NationStates Jolt Archive

No, this isn't another Obama thread...I'm watching Philadelphia and feeling that the subject matter is somewhat dated. Not the issue of discrimination, mind you, but rather the way this movie was a sort of front runner, dealing with prejudice surrounding homosexuality and AIDS. Denzel Washington's character...homophobic, starting out with a very uniformed, bigoted understanding of AIDS, an understanding that was extremely prevalent at the time this movie was released. The movie was shocking for a lot of people because it humanised those with AIDS.

It's still a fantastic movie, but I'm pretty freaking happy that things have improved since then. Prop 8 and assorted idiotic bigotry notwithstanding, mainstream thought has come a way since then.

I think it's good to look back, a few years, a decade, more...and just celebrate the changes that have been made. Celebrate the improvements that have been made, despite political setbacks...the way our various societies have worked to integrate respect for human rights as a matter of fact.

So bring it on...what changes have you witnessed that give you hope for our future?

I have witnessed the final death throes of Apple's horrible computers. I, for one, welcome our new PC overlords.

Oh, and cheaper computers. It might not sound like much, but it opens up so many people to new ideas and debates, things that would be impossible, or near impossible any other way. I'm only talking about the computers hooked up to the internet mind you.

No, this isn't another Obama thread...

Thank goodness. I've had quite enough of people who support Obama based on the political issue of "Change" and nothing else. I'm not implying you are... it was just my first thought on seeing the thread title.

I'm excited for new space technology... that's pretty cool.

I, for one, never believed that I would ever in my lifetime hear an apology from my government to the aboriginal peoples of Canada for Residential Schooling...or an apology for the Chinese head tax, or for Japanese internment. All have happened within a fairly short period of time, along with some compensation.

To me, it signals an attempt for us, as a society, to move beyond reinventing the past and instead attempt to come to terms with it, so that we can grow.

The more things change, the more they same the same.

Call me a cynic but I haven't seen anything recently that has given me hew hope for the future.

The more things change, the more they same the same.

Call me a cynic but I haven't seen anything recently that has given me hew hope for the future.

That's the thing...if you only allow yourself a small snapshot of a few years, it can seem like nothing is getting better. That's why I'm asking for a bit more of a long view. Cripes...in my lifetime, we saw the Berlin Wall come down, we saw the end of the Soviet Union...Ellen went from being a trailblazer to just another gay person in entertainment...a hell of a lot has happened, even within the last decade to give me enormous hope. This in spite of the post 9/11 set backs. Environmental issues aren't just for fringe nutcases anymore. Alternative energy is less 'alternative'. Bigotry exists, oh for sure...but it's become less socially acceptable, and that alone makes me happy my children are growing up now, rather than 20, 25 years ago.

Nothing says "change" better than actual change.

Presenting the 2009 US Mint new releases (http://www.usmint.gov/pressroom/index.cfm?flash=yes&action=Photo#2009LincolnOneCent)!

http://www.usmint.gov/images/pressroom/2009WHHarrisonObvthumb.jpg http://www.usmint.gov/images/pressroom/2009JPolkObvthumb.jpg http://www.usmint.gov/images/pressroom/2009LincolnCentR2thumb.jpg http://www.usmint.gov/images/pressroom/2009LincolnCentR3thumb.jpg

Once again, change is patriotic!

http://www.usmint.gov/images/pressroom/thumbStack.jpg

I never imagined we would see a black president so soon. Never.

I never imagined we would see a black president so soon. Never.

Or in the alternative, a female VP.

Either was a shocking prospect.

Hopefully I've witnessed the end of the Troubles. That's one thing that's pretty good to get out of the way. Gives me vague hope that 3-400 years of petty violence is gone.

A change that everyone can agree with, hopefully.

I'm glad that football has finally become a mainstream sport in Australia.

Five-hour energy.

That stuff is going to kill me one day, but I love it. :D

Oh, and all that other important stuff, that isn't anywhere near as cool as five-hour energy shots.

Which rock, by the way.

Mixed bag -- on the one hand, I'm glad that racism is dead enough that even electing a black President is possible. On the other hand, I'm disappointed that racial sensitivity exists to the point that a black candidate pretty much cannot be criticized -- by the media, or by members of his own race -- nearly as much a white and/or female candidate in the same position.

One the one hand, I'm glad that gender barriers are falling enough that electing a female President or Vice President is possible. On the other hand, I'm disappointed that sexism is tolerated in ways that racism isn't -- the way that a female candidate's look/wardrobe/appearance is a much more analyzed part of her public persona than it would be for a male candidate, the media willingness to attack female candidates (e.g. coverage of Palin vs coverage of Biden, coverage of Clinton vs coverage of Obama), and the general tolerance for sexist attacks when equivalent racist attacks would be seen as outrageous (e.g. hecklers could be seen at one of Clinton's rallies holding a sign saying "iron my shirt" -- imagine the reaction if someone had held up an equivalent sign at an Obama rally saying "shine my shoes").

Mixed bag -- on the one hand, I'm glad that racism is dead enough that even electing a black President is possible. On the other hand, I'm disappointed that racial sensitivity exists to the point that a black candidate pretty much cannot be criticized -- nearly as much a white and/or female candidate in the same position.


Proof?

I've witnessed a new generation of little boys and girls of all backgrounds say, "When I grow up I'm going to be a doctor/lawyer/firefighter/President," with perfect confidence that these are goals they can reach, with no thought to their gender or the color of their skin.

I've witnessed a new generation of little boys and girls of all backgrounds say, "When I grow up I'm going to be a doctor/lawyer/firefighter/President," with perfect confidence that these are goals they can reach, with no thought to their gender or the color of their skin.

Where do you get off teaching women to read?

While there are momentary setbacks and discouraging events, it is good to remember that a lot of things are actually getting better.

AIDS is especially notable in this. Perceptions of the disease have really changed in the last twenty years. For the better.

Hopefully I've witnessed the end of the Troubles. That's one thing that's pretty good to get out of the way. Gives me vague hope that 3-400 years of petty violence is gone.

A change that everyone can agree with, hopefully.
But how else will we train our squaddies for Iraq? *sigh*

Proof?

Well, you know, the McCain campaign and its supporters were extremely nice to Obama in the months before the election. They refrained from making any strong criticism or throwing any harsh accusations. Certainly, unlike for comparable white politicians, there wasn't even a hint of dishonesty in the claims they made.

Right?

In my life, I have seen men walk upon the moon.

I have seen the makings of man's intellect fly beyond the reaches of our solar system.

I have seen the end of institutionalized repression in Zimbabwe and South Africa.

I have seen human average lifespans leap by years - perhaps decades.

I have seen the exploration of the Deeps, and the strange creatures to be found there.

I have seen communism fall to the True power of the people, as they threw off their chains.

I have seen ancient enemies break bread together.

Today, I see many tellers of doom and gloom in our media,

and thus have I the chance to laugh in the faces of fools.

I was born as the world still congratulated itself over tearing down a wall: I grew up in a world without the threat of nuclear war, without, sometimes, any understanding of how much worse it could get. In the first years of my life the United States went to war in the Middle East. Now, as I enter adulthood, it's still at war in the Middle East. When I was young my parents owned a house; now they live in an apartment the fraction of the size, and it costs them even more. I've watched my nation become a culture ruled by fear and apathy -- as the headlines and billboards reveal -- and mentally counted the signs that separate a successful government from a tyranny. And every time it seems people couldn't possibly be more ignorant or malicious, I'm proven wrong.

Young people (like me) are cynical mostly because of their inexperience. This is in contrast to old people, who are cynical mostly because of their experience.