Eye-witness report of MH17 crash

Dutch television just showed an interview with a Ukrainian man who explains what he saw and heard yesterday after Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 was shot down by a rocket over eastern Ukraine.

The interview was subtitled in Dutch, the translation to English is mine. The images belong to Dutch NOS television.

"An explosion and a bang. Then people fell from the sky. People started appearing right out of the clouds. A large piece of wreckage landed at the end of the street. People fell on the rooftops of houses and on the asphalt."

Two hundred and ninety-eight innocent men, women and children. Dead through no fault of their own because they were dragged into a conflict they had nothing to do with. Dead because ... Because why? Because what?

The one who changed my thinking

There's a difference between the person who writes this blog, and the person I am when not writing this blog. In my personal life, I'm quiet, someone who doesn't like attention. There are two reasons for that: One: I often feel like people just don't get me. Being 'the outsider' is just easier. No strained interactions. No having to try to fit in. Two: When it comes to stuff I am passionate about, like sociology, psychology, politics and religion, my opinion differs from many around me. I am pro-Israel. Something that doesn't seem very popular or mainstream. Especially since October 7th. Being pro-Israel, to me... That doesn't mean that I support, or agree with, every decision the Israeli government makes. Far from it. But do I support Israel's right to exist? Yes. Do I support Israel's right to defend itself? Yes. Do I feel that the world is against Israel? Also: Yes. On the 7th of October 2023, a large number of rather angry men entered towns ...

Bronfenbrenner's Ecological Systems Theory

Urie Bronfenbrenner (1917 - 2005) was a Russian American psychologist and professor known for developing the Ecological Systems Theory. He was generally regarded as one of the world's leading scholars in the field of developmental psychology. I learned about theorists such as Bronfenbrenner while studying towards my B.Ed. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory views the person as developing within a multi-layered system of relationships. Using the example of a child, the systems are: The Microsystem - One's family, classroom The Mesosystem - Two micro-systems in interaction (i.e. family and classroom) The Exosystem - External environments which indirectly influence development The Macrosystem - The larger socio-cultural context. Added later: The Chronosystem - The evolution of the external systems over time. Each system contains roles, norms and rules that can powerfully shape development. (Source: Wikipedia ) The Microsystem: The setting in which the indi...

New Orleans' Garden District

Anne Rice's old house on 1239 First Street and the setting of Mayfair Manor Photo Source: Flickr Looking up information about the house writer Anne Rice uses as the site for the family mansion in her Mayfair Witches series, I came across a lot of interesting information about that particular house as well as about the Garden District area of New Orleans. As Victoriana Magazine's website puts it: One of the world's most dazzling residential neighborhoods – containing a time capsule of historic southern mansions – is located in the Louisiana city of New Orleans. The Garden District, a large square area bounded by Jackson Avenue, Louisiana Avenue, Magazine St. and St. Charles Ave, is the live oak tree-lined "American" sector of this southern city. ... The architecture of these historic houses is a fusion of classic styles with influence of Spanish, French, Italianate and English, as well as Greek Revival. These stately homes represent some of the best...

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