Shoe-thrower fans unite online

I bet, by now everyone has already known about the infamous Bush shoes throwing incident that took place in December at a news conference in Baghdad, Iraq.



However, just couple of days ago, I read something in CNN that really intrigued me. It is the fact that the guy (his name is al-Zaidi) who threw his shoes to Mr.Bush actually has hundreds of thousand fans in Facebook ! Surprisingly, what Facebook has shown is that al-Zaidi's angry expression resonated with those beyond his religion and region. Facebook users from around the world has became al-Zaidi's fans and supported what he did to Bush (at least virtually). People started to shoot out their opinions freely in Facebook, knowing that they will not be punished or be ashamed of what they have said.

After reading the news, I started to realize that Computer Mediated Communication(CMC) has really affected our lifestyle. A few decades ago, people used to go around protesting just to get people's attention. But with the existence of Internet and the World Wide Web, People just need to sit down in front of their computer and start voicing out their opinions freely. The shoes throwing incident perfectly illustrates this matter. The fact that CNN covered the news really proved that CMC has evolved into something that is not a mere simple online socializing. But rather, it becomes a medium to voice out serious matters.

U.S. reaches out with cell phone game

Who says diplomacy is always serious business? Sometimes it's a game.

Did anyone says cultural imperialism doesn't exist in today's world? Apparently NOT! It even exist in a form of GAME ! According to CNN news (March 6, 2009), it is quoted that "The latest U.S. attempt to win hearts and minds in the Middle East and Persian Gulf is a cell phone game called X-Life". From this, we certainly know that cultural imperialism still exists in today's world and apparently US is still finding a way to gain the hearts and the minds of people in Middle East and Persian Gulf. The U.S. State Department says the game is intended to bridge cultures and break down barriers. It also aims to show the United States in a positive light and illustrate U.S. values such as tolerance, freedom and respect of religious differences, says Manouchehri, CEO of MetroStar Systems.


A little more about the game
The X-Life games are a series of smaller, interrelated adventure modules which explore one idea. How would your life have been different if you had chosen an alternate career? How would it have impacted you? Your family? The world around you? In each X-Life module, the player gets to try a different "X-Life" and rise to the top of that module’s featured profession. Do not hesitate to visit the official website of the game.

Marley & Me

Marley & Me Trailer

Another great movie starred by Owen Wilson. Marley & Me tells a story of a relationship between a dog(Labrador Retriever) named Marley and his Master, Grogan who's starred by Owen Wilson. The movie started when Grogan bought what seemed to be a quiet and timid dog for his fiancée, jennifer, who's starred by Jennifer Aniston. Little did they know that what seemed to be a timid dog, is actually a highly disastrous, boisterous, energetic, uncontrolled dog. It is to the extent that Grogan often dubbed the dog as the world's worst dog. However, inside that hideous fur of his lies the most loyal heart that a dog can give to his master. Over time, a special relationship built up between the dog and the couple. The director beautifully portrayed that unconditional love in many scenes during the movie (watch the movie then you'll know); SPOILER WARNING: especially when the dog is dying.

After watching the movie, something foolish but true-in-the-sense crossed my mind. I started to questioned myself on why a relationship between man and dog is most often end up better than a relationship between human beings. Did we just discussed on the importance of communication to build a good relationship? But a dog can never communicate with human. Some people might argue that a dog is just stupid in the sense that as long as we give food to them, they'll stay obedient to us. BUT.. WAIT.. A dog has a heart that can feel and a brain that is functioning, doesn't it. I truly believe they know to differentiate between an abusive owner and kind owner.

Moreover, we just talked about cultural barriers* that hinder communication. Does the theory only applicable to human beings? I don't think so. Many, but not all, of theories works on relationship between animals and man. If it is the case, then why is it so much harder to make a relationship between man works? After all, we have the advantage of being able to communicate to each other.

Cultural barriers* includes:
1)Perception or interpretation of reality.
2)Understanding of role relations or identities.
3)Goal-oriented behaviors.
4)Images or sense of self.
5)Language or message making.