Since I'm currently in lab, I'll write my thoughts on this later. But for now, care of NARAL:
On his first day in office, George W. Bush reinstated the global gag rule. This policy prohibits the United States from granting funds to any overseas health clinic unless it agrees not to use funding from any other source to provide abortion services, abortion-related advocacy, or even abortion counseling or referrals.
The global gag rule blocks women's access to family-planning services that prevent maternal and child deaths, unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions, and the spread of HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases.
As part of the annual foreign-aid bill, the Senate passed a full repeal of the gag rule and the House passed a partial repeal. The Senate and the House are now working on a compromise version to send to the president.
On Wednesday, October 31, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a crucial hearing on the global gag rule. Check out NARAL's website to do something about this, ASAP.
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Friends and Honesty
I should be asleep now, but instead I figured I'd blog about something that's been on my mind a lot lately. The question is, to what extent do you want your friends to be honest with you (and vice versa)?
I personally like to think one of the most important roles my close friends have is to call me out on my bs. They can tell me when I'm wrong, am acting too full of myself, or am taking a passive-aggressive stance on something. In this way, they help to shape me as a better person, and challenge me in new directions. Apparently, though, honesty is not always the best policy, for some friends I know are overly sensitive to certain things. And since I've never been able to lie worth a damn, I avoid the subject matter unless asked.
However, why do some people ask questions they don't want to know the answer to? I mean, I had to train my mother not to ask me about physical relationships with guys, but she finally got the message. Nothing irks me more than when people go fishing for a compliment or some other desired response, and are hurt when I tell them my honest opinion. Now, granted, I may not always give positive feedback as often as I should, and I'm working on that, because it is important to not be consistently negative toward an individual and to let someone know when you think highly of them. But asking the stereotypical "Does this dress make me look fat?" question just to have a friend tell you you look awesome is a little much. NOTE: this is not to be confused with asking a friend's advice on clothing, that is totally different and often required to leave the house looking put-together ;).
So the question is, to what degree should our friends challenge us, push us in new/uncomfortable surroundings? And to what degree are they there to support us in our actions, just because they're our friends?
I personally like to think one of the most important roles my close friends have is to call me out on my bs. They can tell me when I'm wrong, am acting too full of myself, or am taking a passive-aggressive stance on something. In this way, they help to shape me as a better person, and challenge me in new directions. Apparently, though, honesty is not always the best policy, for some friends I know are overly sensitive to certain things. And since I've never been able to lie worth a damn, I avoid the subject matter unless asked.
However, why do some people ask questions they don't want to know the answer to? I mean, I had to train my mother not to ask me about physical relationships with guys, but she finally got the message. Nothing irks me more than when people go fishing for a compliment or some other desired response, and are hurt when I tell them my honest opinion. Now, granted, I may not always give positive feedback as often as I should, and I'm working on that, because it is important to not be consistently negative toward an individual and to let someone know when you think highly of them. But asking the stereotypical "Does this dress make me look fat?" question just to have a friend tell you you look awesome is a little much. NOTE: this is not to be confused with asking a friend's advice on clothing, that is totally different and often required to leave the house looking put-together ;).
So the question is, to what degree should our friends challenge us, push us in new/uncomfortable surroundings? And to what degree are they there to support us in our actions, just because they're our friends?
Friday, October 26, 2007
Multitasking does NOT make you more productive
I know this is quite trivial, but it's been on my mind lately as I know too many people who do it. How many times have you heard someone say, "I can't study/work without the tv/radio on" ?
Now, forgive me for being blunt, but this is the biggest load of bs that way too many people convince themselves of. When you were younger and played on a sports team, what would your coach have said if you pulled out some headphones (if you dared)? She'd yell at you and tell you to focus on the game. Well, why do some people decide that it will help them with their studies? You are not concentrating 100% at the task on hand if you are doing something else. It's like the printer/fax/copier combo: yeah, it can do all three functions with one machine, but it doesn't do ANY of them particularly well. Why on earth are you going to waste your time trying to multitask when you could really focus and finish your work/studying much more quickly and thoroughly? Now, if background noise is what you want, go looking for someplace with white noise that you will actually ignore.
You know, it's the same thing with the people who go to the gym and barely break a sweat. Newsflash: be more productive with your time and you won't have to spend so much of it doing one task. Yeah, reading while on the elliptical seems like a good idea, but if you can manage to do both you aren't pushing yourself very hard exercising. You're only cheating yourself...
Phew, I feel so much better now that I got that off my chest. To all my readers to whom it applies, no offense guys, but seriously, common! Next to tackle: sleep deprivation, but this time my own ...
Now, forgive me for being blunt, but this is the biggest load of bs that way too many people convince themselves of. When you were younger and played on a sports team, what would your coach have said if you pulled out some headphones (if you dared)? She'd yell at you and tell you to focus on the game. Well, why do some people decide that it will help them with their studies? You are not concentrating 100% at the task on hand if you are doing something else. It's like the printer/fax/copier combo: yeah, it can do all three functions with one machine, but it doesn't do ANY of them particularly well. Why on earth are you going to waste your time trying to multitask when you could really focus and finish your work/studying much more quickly and thoroughly? Now, if background noise is what you want, go looking for someplace with white noise that you will actually ignore.
You know, it's the same thing with the people who go to the gym and barely break a sweat. Newsflash: be more productive with your time and you won't have to spend so much of it doing one task. Yeah, reading while on the elliptical seems like a good idea, but if you can manage to do both you aren't pushing yourself very hard exercising. You're only cheating yourself...
Phew, I feel so much better now that I got that off my chest. To all my readers to whom it applies, no offense guys, but seriously, common! Next to tackle: sleep deprivation, but this time my own ...
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