Thursday, August 13, 2009
Tourism
Why is it that Asians make the quintessential tourist? I think it may be because they have futuristic technology to tour with like high tech cameras. I question whether Americans reciprocate when visiting Asia. There is something about Asian's enthusiasm about capturing absolutely ever site on camera that worries me and yet I find myself slightly intrigued. Are the rest of us taking everything for granted?
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Maurice Clarett started blogging. I feel like suddenly there is hope in the world. First of all, who would have thought Maurice Clarett was so articulate? And, the criminal justice system almost working? Impossible!
Of course, I say almost because Clarett is apparently attending college while he's in prison. Most prisoner's are denied that opportunity. Moreover, many states have seen a decline in the number of participants in prison college programs. Nonetheless, Clarett, once a bright young football star, has stepped into a whole new arena. He's got the name, the story, and the marketing to make it work.
Personally, I have always had a fondness for Maurice Clarett because I was very sympathetic to his story. I really thought he got screwed by the NCAA. While I did not think he was a saint by any means, I felt he'd been taken advantage of by lawyers and the overly oppressive rules of the NCAA. Admittedly, Clarett made some mistakes in the past but his blog suggests he has truly learned from them. On so many levels this is thrilling to me. Of course, there is the broader societal inspiration. On a very personal level I feel vindicated in siding with Clarett through the thick and the thin. I am thrilled to see someone publicly exhibiting that the criminal justice system does rehabilitate people and we need not fear ex-cons on a stereotypical level.
Maurice Clarett proved everyone wrong and because I always believed in him, I feel a sense of victory too. Clarett does not know me nor does he have knowledge that I always felt he got the bad end of the stick. While I am sure many have expressed their opinion on either side of that line to Clarett, I certainly was never one of those people. Nonetheless, I feel that I won something today. Clarett definitely did and even if my victory is merely a facade it's that winning feeling that really counts!
Of course, I say almost because Clarett is apparently attending college while he's in prison. Most prisoner's are denied that opportunity. Moreover, many states have seen a decline in the number of participants in prison college programs. Nonetheless, Clarett, once a bright young football star, has stepped into a whole new arena. He's got the name, the story, and the marketing to make it work.
Personally, I have always had a fondness for Maurice Clarett because I was very sympathetic to his story. I really thought he got screwed by the NCAA. While I did not think he was a saint by any means, I felt he'd been taken advantage of by lawyers and the overly oppressive rules of the NCAA. Admittedly, Clarett made some mistakes in the past but his blog suggests he has truly learned from them. On so many levels this is thrilling to me. Of course, there is the broader societal inspiration. On a very personal level I feel vindicated in siding with Clarett through the thick and the thin. I am thrilled to see someone publicly exhibiting that the criminal justice system does rehabilitate people and we need not fear ex-cons on a stereotypical level.
Maurice Clarett proved everyone wrong and because I always believed in him, I feel a sense of victory too. Clarett does not know me nor does he have knowledge that I always felt he got the bad end of the stick. While I am sure many have expressed their opinion on either side of that line to Clarett, I certainly was never one of those people. Nonetheless, I feel that I won something today. Clarett definitely did and even if my victory is merely a facade it's that winning feeling that really counts!
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