this is a paper i wrote in hopes of winning a scholarship for college. i'd really like it if you took the time to read it.
\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\Affirmative Action as an Opportunity
By: Rosy Ricks

Do I think Affirmative Action is important for minorities? That’s a tough question for anyone, but it really hits close to home for me. I have a unique perspective on this topic. As a biracial member of American society, I can see why there are such extreme differences in opinion on the social assistance programs available solely to racial minorities. I understand that in some cases it seems unjust, however many non-minorities may never know just how important these services have been to so many citizens. Affirmative Action has been a real cornerstone in the advancement of the civil rights of underprivileged minority groups. It has offered opportunities in self-advancement, be those opportunities mental, intellectual or social. Affirmative Action is about helping the grossly under-represented members of society cross that dividing line of hopelessness and poverty and crossing into the land of endless possibility.
Living in such a modern world, one would hope that social equalizers would be a thing of the past. These programs, however, are needed more so now than ever before. As the population of the United States of America rises, a large percentage of its minority citizens remain undereducated and unprivileged. This is due largely to the fact that many minorities lack the skills, opportunities and confidence necessary to become prominent members of society. Social equalizers such as Affirmative Action offer these minorities a better chance at achieving success by leveling the playing field and offering new experiences, which in turn lead to confidence and knowledge. As the individual is bettered, every aspect of life may be remade to strike a more harmonious balance to every living being, regardless of race.
Affirmative Action levels the social playing field. If a minority wishes to master a skill or trade, he may apply for financial aid through a local minority-oriented agency, such as the Urban League or the N.A.A.C.P. These grants, scholarships and loans offer minorities opportunity experiences in every imaginable field. After the door has been opened, success is much easier to come by. Surly there are some out there who are abusing these resources, but many applying for this type of assistance have a genuine desire to become better people. Without such chances, many goals might remain unattainable and leave people hopeless. Hopelessness is not the way to a brighter future for minorities or anyone else. Affirmative Action is an attempt to give everyone a fair chance at the good life we all dream about.
Social assistance is not intended to be a welfare source, and it is by no means such a thing. Affirmative Action is a compass to a better standard of living. Instead of giving a handout, the idea behind Affirmative Action is to prepare minorities mentally, intellectually and socially. There’s an old proverb that summarizes the concept fairly well: give a man a fish and he will eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime. With new opportunities come new life experiences. Teaching this man to fish is giving him an opportunity to better his life. If he comes away from that experience more knowledgeable than when he first arrived, then that attempt was successful. The man is changed. He is bettering himself and the lives of those around him. Being presented with the ability to better the self is a sure way to enrich a life.
Lives are not changed by these endeavors alone. Confidence and self-worth are both key values needed to become a well-functioning member of society. By introducing the necessary tools, Affirmative Action gives minorities a chance to build confidence in themselves and their actions, thereby becoming a better person. When one feels he has become a better person, it encourages a sense of self worth. This newfound self worth can change a person’s life for the better. These feelings of self worth are major assets. Self-assurance is a key that opens many doors to success. A person who has eclipsed any negative internal sentiments has a far greater chance of further improvement. This self-improvement will eventually extend outward. The more people feel that they can count themselves as members of society, the better society will become for everyone.
The opportunity to better the self mentally, socially, and intellectually should be given to any person who wish to do so. All in all, I believe that Affirmative Action and other similar programs are doing a world of wonder. Any program that can change person’s life in such a positive way should be held in the highest regard. Opening doors that have been long slammed in the faces of minorities is an amazing achievement. Although it may still have a few kinks to be worked out, Affirmative Action offers minorities so many wonderful opportunities which otherwise may not have been available.

because to some people, the truth is more painful than a self-inflicted gunshot wound....
(let this bullet be your guiding star)

for every letter written and never sent
for every birthday forgotten, spent alone at home with the vcr
for every dream shattered without regard for the dreamer
for every love that never was
for every flower i wish i could see
for every riverbank i'll never touch
for every lie that has ever been told
for every second of time wasted that may never be returned
for every dawn and every dusk
for every forgotten memory
for every t.v. dinner
for every twelve seconds
for every beautiful person onthe streets of the night
for every addict who will not see tomorrow
for every secret ever kept
for every fly ball
for every kiss goodnight
for every evening prayer
for every indescribable sentiment you've never felt

just take a moment to realize how truly fucking amazing this life can be.

today is the first day of the rest of my life, right?

as anyone who knows me knows, today is the day that john comes back from germany. thoughts on this? where to begin? ahhhh. the freedom issue. will i be able to maintain my cirlce of zen while the fellow politely intrudeth? hopefully so. will he be different? probably. will i be? ha, ha.

after tonight, i'll know everything i need to know about the situation.

note to self: stop going to george webb's.
sure, leslie gave you free coffee and cookies, but those days are over now. the new era of bad omlettes and soggy hashbrowns has dawned. so just give it up.

on a pleasant note, i cut my hair. gasp. i know. and i really cut it myself. it's all choopy and silly, but it's not like it matters anyway. i had a d.i.y. fashion revolution this week. it's been fun, but we'll see how long it lasts. finished the outline of the film. feel free to love it. i certianly do.

i also love vanilla yogurt, mixed tapes, and unexpected telephone calls from the ones you love the most.

yeah yeah, summer's almost through. i must say it's beeen fair. not too much in the excitement department, but it could have been worse. heh heh.

ciao. miao.

excuse me while i have an emo moment...

pinkgirlrock: who do you think you'll go to prom with?
alar04: i have absolutely no idea. i guess it depends on how the year plays out
pinkgirlrock: i always think that's kinda weird at our school... the most unlikely couples end up going together.
alar04: if i have a girlfriend at the time of prom which i hope i have, i will take her. if i dont have a girlfriend, then i dont know. but prom is awhile away. so there is no rush yet
pinkgirlrock: i know. and we graduate too!!!
alar04: but yea i am thinking about it like in the back of my mind. after seeing everyone go thru it last year, the seniors i mean, its gunna be weird knowing that that is going to be us now. its like one of those things that you think about but never really expect to happen in a way, well you do, but you dont think about it, you know what i mean?
pinkgirlrock: i know. it's so cool. i wonder if the younger kids look up to us liked we used to look up to them?
alar04: senior year of high school, prom, graduation, then college. i dont know. thatd be cool tho lol
pinkgirlrock: i remeber the first day i came to walden,, and i saw leslie williams (a black girl with dread locks and an eyebrow ring) and i thought she was the most wonderful person i'd ever seen
alar04: yea. i dont even think i can remember my first day at walden. that was 6th grade wow
pinkgirlrock: i know
alar04: it seems like so long ago
pinkgirlrock: it was like 6 years agon
alar04: i can remember like just bits and pieces leading up to this. it all seems to weird still. thats why i want to enjoy it and make it truly memorable becuz you'll never have it again, ever
pinkgirlrock: i know. it's crazy
alar04: yea it really is. and most of the people you'll prolly never see again
pinkgirlrock: this is the last year i get to stare at aj... haha
alar04: except for maybe like a high school reunion or something. lol yea
pinkgirlrock: yeah, but by then, everyone will be a completely different person
alar04: yea true. i remember how many people cried the last day of school 8th grade, i wonder if anybody will cry last day of school this year?
pinkgirlrock: we already are all different people. we've all changed so much since middle school...
alar04: yes. i know i have changed tremendously
pinkgirlrock: i will probably cry the last day of school... and i don't do that
alar04: especially throughout my high school years. yea me neither, but i dont know what i will do. ill prolly get emotional some how, but i dont think ill cry
pinkgirlrock: i think everyone will be really close this year
alar04: ive grown a lot throughout the past few years. yea i think so. so many people will be gone, a couple new people. i hope it will be great
pinkgirlrock: we have all been through a lot together, and we never even think about it until it's almost over: who will you ever know this well again? who will be there for you at 2 in the morning to help you with your journey paper (or any paper for that matter?) who will know why you got suspended in the 7th grade and still like you anyway?
alar04: yea i know. no one ever really will
pinkgirlrock: it's kinda sad, but in a way it's really beautiful
alar04: unless it occurs that you stay friends and stay in close contact with one of your friends from high school, but thats always rare. yea it really is. after its over all you have is the memories of it all, of your days in middle school and high school
pinkgirlrock: and everything inbetween
alar04: its going to be a weird kind of empty feeling when its over. but i gues in a way kind of fulfilling to know you did that
pinkgirlrock: this is so sentimental, i am such a girl
alar04: lol yea i know. but its nice to just be able to talk about it like this
pinkgirlrock: yeah
alar04: really makes you think about it
alar04: and sometimes nothing can be better for you than time to think

another lovely day spent in the company of mr tim palacek. wonderful child! i think i'm in love.
first, a bit of napping was in order. upon awakening, we walked the scenic route to the grocer and purchased some very red hair dye and a fresh loaf of italian bread. once we got back to tim's, we cooked up a storm and ate out in the backyard. much of the day was spent in the grass, staring into the nothing. beautiful.
tim is now a sex-machine. silky red hair to die for. i am proud of my work.... not that it matters. anyhow, the day was so spectacular that i had to write about it.... i know that isn't my style, but i felt this was worth it.

also, the film is getting on swell. lots of people are leaving comments and they're great. if you don't know the address, it's
www.livejournal.com/users/shewants

eat your heart out, kevin smith: this is going to fucking rule.

dear god i am resurrected anew!
this music is so full of every sensation i've ever wanted to feel in excess......................
why? why me? why today? this is romance, this is something tha hasn't been touched upon in ages. a cascading balestraude if beauty in its mose exquisite form.

pinkgirlrock: sweet dreams
LilxTrung87: if only dreams were edible

this is the plan : movie.
rock and roll, motherfuckers.

beck, john lennon, devo, cypress hill, james brown, dynamite hack, frank zappa, hank williams, incubus, isley bros, jefferson airplane, joe cocker, king crimson, kmfdm, led zepplin, lynard skynard, mcdonald and giles, meatloaf
merle haggard, motorhead, neil young, otis redding, pantera, peter gabriel, phish, pink flloyd, portishead, queen, ramones, rod stewart, scorpions, sex pistols, SKEELO, skid row, sly and the family stone, snoop dog, dr dre, sonny and cher, soundgarden, steely dan, stevie ray vaughn, stevie wonder, sublime, system of a down, talking heads, ted nugent, the clash, the hives, the strokes, the temptations, the vines......the white stripes, the who, the yard birds, tool, traffic, ugly kid joe, van halen, van morrison, willie d, willie nelson, woodie guthrie, zz top.

hot damn, what a night!
no, not really it's one of those days where nothing is real and i don't care to make it so.....

Michaddison: i'm going to marquette on monday and madison on friday, and uwm soon. hopefully i'll find a better fit at one of those. i don't like it when people really want me to go to their school. i'm not the best that's out there, so i want to go somewhere that thinks i'm nothing special compared to the other students there
pinkgirlrock: great attitude
pinkgirlrock: it isn't like you got great grades and worked hard or anything... those bastards don't know what they're getting into!
Michaddison: well, if i'm going to pay thousands of dollars either way, i'd rather go somewhere that everyone tried harder than me and maybe i'll learn something from them.
pinkgirlrock: why couldn't you do that somewhere where you'd be among people of your caliber?
Michaddison: i don't aspire to be me.
pinkgirlrock: what are you aspiring to be then?
Michaddison: like those people who already had it all together in high school. i'm aspiring to be robbie erdman.
pinkgirlrock: who the hell is robbie erdman?


sigh. you know i love you. let's not bother with silly things such as these. let's think about all the things worth thinking about, like sunrise. or sleepovers.

good friends, good music, good times.

an extraordinary week draws to a close. i went to a phenomenal dance party, went thrift shopping, and just had an all-around rock and roll sort of time. sigh. this has been an insane summer.

everything is beautiful and right, and i have a million miles of freedom. this is amazing. i am in love with all of the possibilities. music everywhere, and nothing matters unless i want it to. incredible.

not to mention the sleeping. oh glorious moonlight activity! the sleep is heavenly and excessive. i think i'm in love.

<3.

She would never say where she came from
Yesterday don’t matter if it’s gone
While the sun is bright
Or in the darkest night
No one knows
She comes and goes

Goodbye, ruby tuesday
Who could hang a name on you?
When you change with every new day
Still I’m gonna miss you...

Don’t question why she needs to be so free
She’ll tell you it’s the only way to be
She just can’t be chained
To a life where nothing’s gained
And nothing’s lost
At such a cost

There’s no time to lose, I heard her say
Catch your dreams before they slip away
Dying all the time
Lose your dreams
And you will lose your mind.
Ain’t life unkind?

Goodbye, ruby tuesday
Who could hang a name on you?
When you change with every new day
Still I’m gonna miss you...


what do you mean, you don't understand?