Wordless Wednesday: Beards, Part 2

Wordless Wednesday: Beard, Part 1

Options for Our Relationship with Iran

The Current Flag of Iran

As I wrote last week, I support the nuclear deal currently on the table between Iran, the U.S., and the U.N.  I know that the United States went into the negotiations wanting to end all nuclear activity in Iran, while Iran wanted permission to not only continue nuclear activity but to research nuclear weapons.

Neither side got exactly what they wanted because they compromised.

I am not certain how it came to be, but a lot of Americans think that "compromise" is a bad word.  As if attempting to reach an accord between two disparate parties through the process of give and take somehow signals weakness of character.  Nevertheless our country was founded on compromises; the biggest one I know about being the legalization of slavery in the southern states.

Point of fact, a two-party political system only works when both sides agree to compromise.  Refusing to yield any part of your demands in order to gain what you really want reeks of arrogance and inflated self-worth.

Looking at the Iran deal, I personally want Iran to not focus on nuclear weapons.  I have no issue with them running a nuclear reactor, because I know that the medical community uses several of fission's by-products, such as providing radiation to cancer patients.  Also, Iran needs electricity and the world does not need more coal mines.

As an aside, I think the U.S. should invest in LIFTR reactors, a type of nuclear reactor that is not capable of creating weapons-grade uranium or plutonium because gamma radiation contaminates all the fissionable material.  But LIFTR reactors do allow for the production of energy, the production of isotypes needed for medical uses, and even the possibility of using up spent fuel rods.

But back on topic, the compromise in the Iran nuclear deal allows the U.S. to gain the most important priority - the stoppage of Iran's nuclear weapons program.  Iran also gets their priority - the ability to run a light water nuclear reactor.  No one is completely happy or unhappy.  But everyone can live with the results.

And to be honest, I don't see any other viable, peaceful options.  Personally, I think we need to begin to seek non-military answers to the problems in the Middle East, because all of our military actions have solved nothing and insanity is dong the same thing over and over and expecting different results.  

We Need To Stop Institutional Racism

Racism:

• poor treatment of or violence against people because of their race
• the belief that some races of people are better than others

Institutional Racism:  any system of inequality based on race.

In my opinion, racism is immoral.  People are people, regardless of where they come from or who their ancestors are or what they look like.  In fact, the amount of DNA responsible for how a person looks is infinitesimal compared to our entire genome.  So, really, who cares?

Sadly, a lot of people do.  I think part of a person's racism comes from their environment.  If a person grows up around racists, that person will pick up racism, similar to how the children of smokers tend to be smokers themselves.  Also, if a person grows up in a homogeneous environment, for example a neighborhood where everyone is either black, white, Latino, Asian,..., it is easier for that person to believe rumors and rhetoric about other races.

I don't know what we as a society can do to directly stop individual racism.  I mean, I have a few ideas, but nothing substantial.  On the other hand, I do think that we can do something about institutional racism in our country.

Institutional racism, you ask?  Wasn't that outlawed in the 1960's?

No, no it wasn't.

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I know of at least three cases in our current society where institutional racism thrives.

1.  The punishment for Cocaine

Powered cocaine and crack cocaine are two forms of the same drug - benzoylmethylecgonine. So it would be logical to assume that our legal system deals with these two illegal substances in similar fashions, right?

Wrong.  Possession of powdered cocaine carries light or no jail time, with rehab and community service standard consequences of legal actions.  Possession crack cocaine, on the other hand, carries heavy jail time.  The legal system acts as if these are two completely different categories of drugs.  But the biggest difference between powder and crack is that white people tend to use powdered cocaine while black people tend to use crack cocaine.

The disparity in punishments astounds me.  It is the equivalent of giving away iced water to white people, but charging black people for boiled water.  But this instance of racism won't go away unless we the people do something about it.  

2. Getting Stopped for Walking in Your Neighborhood

The law has a concept of a high-crime area.  The police and the courts label whole streets and neighborhoods with this, and the outcome is a serious loss of liberties.

If you walked down the street in my neighborhood or on the sidewalks in adjoining streets, you have the right to walk unmolested.  A police officer might ask you to stop, but if he doesn't have due cause, you can just keep walking.  

If you walked down the street in what the police label a "high-crime area", the police can stop you, frisk you, and ask a bunch of questions with no due cause and no justification.  You don't have the right to keep walking until the police tell you that you may leave.  

And the court system has so far upheld the distinction in types of neighborhoods, which pisses off the police in "low-crime" neighborhoods, and pisses off the citizens in "high-crime" neighborhoods.

Guess what?  Most high-crime areas are black or Latino neighborhoods.  Most low-crime areas are white neighborhoods.

3.  Generational Poverty and Housing

During World War 2, the returning soldiers were told that the government would help them buy houses, as part of their compensation for the time they spent serving the country.  Whole towns were built with government funds, and white soldiers began a new life.  

But all of the new towns had stipulations denying black soldiers the right to buy a house.  In fact, black soldiers could only get houses in previously black neighborhoods. 

As time went on, the provisions against non-whites were challenged in the courts, until the Supreme Court finally said that no one may discriminate against a person buying a house based on race.  But by that time, the white soldiers had increased their net worth while the black soldiers lacked the opportunities.  As the white neighborhoods got older, the white people moved out and the black people moved in.  But the houses were very old, the tax base was poor, the school system was old, and the poverty continued.

Now, we have generations of white people who have moved to the suburbs, buying new houses, giving obscene amounts of money to local schools, and buying up vacant property for parks.  Meanwhile, the black generations have poor schools, old houses, and junky vacant lots.  Poverty begets more poverty.  Lack of education in the parents translates into no respect for education in the children.

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Now we have a choice.  Do we turn a blind eye to the situation?  Or do we at least attempt to change the way our society works?

I, for one, think we need to do something.  We need to change how the laws treat cocaine users, regardless of the method of ingestion.  We need to get rid of the "high-crime" label and finally allow people to live their lives without the fear of police interrogation just for walking down the street.  And we need to begin to find ways to end the generational poverty.

Maybe if we take care of the institutional racism, the individual racism will begin to go away, too.

Book Review: "The Science-Fiction & Fantasy Quiz Book" by Joseph McCullough

The Science-Fiction & Fantasy Quiz Book by Joseph McCullough
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

"The Science-Fiction & Fantasy Quiz Book" by Joseph McCullough is a fun and entertaining book to read. Mr. McCullough covers everything from television shows, to movies, to comic books, to short stories, to novels. In the first few sections alone, I saw questions about "Star Wars", "Star Trek", "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Game of Thrones", and the old "Battlestar Galactica".

I could easily see a bunch of geeks sitting around a table, drinking home-brewed beer, and using this book to play a homemade game of trivia.

Also, I like that the questions range from multiple-choice, to short answer, to true or false, to matching related things, e.g. captains with their ships.

I give this book 5 out of 5 stars for entertainment value; and I recommend this book to any fans who like to test themselves on trivia.

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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Book Review: "Ryker" by Sawyer Bennett

Ryker by Sawyer Bennett
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Disclaimer: I was given a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

"Ryker" by Sawyer Bennett follows closely behind the events in "Zack" (Cold Fury Hockey, #3). Towards the end of "Zack", Ryker moves to North Carolina as a goalie for the Cold Fury team because his soon-to-be-ex-wife had an affair with one of Ryker's teammates in New York. Because Cold Fury made the play-offs, Ryker sat on the bench, waiting for the season to end and with no plans on playing, since the current goalie was excellent at his job. But in the last period of the last game, the Cold Fury's goalie received a game-ending injury that spawned a penalty shot for the other team. With the score tied, all Ryker had to do was to stop the puck. But with no current ice time, Ryker missed and Cold Fury lost. Zack, Alex, and Garrett don't blame Ryker, but Ryker partially blames himself.

Book 4 begins in the off-season. Ryker now has full-time custody of his two daughters, and is close to finalizing the divorce. The team is about to begin training for the next season when the owner calls them in for a big announcement. The owner's daughter, Gray Bannon, is the new general manager for the team.

I loved meeting Gray Bannon. She is intelligent, funny, and knows how to be tough without being a bitch. Oh, and she's also beautiful, at least to Ryker. Gray brings a new perspective to managing the team, using statistics and numbers to make decisions in a very "Moneyball" way. But as the league's first female general manager, Gray has a lot of responsibility riding on her shoulders.

The book slowly revolves around Ryker and Gray, bringing them closer and closer even as they both wonder if they can make the compromises that their relationship will need to work. The obstacles to a relationship include their individual responsibilities to the team, a doting father, an ex-wife, and a stalker. Ms. Bennett draws out the story beautifully; even though I knew how it would end, I enjoyed the journey to the end.

I recommend "Ryker" to all romance readers.

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Thought for the Day

I am starting a new posting schedule next week, but I am previewing the new Thursday post today.  It's called "Thought for the Day" and hopefully will contain a quote that makes you think.  Please let me know what you think.

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If you can believe in Santa Claus for 8 years, you can believe in yourself for 5 seconds.

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