Category: the Rant Board
Well, the subject line basically says it all. It's the end of the quarter for me, and things are piling up more than I can say!!! I have a French test on Friday, and I have so study, study, study, study...I'm just feeling really stressed....*frustrated sigh*
so are the Sri Lankan's after suffering their worst train crash in the countries history, 800 bodies pulled so far from the wreckage, many of them children,so get a grip you chose the damned course so stop complaining..
Jeez, just because someone's worse of than you are does not take away your rights to vent about something.
E.g. if one of my best friends died I would feel no better knowing some guy in Sri Lanka lost his entire family, it doesn't make my own personal problems any less significant to me. I don't think the suffering of other people really justifies putting those who complain about minor things down. Sure it makes your problems better, if you put them in perspective, but it does not solve how you feel about them in any way and if you want to rant about it, well this is the perfect board .. there are also tons of people who make over million dollars a year so using the same idea I can complain that I don't have a million dollars, even if I am doing just fine.
cheers
-B
Exactly! There's always someone worse off than yourself but you don't forfeit your right to complain by virtue thereof. I would, however, add a caveat as follows to your point, wildebrew which is essentially this: whilst I endorse entirely your view heretofore expressed, there is never a justification for losing a complete sense of perspective and moaning about trivialities which no right-thinking person would consider problems. To put it another way, there is no call for lamenting something that no reasonable person would lament. I wouldn't put homework in that category, of course I wouldn't. people were probably moaning about homework before the wheel was invented. However, to give an example, I would put moaning about cancellations on E-bay in that category.
LawLord, well said, I agree with that, I was mrely pointing out that, well, she could choose to ramble if she wanted, however senseless it seems to us on the board and, well goblin's justification that others are worse of is just not a good reason for not complaining about something whereas the mere triviality of homework certainly is.
cheers
-B
Hmmm, call me superficial, but the last thing I want to do is worry about the suffering of thousands of people due to an event that I could not control, let alone any of them. It may be better to worry about all the big important problems of the world, but the way I see it, worrying is about all you can do. With personal stresses and problems and frustrations, sure they're difficult if you're in the middle of them, but they can be fixed or you will eventually go through them, and worrying about one's personal life is natural, as well as blowing off a little steam. I fear if some of you continue telling people how trivial their problems are compared to thousands of dead from a train crash, they'll just not use this board and might even not post anything about themselves for fear of being told in a roundabout way to shut up and suck it up.
well actually Labyrynth only one person has posted in that manner and that is our Goblin above. Now, I don't agree with you on one count: I'm not sure what led you to the conclusion that we can do nothing but at most worry about the bigger problems in the world. There is nothing stopping you becoming politically involved, writing to your local congressman etc. or giving any money you can afford to a disaster fund. Certainly in Britain it is very depressing the amount of apathy that seems to prevail. People are worried about world affairs, and even broader domestic affairs like whether these fools should be allowed to implement control orders, but these are the same people who don't vote! fools, the lot of 'em, and I have no patience with fools. I repeat, I have no patience with fools.
The problem with the majority of Americans is their complete and utter ignorance and indifference towards anything happening elsewhere,but who can blame them when they are force fed the belief, that the world begins and ends, with America...
I know for a fact that many American's are unaware of the constant famine in Sudan and the frightening Aids epidemic in South Africa....
I think such a high level of ignorance is sickening and speaks volumes about the mind set of that country....
Lawlord while i agree about the apathy, I disagree with your generalisation, to date Scotland has raised 6million for the Tsunami appeal,and the disgraceful actions of America during the early days was nothing but a desperate attempt to divert attention away from the survivors and onto their relief effort I was honestly waiting for the usual american response I.E taking over entirely and making sure the camera's are all fixed on them,its pathetic and smacks of extreme insecurity ...
Typical of these non-analytical minds, they say they disagree with my generalisation and then they don't make it more specific. make the allegation by all means old lad, but give particulars! Which generalisation do you mean? I have to sa though that, even if I wouldn't have put it in such colourful terms as Goblin did, he's right about the mindset imbedded in the populace of the US from what I have seen. Young people are not taught enough about global issues, not taught enough about America's partners in the commonwealth and European Union, and some are still even taught that the first world war started in 1917 and the second world war in 1942! Some nutter I spoke to on the net from the US thought that Britain didn't have a parliament and that the monarch made all the laws, and this was an adult! another thought that London was in france, and surprise surprise the only country in Asia that 42 percent of American high school students could name in a survey commissioned about four months ago was Vietnam! I'm not saying that everything is perfect about British education, but my experience is that it's a damn sight better than US education, and the education that one receives in Malaysia, Japan and Australia and New Zealand is better still.
You generalised that Britian is in the grip of donar apathy concerning the 3rd world and its plight....Scotland is not included in that ...
..apart from 2 great friends, who now live in Braemar {Scottish highlands} and the few decent people I have met here, the americans seem to have their heads firmly rammed up their enormous backsides.....
I did mention voter apathy as well actually.
Hmm, I dunno, I mean, sure there are a lot of things amiss in American education (not to mention at the top government level which just goes to show this educational problem has far reaching consequences) but I feel people are a bit too negative towards the U.S. in this post. Higher education is better here than the rest of the world, more money is spent on research than anywhere else, the inventions mostly come from here as opposed to Europe or Asia although Japan has its high share of inventions. The country has given a lot to global aid historically speaking and my biggest problem with that is their insistance on only providing help to those who follow the country's ((or leader's) idiology or even way of life.
But, in all honesty, there's a lot that Europeans don't know about the U.S. e.g. do that many people really know where New York City and San Fransisco, Miami and Houston are on the map, just to take examples of big cities in the U.S. could you name me the states they are in off-hand. I felt the same way until I came here and realized there was not that much I knew about the U.S. myself and I feel it's a bit arrogant of us to assume they know all about London and Paris whereas we can't point out San Fransisco on a U.S. map.
(may be a lot of you guys can, I know in Iceland the education did not enable us to do this).
So, good points but I think put too negatively and the country should be given credit where credit is due, there are uneducated people everywhere.
cheers
-B
yeh, and bad things can be said about every country, even scotland, I mean Goblin is from there ... need I say more ...
What I meant is that you can't prevent a disaster once it happens. Yes, you might be able to contribute to fixing things up or sending money or supplies, but once the train has crashed, what's done is done. However, if you are stressed or ahve some kind of personal problems, you can think os solutions while you're still in the middle of the problem is you have a mind to. Somehow comparing a personal stress to an international disaster may be comparing apples to oranges. I hope this clarifies my point. Plus, I'm a cynic, so I will naturally believe that people are not as noble and high-minded as they want to tel us.
Wildebrew I'm afraid I'm going to take issue with you on several points, so I give you fair warning: firstly, relating to education. You state that more money is spent on research in the US than anywhere in the world, but I'm afraid that the reason for this is that it costs an awful lot more to go to university in the US than anywhere else in the world. Furthermore, your top institutions are finding, as are ours, that satisfactory income can only really be generated by admitting overseas students. This analysis yields two consequences: first, it shows that the gap between education for those who can afford it and those who can't is larger in the US than in any member of the European Union. second, it shows that the academic excellence of the likes of Harvard and Yale benefits overseas students as much as, if not more than, US citizens. Add those consequences together and the picture of US higher education is not as rosy as it was portrayed in your post. Secondly, you note that you invent more than anyone else in the world, but as measurements are not taken of such things as inventions given that inventions can range from tiny things to revolutionery machines, I don't see how this stands up to examination. The US does have a larger manufacturing base than anywhere else in the world, a lot of things are made by American companies, but I note that the OECD and the IMF have both recently recorded that first, China is now a bigger consumer economy than the US, and secondly, that the gap between the rich and the poor in the US is the largest in the G8. I wouldn't go as far as one American commentator who recently said that the US had the foreign policy and military capability of a superpower, but the domestic structure of a third world country, but you can see, I think, that the claims I make in my last post but one are not without evidence in support thereof. Thirdly, Wildebrew, you ask the question whether europeans would be able to point to Miamii, Heuston etc. and you imply that it is a touch misleading to criticise the US students for not knowing about London and Paris. All I will say in response to this is that you are comparing the incomparables: You will notice that I wasn't appalled that the people in question didn't know the whereabouts of Bristol, Manchester, Truro or Exeter. The examples I cited were London and Paris, both the capital cities of their respective countries. I would expect every student (within reason of course) to know that London was in Britain, that Paris was in france, that Rome and Milan were in Italy, that Moscow as in Russia, that washington and New York were in the US. I'm sure that most people would be able to tell you that the cities you mentioned were US cities, and unlike you, I believe that most would know the states too. But the fact remains that in the most recent survey, 42 percent of the students in the US did not know of a country in Asia apart from Vietnam. that is shocking. It's also tragic that US students are still taught the wrong dates for the start of the wars. So, alas, I am not persuaded of the merits of any of the arguments you advance above.
I can see my stress post has turned into quite a lively discussion...which is very interesting to read! I am an American raised college student, and I personally don't think everything America does is *wonderful*. Sure, our country does help a lot, but we should concentrate efforts more on the interior of our own country. I am not the smartest American by any means, but I do find it shameful to say the least how undeucated some Americans are today.
One further point: please do not be misled into lumping Britain together with the rest of Europe. This is not xenophobia, not by any means, but is instead vital to analysis of our economic, political, institutional health. Britain is a common law system, a unitary state and built along the lines of parliamentary democracy. In this way it is more akin to the commonwealth, and less so to Europe. It is therefore important that unless the factors people are comparing are identical across the continent, the differentiation is made between Britain and most of the rest of Europe, with the exception of Norway whose structure is similar to ours.
Katie, feel free to rant about any homework stuff you want! Good luck with French! I hope things get better for you.
I'm beginning to feel stressed about being timed out twice in one day, lol. Sorry, just trying to force myself to make a joke out of something that's slightly annoying. Anyway Katie, I haven't had homework in a long time, but I remember it well. I even got sick to my stomach the next morning after a difficult french quiz. The funny thing was, I felt sick the whole time my teacher was with me, but as soon as she left, I recovered almost instantly, like I'd never been sick.
Labyrinth, I know what you mean about people fearing to post because of other people telling them to stop complaining and deal. I'm almost discouraged from posting in geeks are us, because even if I do get a knowledgeable response, I'm told it's nothing to obsess about, or folks just want to blame my computer for everything, but I keep thinking, maybe I'll get lucky, after all, chat rooms, email lists and message boards are all we've got to find answers to computing problems that are vexing to us.
When I was in school, because there were no such things as braille maps, my geography was nil, nada. It still is, and I don't even think about cities and locations. Saturday, an australian friend was asking me on behalf of her husband, if I knew where abouts in the states is atlantic city, and I didn't know.My geography was even weaker than my math.
wonderwoman
Be that as it may, Wonderwoman, I am sure that you are not advancing your own parlous knowledge of geography, both domestic and extra-territorial, and maths, as a justification for the general appearance of insularity which myth I fear the US education system perpetuates. i'm sure you would agree with what I have posted above.
Well, LawLord, I shall look further into your arguments above.
I'm still not convinced of the differences between admission fees to universities especially not knowing the British system. Fees are high, on the surface of things, but when you dig deeper if one is a low income family student with good grades, the financial aid availible + grants and scholarships adds up to an almost free eduaction for those who are deemed to deserve it from academic success or otherwise (admittedly most state universities give the same benefits to athletes, it's questionable from an academic standpoint whether that's really a good idea but at leat it is an incentive to develop your tallents, even if those tallents may not be academic).
I know, at lest compared to Iceland, I prefer this system to a state sponsorred university with vastly over crowded lecture halls, insufficient computer facilities and teachers that are so badly paid they do this as their second or third job and don't really care about the quality of the materials they are educating us on. The main reason for this being kids who apply to university without the passion for learning and who have barely passed their high school exams and subsequently take up a lot of attention from professors etc without much result and then drop out. This being said I am getting way off topic here.
Yes, I was on a full scholarship at Yale, well almost full, my annual contribution to my education amounted to approx 6000 pounds (and this is including room and board) which, I think, is quite justified.
The other point I wanted to make is that whereas London and Paris correspond approximately to New York and Washington DC e.g. I think Berlin corresponds roughly to, say, Los Angeles or Seatl, basically the big U.S. cities and smaller cities in the UK cannot be compared like you did above because of their influence and population alone they have a lot more to do with the European capitals and so I think peole in Europe should learn them as well, at least the 10 largest cities. Charlotte e.g. is a relatively unknown city, especially outside the U.S. yet it has the population of Copenhagen and is the second biggest banking center in the U.S. and not far behind London with respect to member of abnks and cash flwo through.
And yes, you make very good points, the general eduaction here is very lacking and the gap between the rich and the poor is apaulling indeed, I'd like to distance myself a bit from the U.S. in that I don't consider myself an American, I merely live here so you're seeing a bit of an outsiders view. I just have a problem with people making sweeping statements about the U.S. ignorannce based on media perception of the governments reactions, even if the statements you made are backed up and for some parts of the country they are valid (for the south in particular, if the survey you cited would've been taken in the New York or Boston area, even California I am sure the results would be very different, did it say exactly where the survey was conducted)?
So, interesting topic :) disagreeing is good, personal attacks are only for those who are willing to stoop so low, disagreements lead to interesting exchanges of facts and points of view so feel free to disagree with my views for I will never claim them to be the only rightful one.
cheers
-B
Be all that as it may, respective populations notwithstanding, you shall not deflect me old lad from the very fundamental point I was seeking to draw out viz. that Berlin is a capital city, Seattle, Los Angeles, they are not. Charlotte may well be a very big banking city, but as our students in school do not have room for commerce in the national curriculum there seems very little point in their learning this. As for university fees, you should do research into British figures before seeking to compare them with the states. £6000 would be considered a lot of money to lay out for one year over here, and as you say, your scholarship payed a large proportion of your fees. In britain I would personally cut the number of students significantly by abolishing a lot of the lesser degree courses, reducing the status of lesser universities to politechnics and raising the bar for entry to university. too many graduates leave with useless degrees and do not get jobs. But like you, I am in danger of getting off-topic here. I'm grateful for the clarification of your arguments, but my judgment of the US education system as I trust you can tell is based on my own personal observation, facts I have taken from elsewhere and not in the slightest on the media or your government (Although it has to be said that your government are in general intellectually very weak and too weak in my judgment to really understand their role). I take your point about seattle etc. but like I say, you have avoided the point I made which was about main capital cities. And finally, that survey I mentioned was taken across the whole of the US. So, assuming that the north is better educated than the south, and yet the overall figure was still 42 percent, that is incredibly worrying, or at least it should be.
Katie, I worry allot. One thing that helps is to write it down. I have a bad habbit of keeping feelings tightly bottled up inside, so I write them down.