George Clooney was handcuffed and taken away by the US Secret Service van at approximately 8:45am PST, along with his father Nick, for protesting in front of the Sudanese embassy in Washington, D.C.
According to an article by the Telegraph, “The group of activists had been given three verbal warnings not to cross a police line as they gathered outside the embassy. Others at the prostest included Martin Luther King III. They blame the government of Sudan for attacks that have killed civilians there.” Read more of this post
Well, it’s recently come to my attention — for the zillionth time — how much Michele Bachmann needs to simply just shut up about the topic of gay marriage. Seriously, Michele, you do not make sense, and it’s time to take a tip from Herman Cain. Drop out, please.
She recently made comments at an Iowa town hall meeting on the topic, getting bombarded with questions from kids, who know their stuff. She said to one girl: “They can get married, but they abide by the same law as everyone else. They can marry a man if they’re a woman. Or they can marry a woman if they’re a man.”
Michele, this doesn’t make sense.
Gay marriage doesn’t work that way, nor should anyone only have the option to marry or not marry another person based on their sex.
Furthermore, calling Iowa to repeal the passage the ’09 declaration that same-sex marriage in the state would be allowed is none of your business. It’s constitutional, and that’s that.
On the subject, she said: “Marriage, historically, for all human history has been between a man and a woman. It hasn’t been the same-sex marriage And remember that in Iowa, it was judges that made the decision — not the legislature, which are the people’s representatives, and certainly, not the people.”
Well, Michele, maybe you need to hear the heartfelt words of Zach Wahls. He knows a little bit more about the benefits of being the son of gay parents. Just a little.
Anyway, I needed to get this off my chest. The woman is crazy, and she shouldn’t be espousing these ill-informed beliefs. Hell, even other Republicans think she — and all the other presidential candidates — are crazy.
And so, sure, I’m a proponent of free speech — I am a journalist after all. But this stuff? No, it doesn’t make sense.
Time at Oxford is no doubt precious. When not scrambling to have that tutorial essay — or two — handed in, moments do indeed exist for hobbies and self-reflection.
When not working, or penning stories for The Oxford Student, I’ve recently taken up the task of screenwriting, inspired in large part to the Woody Allen course I’m currently taking.
It’s been refreshing working on this screenplay to say the least. It’s one I will do my best to see come to fruition in the coming years. It’s a story that needs to be told: one of childhood, family, faith and more. It’s a project I’ve been working on for years, albeit in my mind, and to finally get it on paper truly is an exciting experience. I would go in-depth further, but I’m a bit superstitious about talking in length about something I’m penning before it’s finished. I will, however, keep y’all posted!
I’ve also continued my foray into photography, which stemmed from my time with Tennis Magazine and WTT this summer. It’s quite different, focusing more on the artistic than the purely sports-centric. That being said, I’ve enjoyed it immensely. For more of my work, see here.
That’s just a little update I’ve felt compelled to post about.
Billie Weiss and I (left) posing in front of Arthur Ashe Stadium before the start of the 2011 men's final on September 12, 2011.
Australia’s Sam Stosur and Serbia’s Novak Djokovic might have claimed the US Open titles this year, but I feel as though I’m the true winner at the conclusion of 2011′s spectacular event held at the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing, Queens.
Working as a Production Assistant for USOpen.org’s video crew, I had the chance to put together three of my passions: tennis, writing and research, and get paid for it! With a credential around my neck and hundreds of tennis matches to watch and to jot down notes about, I knew I’d be in for a treat as soon as I made my first trip to the tennis center. Sure, it may have taken a while to realize just how to get there (the 3 / 7 from Brooklyn or the R / 7 from Queens in case you’re wondering), but I was lucky enough to have my friend Billie Weiss along for the ride (both figuratively and literally).
It was so strange, I was sitting in my living room in Long Island, New York using my computer when I suddenly felt tremors. I didn’t think much of them for the first second. Was I just imagining it? Yeah, probably.
But, no, it continued. I reasoned it must’ve been a car pulling into the garage right behind me, the walls are pretty thin after all.
I turn to Twitter almost immediately and my eyes scanned my stream of Tweet, mostly from tennis reporters and journalists. Almost instantly among the messages centered on US Open results and the news about Libya — all in 140 characters or less — people were describing the same exact thing I was feeling!
Yup, it was an earthquake. Apparently, even though the 5.9 quake struck near Charlottesville, Virginia, I felt it, too, all the way here in New York. In fact, the Pentagon was evacuated as were other building along the East Coast.
Thankfully, no one has yet reported any injuries or building damage. What a relief!
Here’s what the Wall Street Journal tweeted:
To begin, I think it’s fascinating how I didn’t turn to the news on television for information. Rather, my mind immediately raced to Twitter. It’s interesting how the quickness of the platform works so well in these types of situations.
This summer has been pretty fantastic, especially from the point-of-view of my budding media career in journalism and, especially, tennis journalism. The best part: it’s hardly halfway over! I think the photo above captures this excitement, while showcasing a look of pure joy from tennis legend Chris Evert.
I’ve had the opportunity to write and blog for two amazing sites, www.TENNIS.com and WTT.com, as well as do work with content management for both. By working with a set of really talented editors and co-workers, my knowledge of the industry is drastically
improving. Moreover, I’ve covered events, gone to matches, met various athletes and others in the tennis world, and it’s simply awesome! I wake up each morning and feel energized by the work I do, and that’s pretty special.
Added to the opportunities that I get through working at the office, from writing and working on the websites is my photography. Experiencing these events is one thing, but to then have the ability to capture each not only through the written word, but also through
snapping moments in time adds a more holistic meaning to the memory and to the event looking back. Therefore, I’m grateful for the opportunity to have such an awesome camera and the guidance of people who are so committed to helping me improve my skills.
To highlight some of my experiences and share it with you, my readers, check out my photos, click here. Enjoy!
(Photo: Benjamin Snyder) Here's a shot I took from my Blackberry after Goucher College Men's Lacrosse team lost to the Scranton, 12-8. Despite failing to reclaim the championship, they've proven to be an inspiration for Goucher athletics.
While both Goucher College’s Men’s Lacrosse and Women’s Tennis teams lost to the University of Scranton Royals in their respective conference playoff matches in the Landmark Conference, a new and thrilling trend in my school’s athletics program is emerging.
I had the chance to get Athletic Director Geoff Miller’s ideas about the new direction of Goucher sports (of which I am a proud member). He said, “We had a great spring, not necessarily a great year overall. We need to get more consistent, and have all of our teams in the top four and fighting for conference championships. This only happens when you recruit better players and teach the current players how to play and train at a much higher level. The table is set for success for next year. Many of our teams has young talent. Now those youngsters need to step up and be mentally tough and perform.”
The idea that these two teams have accomplished so much, along with numerous others from Women’s Lacrosse to Equestrian, makes me proud to be a Gopher. Although I’ll be abroad next year, it’ll be great to see how Goucher’s sports program involves going forward, especially after so much success this season.
Check out a post I wrote for my blog Tenaciously Tennis reflecting on competing on Goucher College’s Men’s Varsity Tennis Team and my time in high school.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted, especially with the craziness that the end-of-semester brings. Every night, it’s a pile of work to come back to after a day of class, endless meetings, hours of research in the library with iced Athenaeums to keep me sane, articles to write for The Quindecim, along with whatever else comes with the job description of being an involved, full-time college student.
Despite the craziness, it’s all good. In fact, I probably couldn’t ask for a better college experience with a better group of people helping me through everything. I realize, however, that this wouldn’t be enough, nor nearly as fulfilling without being a student-athlete.
Below is a podcast I recorded for my Writing & Producing for New Media course at Goucher College. It was an interesting exercise, allowing me to expand my journalistic abilities to another realm: audio. Using Garage Band and with the help of my friends, I put together this one minute clip of David E. Sanger’s recent lecture at Goucher about the power of social media and the Obama administrations foreign policy initiatives.
Check out the video below that I put together on Final Cut Pro for my Writing & Producing for New Media class. This project particularly proved to be highly educational for me as I never before dealt with video production in my years of journalism experience. Therefore, using Final Cut Pro allowed me to engage in a world about which I had never traversed. I ended up being greatly challenged and learning a lot in the process. Hopefully, I’ll have the chance to keep working in this medium in the future. If not, I’ll make sure it happens!
