“Anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.’”
― Isaac Asimov
This image of the Crayola Multicultural Crayons Set has been making its rounds on Facebook and I thought I’d repost it for the 3 of you not on FB. Arizona Governor Jan Brewer signed the country’s toughest illegal immigration bill into law on April 23, 2010. Among other things, the law makes it a state-level criminal offense (a misdemeanor) to not carry immigration documents or proof of citizenship at all times. Police will have the power to stop people at will and request these documents (passport, drivers license, green card…).
Living in Europe, specifically France, and traveling internationally, I’m used to the fact that other countries allow the police to stop you and verify your residency/visa/immigration status. While racial profiling can happen, it is not common, and document checking is much more tolerated in countries that have numerous neighbors just several hundred kilometers away. In the US, we just don’t have the same international mindset and have gotten quite used to living in a very large country with little interactions with foreigners. President Barack Obama has strongly criticized the law and numerous cities, like Los Angeles and San Francisco, have passed measures barring city agencies from signing/renewing contracts with Arizona-based companies.
Reposted from my Facebook:
Thanks for being a fan of my Barack Obama application page and the will.i.am ‘Yes We Can’ video.
With only days to go, Barack needs you more than ever before.
Every bit of support is another voter we can reach, another person we can get to the polls, and another step towards the change we need.
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For the next several days, we need to work like the future of our country depends on it — because it does. While the poll numbers can give us hope, we cannot afford to become over-confident this close to the finish line.
We only have one opportunity to make history and get this country on a new path. And if we let up now, John McCain will win.
Please forward this email to anyone that you can and don’t forget to encourage all of your friends and family to get out and vote.
If you missed Barack’s half-hour message to the nation last night — American Stories, American Solutions — you can watch it in its entirety on his YouTube channel.
From TED Talks: In Al Gore’s brand-new slideshow (premiering exclusively on TED.com), he presents evidence that the pace of climate change may be even worse than scientists were recently predicting, and challenges us to act with a sense of “generational mission” — the kind of feeling that brought forth the civil rights movement — to set it right. Gore’s stirring presentation is followed by a brief Q&A in which he is asked for his verdict on the current political candidates’ climate policies and on what role he himself might play in future.
This week, the director of “Uncovered: The War on Iraq” and “Outfoxed” released his latest film, “Wal-Mart: the High Cost of Low Prices.” It’s a powerful expos