London burns

People, families, and communities have their possessions, their jobs, and their loved ones destroyed and ripped apart by natural disasters. Most of the time, we can't avoid this. We do the best we can to prevent this from happening, but more often than not, we end up directing all of our efforts to recovering from it.

The London riots are similar in their result, but not in their origins. The carnage is completely man-made. I am astounded by the sheer stupidity and thoughtlessness of the people rioting.



Photo from The Australian

I understand that some of them feel oppressed, or hard done by by the government. How is burning down the neighbourhood grocery, or the barber next door, or bakery, or the school, going to improve their plight? They'll wake up from this madness, and realise that they have destroyed the house of their neighbour, the shops that their friends owned, schools that their siblings attended.

Looting shops is not fighting oppression. Burning property is not fighting oppression. Throwing petrol bombs at families, with parents who have come home from a long day of trying to do what's right by their families, that isn't fighting oppression.

There are also idiots that run around setting fire to things, looting shops and assaulting people because they think it's fun. Or something. I have no idea what's going through their minds, to be honest. That's all they are. Idiots, and probably cowards as well, who wouldn't even think of doing something like this if they didn't have a mob behind them.

The saddest part about all this is that it's caused by people. Not a cyclone. Not a tsunami. Not an earthquake. All this carnage is caused by individuals who think they have the right to destroy the livelihood of people who are actually trying to do the right thing, and barely getting by as it is.

I'm not going to tell them to stop in this post, because I know they won't see it. I know that even if they do, they most likely wouldn't care about it anyway. If they did, they wouldn't be doing what they are now. I guess what I'm trying to say is, before doing something destructive, think of the lives that you're destroying. Because life for many people is hard enough as it is, and destroying them isn't going to make it any easier.

Word of the Day: London

Instead of punching a wall

Instead of punching a wall, I'll blog to siphon off my misery.

I would actually punch a wall, except I'd a) wake my family up, and b)have to repair it afterwards, assuming I'm strong enough to break it.

I did reasonably well in everything except the subject that mattered: accounting. I don't know why it hates me so much. I thought I did alright in the exam, but apparently not. Might have been that, in conjunction with the group assignment.

The stupid thing was, the results were sent to my mobile while I was watching 2012 tonight, which added to my stress levels. I hate watching films like that. I'm actually scared of massive, cataclysmic disasters. Just not this particular one, because of various reasons. It also completely screwed up what would have otherwise been one of the best days that I've had this year, or at least in a while.

I'm going to console myself in two ways.

1. I'm definitely working harder next semester. That's my problem. I don't apply myself properly. It's alright with nuff-nuff subjects like management, it just doesn't quite cut it with real subjects like accounting.

2. I've gotten bad marks before and bounced back.

Now I just kind of need to find a way of explaining to my parents without getting destroyed.

I'm not only disappointing them, I've disappointed myself. I expect a lot better of myself, because I know that I have it in me to do it.

I may just partake in some wall-punching tomorrow, provided I get bored and frustrated enough.

Word of the Day: Wall

I thought about becoming an actor...

And then, I acted in two things this semester, and became thoroughly sick of it.

Earlier this semester, I told y'all about that disaster movie that I had a part in. Well, the finished product which came equal second in the voting is up on YouTube. Here's the link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1yFftvzEso&feature=player_embedded

As you can see, my acting abilities are clearly superior. My expression of the fear that is gripping all of us is very obvious and well-conveyed. That's my scared smile you're seeing.

And today, I was in a French roleplay, which, unfortunately won't be uploaded. Not because it was sooooooo awesome that YouTube can't handle it, it's more to do with the fact that our tutor's concerned with our privacy. Pfft. Privacy. Who needs it anyway? Invasion of privacy is good practice for when you become a celebrity.

Anyway, it was a shambles. Forgot half my lines, and all that jazz. It's weird. I don't actually feel nerves, but I must have been nervous, otherwise I wouldn't have done that badly. At least my pronunciation is fairly spot on.

Word of the Day: Acting

What UP!

Our tute's disaster movie was the best. Hands down. And for some strange reason, I got a starring role, and looked better on camera than I expected. My acting, however, is somewhat not up to scratch. I was half-smiling while an earthquake was supposedly happening. Which makes the decision to put me in a starring non-speaking role all the more puzzling. Must be my photogenic looks.

The one that actually won was filmed Lego-style. It was just pure funny. Didn't even make sense, and I couldn't hear what was going on most of the time. Probably not much going on anyway.

Speaking of movies, this is an awesome linking sentence.

Today, I saw UP! with my sisters, seeing as they had begged me non-stop for the last five months. Not that I didn't want to go with them. But I'm a busy, busy man.

So went down to Village at Glen after MGMT tute today, and saw UP!.

All in all, a pretty top movie. A tad overrated. But then again, so was the Dark Knight.

Plot was fairly predictable, but plots of most Pixar films are. I don't think you're supposed to watch them for the plot, but for the process of rendering the plot. A very good effort in that respect. As always from Pixar, beautifully rendered animation and a good score. Characters, as usual, were delightful. Wouldn't mind seeing it again. Depends on who asks though.

Back to uni today. I think I fair failed the French test, owing to the fact that I did about 15 mins of study for it. Management essay gets in the way of not only French study, but life in general. On the upside, no more assessments for management. On the downside, a bazillion assignments due after the break. Fun times ahead.

CA Career Development Forum tomorrow. Highlight: Suit and tie. What a boring life I lead.

Word of the Day: UP!

Disaster in the Menzies!

Today, we filmed a disaster movie. In the Menzies.

No, this wasn't for Media. It's International Studies. Go figure.

Basically, our unit's about disasters, so we're making it seem like there's an earthquake under the Menzies building. Apparently I put in a stellar performance, but I won't get to see it until next Monday.

We caused a ridiculous amount of mayhem and madness. We hijacked in elevator, blocked up stairways, stole a fire hydrant, injured ourselves and ran into strangers. Would've been awesome fun if I had known absolutely anybody in my tute. Not that it wasn't fun. I just had to keep it bottled up inside, which makes it less fun.

Anyway, I just figured out that I'm going to have to attend a gazillion parties within the next month. Assuming I'm invited (ha ha ha). Which is not a bad thing. In fact, it's a good thing. I just need to plan ahead a bit more. And work a lot harder. And earn more money. And possibly steal a car to get places. Fun times ahead. Watch this space.

Word of the Day: Menzies