One more thing...

A quick blurb on my personal opinion/observations on government, media, and social progress... or rather a rant on a little bit of everything...

I've been following the news pretty closely, and well nothing has gotten me very excited for the future.

1. US deployed "advisers" or troops (?) into Uganda after the LRA
2. Kenya declared a right to protect it's boarder and sent in military to Somalia after the AL-Queda linked group Al-Shaabab (http://www.nation.co.ke/News/Kenya+declares+war+on+Al+Shaabab/-/1056/1255736/-/kl4knaz/-/index.html)
3. The alleged attack on the Saudi Arabia ambassador in the US and the White House reaction/statements on Iran
4. Occupy protests have been expanding both peacefully and violently around the world.

First a quick PLEASE DON'T WORRY:
...don't worry about Somalia, I am far away form the border, and the fighting is in Somalia NOT in Kenya. I am safe where I live and I take the precautions seriously about being here. Obviously there is a risk- I am a foreigner in Kenya, but we have a class on the culture here for a reason and strict guidelines to keep us safe. I also have a huge network of people here not only through AU but through connections I've made to make sure I am well informed and safe.

Now these are not comments on the specific events listed above, those are just some of the topics I have been discussing, but rather I'm discussing how I'm taking in all of the news being poured out from every outlet available... online, in print, and in person. We are a generation receiving infinite information faster than anyone can possibly process any of it. And here is my reaction:

My confidence in Obama as a president is being questioned, this coming Presidential election is the first I will be able to vote in, and seeing the system here in Kenya I believe civic education is more important than anything. Based off of that I have been trying to educate myself as much as possible on issues in the US.  I am not by any means am I saying I am supporting any conservative ideals, and I am 100% born, raised and I have now chosen to uphold liberal ideals. However, I am finally educating myself on various problems as well as solutions (not that I haven't before, but I just took what I read as transparent facts), and who stands for what, and well hell I'm forming my own opinion, WHATT!? Crazy, I am aware.

I've come to discover that the media isn't the best source for news, the news I'm looking for. It's actually the people. By "the people" I literally mean citizens of the world (yes, I'm spreading my new found knowledge to the world via a blog- how cliche, again, I am aware). I've become more addicted to twitter, social media sites, and general discussion more than ever. And not for facts, but for opinions, photos, and updates. Facts are pretty damn subjective as I have come to learn in Kenya (Example A: did you know that eating Watermelon seeds can guarantee men to have a son? -from an actual published newspaper), and the only thing I have to compare it to are the American systems... and well I have definitely started questioning that. News sources I used to follow frequently I've almost given up on. I'm looking for real updates, no more numbers or statistics, because well unless I research it on my own, how am I supposed to know who is skewing what, or outright lying? The world is too interconnected, we are a globalized community of human beings- thanks to technology and other international advancements- whether we like it or not. And everyone has different opinions, facts, problems and solutions. The question isn't how can we consider everyone, but how can we not consider everyone?

I'm only touching on my frenzy of thoughts, opinions, and ideas here (trust me there is a lot more where this has come from), but I figured since I have a substantial base of readers following, especially those close to me, why not share them?

Disclaimer #1: By no means am I saying I know what is best, but I am saying I am trying to learn... and learn to ask more about everything.

Disclaimer #2: this was spurred by the non-stop (literally) stimulating discussion among myself and those around me in Kenya, because... well... you can't take in any information here without questioning it or wanting to know more. So we all compare it to what we know- America.

Well, so much for "one more thing" seems I had more to say than I realized.

So there you have it. A little bit of my own critical thinking out on the inter-webs.