Below, is the full transcript of a recent posting I made to my Announcements page which supports my World Geography course. Enjoy.
“Part of the goal of this course is make you realize you won the lottery by living in the United States. We have two oceans on either side of us which afford us incalculable protection from conflict and culture transference. The United States historically has benefited from the best of technology available at the time and from innovation and entrepreneurship over time.
I personally do not care for comments from people who use relativism to minimize feelings. Statements like, “You shouldn’t feel so bad; lots of people have it worse than you do,” is a form of Relativism and essentially not really helpful in the moment. People experience personal problems which they need to work though, and while the statement is probably factually correct, its also a statement of “your feelings aren’t important.” Anyone who has lost a loved one, gone through a divorce, lost a job, etc., knows what I am talking about.
Now, having said that, every once in a while we do need a verification that, yes, I am lucky or fortunate or blessed. After we get done with our pity party and our life returns to normal, a well-balanced person will come to the realization that tomorrow is whatever YOU make of it.
The video below is from a TEDTalk Global conference. TEDTalk, for those unaware, is a multi-day conference where smart people from all of the world gather and share ideas in front of an audience. TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design.
The speaker in the video is Eve Ensler. You probably have never heard of her – if you are a male. Women, on the other hand, know who Eve Ensler is like men know who Joe Montana is. Men may have heard of the Vagina Monologues. Eve is the creator of that Spoken Word endeavor. Everyone should watch this. I know the title says, “Embrace Your Inner Girl,” but seriously, if you are a guy, and you think you might have a child one day – even by accident (and, there are no accidents, so don’t even attempt to utter something so ridiculous; you’ll embarrass all of Mankind), there is at least a 50% chance of having a daughter. Therefore, you are responsible for teaching her about the male side of relationships, not Mommy. And, you need to prepare her for the world she will grow up in. And, not to leave out boys, but you are also responsible for correcting their behavior, too. You are not their friend; you are their parent.
Finally, yes, this talk by Eve is about geography, specifically the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”
Constant Geography 