DE JOUR

Gas: is $3.49 a gal, so $30 didn't give me 1/2 a tank; makes a person think more about getting in their car all the time. We need to be more concerned with the impact that roads and cars have on the environment, anyway. Most of us have become so accustomed to driving when ever and where ever we want. But autos are the number one atmospheric pollutant and cause for erosive damage. And when I remember that there is a war going on, I feel pretty badly about even driving my relatively fuel efficiant toyota.

Next up, I'm saddened by a good deal of the messages in forwarded emails: My main concern is the perpetuation of racism or stereotypes about minorities. For instance, my mom worked very hard, but also received assistance, so jokes that perpetuate the idea that people who receive government assistance are lazy, ungrateful, demanding, and/or ignorant, to me are a detrimental continuation of blaming the victim. So many people are exploited in this country and world wide, and when those who barely have, point a finger at those who don't have, it creates a rift where it doesn't belong. The true enemies are those that possess the means to pay a decent wage and don't, who pay women less, don't allow pregnancy leave, don't offer health insurance, or out-source jobs altogether. These are the real bad guys. Not a hard working, California farm worker, for example. Furthermore, on that subject, we must also remember that this was Mexico not long ago. So who does and does not belong? There is a lot of racism that goes undiscussed. People say things or create media with negative representations of racial minorities, gays, women, people who are impoverished, and they may not even have intended for them to be loaded or negative. Many people take a lot of what is said or created in jest, and don't recognize the power it has to further oppress people who already struggle for equality and respect.