Shake This Riddle Off

What Both Sexes Can Do to Stop Sexual Assault

Erin Beck — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 23:44:03 +0000

     April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Here at West Virginia University, several activities have been planned to raise much-needed awareness about the prevalent issue. Sexual assault and abuse is “any type of sexual activity that you do not agree to,” including inappropriate touching ,vaginal, anal, or oral penetration, sexual intercourse that you say no to, rape, attempted rape and child molestation, according to the Department of Health and Human Services. It can be verbal or visual or anything that coherces a person into experiencing unwanted sexual contact or attention.
     Just below 3 percent of college women become victims of rape in a 9-month academic period, according to the US Department of Justice. When this figure is translated to a five year college career, it means one in five women will experience rape during college. The Justice Department also compiled some other frightening statistics. In between 80 and 90 percent of rapes, the victim and assailant knew each other. Half of all student victims do not label the incident as rape. This is more likely when no weapon was used, no sign of physical injury is present, and no alcohol is involved. Less than 5 percent of rapes of college students are reported to campus authorities and/or law enforcement.
     To combat the problem, women who are victims of sexual assault have to report the crime. Alerting the authorities will lessen the chance that their assailant will repeat the same act again. Women should use common sense tips like being aware of their surroundings, projecting confidence, not walking alone and being wary of drugs and alcohol. They should also know how to defend themselves. The WVU Student Recreation Center offers a self-defense class designed especially for women, “Fight Like a Girl.” But they must also know that sexual assault is never their fault, they are worthy of respect and they don’t “deserve what they get.”
     Bill O’Reilly, when describing the rape and murder of a woman in New York City, felt it was important for his listeners to know what she was wearing. On the August 2 edition of The Radio Factor with Bill O’Reilly, he said, “She was 5-foot-2, 105 pounds, wearing a miniskirt and a halter top with a bare midriff. Now, again, there you go. So every predator in the world is gonna pick that up at two in the morning.” He also made sure to point out that “she’s out of her mind, drunk” and “moronic.”
     Even if a woman is wearing revealing clothes, walking alone and under the influence of alcohol, sexual assault is not her fault. It is irrelevant what she was wearing. No behavior is ever worthy of provoking an attack. Women never ask for it, and they never deserve it.
     Preventing sexual assault also takes the education of those who become the assailants. WVU could devote some of its sexual assault prevention efforts at men. Among some, it’s considered acceptable to use alcohol in aiding sexual assault, and some believe that it’s not rape unless it’s violent. All-male peer education classes have been shown to decrease beliefs in these rape myths . Minnesota’s Star Tribune described an experience by a student at the University of Minnesota who had been through one of these programs. Tyler Jones was drinking with friends when one said, “Hey, see that girl over there. She’s almost drunk. Not quite drunk enough. … What shot should I buy her?” Jones retorted, “Man, that’s not right. That’s rape. That’s sexual assault.”
     His friend was shocked to be called out because his behavior has become a social norm. Students need to call out their friends who allow these myths to persist. When students hear remarks like Bill O’Reilly’s, they should ask “Why is it relevant what she was wearing or what she had to drink?” When they hear friends blaming the victim, like in the recent case of Rihanna and Chris Brown, they should argue that no one ever asks to be assaulted. Exchanges between men, like that of Tyler Jones and his friend, could be an especially powerful way to decrease sexual assault. Stopping sexual assault requires women to know how to protect themselves and not be afraid to report it. It also requires the elimination of rape myth acceptability in the campus culture.

Ultimate Best-Of White Stripes Lyrics

Erin Beck — Fri, 02 Jan 2009 05:00:58 +0000

“dont let them tell you the future’s electric
cause gasolines not measured in metric.”

-The Big Three Killed My Baby

Yeah you’re pretty good looking for a girl
your eyes are wide open
and your thoughts have been stolen by the boys
who took you out and bought you everything you
want now

-You’re Pretty Good Looking for a Girl

Find a canary
a bird to bring my message home
carry my obituary
my coffin doesnt have a phone

-Hello Operator

The motion of her tiny hands
and the quiver of her bones below
are the signs of a girl alone
and tell you everything
you need to know

-Truth Doesn’t Make a Noise

Soft hair and a velvet tongue
I want to give you what you give to me
and every breath that is in your lungs
is a tiny little gift to me

-Dead Leaves and the Dirty Ground

these two sides of my brain
need to have a meeting
can’t think of anything to do
my left brain knows that
all love is fleeting

-Fell in Love with a Girl

Well I’m sorry but I’m not
interested in gold mines,
oil wells, shipping or real estate
what would I liked to have been?
everything you hate

-The Union Forever

300 people living out in
west virginia have no idea
of all these thoughts that lie
within you but now

-This Protector

You’ve got her in your pocket
And there’s no way out now
Put it in the safe and lock it
’cause it’s at home sweet home

-You’ve Got Her in Your Pocket

Don’t you remember?
You told me in December
That a boy is not a man
Until he makes a stand
Will, I’m not a genius
But maybe you’ll remember this
I never said I wanted to be a man

-The Air Near My Fingers

Don’t even need a drink of water
To make the headache go away
Give me sugar pill
And watch me just rattle
Down the street

-Girl, You Have No Faith In Medicine

Jack it’s too bad about the way you look
You know I gave that horse a carrot
So he’d break your foot
Will the two of you cut it out
And tell ‘em what it’s really all about

-Well It’s True That We Love One Another

Forever, just the word that she said that means never
To be with another together

-Forever For Her (Is Over For Me)

Well, let’s do it, let’s get on a plane and just do it
Like the birds and the bees and get to it

-Forever For Her (Is Over For Me)

She’s been singing it all along
But you were hearin’ a different song

-The Denial Twist

‘Cause everyone that’s under your shoe
And every bird and bee in the jungle, too
And everything in the ocean blue
They just happen to know exactly what to do
So why don’t you?

-Instinct Blues

White Americans, what?
Nothing better to do?
Why don’t you kick yourself out
You’re an immigrant too.

-Icky Thump

Well there’s three people
In the mirror
And I’m wondering
Which one of them I should choose.

-300 MPH Torrential Outpour Blues

Look another way girl I’m telling ya
God gave seven minutes right to ya.
And your mother put her money into platinum
So that you wouldn’t have to pay
Attention.

-Bone Broke

And there was a time when all I wanted was my
Ice cream colder, and a little cream soda
Oh well, oh well
And a wooden box, and an alley full of rocks
was all I had to care about
Oh well, oh well, oh well
But now my mind is filled with rubber tires
And forest fires
And whether I’m a liar
And lots of other situations where I don’t know
What to do at which time God screams to me
“there’s nothing left for me to tell you.”

-Little Cream Soda

I dig your little laugh
And I’m loving your quick wit
I even love it when you’re faking it

-I’m Slowly Turning Into You

I ain’t saying I’m innocent
In fact, the reverse
But if you’re headed to the grave
You don’t blame the hearse.

-Effect and Cause

Jack White Interviews Cate Blanchett

Erin Beck — Mon, 29 Dec 2008 20:13:52 +0000

jack white, from mtv

Jack White, singer/guitarist of the Raconteurs and White Stripes, recently spoke with Cate Blanchett for Interview Magazine. Both are incredibly talented artists, and their conversation was fascinating and thought-provoking.

A few quotes:

(On children)

JW: …We’ve got a girl and a boy now. Scarlett White and Henry Lee White. They’re holding each other’s hands right now. Each moment doesn’t last long enough, does it?

CB: I know. That’s why we just have to have more of them. The world is so massively overpopulated, but if you’re halfway decent-looking and you make nice ones, then I think it’s probably your responsibility to make more.

(On passion and the theater)

CB: I do think, though, that as a species we have been bleaching out our passion. The situation of existing in extremes-and I don’t mean violent, dangerous extremes, but rather extremes of thought or living with contradictions-is kind of considered increasingly abhorrent and antisocial. I think that’s why good theaters are really important. They allow you to exist in a space with other people and deal with these things, and not in a passive way.

(On live performances)

JW: The thing I love about live performance the most, though, is that the doors are closed, the lights are turned down, and the audience has to be reverential to what’s happening onstage. It’s not like being at home where you can change channels, fast-forward, turn it off, put the book down, or walk away. It’s this phenomenon where we all, as a community, go to church and sit and experience this thing together.

(On the Internet)

CB: I think the downside of the Internet is that speaking-or writing-has become the point in and of itself. I’m of the opinion that it’s okay to be silent, to not speak if you don’t have anything to say. Someone was talking to me the other day about her teenage daughter who is very creative. Now, to become a painter or a sculptor or a graphic designer is quite an isolated way to spend your life. But this girl’s passion, she said to her mother the other day, was being with her friends, and she said there’s this sense that she doesn’t exist without the other people there. It seems like people increasingly just can’t be by themselves because they’re so used to having an epicenter on the Internet that actually exists for other people. Until someone clicks onto your Facebook page, it doesn’t mean anything.

(On solo performances)

JW: Well, when you go out to give a performance, you’re putting yourself out there into the world to share with other people. If you just do it in your room by yourself, no matter how beautiful it is, is it dead?

CB: It’s always better in your room. It’s always perfect in your room. And then other people get in the way.

JW: It’s dead, though, in your room. It doesn’t live.

CB: It doesn’t mean anything beyond you having a little narcissistic moment.

Cate Blanchett, from Interview Magazine

And by the way, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is a fascinating must-see. The plot was layered and creative, inspiring emotion and thought. I usually can’t stand long movies, but this one held my attention. It’s highly recommended.

The Airing of Grievances

Erin Beck — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 04:07:27 +0000

As we all know, on Dec. 23rd we celebrate Festivus. One of the many traditions of Festivus is to gather one’s friends and family and express all the ways they’ve disappointed you in the past year. (Idea blatantly stolen from C.G. Shields.)

1. You didn’t involve me in one of the most important days of your life.

2. You proved, once again, that you don’t want to control your anger. It’s not that you can’t; you just prefer not to.

3. Rather than telling me a problem with me to my face, you chose to blast it like a high-school kid on a social networking site. You also chose to attack the person, rather than the opinion.

4. You’ve never liked me since I’ve been old enough for you to be jealous, but wanting to confront me about my personal beliefs among family during a holiday? There’s a time and a place…

5. You still haven’t realized that the way you’ve been brought up is horribly, horribly wrong. I thought maybe you would realize it with your newfound freedom.

6. You refuse to free yourself from a bad situation. In other words, you refuse to allow yourself to be happy.

7. You are incredibly judgemental, but I chose to look past this, because you see, I’m not. The way in which you chose to end a friendship was cowardly and childish.

8. You are overworked, and allow this to affect your own well-being and relationship with friends and family. Some of the things you forget are really important.

If you want to know if it’s you, ask.

Mormon Church Should Not Be Tax Exempt

Erin Beck — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 21:05:28 +0000

AP

My column in WVU’s student newspaper, the Daily Athenaeum, on whether the Mormon Church’s tax exempt status should be stripped due to their huge involvement in the passage of Prop. 8, California’s gay marriage ban.

Yes We Did… now what?

Erin Beck — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 07:14:51 +0000

Barack Obama, do not let us down.

You have achieved the trust of millions of Americans who had stopped believing politicians long ago.

You have inspired the hopes of millions of young people. We have allowed you to set the path for our futures. Prove that we were right.

Those with little money to give have found the cash to make $10 or $20 donations. Those with little time to spare have spent it working for the campaign.

This was the election of our generation. Years from now, will tell our children we supported you.

For many of us, this was the first election in which we could vote. Let us remember that milestone with pride.

End the war in Iraq, as you said you would. Too many of our friends have died in vain.

Guide our country back into prosperity, while allowing for other countries’ economies to improve as well.

Be wise in spending, but realize the priority of education. No Child Left Behind needs to be reformed now, and the American Opportunity Tax Credit must be enacted. We cannot allow troubles in the economy to keep Americans from learning and growing.

Reach out to Republicans and Independents. This was an integral part of your initial platform. We are all in this together.

Ensure that the campaign fervor will have a chance to survive.

Deliver.

Postpartum Depression in China vs. the United States

Erin Beck — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 00:20:00 +0000

Mental health is a universal issue, but in each country, citizens view it differently. The government may address mental illness, but most likely it must first face denial and stigmatization. Postpartum depression is no different. In China, where rapid economic growth has brought new hope for many, it has also raised new mental health issues resulting from urbanization. Of course, depression previously existed, but it is only beginning to be given a name.1 In the United States, there is a longer history of mental health evaluation and treatment,2 but Americans are only beginning to understand postpartum depression.

   In America, organizations such as the U.S. National Library of Medicine, the National Institutes of Health and the American Psychological Association perform research on PPD and disseminate the findings to the public. If an American tries to find information about PPD, they can turn to a wealth of resources. They will find that PPD is a serious mental health problem. Mothers may experience a period of prolonged emotional distress after the birth of a child. According to the APA, PPD can have significant consequences for both the new mother and family.3
   An estimated 9-16 percent of American women will experience PPD. It becomes extremely difficult for the inflicted to function in their day-to-day lives, due to cognitive impairment and feelings of guilt, anxiety, and fear. They may experience a loss of pleasure in life, insomnia, bouts of crying, and even thoughts of hurting themselves or the child. 4
   Even if thoughts of hurting the child are not a symptom, sufferers still have difficulty providing appropriate infant care. Research on American children of mothers with PPD has found that they may display insecure attachment and behavior problems. They are more likely to experience problems in cognitive, emotional and social development, and are at higher risk for anxiety disorders and depression in childhood and adolescence.5 Fathers too are more likely to become depressed if the mother suffers from PPD. 6
   There are several biological and situational factors associated with PPD. The dramatic shifts in levels of reproductive hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone, that occur after birth are linked to depression in susceptible women. 7 Other predictors of PPD include a personal or family history of depression, marital dysfunction, young age, acute stress, exposure to toxins, crowding, air pollution, poor diet, low socioeconomic status, and weak social support. The stress of a new child, especially one with a difficult temperament, is also a factor. 8
   In America, PPD is not a curse; mothers do not have to resign themselves to their fate. There are successful prevention and treatment tactics. To lessen a mother’s risk, she should seek social support from other mothers, friends and relatives, get enough sleep, and prioritize her responsibilities. To obtain treatment, she should consult a mental health care provider. A variety of effective psychological treatments exist, such as cognitive-behavioral and interpersonal therapy.9
   Research has found that the rate of PPD in China is comparable to that of the U.S., but the Chinese do not have the same resources to fight it.10 One study found that approximately one in every ten mothers in Hong Kong falls victim to PPD.11 Another study found similar rates of PPD among Chinese women in other areas, but a significant disparity between women who gave birth to boys and those who gave birth to girls. The study found that PPD is twice as likely to occur in Chinese mothers of girls than Chinese mothers of boys.12 In a sample of women in which 17.3 percent suffered from PPD, the rate of depression in women who gave birth to a female infant was 24. 6 percent while the rate in those women who gave birth to a male was 12.2 percent. The researchers speculated that, because prenatal gender identification had been prohibited in China by this time, prenatal factors were not as important as those that occurred postpartum, such as family member reactions. 13
   They speculated that:

The preference for male children may be communicated to the mother and those who deliver females may receive less support and less positive feedback. Social support has widely been found to be a risk factor for PPD. . . . Deteriorating marital/partner relationship after the birth of a girl baby may be another explanation.14

   A study published in 2001 in the Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology backed up the researchers’ speculation.15 This study examined thirty female Chinese patients who had been diagnosed with PPD and found they had less social support than a control group of women with no PPD. 16
   To understand why women in China who give birth to girls may be more likely to experience PPD, it is important to understand the public policy and social climate of China. China is the only country where suicides among women outnumber those among men, according to Beijing media quoted through Reuters.17 The ratio of male to female suicides in China is 0.8/1; in the U.S., it is 4.1/1.18 While the global average for suicide rates is 15 per 100,000 people, in China, it is 22. For Chinese women in the countryside, where the majority of Chinese live, it is 30 per 100,000. 19
   Michael Phillips, an associate professor of social medicine at Harvard Medical School and head of research at Beijing Hui Long Guan Hospital, studies this discrepancy. He explains Americans assume that virtually everyone who commits suicide has a mental illness. He argues that in China, this is not the case, and the society views suicide as “normal.”20 He suggests “support groups for rural women… and expanded services for mental health” as ways to combat the problem.21
   The rural areas are especially dangerous for rural women because they “(u)sually… have lower education or no education,” explained He Yanling, the chief doctor at the Shanghai Mental Health Center who worked on a 2004 report about the economic costs of depression.22 He explained that sometimes husbands leave for jobs (and even second families) in the city, leaving their wives on the farm. Those women “have less information and less knowledge about how to seek help,” he said.23
   Because rural Chinese women lack social support, mental health services and awareness of mental illness, they are not only at risk for suicide, but also for postpartum depression and other mental illnesses. Previous depression, often a predictor of suicide, is also a contributing factor of postpartum depression. A lack of resources to prevent suicide is also a lack of resources to prevent mental illnesses.
   Isolation is not only a rural problem. Even in cities, urbanization has led to “social isolation and lack of support from the family,” according to Esther S. Lee Yao, a historian who wrote Chinese Women: Past & Present. She claimed that “the imbalance between a rapidly changing society and the slowly growing progressive attitude of women toward their family role” has meant that “Chinese housewives are . . . confronted with the same kinds of emotional shock experienced by women in other advanced nations.”24 In China, urbanization has weakened traditional familial support networks.25
   Both Chinese and American women face the denial and stigmatization of mental illness. The Chinese have traditionally ignored the idea of mental disease, according to He. “Chinese usually think that psychological problems are shameful to mention,” she said.26 Psychological problems may not only be shameful to the Chinese, but they may not even be recognized. In fact, in China, no word distinguishes “depression” from “sadness.” 27 Harvard anthropologist Dr. Arthur Kleinman found in the 1980s that many Chinese did not think or talk about mental illness in the same way as Americans.28 They came to “healers” with physical complaints, such as dizziness or headaches, though in many cases in the United States they would be diagnosed as depressed. A World Health Organization survey published in 2004 found that 2.5 percent of Chinese reported a mood disorder in the previous year, compared with 9.6 percent of Americans.29
   The United States also has a long history of stigmatization of mental illness, but currently organizations, such as the National Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health America, work to combat negative images.30 Mental Health America’s website offers information, other web resources, and even the phone number of a help line.31
   Over the years, the Chinese have had political reasons to deny the country’s mental health problems. Norman Sartorius, former director of the World Health Organization’s mental-health program, pointed out that the Chinese and other Asians have tended to regard depression as something that plagued other places, but not their own countries. “It’s a problem of the West,” he said of the way the argument is characterized. “The Americans have depression. The English have depression. It’s their disease.”32 Officials at the Chinese Psychiatrists’ Association say that China has 17,000 certified psychiatrists, one-tenth the number in developed countries, in proportion to the population. 33According, to the CPA, ninety percent of the 30 million people in China suffering from depression fail to get proper treatment due to worries about discrimination and a lack of professional psychiatrists. But for the 10 percent that did receive medical assistance, the results are encouraging. Among depressed Chinese who seek hospitalization, the clinical cure rate was at a new high of 35 percent in 2007.34
   While a predisposition to depression explains why some Chinese mothers may be especially susceptible to PPD, it does not explain why one study found giving birth to a girl doubled the risk of postpartum depression. This risk factor is specific to China, because preference for boys over girls is common.
   There are several potential factors leading to this phenomenon. This preference is deeply embedded in the culture, dating back to Confucian thought, which dictates that the male rule over the female. There are also many Chinese proverbs which illustrate how unimportant women historically were in Chinese culture. Two examples are “A woman without talent is a woman of virtue” and “It is more profitable to raise geese than daughters.”35
   Because China lacks a social security system, parents rely on sons economically when they become old. Traditionally, women lived in their husband’s home after marriage and couldn’t provide much support to their own parents. Patriarchal family names are also considered an source of pride for the family.
   While America is also a patriarchal society, families are permitted to have more than one child, so having a girl is not a risk factor for PPD. The Chinese government instituted the “one-child policy” in 1979 to alleviate the social and environmental problems caused by overpopulation. The government uses food coupons and cash rewards to enforce the system. Yao explained that “having no son has been considered one of the three kinds of unfilial behavior, many people have had difficulty complying with governmental policy.” 36
   Infanticide with baby girls, though illegal, is not uncommon. According to Yao, it “ can be traced back to early Chinese history.” Dowries would have to be provided for female children at marriage. Yao explained that the practice was “greatly influenced by the philosophy of neo-Confucianism which denied women basic human rights, including the right to live.” She said “In early Chinese history, women were expected to produce as many offspring, preferably male, as possible.” She did conclude that women are better off in present-day China, partly because they are beginning to stay and care for elderly parents.
   Still, in 2005, some 118 boys were born in China for every 100 girls. In some regions, the figure has hit 130 boys for every 100 girls; the average for industrialized countries is between 104 and 107 boys for every 100 girls. Infanticide does not necessarily signal PPD, but the high rate of boys to girls does demonstrate a cultural preference for boys. This preference explains why the mother of a girl might be more prone to PPD.
   Chinese and U.S. women who suffer from PPD have different available options. If an American woman has PPD, there are several organizations she can contact, including the National Institute of Mental Health, the American Psychological Association, the National Mental Health Association, Postpartum Education for Parents, and Postpartum Support International. Depending on her financial resources, she can choose to undergo counseling, take medication, or even hire a mother’s helper. Women in the United States who suffer from PPD also have a vast array of literature to choose from when addressing their affliction.
   While mental illness in America is still stigmatized, there is an increasing awareness of PPD. When Brooke Shields publicly discussed her disease, she let other depressed mothers know that they were not alone. In an editorial composed for the New York Times, published on July 1, 2005, Shields reached out to new mothers everywhere who had, like her, experienced a deep depression after the birth of a child. Shields felt motivated to share her story after a very public disagreement with another celebrity, Tom Cruise, about the need for psychiatric medications. Shields said:

Since writing about my experiences with the disease, I have been approached by many women who have told me their stories and thanked me for opening up about a topic that is often not discussed because of fear, shame or lack of support and information. Experts estimate that one in 10 women suffer, usually in silence, with this treatable disease. We are living in an era of so-called family values, yet because almost all of the postnatal focus is on the baby, mothers are overlooked and left behind to endure what can be very dark times. 37

   Shields must also have given comfort to mothers when she published her book about her ordeal, Down Came the Rain: My Journey Through Postpartum Depression.
   Chinese women do not have a “role model” who has been through PPD. Those who lack a support system may not be aware that other women have experienced it. However, the media has begun to describe postpartum depression to Chinese women. A story on the website of the Chinese Information Center claimed that “close to half of new mothers suffer from postpartum depression.” The story does not cite the testing methods used to determine this figure. But if Chinese women do recognize they have a problem and decide to seek help, they have less resources than American women. The story explains that “depression is often misdiagnosed” and “ a select few maternity hospitals have psychological aid services.”38
   Dr. Alan Stone visited Beijing on behalf of the World Psychiatric Association to research the state of psychiatry in China. He found that “ most of the rural population… have no health insurance and for those in the cities who do, there are significant copayments for psychiatric hospitalization.” He also found that “the stigma of mental illness remains an overwhelming fact of life in China and this sociocultural reality creates a barrier to care and makes the specialty of psychiatry less attractive to promising young doctors.” In the United States, psychiatry is a lucrative and competitive profession.39
   In both China and America, health insurance is an important factor. According to the 2005 US Census, 15. 9 percent of Americans lacked health insurance.40 In China, 80 percent of rural residents and 40 percent of urbanites did not have medical insurance.41 For those that do, plans vary in their coverage of mental illness. The Chinese government did launch an effort in 2005 to help poor people receive treatment. It established 60 pilot sites in rural areas. According to China Daily, “In every site, 1,000 patients are registered and given free medical treatment.”42
   Other hopeful signs are emerging that the Chinese government is becoming willing to take the initiative to expand mental health services. The government launched its first national mental health plan in 2002, with a focus on depression. In October 2004, the State Council (China’s Cabinet) announced its mental health policy, spotlighting proposals to target resources at high-risk groups and make it easier for people to get treatment.43 China is also upgrading its training for mental health workers. Until recently, doctors could not easily specialize in psychiatry, He said. “If you worked in a psychiatric hospital, you were a psychiatrist,” she said.44 Doctors are now getting specialized training.
   The mental health establishment is growing fast, but it has a way to go to catch up with the system in the United States, and the stigma surrounding mental illness in both countries remains. Mental health outreach has only just begun, and has not expanded to specifically target new mothers. Chinese psychologists are engaging more with foreigners and looking for ways to adapt established theories and techniques to Chinese sensibilities, according to The Economist.45
   America’s idea of cognitive-behavioral therapy can be adapted to the Chinese culture, but Freudian concepts, with their emphasis on childhood trauma and repressed sexual desires, do not appeal as much. There remains much room for Chinese psychologists to develop their own theories. 46
   Of course, the Chinese are not without their own healing methods. China Institute in America, a nonprofit, non-partisan educational and cultural institution that promotes the understanding and appreciation of Chinese culture, addresses the issue of “Acupuncture, Depression, and Fatigue” by explaining that, although, western culture views fatigue as physical and depression as emotional, the Chinese view the two as intertwined.47 Evidence of their connection is achieved through traditional methods of Chinese medicine, such as pulse reading and tongue diagnosis. Acupuncture is one method of treatment for depression/fatigue. 48
   Postpartum depression is not fully understood in the United States, but the Chinese are only beginning to researched it, as they have only recently begun advocating for mental health. In both countries, women can greatly benefit from therapy and support. Each country can also benefit from culture-specific solutions. However, before these women will submit to treatment, they must admit that they have a problem. Postpartum depression suffers from intense stigmatization because not only is it a mental disease, but it contrasts with the traditional female role in both cultures. Women have recently begun to question this role, but traditional expectations about child-rearing and motherhood remain. As women’s health issues in general gain legislative funding and public awareness, so will postpartum depression. Women like Brooke Shields who have opened up about their own experiences have helped, but the best social support will be when women feel comfortable opening up to one another.

1 Gordon Parker, “Depression in the Planet’s Largest Ethnic Group:The Chinese,” Am J Psychiatry 2001. 158:857–864
2 “History of Mental Wellness,” MentalWellness.com. Ortho-McNeail-Janssen, Pharmaceuticals, Inc. http://www.mentalwellness.com/mentalwellness/history.html
3 Postpartum Depression [Fact sheet]. ,Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 2007, retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/postpartum.html
4 Ibid.
5Zara Herskovitz, “Study Finds Postpartum Depression Isn’t Just a Mother’s Ill,” The Boston Globe, June 24, 2005.
6 Ibid.
7 PPD [Fact sheet]. ,Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 2007, retrieved from http://www.apa.org/pi/wpo/postpartum.html
8 Ibid.
9 Ibid.
10 Lee, Dominic T.S., Alexander S.K. Yip, Helen F.K. Chiu, Tony Y.S. Leung, Tony K.H. Chung, “ A psychiatric epidemiological study of postpartum Chinese women,” American Journal of Psychiatry, 158 (February 2001): 220-226.
11 Ibid.
12 Goldbort, Joanne, “Transcultural Analysis of PPD,” MCN:The American Journal of Maternal/Child Nursing, 31(March-April 2006): 121-126
13 Xie R et al., Fetal gender and postpartum depression in a cohort of Chinese women, Social Science & Medicine, 2007, 65(4):680–684
14 Ibid.
15 Zhunian Xu and Biyun Lu, “Relationship between PPD, life events and social support,” Chinese Journal of Clinical Psychology 9 (2001): 130, 132
16 Ibid.
17 Reuters, “More Chinese women than men commit suicide: media,” Sept. 10, 2007.
18 Robert Neal, “Suicide in China Gives Unexpected View on Americans Who Kill Themselves,” Social Medicine: Harvard University. Feb. 1998
19 Reuters, “More Chinese women than men commit suicide: media.”
20 Robert Neral, “Suicide in China Gives Unexpected View on Americans Who Kill Themselves.”
21 Ibid.
22 Bruce Einhorn, “Suicide: China’s Great Wall of Silence,” China Journal. Nov. 2, 2004.
23 Ibid.
24 Yao, Chinese Women: Past & Present, 231.
25 Lee R.P.L., Ruan D., Lai G. Social structure and support networks in Beijing and Hong Kong
(2005) Social Networks, 27 (3), pp. 249-274.
26 Bruce Einhorn, “Sucide: China’s Great Wall of Silence”
27 Donal G. McNeil Jr, “Large Study on Mental Illness Finds Global Prevalence,” New York Times, June 2, 2004.
28 Benedict Carey, “Who’s Mentally Ill? Deciding is Often All in the Mind,” New York Times, June 12, 2005.
29 Ibid.
30 “History of the Organization and the Movement,” Mental Health America. Nov. 11, 2006. http://www.nmha.org/index.cfm?objectid=DA2F000D-1372-4D20-C8882D19A97973AA
31 “Factsheet:Postpartum Disorders.” Mental Health America. http://www.nmha.org/go/postpartum
32 Bruce Einhorn, “Sucide: China’s Great Wall of Silence”
33 “90% of Depression Sufferers Fail to Get Proper Treatment,” Xinhua News Agency, May 19, 2007.
34 Ibid.
35 Ling, Amy. 1990. Between Worlds: Women of Chinese Ancestry. New York, NY: Pergamon Press, Inc
36 Ibid., 181.
37 Brooke Shields, “War of Words,” New York Times, July 1, 2005.
38 “Postpartum Depression Widespread in China,” Chinese Internet Information Center, March 26, 2007. http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/cw/204405.htm
39 Kim Khan, “The hottest-and best paying careers, ” MSN Money, March 25, 2004. http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/extra/P78253.asp
40 Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “The Number of Uninsured Americans is at an All-Time High,” Aug. 29, 2006. http://www.cbpp.org/8-29-06health.htm
41 “Mental Health Treatment in Dire Straits,” China Daily, Oct. 11, 2006.
42 Ibid.
43 Bruce Einhorn, “Suicide: China’s Great Wall of Silence,”
44 Ibid.
45 “Mental Health in China,” The Economist, Aug. 16, 2007
46 Ibid.
47 Dr. Zhuoling Ren, T.C.M.D, “Acupuncture, Depression, and Fatigue.” The Edge, Oct. 1999.
48 Ibid.

Why I’m Voting for Barack Obama

Erin Beck — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 01:54:00 +0000

   My family is disappointed in me. Born and raised into a family of conservatives, Fox News was usually on tv. I am embarrassed to admit that age 18, I voted for George W. Bush. Then, I went to college. Or, according to my family, I crossed over to the “dark side.”
   I was warned. I was told that most of my college professors would be liberal, and that their political leanings would seep their way into their curriculum.
   But if most professors are liberal, they don’t infuse their viewpoints into their lectures. (Remember, my experience only applies to West Virginia University.) Because of the nature of the subject matter, most professors leave politics out of the classroom. In history and political science, controversial subjects may be addressed, but it is in the form of historical facts. Professors have heard the claims about liberal universities; they know we’re waiting for it. My American Government professor made jokes about how he knew we were “taking notes,” trying to figure out his political leanings. But if I had been, I would have never figured it out.
   I originally thought the most likely candidates for such a practice would be my political science professors, but they seemed to have intensely studied government for so many years that strongly identifying with one political party would have been ignoring facts. Neither party has it exactly right.
   College did not turn me liberal, although my family might perceive that it has, since they finally pulled it out of me that, yes, I am voting for Barack Obama. College has made me more closely identify with those beliefs I perceived in my political science professors. I believe that neither political party has it exactly right, so I will be voting for the candidate, not the party to which he belongs.
   I still believe in what I initially thought were Republican values; I don’t want government interference in how I choose to live my life. But since the Republican party believes no interference regarding guns makes more sense than no interference regarding gay marriage, I no longer associate that value with the Republican party. If there is interference, it should be for the betterment of American’s lives, not to dictate “moral values.”
   So why have I chosen Barack Obama as my candidate? The media seems to be fascinated about Barack Obama’s appeal to younger voters. John McCain thinks it’s because he’s the “biggest celebrity in the world.”
   Give us a little more credit, Mr. McCain. There’s a little more to it than that.

   Obama is for students.

   Senator Obama’s very first bill increased the Pell Grant limit to $5,100. As president, he plans to create an American Opportunity Tax Credit and simplify the Fafsa.
   He said, “It’s really important that we revamp our college loan programs to free up more money for students. The direct loan program works extremely well–there doesn’t appear to be a need for these student loan programs to be managed through banks and other private lenders. If we consolidate programs under the Direct Loan program, we would save $4.5 billion.”
Source: In His Own Words, edited by Lisa Rogak, p. 37 Mar 27, 2007
   Apparently, John McCain thinks that education ends with a high school diploma. (or at least, the need for a little help.)
Obama is for the working poor.

   He plans to create a tax credit of up to $500 per person or $1000 per family and simplify tax filing, and he wants to index the minimum wage to inflation.
   “Even when a parent works full-time earning minimum wage and EITC and food stamps are factored into their income, families are still $1,550 below the federal poverty line because of the flat-lined minimum wage.”
   (Source)
   McCain voted to abolish the minimum wage.
From a debate:
Q: If you’re elected to serve as president, would you be willing to do this service for the next four years and be paid the national minimum wage of $7.25 per hour?   OBAMA: Well, we can afford to work for the minimum wage because most folks on this stage have a lot of money. I mean, we don’t have Mitt Romney money, but we could afford to do it for a few years. Most folks can’t. And that’s who we’ve got to fight and advocate for. (Source)

Obama is for women.

   He aims to expand the Family and Medical leave act, which provides work leave for working mothers, from companies with 50 or more employees to companies with 25 or more employees.
   McCain was hesitant to even vote for the initial bill and won’t talk about expanding it. Planned Parenthood has a whole list of female-friendly legislation he has opposed.
   In 2003, McCain voted NO on legislation to improve the availability of contraceptives for women and to require insurance coverage of prescription birth control. (Source)
   I plan to begin my Master’s in Public Health in the fall. My mother is a psychologist, and has taught me about the need of the mentally ill. So that’s why it is so important to me that Obama is for our health.
   He supports mental health parity. Or in other words, insurance companies must treat mental illness as any other illness, and cover it accordingly. McCain’s website doesn’t think this an important enough subject to mention.
   McCain’s plan assumes that because people will buy their own plans according to their budget, they will choose the best plan for them. Not so. Young people will buy cheap plans because they are generally healthy, but this ignores the mental health crisis among 20-somethings. Insurance companies will continue to deny mental health treatment.
   Obama’s healthcare plan is also different from McCain because “No one will be turned away because of a preexisting condition or illness” and because it will include mandatory coverage of children.
The American Public Health Association agrees. They rated McCain’s public health voting record at only 25%.

Obama is for peace.

   “Obama is the only major candidate who supports tough, direct presidential diplomacy with Iran without preconditions.” (Source)
   Haven’t we learned yet that war should be a last resort? It is not a true last resort until you have exhausted every possible option.

Obama is for the separation of church and state.

The government shouldn’t be telling people who they can or can’t marry. Neither candidate completely shares my views. However, Obama was the “chief co-sponsor of Illinois’ version of ENDA [the Employment Non-Discrimination Acts, focusing on discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation].”(Source)
   McCain voted against the federal version.
   McCain wants to “teach virtues in all schools.” Virtues. Virtues???? Should the teacher read from the Ten Commandments?
   Obama wants to increase science and math. “Obama will recruit math and science degree graduates to the teaching profession and will support efforts to help these teachers learn from professionals in the field. He will also work to ensure that all children have access to a strong science curriculum at all grade levels.”
   If the schools are teaching values, when will kids catch up to the rest of the world in science and math? Does that mean the parents will take over teaching those subjects?
   McCain believes decisions on teaching evolution should be made locally. (source: Bruce Morton, CNN Aug. 27, 1999) So in other words, West Virginian kids will go to college in New York and be laughed out of Biology 101.
   McCain voted to declare memorial prayers and religious symbols OK at schools. He voted to declare that erecting religious symbols and praying on public school campuses as part of a memorial service does not violate the First Amendment to the Constitution, and to provide legal assistance to any government entity defending such a case. (Source)
   Remember my thoughts on government interference? How is it okay to take this choice away from parents?
   He voted YES on $75M for abstinence education. He voted to retain a provision of the Budget Act that funds abstinence education to help reduce teenage pregnancy, using $75 million of the Maternal and Child Health Block Grant Program.
Source: Bill S 1956 ; vote number 1996-231 on Jul 23, 1996
   He “voted NO on legislation that would help reduce the number of teen pregnancies by providing funding for programs to teach comprehensive, medically accurate sexuality education and other programs to prevent unintended teen pregnancies.” (Planned Parenthood)
     I thought he didn’t believe in wasteful spending. Abstinence-only education seems like wasteful spending to me.
Obama is for America.

Being a patriot doesn’t mean being blind to your country’s problems. Obama recognizes what is not working for America (privatized healthcare, skyrocketing college tuition, “nation-building”) and has designed comprehensive plans with the goal of improvement. McCain seems to think that government should just leave things the way they are… no interference unless it has to do with sex or religion, in which case the government knows best.
Maybe it is because I am in college. Maybe I am young and idealistic. But when did wanting to make things better become a bad thing? If anyone else reading this is young and a supporter of Barack Obama, remember that you are considered an “unlikely voter.” In polls of likely voters, John McCain is winning!
Please show up to vote on Nov. 4.

I Love Secret Diary of Call Girl

Erin Beck — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 19:45:00 +0000

I’m excited for the new episode of “Secret Diary of a Call Girl” to air tonight. I hadn’t really been a big fan of any new shows for awhile until I finally gave in and bought Showtime. “Call Girl” and “Weeds” are both appealing because they feel so fresh and uninhibited.

But apparently, several professional television critics don’t agree with me about “Call Girl.” Some do, but the reviews reveal a wide range of passionate viewpoints. The program has inspired such an array of opinions I wonder if the reviewers were all watching the same show. Metacritic has reviews ranging from 10 (out of 100) to 91, with an average of 53. From what I’ve read, they miss the point in two main areas. No one wants to admit why women might like the show. And they seem to feel as if there’s not enough conflict surrounding Hannah’s choice of profession.

So why do we watch?Assuming the viewers are mostly women, it’s not because it “indulges the common male fantasy that whores truly enjoy prostitution,” according to Alessandra Stanley at the New York Times. Time Magazine gets close, when James Poniewozik says it’s asking “What kind of women get into this business and why?
But that’s not exactly it. Aside from the fact that it’s a genuinely fun show to watch, the show is tempting because women don’t just wonder about the kind of women who become prostitutes.They wonder “Could it have been me?

”

It’s not logical to write off other women as destined to be hookers. We realize the they make a choice. I have often wondered if I would have had the capacity to make that decision, and I’m sure this thought has not been unique to me.

Stanley said that viewers are “expected to respond to Belle, …. but there isn’t much to her story.” This is exactly why we can identify with Belle. We are able to fill in the blanks however we choose. We can project our own ideas onto her.

Some critics noted that the show’s conflict does not revolve around the job itself, and is instead a subtle shadow of the job on the rest of Belle’s life. At Salon, Heather Havrilesky thinks “Hannah’s experiences make the life of a high-priced hooker look like an upbeat, sexy fairy tale.” Poniewozik says she “lacks the conflict a protagonist needs.” Stanley says “viewers may find themselves wishing “Secret” was a little less nice.”

But the conflict is slowly revealing itself as the show progresses. If the show’s conflict had centered around Hannah’s feelings about her job, “Call Girl” would not be an honest portrayal. Hannah chose her profession with a general sense of what to expect. Therefore, the conflict cannot revolve around the obvious implications of prostitution. If Hannah was moping in her room, worrying about STDs, or feeling bad about herself, viewers would ask, “well, what did she expect?”

Instead, as the show progresses, the conflict slowly becomes evident, and it revolves around areas of her life Hannah had originally planned to keep separate from her work (like her family and her relationship with her former boyfriend Ben.) The show doesn’t make her life look like a fairy-tale. It makes it look just as nuanced and layered as the rest of ours’. And that kind of conflict, the kind we can identify with, is exactly the kind a tv protagonist needs.

What Sex and The City Was Selling

Erin Beck — Sat, 12 Jul 2008 16:15:00 +0000

   It’s obvious that the gorgeous fashion in Sex and the City: The Moviewas a form of advertising for Vivienne Westwood, Manolo Blahnik, Prada and the rest of the designers whose clothes were featured. The outfits worn by Carrie, Charlotte, Miranda and Samantha have been heavily commented on by the media and lusted after by viewers like me. While the fashion on the show was more quirky than high-end, it was still a major trendsetter, and the filmmakers knew this movie would be scrutinized to the extent that a single episode of the show could not be. Thus, they took advantage of the the chance to make some extra cash in advertising revenue.
   So if knowing we would intently study the movie, and chose to “sell” us some clothes, they too made a constant choice to “sell” us some ideas.
   I want to preface this by saying yes, I realize the television show didn’t exactly glorify intellectualism. It too had a tendency to simplify complex ideas, focused on relationships over career and family, and encouraged stereotypes.
   But we as consumers don’t place so much blame on television shows when they do this, because it’s only a half-hour to hour span of time, and a new episode each week. In this format, it’s hard to “say” much of anything with each episode. We do enjoy watching characters evolve. But a half-hour is not enough time to peel back layers of personalities, revealing characters’ unexpected traits, or dive into complicated issues and ideas, in the hopes of unearthing a pure truth. Only a long-running show with devoted viewers can do that. Sex and the City, the series, did meet this criteria, and succeeded by choosing to focus on creating situations viewers recognized from their own lives.
   But the movie was an opportunity to take an as yet uncovered topic or situation, and really say something. The show made viewers say “That’s me! That’s how I feel!” The movie could have used its two hours to help them discover why.
   Instead, it chose to perpetuate lingering stereotypes about women and men.

   Mr. Big is so upset by Miranda’s admonishment that he and Carrie are “crazy to get married,” he gets cold feet and almost doesn’t show up to the wedding. If it was that easy for him to think twice, what does that say about his relationship with Carrie? What does that say about him?
   Carrie is so upset by his betrayal that she sinks into a dark depression. At one point, she is awakened by her friend Charlotte, who informs her she has slept until dinnertime. She then returns to her slumber. When it seems apparent that she has not eaten for days, her friend Samantha actually feeds her. Carrie is rendered as helpless and utterly hopeless.
   This part of the movie almost felt like they were mocking the mentally ill who do suffer from depression. Big was late for the wedding, because he had cold feet. Upon coming to his senses, he tried to explain himself to Carrie. He even said, “I’m ready now!” Was this the trigger needed for someone to become severely depressed who had not shown a single symptom of depression before?
   On the television show, it’s true that Mr. Big was commitment-phobic, but a statement from Miranda realistically shouldn’t have been enough to change his mind. On the show, Carrie was very relationship-minded, as she wrote a column on the subject, but was it really feasible to suppose she would have been sent into such a deep depression?
   It was almost as if the writers ballooned the characters’ personalities from made-for-tv to larger-than-life caricatures of themselves. They had a missed opportunity. They could have delved into perhaps why Big was afraid of commitment for so long, or why Carrie is so emotional. They could have explored how he got over his phobia, or watched as Carrie chose to throw herself into her work. Instead, they attempted to take television-worthy, simplistic material and extend it for two hours. Unwarranted drama over petty problems works on shows like “Sex and the City,” “The Hills” and “Grey’s Anatomy,” but it doesn’t transfer to movies. A movie is a chance to take on real drama and real problems. Was this the best the writers could offer?