I don’t know if this article is really fair. The story about the woman being arrested for trying to defend herself from her abusive husband really does not have much to do about race. I have heard of multiple different circumstances where an abused wife has been put in jail for trying to defend herself against an abusive partner, and a majority of them involved white couples. Now, I can see how the Trayvon Martin/ George Zimmerman can be considered a case about race (I’ll come back to this later), but what Marissa Alexander experienced is not a problem that is solely experienced by blacks. Now, I am in no way saying that she should have been punished, in fact I think that this is a great injustice to her. But this is not about race, if anything this is an example of the failure of the justice system and women’s’ mistrust of the system. So, the connection between the Trayvon Martin case and the Marissa Alexander case just seems ignorant to me. Believe it or not, not everything is about race. Now, in regards to the Trayvon Martin case, at first I did not know a lot about the specifics so I did a little bit of research. Obviously, I don’t really trust most forms of media so I went to a bunch of different sources. And basically at the end of it all, I felt like I knew even less than when I began. Each source said something different, even each witness saw something different (if they even saw anything at all). All of it was just really shady. BUT, although I wasn’t completely convinced of anything, I was really weary about the fact that the shooting was a result of racism or racial profiling. Although Trayvon’s skin color may have alerted Zimmerman (which is wrong), if I saw anyone walking around at night in the rain with a hood on, I would have at least given them a little bit of extra attention, especially if it was my job to keep watch of the neighborhood. I feel like the bigger problem is that Zimmerman took his job way too seriously, had a false sense of superiority/’duty’ and was trigger-happy. Let’s face it; this is a prime example of what happens when you give an idiot a gun. He does not have any training, and neighborhood patrols should only be used as a way to tip off the true authorities, not act as vigilantes. It seems like Zimmerman made A LOT of calls to the police over the course of time that he was on patrol, and I’m sure many of those were not necessary. The fact of the matter is, no one really knows what happened that day. Everyone seems to be saying something different, so we all need to stop accepting everything we hear or see as the truth. Even if race did play a part in this, I feel like this should not have caused such a racial divide as it has. And don’t forget, George Zimmerman is Hispanic not white, so I’m not even sure why the media portrays the world as black and white, nothing really makes sense to me at this point. I feel like the bigger issue in all of this is gun control, and that a young man is now dead.

Fear is so prominent in our daily lives. I know I love watching shows like Law & Order: SVU or Criminal Minds, because they are so entertaining and interesting. And I can easily get creeped out by what I see on TV shows like that, but people need to realize 1) these are meant for entertainment purposes and 2) they are not real. We really are surrounded by violence all over the media, whether it is a TV series, a movie or even the nightly news. Violence, tragedy, and fear sells. The entertainment industry produces what we want, and it’s not hard to see that the news stations love focusing on the negatives. So I think that is where this cynicism comes from. A lot of us don’t look for the good in things. I know that my parents gave me the whole ‘don’t talk to strangers speech’, but other than that they gave me freedom to explore. I used to always ride my bike to school when I was in elementary school, one time I was mauled by a dog, but that’s not the point. Other than that, I was completely fine and I learned to not fear the world. I feel like with each generation, we as a whole confine ourselves more and more from fear of the unknown. Kids aren’t getting those real world experiences like they used to, and they are certainly missing out on some hilarious memories. A couple of years ago I read the book titled ‘Fear’ (I forget who the author is..) and it was about how society’s fear is used as a way to control us. Whether it is the fear of planes, strangers, disease, or whatever, these fears cause us to stay stagnant. We are so afraid of the consequences, that we never take any action. It was a great book and it really got me thinking about how fear can have such a strong hold on people. A lot of the things that I used to be scared of are things that are out of my control anyways, so why bother worrying about it? The majority of people are good, and as I go out and interact with new people each day, it is reinforced even more. We need to give each other a chance to show our character. Now, I’m not saying that we should all go around handing out fliers with our social security numbers on them, or get into a van with a guy promising us candy, but to just not be so pessimistic. One of the best feelings is being pleasantly surprised by someone, but without giving them a chance, we will never know that feeling. So, overall I would say that we are conditioned mainly by the media to be fearful of almost everything, but we can over come it.

Interesting, I think this a really loaded question. Not only is it weird that we need a person to act as a ‘middleman’ between us and God, but why do we need an organized religion with a name to feel close to him? Personally I was raised catholic and I do believe in God but I often find myself questioning if organized religion is really the way to go about connecting with God. For a lot of people I feel that it gives them a sense of security to have a relationship with a more ‘divine’ individual that appears to be more deeply connected to God, or whatever you want to call him or her. I know that a lot of close friends or family members of mine tend to lean on their local priest, deacon, kohen, etc in order to make themselves feel closer to the higher being that they worship. In my opinion I think that the main reason these intermediaries are needed is because just the idea of this all powerful creator in the sky is just too abstract of an idea for people to grasp on their own. It is just too out-there for many. So throughout history, we have turned to others who claim to have experienced some interaction with a celestial being. The unknown is a scary thing, and having some sort of explanation offers a lot of comfort. Without a person telling us what to believe, how to act, what will happen to us after we die, we would be forced to practice free will..How terrible! Don’t get me wrong, I have learned a lot about being a good person throughout the years by attending mass and taking part in church activities. But, and this is going to sound terrible (especially since good Friday was an hour ago and Easter is right around the corner), I can’t help but think that all of these traditions, ceremonies and rules are just a bunch of bull shit meant to control us. For me, I don’t need a person to tell me what to believe or how to act, I have my own unique relationship with God. I believe he is there, and I try to be the best me I can be. I’ll never quite understand what gives these religious figures (mere mortals haha) the right to preach the ‘word’ of god. Yes, priest in a sense ‘marry’ the church, but not all religions are like that. What makes these individuals more qualified to interact with God that others? All of this being said, to answer the question: most of the time, religion offers people inner-peace, and many need some type of vessel that carries the word of God to them, reinforcing that whatever religion they are practicing is right. People need others to support them in what they are doing.

This is a great question. I always get confused when people get so offended about certain stereotypes when it does not apply to them. Maybe they are mad because they feel that they are wrongly being judged? Or maybe they think that it is offensive to other people that they know who may reinforce whatever the stereotype is. Most of the time, I find that the people who are in uproar about stereotypes are people who it is not targeted at. If I would fit into a stereotype, I would find it funny. A lot of times the most sensitive are not even affected by the said stereotype. The guy in the video has a great point, and I feel like he went about asking the question the right way. The whole idea of stereotypes is so confusing. Those who fit the stereotype, usually don’t care, the ones who do not fit the stereotype usually have two reactions. They don’t care, or become super angry and defensive. I feel like it is mainly because they think it puts them in an unfair disadvantage. If this is the reason, I can see where they are coming from. If I were to walk in to a job interview and be judged just by what stereotypes that the interviewers believes to be true about me, I would get really upset. In a short time period, I wouldn’t be able to prove the stereotypes wrong, and I would feel trapped. As a white, well off woman, luckily there are not too many stereotypes working against me. But as another race, I can’t even imagine what I would be like to have that weight on my shoulders. Even if people were not judging me for the stereotype, just the thought that they were would really frustrate me. The more I think about it, the more I think that having a bunch of negative stereotypes directed at me, even if they aren’t true, would cause me to become really paranoid. It is hard for me to take stereotypes seriously, because I have found so many to be untrue, and none are really associated with me. So, at first I thought it was so ridiculous for people to react so harshly when people joke about stereotypes. But the more we play in to stereotypes, the more engrained they become in to our society. Humor has the ability to both make things more lighthearted, but also turns these serious issues in to something that should not be taken so lightly. What I am trying to say is that I guess I do not really have a right or enough information to judge why people get so offended, because we are not in the same situation.

First off, the way this girl asked this question was very well done in my opinion. I like that she didn't just give the audience two options either give up the chair or not. Instead she also gave the option of sharing the chair, which I feel a lot of people over look as a possible solution. If I had to just chose between the two original options, I would say that the white girl should not give up her seat, because she can't be held accountable for what her ancestors did. This is similar to blacks being enslaved by whites in the past. Our current generations were not the ones taking slaves; we are not part of that atrocity. Although this was a horrible thing to happen, and I’ll never be able to understand how people could be so cruel, we can’t be blamed for what past generations have done, although this is often the case. So, getting back to the question, if sharing is an option, I would absolutely choose that. That seems to be the clear winner. It’s so sad how an entire group of people were forced out of their homes and given so little land that they can call their own, and I truly believe that the Native Americans are probably the worst treated group of people in history. And the worst part is, is that not many will acknowledge that what was done to them was even wrong. Many would call what happened to the Native Americans to be an unfortunate result of progress. But progress can be made without hurting others, and sometimes I feel like people need to step back the see what their actions are doing to others. The downfall of sharing the chair is that many would not agree to it. It is an ideal solution, but the problem with ideals is that they aren’t usually attained. Why would whites and other races that kicked out the Native Americans be willing to give up ‘their’ land and share it with these outsiders? Although I’m sure that people like myself would be willing to help make this a reality, still a majority will probably be indifferent or against the movement for equality. Although we are not responsible for the actions of people of the past, we can still try and make the present and future a safe and happy place for everyone. It’s important to learn from the past, so we don’t make the same mistakes they did. So, overall, I would hope that everyone will pick that the white girl and native American girl should share a chair, there is enough room for all of us and I can only imagine how better our country would be if we could really unify with the natives. Maybe, one day, we can get over our egos and make this ideal a reality.

I'm so happy that someone is finally addressing the twitter feed. I love to take part in the #soc119 twitter, but most the time, I'm either joking or being rational. Twitter is a forum for people to voice their thoughts a opinions, but they need to be at least a little logical, or not entirely idiotic. I feel like so much of what is posted is completely, I don't like to usually say this but, retarded! That is the only word that I feel completely describes what is being said. Most of the time I just sit there and either laugh or want to vomit after reading what some students post. I feel like, obviously, the people tweeting the most are the ones who are the most outspoken, and who have the strongest and most stubborn beliefs. This is why they are lashing out so much. They claim to be 'open-minded' but as soon as one of THEIR beliefs is challenged, they throw a huge ass fit. It’s embarrassing and they are making themselves look like complete jackasses. I feel as though the comments have been so negative lately because Sam has been diving into two topics in which people are ultra sensitive about: religion and war. It is clear that the people lashing out are insecure with their beliefs. Those who are truly faithful or open-minded will listen to what others have to say and, if they disagree and actually have a legitimate argument, they will respond accordingly. Coming off with hot-headed remarks will not get you anywhere, and this is one of the main reasons debate and politics are so frustrating to me. No matter how much logic you spew at someone, at the end of the day, they will still believe what they chose to believe. Hopefully, after listening to Eric’s question, people will go back and read some of the things they have posted during class, and see how close minded they are coming off. Until they come to the realization that they are only hearing what Sam is saying, instead of actually LISTENING, they will continue to be lost. So, to go back to what I was saying before, I feel like people have been getting so defensive and closed-off recently is because they are finally beginning to be uncomfortable. Before, Sam was just sticking to race relations, which isn’t too controversial..but now he is beginning to question things that people were raised to believe. Religion and supporting troops/wars are so sensitive for people, because to many, those are black and white. Many people think whatever they believe is right, and until all people of the world become truly open-minded, there will continue to battles over the things that aren't meant to be fought about.

This question annoyed me a little bit. Other than the hair argument, I feel like saying that Penn State caters to only white people is false and ignorant. Penn State offers so many opportunities for all of its students, and it is each individual’s responsibility to take advantage of that. The only thing that is legitimate in this question is where she says that there are not salons in state college that caters to people with 'ethnic' hair....or I don't know how else to say it. Anyways, I felt like she is almost blaming whites for the lack of black hair salons. What my response to that is, sorry but you need more black business owners to come into the area then? It's not that Penn State is catering towards white, it’s just that whites don't need as much specialty treatments or stores/products. When she says that there are more Dominican hair salons where she lives, that’s because more Dominicans live in that area. Here at Penn State, some guy in the crowd threw out a statistic about the percentage of blacks in the college and it was a small figure. So, it makes sense that businesses are targeting the majority, because the overall purpose of a business is to make money. Each area has more businesses that cater to the majority type of people that live there. Doing the opposite would be economically irresponsible. That is the fact of business and life. That is unfortunate though if people do have a lot of upkeep of their hair and they have nowhere to go to get it done properly. Maybe they could call out to salon owners to either get stylists that specialize in certain types of hair or maybe even open up a new salon that would target people of other ethnicities. But I must say that the hair salon is the only legitimate point that she raises in her question, in my opinion. I’m getting so sick of hearing about all these complaints. If someone doesn’t like something about their university or life in general, then instead of talking about it all the time, DO something. Very rarely does just talking and complaining actually solve any problems. There are so many groups on campus that are open to all races, genders and sexualities that there is literally a place for everyone. Yes, sure there are some close minded people and close minded groups, but that happens everywhere, not just Penn State. The purpose of life is to surround yourself with people that support you and fuck the rest. If you feel that Penn State is not catering to you, then make it cater to you. Start your own organization, or contact business owners and try to get them to help you out.

But as long as they do have talent, they can still strive. Life is all about making the most of what you have, and living up to your full potential. Everyone must overcome their personal stereotypes to become happy and successful. I hope that people do not get discouraged by other peoples’ opinions of themselves. The people that mostly play into discriminating groups of people due to unproven stereotypes are unintelligent and close minded in the first place, making their opinions unimportant anyways. It is sad that even when there are talented Asians, they are still good ‘for an asian’

The backlash of fans saying that Jeremy Lin is only getting attention for being Asian really takes away from all his talent and hardwork. It takes away from his talent and instead focuses on this race. I’m not sure why everything always has to come back to race. It doesn’t make sense but the stereotypes of races are so ingrained in our society that they are going to be hard to overcome. The final line is that stereotypes are an obstacle, but they can be overcome. Life isn’t easy and we all have something or someone that is trying to hold us back, the trick is to not let it get you down.

For example, we were talking about LINsanity in class, this is a good way of showing how rare is it too have talented asians athletes in things other than chess and other mind games. So it is possible that the asian stereotype can hold asians back in areas of athletics and in relationships. Since Sam showed the quote about tiny asian penises, that is a common stereotype..so maybe females wont be interested in them. So the Asian stereotype can cause discrimination, and definitely negatively impact Asians in their daily lives. But as long as they do have talent, they can still strive. Life is all about making the most of what you have, and living up to your full potential. Everyone must overcome their personal stereotypes to become happy and successful. I hope that people do not get discouraged by other peoples’ opinions of themselves. The people that mostly play into discriminating groups of people due to unproven stereotypes are unintelligent and close minded in the first place, making their opinions unimportant anyways. It is sad that even when there are talented Asians, they are still good ‘for an asian’.