Importance of our Rights

I feel a central theme that seems to have connected the various issues of the course this year was human rights. Learning about human rights, understanding them, talking about them and bringing to light the lack of them throughout the world was a major component in World Issues. For major issues like the Northern Africa and Middle Eastern protests you would had to truly understand the importance of human rights to comprehend why the protests started and why people continue fight for those rights and freedoms that we take for granted each day. Documents like the Universal Declaration of Human Rights prove how important human rights are in this world and by understanding their importance we are able to better apply documents like the UDHR to issues like the mass protests in the Middle East. It also increases ones understanding of the importance of what is happening in the Middle East and Northern Africa and how it is a major step in the right direction for human rights.  As terms like equality, peace and unity become more then just words ones perception on certain issues changes. Problems against these terms like racism and war really strike home because these words become very important and upholding what they stand for becomes essential.

World Issues

My participation in world issues has changed my view on the world greatly. When I first started the course I didn’t really look outside of Canada. I focused more on domestic problems, not really caring about the international. World issues changed that. I opened myself up to, well….World issues. I suddenly started caring about not just what was happening around me but about what was happening between Israel and Iran thanks to the Arab-Israeli conflict or the major protests in the Middle East and Northern Africa because of its importance to the human rights and pro-democratic movement. I felt for the people of Japan when the tsunami hit and felt anger and disgust towards Gaddafi when he talked about murdering everyone who rebelling against him. World Issues has changed my way of thinking regarding the world and has helped me understand what really matters. You have to look at the whole picture to really understand it meaning you can’t just focus on domestic issues and assume to comprehend what’s going on, you have to look at what’s happening throughout the earth to really understand the world and all its problems. By understanding what is happening throughout the world you can gain a better comprehension or what’s happening in your country and why through the knowledge of those world issues. A good example of this is the escalation of gas prices. If you just look inside your country you’ll know the obvious, gas prices are rising. But by looking outside the window into the outside world you’ll know that the rise in gas prices is being caused by the mass protests in major oil producing nations like Saudi Arabia. You can’t just read the plot summary on the back of a book and assume you know what it’s about. You have to read the entire book to understand it which is the same with world issues. You have to look around and know what’s happening throughout the world and keep an open mind about it.

The Death of bin Laden

In the late evening on May 1^st, 2011 a raid was conducted involving two teams of 12 U.S. Navy SEALs resulting in the death of the leader of al-Qaeda, the most wanted criminal on the planet earth. On May 2^nd, 2011 Osama bin Laden was shot in the head in a private residential compound in Abbottabad by a U.S. Navy SEAL whose identity remains confidential. After news of bin Laden’s death reached America, U.S. citizens took to the streets singing such classics as the American national anthem and Amazing Grace which really goes along well with death. While killing the leader of al-Qaeda may seem like the end of the terrorist organization to many, they have vowed to avenge their leader by retaliating. So while people may be celebrating this victory an even bigger battle may be looming. Al-Qaeda may have lost their leader and the mastermind behind all of their attacks but I don’t think it means the end of al-Qaeda. In fact I think the number of attacks and the severity of them will increase because now the terrorist group has their leader to avenge. While their attacks may not be as well planned or thought out as they were under bin Laden’s rule they will certainly have a bigger bang and that bang will reach U.S. soil. By killing bin Laden it just further proved to al-Qaeda and other terrorist group soldiers that the U.S. is evil and should be destroyed. They murdered their leader, their hero and now the only thing that will quench the beasts hunger for revenge is watching the United States slowly crumble and collapse. So who do you think will be the main target of these revenge attacks? If you guessed the United States of America your right. A storm is coming and it may just be the worst we’ve seen yet.

MIddle East Revolution

Over the past few months there have been major protests throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa calling for the end of dictators and oppressive governments who have ruled for decades. The immolation of Mohamed Bouazizi along with the major protests and riots that occurred after Mohamed Bouazizi lit himself on fire on December 17^th, 2010 sparked these pro-democratic protests throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa. Countries like Syria, Iran, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and many others have seen massive amounts of riots and protests calling for a reform. Egypt and Tunisia both had success in making their leaders stepping down but protests still continue in each country looking for more change and a promise of a different, more democratic government. A civil war has erupted in Libya between pro-Gaddafi supports and the rebels who have the help and support of NATO. They are fighting a bloody battle for the rights and freedoms that everyone deserves. These people who have been governed by these tyrants for decades now have finally had enough resulting in them finally standing and shouting “Enough is enough.” People are sick and tired of every aspect of their lives being controlled by their government and this massive movement shows that the end of these dictatorships and oppressive governments is near. The citizens of Iran or Syria voices may have been silenced for decades but this movement has allowed them open their mouths and be known, a true step on the road to true democracy.

Holiday Event

The most important significant event to occur over the first week of the Christmas break would have had to been the political protests and the call for the end to the oppressive government in Tunisia and their long time leader President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. As I look back this one event has had the biggest impact on the world, sparking the protests throughout the Middle East and Northern Africa. Up until December 18^th the protests against the Tunisia governments were peaceful but were unfortunately not changing anything. That all changed on December 18^th when a twenty-six year old Tunisian man, Mohamed Bouazizi, doused himself with flammable liquid and set himself on fire in front of a Tunisia provincial headquarters. This immolation and the violent response of the police to peaceful Tunisia protestors sparked major protests and riots throughout Tunisia and eventually most of the Middle East and Northern Africa. Without the sacrifice of one man along with the major protests throughout Tunisia for the end to their oppressive government we wouldn’t see the massive pro-democratic movement throughout the world today, ending the reign of tyrants who’ve had control over their country for decades.

Wikileaks

Wikileaks is an international non-profit organization that releases private, secret, and classified media from anonymous news sources, news leaks, and whistleblowers. Under the Freedom of Information Act what Wikileaks is doing is legal and I think it is very important to have as well. While some missions deserved to be censored to protect undercover soldiers operations, we as a people deserve to know what our governments our doing. What Wikileaks is doing is completely justified and the U.S. government has no right trying to take it down. Their determination to get rid of Wikileaks just shows to the people of the world that they have something to hide, some things they don’t want the public to know about. Information like the US Embassy Diplomatic Cables is essential in helping the general public know what their government is really doing and by knowing this they are able express their anger and frustration which will pressure governments into doing the right thing because they can no longer commit unjust and inhumane actions without the public knowing about it. Wikileaks, a step forward in the world of journalism and the world of right.

The China Machine

Ever since the downfall of the Soviet Union the United States has been the only world super power. They’ve done whatever they want with no one there to contest them. But as China’s influence and power increases the United States is going to start to lose their grip on the world. With the U.S. no longer being the world’s only super power they are going to lose that domination that they’ve had over the world for so long. What China does and what China says could become more important than what the U.S. does and says. The U.S. and China could develop that same feud that formed between the U.S.S.R and the United States during the cold war, fighting for world control. But there is also a possibility that the U.S. and China could form alliance, feeding and growing off each other. China has already surpassed Canada as the United States number one trading partner showing that peaceful relationships are developing between the U.S. and their Eastern friend. There is no doubt that China has and is gaining a great deal of power and influence in the world, what they choose to do with it is entirely up to them. Who knows, we may need to learn mandarin in the future. 

Globalization

Globalization is defined as “regional economies, societies, and cultures have become integrated through communication, transportation, and trade.” Our world is becoming smaller but not in the sense that it is actually shrinking. New technology like the internet and international trading such as the stock market are connecting the people of the world. Now a days someone in the United States can talk to a friend they made online from Austraila from the comforts of their own home. This connection that countries have formed has helped countries expand and grow ecnomically. But while globalization has helped us grow we are becoming reliant on each others support and resources as shown by the 2008 recession. When one country falls we all fall. Our reliance on the U.S. economy caused our own recession when the U.S. markets fell proving that our close relationship with the U.S. can be very dangerous. While the benefits of being connected is great such as being able to help countries that are in dire need of assistance or putting pressure on foreign governments to do the right thing, flaws and problems still exist. But we as a people continue to strive forward and under one planet we unite together.