MUN - Nuclear Non-proliferation
For the second half of our MUN, we focused on international nuclear non-proliferation. During this time, we studied the political treaties and issues regarding our countries' position on the nuclear threat. I represented the United States for the conference.
Policy Paper
Tiernan Stein
The United States humbly supports the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons, but cannot ban them while being threatened by other states.
Nuclear weapons are a terrible thing that can create mass destruction with the potential to destroy the earth several times over at the quantity held today by the world’s nine nuclear-weapon-holding states. This is why pointing bombs at each other for years to come is extremely dangerous. This is why the web of deterrence across the world must be replaced by a diplomatic system.
Russia and North Korea are two of the most threatening countries we stand to face today. We have recently learned that Russia is making militaristic advancements which violate the INF that both they and we have signed. Therefore, the U.S. has backed out of this treaty in order to stand ready against the potential threat. North Korea, on the other hand, has proven to be dangerous to the U.S, as they are confirmed to be developing nuclear weapons despite the current sanctions we hold on them. What they call the “Nuclear Sword of Justice” can strike our country at any time (Sengupta and Gladstone 2). However, regardless of all the friction happening, the U.S. is still committed to limiting our nuclear power and taking a more diplomatic approach to peace. That is why we joThe United States of America
ined the New START Treaty and have shrunk our nuclear stockpile to the smallest it’s been since 1956 (Hans 1). Hopefully, this treaty, being active in both the U.S. and Russia, can not only maintain our peace, but build and trust and rapport under the idea that we both want a safeguarded future.
Before we can work toward the ultimate goal of the elimination of nuclear weapons, we must first make sure that our world is safe from falsely or unreasonably used nuclear weapons. A start would be to limit the terrible potential that the president and presidents to come will have. As of now, the president is unrestricted to fire nuclear weapons whether or not his country is being attacked. As president Trump has the sole authority to launch nuclear missiles, all it takes is one act of immoral judgement to create a total crisis. This problem can be mitigated by issuing the No-First-Use Policy, which would only allow the president to retaliate to an attack - not start a battle. Something else that gravely disconcerns a safe future is that the U.S. is predicted to spend over a trillion dollars on militaristic advancements over the next decade. I believe most of this money should be redirected to funding for the IAEA. Doing this would allow the IAEA to be able to analyze the nuclear status of other countries much more easily. Nevertheless, my most important proposition to achieve a safe and peaceful world, inspired by Trump’s recent withdrawal from the INF US-Russia treaty (Bidgood, 3), is to create a diplomatic alliance, members of which would discuss their political concerns. These discussions would also demand a militaristic status report, managed and monitored by the IAEA, in order to achieve the trust and transparency of all nations.
Bibliography
Kristensen, Hans. “Nuclear Disarmament United States.” NTI, 12/2/2017, https://www.nti.org/analysis/articles/united-states-nuclear-disarmament/.
Sengupta, Somini and Gladstone, Rick. “The New York Times.” 28/3/2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/world/americas/un-nuclear-weapons-talks.html.
Bidgood, Sarah. “Trump Accidentally Just Triggered Global Nuclear Proliferation.” FP, 21/2/2019, https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/21/trump-accidentally-just-triggered-global-nuclear-proliferation/.
“Nuclear Weapons Solutions.” Union of Concerned Scientists, https://www.ucsusa.org/nuclear-weapons/solutions.
The United States humbly supports the eventual elimination of nuclear weapons, but cannot ban them while being threatened by other states.
Nuclear weapons are a terrible thing that can create mass destruction with the potential to destroy the earth several times over at the quantity held today by the world’s nine nuclear-weapon-holding states. This is why pointing bombs at each other for years to come is extremely dangerous. This is why the web of deterrence across the world must be replaced by a diplomatic system.
Russia and North Korea are two of the most threatening countries we stand to face today. We have recently learned that Russia is making militaristic advancements which violate the INF that both they and we have signed. Therefore, the U.S. has backed out of this treaty in order to stand ready against the potential threat. North Korea, on the other hand, has proven to be dangerous to the U.S, as they are confirmed to be developing nuclear weapons despite the current sanctions we hold on them. What they call the “Nuclear Sword of Justice” can strike our country at any time (Sengupta and Gladstone 2). However, regardless of all the friction happening, the U.S. is still committed to limiting our nuclear power and taking a more diplomatic approach to peace. That is why we joThe United States of America
ined the New START Treaty and have shrunk our nuclear stockpile to the smallest it’s been since 1956 (Hans 1). Hopefully, this treaty, being active in both the U.S. and Russia, can not only maintain our peace, but build and trust and rapport under the idea that we both want a safeguarded future.
Before we can work toward the ultimate goal of the elimination of nuclear weapons, we must first make sure that our world is safe from falsely or unreasonably used nuclear weapons. A start would be to limit the terrible potential that the president and presidents to come will have. As of now, the president is unrestricted to fire nuclear weapons whether or not his country is being attacked. As president Trump has the sole authority to launch nuclear missiles, all it takes is one act of immoral judgement to create a total crisis. This problem can be mitigated by issuing the No-First-Use Policy, which would only allow the president to retaliate to an attack - not start a battle. Something else that gravely disconcerns a safe future is that the U.S. is predicted to spend over a trillion dollars on militaristic advancements over the next decade. I believe most of this money should be redirected to funding for the IAEA. Doing this would allow the IAEA to be able to analyze the nuclear status of other countries much more easily. Nevertheless, my most important proposition to achieve a safe and peaceful world, inspired by Trump’s recent withdrawal from the INF US-Russia treaty (Bidgood, 3), is to create a diplomatic alliance, members of which would discuss their political concerns. These discussions would also demand a militaristic status report, managed and monitored by the IAEA, in order to achieve the trust and transparency of all nations.
Bibliography
Kristensen, Hans. “Nuclear Disarmament United States.” NTI, 12/2/2017, https://www.nti.org/analysis/articles/united-states-nuclear-disarmament/.
Sengupta, Somini and Gladstone, Rick. “The New York Times.” 28/3/2017, https://www.nytimes.com/2017/03/27/world/americas/un-nuclear-weapons-talks.html.
Bidgood, Sarah. “Trump Accidentally Just Triggered Global Nuclear Proliferation.” FP, 21/2/2019, https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/02/21/trump-accidentally-just-triggered-global-nuclear-proliferation/.
“Nuclear Weapons Solutions.” Union of Concerned Scientists, https://www.ucsusa.org/nuclear-weapons/solutions.
Resolution
First Committee
The United States of America
Tiernan Stein
THE GRAND ABOLISHMENT OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS
The United States,
Recognizing President Trump’s recent withdrawal from the INF treaty,
Supporting efforts taken towards nuclear non-proliferation such as the New START Treaty,
Remembering the potentially devastating threat that nuclear weapons are actively posing on the world.
Aware of the usefulness the IAEA serves to the NPT in assuring that regions are using nuclear technology legally and in accordance with the NPT.
Respecting the values and beliefs of all countries involved in international diplomacy,
Responding to the advocations made by nuclear non-proliferation supporters,
Reflecting on the dangerous capabilities that country leaders solely have regarding the launching of nuclear missiles,
Estimating that the United States government will spend more than one trillion dollars on militaristic advancements over the next decade,
Encouraging the goals of the CTBT in banning nuclear testing,
Understanding the United States’ underutilization of the Special Certification Commission in recent years,
The United States of America
Tiernan Stein
THE GRAND ABOLISHMENT OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS
The United States,
Recognizing President Trump’s recent withdrawal from the INF treaty,
Supporting efforts taken towards nuclear non-proliferation such as the New START Treaty,
Remembering the potentially devastating threat that nuclear weapons are actively posing on the world.
Aware of the usefulness the IAEA serves to the NPT in assuring that regions are using nuclear technology legally and in accordance with the NPT.
Respecting the values and beliefs of all countries involved in international diplomacy,
Responding to the advocations made by nuclear non-proliferation supporters,
Reflecting on the dangerous capabilities that country leaders solely have regarding the launching of nuclear missiles,
Estimating that the United States government will spend more than one trillion dollars on militaristic advancements over the next decade,
Encouraging the goals of the CTBT in banning nuclear testing,
Understanding the United States’ underutilization of the Special Certification Commission in recent years,
- Advocates for the implementation of the No-First-Use Policy in all countries bearing nuclear weapons,
- Requests for all countries with nuclear missiles to de-alert them in case of a false alarm,
- Proposes the creation of a subcommittee in the United Nations, representative members of which will:
- Assemble at least annually to discuss political concerns;
- Be required to input a status of their countries' nuclear arsenal;
- Have their nuclear arsenal continually monitored by the IAEA;
- Recommends that all members of the new subcommittee redirect a portion of their funds for military investments to the IAEA,
- Obligates itself to return the equivalent value of each country’s donations in the form of respectively requested, non-militaristic investments,
- Seeks to re-open multilateral negotiations with North Korea,
- Demands an extension of the New START Treaty:
- Under the condition that the treaty is updated to limit Russia’s new military weapons systems;
- Wishes to incorporate China into the New START Treaty:
- Reducing China’s military arsenal equally as the treaty’s original members;
- Offers to resign onto the Iran deal:
- Under the condition that Iran becomes a member of the new United Nations sub-committee;
Project Reflection
International Diplomacy:
After doing this project, my thoughts on the international system of problem solving is that it is very complicated. In all honesty, the conference that we did ignored many, if not, most of the factors that come into play when discussing nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. For instance, the incredibly wide web of deterrence spread across the world is so thick that to know each thread would mean you could literally work for the president. Therefore, I think our conference was definitely a simplified version of a real one.
With that said, I do think that this project, nevertheless, taught me a whole lot about how MUN works and how to tackle political issues. Some of the ways I’ve learned to do this are by doing extensive background research about my country. Then, I easily and simply write a policy paper and resolution expressing my country’s perspective. Finally, I show that perspective in front of my peers while demonstrating the content I learned prior. Easy peesy.
Growth:
I have grown in many ways to become a much better learner and delegate this semester. One of the most important ways in which I’ve done this, I believe, is by committing to researching about my country and then not being afraid to express that country’s opinion in whatever creative way I see fit. Last semester, I had no idea how the conference was gonna turn out or how much research I was expected to do, or what creative strategy I was able to execute, but this semester, I learned to be confident in what I knew and prepared.
Knowledge:
What I will take with me moving out of this project is how MUN generally works, how to prepare for it, and tons of background knowledge on the US’ political opinions, history, obligations and so on. Of all the school projects I’ve done in my time, this is probably one of the most useful ones, as I learned so much about how the United States works to address and approach political issues. Now, I’ll be moving forward with the ability to understand past and present political issues.
Refinement:
In all honesty, I wouldn’t do anything differently if I could go back to the start of the semester. I did my best and am more than happy with the end result. I’m also proud of myself for actually improving on my capabilities for MUN and what I did to dedicate myself to the work of researching and addressing my country’s perspective on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.
After doing this project, my thoughts on the international system of problem solving is that it is very complicated. In all honesty, the conference that we did ignored many, if not, most of the factors that come into play when discussing nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament. For instance, the incredibly wide web of deterrence spread across the world is so thick that to know each thread would mean you could literally work for the president. Therefore, I think our conference was definitely a simplified version of a real one.
With that said, I do think that this project, nevertheless, taught me a whole lot about how MUN works and how to tackle political issues. Some of the ways I’ve learned to do this are by doing extensive background research about my country. Then, I easily and simply write a policy paper and resolution expressing my country’s perspective. Finally, I show that perspective in front of my peers while demonstrating the content I learned prior. Easy peesy.
Growth:
I have grown in many ways to become a much better learner and delegate this semester. One of the most important ways in which I’ve done this, I believe, is by committing to researching about my country and then not being afraid to express that country’s opinion in whatever creative way I see fit. Last semester, I had no idea how the conference was gonna turn out or how much research I was expected to do, or what creative strategy I was able to execute, but this semester, I learned to be confident in what I knew and prepared.
Knowledge:
What I will take with me moving out of this project is how MUN generally works, how to prepare for it, and tons of background knowledge on the US’ political opinions, history, obligations and so on. Of all the school projects I’ve done in my time, this is probably one of the most useful ones, as I learned so much about how the United States works to address and approach political issues. Now, I’ll be moving forward with the ability to understand past and present political issues.
Refinement:
In all honesty, I wouldn’t do anything differently if I could go back to the start of the semester. I did my best and am more than happy with the end result. I’m also proud of myself for actually improving on my capabilities for MUN and what I did to dedicate myself to the work of researching and addressing my country’s perspective on nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament.
MUN - The Venezuelan Refugee Crisis
This project allowed us to become the roles of political figures, representing the many countries of the United Nations. As so, we all did research about our country, and further research about how our country were affecting the Venezuela refugee crisis, which is a real issue. Once collecting enough notes to write a formal policy paper, we then all wrote our own resolutions for the crisis. The best three of these resolutions would later be discussed by the class and partially amended depending on the motives of our countries during an MUN Conference. Finally, the amendments were supported by numerous, in-depth speeches given in front of the whole class.
Policy Paper
Tiernan Stein
Lori Fisher
Model UN
13 November 2019
Venezuela Policy Paper
Although the Venezuelan crisis has been greatly remedied by the US government and other organizations, it will not be resolved until the Security Council can commit to getting President Maduro out of office.
Maduro’s government must be deprived of its funds as well as sanctioned in order to get him out of his current position, and the reasons are more than clear: Over four million Venezuelans have left their country to date. These refugees are mostly migrating to Colombia and Brazil to escape the economic deprivation while evading death and crime. The causations of this situation are many, yet the underlying one was the election of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Since Maduro’s election, which is highly considered by most involved countries to be a sham, Venezuela’s economy has dropped due to the excessive expenditure of oil revenue. As oil revenue was invested in non-infrastructural foundations, the GDP growth in Venezuela plummeted. From 2013, the year of Maduro’s election, to 2018, the GDP growth has been reduced by over 25%. Within the same time frame, 1.5 million less oil barrels are being produced per day and Venezuela’s economy primarily relies on their oil industry. These several factors have ultimately contributed to: a substantial increase of Venezuelans under the poverty line, thousands of power failures and blackouts, and 9.78 million people having rationed water within the average of two days a week. With Venezuela becoming a dangerous, deserted place, one can imagine why its citizens are trying to emigrate, however, there are several problems with this as well. In order for refugees to legally cross the border into Columbia and Brazil, they must have certain documentation, which is usually unavailable or unprovided in their country. Most refugees that do get into the country are not provided legal security, meaning they are completely vulnerable to fall victim to a crime. This is because most governments follow the 1951 Refugee Convention, which constitutes a refugee as “someone who reasonably fears persecution due to their race, religion, nationality, or social or political stance (1951 Refugee Convention),” depriving Venezuelans of most civil privileges. “While there are millions of Venezuelan refugees, they are receiving very limited aid from the government Faiola, Anthony and Krygier, Rachelle).” This vast multitude of unsettling anecdotes are only evidence that Maduro was never right to become the president of Venezuela. Even though several organizations are already doing what they can to mitigate this crisis, and as the UNHCR states, “Throughout the region, UNHCR has stepped up its response and is working closely with host governments and partners, particularly IOM, to support a coordinated and comprehensive approach to the needs of refugees and migrants from Venezuela (Neyabis, Faguera),”the Maduro regime is still taking a heavy toll on what’s left of Venezuela’s citizens. Maduro’s government is even known to have sanctioned its people into voting for him during the election if they were to obtain the food they required. Since the start, Maduro has done nothing but use his people for personal benefits.
The Venezeulan crisis can and will be resolved if the western hemisphere is willing to take collective action. Knowing that President Maduro is poisonous for Venezuela, I, the United States, will continue to support the National Assembly and choke Maduro off from his funds using various sanctions. A vast multitude of organizations, including the National Assembly and the Organization of American States, have recognized Juan Guaido as a strong candidate to become Venezuela's next true representative once Maduro is out of office. “With Maduro’s current position causing much destruction in Venezuela, Juan Guaido is suggested to be the next rightful president of Venezuela (Security Council Report).” As for the current situation in Venezuela’s neighboring states, I will continue providing funds towards their infrastructural priorities. If we can unite our power, through time, I am faithful that the Venezeulan crisis will be resolved.
Lori Fisher
Model UN
13 November 2019
Venezuela Policy Paper
Although the Venezuelan crisis has been greatly remedied by the US government and other organizations, it will not be resolved until the Security Council can commit to getting President Maduro out of office.
Maduro’s government must be deprived of its funds as well as sanctioned in order to get him out of his current position, and the reasons are more than clear: Over four million Venezuelans have left their country to date. These refugees are mostly migrating to Colombia and Brazil to escape the economic deprivation while evading death and crime. The causations of this situation are many, yet the underlying one was the election of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Since Maduro’s election, which is highly considered by most involved countries to be a sham, Venezuela’s economy has dropped due to the excessive expenditure of oil revenue. As oil revenue was invested in non-infrastructural foundations, the GDP growth in Venezuela plummeted. From 2013, the year of Maduro’s election, to 2018, the GDP growth has been reduced by over 25%. Within the same time frame, 1.5 million less oil barrels are being produced per day and Venezuela’s economy primarily relies on their oil industry. These several factors have ultimately contributed to: a substantial increase of Venezuelans under the poverty line, thousands of power failures and blackouts, and 9.78 million people having rationed water within the average of two days a week. With Venezuela becoming a dangerous, deserted place, one can imagine why its citizens are trying to emigrate, however, there are several problems with this as well. In order for refugees to legally cross the border into Columbia and Brazil, they must have certain documentation, which is usually unavailable or unprovided in their country. Most refugees that do get into the country are not provided legal security, meaning they are completely vulnerable to fall victim to a crime. This is because most governments follow the 1951 Refugee Convention, which constitutes a refugee as “someone who reasonably fears persecution due to their race, religion, nationality, or social or political stance (1951 Refugee Convention),” depriving Venezuelans of most civil privileges. “While there are millions of Venezuelan refugees, they are receiving very limited aid from the government Faiola, Anthony and Krygier, Rachelle).” This vast multitude of unsettling anecdotes are only evidence that Maduro was never right to become the president of Venezuela. Even though several organizations are already doing what they can to mitigate this crisis, and as the UNHCR states, “Throughout the region, UNHCR has stepped up its response and is working closely with host governments and partners, particularly IOM, to support a coordinated and comprehensive approach to the needs of refugees and migrants from Venezuela (Neyabis, Faguera),”the Maduro regime is still taking a heavy toll on what’s left of Venezuela’s citizens. Maduro’s government is even known to have sanctioned its people into voting for him during the election if they were to obtain the food they required. Since the start, Maduro has done nothing but use his people for personal benefits.
The Venezeulan crisis can and will be resolved if the western hemisphere is willing to take collective action. Knowing that President Maduro is poisonous for Venezuela, I, the United States, will continue to support the National Assembly and choke Maduro off from his funds using various sanctions. A vast multitude of organizations, including the National Assembly and the Organization of American States, have recognized Juan Guaido as a strong candidate to become Venezuela's next true representative once Maduro is out of office. “With Maduro’s current position causing much destruction in Venezuela, Juan Guaido is suggested to be the next rightful president of Venezuela (Security Council Report).” As for the current situation in Venezuela’s neighboring states, I will continue providing funds towards their infrastructural priorities. If we can unite our power, through time, I am faithful that the Venezeulan crisis will be resolved.
MUN Conference 1 Reflection
I’ve never been one to enjoy the research part of any project, but I’ve also never seen the true pay-off of doing research. In this project, I found that I was able to make satisfactory work when I had enough knowledge and evidence to back it up. It’s hard to say which part of this project is my favorite. While the research piece wasn’t exactly the most enjoyable, it allowed me to have fun with later things like writing and giving my speech and writing my resolution.
I typically struggle a lot in my humanities classes. Hearing about this project for the first time got me scared because I know I’m not the best at straight up data-collecting, but as I got interested in the project, and thanks to the guidance of my teacher, things started to roll smoothly. Being given several resources about need-to-know information about the Venezuelan Refugee crisis was a great way to get me prepared to do the in-depth research. Now, I realize that it takes just a small amount of effort to give you both the capability and the confidence needed to complete your next task. This is something I can remember in my everyday life.
Frankly, I came ill-prepared to the conference. Specifically, I lacked a copy of the three resolutions, the cheat sheet for conference formalities, the conference schedule, a folder to hold what papers I DID have, and a tie. To be totally honest, I don’t think this affected my participation as much as I thought it would, and that’s simply because we had practiced the conference before and I was confident in my speech. I also knew that I had collected a sufficient amount of knowledge to at least allow me to make relevant comments during the conference. Overall, though, I certainly could have better prepared.
Next time, I plan to commit to doing even more research on the matter so that I can be completely confident that what I’m saying (or what I’m not saying) makes any sense. I also plan to work extensively just prior to the actual conference so that I can make sure I am ready. If I can do these two things, I believe everything else will fall into play and I will be able to make a bigger impact on the conference.
I typically struggle a lot in my humanities classes. Hearing about this project for the first time got me scared because I know I’m not the best at straight up data-collecting, but as I got interested in the project, and thanks to the guidance of my teacher, things started to roll smoothly. Being given several resources about need-to-know information about the Venezuelan Refugee crisis was a great way to get me prepared to do the in-depth research. Now, I realize that it takes just a small amount of effort to give you both the capability and the confidence needed to complete your next task. This is something I can remember in my everyday life.
Frankly, I came ill-prepared to the conference. Specifically, I lacked a copy of the three resolutions, the cheat sheet for conference formalities, the conference schedule, a folder to hold what papers I DID have, and a tie. To be totally honest, I don’t think this affected my participation as much as I thought it would, and that’s simply because we had practiced the conference before and I was confident in my speech. I also knew that I had collected a sufficient amount of knowledge to at least allow me to make relevant comments during the conference. Overall, though, I certainly could have better prepared.
Next time, I plan to commit to doing even more research on the matter so that I can be completely confident that what I’m saying (or what I’m not saying) makes any sense. I also plan to work extensively just prior to the actual conference so that I can make sure I am ready. If I can do these two things, I believe everything else will fall into play and I will be able to make a bigger impact on the conference.
The Works of Adolescents
In this project, I studied the stages by which we leave and enter throughout our lives, and learned the purpose of each one of them. Generally throughout this project, we've been learning through many sources how and why adolescents behave the way they do. We would later use this knowledge to create an interview with any person over the age of 30, which we would use to write an essay on the works of adolescence. Additionally, we took portraits of our interviewees that encapsulate the spirit of adolescence in one way or another.
This is the photograph I took of my interviewee:
The Master of Inner Peace
Tiernan Stein
Stress is something we all have to deal with. Work, school, family troubles, often times these things feel like a bunch of smoke suffocating us. It appears to be an inevitable, inescapable human condition… but what if there was someone out there who actually never felt stress? Someone who wasn’t human at all, and therefore never felt stress in their lives. Someone who embraces what life throws at him. Well I know this person. He’s smart. He’s funny. He’s happy and he’s loving. The only thing he isn’t is rich and that’s because he makes everyone else’s lives better. He’s Kyle Edmondson.
Kyle is more divine than man. He’s a mentor for people who desire a big future and an idol for those who don’t. Most of all, Kyle is the most stable man I have ever met. I have never once seen Kyle, or his offspring for that matter, stressed out about anything. He takes great care of himself, his family and his students. I take nothing Kyle says for granted. He is a motivation for me and a great example of a successful person. In addition to Kyle being a completely stress-free entity, he told me that he has never felt stressed out during his adolescence. Do you understand? Read that line again in case you don’t. Naturally, something I asked Kyle was, “Exactly what galaxy are you from?” Kyle grew up in Santa Barbara in a very rich neighborhood. That didn’t make him rich, however. It didn’t make him poor either, although, by comparison, it kind of did. Kyle went to school with some pretty rich people… and I mean rich as hell. Like, the I-have-pet-penguins-in-my-ice-skating-rink-downstairs kind of rich. Kyle actually grew up with these people. Anyway, something Kyle told me was that these kids were supposedly under more stress than he was. Little was ever witnessed by Kyle himself, but he had heard many stories and gossip of these kids going through struggles at home. Even though Kyle never really got the full picture of these struggles, one thing was for certain. They were definitely struggling more than he was. Kyle went to a small high school, but regardless, he was always at the top of his class. In fact, Kyle’s everyday mindset, from what I’ve witnessed, as well as what he told me, indicates clearly that Kyle is not one to procrastinate. He gets his work done as soon as he can. Now tell me how many times you’ve felt overwhelmed by work. Infinity, right? Now guess how many times Kyle’s felt overwhelmed. Zero times. The point I’m trying to make is that Kyle is clearly and evidently a truly stress-free person.
Now let’s delve into this matter and begin to ask, “Why does and did Kyle Edmondson live such a stress-free life?” To answer this, we must enter the topic of the human brain and explore the works of some fine psychologists. One of these psychologists, I believe, has a theory that greatly pertains to Kyle Edmondson’s unusual phenomenon. The theory is called Erikson’s Theory of Psychological Development. Erikson breaks down psychological development into eight distinct stages in which we become different and learn various concepts. For example, the first stage is Trust vs Mistrust, which happens from ages 0 to 2, roughly. This stage is where we learn whether or not to trust people as we explore the world and create preferences. Interestingly, research suggests that children within this stage who don’t develop properly often end up becoming mistrustful and frustrated. Keyword: Frustration (a.k.a. The thing Kyle doesn’t feel). So, logically, this very concept would suggest that Kyle had a very close and trusting relationship with his parents at a young age, evidently giving Kyle a relaxed, non-frustrated personality.
Something about Kyle that goes without saying is that he can handle tons of work. When I interviewed him, Kyle said that he was always at the top of his high school class and would always get his work completed. An Erikson stage that I think particularly pertains to this trait is the second: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt. Something that I personally think affects my day-to-day effort to complete assignments is my willingness to do so as well as my autonomy. Kyle is extremely confident in what he does as well as an independent, self-caring being. Roughly, from ages 2-4 do we mostly develop our autonomy, and in some cases experience doubt in shame. With Kyle, however, I do not believe he experienced hardly any doubt and shame during that age, as it typically leads to, as studies suggest, dependence on others as well as self shame and doubt.
Now let’s skip ahead a few years in Erikson’s psychological development theory to something that especially regards Kyle: Industry and Inferiority, which is developed from ages 9-12. The specifics of this stage pertain to our general competence as human beings, Kyle exceeding the usual expectations. During these years, children ask themselves, “Can I make it in the world of people and things.” I evidently believe Kyle’s answer would be, “Yes.” My evidence comes straight from Kyle himself, as he told me during our interview that he was really into sports during high school. He said that while he wasn’t the biggest jockey or much of an athlete, he would play soccer nonetheless. That alone is a sign of Kyle’s willingness to compete with others, but more importantly, Kyle told me about his significant exploits as a math expert. During his high school years, Kyle told me of two city-wide math competitions--one which he had won first place--and the other which he... technically won first place, however he was mistakenly announced otherwise. Winning a city-wide math competition twice is not the kind of thing I witness for most people, and the most suggested cause of this phenomenon would be three years of great encouragement and idea of self-belonging during middle childhood.
Lastly, we have left to discuss Kyle’s adolescent years which span from ages 13-19 years. One of the few things Kyle told me during our interview that I could actually relate with was that he never truly made sense of his adolescent years. He told me he drifted by adolescence, not truly recognizing it’s full purpose, waiting to become an adult. I think this is something most adolescents experience. Most of my peers today wish that they could skip through these tough years and move straight out of the house. Now, I’m not saying that Kyle didn’t do as well, academically or emotionally, during these years as I’ve suggested prior, but Kyle said he simply didn’t know what he wanted to do… or even why he was doing what he was doing, yet he did it nonetheless. This is something I see constantly as well--people continuously excelling in their activities, never even asking themselves why they are doing it. People just do things. It’s actually a very intriguing concept--one which I have very high interest in. We don’t ever actually have the power to change ourselves, as it has already been determined for us by our environment. Will isn’t the product of your goals and dreams. It’s the product of the way you were raised. Anyway, something Kyle was perhaps missing from his adolescent years was a strong role-model. It would make sense logically as well. Kyle, being the self-centered, confident boy he was, suggestively never depended on many other people, giving him little to no role models in his life. Since he already had great grades and was living life full and happy, he had no need to look ahead or look up to anyone else. As a scientific result of not having a role model, Kyle’s visions of the future and ideas of the purpose of his adolescent years were likely irrelevant and non-existent in his mind.
Kyle surely does take the cake for being the most envied person alive (by me, of course) due to his exceptional exploits and successes as a child. His playful and confident attitude are now clear to me as a result of his childhood memories of being trusted and trustworthy, industrious and autonomic, and actively reassured of his own identity. I wish to also note that these are all things Kyle tells me are things he tries to bestow upon his students in order to make them as successful and stubborn as he is. Maybe someday, using this information, we will soon all become Kyle Edmondsons and conquer the world with intelligence and triumph.
Tiernan Stein
Stress is something we all have to deal with. Work, school, family troubles, often times these things feel like a bunch of smoke suffocating us. It appears to be an inevitable, inescapable human condition… but what if there was someone out there who actually never felt stress? Someone who wasn’t human at all, and therefore never felt stress in their lives. Someone who embraces what life throws at him. Well I know this person. He’s smart. He’s funny. He’s happy and he’s loving. The only thing he isn’t is rich and that’s because he makes everyone else’s lives better. He’s Kyle Edmondson.
Kyle is more divine than man. He’s a mentor for people who desire a big future and an idol for those who don’t. Most of all, Kyle is the most stable man I have ever met. I have never once seen Kyle, or his offspring for that matter, stressed out about anything. He takes great care of himself, his family and his students. I take nothing Kyle says for granted. He is a motivation for me and a great example of a successful person. In addition to Kyle being a completely stress-free entity, he told me that he has never felt stressed out during his adolescence. Do you understand? Read that line again in case you don’t. Naturally, something I asked Kyle was, “Exactly what galaxy are you from?” Kyle grew up in Santa Barbara in a very rich neighborhood. That didn’t make him rich, however. It didn’t make him poor either, although, by comparison, it kind of did. Kyle went to school with some pretty rich people… and I mean rich as hell. Like, the I-have-pet-penguins-in-my-ice-skating-rink-downstairs kind of rich. Kyle actually grew up with these people. Anyway, something Kyle told me was that these kids were supposedly under more stress than he was. Little was ever witnessed by Kyle himself, but he had heard many stories and gossip of these kids going through struggles at home. Even though Kyle never really got the full picture of these struggles, one thing was for certain. They were definitely struggling more than he was. Kyle went to a small high school, but regardless, he was always at the top of his class. In fact, Kyle’s everyday mindset, from what I’ve witnessed, as well as what he told me, indicates clearly that Kyle is not one to procrastinate. He gets his work done as soon as he can. Now tell me how many times you’ve felt overwhelmed by work. Infinity, right? Now guess how many times Kyle’s felt overwhelmed. Zero times. The point I’m trying to make is that Kyle is clearly and evidently a truly stress-free person.
Now let’s delve into this matter and begin to ask, “Why does and did Kyle Edmondson live such a stress-free life?” To answer this, we must enter the topic of the human brain and explore the works of some fine psychologists. One of these psychologists, I believe, has a theory that greatly pertains to Kyle Edmondson’s unusual phenomenon. The theory is called Erikson’s Theory of Psychological Development. Erikson breaks down psychological development into eight distinct stages in which we become different and learn various concepts. For example, the first stage is Trust vs Mistrust, which happens from ages 0 to 2, roughly. This stage is where we learn whether or not to trust people as we explore the world and create preferences. Interestingly, research suggests that children within this stage who don’t develop properly often end up becoming mistrustful and frustrated. Keyword: Frustration (a.k.a. The thing Kyle doesn’t feel). So, logically, this very concept would suggest that Kyle had a very close and trusting relationship with his parents at a young age, evidently giving Kyle a relaxed, non-frustrated personality.
Something about Kyle that goes without saying is that he can handle tons of work. When I interviewed him, Kyle said that he was always at the top of his high school class and would always get his work completed. An Erikson stage that I think particularly pertains to this trait is the second: Autonomy vs. Shame and Doubt. Something that I personally think affects my day-to-day effort to complete assignments is my willingness to do so as well as my autonomy. Kyle is extremely confident in what he does as well as an independent, self-caring being. Roughly, from ages 2-4 do we mostly develop our autonomy, and in some cases experience doubt in shame. With Kyle, however, I do not believe he experienced hardly any doubt and shame during that age, as it typically leads to, as studies suggest, dependence on others as well as self shame and doubt.
Now let’s skip ahead a few years in Erikson’s psychological development theory to something that especially regards Kyle: Industry and Inferiority, which is developed from ages 9-12. The specifics of this stage pertain to our general competence as human beings, Kyle exceeding the usual expectations. During these years, children ask themselves, “Can I make it in the world of people and things.” I evidently believe Kyle’s answer would be, “Yes.” My evidence comes straight from Kyle himself, as he told me during our interview that he was really into sports during high school. He said that while he wasn’t the biggest jockey or much of an athlete, he would play soccer nonetheless. That alone is a sign of Kyle’s willingness to compete with others, but more importantly, Kyle told me about his significant exploits as a math expert. During his high school years, Kyle told me of two city-wide math competitions--one which he had won first place--and the other which he... technically won first place, however he was mistakenly announced otherwise. Winning a city-wide math competition twice is not the kind of thing I witness for most people, and the most suggested cause of this phenomenon would be three years of great encouragement and idea of self-belonging during middle childhood.
Lastly, we have left to discuss Kyle’s adolescent years which span from ages 13-19 years. One of the few things Kyle told me during our interview that I could actually relate with was that he never truly made sense of his adolescent years. He told me he drifted by adolescence, not truly recognizing it’s full purpose, waiting to become an adult. I think this is something most adolescents experience. Most of my peers today wish that they could skip through these tough years and move straight out of the house. Now, I’m not saying that Kyle didn’t do as well, academically or emotionally, during these years as I’ve suggested prior, but Kyle said he simply didn’t know what he wanted to do… or even why he was doing what he was doing, yet he did it nonetheless. This is something I see constantly as well--people continuously excelling in their activities, never even asking themselves why they are doing it. People just do things. It’s actually a very intriguing concept--one which I have very high interest in. We don’t ever actually have the power to change ourselves, as it has already been determined for us by our environment. Will isn’t the product of your goals and dreams. It’s the product of the way you were raised. Anyway, something Kyle was perhaps missing from his adolescent years was a strong role-model. It would make sense logically as well. Kyle, being the self-centered, confident boy he was, suggestively never depended on many other people, giving him little to no role models in his life. Since he already had great grades and was living life full and happy, he had no need to look ahead or look up to anyone else. As a scientific result of not having a role model, Kyle’s visions of the future and ideas of the purpose of his adolescent years were likely irrelevant and non-existent in his mind.
Kyle surely does take the cake for being the most envied person alive (by me, of course) due to his exceptional exploits and successes as a child. His playful and confident attitude are now clear to me as a result of his childhood memories of being trusted and trustworthy, industrious and autonomic, and actively reassured of his own identity. I wish to also note that these are all things Kyle tells me are things he tries to bestow upon his students in order to make them as successful and stubborn as he is. Maybe someday, using this information, we will soon all become Kyle Edmondsons and conquer the world with intelligence and triumph.
Reflection
During this project, I am most proud of my organizational skills and my ability to get my work done. Something I usually struggle with is not procrastinating and using my time efficiently to get all my work done on time and during this project, I think I definitely did that. With my interview & portrait for example, I sorted out a time for me to meet with Kyle and came well prepared on both occasions.
A time that I ran into difficulty during this project was during exhibition. During exhibition, we collectively participated in a Socratic Seminar. Something we all needed for preparation for the seminar was an attachment assigned prior, which I had not finished. Consequentially, I had no references to make during exhibition and had difficulty coming up with things to talk about.
Undoubtedly, the most important thing I learned during this project, specifically, was Erikson's Theory of Psychological Development. Learning about this was the most in-depth research I'd done during the course of the project. I learned so much and found that Erikson's Theory vitally pertains to parenting and knowing how to treat adolescence as a community member.
On my overall performance in this class, I would give myself an 8/10. I almost always arrive to class on time and immediately take my seat and begin my starter. Something I haven't had difficulty doing in this class is providing my attention when needed. However, what I mostly lack in this class is my ability to stay on task and work without stopping. Whenever I work on one thing for more than, say, 20 minutes, I become bored and my mind starts to space out. A specific example of this would be my Seminar Pre-write, as I had not invested enough time into finishing it. Something I can do to improve my performance in staying on task would be to get more sleep. Lately I have been staying up later than I need to, and it has not served me well.
A time that I ran into difficulty during this project was during exhibition. During exhibition, we collectively participated in a Socratic Seminar. Something we all needed for preparation for the seminar was an attachment assigned prior, which I had not finished. Consequentially, I had no references to make during exhibition and had difficulty coming up with things to talk about.
Undoubtedly, the most important thing I learned during this project, specifically, was Erikson's Theory of Psychological Development. Learning about this was the most in-depth research I'd done during the course of the project. I learned so much and found that Erikson's Theory vitally pertains to parenting and knowing how to treat adolescence as a community member.
On my overall performance in this class, I would give myself an 8/10. I almost always arrive to class on time and immediately take my seat and begin my starter. Something I haven't had difficulty doing in this class is providing my attention when needed. However, what I mostly lack in this class is my ability to stay on task and work without stopping. Whenever I work on one thing for more than, say, 20 minutes, I become bored and my mind starts to space out. A specific example of this would be my Seminar Pre-write, as I had not invested enough time into finishing it. Something I can do to improve my performance in staying on task would be to get more sleep. Lately I have been staying up later than I need to, and it has not served me well.