I have a bad, bad habit...
...I love tweaking folks in the forums. Not the comic forums, but the national news and sports forums. New York Times, Washington Post, other areas where I can occasionally cut loose with the kind of sideways thinking I can do.
Here's an example... this was from the ESPN forum on Wright Thompson's recent article about India's best known and most popular cricket player, and the hopes of their country pinned on his success starting tomorrow morning.
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Whether it is our nature in this country to pay little attention to events outside of our borders, or because of our intentional isolationism that has been bred into the majority of Americans, articles like this one from Wright Thompson help to try and illuminate a small light on cultures and lifestyles that are difficult for most Americans to understand. I am an American but one whose upbringing and education included exposure to such cultures at an early age. Back in that time, shortwave radio was the medium which brought the sounds of South Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia to a backyard in New Orleans, and with those sounds a curiosity in those cultures. Along with those sounds would come the broadcasts of cricket matches, World Cup style football and other events just as we export our Super Bowl and World Series events.
Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore and other cities are as different to us as New Orleans, Tuscaloosa or Atlanta would be to the average Indian resident. We see the poverty that exists in their country while at the same time ignoring our own poverty that exists alongside our own hopes and dreams. But in many respects, the dreams are the same... to grow up out of poverty, excel in some arena (be it sports, science, politics) and make a name for themselves. Sachin Tendulkar is no different than Drew Brees, Reggie Bush or Cam Newton, trying to make their name in the sports pantheon. But win or lose, he already has made a mark to many others.
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I'm terrible, I know. *gryn*
Here's an example... this was from the ESPN forum on Wright Thompson's recent article about India's best known and most popular cricket player, and the hopes of their country pinned on his success starting tomorrow morning.
---
Whether it is our nature in this country to pay little attention to events outside of our borders, or because of our intentional isolationism that has been bred into the majority of Americans, articles like this one from Wright Thompson help to try and illuminate a small light on cultures and lifestyles that are difficult for most Americans to understand. I am an American but one whose upbringing and education included exposure to such cultures at an early age. Back in that time, shortwave radio was the medium which brought the sounds of South Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia to a backyard in New Orleans, and with those sounds a curiosity in those cultures. Along with those sounds would come the broadcasts of cricket matches, World Cup style football and other events just as we export our Super Bowl and World Series events.
Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore and other cities are as different to us as New Orleans, Tuscaloosa or Atlanta would be to the average Indian resident. We see the poverty that exists in their country while at the same time ignoring our own poverty that exists alongside our own hopes and dreams. But in many respects, the dreams are the same... to grow up out of poverty, excel in some arena (be it sports, science, politics) and make a name for themselves. Sachin Tendulkar is no different than Drew Brees, Reggie Bush or Cam Newton, trying to make their name in the sports pantheon. But win or lose, he already has made a mark to many others.
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I'm terrible, I know. *gryn*