When most people think of the term "HEALTH," the presence or absence of disease is usually the first thing that comes to mind.
As if health is somehow either black or white, no room for gray.
For example, some common thoughts are: I am in good health if I do not have a cold, if I am not obese or if I do not have any type of cancer (just to name a few).
I don't think it's normal that sometimes I sit and think about the healthcare system for significant portions of the solar day. At least, not at my age. But I do, and Mother always did tell me to share, so I'm sharing with all of you!!!
In 1993 the US, under the Clinton administration, negotiated a trade agreement with Mexico and Canada that eliminated tariffs between the three countries. For years the agreement was hailed as a bipartisan success story, proof that two parties can work together to do something good. Now NAFTA is a campaign issue, not because Hillary is touting her association with it.
This week was extrordinary. One nation has dropped an old republic and a new nation has created their first. These events happened almost halfway across the world from eachother, within two days of eachother; they are likely to effect the entire world and many more than just two days. Yes, bloogies, this week was extrordinary.
There was a democratic debate that was translated into spanish. This is the first time we have ever donr such a thing. The rules were ALL participants would speak in English reguardless so as not to create an "unfair" advantage. There were translators provided and it was publicaly broadcastd on television.
The world today is changing rapidly and in a very different way from any other time in history. Issues that are important to us can no longer be just our thing, we are too connected with other parts of the world to pretend that every culture doesn't play a direct role in our own lives. In particular, the urbanization trend shows an incredible shift in world power to city governments, it strengthens the voice of the common man. More than any other time in history, people today can be mobilized to acheive incredible goals...here's part of why.
As a political science major who regularly focuses on the developments in Africa, I've been semi-addicted to the New York Times website reading the blogs of the winners of the "Win-A-Trip" contest, where the winner gets to travel to Africa with (awesome) writer Nick Kristof. This year two people were chosen, and their blogs have brought a new light to a few of the situations African countries are in, including prolific spots like Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
With the advent of the Internet, there has been a jump in availability of international music. To me, the best part of all of this is that it can be used as a tool. I was introduced to J-Rock (Japanese Rock) and Visual Kei by some friends a few years ago. It sparked my interest in Japanese language and more global music, and I'm now using the lyrics as a sort of study guide to the lan
