I think that I should acknowledge my thoughts on the V-Tech shooting since it is a tragedy and I am in Israel where security is everywhere and top-notch (occasionally over the top, especially at Ben-Gurion airport, don't get me started on that).
America is a dream. The V-Tech shooting had me in shock and gave me flashbacks of the Columbine shooting in 1997. Now colleges are targeted? I read some of the articles on CNN and NYT (my primary sources of American news) and I became amused when I read about how the US colleges were talking about sending campus-wide text messages to all cell-phones. Israel was already doing that- you could hear 3-4 beep-beeps in my apartment when the university sent out to all the students about announcements and such. I told Dad that even if the security in the US beefed up, it still will not be as good as Israel's. The security here is top notch because of the Army training- even one of my Israeli friends can tell when I'm feeling slightly nervous (Of course, that annoys the heck out of me). I could never lie to him to his face, 99% of the time anyway.
I imagined myself wondering if I could walk across Colgate's campus the next day- so open. No security fences. No ID or bag checks. In middle of nowhere. I felt scared at that thought but I reassured myself that Colgate is unique. Colgate is all about community. People don't ignore each other- even if I feel that way from my organizations sometimes, they still care about me at the end of the day. Aside from patrolling the streets at night when students go out drinking, the Campus Safety does have quite an easy time compared to large universities. Large US universities macro-manage the security but in Israel, the security is micro-managed. I read the campus wide letter from Colgate's president, Rebecca Chopp, and her thoughts about campus security and V-Tech. I e-mailed her and told her a bit about my experience in Israel. I pushed her to get this text-messaging program set up as soon as possible because it works very well here and the students in my program have no problem with receiving the texts. It's also more effective than e-mails. She replied and thanked for sharing my experience and will look into it further. (Isn't it so nice when a college president replies individually to you??!?). I will push other students to give out their personal information.
When I attended a program to listen to a soldier's story (for the sake of keeping my friends company- I have my own soldiers, thank you), one of the things he said was that America is in denial that things can and will happen. He reminded us that even 5 years after 9/11, America was still in shock when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf when the scientists have been warning about this possiblity. It is true. But America is also a much larger country with more diverse environment that makes the government's job for preparation for disasters incredibly difficult. Sometimes these things boggle my mind on how can a US President oversee all these departments. Every time I see these headlines of tragedies, it's always the same tone- this is America, land of freedom, liberty, and peace, how can this happen? It's not supposed to happen here! (Ha, I give Philip Roth credit for writing the novel, It Can't Happen Here). I am getting tired of that sentiment. Wake up, America, this is the real world!
I don't know what to feel about Iraq now. I think the Democrats are now a little crazy to pull out the troops. I do want the boys to come home and am getting tired like everyone else of this so-called war, but for the sake of security in the Middle East, I think the US troops are very much needed. The sectarian violence have decreased since The Surge though it is not actually proven- almost maybe if Bush was actually onto something. Even though we are going to lose this war, it is still important that we are there to help the Iraqi people. It's just too late to pull out- we are a plug. Also, keeping the US troops in Iraq can provide a base for the US to attack from should we go in a war with Iran.
Gosh, I don't always love to read the newspaper headlines but I must do it to understand what's going on around me and realize the reality versus dream. America may be a dream but it's also a safe haven for terrorists with its awful security system (Seriously, Mom, how many times does the airport security topic come up during dinner conversations with family and friends?). Israel may be a dream but the Army ensures that it remains a dream for all Jews, present and future.
Seriously, bag and ID checks are very painless, only 15-30 seconds of your life unless someone in front of you has a big backpack with lots of pockets and zippers and the officer feels like giving this guy a full check.
End rant.
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