structural violence and positive peace

So, I read Kafka's "A Report to an Academy" today. It's a crazy story of an ape who learns to act like a man so he can leave his cage. He never experiences "freedom" but be claims it's not what he's looking for. I guess he just trains himself to act like everyone else, so that he can just exist, instead of existing as someone, as an individual. It's really interesting and everyone should read it. It's 9 pages or so. 

I've been reading lots of stuff about social convention lately, both for my Kafka class and for my Peace and Conflict Studies class. Much of the reading right now is trying to establish that warfare is a learned custom, just like marriage, or dueling, and therefore it can be unlearned. Or, better than being unlearned, peacefulness can be learned. It can be effected through attempting to root out both the impulse towards violent action to solve conflicts as well as the structural violence that causes one to receive that impulse in the first place. Structural violence as in racism, sexism, nationalism, homophobia, etc. With increasing globalization, the world is losing these distinctions. However, right now, the numbers of deaths in the world due to structural violence are the highest they've ever been. For example, when someone died 150 years ago of tuberculosis, that was just life and death, but today when some dies of polio, even though a vaccine exists for those fortunate enough to live in the "first world," this death can be attributed to structural violence. We must work to make a world not just free of war (negative peace), but also a world free of structural violence (this world is referred to as one of positive peace). 

Well, those are some of my own thoughts interspersed with some terms i've learned and a few new concepts. I really love the fact that I'm at a place in my life where I can look at the world and see problems, but positively think about changing them, instead of thinking that doom is inevitable.

I really enjoy life.

wow

I just had an amazing phone conversation. Not much of interest was said, but just the implications and the tones were amazing. I think I'm changing (of course, like always), but this girl. THIS GIRL! Stupid jesus.

So, today was amazing. I went to work, went to the bank, I got my prescription filled, I packed and I ate my last dinner at home with my parents. Then, I went out with Julia and we sat in the park and I felt really safe. It was really cool. I'm gonna miss her and I just started to know her. Now, I'm with my best two friends of late. A bunch of my friends are gonna see me tomorrow. I'm excited, but I'm also sad. I feel like I'm leaving a lot more than what I left last summer. I'm gonna be in California for about 3 straight months, stating at about 8 p.m. tomorrow. What an AMAZING. Yeah. I don't know. It works into the shadow.

the crazy guy, the neurotic, the guru and the girl

So, today was amazing. I mended a very dear friendship, and I'm very glad that happened. Then, I packed a little bit and went to dinner with my parents. I was kind of a dick to them, but oh well, i've just gotta let it go. Then, I went through meeting the grandparents and family friends of another girl, and then we went out and just basically spoke our minds about everything, including the way we felt about each other. Then, we cuddled and talked for a long time. When I dropped her off (ooooooh, yay!) i kissed her hand. Then, I went to Daniel's and Caito drove my car to Josh's, where I saw an old "desire" and an old "smart guy". This is like crazy, two-day before i leave "sensory-overload". I'm really happy that today in general happened. "YAY!!!!!!!!!!" ("I really enjoy quotation marks") 

Sonic Youth is great./Two funny things

So, this is a great morning. I'm about to go get my bike from the shop and then get my phone fixed. Then I'm gonna meet Amanda and Ryan Williams for lunch. Then, I'm gonna come home and start packing. :( I'm gonna miss the people who have inhabited the outskirts of my world of late. I think that everything is going to be very strange in two days. TWO DAYS!!!!!!!! I can't believe it. I have about 53 or so more hours in the Phoenix area. I'm sad, but also very excited. Man, I'm gonna miss you Caitlin and Daniel..... I'm gonna miss you Amanda!!!!!!! Everyone should come visit me. Everyone will always have a spot on my couch, my floor, or my mattress. Please come and we'll all be together again. Man, I'm gettin all sentimental again.

So, I said some things that became wonderful jokes last night. One of them occurred when Jonothon came in with 5 (not 4 to match the four of us) but FIVE!!!!!!! otter pops, and I was just "poking" some fun at him and I asked him "WHY ARE THERE FIVE?" It seemed amusing at the time. I have since forgotten the other one. If the awake people from last night can remember it, let me know.