denrkris's blog

I live in quite a socio-economically diversified area.  We have people who are struggling paycheck to paycheck, or who are on welfare, we have a large middle class and we have some of the wealthiest people in the nation in my city.  Class lines aren't crossed during friendships all that much, but it's easy to see just how similar family lifestyles are.

I'm a liberal and everyone who meets me is well aware of it from the get go.  I've got my personal values, virtues and beliefs and I identify with them.  Part of my natural viewpoints (based on my Jungian personality profile type--INFP) is to have values that I will not leave behind.  Yes, you may not agree with everything that I have to say, but in order to improve the future for our country you should at least hear me out.

Let's admit it... the UN can only function to be successful when it involves humanitarian issues and not peacekeeping missions.

Historically and structurally the UN is a weak organization.  It's predecessor failed due to many reasons, similar to those that may bring the UN to its demise.

Realistically speaking the UN should probably be scrapped.  Even with it's millenium goals, which are going well, it isn't doing enough to be effective.  It can't be effective because it doesn't have the necessary funding/support from member countries.

A man in one of my classes is part of a military team that goes on missions to keep peace in foreign countries, where corruption is rampant and the cost of living is unregulated by the government amidst rebellion.

We have natural resources to gain from these countries, which is the only reason we get involved.  For an apartment for one month in at least one of these countries the cost is about $16, 000.  This apartment is a concrete room, but it's in a building.  When you look outside you see bodies and filth of an almos medieval nature. 

A man in one of my classes is part of a military team that goes on missions to keep peace in foreign countries, where corruption is rampant and the cost of living is unregulated by the government amidst rebellion.

We have natural resources to gain from these countries, which is the only reason we get involved.  For an apartment for one month in at least one of these countries the cost is about $16, 000.  This apartment is a concrete room, but it's in a building.  When you look outside you see bodies and filth of an almos medieval nature. 

It was twelve years ago when the world sat by and watched the atrocities being carried out against the Tutsis in Rwanda.  Over 800,000 massacred while politicians debated the definition of genocide.  Tanks and ammunition were promised to help support the UN troops, but they never arrived.  The UN, led by General Dellaire, had no chance at peacekeeping when they 1) had no intelligence capabilities 2) were not given permission to use force, even in order to protect the Prime Minister against the Hutu extremists who killed her and 3) when the world sat by in silence, offering no relief.

HIV is hands down the worst pandemic of our time.  Millions of people worldwide are afflicted by the virus and the disease it inflicts upon its victims.  The worst part about it is the fact that you don't even have to have HIV in order to be affected by it.

Maybe you don't know anyone with the virus, but you probably know someone who has a friend or a relative with it.  To see the decline in not only health, but quality of life is heart-wrenching.  The fact that in today's world we can allow the spread to be as rampant as it is without any effective way of regulating it is pathetic. 

How ridiculous is it that despite all the scandals to come out against Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick during his first term that the people of Detroit re-elected him last November?

Some of the scandals included parties and prostitution at the Mayor's Mansion, buying his wife an extremely expensive SUV and overspending to put the city into even greater debt.

While he was doing these things he also made tremendous cuts in the police force, which seems like an awful idea, considering Detroit is considered to have one of the highest crime rates in the country.

Perhaps you're familiar with Shirley Phelps and her Baptist community in, I believe, Iowa.  She and the members of her church, less than one hundred in total and mostly relatives, go around protesting the funerals of soldiers who have died in Iraq.  Why are they protesting?  They find it wrong that the Army allows homosexuals to join.

Now what is wrong with this picture?  In my opinion quite a few things.