author: ctran1023 category: Journalism ethics tags: date: November 10th, 2009
No, not the Daily Cal (I said news– OH SNAP!)… this time I mean mainstream, mainstream. By now, many of you have probably heard about the tragic shooting at the military base in Fort Hood, Texas. If you haven’t heard, what happened was that Major Nidal Malik Hasan went on a shooting spree at the base where he worked. Reports say that he was upset over being deployed to the Middle East because he was terrified over the prospect of coming back with PTSD like the soldiers he had been counseling. (Hasan worked as a psychiatrist). Further, he had been doubting his career choice after other soldiers began harassing him about being Muslim.
Where’s my sore spot in all of this? A very stupid New York Times article felt the need to include in their coverage an extra little tidbit:
In one posting on the Web site Scribd, a man named Nidal Hasan compared the heroism of a soldier who throws himself on a grenade to protect fellow soldiers to suicide bombers who sacrifice themselves to protect Muslims.
“If one suicide bomber can kill 100 enemy soldiers because they were caught off guard that would be considered a strategic victory,” the man wrote. It could not be confirmed, however, that the writer was Major Hasan.
I repeat: it could not be confirmed. Isn’t that what you call… a rumor? And wouldn’t reporting a rumor therefore be, I don’t know… irresponsible, sensationalist, wrong? hardboiled gets a lot of crap for having strong opinions and edge but this is precisely why we do it folks. We’re not trying to fill your dose of news with subtle brainwashing that reads: this unstable man is a terrorist. I’d pick my blatantly biased and honest hardboiled any day.
My heart goes out to the families of all the victims of this shooting and I think what happened is a very screwed up incident of unnecessary violence. Yet from a journalist’s standpoint I cannot believe how poorly the situation has been covered. It’s not hard to imagine what it would be like if the shooter had not been Middle Eastern or Muslim. The emphasis on his psychological instability would be crucial… would anyone think he was a terrorist?
Oh and by the way, the NYT has recently written a follow up article entitled “Little evidence terror plot based in killing.”
author: ctran1023 category: entertainment and stuff, is this news? tags: date: July 19th, 2009
Ok. Consumerism = evil. BUT I have to say that my heart skipped a beat when I was perusing the aisles of Target and found “Ni Hao, Kai Lan!” merchandise dominating the kids’ section. Heck. Yes.
For those of you who aren’t up to date on your Nick Toons, Ni Hao, Kai Lan! is the Mandarin version of Dora the Explorer. Thanks to Dora, shows that promote biculturalism have become more popular. Kai Lan is not only adorable but she’s one of the few rising Asian AMERICAN cartoons sans martial arts and probably the only Asian American cartoon for a 2-6 demographic.
You can check out the merchandise here (Consumerism is less evil when your dollars go towards bolstering the new face of bicultural media, I swear!) And you can check out my article on Kai Lan from a couple issues ago here (<– Read: shameless self-promotion — definitely kidding).
Enjoy!
author: ctran1023 category: entertainment and stuff tags: date: June 27th, 2009
Have to admit it– it was a pretty funny movie. Who wouldn’t laugh at the awkward Allan? Of course they did have to throw in the effeminate Asian male to top of the hysterics. Mr. Chow, played by Ken Jeong, is a gay, martial arts ass-kicking machine. Ken Jeong has had one hell of a career in Hollywood thus far in shows and movies such as Entourage, Knocked Up, and Step Brothers. He played the illustrious role of the coffee shop manager, doctor 2, and the coroner respectively…
So clearly breaking into Hollywood is hard and maybe after a while you’ll take anything to get your name out there. But come on, Jeong, have a little dignity. Running around butt naked on the big screen, kung-foo-ing, and shouting in shrill broke English (when you really can speak perfect English) about your man purse is humiliating. Way to bring something new to the cinematic plate as an Asian American male. 
author: ctran1023 category: calling 'em out tags: date: May 15th, 2009
Some would say that the title of this blog entry is sensational and untrue– I for one cannot see how what has happened is nothing short of murder.
This past Sunday, police officers were called to a Berryessa neighborhood in San Jose after Brian Pham called to say that his mentally ill brother was making unprovoked attacks on the family. The call was made after Daniel cut his brother with a knife from throat to ear. Thereafter, the police arrived at the home. The family members shouted “Don’t shoot him– he’s mentally ill!” In spite of this, the police tasered Daniel and shot him four to five times until he was dead.
Clearly, this was a fragile and highly dangerous situation. Yes, the police needed to use force to prevent Daniel from hurting others but it is a fucking outrage that they would shoot a man with a knife to death. Menace or not, there is no way that it is justifiable for an officer to shoot someone to death when they are not armed with a gun. Police officers claim that they did not know that he was mentally ill but also state that they would have acted in the same way even with this knowledge. Some remorse, huh? There’s plenty of talk about whether or not Daniel was on drugs– can I just say that this is completely beside the point? It makes no difference if he was mentally ill or on drugs because we know that he clearly had problems. This is a mere distraction from the overt injustice taking place. The fact of the matter is that the police shot to kill a man who did not have a gun and are now calling it acceptable procedure.
What absolutely tears me apart is the suffering and guilt that Daniel’s family must be feeling right now. Daniel’s father says that his brother, Brian, feels responsible for Daniel’s death because he was the one who called the police. The family reports that the police have made no effort to contact the family, update them on the case, or make any gesture to express their condolences.
For the Vietnamese community in San Jose, this incident has evoked memories of Bich Cau Thi Tran’s murder. In this 2004 incident, the police were called to check up on reports of unsupervised children. When the police arrived and saw this 4′ 9” woman gesturing with a Vietnamese fruit peeler knife, they shot her in the chest and killed her. The police were acquitted by the grand jury.
Protests and vigils are taking place in San Jose. Keep an eye out for the way in which the investigation of this shooting unfolds.
You can read the San Jose Mercury News article here.
– hardboiled. keeping an eye on the watchdogs as usual.
author: ctran1023 category: berkeley madness, calling 'em out tags: date: March 31st, 2009
Let’s be real. This past year has been full of some unpleasant realizations for me when it comes to the way the Berkeley campus is run. As Professor Ling Chi Wang said at the API Language and Education Now! conference, the reason that this campus is full of liberal, passionate, and active students is (and has been since the raging sixties) is because the administration is so incredibly conservative.
The need for us, as students, to defend our education against the administration has come yet again with the plan to restructure the International Area Studies (IAS) department at UC Berkeley. The IAS houses 6 undergrad majors such as Peace and Conflict Studies, Development Studies, and even the Global Poverty minor. The Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost (EVCP) George Breslauer recently announced that the position of dean in IAS would be replaced by a director and the IAS Teaching Program would be demoted to the Institute of IAS.
What’s the big deal about this name game? The title of dean represents a certain degree of importance and power and as such, they would have a larger role in the administrative happenings. This demotion not only takes away this power but makes the statement that Berkeley does not value international knowledge despite the fact that we live in a globalized community. In response to the student and professors’ badgering, Breslauer said that this move would save $250,000 annually. You know what, Breslauer? We’re calling your bluff because, as Prof. Ananya Roy has stated, you’re going to be hiring three individuals to replace the dean– how much money will that save? If you want to restructure a program on campus, can’t you please give us real and foolproof reasons as to why and how it will be beneficial? Breslauer has outright refused to talk to students in an open and public dialogue. This is a serious issue of transparency.
As a Development Studies major, this move impacts me in a very real way. I took on this major because I knew it was interdisciplinary and would not confine me to viewing the world’s issues from one field, one perspective. This major allows me to not only better understand the Third World but pick a geographic area of concentration. I have chosen to focus on Southeast Asia and, in doing so, I have had the opportunity to learn so much about Viet Nam, my heritage as a Vietnamese American woman, and better understand the present day conflicts of the region. This program represents the passion for cultural understanding on the Berkeley campus and we are all stakeholders in it. We cannot afford to let the administration tell us that our concerns are not valid. In true TWLF fashion, let’s tell them that this is our education and OUR university.
For more information, please go to: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=75491306920&ref=ts
To sign the petition to stop restructuring: http://www.calpetitions.com/petition/support-ias/
author: ctran1023 category: Uncategorized tags: date: March 6th, 2009
When I think of the Third World Liberation Front (twLF), I get warm fuzzies. Why? Well, to me it’s the epitome of stick-it-to-the-man-ism. Come on, look at Richard Aoki in his fierce shades and tell me that’s not pretty kickass.
On a more serious note, the twLF represents a kind of unified activism that has become so rare these days. 2 weeks from now will mark the 40th anniversary of this epic student-led movement to instate ethnic studies classes in Berkeley and in SF State. I think that there’s so much to learn from this because it shows us that there’s not only strength in numbers but strength in multiculturalism and diversity. The basis of the movement was for different ethnic communities to acknowledge a common history of colonial oppression and to unite under that banner to promote ethnic education and equality in the eyes of a Eurocentric administration. We could use a little more of that today, no?
Interested in coming to some celebrations of the anniversary? Check it outtt