tjtoaster's blog: "Journalism stories"

This one got pulled from the paper at the last minute, but I still liked it. So at least here, someone will read it. lol No simple solutions to complex problems When you have a one sentence answer to a complex problem-you are most likely wrong. If you can mention the problem and solution in one breath-you are most assuredly wrong. If you can give a one sentence answer to world hunger-you have missed the mark. I have heard several oversimplified solutions to world problem. World hunger is a perfect example. When I first attended Edmonds Community College one of my instructors stated, ‘If we all consumed 40 percent less meat, ranchers would grow 40 percent less cattle, and we could use that 40 percent of the land to grow wheat and solve the world’s food issue.’ There are a number of reasons why this wouldn’t work. First of all, if we consumed less meat, it would more likely affect the price of meat rather than inspire ranchers to grow wheat. Second, ranch land is often inadequate farmland it can be rough terrain that isn’t all that fertile or would need extensive clearing before clops could be planted. Third, ranchers are not going to incur tens of thousands of dollars of debt investing in farm equipment. Finally and most importantly, ranching and farming are vastly different. Farming is very specialized, farmers need to consider irrigation, erosion and crop rotation. Most crops do not grow year round so they have to know what to plant in each season and what the long term effects that each crop will have on the soil. Ranching requires constant attention of your animals. Medical issues need to be addressed quickly before they can spread to the rest of the herd. How would a ranger be able to take care of the animals and also farm a large plot of land? It just isn’t practical. Similarly, the sheer volume of food hasn’t been the problem in the past rather it is getting the food to the hungry people. Infrastructure is one of the biggest challenges, roads, corrupt governments and men with guns are all the bane of relief organizations. Afghanistan was attempting to build roads that would make it possible to cross the country in a couple of days rather than over a week. Improved roads would mean that goods could cover longer distances in shorter periods of time. Road construction crews suffered kidnappings, murder, and the destruction of their equipment at the hands of the Taliban and other insurgents. In Somalia during the early ‘90s the issue had more to do with stopping the men with guns from taking the food once it hit the shores rather than getting food to the country. According to figures from the United Nations (UN), up to 80% of internationally provided food was stolen. Stolen food was used to secure the loyalty of clan leaders, or routinely exchanged with other countries for weapons. It is estimated that up to 300,000 Somalis died of starvation between 1991 and 1992. When a ceasefire accord was signed and the United Nations was able to go in to supply humanitarian assistance, their mission was unsuccessful because they were unable to get the food to the people who needed it. Often planes carrying relief were looted as soon as they landed. It would seem that passing off the food to a local government official seems like the best way to handle relief situations. The government would know the people and where there is greatest need. That government would also help escort international relief organizations through difficult terrain and navigate the cultural rules better. However if there is corruption in the government it’s just lining someone’s pockets and not helping those in need. The current situation in Burma is a perfect example: The UN was trying to get relief efforts into the Burma. First, the Burmese government wouldn’t approve visas for the relief workers. Next its military stopped the UN personnel at the airport and took the humanitarian aid from them. UN policy is to escort any assistance all the way to ensure that it is going to the people who need it. In this situation, what can they do? The Burmese military leaders are using the relief supplies as propaganda. According to Burma Campaign UK, regional commanders put their names on the side of aid shipments from Asia, and then say it is a gift from them before distributing it in their region. In conclusion complex world problems require complex solutions. It takes time and effort of many dedicated people to approach anything that resembles a solution. Anyone who claims that a simple solution to a complex problem should not be indulged.

I have decided to post the stories I submit to the paper in this blog folder. have fun. This is my most recent article I am going to submit. It is summer, which means it is graduation time. Some are moving on to a four year college; some are finishing up high school. All should be moving on to bigger and better things. When I was younger I gleaned wisdom from those more experienced than I, and now I try to do the same thing for those about to take the next step in life. Here is some advice, such as it is. Friendship and trust are wonderful things; in life you need a friend that you can trust with your secrets, your life, your money and your wife, even if it isn’t in one person. All my friends in my inner circle I can trust with my life and my money. Only once has a friend ever betrayed my trust with a girlfriend, and he is a friend no longer (not sure what she is doing either) but few know all the secrets. Truth be told not everyone can handle, or even want to know, your inner workings. Not everyone needs to know how many skeletons you have in the closet, or if you have a whole graveyard in there. A good friend knows where the bodies are buried (metaphorically speaking of course) a close friend has a shovel on standby. Which brings us to the next point, always have a person in the group that is the voice of reason. Every time you do anything with more than two people, at least one person should be the voice of reason, and those people should never be outnumbered more than four to one. If you have six people, two must be the voice of reason. You can avoid a lot of trouble if you have at least one person say, “I don’t think slashing that cop’s tires is a good idea.” Having friends that are the voice of reason has kept me out of a lot of trouble since that is a role that clearly I will not be filling in any group. I know someone who thought it would be a good idea to take a couple motorcycles for a test drive with his friend, of course they were parked outside a biker bar and the owners were not pleased when the bikes were returned. Had they had a person who was the voice of reason, they might have avoided that beating. Although I think he still thinks it was worth it. That will move us on to our third nugget of wisdom, live like it is your last day, but plan like you will live forever. When I start to head into the light one day I will not be thinking, “If only I would have…” Regret will haunt you, or at least that is what people tell me. Make a list of all the things you want to do in your life, separate them into what you have to do before you get married and have kids and what things you can do after. Then do the things on that list! When my wonderful daughter was born almost eight years ago it felt like the next step in my adventure. I took it as a good chance to slow down a little, but it was not a hindrance since I had just finished my ‘things I need to do before becoming a father’ list a few months prior. I have still been outside the country every year since then. I have a weird case of cabin fever, if I don’t get out of the country every year I go crazy. So at least once a year, I leave the United States and put a stamp in my passport, and so should you. Maybe not every year, but you need to fill some pages in the passport. Going to distant lands will show you just how large, also small the world is. The planet has a lot of diversity, yet there are a lot of similarities among its people. Getting away from the tourist traps and actually seeing how the people are, or living overseas even if it only for a few weeks will be an eye opening experience and will stay with you for the rest of your life. I feel very confident in new environments because of my experiences. Once I was in a room of people who looked like they were not going to join my fan club, but I was able to find something I had in common with each person and by the end of the night I had won them all over. You can live for today, but not at the expense of tomorrow. Do your homework, even if it means missing some fun times with your friends. Every weekend playing Wii with your friends is like every other weekend playing Wii. Buckling down and getting the work done will pay off huge dividends later. Then you will have all the time to play later. I would rather work hard for 10 minutes and have 50 to mess around rather than drag my feet for 45 minutes getting the work done and only have 15 minutes to play. People who say, “hard work is it’s own reward” are suckers. I am lazy, so even though it looks like I am working hard, I am only doing it so that I can have more time to be lazy later. Smoking will kill you, end of story. If you smoke, quit, if you don’t smoke, don’t start. Idiots say that while smoking takes ten years off your life it is the ten at the end and they don’t want those anyway. That is true, smoking does shorten your life, not just your overall lifespan, but also the time you have to enjoy life. I watched my Grandmother take her last breaths after being hooked up to machines for a long time. She spent her last years living in a mobile, manufactured home on her own property while her son lived in her house. She needed a smaller space so that she didn’t have to drag her oxygen tank around while at home. Instead she had a really long hose. My grandmother used to travel the world, and spent almost 20 years trapped in her own failing body, plagued by health problems because of years of smoking. Learn a dish in each genre of food, that way you will always have something to talk about. Like Italian food? I make a tomato sauce from scratch that it awesome, I also make my own béchamel sauce that I mix the red and white sauce layers when I make lasagna. My burritos are world famous, and I wasn’t allowed to leave Germany until I passed on my ribs recipes to someone who could carry on the traditions when I left. Knowing how to cook sets you up for future success, just trust me on this. Life is an experience, not merely an existence. You are not as frail, or as invincible as you think. Try new things, if you don’t like it at least you now know. Talk to people you don’t agree with and actually consider their argument. Do things that scare you, meet new people, do things that are ‘uncool’ you will be better for it. Date someone you think is out of your league, unless you are one of the arrogant jerks, you are about two notches up from where you think you are. Especially woman, women are always better looking than they think they are. Remind them of that. Find a mentor when you are young and mentor someone younger when you get older, just like I am doing now. And one last thing, wear sunscreen.