tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41073608826858516362024-03-13T12:35:27.565-07:00Heather MangalWelcome to my world of writing...Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.comBlogger9125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-48904466077163598392011-03-21T20:14:00.000-07:002011-03-21T20:16:23.082-07:00Former Journalist - Claudia Dowling<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; line-height: 32px;">Claudia Glenn Dowling wears her dirty blonde hair very long, straight, and parted in the middle, which</span><br />
<div lang="en-US" style="font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">is reminiscent of her days as a hippy. She stands in front of a classroom of young, aspiring journalists and tells them her story on how she became a feature writer and the highlight of her career; her climb up Mount Everest.</span></span></span></span></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> As a feature writer, Dowling has wrote for </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Discover</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> magazine, </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Life </span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">magazine, </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">People</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> magazine, and </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The New York Times</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. She climbed 24,000 feet up Mount Everest for one of her stories for </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Life </span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">magazine in addition to the many emotional, real life stories she has done throughout her career.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Dowling was born on December 13</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><sup><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">th </span></span></span></span></span></span></sup></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">1950 in Ann Arbor, MI. Her father was a herpetologist and her mother was a Spanish teacher. Dowling is the oldest of four, she has two younger brothers and a younger sister. One brother is a musician, the other is a set carpenter for the movies, and her sister is a graphic designer. Dowling's path to becoming a feature writer may not seem typical.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> After graduating from Vassar College with a major in Chinese in 1972, Dowling had no idea what to do with her life, so she moved to Hawaii and lived on the beach selling muumuus and growing cabbages. "After doing that for about a year, I decided I wanted to do the exact opposite, so I thought what would that be and then I thought, well I'll move to New York City," says Dowling. </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> When Dowling arrived in New York City in 1973, she began looking for a job. Time Inc. offered her a job as a coffee girl for their start up magazine called </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">People</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">. After delivering coffee and ordering sandwiches for a little while, Dowling began copy-reading and helped get the magazine ready to print. She was there for the launch of the very first issue. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> She soon became tired of copy reading and moved to Springfield, Il to start up a newspaper with her boyfriend and another couple. Dowling was the main political reporter, but worked their until she broke up with the boyfriend and then moved back to New York City. </span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> At that time she went to work for a women's sport magazine that was started by Billy Jean King and then went back to</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> People </span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">as a movie critic and movie writer. After that she had a baby girl and went to work for </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Life</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> part time. It was at </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Life</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> that she learned how to write a deeply emotional story in which she credits the photographers she worked with for teaching her. "I knew how to write a newspaper kind of story, but I didn't know how to write a deeply emotional story until I learned how to approach people slowly and delicately, like the documentary photographers I worked with did it," says Dowling. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Dowling spent four days with a woman dying of a special kind of Leukemia for a story for </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">People</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> magazine. She sat with the woman all day every day until the woman went to sleep. Dowling thinks that her and the photographer made nuisances out of themselves, but says how cooperative the dying woman was."She was willing to take these important four days out of her life to tell her story to the world," Dowling says about the woman. She continued to say that writing emotional and personal stories is extremely difficult because it is hard to separate natural human feelings from work. </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> </span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> "She [Dowling] is one of the best writers I've ever met, a very experienced and accomplished journalist," says Elaine Rivera a colleague of Dowling's from Time, Inc. and a professor at Lehman College.</span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> The highlight of Dowling's career was climbing 24,000 feet up Mount Everest for a feature story for </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Life</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> magazine; Dowling was the only woman among 24 men and she has always been terrified of heights. The men had to talk her through it because she did not think she was going to make it. The cold was so extreme that her watch and pen would freeze during the night. The purpose of the story was to find out why people actually attempt to climb this mountain. During her hike to the top she witnessed a solo climber die through binoculars.“We watched him go into his tent and he never came out,” Dowling said.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> Today, Dowling lives on the Upper West Side in New York City and freelances a little, as well as writes feature stories for a small magazine called </span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">American History. </span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">She also rents two houses in Block Island, RI, where she also ran a surf shop called “Claudia's Surf City”. She has also recently moved out to the Ozarc mountains in Missouri near the Arkansas boarder.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"><br />
</span> </span></span></i></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div><div lang="en-US" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 200%; margin-bottom: 0in; orphans: 2; page-break-after: auto; page-break-before: auto; page-break-inside: auto; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; widows: 2;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><i><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;"> “</span></span></span></i></span></span></span></span><span style="color: black;"><span style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span lang="en-US"><span style="font-style: normal;"><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">The world is filled with fabulous stories, I mean everyone of you has one. My experience is that if you sit down with someone long enough, everybody has a subject in which they are utterly fascinating, you just have to find it,” says Dowling.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></div></div></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-6169019242821027262011-03-21T20:04:00.000-07:002011-03-21T20:04:34.983-07:00Interview With Luna Management Group<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/pcZjv3zTPxo?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
</div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-42232919766770651922011-03-21T20:03:00.000-07:002011-03-21T20:03:20.391-07:00Interview With New York City Animal Care And Control Center<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/yPTRUCgzb0k?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/KUJq9Uv5knI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
</div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-37966200285292560352011-02-05T15:55:00.000-08:002011-03-21T20:01:02.647-07:00Interview With AIDS Center<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/zPJL3D8WEGI?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPJL3D8WEGI&feature=youtube_gdata_player"></a></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-37264097990222295572011-01-17T08:13:00.000-08:002011-03-21T20:11:00.425-07:00Profile On Ilona Smithkin<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="font: 12.0px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; min-height: 15.0px;">As she sits in front of a wall in her tiny cluttered Greenwich Village studio apartment that holds an assortment of her colorful paintings of flowers and naked women, Ilona Royce-Smithkin, 90, who seems equally as vibrant and dazzling is surrounded by tons of multicolored bright fabrics in addition to boxes and drawers loaded full of a lifetime of her treasures. Her hair is fiery red as are her matching ultra-long faux eyelashes, which she makes from her own hair, and she wears a blue Tweety Bird sweatshirt and drinks take-out coffee out of a petite demitasse. “It‟s more fun to drink coffee this way,” she says with her decidedly European accent. </div><div style="font: 12.0px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; min-height: 15.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">And fun she has had, especially in these twilight years of her life. Smithken has quite a history of accomplishments. As a former member of The Art Student League she developed a network that led to her teaching painting on television, and later writing a book, <i>Painting With Ilona, </i>based on this show. Today she is singing in off-Broadway “Eyelash Cabarets” and doing fashion modeling for Time Out Magazine and “The Look Book” in New York Magazine. She has managed to succeed and keep working despite the pain she is in from arthritis and also from her emotionally difficult childhood. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Smithkin was born in Poland in 1920, but a year after her birth, the family moved to Berlin. As a young girl living in Berlin during the Great Depression and World War II, she constantly feared the Nazis knocking at her door. “When you are living in a police state, you are afraid someone is going to come, pick you up, and kill you,” she said. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">During Smithkin's fearful childhood the artist in her started to bloom; she used this talent to make and sell hats, but gave the money to her parents to live. “Today everyone claims they have a dysfunctional family,” said Smithkin. “I hear people say, I don't want my son or daughter to go through what I went through,‟ but there is nothing wrong with what we went through.” She went on in regards to the great depression she grew up in. Smithkin believes that today's generation is spoiled and does not know how hard it really can be out there. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Her actual artistic talent was discovered by one of her schoolteachers in Berlin. However, her father thought art was a waste of time and told her, “I don't want one of these crazy bohemians in my family.” But Smithkin's mother believed in her talent and therefore encouraged her to pursue it. When Smithkin blossomed into a young woman she went to study art at The Royal Academy in Belgium. Soon afterwards, her family decided to immigrate the United States due to their dangerous life in Berlin. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Smithkin arrived in New York as a teenager and lived on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx with her family. She worked in a factory, which made her appreciate hard labor. “I think every statesman and politician should have a little while, where they do menial work,” Smitkin said, “and then they will understand what regular people go through.” In addition to working in the factory, she continued to make and design hats and leather goods. She also ushered at concert halls. Her salary was $13 a week, which she gave to her parents. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Her youth was not perfect; she was never happy and did not know how to laugh. “When I came to the United States, I was amazed how people could laugh so freely,” she said. Her father would tell her that she couldn‟t do anything right, furthering her insecurities. She did not believe that she would ever be somebody, especially an artist. It would take her years to figure this out and she eventually did through the kindness of the people she met. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">At 18 Smithkin married a young man who served as a pilot in the United States military. She married young because she wanted to get away from her parents and also because this young man wanted more than to simply sleep with her. “He was a very nice person,” she said. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">However, he died while serving in World War II. Smitkin was never remarried and became very used to her independence. Today, she sees different kinds of people for different reasons. She may have one “date,” as she refers to it, that she always goes to the movies with or one that she attends the theatre with. “I used to believe when you fall in love with someone, you fall in love with them because they fulfill all your needs,” Smithkin says, “but I don‟t know if that is very true anymore.” Having children was never a desire of hers. “With children, you never know what you are going to get. I know a lot of loving parents who have had horrible, awful children,” she said she has no regrets about not having raised a family. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">From the time Smithkin moved out of her parents‟ home in the Bronx, she has always lived in her top-floor studio in Greenwich Village. This doesn‟t mean that she has never been anywhere else. In fact her art has taken her to quite a few places around the country. “Traveling is a ripening process. It really gives you a completely different outlook,” said Smithkin. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">In the mid-60‟s, she traveled to Louisville, Kentucky, the first place where she was truly on her own, away from her comfort zone. The Kentucky Arts Commission discovered her in Louisville and took her around Kentucky to a number of small communities before commissioning her to teach art classes. Teaching helped Smithkin realize that she actually had something to offer the world through all the positive feedback her students gave her. One woman wanted to learn from her so bad that she brought Smithkin to South Carolina, installed her and fed her. After that, Smithkin traveled around South Carolina and wound up teaching in 14 different communities within the state. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">One producer was so fascinated by her art that he wanted to produce a show all about it on South Carolina Educational Television. Smithkin was the first woman who taught fine art on television. The show was called “Everybody Can Paint, If You Want To” and she made forty half-hour segments. Smithkin eventually wrote a book based on this show, the title is “Painting With Ilona.” After her adventures she returned to her studio in the Village to continue painting. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Four years ago, Smithkin underwent a painful hip replacement. “I thought to myself, 'I am very positive, something good has to come from the pain',” she said and went on to paint 54 “pain portraits” in 54 days, as she puts it. They eventually became part of a traveling show, “Menopause,” consisting of art done by women over 80. This “Menopause” exhibit wound up in the Women's Museum, Wiesbaden in Frankfurt, Germany, and 40 of Smithkin's portraits are there now. </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Today Smithkin's spirits are high and her attitude is positive, despite the chronic arthritic pain she is in. She attends pain clinics, goes for acupuncture, and has to lie down often. However, she still paints, draws and makes all of her daily routines into fun, like running her bathwater, she gives herself what she calls little “goodies” to look forward to throughout the day. When she gets really down in the dumps, she thinks to herself, “What would you tell your students?” Smithkin continues to teach in the Provincetown museum in Provincetown, Massachusetts every summer, which is where her summer home is. She performs her “Eyelash Cabarets” in the Provincetown nightclubs where she sings Edith Piaf songs like “La Vie En Rose.” </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">“I never say no when things fall in my lap. I never go out and hustle and ask for it or fight for it, that time has come, but when something falls in my lap I say okay,” says Smithkin, like modeling for Time Out Magazine and “The Look Book” in New York Magazine, which she recently did. Smithkin is regularly featured on a blog called “Advanced Style,” which is about stylish people over 70. “At 90, Ilona is an inspiration to all. She is a fearless lover of life and a great artist and performer. I hope to have as much energy and creativity when I am her age,” said Ari Seth Cohen, publisher of “Advanced Style.” </div><div style="font: 11.5px Cambria; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Cambria; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">Gina Brooke, Madonna’s make-up artist and a close friend of Smithkin says, "Ilona is a true vision of light. She exudes the most beautiful energy of artistic expression and above all, life," </div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;"><br />
</div><div style="font: 11.5px Times New Roman; margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px;">“I have never been as happy as I am [now] because of all the wonderful people I have in my life,” Smithkin said. She hopes to be an inspiration to younger people who are struggling with their identity. Her philosophy is simple, “Never look at what you haven‟t got. Always look at what you have accomplished.” Her style is based on what colors look “happy” because happiness is so important to her now. “My life actually started ten years ago,” she said referring to all the opportunities that have come her way. Still, when asked what her plans for the future are, Smithkin at 90 said, “I don't even buy green bananas anymore because I don't know if I will live to see them ripe.” </div></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-41656361261737368272010-09-27T16:46:00.000-07:002011-01-17T08:14:49.356-08:00Animal Care & Control Center of New York City<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/yPTRUCgzb0k?feature=player_embedded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-58406087698615173752010-09-19T17:28:00.000-07:002010-10-27T15:12:26.273-07:00Profile On Eddie Daniels<style>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">When given the choice to be labeled as black or white, it takes a brave man to choose ”black” in a racially segregated society such as South Africa. It takes a braver man to fight the system for social and racial equality.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Fighting the system in order to end oppression and injustice in South Africa was what Eddie Daniels, 83, did and it was what got him imprisoned in the all black prison, Robben Island for 15-years. It was during his stay at Robben Island that he befriended Nelson Mandela, his jail-mate. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Daniels had dealt with race issues his whole life. He was one of six brothers and sisters born to an African-American mother and a Caucasian father. The family lived in an impoverished area in South Africa known as district 6 where they struggled to get by. “I take exception to being referred to as ‘Coloured,’ as I see myself as a South African. If I must be referred to in terms of colour then I prefer the term ‘black,’” Daniels said. He went on further to say that he chose to recognize the African-American side of his heritage because he was proud of it. “Skin color does not reflect integrity, dignity or character… Skin color is insignificant,” he said. Daniels also compared skin color to flowers in a garden, all beautiful and all different.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;"> Daniels was sentenced to fifteen years after he blew up power lines and railroad tracks in South Africa in order to protest the opposition and injustice of the apartheid region. When he first got to the Robben Island prison, he was segregated from the other inmates because he did not look black and the Robben Island prison is an all black prison; later he was assimilated with the rest, which is when he met and befriended Nelson Mandela. “He [Nelson Mandela] was the greatest of the greatest,” Daniels said. Mandela and Daniels had in depth discussion about politics during Daniel’s stay at Robben Island.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">"We recall his loyalty and courage; his sense of humor, and justice as well as total commitment to the struggle of the prisoners for the eradication of injustice and for the betterment of their conditions,” said Mandela according to The Michigan State University Press.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Today, Daniels wants to thank the world for helping to crush the apartheid regime. He is currently touring different universities and speaking to students where he tells them about his story as a freedom fighter. The University of Kentucky and The South African Festival sponsor his tour of the United States. He just wrote a book called <u>There and Back</u>, which is an autobiographical account of his time at Robben Island and his time with Nelson Mandela. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span style="font-size: small;">Daniels begins his lectures with a poem by William Ernest Henley that relates to his friend Nelson Mandela. The most important parts of the poem according to Daniels are the last lines, “I am master of my fate. I am captain of my soul.” At the end of the poem he stresses these lines by telling the audience. “You are mater of your fate. You are captain of your soul.”</span></div><style>
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</style>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-534689089279534902010-05-21T07:38:00.001-07:002010-10-27T15:05:49.204-07:00The Moral Status of Animals<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 32px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 11px;"> </span></span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">All human and non-human animals are sentient beings and it is morally wrong to cause unnecessary pain and suffering towards any sentient being for the benefit of humanity especially when the product of the non-human animal’s pain and suffering is not a necessity to human existence. Therefore, the anthropogenic pain and suffering of non-human animals for reasons that are not necessities to human existence is morally wrong. I will be discussing three topics that pertain to the anthropogenic unjust and immoral treatment of animals: the inhumane practices of factory farms; the unnecessary pain and suffering caused by the fur trade; and the torture endured through animal testing by cosmetic companies. I will conclude this paper on the discussion of when it is morally permissible for the anthropogenic use of animals as a means to save the greatest amount of human and non-human animal lives.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">It is valid to say that humans and animals do not deserve equal treatment, but they do deserve equal consideration. This is a point that Peter Singer makes in his essay All Animals are Equal. Singer goes onto say that if a being is sentient than that being has interests; their interests are to experience as much pleasure and as little pain as possible. They have a will to live and therefore they have an interest in self-preservation. We should not take advantage of any living creature based on their species because it is not justifiable and there is no basis for it. Just as there is no basis or justification behind racism and sexism. Speciesism can easily fit in with racism and sexism because it discounts the interests of a species who clearly has interests, just as racism discounts interests of a particular race and sexism discounts interests of a particular sex.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">The practice of the mass breeding and the genetic engineering of chickens, cattle, pigs, etc., as a way to make profit is an accepted method for factory farms today. After these animals are brought into the world through mass breeding and genetic engineering they are subjected to large amounts of pain and suffering until they are murdered. Their murder is usually not a pain-free way to leave this earth either. Laying hens spend their entire lives cooped up in battery cages where they cannot turn around or move their wings. Their feet sometimes grow around the wire that they stand on. Chickens get their beaks cut off, so that they will not peck the workers in self-defense. By the way a chicken getting its beak serrated off feels the same as a human getting their finger cut off. Cattle and pigs get castrated without any painkillers. Some animals are still alive and conscious when they are being cut up, dropped into boiling water for the removal of their feathers or skinned alive. The bottom line is that these animals are capable of feeling the same pain as you and me.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Food is necessary to human survival, but food made from animals is not a necessity to human survival or existence. As a matter of fact, humans would be much healthier and they would live longer if they were to give up eating any food derived from animals. In addition, the land that is used to hold the animals on factory farms can be used to grow much more whole foods such as vegetables and grains. So, it would be wrong to say that factory farms and their products are necessary to human existence. The underlying reason why factory farms exist is to put money in the pockets of large corporations. Therefore, the only interests taken into consideration are the profits that the farmer will make. The interests of the animals completely go out the window proving there is inequality in the consideration of interests here.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">Is there a reason to wear fur in the 21st century? No. However, people continue to wear fur to make fashion statements and to prove that they have some sort of hierarchy in their social status. The participants in the fur trade today, both buyers and sellers do not take into consideration the interests of the animals who died so that people can make statements on fashion and wealth. We know what humanity gets out of wearing fur, but what do animals give up so that their fur can be worn? Similar to animals on factory farms, animals on fur farms spend their lives in tiny cages. Once they come out of their cages they are either electrocuted or skinned alive for their fur. Again the pain these animals feel is the same pain we as humans would feel if we were being electrocuted or skinned alive. Sometimes it is just easier and cheaper for the furriers to stomp the animal to death or strangle it. Once again profit controls human interests while ignoring the interests of our fellow animals. One may say, well it’s okay to go out into the woods and kill an animal for its fur by setting up traps. This idea is wrong. Traps in the wild cause animals to die a slow death that include several days of suffering. Sometimes, the animal will chew off its foot to get out of the trap and then the animal will bleed to death or suffer deadly infections, thus prolonging its pain and suffering. Do the furriers interests in making a profit or the fashionistas and socialite’s interests in looking good outweigh the vast amounts of suffering that fur animals endure? I think not. Today, fur is not a necessity for clothing. There is plenty of cotton, rayon and denim to keep humanity warm. Therefore it is morally wrong to use animals for their fur because “looking good” is not necessary for human existence.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">The human interest in “looking good” outweighing animals interests in living a life without pain and suffering is also the case in cosmetic company testing. According to PETA, companies such as L’Oreal and Revlon pour the chemicals of their new products into the eyes of rabbits to test that their product is safe for human use. One could argue that it is important to know that the products we use are safe. However, there are plenty of cosmetic companies out there that do not test on animals; maybe their product is a few dollars more, but is saving a dollar every time someone buys make-up a greater interest for humanity than the animal’s interest in not having their eyes burn out? Why don’t L’Oreal and Revlon switch to methods that do not involve animal testing? They probably want to make more profit by being on the cutting edge of cosmetics and testing on animals is their easy way to achieve their profitability. Again, profit is the backbone in human interest and animals continue to suffer.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">The only time anthropogenic testing on animals is morally justified is when the results of the testing will benefit the greatest number in any species whether it be human animals or non-human animals. This theory is associated with the utilitarian theory, “the greatest good for the greatest number.” Biomedical testing on animals in AIDS or cancer research would benefit the greatest number of humans; there are tests on animals as well that can save that animal’s entire species. However, for any of these tests there should be the absolute minimal amount of pain inflicted as possible. In addition, these tests should be non-invasive and the quarters where the animals are kept should be comfortable. It would be morally wrong to capture an adult animal in its habitat and take it to a lab because the animal will be confused and scared; it will not understand the reason for its captivity and thus suffer from fear. Any animals used in research should be born and raised within a laboratory environment. If the animal was a test subject for AIDS or cancer research, the animal should be painlessly euthanized when the experiment is over. If the animal was being tested for a psychological study and not injected with a disease, than that animal should be sent to a conservatory or sanctuary at the end of the research study.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">The only dilemma with allowing animals to be tested in biomedical research and psychological research is why can’t other non-rational sentient beings be tested, for example, comatose patients or marginal human beings. A further inquiry would be, why can’t we just test AIDS and cancer on murderers who are waiting on death row; why is it that we only use non-human animals in testing that would benefit the greatest number of all human animals. This to me is speciesism.</span><span style="font-size: small;"><br style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;" /></span><span style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size: small;">All sentient beings feel the same pain on the same levels. A quote from PETA’s president Ingrid Newrick is as follows, “When it comes to pain, love, joy, loneliness, and fear, a rat is a pig is a dog is a boy. Each one values his or her life and fights the knife.” This quotes supports the claim that any being that feels pain, has a will to live and an interest in themselves whether they are rational or irrational and should have their interests taken into consideration. They should not have to suffer so that a rational species can satisfy their material needs.</span></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Georgia,serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Lucida Grande'; font-size: small;"></span></span>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4107360882685851636.post-51568291860599487522010-02-22T09:21:00.000-08:002010-10-27T15:07:58.291-07:00The Not-So-Ideal Work Space<div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">If someone were to ask me if they could see the place where I do my homework, I would show it to them, they would tell me how "crappy" it is, and I would agree. You see, I just moved into an apartment, in The Bronx, that I share with a roommate. Both of us are college students, both of us are broke, and neither of us have barely any furniture. My portion of the rent confines me to my room which consists of a big blue air mattress; a black three tier, fold-up bookshelf unit; a dark colored, half-circle T.V. stand; and a silver, medium sized T.V. I tried to make my room look like a home, so on my wall I hung a 24'' X 36" black and white photograph of an abstract view of the Eiffel tower to break up the monotony of the white walls. The bare white walls make me feel like I am institutionalized. The Eiffel tower symbolizes the philosophy that in order to get anywhere in life, you need to climb. In addition -- for the sake of my privacy from those peering, creepy neighbors in the building across the way -- I hung white striped curtains on each of my two windows. </span></span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0px;"><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">My big blue air mattress dubs as both a seating area (the only seating area) and a desk. I sit on my air mattress -- hunched over and sunken in as it slowly deflates -- typing away or reading books by the light of the ceiling lamp, which is bright enough for my precious eyes to read. The pain in my upper-right back riles me all too often from my poor sitting conditions. Back pain is very distracting, but I can get distracted from even the scant amount of objects I have in my room.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">The silver television teases me by beckoning me to turn it on while I study, but I muster up my self control and turn my cheek to its bad influence. My laptop, already turned on, calls me to go on Facebook, to go on AIM, and maybe even checkout a dating website, but I turn it down.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">When I am confined to my Bronx apartment during the day, it often feels as if I am living in a Latin American Country due to the sounds of people shouting in Spanish outside my window and the sound-waves of Latin American music seeping through my floors from the apartment below. The sounds of music don’t stop there. Sometimes, I hear opera music playing next door or my roommate blasting "emo" music in his room. At least the music drowns out the barks of small dogs and the cries of screaming babies that seem to come from everywhere. Worst of all is that at times I will smell all of the food that the people downstairs are cooking and the smells are not good most of the time. The rare times that the food does smell good does not benefit me because it makes me hungry; I can't just walk over to my refrigerator and quickly cook up something to eat because I don't have a refrigerator or a properly working stove yet. Our landlord is what I call a “slum-lord." As I sit on my deflating air mattress surrounded by the institutional white walls and the sounds and smells of low-grade apartment living, I ponder on the better places where I could go to study.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">There are much better places to study and one may think I am crazy to subject myself to the inconvenience of my current work environment. However, the alternatives do cause me some problems. The fear of venturing out in the enormous city and scouting out a place that meets my needs in terms of the ideal work environment -- a place where I can call myself a "regular"-- seems a little too time consuming. I cannot just walk into any old cafe and feel at home; it will take time and patience, so in the meantime I am stuck in my humble abode with my deflating air mattress and the white walls in "Little Latin America."</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Why not just go to the library, you ask? Well, the sound of silence actually scares me. It is tough being anywhere quiet: a church, a library, a testing room. What if I were to sneeze, or what if my phone would accidentally go off; the whole room would stop and stare at me. This makes for a very uncomfortable environment. I could always sit in my room and listen to my Ipod as a way to block out the noises that come from everywhere, but then what if I start concentrating on the words of the music and get lost in the lyrics; that would take too much time away from my studies. This also does not solve the problem of my lack of desk and chair. So I am going to go with my first option and take the time to find a proper work environment that will meet my needs.</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">My first step will be to get out of the Bronx. The Bronx does not provide me with that inspirational place I need to be in. Therefore, I will probably venture into Manhattan and find a cozy, quiet cafe that serves my favorite kind of green tea and “Sugar-In-The-Raw," along with vegan baked goods. My café will most likely be found in Greenwich Village since it is quiet there, but not "library quiet." Greenwich Village seems like the perfect place to be inspired and being in an inspirational environment will motivate me to concentrate on my work. The lighting will have to be very bright so that I do not strain my eyes reading, but not so bright that all of my facial impurities will be visible. Sooner or later my café will start considering me a regular and all of my tea will be comp-ed. I’m not made of money; so of course my café will have free wireless internet. Please note that if I was made of money, I would have bought a desk, chair, and normal bed by now. In addition, for the sake of convenience, it will have to be close to either the number 1 train or the number 4 train. After the location is straightened out; I will need to decide what will accompany me at the cafe. </span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">Of course I will need my laptop for writing papers and browsing the internet for reference materials; such as a dictionary, a thesaurus and an encyclopedia. I will most likely bring all of my textbooks; I don't have that many, so it will not be a problem lugging them along with me on my commute. A gel pen will be needed because that type of pen allows for the smoothest writing. In addition, I will have to bring my binders and notebooks to reference my notes and take additional notes from my reading. I will also bring with me a bright yellow highlighter to highlight important facts within my reading. After all of these materials are packed up in my bag, I should be ready to go. </span></span></span></span></div><div style="font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px; min-height: 15px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><br />
</span></span></span></span></div><div style="background-color: #fdf3dd; font-family: Times,"Times New Roman",serif; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 16px; margin: 0px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="background-color: white;"><span class="Apple-style-span">It is unfortunate that I have to have obnoxious neighbors, a "slum-lord", and not a lot of funds. My utopia would be if my neighbors would just shut up, my "slum-lord" would fix the problems within my apartment, and I could get my hands on a desk and chair. However, I am not one to complain, so I will take my situation with a granule of Sugar-In-The-Raw and smile.</span></span></span></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: helvetica,sans-serif;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span></span></div>Heatherhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09825905742089386066noreply@blogger.com0