How About "My Life So Far--Kinda"?
Lately, Jane Fonda seems to be on every talk and news show I watch marketing her new book “My Life So Far" and movie Monster-in-Law.” I really, really like Fonda. She is a very talented actress—I’m almost buying her version of the events that led to that explosive photo of her in Vietnam. Fonda has stood up for what she has believed even when it was extremely unpopular. And, she does some pretty great things for our communities. A matter of fact my child actually participates in one of the youth centers she has sponsored in Southwest Georgia. But still I can’t get a handle on this “universality” concept Fonda is pushing. Generally speaking, I belong to the elite group known as poor folks. A lot of the young people in the programs Fonda sponsors also belong to this group. I have listened to her story several times and I am just not grasping how a rich, privileged, talented, beautiful woman can expect a group of poor, underprivileged girls--many of whom have no dad in their lives-- to grasp how one who was blessed with so much can expect them to relate to her “disease to please” resulting in her paying other women to join her and her then husband in bed. I'm just not feeling it. Like Oprah before her, I think maybe she could have shelved this book. Or at least, she could have left out this portion because I see no purpose other than a bit of sensationalism to sell a few (well, maybe a lot) more books. Fonda has plenty of dirty laundry to air without going this far. I would have been just as happy with my “My Life So Far—Kinda.” Nevertheless, I am still a big fan. Fonda's fearlessness and honesty are admirable, and my doesn’t she make all of us a little less fearful of aging.
Jump Into the Melting Pot: Experience Cultural Diversity
Pati Poblete’s editorial really put into perspective just how much we can glean from the cultural experiences of each other. I don’t know if Pati is Asian, African American, Hispanic, White or another race. I just know that I was able to relate to her experience in diversity, although my own experience was somewhat different. For a few moments she let me into her world.
I truly believe that most people in this country desire positive race relations. But it seems that the subject is so sensitive that it is rare that we have honest, heartfelt dialogue without opening up old wounds or aggravating fresh ones. In the workplace we watch what we say. Even when we casually chat with friends who are outside of our culture we tend to have careful conversations. But the more we converse, the more we interact, the more we read, the more we study, the more comfortable we become--perhaps never fully grasping, but getting closer. And the closer we get to understanding, the closer we come to positive race relations.
Are Our Public Schools Without Hope?
Apparently, billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates doesn’t think so. We know he’s brilliant. We know he cares. When we watch him at the podium, we know he has a weakness—public speaking. But most importantly, whether we agree with him on all points or not, we know his heart is in the right place. And he is willing to do what many are not—put up or shut up. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has invested $2.3 billion since 2000 in new visions of education, with smaller schools and more personalized instruction to prepare young people for the working world and post-high school learning. There is an ongoing debate regarding the adequacy of our public school systems. Gates is saying clearly that our public schools are obsolete, but he’s not abandoning them. He’s helping them.
Most of us have been tuned in to the Terri Schiavo situation. The subject is a top search mover on the most popular search engines. Updates are on every news channel. Many are anxiously awaiting the autopsy results. Lawmakers are reassessing current laws. And, everywhere we look there is an article on living wills. Even minority individuals who have a history of distrust of the medical system and have generally shunned living wills are thinking about life and death decisions and who should make them. And still, many don’t have a living will. Although the case has spurred much conversation, many of us are still no closer to knowing what we would or should do given these life choices than we were before the Schiavo situation.
Death of A Pope
The Vatican announced that Pope John Paul II died at 9:37 p.m. on April 2 after a long public struggle against debilitating illness. He was 84. People from all religions and cultures around the world join billions of Catholics around the globe as they mourn the passing of Pope John Paul II.
John Paul had ruled over the large and diverse body of Catholics for over 27 years. The 2002 Official Catholic Directory lists the U.S. Catholic population at 65,270,444. Catholics represent 22.9 percent of the total population of the United States. There are more than 25 million Hispanic American Catholics, 2 million African Americans , and nearly a half million Native Americans.
Under John Paul’s leadership the church saw an increase in members from all races, and an increase in the number of minority men ordained into the priesthood. In 2000, Pope John Paul II made history when he asked for forgiveness for many of his church's past sins, including its treatment of Jews, heretics, women and native peoples. It was believed to be the first time in the history of the Catholic Church that one of its leaders sought such a sweeping pardon.
The list of potential successors to Pope John Paul II are as diverse as his followers. Members of the College of Cardinals, some of whom have flown in from foreign countries, are meeting as a conclave, a pope-selecting body. Only those under the age of 80 will have a vote; there will be no limit on the number of candidates. If after 30 ballots no one receives a two-thirds majority, the margin for victory can be reduced so that a simple majority could choose the next pope.
Is the "No Child Left Behind Act" Working?
Most parents want the very best for their children. In today's world, that is unlikely if the child does not possess an adequate education. A new study raises concerns about the No Child Left Behind Act, although students are doing better on state verbal and math tests--and, the gap between white and minority student scores is closing. We're probably going to have to pay teachers more. And the money to close an educational divide that has been perpetuated for years must finally be spent. That is, if the problem is truly to be fixed. The real answers lay in whether or not we are really ready to put forth the long-term money and resources necessary to address the problem or if we are going to continue to hide behind the excuse of bad legislation.
