High School, College, and University Students: This Notes for You!
June 2, 2009 at 7:28 am (Musings) (13-15 years old, 1960's, 5 stars, adolescent, aiming, all students, Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, banned all open expression of faith, banned churches, banned in schools, banned temples, bear the consequences, believers are imprisoned, best books, black and white, book, brainwash, brainwash the nation, China, Chinese paintings, Chodidees, College, College students, commune members, Communist China, condemned every form of religion, continue their studies, Cultural Revolution, degrees, destroyed, destroying the four olds, diaries, dictatorial might, dictators, don't take your education for granted, early 1970's, educated people, education can't be bought, education is denied many still today, effective member of society, faith and religious leaders, false literature, fear being overturned by the elite, fled China, genius, Germans, getting educated, gifted and genius writer, god-like, Gr. 6 department, grainy images, greatest writers of our times, hard labor, her spirit comes alive in her writing, High School, High School students, higher education, historical film, http://www.linkedin.com/in/chodidee, http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/research/edu20/moments/1966chinarev.html, ideology, insomnia, it's about the learning, Jason Chu, killed, labor camp in Germany, leader, leadership vacuum, literature, man-gods, many died for, Mao ideologies, monotone, Movies, music, my father, New Order, no one to turn for leadership, not about marks, not about the degree, old culture, old customs, old habits, old ideology, old textbooks, opportunity, organization, people, plays, power, powerful military, President Barrack Obama, Production, production declined, propaganda, propoganda, quasi-religion, really up to you, refused to go against consciences, renegade powers, revolutionary power, rhetoric, rinse and repeat, schools were closed, Secret Annexe, shut down, shut down in the country, so many in the past were denied, structure, student visa, study, studying for, take over nations, teachers, the intelligent-sia, the masses, the young are the leaders of today, the young are the leaders of tomorrow, treasure, trying your best, uneducated, unit, University, University Students, value your education, voiceover, workers, world leaders, writer, WWII, you must learn, you will find another opportunity in the process, youth of the country)
Hello! It is 5:09am as I start writing this. Yes, I do have insomnia again, but that’s not the point…About 2 weeks ago I started reading “Anne Frank: The Diary Of A Young Girl”. What made me choose that book? (never read it up till now). I knew vaguely of her family’s story during WWII, but I also remembered the Gr. 6 department at my “school” was going to do a unit on Anne Frank, culminating in seeing a play about her diaries (stoked my curiosities).
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I haven’t fully completed the book yet, but I realize beyond her extraordinary situation, timing, & her first person diaries of WWII life in the “Secret Annexe”, I see genius. She was truly an amazing person, a gifted & genius writer who wrote her diaries as a 13-15 year old adolescent! If she were alive today, I’m sure she would have become one of the greatest writers of our times (she had that much talent, loved school/learning so much, & her spirit comes alive in her writing). So often, we think of WWII and black & white grainy images of historical film with a monotone voiceover…her writing is a treasure, if you have read this book, or haven’t yet, I would strongly advise it. It’s 5 stars plus (i don’t rate easy)…and it’s simply one of the best books I have read so far.
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Here’s a relevant quote from Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, I would share with anyone who is in school in some form or another:
Tuesday, May 18 May, 1943:
“All students who wish either to get their degrees this year, or continue their studies, are compelled to sign that they are in sympathy with the Germans and approve of the New Order. Eighty per cent have refused to go against their consciences. Naturally they had to bear the consequences. All the students who do not sign have to go to a labor camp in Germany. What will be left of the youth of the country if they have all got to do hard labor in Germany?” ~ Anne Frank
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Another reference is the Cultural Revolution that took place in China in the late 60’s-early 70’s read this: “As students, workers, commune members and people from all walks of life were busy participating in the Cultural Revolution, almost everything was shut down in the country. Production declined drastically, and the country became stagnated. Schools were closed (they would not reopen until 1970 ) so that teachers and students could concentrate on “destroying the four olds”: old culture, old ideology, old customs, and old habits. All forms of the old- — old textbooks, literature, music, movies, plays, and Chinese paintings were banned in schools.”
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Furthermore, in Communist China during the Cultural Revolution of the late 1960’s-early 70’s. The Cultural Revoulution condemned every form of religion and banned all open expression of faith, churches, and temples are shut down and destroyed; believers are imprisoned, killed. link: http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/research/edu20/moments/1966chinarev.html
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As a side note the above paragraphs, my father fled China in fear because of this & many ofther actions within China at the time (on a student visa to Canada & never left). Imagine that, for like 5 years ALL higher education school was shut down completely…and high schools were taught propaganda & Mao’s ideologies. Why do dictators do this, countless times, over and over again, renegade powers take over their nation & one of the first thing they go after is the educated? Why? Because they fear educated people, and their ability to see through rhetoric, false literature, propaganda, their ideas – they fear being overturned by the elite/the intelligent-sia. If they take out the educated…the masses or uneducated, generally do not have no one to turn for leadership, organization, and structure, to form a counter against powerful military and dictatorial might. If you take out faith & religious leaders – people lose hope, and the “new takeover” power have more freedom to brainwash the nation through propaganda and make their revolutionary power into “god-like” or “man-gods”, make their power/ideology/leader into almost a quasi-religion.
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It’s not a joke, the young are the leaders of tomorrow, and some even of today. For example, President Obama is only in his 40’s and has 2 young daughters. Think about it, how many world leaders, do not have an education?
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Value your education. Treasure that you have the opportunity, that so many in the past were denied & many died for. Yes, higher education is expensive, whine & complain if you must, but remember the value of an education CAN’T be bought! You must learn, study, rinse & repeat all your own. How much you decide to learn is really up to you. Oh yeah, please remember it’s really not about marks & the degree. It’s about learning, growing, studying, trying your best, getting educated – so that you can become an effective member of society. You do those things, I guarantee you’ll get what you were aiming/studying for or you will find another opportunity in the process. O.K. 6:09am.
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One hour it took to write this…it’s all good! Anyway, just remember the value of your education was & is denied many still today, so don’t take it for granted! Value your education.
~ Jason Chu @Chodidees
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