The Taxi Chronicles: Episode 1

GHANA - It hit me the other day that some of the most hilarious, death defying and ridiculous moments on my trip have occurred while I was in a taxi. While discussing this with some fellow EAP students, one suggested that I blog about some of my more epic taxi experiences.

Without further ado, so begins my Ghana trip’s first “Taxi Chronicle.”

(Warning to any family members or loved ones who may read this post: Do not panic. Remember, I am in one piece. I have learned my lesson from the following events.)

As I mentioned in a previous post, I spent my birthday in a lovely resort in Busua. I planned the trip with a group of friends the night before we were set to travel with our EAP group to Kakum National Park and the Elmina Slave Castle. We suspected that the group activities would end in the early or mid-afternoon, which would be perfect timing to set out on an hour long journey from the Cape Coast area to Busua.

Unfortunately, things turned out a tad differently than expected. (more…)

Obama, like Clinton, Will Not Be Jimmy Carter 2.0

There was concern in the days leading up to and including the early Clinton presidency, according to Hunter S. Thompson in his account of the 1992 United States Presidential Campaign, Better Than Sex: Confessions of a Political Junkie, that Bill Clinton

“might fail utterly, like Jimmy Carter, and bring another 12 years of greey Republican looting…. That is what happened when Carter lost control of his presidency and got stomped by Ronald Reagan in 1980…. Jimmy was humiliated and the Democratic party was demoralized for 10 years. It was horrible. And it will be worse if it happens again. Jesus! Another populist Southern governor with no sense of humor, no grasp of how to rule Washington or balance the budget or deal with the Arabs or even what to do with his lovely iron-willed wife.” (198)

However, Clinton proved his mettle, and although his presidency had its speed bumps and scandals, he will be remembered as one of the best presidents of the 20th century. After eight more years of “Republican looting” under Bush II, Obama was seen as a shining light to lead the Democratic party in the early 21st century. But when his legislative goals began to run into trouble in Congress earlier this year and his poll numbers began to slide, the media began to question his efficacy. With the ridiculously over-hyped health care debate being continuously fueled by lies, fear, ignorance, lack of education, and the incessant “analysis” of the “signals” being sent out by the White House, it might appear that another populist Democratic president is poised to embarrass himself with legislative failures and problems controlling a Democratic Congress.

If one looks at the facts, though, the situation appears much less dire. The President has already had success with his stimulus package, as evidenced by the dramatic slowdown in the economic free fall. He still enjoys a great deal of popularity with Americans, and has not yet been in office for a year. Furthermore, the health care bills in the House and the Senate have not even gone to conference yet, and with the public option still enjoying overwhelming support in the House and with the administration, it is still very likely that it will be included in whatever final form of the bill ends up going to the President. Additionally, even if the health care bill does not end up covering all of the President’s goals, if things continue going well for his administration, he could win even more seats in both houses of Congress after the midterm elections. This would enable him to convert more of his promises to policy, and perhaps enable him to extend the health care reforms currently in development.

Before the media paints an early end for our young President, perhaps they should let him fight a few major battles. The legislative process is too often hampered by misrepresentation of issues in the media, such as yesterday’s insistence in the headlines that the White House was no longer strongly backing the public option, which today was shown to be inaccurate. The President still has much to do, and if he is given a chance, he will be able to do it successfully.

American Politics Finally Grows a Backbone

Howard Dean, the former chairman of the Democratic National Committee, told Democratic lawmakers today that if they did not back the public option, there would be Democratic primaries in their district in the next election, according to the Huffington Post. His threat, which would represent a major problem for lawmakers long accustomed to utilizing the advantage of their incumbency to be handed victory after victory, signals a major shift in the tactics of American political parties. For far too long, the two major political parties have merely acted in a symbolic fashion, performing their obligations but never really wielding much power.

However, Dean’s announcement changes all that. The Democratic Party has not advocated a party line in this manner in decades—if ever. While the Democrats certainly trend to the left of center, there are various factions within the party, such as the Blue Dogs, who have significantly different political views than the more leftist Democrats. While the party can rely on their support on some occasions, when it comes to major pieces of legislation that would require them to vote against their beliefs, their backing is not always assured. (more…)

Freedom in Copenhagen?

It has been about two weeks since I’ve arrived to Copenhagen. Before I came abroad, I was constantly baffled by the geographical knowledge of my fellow schoolmates and friends. Copenhagen is the main big city of Denmark, a little island with canals, swamps, lakes, etc. all around its crevices. It’s beautiful; a returnee that I spoke to was annoyed of the weather when she was here, but the weather is not all that bad… yet.

Last week, when the sun was out to warm the Amager Beach Park (which is a short walk away from my house—just like the distance from Abrego to DP), I took the opportunity for a long stroll around the shores. Freedom Item 1: nudity. Boobies of all size, shapes and age were everywhere. I was excited to know that I can take it all off without a care, but it would have been awkward since my roommate was with me (I’ll save the awkward roommate story for a different post). Nakedness makes sense to me and it always has. We were born naked, and after a certain age we became shy with our bodies, as if we have something to hide. Moreover, we even get arrested and fined for it; I’d like to see a baby running around in his/her diaper being stopped by the police. The concept of clothing, the question “What should I wear today?”, the constant worrying of if this and that looks “good” on me, fashion and the “I’m going to pay $50 for this shirt because this brand/style is popular.” How disgusting to disguise yourself. Wouldn’t it be nice to not give a fuck? Europe, 1; CA, 0. (more…)

Ghana: A Country of Many Contradictions

GHANA - What I find most frustrating about living here is that many things just don’t equate.

I think the best example of this is how things run on what one might call “Ghana time.”

Ghana is an exceptionally overwhelming country. People are constantly working, traveling, and rushing about. Which is funny because, although Ghana would appear to be as busy as New York City, it is the least efficient place I have ever been to. (more…)

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