(no subject)
I'm making myself bacon cheeseburger meatloaf for dinner, and it's making me feel alarmingly Midwestern.
I have one week of classes left, and I have to say, it was a semester of very minimal effort, and the idea of starting a full semester in a few short weeks is in no way taxing, but really exciting. I'm only taking one political science class, and thank Christ- it's not a theory class, but a political statistics and survey research class. Lately, I have been craving something more concrete in my field. Of late, I have discovered that I really have very little figured out in the public policy arena anymore. The once social democrat, is beginning to feel more and more like a raging libertarian as the days go by. And its all because of the nature v. nurture argument.
Economic policy hinges far too much on human behavior, and the fact that there are an infinite number of variables that affect human behavior, to come to a rational policy decision that would benefit even a small majority of constituents is, well, impossible. I have no idea what I really believe anymore about welfare, affirmative action, environmental policy, defense issues, etc. You really can't help everyone, and its making me feel helpless.
I was talking to Mama Orr about this. She is a retired social worker of 20 years and she is usually a good person to talk to about things like this. She recited to me her mantra she used as a social worker, "I can't do everything, but everyday I can do something."
It seems like the only things I still have figured out anymore are my views on social issues, and thats obvious because they actually are more or less emotional states. So I am going to start volunteering at one of the local women's clinics here in Gainesville called Bread and Roses, and hopefully it will be something that can impassion me again.
I need something that I can see to believe in.
I have one week of classes left, and I have to say, it was a semester of very minimal effort, and the idea of starting a full semester in a few short weeks is in no way taxing, but really exciting. I'm only taking one political science class, and thank Christ- it's not a theory class, but a political statistics and survey research class. Lately, I have been craving something more concrete in my field. Of late, I have discovered that I really have very little figured out in the public policy arena anymore. The once social democrat, is beginning to feel more and more like a raging libertarian as the days go by. And its all because of the nature v. nurture argument.
Economic policy hinges far too much on human behavior, and the fact that there are an infinite number of variables that affect human behavior, to come to a rational policy decision that would benefit even a small majority of constituents is, well, impossible. I have no idea what I really believe anymore about welfare, affirmative action, environmental policy, defense issues, etc. You really can't help everyone, and its making me feel helpless.
I was talking to Mama Orr about this. She is a retired social worker of 20 years and she is usually a good person to talk to about things like this. She recited to me her mantra she used as a social worker, "I can't do everything, but everyday I can do something."
It seems like the only things I still have figured out anymore are my views on social issues, and thats obvious because they actually are more or less emotional states. So I am going to start volunteering at one of the local women's clinics here in Gainesville called Bread and Roses, and hopefully it will be something that can impassion me again.
I need something that I can see to believe in.