I don't believe that a Christian God supports wars and violence. I was born and raised Roman Catholic, but I have strayed away. I still choose to believe, but I haven't practiced my religion in a long time. I think it's ridiculous that people bring religion into their situations just so they can justify their actions to themselves. I believe that no God (no matter what religion) would want to have people killed. Why do I believe that? It may be the catholic talking in me, but I don't believe that a God would want people to die over some human problems. Like I said before, people tend to bring God into their messes just so they can convince themselves they have a strong argument and they hope to rope others into whatever they are trying to defend by constantly bringing up their God and other junk.
It really annoys me that followers of a certain religion get a bad reputation just because a few people get fanatical about their religion and take it to the extreme. This goes for every religion (even atheists; they tend to get a little crazy about not believing, but I'm getting off topic here). Religion can be seen as the same way we see race. It's an uncomfortable topic to bring up with others because everyone has different beliefs and people tend to argue about what is right and wrong if it is brought up. Sometimes religion can be used as an excuse to divide people and continue mistreatment of others (just like race) and it can be used to unify people (for good and bad intentions, just like race).
Personally, I tend to stay away from religious topics because they don't apply to me too much and I don't want to have to deal with two labels for people: my race and my religion. Seeing those quotes from US military and Sarah Palin and how they incorporated God into their goal made me sick. I really can't stress enough how it annoys me when people try and justify their viewpoints with "God". It annoys me because everyone thinks of God differently. Not everyone has the exact same idea and everyone sees God with their viewpoints. Pretty much, when people say "God wanted this" or that, I see it as a way of saying I am right because I am. We do not live in the bible days where God could give people signs or Jesus can make miracles happen; it's just ridiculous to take an average person's word and have them interpret what God wants. What makes them right over me or someone else? Absolutely nothing makes their word better than mine (unless they are God themselves or can give proof). We live in a age where we need hard, concrete evidence to take something seriously. Saying God is on your side is just ridiculous and it seems like a childish way of trying to justify your actions in my opinion.

What I have learned from this scandal is the importance of keeping an open mind. Being the estranged group of people that the rest of the world is judging, I have finally realized what I do to other people every time I hear something in the news. I always make generalization jokes, but sometimes they go too far. The child molestation jokes about Penn State are ridiculous and even taken too far. Between Saturday Night Live, South Park, and many other media outlets, the scandal has somehow wrapped the student body and all of Penn State into it instead of the people directly responsible for what happened. It really feels terrible to be judged on something you did not do and now I have felt that pain again (the first time is because I am black, but I'm over that now).
Another thing I learned was the power of "family". I know everyone at Penn State is not related, but the way the students came together at the candlelight vigil was great. It was a complete 180 from the riot that occurred before. Even the riot was just a bunch of passionate students, who did not have all the facts, supporting their favorite coach for his history, not his involvement in the scandal. Both these events showed me how students can come together when they have a common goal. I cannot describe how great it is to see people come together like they have known each other for years when in reality they have never seen each other. That is what this scandal has shown me. When there is a big enough cause, the Penn State students will come together to show their passion.
These are the two biggest lessons I have learned from the scandal. Besides that, I don't think there was much to learn. Everyone felt some sort of emotion when it was revealed: anger, sadness, disappointment, confusion, disbelief, etc. It was something that I thought would not happen to this school, in the middle of Pennsylvania. It was hard to take in, but after a few weeks and time to talk to students and faculty, I am coming to grips with it. The real victims are the children and one of the bigger takeaways from this whole thing is the awareness of sexual abuse. A lot of people fall victim to it and no one speaks out against it. We need to try and empower the victims to speak out and provide a safe environment where we can talk about these issues. Racism is kind of a taboo topic, but we have made strides to talk about it. If we can make those same strides for sexually abused victims, then we are taking a step in the right direction.

When Sam said that our generation is "f*cked", he pretty much read my mind. I agree with all the reasons he listed, but I want to elaborate on a few that made me realize that we have a lot to deal with before we can have a peaceful time for the next generation. For starters the rise of globalization, the media brainwashing my generation into believing certain things, and the problems of the past generations; these are just a few reasons why our problems are going to suck in the coming decades.
First, let's talk about globalization. With the advancement of communication, transportation, and technology in general, the world has become "flat". Everyone can compete directly with people all over the world and the only thing they need to worry about is their time zone. It's a great thing for the world as a whole; this can be an excellent time for collaboration and cooperation, but for Americans, it is terrible. We have been use to being the king of innovation, we have become stagnant. We pretty much rely on our reputation to bring in foreigners so they can innovate for us. As for our own American grown entrepreneurs, scientists, and engineers, they are screwed. The rest of the world has access to whatever we had and certain countries have a better education system than America. Couple those things together and we will start to see a decline of America's power in a few areas (scientific and business will be guaranteed to go down).
The next issue is the media. With all the entertainment crap on television, people tend not to focus on the real issues. Even when they are presented to us, they have bias with them and people cannot decipher the bias from the actual truth. We are so use to having information spoon-fed to us that we do not have the drive to go and look for the truth and/or more opinions on more topics ourselves. Without being able to do this basic thing, we will not be able to innovate or even understand basic issues in our society. Most of our class did not understand the occupy movements and I doubt most of them are not really aware of local or even national politics (I know I'm not).
Finally, the problems from the last generation seal the "we are screwed" deal. Every generation has to deal with its predecessors shortcomings, but it seems like our generation has achieved the new record for inherited problems. Renewable energy, the economy, and political corruption are just a few of the many issues we need to deal with. With all of these issues on our plate it's going to be a lot of work. It would not be too bad, but we have been unprepared by the last generation and we have not stepped up to these challenges (versus anyone else internationally). It will be an exciting time, but it won't be an easy one to live in.

It’s not surprising that big business controls most of America. I mean with most of the politicians taking donations from companies, it is not surprising to see legislation passed to appease these companies. I think it’s terrible that we allow businesses to control our politicians. With politicians needing money for campaigns and businesses being rich can hand out the money, so it’s only natural politicians would try and keep their monetary sources happy.
We really should be trying to move ourselves away from business support, but with people hurting for money; we only see a short term solution rather than the true long term solution. The reason business controlling government is bad for the average Joe goes back to the conflict of business versus the people. Business only cares about profits and their bottom line and people are focused on themselves. These interests always conflict and giving business more power can only hurt the people in the long run.
I’ve known about the fact that business controlling politicians, but it still annoys me. At the same time, I know if we did not have them “donating” money, we would probably come to a screeching halt and most people would want business back to support our politicians. It’s a vicious cycle, but I think we would be better without any influence on our politics than having loaded agendas with each election.
I hope that one day we can retake the government for the people. Part of my says it is good to have business help fund politics, but another part of me wants to get rid of their influence and have our politicians look at the real issues; not just keep their donors happy. Businesses will only further their agenda with their control over government.
Like I said before, as a person, it angers me to see something pulling the strings for something so important. On the flip side, if I was a CEO of a major company, I would probably be happy to know that I have a control over the government. I would try to maximize my profits by getting influence with the government.
To sum up my position, it would depend on which side of the fence I am on. If I was on business, I would side with business and people if I was just a person. I know it is evident that they do control a lot of the policies domestically and internationally, but their effects don’t trickle down to me. I tend to go about my life like an average person, but it’s good to think about it. I still think it is annoying for someone to control my country’s decisions, but as long as they don’t totally sabotage the people, I’m fine.

I define racism as the belief that physical or cultural differences between different races that justifies discrimination. Pretty much if someone is different, it is okay to create a belief that they are inferior/superior because of a few differences between themselves and yourself. Because I am black, I have experienced racism a decent amount in my life. Thankfully it has only been small and nothing too big that has changed me. One example was in grade school, where people would only see me for my skin, calling me ugly, an outcast, and stereotyping me with typical black stereotypes. They could not be farther from truth about me. Another one was when I was applying for a job. I had a great phone interview, a great one on one interview, and finally I did not get the job. The workplace in question hired someone less qualified and white over me. I don't want to play a racist card, but there was something behind the scenes that stopped me from getting a part time job and it was out of my control.
Even though we have made great strides to eliminate racism in the world, it still exists. Racism is more concealed and takes on different forms. People discriminate against immigrants, convicts, and just anyone they do not know. Whenever we fight a war against another country, we choose another race to discriminate against. With World War II, it was the Japanese and now we have people in the Middle East facing that discrimination. The times had gotten better, but we are not making more progress.
The reason I think we haven't fully gotten rid of racism is because people are too lazy to get to know people next to them. Instead, they decided to rely on inaccurate and dated stereotypes in hopes of "knowing" different races and then they will act politically correct and try and avoid any conflict instead of trying to know the person next to them. When we see a person of a different race, we act like that person is the embodiment of their whole race; they are only a person that happens to be a part of that race. We should focus more on trying to know a person for who they are instead of being intimidated by their looks. We tend to judge books by their covers; instead we should try to read them.
Racism can also involve putting something as superior. With society today, being "white" or lighter skinned is still seen as beautiful. Another thing is how Asians are excellent at science and engineering disciplines, blacks are amazing at athletic sports, and so on. It is good to appreciate something, but we should not try and generalize these claims. They should focus on the small individual or group in question, not the whole race.

I don't think a truly black centered world would be that much different than the one we live in today. The only major change that would be made is more equality among people (regardless of race, gender, and sexual preferences). The world would not suddenly turn into a hip-hop video or anything; it would make the world a more even playground so everyone has a more equal chance to benefit from what it has to offer. I can't speak for all black people, but that's the world that I would want to create.
Our world today is a white centered world. We have made strides in civil rights for people of color and women, but there is still a bias towards white men over anyone else. Usually I don't let the bias bother me because I would play it off saying it doesn't affect me in my life, but it does and I sometimes choose not to notice it. If it's for applying for a job, dating someone outside of your race, or doing anything that people consider taboo, my chances to successfully do one of these things is not that great (they can be done by black people; I am just talking about the chances compared to other races are lower in comparison).
I would want everyone to acknowledge ethnic differences and celebrate them, but not to create a profile of a person based on their racial and ethnic traits. Everyone should know that a person's skin color and a few stereotypes do not make up a person's personality; a person's actions and thoughts define themselves. That would be main point in a black-centered world. Everyone has to work in order to succeed. Besides that, I cannot see anything else changing. Life itself would still be the same, but there would be a bigger need for social reform and more of an emphasis on social equality.
That's how I would want to see a black-centered world. Like I said before, I can't speak for all people who identify as black, but that's my interpretation. I don't see the world radically changing and transforming into something unfamiliar; it would be the same thing except more accepting of people and their differences.
The world itself is great for the most part. It has a lot of potential to become better, but people are established in their ways and tend to stick to the old saying "if it isn't broke, don't fix it". With a black centered world (or even any color-centered world), it would be more accepting of people so we could continue to evolve and get better ideas from all kinds of people instead of just the select few types of people on the top of the totem pole. We can still change this world to be a people centered world instead of a race centered world if we take a few minutes to get to know someone instead of labeling them and not being open to change.

I don't think my race has played a prominent role in how I view the world. I am Haitian American (Black), but my parents never made a big deal about it. Even when I got older, I never really thought about my race. I have seen discrimination (towards me and others), but I tend to stay optimistic, so I try not to let the discrimination change my view. In my day to day life, my race is a non-issue for me (except when I got to Sociology 119). I know I am black, I am aware of the differences in races, their respective advantages and disadvantages in the world, but I tend to focus more on myself on a day to day basis.
When viewing the world, I just look at it as an individual would and not a person from a certain racial group. I always try to go to different sources for different views on the same issue, and then I make a decision for myself. I don't exclusively go to black people, while people, or any particular racial group over another; I try to gather as much information as possible. I try to live as a person, but there are times when my race comes into play.
If I am trying to meet new people, it can be a challenge because people will look at me and see me as a threatening person. It goes along with black stereotypes, and since I'm black, people apply them to me. Because of my race, I've been discriminated against and I don't always blame the people, I see it more as they have yet to sit down with another person of a different race and talk to them; they would have more in common than they want to admit.
I guess I can't say my race has not had some effect on me. I tend to be more careful than most people my age. Because black people tend to be more scrutinized in society than any other racial group (excluding Hispanics and Latinos), I make sure to give people no reason to question my actions. I tend to live a boring life, but no one bothers me for it. I have not had any run-ins with the law and I plan on keeping my life that way.
The only thing my race has done is make me more aware of the law. Besides that, I don't think it has played any other major role in shaping my world views. My world views are mine personally and I don't think everyone in a racial group can hold a common world view. It may make me more sympathetic to more people since I can understand discrimination because of my race, but I don't think it plays a huge role in my life.

This raises an interesting question. Women have made many strides towards equal rights with men for voting and the job market; they have even managed to break away from the typical housewife image. It's weird that women are reverting back towards the old days, but still pulling the equal rights card when it is convenient. I'm not trying to stereotype women into one image, but it seems like most of them go out wearing the short skirts and dresses from the eighties on a Friday night. I'm sure these girls are hard workers, but I don't know why they expect different treatment when they are dressed like ladies of the night. I know society plays a big role in how they act and dress, but if they really want the equal treatment, they should consistently earn it. To use an old expression "you can't have your cake and eat it too". Sometimes women want preferential treatment, but they'll complain when they feel they are being discriminated against, so they'll demand for "equal" opportunities and rights.
Like I said before society plays a role in how these girls dress and act. It puts such a huge emphasis on sex appeal and it downplays the other characteristics that people need to have to have success. At the same time, they're also learning from their parents something completely different and the two ideals conflict. That's how I see it at least. When women get away from their parents, it seems like the emphasis on sex appeal and superficial things wins out and they tend to do dumb things, but still expect respect and equality for those actions.
With the male-centered world, it seems that women cannot get a break. They have to be super sexualized on weekends and hard, respectable workers at the same time. These are two contrasting roles for a women or even anyone in today's world. I think everyone realizes that sex appeal can only get someone so far until they actually need their talents and skills to make it through life. A lot of women realize that at the end of college once they have learned their lessons the hard way, but they should see it sooner. I'm not saying girls can't go out and have fun on the weekends, but they should not get caught up in the party life and stupid stuff and stick with the values and lessons that will take them through life, not just the weekend.
Even though it is a male centered world, women still have a choice to act like themselves and get the treatment they want. They don't have to do a two-timing tango to survive; they just have to take an alternate route to get to wherever they want to go. It may not be what the majority is doing, but they can enjoy what they're doing on their terms and not on someone else's watch.

If I was a different race, I don't think my views on drug use would change. As a black/brown man, I don't use illicit drugs because my parents taught me not to do that. It also helped my friends weren't that into drugs either. Even if I was Caucasian, Asian, or any other race, I still think I would not be doing drugs. I do believe race factors into drug use, but we still also have the free will to choose whether or not we want to drugs. Race doesn't have to determine everything we do as humans; it plays a factor in our decisions, but we can still control our decisions.
Between what the media shows about drug busts and race, it makes sense that more people of color would avoid drugs because it seems that they are always getting caught for doing or selling illicit drugs. Even though there are more white people going to jail for drugs, there is a higher percentage for black people going to jail for the same crimes. Is it fair? It's hard to tell and I think that's more on a case by case basis. Sometimes people can be at the wrong place at the wrong time and other times people are guilty of their charges.
There are a lot of things that would have to change if I was going to use drugs. My upbringing, surroundings, and a lot of other things would have to change before I said yes to drugs. Speaking for myself, I can say changing my race wouldn't change any of my opinions. I can't give a sure answer if everything else changed. If I was rich and white, then I would consider it. It's a hard question to answer since it's hard for me to picture myself as someone I am not.
As a more general statement, I think if people switched to races that are not pestered about drug use, it would increase. If those people are interested in drugs or are current drug users, having a race card for drugs would help them and continue to enable their drug use. I don't think being a different race is going to make someone start doing drugs, but if they were on the edge, then I think it would be the deciding factor to push them in that direction.
Would people start doing drugs if they were a different race? I doubt it. There are a lot of other factors that come into play when making a lifestyle change that big. They have to be making money to keep this habit going if they enjoy it, find time to do drugs, and also make sure they have nothing that will inhibit their enjoyment of drugs (police, caring family and friends, etc). Race is one, but not the deciding factor in a decision this big.

Even before hearing about the Haiti project in lecture, I knew that I would be doing some sort of project involving Haiti. I always wanted to do some community service there, join Project Haiti, but I always had class or a project, so I could not get to it. I am really excited for the group project since it forces me to look at Haiti and help make a difference. As a Haitian and someone who is interested in his country, this is an exciting project especially since we can talk to an entrepreneur who is currently living in Haiti and gain a different perspective on the same issues.After watching some of the videos, I can't say I'm surprised about the conditions they are working in. I am surprised with the amount of quality goods being made with such little resources though. Watching Sonia's videos, she is making great handbags for less than four American dollars and that's something people here would pay at least ten dollars to have. Also watching Yvrose's video, I am surprised at the work she can do with such a small workforce. She manages to make shoes, dresses, and evening wear. There's so much detail and she could really use more resources to keep her products and creative designs alive.
It's refreshing to see people trying to overcome their limitations and still pursue their work or dreams with whatever they have. This goes back to the determinism vs. free will argument and both come into play here. With Haiti's current condition of still recovering from the earthquake last year as well as general poverty, people's choices are limited, but they still decide to have better things for themselves and that's what I see with these entrepreneurs.
Watching these videos helped make the project a little clearer to me. All of these entrepreneurs are really creative people, have great designs, but they need resources, and out input if they want to expand their market over to the United States. It's great that we can see every entrepreneur's story and even help shape it with our ideas. I'm really excited to start working on this project, learn more about Haiti, and even get to know my discussion group better in the process. This is a really big project, but with some good planning and good discussions, it seems like it will be very manageable.
Hopefully this project can show everyone Haiti is poor, but there are individuals that choose to try and overcome their poverty through their creativity and hard work. I think it's fitting to choose Haiti because of what it has been through in recent history. Even with all the bad events and poverty, people will still continue to work hard and we can help them overcome their obstacle with this project.