Some Criticism and Praise of Last Night's SOTU Address

I haven't been able to post anything or update my blog in a while because of a hectic first two weeks of classes. Since my last post, a lot has happened in the political realm, including Scott Brown winning Ted Kennedy's Senate seat in Massachusetts, advancing a bill that legalizes medical marijuana in New York State, and the latest State of the Union address. For today, I am going to write about the latter.

Praise
Everyone expected this speech to be one of Obama's most pivotal point in his career. What is he going to do with health care reform? Instead of focusing on health care reform, Obama mentioned the issue briefly and addressed other issues, particularly the jobs and economic development and many other things. Because he covered so much ground, Obama was able to please both parties. Democrats and liberals were pleased with his strong stance on tax cuts, repealing the "don't ask don't tell policy" for gays in the military, and proposing a job bill. The Republicans were particularly satisfied with him insisting that large banks pay back their bailout money.

Criticism
Although Obama covered a lot of ground, he didn't go into much detail on one particular subject. When he said he wanted a job bill soon, he didn't go into any further detail in regards to the framework of the bill or its timeline. He did, however, hinted that it will be tied to technological advancements in energy. The biggest problem I had was his strong stance on the federal government spending freeze for the 2011- fiscal year. First of all, McCain proposed this idea back in 2008 and Obama was very much against it. Second of all, Obama did not have the strongest rationale: "I am absolutely convinced that the stimulus was the right thing to do, but families across the country are tightening their belts and making tough decisions and the federal government should do the same."

Overall, I think Obama did a decent job. Unlike his precedent speeches, he was more realistic where he acknowledged that change would not be easy and he cannot do it alone. However, I did think the GOP had a few wins last night. There were a few points that deserved criticism from the conservatives and the GOP response was very well delivered. Governor Bob O'Donnell of Virginia delivered the speech, specifically criticizing Obama's safe approach to terrorism. The speech was live, with people around O'Donnell, and an Asian man, a Black woman in the background to strut the party's diversity for the camera. Definitely a step up from Bobby Jindal.

At least I sleep in on some days at school

I am back in Syracuse and just got settled in my room. I am proud to say that I had a very productive break, where I was probably busier than I am at school. Over winter break, I . . .

1. worked and as a result, made enough money to pay my parents back for the new macbook they bought me (after the incident)
2. met up with various people and friends (a more diverse variety than I usually hang out with over vacations)
3. spent ample time with my parents and family
4. completed many internship applications
5. and subsequently going on a few interviews, leading to some offers
6. wrote wikipedia articles for "Project Syracuse Wiki"
7. organized buses again for winter and spring break
8. had a root canal on New Year's Eve, resulting in a very trippy night
9. wrote an angry letter to the MTA about the bus line in my neighborhood
10. read A Farewell to Arms, The Good Earth, and Blink
11. went to the cinema and watched Up in the Air, Sherlock Holmes, and The Lovely Bones
12. tried Sri Lankan, Tibetan, and Ethiopian food and Cakeman Raven
13. completed 195/195 countries on sporcle.com
14. became a aficionado of 90's German techno
15. started this blog

How did I do so much? I worked four days a week where I got up at 6:30AM on those days. On my "off" days, I did not sleep past 9AM to get things done. I did not spend any days lounging at home or spend much time at home. My commute to work was about 3-4 hours every day, where I had time to accomplish miscellaneous tasks. So, my winter break was not really a "break" but a period of time where I had a chance to do non-school things. I am looking forward to this semester because it'll probably won't be as busy as these last four weeks.

Two Tales That Disprove the Myth of Rude New Yorkers

I was standing idly on the West 4th Street platform the other day, waiting for the F, crossword puzzle in hand, trying to look cool. To my left, was a row of platform seats, where a homeless man sat, surrounded by garbage bags and a ragged coat over his head. About 50 feet left of the man, stood an elderly Chinese woman. This woman was accessorized with a grandma hat and a rolling backpack. I watched as the woman unzipped her backpack, revealing numerous red Chinatown grocery bags, and pulled out a steam bun. She then approached the man cautiously and nudged him with her foot. She handed the bread to him with a napkin and said "Here Chinese food" in broken English. The man looked at the woman with curiosity and awe, taking the food hesitantly. No words were exchanged between the two but from their expressions, I can see the enormous gratitude held by the man and the great sense of satisfaction felt by the woman.

Similarly, this happened over the weekend: http://thecomicscomic.typepad.com/thecomicscomic/2010/01/seeing-a-man-on-the-subway-tracks-what-would-you-do.html

In the wee hours of Saturday morning, comic Sean McCarthy was returning home after work when he found a man out cold on the subway tracks. Immediately seeing this, he alerted the MTA staff on duty. They proceeded to inform the conductor of the next arriving train but it was too late. As the train was approaching, McCarthy frantically flail his arms shouting at the conductor to the stop the train. Luckily, it did. The man was rescued from the tracks and McCarthy saved the man's life. Now, remember that subway hero last year who jumped into the tracks and pulled a man out? No, McCarthy did not do that but he did something that was physically possible for any human being. Personally, I cannot pull a man from the subway tracks but I can certain flail my arms in an attempt to stop a moving train.

Not to preach from the Coplin camp of "do good," but even the simplest acts of good deeds can benefit others greatly. You may not have food to spare to a homeless man or the audacity to stop a moving subway but acts like holding the door, giving up a seat on a bus, or simply saying "thank you," these are things that everyone can do.

Going Down the List of New Year's Resolution

One of my New Year's resolution was to create a blog to share my thoughts, interests, and encounters. It will also serve as outlet for procrastination (like this exact moment). The title of this blog translates into "Bonnie's words" and is a play on "bon mot," which as a title was already taken (along "bonsmots," "les bons mots" and every other variation of it). So here's my blog and I promise to update it as often as I can.