This is me!!!

2007-09-22T14:13:00.001-07:00

The dreamt vacation (Part III)

It was a rainy blowing day. It was 27th December. It was the day. We were all exciting at the local airport. We had to fly to Bs As, where we would take our flight to Europe. When we arrived at Bs As, the sun was shining and it was a hot day. We all were happy, but unfortunately it lasted a few hours because our teacher told us that we had to wait until the following day to take the flight since our plane was broken.
The company was in charge of our accommodation, meals and calls. We stayed in a comfortable and warmly hotel. The hotel was near “peatonal Florida”, so we decided to go out and know that famous place which is full of shops, we also went to “Puerto Maderos”, Obelisco, and Cabildo. The day was almost to finish, we had dinner and went to bed because the following day was the day!
It was 28th December. It was 6: 30 when the telephone rang; it was our “alarm clock”. We had a bath and got our luggage down stairs. Then we had our breakfast. At 8 o’clock our mini bus arrived it would take us to the International Airport of Ezeiza.
We wait for HOURS, until a soft and gentle voice said that we had to check in. We were so exciting; I couldn’t believe that in few hours we were to be in Europe.
As I got into the plane, a lady welcomed and indicated what my seat was.

2007-09-22T14:12:00.001-07:00

The dreamt vacation (Part II)

We had the date of our departure, so we-students- had to arrange every document required to travel abroad. I made the procedure in order to get my passport six month before, but something was wrong, all my documents had been lost at the police station; and in two weeks we were suppose to be in Ireland. I can’t explain how my heart was, the whole dream of being in Europe was vanishing at same time as the police officer told me “sorry, you have to make the procedure again, it will take two weeks to get the passport.” When I arrived home, my parents saw my depress face, and they could infer that something happened. My parents had worked so hard to save the money for the journey that they decided to not renounce to this. A few days after this incident, my mother and I traveled to Capital federal to obtain the passport. It was said that there the procedure was more quickly and it would take only a few days. Fortunately, it was true.

2007-09-22T14:10:00.000-07:00

The dreamt vacation (Part I)

Have you ever dream with the perfect vacation? Ten years have passed since I first traveled abroad and I had the chance to experience the most beautiful vacation that have ever imagined. I was only 17 years old when my parents gave me the most precious gift, a journey to Ireland.
One day, as I was at class, our English teacher told us about her project of forming a group of students to travel to Ireland in order to attend an English course. As soon as I heard this news, I could picture into my mind how amazing it would be. So, I told my parents about the meeting that my teacher has arranged to inform about the journey; and they agreed to go to the reunion, I couldn’t believe it. From that moment after the meeting, many parents and students worked together to get money for the journey. Almost ten months have passed when we get the sufficient amount of money to pay for our course and accommodation. When one day our teacher said that she already had the date for our departure, it was the December 27th, 1996.

2007-09-06T11:11:00.000-07:00

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6546209.stm
A survey is suggesting that only a tiny minority of us are getting eight hours' sleep a night. But do we really need that much?

Vocabulary:

Injuction: An injunction is a court order, usually one telling someone not to do something. (LEGAL)

Nutshell: You can use in a nutshell to indicate that you are saying something in a very brief way, using few words.

Loll: If you loll somewhere, you sit or lie in a very relaxed position.

Drool: To drool over someone or something means to look at them with great pleasure, perhaps in an exaggerated or ridiculous way.

Disrupt: If someone or something disrupts an event, system, or process, they cause difficulties that prevent it from continuing or operating in a normal way.

Brood: If someone broods over something, they think about it a lot, seriously and often unhappily.

Main Ideas:

Sleep is an essential part of everybody’s life.
The average of sleep depends on each person necessities.
Sleeping eight hours a day is taken as a false value.
Lack of sleeping affects people’s everyday activities.
Sleeping hours depend on factors of health, stress or fatigue.

Personal reaction:
Every day activities and working hours became the centre of attention to most of the people. Moreover, the aim of reaching a high economic standard of life maintains people busier than previous years. Occupations and business take out all of their energy and health. So, in order to success people devote to their jobs and studies, more than fourteen hours a day. Actually, there are people who sleep only five to six hours per day reducing their resting time. However, they say that time is enough for them to get a good performance. Taking everything into account, I would say that sleeping is an essential activity that people need accomplish to survive; otherwise our body would start working improperly giving signs of a weak health.

2007-09-05T15:27:00.000-07:00

http://www.guardian.co.uk/monarchy/story/0,,2162941,00.html

Vocabulary:

Inquest:1.
a legal or judicial inquiry, usually before a jury, esp. an investigation made by a coroner into the cause of a death.

2.
the body of people appointed to hold such an inquiry, esp. a coroner's jury.

3.
the decision or finding based on such inquiry.

4.
an investigation or examination.

un·der·pass : a passage running underneath, esp. a passage for pedestrians or vehicles, or both, crossing under a railroad, road, etc.

re·mark To express briefly and casually as a comment.
To take notice of; observe. See Synonyms at see1.
head·ing
something that serves as a head, top, or front.
Embalm:To treat (a corpse) with preservatives in order to prevent decay.

Main Ideas:
The inquest jury examining the death of Diana will be taken to the scene of the fatal crash in Paris.
the jury will hear scene-setting evidence and be given maps and photos, before heading to Paris.
The inquest would then focus on the embalming of Diana's body, the post-mortem examination, events earlier in the day she died.

Personal Reaction:
privacy is a topic which frequently generates a great deal of heated debates with supporters who maintain that there is nothing wrong in providing people with information about people whilst opponents to this view claim that privacy is an inalienable right which every single person should nor be deprived of. taking into consideration one of the most shocked incidents in which a person came across death is simple unacceptable.

2007-09-05T12:51:00.000-07:00

Abortion Under Siege in Latin America
Thursday, Aug. 09, 2007 By JEAN FRIEDMAN-RUDOVSKY/LA PAZ

The remarkable comeback by leftist political parties in Latin America in recent years has been accompanied by moves to roll back the region's abortion laws, widely considered some of the world's most restrictive. Mexico City's leftist-dominated legislature legalized first-trimester abortions earlier this year, while Chile's socialist President, Michele Bachelet, allows government-run hospitals to dispense the "morning-after" emergency contraception pill.
Elsewhere, however, it might seem as if a paradox was being played out: Instead of benefiting from the advance of the left, pro-choice advocates appear to be facing more setbacks. Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega, whose Sandinista Front was once an icon of the hemispheric left, backed a 2006 law that outlaws all abortions, even where a doctor would recommend the procedure to save a mother's life. In Venezuela — led by the self-styled commandante of "21st-century socialism," President Hugo Chavez — efforts to decriminalize abortion have stalled. And, perhaps as early as this fall, Bolivia's new constitution, which is being drafted largely by those aligned with Chavez's ally, President Evo Morales, may well proclaim "the right to life from the moment of conception," rendering all abortions illegal without exception. (Abortion in the case of rape or to save a mother's life has been legal in Bolivia since 1973.) Far from advancing abortion rights, "the goal right now," says Paul Bustillos, political director for Catholics For the Right to Choose (CDD) in Bolivia, "is just to maintain the status quo."
"Status quo" was hardly the promise of a political movement that has put the screws on multinational energy corporations, shifted billions of dollars to social projects for the poor and, especially in Chavez's case, hurled a stream of anti-imperialist epithets at the U.S. With firebrands like Chavez and Morales in power, some were hoping for a continental breakthrough on reproductive rights. Yet while positions on abortion rights have been a clear marker between left and right on the U.S. political spectrum, the situation is quite different in Latin America, where the left declines, for various national, cultural and religious reasons, to make "the revolution" pro-choice.
Bolivia is a case in point. As many as 80,000 abortions are performed each year in a country of less than 9 million people, giving it one of the world's highest abortion rates — but most abortions are clandestine, especially among poorer women who can't afford the $150 fee to undergo the safe, no-questions-asked abortions available through some medical facilities. Such underground procedures are the third leading cause of maternal mortality in the country. Yet there is no record of any doctors or patients involved being prosecuted. "I was all alone," says one Bolivian woman who paid about $50 for a back-alley abortion a few years ago. The abortionist "numbed that part of my body and then he did something to make it come out of me right there into the toilet."
Despite awareness of such horror stories, says Julieta Ojeda of the Bolivian feminist group Women Creating, "if you ask the average person in the street, they will probably say they are against" liberalizing abortion laws. Some abortion-rights activists attribute this to such factors as the moral influence of the Church, which has helped convince leftist parties such as Morales' Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) to trade away abortion rights proposals for concessions in areas such as economic reform. Others see it as another sign that the "new" Latin American left has not shed the macho attitudes of its forebears and their tendency to relegate women's issues to the sidelines.
But there are other factors behind the Latin American left's ambivalence on reproductive rights. One is a widespread tendency in the developing world to associate abortion rights, like gay rights, with an imperialist agenda of the industrialized world. That's especially true in countries such as Bolivia, whose indigenous majority suffered foreign cultural, political and economic bullying for five centuries before Morales, himself an Aymara Indian, was elected. Western feminism has had a condescending habit of treating Bolivia's indigenous cultures as backward, without trying to understand the nuances of their outlook on issues like abortion — a word that doesn't even exist in most of the country's Indian languages.
Abortion, in fact, is referred to in indigenous Bolivia as "bad birth." The procedure is, indeed, performed in rural communities, normally with herbal formulas; but it's frowned upon because it's believed to create imbalances in nature. Women who do abort, for example, are ritually cleansed afterward. As a result, there is little enthusiasm in the indigenous communities for legally sanctifying abortion with a raised fist and a NOW button.
But pro-choice advocates such as the CDD's Bustillos hope that indigenous leaders and other pro-Morales forces in Bolivia will agree that the latest anti-abortion proposal goes too far. "Once delegates [to the Constitutional Assembly] realize the implications of the 'conception' clause, like outlawing abortions even if a 12-year-old is raped," says Bustillos, "they'll come around," as Colombia's high court did last year when it decriminalized abortion in such cases. The stakes are high — over 400 women die each year from botched abortions in Bolivia, and there is concern that the number will rise if the conception clause passes. Still, unless pro-choice advocates come up with fresher, more culturally aware tactics for their work in Latin America, "coming around" will simply mean standing in place.

Vocabulary:

If you describe someone, their ideals, or their activities as leftist, you mean that they support the ideas of socialism or communism.

Something that is restrictive prevents people from doing what they want to do, or from moving freely.

If someone dispenses something that they own or control, they give or provide it to a number of people. (FORMAL)

You describe a situation as a paradox when it involves two or more facts or qualities which seem to contradict each other.

A setback is an event that delays your progress or reverses some of the progress that you have made.

A siege is a military or police operation in which soldiers or police surround a place in order to force the people there to come out or give up control of the place.

If you describe someone as a firebrand, especially someone who is very active in politics, you mean that they are always trying to make people take strong action.

If you botch something that you are doing, you do it badly or clumsily. (INFORMAL)

Main ideas:

The leftist political parties in Latin moves to roll back the region's abortion laws, widely considered some of the worlds most restrictive.

Personal Reaction:

Abortion is one of the most difficult issues to discuss, since it involves the life of a person who has not chosen to come to live, the baby; and a person who has had chance to live and is the responsible of an unborn person’s life. The fact of being pregnant would mean one of the most beautiful moments in a woman life. However, there are women who prefer not to have the baby for different circumstances, depriving the baby the opportunity of living.

2007-09-05T12:26:00.000-07:00

Hooked on McDonald's at Age 3
Monday, Aug. 06, 2007 By ALICE PARK

The lure of McDonald's golden arches may take hold at a startlingly early age, according to the latest study on the effects of branding on young children published in the August issue of the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Principio del formulario
Researchers at Stanford University found that children as young as three years old responded to the fast food chain's familiar logo and packaging, saying that they preferred the taste of food coming out of McDonald's bags to the taste of the same food items emerging from plain paper bags. The scientists asked 63 children between the ages of three and five to participate in more than 104 taste tests with some of McDonald's most popular items — including a hamburger, French fries and chicken nuggets. On average, 48% of the kids said they preferred the taste of the McDonald's labeled hamburger, compared with 37% who preferred the unmarked burger; 59% liked the McDonald's branded chicken nuggets compared with 18% for the unbranded nuggets, and 77% said the French fries in the bag stamped with the McDonald's arches and a smile tasted better than the fries from a plain white bag.
Parents and child advocacy groups have long maintained that advertising targeted to children can be harmful, since young minds are not able to distinguish truth from advertising. By age two, say the Stanford researchers, children can already form beliefs about brands, and advertising during children's television programming, or through other media accessed by youngsters, further solidifies their ability to distinguish brand names, logos and packaging. Not surprisingly, in the Stanford study, kids with more access to television in their homes, and those who owned more toys from McDonald's were more likely to say the branded foods were tastier.
"Children under the age of seven or eight really do not have the ability to understand the persuasive intent of advertising and marketing," says Dr. Thomas Robinson, an associate professor of pediatrics at Stanford University and lead author of the study, "so the justification for marketing, which is to inform a consumer, doesn't really hold for them, because they can't understand that advertising is biased."
In a written statement responding to the study, McDonald's spokesman Walt Riker said that the fast food chain "is only advertising Happy Meals with white meat McNuggets, fresh apple slices and lowfat milk," and that the company's recent promotion linked to the popular animated movie Shrek was McDonald's "biggest-ever promotion of fruits, vegetables, and milk — another indication of our progressive approach to responsible marketing."
While commendable, says Robinson, it's hardly enough. He argues that there should be no advertising at all aimed at children under the age of eight, even if it could be harnessed to teach kids about healthy eating habits. In fact, Robinson's own study hinted at such a possibility — two of the five items the kids tasted were healthy, baby carrots and milk — and the children still liked the taste of these items more when they were presented in McDonald's packaging than when they were offered in unmarked containers. But, says Robinson, "If healthful foods still represent the minority of choices available, then [McDonald's] will continue to promote the consumption of the junk foods that kids have been eating."
Dr. Victor Strasburger, professor of pediatrics at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, says "using advertising in a positive way just doesn't sit right with me. It's Orwellian. To put it bluntly, advertising to children under the age of seven or eight is electronic child abuse. I think we ought to leave kids who are under seven or eight out of all advertising."
In response to the growing obesity problem in the U.S., companies including McDonald's, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Kellogg, and Kraft created the Children's Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative last year to self-regulate the $10 billion worth of food and beverage messages they aim at young children each year. The initiative pledges to promote healthy lifestyles for youngsters by giving them healthier food and drink choices. It's a good start, says Robinson. "So far we have seen baby steps toward improving menus," he says, "but it remains to be seen whether these companies will follow through on their promises. If the fast-food industry were to start including more healthful foods in their menus, so that the majority of the foods were healthful, then they could have a very important effect on improving the diets of children," says Robinson. And on proving that there might be such a thing as truth in advertising.

Vocabulary:

To lure someone means to trick them into a particular place or to trick them into doing something that they should not do.

An arched bridge has arches as part of its structure.

A nugget is a small lump of something, especially gold.

Someone's advocacy of a particular action or plan is their act of recommending it publicly. (FORMAL)

Junk is old and used goods that have little value and that you do not want any more.

If you are blunt, you say exactly what you think without trying to be polite.

When someone makes a pledge, they make a serious promise that they will do something.

Main Ideas:

Researchers found that children as young as three years old responded to the fast food chain's familiar logo and packaging.
Young minds are not able to distinguish truth from advertising.
Children can already form beliefs about brands, and advertising during children's television programming.

Personal Reaction:

While I was reading this article, I thought about my little nieces who are always asking for expensive things that are published on channels intended for young children. It’s terrific how the advertisements may influence on people, especially kids. The advertisements of junk food should be banned since children are influenced by colorful packed and the different gifts that they offer in order to persuade children. However, I strongly believe that parents should be aware of this since they are the responsible of their children’s health.

2007-09-05T11:43:00.001-07:00

http://toddlerstoday.com/resources/articles/lefthand.htm

Vocabulary:

Someone who is left-handed uses their left hand rather than their right hand for activities such as writing and sports and for picking things up.

A clumsy person moves or handles things in a careless, awkward way, often so that things are knocked over or broken.

Someone who does freelance work or who is, for example, a freelance journalist or photographer is not employed by one organization, but is paid for each piece of work they do by the organization they do it for. (BUSINESS)

If you strive to do something or strive for something, you make a great effort to do it or get it.

A task is an activity or piece of work which you have to do, usually as part of a larger project.

Shoelaces are long, narrow pieces of material like pieces of string that you use to fasten your shoes.

Main ideas:

One in every 10 people is left-handed, and males are one and a half times more. likely to be left-handed then females.
Genes that manifest their trait one out of every 10 chances.
In past societies, there was no sympathy for left-handed persons.
Most tools, utensils, office equipment and dishes are made for the right-handed person.
Myths related to left-handed children.

Personal Reaction:

As a left-hander, this article caught my attention. I would say that it is true that most things in our world are for right-handers, and regarding this it could be said that it is a way of discrimination. It is also truth that there are many myths related to left-handers which could be true or not, as Lefties are More Apt for Creative Genius, Lefties are More Clumsy. Being left-handed is not a curse, but we have to accustom to this right-handed world.

2007-09-05T11:41:00.000-07:00

Why it is known as Feng Shui?
Can Feng Shui Change Our Life?
Feng Shui is the secular name for KanYu. When a person is born into this world, he receives the qi from the universe, and (the qi he receives) is influenced by the strength of the different Five Elements and also by the heavenly stars. The effect is indicated/symbolized in the date of birth, i.e., in the form of year, month, day and hour of birth.
Along our path of life, there are good and bad times, high and low, and we are also affected by our inner thinking, which affects our conduct. The outcome is what we call "human fate".
The fact that a person lives in a particular era or in a particular country, and has different kinds of opportunities, is why even a similar decision made in different circumstances can come to a different outcome. This is what we call "heaven fate" and "earth fate".
Whenever someone is in a down time or bad luck period and wants to improve his or her luck, the first thing to do is to work on the "human fate" to find out what is one's weakness in one's character, temperament or conduct and behavior, in handling matters.
All this can be found from a person's (astrology) chart and can help to improve it (Wilson, what is "it"? The chart?). These are subjective issues. Next, we can cast an eye on the "heaven fate" and "earth fate".
From the Feng Shui of a house, we can tell the heaven luck the residents are having, or the rise and fall of a profession.
Living in a different environment will affect the lifestyle of a person. If a person stays near a high voltage electric sub-station, his life, mind and emotions will be (to certain different degrees) affected by the magnetic field generated by the sub-station.
We need to know and have sufficient knowledge of what is auspicious and inauspicious. That is a lesson in the process of learning Feng Shui.
If we can correctly make use of the knowledge in Feng Shui and apply it, so that the Three Lucks (or Talents) - Heaven, Earth, and Human - are implementing one another; then usually we can promote one's luck to arrive at the state of blessing, longevity, health and tranquility.
(Wilson, I took out the quotes).
But we also need to pay attention to the fact that the ups and downs of one's luck have a congenital factor. It does not matter what kind of method we use to change one's luck. What matters are to enhancing one's good luck and reducing one's bad luck. The changes are limited to certain degree of changes and cannot totally reverse one's situation. Consider the result of an examination: at first, one would normally achieve 70%, but with the help of Feng Shui, one can increase the mark to 90%. Likewise, those that would have achieved 40% can now get 60%. Therefore, even when one has the help of the best Feng Shui practitioner of this world and has carried out all the placements as advised, one still needs work hard and strive to do better. Only then can one attain the ideal achievement.
There are a lot of different schools and sects of Chinese metaphysics and Feng Shui that have been passed down from ancient times but most do not escape from the interactions (generating/controlling cycles) between the Five Elements, and the transformation based on the origin and development of the Eight Gua.
If one wants to expand one's skill in Feng Shui, one can begin from following the below:
Learn the positive and negative aspects of Five Elements, the connotations and changes of the heavenly stem and earthly branch.
Go deep into the knowledge of Early and Later Heavens Ba Gua (also known as Pre-Heaven and Post-Heaven), especially the positioning of the Early and Later Heavens Ba Gua and the numbering of the Early and Later Heavens Ba Gua.
Learn and understand the `internal and external 6 matters' of a house, and how to determine whether they are auspicious or inauspicious. (Wilson, what are the 6 matters? I'd love to know.)
Learn how to deal with the stillness/movement and Yin/Yang inside a house.
Learn the different methods of establishing the facing and qi distributions of a house and their correct application.
Learn the different water methods and their application.
Learn how to identify Sha and to remedy it.
Learn how to assign a life gua to a house gua.
Learn how to calculate heaven luck period and earth luck period.
Learn the placement of special Feng Shui set-up.
Vocabulary:

Secular: You use secular to describe things that have no connection with religion.

Strength: Your strength is the physical energy that you have, which gives you the ability to perform various actions, such as lifting or moving things.

Fate: Fate is a power that some people believe controls and decides everything that happens, in a way that cannot be prevented or changed. You can also refer to the fates.

Era: You can refer to a period of history or a long period of time as an era when you want to draw attention to a particular feature or quality that it has.

Sub-sattion: A substation is a place where high-voltage electricity from power plants is converted to lower-voltage electricity for homes or factories.

Something that is auspicious indicates that success is likely. (FORMAL)

Longevity is long life. (FORMAL)

To enhance something means to improve its value, quality, or attractiveness.

Main ideas:

Feng Shui is the secular name for KanYu.
Along our path of life, there are good and bad times, high and low, and we are also affected by our inner thinking, which affects our conduct
Living in a different environment will affect the lifestyle of a person.
But we also need to pay attention to the fact that the ups and downs of one's luck have a congenital factor

Personal Reaction:

Along our path of life, there are good and bad times, high and low, and we are also affected by our inner thinking, which affects our conduct. The outcome also affects us as some elements that get energy off our bodies and color, as well. It is everywhere and it affects us. It has been proven that color can influence our mood and our memory retention. Color influence seems to generates a given response, but for a short time, sine the over exposure showed to have the opposite effect. For instance, pink/orange curbs violence and blue decreases the heart rate and has a calming effect but only in moderation.

2007-08-13T12:16:00.000-07:00

Being an astrologer…

Astrologer: good morning people! Today we have a positive atmosphere here. I can feel love, peace… I can feel a positive energy in this studio.
Ok, now I’m going to answer some e-mails that the viewers sent me to my e-mail box.
This mail is from Silvia. According to the date of your birth you belong to the sign of Cancer. For this week Cancer should be cautious, since you may sprain your ankle while crossing the street because of the potholes. So, be careful please!!!
Now, let me see… I have another e-mail. This mail is from Felix. Felix, your sign is Capricorn. Your prediction for this weekend is that you should pay attention to your stomach, given that you may have some problem with it because of some beverages. Good luck Felix and take care.
This is the last e-mail…this is from Nicolas. According to the day of your birth your sign is Virgo. Nicolas is wondering how is going to be his holidays. Ok, Nicolas, instead of the trip you have planned all year you’ll be taking a cruise on the Internet surfing to the places you had planned on visiting. Sorry Nicolas, take my advice otherwise you could be stroke by a lightning during a tropical storm. Good fortune, Nicolas!
That’s all for today my beloved readers. See you next week and enjoy your weekend.
Be optimistic and you will have good luck ;)

2007-08-13T11:51:00.000-07:00

Video Games

During the last years the business of video gaming has increased at an imaginable speed. There are video games which are enjoyed by very young children to adults. However, there exist many arguments about this kind of enjoyment, which generates heated debates. It is said that playing video games may hook children, depriving them of enjoying ordinary things as playing football or marvels with their friends. On the other hand, not only kids have fun with video games, but also adults who are called “digital natives”. These people have been playing for years videos games and they teach their children how to do this.

2007-08-13T11:50:00.000-07:00

Abortion

Abortion is one of the most difficult issues to discuss, since it involves the life of a person who has not chosen to come to live, the baby; and a person who has had chance to live and is the responsible of an unborn person’s life. The fact of being pregnant would mean one of the most beautiful moments in a woman life. However, there are women who prefer not to have the baby for different circumstances, depriving the baby the opportunity of living. There is a case of a teenager whose baby has a mental impairment and it is estimated to live only few hours. On the ground of this situation I think that it would be a difficult choice to have an abortion or not. But in my personal opinion I would say that if we have an abortion for each unborn baby who has a disease, is because we –people- have lost our faith and hope that this situation could be changed thank to a divine light or our love for this creature.

2007-08-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

Child slavery

Child slavery is topic that we-people- are obliged to learn since living in the 21st century slavery is unacceptable. No far from home, in Tucumán, there exist many places where you can see children working, depriving them of enjoying their childhood. Children should not be the breadwinners of their homes. Children have the right to learn and play with other children. In my opinion, child slavery is not only a matter of authorities but also parents who sometimes take advantage of their kids in order to obtain some money.

2007-08-13T11:36:00.002-07:00

AIDS prevention possible with Lime Juice?

In the light of this evidence, it is clear that the urge of finding a cure for HIV infection, make people to look for it in unimaginable things in developing countries where there are not health insurance, as in Africa. Most of the methods are not scientifically proven, as citric juice from lime and Lemmon. Unfortunately, African people can no afford methods for preventing HIV infections and is the reason why they use methods which were learnt by means of folk traditions. In my point of view, I believe that there should exist international politics for campaigns which may able to teach how to prevent HIV infections, around the world; since this is an issue that affects all kind of people without making distinction of sex, age, social class and race.

2007-08-13T11:36:00.001-07:00

Giant dinosaur discovered in Argentina

It could be said that the discovery of a giant dinosaur in our lands is amazing, taking into consideration that no governmental organisms funded the research. Fortunately, there exist many societies that help finance this kind of projects. In my opinion, I think that science organizations, as CONICET, should be helped by the national government, given that anthropologists’ researches discover what roamed our lands in the last times. What is more, it is also enrichment to culture. Indeed, I believe that people should learn more about dinosaurs since most of them were found in our country.
There is another point that I would like to discuss, it is the case how many bones which are found in the Patagonia are sold to collectors in a great amount of money, thank to our government that do not take this topic seriously

2007-08-13T11:35:00.001-07:00

The best things in life are free

A matter of considerable controversy at present is the fact whether the best things in life are free. There is no doubt that money offers people with the possibility to have access to basic necessities as health and education. However, while money is seemed as a requirement in order to have a comfortable life, it cannot be denied there are many things that money cannot buy, as happiness and love.
Money is necessary to fulfill our basic necessities and to improve health, as well. However, I believe that money does not guarantee a healthy life as well as the happiness which can be achieved in our relatives and friends.

2007-08-13T11:34:00.000-07:00

Violence in young people

There are real reasons for the recent wave of violence in disco, for example. Young people are the protagonists of the sometimes fatal violent situations that take place in discos. Today’s teenagers don’t just have partying in mind; they read about injustice and corruption in everyday newspapers, they don’t have any role models to follow and they cannot find a decent job. It is this social background that is vital to keep in mind when trying to understand teen violence. It is logical for this to happen in nightclubs, which provide the perfect wild environment for these feelings to surface.
We cannot forget the influence of alcohol and drugs which are also a problem in our generation.

2007-08-13T11:33:00.000-07:00

The influence of color

Color is everywhere and it affects us. It has been proven that color can influence our mood and our memory retention.
Marketing companies claim that people can make a subconscious judgment about a person, environment or item, within 90 second of initial viewing based from 60% to 90% on the influence of color.
It is also said that a yellow background with black types is the best color to memory retention and legibility. What is more researching prove that violet/purple light corrects jaundice. The Washington State University discovered that people can tolerate more pain and recover quicklier from surgery when they ere in green room
Color influence seems to generates a given response, but for a short time, sine the over exposure showed to have the opposite effect. For instance, pink/orange curbs violence and blue decreases the heart rate and has a calming effect but only in moderation.
Some color studies have shown that blue, green makes you eat slower while yellow, orange and red make you eat faster and more.

2007-08-13T09:49:00.000-07:00

If I were a…

Name: Martina and Hernan
Place: countryside
Day: Saturday
Hour: 21:30
Month: November
Number: 4
Color: blue
Fragrance: Amarige (Givenchy)
Flower: jasmine
Country: Argentina
Book: the bible
Film: la vida es bella
Song: I don’t know much
Cartoon: the pink panther
TV program: Friends
Love: Martin
Wish: peace
Frustration: playing hockey
Regret:
Trip: Ireland
Friend: Martin
Animal: fish
Gift: a golden necklace

Article 18

2007-08-13T09:47:00.000-07:00

Mummy, Daddy, donorSaturday May 19, 2007The Guardian
In the US, at least 15,000 IVF cycles are performed every year using a donated egg. In Britain the figure is lower, but still significant - in 2003 (the most recent figures available) out of a total of 38,264 IVF cycles, 1,381 were undertaken using donor eggs, resulting in 554 babies. In the same year in the UK, 1,156 children were born as a result of IVF using donated sperm, with a further 825 children born as a result of other donor insemination treatments.
Most of these are situations in which people who want children have no choice but to enlist the help of someone who will have a direct genetic connection to the child.
"The whole concept of family is so wide open now," observes Lori Maze, director of Snowflakes, which helps parents sign over surplus frozen IVF embryos to other infertile couples. People who just a few years ago were trying to have a family are now poring over biographical profiles to select the families who will receive their own excess potential offspring. Full siblings are being raised in separate households, sometimes getting together for barbecues, sometimes unaware of one another's existence. "Family is not just that little nuclear genetic family that it was in the 1950s," says Maze.
Of course, the family has evolved over time, surviving migration, war, adultery, epidemics, remarriage, slavery, step-parents, increasing human longevity, social upheaval and dramatic shifts in gender roles. But science has given us something new: families that are designed, from the start, to have only a single parent; to have quite a few parents; to have two parents, only one of whom is biologically related to the child, with a third party out there who is biologically related but, often, unknown. Families with these qualities have spontaneously arisen in the past, and still do, of course, but now they are being consciously formed.
Parental roles are being divided and divvied out, outsourced and reshuffled - even deleted. In addition to enabling the creation of families headed by heterosexual couples, reproductive technology has fuelled the creation of families headed by same-sex couples, challenging our understanding of what a mother is and does, what a father brings, and precisely what significance these terms "mother" and "father" still have.
The possibilities are endless. In America, some infertility websites now include an "arranged parenting" section whereby a man or woman can advertise for a partner to have children with, using IVF. It's online-assisted shared custody, without the dating, the marriage, the sex or the divorce.
Then there are co-parenting arrangements where a lesbian couple raise children together with a gay couple, one or both of whom donate sperm to one or both of the women, resulting in children with two biological and two "social" parents. One teenager described being conceived by a lesbian couple as well as two gay men who later split up and found new partners. He ended up with two mothers and four fathers. "Once you realise it's something to be proud of, you're set to go," he said, though the qualification "once you realise" implies that coming to this realisation did involve some struggle.
This is an important point: how deeply loved all of these children are. Back when IVF was getting started, it was feared that IVF parents might be scarred; that fathers might feel alienated from the child, and mothers pathologically overprotective. Instead, psychologists found that families planned this way tend to be more highly functioning than naturally conceived ones, because the parents are so motivated to have children, and so gratified once they arrive. "Children conceived via assisted reproduction are not disadvantaged," says Susan Golombok, director of the Centre for Family Research at Cambridge University.
Still, there is no question that many of these parents feel anxiety over their child's origins. Kendra and Laura are unusual. Many families do not tell their children the truth of their origins, and most parents do not know the identity of the egg or sperm donor. Many don't want to. "If I never meet her, it won't feel like my husband is having a child by her," I was told by one mother conceiving with the help of egg donation, who did not plan to tell her child the truth. Parents sometimes fear the power of genetic connection so acutely that, if they can get away with asserting their own fictional status as genetic parent, they will do so.
With collaborative reproduction, what you get is a sex-adoption hybrid, and this, for some families, is a source of real, unresolved anxiety. One reason parents don't tell children about egg and sperm donation is that they fear genetics will trump love. They fear that genetic bonds are so fundamental that the child, if told the truth, might reject the genetically unrelated parent.
As is the case with adoption, parents who do tell their children about their origins usually create a narrative that minimises the importance of genetic connection ("You were a much-wanted baby, and that's what matters!"). But there is no guarantee offspring will agree. The unresolved question is: do these families resemble adoptive families, or do they resemble families created through natural procreation? There is furious disagreement.
'I've always looked at this as adoption that is run by the medical profession," says Bill Cordray, an adult offspring of sperm donation who believes donor-conceived individuals have a moral right to know the truth of their parentage.
"It is very different from adoption; it's a purchase of cells," says one pregnant egg-donor mother, who did not intend to tell her child the truth.
"It's just like a blood donation," insists Gail Taylor, who runs an egg-donation agency.
Collaborative reproduction also exposes the contradictions between several popular theories of child development. For more than a century, child-rearing experts have debated the ideal role of mother and father. Should mothers be strict? Firm? Warm? What about fathers? Authoritative? Loving? The assumption is that children would have - should have - one of each.
More recently, an "attachment" model of parenting has emerged: the idea that what a child needs most is a warm, bonded relationship with a loving adult - any loving adult, or six loving adults, or one, or two, male or female. You could call this the Harry Potter theory of child development: the idea that a parent's warm, unconditional love provides a magical protection against the many and varied trials of later life. This persuasive theory minimises the importance of having parents of both genders, and it minimises the power of the genetic bond to trump all others.
But what, then, about "genetic bewilderment"? This is the term used to describe the confusion of a child who does not know the true identity of his genetic parent, and as a result cannot fashion a satisfactory identity of their own. The importance of knowing one's biological parent is a tenet of the way adoption is practised now. In the 1970s, for an adopted child to search for their birth parents was considered pathological and maladjusted. Now it's considered normal. Certainly, it is accepted that adopted children at the least should know they are adopted. Whether children of gamete donation have the same need is, however, unresolved.
Parents using collaborative reproduction often bounce back and forth between all of these theories. Parents using donor gametes hope that attachment will suffice; at the same time, many fear that the genetic ties are the ones the child will secretly honour. For single mothers and gay and lesbian parents, whether and to what extent their children will be affected by the lack of a rearing parent of each gender is usually a burning question.
Vocabulary:
Offsring: You can refer to a person's children or to an animal's young as their offspring.
Reshuffled: When a political leader reshuffles the ministers in a government, he or she changes their jobs so that some of the ministers change their responsibilities.
Fuelled: A machine or vehicle that is fuelled by a particular substance works by burning that substance.
Alienate: To alienate a person from someone or something that they are normally linked with means to cause them to be emotionally or intellectually separated from them.
Acutely: If a feeling or quality is acutely unpleasant, it is extremely unpleasant.
Trump: If you trump what someone has said or done, you beat it by saying or doing something else that seems better.
Parentage: Your parentage is the identity and origins of your parents. For example, if you are of Greek parentage, your parents are Greek.
Bewildered: If something bewilders you, it is so confusing or difficult that you cannot understand it.
Tenet: The tenets of a theory or belief are the main principles on which it is based. (FORMAL)
Maladjusted: If you describe a child as maladjusted, you mean that they have psychological problems and behave in a way which is not acceptable to society.
Gamete: Gamete is the name for the two types of male and female cell that join together to make a new creature. (TECHNICAL)

Suffice: If you say that something will suffice, you mean it will be enough to achieve a purpose or to fulfil a need. (FORMAL)

Main ideas:

In the US, at least 15,000 IVF cycles are performed every year using a donated egg. In Britain the figure is lower, but still significant
· Situations in which people who want children have no choice but to enlist the help of someone
The concept of family is wide open
parents sign over surplus frozen IVF embryos to other infertile couples
siblings are being raised in separate households, sometimes getting together for barbecues, sometimes unaware of one another's existence
reproductive technology has fuelled the creation of families headed by same-sex couples

Personal Reaction:

Family has evolved during the last years. There children who are risen by the grandparents, by their mother or father, by a father and two mothers or the other way round or by two mothers and two fathers. Family nowadays has changed its stereotype, thank to the development of science. However, each member of these new “family” are not concerned who the kids love more since children receive the love of each member of the family who have wanted them for years.

Article 17

2007-08-12T16:57:00.001-07:00

Erasing Tattoos, Out of Regret or for a New Canvas

Axel Koester for The New York Times
By NATASHA SINGER
Published: June 17, 2007
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Kelly Brannigan was suffering from a case of tattoo remorse.

Just a year ago, Ms. Brannigan, 24, who holds up Case No. 24 as one of the models on the NBC game show “Deal or No Deal,” had been full of hope when she and her fiancé had each other’s names tattooed across their inner wrists.
But now, when she looks at the letters — P-A-T-R-I-C-K — she is reminded of the failed relationship.
For help, she turned to Dr. Tattoff, a chain of tattoo removal stores where nurses use lasers in a series of treatments to break down tattoo pigments. Dr. Tattoff is part of a growing industry catering to people who may not have thought about the implications of “forever” the first time around.
Removing tattoos is costly, uncomfortable and time-consuming, but the affinity for body art is so strong that some people say they do it to clear space to tattoo all over again.
Many dermatologists specialize in laser tattoo removal, and some laser hair-removal centers are adding services. In California, there are removal centers like Dr. Tattoff, Tat2BeGone and Tattoo MD.
Most of Dr. Tattoff’s clients are women ages 25 to 35, said James Morel, the chief executive of the company, which has given more than 13,000 tattoo laser treatments since opening here in 2004. “Maybe women are getting more tattoos than they used to,” Mr. Morel said, “or maybe they just have a higher level of tattoo regret than men.”
On the horizon is a development that could change the very nature of tattooing: a type of ink encapsulated in beads and designed to break up after one treatment with a special laser.
The technology for the ink, called Freedom-2, was developed by scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital, and Brown and Duke Universities. It is to go on sale this fall.
“We think the fence-sitters who always wanted a tattoo but have been afraid of the permanence will jump in and get tattoos,” said Martin Schmieg, the chief executive of Freedom-2. “But as your life changes from young to middle-aged to older, from single to married to divorced, you get tattoo regret, so we think the tattoo removal market will increase as well.”
There are no hard statistics on tattoo removal, but Catherine A. Kniker, a senior vice president for Candela, a laser manufacturer, calculated that Americans may have 100,000 laser tattoo removal treatments this year.
Tattoos have been used for centuries to reflect changes in life status, whether passage into adulthood or induction into a group like the military or a gang. In recent years, tattoos have also become a fashion accessory, a trend fueled by basketball players, bands and celebrities.
A report by the Food and Drug Administration estimated that as many as 45 million Americans have tattoos. The report based the number on the finding by a Harris Interactive Poll in 2003 that 16 percent of all adults and 36 percent of people 25 to 29 had at least one tattoo. The poll also found that 17 percent of tattooed Americans regretted it.
A tattoo that cost several hundred dollars could require several thousand dollars and many laser sessions to remove. Dr. Tattoff charges $39 per square inch of tattoo for each treatment.
Devices called Q-switched lasers are used to shatter tattoo pigment into particles that are cleared by the body’s lymphatic system. Full removal takes an average of eight treatments, spaced at least a month apart, using different Q-switched lasers for different-colored inks, said Dr. Suzanne Kilmer, a dermatologist and laser researcher in Sacramento.
Each treatment incrementally fades the tattoo. Some patients are left with pristine skin, others with a shadow or white spots, Dr. Kilmer said.
Many states allow nurses to perform laser treatments. But Dr. Kilmer said patients would be better off going to experienced dermatologists who owned a variety of lasers and were trained to treat possible complications like allergic reactions.
Some researchers are trying to determine whether tattoo removal treatments affect the lymph nodes. Researchers in Europe reported that lasers used on certain pigments had created toxic or carcinogenic byproducts.
“You would be concerned about where the pigment goes, how long it is there and at what concentrations,” said Paul C. Howard, director of the Center for Phototoxicology at the National Toxicology Program of the Food and Drug Administration, which is also researching pigments.
Still, last month, Dage Decuir, a comptroller at a construction company, was at Dr. Tattoff continuing treatments to remove a cat from her chest and a pig from her arm, which would otherwise distract from her strapless wedding gown.
Roger Rodriguez, himself a tattoo artist, was having an amateur tattoo removed. The tattoo — his mother’s name, Margarita, in wobbly calligraphy that had been partly covered with a sprawling tattoo of his last name — had been done when he was 12.
“The back is good real estate,” Mr. Rodriguez said. “We are bulldozing everything so I can have a blank canvas again.”
Recently, Dr. Eric F. Bernstein, a dermatologist and laser researcher in Bryn Mawr, Pa., was treating David Donch, of Collingswood, N.J.
Mr. Donch, a substitute teacher, wanted to erase black-and-white scenes of suffering souls and multicolored stained-glass windows that enveloped his lower right leg — a task that could take as many as 30 treatments, Dr. Bernstein said.
Mr. Donch said the treatments felt like rubber bands being snapped against his skin but that it was worth it. “As I am getting older and planning to start a family and get my teaching certificate, I am more aware that appearances are important,” Mr. Donch said.
Ms. Brannigan of “Deal or No Deal” said she was happy to see the name of her former fiancé fading from her wrist. She said she had learned an important lesson: “I’m not going to get a tattoo of another guy’s name until I get married.”

Vocabulary:

Hold up: If you hold up your hand or something you have in your hand, you move it upwards into a particular position and keep it there.

Wrist: Your wrist is the part of your body between your hand and your arm which bends when you move your hand.

Affinity: If you have an affinity with someone or something, you feel that you are similar to them or that you know and understand them very well.

Shatter: If something shatters or is shattered, it breaks into a lot of small pieces.

Pristine: Pristine things are extremely clean or new. (FORMAL)

Wobbly: Something that is wobbly moves unsteadily from side to side.

Laser: A laser is a narrow beam of concentrated light produced by a special machine. It is used for cutting very hard materials, and in many technical fields such as surgery and telecommunications.

Cater: In British English, to cater for a group of people means to provide all the things that they need or want. In American English, you say you cater to a person or group of people.

Main Ideas:

A woman who wants to erase a tattoo with the name of her ex fiancé
The Dr tatooff’s service
Many dermatologists specialize in laser tattoo removal are adding services in many countries.
There are more women than men who are regret of having tattooed their bodies.
The patients have to attend to many sections to fade the tattoo which cost several dollars.

Personal Reaction:

It is normal, nowadays, to know someone who has tattooed his body. That is, at difference to earlier years when tattoos were seen as sign to belong to a specific group, as military, now it is stylish to have a tattoo. I think that this is the reason why more and more people regret of having a tattoo, since they don’t feel it as symbol in their lives but as an ornament on their body without any meaning. In my opinion, I can say that is a good idea to have a solution to unwanted tattoos and apart from this the business of removal services will increase given that there are a lot of people who don’t identify with anything and lack personality and tattoo their bodies only to be fashionable.

Article 16

2007-08-12T16:54:00.000-07:00

Harry Potter and the internet spoilersEsther AddleyThursday July 19, 2007The Guardian
It has one of the strictest embargoes, and perhaps the tightest security, of any book in publishing history. But only days before publication of the new Harry Potter novel its publishers yesterday were engaged in a desperate battle to suppress a number of websites after extracts apparently taken from the book appeared on the internet.
Digital photos of pages of a book purporting to be Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the final volume in JK Rowling's enormously popular series, have been appearing on websites. Online file sharing networks were also offering downloadable files claiming to contain the full text of the novel, which will be launched in Britain and most of the English-speaking world at midnight UK time tomorrow and across the US five hours later.

Scholastic, the publishing house which owns the US rights, said it was endeavouring to remove the spoilers from the sites, and said there was no guarantee the leaks were authentic. "There are multiple versions of what appear to be official copies of the book on the internet, but they are conflicting," Lisa Holton, president of trade publishing and book fairs, said. "Our goal is to take down all this different material, and by taking it down we'll never know whether any of it was real until you read it yourself on Saturday morning." The firm said it had persuaded YouTube and MySpace not to carry extracts. It has also initiated legal proceedings against another website, gaiaonline.com, for publishing material relating to the book.
If the extracts are genuine it will be one of the most serious security lapses since the publication of the first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, 10 years ago. Ahead of the launch books have been kept in guarded warehouses and delivered by vans tracked by satellites. Clays, printer of the British edition, installed barbed wire around its Suffolk plant and hired extra guards to search workers as they left the factory. A spokeswoman for Bloomsbury, which owns the English language rights outside the US, said only one person at the publisher, JK Rowling's editor Emma Matthewson, had read the manuscript. The author herself has made an impassioned plea on her website against the "sad individuals who get their kicks from ruining other people's fun. I want the readers who have, in many instances, grown up with Harry to embark on the last adventure they will share with him without knowing where they are going," she wrote.

Harry Potter and the boy wizard translatorKim Willsher in ParisWednesday August 8, 2007Guardian Unlimited
A French Harry Potter fan was arrested and held by police after allegedly posting a pirate translation of the young wizard's latest adventures on the internet.
The 16-year-old was apparently too impatient to wait for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and last in the bestselling series, to be published in French.
So he set about translating all 784 pages into the language of Molière himself, according to investigators. The first chapters were available for download a few days after the book came out in July and the complete text was online within days. The site has since been shut down.

"He wasn't doing it to make money, he is a fan," explained one investigator. "His language is French but he's very good at English."
According to Le Parisien newspaper, Miss Rowling alerted her French publishers, Gallimard, to the unofficial version on the Internet.
Police said they were "particularly surprised" by the quality of the pirate version, which they said was "semi-professional".
The high-school student from Aix-en-Provence, who has not been named, was arrested by police on Monday and kept in custody overnight. He was released today while "preliminary inquiries" are made. Police said they were hoping to question several more people in the case. If convicted, those responsible for the fraud could face heavy fines.
The book will be published in French under the title "Harry Potter et les reliques de la mort" in October.
An internet discussion last month suggested several fans working together had produced the pirate translation. Internet users were given the chance to download it in PDF format.
"The translations is semi-professional, proof of relentless work by "fans'," said one blogger.
They added: "These passionate pirates are risking a lot. We have learned that the editor has launched a big 'witch hunt' to throw in the cauldron those pirating JK Rowling's book."
Another blogger complained: "Obviously given the success of the series people's stupidity is provoked - why, we could ask, isn't the publisher capable of publishing the book internationally. It shows a lack of respect for all the French/Spanish/German speaking readers."
The seventh book - as with the previous novels - is being officially translated by Jean-Fran¸ois Ménard.
Mr Ménard, 59, who is an author in his own right, has also translated Roald Dahl and Evin Coffer's Artemis Fowl books. He translates to a strict deadline.
His wife, Diane, told the Guardian: "He cannot talk to you right now as he's translating night and day.
"I hadn't heard about this pirate translation but with the previous books there's often been someone doing something like this and it's never threatened the real thing."
She added: "I remember seeing one on the internet but the first line was the opposite of what it should have been, so it wasn't a very good start."

Vocabulary:

Suppress: If someone in authority suppresses an activity, they prevent it from continuing, by using force or making it illegal.

Leak: If a secret document or piece of information leaks or is leaked, someone lets the public know about it.

Lapse: If a period of time lapses, it passes.

Warehouse: A warehouse is a large building where raw materials or manufactured goods are stored until they are exported to other countries or distributed to shops to be sold.

Release: If a person or animal is released from somewhere where they have been locked up or looked after, they are set free or allowed to go.

Relentless: Something bad that is relentless never stops or never becomes less intense.

Cauldron: A cauldron is a very large, round metal pot used for cooking over a fire. In stories and fairy tales, a cauldron is used by witches for their spells.

Threaten: If you feel threatened, you feel as if someone is trying to harm you.

Main ideas:

After the publication of the new Harry Potter novel its publishers started a new battle to suppress a number of websites
Extracts apparently taken from the book appeared on the internet.
The launch books have been kept in guarded warehouses and delivered by vans tracked by satellites
The author herself has made an impassioned plea on her website against the people who spoil the story by anticipating what is going to happen
A French Harry Potter fan was arrested because has translated the book into French and posted it in the web

Personal Reaction:

Harry Potter has been a successful series book which caught the attention of many lecturers from different ages. The problem that this article mentions should be stopped. Since not only Harry Potter but also many books are posted in the web, in this way the habit of reading a book holding on your hands is spoiled. It is not the same to read a book that read it from a screen, apart from damage your eyes; it has many bad consequences regarding authors to publisher companies. In my opinion, I would say that there would be any kind of restrictions to post books in the web since it is illegal as well as making copies from a book.

Article 15

2007-08-12T16:53:00.000-07:00

Is one child enough?
var clickExpire = "-1";
By Diana Burrell
(Parenting) -- How to weigh whether to have another child -- and what to know about raising an "only"
My husband and I decided to be a one-child family long before our son Oliver was born. With several years of reproductive-health scares behind me, conceiving a child felt like a Powerball win; I didn't need another chance at the jackpot.
Scott thought we could avoid the inevitable slings and arrows of sibling warfare. We both hail from large families, in which continuation of the family name is assured through siblings and cousins.
We were content with our decision, and our families took it well, too. A few months after Oliver was born, I bagged up my maternity clothes for a tag sale, and Scott started researching permanent birth-control options.
But one afternoon while absentmindedly sorting through blue and green baby clothes, the thought hit me like a punch: "I'll never sort through pink clothes." For years I'd imagined myself the mom of a daughter. After all, it had been a popular refrain throughout my adolescence ("I'll never tell my daughter what I think about her clothes," I'd intone to my mother). And I secretly hoped that my daughter would continue the tradition of attending my all-women alma mater.
It wasn't that I was disappointed with a son. To be honest, I was relieved the day we found out we were having a boy because I could work the experience of being the older sister to three younger brothers to the fullest.
Hearing the door clang shut on my fantasy daughter, however, made me doubt. When acquaintances asked, "So, are you having any more?" my voice quivered when I answered no.
A woman in my local mothers' group worried aloud, "How would you feel if something happened to Oliver and you didn't have any more children?" Did I really need another child as an insurance policy?
One night when the anxiety felt particularly overwhelming, I asked Scott, "Is it okay if we hold off on that vasectomy for a while?"
"It's normal to wonder if you're making the right choices and decisions, no matter how many kids you have," says Susan Jeffers, Ph.D., author of I'm OK, You're a Brat! Setting the Priorities Straight and Freeing You From the Guilt and Mad Myths of Parenthood. "Even if you decided to have two or more children, you'd wonder if your life would have been easier with only one child."
Choosing to have one
Haseena Correia of Valley Stream, New York, mom to Zachary, 2, has long planned to have one child.
"Once I understood how much work it takes to have a career and raise a child at the same time, I pretty much decided one was all I could handle," she says. Correia says being a one-child family allows her the right balance.
"It gives me the joy of being a mother, but it's not too overwhelming to the point where I don't have any time for myself or my husband," she says.
Financial barriers were also a factor in their decision. "With a mortgage, skyrocketing taxes, and two cars, we have to be a two-income family. Having another child is financially just not an option for us," she says.
There are social and emotional pressures to consider, too. "If your friends are having second -- and third -- children, you can feel left out," says Susan Newman, Ph.D., author of Parenting an Only Child. "Or you or your spouse may want more kids, but the other doesn't."
Sorting out our feelings on most of these things was actually easy for me and Scott. (It was the emotional pull that gave me second thoughts.) We have similar goals for the future, and we realized that with our temperaments, one child would be best for our marriage. We're happy for our friends who are having second and third children, but for us, Oliver completes our family.
When you don't have a choice
Sometimes the twists and turns of life narrow your choices or eliminate them completely. Jennifer Lawler of Eudora, Kansas, always thought having four kids sounded perfect. But when her daughter Jessica was born with life-threatening health problems and Lawler's uterine fibroids compromised future pregnancies, she and her husband knew Jessica would be their only child. Lawler says, "Raising our daughter was going to take a lot of emotional, physical, and financial resources. If I had any more children, I didn't think I could handle it."
Time made the situation easier. "It's a process of acceptance," says Lawler.
"One thing that was helpful for me was not to focus on the past or the future. I put my energy toward making this the brightest moment. There were times when we thought Jessica wouldn't live, talk, or walk. She's done all those things, so I feel relief and gratitude."
Answering to everyone
As you work out what's best for your family, you'll face some tough questions all around:
• From yourself: Laura Miller of Ottawa, Kansas, mom to Emma, 6, is undecided about having more children. "If finances and circumstances ever allow, we might have another child," she says. "But we're happy the way our family is now." She admits she still has fears. "My husband and I both have brothers and sisters --I can't imagine not having them to lean on. But after we're gone, Emma will be alone."
In my darkest moments, I've been known to worry about the unthinkable: With no other children, what would I do if I lost Oliver? But, of course, parents of onlies don't own the front and center on worry. "Parents fear for all their children," says Newman. "Families with a number of children are equally devastated and blown apart when a child dies -- the pain is no less just because you have others." We need to accept that something so dramatic as death is highly unlikely and try not to live our lives in a state of anxiety.
• From others: "The pressure to have a second child is often greater than for the first," says Newman. But the fact is that the friends, family, and even strangers who are exerting pressure aren't the ones who'll be caring for these future children till they reach adulthood. After Lawler's daughter was born, she answered her questioners with "We're going to take care of Jessica."
Sometimes intrusive questions and opinions can drive us nuts, which is why it can be helpful to look within before lashing out.
"When you are affected by this pressure, it means you're looking for that person's approval," says Jeffers. "Ask yourself, 'Why am I reacting this way? Am I afraid of criticism from this person?' As soon as you stop needing their approval, you can relax and appreciate the decision you made." Once a mom is feeling calmer, she can answer the critics with, say, "I understand you really want this, but it's not right for me" or "Well, thanks for passing on your ideas."
• From your child -- it happens: Many onlies will ask -- loudly, often -- for a little brother or sister, or wonder aloud why they're stuck being an only child. A straightforward answer is the best bet, says Lise Youngblade, Ph.D., associate director of the Institute for Child Health Policy at the University of Florida in Gainesville. "The last thing parents want to do is get into a negotiation," she says. Instead, respond with something like "We've decided that our family size is just right. There are lots of different kinds of families, and this is how ours is."
With an older child, you can point out that many of the advantages he enjoys as an only -- his own specially decorated bedroom, for instance, or the one-on-one time he has with Mom and Dad -- may be things he wouldn't have with a brother or sister. You can also try asking your child what he thinks would be the benefits of having a sibling. It could be as simple as having a bunk bed.
If a child's demands don't abate, Jeffers points out that "children complain, period." Parents with two or three kids sometimes hear, "Mommy, it's time to send the baby back to the hospital."
In my case, it took me time to say goodbye to my fantasy daughter, but when Oliver was 18 months old, I finally said to Scott, "Let's do it," on the vasectomy.
I'm very happy with my son and our decision, and I've looked for other ways to indulge my daughter needs. I volunteered as a Big Sister and counseled a 15-year-old on boyfriends. When I spot cute girly-girl dresses, I buy them for my friend's daughters. And I console myself that when I go through menopause, there won't be two hormonal women under this roof
Vocabulary:
Jackpot: If you hit the jackpot, you have a great success, for example by winning a lot of money or having a piece of good luck. (INFORMAL)
Sling: If you sling something somewhere, you throw it there carelessly.
Sibling: Your siblings are your brothers and sisters. (FORMAL)
Hail: Someone who hails from a particular place was born there or lives there. (FORMAL)
Acquetance: An acquaintance is someone who you have met and know slightly, but not well.
Quiver: If you say that someone or their voice is quivering with an emotion such as rage or excitement, you mean that they are strongly affected by this emotion and show it in their appearance or voice.
Overwhelming: If something is overwhelming, it affects you very strongly, and you do not know how to deal with it.
Mortage: A mortgage is a loan of money which you get from a bank or building society in order to buy a house.
Skyrocket: If prices or amounts skyrocket, they suddenly increase by a very large amount.
Handle: If you say that someone can handle a problem or situation, you mean that they have the ability to deal with it successfully.
Main Ideas:
Some couples decide to have one child
Health, financial, emotional issues to consider
Pressure to have second child greater than for first
Mom: A "process of acceptance" when you can't have another child

Personal Reaction:

Fortunately, nowadays there exist many methods to prevent pregnancy, in order to plan a family. This article refers to the option of having one child or more. This topic is very subjective and regarding my opinion, I would say that it is better to have more than one child. It is truth that before planning to have the second you have to take into accounts many things since a new member may produce a change in the family life. However, a sibling for your primogenitor is good because the best moments of our childhood is shared with our brothers and sister. Apart from this when parents do not live any longer, the primogenitor could have a family where he can find a shelter, as his brother or sister.

Article 14

2007-08-12T16:51:00.000-07:00

Mahatma Gandhi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from Ghandi)
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (October 2, 1869 – January 30, 1948) was a major political and spiritual leader of India and the Indian independence movement. He was the pioneer of Satyagraha — the resistance of tyranny through mass civil disobedience, firmly founded upon ahimsa or total non-violence — which led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. Gandhi is commonly known in India and across the world as Mahatma Gandhi (Sanskrit: "Great Soul") and as Bapu (Gujarati: "Father"). In India, he is recognized as the Father of the Nation and October 2nd, his birthday, is commemorated each year as Gandhi Jayanti, a national holiday. On 15 June 2007, it was announced that the "United Nations General Assembly" has "unanimously adopted" a resolution which has declared October 2 to be "the International Day of Non-Violence." [1]
As a British-educated lawyer, Gandhi first employed his ideas of peaceful civil disobedience in the Indian community's struggle for civil rights in South Africa. Upon his return to India, he organized poor farmers and laborers to protest against oppressive taxation and widespread discrimination. Assuming leadership of the Indian National Congress, Gandhi led nationwide campaigns for the alleviation of poverty, for the liberation of women, for brotherhood amongst differing religions and ethnicities, for an end to untouchability and caste discrimination, and for the economic self-sufficiency of the nation, but above all for Swaraj — the independence of India from foreign domination. Gandhi famously led Indians in the disobedience of the salt tax on the 400 kilometre (248 miles) Dandi Salt March in 1930, and in an open call for the British to Quit India in 1942. He was imprisoned for many years on numerous occasions in both South Africa and India.
Throughout his life, Gandhi remained committed to non-violence and truth even in the most extreme situations. A student of Hindu philosophy, he lived simply, organizing an ashram that was self-sufficient in its needs. Making his own clothes — the traditional Indian dhoti and shawl woven with a charkha, he lived on a simple vegetarian diet. He used rigorous fasts, for long periods, for both self-purification and protest. Gandhi's life and teachings inspired Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Biko, Benigno S. Aquino, Jr. and Aung San Suu Kyi and through them the American civil rights movement and the freedom struggles in South Africa and Myanmar respectively.

Gandhi's principles
Truth
Gandhi dedicated his life to the wider purpose of discovering truth, or Satya. He tried to achieve this by learning from his own mistakes and conducting experiments on himself
Gandhi stated that the most important battle to fight was overcoming his own demons, fears, and insecurities. Gandhi summarized his beliefs first when he said "God is Truth". He would later change this statement to "Truth is God".
Nonviolence
The concept of nonviolence (ahimsa) and nonresistance has a long history in Indian religious thought and has had many revivals in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, Jewish and Christian contexts. . He was quoted as saying:
"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won. There have been tyrants and murderers and for a time they seem invincible, but in the end, they always fall — think of it, always."
"What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans, and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or the holy name of liberty and democracy?"
"An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."
"There are many causes that I am prepared to die for but no causes that I am prepared to kill for."
In applying these principles, Gandhi did not balk from taking them to their most logical extremes. In 1940, when invasion of the British Isles by Nazi Germany looked imminent, Gandhi offered the following advice to the British people (Non-Violence in Peace and War):
"I would like you to lay down the arms you have as being useless for saving you or humanity. You will invite Herr Hitler and Signor Mussolini to take what they want of the countries you call your possessions.... If these gentlemen choose to occupy your homes, you will vacate them. If they do not give you free passage out, you will allow yourselves, man, woman, and child, to be slaughtered, but you will refuse to owe allegiance to them."
However, Gandhi was aware that this level of nonviolence required incredible faith and courage, which he realized not everyone possessed. He therefore advised that everyone need not keep to nonviolence, especially if it were used as a cover for cowardice:
"Gandhi guarded against attracting to his satyagraha movement those who feared to take up arms or felt themselves incapable of resistance. 'I do believe,' he wrote, 'that where there is only a choice between cowardice and violence, I would advise violence.'"[19]
"At every meeting I repeated the warning that unless they felt that in non-violence they had come into possession of a force infinitely superior to the one they had and in the use of which they were adept, they should have nothing to do with non-violence and resume the arms they possessed before. It must never be said of the Khudai Khidmatgars that once so brave, they had become or been made cowards under Badshah Khan's influence. Their bravery consisted not in being good marksmen but in defying death and being ever ready to bare their breasts to the bullets."
Vegetarianism
As a young child, Gandhi experimented with meat-eating. This was due partially to his inherent curiosity as well as his rather persuasive peer and friend Sheikh Mehtab. The idea of vegetarianism is deeply engrained in Hindu and Jain traditions in India, and, in his native land of Gujarat, most Hindus were vegetarian. The Gandhi family was no exception. Before leaving for his studies in London, Gandhi made a promise to his mother, Putlibai and his uncle, Becharji Swami that he would abstain from eating meat, taking alcohol, and engaging in promiscuity. He held fast to his promise and gained more than a diet: he gained a basis for his life-long philosophies. As Gandhi grew into adulthood, he became a strict vegetarian. He wrote the book The Moral Basis of Vegetarianism and several articles on the subject, some of which were published in the London Vegetarian Society's publication, The Vegetarian [2]. Gandhi, himself, became inspired by many great minds during this period and befriended the chairman of the London Vegetarian Society, Dr. Josiah Oldfield.
Having also read and admired the work of Henry Stephens Salt, the young Mohandas met and often corresponded with the vegetarian campaigner. Gandhi spent much time advocating vegetarianism during and after his time in London. To Gandhi, a vegetarian diet would not only satisfy the requirements of the body, it would also serve an economic purpose as meat was, and still is, generally more expensive than grains, vegetables, and fruits. Also, many Indians of the time struggled with low income, thus vegetarianism was seen not only as a spiritual practice but also a practical one. He abstained from eating for long periods, using fasting as a form of political protest. He refused to eat until his death or his demands were met. It was noted in his autobiography that vegetarianism was the beginning of his deep commitment to Brahmacharya; without total control of the palate, his success in Bramacharya would likely falter.
Brahmacharya
When Gandhi was 16 his father became very ill. Being very devoted to his parents, he attended to his father at all times during his illness. However, one night, Gandhi's uncle came to relieve Gandhi for a while. He retired to his bedroom where his carnal desires overcame him and he made love to his wife. Shortly afterward a servant came to report that Gandhi's father had just died. Gandhi felt tremendous guilt and could never forgive himself. He came to refer to this event as "double shame". The incident had significant influence in Gandhi becoming totally celibate at the age of 36, while still married.[21]
This decision was deeply influenced by the philosophy of Brahmacharya — spiritual and practical purity — largely associated with celibacy and asceticism. Gandhi saw brahmacharya as a means of going close to God and as a primary foundation for self realization. In his autobiography he tells of his battle against lustful urges and fits of jealousy with his childhood bride, Kasturba. He felt it his personal obligation to remain celibate so that he could learn to love, rather than lust. For Gandhi, brahmacharya meant "control of the senses in thought, word and deed."[22]
Simplicity
Gandhi earnestly believed that a person involved in social service should lead a simple life which he thought could lead to Brahmacharya. His simplicity began by renouncing the western lifestyle he was leading in South Africa. He called it "reducing himself to zero," which entailed giving up unnecessary expenditure, embracing a simple lifestyle and washing his own clothes.[23] On one occasion he returned the gifts bestowed to him from the natals for his diligent service to the community.[24]
Gandhi spent one day of each week in silence. He believed that abstaining from speaking brought him inner peace. This influence was drawn from the Hindu principles of mauna (Sanskrit:मौनं - silence) and shanti (peace). On such days he communicated with others by writing on paper. For three and a half years, from the age of 37, Gandhi refused to read newspapers, claiming that the tumultuous state of world affairs caused him more confusion than his own inner unrest.
After reading John Ruskin's Unto This Last, he decided to change his life style and create a commune called Poenix Settlement.
Upon returning to India from South Africa, where he had enjoyed a successful legal practice, he gave up wearing Western-style clothing, which he associated with wealth and success. He dressed to be accepted by the poorest person in India, advocating the use of homespun cloth (khadi). Gandhi and his followers adopted the practice of weaving their own clothes from thread they themselves spun, and encouraged others to do so. While Indian workers were often idle due to unemployment, they had often bought their clothing from industrial manufacturers owned by British interests. It was Gandhi's view that if Indians made their own clothes, it would deal an economic blow to the British establishment in India. Consequently, the spinning wheel was later incorporated into the flag of the Indian National Congress. He subsequently wore a dhoti for the rest of his life to express the simplicity of his life.
Faith
Gandhi was born a Hindu and practised Hinduism all his life, deriving most of his principles from Hinduism. As a common Hindu, he believed all religions to be equal, and rejected all efforts to convert him to a different faith. He was an avid theologian and read extensively about all major religions. He had the following to say about Hinduism:
"Hinduism as I know it entirely satisfies my soul, fills my whole being ... When doubts haunt me, when disappointments stare me in the face, and when I see not one ray of light on the horizon, I turn to the Bhagavad Gita, and find a verse to comfort me; and I immediately begin to smile in the midst of overwhelming sorrow. My life has been full of tragedies and if they have not left any visible and indelible effect on me, I owe it to the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita."

Gandhi wrote a commentary on the Bhagavad Gita in Gujarati. The Gujarati manuscript was translated into English by Mahadev Desai, who provided an additional introduction and commentary. It was published with a Foreword by Gandhi in 1946.[25][26]
Gandhi believed that at the core of every religion was truth and love (compassion, nonviolence and the Golden Rule). He also questioned hypocrisy, malpractices and dogma in all religions and was a tireless social reformer. Some of his comments on various religions are:
"Thus if I could not accept Christianity either as a perfect, or the greatest religion, neither was I then convinced of Hinduism being such. Hindu defects were pressingly visible to me. If untouchability could be a part of Hinduism, it could but be a rotten part or an excrescence. I could not understand the raison d'etre of a multitude of sects and castes. What was the meaning of saying that the Vedas were the inspired Word of God? If they were inspired, why not also the Bible and the Koran? As Christian friends were endeavouring to convert me, so were Muslim friends. Abdullah Sheth had kept on inducing me to study Islam, and of course he had always something to say regarding its beauty." (source: his autobiography)
"As soon as we lose the moral basis, we cease to be religious. There is no such thing as religion over-riding morality. Man, for instance, cannot be untruthful, cruel or incontinent and claim to have God on his side."
"The sayings of Muhammad are a treasure of wisdom, not only for Muslims but for all of mankind."
Later in his life when he was asked whether he was a Hindu, he replied:
"Yes I am. I am also a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist and a Jew."
In spite of their deep reverence to each other, Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore got involved in protracted debates more than once. These debates exemplify the philosophical differences between the two most famous Indians at the time. On January 15, 1934, an earthquake hit Bihar and caused extensive damage and loss of life. Gandhi maintained this was because of the sin committed by upper caste Hindus by not letting untouchables in their temples (Gandhi was committed to the cause of improving the fate of untouchables, referring to them as Harijans, people of Krishna). Tagore vehemently opposed Gandhi's stance, maintaining that an earthquake can only be caused by natural forces, not moral reasons, however repugnant the practice of untouchability may be.

Followers
Several people and organisations specifically referred to Gandhi as their mentor, or dedicated their life for spreading Gandhi's ideas. In Europe, Romain Rolland first advertised the struggle of the Mahatma with his book Mahatma Gandhi. Lanza del Vasto went to India in 1936 in the aim to live with Gandhi, later decided to come back to Europe to spread Gandhi's philosophy. Lanza finally founded the Community of the Ark in 1948 on the model of Gandhi's ashrams. Madeleine Slade (known as "Mirabehn") was the daughter of an British admiral who spent much of her adult life in India as a devotee of Gandhi. One of the leaders of the civil rights movement in the United States, Martin Luther King, drew from the writings of Gandhi in the development of his own theories about non-violence. Anti-apartheid activist and former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela, was inspired by Gandhi. The British musician, John Lennon, also referred to Gandhi when discussing his views on non-violence.[30]

Vocabulary:

Struggle: A struggle is a long and difficult attempt to achieve something such as freedom or political rights.

Alleviate: If you alleviate pain, suffering, or an unpleasant condition, you make it less intense or severe. (FORMAL)

Brotherhood: A brotherhood is an organization whose members all have the same political aims and beliefs or the same job or profession.

Shawl: A shawl is a large piece of woollen cloth which a woman wears over her shoulders or head, or which is wrapped around a baby to keep it warm.

Fast: If you fast, you eat no food for a period of time, usually for either religious or medical reasons, or as a protest.

Demon: A demon is an evil spirit.

Wrought: If something has wrought a change, it has made it happen.

Balk: If you balk at something, you definitely do not want to do it or to let it happen.

Slaughter: If large numbers of people or animals are slaughtered, they are killed in a way that is cruel or unnecessary.

Main Ideas:
Mahatma’s life
His concept of nonviolence
His philosophy
Followers

Personal Reaction:

Looking for information on the Internet, I found this article about Mahatma’s life and his Philosophy. In my opinion, I would say that Mahatma Gandhi was a unique man who fought for people’s rights, but he didn’t fight with arms, he fought with nonviolence. His strategy was admirable since only a man with self-confidence and a great soul can do what he did. I think that his way of thinking is difficult to understand by some people. However, he accomplished his goals without violence and promoting peace to people who were in war. I think that we, as ordinary individual, should propose ourselves to be like Gandhi, in order to have a better world. I recognize that this is difficult but as Gandhi said "An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind."

Article 13

2007-08-12T16:50:00.000-07:00

Immigration is bad for society, but only until a new solidarity is forgedAn important US study shows us that the effects of ethnic diversity can be read as a challenge, rather than a threat Madeleine BuntingMonday June 18, 2007The Guardian
Not many thinkers successfully straddle academia and politics, but one of the few who has managed to do so on both sides of the Atlantic is Robert Putnam, author of Bowling Alone. You can spot traces of his influence all over New Labour policy. He was the man who popularised the concept of social capital - the trust and networks of friendship, neighbourhood and organisations on which so much of our lives depend - and it has won him the ear of politicians of all persuasions: Bill Clinton, George Bush, Tony Blair, Gordon Brown, even, most recently, the Libyan leader, Muammar Gadafy.
Aware of how his work is used politically, Putnam is understandably nervous now about how he presents the first findings of the biggest study of social capital ever undertaken on which he has been working for over five years. He started out wanting to track social capital over time and in different communities across the US. What he wasn't expecting to find was a negative link between ethnic diversity and social capital. Put crudely, the more ethnically diverse the neighbourhood, the less likely you are to trust your local shopkeeper, regardless of his or her ethnicity. He warns that, however uncomfortable this conclusion might be, "progressives can't stick their head in the sand".
But the killer punch of his research is that diversity not only reduces social capital between ethnic groups but also within ethnic groups. Diversity leads not so much to bad race relations as to everyone becoming more isolated and less trustful. In the jargon, it kills off both the "bridging capital" between different groups and "bonding capital", which are the connections among people like yourself. Putnam calls it "hunkering down" as people withdraw from all kinds of connectedness in their community. And what follows is a long list of negative consequences, which include less confidence in local government and the media, lower voting registration (though higher participation in protest), less volunteering, fewer close friends, lower rates of happiness and perceived quality of life and more time spent watching television. It affects almost all our relationships, from the most public to the most intimate.
Putnam and his team are too rigorous for any of the usual objections to stick. To reach his conclusion, he controlled for a wide range of other factors including inequality, poverty, residential mobility and education, to be sure that "hunkering" was really a response to ethnic diversity. He wasn't going to publish these kinds of explosive findings without being pretty sure he was right.
What's still not clear to him is what causes the hunkering and whether social psychology might provide some answers. Certainly social psychologists are not unfamiliar with the phenomenon. A study of American schools after desegregation found that children were defining who they would play with more narrowly than ever - "resegregation" followed lines not only of ethnicity but also of gender.
What makes Putnam nervous now is how this could be seized upon by rightwing politicians hostile to immigration. So he insists his research be seen in the context a) that ethnic diversity is increasing in all modern societies and is not only inevitable but is also desirable, a proven asset in terms of creativity and economic growth; and b) that "hunkering" can be short term and "successful immigrant societies create new forms of social solidarity".
In conversation, he emphasises the latter, well aware that he is publishing his findings at a time of intense anxiety over these issues both in the US (where legislation to legalise some of the estimated 12 million illegal immigrants just got thrown out of Congress) and in Europe. He doesn't underestimate the scale of the challenge, particularly in European countries that, he acknowledges, "haven't been immigrant societies for 1,000 years". He says that the "major social learning process" required is in the same league as that required by the industrial revolution.
But as he arrives in Manchester at the start of a major comparative project of social capital between the UK and the US, his big theme is don't panic. He rattles through US history to offer all kinds of illustrations of how large-scale migration can be successfully accommodated in a bid to allay some of the European anxiety, particularly around its Muslim minorities.
Neither the US nor Europe is currently facing the kind of levels of migration relative to population seen at the turn of the 20th century in the US. To the argument that the shiploads arriving in Ellis Island were all Europeans who thus had some common culture, he points out that at the time there was a rich alarmist literature of how racially distinct the Jewish or Italian immigrant groups were. The US has had a history of "exceptionalism" - the line "that past immigration is fine, but current immigrants present an unprecedented problem" - yet each new wave in turn is absorbed as successfully as the last.
US history shows that all migrant groups develop an intense religiosity - Irish, Italian, Jewish, Hispanic. The increasing religious identification of Muslims in Europe fits neatly into a well-established pattern. As do the tendencies to marry within ethnic and faith communities, and to maintain close ties to the country of origin - none of these inhibit integration in the long term.
You could say that they are part of the pattern of settlement as the first couple of generations maintain a strong migrant identity - which is, paradoxically, an important part of their capacity to integrate. A strong community identity gives them the confidence and self-respect to establish themselves and get on.
The frequent UK response to the US experience is that it's not relevant here. The US has a civic nationalism which facilitates the melting pot - the flags and pledges of allegiance But in fact US civic nationalism was deliberately invented at the end of the 19th century in the US precisely to replace an ethno-nationalism challenged by mass immigration. The implication is quite clear: it's up to the UK to develop a comparable civic nationalism, a point that has not been lost on any of the protagonists in the UK debate to whom Putnam has been speaking, from Trevor Phillips to Ruth Kelly, as their frequent statements about British identity indicate. If you want to understand what's driving the political establishment, read Putnam.
The only problem is that they seem to give more prominence to some of his ideas than others. Too often the public debate is skewed towards getting "them" to integrate with "us", and conform to "our" norms of dress, culture and values. When this is allied to an aggressive rhetoric on the war against terror, it begins to sound like hectoring or some form of persecution. But Putnam is not talking about a top-down set of instructions on nationalism, but a much broader social process in which the host country changes as much as it, changes its new arrivals: through a collaborative effort of imagination and myriad individual experiences, new solidarity is forged. It's a message of hope that he keenly hopes doesn't get buried in sensationalist headlines about the short term cost of "hunkering".
m.bunting@guardian.co.uk

Vocabulary:

Straddle: Someone or something that straddles different periods, groups, or fields of activity exists in, belongs to, or takes elements from them all.

Network: A network of people or institutions is a large number of them that have a connection with each other and work together as a system.

Understandable: If you say that something such as a statement or theory is understandable, you mean that people can easily understand it.

Track: If you track someone or something, you investigate them, because you are interested in finding out more about them.

Hunker down: If you say that someone hunkers down, you mean that they are trying to avoid doing things that will make them noticed or put them in danger.

Desegregate: To desegregate something such as a place, institution, or service means to officially stop keeping the people who use it in separate groups, especially groups that are defined by race.

Asset: Something or someone that is an asset is considered useful or helps a person or organization to be successful.

Rattle: If something or someone rattles you, they make you nervous.

Allay: If you allay someone's fears or doubts, you stop them feeling afraid or doubtful. (FORMAL)

Skew: If something is skewed, it is changed or affected to some extent by a new or unusual factor, and so is not correct or normal.

Main Ideas:

Robert Putnamhe presented the first findings of the biggest Studio of social capital
He found a negative link between ethnic diversity and social capital.
Diversity leads not only to bad race relations but also to everyone becoming more isolated and less trustful.
He calls it "hunkering down", people leave of connectedness in their community which carries negative consequences.
Less confidence in local government and the media, lower voting registration, less volunteering, fewer close friends, lower rates of happiness and perceived quality of life and more time spent watching television.
Ethnic diversity is increasing in all modern societies, and is a proven benefit in terms of creativity and economic growth.
"Hunkering" can be short term and "successful immigrant societies create new forms of social solidarity".

Personal Reaction:

When I read this article, it really caught my attention since we cannot deny that most of the societies in the biggest cities are conformed by a wide range of people who belong to different countries. People who have different ideology, religion and language as well, features which differ from the dwellers of that city. In my opinion, I think that not only immigrants do not usually converge in the new society where they are living, but also the citizens who have belonged to that society do not trust on the newcomers.
This seems to affect the social aspect of a city and the individual behaviour as well. I would say that a society is conformed for every single individual wherever they come and whoever they are given that everyone contributes with a pinch of sand to make the life go round within the society.