en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/757099 Comments by joeblanton18 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/south-park-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment71516994 I have not seen this episode that the person in the video talks about, but I have seen a south park episode that portrayed the image of Muhammad, and he just looked like a person of Middle Eastern descent. I do not know why this caused such an uproar, there are depictions of Jesus all over. I think it’s funny that the terrorist group threatened the creators of South Park, because in reality nothing is going to happen to them, and I would encourage them to keep pissing off the terrorist groups because I think its funny to see them annoyed. Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:10:31 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/south-park-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment71516994 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-people-who-can-only-afford-hard-work__trashed/#IDComment71516450 I do not think that success in America is all about money. Being a hard worker goes a long way in this country, and even if you start at an entry level position you can rise through the ranks and be successful. Also, everyone has their own definition of success so one person may think it is to have a million dollars, others may think that it is just having a healthy family. If illegal immigrants can’t afford to get here legally, maybe they should work a little harder in their country, save, and then do it legally. We cannot just give handouts to these people. Fri, 30 Apr 2010 17:06:11 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-people-who-can-only-afford-hard-work__trashed/#IDComment71516450 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/stories-for-uplift__trashed/#IDComment71014082 I thought both of these videos were really awesome. In the first one where the social worker at the school gives the kidney to cashier, I thought it was really neat. We need more compassion like this in the word. We live too much of a sheltered life, especially since September 11th. We all seem to put up a defense system when we meet new people; we just need to trust people more. I think the world wouldn’t be as cruel of a place if we all just tried to be nicer to each other. I know its impossible to get along with every person in the world, but you have to start somewhere. So if you nice to your neighbors then you can meet other people who will know that you are nice and then you just build the amount of people you are friends with. It does not have to be a long-term commitment, maybe just help you neighbor out with some yard work, or even just say hello to them once and a while. It only takes one small thing to brighten up someone’s day. I thought it was really cool how the cashier called the social worker man an angel. I thought that the second video was really cute. I remember having a crush on a girl like that when I was really young. I wonder what both of the children’s parents thought about this video. Were they accepting, or did they tell their children to stay away from each other? I know that the video says that these children are colorblind, but I do not believe that it will last. As they get older they will start to get into the awakening stage and notice it more. Although I do not think that a Chinese person and Malaysian person are such a radical couple; maybe in their home country they are. I think it would be much more taboo if this video was shot in America with a white boy and black girl, or some other type of black and white combination. I think it would be really neat if they kept tabs on both of these children, and interview them again and see what their views are when they are maybe out of high school. I would hope that their views would not change; maybe they have parents that are more lenient about race. I guess as the years go by this is becoming more of the norm, and when I have children race will not be so much of an issue as it still is today. I think Barak Obama is helping our nation become less resilient to letting people of color in power, which is a good thing, because maybe we all can gradually stop hating each other. It is great to see that there is still some compassion left in the world, the news today is too much about murderers, thief’s, and other horrible crimes. Wed, 28 Apr 2010 02:14:40 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/stories-for-uplift__trashed/#IDComment71014082 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/were-being-educated-for-stupidity-and-conformity-really__trashed/#IDComment68947131 I have to agree that a lot of our education is to learn how to be obedient. I think more so in high school, but I do not agree with it in college. In high school you are mostly given busy work, and are taught never to ask WHY. You are largely taught to just memorize something or learn it how the teacher tells you. I think that as you move through college and into higher learning there may be a little less conformity, because in college you are not forced to do anything. I do not have to conform and do my homework, study or do anything I do not want to do. Tue, 20 Apr 2010 04:02:05 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/were-being-educated-for-stupidity-and-conformity-really__trashed/#IDComment68947131 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/creating-terrorists__trashed/#IDComment68945270 One thing that really struck me about the Christian invaders lecture was the fact that the United States army is allowed I think it was 29 civilian casualties for every soldier killed, or for every terrorist they kill. That is appalling, and I am not one of those anti-war people. I agree with Sam that war is pretty much necessary when there are limited resources for many people. I believe that we elected a democrat to get us out of the war, and so far Barak Obama has not done that. Why are we still fighting this war? One thing that struck me during this whole article was how did we start this? Weren’t we provoked to go over to Iraq or somewhere in the Middle East after 9/11? I thought that 9/11 was always the justification for the Iraq war, but apparently it was for oil. Now since I am only 19 years old, I forgot that there was a gulf war in the early 90’s. So I thought that could be the justification for the suicide bombers, and for the two WTC bombings. But what happened before the gulf war to provoke the bombings? It would be nice to see where this all started, maybe it has something to do with Israel? That is my hypothesis but I do not know for sure. In the blog post and in the lecture we were asked if we would take action and become a suicide bomber or terrorist if one of our family members were killed by a foreign military force. I would say absolutely that I would want to seek revenge if a member of my family was hurt by a foreign military force. I would find the weapon to do the most damage that I could afford, and attack. It is sad to think that way, because it is just what the suicide bombers are doing to our troops. I think almost everyone would fight back if their family was hurt. I think this kind of lecture needs to be spread across college campuses, then to our parents, then to government to let them see this. I think it would definitely help us get out of the war faster, and have people open up their eyes more. It has definitely impacted the way I am thinking. This kind of lecture kind of annoys me, just because how right Sam is. I would always support our troops, but we are doing the wrong thing in the Middle East. Although you have to remember that it is not our soldier’s fault that this war is happening, they just are following orders. So maybe the government should see this video, and start thinking from a more sociological perspective, rather than jumping to the first action that pops into their heads. Tue, 20 Apr 2010 03:44:09 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/creating-terrorists__trashed/#IDComment68945270 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/want-to-learn-chinese__trashed/#IDComment67593300 The main gripe that I have had with America’s policy of teaching foreign languages is when we actually start learning them. If we had started out learning them in elementary school, I feel like I would be able to speak it fluently by them time I was in college. America’s policy is to start in high school where children are growing up, and are a lot less motivated to learn another language. Also, in high school the class usually tried to teach way too fast, and a way to broad amount of material. I had more success in college with the foreign language programs, because they had a better curriculum, and gave more homework structured to help us, not just keep us busy. If you look at a child who grows up in America, but their parents grew up in a Spanish speaking country, they are very fluent in both because they are around both languages so much. That’s why I feel that no matter what language we are teaching, we must start teaching them early, and not at the time when children do not care. I feel like the only way we can effectively teach any language is if we start early as possible. I am not so sure we should be teaching Chinese more than any other language. I think we should continue to teach Spanish and French first and foremost, because we will be able to speak to more people than if we only knew how to speak Chinese. I am not bashing the language, but the amount of Spanish speaking immigrants is rising in the United States and maybe we should be focusing more on teaching Spanish. China could have an economic downturn, just like Japan in the 80’s, so I think if we try to stick to Spanish and French, we will have the best chance of not wasting a child’s education on knowledge they cannot apply. I think students should learn either Spanish or French if they are not majoring in something where they are not required to know the language. Now if you are going to major in a subject that is geared toward Asia or somewhere else that does not speak English, Spanish, or French, then focus on that language. Don’t teach children Chinese when they have a greater chance of using Spanish in their future. The world will always have translators, and also technology is becoming more advanced so will we even need to learn this language if I could pull up an application on my iphone or ipad that translates what the other person is saying? If we already have the speech to text application, how hard could it possibly be for the computer to translate if? Tue, 13 Apr 2010 03:19:11 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/want-to-learn-chinese__trashed/#IDComment67593300 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/this-is-totally-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment66142897 I was not very surprised that there is a game made about this. I do not think this is about the videogame industry, as much as it is about the porn industry. Obviously people are not buying this game because it’s a great videogame; they buy it because the “rape” fantasy is something they enjoy. That is not to say that these people want to go out and rape as many women as they can, it is just a fantasy that turns them on. The rape fantasy is just another porn genre and I guess there is a big enough market for it for someone to create a videogame depicting it. I think many people would be amazed at the amount of porn genres out there, some of them can get pretty grotesque, and in my opinion, the rape fantasy genre is one of those grotesque ones. I don’t think that the people that sell this should be reprimanded. They are just selling a product and trying to make a profit. Making a game like this could be considered free speech in America, I do not know about japans laws. As long as these games are not being sold to children or shoved in people’s faces to buy, I don’t have a problem with stores selling them. If you want to look up anything on Google, you can. So if you want to play a videogame that depicts rape or something grotesque, go ahead. I will not be playing it. Now for the topic of overly violent videogames. I do not mind them, I believe that violent videogames can actually help people take their anger or stress out of their day if they go shoot and kill a bunch of people in a videogame. Casual violent video gamers are normal people; it is people that become too infatuated with living the game, that give the violent genre a bad name. I think it is just a few bad apples that go off the deep end and happen to play violent videogames, who give a bad name to everyone who plays them. I guess I could see where this could help a rapist cope with their urge to committee a rape, but I’m pretty sure that it does more harm than good. If people get too used to raping women in this game, what’s to say that they won’t try to do it in public? I think a game like this is harmful because it sort of desensitizes people to the idea or crime of rape. I also do not think that this is just a Japanese problem; I would rather live in a country that sells these video games, rather than live in a country that has a rampant prostitution problem, such as Thailand. Tue, 6 Apr 2010 01:37:56 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/this-is-totally-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment66142897 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/is-quality-the-question__trashed/#IDComment66134658 I do not think that affirmative action necessarily hurts our work force, because affirmative action is not the only basis that employees are recruited on. The best person for the job still gets the job, I think affirmative action could be thought of as if someone is on the fence for a job or something, their difference could be positive, and maybe get them the job. A person isn’t going to be a CEO because they are ethnically different; they get the job because they are the most qualified. I hate the idea of nepotism. I do not believe it is just networking, and it sucks there’s not too much we can do to curb nepotism, at least at the lower levels. Tue, 6 Apr 2010 00:53:43 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/is-quality-the-question__trashed/#IDComment66134658 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/revisioning-the-revisioning-stage__trashed/#IDComment65237989 I grew up in a predominantly white suburb of Philadelphia. One town away is a town called Chester PA. Chester PA is probably 95 percent African American, and almost every resident is below the poverty line. Since I came from a predominantly white town, I started off in the pre-awakening stage. Right now after two sociology classes, I would say I am in the revisionist stage. If I had grown up in a predominantly African American town, or any other town where white people are the minority, I believe that I would have not started off in the pre awakening stage. I think I would have started off in the awakening stage as a child, but I think once I had reached high school I would be in the revision stage. I think its perfectly normal; growing up in the place that you did, to see and experience the white guilt. It is weird though, because when I was real young my best friend was from Guatemala. I never really noticed a difference between his race and my race until we were older. I guess that’s the point when I started in the awakening stage. When you’re a young kid you just do not realize the harsh reality of some things like you do when you are older. Now switching to your comment about Disney, I don’t feel upset that the first movie they made in Africa was about lions, they are a business. They want to make the highest profit they can, so they cater to the audience that is the majority. If black people or brown people were the majority, then the main characters in every Disney movie would most likely be the color of the majority race. Although, I do not know if anyone has heard of a Disney movie called Song of the South? It is a Disney movie that came out in 1946. This movie is where the ride splash mountain originated from, as wells as many of the characters such as briar fox and briar rabbit. It has never been released in the USA for home video because there are many racially insensitive scenes. I think everyone should watch it because it will show you how far we have come in the struggle for equality, and it will also show you a dark time in America’s history when African Americans were portrayed as slaves/ servants to wealthy white people. When the film debuted in theaters, the actor (James Baskett) who played Uncle Remus was not able to attend the premiere in Atlanta, Georgia because Atlanta was still a segregated city. Its pretty crazy to watch the film and see how black people were portrayed back in the day. They were portrayed as slaves to the white people. Thu, 1 Apr 2010 17:44:14 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/revisioning-the-revisioning-stage__trashed/#IDComment65237989 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65227274 I think you should be able to be who you want to be. Since you grew up mostly siding with your mother’s side of the family, then if I was you I would say that I am Hispanic. I guess the more proper term to describe you would be mixed race/ multiracial. I think the Hispanic side could be more fun because white people are pretty normal, in regards to customs and stuff like that. But Hispanic people probably have some pretty cool customs that you would be able to take part in by being ½ Hispanic. I would choose to be identified as Hispanic. Thu, 1 Apr 2010 17:08:49 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65227274 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-white-minorities__trashed/#IDComment64942067 This article was interesting and made me think of some things. What are children from America going to look like in a hundred years? At what point will race be the same for all of us in America. When the “melting pot” that America is finally melts fully, what race will we be called? This article kind of made me feel nervous. Like when the white people become the minority will life be the same, or will radical groups promote same race marriage? I do not think it’s too crazy to think that white people do not want to lose the majority; so that’s why I can picture radical groups trying to promote white only procreation. Although when white people become the minority, I do not things will really change too much. Wed, 31 Mar 2010 02:13:27 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-white-minorities__trashed/#IDComment64942067 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment64077976 I would like to hear what Asian and Asian Americans think about the internment camps IN AMERICA during World War II. Asian American families were targeted and a lot of them were rounded up and put into internment camps in AMERICA. I think I could distinguish from Asian immigrants and Asian Americans. Asian immigrants seem to keep to themselves a lot, and stay in clicks together. They seem very shy, while Asian Americans seem to blend in fine with regular Americans; the only difference is their appearance. I do not really see a difference between Asian Americans and just regular Americans. Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:52:49 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment64077976 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/is-this-just-a-few-bad-apples__trashed/#IDComment64077164 I did not vote for Obama, but so far the pros of the health care bill outweigh the cons. I do not understand why people would not want this health care plan. It benefits ALL Americans, and it is for the greater good of the country. I am a republican, but I will support a law or bill that is for the greater good of everyone. The only con of the bill is how much it is going to cost, which could lead to higher taxes. But it president Obama pulls all troops out of foreign countries LIKE HE PROMISED, we should be able to pay for the health care bill. I think it is just a few bad apples. It all goes back to Sam saying that we have to strive to be in the middle. I am a republican, but I am supporting democratic legislature. Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:45:50 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/is-this-just-a-few-bad-apples__trashed/#IDComment64077164 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/if-men-could-menstruate__trashed/#IDComment64076336 First off if men needed tampons too they would not be free. That’s kind of saying if women needed condoms would they be free? No they would not. Nothing in life is free, and even if something may be free for you, someone else down the road is paying for what you got for free. I think that a lot of men, being one myself do not want to learn about menstrual cycles. If you think about it, what would be the right time for a man to learn about them? In middle school during sex education? I don’t think that middle school children would benefit from learning about it at such a young age. Men mature much later then women, so would it be appropriate for a man to learn about menstrual cycles in college when they are more mature? I personally do not want to learn about it, or talk about it because it is not something I do, and it is a little gross to me. I feel like not talking about something gross that happens from our bodies happens more than just on the topic of menstruation. Like a bet a girl would not be happy to hear about how big of a shit a man took today or something like that. Would a woman want to hear about a man masturbating? That is a natural process for almost all men, which happens daily on average for most men. If women think that men need to be more open to learning about menstruation cycles, then our society in general must be more open to talk about ALL bodily functions and not be disgusted by them. I think this goes farther than gender; it is more of a part of the values you were raised on. Most of us have been raised to be polite, and talking about these bodily functions openly would not be polite in my family. Just because bleeding only occurs in women; it is not the reason why we do not talk about it openly. I do not see why a woman would want to talk about it openly. I would say that I am glad that I was born a man, because women have it a lot harder than men do. I am not sexist, I am just basically saying that it is a lot harder to be a woman day to day than to be a man every day. I mean I would not like to have a child if I was a woman. You gain a bunch of weight that you may never lose again since you usually have more than one child; also being in labor is a lot more painful than anything a man could go through. I would just like to say thank you to all of the women for doing what you do and sacrificing your body to have children. Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:39:20 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/if-men-could-menstruate__trashed/#IDComment64076336 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-world-is-full-of-surprises__trashed/#IDComment62301580 I think it is very interesting that the tribe can be Christian or Muslim, but act as Jewish people. I will admit that if I saw these people on the street I would not think that they are Jewish. I think that is because they stereotype of a Jewish person is a long beard, white, almost as if they were Amish. I don’t really understand why they would follow a religion but then embrace a culture that is opposite of their religion. I thought it was pretty interesting that these people had preserved their values and beliefs for such a long time. Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:25:48 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-world-is-full-of-surprises__trashed/#IDComment62301580 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/women-and-sports__trashed/#IDComment62298807 Let me start off by saying that I grew up playing football. I played from when I was six years old until I was eighteen years old. Football is a very complex sport and takes a lot of knowledge. I have had many coaches over the years, and none of them were female. I would most likely not want a female football coach. If I was a player at the high school that this woman is teaching at, I would feel offended. It is sad in the community that no one else would want to step up and coach this team. I hope that the woman wasn’t hired on the basis that she is a woman. She has only started playing football after college so she does not have a very extensive knowledge of football. I do not think that she should be coaching this team. She said that she ran track in college, and I feel that she would be a better running back coach or some kind of assistant coach, rather than starting her out at head coach. That’s like hiring a high school coach to coach an NFL team. Another thing that is going to affect her performance is the way she sees the game while she played it. The way women’s tackle football team’s play is much different from the way that male tackle football teams play. Women’s football is based on speed and not so much the weight or size of their players. Men’s football is played at a very different pace, which will challenge the coach because she has never experienced it firsthand. While she thinks many people were fine with her being coach, I guarantee many players will not play at that school next year. That is just the dichotomy of football. I have had friends who have transferred to other school districts just to play football for a better team. High school football involves a lot of politics. It is sad because the teams I played for when I was younger won championships, and that same team was present in high school when we met our new coaches. They were outside hires who thought they were big fish in a small pond. They ran the football program into the ground, cutting many players careers short because the kids did not want to play for them. It is really a shame, and I hope that this school districts decision to hire a female coach does not affect the player who have been playing since they were six years old and loves the game with every fiber of their being. But nevertheless I wish her the best, and hopefully the parents will be supportive of her. That is half the battle of being a coach, winning over the parents. She will definitely have a tough road ahead of her, because once the team starts to slump she will be the first one to blame. Mon, 15 Mar 2010 23:17:03 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/women-and-sports__trashed/#IDComment62298807 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/prom-or-no-prom-just-dont-let-the-queer-students-dance-together__trashed/#IDComment62293059 I think it is pretty ridiculous that the school canceled the event. Prom is supposed to be a great time and the last dance you have with your fellow classmates. I wonder if the students would be allowed to go if the two young ladies both wore dresses. At my senior prom two a female classmate brought a female date, but they both wore dresses. I also think that this school may be a little more intolerant because it is located in the southern United States. If the dance was held in Massachusetts or California, it would most likely not be a dilemma. Mon, 15 Mar 2010 22:57:07 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/prom-or-no-prom-just-dont-let-the-queer-students-dance-together__trashed/#IDComment62293059 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/a-long-long-way-indeed__trashed/#IDComment59648316 I agree that we have come a long way since then. I think if slave owners today turned on MTV they would be appalled at the rap videos that some black artists have out there. I am appalled at them sometimes, and they can be really vulgar, but I guess that’s just how our culture is today. If they turned on ESPN, I think that they would be amazed that the race that they called, “inferior” is actually superior to many white people in sports today. They would probably be ready to start another civil war if they were alive today. Wed, 3 Mar 2010 23:29:15 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/a-long-long-way-indeed__trashed/#IDComment59648316 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/whats-with-the-theme-parties__trashed/#IDComment59647886 First of all I am a white person, and from my perspective I have never been to a party or seen one that I considered racist. None of the theme parties that I have heard of have any reason to be racist, people just want to wind down, relax, and have a good time at a party. One time this year, we had a party at my apartment, and my one friend who is black, brought about twenty other black people with him. It was really awkward for a while, but then we all started talking and ended up having a good time. You really just have to talk to a person and get to know them, then the color barrier breaks down. Wed, 3 Mar 2010 23:24:43 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/whats-with-the-theme-parties__trashed/#IDComment59647886 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59647384 First of all I have never seen this show, but I have heard about it a lot. I don’t think that ABC is not choosing people of color because they are racist. I believe that in this case, the bachelor is asked a series of questions before he starts the shows, and one of those questions is most likely what do you look for in a woman. The bachelor most likely tells the interviewer what he looks for physically and mentally in a woman. Then the interviewers then hold casting calls for women that fit his particular parameters. I feel like if the bachelor or bachelorette was a person of color, then the cast vying for their love would be predominantly of color. It is just peoples personal preference. I have also heard that this show is rigged, and I believe it too. These people are not finding true love. Only one couple from this show is still together after the show has been on for more or less ten seasons. I believe that the demographic for this show is women 18-34, and women 35 and up. The cast that is portrayed in the casting call does not ideally represent what this demographic truly looks like. Most people watching this show are not particularly good looking, and I think it is kind of sad that the cast is always these perfect 10 models. It really can be damaging to a persons idea of life that most Americans look like the contestants on this show, when much of our population doesn’t look like this. In the words of Sam, “The most beautiful image you see is the one looking back at you in the mirror”. On the question of are white people the only ones who are willing to be humiliated, I do not think so. There are many viral videos on the internet where people humiliate themselves and their identity. Although when a person of color is the main character in one of these videos, it can turn racial. When a person asks their friend if they have seen a particular video on the web about anything, if the video is of a white person, nobody mentions that they are white. But if the video was of a black man for example, or any person of color, the conversation changes to a person asking a friend if they saw the video of the black guy doing something, or another person of color doing something. The conversation turns racial, and that is why many people of color may be reluctant to post videos that humiliate themselves. You can look at the comments on a you tube video that features a black person humiliating themselves and almost always see someone use the N word in their comment. Wed, 3 Mar 2010 23:19:27 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59647384