en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/767967 Comments by jjk5071 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/letter-from-an-inmate__trashed/#IDComment70006150 this is definitely something you would not expect to hear from a harden criminal who will spend the rest of his natural born life behind bars for murder, but I can see why this happens. Besides the fact he made a wrong choice years ago does not mean this man doesn’t have feelings of remorse when it comes to situations that call for it. People will still have feelings no matter how tough they say they are and to hear this from an inmate doing life in prison surprises me a little. I am glad though that he took the time to let everyone know that the most evil of people who most often have more enemies that friends, still feel compassion when it comes to something like this. I feel this is the case because he sees someone who just lost someone he had no control over losing, especially a son, and he just wanted this man to know that hey life isn’t fair but everything will be ok in time. It shows that even though, at one point, this man did something terrible, he still knows what emotions are and to me that’s special because a lot of people who lose the sense of emotion are not fully living life any more. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 21:50:12 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/letter-from-an-inmate__trashed/#IDComment70006150 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/300000-whats-it-mean-to-us__trashed/#IDComment70003317 This is a very sensitive topic to talk about because it was one of the greatest disasters in the modern world were over 300,000 people perished and it is sad that people did just move on. With that said I have done my fair share of helping without physically going down to Haiti and getting my hands dirty and I feel like some people still feel like I can do more. I honestly do not know what else to do besides give money or donate canned goods or old clothing to help them out. What ive done, in my eyes in plenty to help at least 5 people put some food in their stomach or have one kid able to walk on the ground without rocks getting stuck in his feet. The is a real big problem down there and its going to take years to recover, but people have to remember we have lives to live as well and if we stop living ours to help them then where does that leave us? It’s a terrible situation and you want to help as much as possible but some people don’t have the means to continuously help like other may. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 21:40:09 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/300000-whats-it-mean-to-us__trashed/#IDComment70003317 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/south-park-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment70001502 To start off we all know that south park and its creators push the envelope every episode when it comes to the material they use. They aren’t the only show to do this though and they are joined by the likes of the family guy, the Cleveland show, the Simpsons… and many others. The thing about south par though is that in every episode they are ALWAYS making fun of a certain individual and never let up. Now I’m not of Muslim decent or believe in their religion so I don’t know what their rules and values are, but if I had to guess they are the same as anyone else’s and they take their God and values very seriously. What they do on the show I do not always agree with but it is a very funny and long standing show so they obviously are not offending to many people otherwise it would be off the air. The episode in question however has the prophet Mohamed in a bear costume or something and is being disrespected in some fashion. Is this the right way to go about things considering how the Americans relationship right now with Islamic religion is, eh not really but at the same time Jesus is a main character on the show and they always poke fun at him. In my eyes, obviously, I see nothing wrong with this just a show doing what they always do, but I can see how some people would definitely take offense to these remarks. The thing here though is that this is not just a random group, it’s a group of radicals that have previsouly killed someone for the same action so this needs to be dealt with in a more serious manner. I believe they did the right thing by changing the ending of the show to prevent harm to them, whether the threat was real or not, and they should probably steer clear of offending these same people again. The big issue here though is the never ending issues that radicals have over all people not just the creators of South Park. It is definitely a shame that we have to censor what we want to say or do because we could be killed. I mean I certainly wont be making any remarks any time soon that will put my life in danger, at least I hope I don’t, but these creators were trying to give a lighter mood to a serious situation and it is a shame that they were out in a situation like this. They never meant to cause permanent damage to anyone’s ego or values but I guess in the end you have to take into consideration not everyone is going to find what you find funny, funny. In this case they pissed off a group of people who kill when this occurs that’s all. I definitely think it was the right move to edit the end of the episode and they should probably steer clear of this topic in the future. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 21:34:24 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/south-park-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment70001502 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/nothing-about-the-census-is-easy__trashed/#IDComment65677982 i read a blog from earlier and i found myself feeling the same way as they did. there are boxes that describe what you are they arent trying to offend you or make you angry they simply want to know who is filling out the form. check the damn box and move on, and if you have trouble checking the box dont take the damn survey and go cry. this is the governement we are talking about here not joe blow around the corner wanting to know who lives in his neighborhood. they put effort time money and research into this and do you actually think they would put something in there that would make people not to fill it out, come on. grow up check the box and move on. be pissed if you want thats fine with me but the government is not calling you the n word to be racist. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:28:21 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/nothing-about-the-census-is-easy__trashed/#IDComment65677982 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-white-minorities__trashed/#IDComment65677304 as a white person i am not really worried if we become the minority group of this country because we may not have the same numbers at that point as black or brown people, but in people's minds we will still be the ones who created this country and will always hold a position of power. is this right no but as a white person i do see the benefits of being white. i dont get questioned on as many things, i can say i possibly have more job oportunities, and so on. again this doesnt make it right but it is not going to change anytime soon and i dont ever think it will. there is something about being white that everyone feels we have some type of power and control, when in reality we go through a lot of the same things as everyone else, at least in my opinion, and if we dont im sorry but you are not going to hear me complain about it. i didnt choose to be white and i didnt choose what happened in the past so im going to be me and live my life as i should, whether my race has the most people in one country or not. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:23:10 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-white-minorities__trashed/#IDComment65677304 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676549 sorry i dont have firefox on my sisters laptop for the above entries to make them fit all in one blog Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:16:57 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676549 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676514 i think you should only be allowed to be on welfare for so long so you arent cheating the system. its not fair to the people who do struggle to get by but are putting in the effort to do so. like i said before the sysyem has its ups and downs and as someone who hasnt lived it its hard to say what it right and wrong but what i do know is that if your are on it you should be doing everything in your power to get off of it. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:16:29 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676514 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676495 if you so choose to do this though dont complain about not having anything to your name and not being able to live a normal life. welfare by the way doesnt give someone the means to live the life of luxery it simply allows them to get by in hopes of them moving on a gaining confidence to again go out and look for a job in the world. i know it is intimidating, as a senior here at penn state i am scared that i will not be able to find a job and be forced to live off of family members or governemt money. i never want to have to do that because it is up to me to at leaste make anough money to get by on my own, no matter what the case. the system of the whole thing has the right idea but it has flaws. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:16:17 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676495 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676341 ok so let me understand this, you want money, you dont want to live in poverty, but yet you wont go look for a job to get out of the state you are in. i understand people are plagued by certain issues and sometimes afforded the same opportunities as others but you can still atleast try. i have seen some people on welfare, black and white, who go around complaining about not having a job but they also dont go out and look for them. welfare is a system that does also work for those who just lost their jobs and are currently looking. for this i am ok with the situation, and dont mind some of my money being put twords the bettering of their lives and the lives of their children. for instance you have these rappers and multi millionaires that spend spend spend, like mc hammer and mike tyson, and end up bankrupt. these people are to headstrong to file for welfair and i definatly think thats fine. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:15:34 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676341 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676252 for someone who hasnt been in the welfare system i dont really understand how it exactly works but from what i can conjur up this is a system that allowed people who donbt make enough money to live their lives without having a job and the working classes tax dollars are going twords it. ok soo let me get this straight....i am going to work every morning, putting up with things i dont want to, probably making barely enough to get buy, and i am paying for your living also, im sorry thats not fair to me. in my opinion anyone can get a job at some walmart or mcdonalds and at least afford to make thier own living. what i hate is that people will live off of that and not care about getting a job. its these same people who bitch about everything though and say they dont have enough money. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:14:39 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65676252 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-to-do-about-white-guilt__trashed/#IDComment64256150 I honestly have very little white guilt as it is often referred to and its because I didn’t grow up in that era and I don’t feel like I owe you anything. If that pisses you off im sorry but I didn’t live back then so why should I be punished because the way of others, and what happened back then. Do you as African Americans feel as if I owe you something? I literally mean this generation because yea your ancestors defiantly disserve restitution for what they were put through. It wasn’t right and it shouldn’t have happened. Our generation on the other hand has evolved to the point where we now have a black president. We have opened up and are a completely different nation than we were hundreds of years ago. Now everyone walks the streets equal and yea there are still some people who will make comments that are unwarranted but that doesn’t mean every white person should feel guilty for the actions of others because honestly I don’t. Fri, 26 Mar 2010 21:56:20 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-to-do-about-white-guilt__trashed/#IDComment64256150 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment64254242 I think Asians are just people and I mean that in all honesty. Im not here to judge who you are and what your about. Honestly though I don’t know if I could tell who is Asian and who is Asian American. You have characteristics that make your race and ethnicity look similar. If I talk to you then I can easily tell who is Asian and who is Asian American. But back to the main point in what do we think about asian’s…I don’t see why anyone can really have a problem with them because unless your stuck in the WWII era then they are just another group that makes America what it is, and that is a diverse nation. I understand some people stereotype them to be smart and what not but your going to have that in every race no matter what the case. I do feel sometimes they get forgotten though because we do focus so much on black and white that we forget there are so many other “colors” out there to discuss and learn from. Fri, 26 Mar 2010 21:48:35 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment64254242 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/if-men-could-menstruate__trashed/#IDComment64253733 First off if men could have periods, tampons would still cost money. That’s like saying well since women can have sex condoms should be free…just not going to happen. Condoms are expensive and people still both sexes buy them so if men could have periods, tampons would be in double demand which would cause the price to rise because both male and females would need them. Secondly, and I am not trying to be cocky, but after growing up with a mother, a sister, and basically always having a girlfriend, I don’t feel awkward about talking about women’s periods and I feel I have a pretty good understanding as to what happens. It doesn’t freak me out in the least bit while talking about it, and why should it, its like a guy saying to his girlfriend, “well I have to go poop.” Literally shit happens and so does a women’s period so what the hell is the big deal. Men, if your girlfriend is not having her period and you do not want a kid, you are in some trouble, so you want her saying hey lay off for a few days im gonna be in a bad mood. This means a) they are not pregnant and b) they are functioning healthily. I don’t find this topic being awkward unless you have no idea who is talking about it and they are going into full detail. If I know you or am dating you talk away its not that big of a deal. Sometimes you guys go a little overboard on your explanation, like flow and such, but other than that its all good. You hear us talk about gross stuff all the time, and I feel like this is your equalizer. If you want the average male to leave you alone just start talking about your period and they will leave you be. Also be careful about the guy who is really interested in you talking about your period because that is weird. If you have a guy who is in the middle your good so bring it up if you want to but its not going to cause him to leave the room. All in all, the whole period thing should not bother people because it is the natural life cycle that happens when a woman is not giving birth and has to release the egg that was supposed to support a child. If they aren’t having their period they are either pregnant or something is wrong and you should get medical attention. Like I said before I think girls sometimes try to gross us out by talking about this but at this point im pretty used to the conversation because of my sister and girlfriends and also my education in health class. If you still get grossed out by the idea of it grow up and don’t make your stupid comment like “ewwwwwwww Im a 3 year old” your probably the same kid who writes stupid shit on the text thing we use in class. Fri, 26 Mar 2010 21:43:23 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/if-men-could-menstruate__trashed/#IDComment64253733 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59967324 i definatly agree with what you are saying and here is my view. when we look at these shows we usually only see white people and i think it because we are the only ones dumb enough to actually think this shit works. your on tv to find love, really?!! you actually think this is going to work? there have only been like three or four season where the people get married so the success rate sucks. i think its embarrasing to people who go on the show and cry and get upset over someone they barely know. i think people of color avoid this because they dont want to hear, "oh my gosh did you see that black lady cry last night!" the issue of race will be brought into it instead of her name and thats wrong. maybe im just going out on a limb but i feel like the black and brown people who arent on this show, arent there for their own personal reason and its because of the negative reactions they may get if they do something wrong, get kicked off, or even chosen for that matter, that it will all come down to race not who they actually are. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 01:17:41 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59967324 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/fired-for-a-scarf__trashed/#IDComment59966714 ok first off i worked for american eagle during my high school and some colligate years and there is a look policy which is sad. i didnt show up in american eagle clothes or atleaste cover up the other corporations close i was sent home. i understand why they do this but to fire someone because of a religious article of clothing is rediculous. they really need to look at their policy and decide are we doing the right thing here. she has every reason to be upset and pissed off because what they are doing is flat out wrong, no doubt about it. she deserves some type of apology and the death threats need to stop. if you are threatening a teenage girl over this your an ass and someone should punch you. this is a big issue and people dont want to talk about it and thats why it is in such uproar. if we did something about this earlier we wouldnt have these issues but we dont talk about it so here we are. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 01:11:12 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/fired-for-a-scarf__trashed/#IDComment59966714 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment59965809 Ok so first things first and I could not agree more with Sam, when your conducting an interview like this, one that is so heated with race, why are there only two black people being interviewed? Why isn’t there a white representative, a brown one, why is it only the black race that has a say in this? We wonder why our views are the way they are we hear one side of a story and a reason and have to base our opinions off of that. If you want to change something that surely isn’t going to do the trick you need more views on a topic to really have an understanding as to why something takes place. This goes back to a post a couple of weeks ago as to why no one says anything, well here we are not given that right to say something. When they first started talking they only brought up black issues, and what they mean, especially with the noose hanging in the library. When they first started talking you didn’t hear a black person did it until they were ready to answer then the anchor made sure she said “this was done by a black person” and I thought that was important to state because then race is taken out of the incident as long as color boundaries go. It still deals with racism and stereotypes but at least it wasn’t a white student did this look at how racist they are. It was completely wrong no doubt about that and this is why we cant move forward because we still are focusing on what happened in the past. I understand it is hard to forget but if you want it to stop look at the future and not the past. Second when they asked the professor about the situation she seemed to give a very conservative response about race in general which I liked. She focused not on color but the incident that was disrespectful. She said it didn’t matter who placed it there it was still there and that is the point that is wrong. Then it went on to talk about the party, and how she didn’t really want to comment. It’s a party with a theme it was meant in fun and that’s it. There was no underlining message there besides lets drink eat and be marry. Finally with the chancellor speaking on the website, I thought it was funny that a black chancellor only mentioned the black student union. What about the white one that doesn’t really exists or the brown one or the yellow one, if this was a campus wide complaint on racism shouldn’t they be talked about also? The answer is yes, and this is what makes m so angry, we are getting screwed views on a topic involving a certain race and that’s never going to help fix an issue. You need to ask everyone and talk to everyone before we can assume things and change for the better. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 01:02:11 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment59965809 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-four__trashed/#IDComment59964008 honestly, and it hurts me to say this, but i do not think the average person could do anything about this topic. we do not know enough as a culture in this day and age to really grasp what went on hundreds of years ago. sure we read about it in books but thats all heresay when it comes down to it. i do think though is someone wanted to do something they would have to physically go to these people and ask them what it would take to fix this, how did this happen to them specifically, why do you think it happened, and finally if we did try to help would you even take an apology. if they wouldnt accept our try to help whats the use? i know if i try to help someone and they dont want it, ok see ya later, because why try and try and try when your not going to accomplish anything. they have to want our help for our help to work. most of them probably do but im just throwing it out there that sometimes when a cut gets deep enough it never properly heals. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 00:43:43 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-four__trashed/#IDComment59964008 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three__trashed/#IDComment59963578 i think first and foremost people are not talking about it because it does not happen to them or they do not live in that area. we tend to stay out of problems that do not involve us, which obviously we need to change. this is a big issue but no one will step up because we did steal from them, reffering to white men. its almost like a guilt so deep we feel as if we avoid it long enough it will go away, kind of like a pesty ex girlfriend. but an entire culture is not your ex girlfriend it does not go away. we have to deal with this issue head on if we want it to change and sadly i do not see that happening here. we avoid it because we dont like change in our lives and we figure why change something that seems to be a norm. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 00:39:26 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-three__trashed/#IDComment59963578 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/when-do-we-do-or-say-something__trashed/#IDComment59963099 When I listened to both videos it appears that they are saying they don’t understand when people say it is not your place why don’t you step up and say something anyways. I agree and disagree with these statements and I know I am on the fence about this but I believe there is a time and a place for everything. First off as to why I agree, we need to make our voices heard more often, that is a given. I believe we are scared to say something and someone else take offense to it and then it lead to and argument. You cant be afraid of what others will say to you, you just have to go out there and make your voice heard. If we all stay silent nothing changes and were at square one with the topic of conversation. We always talk about change in our country but without saying anything people will assume that everything is all good. When you assume you make an ass out of you and me so don’t assume anything be proactive about the topic not reactive. I can also see why others do not say anything and I think there are two main reasons for this. 1 people are scarred to stand up sometimes in a crowd or a situation that doesn’t involve them and stir up controversy. A lot of people tend to stay in the dark because they feel safe there, I do it sometimes I am not afraid to admit that. We feel as if we step into something that is heated we may add to tension in the topic and cause it to get more heated and lead to something greater than words. Pretend you see two people about to get into a bar fight, you want to say something so it doesn’t happen, but then you think well if I say something what if someone will take a punch at me because they thought I was interfering. We are all afraid to step up because sometimes that leads to consequences we do not want to deal with. The other reason besides people being scared is that a lot of people are not educated enough on the topics at hand to say something. I know if I do not know what is going on, I stay out of it because I do not want to sound like an idiot or corrupt someone’s view who is probably right. There are so many issues in the world it is hard to get educated on all of them and if someone feels like jumping in that’s fine, but you better know what you are talking about otherwise you are going to look like an ass. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 00:34:34 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/when-do-we-do-or-say-something__trashed/#IDComment59963099 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/lgbt-class-question-one__trashed/#IDComment57649106 I have no problem with gay or lesbian couples having kids. If you know how to raise a child and know how to, you have every right to do so. It shouldn’t matter if you have two dads or two moms, what matters is you have two elders, who love each other and are together, taking care of a child, which we don’t have as much of anymore as we used to. The divorce rate with heterosexual couples is way to high, so why don’t we care when they adopt someone. If you can raise them the right way and guide them in a direction of right and wrong you are doing the right thing. The only issue I could see is that the parents push their sexual tendencies on their children, and if this is avoided then who cares. They can educate their kids on it but allow them to make their own choice. Other than that issue, hell I could care less if you are same sex trying to adopt a child, as long as you love them and take care of them it’s a ok with me. Fri, 19 Feb 2010 17:18:48 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/lgbt-class-question-one__trashed/#IDComment57649106