The Press Officer of March Rotary Club

John Miller. Ensign, United States Navy.

The Star Spangled Banner and the Union Jack, hung in harmony on Monday the 21st November at the regular evening meeting of March Rotary Club. This was in honour of the Guest Speaker, Ensign John Miller, of the U.S. Navy.

Introduced by Junior Vice President, Peter Bennett, John, whose home is Kinsman, a small rural community in the North East Ohio, is the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar for District 6650.

At the moment, he is studying Institutional, Sociological and Economic Development at Clare College, Cambridge. On graduation from Badger High School, he was fortunate enough to be awarded an appointment in the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland.

During his 4 years of training, he served on both ocean going and submarine vessels, gaining a Bachelor of Science in Political Science with Honours. This enabled him to apply for, and receive financial backing from his District Rotary Clubs, and in particular, the generosity of Mr John Nolan and wife Joan, to continue his studies in England, for the next two years.

March was the first of the many Rotary Clubs in East Anglia that John will be visiting during his stay. Based on this evening’s presentation, it is fair to say others can look forward to hearing a fascinating insight into the life of an Ensign in the 21st Century and a true Ambassador for his home town of Kinsman.

Questions ranged from Navel dealings with Somali Pirates, the closure of many previous productive factories in his State, how to revitalise the economy, and the use of vertical take-off ‘Jump Jets’.

A vote of thanks was given by John Reeve, endorsing the feelings of all that this had been a very worthwhile evening.

Robert Freeman-Press Officer.

The Bad Brittanic Blogger

I have to apologize for not blogging with greater regularity over the previous two weeks, but the end of my first term at Cambridge has been filled with fun, assignments (Yes, I actually do work), and more bicycle accidents (Yet, I submit that this accident was not my fault either). So, I will work my way through an eventful few weeks where the university meets the mighty Cam.

Sunday, November 20
For fans of college basketball, I have been playing for the combined college team of Clare College and Trinity Hall; however, this day is fresh in my mind as I suffered through the first tie ever in the game of basketball. In the UK, you can in fact tie a basketball game. I found it worse than losing; however, I have rediscovered my love of basketball, partially because I it breaks up the monotony of running and particularly because I am much better than I was in high school. Coordination and strength really do matter. However, I find it disappointing that there are only about 5 courts in all of Cambridge which are shared with other sports like indoor ultimate Frisbee, netball, badminton, and volleyball. Basketball is second-tier.

Monday, November 21
I attended the tremendous March Rotary Club with Mona and Jenny, my two able Rotarian mentors. As one member of the March club put it: "You must make terrible trouble given that you have two chaperons for this evening. What have you done?" March is in the marshy, Fenlands area which was made arable by a significant drainage system. In fact, the town used to be a de facto island. The town is about 29 miles north of Cambridge. By coincidence or by design, it was "Ladies' Night" at the all-male club, so I had to be on my best behavior. I could not have asked for a better crowd of people. The meeting was an evening long event, commencing around 7 with cocktails followed by a delicious 3-course dinner. In one corner, they had displayed the Stars and Stripes with the Union Jack, but I was assured that the Jack was larger than the Ensign. The club asked if I would speak for 30-45 minutes. Given the magnitude of this engagement, I prepared an epic 80 slide PowerPoint. I started with the following line: "When I was asked to speak for 45 minutes, I thought to myself: Where does one begin? So, I decided to start at the beginning of history. July 4, 1776 (Flashing a picture of the signing of the Declaration of Independence). My humor had its desired effect: I was jeered. For the people of Kinsman, Clarence Darrow was a recognizable character. When I spoke of the Scopes-Monkey trial, one Rotarian quickly asked if he was the inspiration for Spencer Tracy's role in Inherit the Wind. The PowerPoint was quite massive (83 pictures), but the March Club was up for the challenge even after dinner. I had been forewarned that many questions would follow. True to form, I was aggressively questioned, which was a welcome change. In the question and answer session, I spoke about the Somali pirates, economic development strategies in Ohio, the future of the VSTOL F-35 or "jump jets," and the future of my role in Rotary. At the conclusion of the evening, it was already 10 pm, but I would gladly have stayed another hour visiting with the Rotarians of March and if they are willing, I would gladly ride out to them for lunch when the weather warms as I found them to be both friendly and engaging.

Thursday, November 24 (Thanksgiving)

For the first time in my life, I went to lectures on Thanksgiving Day and for the first time in 5 years, I only had one Thanksgiving dinner. Given that I did most of the cooking on Wednesday, I had a relaxing day of preparation. I spoke with all of my family en masse and updated my Great Aunt Joyce on England. I also prepared a feast for 15. While I could have invited strictly Americans, I decided to invite my diverse group of friends and introduce them to a 12-pound turkey (with a bacon garnish on top), 1-kilo of my mother's cranberry salad, 10-pounds of mash potatoes, sweet potato casserole, 2-kilograms of corn, two pumpkin pies, and two loaves of bread worth of stuffing. It was a taste of home, having stolen the recipes from my mother. For my first time cooking for so many, I was truly surprised. Dinner was set for 6:30 and I had filled the table by 7 pm. All in all, we had individuals from Pakistan, Croatia, Ghana, Belgium, United Kingdom, Romania, and Mexico. For many, it was their first go at Thanksgiving and they were surely up for the task. During dessert, I had everyone go around the table and tell what they were thankful for this Thanksgiving. I am of course grateful for all of them as I could not have asked for a better group of friends who could make my first Thanksgiving away from home quite wonderful. They even did the dishes!

Friday, November 25 (Black Friday)
Since the Christmas season and decorations appeared before Halloween, Black Friday was just like any other day. In the evening, I attended formal hall, which was followed by Ceilidh (pronounce kay-lee), which is a traditional form of Scottish dancing. Fortunately, it was quite vigorous dancing and even a novice like me could quickly get up to speed because each song was preceded by instruction. The dancing is so vigorous that I was sweating profusely; however, I hydrated well on ginger ale (alcoholic). If line dancing and square dancing is half as fun, I may take it up as a hobby.

Saturday, November 26
Playing the late basketball game, we took on Jesus College and smashed them, 51-11. Playing with a short rotation (2 on the bench), I was worried. 40 minutes of basketball is a lot without a real half time or substitution. Our victory allowed us to end the season at 3-1-1 and allowed us to move up into the premier division for the spring term. While I am home, I will most definitely require a pair of high-top shoes. We also finished with the number one defense in the entire league.

Sunday, November 27
 I have very fond memories of grandfather, John Semenuk, and perhaps, I should capture his story on the blog at some point. For those of you who know him, his story is inspirational. His tireless work ethic, his patriotic fervor, and his selfless pursuit of a better tomorrow for everyone that he loved was contagious. While he passed away in 2007, his spirit lives-on and was instilled within his daughters (my mother and aunt) and his 5 grandchildren (a lawyer, 2-teachers, a nurse, and myself). While some people teach you lessons and values, my Pop-Pop, as I affectionately called him, taught me a hard-nosed way to live life. He taught me to outwork others and that this in itself would yield success. He never had to verbalize this message. It was evident in his entire life through every action.

Wednesday, November 30 (My Birthday)
I decided to go for a walk on my birthday, and I found myself on Parker's Piece, where the national public sector, pension-strike rally was in full gear. Unfortunately, they would not allow me to make a birthday speech, but their passion was evident, if not radical (Che Guevera flags/ Hammer and Sickle Flags were in abundance). I found this quite unique and ironic as these were professional civil-servants from teachers to paramedics to nurses (healthcare is fully nationalized) to secretaries. These symbols of "the people" represent repression rather than freedom. While each entity has an independent union, they all converged. I have to admit that my exposure to such combined action is limited, but I can see how violence can erupt. Anger and frustration begets more anger and frustration. When the order to march was given, I departed as the police converged on the area. Fortunately, on this day, no violence erupted. In the evening, I organized 9-holes of pub golf, which proved to be quite fun and successful. Each of the 9-pubs had a specific drink and a par (the number of sips required to finish that drink). Even on my birthday, I was badly beaten. We started with a group of 6, but we soon grew to 25 or so as we approached holes 4 and 5. Given that it was St. Andrew's Day, golf seemed quite appropriate. I also received awesome birthday wishes from my beautiful girlfriend and niece.

Thursday, December 1
I attended my first Christmas party of the season at my English friend's home. It was all quite fun. I thoroughly enjoyed the mince pies and mulled wine as well as the company of quite a few Brit's. Mince pies unlike the American equivalent are individually made, about an inch in diameter and are filled with raisins and a wonderful caramelized sugar. I much prefer them to the full slices of mince pie that I sampled in the states. Blah! Mulled wine is heated and spiced wine, which was quite delicious given the condition of my stomach from my birthday night. I also discovered "Christmas Crackers," which contrary to their name are not actually edible crackers. Instead, they are toilet paper tubes, covered in wrapping paper, that are then pulled apart to create a loud "cracking sound." Each one contains a small "toy" and Christmas crowns.

Friday, December 2
My fun continued with a wonderful Romanian dinner cooked by my good friend Gruia, who I will be visiting in Romania in the coming days. The meal was stupendous and filled with great conversation. I look forward to many more dinners with my dear friend, both in the UK and in Romania. Afterwards, I went to a "From Russia with Love" themed poker party, complete with white-Russians (a drink) and black-tie. Ironically, we played Texas-Holdem. The event was hosted by my friend Ali Digby at the Queen's College President's lodge, which was quite historical and beautiful. It is the oldest building (1460) on the Cam River. (You can see pictures of the evening under the photos tab). While I was only intending to stay a few hours, I played until 3 am, splitting the pot with a Londoner and knocking out Baron Eatwell, the President of the College.

Saturday, December 3 (Mill Road Winter Fayre)
As part of the Cambridge Rotaract, I helped set-up and work the booth for the Mill Lane Winter Fayre. While the Rotaract Club is a fledgling organization, its most dedicated members James Sheard and Rachel Peters put a lot of work into the organization. In combination with the Siena Rotaract Club, the club is working to raise 500 pounds, 800 dollars, for a shelter-box, which is a box utilized in disaster relief operations. Each box contains a tent for ten people, sleeping bags, mosquito netting, tools, water treatment tablets, water collection bags, ponchos, and various other necessities. With our friends from Sienna, we sold cookies (biscuits in the UK) and handmade beaded jewelry from the UK and Italy. All in all, we raised 300 pounds in donations and sales, which was quite the feat given our non-central location. I was complemented by the Italians for aggressively pursuing every passer-by. Eye contact has a way of inducing guilt and social responsibility. The fayre (Yes, it is spelled in Old English) reminded me of the Portobello Road scene in Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Street performers, street side vendors, international foods, and community organizations were all active participants. The road was closed for over a mile. I enjoyed some Tamales on my quest for quality Mexican foods. It was delicious, but I regretted it later.

Sunday, December 4
I attended a 3-course luncheon at the Varsity Hotel in honor of the Sienna Rotaract Club. I quite enjoyed their stories and experiences and very much look forward to visiting their club in the coming year. I was also fortunate enough to witness (as signatory) of the twinning agreement between the two clubs, which joins the two entities and encourages both visits and joint ventures. Fortunately, they were all adept English speakers. Nonetheless, my Spanish allowed me to decipher the roots of many words, which made me feel less inadequate, given their command of my native language. The friendships that evolved give me access to a new world, Tuscany and its cultural centre of Sienna. I look forward to visiting and continuing to build this unique bond.

In the coming days, I will be visiting Romania with my friend Gruia. While my initial plans fell through, I am grateful for his invitation to visit and explore his country. Tomorrow morning, I fly to Timisoara, a city in Western Romania near the Serbian border. From Timisoara, I will travel via train to Craiova in Southern Romania, near the border with Bulgaria, and then onto Bucharest, the capital. From there, I will join Gruia and his tourism students on a trip into Transylvania to visit Old Saxon villages. We will then return to Bucharest and hopefully visit Constanta on the Black Sea before I return to the UK next Thursday.

I will be back in Ohio and Rotary District 6650 from December 17 to December 30 before I return to the UK.

30 Day Challenge

    When I was washing dishes this morning, I turned to TED for entertainment and solace. TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Per usual, I clicked on the Global Issues tab on the left hand column and then randomly selected a talk. Today, I met Sasha Dichter from Acumen Fund, a microfinance fund. Microfinance provides financial services for the impoverished in developing countries. These financial services include the provision of small loans to the poor in order to fund small businesses. More importantly, Mr. Dichter took a challenge. He decided to give to any charity or individual who asked for money over the period of 30 days. For him, it changed the way he raised capital for his firm. His methodology became people-centric. It was no longer about the return or the dividend. It was about the people who were in need. With any sort of leap, you must take risk. The risk is that the homeless man or woman on the street uses your money for drugs or alcohol, but what happens if the converse is also correct? What if that spare change fed the person for the day or gave them that little bit more that was needed to give them hope.  The risk is that the charity has inflated pay for employees and lucrative bonuses, but what happens if it is meager and lean?  I tend to gamble on the side of humanity, compassion, and trust. As Mr Dichter says, giving on the street does not preclude you from donating to a homeless shelter or a charity that you know is lean. True philanthropy is about risk taking. Today, I begin my own 30 Day Challenge. From now until December 16, I will give to anyone who asks, whether on the street, at my door, on the phone or in the mail. However, I am extending the challenge. I will then budget that amount for donation each month, and what I do not give on the street, I will give to charity. I challenge you to do the same. It is not a competition. You compete only against yourself and the very inhibitions that prevent you from being more generous.

See Sasha Dichter's TED Talk:
http://www.ted.com/talks/sasha_dichter.html

TO YOU FROM FAILING HANDS WE THROW THE TORCH — BE YOURS TO HOLD IT HIGH!

Yesterday, I rode the 4.5 miles out to the American Cemetery, which is just outside the Cambridge corporation limit. While Friday was Veteran's Day in the U.S. and Armistice Day in the UK, the Sunday following the eleventh day of the eleventh month is Remembrance Day, which is the equivalent of Memorial Day in the U.S. Given the occasion, I thought it was quite time to go and pay my respect to the U.S. fallen, who never made it home. For 3,812 sailors, soldiers, marines, and airman, this scenic field is their final resting spot. Each grave is marked as they are at Arlington, while the magnitude is smaller, the contribution is the same. They represent the cost that was paid in both World War I and World War II to protect our mutual way of life. I found the Wall of the Missing even more sobering. On tablets stretching over one-hundred yards, 5,127 names are etched. They represent the young men who perished in the Battle for the Atlantic and in air raids into the heart of Axis-Europe. Their remains were never recovered and lie in some unknown grave. As I walked along the wall, I read the names and paid distinct attention to the volume of 2nd Lieutentants and Ensigns who died before their time. The following quote runs the entire length of the Wall of the Missing:


THE AMERICANS, WHOSE NAMES HERE APPEAR, WERE PART OF THE PRICE THAT FREE MEN FOR THE SECOND TIME IN THIS CENTURY HAVE BEEN FORCED TO PAY TO DEFEND HUMAN LIBERTY AND RIGHTS ALL WHO SHALL HEREAFTER LIVE IN FREEDOM WILL BE HERE REMINDED THAT TO THESE MEN AND THEIR COMRADES WE OWE A DEBT TO BE PAID WITH GRATEFUL REMEMBRANCE OF THEIR SACRIFICE AND THE HIGH RESOLVE THAT THE CAUSE FOR WHICH THEY DIED SHALL LIVE ETERNALLY.


On Remembrance Sunday, the wall was decorated with wreaths from around the U.S. and the U.K. As I walked along, I read the messages, messages of solidarity between the two nations. If anyone doubts the special relationship between our countries, they should have observed the throbs of Brits who came to pay their respects to American allies who fought and died before they were even born. I would argue that you would not find this type of observance anywhere else in the world. Next time I go, I hope to take other American student so that they can see the cost of freedom that has been paid by people no older than we.

Plight of the Poor Blogger

Due to my poor blogging performance over the last few weeks, I decided to update you on the last few weeks, which have been quite active and busy.

Over the past few weeks, I have engaged the Cambridge Rotary Club in various instances. On November 2, I attended the District 1080 Ambassador Welcome Evening, which was quite pleasant. Here, I met the other Ambassadorial scholars from throughout the District as well as the Cambridge Rotaract President, James Sheard. Each Ambassador briefly introduced themselves to representatives from the various clubs in the district As one could expect, I have a few follow-on events scheduled. After the event, I joined Alexander McKinnon from Darby, Australia, for Cruel and Tender as well as a few beers at the ADC Theater. 

On Friday, November 4, I organized a resistance effort to oppose my exclusion from the graduate student formal dinner at Clare College. At Cambridge, colleges often conduct "swaps" where students at one college go to another for their formal dinners. On this evening, many of the stalwarts at Clare College could not get tickets to the event. So, I organized a revolutionary event in the Spirit of 1776. We held an informal-formal dinner at La Margherita, which was English-Italian and surprisingly delicious. I unknowingly wore a gray shirt and black trousers, which permitted me to match the waiters. After the event, we "occupied" the college bar, demonstrating our disgust with the 1% who actually received tickets.

On Saturday, November 5, I was quite glad that I shed my beard and long hair as I met the senior leadership of the 48th Air Wing Operations Group from Royal Air Force Base Lakenheath. The 48th Air Wing includes U.S. Air Force F-15 squadrons and an HH-60 helicopter squadron (rescue) that support activities within U.S. European Command. The 48th Air Wing has been operating in the European theater since 1952, but Lakenheath has been under U.S. operational command since 1948 as part of the Strategic Air Command, a critical arm of strategic deterrence during the Cold War. It may seem illogical that a butter-bar Ensign would hang around with a group of Colonels and Lieutenant Colonels from a different service; however, one of my Navy compatriots, Will Murray (USNA '10) is studying at Downing College where the senior U.S. Military officer in Cambridge is also studying. As a consequence, he invited me to a lovely 5-course meal as an extra seat became available. I found the event quite wonderful and genuinely learned a lot from these highly experienced individuals, who seemingly have been at the tip of the U.S. spear for the last 10 years. One of the interesting results of prolonged conflict is the diverse experience of individuals in all services. Many of these officers had served as individual augmentees in either Iraq or Afghanistan. The night came to an end at the Eagle, which has been a popular pub for U.S. Air Force personnel going back to World War II. In the back taproom, 70-year old graffiti covers the ceiling and U.S. military patches cover the walls.

On Tuesday, November 8, I rose early and gave a short introduction to the Cambridge Rotary Club at their breakfast meeting. Here, I met Mona who will provide me with transportation to the various clubs. Mona is an ortho-dentist, who is originally from Norway. I gave a cursory introduction, but the meeting was such that I will surely be asked to present again. The meeting also afforded me with the opportunity to learn a little more about the Rotary Club and its activities. At the meeting, the club provided funding for a charity that works to increase financial literacy, budgeting, and debt consolidation for the heavily indebted. Like in the U.S., the collapse of the housing bubble left many common folk reeling. The organization works to support 60-65 individuals who have accrued nearly 750,000 pounds silver (1.2 Million U.S. Dollars) worth of debt. The service is in high demand.

On Thursday, November 10, I attended the Cambridge Rotaract meeting at nearby Anglia Ruskin University. Rotaract in Cambridge is in its infancy, but it is really trying develop and grow itself into a social force. Currently, the body of the organization is almost entirely students.  It will be unique to be part of its development in the coming years. Currently, the group is starting to volunteer with Cambridge Food Cycle. Each year, the UK food retail industry sends 1.6 million tons of food to landfills. 1/4 quarter of this food is estimated as being fit for consumption. FoodCycle raises awareness of food waste and food poverty by reclaiming good food to make delicious, nutritious meals for people in need.  In addition, the Rotaract will have a booth at the upcoming Mill Road Fayre. At the event, the group will be selling homemade necklaces and bracelets to support homeless survival packages. If you know of a strong Rotaract club, I would love to talk to their leadership about recruitment and fundraising. 

Cambridge Ambassadorial Scholars Welcome Evening

Picture from the Scholars Welcome Evening in Cambridge.

 Left to Right:-Myself, Outgoing District 1080 Ambassadorial Scholar Samantha Gale (UK), Jacob Cox (USA), Cambridge Rotaractor James Sheard (UK), Simon Prigent (FRA), Mackenzie Wehner(USA), Russ Burgin (USA), Yuichi Ishida (JAP), Alexander McKinnon (AUS).
                                                                       

Picture Tab

I am adding and modifying portions of the blog. Please check out the "Photo" tab to see the images of my first month on the ground.

Cruel and Tender

Cruel and Tender is a contemporary version of Trachinae, Sophocles’ immortal tragedy. Replication is often difficult, particularly when integrating contemporary events and criticism. The Trachinae chronicled the relationship between a warrior, Heracles and his jealous wife, Deianeira. In the grandeur of conquest, Heracles takes a city in order to seize a mistress. When word arrives home in the form of the mistress, Deianeira is jealous of the younger woman. In an errant attempt to re-win his affections, she receives a mystical potion that will rekindle his love for her. Tragically, the mystical potion is actually poisoned. In an act so familiar in the work of Sophocles, Deianeira commits suicide and Heracles dies suffering, yet aware that Deianeira committed this act out of love.

In this rendition, the setting and period has changed. The far-off conquest and conflict is replaced with the War on Terror, Heracles is now a modern General. His wife is Amelia, a pretentious, jealous, and perhaps even desperate socialite. While the General is off in Africa, her discontent for the War and her husband grows. When he sends back a two Africans to live with his wife, Amelia must decide whether the young girl and her apparent son are a mistress and an illegitimate child or refugees. In a seemingly weird gesture, Amelia sends a pillow to her husband, which knowingly or unknowingly is poisoned, perpetuating the recreation of the tragedy in modern terms.

The plot in general requires a significant suspension of disbelief, which would otherwise be more or less accepted in the deterministic, mythical, and even mystical Grecian form. First, Amelia sends her son to find his father in the war zone. Second, chemical weapons are mistaken for a nuanced love potion. Third, the direct participation in war crimes by a senior officer is rather close to the improbable given embedded media outlets. Fourth, the modern, professional military would not permit refugees to come home as spoils of war. While the analogy is not lost, it is weakened by these plot weaknesses and anachronisms. Ironically, Crimp’s criticism is of the civil-military divide is accentuated by his own lack of knowledge.

These weaknesses do not entirely hinder the recreation of the tragedy. The chorus is insightfully replaced with the shallowness and comedic relief of three housekeepers. The setting takes place entirely in the bedroom, which sets the desolate mood and highlights the centrality of physical conquest. The unfinished walls, exposed to the frame, depict the destruction of the home. With a flashlight, Richard (Michael Cotton) replaces the soothsayer of the tragedy, illuminating the real identity of the young girl. The mutual catharsis of the General and Amelia is powerful; the tragic value is real as the General, through his action, has destroyed the very thing that he nobly sought to defend. He has become the terrorist: destroying a city, conquesting a young woman, and driving his wife to insanity.

Amelia (Megan Roberts) commands the stage in this performance. Her monologues were well-delivered and well-received. She captured the full-gamut of emotion that is experienced by the military wife. The chorus (Matilda Wnek, Kesia Guillery, and Ailis Creavin) enhanced her performance by highlighting both the separation of Amelia from society and society’s separation from the War on Terror and the rest of the not-so suburban world. The General (Lawrence Bowles) did not initially impress. Foreshadowing implied that he was already an invalid, yet he appears strong on the stage. As his hysteria rises in the final scene, The General recaptures the character, but it was almost too late. Serving as the foil to Amelia, Laela (Nys Joseph-Mitchell), the young mistress, delivers a pithy performance in her stage debut. If the play was a bildungsroman, James (Jack Parlett) masterfully captures the coming of age of a young man, whose father remained in permanent abstention. The dynamic of the character could only be captured by such a performance. Jonathon (Phil Howe) wonderfully depicts the villainous and antagonistic role of the government, which sends its men and women to fight and to kill, yet abandons them. Jonathon plays the politician to perfection, enjoying the fruits of the forbidden tree made possible by the General. As a rule, the cast was superb.

In all, the performance was excellent. As one can imagine, the play is difficult to execute. The cast and crew put forth an excellent effort, but were ultimately constrained by Martin Crimp’s inability to understand and deliver a realistic product. His valid social criticism is hindered by his own lack of information and understanding of political and social reality.

Enemy, Enemy, Enemy of the People!

I have started to review plays for the Cambridge Theatre Review. Last night, I attended An Enemy Of The People by Henrik Ibsen. If you are looking for an excellent polit and social critique, you may be able to find it in movie form, starring Steve McQueen as Stockmann and Charles Durning as Major.

An Enemy of the People transcends both time and space providing a universal criticism of societal retrenchment and its impact on idealism. Written in 1882 and subsequently translated by Arthur Miller in the 1950’s, the play is not lost on this generation of theater attendees as it explores the intricacies of truth, ideas, and time through the lenses of society, community, and family. Ibsen well-develops both the classes and the interests that ultimately determine the direction of society for good or for bad. The simultaneous development of these social forces, their friction, and their eventual collusion is startlingly close to reality. As the play develops, viewers suddenly realize that the small, intentionally nameless town is their town and their society.

The plot follows a young, idealist, Doctor Stockmann (Tom Russell), who is the health and safety officer at the “natural” spa, the economic life-blood of an otherwise unremarkable town. As the town physician, he notices a pattern of illnesses which can only be attributed to swimming in and consumption of the spa waters. He soon discovers that the water is toxic, polluted by his own father-in-law’s (Stephen Bailey) tannery (Stephen Bailey). Believing that he is the champion of the town, Stockmann quickly informs the major power players to include his brother, Major (Quentin Beroud), who soon becomes the human antagonist and manipulator of the mass. Stockmann convinced by the power of the truth and the scientific basis of his evidence soon runs into the juggernaut of political and economic retrenchment as he discovers that idealism and righteousness are merely a façade for the status-quo.

Tom Russell delivers an excellent performance as Stockmann, a dynamic and difficult character who travels across the gamut of experiences from naivety and discovery to catharsis and isolation. His performance was only surpassed by his brotherly antagonist, Major, played by Quentin Beroud. While Stockmann is the main character, the performance of Beroud predominates from subtle finger curling to insidious snarls. The style and themes require such a powerful contrast between protagonist and antagonist and Beroud ensures that this exists. The tension is real. As the foil and daughter of Stockmann, Rozzi Nicholson-Leiley with her assertiveness and almost natural emotion overpowers the performance of Mairin O’Hagan. This dichotomy between mother (pragmatist) and daughter (idealist) is weakened only by the unrealistic emotion and sometimes awkward delivery of the former. Covering the spectrum of the oppositional left, Billing (Sam Sloman), Hovstad (Ned Carpenter), and Aslaksen (Harry Baker) deliver excellent supporting performances, which provide the foundation of the social criticism. In a unique twist, the Crowd is introduced as a chorus-like body and allows for the interpretation of the work as a tragedy. Their embeddedness within the audience, their jeers, and their mob-like chants force the audience into the mindset of the mob. This mechanism challenges the idealism that we each believe is within us.

“The strongest man in the world is the man who stands most alone.” The same can be said for this excellent student-production. The strongest plays, presented by the strongest cast and crew, stand alone at ADC.

I shall return....

I am fortunate to be posting today. Yesterday, I suffered an abominable collision with a taxi as I returned from a Cambridge Union Debate over austerity cuts. Neither my sisters who tried to destroy my bike with poor maintenance and corrosion nor the cab driver, armed with a motor vehicle, could destroy my Schwinn Expedition. As the cab pulled out from a string of cabs (out of order), the driver did not see me. As he veered into the opposing bike lane, we struck. I tumbled onto the curb, protected only by my helmet and a thin layer of padding in the shoulder of my best suit. My front wheel was jammed between the curb and the cab. It did not survive. My coat was torn and is irreparable, but my helmet is a survivor. My insulation from poor drivers is crushed, but I will ride again (as soon as the bike store realigns my tire). As I walked home, dressed in my suit, carrying my portfolio in one hand, and the remains of the "red raider" in the opposite hand, I could not help but think that fortune favors the bold. I am the cyclist who rides in either snow, or rain, or heat, or gloom of night, or with the winds of change, or a nation challenged, and will not be stayed from the swift completion of any ride. Even if, I have to walk home carrying my bicycle. After this experience, I feel quite at home with an English culture committed to bicycles, flat tires, and the occassional wreck.

Don't Give Away A Fish; Don't Teach Someone to Fish; But Rather Revolutionize the Fishing Industry

Last night, I attended the second installment of Beyond Profit, the aforementioned social entrepreneurship club, at Cambridge. One presenter, Christopher Dobbing, founder of Oxbridge Tours, described social entrepreneurship as: "the application of business discipline to social issues, pairing accountability with sustainability." This definition encompasses a broad swath of organizations and businesses. More importantly, it highlights the importance of social accountability, doing what is right for society and ensuring that it is sustainable. I particularly enjoyed the spin-off of the proverb of "Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime." Social entrepreneurship requires individuals to find new and innovative solutions to common problems. It requires that the entrepreneur work to remedy age-old issues with new methodology and approaches.

Christopher Dobbing founded Oxbridge Tours in response to the increases in higher education costs. The company utilizes students at Oxford and Cambridge as tour guides for the booming tourist industry. The students are then paid for their service and subsequently are able to pay for their schooling. He encouraged the audience to start any venture by realizing that in social entrepreneurship people buy not how you do it, but why you do it. In his instance, his company started to provide students with a mechanism to overcome the highly contentious increases in higher education funding. As a larger example, he discussed the evolution of chain coffee shops in the UK. Cafe Normandy, a UK chain, prided itself on its quality and presentation; however, it lost its market share to Starbucks, which boasted fair trade coffee (Fair trade as opposed to free trade requires acceptable wages for workers/farmers and environmentally sustainable practices). While its products are 100% fair trade in the UK, only 20% of its U.S. coffee and tea is fair trade. Consequently, Starbucks lost market share to Café Direct who brands itself as a wholly fair trade company as well as a supporter of agricultural opportunity. Café Direct, unlike the global Starbucks trend, is grower centric: "We’re passionate about working with smallholder growers because we are passionate about taste and we believe in business being a force for good. Growers are not just suppliers, they are our partners and at the very heart of our business. We bypass the conventional market, sourcing our coffee, tea and cocoa directly and building long-term, personal relationships with smallholder growers." They pair their successful business model with the charity, CaféDirect Producers Foundation (CPF), a registered charity led by growers for growers that decides how Cafédirect’s profits should be reinvested in their communities. This type of business venture makes the Starbucks' model seem antiquated. Profit maximization may no longer be enough as consumers add ethics to their consumption preferences. Enter social entrepreneurship.

The Virtue of Technology

Since the 2011 Naval Academy Foreign Affairs Conference entitled "People, Power, and Politics in the Internet Age," I have been contemplating the value and virtue of technology and the opportunity cost associated with inter-connectivity. While I do not necessarily eat, breath, and sleep the conservatism of Robert Nisbet, his work, The Quest for Community, delivers a coherent argument about the dissolution of civil-society. He writes in the shadows of fascism and the nascent days of communist empowerment. His fears are indicative of his time, but they are also transcendental. He argues two crucial points: 1.) Man has and always will seek community as a means of me of attaining meaningful, spiritual fulfillment and 2.) In recent years, man has turned away from traditional civil-society and instead turned to the state for this fulfillment (communism/fascism). These observations are not so different from what we observe today.

Last week, I wrote a now well-circulated letter in support of a local library levy. Then, I waged a debate with a local reader defending my position on a newspapers message board. In both instances, I was working from thousands of miles from home. While theoretically disconnected from my community, I retain the ability to shape and mold perceptions and opinions from afar while empowering supporters. This capacity would not be available 10-15 years ago. Nisbet would consider this type of technological advance as a shock, which alters individual-society relations. He would caution that this type of evolution provides only shallow spiritual fulfillment, and I tend to concur. The internet and its "communities" provide a source of information, organization, and mobilization. However, they do not yield the type of interpersonal connections which people inherently desire. They are a "hollow" force. Interpersonal relations still matter, yet people turn not to the state, but to the internet and technology to interact. They tend to generate awareness rather than sustainable action. One can leave the community on the slightest whim. Fortunately, Nisbet likens the entire community-individual relationship as cyclic. The shallow and meaningless fulfillment of today gives life to the real community of tomorrow. While I admire technology as a tool, I reject it as the end-all be all of community. Civil-society must work to leverage this tool while simultaneously providing real human interaction and community esprit de corps.

The Debate Rages

After my letter to the editor was published in the Warren Tribune Chronicle on Sunday, I have been debating with a reader who is purely anti-tax/anti-levy. I find this position illogical. The following is the exchange which can be found here:

AFRET1:

Nice story, John, and I'm sure you're a stand-up guy. BUT, taxpayers are sick & tired of being asked for more, more, more. Off the top of my head I can't think of ANY levy I would vote for.

JDMILLER:

While I respect your stance, I stand to disagree. Local tax levies provide for basic, localized services and infrastructure. They provide essential functions with definitive returns. They are an investment, utilized for specific purposes. Local taxes are also transparent. Services are measurable and observable on an individualized level. Socially, they provide for both the present and the future. If roads, police, fire protection, schools, and libraries are not sound investments, then we as a society must be ready to decay.

AFRET1:

JD, I, too, respect your comments. My position as far as levies, i.e., taxes, are concerned is that at some point entities must learn to live within their means; otherwise, develop and employ practices and methods that will enhance their fiscal standing. I agree that everything you cited has merit. That said, as a homeowner I have had it with this levy and that levy. Schools are the most bothersome. (By the by, nice to have a civil discourse on this board.)

JDMILLER:

Local government provides opportunity. If one is displeased with either the spending or the levying of tax dollars, one can certainly run for public office with minimal barriers to entry. At the same time, it is difficult to win on a platform of cutting public services. The concept of developing and employing revenue generating schemes on a localized level is not feasible given resource constraints (personnel and capital). If you pair state funding cuts with moderate levels of inflation, local governments have been executing crucial functions within their means for sometime. In addition, the millage system is such that the revenue generated over time is reduced. The voted millage does not equate with the effective millage collected. Therefore, revenue decreases and local government must provide the same service with less. Taxpayers pay less for the same services over time.

To classify school levies as “bothersome” is maddening. Investment in the youth of our area cannot and should not be sacrificed. Schools are also facing significant funding cuts from the state. Teaching staffs are being reduced; programs are being cut; and students are already losing. Failure to support local school levies punishes our youth and ensures that they are less competitive than their peers from more affluent and civic minded areas. Perhaps, it is time that individuals live within their means and sacrifice for the collective good of this generation and the next.

The Mandate

The following is one of the many iterations of speeches that I gave to local Rotary Clubs before I departed Ohio:

Good Afternoon,

Dr. Patel’s introduction is truly humbling. I would like to take a moment and thank her for making this event possible. I would also like to thank the Rotary District Foundation and Governor Hayes for their flexibility and willingness to accept me as the 2011-2012 District 6650 Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar. I am grateful.

In one week, I will arrive at the University of Cambridge for what will be the newest chapter in my life. I look at my selection as the districts representative as a mandate. First, it is a mandate from my hometown of Kinsman to go forth and represent the club and the community at events such as this one. Second, it is a mandate from you, the members of the district, to go forth and represent the district and the values of Rotary, not only at Cambridge, but also throughout my journeys, now and in the future. I chose this map for its aged appearance. It represents to me the rich experiences and history of the world. If I was to characterize myself, I would not have a tan aged, hew, but rather some hew of green, indicative of my inexperience and malleability. Given this realization, I will speak on the world that I know today, and in one year, I will speak again on the world that I have found and explored and the people that I have met and friended.

I usually like to start with a quick survey of the audience:
How many of you have been to Kinsman?
You surely have outdone several other nameless clubs…..

Kinsman is a small agrarian community in northeastern Trumbull County. It is nestled along the Ohio-Pa border and is the main population center in the Joseph Badger Local School District. Its population hovers around 2000 people. Its most prominent resident was Clarence Darrow, who gained notoriety as a human rights and civil liberties advocate and litigator in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.In his second book, an autobiography, he wrote and I quote: “If I had chosen to be born I probably should not have selected Kinsman, Ohio, for that honor. Instead, I would have started in a hard and noisy city where the crowds surged back and forth as if they knew where they were going, and why.” In contrast, I would not have selected anywhere but Kinsman to grow up.

My experience in Kinsman was not suffocating as Darrow characterized it. We surely have our share of fields, but the town also has much more. It is a town committed to service whether to the community or to the nation. It is people committed to their neighbors. The town celebrate Darrow’s boyhood home on Main Street, known widely as the Octagon House, but I remember him less fondly than the little old lady, Mrs. Brown, who insisted that her home be open year round to strangers. Kinsman has more churches per capita than most towns in America, and it is these churches which help to instill and reinforce the broad sense of community.We also have a truly one of a kind Carnegie library, where I spent much of my youth reading, learning, and exploring the world beyond Kinsman. It is a library which embodies the vision of a community that aspired for something better in its future generations.

As an anecdote, when I was in second grade, I won tickets from the Kinsman Public Library to go to my first Indians game with my father. We settled into our seats and the gentleman next to us asked where I was from. I told him Kinsman and he responded that he understood how I read so many books: “There are only two things to do in Kinsman: Read books and watch the corn grow.” Today, I would take exception: There are soybeans behind the house.

Our library is paired with a school district which is stocked with superb educators like my mother. While Darrow was suffocated, I was empowered. We also have an excellent Dairi Oasis, but I digress.We are also a town committed to service. Some of my earliest memories take me back to the town square on Memorial Day where the local veterans from the American Legion Harry Lee’s Post 506 would render honors at the veteran’s memorial. The Legion is an organization like the Rotary that afforded me tremendous opportunities, but more importantly, it is an organization and an entity that guided me to service in the military. Like the Legion, Rotary also impacted my life and shaped the way in which I have pursued my greatest ambitions. My first experience with Rotary beyond the annual Chicken BBQ was with RYLA. At the time, RYLA took place in the depths of February at the Timberlanes of Salem. Beyond the wonderful pool at the Salem Community Center and the new acquaintances, the real value of RYLA came in a single exercise. We were told to write a life mission statement, which I carry in my wallet to this day:

“My life mission is to live a fulfilling life while maintaining my values of hard-work, service, and leadership by example in all that I do.”

This commitment matched favorably with the mission of the U.S. Naval Academy which strives to “graduate leaders who are dedicated to a career of naval service and have potential for future development in mind and character to assume the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and government.” Emulating the tradition of military service within my family and within my community, I accepted an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy. I followed in the footsteps of my father, a U.S. Navy veteran and boiler technician. As you can imagine, I experienced a slight culture shock. My time at the Naval Academy was filled with failures, challenges, and triumphs.

The first year, or plebe year, dragged on for what seemed an eternity. An eternity captured in my disgruntled appearance. However, I was well prepared. My mother would often scold me for wearing shoes inside or not folding my laundry. Some things were just like home. During my 2nd summer, I went to sea for the first time aboard LSD-42, USS Germantown, a dock landing ship. I quickly fell in love with ocean as many romantics have done. At the conclusion of my second year, I signed my final commitment papers, agreeing to serve 5 years of active duty upon graduation. I had little reservation. I had committed long before that point.With the paperwork complete, I enjoyed the many aspects of Naval Academy life. These included everything from formal parades to Ring Dance, a formal ball, marking the day in which I could officially don my class ring. A ring inscribed with our class motto: Dom Respiramos Defendemus. “While We breathe, We Defend” My final summer in Annapolis found me traveling in Vietnam and Cambodia, operating on a submarine in the Western Pacific, and serving as an action officer at a Federal Advisory Committee to the Chief of Naval Operations. My senior year commenced and before I knew it. I reached my final Army-Navy football game and was home for Christmas.

In the interim, I received confirmation of not only the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship but also, the Nolan Scholarship, which will fund my 2-years of study at Cambridge. The fall was a period of reflection for me. For me my pursuit of scholarships served as an epiphany for me. I was fortunate to be selected as a finalist for the Rhodes Scholarship. It was at this interview that I realized what I valued more than anything else: my community. During the interview, I made the best mistake of my life. When asked how I planned to impact the world and where I found my calling, I answered unequivocally: "I want to go back to Northeastern Ohio. I want to go back and mentor and guide. I want to go back and give voice to people. I want to make sure that we don’t have one student at the Naval Academy, but instead many. I want to make sure that we have multiple people interviewing for this scholarship. But at the end of the day, if I don’t get the scholarship, I still get to wake up Monday morning and put on my uniform and I am ok with that." Fortunately, the committee found me unworthy.

May and graduation arrived quite quickly. I had the honor of leading my class onto the field at graduation. I received my commission, my first salute, and celebrated the milestone with my wonderful, supportive family.While my time at the Naval Academy was constrained, I took the lessons of Kinsman and the commitment to service with me. These lessons of education, service, and community inspired me to action.

As mentioned earlier, I spent 4 weeks last summer in Vietnam and Cambodia as part of a U.S. Navy Language, Regional Expertise, and Cultural Immersion trip. It was my first trip outside of the U.S.

In Vietnam, and in particular, Quang Tri province, in Central Vietnam, we worked in an isolated rural village called Khe Luo. Here, the central state had built schools, but it provided no resources, a ploy to appease international criticism of the state’s discriminatory treatment of indigenous tribes. The school was actually being used as a chicken coup. We were to work with the locals to rebuild the trail to the school, to paint, and to clean, but this short term commitment became something more. Moved by the children who assisted us and their thirst for knowledge, we paired with Global Community Service Foundation to provide books to schools in the area.
This initiative started Bridges Through Education Corporation, a 501-C3 non-profit organization, intended to support educational opportunity in developing areas. While our initial shipments to Vietnam were not immensely successful, I and another Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar from the Naval Academy intend to return to Vietnam in the coming year and revitalize our supply changes and connections.

Studying at Cambridge will afford me with such opportunity; it will also provide an opportunity to learn from a country not so dissimilar from the United States. For instance, Clare College, my assigned college, has an immense library like Kinsman. It also has a militant dining room like the one at the Naval Academy. Once I overcome the language barrier, I am told that I will adjust quickly.While in the UK, I would also like to explore the British approach to industrial regeneration and business incubation as part of my course in development studies. As we are all aware, our area from Kinsman to Canton is suffering from economic decline. I hope to take their approaches, programming, and lessons and juxtapose them against local development initiatives. While my impact will not be immediate, I plan to return to the area after the conclusion of my naval service and work to turn the tide of human capital flight out of our area. I want to work to end the pattern of escapism, which plagues my fellow youth and our communities today.

After Cambridge, I will report to the USS Fort McHenry, a dock landing ship, as a Surface Warfare Officer. The Fort McHenry is intended to support amphibious operations by providing a platform for airlift as well as a well deck which can launch smaller transport vehicles to coastal areas. Traditionally, this type of ship was utilized to land Marines on hostile shores, but today, it helps the U.S. Navy fulfill its core competency of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief in places like Haiti and around the world. As President John F. Kennedy said at Annapolis in 1963, “I can imagine no more rewarding career. And any man who may be asked in this century what he did to make his life worthwhile, I think I can respond with a good deal of pride and satisfaction: ‘I served in the United States Navy.’”

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your service to your community and our world. At the same time, I want to issue a challenge. Engage your youth. Challenge them. Bring them into the fold. Show them that it is ok to stay that there is work to be done in District 6650. Demonstrate that they can make a difference through service. My generation merely needs a challenge to meet. Thank you.

At this time, I will open the floor for questions.

Escape reality. Read fiction.

The following is the letter that I sent to the Warren Tribune Chronicle and the Youngstown Vindicator:

Dear Editor,
When I share with people about my childhood in Kinsman, Ohio, I never fail to mention the Kinsman Public Library. It was an integral part of my childhood and my development. From my earliest years, I was taken to Story Hour and crafts in the basement. I participated in the Summer Reading Program. I grew to know the librarians, who knew me by name and who could always point me to the right shelf. I would read books by the hundreds. When I was finally old enough for my first library card, I was given a ticket, a ticket to an unexplored world and a ticket to academic success and personal growth. As a child, I spent hours reading, learning, analyzing, and developing a skill set which rivaled my peers from some of the best schools in the nation. Kinsman Library, despite critics of the town and school district, provides this opportunity for those who take it. In my experience, some of the brightest and well-read individuals that I have ever met call Kinsman home. We are not the stereotypical, ignorant, country “hicks.” The existence of the Kinsman Library and these observations are not coincidence. The library represents the community’s commitment to education, whether it is the education of its youth, its elderly, or everyone in the middle. Andrew Carnegie gave the community a shell, but it is the community that has filled this shell. The shell is now cracked, and if the levy fails, we will fail generations of residents who committed themselves to the organization and continued development of our community’s greatest institution. More importantly, we will fail the youth who will never be given a Kinsman Library card.

Opposition will come in three forms: 1.) Economic conditions in our area are such that I can't afford levies for non-essentials; 2.) The library only benefits a small group of people within the Joseph Badger Local School District; and 3.) The library has not been fiscally responsible in response to state-wide budget cuts.

In response to the first argument, I contend that the library provides an essential service to the community. First, it is a free source of knowledge, providing computer and internet access. Many people within the community cannot afford a Kindle, internet access, or let alone a computer. They depend on the library for books, magazines, and technology. The library is a central hub for all of these functions. Times are tough in our area, but in the toughest times education cannot take the hit. The library and the school are assets to the community and to the future of our area. They go hand-in-hand.

In response to the second argument, I argue that the library can support a much larger swath of the school district, but the decision to use the library is a personal one. Opponents will argue that they should not pay for a public good which they do not utilize. I believe that these arguments will come from areas of the Joseph Badger Local School District, which are "far" or "distant" from the library. For these people, I challenge you to cut two trips to the Eastwood Mall for dinner, a movie, and some shopping. Instead, go with your children to the Kinsman Library on a Friday or Saturday; check-out some books; select a movie; go to dinner in the community; and head home for a night together. The benefits are obvious. You spend more time with your family; you instill the values of literacy with your children; you support the local economy; and you get a "return" on your taxes. Eastwood Mall and the Kinsman Library are interestingly the same distance and the savings is actually greater if one takes the "challenge."

In response to the third argument, I submit that the library has already been tightening its belt for several years. Hours have been cut. Staff has been reduced. The core functions have remained. These core functions now face the chopping block: new books, periodicals, and technology upgrades. If you feel that staffing is the issue, I challenge you to volunteer your time to do the same work without pay or compensation. If the levy fails and state funding continually deteriorates, the library will only remain if you are prepared to operate the library yourself. These threats are not idle.

The 1.9 mill levy will cost $58 dollars per year for a house valued at $100,000 dollars. Given the devaluation of housing within the area, most households will pay significantly less. It is time for the community to come together and signal a re-commitment to the values of education and opportunity by voting “Yes” on the library levy. Whether you are from Orangeville, Farmdale, Gustavus, Burghill, Hartford, Vernon, or Kinsman, we are still a community. The library is an integral part of this community. Do not be the electorate that spells the end of its existence.

Sincerely,
John Miller
Kinsman, Ohio

Political Vice and Political Voice

    When I received the link for the fundraising campaign for Traficant: The Congressman of Crimetown, a documentary chronicling the rise and fall of the Mahoning Valley's most recognizable political force, I was skeptical. As the Mahoning Valley works to change and rebrand itself, it might be better to let his tenure in Congress slip into oblivion. Traficant was coarse; he was tactless; and he was rude. Without a doubt, he took money from the mob and his affiliation with Lenny Strollo is not beyond reproach. His eventual conviction included charges of bribery, racketeering, and tax evasion. Whether he was unjustly targeted or not, he made the bed in which he would lay. However, I argue that even if Traficant and vice are synonymous that it was the voice that he gave the Mahoning Valley that mattered, whether a person was from his district or from another state. His ability to connect with the people as a stakeholder and to care about their plight and struggle made him different. He could empathize.

    The 2001 Congressional redistricting broke up Traficant's home field advantage. It split Trumbull County in half. It sent the northern tier of the county into the then new Ohio-14th Congressional District. It preserved the political/population center of the county (Warren-Niles-Cortland) as part of the new 17th District. While this may seem irrelevant, it had two major consequences. First, it accentuated the division between county and township government. The commissioners’ power base has and will remain in the South rather than the agrarian North of the county. It is difficult to have a voice and an ally in county government without impacting elections and generating revenues.  Second, it placed the northern tier of Trumbull County within the 14th Congressional District, whose power base lies in Chardon-Hudson-Mentor-Eastlake, four places that could not be more dissimilar from the northern tier in terms of socio-economic make-up and production. Thus, the redistricting isolated the Northern Tier of Trumbull County and silenced what little voice it ever had.

    What are the consequences of this division? My small town of Kinsman, Ohio, is under an EPA deadline to install sewers by 2013. Currently, small businesses are already under the threat of fine and are installing new septic tanks to avoid the death-sentence-like fines that are on their way. Ironically, a waste-treatment facility exists (an old Kraft plant, abandoned in the early 2000's) and a trunk line is already heading into town, but the project is frozen. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 should have been a god-send. The project was certainly "shovel-ready," but inaction and delays by the county and invisible representation in Congress subjugated Kinsman to the back burner. Kinsman is set to receive second-hand funding (the unused funds from projects elsewhere, which may or may not exist). As an anecdote, I attended a county meeting on sewers in Kinsman in Warren last April. I think the make-up of the meeting is telling. The following individuals attended the meeting:
     1 of 3 County Commissioners (Frank Fuda)
     1 Representative from the Office of Tim Ryan (OH-17th)
     0 Representatives from the Office of Steven LaTourette (OH-14th)
     1 Businessman/Farmer from Kinsman
     1 of 3 Trustees from Kinsman 
     1 Kinsman Township Clerk
     2 Representatives from the Ohio Department of Agriculture 

   First, the attendance of the commissioners was wanting. In terms of prioritization, it was clear that Kinsman had little relevance for the other two commissioners. One commissioner entered the County building as we departed. He had forgotten the meeting and Kinsman. Tim Ryan's office offered as much support as it could, but in the end, the representative said that Steven LaTourette’s office would need to take the lead (Of note: LaTourette voted against the stimulus package which would fund the project and staunchly opposes the use of federal earmarks for such infrastructure projects). Her words meant that Kinsman would not receive help on the congressional level. The lack of attendance by anyone from our own Congressman's office sent another signal: Your revenue generation is too small; your political contributions are too small; and your population is too small to provide me with the votes I need. My time and resources are better spent elsewhere. In terms of the township, the board of trustees was only informed second-hand that a meeting would actually occur. The Trustee in attendance was my mother, who took a day off from school in order to attend. The local businessman and farmer receives attention as a consequence of his affluence and centrality in terms of land-holdings in the Northern tier. The representatives from the Ohio Department of Agriculture were there to offer funding, which may or may not exist, but it is important to note that the lobbyist for this funding was a native-son of Gustavus, the neighboring township. He did not fail to remember where he came from or the people that made his success possible. Attendance does matter as it sends signals about the interests of key political and economic players.

    The connection between Traficant and this series of events should be quite evident. I come from a place without a voice. Jim Traficant, love or hate, provided a voice. I wish my town, my area, could have someone as dynamic and connected to real people and their struggles as Traficant once was. I would prefer that they told the truth, provided fair representation, built goodwill and trust across the diverse political and socio-economic spectrum, and worked to benefit everyone that they supposedly represent. Is it too much to ask that someone represents the interest of the little town, a town with per family income of $28,000 per year in its proposed sewer district? I think someone like Jim Traficant would. Perhaps that is why as we come to terms with the vice of the past, we should examine his impact more carefully and think of the voice which our area requires. As the redistricting from the 2010 Census is revealed, let us think of the consequences and the real impact that it has on people not just politics.

The 1991-2001 Congressional Map of Ohio (A County Together):

The 2001-2011 Ohio 17th Congressional District (A County Divided):

The  2001-2011 Ohio 14th Congressional District (A County Divided):

   
   

   

Free Lunches and English Educational Inequality

  "In life, there is no such thing as a free lunch."

     Last night, I attended a lecture hosted by Beyond Profit, a social entrepreneurship club. Beyond Profit works on business initiatives which combine social good and economic profit. This type of initiative is working to meet the disparate and often conflicting drive of individuals of this generation. The concept uses business principles for socially beneficial ends. As the Beyond Profit mantra goes: "There are people who want to save the world and there are people who want great personal success. Nowadays most of us want to try and do both. Beyond Profit is the place to find out how to achieve this." Because of my desire to make Bridges Through Education Corporation self-sustaining, I decided to become active within the club and to learn from those with more experience and knowledge.

   This night's event covered educational inequalities within Great Britain. The program was sponsored by Beyond Profit, yet it was presented by Alex Spiers of Teach First, the UK equivalent of Teach for America. Of note, the program does not receive the same philanthropic funding that its compatriot in the U.S. receives. Its funding comes from the state, donors (corporate/private), and schools. Money is exchanged for the service of providing high caliber teachers, but the business board receives only one pound per year. The program offers the opportunity to teach in comprehensive schools in which at least 50% of students fall into the low income range within the UK. Unlike the U.S. educational construct, all individuals who attain a bachelor’s degree may become teachers through hands-on student experience (the equivalent of student teaching in the U.S.). Education majors do not exist in the UK. Thus, a program like Teach First faces less institutional push-back as 50% of the individuals who work in the program continue teaching at the end of their one year commitment. No additional education is required. With the merits of the different methodologies and qualifications aside, the program targets the issue of educational inequality within the UK.

      Educational disadvantage is about more than someone being "lucky." In this era, it is despicable that family affluence remains a primary determinant of children’s educational and career outcomes. Education impacts the entire life span of an individual not just childhood, but as time progresses, the divergence between the well-education and the poorly educated is accentuated. 17% of UK individuals ages 16-24 years old are NEET (Not in education, employment, or training). From a fiscal standpoint, it costs the central government and more directly, the taxpayers, 35 billion pounds per annum ($55-$60 billion U.S. dollars). In addition to the financial burden, this issue creates long-term negative externalities: prolonged unemployment, lower income, depression, mental health issues, and alcoholism. These phenomena are the logical bedfellows of poor educational outcomes.

     In the UK, data collection and analysis is excellent. One study analyzed the differential in school readiness between the rich and poor. At the age of three years old, the rich already possess a one year advantage in terms of behavior. At the age of 5, the gap in vocabulary development between the rich and poor is 15 months, which continues to widen over time. In terms of socioeconomic differences, 27% of students receiving free lunches (need based food programs) achieve the required scores on the GSCE (Proficiency or Graduation Test Equivalent) to continue onto A-Level, which is the university preparatory curriculum. In comparison, 54% of students who do not receive free lunch achieve this standard. The disparity is even greater when one compares comprehensive schools (public schools) and independent schools (charter/private schools). At Age 11, 93% of UK students attend comprehensive state schools and only 7% attend independent schools. At Oxbridge (Oxford and Cambridge), 54% attended comprehensive state schools and 46% attended independent schools. Only 43 out of the 600,000 students per year on free school lunches in the United Kingdom are currently continuing their studies at Oxbridge. The statistics speak for themselves: affluence provides opportunities which are not otherwise enjoyed by the poor.

   Teach First works to counter this startling trend by turning exceptional graduates into inspirational educators and leaders who work to overcome educational disadvantage and educational inequality. The program targets schools with a large underprivileged population and schools with underperforming teachers. Interestingly, "performance" evaluation of teachers is on a value-added basis. Based upon post code and family income, models clearly predict academic performance on the GSCE. If the student performs better than their surroundings suggest and their predicted score indicates, the teacher has had some "value-added" and is considered proficient. The program works on the concept of "micro-change" where change/improvement occurs at the local level. Individual students and groups benefit. The culture and internalization of educational stereotypes is changed within schools. At the end of the teaching obligation, teachers become eligible to be Teach First Ambassadors, which affords them the resources and mentorship required to start their own social enterprise. Thus, the program retains a strong alumni group which benefits from business and non-profit support.

   To conclude, the United Kingdom and the United States face similar challenges of educational inequality. Social mobility via educational attainment appears stunted and dysfunctional. It is the youth who suffer, both affluent and poor. The affluent neither know nor understand the nuances of poverty and struggle. The poor neither know nor understand the institutional knowledge of education. If they do, they often do not have the means to achieve the desired end. Everyone loses without socioeconomic diversity within the educational framework. Some lose more than others.

Social Value

      Last night, I hosted the first social at my new home for all of the students who are studying Development Studies at Cambridge. To begin, the program is quite diverse. As an interdisciplinary program, students come from a variety of academic backgrounds. As one would expect, it is also multinational.  My purpose for hosting the social was for people to meet and socialize outside the parameters of academia. It was wholly successful with nearly 30 students from 16 different nationalities attending. The house proved quite welcoming and spacious and the requests for a repeat performance were many. The wine flowed and the conversation was lively. I hardly expected the group to stay past midnight, but they were up for the challenge. The experience was mutually beneficial. I shared about the U.S. Navy, the Rotary, and Bridges Through Education. I also learned from my peers as they shared their experiences growing up and studying within different societies and cultures. Alas, I can finally put names with the numerous faces that I see each day at lectures.
    Events such as this provide an opportunity to increase mutual understanding. They provide an opportunity to delve into the motivations and aspirations of others. Each individual is driven by a certain purpose and a certain interest, which I found is often country or even regionally specific. The common denominator is the general drive and motivation to facilitate change and to make an impact in the world. The University of Cambridge, and in particular, the Development Studies Committee, has provided a commonality amongst a disparate group of people. Given the opportunity, it is then our responsibility to grow and learn together. Last night provided the first real opportunity to develop synergy within the group. It was my intent to facilitate this development and it will be my goal to see it through to the end of our time together by the Cam. I look forward to hosting the next event and gaining new perspectives, new ideas, and new friends.

What is an Institution?

   For my class on the role of Institutions and Development, we are required to succinctly write a one paragraph response to the above question. Over the coming days, weeks, months, and years, I hope to utilize this working definition as a framework for analysis. Today's post is short, yet I feel important.

What is an Institution?
 Institutions are the rules of various political, economic, and social interactions which regulate, normalize, and render predictable human behavior. Human interactions shape them while simultaneously being shaped by them. Institutions are also resistive to change. Once formed, they persist. Their regulation may be formal or informal, codified or assumed. Membership or participation within the institution is either open or selective based upon the characteristics of the individual or entity that desires access. Access may be de jure (legally open to participation) or de facto (actually/practically open to real participation). Institutions also contain other sub-institutions, which impact the operational environment within the institution. As a body, they represent a stock of information, which has been conceptually developed into a form of institutional knowledge that is shared, even if unequally, amongst its members and component parts. Institutions are also amoral as their classification is entirely subjective. Membership, non-membership, and the actions of the institution impact and influence people and groupings in different ways.

The Times They Are A-Changin': Civil-Society Organizations Today

Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'.

     When Bob Dylan released these lyrics in 1964, he was speaking of the social transformation that was erupting. In essence, he was speaking of the rise of individuality and the dismantling of the post-WWII honeymoon. Today, as the baby boomers retire, the times are changing again. These individuals took over the civil-society organizations from their parents and preserved solidarity. These organizations give people and society a sense of community, the foundation of belonging. Unfortunately, these organizations are dying. They are dying because of inaction. Who is responsible? I argue that the fault lies not only with my generation, but also my parents’ generation, the generation of contemporary leadership. First, my generation is one of individuals. We would rather start an organization than take over the reins of an archaic body. We want it our way and we want it to benefit us. We want returns, personal not societal. We are dynamic. In contrast, the leading generation is stagnating. They steer inflexible and unwieldy organizations. They preserve the status quo within a confined box. As an enlightened generation who experienced societal unrest and civil-society movements, they don't innovate anymore or accept new ideas. The line of demarcation is clear.

    Of course, these are blatant stereotypes. They represent perception, and in some cases, reality. Perceptions matter. The demise of civil-society organizations is a consequence of asymmetric information, where one party has more or better information than the other. In this case, neither the leading generation nor this generation possesses adequate information. In fact, they possess misinformation, which distorts the commonality of purpose and value which civil-society organizations provide across generations. They are a mechanism for positive social activism and service. The organizations of today possess institutional legitimacy which allows them to function, to raise revenues, and to act as a force within society. Yet, we must remember that they are fungible. They can change and adapt to meet the needs of today's society. They are capable of innovation and of fighting the world's fights whether locally or internationally, now and in the future. They need both generations working together. This synergy is the intrinsic characteristic of such organizations. Diversity can be the strength of the new civil-society, ending generational frictions.  Without intervention by both generations and shared-compromise, our society (I use this term broadly to encompass many societies) will face a crisis of community. The bastions of community will die and we will be left with nothing but individuals, searching for community.

Birthday Celebrations and Civil-Military Relations

    Last night, I attended a seminar group entitled, "The Trouble with Strategic Leadership in International Interventions." The program kicked-off with an hour long discussion of civil-military relations, centered on the politicization of the military in Western democracies and the creep of military activities into the civilian domain or sphere of influence. On these issues, I raised two points. First, the coalition leadership in Afghanistan and Iraq may politicize issues and speak publically, but this does not imply that the military has its own autonomous political ends which are at odds with civilian control of the military. It is strategic bargaining in the public forum and is intended not to undermine civilian rule but rather to inform the civilian leaders and the polis. When bounds are overstepped, military leaders are removed. The "creep" is a consequence of meeting operational demands with available capacity, military capacity. Pair civil capacities with military security and you have the ideal setting, but as we have observed over the last ten years, the civilian capacity does not exist. Creep occurs on the operational level not the strategic. If anything, strategy seems to be coming from civilian leadership. Second, I made the distinction that pre-conflict military advice in the case of Vietnam, Afghanistan, and Iraq was given by a cadre of military leaders whose formative operational experiences  were shaped by significantly different campaigns.  Korea and WWII shaped the Vietnam leadership and Desert Storm, Panama, and Grenada conditioned The Afghan-Iraq leadership. To some extent, this phenomenon explains the lack of cohesive institutional push back. Push back was ad-hoc and disorganized.

   Given that today is the 236th Birthday of the United States Navy, it seems appropriate to take exception to something that a Royal Army counterpart said in reference to Tony Blair's 2001 assertion that the British military would be a "Force for Good..."  This officer wondered how he was to deliver what he called "philanthropic violence," an obvious oxymoron. I draw a distinction between the U.S. Navy and Western armies. The U.S. Navy is a safety net. It performs 6 core functions, which provide public goods if not public good to the world writ-large. These functions include Sea Control, Power Projection, Forward Presence, Deterrence, Maritime Security, and Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief. While these core capabilities are self-serving, they also have positive externalities for not only our partners and allies, but also the world in general. They protect trade, deter conflict, intervene, provide presence, and relieve those in duress. So, when the Navy issues its next video or you watch the one below about being a "Global Force for Good," think about what a day without the U.S. Navy would be like. The Secretary of the Navy often talks about what the Navy did on a particular day in March of 2011. He spoke of it at my graduation from the U.S. Naval Academy, but I have since heard it several more times. He proceeds to discuss what various platforms, units, and sailors were doing to execute these functions around the world. I think the Navy would do better by popularizing the counterfactual, a day without the U.S. Navy. Inflation sky-rockets as the costs of trade increase, oil becomes unaffordable, shelves in stores are empty, conflict erupts in several hotspots (Iran, North Korea, ect.), a natural disaster strikes in a least developed country, and a manmade disaster strikes an ally. The world wonders what nation has the capacity and the will to help. The answer is not one. No country can match the will and capacity of the U.S. Navy to respond. This counterfactual is a day without the U.S. Navy.