_sysiphus_
03-06-2001, 08:52 PM
I'm a-posting this everywhere.
(This is a wee bit long, but is definitely worth reading)
On Thursday, Ralph Nader delivered an address at my school (University of Toronto). I was curious to hear what exactly he had to say for myself, without falling into the mentality, "well, Eddie likes him, so he must be good." Seeing as to how I'm Canadian, I can be very objective and listen to him and decide for myself what I feel about him. Guys, he was absolutely amazing! There were times where he had me in complete shock, in agreement, and in hysterical laughter up to the point where tears were rolling from my eyes! He began by saying that his brother graduated from Uof T, so there was an immediate bond formed there. What I admired most about him was that he appealed to intellect, not emotion, by sticking to facts and data. Hell, he came more prepared to this thing than most of my professors do to class! And he didn't resort to name-calling, sensationalism, or any hooligan antics you'd come to expect from most politicians. I mean, he could have come there and showed pictures of starving children in third-world countries and blasted us by saying that instead of buying those Nike's or that cup of Starbuck's, we could have helped those poor children, because aren't they people too? Instead, he pointed out that more money is poured out on viagra, cholesterol pills, and debalding treatments for men than on vaccines for malaria and TB - preventable diseases that could save the lives of millions each year. It is shameful when our priority is to ensure that some 65 year old man can have a full head of hair, an acceptable cholesterol level and an outstanding libido at the expense of the lives of so many. What kind of people are we? And you want to hear a real shocker? The top 3% of the world's wealthiest people have fortunes equivalent to the combined riches of 3 billion of the world's poorest people! He tackled the environment next and recounted how in the 1940's he remembered reading a book about Paul Bunyan and the last line in the book struck him the most. It said that after Paul Bunyan travelled to Alaska, he wouldn't stop until the last tree was cut down. And this was a book read by schoolchildren at the time! No wonder so many people are still indifferent towards the environment - look at the propaganda that was spread. Ralph then blasted the school system (something really must be done here) and he said that schools today promote memorization, regurgitation and vegitation, which is the honest truth. Lol, then he said you can tell a student's program of study just by their body language. For example, you ask a student what they're studying, and suddenly you see them straighten their back, hold their head up, smile a little smile, look directly into your eyes and reply, "Computer Science." So, you ask another student the same question and suddenly you see them kind of hunch over, lower their head, and with their hands in their pockets and eyes on the ground, they muffle a reply, "English Lit....I know it won't get me a job, but I enjoy Shakespeare, etc..." That is so true! My friend came out of the lecture and she even admitted that she was ashamed to tell people she's studying geography whenever they ask her, while I can freely tell people I'm in the Life Sciences :) And then he commented about those automatic voice recordings whenever you try to call a bank, or any large company and after pressing an astronomical amount of numbers, you finally end up with the message "Your business is important to us, please wait while a representative becomes available" and then they expose you either to music or ads. Ralph said the recordings have gotten so efficient that whenever he's working and he wants to hear classical music, he calls United Airlines! This guy's a riot! I love him! He's got me hook, line, and sinker. Granted, Eddie's support kinda drew me to this man, but all I got from Eddie was an awareness of Nader's existence, and I was the one who determined his greatness by taking the time to listen to his intelligent and insightful words.
Oh, and btw, Ralph looks EXACTLY like Alan Alda from Mash! And don't tell me you don't see it. I was staring at his profile for 2 hours and I'm telling you they have the same nose - the resemblance is uncanny!!!!
"I thank you for helping me learn how to think, but I reserve the right to determine WHAT I think."
(This is a wee bit long, but is definitely worth reading)
On Thursday, Ralph Nader delivered an address at my school (University of Toronto). I was curious to hear what exactly he had to say for myself, without falling into the mentality, "well, Eddie likes him, so he must be good." Seeing as to how I'm Canadian, I can be very objective and listen to him and decide for myself what I feel about him. Guys, he was absolutely amazing! There were times where he had me in complete shock, in agreement, and in hysterical laughter up to the point where tears were rolling from my eyes! He began by saying that his brother graduated from Uof T, so there was an immediate bond formed there. What I admired most about him was that he appealed to intellect, not emotion, by sticking to facts and data. Hell, he came more prepared to this thing than most of my professors do to class! And he didn't resort to name-calling, sensationalism, or any hooligan antics you'd come to expect from most politicians. I mean, he could have come there and showed pictures of starving children in third-world countries and blasted us by saying that instead of buying those Nike's or that cup of Starbuck's, we could have helped those poor children, because aren't they people too? Instead, he pointed out that more money is poured out on viagra, cholesterol pills, and debalding treatments for men than on vaccines for malaria and TB - preventable diseases that could save the lives of millions each year. It is shameful when our priority is to ensure that some 65 year old man can have a full head of hair, an acceptable cholesterol level and an outstanding libido at the expense of the lives of so many. What kind of people are we? And you want to hear a real shocker? The top 3% of the world's wealthiest people have fortunes equivalent to the combined riches of 3 billion of the world's poorest people! He tackled the environment next and recounted how in the 1940's he remembered reading a book about Paul Bunyan and the last line in the book struck him the most. It said that after Paul Bunyan travelled to Alaska, he wouldn't stop until the last tree was cut down. And this was a book read by schoolchildren at the time! No wonder so many people are still indifferent towards the environment - look at the propaganda that was spread. Ralph then blasted the school system (something really must be done here) and he said that schools today promote memorization, regurgitation and vegitation, which is the honest truth. Lol, then he said you can tell a student's program of study just by their body language. For example, you ask a student what they're studying, and suddenly you see them straighten their back, hold their head up, smile a little smile, look directly into your eyes and reply, "Computer Science." So, you ask another student the same question and suddenly you see them kind of hunch over, lower their head, and with their hands in their pockets and eyes on the ground, they muffle a reply, "English Lit....I know it won't get me a job, but I enjoy Shakespeare, etc..." That is so true! My friend came out of the lecture and she even admitted that she was ashamed to tell people she's studying geography whenever they ask her, while I can freely tell people I'm in the Life Sciences :) And then he commented about those automatic voice recordings whenever you try to call a bank, or any large company and after pressing an astronomical amount of numbers, you finally end up with the message "Your business is important to us, please wait while a representative becomes available" and then they expose you either to music or ads. Ralph said the recordings have gotten so efficient that whenever he's working and he wants to hear classical music, he calls United Airlines! This guy's a riot! I love him! He's got me hook, line, and sinker. Granted, Eddie's support kinda drew me to this man, but all I got from Eddie was an awareness of Nader's existence, and I was the one who determined his greatness by taking the time to listen to his intelligent and insightful words.
Oh, and btw, Ralph looks EXACTLY like Alan Alda from Mash! And don't tell me you don't see it. I was staring at his profile for 2 hours and I'm telling you they have the same nose - the resemblance is uncanny!!!!
"I thank you for helping me learn how to think, but I reserve the right to determine WHAT I think."