TUESDAY’S TALES

This is going to be one of those posts where I should probably be sleeping but instead I’m writing.

I wrote my last midterm of the year today. I didn’t do so great. Part of the reason was that the prof likes to give really confusing exams. He’s fond of convoluting the basic facts and principles into these obscure problems. A classmate of mine wasn’t too happy about it either. I think another reason why I sucked today is that I don’t write exams as well as I used to. Time was a precious commodity today and that just makes me even more nervous.

The year is almost over. It seems like it was only yesterday when I moved in to SJC. I’m not sure if any eight month period has progressed faster in my life.

So, what else is happening? Oh yeah, the war in Iraq. I must admit I’ve been addicted to the news for the last few days. I just can’t get enough of the coverage. I want to know about every major development as soon as it happens. The reporting has been very one-sided thus far. By one-sided I mean, it’s all coming from the coalition side. While Western journalists are more likely to be fair and neutral compared to al-jazeera, I’d like to see and hear what is going on from the Iraqi perspective. And I don’t mean some propaganda from the Iraqi Information Minister.

Actually, some of you may have seen this link before, but I just found it myself tonight. It’s a blog supposedly written by, “Salam Pax”, a citizen of Baghdad. A few people out there are skeptical that the blog is real, but others have all but verified it’s authenticity. “Salam Pax” offers a decidedly unique view on the conflict. So many of the reports are about the fighting and the soldiers, but many times I wondered, how are the civilian people of Iraq dealing with this? Are they going about their business? “Salam Pax” has written about just going outside to buy food and surveying the city. He doesn’t seem to be a big fan of the Saddam Hussein regime, but at the same time you can sense his sadness at witnessing his city being bombed.

There is much sadness going around on both sides though. The American media is so fond of getting on TV the relatives of dead soldiers and POWs. Why do they do that? I guess one reason is so that the relatives can say so-and-so was a great person and they’ll be sorely missed. I have this is feeling though, the networks are putting them on to tug at the heart-strings of viewers.

You know, I honestly have no idea how this is all going to end. That’s partly why I can’t get enough of the news. It will be fascinating to watch this come to whatever conclusion presents itself.

Oh, I’ve been meaning to write this for a while, so I’ll just tack it on this post. I’d like to publicly thank Lulumon for making their yoga pants. I’ve never worn a pair myself, but that doesn’t really matter. And that’s all I have to say about that.