en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2397315 Comments by mfc5088 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/why-does-society-dislike-immigrants-and-why-are-they-portrayed-badly-119-blog/#IDComment144649119 I think the biggest reason that people dislike immigrants is because they think they are going to come here and steal our jobs. This is a reasonable fear because people have been known to hire illegal immigrants for a lower wage because they are willing to take less pay and actually have a job. People might see them as a threat because they are putting us out of work. However they may be necessary since people who are born here would not take these jobs, and then they would never end up getting filled. This would mean that the business would possibly go under. This would mean that there would be less competition within businesses and prices could go even higher for their products.I think another thing that Americans do not like about immigrants is that they are different. They have a different culture then us and we might not be as accepting since they are coming onto “our” land. Especially the fact that they are illegal, although most of us probably do not feel as strongly as the guy in the video, we might not think they deserve to be here. Although I know they are not supposed to be here, I feel like people would be mad no matter what they did. If they got jobs and worked hard then we would complain that they are taking our jobs. If they did not work then people would be complaining they are lazy. I have to agree a little bit with what Sam said about how they are hard-working people. They risk a lot to come here to work hard or get an education so they can make money and eat, making less money than a lot of people who live here already. Back on the topic of their cultures, people might be afraid that if too many illegal immigrants come here that they are going to spread their culture and it will take over. If we our comfortable with our own culture than we most certainly would prefer it to stay the same. I notice that people also get annoyed when people cannot speak English as well as everyone else. I see things that say “welcome to America, now speak English” and we might get a laugh out of that but it is easy to see that some people are serious about that. I have also witnessed many times how people get frustrated when they are speaking to another person and they cannot really understand them because they are speaking “broken” English. I can understand that people get frustrated because they cannot understand them. However I do not think that people should pass judgment on someone so easily. I think all these things add up to the stereotype of who we think immigrants are. Wed, 20 Apr 2011 23:17:51 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/why-does-society-dislike-immigrants-and-why-are-they-portrayed-badly-119-blog/#IDComment144649119 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment143499827 When i was first hearing the students repeating the story i really did not notice that the mixed or black students were telling the story different than the white students. i only noticed that as each person told the story it became increasingly vague and changes somewhat too. not until you pointed out that the white students were telling it differently did i think about it and see that they were actually telling it differently. i think a lot or i guess most of it has to do with political correctness. i think the fact that the student in the story was black maybe made the white person uncomfortable to say black especially since the guy in the story was seemingly a part of racism, in my opinion. i think the white person was maybe trying to seem like it was not as bad as it really was because they were not black and to talk about something like that lightly does come across that easy. i think also that as the story went from one person to the next and some parts of the story were forgotten or changed it seemed like no one was really pointing out the fact that the students who were being racist towards the main character of the story who was black, were white. I think that maybe those who were white were also a little uncomfortable with the fact that the bad people in the story were white because they might feel stereotyped into being a typical white person who was being racist against someone who was black, or a minority. I really do not know how to put into words what I am trying to get across but now that it has been pointed out that those who were white were telling it differently than those who were mixed or black it has become more obvious. Maybe I myself had seen it actually happening in class yesterday but I did not want to admit that it was because I am white as well. I also think that for a white person to retell the story who was of a different race would have been harder for them to repeat it to them because the story was about white people hating on black people. It almost seems silly for someone to be nervous to repeat the story to someone of a different race since it clearly was a story about them. Also because most of us who are taking this class are 1. Comfortable with talking about race to a certain point and 2. Comfortable with people who are a different race then us. I guess what makes us all uncomfortable is talking viewing or hearing about acts of hate on other races or racism on almost any terms. Sat, 16 Apr 2011 22:32:24 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/16/the-kill-team-tragedy-in-the-middle-east-001-blog/#IDComment143499827 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/do-you-agree-with-foreign-aids-use-of-pictures-of-children-119-blog/#IDComment140876041 After first seeing those commercials on tv, it seems like a those countries would benefit from them. However, after hearing Ernso Jean Louie say that he does not like random people coming in and taking pictures of the poor kids around him. It would be one thing if these people were doing this so that the people in Haiti could substantially benefit from it. Hearing that these people only do it for their own benefit is really kind of sickening. That these people could go into a completely poverty stricken country and use the people for their own benefit without contributing anything is terrible. At first when I see those commercials on tv I think how bad I feel for those people, so at first I would assume that this would help them out. However and maybe it is just me, I never actually feel motivated enough to call in and donate money. How do you really know where this money is going? Truthfully, I do not believe that a majority of that money that those commercials raise is going to where they say it is going to go, probably only a small portion of it. Another problem with these commercials is that they are portraying these people in such a pessimistic way. Yes they are living under very bad conditions but the children on these commercials always seem to be on the verge of tears and usually without parents or any caretakers but themselves. When Sam showed us pictures of when he was over there, the people he met with always had a smile on their faces. Also when the two women who went over there and came to soc 119 to talk to us about their trip, the people in their videos were smiling and the children in the video seem to be playing and having a good time. Just because they do not have all that we have does not mean that they are miserable. They learn to deal with what they have and accept that. I do think it is important that people are informed about the poor living conditions that these people are living in but I also people have not been informed of how pretty it looks there. I mean I have never really seen any part of Haiti from those in the commercials and every time it just looks run down. But that is exactly what I’m talking about. I would not want to go there for any reason unless it was to help people. If we are only seeing the poverty stricken parts then most people would not want to go there during their travels. If people actually started going there it could help, and I really do not know by how much, but it could possibly help their economy. Fri, 8 Apr 2011 01:15:56 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/07/do-you-agree-with-foreign-aids-use-of-pictures-of-children-119-blog/#IDComment140876041 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/31/women-what-are-your-thoughts-on-dressing-up-while-men-dress-down-and-did-they-change-after-this-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment138965354 The fact that I do dress up and wear heels to go out on the weekends made me want to respond to this question. I never really thought about it and the fact that I really am not making this decision. I just always assumed because I was picking out what to wear out at night I was making that decision completely on my own, but really that want did not just come out of nowhere. I like the analogy Sam’s wife used when she talked about the young girls picking the white doll a greater majority of the time. Because they are picking for themselves which doll they want makes it seem like they were deciding this completely on their own. However after today’s lecture it is easy to see that someone or some ones were making them feel as if the white doll was the better choice. I think this completely relates to getting dressed up to go out. Obviously us girls do not wear heels for their comfort or wear short skirts because we like to freeze our ass off. We do it because we see other girls do it and it becomes okay for us to do no matter how uncomfortable we might be. I think that seeing so many girls dressed up and wearing heels and you yourself going out in even just jeans and uggs can be a little awkward, even intimidating, I’m not really sure of the exact word I’m looking for. This goes as well for doing our hair and makeup. You normally don’t see girls going out with their hair up in a bun or even their natural hair. Usually it has been straightened or curled or something. As well as makeup too, we might go around saying how much we like to do all this stuff but really with all the time it takes is it really all worth it? Sometimes when I’m pressed for time and I do not have enough time to get ready or when it’s cold out I catch myself saying “ I just wish I could be a guy so I wouldn’t even have to get ready”. I have also heard other people say it but it’s not all the time. I don’t think that every time I am getting ready to go out. But now that I am actually thinking about what I’m saying, I’m realizing how easy guys have it in that aspect. They are able to take a minimal amount of time getting ready and can be comfortable with themselves and the way they look and can also be physically comfortable as well. That part of the lecture had me thinking about this a lot more but to be honest I do not think it will really affect what I wear and what not. I say this because it is almost like I have become comfortable, or used to, being uncomfortable. If I were to go out in say jeans and uggs all they time and feel comfortable, that is what would make me uncomfortable. Thu, 31 Mar 2011 23:48:12 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/31/women-what-are-your-thoughts-on-dressing-up-while-men-dress-down-and-did-they-change-after-this-lecture-119-blog/#IDComment138965354 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment137612385 I do not really know how to answer this because I have never been in a situation like for example the one where the girl was yelled at from a pick-up truck. To hear that though makes me sick to know that someone is so uncomfortable with the fact that someone of a different race was looking in their direction. It also bothers me that I really do not know what I would do in this situation. I haven’t put much though into it since I have never really experienced something like that but if I was put in that situation my first instinct would be to defend the person who was being discriminated against. However this is hypothetical and I also know that when the time would actually come I would also be scared to say something to the person discriminating, especially if I was friends or acquaintances with them. I guess I could say that I have been in situations where people were discriminating but it was not direct. I’m white and I have a few friends who for some reason like to make fun of black people. I really do not understand why and I definitely agree with the things they say. I am friends with people here who are black. They have told me that they would get offended if someone white called a black person a n*****. They told me that they don’t think it’s ok if someone who isn’t black does that. My friends that are white have said that word in a condescending way which really bothers me. I know that because I understand that a black person would be offended by that, that I should say something. However I usually hold my tongue because they are my friends too and I feel unsure what to say. What I really mean is I don’t know if saying something would actually make them reconsider. It especially bothers me that my friends that go here would say things like that because penn state is very diverse so you would think that it wouldn’t be a problem. I am not sure if my friends are uncomfortable but I would have hoped that they would have overcome that by now. The friends I am talking about are a few that I went to high school with. My high school was probably 98% white with some Asian exchange students and a very small number of black people. Probably small enough that I would be able to count on one hand. I understand that when we first came to penn state that we had very few experiences with people who are not white. However I feel as if being here I have become more comfortable with people who are not white. I do wish that my friends were the same because when they are discriminating I really do want to say something to them but it is hard sometimes. Sat, 26 Mar 2011 01:44:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/how-have-you-acted-when-involved-in-racist-or-discriminating-events-119-blog/#IDComment137612385 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment135935064 I am not dark skinned, I am actually white but I wanted to comment on this video because I think that everyone, no matter what race, probably had the same sort of reaction to this video. Before we watched the video Sam warned us that it was going to be the most disturbing video we watched all semester. After hearing that I expected it to be somewhat graphic. However, after seeing the video I realized that disturbing ideas can come from just words. You could sense a difference in the energy of the room after the video ended. Before Sam played the video, he had to stop talking multiple times to tell everyone to quiet down. Once the video was over, the room fell silent. I’m not sure exactly how everyone else felt but for me, I really didn’t know what to say. I was honestly surprised to see over two-thirds of the little girls pick the white dolls. If there would have been white children in this test I might have expected them to pick the white doll. I had assumed that these children would actually pick the doll that was the same race as them. I was also surprised at how quickly they picked the white doll rather than the colored one. Another disturbing part of the video was when they were asked which doll was good and which was bad they chose the white doll as good and the black doll as bad. I really had to wonder where they got this idea. I understand where people in class were coming from when they said to blame media. I do remember growing up how few colored characters there were, especially main characters. However I cannot really recall a time when I was watching something where the colored character was portrayed as being evil. So to hear those children automatically pick up or point to the colored doll when asked which one was bad began to confuse me. The other video “A Girl Like Me” some of the girls talked about how their own family members had an influence on how they felt about their own appearance. It is hard to say where exactly this image of white being the “good” color or the better color comes from but from these two videos it is clear that it is creating negative effects on those of color. I think it’s sad because as a whole race, it’s not like white people are going around and calling people of color ugly or bad. Somehow thought that image seems to be staying in their heads and it is beginning at a young age. The one part of the video that really got to me was the part where the young colored girl was asked which doll was bad and she point to the colored doll. She was then asked which one looked like here and again she pointed to the colored doll. The look on her face made it seem as though she thought the color of her skin was bad. It was hard to see someone at such a young age have to already deal with those racial insecurities. Fri, 18 Mar 2011 23:37:10 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/18/what-is-your-opinion-of-the-video-119-blog/#IDComment135935064 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/is-it-selfish-for-people-in-poverty-to-have-more-kids-because-of-their-lower-income-119-blog/#IDComment131996334 Or what about when you are not sure you can pay the rent. How can you be happy knowing that you may be living on the streets until you can find a better job or one at all? These are the things that those in poverty should consider before they go and have numerous kids. It’s not as if condoms cost so much that they would just be better off getting pregnant and having more kids than they can handle. Those who grew up in poverty are more likely to remain in poverty or remain poor for the rest of their lives. So why don’t they think about their own childhood and realize that they and their children would be better off if they only had the amount of kids that they could financially and emotionally handle instead of as many as they possibly can? Thu, 3 Mar 2011 01:49:40 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/is-it-selfish-for-people-in-poverty-to-have-more-kids-because-of-their-lower-income-119-blog/#IDComment131996334 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/is-it-selfish-for-people-in-poverty-to-have-more-kids-because-of-their-lower-income-119-blog/#IDComment131996300 . I do think it is just stupid to have more kids than they can handle though. I said that they might not be educated about things that can prevent them from getting pregnant but I do not think any education is necessarily required to know that if you struggle to get by alone then you should know that just one child can put you behind even further. I understand that people may want to have children and may dream of having a big happy family but how can you be happy when you are constantly under pressure to make some money here and there and you can barely get by. I know that money doesn’t buy happiness but I would imagine it would be difficult to be happy when you are not sure whether or not you can put enough food on the table to sustain you and the rest of you family. Thu, 3 Mar 2011 01:49:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/is-it-selfish-for-people-in-poverty-to-have-more-kids-because-of-their-lower-income-119-blog/#IDComment131996300 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/is-it-selfish-for-people-in-poverty-to-have-more-kids-because-of-their-lower-income-119-blog/#IDComment131996135 I do not know if I think it is selfish for those in poverty to have a lot of children. I don’t think that is the word I would use but I do think those who live at or below the poverty line should consider the kind of life that their children are going to grow up with before they start having kids left and right. It is possible that some poor people are not educated about the importance of protection or are unaware of products such as plan b and the pill. It could also simply be that they cannot afford these things on a regular basis. It also seems as if those who are poorer have children at a younger age and continue having children a lot of the time raising these children as a single parent. This only comes full circle for their children who will grow up in poverty and be more likely to have children at a younger age creating a sort of never ending cycle. Eventually one should realize you can’t raise a child in bad conditions much less five or more. It seems to me that a lot of poorer people have around the number of five children. I think that as a middle class family four to five children is enough and any more would start to put strain on the family’s economic situation. Thu, 3 Mar 2011 01:48:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/24/is-it-selfish-for-people-in-poverty-to-have-more-kids-because-of-their-lower-income-119-blog/#IDComment131996135 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/23/do-you-think-his-lighter-skin-gets-him-ahead-in-society-119-blog/#IDComment130202023 Another thing that has to do with color is prison systems. It seems that not only being white gets you ahead but maybe being of color can put you behind in a sense. Other statistics that Sam kept showing in class was the percentage of whites versus those of color in our prison in this country. We don’t know if people of color are actually committing more crimes or if they are actually being arrested more often because of the color of their skin. Judging by the way jobs go for people of color it seems as if the prison systems are just as discriminating as the world of businesses. Wed, 23 Feb 2011 23:57:19 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/23/do-you-think-his-lighter-skin-gets-him-ahead-in-society-119-blog/#IDComment130202023 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/23/do-you-think-his-lighter-skin-gets-him-ahead-in-society-119-blog/#IDComment130201981 Other things such as people of color being less likely to get the same mortgage as those of someone who was white when they each had the same type of lifestyle were shocking. This as well as the fact that banks would not give out loans to those of color when they had the same economic status as a white person are hard to believe. This is clear proof that we are still discriminating against those of a different race. What is even worse is that what Sam was saying, how employers or bankers refuse to believe that they are discriminating. He was saying that those people say that racism is not going on in my business. However there is no point denying it because those numbers which weren’t 5 or 50, they were very large, do not lie. I have never thought that I had been hired because I was white. Never have I walked away from a successful job interview thinking okay I probably got it because I was white. Wed, 23 Feb 2011 23:57:05 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/23/do-you-think-his-lighter-skin-gets-him-ahead-in-society-119-blog/#IDComment130201981 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/23/do-you-think-his-lighter-skin-gets-him-ahead-in-society-119-blog/#IDComment130201876 If I had been asked this question before taking this class I probably would have said no. it is not that I never really thought about this problem, but I think I have been somewhat ignorant to the answer of this question. My answer now is of course his white skin gets him ahead. It is sad but clearly true. The lectures focusing on that have opened my eyes and showed me how it is such a problem. I do not think those experiments lie when the statistics show that white men are hired at a higher rate than those of color when the resumes are exactly the same. Before seeing those statistics I would have never believed that a hiring manager would discriminate a potential new employee just because of their name. It is sad because that person has not even met them in person but do not want them simply because they are not white. What is even more shocking to me is that an employer would rather higher someone who was white but had been convicted of a felony than higher someone of color who had a clean record. I don’t understand why some people assume that people of color are less reliable or more likely to cause problems because that is what I am seeing from those statistics. Wed, 23 Feb 2011 23:56:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/23/do-you-think-his-lighter-skin-gets-him-ahead-in-society-119-blog/#IDComment130201876 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/17/how-do-you-feel-about-the-way-people-live-in-america-compared-to-other-places-around-the-world-119-blog/#IDComment128984096 I’ve always imagined that I was better off than a lot of people in this world living here in the United States. My family is not rich or upper class but learning about other cultures throughout my years in school I’ve realized how little so much the rest of the world has. I know that living here in the U.S. does not mean you are living exactly a life with an excess of material goods. It’s clear that there are a lot of people in this country that cannot get by alone and need the help of others. The crazy thing to me is though, seeing lower class people in this country and learning that even they are much better off than 97% of the world. Comprehending that is sometimes hard for me because I also see so many people in this country and others as well who have so much and then there are people out there who literally have nothing. The guy in class on Thursday who had said that he did not have enough to buy fair trade products, saying he only had enough for himself, that is usually what I think of when I think of someone who is poor. I did know that there were people who had less than that but watching that video made it even more real. Hearing the people in the video say that they got paid nothing for their work just seems absurd to me. To go day after day doing hard labor and barely getting a good meal or clean place to sleep would be something that most of us in this country probably never even think about. We don’t have to worry about ever being in that state, and we are so lucky for everything we have because we have so much more than so many people. Another thing that got me thinking was how Sam was talking about the boy he was trying help get a plane ticket so he could go to college. Material things are not the only thing we take for granted. I think we also take our education for granted. We have grown up being constantly educated day in and day out, it pretty much seems like a right that we have and sometimes we don’t even realize how important it really is. Not only are we lucky enough to be able to go to school, we should take this opportunity to be educated about the rest of the world and learn how most of the world lives. As far as it goes with guilt, I cannot say that I feel guilty exactly but as I answered the clicker question, angry about how the world is organized. Why do so many of us think that we need endless amounts of things to be happy. We always want the newest thing out there, but that does not bring long term happiness. We might think that the 97% of the world who aren’t as lucky as us are missing out on everything good. But they are still living and I’m sure that they can find ways to be happy even with the little that they have. So maybe we, the 3%, are the ones who are really missing out. If we all saw that using so many of the world’s resources didn’t make us happy maybe we wouldn’t waste so much and those who have nothing would atleast have something. I am always thinking about how different the world would be if people lived on a somewhat more equal. Sat, 19 Feb 2011 01:38:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/17/how-do-you-feel-about-the-way-people-live-in-america-compared-to-other-places-around-the-world-119-blog/#IDComment128984096 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/10/what-did-you-get-out-of-king-of-the-mountain-119-blog/#IDComment127449616 At first while watching Sam demonstrate the King of the Mountain concept I had to wonder what he was doing. Then as he began to explain it in more detail I began to understand and put it into context. To me it made complete sense that the person on top created rules to ensure that they and their future generations would stay on top. It does not matter whether you are the ruler of many people or the ring leader of the group of your friends or colleagues. It seems those types of people always make biased rules that do not really affect them. However getting to the top of your mountain requires one to make all the right decisions to get there before anyone else. Our choices everyday will be affecting our future. Another thing that was brought up was how we seem to give others of only our own race the advantage. So if we were on the on the top would we only help those who were of the same race? We might think now that we would be in the position to help anyone and be a kind human being. However, when it would come down to it, our decision might be different. And what about if we weren’t at the top? What about if we were just average but we had the opportunity to help someone who was currently of a lower status. Who knows what we would do, we might only be looking out for ourselves and just think that it would be easier to help that person if we were of an even higher status. This includes not just the example Sam used of being a free black during slavery but even today. We see all these people suffering even in America. Sometimes I think it is just easier for us to think that we would like to help out the less fortunate if we were richer. However if that were the case we would only want to be even richer. There are many poor people in this country but if you are in middle class or higher I think it is easy to believe that they do not exist. But we all know that is not true. Most of us have heard the saying that America is the best country but none us can possibly know that. First of all I really doubt that anyone has been to every single country in the world. And second I think that we try to only see the positive in our own country more than the negative in others. I think we should try to work at making our country as great as most of us think it is and help the others to follow. Sat, 12 Feb 2011 01:34:05 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/10/what-did-you-get-out-of-king-of-the-mountain-119-blog/#IDComment127449616 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/03/do-you-think-race-can-stop-being-an-issue-in-the-future-119-blog/#IDComment126075053 To answer this blog simply, I would like to think positively and of course say yes, it won’t. However, to be more realistic I’m not sure how far exactly in the future that is. “Race” seems to be a big thing in this world, which it is; worldwide. Things that are worldwide cannot easily change over the course of a few years or decades. Things like slavery lasted for so long so and now to progress with the issue will take much longer, however much less drastic. I do think that the issue will continue to decrease with each generation. Different cultures and their traditions will fade and people will become more ethnicities will become more mixed. One major part that needs to change is being “politically correct”. Each time you think twice about the things you say while talking to someone of a different race. I had never really thought about it until Sam kept talking about it during lecture. I know myself that sometimes I think about what I’m saying. Before I had taken this class I thought that being more cautious was better. To me I just wanted the person to know that I didn’t discriminate. However after thinking about it after class I realized that the fact that I was acknowledging the difference meant that I was always thinking about it. Although, sometimes it is hard because most people do have physical differences. When you are talking to someone you are usually looking at them. I think that it is why it is always on our minds. I also have learned from this class how similar people look on the other hand. While using our clickers in class and trying to distinguish which choice, either a,b,c,or d was or was not a certain race, I really could not tell the difference sometimes at first. However after doing that a couple time I realized that although I thought they all looked the same it might not be the one I expect. Knowing that people can look so similar but live so far away from each other just shows that we all have the same first roots. That is what I think we should focus on. The similarities of everyone who might seem so different. I do not think that it is necessarily the parents fault just because that is how they are brought up. However one’s upbringing can be a major problem with race relations. If we our brought up to speak correctly then we are going to assume that is what we are supposed to do. If we all only knew that treating everyone the same will be a sign that race is starting to become less of an issue and more of something from the past. Sat, 5 Feb 2011 04:40:07 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/03/do-you-think-race-can-stop-being-an-issue-in-the-future-119-blog/#IDComment126075053 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/why-cant-we-just-be-human-119-blog/#IDComment124455490 I really don’t understand why can’t all be human as well. Scientifically humans are nearly the same, do why do we look down upon some people when really there is no superior human. Humanity is the superior species but there is no subspecies that is better than another. I think even though we all actually no this we still find ourselves making fun of certain people and treat them as though we are better than them. Sometimes I find myself feeling a little weird around those who are a different race than be but when I actually think back about it I can’t really explain those feelings. The other thing I don’t understand is why some people seem to think that some people are so worthless that animals deserve more than them. It seems that people treat their pets better than they would treat a human being on the other side of the world who lives in poor condition. I myself am an animal lover but sometimes when those commercials come on TV about the abandoned animals or about poor people loving in bad condition in Africa or somewhere, the animals get more sympathy. As sad as both of them are it seems like we should reach out to the humans more. If we really think about it, it is just like are friend living that way. They are still human but for some reason they are living in conditions extremely unfavorable. I can’t imagine living that kind of life whatsoever. In the United States I feel so lucky to have a roof to live under and a surplus of food whenever I want it. In my opinion everyone should have an opportunity to live a life where they do not have to worry about where they are going to get there next meal or if they are going to have warm clothes for the winter. It seems almost impossible for everyone to have an extremely cushy lifestyle. However if we saw the way we lived and realized how much we wasted then we would see how much they are living without. To me it seems hard to get all of the nice resources we have over to those who are less fortunate but if we could atleast be somewhat concerned about people then things would happen. We’re all human and we all deserve to be treated like that. It isn’t someone’s fault if they are born into unfavorable conditions and since people like us are lucky enough to be we should atleast do something. In fact it doesn’t have to be all the way across the world. There are people living around us who don’t live the way we do. Being close to them gives us an opportunity to do something. Sat, 29 Jan 2011 02:15:27 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/why-cant-we-just-be-human-119-blog/#IDComment124455490 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/why-do-we-associate-with-people-of-the-same-race-and-ethnicity-as-ourselves-119-blog/#IDComment124453213 i think like many other people have said that we associate ourselves with those of the same race simply because we think we will be the most comfortable. I went to a private school and it was not very diverse at all. there were a few korean exchange students and some people who were not white but probably 97% of my school was white. this is not to say that whenever i was around people who were not white i felt uncomfortable. i grew up feeling as if everyone was equal however going to a school which was nearly entirely white, it just felt like the norm to associate with those people. Also generally we tend to have the same views and customs of people who are the same race as us so this makes us have the illusion that we would be more comfortable around these people. However it would be a good experience to associate ourselves with people of different cultures because there are so many things to learn who live in the same place as us. I also think we exclude ourselves from people who are different race because we are somewhat intimidated. Think about it, if we all hang out with people of the same race then trying to include ourselves in a group that is just one race then we might feel like a bit of an outcast. That is why we should converge races and hang out with anyone because once we learn about different race’s cultures then we would be free to talk about whatever and not feel uncomfortable. However I do think that we are not completely uncomfortable with other races. Although even a school as big as our seems to have the majority white people, I still see people of different races hanging out with each other. If people are only hanging out with people of their own race, I don’t think it is because they are shallow and think their race is superior. I think it is just because it has always somewhat been that way and we don’t know when to change that. Sat, 29 Jan 2011 01:58:44 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/why-do-we-associate-with-people-of-the-same-race-and-ethnicity-as-ourselves-119-blog/#IDComment124453213 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/15/blog-1-freedom-and-toddlers-in-tiaras/#IDComment122876140 Child and toddler beauty pageants do not seem like that big of a deal to me when they are appropriate for the participant’s age. However, when the children are all made up to look as if they are ten years older than they really are it is being taken too far. The children should not be judged on how they would look with make-up and clothes that they would not be considered appropriate for their age. A child’s mind takes in everything around them and the children in these pageants are having their minds molded into thinking they have to look a certain way and do certain things to win. The toddlers in these pageants probably cannot make up their own minds as to how to wear their hair or what to present as their talents. So the parents of these children have to take it into their own hands to tell them how to dress and basically hold the strings to their children being treated like puppets. The children most likely know what they want or do not want so if they really did not want to be involved they would probably say so. However, with their parents being the main force acting upon their decision to participate, it seems like they would choose to do as their parents say. The children who participate in these pageants can either have positive or negative effects from the outcome of the pageant. A child at a young age might not care if they win or lose, some might not realize what the outcome actually means. In their parents’ eyes, they are the true winner. However, for the child that actually understands what is going on, they might become upset because of the fact that they did not win. This child could have serious self-esteem problems because they thought they were not good enough to win the pageant. Although most of the children would probably be able to forget about the fact that they did not win. There could also be negative effects on children who do come out winning the pageant. They might have the idea after this that the way to win is to be perfect and do what other people tell you to do and to look the way everyone else wants you to look like. After watching the video, I have a different perspective on child and toddler beauty pageants. I never really think they were a big deal but seeing the children dress and dance the way their parents wanted them too at such a young age made me reconsider. I do think some people make too big a deal about it in the media, though. It technically is the parents’ decision for their kids but it should be tone down in my opinion. Fri, 21 Jan 2011 23:57:17 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/15/blog-1-freedom-and-toddlers-in-tiaras/#IDComment122876140 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cc%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment122159205 SOC 119 Tue, 18 Jan 2011 22:50:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cc%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment122159205