Although I am coming from a biased point of view, this article reinforces my negative views of the lottery. Aside from a sociological standpoint, I truly believe that work is required to acquire money and that all members of society should do their part to receive benefits and money. Thus, I believe the lottery is truly a construct of addiction and greed. I am biased on this topic because I am the daughter of a man with a very severe gambling addiction, specifically to New York Lottery. But aside from that, I believe the lottery is sociologically connected not only to addiction but also to self-gratification. For example, I know my father is severely addicted to gambling because he began playing scratch-off cards which were “gateway drugs” to “playing the numbers” twice a day, Mega Millions when the jackpot is huge, and Quick Draw at random places around town. Clearly, the way that addiction forms within a human being is through this type of exposure and progression into any and all forms of the “drug” at hand. But in the case of my father, I believe his true reason for playing the lottery is self-gratification.

I find it surprising that I can relate to this blog post about fear so well, because I have always thought of fear in a very similar context. I have been in very trying situations in my life and in recent times, but what helps me persevere through them is that I know that as long as I still have something to fear, things cannot possibly be at rock bottom, and thus I should be grateful for what I have in the present. In a way, fear also relates to freedom in some sort of way. I feel that the more fears you have can correlate to how free you are, because with more opportunity that comes with freedom, you fear things that relate to those freedoms being taken away from you. It is also applicable to detrimental situations. For example, if you are a tsunami victim who has lost your home, family members, and everything that means something to you, then you are likely to have no fears left in you¸ and that means you are at rock bottom.When you’ve lost everything, it is doubtful that you will fear losing anything else, and you probably won’t even fear death, because it would seem a better solution than the current miserable living conditions. On the contrary, if you are able to fear death, losing your family members, and losing your memories and belongings, that means you STILL have those things, and thus you are fortunate and free in that you still have the blessing of OPPORTUNITY that many other people do not possess. Fear is a beautiful thing, as strange as that may sound, because I believe the level of fear you have and the things you fear show how much worth you have in your life. If you fear death and disaster because you don’t want to die or lose those you love, then it is beautiful in that it shows you have worth in your own life that you value, and worthwhile people you love.With worth also shows privilege as well, because if you have worthy things in your life and fear losing them, then you are automatically more privileged than those who do not have anything in their lives. I appreciate this post about fear very much because the views are spot-on to views I have always held about fear, and on a side note, I believe it continues to reinforce how people in prison actually can be free to some degree, because you have fears in prison.

The article from the right-wing politician Michele Bachmann criticizing the First Lady and left-wing politicians’ support of breastfeeding and the governmental aid they are giving to women who wish to breastfeed is unbelievable to me, especially because I cannot understand, even coming from an objective point of view, why anyone would have an issue with the ENCOURAGEMENT of breastfeeding. If anything, don’t people usually have an issue with mothers who choose NOT to breastfeed, because they are “depriving” their children of essential nutrients for better growth and academic activity in the future? The point is, I believe that a conflict such as this, where a right-wing conservative politician is outraged and making a very big spectacle of something the “left-wingers” did, saying they are taking government regulation too far and overstepping their boundaries, is insane and would NOT be an issue between two people, one from the left and one from the right side of the political spectrum.It is simply because they are politicians, and politicians, as we learned from the study Sam shared with us where a Democrat and Republican had their brain activity monitored while they watched statements by opposing political candidates, are extreme in their opinions and judgments and NOT very active with reasoning. The study showed us that they were overly-critical and sensitive to ANYTHING someone of their rival political party said, and were praising their own candidate. They even praised their own candidate when they said things that CONTRADICTED their own political beliefs, simply because politicians and socially subjected to and surrounded by people all around them ALL the time who think and act in extremes, so they adapt these behaviors based on emotion, and all logic goes out the window.Because I truly cannot see WHY this article was even of importance and WHY the encouragement of breastfeeding by government regulation and help with taxes is a BAD thing whatsoever, I can only attribute it to be that the right-wing politician Bachmann had a problem with it simply because it was an idea that came from the left, and she had to find a problem with it to argue, which is in the nature of all politicians. The logistics behind this article may not be as black-and-white as I find them to be, but relating the politics in this article to the study Sam shared in class is the only way I can go about understanding WHY this issue is a big deal to begin with.

Taking Soc 001 has given me an insight into prison life that I have never before experienced, and I feel that I find myself sympathizing for prisoners because of the lack of freedom they have. Prisoners share some of the basic freedoms we have, such as the freedom of thought, the freedom to stretch in the morning or when to close both eyes when lying down to sleep. But prisoners, beyond the bars, do not have the greatest freedom that we do, and that is the freedom of a clean conscience. We all may have our moments where we feel guilt for things we do that may be morally corrupt, but for the most part, if you haven’t committed a crime that landed you in jail, you don’t live with the ultimate imprisonment which is being a prisoner to your guilt, thoughts, regrets, and shame.
The prisoner in “Remember” states that he doesn’t remember specific events or people of the life he used to know, the most menial things which we think about daily. But the things he does remember involve the memories he has of the person he killed, the tragedy It brought to that man’s family, and it is clear he feels some type of guilt about this. No matter that he is physically restricted to a life behind bars that seems to be anything BUT free, he especially has less freedom than we do because those who aren’t prisoners to their own thoughts about killing another person and ruining someone’s life are far more free in their thoughts and spirits. I could not imagine a worse imprisonment than this.
As Sam stated in class, if you were locked in your room or, in the case of prisoners, behind bars, and told you would be there for the better part of the rest of your life, you can either go crazy, or find God, and this prisoner chose the latter. It always amazes me that prisoners of all people end up being some of the most religious people around, but it comes as no surprise. hope to one day fully understand the sociology behind human freedom, but because I do not possess the ability to analyze “Remember” as a seasoned sociologist, I can only say this:
I am mixed in my opinions especially because when I read from the position of the inmate, I cannot help but feel sorry for him in some way simply because in my eyes he lacks the freedoms that I treasure and would never want to lose. But had I heard a heartfelt story from the family members of the person the inmate killed, I am fairly certain I would feel anger and hatred towards the inmate because of how he mindlessly and selfishly ruined the lives of people when no one deserves such a thing.

Conformity is something I have always thought about often on my own even before we discussed it in class, and I suppose it’s because I have always tried to be a non-conformist in most things that I do. But as the Candid Camera video shows, and as we saw in the Joshua Bell video Sam showed in class, conformity is so prevalent in society and even subconscious at times that I believe it takes a physical effort NOT to conform.
When watching the Candid Camera video, I can’t help but think to myself “I wouldn’t have turned around simply because everyone else in the elevator was doing it. They were turned the wrong way and that’s stupid.” I’m sure there are many people who would like to think that, because it seems so absurd when seen from our perspective and knowing the experiment was a set-up, but I don’t think anyone, myself included, would have been able to act any differently even if we wanted to. This is because as hard as we try, in the moment there are “invisible strings” as Sam says that tell us, either through discomfort at standing out or through some subconscious reasoning beyond my comprehension, we just conform because it’s human nature.
I’d like to think that the more we discuss conformity on an academic level, the more people will take a second look at just how easy it is to conform and make more of a conscious an effort to go against the grain once in a while. But in my own personal experience, I have conformed in one of the greatest outlets of conformity that PSU has to offer, and that is Greek life.__ In the minority community especially at Penn State, there is a level of prestige and a sort of hierarchy that is placed on members of fraternities and sororities, and it’s almost as if all of the Black and Latino party scene revolves around Greek life. When people cross over into Greekdom here, myself included, you are given so many congratulations and you immediately are given more opportunities and, it seems at times, more respect simply because you pledged for letters. There are many benefits to this and I love Greek life, but I can’t help but wonder at times: shouldn’t the students at Penn State who get involved and recognized on campus without having to join the conformist culture that is Greek life be more praised because they maintain their individuality? I struggle with these thoughts every day, but the fact remains that there are definitely invisible strings attached to human beings that make avoiding conformity such a difficult task.

Reading an account of prison experience from a lifer himself is a rare opportunity for me, since I have not have never had a conversation with someone like that. The underlying and touching point of the letter is that there is compassion and human kindness in prison, a place we learn is a cold internment for some of the worst humans in society. In any situation, no matter where you are, the bottom line is ALL humans possess many of the same basic instincts and qualities that are revealed in trying or desperate situations. We hear stories of the carnal desires are acts people engage in prison, and the rage and fighting, and I have no doubt these are true. When in a situation, just as in the real world, where men and women have strong desires and needs to be fulfilled, they will likely act upon them, just as in prison or in the free world, if you are enraged at someone, your instinct is likely to have a confrontation with that person.

SOC 001