Reading this has really opened my eyes to something that I never would have thought otherwise. Whenever I think of people in jail I think of horrible people who basically have no soul and who do not care about many things. I mean I guess that has to be somewhat true because these “lifers” have committed awful crimes and have taken the lives of other people and put many families through unnecessary mourning. But I guess I really cannot speak for these people because I have not been to jail and I have not been able to experience the things these men have gone through. It does become hard to have any sympathy for them because personally, I do not believe in the death penalty. I believe that a murdered should be in jail till life without parole, like these men, so they can think about the horrible things they have done to someone else. Like the man said, it is hard to imagine prisoners having any compassion towards anyway because they had no compassion when they killed someone else. I guess being in jail for so long changes your outlook on life. I guess at the start they feel hate and anger, but soon realize they are going to be in jail forever and need a way to cope with the situation at hand. At the same time I almost have to admire this man for being able to turn such a horrible situation into something positive. I have to admire him for being able to have compassion in jail towards other and not just beat other guys up when he sees a grown man crying. I have to admire that he would even give up some of his phone time in order to give it to another inmate in order for the other inmate to talk to his daughter on her birthday. Also, I could not believe how he said he donates blood and tries to do what he can to help others. It feels like this man has really realized his wrong doings in his life and is now trying to make up for it. I always just wondered what prisoners who are “lifers” think about all day when they know they are going to be in the same place until the day they die. This letter gave some insight into something I was interested in knowing. When in bad situations myself, my mom always tells me to turn my head around and try to see the good things or change the way I was thinking. I never thought a prisoner would be able to have this attitude. I guess I learned that no matter what the difficult situation is you should turn your head around and try to see the light.

I think that affirmative action can and can not be effective. In certain cases I think it is important to have affirmative action because it helps people who would not normally have that help. However, I also feel that sometimes people take advantage of affirmative action and just check off that box to get a better opportunity that they do not necessarily deserve. There is a girl from high school who had worse SAT scores and a worse GPA than another girl I know. The girl with the lesser grades happens to be Hispanic and the other girl is just a normal white girl. The white girl did not get into the main campus of Penn State, but the other girl did. It really makes me wonder if the reason the girl with the lesser grades and SATs got in because of her race. This girl does not live in an awful circumstance; she actually has a lot of money and comes from a very good family. Her opportunities for school were probably higher than that of my friend who did not get into the University Park campus. I think affirmative action should be looked into more than just a check on an application. The person’s background should also be looked into like where they come from and the high school they attended, not just the color of their skin or nationality. In the case that the person questioned about as far as people being qualified, I do not know how much affirmative action plays into getting into medical school. I would hope that it does not play that big of a part because I want my doctor to know their stuff regardless of their race.
As far as nepotism goes it is really hard to argue with because if I was able to get a job from a family member or a close a friend I would most likely accept it because I want to be working. I know it really sucks for the person who might be more qualified than me. I mean I would be really pissed if someone else got the job I was more qualified for because of a family member. However, it is sort of just the way the world has been working and I do not know if there is much that can be done to change it. I am not sure that anyone would really pass up the opportunity of a job if they knew someone was better qualified than them to do the job. That is part of the problem because no one really sees it as an issue unless they are the other person, they would accept the job if it was their uncle giving them the position.

I saw this video earlier in the year because my friend showed it to me and when I saw it I was incredibly shocked. I have never seen anything like that in my life before with little kids. It is so sad too because little kids do not really know much about race especially the kids the age in the video. They actually believe that the white doll is better and the black doll is not a good person. When asked which doll is nicer most of the kids chose the white doll even though they were colored. It totally boggles my mind because it seems like this little children actually think they are bad people. It also shows that society has not really progressed much because when this experiment was done earlier, the children chose the same things. I really can not get over the fact that these children have this hatred for their own skin color already embedded in their minds subconsciously. I really would not think that in this modern day the black children would chose the black doll all the time and the white children would chose the white doll and the Hispanics would chose the Hispanic doll and so on. It was so hard to watch the little black girl chose the black doll after she had just picked the black doll as the "bad" doll. The look in her face was unforgettable because this message lies in her head that she is "bad" because of the fact that she is black. It looked almost as if she wished she could have just picked the white doll. I never realized how hard it probably is for children that are not white to even just watch TV and movies. In almost every show there is a white perfect family with a dog and a white picket fence. Usually people of color are the ones committing crimes to these perfect white people and this puts a message in these young children's minds. Most movies have a white superhero, I can not think of a superhero that is of another race. Spiderman, Superman, and Batman are all white macho men that save entire towns and sometimes the bad guys are depicted as black homeless men that have just stolen an old lady's purse. The only children's movie that I have seen that has black princesses and princes is Princess and the Frog and that is a very new movie that Disney created because of the stress of what I have previously stated. I would like to hope that things are progressing and that black's and other races aren't being depicted as being at the heart of crime, but after seeing this video I'm not too sure I can confidently say that. I just do not know what to do to fix this problem.

It really does not make much sense why people get so uncomfortable when talking about a female's menstruation, but mostly everyone does become uncomfortable when the topic is brought up. I have to agree with what some people have said before about this topic. I remember in fifth grade we had mother daughter night and there was also a father son night. We watched a movie with our moms about what was going to be going on in our bodies and the boys watched a similar video except on the male body parts. Being separated so early automatically makes the topic awkward. Also, just bleeding in general grosses me out alone and I would not even want to think about it if I did not have to. Some couples do talk about the female getting her period because they are afraid that she might be pregnant. That would probably be the only time that a male would want to hear anything about a female's menstrual cycle. I'm not sure if it's that males are uneducated about the female period I just think it's that it does not really concern them so they have no interest in learning about it or hearing much about it. Like I said, the only thing they probably know is that when a woman is bleeding it means she's not having his baby.
Men have things so much easier than females do. I wish that men got periods also so they could experience the annoyance of having a period. I sure as hell hate getting mine just like Sam's wife. It's a complete annoyance having to worry about things like leaking and having cramps and not feeling well. Also, sometimes girls are bitches when they have their periods and that's never fun to deal with. I do not get why females get their periods so early in age also. I know back in the day 13 year old's were having babies but that is not necessary in today's day in age so it sucks to have to deal with menstruating for a good portion of life. There are also so many teen pregnancies that come as a surprise to these teens and if periods came later in life like 20s then this would not be an issue. In general, men have things so much easier sometimes. Men do not gossip nearly as much as girls do and probably do not care as much about what other guys think about them. Also, females have to do their hair and makeup in order to impress the opposite sex, but males just put on an outfit and walk out the door like it is not a big deal. Also, women have to go through labor pains; men can not even say they can experience anything even close to that.

I can not believe this is still going on in today's society. I never thought I would read an article in today's day in age saying that a prom was canceled because the school did not want a lesbian couple to attend. Gay marriage is legal in a few a states and things for gay couples are slowly progressing. For a school, in this modern day, to still focus on out dated measures is insane. Things are progressing for gay couples and this school should be able to recognize that society is changing and homosexuality is becoming more and more acceptable as a whole.
I know for a fact that there were a few lesbian couples at my prom last year and one of the girls did wear a tuxedo to the prom. No one in my school had a problem with them attending in the way they did or even the fact they were there at all. It might have bothered some people but the majority of the students and faculty had no problems at all and did not feel uncomfortable by their presence. The school even said they would not let her wear a tuxedo to the dance. The board of education should have no say what so ever about the students attire to the prom as long as it is school appropriate. They can not argue that a tuxedo is not appropriate because most of the boys that would be attending the prom would be wearing them.
I think this girl has a lot of guts to be able to go and buy a ticket her and her girlfriend. A lot of gay couples are probably going with someone of the opposite sex in fear of being ridiculed. Homosexuals are not supposed to be ridiculed by an entire board of education; they are supposed to be accepted and feel comfortable in their sexuality. It is also so good that she was so comfortable in her sexuality. Then, she had to be turned away by her school which is supposed to be accepting of her. A lot of kids can not even come out of the closet so to say and she was able to try to buy a same sex prom ticket. Good for her! I feel bad that she had to go through all of this and then be afraid that her classmates are going to pissed at her for canceling the prom. They shouldn't be mad at her they should be mad and protest the school because it was the schools actions that caused the prom to be canceled, not the young girl who was just being herself. This article still boggles my mind and I hope that the prom is put back on and she can wear a tuxedo and bring her girlfriend.

This is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard but it is not unbelievable by any standards. Abercrombie & Fitch try to pride themselves on looks from having male shirtless models welcome customers, and by doing have naked photo shoots for their clothing catalogs. I knew that they had a strict hiring policy because a friend of mine got asked to work there because he was good looking and the manager thought he would "fit" well. His job qualifications did not matter at all they were almost ready to hire him on the spot because of his looks. I know at the Hollister store in my mall it is mostly only good looking people who work there because they want to try to keep their "beachy fresh" image. Newsflash, not many people who buy their clothing actually look the way their workers do. My friend ended up taking the job and that even while working there he noticed discriminatory actions. The store had hired an African American girl but she never worked on the floor of the store she was always in the back steaming the clothes where no one could see her. These policies are crazy and such a huge company should realize they are going to lose more and more customers each day they continue to hire people who only fit their looks standard. Even all around the store images of mostly white all Americans are plastered on the walls and in the dressing rooms as if when you try on a pair of jeans you should feel like crap because you do not look as good as the blond gorgeous girl in the picture. Even the bags that they put the clothing in after you purchase them half half naked people laying in grass on them. This store really needs to update it's look because a lot of people are going to stop shopping there because of things like this. What really gets me is that they hired her at first and then fired her about a week or so later I think. What is the point of even hiring her if they felt iffy about the situation? I do not know if they hired her only to say they've hired Muslim woman or not but to fire her so quickly after and actually tell her it's because her look does not match theirs is insane. They said in the video that they told her no hats or caps but that is completely acceptable. The fact they continued to ignore her after she said it was for religious purposes is crazy! Hiring her and keeping her probably would have brought a few more customers in that might not have shopped there otherwise because they would see someone working they felt close to. For the lawyers of the company to say they care about diversity is one of the biggest lies/jokes i have ever heard. Based on this woman's story, people like here that this has happened to previously, and my own stories of Abercormbie & Fitch is enough to know their lying and just saying what people want to hear. If they actually followed through with what they "think" they would not have this problem on their hands.

This story of Yvrose is truly inspirational and it is incredible that she can do such amazing things in a nation that is so poor. She only has a fifth grade education and she is able to understand the complex ideals of finance that I can not even comprehend. I am studying to become an elementary education teacher so finance and currency exchange and loans is not exactly my field of knowledge. However, I do not think I would be able to try to do the things she does. She has to be a very strong woman to be able to put her children through school and pay for anything off of her small business. Actually this business is not small at all she has ten clients that she sells to and it is absolutely devastating that she was not able to get her money since she works off of a loan system. I can not think of one business that would just loan it's products out to sellers and then collect money two weeks later. Everyone wants their money now. It is sad that she lost all of capital because of this system she has been so successful with.
It still amazes that she started this business only with a fifth grade education. Like the reporter said, many people spend years on Wall Street trying to figure out the things she was able to accomplish. People spend thousands of dollars each year in order to get a "proper" education to be able to do the things that Yvrose does. It goes to show that people who are dedicated can accomplish anything they really put their minds to. So many people in the US that have privileges that only this woman could dream of would not be able to do what she does. If only she could have the education that many of us think comes easily she would be able to do even greater things. However, what she did was truly spectacular. She used these complex ideals with products people would probably not normally use them with. She has to be able to understand the currency exchange and be able to barter with people in the Dominican Republic. Even the economic adviser to the Prime Minister was amazed at what Yvrose has accomplished with her education and her lifestyle. She would definitely be an excellent addition to any United States company because she would have field experience that probably no one in the company, including the CEO, would be able to compete with.
I also feel bad for her because she gave out everything she had right before the awful earthquake that took so many lives. Of course, her bank is still looking for money from her. I can not believe that the banks are still trying to get money from people who have clearly lost everything.

You really can't be okay with gay relationships if you think that there shouldn't be gay marriages or even unions. Marriage may be defined between a man and a woman but who honestly cares about that. The key thing about marriage is that it unites two people who are in love with each other. It shouldn't matter what gender they are at all. So many straight people abuse the word marriage and get married because they have become pregnant or because their families want them to get marries or whatever reason some people get married not based on love. Gay relationships should be able to have the EXACT same rights as straight relationships and if that means that gay people should be able to get married they should. If they are in love and want their love to recognized by the government like every other relationship they should be able to have that right. People who are gay do not chose the lifestyle they lead. No one chooses to be subjected to discrimination and inequality for their entire lives. Gay people are just as in love as any other straight relationship sometimes even more. If a gay couple is fighting for a right to be married then they probably are in deep love even more than some straight relationships. Not allowing gay marriage is not only unfair but publicly discriminating because the government is supposed to recognize everyone as equals regardless of personal beliefs and religious values. The government and you should just realize it is really none of your business who is in love and wants to be wed. It is extremely unfair that gay couples can't have hospital visitation rights and they can't collect social security benefits after one passes away. God forbid something horrible happens, you'd want your money and belongings to go to the person you cared the most about. If people are not allowed to discriminate because of race why should they be able to do it based on sexual preference. By not allowing gay marriage, the federal government is flat out saying it is not okay to be in love with someone of the same sex. The government might allow civil unions, but that does not justify the fact that there is no such thing as same-sex marriages on a federal level. Some states might allow gay marriage but other states might not recognize this marriage. Gay marriage needs to be recognized on a national level and the government should be able to accept the fact that not everyone is created equally, and not everyone likes the opposite sex like we were all taught as young children. America is supposed to be the land of the free and equal, yet banning gay marriage goes against that American value. How would you feel if one day you turn out to be gay and you can't get married to the person you love just because. I realize some people have a problem with this religiously but like Sam said the Bible is being completely hypocritical. It's like saying a person born with down-syndrome won't be allowed in heaven. People are BORN gay and should be given the EXACT same marriage rights as anyone else.

Tuesday's class was definitely an interesting one. The idea of freedom versus determinism is a huge topic I never really thought about. The overall idea had always been in my head but I never really thought of it the way that it was explained in class on Tuesday. As many people have previously stated the best way to be is in the middle of the argument. People on the extremes must have a hard time getting much done because they always have this looming thought that they chose it this way or that they just what they wanted. Every single person in the class has a different view on this issue and each person sees the middle differently. I personally do not get everything handed to me and I have to work really hard to be able to achieve what I have. Yes, my parents do support me and give me money to buy clothes and food so I realize many people have it much harder than I do. However, I am mostly paying for my college education (my parents are chipping in here and there). It's hard for me to think that after college I will probably be in debt that I will have to worry about paying off with only a teacher's salary. Making tons of money is probably not in my future because to me having a job that I love is more important and that's a decision I have made.
I believe that people make their own choices and things outside of their control occur that they can not change. If a family member of mine was to suddenly become very ill, the first thing I would do would be to go home. I'd probably not do as well in my classes and potentially ruin my GPA to get into my major. I mean yea I made the choice to go home, but I really didn't have an option other than to go home and care for my family member. In my like family comes first and then my education and then my social life. However, there probably have been times when I could have stayed in studying but instead I went out with my friends and didn't do as well as I had wanted on the exam. That is a choice that I made though and I had to deal with the consequence. Not everything in life can be explained with answers and logical explanations for our choices. Sometimes we just do things spur of the moment not even thinking about what is going to happen after. That is not always the best way to look at things but sometimes choices are out of our control and we just do what we think is best.

I really had no interest in seeing the movie Avatar. I'm the type of person who likes the romantic comedies and movies along those lines. Horror, science fiction, or action movies never interest me; there is no need for me to waste 11 bucks on a movie I probably would not enjoy. Even after seeing all the reviews and commercials for Avatar I still really had no interest. Some of friends and family saw the movie and said that no one could possibly not enjoy watching it, even if just for admiring the amazing computer graphics. I still have not had a chance to go to see the movie but this article really interested me.
Just by reading this article I can already tell the movie is predictable. Of course the perfect white hero comes and can do everything the natives can do plus. He can ride the giant bird he can score with the best looking native. So many movies have plots like this and I can totally understand where Brooks is coming from. He makes very good arguments because many of the things he points out about the movie are things that society would agree upon. So many people probably like this movie because it fits their ways of thinking and they are able to sit in their seats and agree that the white marine is the best.
In society, Whites are looked upon as the most intelligent race and all other races are superior. This movie touches upon that and more. Many Whites feel that other races can't read or don't know what they're doing and are just not smart. The natives in the movie are like the other races; they are illiterate and "need" the White man to lead their battles. Yea, they fight against white marines but their leader was once a white marine who was able to "see the light" and change his ways.
However, I do not fully agree on the comment that nonwhites need whites to lead them. Our President is a Black man and he was elected to run our country. I just think that movies like to depict things this way because a lot of people are still completely stuck in their old ways. Some people do not realize that times are changing and more things are becoming accepted. Today's society is getting better in recognizing other races, but I also believe that we will never live in a perfect world where everyone is equal. It's hard not to be totally unstereotypical because it is instilled in us when we are children and it becomes hard to shake off things that we were taught when we were very young.