pln4b

It seems that the use of technology with computers is expanding, developing and evolving every day and the need for writing by hand has become obsolete in the eyes of many. I disagree though. In my experience, typing is much more difficult than writing by hand. I have noticed that when typing, my writing loses voice and my vocabulary isn’t as expansive as when writing. Somehow, typing is great but it lacks the ‘feel’ or emotion that comes in writing by hand. Every time I type an essay on something it seems that I have to go back and forth between different Web site accounts that are supposed to ‘help’ with writing – such as Easy Bib, Diigo and Wiki pages – but this is often just more of a hassle and it keeps me from focusing on the actual writing. It seems that the use of technology with computers is expanding, developing and evolving every day but traditional handwriting has a timeless history that cannot be replaced with a keystroke.

pln3

Imagine eating lunch and having the building you are sitting in collapse over your head. The lunch you just ate was either your last meal ever or your last meal for five days. You don't know where your family is or even if they are alive, you are sealed away under the once peaceful restaurant wondering when or if you will die. That's what the people in Haiti are experiencing right now. It’s been speculated that over 100,000 are dead, wounded, or still buried; the earthquake that struck Haiti recently was one of the largest on record. The quake was at least 7.0 on the Richter Scale, causing mass destruction particularly in Haiti’s capital city of Port-au-Prince. But as many rescuers have found, the Haitians may have much sorrow and much pain but they have not lost hope. It is so hard to comprehend the loss of life when it comes to natural disasters but it almost makes me smile to see the whole world reach out to support the wounded, the lost, and the fallen. We can all help - if each person in the world gave two dollars, euros, colones, etc. to Haiti they could rebuild and recover. Imagine being pulled from the rubble and reunited with your family. Inspired by reading, watching and listening to news coverage over Google Reader.

PLN1B

On the website the Edge, http://www.edge.org/, it asked a very difficult question, that is, "Has the Internet changed your thinking?" My opinion is that anyone who were to answer this question would say "yes," but each person would say something slightly different. The Internet hasn't just changed how we think, it has changed the way we do business, it has changed how we cure illness, it has changed the way we shop and, it has changed the way we travel, ranging from getting around town with via GPS to traveling into space. So, yes, the Internet has changed the way I think, it has opened up a door to an infinite expanse of knowledge and put tools at my fingertips that never existed fifty years ago. The Internet is the ultimate "multi" tool, used to connect, entertain and inform its wide range of users from every corner of the globe.

Violence in Jerusalem

In her January 10 presentation in Englewood, "Voices of Youth: Confronting Conflict and Building Community," Denver resident Kate Simmons stimulated the thinking of her audience with a report on her recent interfaith trip to Israel. It is second nature for a human to discriminate against others who are different; we feel safe with those who share similar beliefs with us. Since the beginning of time man has waged war over our “soul” purpose in this universe, today we know this “soul” purpose as religion. Wars such as the Crusades were fought over a stretch of land considered holy by three of the world’s biggest religions: Christianity; Judaism; and Islam. For centuries followers of these three religions have shed blood over a city known as Jerusalem that all believe to be their historical holy land. Today there are modern crusades being waged over Jerusalem between the Muslims of Palestine and the Jews of Israel. Palestinian Muslims are fighting to gain back their holy land and Jews are fighting to keep their holy land. About 65 years ago after the Holocaust, Jews went to the UN to ask for a country where they could live and practice their religion in peace. With the support of the UN, the country of Israel was established in 1948 and included Jerusalem. There was a problem though. Palestinian Muslims lived there and considered it their home and holy land. A huge war erupted between the Muslims (Palestinians and Muslims in neighboring states) and the Jews. The Jews won and claimed more surrounding territory as a buffer but they have been fighting and defending this territory ever since. In recent times the Jews have built a separation wall to protect themselves from the Palestinians. The wall between the two puts the West Bank on one side and Jerusalem on the other. On January 3, 2009, Palestinian fighters sent rockets into Jerusalem killing many people. This was just one out of many battles fought in the last ten years. The people on both sides are living in constant fear. Kids walking home from school are always looking for places to hide for when the bomb sirens go off. This is a very sad situation and a problem that gets worse with time. But, with every unique problem a unique answer arises. One can’t help but wonder how to make a difference, how to help. The best way to help is to let people know what’s going on in Jerusalem and that the Jews and the Muslims both feel the same when they lose a loved one to this senseless violence and that their biggest fear is not being heard.



At a children’s playground this caterpillar serves as a bomb shelter for kids on the play ground when the rocket sirens go off
http://israeldiplomaticfellowship.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/sdc10107.jpg