So here I am, at a perpetual standstill with the blank page that is my first potential article on Kazakhstan. I've been tossing these ideas around in my head since last night.

What to write? What to write?

At first, I wanted to start with something introductory, maybe dishing out a little historical context or background information, like the approximate geographic location or climate of Kazakhstan. I even thought about chattering off on strings of trivial nonsense about how my day has been (and how has yours been?). But then it occurred to me that I wanted to go back to the reason I started this blog in the first place, to address the stigma that Americans are constantly associating with Central Asia. And much of that can be explained in reciprocation to this question I saw on Yahoo Answers: Is it safe for Americans to go to Kazakhstan? I'm not going to tell you "yes", because there's a certain precaution that anyone should take no matter where they're going. Every travel destination has its thieves, skanky hotel receptionists, shady taxi drivers- the whole lot. I remember watching Simon Reeve's documentary "Meet the Stans", and seeing a scene where he struggles to safeguard his backpack from people whom he deems suspicious, but that's the case in any public facility bustling with business. I've always been warned to safeguard my belongings, whether I'm in New York, Downtown Boston, or Beijing. I don't think that's something that should discourage you from traveling, but you should always be careful.

Otherwise, I want to touch a few general concerns that I've seen on the internet, which seems to be weapons/terrorism, the general attitude of the people, and the response garnered by the indisputably offensive comedy, Borat (If you've not seen/are not familiar with the film, be sure to tune in to my upcoming blogpost dedicated to combating the stigma imposed by it).

So what would you do if you inherited 1,410 nuclear warheads, the Soviet Union's primary nuclear testing venue, and a bunch of nuclear weapon production facilities?

In an unprecedented, badass move, Kazakhstan returned all 1,410 warheads to Russia, dismantled every one of the Soviet testing facilities, and destroyed the Semipalatinsk nuclear weapon testing site within four years of its independence. Heck, the United Nations even designated a holiday to commemorate Kazakhstan's revolutionary decision, so August 29th has since been known as the International Day Against Nuclear Tests. Now, unfortunately, the country does happen to be sitting on some of the world's largest uranium deposits, but Kazakhstan firmly defends their nonproliferation efforts as party to and advocate of the Treaty on the Nonproliferation of Nuclear Weapons, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, and both the safeguards and additional protocol of the IAEA. In a nutshell, this means that Kazakhstan has vied for complete transparency of their nuclear material for the International Atomic Energy Agency that allows the organization to verify that KZ is living up to their promises. Sailing above and beyond, the government even launched the ATOM project, an acronym for "Abolish Testing. Our Mission".

If the Kazakh government's mission is to abolish nuclear testing, then the Kazakh people have long been on a mission to forgive. Of course, because I have yet to visit Kazakhstan, I wouldn't know if this is the case with everyone, but based on what I've seen, read, and experienced, the Kazakhs do not hold political grudges. Back when I used to visit China, I would often be surrounded by flocks of antagonistic relatives who would bicker endlessly about whose ancestors sold opium to who, and how I should always steer clear of the Japanese (Luckily, I've overcome that, as my best friend is Japanese). However, Kazakhs confront political relations of the past with a refreshingly positive attitude. After the Soviet Union's Kazakh genocide, where millions of traditionally nomadic people were forced to desert their past and move on to collectivized farms, one third of the population was killed or wiped out by hunger. Unlike countries such as Azerbaijan and Armenia, who've developed major border conflicts and prohibit citizens of either one from entering the other, Kazakhs are taught to live peaceably with their Russian neighbors and not blame Russia- but rather, politics- for the tragedies that occurred. The second ethnic majority in Kazakhstan is now comprised by Russians, followed by 131 other ethnicities which are subject to the same rights and freedom of religion, making Kazakhstan one of the most diverse nations in the world.

And what of Borat? Rather than letting feelings of resentment fester or infringe upon international relations, Kazakhstan invited Sasha Cohen Baron ('Borat') to visit their country, in hopes of allowing him to experience the beauty of Kazakhstan. "I'd like to Invite Cohen. He can learn a lot of things. Women drive cars, wine is made of grapes, and Jews are free to go to synagogues," said Kazakhstan's Deputy Foreign Minister Rakhat Aliyev. "We must have a sense of humor and respect other people's creativity."

So yes, Kazakhstan is still far from perfect, but since the USSRs collapse, it's only been an independent country for about 24 years, and in that small amount of time, it's sure aspired to great heights. Like America, it's cultured and diverse, and like us, it's also a presidential republic. Give it some time and you may find that Kazakhstan is not so foreign to us after all!