en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2455502 Comments by jshoe1819 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment144970581 This article is very disturbing and so are the images that it has associated with it. It is hard to believe that some platoons are really overseas committing such hateful, careless war crimes. And it is some big mystery as to why the United States has such a poor image in the eyes of the Muslim people? The fact that information such as this has been reported in the media is bound to cause some problems. Here in the United States, we like to believe that our military overseas is fighting only the enemies and not random civilians that they view as "savages." It is quite amusing that this news is not gaining attention or being reported across all media broadcast stations. All we like to report when it comes to morale based stories that have to deal with the war; we only hear the good things that are being done by our soldiers, while the barbaric, hateful acts are overlooked while our news reports of reality TV shows and meaningless conflicts with celebrities. Although, perhaps it is because the majority of us like it that way? We like thinking that everything is under control and things are great in the world. I know that not all military forces overseas are like this, but this gives the terrorists all it needs for propaganda in order to gain the support of the locals into helping drive us out. This whole story is fucked up. Everything from fantasizing around campfires with other team members to kill the civilians, to cutting off the pinky of a victim to keep as a trophy of killing an unarmed, 15 year old boy farmer. These crimes are premeditated and the team should be tried in military court. It makes one wonder if this act of murder was committed due to psychological illness or just plain boredom and anxiety. Either way, the whole group participated under the knowing of the higher ranked officer. All that makes evil possible to triumph is the inactivity of a good man to stand in its way. This article is very disturbing and I hope that this activity is rare in the Middle East; of course there is little way of knowing. Fri, 22 Apr 2011 01:34:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment144970581 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/09/the-fricking-frackers-own-my-arse/#IDComment142986381 After reading this article, it is hard to look at the natural gas companies in a positive way. It seams like they are doing more harm than good, but that may also be because we only hear the bad not the good. Because energy is such a valuable resource for America and many other countries, the companies seem to have the power to do and get anything that they wish. Many of these companies have a great amount of money that allows them to buy out politicians' votes in order to manipulate congress and numerous other agencies in their favor. Bills that control this new found energy extraction method were seen first by multi billion dollar corporations. These companies make a huge profit here in the united states, but a huge opportunity was found to increase profit margin by selling their natural gas overseas. This means less gas for us in the lonng run and less money for the united states than if sold within our borders. Having this alternative source of fuel may also be a good thing. It will allow us to, if ways are researched to improve the effiecncy are found, cut down on our oil use reducing the amount of money we shell out to foreign countries. This is money that isnt being used to feed national enemies and terror groups. However, as of now we highly depend on oil because of how efficient it is. I believe that we will continue to use oil even if natural gas is improved, just because we know almost all there is to know about oil as compared to natural gas. Even though natural gas is better for the environment, but our standard of living is placed highly above the atmosphere and environment. Even by fracking and acquiring natural gas, the local environment is seveerely threatened. The ways of getting this natural gas is highly questionable in ways of "right." This fracking method is resulting in a poisoning of underground water sources, such as wells that are used by familes nearby and is impossible to live without. Fri, 15 Apr 2011 02:46:09 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/09/the-fricking-frackers-own-my-arse/#IDComment142986381 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/4827/#IDComment141155381 Money is one of the easiest tools to use in order to acquire or manipulate the distribution of power. With the amount of money the oil companies make and the high demand for oil currently, they are probably the most powerful companies in the world. With this large amount of power it really is not surprising that they meddle with politics and are active followers and members. With the large amounts of money these oil companies possess, they can manipulate politics in any way that benefits the oil industry. This is an example of the legalized bribery system our nation currently has instilled. The more money one has, the amount of power they have and can essentially "pay" the politicians to act in the favor of the companies. This is the sole reason a billion dollar industry can go untaxed and nobody, not even our own PRESIDENT has the power to go against the oil companies and impose a tax. Meanwhile, people with less money such as the middle class has continuously rising taxes that a very small tax on the oil companies can more than meet the amount of money required to be collected. The greed of the modern day oil companies is drastically hurting the economy of the United States because they acquire so much money that the government has less power than they do. The oil industry is basically a monopoly due to the fact that it is a nonrenewable energy source and we are running out making the price of oil for each company is about equal and continually rising. There is almost nothing the government can do about this. The government need oil in order to fuel the lives we live and upkeep the lifestyles we live. Oil is the most efficient source of energy known to man so far, but we quickly have to find an alternative fuel that’s just as efficient because oil is quickly diminishing. The new craze is natural gas, which seems to cause more trouble than the benefits it provides according to the documentary “Gasland.” Although this is a documentary of only one side’s view. To my knowledge, this is a very eco unfriendly method of obtaining energy because it pollutes the waters of nearby streams and wells making it undrinkable by the local families. Wells that are built on the property of the owners receive a generous settlement from the companies to obtain drilling rights of that real estate. Natural gas is untaxable by the government, because technically the government does not own the gas that is being obtained by the companies. The only tax possible is a tax imposed on heavy machinery and damage done to roads. Overall, the energy industry as a whole has a tremendous amount of power due to the dependability of resources for everyday life and the amount of money these industries collect. Sat, 9 Apr 2011 03:23:45 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/4827/#IDComment141155381 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139202165 Lets take a society in which everyone makes the same amount of money across every job and everyone lives out the same lifestyle. Our lifestyle as we know it today would not nearly exist, in fact, our hypothetical society would be unrecognizable compared to todays society. people wouldnt live nearly as well compared to today. Much of our technology would be nonexistant because a scientist would not have the incentive to work harder than they have to in order to make the same money as a fast food worker. In fact, formal schooling would not exist. The uneven distribution of wealth clearly helps our society as whole. Even someone in the lower class has the opportunity to at least try and better their life by hard work and dedication. Overall, i think competition is the reason in which we have an unequal distribution of wealth in our country. If people are living well, they have no reason to further improve their lifestyle and therefore do not need more money. People on top, however, stay on top more often than not because of the risks they take in order to out do an opposing competitor. The tricky situation to analyze is the lower class. Most people that fall into the lower class are people that were born into the lower class. They still have the same opportunities education wise as someone in the middle class, though the quality may be lower. People in the lower class need to work the hardest and be the most dedicated to moving up in the world than a middle class average person, but once they pass that hump of lower class into middle class they can continue to work and become finanjcially stable. I think our country works well as it is and the inequality of wealth distribution clearly has been a reason as to why. Fri, 1 Apr 2011 21:31:25 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139202165 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139199548 It makes sense that there would be an inequality of wealth within the united states. Some jobs are more important in a sense that they contriibute more to society than others. Naturally, the people that make the decisions for out country ar going to be making a lot of the money, because thats how our governement works. With an increasing amount of risk that is included in the job, such as making poor decisions in office or making a mathematical error causing an accident in a lab, those people taking the most risk are naturally going to make more money than someone that has little to no risk involved in their job to the sense that they can not majorly influence society on a global scale. Fri, 1 Apr 2011 21:16:43 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/30/so-what-your-take-on-those-inequality-classes/#IDComment139199548 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/23/managing-crowds/#IDComment137627506 As mentioned before, people dislike going against the group in fear of being different, but it is much easier to join the bandwagon persay. A perfect example of everything mentioned before is the criticism of someone well known such as the president. A media member may have their opinion published and slowly people start to agree to the point where it becomes the majority. In this type of situation, it is easier than take the groups opinion than to form than form an individual opinion. It then becomes harder to form another idea and the process starts all over again. Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:39:18 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/23/managing-crowds/#IDComment137627506 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/23/managing-crowds/#IDComment137626622 I believe it is easy to manipulate a group of people because nobody loses. By following the group, most everyone is benefiting from the action in mind and in turn, the whole group benefits by adding to the experience Although, the start of the activity is rarely thought about. Every trend in society was started by a single person or group of people. This is because it takes great courage in order to go against the group and be different. Often times, though, it sets a chain reaction that that starts in small groups and slowly gets larger of a group. An example of this is a few people that go against people who arent dancing and start dancing. Ususally, the whole group starts dancoing because everyone is benefiting from participating in the group. Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:32:05 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/23/managing-crowds/#IDComment137626622 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/23/managing-crowds/#IDComment137625798 By reading this article i was able to see how people could be easily manipulated when in the presence of a large group. Nobody likes being the oddball out and will instantly alter its behavior to mimic the group in order to avoid standing out from the group. Just look at media, the easiest way to manipulate large groupos of people is using media to make a large group of people to think the same way, and in turn, act a certain way. Many people go out of their way just to be apart of the group. An example of this can be found in a small group of people watching a funny movie. If everyon one in the group but one person begins to laugh, that person is more likely to laugh than if they watched the same parts alone. This is brought about because of need to connect to other people. People in the group are inclined to act the same as the others in order to share in the experience of the group. This can also be seen in the experiment that was shown in class about how a person would as simple of turning to look the same direction as the other people in an elevator and shift their position in order to. Sat, 26 Mar 2011 03:25:19 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/23/managing-crowds/#IDComment137625798 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740475 Take a car for example, a car given lasts nowhere near as long as a car earned because the car earned has sentimental as well as monetary value attached to it.. Money has a way of going to a persons head. Most often than not, good friends will be lost and false friends will be made in the sudden gain of money, then if the transition is made(which it often times is) from rich back to poor, all friends will be lost and the lottery winner is actually worse off. I believe this is the true curse the article is talking about Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:45:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740475 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740462 Nobody tries to be poor. Although when a poor person suddenly has access to large amounts of money, they try to change the way they live, the way they act, and their whole image. The problem with this is that they cant just magically change their entire way of life because theyre suddenly rich. They would do their best to live the way they think rich people would live, but many people fail in doing so. Probably the biggest problem related to quickly making the transition from lower class to upper class and skipping middle class is not gaining the responsibility to manage money and being naïve about the people in your life. Not earning your own money but rather suddenly receiving money also hurts the chances of lottery winners to hold on to their money. The winners do not appreciate the money because they did not have to work for it. This is also seen in teenagers with rich parents that give them everything they want. Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:45:11 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740462 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740441 Think about it. Our whole life we spend money and attend a prestigious university for the sole purpose of being able to make a lot of money in the future. Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:45:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740441 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740377 At first glance the title of this article interested me. My first thoughts had to deal with people blowing all of their money for a slim to none chance of winning the jackpot. As I read on, though, I quickly discovered the true nature of the article and became even more intrigued. The thought that making the transition from poor to wealthy very rapidly is an interesting concept I have never thought about. A common trait between most of the lottery winners is simply that they’d not know how to manage their newly acquired wealth and end up more poor than before. They tried to fill their life with luxurious goods that they believed would make them happy, only to find out money truly can not buy happiness. These people continuously try to fill their void by continuing spending only to come to the conclusion that over time they would inevitably end in debt. Almost everybody wishes they had more money because a human’s life revolves around money. Mon, 14 Mar 2011 02:44:28 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment134740377 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/23/how-free-are-these-90-students/#IDComment129326603 This video that reports the story of nearly one hundred teenage girls becoming pregnant is nearly impossible for me to wrap my mind around. Also, the added detail that expresses almost all these girls qualify for reduced lunch costs/free lunch in school makes me believe that if all these children are had, the families will be unable to provide for it. That being said, I believe that safe sex classes should be taught and safe sex techniques be discussed with the teenagers, but with such a high pregnancy rate, I’d say they know what they’re doing and becoming pregnant intentionally. I cannot even fathom so many girls becoming pregnant so rapidly, and by their choice also. I think every school, at least mine did, has those few girls that become pregnant in high school, but that does not compete with eleven percent of the overall school being pregnant. First off, much blame is to be put on the parents for letting this happen. All parents should have the safe sex talk with their kids, know what their kids are up to, be around their kids enough that makes it hard to let them do whatever they want, supply them with extracurricular activities to take up time after school and give them less free time, etc. Of course this isn’t just aimed towards the girls, but the males too. I believe that this abrupt “crisis” happened with purpose. Perhaps it started with a few girls becoming pregnant, and other girls wanted to have children too, but did not think of the responsibility and time that goes into raising a child. I’m very surprised the guys were so willing to get these girls pregnant without thinking of the risks and impact it has on their future. I believe that teen pregnancy is being seen as a problem that is seen as inevitable and made part of high school instead of being looked down upon. These teenagers do not realize the impact this will have on their lives, not just the girls but the guys too. If eleven percent is pregnant, this means almost twenty five percent of the entire school will be forced to raise a child. This story is completely mindboggling. Sun, 20 Feb 2011 03:04:46 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/23/how-free-are-these-90-students/#IDComment129326603 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/18/suicide-in-japan/#IDComment129324117 In my opinion, I believe that people use suicide forest as an excuse to end their lives, following in the footsteps of others that were in a similar situation and see it as their best way out. If suicide forest would have never come into existence, the people would maybe think a bit more before committing suicide, but inevitably would do so. If I was on the help lines and got a call from a person thinking about committing suicide I would provide them guidance based on the findings of Durkheim. His findings state that suicide is not a completely free decision, that invisible strings are always there and persuading their thoughts and actions in such a way that people and groups that they are affiliated with would have/do. I would tell them to take a deep breath and analyze the situation that they have placed themselves into. They should do what they believe is right and ignore other factors such as other people and society and so on. In the video, Japan’s society places a huge emphasis on one’s job/ career. Society forms the thoughts of individuals in a way that makes each individual person think that their job is their life, and when their job is gone, they might as well take their life too. To successfully talk down a potential suicide VICTIM, I would take the reason that the person gives to justify their suicide, and show them how little the situation they are in has on their overall life and society as a whole. I would remind them of the mystery of death and the good in life also. Show them what they truly have in their lives and by committing suicide it’s all gone and nobody truly knows where we go after death so make life count. I feel as if people go to suicide forest to find guidance and meaning in their life rather than follow through with their death wish. It is only when they cannot find guidance that they actual kill themselves. Nobody wants to commit suicide. Suicide occurs because they feel as if society is backing them into a corner to the point where they have no purpose and only see killing themselves as the alternative to being a social outcast. Sun, 20 Feb 2011 02:43:43 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/18/suicide-in-japan/#IDComment129324117 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/30/conformity-rules-the-day/#IDComment126015205 This video is actually quite humorous because the subject looks like an idiot for changing and conforming to the group, but would you or I do any different? This idea is dealt with by each person that is around people throughout the day, many times per day. Nobody likes to be the outcast or the one that stands out from the group because people need to feel a sense of belonging to a group and to be accepted by the group. It takes much courage to be able to break those invisible strings and become an individual, in a group, instead of being lumped in with a large group of people. It is not easy to break away. By watching the video, the first individual tried to maintain his individuality, but the pressure and awkwardness overcame the will to be an individual and the subject gave in to conforming and going with the flow of the group. If a person is to be able to break the strings of conformity, they become more confident because they no longer need the approval of the group to live and carry out their daily habits. Some people have a bigger will to express individuality than others. For example, the first subject took quite a while to collapse under the pressures of the group, while the last subject wasted no time doing what the others in the elevator were doing. He quickly changed direction to follow the group and quickly removed and replaced his hat as the group did. This exhibits that some people have a stronger will than others. People that take longer to conform attempt to not conform, but the longer they remain different, the more awkward it becomes for him and the group. People that conform more quickly are less willed to express their individualism, but when conforming, the change is much less awkward, but much more noticeable. I think that this experiment was a clever way to observe the behavior of people that conform and it allows us to observe how they conform under different pressures of the group. Fri, 4 Feb 2011 23:22:39 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/30/conformity-rules-the-day/#IDComment126015205 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/24/life-without-parole-001-blog/#IDComment124483184 I think that this article is a nice change of pace from criminals that blame the law for things they should take responsibility for. I feel great sympathy for this man because he was tried as an adult at the age of 14, but had he been five or so years younger he would not have been held nearly responsible and sent to prison instead of being sent through the juvenile correctional system. It seems as though this inmate is trying to make the most of the situation he has gotten himself into. For starters, he seems very mature and reasonably bright. This letter is well written with few grammar and spelling errors. It seems as though placing an immature teenager into prison would cause a break down in the child’s life by taking away everything he knows and believes. I also find it very surprising that he has built his own little moral code in order to try and change himself. He has been attempting since he was placed in the system to become a better man and try to, not right what he has done, but make up for it. I like the view that he has made towards prison. Many people (myself included) are under the impression that people are sent to prison to be corrected. He interperets prison as a place that does nothing to reform a person, but teaches them how to be a prisoner and reform is forced to be made or prison can be much harder. I know, for me a t least, that I can not even fathem the amount of time that this individual must spend in prison. Many people live to be as old as this man will be, but is he truly even living? Many people not in a correctional institution are not truly living, A pulse does not mean that someone is living, making the most of life is living, so technically, this man is living his life to the best of his ability, hile others are drifting through life not truly living. One must wonder what life truly is… Sat, 29 Jan 2011 05:37:32 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/24/life-without-parole-001-blog/#IDComment124483184 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cs%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment123802142 Soc 001 Wed, 26 Jan 2011 04:03:15 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cs%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment123802142 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/15/what-does-it-mean-to-be-free/#IDComment122902367 Being able to put myself in the shoes of a few of these prisoners in jail for life was strangely surprising. What I expected was thoughts of hate, rage, and regret towards life and the world in general. To my surprise, this inmate has come to peace with his destiny and tackles great issues. This inmate in particular stood out to me because of the topic of conversation- freedom. I have now realized that only through losing your "freedom" as defined by our country today will you truly realize what freedom is. Freedom is the ability to think freely and do what you would please with your life, instead of following a dstiinct plan picked out by your country. We have the freedom to have a pet, or drink what we desire, or go skydiving, basically anything that doesn’t infringe on other people’s freedom is fair game. Many of these freedoms are taken for granted and are payed little to no attention at all. Basic things such as meeting and marrying a girl are taken away when having to spend life in prison, but it is only when that freedom is taken away in which the particular freedom is missed and regret settles in. This is truly an eye opener towards my own, personal life. I have many freedoms that I take advantage of, some as simple as choosing when I go to sleep, and as complex as the freedom to say anything about any subject in the world. I know for a fact that I these freedoms were suddenly taken away from me that I would realize how big of a factor they were in my life. Actually, taking away just one freedom that I take advantage of every single day would completely screw my life over, let alone suddenly losing every freedom I have. Sat, 22 Jan 2011 02:38:38 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/15/what-does-it-mean-to-be-free/#IDComment122902367