Watching those videos of American soldiers acting that way in Iraq was so shocking to me. Our view/thoughts of American soldiers is that they should be outstanding citizens. Now I get that it's a war and there will be violence and innocent people killed in cross fire and so on, but I couldn't get over the soldiers going after helpless citizens. It wasn't like the citizens were threatening it was like a game. The soldier made jokes and laughed as they destroyed a mans lively hood. He was a taxi driver and now that the U.S soldiers destroyed his car he can't do what he needs to do to support his family. Now when I first saw the video, I was in complete shock and it makes sense why Iraq's would have a made image of the United States. It has been a few days now and when I go back and think it makes me think to the situation here at Penn State. The media shows Penn State as the rioters being awful students and destructive. The reality of the situation is that it was only a handful of people that took the U.S to ruin the image. That's what it's like in Iraq. They see just one video of the horrific United States soldiers destroying innocent people's possessions and then Iraq's get a horrible few of America. It's crazy to think how a few people doing destructive things can put a label on a group as a whole. It sucks. The thing is it's so easy to believe the bad. That's why the word is spread so much faster about bad news then good. Now I watch that video of U.S soldiers and I'm truly disappointed. I don't want that to be the name for ALL United State soldiers because I know that's not the case. It was only a selective few. That's one thing I've learned in the past few weeks is that the actions of few should never define a whole group.
Now I know that a lot of people would say they are shocked to see American soldiers act like this and at first I would have said the same thing, but now I don't feel like that. Even if your an American soldier doesn't mean you're an angle. No matter what there are always people in certain groups that aren't going to live up to the standards you want. It's human nature that people do wrong and make mistakes. This hasn't just happened in the military. This happens in the Catholic church, families, school, and here at Penn State. I should stop being surprised about bad things that happen because history always repeats itself. People never learn and no matter what bad things will always happen. Now I know I sound really pessimistic, but this is how I should be. In reality I will still try to think the best and be stunned when I see people I idealize do the wrong thing. You idolize American heroes like soldiers, but they are human beings and some make horrible mistakes. Soldiers should still be honored because they fight for out country and I will always appreciate them even if a few do things wrong.

Looking back at this past week it is amazing how my views on life and how I think of things has changed. I will never be the same after this week and it will be for the better. My eyes have opened up about a lot of things and I'm glad it happened, I just wish it didn't take this situation to lead me to this awakening. First off, I always knew media wanted to make a story and that I shouldn't believe everything they say, but wow NOW...I really believe that. I realized that media doesn't care about the people they hurt. It's all about the story. They don't care that students here at Penn State are traumatically effected and that there are sexually abused victims here as well. Because of the way media has portrayed Penn State ignorant people make comments that Penn Staters are child molesters. That's just ridiculous especially considering there are people here that have been victims and don't ever to deserved to be labeled that. Media just disgusts me. I've also realized how you don't realize how bad media or things could be till it happens to you. People can all give their opinions as outsider, but they don't truly know what it feels like being in the situation. I'm also disgusted with the social world as a whole. People are so quick to judge and it ruins peoples lives. Joe Paterno has not commit a crime, and he hasn't been proven guilty of anything. People ruined his legacy without facts and it's disgusting. Hopefully someday the truth will come out and I hope that justice will be served. I still can't get over people making choices without facts. Also, our judicial system isn't worth anything to us as a population. Because obviously the motto, innocent till proven guilty doesn't apply. Now today's SOC119 class, I think brought the best new prospective to me. It's all about the victims. Society as a whole makes victims and predators victims. Sam discussed how that predators first have inappropriate fantasies and then can't tell anyone to get help. This is because society won't let them. We'll crucify the person and won't give them the help they need. They'll be branded forever and that's why they don't speak out. Then we need to look at victims who don't speak because most of the time it's someone they are close to. If they tell then it could ruin a big part of their lives. I along with other people need to be able to talk about sexual abuse instead of hiding the issues. I don't think we should be punished or branded for the actions of one or the inaction of a small group. I think the most important thing I've learned is that I've got to keep moving forward (it wont be easy because of my strong emotions still) but slowly it will. And even though I'm not a part of what happened, I still need to make my effort to make a difference and because a better person to help the Penn State brand and make sure something like this doesn't happen again. And for me, through all this I'm still proud to be a Penn Stater. This school means so much to me that I will not let an incident like this ruin all the great things I do and the ones around me do. FTK! I AM AND WILL ALWAYS BE A PROUD PENN STATER!

Well, I don't even know how to start this blog because there are so many emotions going on with me right now. I feel sadness, angry, grief, anxiety, and disappointment. People all around the world are so quick to judge us Penn Staters when they have no clue what we are all going through right now. I am extremely worried about how the world is viewing us right now. As I sit and watch ESPN this whole situation has turned into a Joe Paterno and the Penn State student situation when it should be about the accused criminal, Sandusky and the children. The whole media seems to forget that because let's be real they want a story and to get viewers. Here's the situation, you have a scandal, crime, huge university, living legend, and a football powerhouse. What else do you need to make a story. That's why everything has been so twisted. People live on scandals. They don't wanna hear about lives that are better than there own. People want to be assured that there are worse people out there then them. The media is doing that. Now just look at the "riots" that occured the other night. The media showed Penn State students destroying vans and being destructive. Honestly I was down there and that is a poor depiction of the situation. When I heard Joepa was fired, I went down to college ave and beaver. This was not to burn things and flip cars. I went to rally because I thought how they handled the situation was wrong. In this time of grief I wanted to be around people who would feel the same. That's what a lot of people wanted. What the media caught was only maybe 100 so kids being distructive. Now the media shows this and the whole country thinks we support child molestation. I would never want to be associated with supporting that! It's wrong because that's not how these student here feel. That's far from true. I know people are looking down on Penn State right now and it kills me. Penn State is going to be affected no matter what because of who the situation involves, but I wish people would take a step back and look who this is really about. This is more than a university, it deals with people making morally wrong decisions not about our university as a whole. I know we can't avoid it because no matter what it happened hear, but why get mad at a whole university with innocent students who feel just as bad. This whole situation has been really eye opening on how corrupt and distorted media is when depicting a story. It changes when you and things you care about are a part of it. I worry people will not value my education. But you know what I am still proud to go to Penn State and no matter what I will wear my blue and white with pride. I came here for a reason, because I love this place and want and education. I will leave here still in love and with my degree and everyone else can stick it. WE ARE....

I was amazed in class yesterday when there was so much debate and argument about this topic. We've talked about so much more controversial stuff in class that this is what heated people the most. I think that immigrants should try to learn the language of the area the immigrate to. I'm not saying that they should just drop there language because I think it's important to keep some of your culture. My thing is that say you come to America and you know zero English wouldn't that be frustrating. I know if I went to a different country and couldn't speak the language it would be confusing, frustrating, and irritating. I would want to try and learn some of the language and become fluent. I especially think if you plan on living in an area a long time you should learn at least some of the language. If you want to get a full experience you need to immerse yourself in the culture. If you learn the language, I feel like you would get a better experience then someone who doesn't learn the language. Now I know learning a language isn't easy. I've tried learning Spanish, but you really have to put a lot of time into something like that. I feel like you would get better opportunities as well. People always are looking to get ahead. If you come to America it's usually to get a better opportunity and I feel like it would be extremely difficult to do if you can't speak the language of the people your competing or trying to work with.
Mostly, I think it comes down to a respect thing. I know that if I went to a different country to live that I would try to learn the language. It would be important to me because I want to get the best experience. Also, I think showing an effort means a lot to people. I know that I respect people who know other languages and try really hard to speak English. Now I don't expect anyone to know the entire language, but at least try.
There is this Turkish girl on my floor and she speaks English pretty well. I wonder if she didn't know English and tried to come to America for school how that would work out. No one would understand her and she would struggle to do well. Sometimes I think learning the language can be a necessity especially depending on the area you go.
Also I'm thinking about what same said in class about 2nd year generation of immigrants mostly all know English. If they shouldn't have to learn English then why do they? I find it interesting if I talked to 2nd generation immigrants and see how they felt about learning English. I'm pretty sure they would be happy to be bilingual. it leads to more opportunities. I wish that I knew 2 languages. I don't know it's hard to talk about this subject because I know how I feel, but you always have to wonder what it would be like if it really happened to you!

The question is how do I feel about whites being the minority in the future. First off, I am a white female. I really don't have a feeling about whites being the minority in 35 years. Honestly if Sam would have asked me that in class, I wouldn't know what to say either. And why would I? Part of this is because I haven't thought about it much. It's hard to think of something that isn't a part of your life right now. I go to Penn State where the majority is white. Also, I live in a mostly white neighbor hood and surrounding area that isn't very diverse. Therefore I think my area will always remain mostly white. Some people never leave and so they inevitably end up with white people. So if I go back home and live there for the next 60 years of my life, I won't see the major effects. To me the world will mostly be white. Now if I left my little secure white bubble, I still don't think I would notice much. I have an 100% Indian roommate and I never actually think about it because to me her being a different race/color doesn't matter. I think this is partly because she grew up in America. Growing up in the U.S shapes people in different ways and makes it easier for people to relate. Today in class we had all these people from different races stand up in class. I could barely pick anyone out. I even thought some of the people who were 100% from a different race were white. So there is a good change that people could still look white. Also, even though whites would be a minority it doesn't mean there would be a majority. I think it's when there is a majority that more conflicts arise because people try to get all the power. When the white population shrinks there won't be a majority cause there are mixes. Sam talked about how eventually all races will be mixed in because look at all the diverse people from different backgrounds. It's going to see natural soon and I will barely even notice. Now I say this now, but who knows how I feel in 35 years. Sam wants us to always tell him what we would do and makes it seem so black and white sometimes. Honestly a lot depends on the situation and how I change in the next 30 years. I could become totally paranoid and think all the other cultures are out to get me. But for now I'm not worried about being the minority. I'll just sit back and wait to see what the world is like when it happens.

I'm really glad someone asked this question about what stage you think your in. This is kind of complicated because I feel like sometimes people are in the middle of 2 stages. That's where I'm at. I think I'm in the middle of stage 2 and 3 in the white person stage. Obviously I realize there are racial issues and realize people of different races. I don't get how I couldn't after having Sam's class for 9 weeks. I can't really remember that one moment when I realized that there were people of different races. It wasn't one of those ahh ha moments. I like in the middle of nowhere in northwestern Pennsylvania. There are barely any black people or people of different races. So when you see someone of a different race you definitely notice because they stick out. I'm not sheltered though because I'm aware about the common problems in society regarding race and the apparent differences. Now I say I'm in between stage 2 and 3, but I wouldn't say I'm very far into stage 3. Stage three is where you start sticking up for people of color and don't like to hear so much racism. There is this guy in my building who will use the "n" word. After so many times of hearing it I started flipping out because it's soo disrespectful. People of color don't like being called that so you shouldn't say that. It's being racist and very unacceptable. Now unfortunately it took me awhile to say something, but I see myself making progress. I know I still let people get away with saying mean racists things, but it's part of me growing. It's harder for me because I haven't been around people of color that often. Back home I do talk to people who are black, but my friends are all white. People say that Penn State is all white and not diverse. For me Penn State is very diverse. I've found out so much about different cultures. It's the first time I've had classes with blacks, Spanish, Asian, etc. The most diversity I would get is when my school would get an exchange student from like Venezula. Coming to Penn State has definitely opened my friendships to other cultures like Indian, and Portuguese. The thing is I don't really hang out with many other people of color. It might be hard for me to move along in the stages unless my friendship groups widen. Like Sam said today that you are attracted to people that you find similarities. I see this tendency in myself as well. To move on through the stages I must broaden my reactions with other races and this might be hard with how I chose to live or where I end up in life. So maybe I'll never reach to stage 6, but I can at least say now I am more aware of the stages and what I can strive to be someday. Great and comfortable with race.

Everyone wants to be happy. I know I always love the feeling. It's great to feel the excitement and just to be away from anxiety from a moment. After reading this article, I have some new views on happiness. I really enjoyed reading this article and agree a lot. The article talks about how it's hard to define happiness because it's ever changing. This statement is true on so many levels. As people we are constantly changing and the things that once made us happy don't anymore. Take relationships for example, something happens that you don't find the things associated with happiness like fun, excitement, love and then you break up with someone. For some reason they weren't making you happy. My question is why do we let people determine are happiness so much. Society relies on others companionship and compliments to make us feel better. Happiness in theory is kinda pointless. So much of are mood depends on it. Why can't people just be content with life instead of overly happy. Now think of the evolving world where are generation gets new and exciting things every day and the speed of response gets faster and faster. People's moods change up and down constantly. This makes me think of the word biopolar in regards to happiness. It's a term used when people have drastic ups and downs all the time. It's thought as a condition. Now that I read this article, I don't think it's a condition. In our world new info is coming at us all the time that changes are mood. One minute you find out you A's a exam. Then the next minute you get a text that your grandma dies. Information is transferred so quickly no wonder why moods change so drastically. There are so many things out there to affect it. This will also only get worse because the world keeps growing. Full happiness can't happen because there will always be something out there to bring you down. Happiness is like a set of criteria determined my a person. What makes one person happy won't make another person happy. So happiness is truly in the eyes of the beholder. I feel like there should be less emphasis in life. Everyone wants to achieve it all the time and it's impossible. Why not just chill out, and enjoy life from what it is! Now I know that's easy to say and want for society, but I'm realistic. I know that for myself I will strive for happiness, but I'm going to try to find more happiness. I feel like people look for the big things for happiness, but I'm going to look for the smaller things. Also, I'm going to strive to help other people by doing little things for other people.

To say what factors play a role in why women act a certain way is hard to say. Constantly in class we talk about how there are all these outside factors that affect us. Where you grow up, your family, your friends, your race, your religion, everything plays a role. Not all women see the world through a man's perspective. There are some very femanist women out there who want to see the world more womanly. But I do think that most of us have a manly view of the world. I know I want to be feminine, I want to feel like the girl. Also, I want my man to be the man. I want him to take care of me and that he should take charge. For me personally I think it's because society has shaped me to feel like that and also it's my choice. I could say screw society, but I don't. I like the idea of the man's world, but of course I will have a say. I don't know what is the most influential factor why woman view the world through a man's perspective. It mostly part because of the culture that surrounds us. Men are suppose to lead the house and it's about the old ways of society. It's one of those things it's sometimes hard to break. I feel with regards to sex, it makes more sense why we see it through a man's prospective. Sex is one of those things that usually is a hushed topic in households. How many house actually have the sex talk?! Like an in depth one like we had in class about women and men's want. I would say almost NEVER. They just describe how it kind of happens and that you should be in love. Most people get there view very skewed. People either hear from friends, magazines, and mostly TV. If you watch TV sex isn't shown as this long romantic build up. We see 2 people stumbling in all passionately being intense for like 2 minutes then it's over. Let's face it that's what men view it as. Also, then magazines like COSMO have the 25 sex tips guys love. I feel like with sex girls am to please the man because that's what it's thought to be. Sex was never something a woman should want way back when, it was what the man wanted. These views still exist today through print/media and that's a problem. For people who don't have a sex talk this is what they think sex is. It might not even me because it's a man's view, but it's because people are uneducated and uncertain. With regards to other topics women talk a manly view I think it's about those invisible strings that affect us everyday. Society and how we envision things plays a big role. It's often hard for people to go against social norms and that's why woman follow the man's view. It has been strongly shown throughout the ages that it's the way things should be.

I don't think that race really plays a role in whether to do drugs or not. I am white and supposedly more whites than any other race do drugs. I have never done drugs in my life, but statisically I am more likely because of my color. I think it mostly comes down to socioeconomic factors. I live in a small little town in the middle of nowhere and was raised going to church every Sunday. I was always against doing bad things and it's just how it is. I don't know whether it was going to church or something little that happened, but it's just the way I am. Say I was black or Hispanic it doesn't change the community or the way my parents raised me. The choice to not do drugs is based on my beliefs and attitude about drugs. Now I do know plenty of people that grew up in the same area that I did, but they use drugs for many different reasons. For some it's because there friendship groups did it. For others it's because they needed a way to fit in. Ultimately it's a choice. Sam talked about how all this factors play a role on you and are like puppet strings. That's exactly how I feel about this issue; it's a mixture of freewill and determinism. Everything that happens in life will effect you. It would be very easy for me to do drugs because a lot of my close friends do, but it is my free will that determined I wouldn't. This is true for people in any race. Say I was black and I lived in a community where drugs were a major part of life around the area. Just because my race is black doesn't mean I will ultimately do drugs as well. I could have a major life experience that makes me not want to or I want to freely choose a different path for myself. I would not say race is the issue at all. It's about the culture and people that affect you're life. Yes if I am white and I'm around white people all the time yes they would affect me, but it comes down to the core values and influence of other people. Just because you're a certain race does not affect you're outcome in life. People sterotype certain races to do certain things when it isn't about the race. Because if it was solely about race then everyone of that race would all have those certain characteristics or behaviors. It's factors like family, living area, live experiences, and choices that affect peoples behaviors. Race really has little to do with drug use. I would say it would be more about the culture you were raised in. It all comes down to socioeconomics, free-will, and determinism.

When we were first told about the Haiti project in class the other day I was really confused. I didn't feel like their were guidelines and it was all up in the air. Now, I realize the beauty of just being able to just to ANYTHING. This is because no matter what we do or think of it will make a huge impact on the lives of these entrepreneur's. The first project I looked at was Anaes Blaise's original designer totes. Her projects were so interesting. I really want one of her painted totes. The colors were awesome and the bag looked trendy. I liked how Sam critiqued her products and was so willing to change. I feel like she might have a problem with the pricing though. The United States is in a recession and I don't know if 40 dollars for a non-named brand would be work so well in the economy. On the other hand, when people here that it's a Haitian product it could get more people more willing to buy it. I think it would be great to come up with a business strategy for her company. Maybe a marketing pitch could be selling 1 for 40 dollars or 2 for 50. Pricing would have to be worked out, but something along those lines. We could also market them as like holiday or birthday gift. Maybe we could create an on-campus store with clothing from other countries. The one thing I was confused about in the videos was with pricing of yarn and paint. Sam today talked about how we should just give products to the Haitians because they need to help their own economy so I don't know how we should go about getting better products at cheaper pricing. I don't know if Haiti has a loan system, but maybe implement one. Next I looked at Euclid. She made beautiful designer clothing. For her I think it might be harder to think of a great plan, but not impossible. It's hard for many designers in the US to make it so I can't even imagine the struggles. I think maybe finding the right businesses or target group could really help her. Macouchka was the next person I looked at. She works on personalized picture frames, bracelets. She said that a lot of her products are from orders. Maybe if we created a website that displayed the projects we could help get more orders in. I think for more development she needs resources and better equipment. It's easy to say what we need to fix, but it's implementing those ideas that's the challenge. With Figaro I liked that fact that she branched out to schools. If you market your company to schools then it could be like a contract. Maybe she should change her location closer to her markets. After looking at a lot of these entrepreneur's it's just really exciting about all the things that we could do for these people. I think helping them sell there products in Haiti is the top priority, but I feel like some of the clothing and bags would really do well in America.