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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: July 3rd, 2023

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  • Lots to unpack, let’s hit the big ones. Do any means justify peace? Is mass murder of entire countries okay because it would result in less overall friction afterward? How long does peace need to last after for it to make it worth it?

    Displacement. Is it fair to the people who have lived in a country for generations to leave because of other’s actions? Moreso, many of them currently /want/ to leave (really really bad) but can’t, what should they do? And also, how is that fair to neighboring countries, they’re just required to take in refugees because Israel wants more land? (What if there weren’t neighboring countries?)

    Finally, (please educate me), are universities very invested in Syrian companies/industries? That’s what the current protests are about, divestment from Israel. Are you required to care about all atrocities in order to care for one? What line marks which bad things in the world protesters should inclusively be knowledgeable about?




  • Disagree. I won’t say it’s impossible it encourages some antisemitism, but it feels like you’re lumping all these students into that camp. I think the protests provide awareness of where much of the public stands on the issue.

    It feels disingenuous to say these protests are a fun party. I can think of plenty of activities I partook in college that were more fun and with less risk. I think these students (a fairly small percentage of all students, realistically), feel an alturistic need to do something. And there’s not a lot of domestic options available to them, especially ones where their voice is actually heard.

    These protests must be effective if they’re turning the whole world on Israel. But I think that’s much more of Israel’s doing. Surely killing medical staff, journalists, aid workers, and children may factor in? Of course I’m against antisemitism, but I won’t say the same about antizionism.

    There’s also the part where these protests aren’t directly about ending the conflict (of course that’s the ultimate overarching goal). These students are protesting their schools’ investments in Israel. And I think they have every right to have that discussion with the schools they’re attending. This is the impact they’re trying to make, one that /is/ related to them, and one that /is/ possible.

    Like it or not, Joe is the best shot at ending the conflict right now, I agree. But it’s been many months of him appearing to do close to nothing. Is Israel backed into a corner? Looks more like Palestinian civilians are in a corner. A corner that keeps getting moved and then bombed.

    The US has a lot of sway in the world. There’s a lot of options our government could take. Continued financial, military, and political support doesn’t feel like the best option. I’m not saying we should wipe Israel off the map, but surely there’s some sort of middle ground where civilians of the region aren’t just endless collateral damage?



  • How hot is extreme, you and I have now asked ourselves. Well, let me read aloud.

    “as high as 45 degrees Celsius” (113 F)

    “northern province [of Thailand] exceeded 44.1 degrees Celsius on Saturday” (111.4 F)

    “Cambodia, Myanmar, Vietnam, India and Bangladesh, forecasters warned that temperatures could exceed 40 degrees Celsius in the coming days” (104 F)

    “city of Mandalay could rise to 43 degrees Celsius” (109 F)

    “It’s very unpleasant and it takes the energy out of you.”

    Op ed: sounds nasty hot






  • I’m a previous boy scout (~2006-12) and camp staff (~2010-2019). It’s hard to see a lot of these stories and accusations come out against bsa. While I was a youth and staff member, there was a lot of guarding from any possibility of sexual abuse. Many hours of meetings and training for both youth and adult members of the bsa. Everything erred on the side of caution. Even between staff members there’s a lot of separation between over/under 18.

    Granted these experiences all took place in a fairly liberal area. But I like to think that in the last 20+ years, the bsa has become a much safer organization. Inclusive too, girls are now allowed and welcome. (Do note girls and boys are a part of separate groups (there are co-ed branches of bsa though, Venture Scouts)).

    I also think it’s important to know how involved the Morman church used to be with bsa. There’s recently been a pretty large separation between the two organizations, but that wasn’t always the case. And without speculating too hard, churches don’t have a great history with sexual abuse.

    All of this is to say that I believe all the past survivors, and they do deserve justice. But it’s hard to see their lawsuits coming after what I believe is a fundamentally different organization (different policies, different leaders, different ties). I think there’s a lot of good that bsa can help instill with today’s youth. I’m not sure what a good solution is.