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In our discussion today in 5th period AP Language, one question that was more touched on than fully explored (in my opinion) dealt with the ability of satire to effect change in society.  It is my belief that satire alone is not going to cause people to change their opinions or take action on an issue.

One big reason for this is that people are fundamentally resistant to change/hearing things they don't like.  We all hold certain beliefs, and are unlikely both to fundamentally shift these beliefs and to pay much attention to people espousing beliefs different from ours.  For instance, I know few people who actually seek out and watch/listen to satire that openly espouses views they oppose, and those that do are not usually changed by the experience.  I've never seen a liberal listen to Limbaugh and emerge a passionate conservative (although I have seen one emerge an angry, snarling madman).  Usually, whenever we begin to hear things we don't like, we retreat back into familiar territory and like-minded people.

Also, I can't see satire as being something that causes people to take action.  If, for example, Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have A Dream" speech was a satirical piece, it would not have been taken very seriously, and would not have incited people to action.  As another example, look at the impact such media as "The Daily Show" has: you don't see millions of young liberals in the streets demonstrating in favor of a socialist revolution.

Overall, I think that it's fair to say that satire, as a form of propaganda, is more successful at strengthening already held ideas rather than pushing people to change.  Just a thought.

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I know we will be discussing this in class today, but I would like to say something about "Cathedral."  So what I can gather from it is that the narrator is actually the blind one...he is blind to his sexual orientation.  When he talks about how Robert's visit is not something he looks forward to, as "his being blind bothered [him]," I think Carver is emphasizing the narrator's own blindness toward reality.  When Robert tells the narrator to draw a cathedral with him, Carver creates a very sensual mood.  I think he then demonstrates the narrator's realization that he feels free when he experiences this form of lust, as he "didn't feel like [he] was inside anything," and he is no longer blind to what he truly desires. 

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So last night, as I was lying in bed flipping through channels on the TV, I came across CSPAN which was broadcasting the 2010 CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference). My stomach turned as I saw Ann Coulter standing at the podium spewing her offensive, unnecessary crap about Democrats and Liberals. Her speeches literally contain nothing but petty punches at the Left Side. She never has words of inspiration or anything. Her only points that she uses, and they are the same points she has used since the 90s, are Bill Clinton's affair with Monica, bashing gays and their rights and nagging on Keith Obberman. In almost every speech I have watched with her, she touches on one of those three subjects. It's ridiculous. She is a terrible person who never opens up her ears to just listen. When she is debating with people on interviews, she almost never lets them speak and when they do, she doesn't listen. If she ever joins the political world and runs for some type of office I will move to Eurpoe and lose all respect for America.

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Recently, there have been a few important events outside the US that have received relatively little media coverage.  Just looking at the Wikinews section of Wikipedia, which is in no way comprehensive, some of these events include:

-A coup d'etat in Niger

-The fall of the Dutch cabinet over disagreements related to the Dutch military presence in Afghanistan

-A minaret collapsing in Morocco, killing and injuring over 100 people

-An avalanche in Pakistan, killing dozens

-A flood in Madeira, killing dozens

Despite the importance of these events, which will affect our foreign relations, the War in Afghanistan, and which have brought about dozens if not hundreds of deaths, the media has been relatively silent.  The reason why is that the Olympics are in progress in Vancouver, and covering the world's most prestigious sporting event is more profitable than reporting on foreign events of actual importance.  

I feel that there is something horribly wrong with a system which gets away with doing this on a daily basis, and only feeds our desires for pure, unadulterated entertainment.