109 items found for your search. If no results were found please broaden your search.
(04/21/13 8:21pm)
Earlier this month, in the midst of being informed it was “National Grilled Cheese Day,” I remember thinking, “Why so many national days? Why can’t it just be Friday?”
Some days are worth remembering, but other days, not so much.
To be clear, know that I, too, love a well-made grilled cheese sandwich. It’s a well-known fact of life that everyone must always know where they can get a grilled cheese sandwich. It’s a constant. It shouldn’t be limited to just one day.
Sadly, it is. In some groups (vegans and the lactose intolerant), it might not be known at all.
While it may remain unknown for those concerned with dairy products, branding a day in such a way for the rest of us not only burdens the "cause" you’re advocating, but also contradicts the message it’s trying to spread.
It simplifies it and reduces it to an irrelevant and dismissive level. If anything, the only effect National Grilled Cheese Day had on me was to not eat one.
Apply that to Earth Day (April 22), and you may say the same thing.
Out of 365 days a year (and an extra day every four years), we “remember” and take time out of our day to consider the planet we call home.
Some plant trees. Some throw the “recyclable” trash in the “blue” waste bucket. Is this enough? Does it even make a difference?
If it’s anything like the loss of appetite I suffered regarding melted cheese sandwiched between two great big slices of Texas toast, then the odds that anyone actually cares for or is affected by Earth Day (in its desired capacity) don’t look good either.
Apathy toward both holidays — National Grilled Cheese Day and Earth Day — highlights a significant flaw in how we’ve been going about things for far too long.
The Earth quite literally deals with both life and death and should garner more respect than the above average and simple courtesy we show it during Earth Day celebrations once a year.
And no, your “garden” of herbs isn’t enough either.
No one is immune to this. My venus fly trap, Wyctor, contributes nothing to society. It’s all about me; it’s all in vain. He and I both know it.
As disgusting as it is to quote Shakespeare (whether accurately or not), is it “much ado about nothing” to discuss what Earth Day has inevitably become? Just another tedious task — on a Monday, no less?
According to the “About Us” portion of the Earth Day Network, very little has been accomplished since the 1970s when Earth Day originated. We’re still “slurping leaded gas through massive V-8” vehicles. Conversations about the environment are either blindly refuted — and evidence and alternatives to the contrary not even addressed or acknowledged — or are overly dramatized to elicit an emotional connection.
Earth Day should be embraced on a global scale and more importantly on a global level, “universal” even, not a singular day or isolated moment.
It’s going to take more than electric cars and trees in urban areas to make a difference. We’re going to have to start being nice to one another and be willing to work together — all the while refraining from littering.
If not, Earth will have the last laugh.
Reach the columnist at jbfortne@asu.edu or follow him at @JOMOFO40
(04/17/13 1:41am)
Depending on the actual social circle you affiliate with, April 20 might be looked at as a day of celebration: a hazy, lazy day filled with finger foods and uncontrollable giggles. If not, this Saturday will be just that — just another Saturday.
(04/07/13 9:27pm)
Never mind the fact that I had never heard of “North Krall” before: The end was near, and I hadn’t said my goodbyes, or at least not how I would have liked. I was never going to see my dog again. Or have a Big Mac. I was about to be one of the last men on Earth.
(04/01/13 12:41am)
Recently an old friend asked if I might be able to put together a mix tape.
(03/24/13 9:05pm)
Like the tide brushing against any coast, Ann Coulter made waves last week.
While these recent ripples of rage had far less “oomph” than some of what her highlight reel has provided throughout the years, it was still another installment in the "pot versus kettle" name-calling and finger-pointing feud of which so many are so fond.
In the shark-infested waters whose depths only Coulter knows, the conversation during Dennis Prager's radio show last Monday turned to the murky, sometimes shallow existence of libertarians — especially those in college.
She said, "They ought to put down their pro-pot signs and read some Richard Epstein — probably the leading libertarian in the country.” She added that, like liberals, college libertarians are consumed by “groupthink.”
What made parts of this conversation so painful was that I found myself agreeing in part with Coulter's analysis. College libertarians do seem overly fixated on “pot” and the “personal freedoms” being denied by an — as they see it — oppressive federal government.
The debate over the proper use of rhetoric in all its forms and varieties presents headaches to the public sphere.
Rhetoric rarely ever proves or extinguishes the issue at hand. It only facilitates harming ourselves, one another and our ability to work together.
If anything in Washington has bipartisan support, it is the willingness to take and apply any literal or metaphorical “personal” anecdote and wield it as pretentiously or insincerely as they choose.
In truth, we all do it. From Facebook posts to tweets about celebrities or politicians, we throw stones in an attempt to garner attention on a subject we care about. What we have failed to realize, however, is that the very creation of a distraction such as aggressive rhetoric ultimately neither persuades nor informs.
Ann Coulter does it. Democrats and Republicans do it, and now with the zombie-like spread and popularity of libertarianism, a newer and far craftier fox of rhetoric seems to be making its way to the front of the pack.
In Rand Paul’s March 14 speech at CPAC, he made a direct pander to the “Facebook generation.” He did this immediately after claiming that we must “jealously guard all our liberties.”
“The Facebook generation can detect falseness and hypocrisy a mile away,” Paul said. (Never mind that the Facebook generation also invented and subsequently fell for “catfishing”)
Members of the Facebook generation doubt that Social Security will still be around in the future. They worry about jobs. They want leaders who won’t sell them short, and they aren’t afraid of individual liberty.
It sounds great. If I were daft enough to align myself with either the libertarians or the Facebook hierarchy, then I, too, would be excited over Paul winning the straw poll. But I’m not.
While many of the points Paul and his fellow libertarians attempt to make have validity to them, the core tenet of unleashing a near-abolishment of a number of key federal government programs under the guise of “liberty” is not only reckless but hypocritical as well.
Lessons cannot be learned by a jealous hoarder or their party affiliations, particularly lessons on liberty.
Reach the columnist at jbfortne@asu.edu or follow him at @JOMOFO40
(03/24/13 7:30pm)
With the Spring Break vacation fading further and further into your rear view mirror, perhaps a jolt back to reality is all you need. Another, “vacation,” if you will. While whatever possibly led to the creation of “Vacations” by the band Dead Confederate might seem bittersweet, it’s nice to see – hear, rather – how they’ve taken the typical “whine” of the love lost and turned it into a rocking anthem of freedom.
(03/17/13 7:57pm)
For spring break I got as far away from Phoenix as I could. While the suffocation and constant feelings of being trapped might drive some to commit unspeakable acts, I chose instead to drive to Los Angeles.
When I reached the quagmire that is the Los Angeles highway system, I realized that perhaps I just needed some time to myself. Some time to think and re-evaluate my life’s decisions and aspirations, but most importantly some peace and quiet.
After all, rest and relaxation has always been my forte.
Having fought my way through the smog and TMZ tourists, I found myself on the doorsteps of the Sheraton Agoura Hills Hotel.
According to the website, this particular location, located “in the rolling hills of the Santa Monica Mountains near Malibu,” had recently gone through a $6 million renovation.
The website spoke of being far “from the hustle and bustle." It seemed to be the “peaceful escape” I had been wanting.
Of course, this would turn out to be a lie. In fact, this became the first indication that perhaps I should have performed better in school. Maybe I would have seen this coming.
In my academic pursuits, I dropped out of whichever class covered Dante Alighieri’s "Inferno." Not because of the instructor, classmates or scheduling conflicts, but from the simple acknowledgment that I hate poetry — specifically old poetry.
What I do remember (and what a simple Google search clarified) is that the descent into hell that Dante describes is broken into nine “circles.” With the ninth and lowest circle being the worst, I discovered that those who commit crimes against “hospitality” spend all eternity there.
The only thing missing in the $6 million renovation of the Sheraton was a sign that clearly stated (much like the one Dante describes on the gates of Hell), “Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.”
While it might seem trite, possibly even trivial to bemoan a television or iPod-compatible alarm clock that didn’t work, WiFi that cost $10 a day or the $15 breakfast “buffet” of powdered eggs, nearly-rotten fruit and rancid coffee, it does however seem relevant to warn any other weary traveler — as Virgil did for Dante — of the perils that lay before us and the roles each of us play in their creation.
My time in Agoura Hills proved the notion of hospitality is as dead as the souls cast to the hideous underworld.
Who is to blame? Could it be the ignorant tourist or businessperson? Or maybe it’s the free-market system that allows businesses like the Sheraton to nickel and dime their patrons to death.
In all honesty, it’s a combination of them all.
Companies send their minions all over the country for conferences, training seminars and even vacations with all charges covered by the coveted expense account.
Of course, one can always stay at a Motel 6. They do leave the light on for you.
While this is technically an alternative, it is not a solution.
Having stayed in a variety of hotels in my life, I can attest to the fact that when I paid $15 to stay the night in a cheap roadside hotel, I got exactly what one would expect.
Strangely enough however, when I have stayed at establishments that promote themselves as posh or somehow better than the average hotel, such hotels rarely have the accommodations to justify my out-of-pocket expenses.
In the ever expanding corporate world, fewer and fewer of us remain individuals. This creates a cesspool where hospitality to a guest matters not. Unless you are a part of the group in town for business, you will be forgotten — if not ignored.
When it came time to check out, I went to the front desk to ask to speak with a manager regarding my stay. I realized my plight was of no concern. By then, my credit card had already been charged. To the Sheraton, it didn’t matter – I didn’t matter.
Maybe it is too late, or maybe there is still a chance that humans can salvage the only aspect of our existence that is within our control: being hospitable.
Reach the columnist at jbfortne@asu.edu or follow him at @JOMOFO40Want to join the conversation? Send an email to opiniondesk.statepress@gmail.com. Keep letters under 300 words and be sure to include your university affiliation. Anonymity will not be granted.
(03/04/13 1:00am)
Democrats and Republicans: two opposing groups masquerading as “representatives” on the national stage on behalf of the constituents that elected them into office. Each party wants more, but neither is willing to give the other any more slack.
(03/01/13 12:52am)
For those wondering what lasting effect The Tom Green show would have on Western civilization, tune in to Comedy Central on Feb. 28 at 10 p.m. and watch Ben Hoffman in (drumroll please) “The Ben Show with Ben Hoffman.”
(02/24/13 10:42pm)
If you are a male above the age of 18, then chances are you have lost count as to how many times you have held a purse. Regardless of reason or intent, be it a good or bad thing in your eyes, you have held a purse — and you have done it a lot.
(02/17/13 10:30pm)
Most car owners are more than protective of their automobiles. From scratches in the paint, stains on the upholstery or the names we bestow upon our combustible engine companions, car owners are sensitive to anyone or thing that may threaten or harm the sanctity of their ride.
(02/11/13 1:00am)
As tinsel drifts further and further into its hibernation before the next holiday season, we find ourselves overrun with Hallmark haikus, assorted heart-shaped candies and extravagant floral arrangements — all in an attempt to define love.
(02/06/13 11:41pm)
Pitchforks: 5/5
(02/03/13 8:00pm)
Last month, the German print edition of Der Spiegel published an interview with notable Harvard University genetic researcher George Church.
(01/30/13 10:59pm)
On Friday, Netflix will begin streaming the full first season of “House of Cards,” a new political drama television series starring Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright.
(01/28/13 12:00pm)
One would think that with less than a week before the Super Bowl, we might finally be able to talk about the role that football plays in our lives.
(01/13/13 10:08pm)
After much deliberation, I have decided to retire from higher education.
(01/07/13 12:00am)
To say that I was disappointed with the Mayan prophecy proving to be a bust would be untrue.
(12/10/12 12:06am)
With everything going on these past few months, even I have admittedly lost sight of the more pressing matter at hand: the end of the world.
(12/02/12 10:13pm)
Every so often, the art world is turned upside down. In this instance however, Glenn Beck submerged it in urine and auctioned it off for charity.