My view on war has always been negative and after class it has increased in negativity. I have however changed my view on the opposing side. Those that we are fighting are living in the same world as we are. They are only trying to protect themselves and their country just as our soldiers are doing.
Also I never realized how stupid this war we are fighting truly is. I always thought fighting for peace was crazy but we are not even doing that. Instead, we are fighting to take away a nation’s own goods by killing them. There is no reason that we should be over in their country doing what we are doing. War in itself is a ridiculous idea. Killing others to gain anything is wrong but to do it for something as ridiculous and unimportant as oil (in comparison to people’s lives) is even worse.
I am guilty of judging all Muslims and Arabs. I see a person with a scarf around their head and I do develop an unnecessary fear. I have always associated their entire culture to the few radicals and terrorists that unfortunately represent their entire population. As a Penn Stater, I now understand what it feels like to be so wrongly represented and misunderstood. I know that the actions of a few evil men and rioters can change the world’s view on an entire culture and it feels awful. As a person not involved in the insanity that has occurred on campus behind the scenes and in the public eye, I know how helpless I felt that I could not show the world that I am different than the minority representing us. I definitely look at the former evil (in my eyes) opposing side with a completely new point of view. I will not be as quick to judge, especially in horrible situations like wars. I see the war as an even more awful thing than before. I really wish that more people could see the pictures, videos, and other point of views that we were exposed to in class. I wish others, especially in our quick to judge nation, would see the truths behind the war so that they can better understand what our courageous and wonderful soldiers in the military are risking their lives for. The people over there are dying and fighting so that we can drive our cars and heat our houses with another country’s oil. The oil is not even ours to have but we want it cheaper and so we fight on, ruining the lives of the people in that nation. I just find the entire situation to be even more saddening than before and I hope that this knowledge can spread and change everything.

In the first class that we discussed the scandal, Laurie said something that I had not thought about. She pointed out that the media portrays us in the wrong way and how angry that makes us feel but also how we do not ever consider how the media also misrepresents other people. She pointed out that perhaps next time we see videos of destruction in the Middle East we will reconsider who those people really are. In America, we are quick to judge others, especially if they are unlike us. We here at Penn State hate that we are being labeled and judged by the few that made poor decisions. We hear from outsiders that we are “all pedophiles” or “all crazy rioters” when really one man that worked for our university was a pedophile and only a few thousand were rioters. It really does make you wonder just how many times we too do the same to others. How many times have you judged all Muslims or all Middle Easterners? How many times have we mentally accused a person wearing a head scarf of being a terrorist? We also judge a group by the actions of a few however this experience is causing me to second guess my judgments. Previously I have been quicker to judge those I do now know, especially those of different cultures and countries. I just assume that most of the people in their countries are bad people, which is wrong. Even if most of their country is bad, that does not make every single person that way. I wonder just how man of my prejudices, and all others with prejudices, developed them according to what the media fed them through their television screen. The media can and will bend and twist what they see to portray it in the most interesting and captivating way possible regardless of whether or not the truth is compromised. How many times have I misjudged an entire group of people according to the media’s portrayal of just a few of the nations’ people? The answer is probably too many times. I know that this experience has made me a more understanding individual when it comes to the circumstances of others. It also made me realize just how uneducated the world, including myself, is on other matters in the world. I know that others are completely unaware of all that is happening up here in Penn State just as I am unaware of everything happening in the Middle East or anywhere else for that matter. The people judging have nothing to base their opinions on and neither do I. I know that from this experience I will strive to keep an unbiased opinion and judge situations once I am better educated.

On Facebook, and in the real world, people everywhere are criticizing Penn Staters. Whether you are studying here, working here, alumni, or even a fan, people are judging. My sister, a fellow Penn State alumni, is being harassed in the workplace just because she is a Penn State graduate. The media has definitely portrayed Penn State, and everyone even remotely linked, to be a monster. The media chooses to bombard the students rather than the scum that is named Sandusky. Sandusky has been able to walk the streets and lead a normal life while the rest of Penn State and his victims suffer for his actions. The cameras will not leave Joe Paterno’s house nor will they leave Old Main’s lawn. They line the streets downtown and surround the stadium in hopes of capturing our worst. The media has thrown our name into the dirt and have included everyone. The world does not see all the grief and sorrow with which our university is dealing. We are all mourning not only for the victims but victims worldwide. They all see us as rioters, angry over the firing of “just a football coach.” Nobody sees what that man has brought to this school. Nobody understands that we are mostly angry that the fingers are only pointing to the very few involved. So many others were involved and knew and they have not been punished and that is what angers us. People who are not Penn State cannot and will not understand. The world is going to have their extreme biases and insist that we are in the wrong for staying true to our school. They are going to misjudge all in Penn State’s blue and white. The will pass judgments without education. Listening and interpreting the media is all that they will do simply because it is easier. The students, proud and true, will continue to support our school and hopefully the current students, and alumni, will continue to show the love our school shares with the world what we truly stand for. The rest of the world will see that we do not stand for the actions of our administration and that we will not tolerate that anywhere. The world will continue to judge but we know who we are and what is important in our lives and that I all the matters. We will continue to love and support our beloved Joe and Sue Paterno that have given us so much. We will start funds and groups that go after Child Abuse and tear it down. The world will never see us the same but that does not stop us from making a change, taking a stand, and loving our school with all that we have.

I do not think that immigrants should be required to learn English when moving to the United States. If the person is able to survive in the country without having to learn English then why should they have to? The United States does not have an official language and therefore the comment “if you are in our country, speak our language” does not make sense. Besides, we are one of the only countries in the world that is unilingual. A majority of people from other countries are able to speak two or more different languages yet the United States insists that we have one language and that everybody must speak it. Americans really want all immigrants to “learn our language” but what is our language? Perhaps we too should try to learn the country’s true language by learning some dialect of a Native American language.
Many families are able to get by living in the United States without knowing English at all. Many immigrant families have English speaking children but the parents themselves cannot speak English or if they do, not well. By the time the immigrants move to the United States, their optimal time for language learning is far in the past and therefore learning a completely new language is much more difficult. That is why a good amount of immigrant families have only English speaking children since they move into the country at an age that is best for learning a new language.
There are opportunities for immigrants to live in areas where they are surrounded by others that speak their language. There are places throughout the United States where certain ethnic groups congregate. Places such as “China Towns” and “Little Italies” are groupings of Chinese and Italian people. The people all speak a different language, not saying that they do not know English, but knowing English is not necessarily required for their survival.
I have traveled to Italy and Greece and specifically remember feeling uncomfortable in most places in Greece. I did not speak Greek and so trying to order food (and having to ask whether or not my food was vegetarian) was very difficult. Most of the Greeks that I encountered had an attitude with me when I could not comprehend what they were saying and they got annoyed when I tried to communicate. Most people in Greece did not speak English and so communication was just difficult and uncomfortable so I can understand the frustrations that new immigrants feel. They do feel the pressure to learn the language in times of confusion however they should not be poorly treated. Who knows, maybe these immigrants want to learn English or maybe they are even trying to but it is not easy. I suspect most Americans would move to another country (like that MySpace post that Sam showed us) and not learn the language there and expect everybody to know English for them. Americans are very egotistical people and expect that the entire world should know English when really they do not need to.

Discussing the wrongdoings of our ancestors in the past really sparked a lot of thought within me. I have been considering the options a lot since then and after watching Sam give the three examples I could not possible say that the grandchildren, great grandchildren, and so on, should have to give back the land. We discussed in our discussion groups about white guilt in general and how it really makes no sense for us to feel so guilty for something that our ancestors. When you really get to thinking about it, we did nothing wrong ourselves. We should not have to give up the land we have forever lived on because of our ancestors awful decisions because then where would we go. This also does nothing at this point. The indigenous people have already adapted to their poor lifestyle and unfortunately, new and better land will not rid them of their poor habits. Many indigenous people have developed alcoholism and their bodies are already permanently damaged. This damage could still result in an early aged death and other complications that they face. They would be confused and unable to function given the new land. The people would still unfortunately be discriminated against and thus would not further advance on their own. The indigenous people are used to the poor life style they live. It is all that they know and so throwing them back onto their old land would not fix much at all without help from others. What we really owe these people is our help. They have land and homes that they live in however they are stuck in awful situations. They suffer from discrimination which we would first have to overcome. Secondly, they need help gaining better educations and learning how to use their knowledge to get better jobs. If they get better jobs and are able to provide for themselves and their family much better, then they will be able to advance and live a life of higher quality. This is the primary issue of their lifestyle. The quality of their lives is very low. They have land that they live on together, but they do not have nice houses, they are poor and, like in the video, they have to pawn their basics to get enough money to supply their car with gas. The man pushing the car said that it was not anything unusual to him because he always has to do these things. Those are the sad situations that should provoke some feeling of guilt, regardless of the fact that we have not done anything to them, and that guilt should push us to help them out. We could teach them better ways to make money and how to manage it. We do owe the indigenous people something however giving them our land would be pointless. Instead, we should raise awareness of the conditions these forgotten people live in and help them.

I do not like HBCU colleges primarily because they are reverse racism. I did learn something new today though, that white and brown people are not completely excluded from the college. Before I thought that it was exclusively for black people only. However the fact that they are not required to meet a quota like other colleges is unfair. If white people had “historically white colleges and universities” we would be called out as racists when in reality the school has been predominantly (to an extreme) white in history. I just dislike the double standard that faces the white community. White people already feel “white guilt” for what has occurred in the past regardless of the fact that we have zero control over the past. Sometimes it seems as though the political correctness forced upon us and the white guilt combined controls the white population. We are limited in our speech, meaning mostly our vocabulary, and much more. Some things that have been brought to my attention in the past include BET, the “Black Entertainment Television.” If there was a “White Entertainment Television” channel, we would be called racist. This applies to other situations such as general scholarships specific to race, specific race clubs and organizations that exclude other races (mostly those that are white.) There are many seemingly inappropriate situations such as the HBCU colleges that occur today.
Also, the colleges do not accurately prepare their students for the “real world” in the future. The students must graduate at some point and in the real world they are more accurately represented as the minority in the United States. Of course if the students move to predominantly black communities the transition will not be as dramatic or extreme but still there will be other races. In any community there will always be a few people, white, Hispanic, Asian, or whatever race or ethnicity. There will never again be a time when nearly 100% of the people around you are the same race. The students may not learn how to interact with people of different races or cultures simply because they never really had to. I feel that most people that choose to go to a school where the population is mostly made up of their own race are not extending outside of their comfort zone. There are boundaries in life that are meant to be crossed and comfort levels that are meant to be expanded. How can you learn if you forever surround yourself with people just like you? How will you feel if you are suddenly thrust into a completely new environment surrounded people very different from yourself? The nearly one race school is not going to help anybody in that kind of situation except maybe that on white kid that has the guts to step way out of the boundaries and explore something new.

What do I think about girls “sacrificing their comfort?” I think they choose to sacrifice their comfort to get the most attention possible. Nobody is making girls dress in such revealing clothing when they go out to party on any night of the week. I personally do not go out to parties but a few of my friends do and they never dress in a way that compromises their comfort by any means. The first time two of my friends went out they wore heels and after that night they decided not to due to the discomfort. From that night on they decided to wear flats to parties and had no problem getting in. In fact, my friends all go out in appropriate clothing, some even in just jeans and a normal tank top, and none are ever turned away from frat parties or apartment parties. I had a conversation with my friends about how people say in order to get into parties they have to dress in their “slutty” attire or else they could be turned away. The conservatively dressed students seem to have the same crazy party stories as those in more revealing clothing thus proving that their attire did not determine their acceptance into a party. From what I have witnessed from the drunken students on my floor (and others) that stumble home each weekend is that the people that dress provocatively and those that dress more conservatively have the same amount of “drunken fun.” I would assume that the more comfortably dressed student have more fun simply because they’re not as worried about their comfort (of course none of that probably matters once they are all drunk.)
Anyways, another point I would like to question is how exactly does a male dress in a way that compromises his comfort? I cannot think of an outfit (at least for a party) that a guy could wear that would sacrifice his comfort. Guys generally have more loose fitting and comfortable clothes and therefore this issue does not even apply to them. Sure a guy does not necessarily have to dress up as much (not saying that females necessarily have to either) but they still dress to impress, they are just blessed with more comfortable clothing.
Basically, my best possible answer for this question is simply because girls are willing to and choose to dress that way. Another answer could be that the women have low self confidence and feel that if they dress a certain way then they will be perceived as more attractive and again will get more attention (which is the ultimate goal.) Guys on the other hand, care less about the attention and when it comes to getting into frat parties all guys have to worry about is the ratio of men to women, not how they dress.

I do not think that race by itself influences my personal view on criminals or most other peoples’ opinions for that matter. I feel like the media, such as newspapers and especially the news on television, influence our idea of criminals. The media tends to show less white criminals and more criminals of other races. The media has been known to skew their information and the problem is they can choose what they want and do not want to display. Unfortunately they choose to display minority criminals far more than they display white criminals thus putting an inaccurate representation of a criminal into peoples’ minds. From watching the news on television or from reading the newspaper, we subconsciously, and falsely, attribute the races we view to all be criminals. From this, a person wrongly assumes that any person of a minority race is a criminal, or a “dangerous” person, or at least judges them whether or not they are aware of it. It is after these false thoughts are implanted into our brains that the affect of race itself starts to matter. The media (and the criminals that land their picture or video on the television or in the newspaper) create this harsh stereotype that all people “of color” are criminals. They set the standards low and create judgment for everyone else of their race.
Also, since the majority of the population in America is white (as are news reporters) the information is obviously skewed in their favor. They do not want to report about all of the white criminals that could possible create a negative stereotype about their own race and so they continue to target others. Besides the media, being represented by classy, well presented white news reporters, could not possibly report about a criminal of their race and have a stereotype created due to their own image. The viewers would see the higher class news reporter in comparison to the “white trash criminal” and simply think “well there are only a few white criminals so not every white person is a criminal.”
Another issue, not related to the media, is the way a person (specifically a black person) dresses can influence a person’s opinion. Personally, the way a person dresses themselves, regardless of race, affects my opinion on criminals more than anything else. A person (again any skin color) can be wear oversized, baggy clothing and appear to be unclean thus raising my suspicions. A person with baggier clothes could do a number of criminal acts such as smuggle merchandise out of a store, hide drugs or illegal substances, or worse conceal a weapon. These thoughts cross my mind when I consider who could possibly be a criminal. I do, like many, subconsciously judge others by the way they appear or act however their race or skin color has no real influence on my judgments.

Just after watching the first video about an entrepreneur, I am really interested in this project. During class I was a little confused by what exactly the project was and to be honest it sounded like a nuisance. It sounded like a lot of video watching and reading to learn about people we did not know in another country just to be educated but I was wrong. The project is so much more than just learning about other cultures. The project seems to allow us to really get to see and know the Haitian entrepreneurs and to help their ideas grow into something bigger. The objective of the project is truly amazing because it actually considers the entrepreneurs’ feelings and ideas. The project supports the Haitians and their ideas rather than underestimating them and taking over. A lot of organizations get the wrong idea in their head on how to help others but in the end their intentions prove to be selfish. This however seems to be quite the opposite. The sole purpose of this project is to assist the Haitians so that they themselves can save their country. With the help of this project combined with the innovative and creative ideas of the Haitian people, they can provide job opportunities to their country.
The first entrepreneur that I learned about was Euclid. The fact that she is a fashion designer caught my eye. As a person interested in fashion and style I was interested to see what kind of clothing she designed and I was fascinated to see that she paints on clothing. She paints certain designs and picture onto various articles of clothing, and the best part is that all of her images are straight from her brain, not copied from a picture. She is a very imaginative and creative person with a successful business however she does not have everything she needs, or at least not at the quality that she needs for her paints to better stick. She is a prime example of a person with a bright idea, a start on their business, and now all she needs is a little extra support to keep it going. I was shocked at how interested I became in her story and hearing how everyone in the family is a part of it. Also I think that her particular business, when helped properly, can grow in popularity, thus resulting in more money so that she can hire additional employees other than her husband.
The second entrepreneur, again a fashion related entrepreneur, is Aneas. I really liked seeing how this project is actually working. To see Sam talking with Aneas and telling her what she can do to improve her projects. The second video shows that she appreciates his input and would enjoy having someone in her business that could do that for her. It is sad to see how she has so many ideas and has big dreams to expand her business if only she could move to a better location and have a larger building to work in. Lastly, it is crazy to see just how much her materials cost. Her designs are lovely, creative, and marketable however how much profit can she really make if those items are so costly in her country?
Learning about just these two entrepreneurs alone taught me so much about this project and really showed me how we can help the Haitians in their struggle to help themselves and their country through their ideas.

It makes sense that SAT scores rise as income rises since those with more money are exposed to more opportunities. A person with access to more money can afford prep courses, review books, and anything other “tool” used to prepare for the SATs. Also, a person with intelligence can achieve a degree which equals higher paying jobs. Therefore it makes sense that the people with higher incomes have higher SAT scores. Chances are that the parents are also skilled in the tested material and can assist their children. The parents themselves can help teach their kids all the material for the test. At home, since I’m making the connection that higher incomes are related to more educated parents, the quality of grammar and higher vocabulary usage is more likely. Therefore, the children growing up in the home are exposed to better English as opposed to a lower income, less educated family. Both the reading and writing section of the SAT require these kinds of skills which ultimately benefits the children.
However much that I can make the relation between SAT scores and income, I do also believe that there are many other factors. Biology, for example, can affect a person’s score. For example, in my household there are three of us including myself. There are three daughters in my family with the exact same parents and same upbringing. My parents, my mother especially, were very interested in our school work. My mother encouraged us to study and to always try our hardest. She taught me the best study skills I know and use to this day. Both of my parents treated my sisters and me equally and yet we all performed differently academically. My one sister studied and worked just as hard as my other sister however their talents lied in different places. My oldest sister was the “book smart” type while my other sister excelled in more hands on situations. My oldest sister took the SATs and pursued a four year college education while my other sister didn’t need the SATs because she planned to attend a two year technical institute instead. Their educations differed greatly (although both successful) and they were both raised the same way. In this situation it is very clear that biology plays a significant role in a person’s success.
Another issue with the statistic is that a friend and I were trying to figure out if it was accurate for ourselves only to realize our scores were not even on the chart. Most of the people that I know scored higher than any combined score on the chart. According to the statistic I should have scored much lower however I scored higher than my income level and even higher than the highest income level. I know of friends with higher incomes than my family’s that scored lower than I did on the SATs. That makes me wonder how it is that income can have that high of an affect over other aspects.
I personally feel that biology and how much a parent cares about their children’s academics outweighs the income. I came from a very caring and involved family. The amount of money we made never mattered because they had instilled a strong work ethic in each of us. I know many people from low incomes that have excelled on their SATs and therefore I believe that SAT scores are weakly linked to income and strongly linked to other factors in a person’s life.