Prism

Fraud In The Banks

So, remember that huge mortgage crisis? The one that caused the biggest economic fallout since the great depression. The one that turned this country upside down and cost millions of people their jobs. Well as it turns out, those big business that actually benefited (The banks) also caused the issue. On Wednesday a federal jury found Bank of America liable for fraud due to an intentional flood of defective mortgages. These mortgages are traced directly to the cause of the financial crisis.

Thankfully this has begun a healing resolution in cleaning up the stains in our economy. This has been a tremendous victory for the Government in the fight to show the criminal acts of Wall Street. The point of the attack was found in a plot scheme of Countrywide Mortgages. The scheme had been code named "The HUSTLE" which was a program that actually gave bonuses to how quickly bankers could originate loans. As a result the credit quality of each borrower was short shifted, leading to the eventual failure of the loan. This was luckily uncovered by the feds, and now Bank of America is receiving a real civil suit that is claiming upwards of $848 million dollars in damages.

What is most rewarding about this case, is that the federal government now has a focused plan of attack to fight the sins of giant corporations. We are now on a great track to recovery and we can hone in on the even greater plots that caused this economic break down.

Link http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/bank-of-america-is-found-liable-for-countrywide-fraud/2013/10/23/60ce89fe-3c27-11e3-b6a9-da62c264f40e_story.html

GOLD! GOLD! GOLD! (on trees!)

They say that money doesn't grow on trees.... but apparently gold does!

Gold particles were found growing in leaves of Eucalyptus trees in Australia by surprised researchers. Because Eucalyptus trees roots can delve up to 130 feet underground in search of hydration, the roots of these particular trees came upon deep ore deposits with lots of gold! The article seems that it is very important to state how much gold is worth theses days, as the researchers were fierce with excitement on their possibility of such a valuable mineral. The researchers were smartly wary at first, doing many in depth tests to make sure that the gold was actually growing on the leaves. The researchers want to find the ores where the gold came from, but want to be careful about harming the trees areas.

I find this story to be extremely exciting because though I do not know a thing or two about plants, the amazing happenings of nature really fascinate me. It is poetic in a way that something of such materialistic value and a beauty of nature could really solidify the fantasy of money "growing" on trees. It really shows the magic of nature and how sometimes really anything can happen when it comes to nature. I find it to be almost a sign of how we should stop putting so much value to materials and nurture nature!
Article + pic link:

The Dead and The Environment

If I was married for 48 years to one person and they had one request upon dying, I would, no doubt, agree to anything they ask. But if this request was to be buried in our front lawn, it might take some mulling over.

All James Davis’ wife, Patsy Davis, wanted was to be buried in their lawn. So, Mr. Davis was determined to do just that. After going through all the necessary paper work and being denied by the city and even The Alabama Supreme Court, Mr. Davis did what he was told anyway. A month later he was sued by the city. For the next four years Mr. Davis became thousands of dollars deep in legal fees.  He stuck to his guns. He even ran for Mayor and lost. His neighbors weren't bothered by her, so why should the government be and how is this related to environmental news? The city’s attorney Parker Edmiston said” If you allow it for Mr. Davis, you allow it for Ms. Adams, Mr. Jones and everyone else,” and that would mean bad news for the rest of us.

The process of laying a human to rest nowadays requires many chemicals including formaldehyde, which is toxic to all animals and has been the cause of death to some adult humans. So you can only imagine how this chemical seriously contaminates the ground and the plant life it comes in contact with. If everyone began burying their loved ones in areas where there is life and community, toxins would build up and eventually start to affect the living.

There are more environmentally friendly ways of resting. Including cremation, (which has its only pollutants to worry about, but it’s still not as bad as cutting down millions of rain forest  making steel vaults, and concocting embalming fluid) and natural burials which is done without chemicals. The deceased is put in a biodegradable coffin or casket and the area where the person is buried is kept as close to the original state as possible. Just like our ancestors did. Awesome. 

Read about it.

Midterm Instructor Assessment

Does this course match your expectations
I wrote the syllabus and course description, so not too many surprises here. But you never really know what you’re going to get in a college class. Honestly, I am pleased about your interest in the subjects from class. And you’ve all brought some great material for discussion. I don't expect everyone to love history, but it will prove to be useful as we move into more current topics.

What are the most valuable things you gained thus far?

• Cornish students are engaged with the world. 
• No one seems to feel the blog posts are “busy work.”
• You're enjoying the mode of class

Supported learning

Based upon your comments, I could more effectively support your reading of the text. Several of you made this comment. Did the reading questions help? This is always a tough line to walk. Granted, it is a lot of pages. And there are not a lot of spaces in your course work at Cornish to refine your skills with long, social science reading. I’m prepared to meet you half way here. I will devote more time to discussing, explaining, preparing you for the reading. However, reading comes with the territory. 

What challenges?

The agenda in this class is ambitious. We’re working on subjects in the past and present. Encouraging you to read things that are outside your normal zone is difficult, but important. Otherwise, we go sliding across the surface and never dive into the subjects in more detail. I could tell you that America’s relationship to the rest of the world was guided by a missionary zeal for civilization. But what does that mean? To really unpack that difficult concept requires a lot of context and work. 

What would you change?

For the second half of the semester, we’re going to spend more time in discussion. There will be more time for you to explore topics of your own interest. As we march stridently towards the present, our topics will become more and more relevant to the present day. The trick will be to convert the historical foundation you have into useful knowledge about the present.  There are two long documentaries.

How to be successful

Keep up with the reading. There's only one "big" assignment. Thus far, most of class has been passive learning – I talk, you learn. The second half is going to require you to be more active learners. The relaxed atmosphere in class has to be balanced with utter professionalism and a sense of perfection in your written work. 

Additional comments

• Some of your classmates have expressed frustration with the amount of talking and side conversation. That will have to change.
• We’re gonna have to strike a balance between lecture and discussion. I’m going to do less talking for the remainder of our time. That’s perilous, because it means you are responsible for the success of class. But ultimately, the pay-off is greater. 
• I want to work on adding depth to our current events discussions. How can we make them more than personal interest stories? We are turning into a society that reads headlines, captions, and twitter posts. What happened to the substance and meat?
• I’m really enjoying this class. It’s a joy to interact with ya’ll and I wish we had more time in class. This class is a lot of work. But when it’s working, it can be very rewarding.

Hunks: Muscular Men Around the World

I'm gearing up to teach a unit in my IS class in a few weeks on the emergence of new ideas about gender and sexuality in the Modern age - flappers, gender-bending, end of the Victorian age, etc.  In my search, I came across this book review from the Atlantic Magazine, Universal Hunks: a Pictoral History of Muscular Men Around the World.  

Low and behold, it is topical for our class as well.  The authors trace how the male body served as a platform for nationalist display.  Each country attempted to assert its power in the 20th century.  Like this guy:

The emergent field anatomy [who's taking anatomy?], closely related to the science of eugenics at this time, also used the male figure as a scale to measure the progress of civilization.  Matt Jacobson is sitting in his office, feeling very pleased about the influence of his "Parables of Progress" idea.

Other pieces in the book, explore the growing acceptance of "The Hunk" in popular culture as an illustration or referent to an emergent post-war gay subculture.

The Brits Nuke Up

Prime Minister David Cameron spoke at Hinkley Point B Nuclear Plant.
His orange hard hat makes him stand out in a stately, powerful way, nay? 

Like the US, the UK is making strides to cut their emissions, but their feat is rather more ambitious. In 2011, Energy Secretary Chris Huhne told parliament that the UK would cut emissions in half by 2025. A goal like this called for some drastic measures to be taken, and of course for coal plants to be shut down.

This leaves a huge void of reliable energy production that must be filled. Developed European nations have led the way with renewable energy, but it is neither consistent, vast, nor inexpensive enough to take over the main load of British power production in the near future. Nuclear power is the only logical choice for a fossil fuel alternative. On Monday, Great Britain announced its 26 billion dollar deal to build twin nuclear reactors in Hinkley Point B.

At this time, unfortunately, the market of nuclear energy is shaky, and the best deal UK officials were able to find includes multiple international parties and some outdated technology. The UK reached its deal with the French state-controlled utility the EDF Group. To reduce the risk of the several billion dollar investment, Great Britain has opened the door to Chinese investment, with China General Nuclear Corporation and China National Nuclear Corporation taking as much as a 40% stake in the project.

This project doesn't come without a pricetag to UK residents. According to EDF projections, the per-megawatt-hour prices of energy could double for the next 35 years when it begins producing in about a decade. Parliament for the Greens member Caroline Lucas called this endeavor "a terrible deal for billpayers."

Regardless of the expensive and foreign-funded aspects of this operation, I think that the UK project is to be admired, not dreaded. Rather than wait for an ambiguous future where it  might be more convenient to make the leap to alternate power sources, the European super-power is taking its part to do everything they can as soon as they can to help save our planet. This move, more than anything, sends the message that the need for change is immediate and that our planet's health takes precedence over financial independence and low wholesale energy rates. 

Read more about it HERE.

China's smog problem!!!

With the winter months coming in China, the smog levels are skyrocketing. The amount of pollution this year is the worst in recorded history for China. Every winter the smog tends to increase quite a bit because of the country’s dependence on coal. But since winter has started, the amount of pollution in the air has jumped to 40 times the international safety standard. The smog is so bad you cannot see half a football field away from you, a housewife in china said she looked out her window and thought it was snowing but soon realized it was layers of built up smog, also saying that she has not seen the sun for a long time. This causes road closers; school closures and they are also advising the elderly and young with respiratory problems to stay inside as much as possible. China’s dependency sits at about 70% energy from coal; but the Cabinet of China has said they plan to reduce it to 65% by 2017. I guess that is better then nothing.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/21/super-smog-beijing-china_n_4134226.html?utm_hp_ref=green

UK’s first new nuclear power plant for a generation

The deal under which Britain will start building its first new nuclear power station for almost two decades is a devastating indictment of the muddled approach to energy policy under successive governments.
As other Western democracies, including France, Germany and the United States, are retreating from nuclear investment in the aftermath of the still unresolved 2011 Fukushima crisis in Japan, the UK heads in the opposite direction.
It is doing so bizarrely with the help of two state-owned French companies, EDF and nuclear designer Areva, investors from the People’s Republic of China.
It has only managed to push ahead by offering the rag-tag bunch of investors a guaranteed fee for the eventual electricity that is twice the current price.
Lib Dem Energy Secretary Ed Davey glibly declares the deal will have no effect on consumer or industry bills until the plant is finished in ten years time but he cannot possibly know that.

Furthermore, there can be no guarantee that EDF and its partners can deliver an operating nuclear power plant, with the necessary post-Fukushima safety requirements, in the ten-year timeframe.
Two similar new nuclear plants – in Finland and France – have been subject to long delays. The real tragedy is that the new nuclear energy will not start to come on stream for at least a decade.
It will do nothing to prevent the possibility that the lights will go out in two to three years.
Perhaps worst of all, the UK is effectively ceding control of a vital aspect of the nation’s economic and technological security to overseas owners. It is possible that the current or a future government in France will decide it is not the job of a state-owned enterprise to focus most of its new investment abroad.
This is precisely what happened last year when two big German power firms, E.on and RWE, reneged on their promise to invest in new nuclear at Anglesey. Instead, of the UK having control over its own electricity future the decision was taken for it in Berlin.
Another serious risk is that sophisticated technology for our nuclear plants, made by Rolls-Royce and other UK high-tech engineers, could be copied by Chinese firms, which George Osborne says could become the majority shareholders in new plants.

It will be terrifying to think of Britain’s electricity being held hostage to the whims of secretive and corrupt policymakers in Beijing, who take commercial revenge on anyone who dare question human rights outrages.
As some members of the Coalition government have told me, the biggest blunder was made by Gordon Brown when in 2006 British Nuclear Fuels sold off Westinghouse Electric Company, one of the two companies in the world with sophisticated nuclear technology, to Toshiba of Japan.
Now we are relying on Japanese investors – including Toshiba - to pick up the pieces of the Anglesey project abandoned by Germany’s finest.

Britain, the first country in the world to inaugurate a nuclear power plant at Calder Hall in Cumbria 57 years ago, finds itself at the wrong end of a foreign-owned supply chain over which we have little or no control.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/f7dd71b2-3a82-11e3-9243-00144feab7de.html#axzz2iQIIU9kF

Another Dry Winter Could Be Bad For California

On Monday October 14, 2013, water managers urged Californians to step up their water conservation efforts. This is a warning that many parts of the state could face water shortages if this winter is dry. Although the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California has not declared a statewide drought yet, this is a very real possibility if it stays as dry as it has been. Two dry years in a row have caused water levels in the state's biggest reservoirs to be below normal. Lake Shasta is at 66% of the average for this time of the year and Lake Oroville is at 73%. The fact that the Colorado River basin has had more than a decade of severe drought does not help. The Colorado River basin is a source of about a quarter of urban Southern California's supplies. The last two years on the Colorado have been some of the driest on record in about a century.

Being from California, this is very scary to hear about because I know the kinds of conservation efforts that have already been taking place. For the last few years, we have been urged to really take water conservation seriously. There have been restrictions in place for when lawns can be watered and many people have installed low flow fixtures in their houses. Being from Northern California, I know that we worry every winter when Tahoe gets less and less snow because we rely on the snow melt from Tahoe as a water source as well. This is a scary issue and not one that you usually hear about somewhere like Washington where water is always present. The MWD says that they have sufficient supplies in regional storage to avoid mandatory cutbacks for another year, but after that we're kind of screwed.  Hopefully this winter is not dry in California and a drought will not have to be declared.

You can read more about the issue and the water conservation efforts that are already being taken by those who live in California here:
http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-water-conserve-20131014,0,6674448.story

Better Out Than In

The notorious street artist known as Banksy is currently producing works throughout New York City on a "open air residency."  Among his many funny and cutting pieces are several that may interest us in this class, including these two:

This second piece, includes an audioguide (which is available here).  The work references an incident from 2007 in Iraq, in which an Apache helicopter (call sign Crazyhorse) fired on a gathering of civilians, children, and two Reuters reporters.   The video footage was released by Wikileaks and Prvt Chelsea Manning.  More HERE

Who Needs $689 Billion?

$680 billion dollars cut from our deficit, plus an extra $2 billion dollars a year in state and local tax revenue, plus $7 billion dollars added into the U.S economy due to increased travel and tourism, this is what we stand to gain if the immigration reform passes. And it doesn't stop there we would also gain, "From California to South Carolina...an average of 14,000 jobs per congressional district in the next decade." To put that into perspective that is 69, 094 jobs in Washington State alone. So what is the problem? Why aren't our country's leaders fighting like hell to get this reform put into action? From what I have gathered it seems the main opposition to the reform is based on two arguments, it is too expensive and too progressive. My response to these extremely valid and well thought arguments (sarcasm intended) is a) one would think that $689 billion dollars would more than cover the costs and b) too progressive, is just the verbal crap spewed out by congressional xenophobes. In addition, a major argument against legalizing immigrants and/or letting them into the country in the first place, has been that they would steal jobs from us well-to-do average Americans. But, with this reform, immigrants would be on the same hiring level as “average Americans,” because they would no longer be able to be paid: under the table, unbeatable, and unrighteous wages. Families living without the fear of being torn apart, more jobs, more money, a lower deficit, and a better global image, that is what the immigration reform could bring, so what’s the downside again?

http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/08/20/immigration-reform-could-boost-us-economy

http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2013/08/20/economic-benefits-fixing-our-broken-immigration-system-travel-and-tourism

Turning the country Inside Out

Politically immigration has become a topic of utmost urgency; artistically immigration has become a muse for artistic activism and many artists have taken it upon themselves to not necessarily fulfill a political agenda, but to make people aware, and make voices heard. One group of artists in particular have started what’s called the Inside Out project, a project which focuses on taking pictures of illegal immigrants and creating a portrait of the “faces of America.” The group travels in a van across cities in the US to put faces to the 11 million illegal immigrants living in the country, and posts the 3 x 5’ portraits of around the city. With inspirational quotes such as, “we’re all immigrants, and that’s the makeup of this country,” and “we need you to rebuild the country,” the pictures typically stay up for several weeks.

Admits all of the political strikes and protests, it’s nice to find news about fellow artists and the impact that they have, however small, on society. Though the organization isn't taking to the streets with riots and fancy speeches, the little things, the silent voice has so much to say. In some ways I feel like the subtlety is better because it’s always there, it makes you think, it brings attention to the smallest details in a way that’s not disruptive or distracting to what’s really important. It’s not an argument of who’s right or wrong it’s a silent reminder what’s really going on. I just hope that the group can find a way to bring the awareness that they’re gathering and apply it to something that’ll make an impact on a larger scale.

http://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20130903-art-project-stops-in-dallas-to-put-a-face-on-immigration-issue.ece?ssimg=1175759#ssStory1176299

Made in Chi-- America?

President of Carolina Cotton Works inspects fabric made in the USA.

In the last 20 years, the American manufacturing industry has largely disappeared. It used to be that nearly half of all apparel bought in the United States was made here within the country, but because of a few events, laws, and CEO's discovering cheap labor across the sea, it's rare to find a pair of slacks anymore that is "Made in the USA". Simply because it is cheaper to manufacture goods overseas. Labor costs about 3 times more here at home than it does in China or India, and even after transportation costs, the overall price to manufacture something overseas is still less than it would be to make it over here. BUT it seems that the textile manufacturing industry has started to reopen its doors after years of being closed. Carolina Cotton Works has, since 2010, reopened a formerly closed factory in Parkdale, SC. So, what are the benefits? If it costs less, how are they to compete with cheaper goods from overseas. Well, CCW claims that transportation costs are much less, and though labor costs more, there are benefits such as being able to check on quality, oversee production, and toss around ideas with managers. Plus, it takes about 1/3 to 1/5 the time to make a sweatshirt domestically than it is outside the country. Mills are much safer now than they were years ago, and with all of the unpredictability of having a mill overseas, the company can make sure working conditions are maintained and upheld at a good level.Most of the work is also done by machines now, so companies do not have to hire as many human workers as they once did. If this keeps up, and if more companies end up moving back home. It may put the US back in position to have a global manufacturing influence. I doubt that the US will ever have such a large industry as it once did. Consumers may find the appeal of American-made clothes enticing and possibly more ethical which could help bring business back to our shores.

Read about it here!

Art Supporting DREAMers

Sam Comen, an L.A. photographer, has found use of his particular medium of visual art in support of political concerns. Most recently his photographs have provided portraits of the lives of people near his home city that have immigrated to the United States. Flipping through his work, my attention was brought to his project titled Dreamers: Undocumented & Unafraid. Hoping to use his talents as a photographer to push for immigration reform, Comen creates portraits of DREAMers that reside in his immediate city of Los Angeles. As we’ve discussed in class, DREAMers are undocumented young people pushing for their rights to remain in the country their parents had brought them when they were children. They are fighting for their rights to remain home.

Working together with all 28 DREAMers to capture who they are and what they are boldly fighting for provides a new way of looking at immigration in today’s world and direct examples of why pushing for immigration reform really matters. As Comen points out in his introduction to the collection of portraits, allowing for their names, pictures, and stories to be publicly available is a very brave thing for them to participate in. In my opinion, this personal bravery and commitment gives another powerful element to the work Comen has created. Each of these stories has something unique and powerful to offer and these incredibly passionate young people are beautifully captured in both portrait and story. I think Comen’s work provides a wonderful example of how we can use our art for topics we touch upon in this class.

Most of the DREAMers photographed are involved in art, activism, or both. In this way, I think a lot of us can relate to them. Flip through the portraits and stories Comen has carefully put together with the help of people whose lives are drastically effected by immigration. 

http://www.samcomen.com/index.php?/projects/no-papers-no-fear/

Will it be passed????

Early in october, 8 members (all democrats) of the House of Representatives were arrested outside of the house while protesting for the passing of the bill for citizenship. The reason they were protesting is because they feel the issue of immigration is being pushed aside and belittled by health care and the government shutdown. This rally also caused a huge issue because it was held in the middle of the National Mall, which is a national park and currently all national parks are supposed to be closed and off limits because of the shutdown. Despite all this, they were able to continue their rally and protest and this of course created issues over twitter and other social media. People commented that it was unfair since a week prior to the event several WW2 veterans weren't able to enter the memorial because it was shut..... um #cray, double standard. After the arrests and the rally, house republican members commented that the issue of immigration should have just been fixed and that by granting illegals citizenship it could actually help the economy which is why the government is shut down.... um how about no. We still do not know if they are gonna pass the immigration bill but we shall see in the future. 

They really should just fix this issue because it is kind of getting out of hand, and it is making the governments other decisions a lot harder because now they have so much shit to take care of.... and its getting crazy. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/09/us/8-lawmakers-arrested-at-immigration-protest.html?_r=0