Week of August 23 International

Students of the Beijing Opera Academy are keeping traditions alive by practicing and preserving the ancient songs in a "modest and slightly shabby theatre". However, commercialism and modernization of China pose a threat to the support of theatre. Traditional music and dance have also been rejected by many younger Chinese in favor of Western music and modern dancing thanks to the Cultural Revolution. I really encourage these performers to keep up with their tradition, even the most pathetic plays have some value, if only to prevent the tradition from dying out completely. Apparently though, plenty of students show up for various reasons, whether they were encouraged by their parents or decided on their own. As a result, the real threat seems to be industrialization in general, the expansion of malls and the like. I really hope China rediscover's its roots so that beautiful traditions like the operas can be preserved.

Article Referenced:

Bernstein, Richard. "Beijing Opera, a Historical Treasure in Fragile Condition". NYTimes. New York Times. 29 August 2010. Web. 29 August 2010.

Week of August 23 National

Designed for "shaping the inchoate anger of the Tea Party with its libertarian ideology and leftist organizing tactics", recent talks are teaching Tea Party members how to recurit and advertize politicians of their party and win over the people "one vote at a time". Should the Tea Party accomplish this feat of complete organization in such a limited amount of time, I will be thorougly impressed and suggest that opposing parties take their impact into consideration while formating their own campaigns for the upcomming elections. However, these this may just be another third party, doomed to fade away or blend one of the other two major parties like every other third party in American history. Their ability to unionize under specific leaders and recruit supporters en masse will determine whether this party will sink or swim. A clear picture of what it is exactly they are endorsing would be nice though.

Article Referenced:

Zernike, Kate. "Shaping Tea Party Passion Into Campaign Force". NYTimes. New York Times. 25 August 2010. 29 August 2010.

Week of August 23 Economic

Taxpayers, and the government, appear to be focusting the vast majority of their attention on larger banks rather than smaller, more localized ones. However this only hurts smaller banks as, "larger banks percieved as "too big to fail" have a lower cost of capital, putting smaller banks at a competative disadvantage". On the other hand, should a massive bank fail, far more damage and loss would occur for the economy and individual consumers than if a smaller local bank collapsed. I really think that any and all banks should stay afloat at all costs, if one falls, then others tend to fall down with it, or at least lose the trust of potential consumers and investors. Perhaps another of FDR's policies should be employed here, a shut down and reevaluation of all banks to check for safe practices and proper conduct. However, it may be too extreme of a measure nowadays due to the size of companies and the chaos that would ensue if a major bank should be shut down even for a day.

Article Referenced:

Reuters. "Taxpayers to Rescue the Largest Banks". NYTimes. New York Times. 23 August 2010. Web. 29 August 2010.

Week of August 16 International

Good news for the anxious families of miners in northern Chilie, 33 of them are still alive. The miners were able to send up a message on paper declaring, "the 33 of us in the shelter are well". Unfortunately, it will take a long time to reach the miners trapped 2,300 feet below ground. However, knowledge of a "happy ending" seems to be worth waiting for. The discovery of the note resulted in an exuberant uproar from listeners who honked their car horns and cheered in restaurants. The mine is unstable though, so the focus now is to construct a new shaft to allow the miners to escape, possibly taking 120 days to complete. Mining accidents this severe are rare for Chile, however, this particular company seems to have had quite a few problems over the past few years with 16 workers killed. I really think mining should be converted to complete mechanical control as soon as possible to avoid future accidents like this one where human lives are threatened in addition to raising safety standards in the meantime.

Article Referenced:

Reuters. "Trapped Chilean Miners Send Message". NYTimes. New York Times. 22 August. Web. 29 August.

Week of August 16 National

While President Obama appears to support Islamic rights, declaring that "Muslims enjoy freedom of religion in America and have the right to build a mosque and community center in lower Manhattan", he refuses to comment on the construction of a mosque yards away from ground zero of 9/11. There are already two mosques in the vicinity; one 4 blocks away, the other 12 blocks. I am completely support freedom of religion and the rights of everyone to practice as they wish, however, I do think it very insensitive to construct a mosque so close to ground zero as many affected families still associate Islam with the fear from 9/11. Besides, with two other mosques in the area, why does a third one need to be constructed? I find it hard to believe that there are enough Muslims in the area to completely fill two mosques so close to each other. However, the war "against terrorists is not a war against Islam", though Islam cannot be removed completely from the equation because it is the primary reason for terrorists acting the way they do: to spread and uphold the teachings of Islam. Overall, I say don't build the mosque, just find another location, its not worth all the fuss and controversy.

Article Referenced:

Dowd, Maureen. "Our Mosque Madness". NYTimes. New York Times. 17 August 2010. Web. 29 August.

Week of August 16 Economic

Three decades of "spectacular growth" resulted in China's passing Japan and landing in second as the world's largest economy just behind the United States. This display of improvement in China means the "world will have to reckon with a new economic superpower". Japan's economy, in contrast, has been "stagnating for more than a decade", although in years past it was believed that Japan had the potential to sometake overtake the United States in the economic rankings. Japan's economy seems to be, "mature and its population quickly aging" while China, "is in the throes of urbanization and is far from developed". I think it would be very wise for the United States to remain on good terms with China as it has great influence over countries such as Russia, India, Australia, and Latin America, and increasingly so due to its dominating economy.

Article Referenced:

Barboza, David. "China Passes Japan as Second-Largest Economy". NYTimes. New York Times. 16 August 2010. Web. 29 August 2010.

Week of August 9 International

The Prime Minister of Japan, Naoto Kan apologized again to South Korea for Japan's "brutal colonial rule". However, unfortunately "anger still runs deep across the region" towards Japan. Apparently, rightfully so as the brutality of the Japanese surpassed even the, "documented atrocities during World War II", including experimentations on humans and massacres of civilians. Kan hoped to "address the past and build a more forward-looking relationship with South Korea", however, it appears this will take longer than he intended. Nonetheless, I appreciate Mr. Kan's attempts to make amends with the nation's former colony, despite angry civilians in nboth countries. However, it seems it will take just as long, or longer for Korea to forgive their former ruler compared to how "quickly" Germany was forgiven after the death of Hitler and Neuremburg Trials; or even how relatively soon the United States became close allies with Britain after colonization, revolution, and other wars.

Article Referenced:

Fackler, Martin. "Japan Apologizes to South Korea on Colonization". NYTimes. New York Times. 10 August 2010. Web. 29 August 2010.