Essay
Trump's Pardons for January 6 Rioters
On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump issued full pardons to 1,500 individuals convicted for their roles in the January 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection. Among those pardoned were prominent figures from extremist groups, including leaders convicted of seditious conspiracy. This unprecedented move has reignited concerns about the fragility of American democracy, the erosion of the rule of law, and the stark inequalities within the justice system. When viewed through the lens of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), these pardons further highlight systemic inequities and the disproportionate impact of justice decisions on marginalized communities.
By Dr William M Whiteabout a year ago in Critique
Grimm's Fairy Tales #9
The next really short fairy tale that I read for the very first time is entitled 'The Old Man and His Grandson'. This story is a story of love and respect for your elders. The child of sees how his parents treat his grandfather and shows them in another way that they should respect and love him still. This little boy does come up with a very interesting and poignant way to show his parents their wrongdoing in caring for their parent, his grandfather. This is also a story of how children can teach adults to be better in showing respect. We should all love each other no matter how old we are and become. Again, please share your thoughts on this and the others, and by the way there are still more of these I plan on sharing. Thank you.
By Mark Grahamabout a year ago in Critique
Grimm's Fairy Tales #8
Here is another Grimm's Fairy Tale entitled 'The Death of the Little Hen'. This is the story that could be about being greedy for the little hen did not want to share a nut with a friend. The friend did try help by trying to fetch some water, but when he went to ask everyone wanted something. The friend was too late to save the little hen, and she died. The friend cried for his friend so loudly that other animals came, and they built a carriage and helped him take the little hen to be buried. They came to a stream and to figure a way to cross. They all tried to help but in the end the friend was alone to bury the little hen and cried till he died. This could be a lesson on learning about death and coping and how one copes with a death of a friend. It did seem that the other animals wanted to help, but could their real reason be for helping the friend. Please share your thoughts and it will be greatly appreciated.
By Mark Grahamabout a year ago in Critique
Grimm's Fairy Tales #7
Here is another very short fairy tale from Grimm's Fairy Tales entitled 'The Water Nixie'. This a tale of two young children who were playing beside a well and fell in it. The nixie appeared and took them to her place and made them work using tools that made the jobs very hard. The children had to find a way to escape this magical place and get home somehow. They used a few tools from a brush to a comb to a mirror to keep the nixie from catching them. I am not sure of this one, but I think the lesson would be to be careful when playing around wells or any place where water is present for one never knows what may be lurking in the depths. This one could teach about trusting others as well as maybe teaching about 'Stranger Danger'. Please share your ideas on this one. I would appreciate it very much.
By Mark Grahamabout a year ago in Critique
Grimm's Fairy Tales #6
Here is a very short Grimm's Fairy Tale entitled 'The Fox and The Geese'. This tale is only a few short paragraphs yet to me very descriptive. To me this is a very short story for the power of prayer. The fox one day came up to a group of geese and told them that were going to die for he planned on eating them. Then one goose spoke up and asked for one thing before they were set to die and that was to say a prayer. The fox will be given his choice of the fattest goose but will he for the story is still going on for the prayer the geese are saying is still going. "Ga, Ga."
By Mark Grahamabout a year ago in Critique
Tin Cans?
What can one person or a whole group do with a bunch of tin cans? What good are they? To me there are a lot of good uses for these objects of various sizes. Looking at the picture they can be used for target practice. You could set up for a game of nine pin or something along that route. Tin cans can also be used for planting seedlings for some varieties of flowers and vegetables. Some have even used them to make alarm systems for various reasons. I just thought of this they could be turned into little lights of some kind. Maybe if a person is good with wiring, one could drill little holes in the bottom of the can and put a plug there and on the inside the fixings for the little light bulb. Who remembers the game of Telephone where two cans are joined by a string and a long time ago young kids would act like they were calling their friends like their parents do. As you see I have came up with a lot of uses for old tin cans. In a poem I just published here on Vocal I thought tin cans would make great planters for seedlings of some kind or another. One old idea one could always decorate them somehow for a pencil holder or some sort of holder for some various small objects. If anyone else has any other ideas, please share and if no ideas come to mind one can also take them to a recycling center to be smashed and sent somewhere to be turned into something else perhaps a part of a bike or even a part of a car or turned into a wagon of some sort the kids pull around. There are many options.
By Mark Grahamabout a year ago in Critique
Announcing The Stargate Project: A Bold Leap into the Future
In a world where technology evolves at an unprecedented pace, a groundbreaking initiative has emerged to redefine the boundaries of human potential and technological achievement. Today, we are thrilled to unveil the Stargate Project, an ambitious venture poised to revolutionize how we explore the unknown, harness innovation, and connect the dots between science fiction and reality.
By EA MARKETINGabout a year ago in Critique
Why Do The Games in Squid Game S2 Show Real-Life Struggles
Many people have been anxiously awaiting the second season of Squid Game, the most-watched show on Netflix. To win prizes in the first season, players had to compete in several lethal kid-friendly games. The upcoming season, which is also expected to break yet another Netflix record, delves deeper into the limitations and economic background of the surrealistic games. Green light, red light. When the song starts, move forward; when it ends, freeze. It's a fairly easy game. Or is it that moving after the music has stopped carries a death sentence? It was clear from the first season that Squid Game allegorizes the horrors of capitalism through kid-friendly games. Three years later, the second season of arguably the most significant television program of our time advances its adamantly anti-capitalist theme. It accomplishes this by exposing the illusion of "choice" in a system threatening to starve the great majority. In this article, I dive deeper into the dystopian nuances of capitalism and the illusion of choice that stir up scenarios very similar to reality.
By Hridya Sharmaabout a year ago in Critique
Liberty and Justice for SOME
Well, the moment has finally come, a moment we knew would come since November 5th, 2024 a date that will assuredly live in infamy. A date that if studied by historians centuries in the future will surely be sighted as the date that irrevocably changed the course of the country once known as the United States of America. A country that to be honest never fully stood for liberty and justice for all, a more accurate description would be "Liberty and Justice for SOME." This distinction is important as even at the country's founding many of the leaders owned slaves and felt there was nothing wrong with owning slaves while also ascribing to the mantra of so-called "liberty and justice for all." Furthermore, this distinction is important to points that I shall be making in the rest of this piece about how we got here. Some who are more idealistic than me may feel that Trump becoming president a second time is some major failure and a sign of how far we as a country have fallen, but I think that if we step back and take a look at the past we shall see how in another way, perhaps we've simply gone back to the beginning. I will endeavor to explain why to the best of my poor ability.
By ChampionElCidabout a year ago in Critique
JOKER A Neurodiverse Analysis. Content Warning.
Introduction Directed by Tod Philips, who earned three Academy Award nominations thanks to this film, Joker has gained much fame, criticism, and honors. Joaquin Phoenix, received several Oscars and accreditations based on this particular movie, and it is one of the top-rated movies on IMDb. This essay takes insights as to the ways cinematic framing and content are absorbed by society and individuals and its impact on culture (Marsena and Angjaya, 2022, p. 37) (Nelson et al., 1997) (Brader, 2005). The aim of this essay is not to assume the intentions of the directors and cast, nor is it to criticize the movie, as it is impossible without the knowledge of Phillips’ intentions, but to offer a nuanced neurodiversity perspective on a highly rewarded and well-viewed film. Nonetheless, there have been huge discussions online about how accurate the depictions of negative mental health were in the film.
By Marion Aubryabout a year ago in Critique
