en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/764465 Comments by aps5121 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/letter-from-an-inmate__trashed/#IDComment70021757 The whole prison issue is controversial. I believe I am caught in between with which side to be on. In one sense, obviously those humans that are sentenced to life are there for a reason. They did something horrible that cannot be forgiven. If I was in the situation where someone had killed a family member of mine, I would want the convicted criminal to be sentenced to life. I would want them to feel as terrible as I did when that happened. I don’t see how I could possibly forgive someone for doing something so wrong and letting them get away with it. But then I have the feelings that people do change over time. People are meant to learn from their mistakes and can change. But I don’t think that is the case for all men and women. That is where a line has to be drawn. People cannot commit crimes and get away with it. How can someone really learn a lesson if they have no punishment? I have never been to jail myself, but I couldn’t imagine what it would be like. I am sure it is horrible and life changing. I couldn’t imagine being locked up all day and night with no one to really talk to or go anywhere. So I am sure it is an unfortunate thing to experience and something no one ever wishes upon them. Maybe going to jail is too unfair. In the back of my mind, I still cannot help but think that these people deserve this. There are so many criminals who murder innocent people. How could one not want punishment for them? The only sympathy I have for inmates is the fact that they really screwed up their life and it’s too late to change it. I don’t think everyone deserves a second chance. There are still murderers who kill, are let out finally, and go right back and commit another crime. How do you explain that? Did they learn their lesson? The answer is obviously not. That’s why we as a country have to have a set of rules. Everyone’s case is unique and different. It’s hard to handle everyone’s situation in the same way. But it is also hard to take the chance that the person will change for the better and should be allowed to be let out. I do agree that the man who wrote that story does have feelings and is remorseful. It is sad that he will have to spend the rest of his life behind bars for one thing he did. As a human, you cannot help but feel bad. But I couldn’t imagine being on the other perspective, meaning having the lost loved one. It’s not fair at all to innocent victims. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 23:44:41 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/letter-from-an-inmate__trashed/#IDComment70021757 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/christian-invaders-the-turnaround__trashed/#IDComment68421213 I thought this was a very enlightening and awakening class. It was a real eye opener because normally we don’t think about another’s situation, let alone country. In America, it seems as if we ignore the problems that aren’t directly affecting us. I mean were in college and most of us who aren’t in the military cannot make a difference in what happens abroad. So we are oppressed and ignore it in a sense. I really didn’t think about the mid east until we had this lecture. I actually attended this famous, spoken –of lecture last semester with a friend who was in the class. Honestly, it was what inspired me to take this class. It showed me life and the world from a different perspective. Basically, I left that class thinking, “Wow, that male really knows his shit”. When I attended the lecture the other day, it still had the same effect on me. I felt scared at the things that were going on around us; I felt angry and uncomfortable with foreign nations. But then it made me realize something different about this issue that I never did before. We are all scared. And like many people in this world, when were scared of something or do not wish to deal with it, we act like it never happened. It’s easy to ignore when it is not going on directly in front of your face. We don’t see or even completely understand what is going on abroad, so we back off and pretend it is a forbidden land that we just don’t speak of. It’s really easy to get by in life when you don’t have to deal with life threatening issues. Was I scared before? Not since the month of September in 2001. Am I scared now and feel as though there was something I could do? Yes, terrified. I don’t like thinking about these things. It’s kind of like that whole 2012 theory. They make me panic and I act like they don’t exist. But on a brighter note, I thought it was good what Sam did. He made me realize that I shouldn’t judge and hate someone without knowing where and what they came from. Empathy is something I don’t seem to have. I wish I could be more empathetic and less ethnocentric. I do understand why the mid east citizens hate Americans and look down upon us. It’s unfortunate, really. It’s sad that they have to see negative images of us but that is how the world works. No one wants to show positive and happy images of any country. Everyone seems to have a hatred of each other’s country once they go to war or make one bad decision. It is depressing that this is how society works. Fri, 16 Apr 2010 20:10:52 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/christian-invaders-the-turnaround__trashed/#IDComment68421213 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/this-is-totally-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment66503818 First of all, I can’t believe this game even surfaced and was actually sold in any country. This isn’t a “challenging” or “fun” game. And if a person thinks of this game as fun, there is something seriously wrong with them. Rape is a form of abuse. It’s a tragic and unfortunate action that does happen. Rape is not an action to be proud of. It’s not commonly spoken of or joked about. By making a game of this, it doesn’t do anything but show a society that it is acceptable to take part in the action of rape, which is not right at all. It also shows that there are no consequences of taking part in this. I really hope this doesn’t help rapists justify what they have done. When a society produces shows or games that are explicit like this, it seems to do nothing but persuade more people do take part in the action. I don’t see how this could positively influence any person. When you think about it, what good can come from this game? Rape is being made into a game and some sort of quest. It shouldn’t be anyone’s goal to do that to someone. After all, it is cruel. This game demonstrates how women in the world are silenced, embarrassed, and easily abused. They are taken advantage of and appear as if they don’t have an opinion in what is happening to them. I don’t agree with whatever the creator the game was thinking. Yes, it may be a man’s world. However, this is ridiculous. It does not mean that men can take over everything and disgrace women. I do not believe all women are weak. There are so many other video games out there to play; basically there is game for anything you could imagine. And these games are all appropriate. It isn’t the fact that it is not suppose to be spoken of; it’s the fact that it is a crime to rape someone. I know, there are games where you shoot people such as Grand Theft Auto, but I don’t think it is degrading toward any specific group of people like rape is. It doesn’t show people being weak because it is not abusing the human body. This makes me sad to watch this. I don’t think I could imagine the emotions I would have watching this after knowing someone who was raped. When making a public statement like this video game, the creator should know who he is going to offend and how to defend him or herself. Except this time, I don’t see where one could have a defense. Maybe I am crazy but in my opinion, I just do not see how raping a woman would be funny or entertaining to anyone, unless you were mentally ill. Overall, this game sickens me and should have never been permitted to be on the market. Whoever allowed this to happen is mentally ill too and should really think about what they have exposed to the world. Thu, 8 Apr 2010 02:43:50 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/this-is-totally-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment66503818 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment63959239 This is true. I suppose Sam does include Asians as the brown group but they are really their own group. When he says brown people, I think of Hispanics and Latinos, not Asians. I imagine this is due to the fact that they don’t have brown skin. It is lighter than brown but surely not white. I think they are an important part to our society and should be included as their own individual group and subgroups. Just because a person is Asian doesn’t mean that they are or aren’t Asian – American. They are grouped together as one rather than by their birth place and socialized customs. It is unfortunate that this happens but I guess its cause at times it is hard to tell the difference between them. Most other groups of people you can tell the difference between original locations based off of what their physical appearance looks like. In the case of the Asians, this doesn’t happen; but it should since it really isn’t fair. Secondly, I can sometimes tell the difference between an Asian and an Asian – American. I guess I could reword that as I can definitely tell if a person is Asian. Obviously their eye shape and appearance is different from other groups. But when it comes to people directly from Asia, meaning they live there and study here, they only have subtle differences. These Asians are sometimes easy to distinguish. They’re appearance and some mannerisms are how I can slightly tell. I know this is really stereotypical but they always dress in really fitted clothes, wear glasses, have longer hair which is typically styled, and carry those small pencil cases. I am not trying to offend any Asian or Asian – American that reads this; it is just what I personally have observed. Additionally, I find that most Asian – Americans speak English around mostly everyone. So I guess what I am saying am I can tell the difference in how they act. But when looking physically at them, no I cannot tell the difference. I wish I could but I really don’t think I will ever be able to. It isn’t right either because the group that is Asian – American shouldn’t be classified as that. That term means they have ancestors from Asia but live in America. My view is that they should just be considered American or the question should be specific on what it is looking for. Personally, I know an Asian – American and his socialized characteristics are like those of an American. You can tell that he isn’t “foreign”. Yes, he still celebrates and lives in his Asian culture but does not demonstrate this in public in front of everyone; just with this family. And I would consider him just American even know his appearance is obviously Asian. Thu, 25 Mar 2010 04:28:05 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment63959239 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment62883435 To start, this texting method of responding is a cool idea. It is really creative but I think everyone knew how it would turn out, at least until everyone adjusted and didn’t see it as a new funny thing to do. So going into it, everyone should have expected to be offended to an extent. I mean come on, it is anonymous, and so pretty much anything goes. Secondly, I don’t think the rudeness thing cuts both ways. There is obviously a degree of inequality existing which was evident after the “loud, ass black girls” comment. I agree with the male in the video that white people get a lot more slack for saying stuff on that screen compared to the people of color. I didn’t feel that everything that people of color wrote was necessarily friendly and considerate, like when students of color wrote that white people were “rich and superior”. Then another student wrote that white people were stuck up. I do take offense to that. All of their comments were way more harsh and bold than the white people’s comments. But no one says anything to them when they say something inappropriate; only the white people get yelled at for it. I’m starting to ponder why that is too. It’s definitely not fair and I don’t understand how they get away with “being in the right” while us white people are reprimanded for telling it how it is. I guess it is just another thing we have to accept and know it will be the way it is. The comment that referred to how white people had to put up loud black girls in the Pollock lab was not necessarily appropriate. However, someone did write that because they did not get the idea from nowhere, meaning that it had clearly happened before. I don’t understand why black people are offended by someone calling them loud – because that’s a pretty common stereotype. And I know, a stereotype is a stereotype but they form based on common elements of that subject. So they are some - what true. So I don’t know why they got so offended at that comment. I guess one reason is because they are sensitive and feel attacked in a sense ever since the slavery time period. But really that isn’t a good reason to get offended at everything a white person says. Additionally, I suppose it was the way the comment was worded. If there wasn’t swear words to emphasize the meaning it probably would have been taken the same as it did. It sounded worse than it actually was. So maybe everyone just needs to calm down, be open minded to comments, and try to understand why someone would think that. Fri, 19 Mar 2010 03:17:14 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment62883435 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment61224119 I do agree that this part of this incident has gone far enough. Putting a noose in library? Really? If that’s not inappropriate I am not sure what is. That is going far out of one’s way to offend others, which is quite ridiculous that someone cares that much. I wish I could blame it on someone without education and not knowing what is wrong, but I cannot. This was a student, obviously a well educated student, who did this. They knew what they were doing and made the conscious effort to pursue it, despite the negative connotations that came along with this symbol. Nothing good could have come from doing this, at all. So that individual, who may have thought this was funny or important to do, really wasn’t. There is no way this could have brought any happiness to anyone on campus and I am sure many other students there have felt the same. Furthermore, one has to look at this action as an individual’s and not as a group’s. Clearly it didn’t take a mass amount of people to do this. And the entire campus should not be held responsible for the action, even though it will tend to. Now when people think of that college, this will definitely be linked to the hanging of the noose and that really isn’t fair to the rest of the student body. Secondly, I do not feel that dressing ghetto is offensive to one’s race. It’s more of a culture perhaps. There are plenty of black people that are not necessarily “ghetto”. So no one can really group all black people as ghetto. Themed parties are just a way to get people to dress different than they normally would. It is something fun to do and really shouldn’t offend anyone. They aren’t in place to do so. I would not be offended if a black fraternity held a themed party that told people who are attending to “dress white” or “preppy”. I mean really, it is just a style. And also, frats have parties with plenty of different themes and no one else is offended by them. One example is “office ceos and hoes”. Girls aren’t offended what so ever and still attend these parties and dress for the occasion. When you sit back and think about this, it’s more degrading to women than men, however, no one really says anything about it being sexist because everyone just wants to have fun. No one looks that far into things, or at least shouldn’t. Fraternities do not intend to offend anyone; they just try to throw successful and fun parties. After all, most fraternities are multicultural and are a primarily social group. I don’t think these themed parties denounce anyone or anything. They are just there for entertainment. Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:47:30 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment61224119 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three__trashed/#IDComment58727183 To start, it is sad that there is and was genocide going on with the Native Americans. And it is not necessarily right that our ancestors took their land. I do have to agree that people aren’t really getting the take home message. I think this is partly because we live in Pennsylvania and there aren’t really any reserves around here to see what they go through. There aren’t even any nearby to visit. It is hard to understand and be empathetic when we haven’t got the full picture and effect. It is kind of like the saying that actions speak louder than words. So until we see it for ourselves, I don’t believe anyone will see the true take home message. I will admit that I, myself, don’t really get it either. I mean I have had history class every year since I was in elementary school and learned about the Native Americans. The teachers taught us about their culture, and when they came in contact with the pilgrims and so forth. Then as we got older we learned about all the wars and the trail of tears. So I guess in a way, it seems as those Native Americans were just a part of the past and not the present. It appears as if all of hate and unequal rights have been resolved. Personally, I thought that we were on equal terms with them and it never crossed my mind that the information I understood to be correct, was not correct. We aren’t really educated on Native Americans anymore. I think part of the reason is that it still goes back to the fact that we aren’t near the reservations to realize how they are still treated. And I know as Sam mentioned in class, just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen, and I concur. But the point is that we don’t see it, so how can we truly be sympathetic if we don’t exactly understand? I think it would be more of a take home message if we could relate to it. I am sure that lot stuff goes down that we aren’t aware of. It makes me feel bad that they have a harder time than any of us doing things such as applying for a loan or job. However, I do not feel responsible for taking their land. I personally am not aware of any of my ancestors doing this since my family moved here right after World War II. It is more of the race and inequality issue that gets to me than how they became in the position they are in. It is not right in any sense but I am not really sure what we could do about it. I guess perhaps they would have to stand up for the government to grant more rights and get their equality back. Fri, 26 Feb 2010 01:17:51 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three__trashed/#IDComment58727183 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/swinging-past-the-other-end-of-the-ideological-spectrum-on-the-way-to-the-intellectual-gray__trashed/#IDComment56588410 I do agree with Sam and how he says that we all need to stay in the middle when deciding what shapes our lives. However, I am not sure how realistic that is. Typically, I think that people learn towards the idea that it’s our parents fault for the way we are. I think a lot of people like to blame the people around them for the way their life is because it is always easier to blame someone else for your actions. Anymore, it seems as though people don’t want to take responsibility for their actions. Don’t get me wrong, I think family and loved ones do shape part of the life that one has. But honestly, I believe that individual decisions are way more detrimental to one’s life rather than outside forces. If a person doesn’t have in it within them to do well and succeed in life, they aren’t going to. If they don’t want to do their homework or study or take part in a sport, they aren’t going to. People act off of internal thoughts and ideas. My parents divorced when I was at a young age and it definitely took a toll on me. But I never stopped working hard in school or fail a test. I always had personal drive to want to do well in school and be happy. There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think about how lucky I am to have come this far in life despite the surroundings I grew up in. I didn’t let stuff get to me like some people do. Neither one of my parents pressured me to do school work or study for a test. I took the initiation and did it all on my own. Every time someone decides to blame their parents for not pushing them enough to succeed, I want to explain to them that it isn’t their entire fault. Another example is that my best friend’s sister. Her family isn’t poor and they didn’t grow up in a bad area at all. She just refuses to do schoolwork even though her mom has hired tutor after tutor and even attempted to take her to therapy. Her mom will try to make her do homework at the table and she will just sit there and not do anything. She has bended over backwards to help her and it doesn’t do anything in aiding her. That goes to show that no matter how much a parent tries to help, they can’t actually change anything. You have to have personal drive to and desire to want to better yourself and care about your grades and where it takes you to in life. Your loved ones can only help you to an extent. Sat, 13 Feb 2010 03:06:22 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/swinging-past-the-other-end-of-the-ideological-spectrum-on-the-way-to-the-intellectual-gray__trashed/#IDComment56588410 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/avatar-and-the-white-mans-burden__trashed/#IDComment55568633 After reading the Brooks article, I really do not agree with some of his choice words. People who aren’t white “need a White Messiah” to help them defend themselves. Since this movie is apparently symbolic of just about everything dealing with culture and society, I think that is one stand out symbol. To begin with, I think that could be extremely offending to people who aren’t white. I don’t really believe people of other races and ethnicities would like to appear as that to America. How Brooks approached this idea was wrong; he could have stated what he meant in better way. What I believe Brooks meant was that it is mostly white people who are the ones who deliver the help in America. Take a look around, the majority of doctors are white and granted, some Asian. Personally, I have never had or saw a black doctor. This could be a root as to where Brooks got the idea of the white messiah taking the lead. Other community help that involves mostly white people are firefighters. This is predominately white field of work. The “helping” jobs in our country are all governed by white people. They are the ones who do that kind of work. Moreover, we have white presidents since our government was created. Up until 2008 there wasn’t even the idea of an ethic president. That is basically the most important job in our country and has been taken over by a white man for hundreds of years. And there is a reason for this. Some fail to realize that. The thing is, this country is a “white” country. It was never a mixed country to begin with. Black people are always so offended at the fact of the “white supremacy” that takes place here, but that is how the country was built. I think those who feel that way need to open their eyes and read a text book because history and Europeans are the reason for the ethnic makeup of this country. In correlation with this movie, the thing is, is that who really cares if a movie has a white person as a leading and powerful figure. I know the movie is symbolic, but did anyone ever stop to think of other movies that have black leading roles that are portrayed positively? Movies such as I Am Legend and Coach Carter all display male, black, powerful roles. There is a valid reason to not be so racist towards one’s ethnicity. We have movies that show both, however, no one seems to acknowledge the black leading- role movies. I don’t really see too many white people claiming a movie is racist towards them or “out to get them”. These “racist” people need to realize that there are productions of different leading roles, but they are equal. Sat, 6 Feb 2010 03:59:29 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/avatar-and-the-white-mans-burden__trashed/#IDComment55568633 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/i-guess-it-pays-to-learn-a-bit-about-other-people__trashed/#IDComment54297392 To start off, this was a very interesting article. I believe there are two different ways to interpret this. However, either way each side displays a degree of ethnocentrism. On one side, the boy was seventeen and traveling with his sister, not a mob of terrorist-like people. It is almost embarrassing that they landed the plane just because they "thought" he was suspicious. Who knew that if one was praying it would be considered suspicious? Also, the boy was Jewish. Not some foreign religion that is not common the United States. The pilots and flight attendants should take more of an initiative to know some customs and norms of the main religions in our country due to the whole September 11th attack. They could have avoided this whole problem or even just questioned the boy if they had some type of knowledge. Additionally, I do not see how one goes from being not that concerned to landing a plane over this issue. When I say this I am referring to the time when the boy claimed he wasn’t stopped throughout the bag and security checks. He was wearing the same material around his body which is what the pilot and flight attendants claimed to have made them curious. If he appeared so dangerous, why wasn’t he stopped earlier? Maybe the US does not want to put any blame on them. Rather, it is easier to blame the male for dressing obscurely in the airport and plane. Even though they tried to do this, it still negatively reflects back on our country demonstrating racism and confusion to indifference. It shows the insensitivity the US has to religions that are practiced here in our own country. But then there is still the argument that this is part of the procedures America takes when flying. It seems as though many people are afraid to fly anywhere because of the September 11th attack and the other plane crashes. So in a way, I guess they are trying to tighten security. If they didn’t do this, I am sure there would be many people who would say that the airlines were not doing their job and not protecting our country. No, I do not think they should have gone to the measure of ending the flight. I think they could have avoided this whole situation if the US airlines were not ignorant of others’ religions, as I stated earlier. I am not saying they should study every religion in the world but perhaps the main ones that are practiced in this country. Both sides of this story require some adjustment, whether it is them learning the religions to avoid situations like this and/or the United States’ airline travelers not demanding the level of security they do. Fri, 29 Jan 2010 02:56:45 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/i-guess-it-pays-to-learn-a-bit-about-other-people__trashed/#IDComment54297392 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/last-name-begins-with-s__trashed/#IDComment53949661 hey Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:44:38 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/last-name-begins-with-s__trashed/#IDComment53949661 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/haitis-calamity__trashed/#IDComment53504792 It’s hard to put into words the sadness and destruction that the Haitian earthquake pictures convey. Along with the rest of the nation, I’ve watched news clip after news clip and read numerous articles about the 7.0 quake. When I first heard and saw, I thought this was the most televised natural disaster I’ve ever seen but after I gave it a closer look I realized America has never seen such exposure to a third world country. People go on with their day to day lives not thinking that there are other humans out there who don’t even have clean water to drink or shoes to wear. By no means am I trying to make light of the earthquake that devastated the already impoverished nation but there were serious problems there, even before the disaster struck. In a way maybe Laurie is right. Salvation may come to Haiti now, but it took great destruction for the media to finally pay attention. The media can be a tool used to inform and expose the world with news but it can also insert religious propaganda. What happened in Haiti is terrible but in my opinion it is Mother Nature. No act of god or agreements with the devil caused this destruction. People are so quick to blame or suspect the supernatural. Of course it is much easier to say “we’ll never understand why this happened,” or “by some act of God so many were saved” (Both Fox News quotes). To me, this is just an easy way out for so many. No one wants to concentrate on the facts and find a “real” answer. Haiti is situated on a fault line which means that the area is susceptible to earthquakes. With this knowledge, it is no mystery of science why this happened. My point is, let’s concentrate on how we can help instead of playing the religious blame game. It is an overwhelming feeling to see all of those disaster relief teams there trying to rebuild and rescue so many of those in need. Religious or not, people need to work together to help each other and to provide better futures for the upcoming generations. Disasters like these remind us all of how human we really are. There are some things that are going to be out of our control which is why we need to realize our own ethnocentrism and work together. We need to step outside of our comfort zones to see and feel what others may be going through, not just in this situation, but globally. Let this be a sign and not a religious one, but more of a humanitarian sign that we need to start thinking about the world around us. Sat, 23 Jan 2010 04:29:10 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/haitis-calamity__trashed/#IDComment53504792 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/haitis-calamity__trashed/#IDComment53503908 It’s hard to put into words the sadness and destruction that the Haitian earthquake pictures convey. Along with the rest of the nation, I’ve watched news clip after news clip and read numerous articles about the 7.0 quake. When I first heard and saw, I thought this was the most televised natural disaster I’ve ever seen but after I gave it a closer look I realized America has never seen such exposure to a third world country. People go on with their day to day lives not thinking that there are other humans out there who don’t even have clean water to drink or shoes to wear. By no means am I trying to make light of the earthquake that devastated the already impoverished nation but there were serious problems there, even before the disaster struck. In a way maybe Laurie is right. Salvation may come to Haiti now, but it took great destruction for the media to finally pay attention. The media can be a tool used to inform and expose the world with news but it can also insert religious propaganda. What happened in Haiti is terrible but in my opinion it is Mother Nature. No act of god or agreements with the devil caused this destruction. People are so quick to blame or suspect the supernatural. Of course it is much easier to say “we’ll never understand why this happened,” or “by some act of God so many were saved” (Both Fox News quotes). To me, this is just an easy way out for so many. No one wants to concentrate on the facts and find a “real” answer. Haiti is situated on a fault line which means that the area is susceptible to earthquakes. With this knowledge, it is no mystery of science why this happened. My point is, let’s concentrate on how we can help instead of playing the religious blame game. It is an overwhelming feeling to see all of those disaster relief teams there trying to rebuild and rescue so many of those in need. Religious or not, people need to work together to help each other and to provide better futures for the upcoming generations. Disasters like these remind us all of how human we really are. There are some things that are going to be out of our control which is why we need to realize our own ethnocentrism and work together. We need to step outside of our comfort zones to see and feel what others may be going through, not just in this situation, but globally. Let this be a sign and not a religious one, but more of a humanitarian sign that we need to start thinking about the world around us. Sat, 23 Jan 2010 04:20:22 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/01/haitis-calamity__trashed/#IDComment53503908