en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2416741 Comments by falcobader http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/why-does-society-dislike-immigrants-and-why-are-they-portrayed-badly-119-blog/#IDComment145256211 Society dislikes immigrants for many reasons. The possible reason is that our society thinks that immigrants are talking our jobs. They think this especially of illegal immigrants. They think that the illegal immigrants come to America and work for cheap labor. The cheap labor is in turn then taking a citizens job because most bossiness’ are more likely to hire an immigrant who will work for cheap than a normal person who demands better pay. So this angers society because they think they went to college and are citizens of the country for longer and therefore deserve the job more. They do not like how immigrants are so desperate for jobs that they are willing to work for such cheap labor because they lose their chances of getting hired then. Another reason why society portrays immigrants badly is because they are different. They are not like us. They don’t speak our language. They don’t wear the same clothes as us. They eat “weird” foods. They have a different culture. All of these things may be frightening or make society uncomfortable. Our society is so used to the same routine and people that when something foreign comes in they do not know how to react. I think Americans are really sheltered and that this is terrible reason not to like someone or portray them badly. It makes America look like a bad country. The part that annoys me the most is that we all once immigrants. We all went through the same hard, difficult, long trip to come to a land of freedom. We are all seeking a better life and success. And we got that better life and success and now it is time to let somebody else get that success and happiness. It is not fair that we treat immigrants’ poorly because we were in the same boat that they were. WE should put our selves in their shoes and think about how they are feeling. They are here because they are hard workers who are willing to do anything to get here. They come on small ships packed tightly so that they can barely breathe. WE need to give them the chance that they deserve. We need to look past the differences and see that they are just people. People like you and me who are seeking the same goals that our ancestors had. So in conclusion immigrants do not deserve to be portrayed as bad people because they are simply not. They are humans just like you and me. They are just seeking the a better life. They are not trying to take our jobs it is just that they will work for cheap labor. Immigrants should not be portrayed in a bad light. Sat, 23 Apr 2011 00:47:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/why-does-society-dislike-immigrants-and-why-are-they-portrayed-badly-119-blog/#IDComment145256211 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/is-nepotism-a-good-or-bad-thing-in-the-long-run-119-blog/#IDComment143136448 While nepotism seems like a great thing in the short run, in the long run it will most likely bite you in the back. So you need a quick job so you hit up your connections and all of the sudden you have a job sitting right in front of you. Were you qualified? Maybe. Did you deserve it? Maybe. Did someone else deserve it more? Most likely! Ok so you have a job, which seems nice at the moment but maybe in a few months, or a few years you will probably realize that this job is not for you and only got it because of networking. You will probably realize that you are not prepared for the job and this can lead to many things. Of course your job performance is going to be less than it should be. This could lead to you getting fired, even by the person who hired you! How embarrassing is that? They might have thought you were equipped for the job or felt bad so they gave you a job, but now they are reconsidering their decision. Less job performance means less money in the long run. If your job has commission, you probably are not selling a lot because you are not prepared for this job, and therefore you are probably not going to make as much commission. If you were actually prepared for the job and deserved it you could probably make a lot of money off commission. Another reason you will be worse off in the long run is because it is unfair; you took someone’s job! That someone probably worked a lot harder than you did to get that job but you only got it because of connections. You may have to live with the guilt of this if you realize what you did. But, if you do not realize what you did than you will have to live with that fact that you took a hard working persons job and you will never even know that! That possibilities of that happen to that someone are endless. They could have had to take a lesser job and are unhappy and are not making the money they should be. Maybe they had a family and need to support them but because they couldn’t get the job they had to go on welfare or something else terrible. This is a moral issue. It is not fair that people who deserve jobs are not getting the jobs they deserve. Although this is a popular issue, I do not see any change coming in the future. There really is no way to stop this problem. People will always favor family and friends and there is really nothing we can do about it. Fri, 15 Apr 2011 15:07:03 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/is-nepotism-a-good-or-bad-thing-in-the-long-run-119-blog/#IDComment143136448 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/which-video-in-class-today-had-the-biggest-impact-on-you-and-why-119-blog/#IDComment141128525 All the videos shown in class were very impacting and made me think very deeply. The video that impacted me the most was the video where the American soldiers were running the tractor truck over the Iraqi’s car. The Iraqi did not deserve that whatsoever. I believe he did do something to provoke the American soldier to do it but it was nothing that deserved such a severe punishment. It really makes me upset to think that our homeland’s soldiers are treating other human beings for such terrible reasons. This really amounts to the big picture of how war is evil, cruel, and terrible. People can be so disgusted with another human and treat them so poorly merely because the country they are from. They do not anything about their personality, their life, and their families but just because of the country they are from they treat them like animals. I also felt terrible because the Iraqi was a cab driver so the car was how he made a living. Yes, anybody would be very upset if they got their car crushed, but it was his only way of making money. That man probably became poor and had a terrible life after the incident. When you do something like that you have to look at the consequence it is going to cost someone for the rest of his or her life. So, maybe the American soldier was on a power trip and wanted to make a statement, but he should have thought more before he acted. He should have thought about how his actions were going to ruin a basically innocent man’s life. This video also upset because this how Iraqi’s will view America and our soldiers. The media shows negative footage and that negative footage gets brainwashed into our heads and forms views about people that are way exaggerated. Iraqi’s probably think that all American soldiers torture Iraqis and are bad people. Which of course is not true at all. This is also vice versa. We are only shown negative footage of Iraqis so our view of them is completely skewed. Like Sam said in class, on the news we always see Iraqis in poverty, crime, and despair. They never show how Iraqi’s are just like normal Americans, normal humans. Sam showed us slides that showed Iraqis in every day, normal context. They were taking family pictures, going shopping, and eating together. Which are all things that you would associate with a typical American. WE need to realize that Iraqis are not aliens and they are not all terrorists. Every country has terrorists. We most certainly have them here. But, terrorists make up about one percent of any population, so we need to see past that. Sat, 9 Apr 2011 00:51:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/which-video-in-class-today-had-the-biggest-impact-on-you-and-why-119-blog/#IDComment141128525 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/31/women-what-are-your-thoughts-on-dressing-up-while-men-dress-down-and-did-they-change-after-this-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment139245387 When Sam and Laurie brought up this point in class it really made me think. Because I am in a sorority and tend to go out a few times a week I can say that I have experienced this firsthand. It is kind of amazing how I never really think about how much time and effort women put into getting ready to go out and men take about 10 minutes. It is almost kind of sad how this is so the norm, that it does not even phase us. Not only is it kind of sad, but it slightly angers me. As women we must ask our selves, why do we do this to our selves and let boys get away with it. It is not fair. We should stick up for ourselves and realize how unfair this is. Could you imagine going out in jeans, sneakers, and a t-shirt (which is a typical outfit a boy will wear)? No you cannot and it because it is just so out of the ordinary we cant even fathom it. But think about the stress that would be taken off of us if we didn’t have worry about what we looked like and spend so much money on clothes. I know I can speak for myself and say there are many things I would rather spend money on clothes (or save money for the future) but I spend the money because I am basically brainwashed. Women have been brainwashed into thinking the higher the heels, the tighter the skirt, the better they look, and therefore the more attention they will get. This should not be like this! Yes, personality does play a role in how people judge each other but I think in especially Greek life, looks play a large role. Way too large of a role. So what can we do to change this? I am not trying to be a pessimist but honestly there is nothing we can do. I do not see this changing any time in the near future. People are just so sucked into this way of being that it almost a blindfold. We are so brainwashed that we do not even realize what is happening. This issue goes a lot further than Penn State Greek life or other students who go out on the weekends. This issue stems from the media. The media shows us celebrities who look ‘perfect’. They wear tight, short outfits and look very appealing and suddenly that is the image that becomes engraves in our heads. That is how we should look and dress. The media has influence on our generation that is impossible to even come close to understanding. It has been like this for ages now. What the celebrities wear is what we try to wear. I find it crazy that celebrities who are such a small percent of our population can influence the way we think we should look so vastly. In conclusion, this issue is definitely wrong but unfortunately I don’t see much change in our future so we might as well just accept it. Sat, 2 Apr 2011 01:00:56 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/31/women-what-are-your-thoughts-on-dressing-up-while-men-dress-down-and-did-they-change-after-this-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment139245387 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/for-the-white-females-would-you-ever-date-a-black-guy-119-blog/#IDComment137622367 . Although my mother is definitely more accepting I think she would still be wary to the idea of me dating a black man. This is because she has grown up with her mother who put such racist thoughts in her mind. Also, my mom has always been surrounded my predominately white surroundings. I think should would let me date him but deep down she would wish it was not happening. Another reason why I would date a black guy is because it would make me a better person. Would you do things that are out of your normal comfort zone then you learn and grow from it. I would learn how to accept people more and how race is just a color, and nothing more. I would learn about his culture and past and how it is different from mine. I love to learn about how people are unique and different from me. Although I never have actually dated a black man I am sure that I will sometime in my life. I think that being white and Jewish can be rather boring and like everyone else sometimes. I like to be different from other people, so this could show others and myself that I am open to different people and new experiences. SORRY MY POST IS IN THREE POSTS (IT MADE ME SEPERATE IT) Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:57:47 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/for-the-white-females-would-you-ever-date-a-black-guy-119-blog/#IDComment137622367 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/for-the-white-females-would-you-ever-date-a-black-guy-119-blog/#IDComment137622279 The only reason dating a black person would be hard my family. I am a white, Jewish girl. When my family thinks of the person that they would want me to date it would be a “nice Jewish boy” certainly not a black guy. My mother’s mother is extremely strict with this thought. My sister Jessica has been dating a white Catholic man for just over a year. My Grandma told my mom that she will take Jessica out of her will if she marries Matthew. That is pretty serious. Whenever we have family occasions my Grandma barely talks to my sister and if she does it is very awkward. I find it disgusting. How could my Grandmother betray her own granddaughter because she is dating someone out of our religion. Me and my immediate family members always joke and say how if we dated a white man who abused us my grandfather would be happier then if we dated a black man Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:57:02 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/for-the-white-females-would-you-ever-date-a-black-guy-119-blog/#IDComment137622279 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/for-the-white-females-would-you-ever-date-a-black-guy-119-blog/#IDComment137622157 I would most definitely date a black boy. It is not even a question. I do not believe that race matters when choosing someone to be my significant other. The only things that matter when I choose my significant other is if we get along, have common interests, he treats me properly, and I enjoy my time together with him. Race is just a color, the shade of your skin. Race says absolutely nothing about your personality. Your personality is something that you can choose and society helps form for you. Personality and race are completely unrelated. There should be no correlation between the two. I believe that when you are looking for a significant other that you should only base it on personality. if you base it on race then you are racist. There is nothing around that and that is a fact. Sat, 26 Mar 2011 02:56:09 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/for-the-white-females-would-you-ever-date-a-black-guy-119-blog/#IDComment137622157 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128895612 I believe that the reason for the high amounts of black arrests is not merely for one reason. You cannot simple blame it on the racism or because there is such high black populations in urban areas. As Sam likes to enforce in class, stay in the middle! I believe this is the case for most situations. It would be easy to point your finger in one direction but unfortunately there are many, many factors that contribute to issues like these. First I would like to comment on the higher police argument. This issue also goes hand in hand with higher crime rates is urban areas. Why are there such high crime rates? I believe it is due to the fact that people are squeezed into small areas and this creates tension. Think about it this way, do you think 5 people are going to get along better if they are forced to live in one room together or they can spread out across entire house together? People are biologically prone to want privacy and space. When this privacy and space is taken away from them then trouble can easily arise. In urban areas houses and apartments are very close to each other, leaving minimal space for people to live in. Also, people are raised under the influence of violence. Violence is all around them, so they become used to it and it is not such problem to them. I live in a typical suburban town where violence is tabooed so people are taught that it is not ok, and therefore it happens a lot less then it would in an urban town. On the other hand, the topic of racism is a lot more difficult to explain. It is hard for me to say as a white girl who has never experienced the racism that goes on dealing with crimes, but it definitely happens, and daily. Sam showed stats in class that justified this theory. The stats said that whites use about 2/3 of the drugs but are only arrested for about 1/3 of the drugs used. While blacks use about 1/3 of the drugs used but are arrested for about 2/3 of the drugs used. There is something wrong with that statement. Although it is illegal to use racism when proving someone innocent or guilty, it does not stop people. Racism has come a far way, but it is still heavily present. I think that people use racism when involved with crimes unconsciously. They don’t mean to, but it just happens. An example of this would be a police officer assuming that a black man committed a crime, rather than a white man. It is his racist thought and past experiences that lead him to blame the black man over the white man. Fri, 18 Feb 2011 20:02:09 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128895612 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/08/how-have-the-choices-youve-made-and-determinism-affected-your-life-119-blog/#IDComment127406566 Determinism and free will have both had a major effect on my life and where I am today. I certainly cannot say it was only one, and not the other, rather it was a combination of the two. I will start off with free will first. I am at Penn State because I choose to be here. I could have applied and possibly went to many other schools but I choose Penn State. How did I get here? I worked hard. It began in middle school when I realized that how I preformed in school would basically guide my career and the rest of my life. I have always been a very ambitious person, so I took this to heart. I tried hard in school because I knew I wanted to go to a good college and eventually be successful with a career that I enjoyed and loved. But high school is where I really buckled down. I took rigorous high-level courses and AP courses. I strived to get good grades in these classes again, because I wanted to go to a good college. But truthfully there was another reason why I strived to do well in school: To please my parents. I knew my parents expected me to get good grades and I loved the gratitude I received when they saw my grades. Both of my parents went to college and have b.a. degrees. Since my parents worked hard in college and throughout their career they passed on those ideals and values to me. My parents have also raised me in a fairly wealthy area where the same ideals are practiced. My teachers in school reinforced the greatness of college and why we should try hard in high school. All of these factors had a huge influence on why I tried so hard in high school. I never wanted to let my parents down. If I did let them down then I would feel stupid and embarrassed. I’m sure that my parents still would have accepted me for who I was, but I would not have been able to accept myself. I believe this is mainly because my society put such a strong importance on education. For example, one of my good friends parent’s were always fighting and got a divorce when he was a senior in high school. My friend was very smart, he actually scored pretty high on his SAT’s, but his grades did not show that. This is because he did not care. His parents were too busy fighting to ever teach him the importance of getting good grades and going on to a good college. My parents on the other hand are for the most part happily married and “pretty normal”. They had the time and want to teach me the value of a good education, which led to where I am now. Fri, 11 Feb 2011 21:03:22 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/08/how-have-the-choices-youve-made-and-determinism-affected-your-life-119-blog/#IDComment127406566 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/03/why-dont-we-like-positive-news-119-blog/#IDComment126045539 The reason why we attracted to negative news is very complex and deep. There are many possible reasons as to why this could be, but I will touch on a few. First of all, I believe the strongest attributing factor must be the media. The news loves to broadcast the recent corruption and violence that is happening world-wide. They trap viewers by leaving commercials breaks saying, “stay tuned to see the horrid pictures of the hurricane” or “stay tuned to hear why bananas could be posing a deadly threat on your health!!” The viewer is then wondering what the newscast is going to say so they stay tuned! The media is well aware of the popularity that negative news brings so they use it to their potential for their own popularity. Sam gave a very good example of this in class on Thursday. He said that Haiti had just sent a good person into political power instead of a corrupt person. This would usually be major news, but it was positive! People don’t want to hear that what morally should have happen happened. If the corrupt person was put into political power than the news probably would have aired a story about it. This was huge major news and Sam could not even find it anywhere in the news! This says something about our media. We also must consider the effect on negative news on our individual self. Whether we do this subconsciously or not, we are drawn to negative news because it makes us feel better about our own lives and ourselves. Negative news usually focuses on the hardships of other peoples lives that in turn makes us feel better about the lives we live. When you see a story about a house that was robbed or burnt down you feel comfort in the fact that you still live in a safe and functioning house. We are also attracted to negative news because it is something that will stay in our memories longer. If something tragic happens you are more likely to remember it then something happy and normal. The last point I would like to touch on is the point that Lori made in her flip video. We watch negative news because of our biological instinct. We as humans have a fear of the outside and unknown world. When we watch news, especially news that tells or warn of danger, we can act upon it and feel safer. We want to watch news about food products or environmental hazards that could affect our families and ourselves. We also want to hear about the threats and dangers nationally and internationally so we are aware of the safety in our country. We as humans are instinctively always looking out for our safety- whether we do it purpose or not. Sat, 5 Feb 2011 01:23:23 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/03/why-dont-we-like-positive-news-119-blog/#IDComment126045539 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/how-do-you-classify-yourself-119-blog/#IDComment124454243 People can be classified as many different labels in regards to culture, race, biological makeup, and interest. I could go on forever about classifications I consider my self to be part of but I will just name the ones that are most important to me and who I am. I am Jewish. I think that Judaism is more than a religion, because it is also a culture. Both of my parent are Jewish and I was brought up 100 percent Jewish. I went to Hebrew school and eventually had a Bat Mitzvah. I was taught the ideals and values of Judaism. But I think Judaism was more of a culture for me. I spent eight summers at a Jewish sleep away camp. Although it was a Jewish camp, religion was not strongly enforced. Me and my friends had a such strong bond because we got along, but mostly because we were all Jewish. It is hard to explain, but being in an environment I was in I felt like I belonged. Judaism is also a culture because the type of Jewish people I hung out with and went to camp with tend to dress, talk, and think alike. My parents have many Jewish friends and I see the same in their relationships. I also classify myself as white. My ancestry is Russian and Hungarian. This is pretty much beyond my control because it is something that from my great grandparents so there is not much else to say about that. I am a female, which is a simple classification but does say a lot about me. My religion, race, and sex are all predetermined, so that is out of my control. Classifications that I can control are my political beliefs. I would consider myself to be towards liberal but I would not consider myself a complete liberal. As far as my personality I am outgoing. I love to meet new people and here about their past and their stories. I am very sociable and enjoy interacting and being around people. I am very adventurous. I love to be outside and be active. I get bored really easily when I am inside and sitting on the couch. I like to go on adventures because I like to discover new experiences. Unfortunately, my downfall is that I am huge procrastinator. I tend to leave everything to the last minute. This leads to me being stressed out a lot and not getting a lot of sleep. I would consider my self a right-brain person, as in I like math and science. My major is nutrition. Science fascinates me in every way. All of the classifications in this paragraph are things that I can decide and control. They are influenced by society, my peers, family, and of course, my self. Sat, 29 Jan 2011 02:06:23 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/how-do-you-classify-yourself-119-blog/#IDComment124454243 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/14/why-do-we-still-have-stereotypes-blog-1/#IDComment122630298 The question of why we still have stereotypes is something that a lot of us wonder everyday. At least I know I do. If these stereotypes have been proven wrong, right in front of our eyes then why do we still believe them or make jokes with our friends about them? The answer is not simple and involves many factors and influences. First off, we must consider the way we were brought up. When a child grows up in a typical, two-parent house their parents are going to be the main influence on the way the child thinks, acts, and carries out their daily actions. I know for myself, many of the traits I possess can be found in my parents. My view on politics and everyday issues also reflect my parent’s views. It is hard to not reflect your parents, especially when you have a decent relationship with them. So how do parents relate to stereotypes? This is because our parents grew up in totally different generation than us. Stereotypes were way more acceptable and people believed them a lot more. We will live our lives mostly in the 21st century; a century where America as a whole is trying to avoid stereotypes and bias toward people- but our parents did not grow up in this century. Another reason for perpetual stereotyping is the media. Yes the 21st century has grown away from racism, but it has also grown attached to the media, and stereotypes are portrayed in the media daily. Take the rap industry as an example. African-American artist have only made their image worse. Their rap songs seem to always be about sex, drugs, and money. This only puts a dark shadow on the entire industry and African-American race. It also does not help how Black artist refer to their race as “niggers” constantly in music. This only seems to make it ok for other people to call them by such a derogatory name. The television and movie industry also has contributed to people still following stereotypes. In countless movies and shows the gangster “thug” is played by an African-American or the smart, nerdy student is played by the Asian. Although this is usually for comedic entertainment it just not make stereotyping justifiable. It only engraves it into people’s minds that it is ok to use these stereotypes if it is for a joke. Which leads me to my last point. Ignorant people think that using stereotypes is just a joke. They get pleasure when they make a racist joke and people laugh at them. We will never get over this problem if people do not take it seriously. We must put some blame on ourselves and realize we are the ones making these stereotypes worse. This problem can only be stopped if we take it upon ourselves to make the difference. Fri, 21 Jan 2011 01:27:47 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/14/why-do-we-still-have-stereotypes-blog-1/#IDComment122630298 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cb%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment121930264 soc119 Mon, 17 Jan 2011 20:13:54 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cb%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment121930264