free Taiwan,” Wu explained. Many of those people were members of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which currently governs Taiwan. In 1987, the KMT lifted nearly 40 years of martial law. Wu’s political consciousness was shaped by the protests, marches, and hunger strikes that led to Taiwan’s first true presidential election, in 1996.

By the beginning of the 21st century, Taiwan was becoming ever more democratic—and ever more Taiwanese. The school curriculum changed: Taiwan’s distinct history was taught, as were Taiwanese languages. Taiwan also began to celebrate its Indigenous population. After the election of President Ma Ying-jeou, in 2008, links of trade, investment, and travel helped reduce tensions with China. Ma was from the KMT, and the party’s Chinese heritage and its ties to Taiwan’s business elite eased the way to détente with Beijing. But many Taiwanese, particularly the young, feared that forging too close a connection could ultimately give Beijing leverage over Taiwan. In 2014, in what became known as “the Sunflower Movement,” named for the flower that served as a symbol of hope, students occupied the Taiwan legislature to oppose a free-trade agreement with China. After a tense standoff, they succeeded in stopping the deal. They also helped propel a political wave that in 2016 brought the election of the DPP’s Tsai Ing-wen as president.

As Taiwan was becoming more democratic, China was becoming more autocratic. And as Taiwan was becoming more Taiwanese, China was becoming more fervently nationalist. After the ascent of Xi Jinping to the head of the Communist Party, in 2012, Beijing shifted from incentives to coercion. Xi’s government proved adept at bullying companies and entire countries to stop doing business in Taiwan and to recognize China’s narrative of sovereignty. Xi also began escalating crackdowns on China’s periphery—in Xinjiang province and in Hong Kong.

  —  Taiwan Wants China to Think Twice About an Invasion

[gxlden-angels]

Shiny Happy People Thoughts: Episode 2

TW: The Duggar Family

- This episode begins on Josh's crimes and abuse as well as his family's attempts to cover it up

- I thought the documentary would focus more on them, but it's actually going more into how these environments foster so much abuse, which is honestly great but also a lot harder to watch

- Like it's one thing to point at them and say "This is where it could lead" but it's another to say "This is the environmental set-up. It was widespread and you may have grown up with it. Here are some of those factors you may know"

- It's weird to watch a family like the Duggars and go "oh most people think this is weird" like I was never homeschooled but I didn't need to be. We were actively taught that public school would teach you these specific worldly things so ignore those and listen to us instead

- We "had church" at home during birthday parties and holiday dinners or whatever where they sat all us kids down and insisted on teaching us these things

- Older women in the family would tell testimony after testimony about how happy they were being under their husband's protection even if that meant having sex when they were exhausted, not in the mood, and sick

- Men complained about abuse being exposed on the news because they felt like an abused wife should handle it privately at home

- I honestly can't imagine where I'd be if I was homeschooled on top of everything

- I do agree that the insistence on homeschooling only is more of a white evangelical thing. After such a fight to even have the right to get into and finish public school, I think in black evangelical communities it was seen more as a blessing to be able to go to public schools, especially if you convinced your friends to go to church with you

- The 2nd to last church we went to even bribed us into it. They gave us a dollar if we brought our own paper bibles and we had a sticker chart or something if you brought friends we'd eventually get a celebration

- There was also this fear that if you didn't assimilate into white evangelical culture in the South, then you'd end up on the streets doing illegal shit and going to jail or whatever. It's very victim blaming. There was a mix of understanding systemic racism in the U.S while also saying Black people are at fault for not just staying married and spanking their children to prevent them from being "fast"

- Like sure my own parents are older than the Voting Rights Act, but somehow "welfare queens" are the issue. Black communities are very quickly assimilating into the individualist white evangelical mindset of be good and god will bless you individually

- Spare the Kids: Why Whupping Children Won't Save Black America goes into that a lot. People have mixed feelings about it but I related a lot to it

- Black kids in these spheres were seen more as a risk if not raised this way essentially. Don't hang out with so and so's kids they don't go to church, spank their kids or insist on parentifying their older kids and that's how you end up smoking crack or something

- I honestly had to pause during the section about hair. That's a major trigger for me.

- It was such a confusing balance because I was told I need my hair done well because it needed to glorify god and honor my father, but it also couldn't be too beautiful because then I was being vain/causing lust but also my grandfather would tell me he liked me better when my hair was a certain way but also I should focus on what god wanted, not what he wanted but also

- And it was even more difficult with my coils and curls. I relaxed my hair from ages 5 to 15 and it legitimately took years for my hair to recover from it. It was a difficult transition because my grandfather insisted that I was much prettier and more godly to him when my hair was long and relaxed and he even talked about how unattractive my grandmother is between hair styles when her natural hair is out to convince me to start relaxing and stop cutting my hair again

- The insistence on framing your face correctly was wild. I had this unhealthy bob for years because it "framed my face well" like no my hair was one bad summer day from being fried to death and falling out (and sometimes it really did fall out)

- "Instead of learning math, you're leaning slut shaming"

"Don't think about your sisters' boobs. What are you gonna do? Think about your sisters' boobs."

- Unrelated but Bill Gothard looks like a deepfake in every video of him

- They've come back to the effects of parentification. My dad got the worst of it as the oldest of 6. I was parentified but not as much as he was

- "I had to break his will" another hard trigger

- I was told at 11/12ish that I was allowed to spank my younger stepcousins when I was babysitting them. I hate to admit that I did once when the youngest slid down the stair railing she was told not to slide down and I felt so guilty I never did it again. I shouldn't have been told to spank her and I also shouldn't have been put in this situation that young. That was around the time I first developed intrusive thoughts about my family dying so at the time I legitimately thought it was the only way to keep her safe from falling to her death

- "You were spanked until you stopped crying, which could be hours" for me it was "now stop all that crying before I really give you something to cry about" which all seems counterintuitive

- Took another break because of To Train Up Child. Did not have the book growing up, but definitely recognize a lot of the ideas from it. I've talked about it before on this blog

- Its difficult to get through but I also feel such a weight off my shoulders. Like it's one thing to have a therapist say "you're not a bad kid, you were raised in bad circumstances" but it's another to have a docuseries say it. It's another thing to see others have this same uncomfortable bodily reaction. Nervous laughter, moving around, fidgeting, etc.

- "You know, a little psychological terror is sometimes more effective than the pain" I was much more terrified of the threat of being spanked than actually being spanked. I hated the feeling of "I disappointed you enough that you have to plan to hit me later"

- My dad says he remembered spanking me a couple times when I was like 2 and never again. He felt like positive reinforcement and explaining why doing something bad was wrong was more efficient for me cause I liked being helpful, I was just super independent and easily overwhelmed. There's a reason he's the only family member I honestly care to keep contact with

- "Michael and Debi Pearl are some motherfuckers" SAY IT AGAIN LOUDER

- Amy Duggar crying about the "rod of encouragement" made me also tear up. I'm working on the guilt of not being able to change the rest of my family's mind and save my younger family members.

- This episode is harder than the first but it's honestly what I needed right now. I needed a third party to say "you survived the best you could. you're still trying. you can't save everyone, especially if you aren't fully free yourself yet"

- There's stuff I didn't even think of as traumatizing that I realize still controls so much of my actions. This is so good and I highly recommend it so far if you think you can handle it.

- I wasn't blanket trained. My biological parents loved my independence. They loved how much I liked being helpful independently and they never wanted to break that spirit.

- My dad even raised me to focus on education and be able to support myself before I ever got married. I never had a conversation with him about relationships since he felt awkward about it he much preferred I learned from women in the family/church. They taught me purity culture.

- "If a man says he wants you, then he's god's man for you and you have to learn how to adjust your feelings and thoughts around that." This is how my grandparents and uncles saw things. They insisted this was romantic and good. I did a survey of my high school to see if anyone else thought that way and only like 3 out of the 50-60 people I asked did. When I pointed that out to my uncle he said it's because my school was full of sheltered nerds.

- My dad was horrified by all of it. I honestly think watching this documentary could make him deconstruct more than he already has. He's still a christian, but a progressive one. He's still growing each day

- Had a lot of feelings about this one. I think this one hit the hardest cause it essentially explains how these circles groom people, especially young girls.

[feralboo-the-weirdo]

It's kinda... odd? To be like 'I'm truly sorry for everyone affected if trump goes through with his policies' in the same post as saying 'don't hate everyone who voted him though'.

Like??? The people who voted for him know about those policies you know???

i mean yes. I will admit that was odd. Not my best move. Also, if you want to hate them I won't stop you. I just think the sudden upsurge of people voting for him and him getting the popular vote reeks of foul play, and I don't know if the people in the middle of that deserve the hatred.

Also I don't feel like everyone did know though. Trump supporters can be quite... mean. to put it lightly, and they aren't kind to people who don't agree with them. I wouldn't be surprised if people voted for him so they would stop getting verbally assaulted by die hard trump supporters. Also the us vs them is bad right now between Republicans and Democrats. So my thought was a lot of people voted for him because if they didn't their community would kick them out because they 'went woke.' Also like hiding information from the public is a thing?? Something people have been known to do when Trump is involved. (Elon Musk with Twitter, Fox News... to name a few) and like I think people genuinely didn't know because not everyone had time to research or just didn't??? Also I don't doubt a lot of people didn't want to accept he's a terrible person, and his policies are genuinely concerning, when he seems like such a good person in the media. Those two things are very jarring when put together and a lot of people probably just chose to believe he was a good person rather than hold the fact he's comitted over 30 felonies and should be in jail, but he's placed in the media like the saving grace of America. Or they just didn't know because they didn't seek out sources that had opposing views and actually consider them. Cognative dissonance is not something a lot of people are willing to face.

Also sorry??? For not thinking everyone deserves to be despised???? Like I don't like that people voted for trump. Let me make that clear. I do not like that he will be in office. I don't want him there. I really want immigrants to be able to stay in the U.S, women to have healthcare and be able to have an abortion and just be able to idk, exist?? For once??? And people of color and people who aren't Christian to able to exist, and LGBTQ+ people to not be killed and for trans people to not be demonized and actual history to be taught in schools. Also the climate change. I want that to be taken seriously. I don't think he's a good person and honest to God I don't understand how he got in again. And I don't want to repeat his last term just worse. But I just wish we could try to convince people that Trump is not a good person and his policies are not good in a way that wont make them double down in the belief that they are. I don't know how to do that, but I don't think attacking them will do much. That is what I was trying to say in my previous post.

But to address the last part of anon's ask, 'the people who voted for trump knew his polices' that's why I'm concerned???? is the people who knew his policies still voted for him knowing his policies???Like I'm genuinely terrified of those people because they know the harm this will bring. Also like didn't he promise to be a dictator day one and kill everyone who opposed him??? Or if not kill incarcerate? Or do something else terrible? Like. Um. If I'd heard that constantly I would have been terrified to not vote for him. And it's with the extremists for trump (something that is turning into a cult if you compare it with the BITE model) who would storm the capital again if he asked and kill half the population if he asked that I draw the line of we shouldn't hate them. I don't like those people. I don't like that that's a possibility.

And like I am sorry for how badly this will affect people.

And I don't think everyone who voted for trump is a terrible person. I just don't think everyone who voted for him knew what they were voting for. Is it controversial to hold that opinion? Maybe. Idk. Sharing it is stupid, apparently. Like I get people are really angry right now, with good reason but idk. I didn't want this to happen. I wish he hadn't run again so this wouldn't be a problem. And I don't understand how he not only won but got the popular vote, when a ton of celebrities were suggesting to vote for Harris. It doesn't sit right with me.

Sorry if this is controversial, I guess. Disregard this if desired. I know a lot of it probably doesn't make sense.

I just, idk. I don't know why I thought it would help if I tried to suggest that the trump trolls stop insulting people.

God I'm so tired.

[the-martyrfication-of-the-matron]

So, have you seen the some of the drama in regards to a fan of Interview With the Vampire? Like, I am gonna explain it anyway but brooooo.

So, an iwtv fan decided to fly from their home in Englad to Louisiana, specifically New Orleans. Which is cool, whatever, beautiful place. Except this woman decided to visit a plantation and take photos there with her Louis Funko pop, the slave owner book accurate one. On a slave plantation.

Like, I am not a fan of the books because any character that is both a sympathetic protagonist and a slave owner is extremely tone deaf to me. I also don't believe we should even still have plantation homes unless for the express purpose of showing the horrors that occurred. So just having a photo shoot is wrong as hell.

This is also to partially ask about how England is taught about slavery and the machine that happened in the U.S. by them bringing it over here? I am just wondering if it is in the same tone deaf way America is taught about our actions in Cuba and Korea.

tw, talking about racism and the sexualisation of kids

I did hear about that, yeahhh! me and an irl were talking about it yesterday, because they're a fan of the movie/show, and i have read some of the book. and we both just found it SO WILD. like FUUUUCk.

and the apology was so bizarre. 'lack of education'??? That's... if you know what a plantation is, you should understand why that was wrong. Not to mention, i heard that the plantation house is like a haunted house thing too??? Like that's so fucking gross.

You're totally correct in your discomfort with the slave stuff in the books. It's... certainly very uncomfortable. I ended up taking a very long Hiatus from the book because there was just a lot of uncomfortable things going on. I'm still on that Hiatus.

because obviously engaging in tone deaf/problematic media with an awareness of why that stuff is wrong is not something I'm opposed to, especially when the author is dead and cannot profit, so I went into it with the knowing i would yuck out, i just... wasn't prepared for everything. And so reading the plantation things, and how Lestat specifically treated the slaves, and going 'yeah that's wrong' was an experience enough, like three millimetres away from my limit, and then i just got jumpscared repeatedly with the sexualisation of kids and i had enough of everything. Like i can't grasp how this book got so popular with the way kids and black people are spoken about.

As for england's education on the Trans-atlantic Slave Trade, and our involvement, it's complicated. A lot of history education depends on the area, and so i can only speak for the schools i attended in the area i have lived in my entire life.

for the first 2 years at my secondary school, we had general education in regards to lessons, so basically everyone did standard curriculum classes, including history. Whilst at that point i don't think they discussed britain's involvement, the education on slavery was at least there, people understood what the slave trade was and the impact it had, and we were taught about how that impacted (and continues to impact) black americans even after slavery was abolished.

but i continued on with history for GCSEs, and even though it wasn't part of the exam courses, we did learn more in depth on England's involvement, including a diagram i half-remember that discussed why it was called 'trans-Atlantic'. and how England benefitted off of it in way of resources and money, even if they didn't have plantations in england. and that lead into the whole discussion of England actively contributing.

So the long and short of it is basically just that : I had teachers who taught it, because i bothered to continue history at a higher level, and they could be bothered to teach me, but at a basic gen ed level, it was... rudimentary.

[toetips]

I have a friend that I love dearly. She has truly been one of my best friends for many years. We started college together graduated together and overall just grew into adults together. We’ve voted together and took many years understanding how our morals and standards align and where they differentiate.

This current election is very huge. After Roe v. Wade was overturned, I think anyone would be able to tell that election is not one to play around with.

The presidential candidates and Donald Trump and Kamala Harris. Anyone who has any sort of grasp on politics when know that Donald Trump is not a good fit for the position. He has been backed/endorsed by the literally KKK. When he was having his rally’s, he would only go very racist areas and areas where he knew people were pro Trump. Harris had been very vocal about her plans to reinstate Roe v. Wade and have get tax policy idea like increasing taxes for the rich and cutting them for the middle class and lower class.

Under Trump’s admin, it was been very clear that that his main demographics in terms of intended audience is white racist people. His has been convicted of rape and so far officially been convicted of 34 felony charges out of 88. He wants police to have full immunity from the crimes that they commit. And also wants to dismantle the department of education and will not want any funds to go to any schools that teach things that he doesn’t want to be taught like critical race theory. The people from his cabinet have said that he should not be president again and he had fascist views. He also praised dictators and has said that he wants the American people to obey his orders and will put the military against those he do not follow him. This is very clearly not a good man. It is very clear that this election is very important and I very big deal.

My friend Britney said that she was having a hard time choosing who to vote for. Which is obviously very concerning. Kamala Harris is the most qualified candidate. She been in the senate, House of Representatives and currently vice president. She has also been an attorney general. So to me it is not hard to know which is the better option. She has at least two policy that I align with and she is beyond qualified to been the representation of what the U.S. is. The day that Britney voted she didn’t want to tell anyone who she voted for. Obviously that is cause to assume that you voted for Trump if you’re embarrassed or not comfortable to talk about who you voted for. This is what the whole group thought.

Obviously I would not want to be friends with someone who thinks that voting for Trump is okay. Why would I want to be friends with someone who does not value my life and my rights? Why would I want to be friends with someone who thinks this is a game and is actively refusing to understand why this is a big deal.

But I love her. I love Britney and she has almost always been such a great friend to me. But I love myself more to not allow someone to keep their place in my life if they don’t value my rights and doesn’t see how the potential of losing them is a big deal. The idea of having to let her go hurt me a lot. But it is something that must be done. I can sit here and cry all day and night but that doesn’t change anything. I cannot make her understand basic human decency. But I also wanted to give her the chance to explain herself and I also wanted to explain myself and how her lack of understanding hurt me. But she declined the talk and wanted to reschedule but now I feel like I don’t ever want to talk to her again. I’m over it. As of now it’s done; I’m done.

[leonbloder]

When We Worry Too Much

I read somewhere not long ago that there are more people in our current culture walking around with low-grade depression and anxiety than at any other time in U.S. History.  

That's an astounding claim, but based on my own experience, I tend to believe it.  

There's a lot of uncertainty in our world, and when you combine that with the amount of information we have access to about all of the things that are not going well, it makes sense that more of us worry than our forbears.  

The other day, I ran across this quote from the comic strip "Peanuts" that both made me laugh but also made me think: 

“Sometimes you lie in bed at night and you don’t have a single thing to worry about. That always worries me!” - Charlie Brown

I have to be honest; that sums up how I felt for a long time.  

Over a year ago, I was struggling with depression and anxiety, so much so that I was having trouble doing even the most straightforward task without overthinking it, fretting over it, and then worrying about whether it was good enough after I did it. 

This would often send me into a spiral into darkness where all I wanted to do was sleep, check out, or otherwise shut out the world and not have to think. 

My therapist had recommended I begin taking anti-depressants, which I had resisted for some time because I was afraid it would make me numb to my feelings, which I didn't want. 

But I finally relented and got a prescription.  I had no idea how much it would change my life.  My fears about not feeling my feelings were completely unfounded.  I still felt all the same feelings as before, but I could work through them more easily.    

I still worry about things, to be sure. Sometimes, I worry too much. But I've been able to understand my worry more objectively and to do my best to make it productive. 

Worry can become productive if we are willing to remain curious about it even when we are worried.  

Suppose we can remain objective enough to let our curiosity lead us to the root causes of our worry. In that case, we soon realize that almost all of the things we are worrying about have little to do with the actual thing itself and more to do with past experiences, trauma, and the like. 

It can also be productive if we see more clearly that worrying about something doesn't affect the outcome.  

One of the teachings of Jesus from Matthew's Gospel often comes to mind when I ponder my worry and anxiety: 

25“Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? (Matthew 6:25-34)

Jesus often taught his followers to live more in the present because it was unproductive to dwell on the past and pure speculation to worry about the future.   This is one of the most difficult things we can do as human beings, much less as followers of Jesus.  Most of us struggle to surrender our outcomes and place ourselves in the hands of a loving God because we worry that things won't work out for us.  Sometimes, our worst fears are realized.  Sometimes, the things we were worrying about do come to pass, confirming our worries about them.   But even so, those calamities ought not destroy us.  We are never outside God's grace, forgiveness, and mercy.  We are never so far gone that we can't be found.  There is nothing in this life or the next that can separate us from the love of God.   May we realize this as one of the truest things we can know.  And may the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with us all, now and forever. Amen.  

[sagesipsblog]

I guess it's time.

I've done my fair share of social media doom scrolling and void screaming over the years. Oddly enough, social media can also be a source of inspiration. Especially if you can pull back and look at big picture trends within your individual feed (not the big platform-wide trending topics.)

Lately I've been seeing all the usual tensions between Easter and those of us raised in evangelical fundamentalism who get a little twitchy this time of year. Plus there is a presidential election this Fall here in the U.S. The very real dangers of Christion Nationalistism are (finally!) being recognized. I've added what I can on the side of church-state separation. One person called me a "bafflingly atheist Tarot reader." Well, I am an atheist and I am  a Tarot reader. I've been planning to write a post like this to un-baffle things a little bit.

Unsurprisingly, I follow a lot of Tarot readers on Threads and Instagram. We are in the business of provoking thoughts so when @pixiecurio (creator of the brilliant Light Seer's Tarot deck! www.chris-anne.myshopify.com) outright asked for our thoughts about religion and spirituality, I knew it was time for this particular behind the scenes peek.

The root problem, as I see it, is when we use religion and spirituality interchangeably or think of them as being essentially the same thing.

They are not.

No matter how thin a coin may be, it still has two distinct and opposite sides. Both religion and spirituality deal with the intangible mysteries of human life. In that sense, they are part of the same coin, but they approach life's mysteries in distinct and vastly different ways.

Spirituality is internal and moves from the inside out. Spirituality is our individual, direct experience of life's mysteries and can be expressed but not taught. A spiritual teacher can lead you to the doorway, but only you can cross the threshold into direct experience and direct understanding. This internal experience directs external behaviors.

Religion is external and moves from the outside in. Religion is a group consensus about life's intangible mysteries and is taught from one generation to another. The external behavior strives to direct the internal experience.

Rather than two sides of the same coin, I find it more helpful to think of religion and spirituality as two circles of a Venn diagram.

For some people, their group, cultural, external religion is also an expression of their sincere, individual, internal spirituality. In that case, their circles overlap a great deal. For others, like me, the circles don't touch at all.

Tarot falls 100% within the circle of spirituality and not at all within the circle of religion. Tarot doesn't touch religion unless there is already some degree of overlap in your individual, personal religion-spirituality Venn diagram.

The original Tarot images emerged in sixteenth century Europe where religious and cultural diversity was less common. The original Tarot decks are rife with Christian images and symbols because at that time, Catholicism was culturally and politically dominant. Their circles had a lot of overlap.

Here, now, the circles need not touch and are still perfectly valid. In 21st century America an atheist Tarot reader is both possible and understandable.

Centuries of use and practice have shown that Tarot is a tool for our spirituality - it is a mechanism that enables our individual understanding and experience. Tarot doesn't tell you what to think or do. Tarot shows a world of possibilities, options, and guidance. Tarot only serves to enrich our internal understanding.

Tarot is a means of spiritual experience from the inside out, not a means to impose dogma from the outside in. Tarot does not make concrete predictions or impose anything from the outside.

Like Taoism and Buddhism, Tarot concerns itself with living human experience and doesn't say anything one way or the other about any particular god or gods.  Tarot works well with any religion, especially with modern, diverse (and sometimes abstract) Tarot decks.

In 30 years of reading Tarot and Oracle cards, both privately and publicly, I've never received the slightest hint of a message for or against any religion. There is never a sense of 'this is the ultimate truth for everyone.' Tarot is always individual. Tarot is always well within the realm of the spiritual.

If religion comes up in a private individual reading at all, it is emotional chicken soup. Sometimes the cards will remind the individual to take comfort in their chosen religious practices whatever they are.

With every passing year, religion has become increasingly radioactive as a public topic. I actively avoid religion and politics in my public collective energy Tarot readings.  I want my work to be inclusive and compassionate - to the best of my ability I will not allow toxic energies into this blog, this website or any of my readings, even if it comes in the guise of religion.

Religion in the mainstream despises Tarot. Religion despises atheists.

Spirituality embraces both with open arms. There is nothing baffling about that at all.

[hbenvs3000w24]

Ethics, Beliefs, Responsibilities, and Approaches in My Role as a Nature Interpreter

Hi everyone! Welcome back to my nature interpretation blog! This is my final blog post for ENVS*3000. Over the course of this semester, I was given the opportunity to learn a lot more about nature interpretation through art, history, music, and technology while being taught about how privilege plays an integral role within the nature interpretation world. This course has allowed me to learn about nature and interpretation while being able to connect lectures and other course content to personal experiences. I truly enjoyed learning from my peers through their ideas, connections, and experiences. I am also grateful to attend the University of Guelph, where I have been constantly been given opportunities to succeed and learn more. Please enjoy some pictures I took this past year on and off campus before diving in :)

So without further ado, this final blog post will be focusing on the ethics, beliefs, responsibilities, and approaches surrounding my role as a nature interpreter. 

As stated in Interpreting Cultural and Natural Heritage for a Better World, interpreters as a whole often “strive to inspire stronger civic and environmental ethics” (Beck et al., 2018, Chapter 4: Values of Interpretation for Management, p. 71). As a result, over the course of this semester, I think I have developed stronger civic and environmental ethics in my role as a nature interpreter. “The beauty of human integrity commemorated in events of the past and the beauty of the intricacies of nature give rise to hope, and these are the tools of the interpreter.” (Beck et al., 2018, Chapter 5: Guiding Principles of Interpretation, p. 84). The main personal ethic I have as I continue to develop as a nature interpreter is ensuring that I honor the integrity of the landscapes, environments, and cultures we explore as I continue my role as a nature interpreter. As nature interpreters, we are more privileged than others since we have the tools and capabilities to explore landscapes and new aspects of nature. As a result, it is integral that we ensure that the environments we are exploring are being respected and that there is no harm done to any surrounding animals, habitats, and/or ecosystems. 

My main belief is that as a nature interpreter, it is important to ensure that sustainability and conservation efforts are at the root of nature. Various agencies like the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Environment Canada prompt the public to be more concerned about the environment and encourage intelligent action during visits and in their daily lives (Beck et al., 2018, Chapter 1: What is Interpretation? p. 11). Similarly, as nature interpreters, we are given access to a lot more resources and tools in order to educate others about the unknown while providing individuals with new perspectives and experiences. However, in the process, it is important to encourage the listener and audience to choose environmentally sustainable alternatives, like sustainable pieces of clothing, refillable shampoos and conditioners, refillable and reusable coffee pods, and reusable water bottles, when they are able to do so. Nature interpretation is not only an outlet to help individuals connect with and understand nature, but it is also a tool to help educate individuals on the importance of preserving and conserving various environments, landscapes, animals, habitats, and ecosystems.

The first responsibility I have as a nature interpreter is to acknowledge the land and the Indigenous groups and people it rightfully belongs to who is allowing us to explore and learn more about nature with the help of their land. Land acknowledgments are especially important in the environmental world in which a lot of practices concerning environmental activism in British Columbia and other provinces and regions within Canada are heavily influenced by the cultures, practices, beliefs, and traditions of Indigenous and First Nations groups (Blenkinsop & Fettes, 2020). Land acknowledgments are also important as they allow us to take responsibility to continue to honor the history and the past of the land while ensuring that past and present oppressions are not left forgotten (Blenkinsop & Fettes, 2020). Another responsibility I think every nature interpreter should have is following the Leave No Trace Principle, which is a minimum of seven practices that should be enforced by anyone exploring nature or visiting the outdoors to ensure that no surrounding animals, habitats, and/or ecosystems within the area are disturbed and/or threatened (Leave No Trace 2024). To get some more insight on the Leave No Trace Principle, please refer to the blog post titled ‘Respecting Nature’ from February 16th, 2024.

The main approach that is suitable for me as an individual is being taught and teaching others using the appropriate learning styles. Learning styles are an integral tool used to help individuals learn information and content in the most effective way possible (Beck et al., 2018, Chapter 6: How People Learn, p. 110). They are also effective in helping nature interpreters understand how to better connect and communicate with their audience in an impactful way (Beck et al., 2018, Chapter 6: How People Learn, p. 110). In the second week of the semester, I completed the ‘What's Your Learning Style’ quiz by EducationPlanner.org and learned that I am a visual learner, which means that I like to learn by reading or seeing, and a kinesthetic/tactile learner, which means I also like to learn by doing. The third learning styles is being an auditory learner. In the nature interpretation world, I think implementing the visual and tactile learning and teaching approaches is best since describing the various wonders of nature through audio clips and sounds is a lot more difficult compared to individuals being able to visualize and feel the landscapes and environments themselves. To get some more insight on the role of learning styles within nature interpretation, please refer to the blog post titled ‘My Role as an Environmental Interpreter’ from January 25th, 2024.

Thank you for an amazing semester. The final question I have for you is, what was your favorite thing you got to learn about this semester?

Thank you for reading!

- Sharan

References

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. Sagamore Publishing. Chapter 1: What is Interpretation?

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. Sagamore Publishing. Chapter 4: Values of Interpretation for Management

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. Sagamore Publishing. Chapter 5: Guiding Principles of Interpretation

Beck, L., Cable, T.T., & Knudson, D.M. (2018). Interpreting cultural and natural heritage for a better world. Sagamore Publishing. Chapter 6: How People Learn

Blenkinsop, S., & Fettes, M. (2020). Land, language and listening: The transformations that can flow from acknowledging indigenous land. Journal of Philosophy of Education, 54(4), 1033–1046. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9752.12470Leave No Trace. (2024). The 7 Principles. In Leave No Trace. Retrieved March 24, 2024, from https://lnt.org/why/7-principles/

[jcmarchi]

How the definition of digital transformation continues to evolve... - CyberTalk

New Post has been published on https://thedigitalinsider.com/how-the-definition-of-digital-transformation-continues-to-evolve-cybertalk/

How the definition of digital transformation continues to evolve... - CyberTalk

From 2003-2004, Aman served as the Chief Technology Officer for AGF Technologies, during which time he also co-founded a company called Pi Squared Technologies, LLC. Subsequently, he served as a consultant for MasterCard, and an adjunct lecturer for Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. In 2005, Aman started a new role with Citi, where he ascended to SVP, Group Information Security Officer. In 2015, he became the U.S. Chief Information Security Officer and Head of Enterprise Information Security Solutions for BMO Financial Group, where he was invited to assume the role of CISO. Aman joined Humana in 2020.

In this interview excerpt from the CISO’s Secrets podcast, Aman Raheja discusses his CISO career path, what it really takes to serve as a CISO in today’s world, and so much more. Don’t miss this!

You have accomplished a lot in your career. How did you get started in cyber security?

Interestingly, I can’t say that this was planned. Because it wasn’t. I did my undergrad in India and started out in software engineering. I started writing programs and doing software development.

The website that I took over from my predecessor actually got hacked, at which point my boss walked into my workspace and said ‘hey, you own this website now, go fix it’. I had no idea what was broken, so I had to teach myself how to do web hacking.

So that was my starting point — I simply used a couple of books, because that was in 2001-2002, and there wasn’t YouTube and all the Google information and the podcasts and everything that you have today.

I went off to Borders, bought a couple of books, and I still have them, as they remind me of my start. Taught myself how to do pen-testing, started to do pen-testing for other organizations in the St. Louis area, and just stuck with the theme.

That’s extraordinary. One of the things that I find interesting is that a lot of the leaders who I speak with started in the development world. How do you feel that that has contributed to your role as a Chief Information Security Officer?

I think that regardless of whether someone starts in software or system administration, it’s extremely helpful to have fundamental knowledge of the basics and of how things work. At the crux of what we do —underlying it— is a tremendous amount of engineering power. If you understand it well enough, you can actually do a lot better as an executive. I firmly believe that and think that a lot of successful people have development backgrounds.

Not to say that there aren’t executives without that type of depth — there are and they’re also successful…

So, technical knowledge is extremely helpful…although in and of itself, it’s not sufficient to be successful in a senior role.

A lot of people think that being a CISO is solely about information security. But the role has evolved, wouldn’t you say?

It has. Up until a point, it was sufficient for me to have the technical details about a topic, and to converse with management about it. But then, what changed was that at some point, I decided that I did want to get into management. Once you make that decision, there’s a completely different skill set that you need to work on…

It takes an ongoing learning mindset in order to be successful. It’s also important to be able to talk with the business in terms that leaders will appreciate…

We are digitizing every aspect of our business. There are so many elements of risk. Digital transformation is a double-edged sword, as it means that there’s more to be done when it comes to cyber security.

Yes, absolutely. Let me break my response up into two parts. First of all, I think that the definition of a transformation is continuing to evolve and change…I don’t know of any two companies that even define digital transformation the same way.

There was a point, earlier in my career, where we went through a digital transformation and it truly meant moving away from paper and digitizing…The definition of digital transformation then shifted to creating mobile applications. It moved to adopting cloud…The next phase of digital transformation, as we all know is…

Did you find this interesting? Get the full conversation here.

                                                                       For more CISO insights:

Check out this interview with the CISO of Archer Daniels Midland Company – See article

Explore cyber security training for C-level executives – Right here

Do you know about this CISO advisory service? – More information

[spacedustpan]

Before I get into this please know that I am saying this gently. I'm not trying to shame anyone here.

There is no Standard American Secondary School Curriculum for American Public Schools.

What is taught and tested varies from state to state.

"Authority to regulate education resides constitutionally with the individual states, with direct authority of the U.S. Congress and the federal U.S. Department of Education being limited to regulation and enforcement of federal constitutional rights. "

" The U.S. government may also propose, but cannot enforce national goals, objectives and standards, which generally lie beyond its jurisdiction. "

My friends in neighboring states and I would bitch and moan about Standardized Testing and we all learned fairly quickly after asking at school that our states had wildly different education requirements.

The differences in curriculum between states has also been a focus in most major news outlets for the past 3 years due to MAJOR differences in curriculum regarding Slavery, The Civil War, and things like discussion of Gender and Sexuality in Southern States versus other states.

I personally was taught very little about the Vietnam War. I memorized the start and end date the reason for the conflict and got some personal anecdotes from my teacher about his family that was in the war, but it wasn't a focus for Standardized Testing.

So it wasn't a focus for the class teachings or the review.

The teacher gave it more time than he was technically supposed to because he personally cared about it.

But he had a very Pro War Anti Hippie stance on it.

He didn't mention Kent State.

I'm sure you can understand how that would shape my class's perception somewhat.

I personally learned about Kent State while watching the movie Nixon when I was bored out of my mind one summer and my parents were watching it.

Otherwise I wouldn't have learned about it.

My family and friends didn't listen to Niel Young when I was younger and my tastes lean more towards EDM and Pop so I haven't heard that song before.

On top of that, not everyone picks out the lyrics of songs that they hear snipets of while shopping at the grocery store or while watching a movie. Sometimes people just hear background music as Pleasant Background Noise. Or they hear the melody but not the lyrics.

There's a lot of universality assumed that just is not true.

I understand someone being frustrated if they and another person went to the same high school and their state teaches a topic in detail and they know for a fact that they were both absolutely taught the information. That would be very annoying to hear from someone at that point.

But being frustrated with random internet strangers because of an assumption that every american high school teaches what you were taught the way that you were taught it is uncharitable.

If you're reading this and also previously thought that all high schools in the US have some overarching requirements for curriculum -especially regarding history- it's not your fault.

We are all Today Years Old at some point in our lives and we all have gaps in our knowledge determined by our learning environments.

This is also not the first or last time this conversation will take place on tumblr dot com. 🌈

I will say thanks for the song reccomendation though! 👍 I'll give Neil Young's "Ohio" a listen. sounds like it'll be a good listen that goes hard judging by that snippet of lyrics I used to Google it just now.

there is a post going around like THE GOVERNMENT DOESN'T WANT YOU TO KNOW ABOUT KENT STATE and I am sorry but if you are an adult American with a high school degree and don't know about Kent State I'm afraid that's on you. There is a Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young song about it and they play it on your average oldies station like twice a day.