Blogging just for the heck of it

What to do?

2009-11-03T16:28:00.000-08:00

Hello again World. Yeah I know I published something only a couple of days ago, and that I don’t really need to make another contribution to the blog in at least a couple of weeks, but still, here’s another entry for you. As I wrote in one of my earlier entries, I’m starting military service in January. For an entire year I’m going to work as a “whateverweneedyoufor” for my King. However, it’s only a year, so after that year is done I need to do something else. So what should I do after the year in green is over? Since I’m joining the force in January I’ll be done around the next January (2011). The study I’m going to apply for doesn’t start up until August, so that leaves me with eight months to do whatever I feel for. As of now I guess I’m going to work for eight months, and try to save up as much cash as possible so I can live a little more comfortable than other students. I’ve also been thinking about hiking to China or the moon. Still, nothing is decided yet, so I got to come up with something meaningful to do for those eight months.

Kjo1v

Québécois

2009-11-01T07:39:00.000-08:00

Hello world, what's up? As you probably know (from looking at my profile) I live in Ottawa for the moment. If you look up Ottawa on Google Maps you will find that it is right on the Ontario/Quebec border. So what, you might ask yourself, however, there is one big difference between these two provinces. In Quebec the official language is…FRENCH!!! If you have ever been to France before you know hard it is to get around only knowing English. Well, it is almost the same way in Quebec. The Québécois are so proud of their language and heritage that they often refuse to speak English (although 40% of them are fluent in both French and English). When I have to get groceries I usually head over to Quebec since the nearest Wal-Mart from my house is located there. Normally I don't need any help finding stuff, but those times I have needed to ask for help the employees just look strange at me before they say something in French and leave. What's up with that? It is either because: 1. They don't speak English. 2. They speak English, but don't like to use it. 3. They hate me. I hope its 1 or 2, but for all I know it could be number 3.

That was a warning to all of you who plan to visit Quebec without having any knowledge of French at all (like me). Be aware that it is not enough only knowing English, although you are in a country where English is the dominant language.

Kjo1v

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-10-13T16:48:00.000-07:00

In June I wrote that I probably would still update this blog from time to time. So here is an update for you (Mrs. Michalsen to be precise, since she is the only one who actually cares to read this blog ;)).

Since my last entry a lot have happened. I don’t longer live in Norway, but in Canada. Ottawa to be precise. My mum got a job over here, so I’m staying with her and my brother and sister to help out with whatever they need help with. Other than going to IKEA once in a while I spend my days reading various English and Norwegian books. However, I’m not a geek, so I do spend a lot of time cruising around in Ottawa exploring the city too. After all, the cops can’t give you a ticket for speeding if you drive a car with diplomatic license plates ;). So that’s basically my life for the moment. I’m also jogging a lot (almost forgot about that), trying to get in shape before I join HMKG in January. In mid-December this sweet life is going end. Then I’ll head back to Norway to work at Meny the entire Christmas and the two first weeks of January.

So if anyone got any questions about Canada, or how fast it’s possible to drive through a 50 km/h zone without getting pulled over, just ask and I’ll try my best to answer. That’s it for now, and I promise that the next update won’t take so long. (the house in the picture is the house I currently live in).

Kjo1v

The future of the blog

2009-06-30T03:27:00.000-07:00

Now that I am done with school I don't have to update this blog anymore :D. However, since I'm gonna take Internasjonal Engelsk as a private candidate this fall I might keep writing on it just to maintain my English skills. I can't promise anything but don't be suprised if you see a couple of entries during the fall.

Kjo1v

ATTENTION NEWBIES!

2009-05-29T16:56:00.000-07:00

Ehm…yeah…so I guess I’m supposed to tell you guys why Sandvika Vgs is such a “fabulous” school. The use of video games is the best part of being a student here. Having your own personal pc dedicated to gaming really makes the day go by fast. Instead of having to listen to a boring teacher telling you about how a wood cutter from 1764 works, you can kill zombies and conquer countries (Age of Empires 2<3). But you girls don’t worry! I know most of you aren’t that into video games as we guys are, but for you there is always facebook, myspace, and msn. They too are good tools for making a long day shorter. However, some people actually use their pc’s to take notes :-o, believe it or not. I started doing this myself in 3rd grade (was in the US my 2nd year), and it does actually help on your grade. I’ve managed to get a higher grade average after I downloaded MS-Office.2003.SP3 Norsk last fall. So deff take advantage of that you have a pc. Take notes while the teachers are burbling, and then when they give you a couple of questions to answer in class, don’t do them. They don’t care if you do them or not, so instead of answering meaningless questions you can start Halo and play death match with ten other guys in the same room (T matte Vg1). Seriously, having your own computer really makes the school day a lot more fun. Just try to not play games all the time (although this is gonna be hard in first couple of months, trust me).

If you got any more questions on what it is like to be a student at Sandvika Vgs, or being an exchange student: Hit me. Also if you need tips to what are the best “school games” just leave a comment and I’ll get back at you.

Only in America?

2009-05-19T16:27:00.000-07:00

Working in a grocery store

2009-05-19T15:02:00.001-07:00

Since last October I have been working in a grocery store as a cashier. This has lead to some frustration among my fellow students, and my teacher. Not that I am working there, but that me and another guy tend to talk about our work. The two of us usually work the same shifts, which gives us even more to talk about. Although I can understand that it maybe can be a little bit annoying to listen to use, I still think that the rest of the class overreacts. At least we got a job and can pay for our own stuff, unlike some of the people that complain about us. However, this blog entry is not supposed to be about me and my work, but a about a new book.

Anna Sam is the author of Les tribulations d'une caissière (The Trials and Tribulations of a Check-Out Girl). She has been working as a cashier in a French supermarket for eight years, so she defiantly knows what she is talking about. During an average workday (five hours) she found out that she said "Thank you", "Goodbye-have-a-good-day", "Do you have a loyalty card?", and "Could you remove your card please" 250 times a day, each. Everybody should be able to understand that having to repeat the same lines over and over again, will eventually mess up your head. Her book have so far sold more than 100,000 copies in France alone, and it looks like it will be published in 15 more countries. Hopefully people now will understand what it is like to be a cashier. It's not that easy as it might look. It may look like we sit just sit there, but we do have tasks to focus on. When a customer comes in and buys food for 4000 NOK, but realizes that his/her card is not working, and that he/she won't be able to pay, what do you do? If you then have an impatient line waiting to be checked out as well, things are not going to be easy. First of all you need to contact your manager (1 min), pack down the items the customer could not pay for (2 min), and then go back and take care of your line. Remember, during these three minutes where you have worked yourself a sweat, the line has grown even longer. Then when you handle the customers, who do you think they are going to take their anger out on? That's right.

Personally I can't wait to read Anna Sam's book. From the reviews I have read so far, it seems that she has the same issues with customers as I do. Customers don't look at us as equal humans, but as some kind of inferior race. If the old guy in dress that usually comes to my cash register every Friday would read this book, maybe he could make both mine and his day easier?

The Beginning of the End

2009-05-17T08:10:00.000-07:00

You Lost fans out there might recognize the title. In this case it's not about Lost or any mainstream TV show. It's about finally getting out of school after 13 year long years. That's right, soon I will finally be done with school :D:D:D. Thursday each and every one of us in VG3 (last year of high school) in Norway got to know what exams we will have to face during the next two weeks. I was lucky enough to come up in English, book Norwegian, and new Norwegian. Exactly how I wanted it turn out, so I am pretty happy with that. Got my first exam (English) next Friday so I am probably going to spend the next week going over my old papers to see what I did good, and what that I can improve.

We don't only have written exams, we also got one oral. This makes it a toal of four exams (three written, one oral). For my oral I would like to come up in English or history. Two of my favorite subjects, and I don't think I would have to much trouble to get a good grade in either. The oral exam is not until the 8th or 9th of June I think, so when I am done with the written ones I am basically done with school^^

British teens ^_-

2009-04-21T02:18:00.000-07:00

Here is another fine blog entry for you Mrs. Michalsen (I assume you are the only one that actually read this blog). This one is about British teenagers.

In the article “The Nothing-to-do Generation” British teens are portrayed as the worst teenagers in Europe. The funny thing tough is that they actually are the laziest, ugliest and most disrespectful teenagers in Europe if you ask me. Before you accuse me of being degrading towards British teens, and that I don’t know what I’m talking about let me say this. I have lived in the UK, more specifically London. I only lived there from I was 14 to 16, but what I experienced there when it came to British teens and their behavior was shocking. When riding on the train to Waterloo there was always some 16-17 year old guy or girl that made a big show by trying to act as stupid as possible. This includes vomiting on the floor, stripping, screaming constantly without stop, and having sex with him/herself (!). For a 14 year old Norwegian boy this was quite an impression, I was scared for life. It’s not only on the train British teen’s act as idiots. In the queue at Burger King or MacDonald’s some of them were always trying to sneak past the line. Then when they got their food they would eat it the same way as you expect one year olds to do. No manners, screaming and shouting, and not cleaning up after themselves. I got tons of more of examples, and remember I only lived in the UK for two years. Just imagine all the stuff you could experience if you actually move there for a longer period of time.

Since my first paragraph was kinda negative and I don’t want to get sued by the Department for Children, Schools and Families this one is going to be positive, (or at least more positive than my previous one). It’s not that easy being a teenager in the UK, actually it is quite hard. The class distinctions in the UK are a lot clearer than in most other European countries. Growing up in the working class or in the middle class the environment might not request too much from a person. As long as they follow their parent’s footsteps that’s good enough. For teenagers this may lead to restlessness and uncertainty. They don’t know what to do and many will make bad choices, which eventually for some will lead them into the criminal runway. The most important reason for the “downgrade” of British teens is because of the government. For many years’ social activities like activity clubs, sports clubs etc have received less and less funding. In the end many have had to close, leaving the kids with nothing to do except watching TV. Joking around in the streets is for many the only thing to do, which eventually could lead to criminality.

As a conclusion I would just stay that I might have not been 100% objective in my evaluation of British teenagers. However there are many reasons behind this, many of them being built on personal experiences. So if you are a British teen and disagree with me, please make a comment and try to convince me that you guys are not as bad as I think you are.

Jackie Robinson

2009-04-17T21:25:00.001-07:00

So I guess I was supposed to write something about African Americans or something. Since everybody else is writing about Martin Luther King Jr and the civil rights people I wanted to write about someone else. So why not Jackie Robinson? A famous baseball player in the US, but that few Europeans have heard about.

Jackie Robinson was born in Georgia in 1919. At this time Jim Crow laws were still in effect, and segregation was a major problem. Mr. Robinson did not experience that much discrimination during his childhood years, but of course he experienced some. It was not until he was drafted in 1942 he experienced "serious" discrimination. Mr. Robinson was sent to Fort Riley in Kansas where he was training with other blacks (back then the army was still segregated). Joe Louis, the famous boxer was also stationed at Fort Riley. In 1943 Mr. Robinson was transferred to Fort Hood, Texas where he became a part of the 761st Tank Battalion. This was an infantry unit only consisting black soldiers. Although the unit went over to Europe and served over there during WWII Mr. Robinson was held back. He had offended a white bus driver by not moving to the back of the bus when told so. Although most charges were dropped, Mr. Robinson was still given an “honorable discharge”.

From the years 1944-1947 Mr. Robinson played football for a football club in Los Angeles, and he played baseball in the Negro League. However in 1946 he was signed by the Brooklyn Dodgers (now known as the L.A Dodgers), making him the first African American in major league baseball. 15. April 1947 Mr. Robinson played his debut game for a packed Ebbets Field. This is by some considered to be one of the most important moments that later lead to the civil rights movement that started with Rosa Parks in 1955.

In 1962 Mr. Robinson was given a spot in the baseball Hall of Fame and in 1972 fatal heart attack lead to his death. Still, having been dead for 37 years Jackie Robinson's legacy lives on. He is often listed in different lists, like in 1999 when Time Magazine ranked him among the 100th most influential persons of the 20th century. This is just one of many rankings where the name Jackie Robinson is listed. Today his legacy is still alive and so it will for many years to come.

African Americans

2009-03-31T01:18:00.001-07:00

On 20. January 2009 Barrack Obama was sworn in as the 44th President of the United States of America. Obama was also the first non-white male to be sworn in as President. But does Obama’s presidency really change anything for African Americans?

Since the first African Americans came to America as slaves in 1619 they have always been a minority that has struggled. They have a higher dropout rate from high school, they make on average less than other groups, and they have a greater chance of going to prison. In 2003 791,600 black men were in prison and 603,032 enrolled in college. In 1980, there were 143,000 black men in prison and 463,700 enrolled in college. What we can read off these numbers is that conditions for black men have become worse during the last decade. Other surveys also indicate similar problems regarding salary, spending power and housing. Since these trend has been going on since the beginning of the 1980’s I think Obama is going to have a hard time to make things right since it’s not only black men that are struggling, but the whole black population as one.

OneNote

2009-03-25T04:23:00.000-07:00

For the last couple of months my teachers here at Sandvika upper secondary school have been worshiping OneNote and everything about it. Of course I agree with them that it is a great program but is it really necessary to start every class with worship? If I wanted to have worship as part of my school day I would have applied to Kristelig Gymnasium in Oslo, not Sandvika.

If you don't know what OneNote is here is a short description from Microsoft’s homepage: "Office OneNote 2007 is a digital notebook that provides people one place to gather their notes and information, powerful search to find what they are looking for quickly, and easy-to-use shared notebooks so that they can manage information overload and work together more effectively.” Sounds awesome don’t it? I can totally understand why the teachers here at Sandvika love OneNote so much. They are teachers. They usually got a lot more documents and presentations on their HHD's than we the students do. Why do we need an organization program when we don't have anything to organize? Don't get me wrong here, I do homework and what I'm told to but I feel that I got a good enough system for organizing my files. I don't need all my teachers to tell me how to do it. It's like I will get the grade 6 (best grade) just if I use OneNote according to my teachers. And why did they wait till the second semester before they introduced OneNote? I understand that Micro$oft are greedy and don't like to hand out licenses just like that, but seriously. The teachers can't just expect us to start using OneNote in the middle of the school year. Many of us have had OneNote on our machines since 2006 so to say that we did not have it before now is a weak excuse. I decided that I did not need to use the program back in 2006 and I have stood by that ever since. That's why I think it is so ridiculous that the teachers now in 2009 have started to praise a program that was introduced in 2006.

I am sure many people will disagree with me, especially my teacher Mrs. Michalsen. But to be honest I couldn’t care less what the OneNote fanatics think about a "denier" like me.

Obama on The Tonight Show

2009-03-24T14:48:00.000-07:00

A couple of days ago Barrack Obama appeared as a guest at The Tonight Showwith Jay Leno. Obama is the first sitting President to appear on a late night TV talk show. Obama’s appearance on The Tonight Show has led to a heated debate in the US if it is right of Obama to visit Jay Leno instead of staying in Washington, and try to fix the economy. So there are both advantages and downsides for Obama by being a guest on The Tonight Show.

Obama’s use of the media was one of reasons he won the election. His use of media forms such as Facebook, MySpace and YouTube helped his campaign to engage young people. This is a group that usally has a low voter turnout, but this was not the case for the last election. By using new forms of media Obama managed to get more people interested in politics (especially the youth) and therefore generating more votes for himself. It can be discussed if a night TV talk show is a new form of media, but at least it is something. What we must not forget is that Obama is now the President. He is now representing the people not only young people, but the people as whole. That makes it important to use a more traditional media channel such as TV; he can't only rely on the internet anymore since many Americans don't use the internet much or know how to use it. So by appearing on the tonight show Obama went out to the people, instead of waiting for the people to come to him. Another important factor in this time of crisis is information. For many people it is a lot easier to understand what is being said on a night TV talk show than reading a political magazine. Obama is getting down to their level by appearing The Tonight Show.

However there are a few downsides as well. Critics are saying that Obama appears as a President that is more interested in media attention than fixing the economy. They are saying that he should have stayed back in Washington to work as much possible. During the interview with Jay Leno Obama also made a joke that did not turn out that good. He compared his bowling skills with the skills of an athlete in the Special Olympics. In today’s society where everything have to be political correct this was a huge mistake by Obama. Other than that he did not make any remarkable mistakes while he was on the show. So overall I would conclude with that Obama probably gained more than he lost by appearing on The Tonight Show.

The Falkland war

2009-03-24T05:12:00.000-07:00

The Falkland War was fought between Argentina and England in 1982. The two nations were having a dispute over the Falkland Islands. Although the Falklands are located 300 miles east for Argentina's mainland, and Argentina is the closes nation the islands are part of the UK.

In 1982 Argentina had been under a military dictatorship for several years. During this time the country had experienced a decrease in their economy, and people were starting to get angry with the leaders. So to try to take attention off the domestic problems the military leaders decided to invade the Falklands. By doing this they were hoping to get the people's support, and build up their status within the people. They assumed that Margaret Thatcher and her government would not interfere much since the Falklands were (and still are) an unimportant group of islands in the south Atlantic. This was not the case. The United Nations urged the UK and Argentina to solve their issues trough diplomacy, but Thatcher said that this was not an option. She stated that Argentina would have to face the consequences trough war, not diplomacy.

The war itself only lasted from 2. April till 14. June. During this time more than 650 Argentinean and 250 British soldiers were killed. More than 1000 thousand were wounded and several thousands were taken as Prisoners of War. After the war the military regime in Argentina lost the little support it had left within the people. The regime was pushed over and Argentina once again became a democratic republic. In Britain the war helped Margaret Thatcher in the upcoming election. From being an underdog candidate and seeing as she would lose the election she became the winner. The war helped Thatcher to win the election and to remain prime minister in the UK until 1990.

Racism in European Soccer

2009-03-06T18:32:00.001-08:00

Current problem/issue
Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, but it is particularly popular in Europe. All the best teams in the world are located in Europe, and the world’s richest soccer club, Manchester United, is valued to $1.2 billion. With all this money involved in the game, you would think that unsporting incidents like racism would result in declining sponsorships. So you think the clubs would have to do something about it, but they don’t. How can racism be tolerated in European soccer? [Forbes.com]

Pre history

When soccer started to grow in popularity during the 1850’s, it was mainly among the working class. They saw soccer as a way to keep their young kids out of trouble by providing them with a sport that would help them to learn about teamwork, and hard work. Through the years, soccer was established as a working class sport. During the mid 1800’s, there were very few people living in Europe with racial diversity. Asia, Africa and Caribbean immigration began in the 1950’s, which was a hundred years after soccer started to grow in popularity. As a result, white working class males saw soccer as a segregated sport, and believed soccer should be reserved only for them. A good example of racism was during the 1950’s when the White Defence League sold their newspaper Black and White at soccer stadiums in London. When the first black players started to join the game in the 1960’s, they were met with a lot of skepticism. The crowd they were playing for was the descendants of the crowd that first started to go to soccer games a hundred year earlier, and held the same political view points and prejudices as their ancestors. Today, the majority of the fans attending the games at the stadium remain white. In a survey during the 1993-1994 season in the English Premier League, only 1% of the fans described themselves as none-white. However 25% of the players that played in the English Premier League, which is by many considered to be the best league in world, are black. [Social issues research center], [Collins]
Forms of racism

Racist insults from the crowd were directed at black players. The crowd would make monkey noises and throw bananas down to the field. Racism in soccer remained a significance problem during the late 1980’s. In addition to racial prejudice, religious prejudice was also demonstrated toward Jewish and Muslim players. Ronnie Rosenthal a Jewish player in the Italian club Udinese did not play a single match for the club due to pressure from a neo-fascist circle around the club. [Social issues research center]

Soccer clubs fans are also experiencing racist abuse. AFC Ajax is a club from the Dutch capitol of Amsterdam. When the club was founded in 1900 it was founded in a Jewish neighborhood. After WWII, most of the Jews that lived in Amsterdam had been murdered by the Nazis, but the Ajax fans continued using Jewish symbols to express their support for the club. Many Ajax fans calls themselves “joden” which means Jude in Dutch. This has caused opponents supports to use bizarre ways to show their antipathy against Ajax. One slogan the opponent fans use is “Hamas, Hamas, Jews into the gas”. Another thing that is done by opponent fans is to make hissing sound that are suppose to imitate the flow of gas heard in the deadly gas chambers. [ReligionNewsBlog], [USHMM]

Soccer fans have also used current events to express their hate. After the Deptford fire in London in 1981 where 13 black partygoers died, the fans of Millwall, a London club that is known for its extreme fans, sang at the stadium “We all agree, niggers burn better than petrol”. [Social issues research center]

Racism in European soccer today

Up to the late 1980’s, racism was considered to be a huge problem in all of Europe. Today the problem is more located in the southern and eastern parts of Europe. In countries like Italy and Spain there has been a growth in racist incidents. Other countries like England, France and Germany, racism has declined. In Eastern Europe, racism is a developing problem as more black players immigrated to the east in the mid 1990’s following the fall of the Soviet Union.
Racial incidences attracted more attention Spain and Italy. The leagues in both countries are considered to be among the best in the world. In both countries the gap between soccer and politics is not big. Many fans have political beliefs that are far to the right making it difficult for them to accept black players and they often react by throwing bananas and making monkey sounds. [Deutsche Welle], [Fraser], [Nash]

Examples of racism in modern time

One of the most serious incidents that has happened in modern time was when Spain played England in Madrid in November 2004. England which in much greater scale is a multiethnic country started with two players that were colored. Ashley Cole and Shaun Wright-Phillips which both are young up-and-coming soccer players, abused by the Spanish crowd throughout the whole game. Each time one of them got the ball the crowd started to make monkey sounds. The insults were so strong that the British Prime Minister at that time, Tony Blair got involved too. The president of the international soccer organization, FIFA, Sepp Blatter made the following statement following the game: "There is no room whatsoever for racism or discrimination in our sport. On the contrary,soccer is a tool for building bridges and nurturing tolerance,”. Racial episodes continue. [BBC Sport 2]
During a game between Inter Milan and Messina in the Italian premier division, Messina defender Marc Zoro a native from the Ivory Coast, threaten to leave the field if the Inter Milan fans did not stop the abuse. Zoro was transformed to teams after retrieving a ball near the visiting Inter Milan supports where they started to make monkey sounds and scream racial slogans. Zoro proceeded to pick the ball up, and began to leave the field until black Inter Milan striker Adriano persuaded him to keep playing. After the game, Zoro said that this was not the first time that he had been abused. "I have been playing in Italy for three years and I see this happening almost daily," was his answer he gave when a reporter asked him if this had happened before. [Deutsche Welle], [BBC Sport 3]

What are being done to stop racism?

It was first in the beginning in the 90’s that soccer officials started to seriously take care of the problem. Especially in England where the Football (Offences) Act 1991 made racist abuse at game unlawful. So far England is the only country where racist abuse at soccer games is illegal. So to handle the problem several campaigns have been launched. The two most famous campaigns are the “Kick It out”, and “Stand Up, Speak Up”. [Social issues research center]
Kick It Out: The kick it out campaign was launched in 1993 and the brand name is “Let’s Kick Racism Out of Football (soccer)”. One of the first things the campaign did was in the 1994/95 season, they made a fanzine called “United Colours of Football”. The magazine was printed in 110,000 copies and given out free at soccer grounds all across England. Although most people thought the campaign was a good idea, some people did not. Some critics said that racism is not a problem, and by having a campaign that focuses on it the problem would just be highlighted. [Kick it out], [Social issues research center]
Stand Up, Speak Up: In January 2005 French striker Thierry Henry launched with help from his sponsor Nike, the Stand Up, Speak Up campaign. Henry got the idea to have a campaign after he had been called “a black peace of shit” by Spanish national team coach Luis Aragonés. The symbol of the campaign is two wristbands interlocked together, one black and one white. Five million wristbands were produced, and then sold on the European market. The wristbands became extremely popular after Henry and several other soccer stars started to wear them. However Nike was criticized for using a serious matter as racism to get publicity. [Stand Up, Speak Up], [BBC Sport]
There are also several smaller campaigns. One of the most extreme actions that have been done is by the English soccer club Derby County. The club went so far to dedicate a match in the 1994 season to the fight against racism. Several hundred tickets were also given out free to children in hope of encourage the people in the local Asian community to come and attend the matches. [Social issues research center]
There have also been several other forms of markings to show that racism is not tolerated. In The Netherland the players went out on a strike due to racism. The Norwegian club Vålerenga, which is located in an area with many immigrants decided to play some of their games in the 2006 in a black and white jersey with the slogan “Vålerenga against racism” on the jersey. Other than showing the support against racism, the international soccer organization (FIFA) is raising the fines for clubs and nations that let their fans express themselves in a way that may be understood as racism. [Strand], [Moore]

What I think should be done/Conclusion

I am a soccer player, and in Norway I live in a multiethnic community. Many of my friends have experienced what it means to be abused just because of the color of their skin or religion. I think the most important thing that has to be done to get rid of racism in soccer, is to enforce stronger financial penalties. Today the clubs don’t even notice the fines. If FIFA had expelled clubs that repeatedly are having problems with racism, other clubs would have reacted by doing something about it. The various campaigns that have been launched are helping too, but in the end financial penalty remains the most impactful motivator.
Kjølv Fossum.

Sources cited
• Kick it out: www.kickitout.org
• Stand Up, Speak Up: http://www.furd.org/default.asp?intPageID=275
• Social issues research center: http://www.sirc.org/publik/fvracism.html
• Forbes.com:http://www.forbes.com/finance/lists/34/2005/LIR.jhtml?passListId=34&passYear=2005&passListType=Misc&uniqueId=340001&datatype=Misc
• Collins, Robert: http://www.popmatters.com/sports/features/050119-europeanfootball.shtml
• BBC Sport: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/low/football/internationals/4252871.stm
• Strand, Sigbjørn: http://www.dagbladet.no/sport/2007/08/25/509998.html
• Moore, Glenn: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_20060317/ai_n16228778
• BBC Sport 2: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/internationals/4018421.stm
• BBC Sport 3: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/africa/4333936.stm
• Deutsche Welle: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1798795,00.html
• ReligionNewsBlog: http://www.religionnewsblog.com/9885/ajax-seek-image-change-to-stop-anti-semitic-chants
• USHMM: http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/article.php?lang=en&ModuleId=10005143
• Marcus, Jefferey: http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/q-a-fighting-racism-in-european-soccer/
• Fraser, Christian: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/6339775.stm
• Nash, Elizabeth: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19980913/ai_n14170578

The Heroes of Telemark

2009-03-04T01:43:00.001-08:00

The Heroes of Telemark
Kjølv Fossum

Background
The battle of Telemark was not a single battle, but rather a series of small sabotage actions performed by Norwegian resistance forces during WWII. In April 1940, Norway was invaded by Germany and it only took the Germans a couple of months to take control over the whole country. By 1942, the Germans had taken control over most of Europe, but they were still struggling to take control over Great Britain. However in 1942, the Germans became interested in the possibilities of creating the world’s first nuclear bomb, which could help them to win the war. In Norway, which was under German occupation, there was an electricity plant in Telemark near the town of Rjukan that produced “heavy water”. In the 1940’s, scientists’ believed that “heavy water” was the key to develop a nuclear bomb. The Germans demanded that the fabric should produce more “heavy water”, but the general manager of the plant Bjarne Eriksen refused to comply. The Germans then had to get experts from Germany to come and set up equipment at the plant, and Mr. Eriksen was sent to a German prison camp. The plant ultimately produced 12 ton per year which was a significant increase from its 1934 output of 1.2 tons.
[1943: The Heroes of Telemark], [“The German Invasion of Norway, 1940”]

Operation Freshman and Grouse
In 1942, the allies were starting to fear that the Germans were close to develop a nuclear bomb with help from the heavy water. Therefore, they decided to destroy the plant. On October 19, 1942 four Norwegian saboteurs were dropped over Telemark in parachutes. This is known as operation Grouse. The four men were members of company Linge a Norwegian military unit that was established in England in 1941. The captain of the company, Martin Linge, and three other members of the company were dropped far away from the plant so the Germans would not notice them. They now had to wait for one month before they would get assistant from a group of British engineer soldiers from 1st British Airborne Division. Their part of the job was known as Operation Freshman. On November 19th, two British bomb planes towed one glider each towards Norway. The plan was that by having two gliders it would be more difficult for the Germans to notice the British soldiers as they approached the plant and the surrounding areas. However, when they approached, Norway problems started to occur. The planes were circling over the drop area, but due to bad weather they had to return. On the way back, the planes had been out so long that they had started to ice. On the first plane, the hanger broke, and the glider crashed near Lysefjorden. Nine people survived the crash, but all of them were later executed by the Germans. The bomb plane managed to return to England. The second bomb plane and glider both crashed. The bomb plane crashed in a mountain, and all crewmembers died. The crew in the glider however survived, but they were captured by German troops and later executed. The four Norwegian saboteurs now had to flee since the Germans now knew about the plans the allies had for the plant. The four members hided in a small cabin on Hardangervidda, a huge mountain plateau while the Germans sent thousands of troops after them. They stayed in the cabin for three months, and during this time the only thing they had to eat was moss and lichen, except a reindeer they managed to shot right before Christmas.
[1943: The Heroes of Telemark], [“The Real Heroes of Telemark”]
Operation Gunnerside

By February 1943, the British over command had gotten the news that the four member of Company Linge had survived. They then decided to keep building on this unit for another attack against the plant. Six new Norwegian saboteurs from Company Linge were sent from England, and on February 16 they were dropped in parachutes on Hardangervidda from a British Halifax bomber. After a few days of searching they hooked up with the four members from operation Grouse. British planes dropped supplies and other equipment, and on February 27 the group consisting of ten men was ready to attack. After the failure of operation Freshman the plant was much more heavily guarded than before. Now there were mines, floodlight and additional guards around the plant. Although the Germans knew there might be another attack they had slacked the guard hold inside the factory. One of the reasons for this was because they didn’t think anyone would make an attack during the winter months. To get to the plant they would have to pass a 80 yards long bridge that spent 200 yards over the river Måna. The bridge was heavily guarded by the Germans, and an attempt to make it across the bridge would be considered suicide. The group decided to climb down the abrupt mountain sides that lead down to the river, and walk over as the river was covered with ice. This was done in the dark and was considered extremely dangerous. After they had made it to the other side of the river they entered the plant. Thanks to a Norwegian agent who had supplied them with detailed information they did know exactly where to go. On their way through the fabric the only person they encountered was the Norwegian caretaker, and he was more than happy to help the group. The saboteurs planted explosives on the heavy water electrolysis chambers, and left a British submachine gun left, so the Germans would think this was the work of the British, not the Norwegian resistance. The explosives went off and destroyed the electrolysis chambers. Six of the members escaped by skiing to Sweden, a trip that was almost 250 miles long. The remaining four stayed in Norway to help the resistance forces.

In April 1943 the Germans had managed to start up the production again. The over commando in London concluded that a new raid would be too dangerous, so they decided to use other means. In November 1943 143 British and American bomb planes dropped 711 bombs that were suppose to hit the fabric. However only 41 did hit and several civilians in the nearby town Rjukan were killed. The bombs did however don’t do much damage to the plant, but it stopped production for a short time.
“The Real Heroes of Telemark”, “1943: The Heroes of Telemark]
The Aftermatch

Although the attacks had done little damage to the plant itself the Germans was now scared. British and American bomb planes leaded several raids over the plant, and the Germans feared it was only a matter of time before the plant would get serious damage. In 1944 the Germans decided to ship the heavy water and valuable equipment back to Germany. To do so they shipped the heavy water in railway cars. Knut Haukelid a Norwegian born in Brooklyn, who was a member of the Norwegian resistance force become aware of the plan the Germans had. He decided to sink the ferry while it was crossing Lake Tinnsjø. This was the best chance he and his fellow resistance fighters had to take out the heavy water. After getting approval from the over command in London they decided to take out the ferry where the lake was on it deepest. Then the Germans would not get the heavy water up from the bottom of the lake. Mr. Haukelid knew a member of the ferry crew, and thanks to him he got to the bottom of the ship where he planted a bomb consisting of 18.7 pounds of dynamite, and two alarm clock fuses. On February 20 1944 the ferry sank just after midnight on 160 yards deep. 14 civilian Norwegians and four Germans died when the ferry went down. The Germans dream to make the world’s first nuclear bomb had come to an end.
“The Real Heroes of Telemark”, “1943: The Heroes of Telemark], [Heroes of Telemark and Heavy Water

Sources Cited

• “The Real Heroes of Telemark” www.teachnet.edb http://teachnet.edb.utexas.edu/~lynda_abbott/abtknutslides.html
• “1943: The Heroes of Telemark” www.hydro.com
http://www.hydro.com/en/About-Hydro/Our-history/1929---1945/1943-The-Heroes-of-Telemark/
• “Heroes of Telemark and Heavy Water” www.norway.org http://www.norway.org/culture/lectures/Heroes+of+Telemark+and+heavy+water+barrel+to+The+US+National+WWII+Museum+New+Orleans.htm
• “The German Invasion of Norway, 1940” www.magweb.com http://www.magweb.com/sample/sconflic/co03wese.htm

English project

2009-03-03T04:22:00.000-08:00

My problem to be adressed for my English project is : Why does religion still have such a large influence on American society while in Europe relgion is loosing ground?

Gaming in class

2009-02-10T02:14:00.001-08:00

So my English teacher Mrs. Michalsen asked me and Mr. Sparre if we could help her out by testing a game for her. "Sure, no problem" I said hoping that we were going to test Fallout 3 or something like that. Still testing out Urban Design Associates was fun.

First I logged on to the site with no problems at all. The layout is good with links on the right to explore. I didn't really know what to do or what the game was about except that it would be something about urban design. Next I clicked on the practice map to see what would happen. This Google map then showed up full with pointers to people’s name. When I so clicked on this guy called Mohammed he was complaining about the parking space and that his employees couldn't use their car to work and that he couldn't afford to rent parking from a high price parking garage. Still I didn't really know what to do.

After I had read the opinions and wishes from a couple of people I checked out the part where you are going to place different buildings. You decide where there should be restaurants, houses, parking garages etc. However you couldn't decide where to put them you had to stay inside a small geographical area, but then again I think that's what you are supposed to do. At the bottom of the page there were different charts that showed how many jobs that were in the area, number of crimes per year, number of housing units and so on. What was interesting was to watch how the figures changed when you decided to do something different. Like when I made parking garages all over the place the number of parking spots rose, but the number of housing units went down. The fact that you could observe how these charts changed were probably the best thing and most interesting part of the game in my opinion.

In the end I thought this was an ok game, not that bad and not that good either. However if we were going to learn about city planning and so I would rather play SimCity. In SimCity you are the mayor of a town and you have to build it up. However it's not only placing houses here and there you have to make sure you provide enough schools, stores, water supplies, police, hospitals and so on. SimCity is in my opinion far more advanced and fun to play, but then again it's not free like this game. But if you know how to use torrents getting SimCity for free shouldn't be a problem.

Northern-Ireland finally united?

2009-02-03T01:29:00.000-08:00

In the morning edition of the Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten there was an article about Northern- Ireland and how the Catholics and Protestants are now putting behind (or trying) all that happened during the years of “troubles”. Approximately 3,500 people died during the troubles that did not really end until 2005 when the Irish Republican Army (IRA) agreed to be disarmed. Since then the British and Irish governments have cooperated to try to find out how to deal with the conflict between Catholics and Protestants in the region.

Earlier this week a commission with members from both the Irish and British parliament presented what they had worked out. They want to give the families of all the victims circa 12,000£ each. However it's what the commission defines as victims that are making people furious. The families till the IRA members will also receive compensation for their pain. Especially Protestants have protested against this policy. They are comparing this as if the families of the 9/11 terrorists should receive compensation for having lost their relatives when they decided to attack the US. Instead of reconcile Protestants and Catholics the compensation plan has made old hate blaze up again.

To be honest I don't blame the people of Northern Ireland for hating this new conciliation plan so much. Especially the women in the article Michelle Williamsons who lost both her parents in the Shankill road bombing, who will have to accept that the parents of the IRA member who killed her parents should receive compensation doesn't make sense at all. At the same time I think it is important to try to move on into the future. If you are going to dwell on what happened in the past it's going to be hard to make progress. But with a history like the one Northern-Ireland has you should not forget it either. In my opinion they should make a new proposition for a reconciliation agreement. Relatives of civilians who lost their lives should receive compensations, but not those who happened to have a son who blew himself up in the air killing 10 people just because of their faith. They are victims as well but they should not get compensation because a family member is a murderer. Other than that the annual memorial day is a good idea, same with the fund that was established to solve unsolved murders.

I personally do not think that the Protestants and Catholics in Northern-Ireland will ever be united for a long long time. It's only 10, 5 years since the Omagh bombing where 29 people lost their lives. Time might move on but peoples hate and distrust will stay the same for a long time.

Millitary service

2009-01-27T04:31:00.000-08:00

Couple of days ago I talked to some friends over in the U.S about military service. None of them are thinking about joining the army, air force etc. In Norway on the other hand we have conscription. All boys are called in for an interview with some officers when they reach a certain age (17-19). I had my interview last December and it went really well. However we don't only talk they show us a one hour long propaganda movie, check your eyesight, hearing, and some tests that are similar to IQ tests. The tests went well for me and when it came to choosing a military unit I would like to serve in I chose HMKG (His Majesty The King's Guard). HMKG are responsible for the security and safety for the royal family and they stand guard at the Royal Castle, Akershus Fortress (where the sarcophagi of King Olav and King Haakon are), and at Skaugum where Crown prince Haakon Magnus and his family residence.

Service only lasts for 12 months, in my case from January till December (2010). While in the military they will pay for your board and lodging and you receive like 20$ a day, and 5k or something when you are done. Only boys are obligated to serve, but they are thinking about making in mandatory for girls to serve too. Only time will show.

Hometown in Norway -_^

2009-01-27T02:12:00.000-08:00

Well just thought I should put down some words about my hometown/home place up here in the cold north. I live in a place called Rykkinn in the county of Bærum a suburb of Oslo. Rykkinn was created in 1970's as a satellite town to take some pressure of Oslo, since the city experienced a high increase in its population. People from all over Norway moved in, and immigrants from countries like Pakistan etc. Since houses in Rykkinn were sold cheap in the beginning to make people move there many families with young children moved there. In the 80's when these kids became teenagers things started to get messed up -_^. Bærum county which Rykkinn belongs to is considered to be the richest county in Norway, but Rykkinn on the other hand is the total opposite. Often referred to as the "slum" in Bærum. Also due to all the immigrates that arrived in 70's one area of the town is often referred to as L.A (Little Asia).

But everything is not messed up either. Living with people from different cultures, with different religions and backgrounds have deff made me less xenophobic than if I would have lived in a small town where 99% of the population were white. Last year I was an exchange student in Walton, New York and some of the comments made about Muslims, Obama and people from other countries were nothing less but shocking. But can't blame them tough, they're not used to live in a multicultural community.

Facts Rykkinn:
15,000 inhabitants
Considered to be one of the worst places in the Oslo region to live in by outsiders
One of the most multicultural communities in Norway
More than 40 languages are spoken there
One elementary, one middle, and one junior hich school
Hated by the national media. Almost all stories about Rykkinn involves something negative.

If you want my AIM hit me.

David Cameroon - Important to keep the United Kingdom

2009-01-20T03:18:00.000-08:00

David Cameron the leader for the conservatives has like many British strong meanings when it comes to conserve the union. During a speech in Edinburgh in October he made it clear that he will not tolerate that Scotland would break out of the union. Later he said ”I don't want to be the prime minister of England, but of the UK.

The union between Scotland and England has been around since 1707. At that time the English were having problems with the French and Spanish, and at the same time the colonists over in America were starting to want independence. If Scotland too was to ally with one of these things would be a lot harder for the English. Instead of just focusing on their navy (which was the best in world) they would have to recruit thousands of new ground forces to protect the border in the north.

In the speech Mr. Cameron made it clear that SNP (Scottish Nationalist Party) would ruin what in Mr. Cameron's mind seems to be the greatest nation/union in the world. But why has Mr. Cameron gone out and criticized the SNP in public, when there are nationalists parties in Wales and Northern Ireland that want independence from the union as well? Personally I think it's due to the North Sea and the oil resources there. If Scotland was to become independent and withdraw from the union those oil resources would fall to Scotland. This would be a great loss for the politicians down in London.

I think that within 30 years Scotland will have withdrawn from the union and become an independent nation. If the SNP keeps up their progress and get more and more supporters David Cameron and other supporters of the union want have much of a choice but to watch the oil resources on the continental shelf go to Scotland.

Into the wild - My 2 cents

2009-01-12T11:36:00.000-08:00

Yeah, so I finally finished Into the wild. I spent this last weekend in Paris visting my uncle, and since it takes 2 hours to fly from Oslo to Paris I managed to finish the book on the plane.

Into the wild was written by John Krauker and was published in 1996. The book tells the story of Chris McCandless a young man who went on a roadtrip from his home in the suburbs of Washington DC to the Alaskan wilderness. He gave up a promising futrure, his family and all his money he donated to charity. His corpse was found in Alaska and cause of death was starvation. He had little and no decent equipment with him when he decided to try to live in Alaska by himself for a couple of months. McCandless also did not bring enough food to survive in the Alskan winderness, and this is probably what lead to his death.

Personally I tought the book was okay, not the best I've read but then again not the worst. During his journey McCandles met all sorts of people and everywhere he went he was considered to be the perfect son, man, boy or whatever he could be. This seems a bit unrealistic in my mind. Altough some are more popular than others I don't think everybody would praise him like a god. But again this just adds to the mystic surrending McCandless. It makes it even harder to understand why a man who seems to have everything would so suddenly give up his life so he could die in the Alaskan winderness.

Altough the novel is not great it's not to bad either. It's hard to understand what McCandless wanted to achieve when he began his journey. Altough the autohr said that he wanted be free and discover it still seems strange that a kid like him would give up his life for something like that. To get even more background information on him would be great so we could understand McCandless better. But in respect of his family we will probably never see a new and imporved edition. However an ok book and if you are not a native English speaker I would reccomend it since the language is not two hard and it is quite short after all.

My 2 cents.

Picture: http://www.thequietman.org/imagenes/Chris%20mccandless%20final.jpg

Mock exam

2008-12-03T08:30:00.000-08:00

Well I had my mock exam for English yesterday. Showed up at school at 930 am turning my laptop on and getting ready for five hours of intensive writing. When I saw the topics to choose from was quite relived to be honest :). I did expect to get at least on assignment on Obama becoming the new President of the United States, but that one of the short and the long one could be about Obama surprised me. I don't mind tough since after all he is one of my favorite politicians. Worked almost non-stop from 930 am till 2 pm. Ended up with 2652 words so I'm pretty happy with the text. Not only with all the information I managed to put in but also the how it turned out overall. Defiantly hoping for a 5 or if I'm luck a 6 which would be crazy. That would almost be as awesome as if FRP falls down to under 5% on the polls.

But yeah that's it. Going to try to update the blog more often but living a busy life so can't promise anything.

Kjo1v

In the Valley of Elah- how war impacts young people

2008-10-21T02:04:00.000-07:00

The Valley of Elah came out in 2007 as one of the first movies regarding the war in Iraq. Starring world famous actors Tommy Lee Jones and Charlize Theron the movie received a lot of attention. Critics said it portrayed American soldiers as monsters in a time where they need all the support they can get.Trough all times wars have been fought and the soldiers have always been one group, young men. Herbert Hoover once said “Older men declare war. But it's the youth who must fight and die!”

In The valley of Elah the soldiers are constantly living under pressure when they are in Iraq. They sleep in tents, don’t have showers or toilet papers, and rarely get to speak to their family back home. Living like this for a long period of time your mind and how you view life will most likely affected. For Hank Deerfield’s (Tommy Lee Jones) son Mike he completely changes. When he and his squad in out on a routine mission he is driving and a kid runs out in front of the Humvee. Although he has time to stop his squad leader orders him to keep driving resulting in him killing the boy. This and other situations involving post a traumatic stress disorder happens often to soldiers in Iraq. For Mike this changes his life. He starts acting more immature, disrespectful, and the nickname “Doc” is given to him due to how he has tortured wounded POWs.

Not only Mike changes after the stay in Iraq, his whole squad does. The squad members start to act less tolerant and more violent towards each other. This results in a fight between Mike and one of his buddies in the squad Dan Carnelli. After getting kicked out of strip club they start fighting outside in the parking lot. Mike is stabbed 42 times before he is dumped and his dead body is put on fire.

My conclusion is that the Valley of Elah gives a great description of how wars, not only the war in Iraq affects young people. Mental illnesses resulting from fighting in a war have for a long been taboo to talk about. Hopefully The Valley of Elah can start a debate about this, and make it more accepted to talk about.

Picture: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/0a/In_the_valley_of_elah.jpg

Who's pulling the strings in Afghanistan?

2008-10-07T01:46:00.000-07:00

The war in Afghanistan has been going on for more than seven years now. More than 500 American soliders have died so far in a war that's been lasting longer than WWII so far. So how's in charge of this disaster?

Just a few days after the 9/11 attacks President Bush declared war on Afghanistan, the home of terrorism as he said back then. In a couple of months the US army had seized control of much of the country. The Taliban only managed to put up resistance in the mountanis along the Pakistani border. Now you would think that the Taliban would be killed off in maximum a year, but they are still fighting, and they are fighting good.

The war in Afghanistan is expensive and costing a lot of money for the taxpayers in the United States. With this in mind you would think that the US would like to get the war finished as quick as possible. That's not gonna happend as long as the lobbyists and not the politicans rule. The weapon lobbyists are the most powerful group in the capitol and influence all the politicans even the President. And when the President too is a crazy loving weapon maniac of course he wants to use as much money as possible on weapons.

My point is that the one's making money on the war in Afghanistan is the corrupt politicans who recive money from the lobbyists and they recive money from the weapons manufactures. So the weapon manufacutres are the ones who make money on the war and in my opinion they are pulling the strings.