It’s a curious feeling to wake up and be told your face is in the morning newspaper.

Such just happened to be the case on this, a weekend otherwise submerged in the one-week-of-class-left flood. As it turns out, the South China Morning Post (Hong Kong’s largest English newspaper) picked up the story of a little campus activism instigated by MC, my roomate and president of the Student Union.

The news story has embellished the situation a bit, but basically it amounts to the government raising the minimum wage and the University refusing to raise its cleaning staff salaries accordingly until contracts are renegotiated in July. Frankly, I think the University is holding to a legally justified posture–they have no reason, other than the goodness of their hearts, to give the cleaning staff a raise before the existing contract expires. What leads me to show solidarity with the cleaners, though, is the fact that their monthly salary (that’s supposed to cover food, shelter, transport, etc) is less than my monthly Pepperdine-allotted food stipend. This is not a poor University… what amounts to a few pennies from the coffers of the administration would make a world of difference to the very dedicated cleaning staff. I was also particularly impressed that a number of students banded together to support the cleaners; I figured the least I could do was offer the backing of a native English speaker.

So, when my roommate offered me the chance to participate in a demonstration he was organizing, I decided it was certainly an experience worth seizing and a freedom worth exercising. After all, there’s something mighty special about marching in a demonstration directly past the PLA Barracks. The demonstration wasn’t especially large but it appears to have been remarkably successful in achieving the goal of bringing press attention to the situation.

I’ve posted the article below; checkout the comments of my roommate (Chan Kai-chun) and the picture that features us both (he’s to the right of me, reading a speech).

<<click to enlarge>>

Welp, my bro, Mike, and I just said our “zaijians.” (There’s your free Mandarin lesson for the day… and you didn’t even have to crack a fortune cookie.) For the first time this semester, the vacation came to me in the form of a five day swing through HK courtesy of my brother and two of his fellow American Eagle flyers, Joe and Eric.

In short: a grand time. These guys pulled a full-time tourist schedule and saw nearly all there was to take in during their short stop. It was also a great opportunity for me to join them back in the tourist rut and explore some HK spots I haven’t yet seen, ranging from an Anglican Mass, to a snoozing jaguar, to a memorable conversation with a Cathay Pacific A340 pilot. As the Hong Kong academic calendar throttles up to the “Home Depot paint mixer/shaker” setting, I really enjoyed the opportunity to take my mind of campus for a few afternoons and enjoy some good ‘ole native English… particularly the dialect that only bunker-native Denistons speak.

Beyond the obvious enjoyment of seeing my shared genetic material incarnate in the five year older model, I must say there’s two things I greatly enjoy about the pilot mentality: they know what a schedule is and they don’t have a problem being direct. It was a pleasure to host some guys that were enjoyable company but respected my existing schedule. I’ve gotten frustrated at times this semester with the Asian plan-it-on-the-fly outlook, which is fun at times but can cramp my “smart plan = maximum efficiency” style. Also, maybe it’s just the fact that these guys are a few years more senior than most of my social sphere, but I found their ability to respectful yet direct on any object of discussion to be quite refreshing. These guys realize that ultimately they’re not helping anyone if they try to avoid offending someone by playing neutral. And I like that.

And so, tomorrow they begin the day-long quest back to the other side of the world, namely Puerto Rico. It sure puts me in awe when I align the pieces: I’m living in CHINA and my BROTHER just flew over for a WEEK. Family, freedom, and a small world. So much to be thankful for on this rice-laden Turkey Day.

We didn’t take a great deal pictures, so I thought I might just post one here in lieu of the gallery…

The blurry version. (L to R: Me, Mike, a street vendor, Eric, Joe)

The sharper, Eric’s-a-ninja version.

It’s been a week of tender turkey, but lumpy mashed potatoes.

Just when you think you’re at home in this island metropolis, the powers-that-be seem to quickly dispatch a swift but subtle reminder that one’s homeland still has its perks. For instance, on Monday morning I was feeling quite positive after a strong performance on a political science presentation regarding China’s demographic transitions. But, my ego was quickly returned to a convenient, compact travel size when I celebrated by academic victory with a trip to the dining hall. My order? An iced coffee and the 2 item set lunch. What ended up on my tray? A hot coffee, and 2 milk cartons.

It hit me as a cruel irony that I can tell these people in great detail what the population of their country will look like in 20 years, but apparently I can’t yet order a US$2 lunch with decent communicative efficacy.

But, all in all, the adventure is still grand, the challenge still intriguing. Though, with about two weeks of classes left, I think I have hit the point where I feel quite vindicated in making this excursion a single semester; I don’t know if I could keep this up for another four months.

My brother and two of his fellow-pilot-friends are planning to swing through HK this weekend, so I’m pretty pumped about seeing someone that shares not only my skin color, but my last name! So, the weekend should be a welcome pause of doing “the tourist thing” with my bro. Until then, I’m headed back to the books… In the final two weeks of class, I have: 39 pages of papers due, 3 tests, 1 Mandarin quiz, and 1 debate. And that’s before “finals”!

On rare occasion, something comes along that challenges me to consider if everything, or more accurately, anything I’ve ever done has justified the truest of sacrifices given on my behalf.

I came across the following thanks to Hugh Hewitt. It deserves to be repeated. Every day.

Hugh writes:

Yesterday I broadcast from the Manchester Theater at the University of San Diego. In the course of the program, I received this e-mail: “Hugh, because it is the Marine Corps birthday today, and because I heard that you are broadcasting live from USD, I wanted to let you know that USD lost one of its alumni on April 8th of this year, in Fallujah. His name was 1st Lt. Joshua Palmer. It would be great if you could somehow remind the students that they’ve lost one of their own over there, especially today, and especially before veterans day. Josh loved USD. He graduated just a year before going to Iraq, and still has a lot of friends on campus. In fact, he was president of the College Republicans there. Thanks,

Josh’s girlfriend,

Laura”

I read the e-mail on air, and asked Laura’s permission to post it. She agreed, and also sent along a copy of the remarks given at Lieutenant Palmer’s memorial service:

“Joshua Michael Palmer was born on Nov. 28th, 1978. He loved to read, he’s read more books than most people have heard of. He particularly loved history and politics. He also played football in High School. He had a very close group of friends while growing up, called the Banning Boys. They were like brothers. In High School, he was known as a leader. He was the guy who always knew what to do, in any situation. While in High School, he went on a trip with his friends to Mexico, and saw the children selling Chiclets gum on the streets. He saw the corruption of the government, and vowed that he would never let that sort of corruption ruin the lives of his children, or the children of America. That’s when he decided to join the Marine Corps., to prtect America from that sort of life. He began attending ‘Poolies” meetings right away (because he wasn’t old enough to join) and he practiced with the marines each weekend. He was the only soldier in the history of that unit to be promoted before actually being a marine. When they found out that he wasn’t actually a marine, because he wasn’t old enough, they couldn’t believe it. He got special permission to join when he was 17, but his mom had to sign waiver. Josh joined with two of his best friends, John Thompson and Ryan Hansen. He had one brother, and a mother and father. His parents divorced when he was in the 7th grade, and it had a lasting impact on his life. His family never really understood him. They thought that he was too determined, always trying to be better and do more. He tried to explain to them that he wanted to be someone in the world; that he wanted to do something important, to help people; but they never really understood.

I was engaged to Josh. He sent me flowers all the time. He loved to give people gifts. For my birthday, he spent hours wrapping each gift perfectly, and when it was time to open them, he wouldn’t let me, because he had spent so much time wrapping them. He took very good care of the people he loved. Josh worked hard at everything. He learned Spanish in 2 weeks, enough so that he could pass a fluency test and graduate college early. He wanted to graduate early so that he could become an officer in the Marine Corps., and then serve his country. He was in the top of his class at OCS (Officer Candidate School). Because of this, he could choose any MOS, or field in the Marine Corps. “He chose the infantry because he believed it was the heart of the Marine Corps.”, is how his best friend, Dominic Persechini explained it to Josh’s family. They were upset he had joined the infantry. Infantry is one of the most dangerous MOSs in the Marine Corps, but Josh wanted to make a difference, and actually fight for what he believed in, so he was willing to do it.

In college, when they passed out the reading lists for class, he had usually already read most of the books on the list. He often debated with his professors. He graduated from SDU, San Diego State University, with a degree in International Relations, political science. While he was there, he was selected from among the entire student body, to accompany a professor down to Mexico, to present a study on drug enforcement reform to the Mexican Government. He spoke in front of what would be the Senate for us. His love for children wasn’t just for his and America’s, he was determined to do something about the world’s children, and to fight for their future. That’s why he worked so hard to be selected to present this study. He believed that stopping drugs in Mexico would be one way to help the kids have a better future. It’s also why he decided to go to China for a few months, while waiting for TBS (officer training school in the Marine Corps.), and to learn Chinese.

Josh hated Communism. He saw what it had done to the people of the world. Once, a professor in college told the class that he thought Communism was the best way to live, that we ought to share everything, all of our money, and that doctors ought to be paid the same as gardeners. Josh stood up and asked the teacher to give his paycheck to the gardener, who was working outside. The professor was stunned for a minute, so Josh continued. He said “If it’s so great, why don’t you start? Sign over a check, right now”. The professor had never been confronted this way before. Josh always, always stood up for what he believed in. That is one thing that all of his friends have vowed to do, in memory of him, because it was so important to him that people live by their words and stand up for their beliefs. On anther occasion, this same professor began talking about the Holocaust. Josh calmly walked to the front of the class, and wrote 10,000,000 + on the board, the number of people killed by Communism. He turned to the class and said “The Nazis killed 6 million Jews. Communism has killed many more people, of all religions. Yet our professor will talk to you about how evil the Nazis were, but not tell you how evil Communism is.” Then he sat down. He was also known for his knowledge about Chinese history. His professor of Chinese History often asked him to lecture in the class. Why had he studied Chinese history so much? For the same reason he went to Mexico. He hated the corruption that had destroyed its future, and he was working on a way to try and help. He went to China to learn the language, and had plans to go back with a political group. Josh believed that, as humans, it is our responsibility to care for the people on our earth, and to help each other out, by the most effective means. Not just giving them money, but actually helping.

Josh also believed that it is a person’s responsibility to become educated. He said that we shouldn’t rely on others to do it, like the schools. It is our responsibility, and we have to do it for ourselves. That’s why he read so much. He wanted to know things, so that he could help. When he was 7, he and his mother were driving by a soccer field and he said “Look at all those parents who are allowing their kids to play soccer. Don’t they know it’s destroying their brains?” (He thought that having the ball hit their head would do brain damage over time. Even as a kid, he though it was important to develop our minds.)

He was so proud to go to Iraq. The same as when he had vowed to help the Mexican children, and the Chinese children, he felt that he could now help the Iraqi children. The week before Josh was killed, he had requested special permission to stay another year in Iraq. He didn’t want to leave until the work was done. He loved the kids there. He wrote home, asking for candy and toys, because he loved giving it to the kids and watching them smile. Every night, he ate dinner with Iraqi families. He loved them, and they loved him. He believed in what we are doing there. He told my cousin Laura that he wanted these children to have the chance to grow up with democracy, the way he did, so that they would have an honest chance of making their lives better. “Josh was exceptionally passionate about service to his country” was the way that one of his best friends, Ryan Hansen described him. Josh had a deep seated belief that the military had a benevolent purpose in the development of countries. One of his favorite books, Starship Troopers, talks about the military’s role in society. Dominic, when asked to describe why Josh had joined the Marine Corps., said, “He was a great student of history and he thought that it was warriors that make countries strong and prosperous.”.

On April 8th, in the afternoon, Josh’s convoy began taking sniper fire as they entered Fallujah. Josh was a first lieutenant, and led a group of men. Some of the men in the convoy, from another lieutenant’s unit, were injured by the sniper fire. It was determined that someone needed to hunt down the snipers and kill them, before they killed any of the men in the convoy. Josh had been trained in sniper hunting, and volunteered. He led a small group of men into the area where the snipers were. They pinpointed the snipers’ location and ran to the building were the snipers were located. Josh didn’t hesitate, he just ran. When they got there, they began clearing rooms with grenades. When they got to the room where the snipers were, Josh insisted on being in front. Usually officers stay in the back, because their lives are considered more valuable. But Josh had always said that he would never send his men somewhere he wouldn’t go himself, and the test of a true leader was whether or not he led from the front. It was known that there was a very high chance that the person in front would be shot, as they were so close to the snipers, and the snipers were waiting for them. Josh still went in front. He probably knew that he was going to be shot, but he wouldn’t allow someone else to die when he could have prevented it. So he leaned forward and threw the grenade. As he did, he fell a little bit forward, and was shot many times all up his left side and into his neck. Immediately his men pulled him back, and killed the sniper who had shot Josh, the other two snipers were taken prisoner. They pulled Josh to a safe location, where he eventually bled to death. The photo I have, which many of you have seen in the papers, is of Josh’s men praying over him, just after he died.

It is important to know that the snipers, when the US soldiers got there, were strapped with C-4, a very dangerous explosive. They were cowards and monsters. They had enough to blow up the entire city block. It was a civilian block, and many innocent people would have been killed. Josh died protecting other people, the same as the way he had lived. Somehow, it doesn’t seem real that someone like him existed here, someone with such high ideals and such brave determination. Josh’s captain, Captain Smith, said that Josh was an unreal soldier, that he’d never met someone so strong in his convictions and so devoted to a cause. We are left to wonder why it is so often those that are so great, that live with such nobility, are the ones to die. The answer is that, because of their nobility and greatness, they are the first to volunteer. It is often the better people who end up giving their lives for others. My cousin Laura, Josh’s girlfriend, said that she knew something like this would probably happen, because Josh was the type of person who would volunteer his life, if he thought it would help someone else. These are our heroes, the men and women who believe in the greatness of our country, and want to share that greatness with the world, so much so that they are willing to give their lives, on the small chance that some other poor, underdeveloped country will have freedom like ours I want everyone to know how much I love Josh, and how proud I am of him and the type of man he is. And that, because I love him, and I know how important these ideals are to him, I would do the whole thing again, because I knows that, even if Josh were told that he would die in Iraq, he would have gone anyway, because he believes it is that important. God bless our troops, and God bless America.”

“Earn it.”

Capt. John Miller

Well, folks, I’m sentenced to full-time academics this week, with no possibility of parole until the weekend. Thus, there’s nothing too terribly exciting to post on my end, but if you’d like to enjoy a few minutes of web-based-distraction, I thought I’d toss along a few links I’ve enjoyed this week:

RELEVANT Magazine does an excellent job recapping the election with, “Rock The Vote… Or Whatever.”

Family law is alive and well in China.

Today’s [insert Orange County movie line] “Shawn, you’re the same height as me. That is neat.” link comes courtesy of my Dad. Check out “Secret Worlds: The Universe Within,” thanks of FSU. Pretty spiffy, ‘eh? (If it makes you feel insignificant, make sure you’ve taken your time in front of the mirror today: “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and gosh darn it, people like me.”)

Also, special thanks to those of you that have taken the time to comment on trusty ‘ole Crimson Velocity in the past weeks. Blogging, like a bar mitzvah, is a lot more interesting with more than one person involved. If you’re feeling particularly witty, I always welcome innovative caption suggestions via the comment feature in the photo gallery.