Blog #4

Bryson Welch   

One of my favorite things to do is to share dinner with someone. Therefore, in order for me to express my idea of what defines leadership I am going to create a “menu for successful leadership”. Any menu should contain options for different appetizers, main courses, deserts and of course drinks. A good meal should always begin with the appetizer since it lays the ground work for the rest of the meal. People possessing leadership roles started off by preparing a group for the plans, ideas, and beliefs that he or she planned on following if they managed to gain enough support. An appetizer is similar to the beginning stages any leader must follow. Next, most importantly in any meal is the main course, it can be compared to the actions a leader takes because they are most important to a good leader and his or her success depends entirely on their actions. Finally, the desert which rewards the eater with its deliciousness. A good leader should encourage their followers and reward them for good deeds. Throughout the whole process of consuming a meal one thing that is crucial is the drink. Without a drink all other components may fall apart, the drink keeps things in line, just like the leader who replenishes and keeps his or her followers focused. Overall, a good leader brings out the best in everyone just like each individual course of a good meal. Each course serves to complement one another.

No More War

        Chemist, Biochemist, Physicist, medical doctor, holistic experimenter, anti-war activist, and anti-nuclear test activist: Linus Pauling. The holder of 42 different PhD's, and arguably one of the most intelligent men to have ever lived. Living from 1901-1994, Linus Pauling lived through two wars and two global police actions that the U.S. involved themselves in: WWI, WWII, The Vietnam  Global Police Action, and The Korean Global Police action. Having seen the effects of war on this country, he became an anti-war activist, and gave several talks about the importance of diplomacy. He also lived through the cold war and nuclear age.
Seeing the destruction that a nuclear bomb could cause he began to study physics extensively. While other scientists were designing bigger bombs, Pauling was planning what the best way to get rid of them would be. Pauling feared a nuclear war after what had been inflicted upon Hiroshima and Nagasaki during WWI and because of this he became an adamant protester against the increase in the number of nuclear bombs that the U.S. put into production. His major feat was in joining the Emergency Committee of Atomic Scientists. This committee was filled with the brightest scientists from all around America, and was chaired by Albert Einstein. These scientists pooled their resources and
launched onto a campaign which they hoped would turn public opinion in favor of disarmament. Nearly all members of this group earned a Nobel Peace Prize for their activism, and Pauling was among them. However, these scientists and Pauling in particular faced considerable opposition from the U.S. government. When Pauling began to stir up the American populace against Nuclear Armament, the federal government tried to both discredit him and shut down many of his activities. Even going so far as to revoke his passport in 1952 in order to prevent him from attending international peace talks in Britain. By peaceably continuing his protests and activism while using hard scientific data to prove his assertions, Linus Pauling shows that no matter how large and resourceful the foe, your goals can be accomplished through force of will and intellect. His example has led me to incorporate the theme of intelligence into my own leadership. Because any activist that can use irrefutable evidence to support his or her claims is a force to be reckoned with; they are unable to be discredited, and therefore make a larger impact on society. This is my goal where my leadership style is concerned. Whenever I begin to feel passionately on an issue that I feel warrants change, I will arm myself not just with opinions and moral arguments, but with cold, unyielding data and hard facts.








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What Makes Me Come Alive

I am moved when it comes to improving myself in some form which will make me a more valuable person. I wish to become valuable in a sense that what I do in life affects others in a positive way whether it be instilling in them better morals through their witnessing of my behavior or it be my creation of something which becomes beneficial to the world. So when a person exhibits characteristics of a good hearted person, extremely driven/motivated individual or proves to me he is ridiculously intelligent then my eyes will light up at the chance to learn from him. Therefore, if I come alive when I see a person who exhibits value, then I should go out in an effort to demonstrate similar characteristics. Never should I act in a way that portrays poor morals or a lack of intelligence because who then would wish to follow my example when there are other truly valuable people out there. I do not currently demonstrate many valuable characteristics, I wish to separate myself from those I see little value in so that I may find other individuals whose good examples I can follow. Another alternative to this would be to ignore those who demonstrate little value and simply take after those who act in accordance to how I wish to portray myself. However this is not easily done, there are few people around me who exhibit value and instead of acting as the righteous few, who will more than likely become the immensely valuable person I am striving to become, my will at times is simply not strong enough to avoid acting in accordance to those who set a bad example before me.

Bryson Welch

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My name is Bryson Welch, I am a biology major and my favorite soda brand is Mug root beer.