Iraq
Again no update for a while, mainly because I had exams. But I guess I will compensate with a very long update now. Well, we will see, I planned to at least.
First of all about exams. I had analysis on Monday, which pretty much didn't go as I expected. I got only a few points, barely enough not to fail this time but with a little prospect to my next exam. You need to collect a certain sum of points and as things are now, I will need to write an outstanding second one to gather enough. I tend to think it was not only my fault. We were promised to have a test-like exam with a couple answers out of which you have to choose the right one. We were also promised not to be able to receive negative points for wrong answers. Neither of these promises has been kept. We had no choices but spaces for the answers, which is the worst kind of exercise in my opinion not giving the chance to receive points for your part work. I mean if there is a long equation which I solve right I only make a mistake at the last line of the solution I will still have a wrong solution and zero points. Plus for the wrong answers in the true/false choices you could get minus points. A right answer meant 2 a wrong -1 point. Shall I expect this all the time, not getting what I expect? Strangely enough there are some subjects where professors can keep their promises.
My second exam was information technology, which went well. It could have gone better of course - as always - but because perfectionism will kill me someday I'll only say it was ok.
I'll rather write about my weekend experience. I watched The Ring with my brother in the afternoon. (We waited for the sun to set to maximise the fear effect.) I have to say that movie is good. It is tense from the beginning to the end. Though many elements of it can be familiar from other previous horror movies, The Ring is a mixture that is better than its components alone. I like these kinds of movies where tension and fear in not kept up by constant spraying of blood and still moving ugly cut-down monster body parts. Simple pictures can give you much more thrill. Like the one when the journalist woman (cannot remember her name) comes out from the doctor's house on the island and as the camera closes up on them suddenly the mentally challenged boy swings into the picture with his pale face. It scares you because you don't expect it.
Another thing I liked is the ending. Simply the fact that you think it has come to an end and eventually it turns out it didn't is good and then the very end is cunning too. After seeing I wrote the text "COPY" on my CDs on which I have The Ring. Who knows?
To my great sorrow you don't have to watch films like The Ring to see horrific things happen. You just have to torn on the TV and see how it shows 7/24 the war in Iraq. I didn't write about this before not because I tried to avoid political content but because I thought it is only a plan, a game of diplomats, and why shall I write about a thing that is only a plan yet.
I am sad the United States decided to attack in the end. No matter what do some people say the US still remain the aggressor this time. Yes, I know Saddam is dangerous, that he is a dictator and he uses evil things and methods to keep up his power. But then again, who is the United States (and UK and Spain, and all the countries that are in the military alliance, even Hungary (we let US planes to fly through our country)) to judge that and decide that it shall come to an end if not diplomatically then by force. No, no one has the right to decide that. The only institution that could justify this war could have been the UN in my opinion. The United Nations as its name indicates is an organisation above national level. Supposedly the UN is not affected by national interests and interests of various multinational companies. The UN does not need to collect votes to be elected next cycle again. Therefore only a majority vote in the UN could have justified the war against Iraq.
With this move the attacking countries just threw away the main idea of our governing: democracy. How could we expect our enemies i.e. Iraq to follow our rules if we are the ones who cross them? We are obliged to follow the rules of democracy if we want to stay justified and authentic in the eyes of the other part of the world. I think this is very important. Why democracy when you can go there like the US and smash the puny Iraq? (That seems not that puny as news say, almost like Vietnam.) No one said democracy is easy but we didn't find any other better way to rule so we need to stick to it.
I have never been and I am still not a supporter of any military action. "War never changes" as the intro of Fallout says and it is very true. No matter if that's in the desert or in the backyard of our homes still people die. But if the war had based on a decision made by a majority vote in the Un I would have accepted its necessity. Things turned out to be different though.
I think the alliance is strong enough to defeat Saddam and exile him the only question is the losses... on both sides. And the mistake these countries made by neglecting the decision of the UN will not be forgotten either.