Once again I'd like to thank all the people who took the time to post their answers to the questions last week. Last week in Martinique I was introduced to the two other Americans who live on the island. I mention this to highlight the fact that Martinique is not the center of many divergent cultures and I think we all gained a lot from the various views on what it might mean to be Muslim in America. I also found it interesting to see the diversity of opinion regarding our need to balance our desire for security in the face of increasingly common acts of terrorism and our desire to hold on to our civil liberties. It certainly animated our class discussion considerably. Thank you.
This week you have a choice as to what you'd like to post.
1. Ms. Aucoin thought it would be interesting if the students at QHSS explained a little bit about their research projects. I think it might indeed be very beneficial for the students at Bellevue to read about a variety of topics because they never know what type of article they might get on the day of their final exam.
2. In our literture class we are beginning to study Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography. He is writing partially in response to a French immigrant farmer Hector St. Jean de Crevecoeur
http://www.civics-online.org/library/formatted/texts/crevecoeur.html
who lived in New England and describes what it's like to be an American in 1781. What does Crevecoeur think it means to be an American? What do you think it means to be an American? Is the self-made man concept a myth? What does it mean to be Martinican? To what degree is the desire to work hard, educate yourself and better your life and that of your fellow citizens true of all humans and certainly not reserved to any particular nationality? Are their certain structures needed to make sure everyone is able to realize his/her desires? To be clear, you might say that free quality education is necessary in order to capitalize on inherent qualities, yet Franklin only went to school for one year. Are their particular aspects of American society that promote or inhibit the realization of the self-made human being?
3. The article I've chosen for the week is about the current debate on carbon tax. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/18/opinion/18friedman.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=%22thomas%20friedman%22%20carbon%20tax&st=cse
How would the system work? Is it fair and why does Friedman think it is crucial?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I think the carbon taxe in America would be very decision important as Friedman argues. Because I do believe in the world warming and I think the most powerfull contry should have already accept the protocole of Kioto and the carbon taxe in order to appear as an example since they already are for so many other cultural or techonologic elements. Moreover in my mind, the carbone taxe will obviously works because if you had to pay about 500 more dollars on your car just because it spread too CO2, you won't buy and buy these cars and you'll rather buy tiny and less polluting cars. To conclude, I think it's maybe a shame to see that some "underdevelopped" countries such as Brasil have already adopted laws and are already acting in favor of the renew of the planete while the most powerfull contry of the world is still doubting about the real needing of the actions for the environment.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate that Mrs Owens is giving us a chance to express on a free subject. I chose to post a comment on "What is it to be a Martinican?" because I think it's one mean for my professor to know better the island and the people she's living with and also for her students in NY to realize how different is our life here.
ReplyDeleteTo me, being a Martinican (It's not really the good term as I consider we're French from the French West Indies above all), is to be welcoming. Our culture is known as being rich ( any culture is I agree) and colored and also, quite a burden. I'm thinking about our History, history which people still have trouble with.
I live in a very small island where everyone almost knows you. People are welcoming with tourists and foreigners because they are so pride of their island. But not always, as I must admit that some of us are quite narrow-minded when it comes to try to speak English for instance, whereas our economy is mainly based upon tourism.
When it comes to education, well, I think our problems are not typical from here but from France generally speaking. I condemn the way we are taught English and the lack of opportunities to do cultural exchanges whereas we are so close to the USA!
My people has a high sense of community : my Philosophy professor keeps on saying that he admires us because family matters so much here. But not only the nuclear family, that's is to say, Mum Dad and Sister or Brother, here, everyone is linked and close : families are huge and are the basis of our society. I see my grandparents every week, same for my cousins aunts and uncles. We have the sense of sharing and I think it's the best thing about living here, there's always someone to help you.
Parents, like any parents, push their children to the limits of their skills. We are encouraged to go abroad to open our perspectives and mind in order to come back, "armed" and able to change our island and work to better life conditions here and to open it on the Caribbean Islands.
We don't have many things to do here, clearly, but we can learn to revisit our island. Don't you think that we don't have fun, of course we do ! We have the sun and an average temperature of 31°C! Here, you must have a car, because buses don't go everywhere. I won't have enough space to tell you about being a Martinican, but I hope I gave you the desire to get to know us better !
My island is my treasure, it's home, the place where I'll always come back. Martinicans are far from being perfect, but living in an island teaches things that maybe, a big country wouldn't be able to !
I enjoy the fact that, this week, we have the choice between two subjects and I’ve choosen to treat both of them because I think they are linked.
ReplyDeleteWhat is interesting is the fact that just before me, Elodie spoke about carbon tax and Melanee spoke about « what does it mean to be a Martinican ?». Their point of views were really interesting and very true. I like Elodie’s point about the fact that countries like Brasil act contrary to a big and powerful country like the U.S! ! !
Then I love the way Melanee describes the typical Martinican and our culture !
So, now I’ll give my opinion about the two subjects :
1) In my view, carbon tax is important because if we hadn’t polluted like we did, carbon tax would have been useless, so if it exists ,it’s our fault and we have to assume our pollution and the consequences.
Some people think that carbon taxe is just about ecology but I think it’s stupid to think like that. It’s not about ecology but about the future of human being ! In fact, people and above all the U.S governement are supposed to know that. The U.S want to be a leader in economy, power, exchanges, influence, culture … so why not in ecology ? Because of benefits ?! I suppose, but it’s a choice limited in the time that they will regret later…
2 ) Then, for me to be a Martinican is to be what Melanee said, but it’s also a challenge. In fact, now, I think that some Martinican people are lost. They lost their identity because we live between a lot of cultures ( Caribean culture, French culture, U.S culture) and it’s really hard to feel ourselves really French ( because of the distance with France and also because of the difference of culture).
In my case, it’s just about a feeling, it’s in my blood, it’s a part of me. It’s something indescribable that related me to Martinique and to Martinican people as a Big family, because we live in an island, so it makes us closer. I kwow that I want to suceed in my life to add my contribution to the future Martinique.
So, I think that the two subjects are related because , we live in an island , we know that because of the pollution and the fact that some countries pretend to ignore the problem of carbon, my island will disappear under the sea earlier than expected. That makes me sad because it’s a beautiful and amazing island !
Joanna xxx
People who know me won't be surprised that I chose the subject on Martinique, and what is to be a Martinican, because of how I love my island! So I take advantage of this opportunity to share with you, Mrs Owens, the NY students and even my school friends my point of view of being a Martinican!
ReplyDeleteI live in a very small island, close to big countries and very far away of France, which is supposed to be our country too. However, I have to admit, and I guess that a lot of Martinican people will agree with me, we don't really feel us as French people. It must be because of the distance or, as Melanee said of our past which is still present in minds, but fortunately not really obviously (I'm talking about slavery).
Nevertheless, this distance, which is really a handicap for us in a certain way, we use it as a strength. Indeed, the stereotypes about Martinican and the ideas about us are that we are spending our time under coconut palms, close to the beach, and having a nap in hammocks!Or, we live in wooden cabans without electricity, current water and we don't even know internet!Now, that kind of speech makes me laugh but before, that got me really angry, but in fact, I hadn't realized that we are not known by the world so that they make up stories or assimilate us to what you can call "savages" or "no civilised people". But it's no big deal,I can't demand to someone coming from the USA, Argentina or even France (it's a shame all the same because it's part of France) knowing Martinique, such a small island, lost in the Atlantic!
What's more, coming from this small island, since our childhood, we are taught that we will have to fight, to work harder that the others because we are not seen as real rivals (of course, we spend our time under coco palms!).Necessarly, we will have to expatriate because Martinique isn't able to allow our total development and it's during our "expedition" that we will have to prove ourselves!And that's a good thing because we are really open-minded towards the world, contrary to another countries which shall be nameless...
Another important thing is the very importance of the family in Martinique, as Melanne said. Indeed, maybe in big countries, because of the distance, the links with the family are lost, and that's really sad. But here, the family are big, and parties to not loose the contact are often organised; I took my case for example but I suppose in main families it's also the case.
So, I finish saying that being Martinican, we have since the beginnig a lot of handicaps which can prevent us from doing what we really want to do,but in fact we use them as a strenght to do more from what we are expected to do.Of course, we have a lot of shortcomings and I'm the first to denounce them but I love my island, life is pleasant here and I'll do the maximum to contribute to its development!
I think both subjects are interesting but I prefer to comment on the carbon taxe in America.
ReplyDeleteI think taking care of the environment should now one of everybody's priorities.We all know that if we don't stop polluting so much in twenty years life will almost be impossible.There will be a real lack of water.So carbon taxe is apparently a way to make people pollute less.
But, I don't think carbone taxe can suddenly make people change their habits. People who can afford to buy big cars , buy big cars. They don't mind paying carbone taxe. They want a big car so they buy a big car. Therefore , I think carbone taxe does not persuade everybody not to buy big cars. Carbon taxe helps the gouvernment financially too.
I think everybody must make an effort to pollute less.As Elodie said America can begin by signing the Kyoto Protocole and countries like China should change their means of industrialisation.The climate is everybody's problem so car makers should sell cars that don't pollute much .
The sellers are responsible too.They should stop thinking of getting richer and richer to take care of the climate too.It's more necessary because in a blink of an eye the world can change and we won't be able to do nothing else but regret.
I think a stich in time saves nine so it's of no use of waiting.If carbone taxe is not effective,there are other methods to make people become aware of the coming danger.They should think of future generations.I'm sure that they will like to live in a comfortable world too.It's time to stop being selfish or less we'll lose everything.
Me I'd like to live longer but not in a destroyed world so I think that everybody should quickly seize the opportunity to change the world before it's too late.
Etre martiniquais c'est avant tout accepter un passé douloureux qui remonte au temps de la colonisation avec l'esclavage. Désormais le martiniquais, bien qu'il ne soit qu'un habitant d'un Département d'Outre Mer (DOM) de la France, possède une identité unique ( avec quand même des similitudes avec les autres DOM).
ReplyDeleteIl n'a pas toujours conscience de la richesse culturelle de son île mais ne manque pas de respecter les traditions telles que la Noël avec les "chanté nwèl) ( ce sont des cantiques en créole), le réveillon familial etc. En fait, ce sont d'abord les fêtes religieuses qui rythment le pays , la religion catholique étant la religion la plus pratiquée : la Toussaint, la Noël, l'Epiphanie, Pâques... sont propices à l'effervescence de la population. Ensuite, il y a les fêtes profanes telles que le Carnaval, les fêtes patronales, la Grande Foire Agricole de la ville de Rivière-Pilote, le fameux Tour des Yoles Rondes de la Martinique ( course d'embarcations typiquement martiniquaise qui se déroule sur une semaine entière entre Juillet et Août).
Par ailleurs, le martiniquais a en sa possession la langue créole que leur envient les étrangers vivant au pays. Il s'agit presque de sa première langue avant même le français, car c'est en créole que nous nous exprimons entre amis lorsque nous nous racontons des anecdotes. C'est aussi le créole qui va intervenir lors des moments de colère car l'accent et la puissance des mots créoles reflètent mieux ce que nous ressentons. Enfin le créole est aussi la langue de nos plus belles chansons et musiques, que ce soit la biguine, la mazurka, le compas, le zouk, ou encore le dancehall.
Mais il y a aussi l'éducation martiniquaise qui a également sa spécificité. En effet, le martiniquais est un être qui a l'esprit de
groupe, il prône la solidarité et la met en pratique. L'on retrouve par exemple les fameux " cou d'main > coup de main" lors de certaines constructions, réparations, les jobs en général. Ils consistent en un regroupement entre amis dans le but d'aider un des leurs à réaliser quelquechose . Et c'est esprit de solidarité lui est enseigné depuis l'enfance .
La mère martiniquaise est le "poto-mitan" de la famille et de son entourage. C'est la femme qui depuis des générations lutte, trime pour voir ses enfants réussir plus tard.
( Il existe tant d'aspects du martiniquais aussi positifs que
négatifs, que je ne pourrai tous les aborder, à moins d'en faire une thèse de doctorat) ....
" Lè nou tout' nou ensemble , nou pli fo ! " ( Lorsque nous sommes tous ensemble, nous sommes plus forts !)
It's really interesting that my school friends can give their point of vue about the Martinican identity, because it really exists and I feel it very strongly.
ReplyDeleteBut it's al little bit difficult for me to explain what Martinican identity is exactly. I'll let my school friends do this job. However, I could explain better "what is to be a French metropolitan in Martinique".
To begin, even if overseas territories are supposed to be French, I don't think so. Of course, in Martinique, we speak french, we have the same celebrations that in France, School system and law are the same ... but for me, Martinique and France are very different.
I'm in Martinique since 4 years now, but I always remember the feeling I had when I just arrived. I think when you are French metropolitan, for sure you keep your roots, but you have too discover the martinican identity, you have to show that it interests you if you want to become integrated.
All was different.
In Martinique there is no season : no automn, no winter, no snow when Christmas is coming ... but I have discover hurricanes and earthquake ^^!
As Melanee and Sophie said, in Martinique we are close, because we live in an island. You feel it when you are in the street and say hello to 2 or 3 persons, or more ! When I go to the cinema, I always see someone I know. But I also feel it in my classroom : students and teachers are united by a common culture though in France, there are too many origins in a same classroom. This link is allowed - among others things - by the Creole.
In France, it exists regional languages, but not everywhere, and not as important as the Creole is in Martinique. I think Creole is very important in the Martinican identity, it is a cement, which have its own puns, its own significations. For exemple, when I came back in France this summer, and when I have eard someone spoke in Creole, I thought I was in Martinique and that no everybody could understand what this person was saying, but me, I could. And I liked it. But at the begining,when I came in Martinique for the first time, I didn't understood nothing, and I felt excluded.
Traditions are also different. Christmas in Martinique is very different from Christmas in France : the meal is different, and the way to prepare Christmas are different to.
The fact that I am in Martinique and that Martinican idendity isn't mine made me understand how important my roots and my regional identity - I came from South of France - were important for me. Martinican identity is very strong but very different then mine. And sometimes this strengh can be disturbing.
Martinican are proud of their identity, and sometimes, they don't understand you don't like it anymore and it make them angry or disapointed. I have already knew that. And sometimes they don't understand your roots and your identity are as important as their own. I say SOMETIMES because I have already lived this, and I know that it isn't what everydoby think.
So, sometimes, it is a little difficult to keep intact my French metropolitan identity in Martinique, because this island is very different from France, and the identity too. And I have to melt them together if I don't want to be excluded.
I know some people will think what I'm saying is shocking, or will desagree. But nobody has my experience, nobody has lived what I lived, that's why they can't judge what I think.
Je viens juste de voir le post de Laurine, et il complete vraiment ce que je voulais dire : tout ce qu'elle y décrit sont des choses qui n'existent pas en France, qui ne font pas partie de mon identité, mais qui existent avec une telle force qu'elles sont évidentes.
ReplyDeleteL'identité martiniquaise se vit au quotidien. Et je pense que c'est ce qui fait sa force.
I totally agree with nisha, i think that carbon tax won't change anything , beside it risks to be pretty unfair for some people. Indeed , in France one of the goals of tax carbone is to make people with cars or other vehicles emiting too much carbon dioxide pay, but most of the time electric vehicles or those which don't pollute "véhicules propres" are expensive so household who can afford these vehicle who don't have enought money to buy a good and "green" vehicles but only a polluting vehicles will have to pay this tax.
ReplyDeleteHowever, Thomas Friedman is totally right and he wants people be aware of what's happening that's why throuhgout his article opinion he adresses directly to the readers. What i like the most it's when he writes" You don't believe in global warming? You're wrong" it makes you fear but you realise that if we don't make efforts together we risk to loose our planet. i think that most of people are not aware of that for the moment but they will be when their "beach house" will "get washed away" as Friedmann says. he is also right when he says that populations of develloping countries yearn for living like Americans , for instance China doesn't stop to use its factory working with charcoal, they are the motor of its economy and they help greatly the economic development and improve the standard of living of Chinese people but as a result of that Hong-kong has become a very very ,very polluted city.Pollution and diseases engendered by that is the price that Chinese have to pay to become the "new Americans"
Finally, i would say that president Obama and his stimulus for green energy are real chances for usa ,they have to take it . If yo are interested about his policies in terms of ecology here is an article from the NYT about what he is going to say at the Copenhagen summithttp://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/26/us/politics/26climate.html?_r=1&hp
First, sorry to post my comment so late. Then I hesitated but I finally chose to write about the carbon tax.
ReplyDeleteElodie is right about this point: the most powerful country in the world should have ratificated the Protocol of Kioto as we all know United States used to boast their qualities of honorable and rigteous country. However it is necessary to consider the general mentality of the country whose inhabitants' capacity to reach success in life is often praised. I would like to add to Nisha's comment on car makers that the fact that the Hummer was the car American liked the most is not a trivial fact. Indeed, it IS a symbol of success revealing an intention to show this success. Nonetheless, this car is one of the cars that pollute the most... Fortunately it is not as sold as it used to be. But this necessity to take care of our "dear Earth" is quite recent, we get more and more aware of this necessity. However, a country such as E.U which always based its power on an unilateralist domination itself based on the control of energy in the world, will likely have trouble to get rid of the habit. And it is what Thomas L. Friedman reminded. E.U is confronted with a dilemma which would consist at the end in forgetting a bit about this unilateralist vision of the world. Fortunately (in my mind), Obama's election will give a chance to reach this as he seems to be more aware than his so popular predecessor George Bush of what the Earth is endangering.
Furthermore i found interesting the description of the phenomenon making the under-developped countries be obsessed with what we usually call the " American Dream". If a notion exists to describe this, it means that the phenomenon has become common. It is the demonstration of the American soft power which allows E.U to praise its culture in the globalisation process, thanks to TV shows for example. But indeed, the gap between rich countries and poor countries is intolerable. Still, we must understand these people from under-developped countries. Dreaming of a better life, such as an American way of life, allow them to stick to hope. It is one of the reasons why they struggle for life. But can we really prevent rich countries to be so rich in this new vision of the world, presenting a dual world with the ones at the top of the pyramid and others below?
Instead of complaining of this obvious situation, and writing about it, about how shameful it is, I think it would be better to act. Rich countries are able to reduce the gap but for various reasons they don't do it sufficiently. And i'm talking about "rich countries" because the United States should not be seen as the only responsibles. Capitalism is present everywhere. Moreover, are people involved enough to "save" the Earth? Are we ready to lessen the industrial phenomenon and the "energy obsession"?
I would also like to add that some scientist point out that the pollution with carbon, by cars especially, may not be what will condemn the Earth first. Other gas such as methane are real problems. And it is ironic to think that the lack of what we are fighting (that is to say carbon), may lead us to death. Indeed, it will be hard to stop our dear star, the sun, to disappear. There it is another scenario to avoid...
I really liked to read what my colleagues had to say about both the carbon taxe and being a Martinican. But as for me, I' ll comment upon the carbon taxe and the article. Undoubtedly, the journalist feels really concerned by the burning issues of our time such as energy, global warming, and for sure he wants things to get better. But still, he makes easy shortcuts and simplifications to make his point : that the carbon taxe will provide a significant financial support to develop green fuels.
ReplyDeleteFirst point : energy is nothing more than a mere business and it doesn' t matter if U.S.A get the major part of its oil from countries which "hate" them. Nothing to do with hate or love, we' re talking about money. The fact that fossil fuels are so dangerous for the atmosphere doesn't really matters for our chieves. And if oil's price is increasing, this is because our economic system rest on obscur bases, everybody noticed it during the sub-prime crisis. Oil companies are at their best, oil never have been so expansive on the marketplace, however oil's quality is decreasing as they must go deeper and deeper in the seas to produce it. There's also the rule of offer and demand, oil reserve are decreasing, but the demand is exploding. And it will even grow with time. Anyway, It's hard to find out why oil became that much expansive.
Second point : The idea of a carbon taxe doesn' t seem so bad at all, if it can help to fix something why not ? But i'm totally against it. Let me explain why. We don't really know how far cars are responsible for global warming. We don't even really know if CO2 is responsible. One must be careful with global warming, as the topic grew worldwide, it became a business, and there is much propaganda about it. Even the scientist are not reliable ! It is crucial to remain critical. Furthermore, industries are likely to be far much great polluting agents than car users or fossil fuel consumers, and they aren't asked to pay any taxes. In my opinion carbon taxe is a step further in order to criminalize the lambda citizen, they want you to pay your right to move. One can play this fool game at its worst: why not asking us to pay for the air we breathe everyday? Maybe they could establish quotas ( like in the Kioto protocol ), as even when we breathe we produce CO2.
Third point : about the journalist. I totally disagree when he says that everybody want to live like "Americans". Of course the American culture is everywhere, of course it create frustration for the ones who live in "developing" countries ( actually they're not given any chance to develop ). But things are way more complex in reality, and the journalist ( unless he is ironic ) delivers his point of view through flagrant manicheism. It's a totally different thing to live on the other side of the world, I mean in what they call "South". They have no need to live in big houses, or whatever else our occidental sense of comfort make us see has necessary, and fortunately, the culture control isn't powerful enough to create this need everywhere. Give them a chance to develop their countries, and then we'll be able to discuss about their willing to live like American people. For now they are far away from such desires, they're much more busy in their survival. Does the journalist forget international organizations such as the Worldwide Bank, or the international monetary fund and their responsability in economic disasters in these countries ? I end my comment by saying global warming is also used as an argument from these parts to prevent the poorest countries to develop : they would produce too much CO2.
I writte about" what is to be martinican" in order to present my own vision about the feeling to be martinican because I think everybody feels martinican but of a different way ,everybody has is own and personal contact with Martinique and her culture ; and also in order to people and martinicans may aware of their culture and their heritage .
ReplyDeleteTo me ,to be Martinican is also to be French because Martinique is an island which depends on the French nation . So we have to keep in mind that even if we live in this island , France also contributes to our identity because Martinique inherited many things from France as the religion, the language... I think we are Martnican as the same title than French who live in provinces because as them we share the French culture even if we have some particularities as regional language and some traditions . So we may nearly compare our status of Martinican with the one of those who live in French provinces but not totally because we mustn't forget that they live contrary to us in the French territory , so thay have more common points with the French who live in France .
That is to say that to be Martinican is a singular experience of life .
To begin , in my opinion there are different way to feel oneself martinican .In fact , we are not martinican just because we live in this island , we may also be Martinican because we have many members of our family who originate from Martinique, we may be Martinican because we have born in this island and also because we share the culture and traditions of this island , we may be also martinican form a geografic point of view. Consequently the concept of to be Martinican is not closed but on the contrary very vast .
I think Martinicans have a very interesting and important culture . In fact Martinicans inherited many things since the slavery and have nowadays a true cultural diversity .
For instance a Martinican identifies himself through different kinds of music which constitute the particularities of this island.For example in Martinique we have " biguine, mazurka , valse, bèl-è " ...which are not just songs, but the true way of expression of this people; in fact most part of these music constituted during the slavery and the colonial system for the slaves a way of expression that only them could understand because they didn't have the right to express their mind, so their feelings of rebellion and sometimes of joy could be expressed by the music which was their only way to protest the system .
Generally a Martnican knows speaking "le créole martiniquais " which is a language and patois . Since his childhood he learns speaking creole which is a common language and a privileged way of expression between martinicans and creole people because it has also been created during the slavery in order to speak between the slaves and in order to the foremen don't understand what they were saying because they wanted to rebell themselves against the colonial system .
What I really like in the Martinican culure and in Martinicans is their solidarity and help . In fact to be Martinican is as to be a great family because everybody knowns everybody and tries to help his friend , his mother .. when seomone needs help . In Martinique you may sure contrary to France which is a very great country compared to Martinique, that you will find help if you have a problem whathever your difficulty . That is in our mentality .
We may also underline that a Martinican are used to go to the beach because we live in an island and whathever the ite we are we see the sea , furthemore it's one ofthe best activities for a martinican because sea enables to relax and enjoy oneself . Sea for a Martinican is very important because we use this site to celebrate for instance "Pâques" eating crab on the beach, we have also many water activities .
Hi I'm a student in Mrs. Aucoin's class...no kidding!! Lol… but anyway my research topic is about Torture and the discrepancies between foreign and domestic press coverage of the 2004 torture investigation at Guantanamo Bay. I chose this topic because it's always interesting to play a sleuth and uncover the mistreatment and corruption within the government. Also it was a very huge issue, as America proclaims itself to be the land of freedom and equality but yet there are detainment centers that rob prisoners of their natural rights. This ongoing torture investigation has made headlines, giving former President Bush and V.P Cheney a bad rep as they gave the orders to use extreme methods like water-boarding, mock executions, testicular shocks,etc. They used their attorneys to manipulate the law (gov. corruption at its best) Moreover, I chose this topic because it’s interesting to hear the multiple views on this issue; Japan’s got an opinion, Germany does, Australia, England, the Middle East too. It’s cool to read about the world’s reaction.
ReplyDeleteMy topic is on the “additional topics” category, so I’m not sure if it’ll be helpful for the students at Bellevue. I’m working on a paper that involves YouTube and how it helped shape the presidential elections of 2008. Many candidates posted videos on YouTube throughout the election, involving users and increasing interest; this especially can reach out to kids our age because it makes the news interactive and accessible via the internet. It adds a layer of personalization to the elections and can provide information to the voters for them to make more informed decisions. For example, the CNN/YouTube debates allowed YouTube users to ask their own questions for the candidates to answer. Having questions answered on personal concerns is what debates should be about--not just broad statements that not much of the American public can relate to or have interest in.
ReplyDeleteUsing YouTube, many say, was key in Obama's win. He was successful because he used a plethora of internet resources and networking sites (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc.) in tandem with YouTube. This strategy was so successful that Obama plans on continuing to use YouTube to post his fireside chats.
This time I writte about the article of Friedman about carbon tax .
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion the article about carbon tax article is very very interesting because it deals with a very contemporary subject and above all because I like very much the way how the author expresses himself in order to sensitize his lector and to convince him of acting .
In fact , sometimes , for instance at the end of the article, Thomas Friedman uses irony : "but I'll let you enjoy it untill your beach house gets washed away . " It's because he wants the lector to realize that the world climate is really changing and he also wants the lector to choose solutions as lasting development . In this article, Thomas Friedman, doesn't agree with the ones who think the globe has been cooling and who think America can't afford carbon tax . On the contrary , the journalist is for carbon tax because it's the only way to reduce the emission of C02 and to incite the different countries to take measures and to change their behaviour. The journalist is also for the energy technology , because it is based on clean power and energy efficiency . Sometimes ,for instance when he says " It has to be ", he uses an imperious tone what shows the importance and the necessity to choose this kind of measures in order to the situation can evolve . I think Thomas Friedman is very involved because of the solutions he proposes and because of his way of writting and speaking . When he asks questions as : " So as I said you don't believe in global warming ? " , he wants to arouse the lector's attention and curiosity , and he also tries to convince him . For the journalist , it's an aberation to want as the drill -baby -drill opponents that the world to be dependant of oil for energy . In his opinion America has to give the example inventing the technologies to address these problems . He also underlines the fact that the world is getting crowded and warming what can damage the present situation, that is why he wants everybody to be aware of the situation in order to we may propose solutions together .
In my opinion Friedman thinks this issue is crucial because the world climate is changing and for the moment the different countries concerned don't take the necessary measures . He is worry about the future .
In my opinion every country should involve in the Kyoto protocol , and above all the one which produce a lot of CO2 in order to reduce this emission which pollute of a way considerable the earth . That is the reason why I'm happy that Barack Obbama received the Nobel price because he really wants to change Amercia and the world . In fact he promised to reduce the emission of CO2 of the USA . I think every country should take example on Barack Obbama's policy , because this change doesn't only concern us but also the future generations and the future of the earth planet . I hope the 192 countries involved in this fight against the emision of CO2 will choose efficient measures in order to save our earth .
This is Cindy :
ReplyDeleteIn this article some things are very interesting : the journalist Thomas L.Friedman evokes a theme which concerns everybody, not only the American , but the entire world .
So , i think that it is really important to pay attention to this article in which two ideas are opposed . On the one hand , the oponents who disagree with this carbon tax give some arguments in order to explain their opinion , for instance , " the globe has been cooling lately , not warming " or , " America can't afford any kind of Cap-and-trade .For them , it is'nt important to pay any carbon tax because the world is in perfect health!!
But contrary to the oponents , Thomas L Friedman reveals his point of view saying that he is " a clean-enrgy hawk" . For him, greenhouse is not only about recycling garbage but about renewing America .So, I think that the journalist invits us, like him, to take care of our globe , because we live in a society which more and more would know important difficulties .So, that is why, like Stephan , i believe that Barak Obama represents a real opportunity in order to save and preserve our planety because contrary to Georges Bush , this new president aims at reducing of 17% the emission of CO2 ; To my mind , everybody has to be aware of our situation , because it is a world phenomenon that we have to stop quickly to protect future generations , our children and children of our children . Moreover, i completely agree with Elodie who says that America can sign the Kyoto Protocole . Indeed , i think that it is the better way to begin by reducing CO2 level and making other countries sign it and involve themselves . In fact , to my mind , when we see something which is new , immediately , we want to adopt it , or to imitate it .
Also, what i find very interesting is the fact that the journalist appears like a involved man. Indeed, he presents true information, such as ,"6,7 billion to 9,2 billion in 2050 , in order to say that the number of people is increasing what represents a big hasard for everybody .
Furthemore, all contries should be in alert , and make all their possible to try to improve this situation . Like China , we have to make good decisions , even if , i am not conviced by the fact that to pay the carbon tax will radically change our habits .
I believe that it is in the course of time , that we will really have an impact on this phenomenon .
1.For my research paper, i decide to do a paper on the State of Florida banning gay people from adopting children. As a child, there are signs everywhere that shows America is a country of freedom, so it is quite a disappointment to me to see how not everybody is getting the same treatment.
ReplyDelete2. As a Chinese Immigrant, living the American life is not as funny as i dream of when i was in China. I think the self-made concept is true. From living in China and America, both countries has this desire to work hard and such, but I am not sure about the other countries, but don't all people want to make the world a better place? I don't think there is a structure to make everybody realizing their desires, the America education system forces this system of hard work on you, forcing you to learn skills that makes you a good office worker, but doesn't allow the student to be creative or more time on art and music. i think it is everything that around you indirectly push you to be self-made man, such as the books we have to read for school, TV shows about self-made millionaire.
4. I'm not sure how the system would work, i mean do you tax the people or the factory, and how do you know fur sure how much they are producing. it sounds like a good plan and i agree with the author that we need to do something about this energy problem.
I wrote my research project on why Obama does not deserve the Nobel Peace Prize. My argument is that he has not fulfilled his promises yet and that his accomplishments so far cannot compare to past laureates, he should not have been awarded this prestigious prize so soon.
ReplyDeleteBeing an American makes me feel a national pride that we are a super power that has laws to protect people’s rights and that our country is diverse in so many ways. The desire to work hard, be educated and have a better life is certainly not reserved to any particular nationality, but there are some cultures where these values are more emphasized.
It is crucial that the world realizes and works together to reduce the CO2 levels. Carbon tax is a great way to penalize businesses that disregards the energy problem.