The rally at President Nichol’s house was a great success, with approximately 1500 to 2000 students and faculty showing their support for their leader, and saying their last farewells. I’ll let the video do the explaining for now. :)
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Let Them Hark upon the Gale
On Tuesday morning, approximately 9:45 am, President Nichol of the College of William and Mary announced his resignation in an email sent out to the student and faculty. This news sent shockwaves throughout the student body who had most enthusiastically supported Nichol in the controversial decision that the Board of Visitors had been discussing under the protection of closed doors. According to the TransWorld News, four decisions led to the final decisions of the Board of Visitors, led by Michael K Powell:
“His decision to remove the Wren cross, his refusal to ban the Sex Workers’ Art Show, his support of the College’s Gateway Program and his commitment to the College’s faculty diversity.”
All of the four decisions made by President Nichol were justified in his e-mail sent to everyone in the college to read. He justified the removal of the Wren cross, saying that he was advocating the separation of church and state, and at the same time voicing the opinion of the numerous religious groups in campus, such as the Hindus, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Sikhs, etc. making them more comfortable in a college that set its goals to diversify the student community.
The Sex Workers’ Art Show was defended by the argument of the freedom of speech, which defends the program which is completely student-run and student-funded. Asking what right he has as the college authority to suppress the voices of the student body that has put in the effort to make the program happen. However, apparently, freedom of speech is one of the hardest ideas to defend in this country, as it has always been involved in controversy in recent times.
Third, President Nichol has been criticized and eventually been forced to resign due to his financial Gateway program for students who come from fairly poor households. In his efforts to reach out to the young and talented students who are also held down by financial inadequacy, President Nichol has gone under heavy fire by the rich, white, social elite who cannot imagine the idea of giving poor intellectuals the financial support to succeed.
Speaking of rich white elites, Nichol’s fourth act that has pushed the BOV to discontinue Nichols contract was his decision to broaden the College’s diversity. William and Mary has always been known to be a small and, more noticeably, homogeneous college, consisting of mostly middle to high class white students enjoying the seclusion from the inferior minorities of different cultures and history. Those were the good old days, weren’t they?
To defend their own names, the BOV sent an email to the William and Mary community following President Nichol saying that their decision was “not based on ideology”. Rather, they decided that the further progress of the college required the removal of Gene Nichols. Yet, it seems rather ironic that the BOV removed an active president, always in search of new programs and ideas for the sake of progress, and the betterment of the community. By progress, do they mean status quo? Because it seems like what Powell was saying was that the College needs to return to its original path and stop involving itself in its diversity mumbo-jumbo.
“ Many policies championed by President Nichol are fully embraced by the Board. We agree unflinchingly with the President’s efforts to make William and Mary a more diverse educational environment.”
Yeah right. After President Nichol refused to accept a financial bribe by the BOV to keep quiet, I find it hard to believe anything that comes out of these hypocrites’ mouths.
“I add only that, on Sunday, the Board of Visitors offered both my wife and me substantial economic incentives if we would agree “not to characterize [the non-renewal decision] as based on ideological grounds” or make any other statement about my departure without their approval.”
-President Nichol
“His achievements in this area will be the most enduring part of his legacy.”
-Michael Powell
We can now see that it is a legacy gladly ended by the Board of Advisors.
Also, the student of the College of William and Mary will hold a rally in front of President Nichol's house in support of him and their absolute disgust at the Board of Visitors' decision. Please be there! Updates will come soon. I will have videos from the rally :D
“His decision to remove the Wren cross, his refusal to ban the Sex Workers’ Art Show, his support of the College’s Gateway Program and his commitment to the College’s faculty diversity.”
All of the four decisions made by President Nichol were justified in his e-mail sent to everyone in the college to read. He justified the removal of the Wren cross, saying that he was advocating the separation of church and state, and at the same time voicing the opinion of the numerous religious groups in campus, such as the Hindus, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists, Sikhs, etc. making them more comfortable in a college that set its goals to diversify the student community.
The Sex Workers’ Art Show was defended by the argument of the freedom of speech, which defends the program which is completely student-run and student-funded. Asking what right he has as the college authority to suppress the voices of the student body that has put in the effort to make the program happen. However, apparently, freedom of speech is one of the hardest ideas to defend in this country, as it has always been involved in controversy in recent times.
Third, President Nichol has been criticized and eventually been forced to resign due to his financial Gateway program for students who come from fairly poor households. In his efforts to reach out to the young and talented students who are also held down by financial inadequacy, President Nichol has gone under heavy fire by the rich, white, social elite who cannot imagine the idea of giving poor intellectuals the financial support to succeed.
Speaking of rich white elites, Nichol’s fourth act that has pushed the BOV to discontinue Nichols contract was his decision to broaden the College’s diversity. William and Mary has always been known to be a small and, more noticeably, homogeneous college, consisting of mostly middle to high class white students enjoying the seclusion from the inferior minorities of different cultures and history. Those were the good old days, weren’t they?
To defend their own names, the BOV sent an email to the William and Mary community following President Nichol saying that their decision was “not based on ideology”. Rather, they decided that the further progress of the college required the removal of Gene Nichols. Yet, it seems rather ironic that the BOV removed an active president, always in search of new programs and ideas for the sake of progress, and the betterment of the community. By progress, do they mean status quo? Because it seems like what Powell was saying was that the College needs to return to its original path and stop involving itself in its diversity mumbo-jumbo.
“ Many policies championed by President Nichol are fully embraced by the Board. We agree unflinchingly with the President’s efforts to make William and Mary a more diverse educational environment.”
Yeah right. After President Nichol refused to accept a financial bribe by the BOV to keep quiet, I find it hard to believe anything that comes out of these hypocrites’ mouths.
“I add only that, on Sunday, the Board of Visitors offered both my wife and me substantial economic incentives if we would agree “not to characterize [the non-renewal decision] as based on ideological grounds” or make any other statement about my departure without their approval.”
-President Nichol
“His achievements in this area will be the most enduring part of his legacy.”
-Michael Powell
We can now see that it is a legacy gladly ended by the Board of Advisors.
Also, the student of the College of William and Mary will hold a rally in front of President Nichol's house in support of him and their absolute disgust at the Board of Visitors' decision. Please be there! Updates will come soon. I will have videos from the rally :D
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Math/Sci High School Convocation Speech
This year, after all the college stuff was done, everybody asked me what I was planning to major in. When I told them I am thinking about a double major in international relations and philosophy, with minors in Chinese and Russian, they all made a funny face and repeated, "philosophy?" Honestly, what do all of you think of when you hear the word, philosophy? Well, when all the people I knew started to question my decision to major in such a seemingly old and useless subject, I became doubtful and decided to figure out what the word actually meant. Now, according to dictionary.reference.com/browse/philosophy, the word means the rational investigation of the truths and principles of being, knowledge, or conduct. So what does it all mean? Truths? principles of being, knowledge, or conduct?I still don’t know. It still sounds like gibberish to me, and apparently, to everybody else as well. So what I'm going to talk about today is how I became interested in philosophy, and how that has shaped my opinion of the world and my purpose by deriving all of this from what I believe is a philosophical approach to the concept of truth and reality. Now, I'm not up here advertising for any philosophy classes, especially for Mr. Fout's new Philosophy/Bioethics class next year open for all of you interested in humanity and the progress of human thought. (By the way, if any of you see Mr. Fout today, please remind him to leave the check in my locker by this afternoon.)
I first took interest in philosophy in my AP Euro class last year, when we were going over late 19th and early 20th century western thoughts, such as those of Sigmund Freud and Friedrich Nietzsche. Now, I'm pretty sure that everybody who has met me know that I'm quite a Nietzsche fan, just like the guy from Little Miss Sunshine. To tell you the truth, I wouldn't even have been interested in philosophy itself if I hadn't seen the picture of Nietzsche in the AP Euro textbook. I mean, look at that mustache! I would grow mine out like that, if only I had facial hair. So when I first saw this amazing picture, I decided to go to Barnes and Nobles and check it out, thinking, "What in the world would drive a man to grow out his mustache like that?" Of course, later on I found out that he went crazy in his thirties and the mustache was the result of his sister's negligence... or maybe her own, I don’t know, amusement. Anyways, starting with the short segment in the textbook, I learned about Nietzsche's idea of master and slave morality. The Ubermensch, the Untermensch, and the Last Man. I learned about the concept of God in society, and the nihilism of postmodern values as a result of the evolution and power struggles of religions. Later on, I moved onto his books, and carried them around. And I'll admit it. I liked the fact that carrying around philosophy books made me look smarter than I really am. But hey, Machiavelli wouldn’t have had a problem with that.
So how does the world and my view of it fit into all of this? German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer once said, "the world is my invention." It seems that the one idea that modern philosophers have emphasized over the years is the idea that life is not reality, and that universal truth does not exist. Without perspective, without perception, there is no life, only existence. And mere existence is never sufficient to provide meaning, and what good is a life without meaning? With that statement, I would like to implore you to think even further by saying that there exist no children dying of hunger and malnutrition in this world if they do not already exist in your minds, and for most of us here, they do not. They are merely words and images that are buried in the deepest crevices of our brains, the cancerous root, the darkness of our souls that we call apathy. Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “Out of damp and gloomy days, out of solitude, out of loveless words directed at us, conclusions grow up in us like fungus: one morning they are there, we know not how, and they gaze upon us, morose and gray. Woe to the thinker who is not the gardener but only the soil of the plants that grow in him.” You have decided to attend this school as Math and Science scholars, but only in title. The goal of this institution, the goal of any academic organization is to create thinkers; to create the leaders of this generation; and most of all, to create individuals. The common belief among the students here in Math/Sci is that there is a Math/Sci student stereotype to fall into, or more likely, to avoid. Yet our mission is to create the Math/Sci image from within ourselves. There are no rules, there are no guidelines to life. Society, laws, and rules, are all meant to be broken down to make way for the new and better ones. This is known as progress. Thus, you have to take up the responsibility to create your own morals; to make your own values blossom out of your education. And for that, you must be diligent gardeners, never afraid of hard work to weed out the negative influence of a gray, uncaring, and apathetic world, and to create your own truths and realities by nurturing your mind.
Now we come to the question of where you and I fall into the equation. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 21st Century. Welcome to the pinnacle of Capitalist Democracy. There is a famous saying, that states, "history repeats itself." Yet, I am sure that Mr. Loret and others in this school like me, can disagree. By taking a look back into philosophy, I find the quote, "Once spirit was God, then it became man, and now it is even becoming mob." Friedrich Nietzsche again. But what does he mean!? The spirit is becoming mob. Reading that, I can't help but to think about this idea of popular culture and mainstream media. This is the age of globalization. Where the world becomes smaller, and the individual becomes more impersonal. Furthermore, this is the age of information. Maybe too much information, where the verbosity of self-proclaimed experts sway the general public back and forth like a pendulum without purpose or meaning. Politics, government, even day-to-day living... they are inane and senseless when there are no individuals stern enough to hold their grounds and their values, only to be swept away by the momentum of this mob. Therefore, I challenge you, along with myself, to be the gardeners of your own lives, and not just the soil. To be fertile for all ideas, yet wise enough to weed out the harmful ones. And lastly, I will leave you with this advice: Do not let the jungle of society overtake your lives, your morals, and your values that you have created and will further create for yourself through your dedication as pupils, the gardeners, of wisdom and life.
I first took interest in philosophy in my AP Euro class last year, when we were going over late 19th and early 20th century western thoughts, such as those of Sigmund Freud and Friedrich Nietzsche. Now, I'm pretty sure that everybody who has met me know that I'm quite a Nietzsche fan, just like the guy from Little Miss Sunshine. To tell you the truth, I wouldn't even have been interested in philosophy itself if I hadn't seen the picture of Nietzsche in the AP Euro textbook. I mean, look at that mustache! I would grow mine out like that, if only I had facial hair. So when I first saw this amazing picture, I decided to go to Barnes and Nobles and check it out, thinking, "What in the world would drive a man to grow out his mustache like that?" Of course, later on I found out that he went crazy in his thirties and the mustache was the result of his sister's negligence... or maybe her own, I don’t know, amusement. Anyways, starting with the short segment in the textbook, I learned about Nietzsche's idea of master and slave morality. The Ubermensch, the Untermensch, and the Last Man. I learned about the concept of God in society, and the nihilism of postmodern values as a result of the evolution and power struggles of religions. Later on, I moved onto his books, and carried them around. And I'll admit it. I liked the fact that carrying around philosophy books made me look smarter than I really am. But hey, Machiavelli wouldn’t have had a problem with that.
So how does the world and my view of it fit into all of this? German philosopher, Arthur Schopenhauer once said, "the world is my invention." It seems that the one idea that modern philosophers have emphasized over the years is the idea that life is not reality, and that universal truth does not exist. Without perspective, without perception, there is no life, only existence. And mere existence is never sufficient to provide meaning, and what good is a life without meaning? With that statement, I would like to implore you to think even further by saying that there exist no children dying of hunger and malnutrition in this world if they do not already exist in your minds, and for most of us here, they do not. They are merely words and images that are buried in the deepest crevices of our brains, the cancerous root, the darkness of our souls that we call apathy. Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “Out of damp and gloomy days, out of solitude, out of loveless words directed at us, conclusions grow up in us like fungus: one morning they are there, we know not how, and they gaze upon us, morose and gray. Woe to the thinker who is not the gardener but only the soil of the plants that grow in him.” You have decided to attend this school as Math and Science scholars, but only in title. The goal of this institution, the goal of any academic organization is to create thinkers; to create the leaders of this generation; and most of all, to create individuals. The common belief among the students here in Math/Sci is that there is a Math/Sci student stereotype to fall into, or more likely, to avoid. Yet our mission is to create the Math/Sci image from within ourselves. There are no rules, there are no guidelines to life. Society, laws, and rules, are all meant to be broken down to make way for the new and better ones. This is known as progress. Thus, you have to take up the responsibility to create your own morals; to make your own values blossom out of your education. And for that, you must be diligent gardeners, never afraid of hard work to weed out the negative influence of a gray, uncaring, and apathetic world, and to create your own truths and realities by nurturing your mind.
Now we come to the question of where you and I fall into the equation. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 21st Century. Welcome to the pinnacle of Capitalist Democracy. There is a famous saying, that states, "history repeats itself." Yet, I am sure that Mr. Loret and others in this school like me, can disagree. By taking a look back into philosophy, I find the quote, "Once spirit was God, then it became man, and now it is even becoming mob." Friedrich Nietzsche again. But what does he mean!? The spirit is becoming mob. Reading that, I can't help but to think about this idea of popular culture and mainstream media. This is the age of globalization. Where the world becomes smaller, and the individual becomes more impersonal. Furthermore, this is the age of information. Maybe too much information, where the verbosity of self-proclaimed experts sway the general public back and forth like a pendulum without purpose or meaning. Politics, government, even day-to-day living... they are inane and senseless when there are no individuals stern enough to hold their grounds and their values, only to be swept away by the momentum of this mob. Therefore, I challenge you, along with myself, to be the gardeners of your own lives, and not just the soil. To be fertile for all ideas, yet wise enough to weed out the harmful ones. And lastly, I will leave you with this advice: Do not let the jungle of society overtake your lives, your morals, and your values that you have created and will further create for yourself through your dedication as pupils, the gardeners, of wisdom and life.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
