Foamphobia

I have always been a bit tactilely defensive, socks have to feel just right and seams on clothing absolutely cannot be itchy… A good majority of fits I pitched in my youth were related to things just not “feeling right”. This leads me to my irrational but overwhelmingly strong fear… of foam. Yes, foam. I can’t tell you with certainty what the root cause of this “foamphobia” (as named by my family) is, but I can assure you this fear is immensely real.

My foamphobia is the one major reason I no longer choose compete in the sport of gymnastics. Even entering the same room as that giant looming pit of disgustingly hellish foam is much too intimidating for me, let alone practicing proper tumbling form into it. The foam pit drove me away from the sport after six years of high-level competition, and needless to say it was a bit of an embarrassing talk with some of my relatives who were wondering why I was no longer participating. My coach had definitely seen it coming. The very last tumbling practice I ever attended, he had been warned that I was in no way willing to tumble into the foam pit, but he forced me to participate with the rest of my team. Anxiety started building the very second I realized my fate was to end up flipping into the disgusting pit, and the moment I hit that foam was definitely the rock bottom point of no return for my ever-strengthening foamphobia and I. Upon my landing, I felt my body become engulfed by those hellish spongy blocks and was paralyzed by the feeling that I would never escape the clutches of the horrid material. I promptly responded by throwing up a good portion of my lunch.

I’m not even sure of exactly what about the material frightens me, but do not bring even a miniscule piece of that spongy material around me. The foam will set off an embarrassing fit of hysteria, and if I am forced to touch it with a bare hand I am guaranteed to feel nauseous, uneasy, and on the verge of tears (on a particularly good day).

I sincerely hope that one day I may be able to conquer my irrational fear of foam, but until that day arrives, I would appreciate it if you would refrain from bringing me near to any piece of it. 

I believe the controversy over Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks site will never cease to exist, but personally I see Assange as more of the people’s hero than as a monster to be feared. Viewing the TED Talks interview with Assange helped to sway me towards having that stance.

The single largest reason I feel Assange is right in defending his website, is the Bradley Manning video that was leaked. The footage of soldiers laughing at the deaths of innocent people is something the American people should be aware of, and not something that should be covered up by the government. Those soldiers in the helicopter knew exactly what they were doing, and I don’t see any defense for them being found out.  This is an example of Assange’s WikiLeaks being used to uncover truth for the common people, truths of “true human rights abuses”, as Assange stated in his interview. The comment Assange made about the footage of the helicopter shootings, “they (the people in Afghanistan and Iraq) don’t need to see the video, they see it every day”, really hit home for me. If my country’s military is abusing basic human rights of innocent civilians, I believe it should be brought to light, and that those involved should be prosecuted. Assange’s website makes this possible.

Another reason I feel Assange should not be known as an evildoer, is that through viewing the interview I felt he believed that uncovering truth through leaks can do good for the world, and even change the world. He stated that he works to “police perpetrators of crime” through his work, and that he has a hope of “doing good with the release of the documents” through WikiLeaks.

WikiLeaks also seemed like a fairly credible source for getting information. Assange said in the interview that if the website cannot fully verify a document, but feels it could be substantial, they will say that outright. Also, the people submitting information are “whistle blowers”. These individuals obviously feel that the general public has a need for viewing these documents for whatever reason.

I do understand the opposing views in this argument. I realize that some documents are confidential for a very significant reason and can possibly protect the safety of a country’s citizens.  Videos and information about outright abuse of human right and various other ugly truths, though I feel do not meet the criteria of that category.