My New Hero-Rachel Carson

COLLAPSE

Rachel Carson challenged all the social paradigms (cultural, scientific, political, and social) to help, after Olga's birds were killed in her sanctuary. At the time she was writing her book, the use of DDT/Pestroy was prevalent and widespread. 

Because government experts,like Dr. Stevens and Dr. Nichols, were endorsing the usage,saying that it was safe, and, as in the video, social drama was used, along with two elderly white men, who could be a grandfather. There were at least three (mothers) spraying and laying down Pestroy to stop the insects. 

The country was being bombarded with pictures of children and waterways being sprayed to help show its benign status.

Carson affected the distribution of DDT, even though the government from President Kennedy to scientists and politicians were investigating whether she was correct in her assertion that DDT is dangerous to all animals, including humans. She stated that "progress has a price."  

Consider what would have happened if Carson had not been effective in her campaign to stop the spraying of DDT and other destructive pesticides.  Would we now have more birth defects, health issues, and other problems in our lives than what we have now?  

So, yes, she is one of my heroes for her stand and how she used the system's rules to prove her point in a male-dominated society.

Natural Disasters' effect on different stratus of people

In Environmental Sociology 480 at OSU, these are questions we were asked to answer and I hope it will make others think about the inconsistency in the way the social stratus of a society determine how disasters will affect their community.

When we think of natural disasters, we often assume that because it is 'natural' everyone is affected equally. 

 Can you think of examples other than Hurricane Katrina where a natural disaster did not affect everyone equally?

People are affected differently in natural disasters. The very poor will be continually affected negatively in natural disasters as they live in the areas where these disasters are more likely to occur, have the least amount of resources to get out of the way or survive aftereffects. Vulnerability is defined in two categories of social and physical by Youngman. I lived in tornado alley and, when I was in Mississippi, we could do nothing but watch and pray that we survived, because we did not have anywhere else to go. We had no underground shelters, strong buildings, or community center, etc. to go to.

When I moved to Illinois to go to college, I was again in tornado alley. The difference this time is I was at an expensive college, which had been built by some of the best architects. So, no, we were not affected and stood in our dorms and watched the tornadoes come and go or combine but were not afraid, as I had been in Mississippi. For me this emphasized the social and physical environment do matter. What level on the ladder of capitalism is your family on? How would a natural disaster affect you and yours? What about relatives living in poorer neighborhoods where you live?

Kate Chopin's Desiree's Baby Comments

Chopin's Twist

COLLAPSE

Having grown up in the South for the first 17 years of my life, I am aware of the diverse people we are studying this week, but I had not read Chopin's story. This is a subject, which has affected many blacks, being part white in a black and white society. 

When I was little, a new family moved into my neighborhood. They looked very white but one of the children was darker than the others. We knew they were black but when they first moved to town, they moved into the white community and went to the white school, I later attended. They were immediately expelled when one of the staff told the principal that the school they came from up north was black. When questioned, the family did not deny this claim and had to move and relocate schools.

The plot in Desiree's Baby was unexpected as few writers had the audacity to attack a man, let alone one who was passing. It was usually the woman who were at fault. I liked this twist but it sure put a roadblock in any future plans for Armand, the main character. He actually put Desiree in his shoes, which he was ashamed of. 

In the past, Thomas Jefferson actually sent his sons up north so that they could pass as did some other slave owners. This practice is perpetuated throughout history, so that few families in America are entirely of one race. 

My immediate family is black and are very proud, almost to the extreme.

Yet, I married my husband, who is white and his family has branches that are Spanish, Vietnamese, Indian, black and white.

So yes, I know the joys, pride and understanding of diversity, prejudice, freedom, and love.

Walt Whitman," Song of Myself" comments

After reading Whitman, I almost believe that aliens have been here and influenced our history. Consider Galileo, Aristotle, Michelangelo, and now Whitman. The futuristic view of the heavens, the learned opinion of the past and the refusal to accept just the present are all evidenced in his writing. This writing should be studied during all years of education. It can be fed to the young in snippets and later expanded on for the older ones. How many lives would be saved, how many souls would find comfort, and how many people would rejoice after reading his "SONG OF MYSELF"?
While reading this, I realized that Whitman is basically saying that Everything is Everything, Everybody is Everybody and, conversely, Everything is Everybody, and Everybody is Everything. There is no difference as we are all part of a smaller object. He considers the cosmos more than once. One instance (pg. 3266, line 789) "Speeding through space....speeding through heaven and the stars, Speeding amid the seven satellites and the broad ring and the diameter of eighty thousand miles, speeding with tailed meteors..."

When reading Whitman, could you find yourself, your family, friends, ancestors, and your neighbors in this poem? I certainly could.

What are some of the implications of applying his philosophy to your life?

Would you consider doing it?

HE is such a twentieth century man. I could see him in the smoke shops of the 60s and 70s, in the halls of great auditoriums, on the TED talks, etc. HE would so fit in in our environment (environmentalist, socialist, forward thinking man) CONSIDER!!

Frederick Douglass at his first abolitionist meetingin Nantucket!!!

For approximately two years I was required to sit in an all white auditorium and not being able to talk or participate in any way. My only form of protest was not standing when "Johnny Reb" was being sung to the Union Jack flag. You know the one, "When Johnny comes marching home again."   Because this is the direct opposite of what happened to me, I will try to be Mr.Douglass, sitting in his audience.

At a meeting of the Bristol Anti-Slavery Society in 1841 Douglass first heard William Lloyd Garrison speak and not long after that Douglass himself was asked to speak for the abolition of slavery.

And this is my interpretation of what Mr. Douglass was thinking when asked to speak before this audience after escaping slavery:

I had heard of these abolitionists and their followers and because of Mr. Coffin,  I am here to see what they have to say. Many say they do not approve of or want slavery to exist.  I have never met nor entertained the prospect of meeting anyone, especially white men, who want a black man to be free.  My heart is in my stomach and I fear this will end badly for me.  Is there someone waiting to take me back to that awful world of cruelty and debasement?  I have seen things that defy description. 

Now they want me to speak and I don't know what I can say or if I should.  Will they be so reviled that they will want to return me to that hellhole called slavery?  I have never seen so many smiles when looking upon a black face, unless it is in laughter at an indignity which has been performed on that person.

I am so ignorant in the speech and ways of these men, yet, they want to hear what I have to say.  After telling them about the atrocities and hardships faced by the black race and telling of my own personal history, I listened as Mr. Redmond, a free black man, talked about the abolition of slavery. 

I will be vigil and try to trust these people. They want me to continue talking and I will do this as I have nothing to lose because I have tasted freedom and that cannot be taken from me.

The Albanian Alps Institute

I am writing this to hopefully generate DONATIONS for a project which has been brought to my attention in my class at Oregon State University, where Dr. Steve Cook teaches a great class in Sustainability, GEO300.  Being fortunate to take this class in my 64^th year of life, I have learned that sustainability is more than saving the environment but also about educating people, so that more can learn what needs to be done to sustain this planet for future generations.  Education is the key to sustainability, along with action.

Dr. Cook is an unassuming person, who has created a sustainable home environment, which he shares with all of his students, to hopefully give them ideas they can adopt in their lives.  He has truly changed the way I shop and look at the world now.

If you give to this Institute, I can assure you that your funds will go to the Albanian Alps Institute for the education of the students, especially the girls, who have never been able to receive an education.

In class, Dr. Cook shared with us how everyone thought girls would not come to school, so he devoted a Wednesday for girls only, and the girls came and are now part of the school.

Please check out http://www.albanianalps.org/about.html or email them at albanianalpsinst@gmail.com to contribute money or time.

The Albanian Alps Institute

Dr. Steve Cook, President with Terri Cook as his secretary started The Albanian Alps Institute.   After he and his twelve year old son traveled there in 1992 and “found a post-Communist country that was barely avoiding chaos”, Steve could not forget the things he had seen with incredibly hospitable people living in dire circumstances.

In 1996, with a Fulbright grant he taught at Universiteti I Shkodres in Shkoder and helped several Albanian university students, while personally sponsoring two high school students to study in the United States who received university degrees in the U. S.

In 2001, Dr. Cook returned to Albania where he consulted with Marash Rakaj, now AAI’s Albanian Manager, on how to contribute to education in the impoverished villages of the Malesia e Madhe, consisting of seven clans on five mountains.  AAI, as a group, decided to concentrate on: school libraries, school supplies, English language classes, school repairs and scholarships for promising students, especially girls, who had not been going to school and educated as the boys were.  He has hired an English teacher in Boga and purchased textbook for the classes, many times at his own expense.

Note from the President:
It's been over ten years since AAI began working to improve the education for students in Shkrel. We've invested over $150,000 into these marvelous students and they've responded accordingly. Kids are reading books, swinging on swingsets, using computers and dreaming of a future unimaginable to them or their parents before AAI. One of the biggest successes is that girls are now attending high school and two of our female scholarship recipients are currently enrolled in universities - one in Albania and one in the U.S.-- Steve Cook

The Tread to Freedom, written 11/30/13

I am  writing this poem about my experience in desegregation in an all-white school in 1964 in Clarksdale, Mississippi, where I graduated as the first and only black in 1967. 
Isolationism is not a stranger to me and books became my friends, when I had none. This is part of my history, which I am sharing with you.

The Tread to Freedom

By
Elnora Palmtag
How well I remember that long walk from the car to the door,
Leaving my familiar faces to face this strange, cruel school,
Coming inside after passing their vile, pointless drops from above,
Finally, inside the corridor, where only the white can rule.

This walk is repeated for two long and painful years,
But never will I let them see my anger or pain,
I will face each day as if it is the last,
When I can escape from the driving rain.

The rain of tears I cry each night in my lonely bed,
For no one wants to talk about the things I dread,
They keep saying, “We are so proud of you,”
For everyone will cry if I turn up dead.

Dead from the cruelty told to me each day,
In the classrooms of a place that has no heart,
By children of people who think they are right,
Right to say what which path is my part.

Part of a black world, held in contempt,
Sold into slavery and then set free,
Set free to do what I hear my family say,
Free to be whatever you want to be.

Some want to be white and live “the good life”
Have the kids, home, husband and wife,
Live in the big house in a good neighborhood,
And forget that there was ever slavery, “That’s good!”

Theory Or Model Journal (TOMJ1) for Interpersonal Communication

         I wrote the following 5 Journals for my Interpersonal Communication class at Linn Benton     College.  These are all related to different theories or models involving communication in my life which were studied in our class and influenced all aspects of my life.  Unfortunately, I am taking this class late in life, but it has helped me to figure out parts of my life which I had not fully understood before.  I hope you enjoy these!

     The linear communication theory is the most important and simplest theory in the formation of all sociological communication that is conveyed universally in all cultures.  The main person communicating (sender) relates information (encodes) in the form of  a message (information being relayed) to another person (receiver) who deciphers or tries to make sense of that information(decodes), while dealing with all the distractions (noise)  in the way of the exchange of  that same information.

        As I watch my granddaughter, Aaliyah, who is 10 months old try to communicate to our household, which includes my husband, daughter, son, grandson, and me, I am reliving the primary process of communication.  Because she does not have the communication skills, she is adapting and using all means to get her message across.  I taught her the words- come here- and, finally, one day she yelled, “Grandma, here, eat,” as she banged on her high chair tray.  This is not a great conversation but it is essential the basic form of linear communication.  She is not as aware of the noises in the background as an older person would, but focused on her basic needs.

       This theory is the basic of any language, including sign language, and I remember when I was very little and it was so important that everyone understood what I was saying.  It is the basis of the development of any good relationship.  Although we do not see it all the time, this communication theory can even be between a person and an animal.  Have you ever called your animal friend to come and get their food or sit or any other command?  The message is sent by you and received by them, even when you have other things going on in the background, effectively validating this theory.

     I feel that this theory is our most basic and fundamental theory, without which you can literally die of loneliness.  We learn to communicate by being communicated with by others.  Basically, I learned how to talk from television as I was born in the same year and the television and it was the new, extraordinary invention.  Because of this, I learned to talk different from the rest of my family and was considered different by them and society.  Learning to communicate in a different linear pattern influenced the rest of my life and was a benefit to me in getting ahead and out of the pattern of poverty in which I was raised.

TOMJ2

     The transactional communication model depends on the communicator or the person relating a message to another communicator through all the noises and channels of communication and, hopefully, getting their message across.  However, theorists believe that both parties of communicators are sending and receiving messages at the same time through the same or different channels and noises.  This process can be complicated if the persons communicating are not from the same cultural background, speak the same language, or different ethnic backgrounds.

      I have lived with this phenomenon most of my life as I developed my most basic communication skills from television and books, not from my ethnic background or family.  This effectively made me a social outcast with my own race and culture for most of my life.  When I was younger, I was considered by my friends as thinking I was better than them because I talked so much better and tried to emulate what I saw on television.  It was hard to reconcile in my head that my communication style was not being perceived by the people in my neighborhood in Mississippi as being different.

       When I transferred to the all-white school in 1964, I understood the transactional communication around me but because of my ethnic difference, I was not perceived as acceptable in this environment, although our speech patterns were the same.   Messages were being sent and received but they were not being received correctly because of preconceived ideas imparted by their society against anyone from the black community at that time.  The messages were surrounded by all sorts of noises in their heads from their entire community all the time and I was hearing different noises plus their noises also.  These noises were not always verbal, as a sneer could convey a clear and concise message.  This is not to say that all transactional communication is relayed effectively but it is there if the communicators are on the same wavelength of understanding.

      Transactional communication is the most concise description of the way humans communicate with each other.  There are other factors which are involved but I feel this is the most efficient and beneficial way to explain how we communicate with each other.  It is the most important theory in my life, as it is the reason I am where I am today.  The messages I received and translated early in life made me see that education was the only way I could escape the poverty and misery of my childhood.  This form of communication has inspired me to pursue another career after retiring from my last job.

TOMJ3

     The moral rules theory was offered as a self-evident obligation of the way people should treat each other by American philosopher, W. D. Ross.  He proclaimed that the components of moral rules are fidelity, reparation, gratitude, beneficence, self-improvement, justice, and nonmaleficence.  

     The first component of the moral rules theory is fidelity or keeping promises, followed by reparations, which means to make up for wrongs done to another.  Gratitude is acknowledging appreciation of the kindness of others and beneficence would be to “promote goodness and help others.  Another component is self-improvement (being the best you can be) and justice is to be fair in all things, what a person deserves for what is done.  Finally, nonmaleficence is to not cause harm or let anyone cause harm.

    All of these rules can be encompassed in what I have lived by all my life, “to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”   I have tried to always live by all of these components and have found most times that each will be returned by the other person.  However, I feel that these components are learned behavior.  I learned these because they are the opposite of my learned family values.   Living with all kinds of abuse and duplicity, where my life outside my home in no way was as it seemed to the public eye, I was determined to always think of what I had been taught in my home and do the opposite.  This has worked well for me, especially being nonmaleficent.

     I feel that this is another one of the main lessons which should be taught in every high school in America, if we want to stop all of the violence, abuse and other social ills which are affecting most of our society.  In conclusion, these concepts of fidelity, reparation, gratitude, beneficence, self-improvement, justice, and nonmaleficence should be the cornerstone of every human life lessons.

TOMJ4

     The models of relational development, developed by Mark Knapp, are divided into two categories (coming together and coming apart).  Coming together is comprised into five stages (initiating, experimenting, intensifying, integrating, and bonding), while the coming apart stages are differentiating, circumscribing, stagnating, avoiding, and terminating.

    The initiating stage is that first time you meet someone and shake hands or other mild forms of communication.  Experimentation stage is the next level, when you decide if the relationship is worth pursuing further; usually involving what we call small talk.  The next stage is intensifying, which this person is becoming important enough to pursue the burgeoning feelings of a relationship, which may or may not be romantic.   The integrating stage is very important because the relationship becomes a shared phase between two individuals who adapt to each other and need less overt communication.  The final coming together stage is bonding, which is usually some type of committed relationship, whether it is marriage or co-habitation of some sort.

     The first part of coming apart is differentiating, where the relationship is strong but there needs to be a reassertion of the individual needs, as well as partnership needs.  Another stage is circumscribing, where the quality and quantity of time and effort spent in a relationship lessens.  This is not necessarily ending the relationship but that is possible.  The stagnating stage occurs when the relationship is no longer moving forward but has come to a standstill on its downward spiral.  When the avoidance stage occurs, it is just what it sounds like; the relationship has come to the point where the individuals are avoiding each other to avoid unpleasant feelings or scenes.  And, finally, the terminating stage occurs and the individuals are aware of the ending of the relationship and make some sort of break in the relationship.

     I went through the whole scenario described above in my first marriage.  Unfortunately, the coming together stage was way too fast and I did not spend enough time making sure our friendship was developed enough to really know my ex-husband.  I admit I was young and in lust with love!  In my second marriage, I took the right steps and have been married, not 6 years as in my first marriage, but over 20 years.  After the coming together phase of our relationship was over in my first marriage, I found that my ex was a closet abuser of alcohol and drugs, as well as a womanizer.  This was all uncovered in the circumscribing stage, which led to the stagnating stage with the advent of the Aids scare.  When a person is impaired mentally, the chances of them doing something stupid sexually are greatly enhanced and scary.  After entering the stagnating stage, I realized I could do better for my son and I on our own.

     I feel this whole model of relational development should be mandatory for all children in high school and they should have to write about relationships from this standpoint.  This could possibly save a lot of pain and heartache in their future, especially with the divorce rate increasing in this country so drastically.  For couples looking for a lasting relationship, this is what they used to call courtship or, now, coming together and there would be less coming apart.

TOMJ5

     Identity management is the different communication strategies “people use to influence how others view them.”  There are two phases of identity management, perceived self or how we perceive ourselves and presenting self or they way we want others to see us.  To complicate this further, there are five characteristics of identity management.  There is first the construction of multiple identities, whether consciously or unconsciously.  Then there is collaborative identity management where each person is performing their role and is interacting with another person who is also performing a role in the theater of life.  All of this can be deliberate or unconscious, in which you control the impressions you make or these impressions are made subconsciously and another aspect of identity management varies by situation.  And, finally, two different degrees of identity management are high self-monitor ( a person aware of all stimuli and all situations) and low self-monitor ( a person who has no regard for another person's impressions or the feelings of others).

      This concept was evident in my early life as I was a consummate actress, covering up my true feelings, because of the abuse and isolationism for so many years.   During my younger years, I was sexually abused by my step-father and later because of this; my mother subjected me to physical, emotional and psychological abuse.  After having all of this done to me, I entered an all-white school in 1964 and was again subjected to isolationism and racism, with verbal, physical and non-verbal abuse. I had developed multiple personalities, thankfully only two, one conscious and the other subconscious.  My subconscious self was not discovered until I was in college, where I went to very vocal to totally non-vocal mood.  The strange thing is because of my multiple personalities, I have been both a high and low self-monitor, especially with my acting abilities.

      This process, however, caused problems in the collaborative stages in my life.  I did not develop the ability to collaborate with others in an effective manner, especially in a business environment.  It was, also, one of the main reasons I did not complete college the first time, as I was going to school and working full-time, while being counseled for my disorder of multiple personalities.

     .  I feel that identity management is one of the shortcomings in my life because of the dual personalities I suffered.  It took me a lot of years to learn how to cope with and communicate effectively with others, due to bad role models on how to manage your identity.  All of this is a learned behavior and I did not have the role models needed to become a self-sufficient person with a good identity, let alone learn how to manage an identity.

TAKING THE LONG WALK HOME

So tired of being cooped up in this house, this cab, this school,

I broke a very sacred and basic rule.

“You can’t walk home,” they tell me each day.

But I am a child who loves to smile at people along the way.

They don’t understand my young free spirit so strictly confined.

This is why I took the path which others definitely declined.

Travelling each day to school, while they watch over me, I long to wander and be truly free.

Too young and dumb to realize the truth in the South,

I just traversed home and shut my little mouth.

The phone rang at 3:30 sharp and I answered with a grin,

They wanted to know where the hell I had been.

I tried to explain why I went home alone,

But they censored me and told me to walk downtown now, I MOAN!

So down to their office I walk slower and slower

And, when I arrive, they make me wait some more.

“Why did you leave school alone?”  They have to report!

I didn’t know they all thought my life had been cut short.

So I say, “The dumb kids are in school and cannot hurt me.”

Their eyes widen as they exclaimed, “What about their dumb family?”

So I walked the long, lethal walk home again,

And I never left ventured out alone again, ahem.

 (This is dedicated to the marshals, who protected me for the two years I attended Clarksdale High School in Mississippi.

BY

ELNORA PALMTAG)

LBCC Choir Wins in the Aloha State

LBCC Choir in Hawaii. Photo provided by James Reddan

The LBCC choir has been on a mission in the South Pacific. During spring break, they went to the Hawaiian National Heritage in Honolulu on March 23. Overall, 59 students participated in the programs. Choir director and conductor James Reddan posted his thoughts regarding these events on the choir’s Facebook page.

“Congratulations to the LBCC choirs at the Hawaiian National Heritage Festival,” he wrote. “[One gold and two silvers], invitation to the festival of gold, outstanding choral ensemble trophy, choral sweepstakes trophy [...] lots of wonderful things today. Feeling so humbled to be the director of such wonderful students. And congrats to Travis Bazanele on winning the Maestro award at todays festival,” Reddan continued. “You all make LBCC, Albany, and Oregon proud!”

Kim Garwood Willaman proudly displays one of the trophies won in Hawaii by our choir. Willaman also posted a picture of all three trophies with a comment.

“These are all of the trophies we pulled yesterday,” She posted. “Though the clear one in the bottom middle is one Travis personally earned: The Maestro Award. So we did [okay].”

The choir took a total of 4 trophies while in Hawaii.  

• Re-Choired Element Chamber Choir: Gold, Trophy for Outstanding Choral Group with an Invitation to the 2014 Festival of Gold
•  
• LBCC Concert Choir: Silver, Travis Bazanele recipient of the Maestro Award for his performance as percussionist and singer
•  
• LBCC Mixed Vocal A cappella: Silver trophy
•  
• Entire LBCC Choral Program: Choral Sweepstakes Trophy for Outstanding Choral Program

On this trip the choir members were able to do some sightseeing:

• Tour and performances of the Polynesian Cultural Center on the Island of Oahu.
• Tour of Pearl Harbor and Visit to the USS Arizona Memorial
• Hike of Diamond Head Crater

The choir was able to do a tribute performance at the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor, which is the site of the Japanese Surrender at the end of WWII.

In the past year, the choir visited Washington D.C., London for the 2012 Summer Olympics, and Honolulu.

They also competed at the International Championship of Collegiate a cappella.

The chamber choir has been named semifinalists for the American Prize in Choral Performance for the past two years, and this year, both the chamber and concert choirs have been named semifinalists.

Next year, the chamber and concert choirs will compete in the ninth World Choir Games in Riga, Latvia with additional performances in Helsinki, Finland, and Tallinn, Estonia.

A Rebuttal to the Conservative Corner

Thinking The Tea Party and Conservatives (Republicans) are the same is like comparing grapefruits and oranges. The Conservative or Republican Party is more about economics and conservative social mores, while The Tea Party is ultra-conservative, mostly about their so-called rights.



I don’t consider The Tea Party as racist so much as unbendable people, who do not respect or acknowledge others rights to their own opinions.

Where is there any evidence of someone saying there are no minorities in The Tea Party? There are people in all races, who have a right to their indignant, ignorant and biased opinions and I acknowledge this.

Also, please do not confuse The Black Panther Party, founded by Huey P. Newton in California in 1966, with The New Black Panther Party, chaired by Khalid Abdul Muhammad, in Texas. The original Black Panther Party was a non-violent group who wanted the same rights as other citizens, including the right to carry arms as long as they are visible and not pointed at anyone.

The New Black Panther Party, while racist and anti-Semitic, did not sanction the two individuals who went to Philadelphia but they are a small-minded group of thugs who are not reflective of the black community.
Blaming “the liberal media, poorly informed liberals, progressives and so-called ‘civil rights’ leaders who only seem to see things in a positive light if it agrees with their own mindset for the negative information,” but isn’t that what everyone has a right to do, as you are. Do we, the public, have to believe what you or they say?

No, we do not. We need to be better informed and check the information for ourselves from other sources and make our own decisions. All of these rights are protected in OUR constitution.

Comparing what Imus, a talk show host, said to what Janeane Garofalo, a comedienne, said is not in the same genre or occupation. Garofalo can say the sky is red and I would laugh but if Imus said the same statement, I would question why he said this because of his occupation. The seriousness of the two situations must be considered in the context of their positions in society.

If you do not have racist thoughts and this was demonstrated at the Academy Awards last night, then you can say so-called racist comments and be funny and not be censored by any groups. There are some situations and groups, like children, who should not be subjected to statements, like Imus did. Maybe you don’t understand the stigma behind the words he uttered but believe me they were hateful and not meant to be funny.

I, too, hope that one day we can look around and not think about the color of someone’s skin but the content of the character of the individual. So, basically, we are on the same path but from different poles.

Movie Review: ‘Star Trek: Into Darkness’

Even though filmmaker J.J. Abrams only became a fan of Star Trek in 2009, he has redeemed himself, because he was able to connect with repeat and new audience members. When a director makes the viewer forget that they are in a theater and are truly in the Trekkie world, then he has done his job. Abrams had the audience enthralled with the graphics and continuation of the theme from the last movie “Star Trek” with “Into Darkness.”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=QAEkuVgt6Aw

Starting with the dramatic action of James Tiberius Kirk being chased through the forest by beings similar to a primitive tribe on Earth, Abrams introduces the primary tenets of scientific exploration which is being done by the Enterprise for The Federation of Planets. Knowing the difference between the young Kirk and the Kirk many of us grew up with brings excitement to the scenes but leaves us wanting more.

Chris Pine portrays a believable Kirk, but Zoe Saldana as Uhura steals the show, as a strong, confident and brave woman in the midst of many crises they face and overcome. The actors Karl Urban as Bones, Simon Pegg as Scotty, Anton Yelchin as Chekov, and John Cho as Sulu are great character actors who have studied their counterparts and nailed their personalities and idiosyncrasies.

Zachary Quinto is Spock with a cameo by Leonard Nimoy to advise himself during their time of crisis. The enigmatic Vulcan, played by Quinto, is as irascible as ever and tries to explain the Vulcan philosophy to the audience. This is not necessary for true Trekkies and stops the momentum of the action and continuity of the interplay between the characters.

Benedict Cumberbatch plays a powerful and intelligent villain, testing all the physical and mental abilities of the crew as a team.

A fan of Star Trek, Sean Welty said, “It is a good standalone movie which allows a neophyte to experience Star Trek with no previous knowledge of Star Trek. It is a modern day retelling of a classic Star Trek storyline. ”

Mark McIntyre replied, “I thoroughly enjoyed this movie better than the ones they normally put out.”

Empire online reported that “working with screenwriters Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof, Abrams can flip between different tones in a heartbeat — a comedic lovers’ tiff in the midst of battle turns into an affecting meditation on fear — and will leave no stone unturned in trying to entertain…. Not all of it works — compared to the opener, the last-reel action is enjoyable rather than jaw-dropping — but there is the sense of a true showman at work.”

This movie is good enough to pay for but it definitely leaves the true Trekkie hungry for the next movie, which unfortunately will not be made until about 2016.