en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2431886 Comments by Ophiuchus http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment145169125 I have no idea what would bring people to do these things, but at the same time I’ve never been over seas for months knowing that I could die at any moment. The military is an extremely well disciplined group of soldiers, but one thing like this and everyone looks like a criminal, or that they can do whatever they want while overseas and no one will care. They need to make a big deal out of this case and punish these men to the fullest to keep this from ever happening again. It is horrible that it had to happen, but if things like this have been happening all along, hopefully this case will change the rules and scare soldiers from ever committing any acts like this again. Knowing the consequences will deter any other soldiers from trying anything close to this ever again. These civilians had nothing to do with the war, and shouldn’t have been killed just for a group of soldiers to have fun one day. Fri, 22 Apr 2011 17:30:14 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment145169125 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment145169064 In the write up on the blog there is the statement, “But this is the type of thing that inevitably happens in war, just like accidentally killing civilians.” I find this to be completely ridiculous. Yes killing civilians is something that accidently happens in war, but actually choosing innocent people to unnecessarily kill is completely different. These men went out to find civilians to kill. They had no other purpose of being out that day, and no other reason to kill these people. It was basically a game to them. It wasn’t an accident that happened when they were defending themselves or trying to kill the enemy, they were just bored. Hopefully, this isn’t something happening often in foreign countries, but it makes us look bad as a whole. I’d like to think that this is the only time that something like this has happened. It is outrageous some of the things these men did. I have read that they were apparently taking drugs and I almost hope that they were. They were so proud of themselves that they were cutting off a finger from each one the people they killed and keeping them in a water bottle. Fri, 22 Apr 2011 17:29:56 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment145169064 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/war-vets-and-ptsd/#IDComment142900565 In the video, Andrew was immediately sent home when he finally spoke up, after initially being turned down when trying to get help. I’m not sure what’s worse; being sent home and not cared for properly, or then being sent back and expected to relive these situations every day. We need a more efficient way of detecting post- traumatic stress disorder and depression, or another way of preventing it all together. These soldiers need an outlet to tell someone how they are feeling and hopefully get the help they need. We are the country with almost half of the worlds spending on war and yet we can’t find a way to protect our soldiers when they are at home. That doesn’t make any sense. There should not be soldiers dying from the affects of war after they return home. If we are going to continue to send soldiers to war we need to find a solution to keep them emotionally stable. Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:06:24 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/war-vets-and-ptsd/#IDComment142900565 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/war-vets-and-ptsd/#IDComment142900506 As I am sure this is the case for the majority of Americans this situation hits close to home. It is hard to imagine that in just 6 short months the majority of my closest college friends will be faced with many of the issues mentioned in this article and video. I am scared to see the various reactions they will all endure after their first tour overseas. This is an extremely large problem and after having watched the video I am ashamed to see how some of their fellow soldiers react to these problems. They clearly need help. It’s not like there are only a couple of soldiers are having these issues while at war and after returning. They are seeing life altering things happen on a daily basis and need help coping. The supposedly unaffected soldiers are just lying to themselves acting like nothing affects them, when in reality they are just as scared. None of Jeff Lucey’s team had any clue he was feeling this way, but that is the environment we force them to fight in. If you tell someone about these feelings you are immediately tagged as a wimp, and unable to fulfill your duties. Thu, 14 Apr 2011 20:06:05 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/war-vets-and-ptsd/#IDComment142900506 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/03/women-and-war/#IDComment140159108 I am ignorant to the fact that there may be nothing they can do, but I feel like someone should be protecting their citizens. Some of these women’s biggest fears are that their children will have so much hate in them from what they have lived through that they will continue the tradition. It is hard to imagine having grown up so scared that you want to continue to kill people. These women are keeping life going and leading the backline discussion, and are just waiting for the schools to reopen so they can go back to their way of life. They are just hoping for peace. We’ve been learning in class in light of the new tuition increase that we need to stand up and fight for what we want or need. And in this case all I can think is, ‘I wish there was more we could do to help these people.’ Tue, 5 Apr 2011 13:38:02 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/03/women-and-war/#IDComment140159108 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/03/women-and-war/#IDComment140159054 When the discussion is started about a female centered world people begin to laugh. It is funny to think about how feminine our way of life would be that feminine means we would always be scared and unable to control things. That women are too emotional to run a country, and that once a month all hell would break loose. After watching this video it is obvious that during times of war, in these countries, women need to be heard. They are the ones supporting the family and holding together the community. They are making sure that there is still a civilization to be fighting for. They are not involved in any discussions about war and therefore there needs are dismissed causing them to live in fear of rape or mutilation everyday. I think that in the U.S. we don’t understand what happens in these countries. We are uninformed about the horrible things that are happening around the world, or just believe that it is only happening every so often. I could not imagine living everyday in fear of loosing a loved one. They are constantly scared. 90% of modern war casualties are civilians and 75% are women and children, and no one in these countries seems to care. Tue, 5 Apr 2011 13:37:45 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/03/women-and-war/#IDComment140159054 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment139208467 Electricity isn’t necessarily something we “need” to live, but people enjoy it and use it daily, and unless we run out of sources of electricity we will always want it. Religion gives people a sense of comfort and purpose. Some people need to believe. It also answers the unanswerable question, where do you go when you die? It is one of the longest lasting establishments in society. When people loose everything they have religion is the one thing they can turn to. They continue to believe to stay positive. A perfect example is the lifers in prison. They find God as a type of rebirth to help them keep going. Otherwise, they would have nothing to live for. Religion will never be completed gone. There will always be people who believe. As unreligious as it is people’s faith can have its ups and down, but if they truly believe they will eventually realize things are ok. We need religion to help us keep going when things go wrong. Fri, 1 Apr 2011 22:08:35 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment139208467 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment139208428 I don’t think religion is going anywhere. Religion will never be completely eliminated from society. We rely on religion as a way to stay hopeful when things go wrong. So what, if in light of relatively recent events our faith has been temporarily depleted. There will always be people who believe. Some countries entire way of life is based on religion. Without religion they would have no authority to regulate their lives. I do think that peoples belief may continue to dissipate for now, but what doesn’t have its up and downs. One day people are interested in one thing, and then change their minds the next. Most people need religion in their daily lives to keep them going. They need a way to stay positive when everything is going wrong, and their will always be people who need this. I think that the decrease will continue for now, but they then bounce back again. If we saw on the news one day that people’s electricity use has decreased in the past 10 years would we just decide that it would eventually be dismissed completely? Fri, 1 Apr 2011 22:08:18 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment139208428 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/15/lgbt-families-theres-a-lot-of-fear-out-there/#IDComment137369046 This statement makes the argument that being gay is not a choice and is biological, but either way who cares if a gay couple that you have never met wants to become legally married. I think it is selfish of the majority of the population to try and keep marriage as something only for straight couples. Half of these so-called “normal” couples are horrible at raising children to begin with. Gay couples are put through many invasive and nerve-racking tests to prove that they are fit parents. If they want to adopt it is a huge drawn out process for them to finally get the child. Most straight couples wouldn’t even be able to pass these tests. Zach Wahls is proof, along with many other children of gay couples that they are just as fit parents as any else, so why stop them from getting married. They want to be able to truly become a family, and I think we should allow them to finally do this. Fri, 25 Mar 2011 00:50:52 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/15/lgbt-families-theres-a-lot-of-fear-out-there/#IDComment137369046 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/15/lgbt-families-theres-a-lot-of-fear-out-there/#IDComment137369004 This speech by Zach Wahls really brings into perspective the issue of gay marriage. What difference does it make if two people, who have no affect on our lives, of the same sex want to get married? Zach is a perfect testament to the fact that gay parents are completely capable of raising healthy, intelligent, and successful children the same as any straight couple. This amendment to the constitution has no effect on the daily lives of anyone, but the gay couples themselves. Why not let them get married instead of forcing them to live as second class citizens? We discussed in class the various responsibilities of families and parents, and not one of these goals is not able to be accomplished by a gay couple. They are able to keep a child safe, while helping them to grow and learn the same as any other couple. Statistics prove the children of gay couple are not different from other children. They aren’t more likely to become gay themselves, they are just more likely to be open about it given the way they grew up. Fri, 25 Mar 2011 00:50:37 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/15/lgbt-families-theres-a-lot-of-fear-out-there/#IDComment137369004 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/09/what-would-make-this-guy-less-white/#IDComment135195834 Its not that acting one way is better than another, or the correct way to act it is just what we know, and for some unknown reason different races act differently. This is true even if we grow up/live in the same area, there is something that influences to act one way opposed to another. I would guess that if this man lived and did everything everyday with a black man they would act exactly the same. For some reason this guy sounds awkward and nervous, and I guess that means he seems more white to me. This is seen in the way he acts, talks, and dresses. Whether it’s the topic or not that makes him act like this, something in his life influenced him to act what comes off as white. Strings impact us everyday for our entire lives. The way we are raised and who we are raised by is what controls what we become. Wed, 16 Mar 2011 00:51:34 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/09/what-would-make-this-guy-less-white/#IDComment135195834 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/09/what-would-make-this-guy-less-white/#IDComment135195776 I definitely agree that the guy in this video comes off as extremely white, and that it is difficult to understand exactly why. White people do have their own way of standing, talking and dressing, but this guy takes the cake. I think the reason he comes off as so overwhelmingly white is how awkward he is. This involves everything about him; the way he stands and talks, or how he walks around and is adjusting himself. He just comes off as extremely awkward and nervous. It’s hard to tell if it’s the topic or the fact that he has to lower his pants, but everything he does just seems stressful and nerve-racking. I personally think this is a quintessentially white way to act. I honestly believe that black people are calmer and more collected than white people. I don’t think there is any way of avoiding the way you act. We are influenced by the way we were raised. We are predisposed to act one way by all the strings around us. So maybe the fact that this man comes off as so incredibly white is just because he was taught to act this way. He learned everything he knows from a white man and from watching other white people. Wed, 16 Mar 2011 00:51:18 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/09/what-would-make-this-guy-less-white/#IDComment135195776 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment131715165 So it makes sense that they wouldn’t understand what to do with the money, or how to manage it. It seems like the first lady in the CNN article was the only one who managed to keep things in order after winning, by only buying necessities and saving the rest. All of these lottery winners mentioned being hassled by family and friends. How is someone supposed to live while they are being constantly bothered? It’s obvious that winning the lottery makes people happy; it just doesn’t last as long as we someone who hasn’t won would expect. I enjoyed the part about investing in making memories. I believe that these people will be happier longer if they are spending their money on meaningful things. Making memories with the people they care about, and most likely they ones who are asking them for money, will hopefully make them both happy. I think the most difficult thing about winning the lottery is trying to ignore the strings. Trying not to be influenced by the new people around you and just living the way you want. Even with all these negative aspects, I don’t believe reading this article would deter anyone from trying to win millions of dollars. Tue, 1 Mar 2011 23:18:10 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment131715165 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment131715117 Moving from one social class to another causes many problems. We are influenced on how to act only by the strings we have lived within. To switch from one class to another almost instantly is, in lamest terms, confusing. We don’t know how to act properly, or how to think, basically how to survive among this new social class of people. It’s hard to understand how people find it difficult to become instantly wealthy, but when you have people who supposedly love you and care about you taking advantage of your good fortune can be upsetting. When people win the lottery they don’t know how to act or how to feel. A lot lottery winner’s end up frivolously spending all their money and losing it all. So it makes people think, is winning the lottery worth its consequences? From what we learned in class, the people playing and winning the lottery are people in a lower economic class. Tue, 1 Mar 2011 23:17:49 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment131715117 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/21/stranger-kidnapping/#IDComment130573832 Yet, it is now an issue and parents continually check their children’s candy each year. Our society loves this fear, and the rules it provides. The numbers of abductions have not changed from when our parents were children, but the media has. We are able to watch a play of play of what happens from when a child is abducted until they are found. Making it seem for realistic to people today. We could post these statistics out front of every store in the nation, but parents are still going to refuse to let their children walk to school. The strings in our society today, from the neighbor next store or the mother down the street, telling us some crazy story about a child abduction, along with the media, are who we will listen to. People don’t listen to the statistics because they don’t want to be one. They would rather spend every minute of everyday watching what their child is doing and who they are with then be a part of the .01%. We can’t blame people for this, it is the way we have been influenced to live our lives today. Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:35:45 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/21/stranger-kidnapping/#IDComment130573832 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/21/stranger-kidnapping/#IDComment130573789 Personally, I think this is a very difficult topic to take a stance on. Do we encourage our children to talk to strangers or not? Based on the statistics, the answer would be yes, tell them to talk to whomever is around if they are in trouble. Encourage your children to walk up to anyone they see if they are having a problem. The studies show this is the best way to get out of trouble as quickly as possible. On the other hand, what about those .01% of people who have lost a child because of a stranger? They would blatantly state that a child should never talk to someone they don’t already know. But, then there is the fact about most abductions are actually caused by people we already know, that these types of assaults are committed by people that the child is probably already close with. So, who decides what we are teaching our children? Since we are a scared society, it only takes .01% of people to influence our decision. As mentioned in class, the Halloween candy incidents, when the children were poisoned from the candy they received. This has only happened twice, and both times the candy was poisoned by the children’s parents! Fri, 25 Feb 2011 13:35:27 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/21/stranger-kidnapping/#IDComment130573789 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/15/social-structure-shapes-free-will/#IDComment128817901 Who knows if they will think this different way of life is better, but if polygamy isn’t providing any refuge for them maybe they will change their way of thinking. These new stings will encourage them to try monogamy, and maybe share the farmland. If they are happy living this way then no one should try to make them change. I just personally find it weird for a woman to be sleeping with three different brothers in one night. We can’t judge them on how they want to live. If this is all they’ve known how were they supposed to change? They are being influenced by everything around them, and encouraged daily that polygamy will help provide more food for their families. Eventually, if this is not the case anymore and new strings are influencing them hopefully they will be able to change. This is just another example of how little freedom will we truly have. They are just living day to day based off what they are told is good for them and all they have even known. To them we are the different ones. They may think we aren’t free to have as many husbands as we want. So I guess the question still remains, how free are we? Fri, 18 Feb 2011 14:34:02 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/15/social-structure-shapes-free-will/#IDComment128817901 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/15/social-structure-shapes-free-will/#IDComment128817871 The last statement made at the end of this video is completely contradictory to the marriage choices these people have made. The wife states, “even if we do not have anything to eat, we live peacefully.” I thought the whole reason they lived like this was so the land would not be divided too many times and each group of husbands would have enough food for their families. If this is not the case, and people are still starving, I think they should quit living their lives this way, especially if they are being modernized by the outside world. They should try to find a new way to provide for themselves. If they were practicing polygamy out of necessity before, then why do they continue to do it? They state that it is comfortable and what they are used to. I guess the invisible strings in their lives are influencing them to continue living this way. If they continue to be subject to different cultures, whether it’s through the media or travel, maybe they will start to think they have more choices. Fri, 18 Feb 2011 14:33:48 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/15/social-structure-shapes-free-will/#IDComment128817871 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/04/the-not-so-invisible-structure-that-shapes-us/#IDComment127447105 Americans need to know more about the world around them. We should be being influenced to travel new places be others instead of warned of what dreadful things could happen. When I mention travelling to China it seems like some people are almost appalled. Instead of asking about what new and interesting things I saw, they ask, “did you eat dog?” or “where did you go to the bathroom?” These people clearly haven’t ever left the country. Eventually we will be more enthusiastic about travelling like other countries. I believe that slowly as more people start venturing out of the country it will encourage other people to go. Right now Americans just don’t understand the exciting things out there to see. We are too comfortable and arrogant about our lives now. We should be more outgoing and willing to try new things. Hopefully, these strings disappear or influence us to try something new. Sat, 12 Feb 2011 01:18:14 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/04/the-not-so-invisible-structure-that-shapes-us/#IDComment127447105 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/04/the-not-so-invisible-structure-that-shapes-us/#IDComment127447065 Ironically, as I am typing this blog, both of my parents are overseas in China, one for work and the other for leisure. I was surprised to read that only 30% of Americans have passports, and I do not understand the anxiety we have about traveling. I believe that we are just ignorant, and that the people who believe they can fulfill their traveling goals by staying in the U.S. alone are ridiculous. The stings that are influencing us as Americans, not to travel, are the people around us who are scared. The United States is comprised of a combination of many different cultures. Shouldn’t we want to visit our counties of origin? I do not believe that people do not travel because we aren’t really as free as we think we are, but because a lot of Americans just believe there isn’t anything interesting out there to see, or they are scared. I guess you could see we are not as free due to the fact that when someone mentions travelling others deter them by reminding them of all the “horrible” things that could potentially happen. Strings all around us are saying we shouldn’t be travelling, but I think these influencing factors are uninformed. Sat, 12 Feb 2011 01:18:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/04/the-not-so-invisible-structure-that-shapes-us/#IDComment127447065