- Logtar's Blog -

I have theory of why the US is so easily dominated by the media and politicians. I think that this country’s consciousness has been dominated by removing critical thinking. In a debate that ended up in an argument I started to realize that people in this country cannot think outside of their convictions. People truly think that seeing another point of view is someone betraying what they believe.

Compromise and empathy become almost impossible to achieve when you are always thought to only think in a very linear way. It is either black or white and anything in the middle is consider mediocre or lacking. We see that on the polarity of politics and how moderates are constantly attacked for not “taking a stance”. Do not get me wrong, I do believe in strong ideals, morals and convictions; but to have a good footing on your stance you have to be aware of not just what you are standing on but also your surroundings.

The Middle East policy always seems short sided. Giving democracy to Palestine was such a mistake… why? Because we do not understand their culture or way of living. We think that everywhere in the world there should be a nice little community full of cul de sacs. We believe that everyone should enjoy a burger, a beer and apple pie.

I have seen this in many levels of our culture, from the repulsion of what other people consider delicacies to the arrogance to think that eating an animal that we consider a pet is plain barbaric. So many people think that the US way of living is how the world should live and cannot understand how in Japan people are content in small spaces and minimalist environments. Even within our own borders the South does not understand the North and vice versa. Are we really that blind that we cannot see but our own point of views?

Religion is something that causes controversy. Almost every single religion teaches that they are the one true faith. The moment that I talk about how cool Buddhism is as an ideology, or the history of pagan religion another Catholic or Christian will jump down my throat and say you are not allowed in my clubhouse anymore. I believe it is ridiculous that we cannot respect other cultures, other ways of living, other ways of thinking. I believe that as long as another country is not crossing the basic human rights line, they should be able to live how they chose to live without us telling them that a Mc Donald’s and a Wal-Mart is what they need to be free! Free to become consumerist… when are we going to wake up and see that what we are giving the world is not democracy but rather an addition to corporations… I digress.

I have been called sentimental many times, and it was not until I read this post that I realized that for me it has a different meaning in Spanish than in English. I think in English must of the time, but the blog world has made me reconnect with many Colombians and when I read their blogs, for some reason my brain starts to think in Spanish or bilingual mode again. It made me sad to know that I somehow began to think of the word sentimental in a negative way.

I blame myself first, for letting the environment and society teach me that sentimental is not a good thing. It is amazing how many people have told me that being sentimental is just not good. While I have understood that applying your feelings to for example your professional relationships is not a good thing, I believe that in life being sentimental is a positive thing… but how could I forget about that?

I have also been called passionate by many of my bosses. Some of them used it as a negative remark… one of them telling me that I was too passionate about what I did and I needed to just not care so much. That same boss believes that people at a certain level of the company did not matter. Glad I do not work there anymore. Even though I have had the word Passionate used towards me in a negative way I did not make it negative in my head. Sentimental though, definitely has changed from someone that cares about feelings to someone that gets carried by their feelings… but somehow when I think of the word in Spanish, which by the way is spelled the same and pronounced almost exactly, in a more positive light.

It could be the emphasis on the syllable of the word, in Spanish the last syllable is the one that gets it, SentimentAl, in English the second to last SentimEntal. Maybe the whole mental thing is what has turned it into a bad word.

I have always been bothered by the dating world and the thought those women want a sensitive guy… I say bullshit, must woman do not want a sensitive guy. Same with the whole, I want a funny guy. I think the guy that treats woman like crap is the one that has more luck in the dating world. I know one of my close friends will agree with me, he is both a sensitive and nice guy and has had a tough time finding even people to date… and he is actually funny, the other word that gets town around.

So I am looking for you guys to tell me that I am wrong, and that here in the US being Sentimental is not a bad thing… that society and people around you or even you don’t consider being sentimental (not over sentimental) a bad thing.