en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2437614 Comments by lovebum4life http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/were-you-surprised-to-find-that-business-is-the-factor-that-shapes-immigration-policies-119-blog/#IDComment144867836 Part III: It has always been come here when we need you but get the fuck out of here when we are done using you. Immigrants have and will always be pawns used to build the economy and nothing more. I mean sure they are needed greatly and it’s sad that the country has such a negative view on immigrants, especially since I am the child of immigrants. But call me a pessimist because I do not think that the way this country uses immigrants is ever going to change. It has been this way for a while and that is just what this country is used to. I mean it’s hard to change old bad habits especially when it works in your favor. Thu, 21 Apr 2011 17:47:34 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/were-you-surprised-to-find-that-business-is-the-factor-that-shapes-immigration-policies-119-blog/#IDComment144867836 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/were-you-surprised-to-find-that-business-is-the-factor-that-shapes-immigration-policies-119-blog/#IDComment144867775 Part II: I feel as if we the American people are really just pawns that the government uses to keep the rich richer and keep the poor, poor. This is why I hate how immigration is being used just like America uses everything in life. It’s being used so that America can keep its piece of cake or even make its piece of cake bigger. If you look at the immigration patterns in the past you really wouldn’t be surprised at how business plays a role. Look at how the Asians were used to build railroads but then were barred from immigrating to the U.S. years later. Or Mexicans who at one point were also sent back to Mexico, even the Mexican American children were deported. This country had always been pretty ruthless when it came to immigration. Thu, 21 Apr 2011 17:47:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/were-you-surprised-to-find-that-business-is-the-factor-that-shapes-immigration-policies-119-blog/#IDComment144867775 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/were-you-surprised-to-find-that-business-is-the-factor-that-shapes-immigration-policies-119-blog/#IDComment144867654 Part I:To be quite honest I was not very surprised at all when Sam said that Immigration policies had to do with business because honestly everything that has to do with the United States’ policies always end up having to do with pleasing the rich assholes who own like 90% of our U.S. dollars anyway. I always found it funny how nobody cares about immigration as much when the economy is good because you’re not really concerned about the low paying jobs when you are employed and living the life. Which now when I think about it I guess it is understandable. They care about it when the economy is bad. I guess it makes sense because immigrants are needed when the economy is bad so that we can have low rate paid workers to help boost our economy up. I don’t like the whole idea of the government using immigrants when it is convenient for them and then casting them aside like criminals when we don’t need them it is crazy. Whenever I hear the right side speak of this issue I roll my eyes. This country is the definition of catering to the rich. Thu, 21 Apr 2011 17:46:45 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/were-you-surprised-to-find-that-business-is-the-factor-that-shapes-immigration-policies-119-blog/#IDComment144867654 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/what-are-your-thoughts-on-everything-we-saw-and-heard-in-lecture-about-native-americans-119-blog/#IDComment143256546 Part III: Native Americans are the afterthought of the American society. I think that is the saddest part about most of the stats. Even though the Native American population is very small, which is very sad in itself, since they were once a thriving population, it’s hard to believe that the numbers for poverty and assaults are so much more for such a small population of people. I think that it puts questions in your head as to why the oppression of the Native American people still happens and what can we do to change such a modern day oppression. Sat, 16 Apr 2011 00:12:06 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/what-are-your-thoughts-on-everything-we-saw-and-heard-in-lecture-about-native-americans-119-blog/#IDComment143256546 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/what-are-your-thoughts-on-everything-we-saw-and-heard-in-lecture-about-native-americans-119-blog/#IDComment143230353 Part II: The suicide rates, the assault stats, and the derogatory terms were also surprising. Especially the stat about how Native Americans on the Lakota Reservation have a death rate to about 50 years old. That was very surprising and sad. But looking at the conditions that the people on that reservation live in, which pretty much ruined the engrained idea of a reservation that I had in my head, and which looked worse than a trailer park or even the projects, I am also not that surprised in the death rate. The video along with the song, impacted me greatly. I think that the song lyrics harshness embodied the violence of the founders of this country against the Native Americans. The song with the pictures of the death Native Americans and the lynching of the black was very powerful. I think the lyrics and the song were so powerful that I left speechless. Like I couldn’t really think of what to say or how to describe what I felt because the essence of song, the history, and everything was embodied. Fri, 15 Apr 2011 21:59:33 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/what-are-your-thoughts-on-everything-we-saw-and-heard-in-lecture-about-native-americans-119-blog/#IDComment143230353 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/what-are-your-thoughts-on-everything-we-saw-and-heard-in-lecture-about-native-americans-119-blog/#IDComment143227544 Part I:I was actually surprised when I watched the video and the thing that is so sad about it is that we know so little information about Native Americans. I remember when I was younger I was surprised to know that Native Americans still existed because as a child you tend to believe that Native Americans, even though they are people, are somehow figments of the past. Like almost a myth or a group of people who aren’t real. The video we watched was really sad because you see all these people literally suffering to live day to day. I thought that the fact that you have these people, who were once thriving, now demoted to a lifestyle while they were living way way way below the poverty line, they have no electricity or gas, and the government isn’t really helping them just disgusts me. Especially since there is barely any media coverage for their situation. So it’s as if everyone is turning a blind eye to the Native Americans. I guess it is because if we pretend that they didn’t exist or we turn a blind eye to the situation then it’s easier for us to live with ourselves free of guilt and with no remorse. Fri, 15 Apr 2011 21:46:53 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/12/what-are-your-thoughts-on-everything-we-saw-and-heard-in-lecture-about-native-americans-119-blog/#IDComment143227544 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/did-putting-yourself-in-the-shoes-of-the-middle-easterners-change-your-views-on-the-war-in-iraq-119-blog/#IDComment140781119 Part 3: I also bet that many other people did not think the war on terror was about that either but now that we were able to see the videos with our leaders blatantly saying that it was about oil and about how we were going to control the oil reserves for the betterment of our economy I really makes me outraged. Once again people are losing their lives in the hands of fat, white, rich, and wealthy white men’s fortunes. I am already outraged as an American woman and if I were Muslim I think I would be even more outraged. I also found it appalling at how Southern Baptists Churches were sneaking in undercover trying to convert people of Islam into Christianity in their own countries. Even risking the lives of the people. I believe in free choice and the fact that they are pretty much leaving their countries and trying to convert the rest of world makes me shudder in disgust because we as Christians can get away with it but if it were vice versa the world would be up in arms. Thu, 7 Apr 2011 17:21:23 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/did-putting-yourself-in-the-shoes-of-the-middle-easterners-change-your-views-on-the-war-in-iraq-119-blog/#IDComment140781119 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/did-putting-yourself-in-the-shoes-of-the-middle-easterners-change-your-views-on-the-war-in-iraq-119-blog/#IDComment140780910 Part 2: As someone whose parents are also from a country with lots of oil and a country that has been colonized by European countries it was easy to take on the perspective of people who had to get used to people of powerful countries invading their land and using their resources at the expense of those who dwell in the countries of resources. The lecture also made me see the whole war on terror in a different light. I was only ten years old when September 11th happened. When we did decided to declare war it was easy to jump on the bandwagon of defeating the terrorists who are putting our lives in danger. Especially since so little is known about Islam. I think that it is sad how this country manipulates us into thinking that the War in Iraq was about terrorism and nuclear weapons. I never really thought that the war in Iraq was about oil ever. Thu, 7 Apr 2011 17:20:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/did-putting-yourself-in-the-shoes-of-the-middle-easterners-change-your-views-on-the-war-in-iraq-119-blog/#IDComment140780910 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/did-putting-yourself-in-the-shoes-of-the-middle-easterners-change-your-views-on-the-war-in-iraq-119-blog/#IDComment140780841 part 1:I was very skeptical about the Christian Invaders class in the beginning. I thought that I would be on the defensive for that lecture and I was already preparing myself to get offended by anything Sam Richards was going to say. When I think about it in retrospect I think I was already getting defensive over Christianity because I come from a very Atheist and liberal town where although in the United States I am considered the majority in my town I felt like the minority. So I was ready to hear about Christians being ignorant and horrible and rude. Enforcing their religion on others and essentially even though that is what I heard I pretty much agreed with everything that was said in class and look at the whole war on terror with a Muslim perspective made me understand why there would be animosity from their point of view. Thu, 7 Apr 2011 17:20:09 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/05/did-putting-yourself-in-the-shoes-of-the-middle-easterners-change-your-views-on-the-war-in-iraq-119-blog/#IDComment140780841 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment138893624 Part III: And it is so annoying especially because you really can’t say anything back to a white person that has the same effect. In you are fighting fire with fire. I mean sure you could call them a cracker or a honky but it just doesn’t have the same stinging effect as derogatory words made for minorities. So I really like if the racist situation has to do directly with you than it is hard to really say how you react to that. Now if it was another person who was going through a racist situation and I was in the presence of the person than I feel like it is easier to react to the situation with wit, quickness, and vitriol. When you’re fighting for yourself it becomes less about your own personal feelings and more about the situation at hand. You quick to defend the person who is experiencing the situation at hand and you are just quick to shut down the asshole who says the derogatory terms. It’s easier to fight for someone else than for your self in situations like these. It’s a lot less introspective in general . Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:52:37 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment138893624 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment138893566 Part II: I think me and my friends were walking somewhere from a party and some douchebags from a house yell at us get off the street niggers. It took a few minutes for it to all set in and even though I was drunk I did not know how to respond and that is the worst part. When you go through an incident like that in your head you think you are already prepared to go through an incident like that. You have the smart and witty comebacks prepared in your head but in real life it is disappointing because you are not really prepared. All you feel is pure shock and you are either standing there speechless that the situation just happened(before the anger sets in fully) or you are really to physically beat the shit out of someone, or yell and act like a fool. Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:52:17 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment138893566 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment138893521 Part I: I find that a question like this is hard to answer because it depends on where or not you as a person are the target of the racially derogatory word or another person is the target of the racially derogatory word and you are just in the presence of the situation. It is funny because I am from a very open area and I am used to all cultures being around me. I do not feel like a minority in my town so it is weird because I remember in high school they used to tell us over and over again that the world is not like here. When you leave this town you are going to realize that the world is horrible and cold place not open to many things and that I should be thankful that I grew up where I did. The first racist experience in my life that I have ever been through was during my freshman year at Penn State. Thu, 31 Mar 2011 17:52:01 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment138893521 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment137290203 Part 3: When all you see as a kid is white on your cereal, in your dolls, on your video games, and in your cartoons you are obviously going to buy into the fact that the white people are the us and the minority you are the them. You watch the news occasionally with your parents and or even the opening of the show COPS and you are constantly being bombarded with images criminalizing minorities. In newspapers the minorities are usually pointed out but if they are white they have the privilege of being treated as an individual while the minority race is lumped in with all the other minorities with horrible stereotypes and bad publicity. It is really a sad world out there. Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:37:06 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment137290203 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment137290158 Part 2: The family members would be the first to tell you to change it and conform with the rest of society. White people have fucked with minority races for so long that many of them end up hating themselves and it is sad. It’s gotten so bad that minorities have gotten used to using skin bleaching creams, eye lid surgeries, relaxers, etc. To make themselves feel better. Their self esteems are constantly being kicked down by the media and society reinforces that white will always equal beauty because it is the whites who are in power. The video about the child is also very telling but once again when you are a young child what kind of children do you see on television? What kind of children are the main characters to a cartoon or a TV show? Or even in commercials? What kind of characters are the secondary characters? Who are usually tossed to the side in favor of the white lead and plays fiddle and sidekick to him/her. Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:36:50 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment137290158 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment137290103 Part 1: Well I have seen the black and white video many times and sadly enough even though I have seen the video multiple times I still cannot help but feel disturbed when I watched the video. The fact that society has such an impact on children at such a young age about the fact that white is always seen as good and black is always seen as bad is very sad. Looking back on the video as a whole all the things the black chicks were saying about hair and skin color did not really faze me because it is the truth. I have been using relaxers and perms to straighten my hair since I was a child and before I really had a say in the matter. In society straight hair equals good hair. Even in the work force a black woman with straight relaxed hair would probably get hired five times more than a black women with a thick ethnic afro. I never once wanted to go natural but I really admired those black woman who do because the people who give black people the most shit about their hair is other black people. Thu, 24 Mar 2011 17:36:31 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment137290103 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/06/are-whites-racially-oppressed/#IDComment135634872 Part 3: Unfortunately, I made the sad mistake after reading the comments section of the article something that I will never do again. I caught a comment that talked about how whites were being discriminated in South Africa and it really made my blood boil. South Africa home of apartheid and as an African I still feel uncomfortable around old White South Africans because it was so recent, I just really couldn’t comprehend that bull. Thu, 17 Mar 2011 17:45:47 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/06/are-whites-racially-oppressed/#IDComment135634872 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/06/are-whites-racially-oppressed/#IDComment135634823 Part 2: . The fact that they have idiots such as Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh as examples of proponents of this idea makes this whole view of white oppression sillier to me. What is white oppression? I don’t understand how the race in power worldwide can be considered oppressed! I feel as if this call for help against white oppression is just white being fearful of not securing their spot on top. If they are not getting the benefits that they are used to getting at the expense of other races than they are against current policies and then they yell about how oppressed they are. I think that’s why this whole idea about whites being oppressed annoys me so much. Like it is just kind of insulting as a minority to listen to someone who has all the benefits of that you grow up wanting complaining about how hard it is for them now that they do not have them as much as they did. These are the same douches who complain about affirmative action as well. Thu, 17 Mar 2011 17:45:31 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/06/are-whites-racially-oppressed/#IDComment135634823 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/06/are-whites-racially-oppressed/#IDComment135634612 Part 1: No offense but I think the idea that white people are an oppressed in the country is a load of bull. Like it took me a while to even try and read the article just because of the title. It felt like something FOX news would have a three hour special on. Reading things like that article and hearing those people speak just makes me really really angry. From the prospective of a minority the whole idea of “reverse racism” and white oppression is very belittling. I honestly think that whites who are so stuck on this idea are really just scared, self-absorbed, xenophobic idiots who are too daft to really understand the amount of ignorance and idiocy coming out of their stupid mouths. First of all a lot of the times when I hear these people speak they go on and on about how America is a white country and it should stay that way. These are also usually the same idiots who say the blacks should go back to Africa. When I hear stupid words like that I think about how this country was really the land of the Native Americans and that the only reason the blacks are here is because the white people brought them into this country. Thu, 17 Mar 2011 17:44:30 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/06/are-whites-racially-oppressed/#IDComment135634612 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/how-conscious-are-you-of-your-seat-in-class-before-and-after-todays-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment132026411 When it comes to race I find that black females and males are sometimes more inclined to seat next to me when the bus is one hundred percent full or like ninety nine percent full of a different race. I am inclined to do the same thing because when you are such a minority to tend to gravitate to your race. If the amount of people on the bus is more mix than I tend to sit next to whoever and race is not really a problem for me. I sometimes still lean towards sitting next to a female but I guess that is because I am a female and I unconsciously gravitate towards my own gender. I guess I do have certain latent prejudices that I did not even realize I had until I really looked at the sitting situations I made in the past. It is funny when you think of the choices you do in retrospect. Thu, 3 Mar 2011 04:51:39 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/how-conscious-are-you-of-your-seat-in-class-before-and-after-todays-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment132026411 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/how-conscious-are-you-of-your-seat-in-class-before-and-after-todays-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment132026386 In my head I basically just focus on the seat positions that I find viable to my interests. Though the class on latent racism when it comes to seating made think about where I seat on the bus and my usual sitting patterns. I would always try to sit in the back seats and if the back seats were all taken then that is when I am forced to kind of choose between the empty seats in front of me and pick and choose the people I prefer to sit with. Before latent racism came up in class I did not think that I really had a bias when choosing seats but now that I think about it I really do. In retrospect I find that I tend to sit next to females more than males. I am more inclined to seat next to an empty seat next to a female than an empty seat next to a male. Thu, 3 Mar 2011 04:51:28 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/how-conscious-are-you-of-your-seat-in-class-before-and-after-todays-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment132026386