The situation with illegal immigrants is a very complex situation in the United States today, and I knew that going into the lecture. But this lecture helped to see more sides to the issue and help me not be as narrow minded about the problem. I agree with Sam when he said that we can't just open the border and let things go wild, because it would really get out of control. I grew up pretty close to the Hazelton area and even spent two years at the branch campus so illegal immigration is an issue that has been a part of my life for some time. Originally, my mentality was to just simple get rid of as many of them as possible because I don't want to be footing their hospital bill and so on. But I never really thought of the fact that I wouldn't be here if it weren't for illegal immigration. My great grandmother came here illegally from Ukraine back during World War two. If the native Americans would have had a strict immigration policy when the Europeans showed up in America, maybe none of us would be here today.
I had a run in with a man about a month ago that was an illegal immigrant. I was stopped at a red light and he plowed right into me. He pulled over to exchange information, but fled the scene when he found out that the police were on their way to report the accident.. The family bribed me for cash the entire time we waited and I didn't take it. They kept complaining about my actions as well, and it was really starting to bother me. I never had a big problem with immigrants, but this put a bitter taste in my mouth. I feel that if you do indeed want to live here, you should be prepared to play by the rules that we have. But aside from that, they offer very good and cheap labor and that is not a very terrible thing for our economy.
Overall, I think we are doing a pretty solid job with the immigration in this country. It is a very complex issue and it can't be completely fixed, but it under control and we don't need to dump a couple million more dollars toward it. There are better things for us to be spending our money on. I have to thank illegal immigration for where I am today so it's not a totally bad thing like it is portrayed, but it also needs to stay under control.

The way Sam did this class was very interesting and once again, i felt ignorant. That seems to be a very common trend in this class. It definitely made me think differently about the war. I had never really put myself in the shoes of a Middle Eastern person or even think for a second that we are there for oil that doesn't belong to us. I think if I lived there, I would be pretty pissed at us. I'm still not completely against the war though. After September 11th, I think it was in our place to be there, but it seems to have gone too far.
There was one video that really pissed me off as a Middle Eastern person. It was the video about U.S. soldiers harassing the civilians there. That video pissed me off as a U.S. citizen too. I don't know if those soldiers were just as ignorant as they looked, or if they were really that cold hearted, but it didn't leave a good mark on our name. Sometimes I just have to laugh when people say, "why does everyone in the world hate us?" This is the stuff that people are going to see and it puts such a negative image to the people of our nation. That is all next to how terrible it is to crush a cab driver's car for taking some wood.
I was also interested in the videos of the big political figures speaking about the oil in the Middle east as if it truly belonged to the U.S. Before this class where we had to pretend to be Middle Eastern, I would not have thought twice about those statements. Now it seems really strange that the nation thinks that way. But on the other hand, I can see why they would speak like that. Our economy is pretty reliant on whether or not we can get this oil. As an American, I like to see that our country is very powerful and I would like to see it stay that way. When big political figures speak out like that, it gives a sense of security to Americans listening to them. We don't have to worry about losing our status around the world because we are doing what we can for the oil, and in turn, the well being of our nation. It was just very interesting to look at the whole situation through the eyes of the Middle Eastern person.
Another thing that Sam really got into was the idea of a Christian invasion. I don't align myself as a Christian, but I have no disrespect toward typical Christians. However a lot of things we saw in class were really the reason that Christians can really bother me. I understand that you want to spread the word of God, but i really think people need to be more respectful to people with other religious practices. Hardcore Christians can never just shake hands and say "agree to disagree". That should go on more often then it does. In fact, I don't see why people wouldn't want to talk about other people's religions and learn about them. They can be very interesting. In my first semester of college, I enrolled in eastern religions because I thought it would be very interesting. Sam is the perfect example of this because he really has done so many, and his experiences are very unique. But you will never see him push a religion on us in class because he would be okay saying "agree to disagree".

I wouldn't really say I was enlightened more or less for either gender, but the talk was very interesting as far as the language goes. As every other lecture in this class goes, I did become a little bit more open minded. I have taken philosophy of love and sex here at Penn State, so talking about sex is an area where I am comfortable. But even after that class, the point Sam made about why women are not always in the mood because the vagina is seeing a lot more action in non-sexual ways was something I never really thought of. I mean the vagina requires maintenance, where penis is really no more complicated than a kazoo. Not that I have ever been an overly persistent type of person, but now I will try to be more understanding to that concept.
Sam also raised the topic of porn and how lots of men are seeing it as how sex really is or should be. I think that was pretty clear from the start, and if anything came from that, its that being a pizza delivery boy is probably the best job in the world.
Another thing that I was intrigued by was the collective attitude the guys had toward the concept of the needy penis. It seemed to me that it is really hard to shoot guys down in a negative way, where as it is much easier to shoot down a woman. For instance, if the lecture was called the needy vagina, i think the talk would have been geared in an entirely different way. When they talked about the needy penis, most guys seemed to have a different attitude then what you would expect based purely on the language used. It really speaks to how much of a male-centric society we live in today.
After taking the love and sex class, I became very open to talking about sex, where I think a lot of people are still uncomfortable with it. If there is one thing that I hope people got form this talk, its that sex is good to talk about and it doesn't have to be so taboo. Sex is such a natural part of life, and really hope it becomes easier to talk about now that more people are being sent out of that class with a certain sense of comfort on the topic. I also hope that the women were paying close attention because I think that talk could have been more enlightening and possibly life changing then for the guys. I don't know that for sure, but I think it is a safe guess.

For me personally, the factors that make it difficult to date outside my own race are the same things that make it difficult to date inside my own race. If a person doesn't share many interests with me, then they are probably not compatible with me. If someone does share interests with me, then I would be okay potentially dating that person.
I think overall, there might be a certain pressure in society not to date outside of your own race. It could just go to a person's family. I am fortunate enough to have a family that would be completely accepting if I were to bring home a person outside of my own race, but I would be willing to bet that not every family is as open minded as mine. Actually with my rebellious nature, my family is probably expecting me to date a black woman at some point in my life. I really don't see that as a problem at all. If a person can make me happy and vise versa, then who care what color they are.
As I said before if a person shares similar interests with me and they are compatible with me, I would not have a problem dating them. However I think it is a little harder for me to date outside my race because I have met very very few black women who even know who Children of Bodom are and what they do. Music choice is a big part of who I am and going to concerts is probably my favorite thing in the world. But there is no way in hell I will ever be dragged to a Kanye West concert. I would honestly rather shove a fork in my eye and hold it steady in the emergency room for a couple hours then go to that show. I'm not saying every person of color likes Kanye West, that is just an example. But generally speaking, hip-hop is a big part of black culture and I think that is very cool. I just don't want to listen to it.
I really think that everyone should be able to date outside their race. Sam said in class that mixed couples are the fastest growing group in the United States and I think that is really cool. As far as racial equality goes, I think that is a nice sign of improvement in this country. More people are seeing the beauty in people despite race. I mean it does't say much for political equality, but it says something good about the progress the people are making in an overall sense about race, and I think it is really awesome.

Up until the time that I started taking this class, I never really had any guilt about being a white male in society. The main reason is because I was very ignorant to how advantaged I am as a white male in the United States. I still wouldn't say that I feel guilty about being a white male in America because it is something that I had no control over. I would say that I feel very lucky that I am a white male, especially now that I am more educated on the struggles that other people have even today in our society. I will say that I feel better about myself living in this day in age where minorities have taken some tremendous steps to break out of extreme racism in this country.
One main reason that I do not feel guilty about being a white male is that I don't like living my life in guilt. For example, I felt very guilty about the eating chocolate on the day we talked about modern slavery, and since then I have eaten much less chocolate, but I haven't cut myself off completely because I felt guilty. I empathize to those people in slavery, but I can't spend my life feeling guilty about myself because I was born into a better situation. That is something that I had no control over and I won't let it ail me for my entire life. There is a certain amount of empathy is that is good to have because it means you are a caring person, but I have to live my own life and feel good about it too.
Overall, I am proud to be a white male in todays society. Yes, whitey has done some terrible things in this country historically, but I am part of a generation that is making some good strides to erase the hostility of the white man, and I am proud of that. Especially down to the individual level. I don't treat people differently only depending on race and I feel good about myself. Sure I treat people differently, but it really depends on whether or not that person is a complete douche, regardless of race.
So overall, I do not feel guilty for being a white male in America. In fact, I feel bad for those people who do feel guilty about being white. I can't imagine what life would be like if I had a rain cloud of guilt hanging over my head everyday just for existing in the way I do. I think everyone would just be proud of who they are and live life as best as you can. I can't control my race, so why should I let my race control me?

While watching the Tammy video in class, I don't think i felt as bad for her as the rest of the class. I felt this for a number of different reasons. One reason is that I grew up in an area with many people like her. I went to school with the kids like her kids. Although they were poor, they were not unhappy people. I mean I surely think she could use some help, but there are also other things she should do to improver her life. She could start by cleaning up her yard. I also don't think people of that social class should have four children. It is nice to have a large family, but realistically, you shouldn't have so many kids if you can barely take care of yourself. I would also have liked to see how she spends the money she earns. If anyone has to climb out of the hole that is the lower class, you are going to need some sort of financial plan. The only grudge I had against the poor people from my area that live off of welfare is the way I would see them spend their money. They complain about their social class, but then go out and blow all their money on lottery tickets and booze. I have seen this happen time and time again, and it aggravates me. Start investing some money and clean yourself up a little bit. If you can look nice and work hard, you can move up the ranks in the workplace, even if it is only Burger King. I feel like at the age Tammy is at, she could have easily worked her way out of a position where she cleans toilets if she could clean herself up and put forth a good effort. I do however give her credit for wanting to earn her own money. She had a good attitude in that area.
As far as helping my own race more then another race, I don't think I would discriminate in that way. If someone needs help and I am in a position to help, I will. It doesn't matter what race you are to me if you need some help. If I found myself in some stormy weather, I would hope to get some help from anybody.
The one question Sam asked about whether I judge my race harder then other races, I'm not sure about. Off the top of my head I would say I criticize them all the same based on individual action, but after a little more thought, I think I may criticize white people a little bit harder. I might simply be because I am white. It may also go back to the talk we had about determinism vs. free will. If the color of your skin gives you some societal advantages, then you should be able to move through classes a little easier. But I would say that I am still a bit unclear in this area. I will be putting some more thought into this through later discussions.

People in the United States are not aware of global problems such as modern slavery because we are ignorant. I include myself in that statement as well. I was not previously knowledgeable on this subject until very recently, probably as well as most everyone else in the class. The one guy in class asked how many time can you play the ignorance card, and i say "if the shoe fits". We tend to really block ourselves off from these issues as a society. It could be a number of reasons why. For example, the cocoa slaves from the video we watched. Nestle isn't going to run announcements in commercials because they don't want people to stop buying the chocolate. I mean these things can be covered up and left out for so many different reasons. Maybe people just don't want to live a life where they feel guilt for having been born into a well off lifestyle. I empathize to those people because they really do have it bad. I can imagine having to live my life that way. But at the same time, I don't want to punish myself psychologically for being dealt a good hand in life.
As far as how do we inform the nation of these problems, again, a tough situation. I feel it can be accomplished through the media for sure. However we all know the media so I think it would need to be done carefully. Back to the point of feeling guilty, I don't think it would be right to make a heart wrenching PSA that lays a giant guilt trip on the entire nation. The very serious issue would not be received very well if that were the case. I think if a formal figurehead, like the president or Sam for example, were to have a talk on a quick commercial or a prime time special, and it was laid out in a similar way as our class, it would have a positive impact. Hell this show could become very popular if there was a new topic every week with a new star discussing it. It would be called "Ignorant America" and air at nine o' clock eastern time on a major network. It would be cheap to produce and the advertisement slots would be worth quite a lot. Now that is how I think this problem could be solved, but there are a lot of things that would have to go right for this to happen and it is very unlikely that any network would really go for it. But if it happens someday, you heard it here first.

Sam's King of the Mountain example in class was a very good way to describe how power struggles work. I have always referred to the United States power elite as "the folks on the hill". The reason I use that term is because I have actually thought of power elites like this before, but I have not actually seen an example in a class of a direct connection to a time and place in American history.
I don't feel like I have ever been a very ignorant person, but I really did feel that way after that class. Not in a really bad way, but in a constructive way. I will admit to having thought that blacks have had so much time to get their lives on track and wondered why they are still so low in certain statistics, like the overall wealth chart. I felt ignorant because I wasn't aware of exactly how limited blacks were after slavery. I knew they didn't have all the rights white people had and life was more difficult, but I was not aware of ow long it has taken for our society to really start to embrace other people. I know we as a society are no where near to total equality and acceptance, but we defiantly have taken steps in the right direction over the last one hundred years. The king of the mountain example was a very simple and effective way of showing how the whites have been able to get away with all the crap they have gotten away with. It is completely unfair and it is sad that history has to read this way for all white people.
On the flip side, his perspective made a lot of sense. As the guy on the top of the mountain, why would he let anyone into power other then himself. I feel like it wold go against human nature to just hand over the best position possible because it is morally correct. The best option is not always the easiest. It is hard to stay completely upset of the issue as a white male because if these people hadn't done what they did, I may not have the opportunities that I have today. I'm not saying I should rejoice the racist bastards of the past, but they put me in a position to be well off in life. I could be working as the manager at my local McDonald's for the rest of my life if i didn't have the privileges that I have. So yes, I am lucky and privileged, but it comes at a cost.
One last thing that I took from his example is that there is a small amount of hope shown in his version of king of the mountain. The people at the bottom have it worse off then the people at the top for sure. But everyone wants to be on the top, and that provides incentive to do well in life and try to become a man on the top of the hill. This drive can keep society running in a effective way. But we just need to learn from history. If you make it to the top, good for you. Just don't learn to smile as you kill.

Will race issues be around in the future? I can only see one possible way that race will stop being a big social problem. That is in the distant future when everyone becomes "brown" like Sam was discussing in class. It would surly be nice to live in a world where race is not an issue. But as long as we are completely different people with completely different cultures and backgrounds, we will never completely resolve these issues.
One of the things that came up in my discussion group this week was how humans have the need to categorize everything. Obviously this includes people as well. Now if we are putting things into categories, there have to be distinctions. Skin color for example can simplify things when lumping big categories. So by making these distinctions all the time, race issues will always hang around. I'm not even saying it is bad to categorize. I am fascinated by the fact that some people look nothing like me despite being almost identical genetically. I also know I'm not the only person that is fascinated by this, but at the same time, not everyone shares my ideas. There are a lot of people who for no real good reason don't like things that are very different. There are people, especially in some parts of Pennsylvania, that don't get much exposer to other races. Most importantly, there are a lot of stupid and ignorant people in the world who go through life very close minded and unwilling to learn about other cultures. These are all very basic reasons race will always be an issue.
Another reason race issues will always exist is because there are so many small barriers to break through in this issue before the big overall issues can be resolved. One is political correctness. We had good talks about that in our discussion group. Since not every group of people can decide what is politically correct, everyone has to be a little less sensitive about race. For example, some people get offended or upset when they are called by something other then what they prefer. These people need to hear what context it was said under. Many times it is not some act of hate, just a misunderstanding of preferences. If racial sensitivity came down a bit, it could help the political correction part of the issue.
A second smaller issue within the big issue is affirmative action. Don't get me wrong, there are people who take advantage of affirmative action and do well in life, and I applaud those people. I also think that if all race issues are to go away, these social advantages need to go away. There are going to be struggles with and without total equality. Life can be a struggle. You just have to pick your battles and hang in there.

I would like to start by saying that is a pretty stupid question. Nobody should be looking down on anybody. This idea that ever sub-culture in America should have a common sub-culture to look down upon is ridicules. I think it is human nature to look down on people that we think we are better than. I know I'm guilty of this and it is something about myself that I would like to change. But going off of that I would say you can't really lump all "rednecks" together into one category and ask "who do you look down on". It is defiantly an individual type of behavior.
I grew up in a small central Pennsylvania town where there were rednecks galore. I went to high school with many rednecks. I have to say that they do get a very bad reputation and are often paralleled to "white trash" . Sure some of them defiantly earned their stereotype but most of these people are not very different then those of us who don't consider ourselves rednecks. In fact there were some perks to being friends with some rednecks. These people are usually skilled in technical areas like car repairs and carpentry. Whenever I needed something small done to my car like new a new belt or oil change, I never bothered to take it to a garage. I didn't have to pay someone to do these things. I had redneck friends in high school. Rednecks always have the best venison jerky as well. When they go hunting, they use the meat from the animal and I think that Sam pointed out something interesting is class on that subject. He said if you eat meat, you should at least once in your life go hunting and feel what it is like to take the life of another creature for your nourishment. I totally agree with his statement. I have only been hunting once in my life, but it was a unique experience. It was not a happy-go-lucky slaughter like it is viewed as by many people. They get their kill, and bring it home to eat. Just like humans have been doing for hundreds of years.
The last thing I would like comment on is the way that we look down on redneck activities. Rednecks do usually enjoy driving around in pick-up trucks, drinking beer, and listening to Lynyrd Skynyrd, but what is wrong with that and why does anybody care? They do things that make them happy just like you and me. I don't see a reason to judge people just because they have different ideas of fun me. I mean to a certain degree. If you think it is fun to molest children then I will judge you and look down on you, but thats not really the point. I just don't think it is fair to attach a negative stigma on these people and their activities just because we don't partake in them ourselves.