Envy

It appears that most of the people I communicate with back in the US are currently sunning themselves in Carribean locations, because I've recieved more 'Out of Office Auto Replies' than I can count!! I hate them for this. It's f----ing cold in Scotland this week!

You bastards have fun - I want pictures and stories.

Essays from first term are FINALLY in

Back to the essays from first term that I was whining about...

Well - I figured that I would do pretty well on the first 2 essays, and I did. But the third essay, the one I spent the better part of 5 days toiling and swearing over, I imagined nothing better than say a 60. Well - IPEU, I earned a 68 (two less than my first essay in the class). In IR Theory, I earned a 70 (five points higher than my first essay) and for Sociology of Nationalism, I scored a 72, the highest mark I've earned in any course of essay this term?

I was gobsmacked! How in the hell did I earn such a mark? I reviewed my paper, the comments on there, and, after reading, decided that despite one or two large errors (not highlighting enough of one argument, etc), it was as poorly researched or written as I thought, but I sure as hell wasn't expected that high of a mark! Yeah for me I guess.

I'm about 1/3 the way through my first of three essays this term. It's going a little better this term, but I credit that to organization and knowing the system a little bit better.

NYE - With Friends like these

I don't need to resolve anything for the new year! They will corrupt me at every corner... :)

Came across some photo's I hadn't looked through thoroughly yet...
I hate it that we always have so much damn Fun!!

JoAnn Archbold (Alnwick), Gentry, Tim, me, Boy Corey, Tammy, Kim, Amy and Chris (and Dan, taking the photo!)

Human Rights

Dr. Irene Kahn's speech last night was moving, poignant and relevant. Being part of the 'Enlightenment Lecture' series, she spoke of the rights and values that our international society has held and still hold dear - liberty, equality, rule of law and how the 'war on terror' is undermining those values. It is not right, in the name of the law, to suspend any one's or any group's rights for the sake of the whole. She told stories of detainees she's met (from a variety of background including British nationals) who have been in prisons for 4 or 5 years and never interrogated. Their rights are simply being denied. Torture, something we thought was in the past, is alive and well. She spoke of the recent resurgence in the Abu Graib investigation into the US and UK treatment of prisoners. Torture is some the US does not practice, she said, on their soil.

One powerful statement that resonated with me was how the media and leaders frame things, situations, which allows them to utilize tools that are undemocratic. 'War on Terror', for example. She said, 'By calling it a war, human rights are suspended. Human rights don't count in war. By calling it Terror, state borders don't count. It is open to all people, and abuses can take place in the name of war anywhere'. I had never considered the power of that phrase before.

Dr. Kahn, the first Asian, first Muslim and first women to hold the post of President of Amnesty International, did give some recommendations for change. She said first, we need to address security issues not as National Security, but as Human Security. Take into consideration and secure social, economic, political and civil rights for all people, and the world will be safer. Second, she urged the UK and Scotland to take a leadership role at a time when some nations are not, or, in the case of the US, lowering the moral benchmark which other states measure themselves. Finally, she said more people need to become aware of the cause, the organizations that advocate and the importance of human rights. Without people bringing these issues to the forefront, they will not be taken on and solved by governments or anyone else for that matter.

Bookmark it Today! Amnesty International's Website

Academia

I started off my school day at the meeting for dissertation writing at 9:00am. Well, that's a bit of lie - I started off my school day on a bus navigating its way through very bad traffic, causing me to be late, which infuriates me like nothing else. Perhaps I was have premonitions earlier, when I was a bit terse this morning... Anyway, I was somewhat relieved and disappointed to find out that the talk was no more than the lecturer reading from the 12 page handout that she emailed to us the week before. Grrr! Don't read to us, we can do that, tell us something! Having said that, the process has begun. We need to come up with a research question that will essentially occupy our thoughts and time for the next 5 months. Joy.

After speaking with 5 professors and chaning the the question, hell the topic, 5 times, I have my latest idea:

Why have American immigration policies become increasingly restrictive in numbers and type of immigrants since the country's inception (or perhaps since WWI or WWII, etc)?

I'm emailing it to a 6th lecturer today, so we'll see how much it changes by the time its due (Thursday).

Tonight: Tim, along with John and Mary and two of our faculty, Janet and Jim are meeting me at Deacon Brodies for a drink and then we are going to a lecture given by Irene Kahn.

6.30 pm, Assembly Hall, The Mound - The University of Edinburgh Enlightenment Lecture Series
Irene Khan (Secretary General of Amnesty International):
"'The War on Terror'....A War on Liberty?"

Stuart's Birthday

Tim and I celebrated our friend Stuart's 37th birthday this weekend. Drinks and appetizers and really loud dance music - his man Neil was a little under the weather and played hostess and maid for the food and the spills that occurred on the new 'its not acrylic its wool' rug. Alister, Nick, Jodie, Malcom, Martin and Robert in attendance...and some other random people showed up around 130am, but were not quite sure who they were. All in all - fab night. And, despite living here for almost 19 months, the accent after a few drinks mixed with slang still gets me at times, but that also makes for interesting conversation.

On the work end, when it rains it pours. Seminar one for the SCC is tomorrow (which, I am pretty well prepared for, it is just something else on the list), I am struggling with the first of 3 essays for this term's assessment, the dissertation proposal is due Tuesday, and I have just plain old regular homework to work on... ugh, all work and no play. Aw, I really need to stop bitching - didn't I just go out and have a fab time last night in the paragraph above? Damn!

Facebook

I started a Facebook account... good god. Like I needed one more thing to be addicted to and to distract me from work!!!! Damn you kids for getting me on it... You will pay, oh yes, you will pay.

Rules of War?

It saddens me to think how good some people have it in this world and how bad others have it. Religion, history and the geo-political landscape have left many places miserably equipped to enjoy any sense of a 'quality life'.

In Afghanistan, a country ravaged by years of invasion, instability and factionalzied in-fighting, people are seeking out any semblance of normalcy in the post-Taliban, post-al Qaeda, post-US (read: they are ALL still there) hell they are living in. In the PakTribune, it is reported that, in order to establish control and an environment of fear, insurgents are targeting teachers and school children and schools in general. As a result, over 200 schools in the southern region of the country have been closed.

It is infuriating to try to comprehend what lengths people will go to to assert their power. But then, they probably don't feel like they have much choice, considering their history. I have always been one to question the concept of the 'rules of war'. I thought, each side has guns, each sides wants to win, each side will fight to the death, where the hell do rules come into play??? After reading these types of accounts and because of my courses this term, I have been made more aware of their frequency; it is the extremely weak and vulnerable populations that I feel the saddest for. This reality is causing me to rethink the concept of the rules of war. My position is that the international society, via NGO's or regional organizations (EU, NATO) need to seek out and establish some rules or norms protect these innocent lives.

New Music

Stevie K pointed out an up and coming country artist! He sounds pretty good... Billy Currington - take a look and listen!

Thanks Carolyn

You are the Weiner.

There is so much material to pick from - it's hard to choose. But here ya go!

Looking ahead at dissertation writing

It is week 5 of the second term of my grad program. Despite the fact that we have 7 weeks of class left before essays are the primary concern, my peers and I have to have a dissertation proposal in by 21 February. In order to do that, at least for my own organization, I need draw upon my first sets of essays (areas of interest, since I selected the questions!) and ultimately my spring essay questions.

I've decided on my spring questions for American Foreign Policy, Political Theory of Human Rights and Social and Political Movements. In respective order:

• ‘Why, with a record so active and glorious, is American foreign policy held in such low esteem?’ (Walter Mead, Special Providence, p.30).
  
• Can humanitarian intervention be justified by appeal to human rights?
  
• ‘Movements that privilege identity ignore opportunities’ (Tarrow 1998). Discuss with reference to one or two specific movements.

These, along with my first essay questions:

1. Too what extent is there a conflict between the cosmopolitan and communitarian conceptions of global duty?
2. How should the powers of the European Parliament be developed to deal with the EU’s perceived democratic deficit?

* * * *

3.“Intervention by force might be the only means of enforcing the global humanitarian norms that have evolved in the wake of the Holocaust, but this fundamentally challenges the established principles of non-intervention and non-use of force” (N.J. Wheeler, 2000:1). Discuss.
4. ‘The slow and limited development of CFSP demonstrates the validity of liberal intergovernmentalism.’ Do you agree?
5. Are Nations Constructed? A comparison ethnosymbolist and constructivist theories on the origins of nations.

So - with those 8 choices over the past 6 months, I will begin the process of pin-pointing a dissertation title and 1 page research description

Right-thinking Teachers

In the Washington Post yesterday there was an opinion piece where author Frederick M. Hesse stated that teachers colleges wrongly promote policies that embrace certain perspectives on complex social issues involving race, sexuality and power. Hesse says empirical evidence hasn't proven that such personal philosophies improve instructional effectiveness.

It caught my eye because I don't view that personal philosophies improve or lessen a person's instruction. A xenophobic teacher can probably teach just as well as a less fearful or more tolerant teacher. What seems to be missed by the focus of this piece is the importance of bringing up different perspectives. What not have a debate (age-appropriate and within the confines of the curriculum) about cultural relativism or absolutist moral thinking on the topics of sexual orientation or race or class. In this excerpt:

"One can sympathize with the sentiments at work. Moreover, in theory, academics can argue that merely addressing these issues implies no ideological bias. But in practice, education courses addressing "white privilege" and the "language of oppression" typically endorse particular views on issues such as affirmative action and student discipline. These codes have real consequences."

I would simply ask the students to decide. Is it a case of white privilege? Could people of colour made their way to the top of the corporate latter? Why or why not? If not, is 'White Privilege' the only reason? What are some remedies? etc., etc.

"The National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education -- which established requirements that would-be teachers embrace "multicultural and global perspectives" and develop "dispositions that respect and value differences" -- has tried to backpedal recently by protesting that it didn't "expect or require institutions to attend to any particular political or social ideologies." Much more is needed. The cultivation of right-thinking cadres has no place in America's colleges and universities."

I am not sure that I've EVER been in a class where the professor is forcing her opinions on the political landscape of the country or world to allow for 'right-thinking cadres'. What ever happened to letting the student-teachers form their own opinions? It does happen.

Students Arrive!

It's that time again - brand new group of students. 74 in all - they seem really charged to be here, despite their long flights and jet lag! Orientation starts tomorrow and I am lucky enough to be teaching the only required course, so I will get to meet them all.

I had to do the 'talking points' today for class. The topic: identity and leadership and their role in social movements; how important is a collective identity? when/why do people mobilize? do SMs need a leader? Good questions, now, if only I had the answers. More reading ahead.

Came across this quote today - it kinda fits me I think:


I am still determined to be cheerful and happy, in whatever situation I may be; for I have also learned from experience that the greater part of our happiness or misery depends upon our dispositions, and not upon our circumstances."
-- Martha Washington, former U.S. first lady

New Music

The Soundtrack of Brokeback Mountain arrived today and I'm very happy. It's almost hard to listen to though! The music is haunting and quickly reminds you the scenes it was used in.

The award winning song could be a (gay) wedding favourite? It's absolutely beautiful.

A Love That Will Never Grow Old
song by Emmylou Harris
( Santaolalla/Taupin)
Go to sleep, may your sweet dreams come true
Just lay back in my arms for one more night
I've this crazy old notion that calls me sometimes
Saying this one's the love of our lives.

Refrain:
Cause I know a love that will never grow old
And I know a love that will never grow old.

When you wake up the world may have changed
But trust in me, I'll never falter or fail
Just the smile in your eyes, it can light up the night,
And your laughter's like wind in my sails.

Cause I know a love that will never grow old
And I know a love that will never grow old.

Lean on me, let our hearts beat in time,
Feel strength from the hands that have held you so long.
Who cares where we go on this rutted old road
In a world that may say that we're wrong.

Cause I know a love that will never grow old
And I know a love that will never grow old.