Dear Congress
Dear Congress,
Certain words that have reached my ears have angered me to an extent where I no longer believe that I can endure the corruption of what Herricks once was, or at least what it stood for in my eyes.
Four years ago was my first congress experience, where my brother was just a freshman and it was his first experience housing foreign delegates. Here he did hurt me how ever my curiosity was piked. The same thing happened the next year. Then the next year I entered ninth grade and I joined the family to. When I was told to speak the pressure of the “need” to win awards was not applied. Back then it had been a long time since we had won a best d and I only spoke with the intent to speak and make friends. Then a miracle occurred, at O-Side Model Congress (exactly one day after my birthday) we won best-d. I believe from there we have taken a down ward spiral.
The reason for this is that I once considered leaving congress. The circumstance behind it was that my brother, who was the only person in the club to be a senior the next year and to have been in the club since freshman year and have a perfect attendance record, was effectively cursed away by the club in favor for a lesser experience board which would consist of only Juniors. Only one person has not lied to me about who they voted for.
The next year when I decided to return for I loved the people and the friends I had made I returned to debates that seemed lackluster. And so in boredom I left for the school’s American Sign Language Club where I would become the Public Relations officer. However I would never be reelected. In the wake of this I was guilted by a member of the current Exec board that if I truly loved congress I would show up at the vote the next day instead of attempting to see if the election would be declared unfit due to its impromptu nature. At the election I saw the only person on that board that I could say that I ever trusted voted off. the only person who I could truly trust was gone.
And so a summer came and went. I was beginning to convince my friends to join the club as they were eager to hear my speak on many issues. However the day the first of them joined they chose to recognize me and then unrecognized me. When I later talked to them about it continually they would either limit me to inquiries or would completely ignore my friends and I claiming they were looking for “new people” how ever they would then turn and pick someone who has been there nearly as long as I have.
And then we have the events of this weekend. Not only was it made to at least seem like they willingly abandoned me to cheer by myself but they insulted my friends. The amount of disrespect they showed to people I consider nearly like family was atrocious, and they did so with smug smiles on their faces claiming they should have won.
This delegation has become increasingly materialistic and they have abandoned all sense of decency in favor of the idea of a big shiny trophy. The delegation that won has always seemed like an amazing, a nice family to me. This is a delegation I love and respect and so I wish them well with their shiny new trophy. However I do not believe that I can exist with such contrasting morals of those of my delegation. Nor can I sit by and watch the degradation of what I once loved and do nothing. I cry as I write this sentence because I remember what you represented to me just two years ago. Two years ago I learned respect and other important values from this delegation and now it is all about the awards.
As such I wish to be disassociated from the statements that have been said and for it to be known that I have an opposite viewpoint. Let it be known that I belong not to Herricks but to UMC.
From the senior most Junior delegate of Herricks Model congress,
Michael Hand
The Meaning of Greatness
Well I was just thinking, what is the meaning of great? Some would say it is protecting and defending numerous people. Some would say giving your life to save another. While those are all noble things I do believe that it can be scaled down massively. Every time we make one person smile or enjoy themselves then we have done greatness. What difference does it make if you threw a man away from the car he stepped in front of or simply prevented it with but one small action. We do small things every day and to whom there done they add up. I believe that greatness is helping people and allowing that small deed to help add up and at the end of the day make the person happy, because our days are so short and limited we should be able to enjoy them and not wallow in enguish. I only hope that I to may one day be able to be great in this sense.
Is Earth shrinking?
Well originally I was going to rant about free will. But instead I’ve realized that despite the huge landmass this world is shrinking. It first started with letters, then telographs, then phones and now we have stuff like email and Facebook. It was such a large deal so many years ago when the first colonizers stepped foot upon this great land we love and now as America. You see back then they traveled by boats across seas at very, very vast spaces. Now we have our jet engines to cut it by far more then half the time, making a month of favorable winds to a day with favorable winds. Now it seems as if distance does not matter, what does this mean? My prediction is a blending of cultures, which I have already seen. But to a point I have not previously seen, as in every culture becoming one, retaining key parts of each and dropping minor parts and creating one giant “Earth culture”. Sadly this would mean everything that makes us, us would be gone. Our seperate cultures created us as to whom we are. But on the other side, it makes us more open. Where as my parents did not grow in a school with such diversity as Herricks, I have. I always investigate into other cultures in my spare time and learn more about our minds, more of what makes us us. But this is seemingly parodoxal because in oreder to inspire me to this, I have also decided could be the end of individuality.
I think all we do is misunderestimate the power of words. Here’s my story:
About a year ago at Long Beach I completely improved one of my greatest peices off the top of my head, now known as “This Mortal Coil”, the title was stolen from Shakespeare with his Hamlet “to be or not to be” speech. This obviously conjures up the issue of suicide but I have not chosen the title for that, but because I like the speech. The true story behind it is numerous connected images from a dream which I weaved together at the “freak show” at long beach. It is of my belief that people took the wrong interpratation of it. I have no issues, and I forgive all who have said that about me due to a few people. So why make a post about this and not a few certain annoying people who sat behind me at the closing ceremonies this year? Simple, this is simply something I want straightened out, ASAP. Thanks all for reading this, despite the fact that that is only a few people. I shall include a poem for those people:
And of our greatest power
is our speech.
We are all blind
we know not of what we say.
We should all forgive
one another for we are all
to sides of the same coin.
And of our greatest powers
is our words.
Thank you,
Mike Hand
II’m kinda curious what’s up with this Taylor Swift-Kanye West thing. Why is Obama giving an opinion? He must know that everything he says may make it to the press. He should be talking about HEALTH CARE not some jack as stunt Kanye did. Granted it was wrong, but what example does this set for the public? I’m not caring about your health, but Kanye instead, you’re on your own. I really love to say this, Obama, get your fat ass back to work.
Is it wrong that I’m sitting at home typing in to Tumblr and listening to Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie when I probably should be studying? Nah. So what is there for me to say? Well, I’m still waiting for Orson to find a director for Ender’s Game. Is that really my biggest worry? What is a worry any way except something that we fear? And if we fear it then don’t we know that it CAN happen? So why do we worry? Wouldn’t that make it worse? Well I guess this means I have to go looking for some crazy guy paper.
