en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/3075010 Comments by rfs5075 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/30/week-8-%e2%80%93-lesson-14-affirmative-action/#IDComment170477426 That video that Sam showed was pretty eye-opening. Here you have two schools, less than a few hours away, and they look like they're in completely different worlds. It's easy to see the disparity in the quality of education between the two schools. The nicer school that was shown probably spends more money on just maintaing the place alone than the teacher at the other school would make in a lifetime as a whole. Every kid should have the same opportunities to learn and grow. To learn in the best environment as humanly possibly. But as of right now, it's just one big pipe dream. Thu, 7 Jul 2011 00:50:51 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/30/week-8-%e2%80%93-lesson-14-affirmative-action/#IDComment170477426 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/30/week-8-%e2%80%93-lesson-14-affirmative-action/#IDComment170475582 Sam hit the nail on the head at the beginning of the lecture when he said that people will never be equal. There's way too many variables to take into account. Where were you born, how were you raised, how much do your parents make, what's your ethnicity? The list goes on and on. Then there's actual personalities to take into account just like Sam said as well. One person may define success has laying down on the beach all day while kicking back on the beach with no worries. Another person may define success as being the CEO of a company and nothing else. Everyone has different perspectives and goals and neither person's one here is at fault. That same freedom and different outlooks on life however is exactly why it's impossible for two people to be the same. In the example I said above, how are those two people going to agree on the same life goals? It's practically impossible. If a person wants to relax all day, then relaxing all day is a good day to him. Working away all day like a potential CEO would, is a bad day for him, and vice versa. An interesting fact though is what women, primarily wealthy white woman, benefit the most from affirmative action. If you would have told me that before I would have laughed at you, and any one of my friends would have laughed at you as well. However, affirmative action is usually viewed as a single entity, without factoring in nepotism. Nepotism is a very touchy subject. Benefits from nepotism are wonderful, but being on the other side is horrendous. Would you love to gain a job because your friend is cool with the boss? Sure. May someone else be better suited for the job? Perhaps. Are you taking a job from someone else? Definitely. "Affirmative action exists to cancel out Nepotism." That's an extremely interesting way to look at this, and I say that it holds a lot of water. The two definitely balance each other out nicely. Let's say you were a young lady looking for a nice secretarial job, but the rich bosses wife put her in over you. Now you're out of a job! But wait, your best friend from college that you still sort of talk to just opened up a nice company and they're looking for secretaries! It's a cycle. A vicious one albeit, but that's just the way the cookie crumbles. This world is far from perfect, but you have to make the most of it. Nobody is perfect, we all think we're way better than we are, and we're going to make mistakes. That's why you need to have friends, and establish connects. So when you do slip up in life, you'll always have somebody to help you get back up on your feet. Thu, 7 Jul 2011 00:43:39 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/30/week-8-%e2%80%93-lesson-14-affirmative-action/#IDComment170475582 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-13-immigration/#IDComment169488842 I was born and raised in the city and I am a man of color. As such, I have already dealt with race relations and other issues about race everyday while I was growing up. I wasn't sure how much I could really learn going into this class, but I now know that I still have a ways to go. There were things I knew going into this class that I was aware of, but there were also things I took for granted There were other issues that I ignored completely or didn't give much thought. Whys is it okay to drink cow's milk and not whales milk? Why is everyone automatically go into this political correctness filter? These are some questions that people may be aware and think of from time to time, but not really topics that as Americans we tend to dive into. I went to high school with a son of an illegal immigrant family. Did I know this before I started taking to him? No. Did I stop talking to him when I found out? No. Did this change my perspective of him in the slightest when I found out? Some people may lie here and say no, but I'm going to be honest and say yes. It's hard for any American not too. From a young age we're made to believe that illegal immigrants are bad for America and bad people. They steal jobs from hard working Americans and we don't need them here. Is any of this actually true? I don't think so. But are more Americans basically programmed to believe this? The answer is yes. I still talk to this friend to this very day and we had some very enlightening discussions about the entire topic. He says he generally does not like to tell people about his illegal immigrant family status due to the negative stereotypes, but he is very proud of his family and appreciates everything they have done for him. Free market capitalism is a very interesting topic. A lot of people seem to blindly support it without understanding it or what it supports in its entirety. I'm not claiming to be an expert, but if everyone that is against our current illegal immigrant policy is against free market capitalism/a socialist--then I guess we have a lot of socialists. Things get even more interesting when we bring up Obama. People that are anti-Obama claim that he is a socialist and describe socialism in a bad light. I am in no way a socialist, but if these same anti-Obama people that are against socialism are against our current immigration policy what does that make them? If they're aware it makes them hypocrites. If they're unaware then it makes them ignorant. Either way none of if is positive, and it doesn't reflect well on America when people who discuss politics do not really know what they are talking about, or even worst--contradict themselves. Mon, 4 Jul 2011 03:11:33 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-13-immigration/#IDComment169488842 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-13-immigration/#IDComment169477356 Illegal immigrants are definitely portrayed extremely negatively like you said. Between the way the news portrays them and the way teachers talk about them in class we're basically programmed to dislike illegal immigrants when we don't even know anything about them. It's hard not to discrimination or think of illegal immigrants in a negative light when we have never heard a single positive thing about them. Before these lectures with Sam I've heard very little about the positive effects that they can bring. Like you said in their position, why would we do want to go and purse a better job? People switch schools and go to other states for better learning and job opportunities, it's only fair that we give illegal immigrants that same opportunity. Mon, 4 Jul 2011 02:12:26 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-13-immigration/#IDComment169477356 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-12-multiculturalism-lgbt/#IDComment168173715 LGBT. A lot of people don't know what that stands for, and the people who do know tend to not be big fans. Personally, I have no problem with the LGBT community, as I have close personal friends that are apart of it. That being said, I know other people person who discriminate against the LGBT without knowing or even talking to anyone inside of that community.The general population doesn't like a racist (an outright one,) but is discriminating against the LGBT any different from discrimination? Why are most people afraid to come "out of the closet" and admit they're gay? Why do some people go their entire lives without telling anyone? Or worst, live out a life with their spouse, only to confess decades down the roads? Because the general public does not like the LGBT community. Political correctness may have a part in the division between people who support, and people who are against the LGBT community. If there was no political correctness, I feel that it's not unreasonable to believe that a lot more people would come out and express their dislike of the LGBT community. What would be stopping them? Just like a white man running for office cannot come right out and say he dislikes every black person out there, or a black man running for office cannot say he hates every white person on the planet--political correctness weights us down. Recently, New York became the fist major state to allow gay's to legally marry. Obviously this is a huge moment for the LGBT community, and there's obviously a few New Yorkers who may have a thing or two to say about gay people being able to marry in their state. The regular people can speak their mind freely, but the people in more established positions cannot. If the CEO of Coca-Cola came out and said I hate every person in the LGBT community, how do you think that would effect their business? First off, the CEO would be promptly fired, and would be lucky to be the CEO of a cardboard box. Secondly, the entire LGBT would riot and refuse to even be in the same room as a Coca-Cola can. "You can't have your cake and eat it too." I think this quote sums up life pretty well, but some people don't get it. What this quote is basically saying is that you can't always have everything you want. Some people want political correctness to go away completely, but it's hard. It's very, very hard. The main reason for this is that people are sensitive. We are a very sensitive generation and most of us wear our hearts on our sleeves. If some people in power spoke their minds 100 percent, people would riot like no tomorrow. What if Obama told you he hates all Asians? Or the Governor of your state says he actually hates the state and wants to be the Governor somewhere else? Granted, these are extreme cases, but some people do truly feel this way. How do you filter these feelings out, and draw the line between what's too much and what's okay? Political Correctness. A lot of the things we discuss in this class can be tied back to this one concept. It's the Pandora's Box of sociology. It enables people a go to way to talk about sensitive subjects, while it disables people to truly speaking from the heart. Thu, 30 Jun 2011 03:43:14 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-12-multiculturalism-lgbt/#IDComment168173715 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-12-multiculturalism-lgbt/#IDComment168164515 I definitely agree with being gay being biologically. It's hard to turn a straight person gay and to make a gay person straight. Just like you mentioned Sam said in a previous lecture it's not really something you think about, it just is. You don't wake up one day and decide that you're going to be gay--it just happens. Whatever sexuality you are, or whatever sexuality you become, depends on your genetics. If you're genetically wired to be gay, you'll be gay. A person can try and make the choice to change your sexuality against your genetics, but it's going to be very hard to maintain in the long run. Thu, 30 Jun 2011 02:54:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/26/week-7-%e2%80%93-lesson-12-multiculturalism-lgbt/#IDComment168164515 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/22/week-6-%e2%80%93-lesson-10-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-people-of-color-stages-1-4/#IDComment165995996 I watched the same documentary back in high school and found it to be pretty sad. It shows just how bad things can get when someone is treated differently from everyone else. A lot of people think that a person getting attention is always a positive thing, but it's not. Kanye West has a Twitter account and he initially wasn't following anyone. When he finally did follow someone can dubbed him the "Chosen One," that guy was flooded by Kanye West fans on Twitter. He claimed he was just an normal guy and didn't want the attention. Even though the situations are clearly under different circumstances it shows that the grass really isn't always greener on the other side. Fri, 24 Jun 2011 01:30:57 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/22/week-6-%e2%80%93-lesson-10-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-people-of-color-stages-1-4/#IDComment165995996 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/22/week-6-%e2%80%93-lesson-10-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-people-of-color-stages-1-4/#IDComment165994090 Discussing the Pre-Awakening stage a little more and the story told Sam about his friend was very interesting. I know some people tend to ignore racism or stereotypes to at least some extent, but I don't know a lot of people that haven't had a single experience related to race at 40 years of age. I'm not sure if I believe him completely but it's definitely something worth thinking about. For his friends statement to actually be true would depend on a lot of variables. Such as where he grew up, how he was raised, and how much he looked/cared about those experiences or encounters. Someone could be discriminated against for a job or a promotion but not view that as being discriminated against. The way a person looks at a certain experience or event really if that particular instant is racial to the person or not. The saying "to each his own" describes this perfectly. I have one white friend at 35 years of age hasn't had a lot of experiences where he had any racial encounters or experiences, and yet felt some feelings of white guilt. His family is decently connected and he initially got his job due to his father pulling some strings. Some people care about these things, others don't. Other people want to work right at the top of their father's company, and others want to work their way up to the top. Just like people's view on racial experiences, people's feelings about getting favorable benefits varies as well. My friend accepted and embraces said benefits, but he always wondered "what if?" What if his dad didn't help him get his job? Or what if he was born under a different family or different circumstances? It's always interesting to ponder these things, but at the same time you do have to carry on and live your life to the fullest. Another thing what got me was the clip "A Girl like Me" that Sam showed during the lecture. The clip covered multiple stereotypes that black girls face in today's America and how they feel about them. One part that I found particularly applauding was when one said her mom told her to "stop, you look African." To which the girls response was "I am African," and she was visibly upset by her mother's comment--and she should be. The household is so important to a person's development in the future. What your household is like and the environment around you is such a huge contributing factor in how you're going to grow and develop down the road. When you hear words like that coming from your own mother, a person you're supposed to look up to--you have a big problem. Fri, 24 Jun 2011 01:24:28 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/22/week-6-%e2%80%93-lesson-10-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-people-of-color-stages-1-4/#IDComment165994090 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164424413 I definitely agree with your point about them being a product of their upbringing. Everyone is brought up in a different way, and it effects them in ways long term and short term. Some ways may seem normal to us like yours, and others may seem out to there to us like there's. I also agree that it's fairly obvious that they really didn't grasp the weight of what they were actually saying. They were brought up with that mindset and thought nothing of it. In America there's certain things we can and can not do, in other cultures that same list is completely different. Even though the audacity of what those girls were saying is hard for us to wrap our heads around, the same thing could have happened to us if we were in their shoes. Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:46:46 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164424413 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164422062 I definitely agree with your point about them being a product of their upbringing. Everyone is brought up in a different way, and it effects them in ways long term and short term. Some ways may seem normal to us like yours, and others may seem out to there to us like there's. I also agree that it's fairly obvious that they really didn't grasp the weight of what they were actually saying. They were brought up with that mindset and thought nothing of it. In America there's certain things we can and can not do, in other cultures that same list is completely different. Even though the audacity of what those girls were saying is hard for us to wrap our heads around, the same thing could have happened to us if we were in their shoes. Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:37:38 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164422062 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164421580 I definitely agree with your point about them being a product of their upbringing. Everyone is brought up in a different way, and it effects them in ways long term and short term. Some ways may seem normal to us like yours, and others may seem out to there to us like there's. I also agree that it's fairly obvious that they really didn't grasp the weight of what they were actually saying. They were brought up with that mindset and thought nothing of it. In America there's certain things we can and can not do, in other cultures that same list is completely different. Even though the audacity of what those girls were saying is hard for us to wrap our heads around, the same thing could have happened to us if we were in their shoes. Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:36:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164421580 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164419324 The Awakening is the stage a lot of people in America have been in, black or white. While it's seems fairly easy to get into this stage, it's significantly harder to get out of. You can either a) avoid taking racial risks and remain stuck in this stage, b) deny inequality and obstruct the improvement of race relations or the rare c) seek a deeper understanding of race issues and lay the foundation to move forward to next stage. In an ideal world everyone would pick C, or in an even more ideal world there would be no inequality to deal with in the first place, but I digress. It's very easy for people to recognize the inequality, racism, and different racial barriers in the world, but it's another thing entirely to do something about. It's also very easy for someone to make progress then enter the reversal stage. I've had a friend personally talk to me about various racial issues ranging from racism, to how people censor their words on television (what I now know is political correctness,) and other various topics people tend to avoid. Then, when he went to college, had negative experiences with the colored people at his college and completely regressed. He now chooses to avoid all of the topics we used to talk about, and if we do manage to talk about them, you can now hear the anger in his voice about people of color. Even though it takes months, even years to make progress; it only takes a couple of negative experiences to ruin all the progress that has been made. I used to keep a journal, but only when I was very young. I never thought up keeping one as a got older as I thought the idea to be silly. However, reading the journal from SOC 119 from a few years back has given me new perspective. I find it to be more personable at times when you actually see and read someone's thoughts as opposed to them just talking about it. The way this individual wrote his journal let's a reader completely connect and understand him. You can see his views on being white, how he feels about the benefits white people get, and how he feels about people of color. At first he was motivated, even happy to look into his family history. Then he started feeling white guilt when he learned of the benefits white people received. Then the people of color talked about it constantly around him, and directed his hate towards them. This is only one example of the changes and swings people can go through. You can go from loving everything about Mexico from one visit, to hating it the next. We, as humans, are funny people. We can shun things from our mind after just one experience without a second thought that can benefit us in the long run. While at the same time constantly turn to something that effects us in a negative way. Mon, 20 Jun 2011 00:26:35 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-9-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-3-4/#IDComment164419324 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-8-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-1-2/#IDComment163049889 A lot of people are definitely not comfortable dealing with people that have mental health issues or other needs, but that's normal. People are always unconformable dealing with things they haven't dealt with before, it's extremely heard to be conformable with something right off the bat, so that definitely falls under the majority. I do agree with your political correctness point as well. That's definitely one of the reasons white people default to political correctness, it's hard to give a unique perspective or point on something you haven't dealt with. A lot of people that defer to political correctness never take the time to gain that perspective, and the cycle of political correctness just continues on. Thu, 16 Jun 2011 03:02:21 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/07/week-5-%e2%80%93-lesson-8-stages-of-racial-identity-%e2%80%93-white-people-stages-1-2/#IDComment163049889 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/02/week-4-lesson-6-race-and-ethnic-inequality/#IDComment160817393 In an ideal world everyone is created equal, and we would all have the same opportunities. In the real world, everyone is not created equal, and we do not have the same opportunities. It's a little hard to accept, but let it sink in. No two people are going to begin at the same spot on the starting line. Every single person is at least a little ahead or a little behind of another person. In some cases people start off with a huge advantage, but that doesn't mean they'll get to the finish line the fastest. Even though some people have advantages in life, it doesn't mean that they will make the most of it. Taking an attitude where you just blame your shortcomings on "bad luck" is a surefire way to not live up to your full potential. Sure, head starts are nice, but you don't absolutely need them. With hard work people can still persevere. "Hard work beats talent if talent doesn't work hard." This quote explains if perfectly. It doesn't matter if you are 7'5" with a huge wingspan, if you can't dribble a basketball, you'll to practically anybody who can. Usain Bolt could've been working at a regular 9-5 job just like anybody else, but he worked hard and he had a goal. Just like any other athlete--he put in the work. Sure, he had the physical tools, but he had to learn how to use them. Making the most with what you got is a very overlooked idea. A lot of people, in various fields, like to rely solely on their talent. I hate to break it to you, but talent isn't enough got over 95% of people. It doesn't matter if your rich family gives you whatever you want. If it becomes your time to run the family business, and you have no idea what you're doing--money is not going to change that. Affirmative action is very real, but it works both ways. Most people only think of one side of action on one level. "This guy only got the job over me because he's black." Or "I would've gotten into this school if I was a minority!" But how about the rich white guy who's dad just paid off the board to get his kid into school. Or the enormously one-sided affirmative action that occurred after the Civil War? People tend to only look at things on one level, or one perspective, that's the real downfall of America. Affirmative action, racism, and ignorance doesn't help, but it really bodes down to how a majority of us approach life. We look for scapegoats and tend to place the blame on others. Why own up to your own mistake when you can blame others? It's easy. A lot of people say they own up to their mistakes, but few actually do. Thu, 9 Jun 2011 02:25:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/02/week-4-lesson-6-race-and-ethnic-inequality/#IDComment160817393 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/02/week-4-lesson-6-race-and-ethnic-inequality/#IDComment160811116 It is a pretty simple concept like you said, but it's also overlooked. A lot of people really don't even think about the impact the advantages they were born into could effect not only them, but other people in the possible future. If they were trying to get into a certain school they normally couldn't get into, their family could just pull some strings. This not only benefits them, but it also takes a spot away from a more deserving possible student. Things like this happen all the time, and the beneficiary doesn't even think about it on that level. Thu, 9 Jun 2011 01:50:03 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/06/02/week-4-lesson-6-race-and-ethnic-inequality/#IDComment160811116 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-5-social-inequality/#IDComment159819133 It's obvious that we are all different. We have different height, skin color, backgrounds, and views on life. Some people think everyone in a certain group is the same, and others think they're all different. There is some middle ground here, but these all usually the two sides most people fall under; just like Republicans and Democrats. However, unlike Republicans and Democrats, we as students can have civil discussions here without plotting against each other or talking behind each others backs. The first thing that really popped out at me was the huge disparity in median income in 2007. Asians being the top earners, while Native Americans were on the bottom. The reasoning, at least to me, is fairly obvious. Asians, quite frankly, probably put more time into education than most "races." This is due to a number of factors such as background, how their parents were raised and other socio-psycho cognitive reasons. However, Native Americans cannot control why they are the lowest earners. They confided to minimal involvement in the country/mistreated for years. Only recently have they really had a chance to start paving their way here. It's a sad truth to face--but it's the truth. Other thing that jumped out at me was the correlation between income and college education. It's fairly obvious that the more money your family has, the easier it is to send you to college. However, finding out that if your family makes over $80,000 a year, you have a nine out of 10 chance of taking college classes before the age of 24 is astounding. Especially when it's compared to six out of ten when your family makes less than $33,000. Sure, $33,000 is barely enough to live on in America, but the value of a college education has no real dollar amount. Six out of ten versus nine out of ten might not sound like a lot, but it really adds up when you do all the numbers across the scale. The next point I want to make is free will versus determinism. It's funny how many people think they're making choices of their own free will, but are really doing it because of outside factors. One example is getting a summer job because your family needs the money. Sure, it's your free will to go out and get a job. However, it's outside factors that shape your choice to actually go out and get that job. You might not want to work over the summer, but you know you have to go and get a job to help your family. It's a very admirable move, and I would respect you for it. But it's not of your own true free will, it's out of your control. Mon, 6 Jun 2011 03:24:00 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-5-social-inequality/#IDComment159819133 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-5-social-inequality/#IDComment159813826 It's amazing that your parents were able to do all of that. It hard, especially when you're not originally from the United States to come here, be successful, and start a family. It's great to hear that your parents pull it off, and it does show that anything is really possible if you put the time in and work hard enough. My parents where in a similar situation and now they are able to send me to college. The crazy part is how much more it cost to go to college than a couple decades ago, the price has really gone up! Mon, 6 Jun 2011 03:05:49 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-5-social-inequality/#IDComment159813826 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-4-ethnocentrism/#IDComment158400277 The truth hurts, and it's usually very well protected. In this case, it's also very ugly. From the soldiers disregard of their consequences, to the negative impact America has had not only on Iraq, but the world. America is liked by few, and hated by many. I have had friends personally tell me that if I every go abroad to NOT say I was American. But why? Why would I not want to mention that I was from the "land of the free?" Where opportunities are limitless and the poorest Americans live better than over half of the world? Because of the actions from our government, and how we go about things. It's hard to have a lot of fans when you have George Bush as a President and hit an atomic bomb on other countries. It also becomes a little hard when hand over ridiculous amounts of money in military equipment to another country and then act as a victim when they use it against you! I don't want to get too caught up in this or start any political/religious debates here but it's ludicrous how America has done things as of late. We get into war after war, keep spending money we don't have, and not only did we get ourselves into debt--but the whole world. As weird as it is to say, America is the face of the world. The country we live in, born or not, controls a lot of the power in the world. And to a lot of people from outside countries--they see it as a bad thing. Other countries wait for us to act before they do. They look to us for guidance, come to us with their problems. We're like the big brother of the world, but we're no longer respected. Our actions over the years have lost us that respect, and the worldwide recession isn't helping. Who really thought Iraq was so similar to us before the war? I didn't. Pictures can tell a thousand words, and those pictures from Sam's former T.A. spoke millions. As sad as it is to say, America has made a lot of situations worst lately. From the no way out of it draft, from getting involved with Vietnam, to the Cold war (really?) to the "war on terror" now; America has not done a lot of things right. Being the President of the United States was always a pretty hard job, but it's by far the hardest job in the world now. It's funny to say that 250,000 is probably being not enough compensation but it's not, especially during these times. A lot of people don't like Obama, and put a lot of blame on him, but he is at least trying. I'm not going to say he's doing a good job or a bad one, but unlike certain Presidents before him--he's trying. Thu, 2 Jun 2011 03:14:52 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-4-ethnocentrism/#IDComment158400277 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-4-ethnocentrism/#IDComment158396757 I was also really shocked at how the soldiers treatment. It's funny how our soldiers are portrayed as such great men of high character when you have some that carry themselves like that. Obviously every single officer isn't like that, just like every Arab/Muslim man isn't a terrorist (although some people think otherwise.) It's just disgusting to watch not only their actions, but the way they went about it. Just like you mentioned, they didn't even think about the consequences of their actions. Even though it just seemed like a funny joke to them, it really was a huge deal to that family. Thu, 2 Jun 2011 02:58:19 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/25/week-3-lesson-4-ethnocentrism/#IDComment158396757 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/22/week-two-lesson-2-intro-to-race/#IDComment156204697 It's definitely tough to think about people still being slaves while we're here in America living a pretty much perfect life. Sure, we all have our little problems, but compared to them we may as well be billionaires. Not only that, but they're directly involved in making a lot of the things we use every single that. All the things we use, such as a cell phone, a car, or even hopping on the bus for a ride--was made by somebody. A lot of people don't even think about who made it or where it came from, we just go on with our day living in a blissful but truly sad ignorance. Thu, 26 May 2011 03:19:52 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/05/22/week-two-lesson-2-intro-to-race/#IDComment156204697