NO REST FOR THE AWAKE - MINAGAHET CHAMORRO

I recently watched The Green Inferno from Eli Roth, which is a disturbing film to say the least. It follows in the vein of Cannibal Holocaust and other gore-filled flicks from the past. Many of these films have no real merit to them, as they are simply meant to shock or horrify. But in some rare cases there is the intent to have some real intellectual or political teeth behind them. In some cases films of this genre, which seem to only prey on the poorest instincts of people, end up making remarkably strong appeals to human ethics. They may do so in ways to appall us, but that on its own can be a good reminder about the flexibility of ideology. How one position, which may feel so secure and true in one moment can have the theoretical floor fall from beneath it the next. Eli Roth was heavily criticized for his portrayal of indigenous peoples as savages and evil, mindless cannibals. His response was to say that to worry about a movie and its portrayal of indigenous people while actual

I trongkon niyok, i trongkon lina'la para i taotao gi i Tasin Pasifiku. Anggen manbetde yan manggaila'la' este na trongko, manggaila'la' yan mabrabu lokkue' i Chamorro siha. Lao anggen un atan este na trongko siha pa'go gi isla-ta, ti manbrabrabu, mismo manmalalangu. Across Facebook for months I've seen posts lamenting the state of Guam's coconut trees. The rhino beetle has infested the island and is slowly destroying this essential island trees from within. Asan Beach, a site that 70 years ago was obliterated in the American re-invasion of the island during I Tiempon Chapones, has become synonymous with scattered coconut trees as much as military relics. Earlier this year, the Department of Agriculture began cutting down trees there that were infested with the rhino beetle. As I kept reading these updates a particular image kept popping into my head. I wrote about it on my own Facebook: I want to translate "Fake Plastic Trees" by Ra

I have a weird fascination with movies that people generally don't like. I've never found anyone else for example who enjoyed the film The Postman directed by Kevin Costner from the book by David Brin. In the spectrum of what makes a movie enjoyable or likeable a film like The Postman, seems to fall inbetween the crack of everything. You can like movies because it connects with something in you, because everyone else likes it, because so many people say it is great. You can hate it because it offends you, bores you, is just plan stupid or terrible. Interestingly enough when something reaches the point where its meaning is too assured, that is precisely when your response may end up on the opposite end of the spectrum. If a movie is too poorly put together, it can become charming, unique, silly, bad in a good way, etc. The Postman, which tells the story of how certain symbols of daily modern life, such as mail, play an inspiring role in rebuilding communities aft

Over the past few years I have been on many hikes here on Guam. I have seen so many beautiful things on these hikes. I have found artifacts that hundreds had probably walked by, but never noticed before. I have found latte stones that may have gone unseen for centuries before I stumbled upon them, literally. I have seen sunsets sitting on rocks that seemed to be created strictly for the purpose of allowing ones eyes to swallow the sky in massive gulps. I have seen the ocean in so many types of blue at a given moment that it both looks like one massive solid color and a multitude of disagreeing blues at the same time. Throughout these hikes the history and beauty of Guam has come alive in so many ways. I feel not only a stronger connection to the present day Guam, but also to so many versions of its throughout the past. Walking amongst latte stones where Chamorros walked hundreds of years before. Exploring caves where Chamorros and Japanese soldiers huddled hiding from American bo

It only takes a moment, please sign this petition in order to protect the natural beauty of Jeju Island, South Korea. http://www.avaaz.org/en/save_jeju_island/?copy   More information on Jeju and Gangjeong is pasted below. ********************** From: Robert Redford To: All of your people Subject: Tell Environmentalists & IUCN : No Base on Jeju Island Dear Friends of Jeju Island, From September 6-15, some 10,000 environmentalists will converge on Jeju Island to attend the World Conservation Congress (WCC) organized by the oldest environmental organization, the International Union of the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The IUCN’s slogan is that it promotes “a just world that values and conserves nature.” If recent actions are any indication, nothing could be further from the truth. The WCC will take place only a few minutes away from Gangjeong where the construction of a naval base is threatening one of the planet’s most spectacular soft