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KEVIN STODA-has been blessed to have either traveled in or worked in nearly 100 countries on five continents over the past two and a half decades.--He sees himself as a peace educator and have been-- a promoter of good economic and social development--making-him an enemy of my homelands humongous DEFENSE SPENDING and its focus on using weapons to try and solve global issues.
"I am from Kansas so I also use the pseudonym 'Kansas' and 'alone' when I write and publish.- I-keep two blogs--one with BLOGGER and one with WORDPRESS.- My writings range from reviews to editorials or to travel observations.- I also make recommendations related to policy--having both a-strong background in teaching foreign languages and degrees in teaching in history and the social sciences.--As a Midwesterner, I also write on religion and living out ones faith whether it be as a Christian, Muslim or Buddhist perspective."
Monday, February 13, 2012 "Would You Stick It Out? Or Run?" asks the International School Review
Many Americans (and people of all nationalities) are finding themselves employed outside their homeland these days. This has to do with the realities of global economics and bad economic practices in our homelands. IRS--which focuses on international educators and education--recently asked its readers what to do when the workplace is incredibly bad.
Saturday, February 4, 2012 Baby Steps to Stairs & Boom
As I approach 50 years of age, I am still a relatively new dad. I have a lot to learn and to observe.
Sunday, January 29, 2012 Teach-Ins are needed on USA campuses and in schools more than Ever in 2012
In the past there have been Teach-Ins and occupations at schools and campuses, demanding civil rights, demanding universities disinvest in the Apartheid regime, etc. This 2012 should be a year when more issues are looked at and action demanded in accordance with what is right and the masses believe. Here is one example.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012 But, Why did Einstein Stipulate that Nothing could travel faster than the speed of light? (14 comments)
Science fiction writers and those people who believe in prophecy have in common a belief that the speed of light is not the fastest thing in the universe. I'd like to see a discussion on why you feel Einstein stood so firm on the speed of light being the fastest thing in the universe as part of his work on special relativity.
Tuesday, November 29, 2011 Historians Against War's Recent Links
Here are some anti-war hints and other news from the HISTORIANS AGAINST WAR's recent postings.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011 Amen to the Letter to the Ex-Marine
Max Udargo has great points (below), but one of the most important things for the young man is to take the big picture and evaluate how Wall Street has effected the military and been effected by military activity. Worse, possibly, is how have the activities of Wall-Street-Unfettered over the years effected (and will likely continue to effect) the young man's savings, 401Ks and his ability to borrow money or pay off debt.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011 Stormy Outlook? " in Indian Ocean/ Arabian Sea future?
This isn't the first time Oman has been hit by such weather and it certainly wont be the last.With the world population at 7 billion and growing, is it possible someone's trying to tell us something?! Are we the masters of our own destruction?
Tuesday, November 8, 2011 Does Mr. Blunt Think We Are Stupid Or What?
Senator Blunt tries to gloss over the fact that he and the current Supreme Court want corporations to have more power and rights than the people, especially in election times.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011 In search of a new and democratic Islamic state!??
"In both symbolic and practical terms," Feldman asserts, "the Islamic state died in 1924." Ever since, the call for a revival of the Islamic state has been strong, persistent -- and often militant. Yet radical Islamist movements, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Feldman points out, offer grandiose slogans but few realistic options.It is abundantly clear that fresh models of governance in some Muslim nations will be required to build genuine consensus, afford legal justice, and guarantee peace and security. -JRP
Tuesday, October 11, 2011 A Thousand and One Egyptian Nights
A Thousand and One Egyptian Nights--The book will certainly be an eyeopener to thousands and millions of American Christians who have a uni-dimensional view of living with Muslims and Arabs in the Middle East. I highly recommend it. It, too, is a timely work, i.e. as one watches the changes and intra-religious strife in Egypt this 2011.
Tuesday, October 11, 2011 Where was Hank William's Jr. during the Cheney Bush Travesty Decade??? HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN BACKING THE DIXIE CHICKS!
I wish Hank Williams Jr. would have been half that loud and verbose on behalf of free speech and fairness of mind when the DIXIE CHICKS were blasted by the love-it-or-leave-it types back in 2003 when they much more appropriately noted their embarrassment for having grown up in the same state as George W. Bush--and other criminals of the century, like Dick Cheney.
Friday, September 30, 2011 EYE WITNESS ACCOUNTS--from Hitler, Austria and on to America 2011-2012 (2 comments)
"Farmers and business people were declaring bankruptcy daily. Young people were going from house to house begging for food. Not that they didn't want to work; there simply weren't any jobs. My mother was a Christian woman and believed in helping people in need. Every day we cooked a big kettle of soup and baked bread to feed those poor, hungry people -- about 30 daily."
Thursday, September 1, 2011 WHILE America Slept......
"After Fukushima, she [Merkel] changed her mind with dizzying speed". So, "German nuclear plants will go dark by 2022, and the nation will steer a hard course for renewable power by working as a group, like Boy Scouts, to replace the nuclear portion of its energy demand (about 25 percent) with solar, wind, biomass and natural gas."
Monday, August 15, 2011 Where Would You Go (If You Couldn't Go Home)? By markchapmanband1
An article about this song, "Where Would You Go (If You Couldn't Go Home)?" (by markchapmanband1) , was printed in our local paper this past week. The singer and writers are from Springfield ,Mo.
Friday, August 12, 2011 VOTE for KEVIN STODA (Kansas) in Iowa Straw Poll this August
The Republican party will be dead in the water if it does not get more progressive. Christian folks want social justice. They do not want demagoguery nor ill-spirited anti-government fanatics representing them in Washington, D.C. Finally, they need social justice.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011 "The Fall of the Faculty'--leans towards explaining the tragedy
Earlier this summer a faculty member at the university of Kansas had shared with me the fact that there has been run-away growth in administration levels at universities in the USA over recent years.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011 What did you Learn or See at the SOS Rally?
I'm a teacher who stands up for teachers. Now more people--especially America's parents--need to stand up for teachers against the wealthy nuts mis-running the political economy.
Thursday, July 21, 2011 LAUDING THE THINKPROGRESS WAR ROOM, E.G. The GOP's New-Old Plan to Destroy Medicare & Social Security
I have been evaluating the new THINK PROGRESS method of delivering information. A changeover was made in the way THINK PROGRESS organized its info this past spring. I think the fonts, the links, the charts, graphs, and graphics help progressives tell their story much better. Here is an example from yesterday. (Check out the charts!)--KAS
Monday, July 11, 2011 Many Joplin Tornado victims are still being mishandled by Bank of America
Bank of America is even screwing CEOs of smaller banks and credit unions. Here is the continuing big story in Joplin. Big and Small banks and owners or loans are stalling aid to victims of the deadly Joplin tornado.
Sunday, June 26, 2011 Your opinions and knowledge are welcome. What makes one article or one blog page more popular than any other.
What makes one blog article more popular than another? Is it luck, search engine, random, destiny, service provider, connections, location, Facebook or what? I have been doing some research on search engines since 2007 and have some of my own thoughts, but I am interested in opinions from other bloggers--and their on line complaints as to how the system is set up.
Saturday, June 25, 2011 IS IT ABOUT FACE, ONE FACE OR TWO¡VTAIWAN & CHINA TODAY
Quite obviously, despite Mainland Chinese propaganda (and other state's collusion with China, the various peoples who have lived in Taiwan over the past few centuries are not really sure that they are part of China--yet the current president of Taiwan waffles on the issue even more.
Thursday, June 23, 2011 Clarence Thomas--needs to resign--and America needs to have higher standards for all leaders and officials
I have been swamped by emails, blogs, and campaigns demanding the Clarence Thomas resign or be put in jail, etc. We needed the same last decade for most folks on the Bush-Cheney Mafia that mis-ran the antion for 8 years. Now, we have another president enforcing the same Bush-Cheny shenanigans. American needs to demand and recieve better--as of yesterday.
Monday, June 20, 2011 Part 1: Teaching Culture through metaphor and comparative cosmologies--Examples "Dust in the Wind" & other WIND tunes
Most interestingly for me is the fact that in a high-context culture, like Taiwan, China, or Japan, this need to explicitly teach cultural symbols -beyond the teaching of a few national holidays -is not obvious. Educators who understand that East Asian cultures are high-context cultures know that the learning of - -high context - - nuances are only taught indirectly over time ourside of the classroom, but in school, these cultural elements are also taught explicitly. For example, Chinese moral and cultural education are taught with regular textbooks here in Taiwan.
Thursday, June 16, 2011 Birding and Deer--Well off the Beaten Track of Taiwan and China
Very few people have been able to see the deer and birds off of Beigan Island--until recenlty when the post-Cold War relationship enabled many islands to become available for tourists for the first time.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011 IRAQ to sue the U.S. government & DOD for misplacing U.S. $6,600,000,000 over the past decade (2 comments)
Chris Hedges wrote elsewhere today that America has Kafkaesque courts these days. Despite this, it looks like Iraq is preparing to sue the USA to return or compensate it for the 6.6 billion dollars lost or stolen in 2003-2004. However, the case of Maher Arar before American courts didn't go well in the USA--he could only gain justice back in Canada.
Monday, June 13, 2011 "BECAUSE OF YOU"--What does it mean to you? e.g. a male bias corrected
On the one hand, it is a universal song for all parents and potentially divorced families. Another revieweror interpreter of the text notes, Because of You is about the negative legacies parents leave their children with. They enforce their ideas and bad experiences they've had on their kids without realising the true impact of their words. It's about the vulnerability they create within their children.
Sunday, June 5, 2011 Editing practices still need to properly reviewed and discussed
After REVIEWING the "P.S." FROM THE EDITOR, I chose to write the editor an email asking whether his single critique with the article [part 1 of an article of 3 parts] was simply: Are you in disagreement with the fact that Americans and American society have gained a learned helplessness supported by increased learned helplessness in education and society?"
Saturday, June 4, 2011 I NEVER CAN SAY "GOOD-BYE" to SHOGANAI (After all)--Part 1 (1 comments)
High context cultures and low context cultures are not supposed to function the same way, but this 3 part series looks at how societies as a whole are behaving currently and comes to the conclusion that in the area of learned helplessness, most societies are similar in 2011.
Thursday, June 2, 2011 STILL MANY BAD AIRLINES AND PRICE MANIPULATIONS BY AIRWAYS IN TAIWAN?
Eva Air, UNI Air, bad airlines and airline monopolies are still operating around the globe. The European Union and the USA have been investigating 22 airlines and have made warrents against 22 executive officers in recent years. Alas, small subsidiaries of these larger firms are treated with kid gloves--here in Taiwan and probably around the globe.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011 HORRORS FROM HOMS [Syria]
Mostly people in their twenties and teens are being arrested and disappeared. This appears to be the status quo of how the regime targets any demonstrator--even kids.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011 111 trade union leaders face up to 5 year jail terms in Turkey
Crackdowns on labor are going strongly in the Middle East these days. Bahrain and Egypt have seen a lot of abuse in 2011. Now, Turkey is jumping in. Sad. Get going and make your voice heard with the Turkish authorities through the campaign link.
Friday, May 20, 2011 Overcoming language barriers is critical to due process
I AGREE fully with this articles call to stop states, like, Missouri from making it hard for non-native Speakers of English to gain justice in America's courtrooms.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011 Dear Kansans, "Who elected this Pompeo idiot?" Koch Bros. or you? (7 comments)
Kansans need to work hard and replace this disaster of a Representative in Congress--who is fully supported by Koch Industry and Koch Brothers in all his efforts and bill creations. This is sickening. Clean up Kansas and the USA House of Representives. Mike Pompeo is just as bad as Mit Romney, or worse.
Sunday, May 15, 2011 Chernobyl: indelible reminder of a bankrupt political system--SAYS ONE AUTHOR--but what about the USA and Japanese ?
It is official indifference, however, that is truly unpardonable, perhaps because indifferent officials never feel the guilt of which Levi wrote. Indeed, for some political leaders, indifference is seductive. It is so much easier to avert your eyes from citizens than to grapple with their plight. It is so much easier X and often less costly X to avoid individuals tragic circumstances than it is to adjust your policies to their needs.
Sunday, May 15, 2011 So-called "Thai rescue" will have and does have "unintended victims" and other consequences
On Feb. 23, a surrogate claiming to be a captive called the Vietnamese embassy in Thailand asking for assistance. The nonprofit organization Alliance Anti Trafic (AAT) and the Thai authorities responded to the call by raiding two boarding houses in Bangkok and rescuing 13 women (two others were in a hospital where they had just delivered babies).
Friday, May 13, 2011 Report Back from the SOA Watch Honduras Delegation
Honduras has usually been a peaceful place--but it has had bad governance--and thanks to the SCHOOL OF THE AMERICAS things have never been allowed to get better. Tell congress to close SOA down today.
Friday, May 13, 2011 THIS SHOULD BE ANOTHER NO BRAINER, AMERICA (4 comments)
I feel run-over by banks and oil companies. Let's speak loudly and tell them to back off our carcasses.
Monday, May 9, 2011 Seawater will rise higher than expected-- MY FAMILY, FUTURE GENERATIONS OF MINE, and You will be affected (3 comments)
A new international report finds rapidly increasing climate change could raise global sea levels up to five-feet, three-inches by 2100. Temperatures in the Arctic are the warmest ever recorded, putting the regions ice caps and glaciers, as well as the Greenland Ice Sheet, at risk of melting. Such a thaw would threaten coasts from Bangladesh to Florida, low-lying Pacific islands, and cities from London to Shanghai. My family is affected too.
Sunday, May 8, 2011 Read 'em (the statistics on Exxon and BP) and Weep!
Like every American, I am outraged. Why aren't these firms held accountable for better developments in America--instead of simply siphoning off our savings???
Saturday, May 7, 2011 Why it was not likely intended to Kill Osama bin Laden on May 2--final conjecture
This is the third of 3 diaries, which discuss the timing of the bin Laden assassination in terms of how the military establishment might have picked the weekend of April 30 and May 1 to kill Osama. In this diary, I indicate that the events on MAY 2, the date of bin Laden's death in Pakistan was not the best or likely intended date, i.e. from a symbolic perspective.
Friday, May 6, 2011 Justice Center Celebrates a Significant Victory in Immigration Court (1 comments)
The normalcy of abuse of women is reflected throughout some societies. It manifests on multiple levels - in the home at the hands of an abuser, in society through social attitudes accepting violence against women, and in the government by the unresponsive and ineffective legal system that is unable or unwilling to protect women. The Obama administration's action has been instrumental in bringing justice to such cases.
Friday, May 6, 2011 Conjecture on Why the Military Wonks and Obama decided to Off Obama when they did (4 comments)
Veterans and those involved in any historical event or perceive any personal sense of identity with a historical event "link . . . the idea of historical re-enactment as an act of memorialisation. And also of trying to come to terms with a particular historical episode you've [they've] been in."
Sunday, May 1, 2011 Ban Li Beach Thoughts
What does a beach, China, marble and left over mines have to do with me?
Thursday, April 28, 2011 The Business Insider provides " 15 Facts About China That Will Blow Your Mind"
There is both danger and good news in Chinas future and that future in some areas is already NOW--according to Vincent Fernando and Gus Lubin. In this piece from THE BUSINESS INSIDER, The two AUTHORS have provided a wonderful list of insights on 21st Century China for us to discuss.
Saturday, April 23, 2011 GRAN TORINO and War Crimes Revisted--End the War on Terror Now!!!
What is beating in the rhythm of our hearts, America? The film GRAN TORINO is revisiting me in Asia this week--and it is taking me to Afghanistan and the WAR on TERROR--or is it the War of Terror and other fruitless endeavors--just like blood on the streets in American cities?
Monday, April 11, 2011 KSDE is going further overboard on teacher harrassment and denigration this 2012
Twice in the last week, Kansas teachers have become angered by the Kansas State Board of Education (KSDE).This blog refers to the fact that "KNEA opposes this change {by KSDE] and needs you to contact State Board members before the public hearing and ask them to oppose this change."
Saturday, April 9, 2011 AMERICA, INSPIRATION NEEDS TO BE REGAINED
Candidate kevin invites you to watch the movie Invictus and take the message of the life of Nelson Mandela seriously. America is a mess socially with 1% to 10% controlling the whole land. We need a 20 year reform march and make America the most improved country, i.e. if we are to offer an alternative to China,Asia, Latin America, or Europe.
Friday, April 8, 2011 Why left of center and progressives have little to fear in 2011... (2 comments)
History appears to be repeating itself in some cases. Teh pendelum will swing back and forth in elections faster and faster till some stabilizing forces are set up in the USA.
Thursday, April 7, 2011 Crises of the Paperless Office Paradigm
Management personnel and educators need to regain control and transform the paperless paradigm. Any old sociologist can predict properly where the project will be heading. That is, isolation and marginalization are ocurring already at present and will rise as those who cannot keep up with the paradigm of the age fall flat-foote from such offices.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011 Excuse me, Mr. Obama, how can we vote for you when you are breaking War Powers Act? (2 comments)
Is it time for President Obama to get on his marching shoes in support of labor and unemployed Americans? Is it time for him to pull troops out of endless wars and occupations with no real endgames? Of course, it is. Why does he expect progressives to support him in 2012 otherwise?
Sunday, April 3, 2011 Despite Return of the Envoy, Taiwanese Are Processing Visas Slowly this April
In January the Filipino government extradited Taiwanese to Mainland China. The Taiwanese government responded by recalling its representation in Manila and making it extermely hard for Filipinos to maintain work visas in the country. Moreover, families were divided by the crises. Since the end of March the Taiwanese ministry of foreign affairs has sent its envoys back to Manila--but many Filipinos are still caught up...
