Last Post

Hey all - since this is our last post of the semester I didn't want to go with anything too heavy.  I thought I would just say thanks for an awesome semester.  Congratulations to those of you who are graduating and hopefully I will see the rest of you again in the fall.  Have an awesome summer!  Thanks again for a great semester!

Is it Art?

So I know we talked about the issue of art and censorship a while ago but I ran across this "exhibit" that I just can't ignore.  I have been trying to find as much information that I can about it but it is hard to know what is true on this one.  The artist, Guillermo Vargas Habacuc, took a stray dog from the area and tied him up in a corner to starve to death.  He has not released comments as to whether the dog actually died but "some people say" that it has.  On the wall near the dog there were phrases written in spanish in dog food.  He has said that the exhibit was meant to raise awareness about the cruelty of animals but is this really the way to do it?  The is a petition going around to prevent him from doing a similar exhibit again.  I found a lot of blogs, videos, and articles about this.  What do you guys think, is it art and a public statement or is it just cruel?  

Earth Day 2008

So I know this post has nothing to do with free speech but it does have to do with responsibility. And this is my space to talk about what is important to me - so that is free speech right? Well, for those of you who don't know (I didn't until I just looked it up) Earth Day 2008 is April 22. I honestly have never done anything for earth day before and since everyone is jumping on this eco-friendly trend lately I thought this might be important. I do not consider myself to be an enviormentalist but I do what I can to "be green." I realize that climate change is a serious problem in our world I really truly want to be a part of the positive change we are making. But I sometimes get really discouraged. As a college student I am sure you all know this feeling, it can be really hard to but the local, organic, "green" products because they are often more expensive. I also get discouraged because I think about how little of an impact I can really have on something so huge as climate change. In researching this I have found a lot of how to sites on being more environmentally friendly but I find that a lot of these tips do not really apply to me. Do you guys have a tips that you can think of that help you with this? Also do you know of any place to buy local, organic or just more enviornmentally friendly products on a college budget? Any of your tips will help thanks!!! Also what if anything are you planning on particpating in for earth day? I was sparked to write this blog based on a show I saw the other night on the national geographic channel called the human footprint. I don't know how often they will be reshowing it but if you can catch it is an amazing show about the amount of products an American goes through in their life time - and it is only a hour! If you don't have an hour then check out this video - it's hilarious!

UnChristian

I spent the past week at a Church leadership conference in Chicago.  I have grown up in the church (sometimes literally - I lived in one) my entire life.  And while it haven't been a christian the whole time I have been for a majority of my life.  However, I have always been one of the many christians who does not talk about their faith in public - especially academic - settings.  It wasn't until this week at this conference that I really began to understand why that is.  Part of my inability to talk about my faith comes from my own insecurities.  No I have not read every portion of the Bible, much less understand it, but I am a christian.  I have a fear that people will (and they have in the past) call me out of issues in my faith that I either don't understand or struggle with myself.  I try not to talk about my faith because I don't want to be a christian who turns people away from the faith because of my own insecurities.  I think the main reason however that I don't talk about my faith is because of the many stereotypes and boxes it immediately places me into; right-wing, homophobic, hypocritical, conservative, Bible thumping, judgmental etc.  While I really truly believe that I am not any of these things I can't help but fear the facts that claiming my faith as a Christian places me in these categories.  

One of the main focuses of the conference I went to was this new generation's fascination with social justice, world issues and even Jesus; coupled with their growing un-satisfaction with the church itself.  Having grown up in the church myself I completely understand these views and agree with many of their points.  There are so few true christians in this world who are following - to the best of their ability - the model Jesus' life and words gave us.  Ghandi has been quoted as saying,  "If it weren't for Christians, I'd be a Christian."  In findings from a new book titled "UnChristian" authors discovered what it is that our generation feels about the Christian church.  While I can't summarize them all here, some of the important findings are that they see the church as firstly homophobic and secondly judgmental.  As a Christian I am not only ashamed of these perceptions but also very scared of what they mean for the future of the church.  I think it is so important that we begin to stop living in the stereotypes our parents set up for us (on both the christian and non-Christian sides) and start really talking openly about faith, doubts and religion.  I want to live my life in a place where I don't have to be ashamed and labeled because of my faith.  I really feel this whole concept of "They like Jesus, but not the Church" has become a huge role in our society that we need to be talking about and looking into both as believers and non-believers.  I know I don't have the answers but I would love to be in a place open to the discussion without judgement from either direction.  

Credit Card Fraud

This week I became the victim of credit card fraud and for those of you who have not experienced it before it is not fun!!!  My mom works for a bank and has taught me a lot about how to handle my money and stay safe with my cards.  I never really worried too much about fraud because I knew I was smart with my accounts.  I really wish I had been more paranoid about it because dealing with this is more of a hassle then I could have ever imagined.  While I think I will be able to get all of my money back it has been a really awful experience that I wouldn't wish upon anyone.  Here are some basic tips I found online about credit card fraud.  Also, here are some more tips on how to avoid online credit card fraud.  If anyone else has experienced this and wants to share stories, tips etc. please feel free.  This is something we really need to become more aware of so less people are able to get away with it and more importantly less people suffer through it.  

Art and Censorship

Although I am not an artist myself this weeks discussion of art and obscenity has really got me thinking.  I really do not understand why people need to get so offended by others people's art.  If it is offensive to them then why are they looking at it.  No piece of art appeals to everyone so why do people feel that if a piece of art does not appeal to them they should have the right to make it unable to be shown.  In our class discussion we got onto the subject of money and I really think that money has a lot to do with these types of situations.  When people contribute to certain causes they want to see that cause using the money in ways they like.  I understand contributors to an organization should have a right to voice their opinions about how their money is spent but this type of manipulation for personal values is wrong.  I really wish money wasn't such a huge factor in world and people could just act on their values and not the values of their bank account.   

'The Ashley Treatment'

I was looking on CNN and found this article.  I'm not 100% sure how it has to do with free speech but I think it is really interesting.  The article describes the actions of two parents who made a very controversial decision about the care of their ten year old mentally disabled daughter.  Their daughter was born with brain-damage and a condition described as static encephalopathy, or cerebral palsy.  Ashley's parents made the decision to preform controversial growth-attenuation therapy.  This surgery treatment prohibited the growth hormone making it easier for the caregivers to take care of this young girl.  Ashley will never walk or talk and doctors who perform these treatments feel that it makes a significant impact on the caregivers ability to provide a quality life.  Although this treatment is done by doctors through out the country it was particularly controversial in this case because it was illegal in the state where it was done and the doctor who performed the treatment committed suicide in the year after.  This case was published in a medical journal but did not gain more wide spread attention until the family posted their account of the situation on their blog.  Their hope was to inform more parents on this possible treatment but instead they gained a lot of negative attention from people who did not agree what they have done.  Like I said I'm not sure how exactly this would relate to free speech but I think it is interesting.  Let me know what you think about this controversial case.