My Sincere Gratitude

I’d like to extend a thank you to Michelle Malkin for opening my eyes to the very real and very present threat faced to us by yet another liberal Muslim group intent on destroying the way of life we hold so dear: Dunkin Donuts.

Business Week Article

Vivek Wadhwa was one of the experts interviewed in the film, and has written an article for business week here.

I’d love to see what people are commenting about it and engage them in it, but I have some work to do here at Vontoo. I’ll write more about it when I get home.

Well Rounded

I’m curious – what exactly do people mean when they say Americans are ‘well-rounded’? What specific traits or characteristics are we pointing to? I don’t think there is even a set common definition – just an arbitrary concept we can use to differentiate ourselves from ‘them,’ and in many cases prove our superiority – without ever having to explain the true rationale behind it. Does it refer to extracurricular activities in youth? Social skills – team building abilities – that little ‘extra’ in ‘extrordinary’? 

I think at its base is a xenophobic need to distinguish ourselves as Americans from the rest of the world, to say that somehow our culture and lifestyles just make us a little bit ‘better’ than everyone else, regardless if we’re not as ’smart’ or ‘capable.’ Sure, Ahmed and Raj are just as smart as Rick and Joe, but they’re hardly ‘well-rounded,’ right? I’m sure they’re just drones, incapable of social interaction or anything other than routine work. Right?

recently

In between studying for finals, of course…

The two Indian students (Rohit & Apoorva) were in town last week for a whirlwind tour of the US. I believe they managed to go to Indianapolis, DC, Chicago, and Boston all within a week’s time, which left them (understandably) exhausted. But Brittany and I got to spend some time with them, and honestly had a blast.

Wednesday night we filmed a discussion moderated by Indy Star Business columnist Jon Ketzenberger and Bob, which went pretty well… eventually it was the two American students asking the other two questions and vice versa. We then went to Brittany’s house to have an interview with NBC’s Channel One news (it’s put on in homerooms in various high schools), which also was a lot of fun – very informal and very laid back. Bob took us out to dinner to Fleming’s Steakhouse (totally worth not getting a project done) along with most of the people who worked with the film.

Saturday I came back to Carmel and we took the two out to lunch and shopping. We ended up seeing a movie with them that night (88 Minutes, wasn’t great) before heading our separate ways. My impression of them was basically that the two of them could fit in perfectly in any American school – they have the same basic ideas, share the same sense of humor, enjoy the same things… frankly, if we begin to talk about ‘well-roundedness,’ I don’t know if I would consider myself well-rounded if I did not also consider them to be. They like sports, are involved in extra-curricular activities, volunteer, sing, etc. One-dimensional? Hardly. A lot of fun to hang out with? Definitely.

2 Things-

Bob is planning on taking Brittany and I to India this winter. Hopefully that works out with our schedules and everything.

Interviewed by the LA Times yesterday. Not sure when the story is running.

 

Also saw Obama speak last night. Will write on that later.