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Show iitomdTi IU CwM Tffwh-th- f Jforfri Five Lessons from the All- - Greatest Movie of Joints Powtll I where computers, electronics, Add machine seem to be everywhere, its nice to see the human mind win in the end. When Luke shuts off his targeting computer and manages to blow up the Death Star only with his wits and intuition, we see that we dont really need to rely os anything but ourselves.. Somewhere along foe Has, mans acceptance of his intuition has gone the way of the DoeDoe. I feel mans relies for too much on all of these nec- recently watched Star Wan again.- Id have to lay Ive aeen it doie to 100 timet, and If a (till eqjoyabfe. Even though I know nearly ever line ver- batim, the great ici-- fi adventure is, and probably always will be, exciting and fun. But why is that? What makes me, and many, many others around the world, consider Star Wan How can any one perthe best movie of son sit through the same movie 100 timea and stiH find it wstduible7 After seeing it again this weekend, I may have movie. Who figured it out: It's a feel-goo- d doesnt feel elated after seeing die good guys finally come out on top? Yet Star Wan is so much more than that There are lessons to be learned throughout the story that could serve the world well if everyone understood and obeyed them. This is 1) The ultimate in Good vs. Evil: perhaps the easiest lesson to note because the whole dot of Star Wan revolves around good vs. evil A small band of rebels tries to correct the wrongs in the galaxy done by the evil galactic empire. And in the end, tiwy succeed in conquering the bad guys. This lesson has been used over and over since the beginning of time: cheaters never prosper, crime doesn't pay, good guys always finish on top, etc. Yet, anymore, it seems we are constantly bombarded with negativity and are always seeing the story burn the bad guy's point of view. news and you'll see Flip on the local what I mean. Far too often an entire telecast is filled with information showcasing what is wrong with the world today. Perhaps if we were saturated with the positives, and continued to see the elation one sometimes gets from doing right, then maybe people would begin emulating these acts and do good themselves. When I was a kid, I wanted to be Luke Skywalker or Han Solo. But where are the children's heroes today? The greedy Athletes that always manage to get on the newe for busting someones chop aren't role models. And neither are the glorified drug pushers we constantly see at the movies and on television. So maybe more movies like Star Wan need to be brought bock into circulation. Aside form the special effects and interesting characters, we see that through hard work, determination, and sticking with ooe's morals, the good guys are rewarded in the end for their efforts. 2) Man vs. Machine: In this day and age. essary things, such as cars, televisions, electric razors, etc... Today, many of us dont do anything for ourselves. We dont catch our own fopdjmd with microwaves, we dont really cook our own food; we use other forms ctf transportation to get us where were going, not our legs; instead of feeding our brain through reading, we watch the tube, ,, All these things and so much more have plummeted our reliance on ourselves.' We look to quick fixes to get us through the day. Because of this, we have learned to stop listening to our heart, our intuitive self, and have become zombies of . . ' sorts. .. , . . Sure, that's stretching it a bit, making man sound a lot worse than he really is. But it serves my point We need to get back to nature, back to our true selves, and again listen to what our soul tells us is the right thing to db, instead of listening to our underworked minds. Why not? After all Skywalker did it, and hes a hero. 3) Acceptance of a Higher Powen Ifs an energy field created by all living things. . It us, penetrates us, binds foe galaxy together. Of course, Obi Wan Kenobi is talking about foe Force, but he could have been talking about God, die Universe, or whatever you see being ' the higher power. , i late-nig- ht - - u V' Throughout Star Wan, and the subsequent films in the trilogy, Luke is continually being taught to let go his conscious thought and give in to the Force. Luke's teachers basically tell him to forget what he has learned and let the Force guide him through life. V;,v I agree wholeheartedly. I may not call it the Force, but I do indeed know that there is some sort of higher power out there guiding me along my path in the right direction. The more I open myself to foe messages, foe easier and more fulfilling life becomes. When I shut out that 'voice,' my life is usually filled with stumbling blocks. Aside from accepting guidance, there may be more to the story. The Jedi Knights used foe face to fight for peace and justice throughout the galaxy. Maybe what this shows is that by accepting the higher power, and the acting out of whats right or'.y comes naturally. Maybe when we give ourselves up, we begin to share love to foeworidfa world that U in much need of a little love.,a ,3. Mon tenons next wtriL. Tell Me About it "There You Go Again Leon Sinister There you go again. words, with a sigh from Ronald Reagan to Walter Mondale, during Reagan's second successful presidential campaign, and in response to some extremely worn-opolitical rhetoric, provided a thorough quenching of the tiresome and useless verbage that was leading nowhere. Such appears to be the case with the chronic and endless stream of "diplomatic parleys, endlessly streaming into the U.N. agenda from Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister, Tariq Aziz. The "brilliance displayed by Sad Hussein in orchestrating a whole new agreement to increase foe previously-sanctione- d ceiling of oil sales by Iraq from $2 billion to 13.2 billion every six months, culminated his five or six weeks floor-shoof dialing foot-wor- k U.N. lured when he Secretary General Kofi Annan into doing exactly what Saddam wanted. Aaaoon as Hussein realized his Arab neighbors (together with enough of foe world's media sources) were sympathetic with his propaganda about how the U.N. embargo of economic sanctions was severely, and unjustly, punishing the common folks of Iraq, he knew he was rapidly becoming more bullet-prothan ever. The five dr six weeks of his dazzling footwork when he chased foe UJf. inspectors out of Iraq and brought his country to the brink of another all-o- ut effort for air attacks from the United States, has paid off. While much Iraqi propaganda has been disseminated about the suffering of the Iraqi populace, virtually nothing has been printed about the lavish spending engaged in by Hussein and his inner circle, non-stofor the entire eight yean since the embarEven though Iraq has lost approximately started. go $113 billion in oil revenue, as a result of the sanctions, Saddam and his ilk have continued their spending sprees unabated. Building lavish, multimillion dollar, new palaces with incredibly expenover-work- ed ut w of p, sive furnishings, fantastic landscaping, and increased spending amounts on "national defense" (also known as "weaponry" - the kind, of course, that the UJf. wants to continue inspecting for), and other extravagant expenditures - all of which have occurred since the unctions have been in effect In feet, the trip from Baghdad to New York in November, 97, made by Tariq Aziz and his seven aides, via the world's most luxurious airlines, foe Air Guest Editorial aur-roun-da nreHHmMHBeeaamwnaHHmaHremwMn a . . Teach Children Respect, Not Rage ByKimberlee K. Kovach, Chair of the ABA Section of to turn down the volume on our voices, remove foe hate Dispute Resolution, pod Jack Hanna, Director of the from our speech, and begin to teach a radical concept to ABA Section of Dispute Resolution our children We are a busy nation. We scurry around with our .schedules, and too often dispense with civility in our an attempt to save time. We cut one another off in traffic. Wo bump into one another on foe street We pursue our personal and business agenda without the slightest regard for other people. Our children see that we care little for our fellow Americans. Similarly, our politicians play scorched earth games with one another and generally demonstrate a supreme disregard for civil or reasoned discourse. There is no limit to what our leaders will say about one another. And guess what -t- here ore children listening and watching! ' The average child entering fifth grade has seen hundreds of thousands pf acts of violence on television. This artjfce of violence continues throughout their school yeaniatidmany psychologists believe that it desensitizes youth to witnessing violence. When this omnipresent violence is coupled with the demonstrated incivility among adults and the easy availguns in our nation, tragedy can result The tragic ability incident, in the Arkansas schoolyard provides us an excellent opportunity to reflect on what we can do, as a society, to lower the decibel level and encourage' constructive discourse and problem solving. We must move toward a more civil society. We need France Concorde and, according to reports pub; lished in the Sab Lake Tribune, cost the Iraqi gov'i. ernment - together with all amenities furnished -almost $8,500 per head. Yes, Saddam and his cronies are living it up in I by style, but his people are paying dearly for his despotism. By booting the inspectors, his stalling, gained My little one is growing up. Tyler, my baby, turns two him time which enabled him to move and this Saturday. It seems like it was only yesterday that I his manufacturing equipment and his stockthe little bundle home from the arsenals into deeper,, more brought piles of hospital. In two short years hes grown from a helpless litsecretive locations, thus defying detection even tle pink liimp into a toddler whos well on his way to being ntoresa But mainly to provide for worldly petusal-tha- t ' . alittleboy.- he was a squeaky clean, victimized Hes growing up. He says "thank you" and "please and leader, who was merely wanting to comply so "you're welcome. He loves all the little boy stuff like ice . "his people wouldn't have to suffer." , cream; candy, spaghetti, chicken nuggets, and meat loaf Mud: like a snake who eats its prey by grab- .drenched in ketchup. He sings along with Barney and his favorite videos are The Aristocats and The Brave Little bing a victim usually a small rodent - which appears to foe human eye much to large for the snake to Toaster". He squeals and runs to the door when daddy gets wallow. But foe snake grasps U firmly in it jawa home- - He foveahla yellow blanky. And ha already knows now to touch nil inoRuny heart. lowly inching Ita fangs forward, ever forward on Ho talki up a Horn. And not Juit lilly words. Hs'a the hapless victim's body, savoring every auceeuiys in foil stutencai, Even strangiri will stop and ask speaking centimeter gained until the entire carcass disappears how old he la. When I tell diem he'a not yet two, theyre Into the snakes belly when the bulge is sltccesifelly amazed. The other night at the dinner table, we were strugdigested. Saddam la probably looking at his border- - gling, trying to get him to eat his dinner. I want to get tog neighbors right now (shades of Kuwaiti) as just down now, Ty la said. so many rodents, and how aoon (and easily) he No, Tyler. You eat your dinner, daddy said firmly. might feast on them once he swats the pesky fly foot . Tyler. stuck out his chest, lowered his voice and said the U.N. has become to him. "Dont tell me no. I dont like it! he has TVfert Dont you talk to daddy like that, I said, trying skilled his Through manipulative 'genius, been able to gain enough Arab (and other U.N. asso- hard not td laugh. Tyler turned to me, cocked his little head and to a very ciated nations) sympathies to tip the scales into a sweet demure little voice, said "What mommy? He even precarious and highly speculative, if not temporary, foe; inflections to use! knowp to basiWhile Kofi Annan regarded at advantage. Hes got hair the color of golden straw basking in foe cally a good man, and who acted to foe moat honorsun, gpd crystal blue eyes foot dance with excitement Hes able way he could to avert foe tragedies of aw, he a hapgy child, always ready wifo a laugh and a giggle. And appears to certainly be no match for the likes of hes a good boy, tan by no means a perfect angel. He is full Hussein. It would be difficult to predict what will of innocence and the devil and life. He has a smile that happen next, but the Iraqi problem shows signs of lights up his entire free and sparkles to his eyes. Hes a tougtne and can certainly hold his own wifo his tog brothbring with us for awhile. Sane months ago to the International Herald er. Hiftias Devin to tears as often as Devin has him crying. Tribune, Richard Pole, formerly with the Beagan But hdTs got a gentle side, too. A few nights ago I was reading him a good night story. administration - in a seminar - said he liked to think tunned the page and my thumb got caught between the He ' foe he wasn't the only person to roan who hoped tow head looked at me wifo concern on his pagcwJMy'httfe solution-tthe prbblenf of that no diplomatic Sidtan would be fooad. rfi preted this, cryptically, for Get Saddam To ilhs- - motfV took to his little hand and put it to his finger my in his trete it, William F Buckley mentioned-thi- s lips and gently kissed my pinky. A11 better now, 21998 column (and foil is our Thought fa the .moauay, he said. , Day): in the last analysis, such liberties cad be Oh, it still hurts a little, I said with a smile. He kissed defended only in airtight morel situations... It would .my finger again, then offered me a tug on his binky. i have been good, no, if somebody hacshot HitfejfTr-of me would like to keep him little; to protect him hat each human - tion to schools that cannot afford to hire a private organization to Implement a program, or that do not have volunteer programs available in their communities. Skills learned through peer mediation can be used not only in the schools, but in foe .students! neighborhoods and throughout their , " Peer mediation programs akme.won't end.tcbool yio- fence. But they can go a long way toward returning us to the more respectful approach to hudum interaction we seem to have lost Until we increase foe positives in the sum of influences oa our children, we will be left with only the negatives - feck of civility in ev&yday interaction,' media violence, gutter politics, and the pady availability of guns. The ABA encourages community leaders to start mediation programs in their schools, aqd to make training in conflict resolution available to paren. Just Stuff . Jqn and keep him cloistered from the world; to keep him that Innocent little tow head willing to blue-blanket- ed share his btoky. And yet another side of me is anxious to watch him grow add learn; watch him develop into foe fine young man I know he will become. But it is hart. As I hot up hli Onesiei, his choir-boy-ty- now-Vut-zros- alaapan and hii 13 month ihirti that won't itratchovar, his fat little tummy anymore, I realize Im closing the chapter oa a time of my life. . -- ", 1 . being has value, and that such value deserves respect Peer mediation programs in schools can help. They teach students how to listen to one another, how to solve conflict without violence, how to manage anger, communication skills, self respect, trust, and how to express feelings in a constructive manner. The American Bsr Association it volundoing its small share to promote peer meditation teer lawyers in 21 cities art working to bring peer media- ed ... -t- ' I won't experience the joy of carrying another child in my womb or again holding my own newborn to my breast Gone are the days of having a small bundle form to the contours of my body, his soft breatlj tickling my ear. Tyler is my test I wont again expe- rience having a babe , to tiie house and all the joy it brings. All I have are memories of by gone days; happy, wonderful memories. And a lifetime ahead, of watching him grow. Happy birthday, lit- tle buddy. Mommy' ovc y001 The Stanm Cbuite Baa (UF9T 929-Mh pubSshed week tor SIS yew to Summit County, Senior I Discount, sis In county; 121 county to Maw fttbuArv toe.. 979 West loo South, Iteber City. UT 94092. Periodicals Postage PMd at Coalville, UT 84017. POSTPU8TZR: Send addrea changm to The Swim Oounta Bee. P A Bee 7. CnMh, UT . 64017. . |