If you go out in the woods today

Becky's article on slavery in the world shook me up a little. Growing up I heard stories about people who were sold into slavery. Women were abused in deplorable ways, while men were exploited and beaten down emotionally and physically.

As a college student I heard stories of people being tricked into prostitution and some times even of servants who lived the lives of virtual slaves who escaped their slavery by jumping out of windows to their death.

Somehow the idea that people were being bought and sold never came up. I believe its the price of a life that has me so shaken. When the price of a 9 year old girl is a mere $50 USD, it makes me want to suddenly rush out a buy the freedom of as many as I can.

Freedom is a great ideal. Thousands of people flood the borders of the USA in hope of freedom. Countries riot and governments topple as people demand freedoms. Yet the plight of a little girl goes almost unnoticed. Does she dream of freedom? Does she even know what that concept means? Or has life's unfairness stripped that from her?

This is the world I live in. And I refuse to be blinded by products, new and flashy toys, or scare tactics. We must demand a better world. I do.

Another Shooting in the USA..

It seems like every week we get a new story about a shooting in the states. Last week it was a part-time police officer who went crazy over an ex-girlfriend and shot several people. This week it was a boy who took a gun to school and wounded teachers and classmates before killing himself. Later in the week we heard of a boy who was planning another school attack!

Its strange that these stories of tragedy should become so common place in America. With all the hype of security, it seems that people are feeling less secure. If there was a better way for the gunmen to get what they wanted, do you think they'd have been gunmen?

We can easily push this off as crazy people acting out...but crazy people do not just reside in America (contrary to popular belief and most evidence). There are crazy people all over the world, yet for whatever reason there are fewer shootings coming from the UK, the EU, and Australia.

I personally believe that the reason shootings are less frequent in these countries is because the citizens feel more secure. Its not about the security measures that the governments are taking. Its about people feeling like they have control over their life.

Whatever it takes to get a solution, it needs to happen soon. i don't think the country needs any more death by guns next week.

Gun control and me

Having grown up in America, I know that the gun control issue is HOT. No one likes the idea of more legislation on gun ownership (they feel that it takes away their freedoms granted in their constitution), yet many people agree that something must be done to prevent the mass deaths of students (which seem to be the main target of late).

There are a few things that make me uneasy about this though.

1.) The general public are willing to fight tooth and nail for their right to own a personal semi-automatic hand gun, but don't find it neccissary to fight as hard for their right of free speach or their right to assemble.

2.) The media cover gun deaths only when they range higher than 3 at a time...and even that is beginning to become less common. If the media (everywhere) were to cover the gun related deaths of every single person from their country, I wonder if we might become a little bit more aware of the power we wield over life.

3. the government seems to back the idea of a 'safer' America with less or no immigrants. Suggesting that the only danger America ever faces is from outside. Maybe they should take down their welcome on the Statue of Liberty then...

("Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me.
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.")

The irony is that Americans are developing a reputation outside their country as gun-toting-christian terrorists. The idea that 'all america owns guns' is so prominate, i have many friends who have no wish to ever travel to America for fear they will be shot! "After all", they say, "I'm not white or Christian, they might mistake me for a target".