Truth and Justice

Part One: "They told me I was going to Belgium to sell flowers."
I am taking a moment to provide some resources on human trafficking, especially sex trafficking. Here are some general clips from YouTube:
UN Ad 1
UN Ad 2

One of the best organizations tackling this subject is the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women. Their FactBook is especially helpful. Of course, there is also Amnesty and IJM.

I have discovered a fantastic documentary about sex trafficking from Armenia to Dubai entitled "Desert Nights." Here are the links:
Part 1
Part 2a
Part 2b
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5a
Part 5b/6

I have never heard of these particular cases of trafficking. Usually reports on this subject come from the Philippines, Burma, Thailand, or other places in Southeast Asia. So tonight, I emailed IJM about the matter to see if they were doing anything about trafficking in Dubai. I also emailed the creators of the film and asked them what was being done by governments or outside organizations, if Americans could do anything, and if I could set up a screening of the film at UF. The reporters work for an Armenian investigative reporting group called Hetq. They are following these stories closely, and you can read their work here. I am a bit embarrassed because I should have read everything on their site before emailing them. But oh well. If nothing else, they can know that I support them.

I also went ahead an emailed IJM about starting a chapter at UF. I can't play too big of a role in it since I'll be working on CSN most of the time, but I've been bugging a few of you about it recently. Hopefully a small group of people can pull it off.

Part Two: "We must not confuse dissent with disloyalty."


If you haven't figured it out yet, the library has a ton of movies here that I can watch for free. Today I was supposed to watch Life is Beautiful, but some crafty student in an Italian class had it checked out. Maybe tomorrow.

So instead, per the recommendation of Matt and my friends in Orlando, I checked out Good Night, and Good Luck. I enjoyed it. It was also beautifully shot.

The title of this section is a line that summarizes much of what I liked about the movie. I feel like we're at a time in American history right now where we are surrounded by a fear to dissent due to the enemy at hand. More specifically, I feel like Christians in this country are afraid to disagree with many of the policies and actions of our current administration due to religious convictions.

That's all for now. If you want to talk further about any of the above, you know where to find me.

Peace,
Sam
P.S. If you like Good Night, and Good Luck, you would also like The Insider.
P.P.S. Congratulations are in order to Matt, who's just been brought on with The Alligator as a columnist.
P.P.P.S. Music recommendation of the moment: Yo La Tengo - And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out