Obama's Beer Summit

Written by Sang Jung

It was a unique cocktail hour at the White House. Four men getting together for a cold beer to discuss the scorching issue of race and police-minority relations.

But beyond the photo-op, President Obama hoped to accomplish what he called a "teachable moment" for the country and dial back the controversy that has exploded from a local issue into a national debate. Yet, his “teachable moment” is growing into a full-blown semester.



In Obama's 40-minute meeting with Cambridge, Mass., Police Sgt. James Crowley and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., there were no apologies, or the appearance of a reconciliation, but the two men agreed to disagree.

"We have all agreed that it is important to look forward rather than backward,"Crowley said at a news conference at the AFL-CIO's national headquarters after the suds summit.
"What you had today was two gentlemen [who] agreed to disagree on a particular issue," said the police officer. "I don't think we spent too much time dwelling on the past. We spent a lot of time talking about the future."

However, If President Obama is unable to bring a cop and a Harvard professor together, what chance does he have brokering a peace deal with Israeli PM Netanyu and Palestinian PM Fayyad.

Labels: beer summit, harvard professor, herny louis gates, james crowley, Obama

Diamonds are a Wound's Best Friend.

Written By Sang Jung




Women tend to like them, meteors tend to make them and De Beers tends to hoard them, but now diamonds turn out to have a more constructive use: making nasty wounds heal faster.

Northwestern University scientist Dean Ho and his team discovered that nanodiamonds are very attractive to insulin, best know for helping regulate blood sugar. Insulin, however, can also accelerate healing processes and stave off infection in wound sites.

Ho and his team discovered that it was easy to get the insulin to stick to the nanodiamonds, which are easy to get to the wound site without causing further damage. More interestingly, the only thing that can cause the insulin to release from the nanodiamonds is the presence of a base pH level, which often occurs in wounds and infected tissue.

A substantial amount of insulin can be loaded onto the nanodiamonds, which have a high surface area. The nanodiamond-insulin clusters, by releasing insulin in alkaline wound areas, could accelerate the healing process and decrease the incidence of infection.

This scientific discovery is great and all. But its disconcerting to find out that even our molecules love bling.

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Labels: bling, Diamonds, molecules, wounds

Why does Conservative America care about Israel?

Written by Sang Hyun Jung



Conservatives have always believed that Israel is one of our closest allies in the world. Our politicians and strategists portray Israel as THE shining light in the dark brackish sea that is the Middle East. Congress passes legislations at home and foreign policies that take into account Israel’s wishes. Every election cycle, our political candidates pander to the Jewish population in Florida by extolling Israel. Even now, President Obama is starting to take the heat for not establishing a “dialogue” with Israel.

So why do conservatives and American in general care about Israel?

Is it because Israel is the “only democratic state in the Middle East”? Israel is often portrayed as a model for the rest of the Middle East. So most politicians and Americans believe Israel deserves some special acknowledgement from the U.S. and other western democracies. However, Israel does employ draconian practices on its non-Jewish citizens. Palestinians, anyone?

I think we care about Israel, not because we value their democratic principles, or sympathize with the plight they faced during the Holocaust. I think most Americans care about Israel for one thing. Real estate. Religious real estate.

Megiddo, Israel. This is where The Bible states the apocalypse will begin. And to most, religious conservatives, the apocalypse is a welcome sign. Because right after the apocalypse, Jesus comes down from Heaven, defeats all the demons and sinners, and establishes Heaven on Earth. But all this requires Israel to be in one piece before the apocalypse takes place.

Conservatives and misguided mainstreamers are establishing such a parasitic relationship with Israel. “We love you Israel. We’ll take care of you. We need to keep you safe until the Apocalypse … you’ll all probably get slaughtered, but we’ll see you in Heaven.”

Is this true? Why do you care about Israel?

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: apocalypse, conservative, israel

Otaku: It's Weird

Written by Sang

Japan, for the past decade, has been experiencing a social and cultural phenomenon called Otaku. Otaku refers to the obsessive interest of anime, manga, and videogame characters. Otaku is closely related to the American term, "Loser".

The number of people practicing Otaku has grown so large that they represent a powerful subculture within the overall Japanese society. There are internet cafes, social networks, and large swaths of physical territory dedicated to Otaku-culture. There are forums, meetings, and clubs for those who love the Otaku-lifestyle.





The Otaku-lifestyle, though strange to us, raise little eyebrows in Japan. Let's face it--the people of Japan has seen weirder things (underwear vending machines, penis festival). Those engaged in Otaku claim to feel an emotional connection with the anime characters. So much so that they buy dolls, figurines and any object that has the likeness of the character they love.

Now that I think about it, it's not surprising why Otaku is so popular in Japan. In Japanese society, both men and women are discouraged from displaying their sexuality. Both groups have very few friends of the opposite sex.


Personally, i don't think its sexually healthy to shy away from the opposite sex, and/or go on dates with your Sailor Moon action-figure. There might be away to tackle the Otaku culture, and liberate these sexually awkward losers back to the land of the living.

..Japan Needs you Mystery.

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: anime, japan, japanese, manga, otaku, sexuality

The Gloves are Off



Liz Cheney looks cute as a button with her squirrelish face and pink jacket. But there is no denying she might be one of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.





Michelle Bachman looks great with her grey pinstripe suit and megawatt smile. Although, judging from this clip she might be considered mentally challenged in some states.




You almost feel sorry for daddy's girl, Meghan McCain, but then you realizes she's 24 and this is 2009.

Should women public/political officials be subjected to the same scrutiny--and well-deserved--backlash from us?

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: bias, gloves are off, politics, pundits, women

Pay for Progress

Written by Sang Hyun Jung



During the past few months, President Obama has delivered on his campaign promise to aggressively tackle the rising cost of healthcare in the U.S. Now the president faces stiff opposition from Congress, as both cynical Republicans and overcautious Democrats try to slow down the Obama administration’s healthcare reform bill.

These critics highlight one argument against spending: Cost.

The healthcare legislation is expected to cost upwards of $1 trillion. That’s 12 zeros. Compound that with the first recovery stimulus that cost $789 billion, and the fact that the Congressional Budget Office projects this year’s budget deficit to round out to $1.7 trillion, and you can see why Obama’s plan has many detractors.

The price tags of these legislations are enormous. There almost too large to comprehend. But the costs of these bills are well worth it, if they bring what they promise.

The economic stimulus provided funding for invaluable social programs that focused on poverty-relief, education, and cutting the rising cost of Medicaid. The bill contains more than $150 billion in public works projects for transportation, energy and technology.

The healthcare legislation’s promise is also ambitious and far-reaching. The bill outlines tax-relief to low to middle-income class Americans, funding of cost-reducing technology, and a single-payer system where all Americans are insured with affordable healthcare.

It’s almost certain that we will experience a rise in taxes due to the amount of spending. But I say it’s worth it.

For so long, decade after decade we cry out to our government to keep us safe, repair our roads, and fund our children’s schools. We then scream, even curse at our government for raising our taxes to pay for these social programs that will benefit us and our communities. We eat and eat, but we balk when the check comes.

We have to recognize that are no free meals. We ask a lot from our government, and we have to pay the cost. And no cost is too high for progress.

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: congress, Congressional Budget Office, Healthcare reform, Obama, Stimulus, tax relief

White Animus

Written By Sang Hyun Jung




The Sonia Sotomayor hearings will likely wrap up today. Instead of a civil discourse on constitutional and judicial matters, we were treated to a circus. The prime act was based on race. Specifically, the racial prejudice and injustice of Sotomayor. Sotomayor, for the bulk of her testimony, fielded questions from Senate republicans who accused her of race bias.

There’s nothing more surreal than old, white men claiming victimization, while looking down on a latina woman. Yet, this is a larger issue.

The United States is experiencing a profound demographic shift where minorities will soon replace whites as the majority. This is partly due to the rich history of the U.S. taking a huge influx of immigrants from Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. Yet, the most noticeable rise in demographic diversity is not from the arrival of immigrants, but from the population growth of Hispanics already in the U.S.

In fact, the nation’s Hispanic population has passed 41.3 million as of 2004, a 3.6 growth rate that shatters the growth rates of other minorities and whites.

However, all minorities are replacing whites as the majority not in terms of population size, but of social and cultural relevance. This is due in part by their increase participation in civic discussions and public policymaking. Policy shifts and laws will undoubtedly change as politicians seek the increasingly significant Hispanic vote. Our education system—and what schools and universities teach will—change to better reflect a more ethnically diverse reality.

And now we are seeing a prolific rise in minority professionals, in business, the arts, and in science and engineering. Although upper management is still dominated by white males, minorities are starting to crack the glass ceiling. Asians, in general, earn more income than whites. Blacks and Hispanics have been slowly eroding the income gap over the past decade.

Where does that leave whites, the old majority?

Minorities are experiencing a population boom, thus raising their political significance. Our academic discourse and national history is changing to better reflect the role of non-whites. Non-white actors and themed shows are starting to crop up in movies, television and music. And a black man is the President of the United States.

Scary—to some.

There has never been a time when conservative whites have been so politically, and culturally irrelevant. And that is what scares the old white men who were once comforted by their codes, handshakes, and country clubs. They feel “victimized”, by the success and proliferation of minorities. And so these men clutch on to their old way of thinking. They scream “victim” and stoke the white animus from the hardcore fringe of their constituencies.

The times, they are a-changing. The only way for these ol' Republicans to stay relevant will be to roll with ethnic change and create positive relationships with minorities.

Labels: demographic, ethnic, population, racial prejudice, republican, sonia sotomayor, supreme court, white, white animus

Obama's Beer Summit

Written by Sang Jung

It was a unique cocktail hour at the White House. Four men getting together for a cold beer to discuss the scorching issue of race and police-minority relations.

But beyond the photo-op, President Obama hoped to accomplish what he called a "teachable moment" for the country and dial back the controversy that has exploded from a local issue into a national debate. Yet, his “teachable moment” is growing into a full-blown semester.



In Obama's 40-minute meeting with Cambridge, Mass., Police Sgt. James Crowley and Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr., there were no apologies, or the appearance of a reconciliation, but the two men agreed to disagree.

"We have all agreed that it is important to look forward rather than backward,"Crowley said at a news conference at the AFL-CIO's national headquarters after the suds summit.
"What you had today was two gentlemen [who] agreed to disagree on a particular issue," said the police officer. "I don't think we spent too much time dwelling on the past. We spent a lot of time talking about the future."

However, If President Obama is unable to bring a cop and a Harvard professor together, what chance does he have brokering a peace deal with Israeli PM Netanyu and Palestinian PM Fayyad.

Labels: beer summit, harvard professor, herny louis gates, james crowley, Obama

Diamonds are a Wound's Best Friend.

Written By Sang Jung




Women tend to like them, meteors tend to make them and De Beers tends to hoard them, but now diamonds turn out to have a more constructive use: making nasty wounds heal faster.

Northwestern University scientist Dean Ho and his team discovered that nanodiamonds are very attractive to insulin, best know for helping regulate blood sugar. Insulin, however, can also accelerate healing processes and stave off infection in wound sites.

Ho and his team discovered that it was easy to get the insulin to stick to the nanodiamonds, which are easy to get to the wound site without causing further damage. More interestingly, the only thing that can cause the insulin to release from the nanodiamonds is the presence of a base pH level, which often occurs in wounds and infected tissue.

A substantial amount of insulin can be loaded onto the nanodiamonds, which have a high surface area. The nanodiamond-insulin clusters, by releasing insulin in alkaline wound areas, could accelerate the healing process and decrease the incidence of infection.

This scientific discovery is great and all. But its disconcerting to find out that even our molecules love bling.

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: bling, Diamonds, molecules, wounds

Why does Conservative America care about Israel?

Written by Sang Hyun Jung



Conservatives have always believed that Israel is one of our closest allies in the world. Our politicians and strategists portray Israel as THE shining light in the dark brackish sea that is the Middle East. Congress passes legislations at home and foreign policies that take into account Israel’s wishes. Every election cycle, our political candidates pander to the Jewish population in Florida by extolling Israel. Even now, President Obama is starting to take the heat for not establishing a “dialogue” with Israel.

So why do conservatives and American in general care about Israel?

Is it because Israel is the “only democratic state in the Middle East”? Israel is often portrayed as a model for the rest of the Middle East. So most politicians and Americans believe Israel deserves some special acknowledgement from the U.S. and other western democracies. However, Israel does employ draconian practices on its non-Jewish citizens. Palestinians, anyone?

I think we care about Israel, not because we value their democratic principles, or sympathize with the plight they faced during the Holocaust. I think most Americans care about Israel for one thing. Real estate. Religious real estate.

Megiddo, Israel. This is where The Bible states the apocalypse will begin. And to most, religious conservatives, the apocalypse is a welcome sign. Because right after the apocalypse, Jesus comes down from Heaven, defeats all the demons and sinners, and establishes Heaven on Earth. But all this requires Israel to be in one piece before the apocalypse takes place.

Conservatives and misguided mainstreamers are establishing such a parasitic relationship with Israel. “We love you Israel. We’ll take care of you. We need to keep you safe until the Apocalypse … you’ll all probably get slaughtered, but we’ll see you in Heaven.”

Is this true? Why do you care about Israel?

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: apocalypse, conservative, israel

Otaku: It's Weird

Written by Sang

Japan, for the past decade, has been experiencing a social and cultural phenomenon called Otaku. Otaku refers to the obsessive interest of anime, manga, and videogame characters. Otaku is closely related to the American term, "Loser".

The number of people practicing Otaku has grown so large that they represent a powerful subculture within the overall Japanese society. There are internet cafes, social networks, and large swaths of physical territory dedicated to Otaku-culture. There are forums, meetings, and clubs for those who love the Otaku-lifestyle.





The Otaku-lifestyle, though strange to us, raise little eyebrows in Japan. Let's face it--the people of Japan has seen weirder things (underwear vending machines, penis festival). Those engaged in Otaku claim to feel an emotional connection with the anime characters. So much so that they buy dolls, figurines and any object that has the likeness of the character they love.

Now that I think about it, it's not surprising why Otaku is so popular in Japan. In Japanese society, both men and women are discouraged from displaying their sexuality. Both groups have very few friends of the opposite sex.


Personally, i don't think its sexually healthy to shy away from the opposite sex, and/or go on dates with your Sailor Moon action-figure. There might be away to tackle the Otaku culture, and liberate these sexually awkward losers back to the land of the living.

..Japan Needs you Mystery.

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: anime, japan, japanese, manga, otaku, sexuality

The Gloves are Off



Liz Cheney looks cute as a button with her squirrelish face and pink jacket. But there is no denying she might be one of the four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.





Michelle Bachman looks great with her grey pinstripe suit and megawatt smile. Although, judging from this clip she might be considered mentally challenged in some states.




You almost feel sorry for daddy's girl, Meghan McCain, but then you realizes she's 24 and this is 2009.

Should women public/political officials be subjected to the same scrutiny--and well-deserved--backlash from us?

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: bias, gloves are off, politics, pundits, women

Pay for Progress

Written by Sang Hyun Jung



During the past few months, President Obama has delivered on his campaign promise to aggressively tackle the rising cost of healthcare in the U.S. Now the president faces stiff opposition from Congress, as both cynical Republicans and overcautious Democrats try to slow down the Obama administration’s healthcare reform bill.

These critics highlight one argument against spending: Cost.

The healthcare legislation is expected to cost upwards of $1 trillion. That’s 12 zeros. Compound that with the first recovery stimulus that cost $789 billion, and the fact that the Congressional Budget Office projects this year’s budget deficit to round out to $1.7 trillion, and you can see why Obama’s plan has many detractors.

The price tags of these legislations are enormous. There almost too large to comprehend. But the costs of these bills are well worth it, if they bring what they promise.

The economic stimulus provided funding for invaluable social programs that focused on poverty-relief, education, and cutting the rising cost of Medicaid. The bill contains more than $150 billion in public works projects for transportation, energy and technology.

The healthcare legislation’s promise is also ambitious and far-reaching. The bill outlines tax-relief to low to middle-income class Americans, funding of cost-reducing technology, and a single-payer system where all Americans are insured with affordable healthcare.

It’s almost certain that we will experience a rise in taxes due to the amount of spending. But I say it’s worth it.

For so long, decade after decade we cry out to our government to keep us safe, repair our roads, and fund our children’s schools. We then scream, even curse at our government for raising our taxes to pay for these social programs that will benefit us and our communities. We eat and eat, but we balk when the check comes.

We have to recognize that are no free meals. We ask a lot from our government, and we have to pay the cost. And no cost is too high for progress.

HTML Comment Box is loading comments...

Labels: congress, Congressional Budget Office, Healthcare reform, Obama, Stimulus, tax relief

White Animus

Written By Sang Hyun Jung




The Sonia Sotomayor hearings will likely wrap up today. Instead of a civil discourse on constitutional and judicial matters, we were treated to a circus. The prime act was based on race. Specifically, the racial prejudice and injustice of Sotomayor. Sotomayor, for the bulk of her testimony, fielded questions from Senate republicans who accused her of race bias.

There’s nothing more surreal than old, white men claiming victimization, while looking down on a latina woman. Yet, this is a larger issue.

The United States is experiencing a profound demographic shift where minorities will soon replace whites as the majority. This is partly due to the rich history of the U.S. taking a huge influx of immigrants from Asia, Latin America, Eastern Europe, and the Middle East. Yet, the most noticeable rise in demographic diversity is not from the arrival of immigrants, but from the population growth of Hispanics already in the U.S.

In fact, the nation’s Hispanic population has passed 41.3 million as of 2004, a 3.6 growth rate that shatters the growth rates of other minorities and whites.

However, all minorities are replacing whites as the majority not in terms of population size, but of social and cultural relevance. This is due in part by their increase participation in civic discussions and public policymaking. Policy shifts and laws will undoubtedly change as politicians seek the increasingly significant Hispanic vote. Our education system—and what schools and universities teach will—change to better reflect a more ethnically diverse reality.

And now we are seeing a prolific rise in minority professionals, in business, the arts, and in science and engineering. Although upper management is still dominated by white males, minorities are starting to crack the glass ceiling. Asians, in general, earn more income than whites. Blacks and Hispanics have been slowly eroding the income gap over the past decade.

Where does that leave whites, the old majority?

Minorities are experiencing a population boom, thus raising their political significance. Our academic discourse and national history is changing to better reflect the role of non-whites. Non-white actors and themed shows are starting to crop up in movies, television and music. And a black man is the President of the United States.

Scary—to some.

There has never been a time when conservative whites have been so politically, and culturally irrelevant. And that is what scares the old white men who were once comforted by their codes, handshakes, and country clubs. They feel “victimized”, by the success and proliferation of minorities. And so these men clutch on to their old way of thinking. They scream “victim” and stoke the white animus from the hardcore fringe of their constituencies.

The times, they are a-changing. The only way for these ol' Republicans to stay relevant will be to roll with ethnic change and create positive relationships with minorities.

Labels: demographic, ethnic, population, racial prejudice, republican, sonia sotomayor, supreme court, white, white animus