"Exertion" by Shinji

Hey everyone! Did you think you would ever see me again? Well here I am with another article. Here goes:

Every day we push ourselves to the limit one way or another. Exertion is just an everyday thing. We stress ourselves physically and mentally to do much more than we are capable of. I know I've even done it today what with getting a week's amount of programming done in one day. The after-effects can be horrible. You feel tired, you don't want to do anything... I'm surprised I'm even writing this article after being unable to write for so long! I suppose exertion unlocks what's hidden inside of you as well. Never before did I think I could write about exertion, much less exert myself at all. But the key to it is to keep pushing yourself all the time. Keep going until you can't take it anymore and then keep going some more. What I've noticed is that if you exert yourself, your limits expand. When your limits expand, you can do much more in less time because you don't have to take breaks or anything of the sort. I'm sure you all know what I mean - athletes exert themselves to train for events by running until they can't anymore. This, in turn, allows them to gradually run longer and faster without stopping or slowing down. That's the way it is for us as well. If you're not the physical type, much like myself, then go for mental exertion - get a hobby or something that is mentally intense and keep working on it. Quite a few times you'll get a headache or you'll develop a mental block but the key here is to rest very shortly and keep going at it. In no time at all, you will notice that you are capable of doing more than what you started off doing. For example, if you worked on a puzzle (let's say sudoku) and you kept going until you couldn't do a single one, in time you would be able to do the toughest sudoku puzzle possible in a matter of minutes. It's all about pushing yourself past your limits, exerting yourself that is, to realize and broaden your potential and ultimately make yourself a better person in the end.

"Money" by Shinji

Money does exactly what everyone says - it makes the world go around. But still, it's the cause of our servitude. It's the reason why some people are impoverished, it's the reason we have taxes, it's the reason we have prices. A handful of people have lots of money and no use for it and yet some people are so poor they have to live in the streets. And yet the governments across the world say that they are trying to spread economic wealth evenly? Obviously there's a flaw in that. If all of the world's money could be pooled into one big pot and then spread evenly to every person in the world, everyone could live fairly well. Quite well, actually, seeing that some families in the world have millions of dollars to their name while some families don't have two pennies to rub together. If everyone did get that base amount of cash and then people have to work to earn their keep and make more money, it would show us who deserve the money they make and who don't. Naturally, once everyone had a base amount of money to live comfortably, the ones who do work will make money and those who would rather be lazy and spend all their money would wind up in the gutter. Welfare? Unemployment insurance? Yes they are needed when people get laid off of work or when they get injured, but you have alcoholics who don't even try to get a job and just collect welfare. Anyways, getting back on track here and wrapping this up, money is the curse and blessing of the world, and I think that something should be done to distribute it more evenly so we can allow people to live comfortably and so people do not have to suffer.

"Conformity" by Shinji

Nowadays everyone conforms and everyone follows the same trends. Why is this? Could it be because the media sets the standards of how everyone should look and act? And then again, we are also to blame for obeying and following the media. Of course, once a few people follow the media, they can use peer pressure to force everyone else to conform. The way I see it, everyone is turning into mindless drones. People should follow their own path (or even make a new one!). Everyone's losing their individuality; I say we reclaim it for ourselves. Just because everyone is into one look, it doesn't mean you can't dress your own way. Listen to your own music. Buy your own stuff. Become your own person, not a clone created by the media.

"Anti-Semitism" by Shinji

So these days the thing everyone does to insult something, be it human, animal, or even an inanimate object, is call it a Jew. You don't call someone an idiot anymore, no, you call them a Jew. Your lawnmower break down? It's Jewish. This really gets me pissed off. Now first thing's first - what's wrong with Jews? Jewish people haven't done anything to you or anyone else; they're totally innocent people. So why do we say such anti-Semitic comments? There are more and more Jew hating jokes being made up daily, and there's no reason for it. It goes to show you that mini-Hitlers are popping up left and right these days. I'm not saying target another religion for insults, I'm saying cut out the insults that target a race, religion, gender, etc. General insults like calling someone an idiot is acceptable because it doesn't make fun of any race or religion or gender or (insert specific target here). So why don't we cut out the unnecessary anti-Semitism in our everyday speech and focus more on uniting religions, cultures, and the like instead of dividing them even more? To me it sounds like a good plan, and I'm gonna keep sticking with it.

"America's World Policeism" by Shinji

America, in a way, does act like a world police. They are always bringing Democracy to countries that do not have it. They are at a constant struggle with the Communists. A prime example of this was with Stalin. Stalin kept trying to convert all the countries in Europe to Communism and the USA kept on struggling to bring those countries to Democracy. If those countries wish to be Communist, let them. Personally, I do like my Democracy, but other countries can have Communism if they so wish. Each country should be able to have its own unique type of government. Each country’s culture(s) should also be able to be free instead of being influenced by America’s world policeism. Canada is on the right track. Its multiculturalistic approach enables each culture living in the country to practice their own religion, traditions, etc. The government is there, but it does not control the people in a way that restricts them. In conclusion, I think that America should lay off a little on the world policeism and allow other countries to do what they want to do. Not everyone has to be American.