Favorite Website

MMAweekly. It is a website that focuses on Mixed Martial Arts, or what many casual fans know it as - Ultimate fighting. I have been a fan of MMA since its beginning. Despite what many think of the sport, MMA is truly a thinking mans game. It requires skills in a variety of martial arts, like jiu-jitsu, kick boxing, and wrestling. Despite the skill it takes to compete and the massive amounts of training involved, many opponents of MMA call it "human cock-fighting", which is an unfair attack.

The website MMAweekly keeps me up with the latest news, upcoming events and also features a discussion forum where many fans get together to give takes on fights. I goto this website at least once a day. The website also features fighter interviews and a streaming radio show. Out of all the MMA websites out there, it is truly my favorite.

Does my Zodiac sign traits describe my personality?

For many years I believed what I read under the sign, Libra, was an accurate description of myself. This belief in astrology came from my mom who told me about the signs at a young age. A Libra is supposed to be balanced, and be very social, and is also indecisive and can have mood swings. I thought that those traits described me very well.

Now that I am older, I believe that since you read horoscopes from a young age on, you shape yourself to fit the traits you read. I saw a documentary where as a test, a professor gave students a "horoscope" and told them that was their sign. What the professor didnt tell them was that he gave everyone the same horoscope. Turns out, the majority of students felt the horoscope was an accurate description of who they were!

So, I no longer subscribe to the notion that the stars you were born under influences who you are as a person.

Something that caused me to drastically change my way of thinking

Maybe the biggest thing that caused me to change my way of thinking was becoming a home owner. I rented for many years and it truly is a different way of thinking. As a renter I had no issue with renting or hanging out with my friends on the corners. My friends and I would get loud at night and then not understand when neighbors would complain.

Now that I own, I am now the angry neighbor! I spend a lot of time cleaning garbage up around my house. I find beer bottles, empty Cheetos bags and sometimes even old corn on the cobs in my front yard garden. At night, I deal with renters making noise and being inconsiderate of their neighbors. Having a house to actually take care of truly gives you a different way of thinking.

Films vs Text

I have to make a choice? Tough one to make and I actually cannot give you a definitive answer! I love films: action, sci fi, adventure, martial arts and comedy! Some of my favorite movies: Kung Fu Hustle, Fight Club, The Prestige, and The Matrix off the top of my head.

Books on the other hand; I tend to stick to one particular genre - Fantasy. I am a huge fan of Robin Hobb, George RR Martin and Patrick Rothfuss.

I watch a lot of movies. At least 5 a week if not more, but at the same time, I also read a great deal -books, magazines and online content.

If I had to make a choice between the two, I would choose text. Why? Because it requires far less technology to utilize. Could you watch a movie on a deserted island? Or during a power outage? Nope and that is where the simplicity of books is superior.

My favorite form of entertainment is neither books or film however. My favorite is video games; a genre that is blurring the lines between film and books.

But in terms of learning: I learn far more from books than I do in movies. I am able to process the information better from books and it is easier for me to remember facts.

Education in the US: Are We Falling Behind

I do think the U.S. is falling behind in education. Our public schools systems are broken. The curriculum is being dumbed down for one. I have spoken to international students at NEIU and for the most part, they have learned many concepts in High School that the American student learns at the University.

When it comes time to balance state and municipal budgets, education is one of the first things cut. Teacher's are not paid enough, so the best and brightest move towards higher paying careers. Public education needs to be seriously overhauled to help get the United States back on track.

Another reason the United States is falling behind is our lack of a free public option for students looking to go to college. Many other industrial countries offer free higher educations for students and this gives them an edge over the US citizen who has to pay or take out loans for their education.

The US needs to catch up and to do so it will need to take drastic action.

Thoughts on Plagiarism

Plagiarism really angers me. Why do it? The main reason, in my opinion, is that students get lazy and look for a quick fix. And with the internet at a young students disposal, it must be an easy move. I wonder how much plagiarism goes on between students for different classes. How much plagiarizing goes on at the University level? With all the means available it must be an increasing problem. I have never been tempted to plagiarize because I have always wanted people to read my work and know I wrote it.

Is there a difference between racism and classism

Yes, there is a definite difference. Racism is the view that no matter where you stand economically, your skin color and ethnic origin define your actions as a person. Classism is the view that your economic status defines your actions as a person. Both are forms of prejudice. But racism has to do with discriminating by race while classism is about discriminating based on money and possessions. Neither are right, but they will always exist.

How to End Homelessness in America

Personally, I do not believe there is a way to ever end homelessness in the US or any other huge civilization. The problem is there will always be people who fall through the cracks of capitalism. Those who lose everything, those who become addicted to all different kinds of drugs, and those who refuse to conform to societal standards. And there will always be the mentally ill. Now maybe we could force these different peoples into homes where we "protect them from themselves", but in a way, are we not compromising their freedom by doing that?

As long as we live in a Capitalistic society, homelessness will not be going anywhere.

What is Truth?

Truth is a lie!!!!


No, but in all seriousness, truth is completely relative to who is perceiving it. Some would claim that it is a universal truth that the sky is blue. But what about the man who is color blind? His truth is that the sky is gray.

Or a some believe that January 1st is the beginning of the New Year but in China, February 14th is the New Year.

Or one might claim that a universal truth is that the time right now is 11:28 but in Seattle right now it is 9:28, so even time is relative and never completely true.

Is this the end of books as we know them?

No. But it is the beginning of a symbiotic relationship with the digital. The hard copy will not go away for three reasons:

The Bathroom- Who would want to read a digital copy of a book on the can? How would they read an electronic device in the bathtub?

The Bookshelf- What the heck would you put in them if books go the way of the dinosaurs? Bookshelf makers will not let the hard copy book go away.

Cost- Right now the readers are far too expensive. The lower end consumer simply cannot afford it.

The US and Neo Colonialism

Now I won't pretend to know a huge amount about Neo-Colonialism so I will speak with a level of vagueness that denotes that lack of knowledge.

The first thing I look at when examining US foreign policy is who is making money. When the US invades a country like Iraq, I try and see what they are getting from it. In Iraq it is pretty obvious; oil. In a country like Afghanistan we can masquerade it as bringing the Afghans freedom, but I believe it has more to do with securing the huge amount of opium in the country for corporate interests. Remember opium makes morphine and other pharmaceuticals.

In Africa we create disability and unrest in the countries then loan them money through the IMF and indebt the countries forever. Africa has a huge amount of natural resources to plunder and that is why you see such strong US and European influence and intervention in the countries.

As long as there is money to made and resources to be looted you will never see the end to this form of Neo Colonialism. Under the guise of freedom and peace-keeping, US forces will continue to work for the interest of the US corporate machine. More and more the USA is becoming the United States of America INC.

Why Learn Academic English?

"The best way to destroy an enemy is to make him a friend"
Abraham Lincoln

Academic English, right now, is my enemy. I have never been a rebel and as long as rules are simple and make sense, then I have no problem following them. My "beef" with Academic English is that everything is so specific and there seems to be zero room for improvisation. There are so many rules that it all just seems very stifling. Some of my favorite writers move outside of it's boundaries and I applaud them for it. That being said, I can almost guarantee that even though there are many famous writers that do not use Academic English in their works, almost of all them know Academic English and can write in that fashion at will.

I will learn Academic English, so I can "know my enemy" and once I know it, I will use that knowledge to destroy Academic English under my pen. But even before I do that I will use Academic English to further myself through The Academy. It is the language that the Academy speaks, so until I finish school, Academic English and myself will learn to be good friends.

But then later.....I will destroy it!!!

About Me

“Idle youth, enslaved to everything; by being too sensitive I have wasted my life.”
Arthur Rimbaud

My life for many years was off-track but now as I begin my 30th year, I will make myself a better person. As a small child I was placed in the gifted program at my elementary school. I had been blessed with a Mother who taught me to read at the age of three. That early start more than likely helped give me a leg up over my fellow classmates. As the years passed I grew accustomed to being the "smart kid" in class. Little did I know that the moniker "smart kid" when come back to hurt me.

When I turned 12, my step-father was diagnosed with lung cancer and we moved from Seattle to San Diego for the dry air. I began middle school with the same level of "nerdiness" I had throughout elementary school, but this "nerdiness" gained me ridicule from my fellow classmates. They called me "geek" and "schoolboy". At this point I decided to neglect my studies in an effort to be "cool".

My stepfather passed away right before I was to start high school. We moved back to Seattle and I attended an alternative school. I also continued to try and be cool and succeeded somewhat! This small bit of success worsened my school work. And eventually all that mattered at high school revolved around the social.

I got a job at a restaurant at the age of 17. I began to make money! Not just a little bit of money but a lot for a teenager. I also started having success with the opposite sex. School was an afterthought, so it made sense in my young mind to me to drop out and get my GED at 17.

For several years after leaving school, it seemed my life consisted of work and leisure. I would drink and smoke to pass the time between my hours on the job. Hundreds of hours were spent on street corners with beers and my slacker friends. Eventually at the age of 24, a woman named Wendy would help me break this routine and help me remember something about myself that I had forgotten; that I wanted to be a winner. We moved in together and eventually I got a job selling windows. It ended up being quite lucrative, but I had to step away when Wendy got a can't turn down job offer here in Illinois.

We moved to Chicago together 2 years ago. It has been a huge lifestyle change for us. Especially the winters, which have been quite taxing. I took a job selling security services, but I soon realized that I did not want to sell things forever. I wanted to do something "meaningful" with my life. I had wasted too much time doing nothing that truly mattered in what I felt was the big scheme of things.

So that's why I am in school. To get my degree in teaching and do something that matters to me. Maybe I can help a kid that is going through the same issues that I went through, the issues that I allowed to stunt my development. If I can help one kid, it would mean more to me than selling 100 windows.

That's basically a quick rundown of my life. I am an old soul, but young at heart (can one have both?). Interests include: Mixed Martial Arts, Video Games, Sci Fi/ Fantasy Fiction, a good conspiracy theory, History, Movies, and our three dogs.