I liked the movie. It provides explanations I have never thought of. Yet, I cannot believe it fully (I should not take any kind of information for granted); and what if Zeitgeist itself is a conspiracy! The only thing I can do now is to analyze it with a critical eye; however, my heart has already chosen what facts to believe…

Reference: New York Times, May 5, 2010.

The article’s title is “A Campus Where Unlearning Is First” , which was written by Michael Slackman.

The leading evangelist, Franklin Graham, was supposed to speak at the pentagon on the National Day of Prayer, May 6th. He had said that Islam is a very evil and wicked religion, after the 9/11 attacks. So his invitation  to speak at the pentagon has been withdrawn because of his views on Islam.

I agree with the pentagon’s withdrawing action. Graham– or anyone– does not have the right to judge a whole religion based on one or two acts done by rogues who name themselves Muslims (Maybe 9/11 was not performed by Muslims, in the first place.). Everyone has the freedom to think the way he wants, but not to say whatever he feels like. You may think “Where is the freedom of speech?” My answer is “Freedom is limited to what’s proper and religions are above all kind of freedoms.”

On Tuesday, president Obama acknowledged that solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is vital, because its continuation is a threat to the US national security. Arabs know that Israel could not have continued the occupation without the American support, so when they watch Israel’s persecution against the Palestinians, they may generate the idea of  anti-Americanism or even terrorism.

I support Obama’s decision. If the occupation continues, it would be less safe to be American. If you read this blog, you may think I had written such words and stated such an opinion because I’m American. However, I am not. I have written this because I am a human, who views hatred as a heavy burden to bear. Why should Arabs hate Israel, America, or even each other? Why should anyone hate someone else? It is not just “Why hate?”, it is “Why make others even think of hating you?”

On March 8, International Women’s Day  is annually celebrated to commemorate women’s achievements throughout the years. This day’s events include seminars, conferences, and lectures by female political figures and business leaders. In some countries, including Ukraine and Russia, this day is a national holiday.

Women’s rights are in progress, yet not all women have their rights in all the regions of the world. The majority of the poor is women. Women receive 30 to 40 percent less pay than men occupying the same job. Also, women are still victims of violence, like rape and domestic assaults. I believe that in most countries, women have their rights legally, yet the idea that women are inferior to men is still existing in the back of the heads of not only men, but also women.

Nothing significant has happened after Copenhagen summit. Even at the summit itself, no certain agreement has been reached to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Global warming is a dangerous problem that needs solving as soon as possible.

It is such an irony that only 43 percent of Americans believe that global warming is due to human activity, and only 44 percent believe it to be a “very serious problem”. I believe that any nation should start the change (ASAP)–supposedly, a rich on.

The Obama administration has altered the name of the US occupation of Iraq from Operation Iraqi Freedom to “Operation New Dawn.” This change underscores that Operation Iraqi Freedom has ceased, and the American forces are operating under a new mission. “Operation New Dawn” was also the name of a US attack (in November 20004) on Fallujah, that killed and displaced thousands of Iraqi citizens.

I do not think that changing such a name would make any difference. If any difference was to occur, it would be negative. For it would cast fear upon the Iraqi spirits; the Iraqi people would think that the Americans had changed the name just to attack them as before. I don’t think it is a smart move. Anyway the article itself was brief–yet informative.

Hillary Clinton–Secretary of State–meets Saudi leaders Monday, to discuss ways to restrain Iran’s nuclear program. She will also meet Saudi Arabia’s king Abdullah to discuss this issue. The United States has been helping its Gulf allies (who are concerned with Iran’s nuclear programs)  build defenses.  Clinton has also appeared in US-Islam  relation conference (in Doha), where it has been suggested that political stability is needed in the Gulf region and that there is still time to dialogue with Iran in order to restrain its nuclear program.

What I did not like about the article was its default to focus on few points (it did not concentrate on one or two points, but on several ones). I think that Iran should not stop nor restrain its nuclear program, in order to be feared by the other powerful countries. For no one will dare attacking Iran, knowing about its nuclear weapon. However Iran should not actually use it. Iran should just keep it as an imaginary defense line.

The US has finally formalized the pledge to degrade greenhouse gas emissions under the consensus struck at the Copenhagen Climate Summit last month. the Marshal Islands pledge to reduce emissions 40 percent.  John Silk –Foreign Minister of Marshall Islands–said that if one of the smallest island states could take action, the largest countries would have no excuse not to follow the example of that island’s states.

I like this issue (greenhouse gas emissions), that is why I have written more than once about it. I agree with John Silk. Some country has to start, even if the smallest one. As I have said before, developed countries should reduce greenhouse emission more than 4%. They should follow the Marshal Islands.

Some video games are not just for fun, they also possess progressive messages. Such games are called “Games for change”. “Darfur is dying” is one of such games. It shows the dangerous daily life in Darfur. Another game allows the player to choose to be an Israeli prime minister or a Palestinian president; then to try to establish permanent settlements. This game introduces the Israel-Palestine issue to the world (maybe, this issue is quite known; however, the game makes the world remember this issue in order to find solutions)

I believe that such games are better than time-wasting ones. They teach their players peace and responsibility. I encourage the production of “games for change”. 70 percent of all Americans play video games (a huge percentage of the population of Earth loves playing Video games); and if these people play message-containing games, the world shall definitely be a better place to live.