Take Home Assignment: Criminal DNA Database

Ye Ji Park / 111053 / b4

Mr. Garrioch

English Composition

November 29 2012

Make a rational argument for a position you do not support personally. For clarity, please state your true opinion first and then argue the opposite position. Consider an issue that has affected you personally.

TRUE OPINION: A criminal DNA database should not be produced.

     Retaining the DNA of unconvicted suspects to create a criminal DNA database is controversial because there is high possibility that an individual’s private information may be abused. Also, a DNA database degrades an individual by allowing the government to view every citizen as a potential criminal.

     However, there is no doubt that a database greatly reduces the risk of wrongful conviction and the time of tracking down the suspects. Although some people argue that DNA testing does not guarantee 100% accuracy and thus should not be used as the basis of convictions, it is much more reliable than the conventional investigation method. For example, compared to conventional fingerprints investigation, in which fingerprints are easily smeared or contaminated, DNA testing is applicable even with very small amounts of genetic data, notwithstanding contamination from oil, water, or acid. Therefore, producing a criminal DNA database contributes to a more precise and convenient investigation.  (998 characters) 

University of Chicago Essay: Silence - Not Always the Best Speech

Ye Ji Park / 111053 / b4

Mr. Garrioch

English Composition

November 29 2012

Silence – Not Always the Best Speech

[University of Chicago Prompt] Essay Option #3. Susan Sontag, AB'51, wrote that "[s]ilence remains, inescapably, a form of speech." Write about an issue or a situation when you remained silent, and explain how silence may speak in ways that you did or did not intend.

Two hours left, yet I still heard from no one. Among twenty people I contacted, thirteen said "Sorry, I have another schedule," and seven did not even respond. "New Message Arrived" – I opened my phone in slight expectation. It was, however, a message from the club teacher urging me to give the names of two participants right away. I threw away my phone in anger, and let out a loud wail.

MUNESCO, which stands for Minjok UNESCO, is a volunteer organization in KMLA that I had been the Chief for the last six months. One special characteristic of MUNESCO is that it is one of numerous affiliated clubs under the Korean National Federation of UNESCO; that is, there are similar clubs in other high schools all over the nation. Usually, each club acts independently, but occasionally there are camps that assemble all clubs to share their achievements. I was looking for two members who could join a three-day camp which would be held during the summer vacation. However, among twenty members – twelve juniors and eight freshmen – no one volunteered. No one.

Eventually, I couldn’t find two participants until the last moment, and had to contact the club teacher and National Federation that MUNESCO would not be able to join the camp. After being severely reprimanded, I started to question myself; why everyone was so passive to participate in club activities? Maybe my leadership had been wrong, I thought. Looking back the past half year, I realized that it was not the first time that MUNESCO members did not show their best devotion; they did not appear in group meeting, kept making excuses for not attending camps, and often ignored my contacts. My solution to this problem was “the speech of silence”, not direct confrontation and scolding. I expected that my silence would speak out everything – how I was doing all the jobs, including the members’ work; how burdened I was; how desperately I was waiting for the members’ apologies and voluntary participation; and so on.

But the solution did not work at all. All the members were already too busy with their assignments, quizzes, and other club activities. They were not attentive enough to be concerned over someone trying to convey message via silence. At the end of the first semester, I was utterly exhausted that I couldn’t continue working alone in silence. Still, I was too afraid to break the silence, which would create public discord. I eventually renounced the Chief position; I entrusted another member – the one who showed the most enthusiasm among reluctant members – with full power.

The new Chief’s policy was, definitely, not silence; she was not afraid to speak out loudly of her dissatisfaction about the members’ passiveness, even if it led to discord and conflict. Whenever she felt that members were not doing their best, she posted a status in reproach and anger on Facebook. Ashamed to be “publicized” for their lack of devotion, members started to participate. They came to almost every meeting, tried to join the campaigns except for the inevitable cases, and paid attention to the outspoken Chief.

(This is not real; I just made it up, but something similar like this was updated on the New Chief's FB wall few times.)

Silence, definitely, works far better than grandiloquent speech in some cases. As Leonardo da Vinci pointed out, “[n]othing strengthens authority so much as silence.” But sometimes, like my experience with MUNESCO, silence does not act as an effective form of speech; the listeners are too busy or inattentive to search for the message the silent speaker is trying to convey. Evidently, silence is not the best approach a leader can always employ. 

                                                                                                                                                                                   

To be honest, I did not want to upload this essay on my blog. This essay is about one of the most embarrassing experiences in my life; thinking back, I feel stupid about me for shrinking and hesitating to speak out, in an idle fear that members would resist to my reproach. But I actually learned an important thing -- that "silence is not the best approach a leader can always employ", as I stated in this essay's conclusion -- so... it's not that bad to undergo a frustration in return for some lesson, I guess? J

[Ben X Full Review] Yet No REAL Solution

Ye Ji Park / 111053 / b4

Mr. Garrioch

English Composition

November 22 2012

Yet No REAL Solution

I can categorize my worries in three sections: weight gain, academics, and human relationship. If a Genie shows up and says “Choose only one trouble you want me to solve,” then I would choose the last worry – human relationship – without any hesitation. I stop eating and exercise more when I gain weight; I stop watching cartoons and study harder when I get B from English Compositions; but I don't know what to do when I ruin my relationship.

There is one friend that I once was super close, but not now. From the moment that we started to feel this strange turbulence between us, we couldn't face each other with ease. Once I noticed one of her drawbacks, I started to find out more and more, which made me feel guilty whenever I tried to sew up our broken relationship. Then I felt fury to her for making me feel blameful; then I again felt guilty for enraging at her, who definitely did not intend to anger me. This cycle just went on and on, and I’m sure it was same for her. I finally realized that restoring relationship is one of the hardest conundrums in our life.

And this was what happened to me – conflict with "one" friend – but what if the conflict is with "many" friends? This is what Amanda Todd, a fifteen-years-old girl who left her last words on YouTube and committed suicide, experienced. Her YouTube suicide note, "My Story: Struggling, Bullying, Suicide, Self Harm", talks about how she became an outcast and how she could not break away from bullying. Just because of one little mistake she had made when she was in 7th grade, Amanda was continually tortured online (for example, being revealed a photo of her bosom on Facebook) and offline ("threw me to the ground and punched several times ... kids filmed it," states Amanda). Amanda entitled the bullying "My Never Ending Story": yes it was, broken relationship just kept on breaking deeper and deeper.

A lot of people ponder over this problem, trying to suggest solutions to free from the endless cycle of bullying. Ben X, a Belgium film released in 2007, is a fruit of the director Nic Balthazar's deliberation. Unlike "common" solutions most counselors think of – asking for parents’ active help, for example – Balthazar raises a creative solution: "online game". Ben, the protagonist of the movie, suffers from Asperger's syndrome which accompanies autism, keen response to the slightest stimulus, etc. Ben's classmates feel interest in bullying someone different from them; they make Ben stand on the table and take off his pants, film this mean prank and post it online. Balthazar presents a new character, Scarlite, an imaginary girlfriend from Archlord as a cure for Ben’s ostracization; she stops Ben from committing suicide and thinks of ingenious revenge to Ben’s classmates.

When I accessed to Ben X Facebook page, some viewers left posts about how excellent resolution this movie has. However, I could not agree to those posts; to be honest, I thought the resolution is creative, but nothing more. Suggesting online game – itself or whatever originated from it – as a solution to bullying problem is, in my opinion, dangerous and incomplete.

Consider case 1; if the online game itself is a solution to Ben’s problem – that is, if Scarlite did not show up – it is highly possible that Ben would have stirred up bloody affairs. And the movie does admit this presumption; until the middle of the movie, before Ben met Scarlite in his real life, Ben often imagined himself in computer graphics in the armour of the warrior whenever his classmates bullied him. He imagined purchasing weapons at the item store and fighting the bullies back. And Ben once really attempted to fight in real life with a sharp piece of sculpture. But online and real world was different; Ben was easily oppressed by his bullies and was harassed even more severely. Then Ben tried to commit suicide by crashing into the train, in hope to escape from current “game” he is playing. In short, online game itself could not be a desirable solution for Ben – it could lead him exert violence upon his opponents, as he does online, or kill himself, in delusory belief that his life is just another set of game.

Case 2: Scarlite, Ben’s imaginary supporter originated from the online game world, is what Balthazar actually believes to be a desirable solution. Scarlite helps Ben act a fake suicide, thereby make his bullies feel guilty over his death. And this was indeed a creative solution; the viewers extolled the twist, that set something else than bloody affairs as an ending. Yes, the creativity is accepted – but the solution does not work. When the film of Ben’s fake suicide is played in the auditorium, what the bullies feel is not remorse, but actually a greater rage toward Ben for publicizing their cruel act. This is obvious when the camera zooms up the classmates’ facial expression in the funeral – they do not show a drop of tear. When the funeral ends, the camera pictures Ben happy in the farm, alone, but not Ben happy in the class, together. That is, even with Balthazar’s creative solution, the classmates did not regret their past acts or/and accept Ben as one of them; what this solution achieved was merely removing the violence and harassment from Ben and his classmates’ broken relationship. The fact that Ben is an outcast still does not change.

Viewers of Ben X, including most of my classmates, said that they enjoyed this special and unconventional movie. Indeed, Nic Balthazar’s suggestion of Archlord as a solution to the bullying issue was original and novel. Such proposition of new idea, definitely, is praiseworthy; nevertheless, it is sorry that this ends only as a creative “attempt” that does not resolve the real problem. Overall, Ben X was an interesting, exotic movie, but its incompleteness disappointed me again for finding no real solution over broken human relationship. 

10 Flash Fictions

1.      Phone alarm rang. I looked down my phone. Sighing, I turned off the alarm. I thought I already erased everything. But I didn't. I leaned over the wall, and clapped slowly. Happy Birthday to you.

2.       Living in a dorm school is: You put a full bottle of coke in the fridge, and next morning you're drinking a cup of water.

3.       "You collared the cole to buy a pen?" The father angered at the boy. "I can bring you numbers of pen from my office!"

4.       "Teachers must allow students autonomy" I commented at KMLA Forum, ignoring Facebook message from Judicial Branch to join Student Jury.

5.       "Hey, I was just going to study!" exclaimed my roommate who had been Facebooking all day, as the dorm blacked out.

6.       [11:59:59PM] "The Concert Ticket Sale begins within a second!" 

          [12:00:00AM] "This computer is out of battery. The system is forced to perform terminations."

7.       “You are allowed to buy translated copies," said my professor, and I stared down at my book -- Shakespeare in the original.

8.       [Sent Message] It's been more than a month... How are you these days? 

          [Received Message] This number is not registered.

9.       Have a nice… days.

10.    Window opened. A slight breeze. The door locked inside-out.

Comments

   Hemingway's famous flash fiction makes me feel most of my examples are wrong : ( Hemingway seems to make the readers imagine all the events that may have happened -- baby's death, mother's sorrow, etc. Some of my examples -- 1, 8, 9, 10, and maybe 2 -- do seem to act like Hemingway's, but others seem to be more like "irony" than flash fictions. Hmm....?

   Please leave comments about this question! And if you see any ambiguous flash fictions that you can't predict what was my intention, feel free to ask : ) Thanks!

[Earthlings Revision] Vegan Maker? – Nope, Vegan Introducer

Ye Ji Park / 111053 / b4

Mr. Garrioch

English Composition

November 20 2012

Vegan Maker? – Nope, Vegan Introducer

Of course we know meat dishes and leather shoes are not fallen from the sky. We know animals are slaughtered to be served at family restaurants and displayed at department stores. But when we confront the true reality, not the ambiguous imagination, we realize that animal abuse is something much, much more brutal and gruesome act than it is in our mind.

Shaun Monson, the writer/producer/and director of the documentary Earthlings, gets the audience to face the truth via exploring the vivid descriptions of animal maltreatment for 95 minutes. The documentary is divided in five parts: pets, food, clothes, entertainment, and scientific research. The first chapter shows animals locked in dirty, crammed cages in pet stores. The second chapter portrays the bloody slaughter of pigs and cows, practiced with no effort to appease pain at all. The third chapter follows India's "Death March" that transports animals to regions where it is allowed to skin them. The fourth chapter shows the shackled life of circus animals, commanded to perform abnormally for the sake of entertainment. The final chapter pictures the cold-blooded medical experiments performed on animals, such as vivisection without anesthetizing.

All the visual images Shaun Monson displays in the documentary are often shocking and appalling enough to make people feel guilty. A lot of reviewers admit that the video made them reconsider about their meat diet, which is why the video is nicknamed "the Vegan maker". It is doubtful, however, whether this video succeeded in "making" the vegetarians. People did think about being vegetarian, but only few actually changed their lifestyle. In other words, Earthlings is enough to inspire people to think about change, but not enough to actualize that change.

This "insufficiency" is incurred from three shortcomings of the film: its broad range, prejudiced standpoint, and enumeration of facts. First of all, the video deals with a general problem; rather than choosing one specific example of animal abuse, the film covers many aspects of human violence on animals. Discussion of overall issue is effective to enlighten the viewers that animal violence is a ubiquitous problem. The drawback of this approach, however, is that the film needs to deal with too much content; some of the details, therefore, must be portrayed in brief. One YouTube reviewer points out that the film "tries to cover the whole spectrum ... that give you fast, short facts here and there.” For example, the reviewer points out, the images of animals in the zoos pass so fast that he missed most of them. If the film had included specific acts of zoo staffs mistreating animals, the film would have conveyed a much clearer message. Likewise, because the film deals with a general problem, the quick series of short-cut images does not give the viewers enough information or time to ponder about their lifestyles. As the reviewer mentioned, the viewers must do their own researches to replenish their knowledge until it reaches enough to lead to realistic action.

Secondly, the stance of Earthlings is overly one-sided. A strongly-biased perspective unintentionally leads the viewers to question, "What about the other side?" Maybe the director picked the most extreme examples among various cases in order to maximize pathos. Maybe there would be some more generous industries that anesthetize animals before slaughter or vivisection. Actually, the U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that 57% of animals used in scientific experiment were used in procedures that did not include more than momentary pain or distress; 36% were used in procedures in which pain or distress was relieved by anesthesia; only 7% were used in studies that cause pain or distress which would not be relieved. The documentary, however, neglected 93% of consideration and only exhibited 7% of inhumanity, leading the viewers to accept this minor practice as a whole. Even if this is not true – that is, even if Shaun only pictured normal, quotidian, everyday-happening real events, the "truth" of video is so uncomfortable and guilt-eliciting. The viewers would try to deny and justify their current situations, rather than believing the film as presented and changing their life. If the director had included milder examples of the brutality and tempered his strongly biased perspective, viewers would have raised less disbelief and denial.

Finally, merely listing the “facts” is not enough to make the viewers of Earthlings act. Throughout five chapters, the film clearly shows that animal abuse is omnipresent; however, it does not suggest any solutions to rescue animals from maltreatment. There do exist alternatives; beans and tofu other than meat; synthetic fiber in substitute for leather and fur; a tennis competition in place of bullfighting. The film, however, hardly suggests such solutions. A local foodie and interactive marketer, Adam Harrell claimed that “[Earthlings] implies that if we want to eat meat, then animals will be treated cruelly in factory farms. That there is no other way. It’s an all or nothing approach.” The viewers, thus, feels futile and regards challenge meaningless – consequently bringing no change in their lifestyles.

Earthlings is, doubtlessly, one of the greatest definitive animal rights films. It introduced the brutal reality of animal abuse which humans are unaware of. Unfortunately, its role stops at merely "introducing" the issue; the film fails to take a further step of eliciting real changes. The film’s broadness, biased stance, and little suggestion of solutions, prevents the viewers from "being vegetarians". Maybe the film's nickname, "the Vegan maker", is adulation; "the Vegan introducer", instead, would be felicitous.

Ben X First Review

     I recently read a newspaper article about two kids seriously addicted to the computer games. They were so lost in their game world so that they considered their grandmother as an enemy and exerted violence on her. The writer of that article claimed that the reason the kids became such a serious addict was that they were impoverished, were isolated from same-aged friends, and the only entertainment they could relish was computer games. Inthe imaginary world, where they can have anything, play freely, fight and win, they were so satisfied with such "utopia" life that they started to refuse the reality, the "distopia" life.

     Even though I did not finish watching the movie Ben X, I can predict what will happen to Ben in the following running time, based on the newspaper article. His discontent reality and ideal game-life will soon collapse and demand Ben to choose one. Presumably, Ben would choose the latter as his reality and maybe start to kill his "enemies" -- for example, bullying students -- as he does to his online enemies.

Yeon-Koung Kim: "Our Change Makes the World Change"

I have been a member of MUNESCO (Minjok UNESCO), one of the social activity clubs in KMLA, since my freshman year. The goal of this club was “to make a better world”; club members campaigned to persuade people use personal tumbler instead of paper cups, and raised funds to help the multicultural children. The club proclaimed that “Our change makes the world change”; over the last one-and-a-half year I participated in MUNESCO activities, however, I never felt this motto by heart. To be honest, what I felt was closer to skepticism. I wondered how many people would keep their promise to use tumbler after they leave our campaigning site. I wondered whether our fund would change a multicultural kid’s life greatly. I thought that the world was too large and distant that my act can hardly influence it. I thought that the change of an individual can never contribute to the change of the world.

Such of my skeptical attitude toward the power of individual remained same, even when I heard what was happening to my favorite sports star, Yeon-Koung Kim. Kim is a South Korea female professional volleyball player, a heroine of an impressive career that engrosses all the “Best Scorer” and “MVP” awards every season in every league. However, most of the Koreans do not know even of her name, since volleyball is not a renowned sport in Korea. 

Yeon-Koung Kim, the Volleyball Superstar

Using the public indifference over volleyball, Heungkuk Life, a volleyball club which Kim once belonged, and KOVO, Korean Volleyball Federation, are “enslaving” Kim. Heungkuk and KOVO claim that Kim did not run for Heungkuk for six seasons, which is a requisite to be qualified as a FA player (a player who is eligible to sign with any club or franchise, not under contract to any specific team). Kim actually played more than the required six seasons (four in Heungkuk, two in JT Maberas (Japan), and one in Fenerbahce (Turkey), the latter two as a status of rent player); nevertheless, Heungkuk argues that her three seasons in Japan and Turkey should be not counted, thus she needs to run in Korea for two more seasons. As Kim dissents from Heungkuk’s stance, Heungkuk and KOVO classified Kim as a withdrawn player, which means that she cannot play any international games (including the World Championship League, which is being held right now) until she capitulates.

I have loved Yeon-Koung Kim ever since the London Olympics. I joined her fan café, and I regularly search her name in Naver or Google to check what is happening to her. Despite I knew all the terrible things happening to Kim, I thought that there was nothing I can do to help her; no matter how I support Kim and wish her to find her rights, I was just an ordinary eighteen-years-old girl, who cannot influence Heungkuk or KOVO in any way. – That was what I thought.

The day when FIVB officially proclaimed that Kim belonged to Heungkuk was the turning point.* A movement started; one member of fan cafe suggested twitting to politicians and celebrities about Kim, explaining who she is, what is happening to her right now, and asking for help. Another member made an online petition site, which signed-up list would be used to request FIVB for reaffirmation about Kim's status. Members updated every online article about Kim so that other fans can visit the site and leave comments so that the article would be classified as main news.

My Twitter "#LetKimYK10play"

I doubted whether this would work; anyway, I was a pessimist. In hope to be a very, very small help for Kim, nevertheless, made me twit to celebrities every day and sign up for online petition. And, for sure, I was not the only one who did so; Kim’s other fans, who had been hiding behind, did the same.

What happened during last few days was just so amazing; politicians, who received hundreds of twitter messages from Kim’s fans, responded. Some of them contacted the fan café to visit their office and explain more about Kim, so that they can help her. Tomorrow morning, Kim is going to have a press interview in Congress; then, the politicians who promised to help her will discuss Kim’s issue in the proceeding inspection of government offices.

A Politician's Reply: "I will do my best to resolve Kim's problem."

All I did was a few twits. That was really “ALL”. And yet my effort, combined with others’, brought a hopeful chance for Kim. It was the first time that I understood the phrase, “Our change makes the world change”, by heart. No matter how small influence an individual seemed to possess, tremendous impact could be created via cooperation of individuals.

I thank Yeon-Koung Kim for giving me opportunity to gain such a valuable lesson – that I can do something to change the society. I’ll keep on my little acts to support Kim, in conviction that those of hundreds of other fans would be added to mine, thereby motivating Kim the volition to continue the struggle and find her fair rights as a player. All I want is to see Kim back on the court, shining, smiling, playing – the outcome partly based on my small efforts.

Want Kim Back on the Court... T_T ♥

                                                              

If you are  interested in Kim and want to know 

what is happening to her, click HERE.

¿ What Is Happening to Yeon-Koung Kim ?

You wonder who this magnificent player is, who engrosses all the "Best Scorer" and "MVP" awards every season in every league. You search the list of renowned athletes in your mind, including Yuna Kim, Ji-Sung Park, Se-Ri Park, and few others. Still you cannot find out who this player is; the name, Yeon-Koung Kim, is not in your list.

A South Korean female professional volleyball player, Yeon-Koung Kim, is the heroine of this impressive career. Only 24 years old, Kim is Korea's most decorated player within the last years. Every players, coaches, and fans that observed Kim's play named her as "the Gamova of Asia", "the player of a century", "the top notch hitter", etc. Kim's annual income approaches one-and-a-half billion won, definitely a world-class level. And still most of the Koreans do not know even of her name.

 Yeon-Koung, KIM 

Using such public indifference over volleyball, Heungkuk Life, her domestic club, and Korean Volleyball Federation (KOVO) are "enslaving" Kim. According to the local rule, a female volleyball player can achieve FA (FA: a player who is eligible to sign with any club or franchise, not under contract to any specific team) Qualification after playing for six seasons. After she joined Heungkuk, she played for four seasons, then she entered Japanese League for two seasons, and moved to Turkey League for a season. Even though she played in Japan and Turkey, not in Korea, it was as a status of "leased player", not as "FA player". What this means is that she played seven seasons as a Heungkuk Life player, exceeding the required six seasons for FA Qualification. But Heungkuk argues that her three seasons at Japan and Turkey should not be counted for her FA qualification. 

Kim, who already achieved so many things not only in domestic but also in international stage, does not want to remain in Korea; she wants to stay in Turkey, wants to learn more among worldwide players and coaches, wants to become a better player. And now Heungkuk impedes her from achieving her dream, just to keep its team in top place in V-League. KOVO, which should be a mediator between Kim and Heungkuk's struggle, leans toward Heungkuk.

Recently, FIVB (International Volleyball Federation) judged that Kim, even though she is a FA qualified player according to the laws, still belongs to the Heungkuk. FIVB's decision is based on a document that Kim, Heungkuk, and KOVO signed; its first and second clauses suggest that Kim is a Heungkuk player, thus if she wants to run in Turkey league, she needs to return to Heungkuk after spending two seasons in Turkey. However, the third clause mentions that the above articles are valid if and only if FIVB judges Kim to be a Heungkuk player. Heungkuk and KOVO forced Kim to sign this document, promising that signing this document would not impact FIVB's decision at all, and the document would be kept by KOVO, without any circulation. Even though Kim did not want to sign the document, she needed to depart to Turkey as soon as possible to prepare for the following matches, and it was sure that Heungkuk and KOVO would not let her go without sign. So Kim signed. And what happened? Heungkuk and KOVO sent the document, changing its title from "Agreement" to "Final Decision" so that FIVB would mistake temporary concurrence for definite resolution, without notifying Kim about spreading the document.

This is what is happening to the worldwide superstar volleyball player. She cannot play on the court, just because of Heungkuk and KOVO's stupid logic. Kim once said in interview that she enjoys the moment she runs for national team the most because she loves her nation. She has played the London Olympics without any break, and boosted the Korea Team to the fourth place for the first time in thirty-six years, but all she got in return was a knee surgery (due to the excessive amount of play she did in London) and the nation's betrayal. 

Kim must be free. She must be qualified as a FA player, so that she can play the volleyball freely. Kim recently proclaimed that she would continue this fight, until she gets a fair judgment without intervene from Heungkuk or KOVO. Right now, her fan cafe members are helping her struggle; there is an ongoing online petition site, which signed-up list will be used to request FIVB reconsideration about Yeon-Koung Kim. Please join the sign, if you ever want to see Kim shining on the court once again. This is the moment your help is needed, to save the greatest volleyball player of the age. 

Academic Film Review: Earthlings

Ye Ji Park / 111053 / b4

Mr. Garrioch

English Composition

October 14 2012

                Academic Film Review: Earthlings

                "Mrs. Hicks, finding the girl slow to move, jumped from her bed, seized an oak stick of wood by the fireplace, and with it broke the girl's nose and breastbone, and thus ended her life. I will not say that this most horrid murder produced no sensation in the community," recalled Frederick Douglass, a prominent black leader of the abolitionist movement, of his slavery days that he observed and sometimes experienced by himself of vicious violence upon blacks by whites. In today’s society, in which about two centuries passed after Frederick Douglass' ages, it would be untrue to say that there exists no racial discrimination at all; nevertheless, blacks relish a much happier life than that of their ancestors.

It's surprising that the atrocious brutality whites exerted to blacks had been considered to be perfectly normal and fair in the past. Yet the same bloodshed is prevalent in today's society, only with its subject changed from blacks to animals; Shaun Monson, the writer/producer/and director of the documentary "Earthlings", uncovers this unawareness via exploring the vivid descriptions of animal slaughters for ninety minutes.

"Earthlings" categorizes the humans' cruelty on animals in five parts: pets, food, clothes, entertainment, and scientific research. The first chapter shows animals locked in dirty, cram-full cages of the pet stores. The second chapter portrays the bloody slaughter of pigs and cows, which is practiced without any anesthesia or other methods to appease animals' pain. The third chapter follows India's "Death March" that transports animals to the region where it is allowed to skin. The fourth chapter shows the shackled life of circus animals which are demanded to perform abnormally for the sake of human's entertainment. The final chapter pictures the cold-blooded medical experiments performed on animals, such as dissection without anesthetizing.

All the visual images Shaun Monson displays in the documentary are often shocking and brutal enough to make people feel guilty. A lot of reviewers admit that the video made them reconsider about their causal life of meat dishes -- which is why the video is nicknamed "the Vegan maker". It is doubtful, however, whether this video succeeded in "making" the vegetarians. People did "think" about being vegetarian, but only few actually changed their lifestyle. In other words, "Earthlings" is enough to inspire people to think about change, but not enough to actualize that change.

This "insufficiency" is incurred from three shortcomings of the film: its broad range, prejudiced standpoint, and enumeration of facts. First of all, the video deals with general problem; rather than choosing one specific field about animal abuse, the film covers whole aspects of human violence on animals. Discussion of overall issue is effective to enlighten the viewers that animal violence is not a distant, alien issue for humans but is a ubiquitous problem. The drawback of this approach, however, is that the film has too much content to discuss; some of the details, therefore, is portrayed too briefly that they lack in strong power to persuade the viewer. One person points out that the film "tries to cover the whole spectrum ... that give you fast, short facts here and there". For example, when Shaun pictures animals in the zoos, the image passes so fast that viewers might miss it if they had not been paying close attention on the screen. The reviewer suggests that if the film had included specific acts of zoo staffs mistreating animals, the film would have conveyed much clearer message. In short, because the film deals with general problem, the short cuts of images do not give the viewers enough information or time to ponder about changing their lifestyle. As the reviewer mentioned, the viewers must do their own researches to replenish their knowledge until it reaches enough to lead to realistic action.

Secondly, the stance of "Earthlings" that humans impose too much cruelty on animals is too one-sided. Strongly-biased perspective unintentionally leads the viewers to question, "What about the other side?" Maybe the director picked the most extreme examples among various cases in order to maximize pathos. Maybe there would be some more generous industries that anesthetize animals before slaughter or vivisection. Even if the images are normal, quotidian scenes in animal industry, the "truth" of video is so uncomfortable and guilt-eliciting that the viewers try to deny this truth and justify their current situations. If Shaun had included milder examples of the brutality, or suggested possible objection, the video would have been less biased, thereby raising less disbelief and denial.

Finally, merely listing the facts is not enough to make the viewers of "Earthlings" act. Throughout five chapters, the film clearly shows that animal abuse is omnipresent; however, it does not suggest any solutions to rescue animals from maltreatment. There do exist alternatives; beans and tofu other than meat; synthetic fiber in substitute for leather and fur; tennis competition in place of bullfighting. Instead of suggesting these alternatives, however, the film merely enumerates brutal images over all human life that drive the viewers to think that use of animals is ineradicable. The viewers, thus, feels futile and regards challenge meaningless -- consequently bringing no change in their lifestyles.

"Earthling" is, doubtlessly, one of the greatest definitive animal right films. It introduced a modern version of black discrimination by depicting the brutality of animal abuse while humans think nothing of this violence. Unfortunately, its role stops at merely "introducing" the issue; the film fails to take a further step of eliciting real changes. Shallowness, suspicion, and renunciation, respectively derived from the film's broadness, strongly biased stance, and no suggestion of solutions, prevents the viewers from "being vegetarians". The viewers would need more research that would resolve the drawbacks of "Earthlings". Maybe the film's nickname -- "the Vegan maker" -- is adulation; "the Vegan introducer" would be a little more proper.

My Childhood Trauma -- Revision

You were no more than eleven years old then. Your parents firmly believed that you were innately talented in literature. Pretending to succumb to your parents’ enthusiasm, you enjoyed to recite your own poem. How you “wrote” poem was ignorantly simple; you stopped one line if it seemed to prolong too much, stopped one stanza if you made four lines, and then, voila! Just in five minutes you composed a poem.

Not only your parents but your teacher also praised your poem. Looking back those days, you now know the teacher extolled your poem’s “quantity”, not “quality”. You wrote dozens of poems whenever you felt “It was the day”, and showed all of them to your teacher. One day, she recommended you to upload your poems on the Internet. You, in childish arrogance, thought that not sharing your poems would be a great waste of your talent. So you searched the Internet and joined a literature society.

The society members all seemed to possess a high standard of literature. They uploaded their own poems or novels, and shared ideas via writing comments. You still remember how embarrassed you were when you read the members’ pieces for the first time. They used a whole chunk of abstruse vocabularies that made you be flustered. Observing frequent updates of members’ comments, nevertheless, you thought that you should at least pretend to understand those convoluted poems. You, thus, started to choose the most comprehensibly-looking poem and leave sloppy comments—“Humans sometimes tend to be lonely. T_T But you succeeded in sublimating your solitary into the literature, and I’m sure that you won’t feel alone ever again!” or, “I think you caught a nice glimpse of clear autumn day :D”, etc. And you were satisfied with yourself. What a shame.

A month passed, and you noticed that the club members were so generous that they never slandered on other person’s work. You, in confidence, decided to upload your own poem. Among numbers of poems that you had written, you chose one that seemed the best. Then you slightly corrected and uploaded it. You nervously waited until a notification popped out that first comment was posted. You rushed in one second to check it.

“I enjoyed reading your poem. It was full of childlike innocence,” the kind comment made you be puffed up. An “adult” liked your poem. This comment was just the start; other members also posted cordial comments. Every time you saw a new comment, you gained more confidence to upload more poems more frequently. 

One day, you accessed to the site with usual expectance. Scrolling down the lines of comments, smile spread over your face—and then, suddenly, your face was hardened in shock. No, this could not be true. An anonymous member was scorning:

“You call this a poem?”

You turned off your computer and cried for hours. As you calmed down, you accessed back to the site. The manager of the site had already retrieved the situation. The member who slandered your poem was withdrawn from the society by force, and the manager left a written apology for the angered users. You posted another silly comment under that announcement: “I’m terribly sad T_T I wrote that poem so arduously and was treated so poorly T_T”. For sure, nobody consoled you after you posted that comment. You suddenly lost all of your confidence. You stopped to upload your poems or to write childish comments on other people’s work. A few days later, you left the club.

Years passed, and you became eighteen. Last week, you accidently found out numbers of poems that you had written in your young days. Reading them again, you appreciated the society members who so generously bear those shabby works; you smiled away the malicious comment which once you cried over for hours; you blushed over your childish idea to post “I’m terribly sad T_T” comment. But most of all, you regretted, as thinking about how preciously you valued poetry, of giving up writing so easily just because of one comment. Your once-so-valued literature is now nothing more than a forgotten vestige that slipped out of your fingers.

[ Writer's Comments ] I fixed some grammatical errors and shortened the sentences, following Woochan's advice. If there still remains any error, please feel free to point out! :-)

The Martian Chronicle: Favorite Quotation

Favorite Quotation: "The four bodies lay in the sun. Mr. Xxx lay where he felt.The rocket reclined on the little sunny hill and didn't vanish."

When the astronants landed on the planet Mars, they were definite that the Martians would be as surprised and amused as they are for confronting the living creature from another planet. The reaction, however, was not what the Earth men expected; the Martians believed that those men were seeing hallucinations, and sent men to asylum. The Earth men, eager to prove that they are not insane and they are REALLY from the Earth, showed the psychiatrist the rocket they had riden to Mars. Despite all these evident proofs -- different appearance of Eartlings, rocket and other objects inside it -- the psychiatrist NEVER considered the possibility that the Earth men might be telling the truth; instead, he praised the Earth men that they have a beautiful insanity that conglomerates visual, auditory, sensual, and even labial fantasy. Even when the psychatrist found out that the astronants' dead bodies do not disappear, he did not admit that thoes men were "real" -- he believed that he himself was "hallucinated", "contaminated", and committed a suicide.

My favorite quotation, "The four bodies lay in the sun. Mr. Xxx lay where he felt. The rocket reclined on the little sunny hill and didn't vanish," shows the contrast between the four bodies/the rocket and Mr. Xxx. This contrast emphasizes the Martian doctor's firm belief on hallucinations -- in other words, a foolishly close-mindness.

My Childhood Trauma

You were no more than eleven years old then. Your parents firmly believed that you are innately talented in literature. Pretending to succumb to your parents’ enthusiasm, you enjoyed to recite your own rubbish poem. Your way of writing poem was so ignorantly simple; you stopped one line if it seems to prolong too much, stopped one stanza if you made four lines, and then, voila! Just in five minutes you composed a poem.

Not only your parents but your teacher also praised your poem. Cast your mind back to those days, it is definite that the teacher’s reason for compliment was quantity—you wrote three, or even for poems one day, if you felt “It was the day”—rather than quality. One day, your teacher recommended you to upload your poems on the Internet. So arrogant you were, you thought that not to share your poems was a waste of your great talent. So you searched the Internet and joined a literature society.

The society members, who seemed to possess a high standard of literature, uploaded their own poems or novels and shared ideas via writing comments. You still remember how embarrassed you were when you read the members’ pieces for the first time. They used a whole chunk of abstruse vocabularies that you had not known that such word exists before. Observing frequent updates of members’ comments, nevertheless, you thought that you should at least pretend to understand those convoluted poems. You, thus, started to write rubbish comments; choosing the most comprehensibly-seeming titles, you uploaded a complete sham—“Humans sometimes tend to be solitary. T_T But you succeeded in sublimating your solitary into the literature, and I’m sure that you won’t be lonely ever again!” or, “I think you caught a nice glimpse of clear autumn day :D”, etc. And you were satisfied with yourself. Good grief!

A month passed, and you noticed that the club members were so generous that they never slandered on other person’s work. Gaining confidence, you decided to upload your own poem. Among numbers of poems that you had written, you chose one that seemed the best, corrected it slightly, and uploaded the poem. Alarmed, you checked the club in five minutes interval, and when a notification said one new comment was posted, you rushed in one second.

“I enjoyed reading your poem. It was full of childlike innocence,” the kind comment made you be puffed up. Some “adult” enjoyed your poem. As more cordial comments were posted, you gained more confidence to upload more poems more frequently.

And one day, you accessed to the Internet site with usual feeling of expectancy. Scrolling down the cordial comments, smile overspread your face—and then, suddenly, your face was immobilized with shock. No, this cannot be true. An anonymous member was saying:

“You call this a poem? Good god!”

Running away from the site, you cried for hours. As you calmed down, you accessed back to the site, and the manager of the society site had already took needed measures. The member who slandered your poem was withdrawn by force, and the manager wrote an announcement of apologies for the users who must have been angered by the secluded member. You, so childishly, posted another comment under that announcement: “I’m terribly sad T_T I wrote that poem so arduously and was treated so poorly T_T”. For sure, nobody consoled you after you posted that comment. You suddenly lost all of your confidence and stopped to upload your poems or to write rubbish comments on other people’s work. A few days later, you left the club.

Years passed, and now you are eighteen. You were rummaging the computer files, and accidently, you found out numbers of poems that you had written so arduously in your young days. Reading the poems again, you appreciated the society members whom so generously bear those shabby works, you smiled away the malicious comment which once you cried over for hours, you blushed over your childish idea to post “I’m terribly sad T_T” comment. But most of all, you regretted, as thinking about how preciously you once treated poetry, for giving up writing so easily and rashly just because of one comment. Slipped from your fingers so easily, your once-so-valued literature is just forgotten vestige now.