edmontonsun comments
every now and then I read a comment in the EdmontonSun that I go "YES!" and then I read another that makes me go "D'OH!". For instance, this comment made by R.R. Sidor (http://www.edmontonsun.ca/Comment/Letters/2007/08/18/4426997.html) about cell phone users
"Calling all phone addicts: if you could see how silly you look on your cell in public, you would disconnect from this foolish practice. Phones should be used to communicate important messages and for emergencies, not to annoy and disrupt concentration. Warnings should be placed on cellphones, stating they may cause serious damage when used with other devices. The use of cellphones while driving should be a criminal offence."
I agree, cell phones should be used as an emergency device or really important message. No matter how badly you may think it is, calling someone from the video store to ask "where you at?" and what movie you should rent to 'chillax with' is NOT an important emergency. I also think people look goofy standing in the supermarket going "yeah, ok, got the spaghetti sauce...anything else we need? milk? ok...gonna go to the milk aisle now...oh, just passed the canned fruit, do we need pineapple chunks?" How about some advanced planning here? make a freaking list people. I guess I am just an antisocial person since I think going shopping or running errands by myself to spend some quiet time alone with my thoughts is a good thing and I dont need a cell phone to talk to friends who might be in another store or doing something else constantly to keep me company.
Then there are comment like W.P. Allen makes (http://www.edmontonsun.ca/Comment/Letters/2007/08/17/4424325.html) that make me go "D'OH":
"I have no problem with multiculturalism, but if Canada is a free country then why am I seeing more and more women draped in robes from head to toe with veils hiding their faces? Surely the women who wear this garb are not truly free. I don't understand why anyone would come to this country only to live by the same oppressive laws and/or religious doctrines of the country from which they fled. To me it looks like the women are being kept under control and that is not freedom. "
I like how s/he starts off by saying they have no problem with multiculturalism but then says that these women are obviously being held hostage of religious/cultural dogma because they are retaining their religious/cultural beliefs. I get the feeling the message behind this comment is "I have nothing against multiculturalism as long as you are my culture". I guess W.P. doesn't really consider the thought that the ladies came to Canada and made a choice to retain their cultural beliefs. Perhaps they came for the freedom and safety knowing that they can not be beaten or forced into some cultural medical procedure that they would have undergone in their homeland, but they choose to retain their clothing habits.
Though I did think like W.P. did before then I put it into terms of what I wear and what I think. I am totally against brand name labels. I find it strange to pay $120 for a pair of jeans that have a brand name when I can buy a pair of jeans for $40 that are perfectly fine but lacking the name label on them. So, I have exercised my freedom of choice to wear the cheaper brands. However, so many people have commented that I obviously 1) have no pride in my appearance since I can afford higher priced clothes to show my financial stability but I dont, or 2) am poor and forced to wear cheaper quality clothes and thus they pity me. So, after I thought "it is my choice of what I wear, though I do have the freedom to change" I considered maybe that is the same way for people that come from other countries with cultural clothes (turbins, head scarves, etc...).
So, nice to know there are some people out there that think like I do. I do love our opinion/comments page of the papers. Always nice to have a section to vent and show either our arrogance/ignorance of the world.
"Calling all phone addicts: if you could see how silly you look on your cell in public, you would disconnect from this foolish practice. Phones should be used to communicate important messages and for emergencies, not to annoy and disrupt concentration. Warnings should be placed on cellphones, stating they may cause serious damage when used with other devices. The use of cellphones while driving should be a criminal offence."
I agree, cell phones should be used as an emergency device or really important message. No matter how badly you may think it is, calling someone from the video store to ask "where you at?" and what movie you should rent to 'chillax with' is NOT an important emergency. I also think people look goofy standing in the supermarket going "yeah, ok, got the spaghetti sauce...anything else we need? milk? ok...gonna go to the milk aisle now...oh, just passed the canned fruit, do we need pineapple chunks?" How about some advanced planning here? make a freaking list people. I guess I am just an antisocial person since I think going shopping or running errands by myself to spend some quiet time alone with my thoughts is a good thing and I dont need a cell phone to talk to friends who might be in another store or doing something else constantly to keep me company.
Then there are comment like W.P. Allen makes (http://www.edmontonsun.ca/Comment/Letters/2007/08/17/4424325.html) that make me go "D'OH":
"I have no problem with multiculturalism, but if Canada is a free country then why am I seeing more and more women draped in robes from head to toe with veils hiding their faces? Surely the women who wear this garb are not truly free. I don't understand why anyone would come to this country only to live by the same oppressive laws and/or religious doctrines of the country from which they fled. To me it looks like the women are being kept under control and that is not freedom. "
I like how s/he starts off by saying they have no problem with multiculturalism but then says that these women are obviously being held hostage of religious/cultural dogma because they are retaining their religious/cultural beliefs. I get the feeling the message behind this comment is "I have nothing against multiculturalism as long as you are my culture". I guess W.P. doesn't really consider the thought that the ladies came to Canada and made a choice to retain their cultural beliefs. Perhaps they came for the freedom and safety knowing that they can not be beaten or forced into some cultural medical procedure that they would have undergone in their homeland, but they choose to retain their clothing habits.
Though I did think like W.P. did before then I put it into terms of what I wear and what I think. I am totally against brand name labels. I find it strange to pay $120 for a pair of jeans that have a brand name when I can buy a pair of jeans for $40 that are perfectly fine but lacking the name label on them. So, I have exercised my freedom of choice to wear the cheaper brands. However, so many people have commented that I obviously 1) have no pride in my appearance since I can afford higher priced clothes to show my financial stability but I dont, or 2) am poor and forced to wear cheaper quality clothes and thus they pity me. So, after I thought "it is my choice of what I wear, though I do have the freedom to change" I considered maybe that is the same way for people that come from other countries with cultural clothes (turbins, head scarves, etc...).
So, nice to know there are some people out there that think like I do. I do love our opinion/comments page of the papers. Always nice to have a section to vent and show either our arrogance/ignorance of the world.
posted by Capt_Canuck at 7:22 AM
2 Comments:
handphones...! I can remember a time BH (before handphones), and now it seems it's even hard for me to think how I'll get about my day wothout one. Can you imagine you car stalls on a highway and you are handphone-less? Tough...
I agree that cell phones should only be used as emergency devices. Lost are the good old days when your car broke down on the highway, you turned on your warning flashers, and either walked or hitch hiked (back in the good old days when people were psychopathic killing rapists cruising the highways) to the next town and then got a tow truck/mechanic back to your car and regardless if it took an hour or a day, you were confident that no theif have stolen your car, or broken in and taken your tires/CD player/luggage or anything else they can grab.
In this world of distrust and low morals, cell phones definitly are needed to protect your own body/property.
Post a Comment
<< Home