en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2417224 Comments by mikeyd17 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/29/do-you-ever-feel-uncomfortable-around-two-or-more-people-speaking-another-language-119-blog/#IDComment139783261 Hearing a language other than English as never been frightening to me. I come from a suburb of Washington DC so growing up I’ve been used to a large diversification of people. Almost every day I hear people speak a language other than English. A large amount of my friends are Asian or Indian. When they talk to their parents its almost always in a language other than English. I’ve never felt phased by this as I always grew up with it. Diversification is a great part of America and I never have a problem with people speaking their own native language. Frankly I find it very intriguing when people speak in other languages around me. I always ask my friends to teach me words and sentences so that I can joke around and communicate with them. So whenever I hear someone speak a language other than English I always “eavesdrop” on them to see if they say any words that I might be able to recognize. Then even if I can’t recognize anything they say I try to pick up clues due to their facial expressions and gestures to see what they’re talking about. I’ve always seen something that is different then me as interesting and intriguing more than a threat. Many people become uncomfortable in this situation because they believe that they are talking about them. I don’t believe that many people who would speak another language would do this and plus even if they are, who cares? It’s not like people who speak English wouldn’t talk bad about you if that were how they felt. They would either just wait till later or talk in a low enough voice so they can’t be overheard. The ability to speak another language has always been intriguing to me and I encourage people to learn and speak another language. Also those people who are from other countries that speak their native language have every right to and shouldn’t have to speak English just to make other people feel comfortable. They are holding onto a part of their culture and I see it as nothing more than that. People always have their own slang terms and inside jokes among friends anyways, its not like you always understand what someone in English is talking about. Nothing about another language should make someone feel uncomfortable; the only thing in that situation that could make you uncomfortable is your own insecurities. I think that sometimes when people just don’t understand what’s going on around them, they jump to the worst possible conclusion which is that the person is making fun of them so they feel uncomfortable. The only part of language that makes me feel uncomfortable is when I have to communicate with someone who can’t speak English very well. I don’t want to sound like a jerk when I talk to them, but at the same time I don’t always know what to say or how to say it, so that they will understand the point that I’m trying to convey. Mon, 4 Apr 2011 03:05:49 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/29/do-you-ever-feel-uncomfortable-around-two-or-more-people-speaking-another-language-119-blog/#IDComment139783261 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/what-factors-in-your-race-make-it-difficult-to-date-outside-your-race-119-blog/#IDComment137217123 It’s difficult to date outside of your race because there are a lot of factors that come into play when dating. For instance are you attracted to every type of race? Many white people find other white people to be better looking than other races so therefore they are more inclined to be in a relationship with someone within there race. As an example I have this friend who is really attracted to Asian girls. He is a white male but that is just his preference. Though this isn’t the preference most white people take. I think the reason you don’t date many people out of your race is because your most inclined to be attracted to someone of your own race which is just a latent prejudice. So most of all I believe its physical reasons why you don’t date outside of race but there are still many other factors that take part in this. Even though you don’t think about having kids and a family with someone right when you meet them this has a big part in who you are attracted to. I think a lot of people don’t like the idea of having kids with mixed races. There are obviously many exceptions to this, but I believe most people would rather have a kid that is there own race than another. Another part of this is religion. It is very hard to raise a family when the parents each have a different religion. This would be the case for many multiracial couples. Many Asians and Indians will have a different religion than that of a Black or White American. For this reason people also aren’t as likely to date outside of there race. Last, is simply that its just not something we’re that used to seeing. Many of use aren’t sure how are parents would react to having a new race be brought into the family. For example if you were to look at my family tree, it would be 100% in my close family and maybe if you go back enough you could find some other races in it, but not much. It would be a big change for the family to start branching into a new direction of race. For instance if I were to marry an Indian girl who was Hindu then my kids would be raised have Hindu. If they were to choose to continue that way and also marry Indian people themselves, then all of a sudden you would take my protestant white family and have them branching into an Indian/Hindu family. By this I’m trying to say, that your family puts a lot of pressure on you to pick someone to marry that they find to be acceptable. For many peoples case their families are Thu, 24 Mar 2011 11:01:18 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/22/what-factors-in-your-race-make-it-difficult-to-date-outside-your-race-119-blog/#IDComment137217123 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/02/do-people-feel-guilt-about-their-current-positions-when-knowing-about-the-disadvantages-of-the-freed-slaves-119-blog/#IDComment132094332 I wouldn't necessarily say that the feeling I have is guilt when it comes to this issue. I don’t feel that I have done anything to feel guilty about. There isn’t any action or set of actions that I have done to harm the other group. I do recognize though the advantages in which I was born into. I believe this is the key to not to feeling guilt. Awareness on the part of us to see our advantages. Only when we are aware of the others disadvantages can we help. Though in no way do I feel guilt because I’m not responsible for any slavery in the U.S. I neither founded nor condone the notion of slavery. Yes it is true I don’t go out of my way to protest against it, for example buying free labor products. Though I still feel that I’m very young and have time to make an impact on this topic. It’s impossible to look and not feel bad for all the people in slavery or freshly out of it. This is just human companionship, but guilt is a feeling created when you feel like you have done something to wrong another. Even if it was my ancestors who brought another s ancestors down which is why they are in the position they are in today, I wouldn’t feel guilty. I feel strong in my belief so that I have nothing to be ashamed of. I encourage others to also not feel guilty of the position they are in. Yes we were born with many advantages, but we still had to take advantage of them to get were we are today. One of the most important quality in someone is their work ethic and how they take advantage of opportunities. I believe that I have worked hard and had to face adversity to get where I am today. I know that even if these other free slaved work just as hard as I have they will not reach the position I am in most likely but that is not a reason to feel guilt. There is this talk about “white guilt”. To be that’s a terrible reason to feel guilty. Being born into a middle class white family is hardly an action to feel guilty about. I believe that the only reason you should feel guilty is if you’re a lazy person who doesn’t take advantage of their opportunities. For example if I was born into a middle class family that could support me going to college, you better believe that you should work hard in school and try to go to college to make something of yourself. It’s the people who sit around and just don’t try that should feel guilty. You don’t even have to go to college, that was just an example. If you want to play guitar, be an actor, a recording engineer, that’s all fine, but you better work hard and use your advantages. It’s the people that let them go to waste, while others of a lower class would kill to be in their position. People who work hard and don’t make decisions that put others down should have nothing to feel guilty about. Thu, 3 Mar 2011 13:23:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/02/do-people-feel-guilt-about-their-current-positions-when-knowing-about-the-disadvantages-of-the-freed-slaves-119-blog/#IDComment132094332 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/#IDComment130456601 To be honest, yes I think it is somewhat selfish and also irresponsible of them. They are in poverty and having more kids isn't going to help them at all. I know its hard to tell someone that having a lot of kids is wrong. I mean pro creating is something that can never be taken away from you by another human. Though in this instance you have to think about how your kids feel. For example in class today we watched Tammy's story. Do you honestly believe that her kids were that happy. She said herself that she wasn't happy so I can't imagine her kids were. Her one son kept talking about how he wanted more out of life and wanted to better himself. It is your responsibility as a parent to be able to support yourself and your kids. I think it is wrong to tell a person they can’t have a kid at all. But if you have your first kid and you are struggling to support them, clothe them, and feed them, then it is wrong of you to have another. The only argument you can have for having another kid, is another kid to love and share compassion with. Though if you really loved your first kid you would realize how much you are hurting them by having another kid. I look at middle class families and you can easily see the disparity within them already when it comes to kids. A middle class family that only has one kid will much sooner become an upper middle class family than one that has 5plus kids. A big part of this with middle class families is college, they can only support so many kids tuitions, so what do they do? Do they only help out the first few kids, or give nothing to all of them to be fair. This is the same for lower class people. If they were to have a lot of kids, surely they wouldn’t have enough money to spend for all the kids needs. So it ends up that some kids get a lot while others getting nothing or you have all your kids end up with nothing. I don’t think anyone should willingly put a child into poverty. This is exactly what you would be doing though by having multiple kids as you give no hope to better your financial situation by piling on kids. Instead you just force more and more kids to grow up in low class situations without advantages that many other kids get. Fri, 25 Feb 2011 00:21:58 +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/#IDComment130456601 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541769 (4/4)The only stat that throughs my theory off is the one stating that Blacks and Hispanics get heavier charges for the same drug crime that White's commit. My only thought behind that, is what background do they come from. For instance if you take a middle class white person vs a lower class black/hispanic. They will always charge the lower class person with a heavier charge than the middle class and in most cases I believe its classism not racism that leads to misguided numbers in our legal system. Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:47:49 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541769 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541721 (3/4)For this reason they will track people in urban areas and crack down on drugs because it is easier to make arrests that way. Also once they charge someone for drugs they can look deeper into their background to see if they were the cause for any of the crimes that had been going on in that area. For the most part I think the reason the Blacks and Hispanics have such high drug charges compared to drug usage is because urban areas are typically heavier populated with Blacks and Hispanics. Then these are the areas targeted to find drug users, not because they care about their drug consumption but because the other crimes they believe these people may be doing. In areas of high crime rate, the police are looking for execuses to arrest anyone in hope they may find someone who has been the cause of many crimes. In these areas I don't believe they crack down any harder on Blacks than they do Whites. Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:47:29 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541721 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541668 (2/4)Since there was little need for law enforcement they didn't bother on cracking down hard on people doing drugs because it obviously didn't lead to them doing other illegal things. Now when you take urban areas, the crime rates are extremely high for crimes other than drug related ones. Due to this they simply place for policemen in urban areas who are trying to come down harder than those in suburban areas. I also believe that law enforcement doesn't care that much about the usage of drugs that a normal citizen uses. The only drugs I believe that the law cares about are the dealers who handle large amounts of drugs and have a lot of money. The everyday user of drugs hardly gets pursued by the police. This being said, I believe that many of the arrests and charges that take place in urban areas for drug related issues isn't because of those drugs but simply since because they live in an area of high crime rate. It is easier for the police to track and find people doing drugs than it is for them to find people for other crimes. Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:47:04 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541668 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541609 (1/4) I would have to lean towards the face that there is more arrests of black and hispanic simply due to the fact there is a higher population of them in urban areas. The town I grew up in was about 60% white. This isn't a strong majority but it still is one. In my town almost everyone used drugs in highschool, every white, black, asian person was smoking weed or doing something else. Even though we had these high drug numbers almost no arrests or charges were ever place on anyone I went to school with for drugs. This is for all races and all ages. If you were to look at the criminal charges for my town there would hardly be any for drugs. This is because my town was also very safe. There was little crime, such as vandolism, assualt, or theft. I have to believe that do the fact that the crime rate was so low there was little need for law enforcement. Thu, 17 Feb 2011 12:46:37 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/16/do-arrests-of-different-races-occur-more-due-to-racism-or-more-police-in-urban-areas-119-blog/#IDComment128541609 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/01/what-is-the-difference-between-a-colored-and-white-comedian-119-blog/#IDComment125622800 I think this whole thing goes back to political correctness. White men are raised to always be politically correct. It is expected of them to always say the right thing in regards to other races that would least offend them. So because of this it is very hard for a white person to be the type of comedian that makes fun of other races. As the majority it isn't considered correct to make fun of the minorities. That's just the way it is, it isn't that minority races take more effect to being made fun of, its just that the source its coming from isn't supposed to do so. For example, even other white people in the crowd don't respond as well to white comedian making fun of other races because even though it doesn't offend them, they don't see it as right. The only way a white comedian can make fun of other people is of they are of white races. For instance making fun of italians or irish is perfectly acceptable for a white comedian to do because they are also white races. Some others have said that it is better to open up by making fun of yourself before moving onto other races but even in this case I don't believe that, that would work. I just think that due to the political correctness in the world any joke made by a white man towards a minority is considered offensive not funny. After saying this all, I believe it is something that really needs to change in todays world. Political correctness shouldn't just pertain to a majority and also it shouldn't limit them to something it doesn't limit others too. The whole idea of political correctness is equality and not to treat others bad. Many comedians of other races base there whole acts on making fun of there race and other races. It is something that is perfectly for them to do, because they are of a minority it isn't against political correctness for them to speak about other races in that nature. I believe this a just a small part of a problem in todays society where we sometimes over due things to try and gain equality. We go sometimes to such efforts to help the minority that we are actually suppressing the majority and creating an unfair advantage in the opposite way. I'm not just talking about race in this but also gender. One good example is title IX, which requires colleges to offer the same number of sports to men as it does women and also give equal money to them. This can create a problem as it limits the number of sports a school can offer for men. Also for funding it limits the amount of scholarships they can give out. For instance since they need to offer the same amount of money towards scholarships for men and women sports, football dominates the scholarships for men sports on colleges. So then smaller sports like soccer may be neglected. While the girls soccer team has $150,000 to give away in scholarship money, the men's team may only have $50,000 simply because mens scholarship money is taken up by football. Thu, 3 Feb 2011 06:25:07 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/01/what-is-the-difference-between-a-colored-and-white-comedian-119-blog/#IDComment125622800 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/why-do-we-associate-with-people-of-the-same-race-and-ethnicity-as-ourselves-119-blog/#IDComment124097072 I don't if your right to say that people don't branch out and hang out with other races. People tend to hang out with people that share the same type of culture in life that they do. For example the reason you see many of the international students hang out with one another is because they aren't to quick to give up the culture they have lived and grown up accustomed to. There right for doing so, they shouldn't give up there past. I'm from a suburb about 10 minutes outside of DC. Growing up I lived with the most diverse group of people, including very close friends who were black, muslim, hindu, buddhist. We all recognized the comfortability in each other because we grew up in the same area with the same culture to it. I don't think it matters what race or ethnicity someone is at all to whether we hang out with them or not. It rather depends on the culture they grew up in and the way they go about things, because thats what makes us most comfortable. Your always going to be more comfortable with what your most used to. So in this case you ask why people don't branch out more, it's because its just not human nature to continually put yourself out of a comfort zone when your happy with what you have. There will be exceptions, but those are generally due to peer pressure which in this case you wouldn't receive any. Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:07:56 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/26/why-do-we-associate-with-people-of-the-same-race-and-ethnicity-as-ourselves-119-blog/#IDComment124097072 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/18/what-characteristics-would-you-give-your-race-blog-2/#IDComment122459856 I'm a caucasian male, with a polish and irish background. I find that whites tend to always be politically correct because being the major race in the U.S. it is very easy feel racist saying anything that goes against the minority races. To be truthful I find that most whites think very highly of themselves in regards to other races which creates this expectation that if your a white male you should go to school and get a well paying job. If you don't do these you've screwed up in your life because whites are just expected to achieve. Other than political correctness many whites try to just represent themselves nicely. Even if they are in a bad mood, for the most part they will not try to show it or speak in a language that represents that, unless you are the one that provoked them into that bad mood. It is tough though to really describe the traits of any race, because in these time races are growing and branching out to take on the habits of the cultures other races create. Thu, 20 Jan 2011 07:57:44 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/18/what-characteristics-would-you-give-your-race-blog-2/#IDComment122459856 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cd%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment122458643 soc 119 Thu, 20 Jan 2011 07:46:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cd%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment122458643