en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/2437166 Comments by sap5362 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/what-americans-fear/#IDComment144362238 It is the images and quotes shown throughout this video that uphold the feelings felt by not only most Americans but also those that have also been negatively impacted by the jihad. The feeling of fear, numbness, and even anger that take over when seeing these images and quotes but can you blame an American? Yes, it is bias to think that every Middle Easterner is included in this violent jihad group and to fear people just because they wear a turban or Burqa is unjust but going on not only our own experiences but events taking place all over the world can you blame someone for feeling this way? These feelings are re-enforced when the media, like this video, show us the faces of people that feel this way about us. Putting a face on these people make the situation even more real, making people even more scared. I cannot say I am someone that does not judge Middle Easterners, not only am I an American that experienced September 11th with the rest of the country, but I am a New Yorker. I watched from my television only 40 miles outside the city what radicals, religion, and violence could do. I lost family, friends, and neighbors in the Twin Towers that day, so a little tense towards people of Middle Eastern dissent seems understandable. But watching this video a specific sign caught my attention and enlightened some fear that I did not realize was there before. The sign said “ Exterminate those that insult Islam.“ The simple word “exterminate” reminded me of something a Nazi would say towards a Jew. And if that was not enough, this bizarre feeling was aroused again when the video showed the president of Iran being quoted that “ the Islamic Revolution will soon reach the entire world.” The first thing we learn in social studies since the moment we can open a textbook is that history will repeat itself unless we learn from our mistakes. Just the little clips from this video are showing similar warning signs that the world once overlooked and lead to the second World War. If we see similarities to one of the worst wars in history can you blame an American, the people of the world, for fearing the Middle East? As bias as the reader of this blog may think, my answer to this question is no. Wed, 20 Apr 2011 01:02:27 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/19/what-americans-fear/#IDComment144362238 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/11/the-cost-of-empire-soc-001-blog/#IDComment142288809 The video “The Cost of Empire” was extremely interesting to watch because the information that this video provides is not shared openly with the American public so most, if not all, was new news to me. The first thing that surprised me was that Obama is actually increasing the military budget, which includes the number of troops. His main point during the Presidential election was that he had a plan to get our troops out and fast. Now he is expanding the army and sending more troops to the Middle East, now that we have invaded Libya. The reason for all these increases, as we have learned in class, is because we are preparing to defend and fight for resources that are becoming scarcer each and every day. We have been shaped by the invisible strings are government has created to believe that these increases are necessary in protecting the American people, but when looking at these increases one has to think, more money is going to mean more fighting. Another astounding fact was how many bases we have all over the world. Having close to a thousand bases when only twenty percent of troops are stationed out of the country seems a bit ridiculous. What I did not know is that the United States pays these countries to have bases there, which have lead countries to start bidding wars. The United States actually paid twenty million dollars for a base in the Middle East. Twenty million dollars for ONE base. Also, the people of these countries are protesting and starting anti-base movements towards the United States bases. During this video a Republican stated his opinion, that the army is in worse shape then ever and that is what the military needs to worry about, not the amount of bases. This is important because the United States is focused on having a presence in as many countries as possible to make sure that people remember who is a super power. But spending money on an abundance of unnecessary bases and jets (like the one in the video that costs 350 million dollars) that the military never use is just pure stupidity when this money could be used to better train our troops. This video shows that our military, government, and defense system have the wrong priorities when it comes to spending money, and the American public has the wrong impression on the intensions of the these sections when it comes to spending this money because we are uninformed. Tue, 12 Apr 2011 20:41:52 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/11/the-cost-of-empire-soc-001-blog/#IDComment142288809 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/03/women-and-war/#IDComment140269060 I thought this speaker was extremely influential throughout her speech. I think the idea that there are two sides of war is extremely important for people around the world to hear and acknowledge. During war we honor the men and women fighting, which we should because they are risking their lives each and every day for our safety. But it is ridiculous that we do not acknowledge the people that keep life going in their homes, and their communities that make it a little bit better then horrible during wartime. The invisible strings of society are what put these amazing people in the background during war. Shaped by the media and the government we were only taught to praise and thank those that are sent off, those are the people we have the parades for and get medals and honored. But like this video points out, there are two sides to war, so the question becomes why don’t the heroes at home receive anything? When first reading the title, “Women and War” I thought this video was either going to be graphic and say the horrors that women go through during war, such as rape and kidnapping, or take pity on women during war. Either way I did not think I was going to like the video if it was on either of those topics because I see women as strong and independent, but the video was a happy surprise. While the speaker shared heart breaking which showed the horrors of war for women, she also showed how they kept on living life in a happy manner, and helped society keep on moving. The most important story out of them all, the one that summed her whole speech up, was the one about the women whose children saw bother their father and brother killed. While in days, months, possibly years there will be a peace agreement, but this peace settlement does not change the fact that these children have hatred in their hearts for those that took their loved ones from them. Women, mothers, grandmothers, and so on belong at the table when peace, even war, is being discussed. While many disagree with this just think without women what would happen to the community? If it was not for the woman keeping the music school opened what affect would that have on the community, on the children? Seeing the horrors of war, especially as a child produces loathing and enemies that will one day grow up and want to fight the country that took their childhood. Some of these people might have so much disgust and hatred built up they will even cause a war by terroristic acts. It is theses women, who go through the horrors but learn to still dance, sing, and be happy for life, that are the only people that can stop the development of these demons and the cycle of war. Tue, 5 Apr 2011 22:03:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/04/03/women-and-war/#IDComment140269060 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/27/family/#IDComment138906448 This letter written by a lifer has so many connections as to what we had just read in our sociology book and what we were just tested on on Wednesday. In the chapter “The Meaning of Social Control” by Peter Berger, while this passage has little to do with social control, he explains what the family means and its influence upon its members, which is important to this lifer. Berger explains how the strongest social ties are with a person’s family, and rejection and ridicule by anyone is devastating but has the most psychological impact if a family member does it. This is extremely important and even noted by the lifer when he says, “the ones who have the strongest family ties are the ones that aren’t assholes!” The lifer’s family gave him the support and strength that he needed to get through the years in jail, especially in the beginning of his sentence when he was getting 3-5 letters a week. They gave this to him because he was a good guy at home, never abused them and treated them with respect. Every one that reads this letter can tell that this lifer is truly a good person especially to his family because while he can demand them to come every week, say that he is the one a jail and wants three to five letters a week every week he does not. He is extremely understanding that even though he is no longer a participant in the outside world, his family is. He realizes that they have other obligations and while their voices have decreased over the time, it is still nice to hear from them. Also, to insure the reader of the type of person he claims to be he tells us that he still talks to his high school teacher, that his childhood friends are still behind him. This is truly amazing because I am just a freshman in college and home for all my breaks I have yet to go back to my high school just to say hello. This is perfect evidence that just goes to show you “what goes around comes around.” By being the type of person he was, and still is, his friends, family, and teachers remember and cherish that about him instead of looking at him as just an inmate for life. Thu, 31 Mar 2011 19:02:22 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/27/family/#IDComment138906448 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment137561672 This article is very interesting and the more I read the more I thought about it and just looking at my own family religion has declined from generation to generation. My grandmother, ever since she was a little girl, has gone to church every Sunday. Looking at my mother and father they go to church simply when they have the time or remember at what times mass occurs. Finally looking at my sister, and me I can’t remember the last time I went to church voluntarily, and I usually only go on holidays like Christmas Eve and Easter. But this is not just a trend in my family because after reading this article I asked not only my roommate but also my sorority and only a mere few said they go to church weekly but the key words were at home. Here at college I do not know one person that goes to mass, I do not even know where the church is on campus. The fact is that as more and more people all over the world are deciding to put a check mark next to unaffiliated box there influencing the ones around them. The invisible strings are hard at work here. I’m sure that if a group of my friends starting going to church again I would join, but life is moving to fast for our generation and is only going to get faster for future generations. We try to seize the moment every chance we get whether it is laying on the beach, drinking a beer, or even just being lazy and watch a movie while we are not at school getting pounded with homework. Today, the pressures of getting A’s in school, being popular, and having fun overtake the importance of God and going to church. That is the way our society is and it is going to continue on this route, as future generations get more and more competitive. I personally believe that decrease in religion would be a good thing. If you ask me I say I’m catholic, but I’m not such a devout Catholic that I would to actions into my own hands, I hardly go to church. As religion declines so would religious wars, hatred, and terrorist groups. As the invisible strings pull future generations more and more towards a world with less and less religion, the world might be a little bit more at peace then it is today. Fri, 25 Mar 2011 20:10:19 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/03/24/religion-in-the-future/#IDComment137561672 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment132174527 The “ curse of the lottery” has gone under the radar for some time and this article does a good job of making it globally known the positives and mostly negatives that can come along with winning the lottery. Most people believe that winning the lottery, or in reality more money, would make life more simple and easy. These people are sadly mistaken. Take example the woman who worked four jobs and then suddenly won the lottery, coming into an abundance amount of money. Any person in their right mind would think that this woman’s life would become relaxed and trouble-free compared to her old life, but these people would be wrong. After winning people and calls came in the hundreds asking her for anything they needed. She is quoted in the article that she wishes sometimes that she could move and change her name. She even refuses to have her name used in the article to prevent further attention. Does this seem like a life that is better? While she does not have to work four jobs now and can support her children, to wish to not be yourself, by moving or changing your name, does not seem like life can be the happy. We learned in class that the lottery is mostly played by the low-income part of the population. The part of the population that believe winning the lottery will change their lives for the better, making them richer, living the easy life. But the story that Sam told in class really demonstrates how wrong these people are. How the invisible strings that play a role in every bodies life daily, still have an extremely important impact even when winning the lottery. The low-income population believes that when they win the lottery or come into a big sum of money, everything in their life rises. Social status, clothing, homes, cars, etc. They believe that money is going to make them fit into this social class. But like the story Sam told, you can take the people out of the trailer park but you can’t take the trailer park out of the people. The invisible strings that are connected to these people from birth do not change because of money. In a million dollar home they will still have Wal-Mart carpets. Also, these people usually spend all their money on materialistic things, and they usually end up in debt. Do to the invisible strings that tie them to their old life, they are not use to living life in their “new” social class, and 99.9 percent of the time can’t handle it. This article demonstrates what people need to start realizing, these invisible strings change ever so slightly. Lottery, or money, only changes how many zeros you see when looking at your bank account, but other then that it can actually turn into a chronic hassle. Thu, 3 Mar 2011 19:53:28 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/28/the-lottery-as-a-blessing-or-a-curse/#IDComment132174527 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/21/stranger-kidnapping/#IDComment130229275 The media is a key source from where people’s fears stem from, which is extremely apparent in this video. We were taught in class that the chances of being kidnapped are the same today as they were when are parents were little children, so why are people today so much more protective then our grandparents. The answers to that question are videos like these that play nation wide on televisions. People are afraid of the unfamiliar, so the fear of kidnapping is the same as airplane crashes. While crashes are extremely rare, like kidnapping, we do not fly in an airplane day to day like we do a car so getting on an airplane is much more frightening then getting in a car, even though car crashes out-do plane crashes ten fold. Kidnapping is the same concept. Extremely rare yes, but the fact that these videos are playing showing us that it can happen frightens us to the point to take excessive precautions. With these videos in the back of our parent’s minds, even our minds as we grow older, why wouldn’t our parents teach us not to talk to stranger. When in this video a man attempts to abduct a child when he is with a nanny, what is a parent suppose to think might happen when the child is alone. I was taught from a young age never to talk to a stranger and if I was ever lost go to the first police officer, security guard, or store and ask for a phone. My parents even created a password for me and sister when we were little so if someone ever said they were sent to pick us up by our parents they would have to answer correctly or we could not leave with them. It is videos like these that lead parents take preventative measures in protecting their children. The most interesting fact that we learned in class is that actually avoiding strangers and looking for a police officer when a child is lost actually increases the likely hood of getting abducted because the child is out on the street alone longer, increasing their chances of running into a person with this intension. But the news does not report these types of facts, just the ones that instill fear into people. It is unlikely that this type of protective mentality is going to change anytime soon because when asked in class “ would we let our seven year old son walk without us to school that is less then a mile away” the majority responded “no.” Even after these facts were laid out for us the mass reply was “ better safe then sorry.” Thu, 24 Feb 2011 02:50:25 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/21/stranger-kidnapping/#IDComment130229275 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/15/social-structure-shapes-free-will/#IDComment128458251 This video demonstrates a point that has been emphasized over and over again throughout lectures. This point is determinism. Determinism is defined as people’s actions and thoughts that are shaped by factors and forces largely outside of their control. These are the invisible strings that we are not able to see but shape our lives and decisions. Here, in America, and in most places around the world, polygamy with a man with many wives is looked at as unacceptable and disturbing behavior. So when this video began with a woman with three husbands, almost anyone other then the people of the Himalayas experienced what is called “culture shock.” But as we have learned through lectures and our book we are a social and cultural species. “Our lives are linked to others and society as well as what we become is not a result of instinct but of the ideas, values, and rules developed in our society.” Polygamy is a way of life for people of the Himalayas because it fits their social and cultural way of life. The video made important points as to why polygamy works for this civilization and how it actually increases their way of life. The population would be out of control if each man and woman had their own family. And the land is scarce enough that if each person received their own piece of land the uncontrollable population would practically starve to death. Polygamy is unacceptable here because we do not live in a place that requires restrictions. We do not have to worry about starving or uncontrollable population booms that could lead to our destruction. But the video concluded with our way of life, our invisible strings, starting to latch on to these people through a road. In a couple of generations when polygamy is gone one can only wonder what will happen to this civilization. Their society calls for these actions, when polygamy ends, land will still be scarce and starvation will still be a problem. When looking at polygamy in a positive light, that it actually helps some people and places, this could be one of many solutions to the Chinese problem. Their social and cultural problem is that they have to many people so families are only allowed to have one child, and a majority of the time they wait to have boys. This has lead to an unbalanced population dominated with men and scarce of women. Polygamy can fix their social and cultural problem. Socially the population might become stable, even decrease, if not every man if having their own family and children. It can save them culturally because if this problem persists Chinese men will have to go outside and find women of different nationalities, which will decrease the Chinese race. If they do not do this, with the lack of women there are bound to be hundreds, if not thousands, of Chinese men alone with no offspring, which will also hurt their culture by decreasing the number of new generations. The view on polygamy needs to change. It is not gross men and women that just want multiple sex partners or people that cannot commit to one person. Polygamy is a way of life that fits certain people and populations social and cultural needs. While it does not fit ours it works perfectly for the people of the Himalayas and could potentially be the solution the Chinese people have been searching for that could save their way of life. Thu, 17 Feb 2011 03:05:23 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/15/social-structure-shapes-free-will/#IDComment128458251 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/09/4092/#IDComment127058483 While reading, “Remember” written by an inmate in prison for life, I cannot help but feel sorry for him. At the young age of twenty-two when people are suppose to be having the time of their life, drinking, partying, and hanging out with friends, all of these contributed to the mere seconds that turned him into a lifer. At first when reading, you believe that he has been in prison for so long that he can’t remember when he lost all these things one by one. But when getting towards the bottom the reader realizes that it is not because he has been in prison so long but because it did not affect him as much as other things have impacted his life. He can remember the day, the reasons, even the person’s life that he took. He can remember everything about the situation, all the way down to the emotions he has felt throughout the years. He does not explain exactly how he ended up with the title “murderer” but relates the incident to a “few seconds of drunken stupidity.” The older teen years to the mid-twenties has its own set of invisible strings that are hard to explain if you have not experienced yet. As we have been talking about in class, these strings influence our lives in ways that we cannot see. The age spans specified above are the ages around going into, being in, or just getting out of college. This is when people think that their social life, which includes drinking alcohol, having a good time and even possibly trying illegal substances, is the most important part of life. These strings have lead to many accidents and in this particular inmates case it ended his footsteps in the outside world. It is sad to see someone who should be celebrating a surprise 50th birthday in two years, writing about a mistake that could have been any number of drunken messes that night. He has obviously matured with age as he has spent twenty-six years in jail. He remembers that night perfectly because it lives with him every day. He maturity is shown in his acknowledgement that every emotion and every sorry he could possibly say will never change the fact that he took Kevin’s, a young man’s, life. But the most important lines of this whole reading are the last two. He has come to comprehend that society just sees murderer stamped on his forehead, he even questions if they should forgive him. But most of all, instead of be ashamed of the way society views him; he has turned to God, the one person who will always forgive. Thu, 10 Feb 2011 05:42:52 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/02/09/4092/#IDComment127058483 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/30/conformity-rules-the-day/#IDComment125547153 This video is a great representation of the human society. A trend comes rushing in and everyone seems to follow. It happens all over the world each and every day. Take a look around. Just here at Penn State walking to class you can see numerous girls walking with the same black North Face jacket and Uggs. Almost everyone these days has a blackberry, when most people do not care what kind of phone they have as long as it makes and receives texts and calls. While these are easy things to notice, conforming not only affects the way people dress, talk, walk, etc but it also has a shocking affect on human behavior. There are invisible strings that attach to each and every one of us from the moment we are born that makes us desire acceptance from people and society. It is important to notice that in this video there were never less then three confederates facing in the wrong direction. That is because if it were just one person facing the wrong way, it would do very little in convincing the other person to turn around. But when there is a group of people all doing the same thing, like in this video facing the wrong way in an elevator, it makes a person wonder and feel like an outcast. This is the basis for the terms conformity and groupthink. Just about anyone would do anything not to feel alone or like an outsider. Even the people that think they are breaking the mold by going against the norm are conforming with all the other people trying to be individual. The fact is, and what this video proves, is that no one is individual. Those that try to be, for example Goths, just conform with all the other people, which starts stereotypes. The man in this video clearly knows the normal way to stand in an elevator because he was standing the correct way when the elevator doors opened. But once he saw that the other people faced the opposite direction he made slow movements to turn to face the same direction as them. These invisible strings are clearly at work here and they are pulling this man to face the back of the elevator. Even though this man knows that something is off he does not dare to question the group in fear of the rejection he may face. That is the point this video is trying to make. Although you hear the laughter of others as they watch this, put in the same situation the human fear of denial and rejection takes over and almost everyone would turn to the back of the elevator. Thu, 3 Feb 2011 01:25:34 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/30/conformity-rules-the-day/#IDComment125547153 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/23/how-free-are-these-90-students/#IDComment123989443 Initially hearing that 11 percent of a high school’s student bodies, 90 students to be exact, are pregnant took me a little time to process. This number is extremely high, which is why this story is making its way to nation news. But when investigating a bit more into the lives these teens live, it is easily seen that these invisible strings are influencing their lives. The first piece of information that the report gave was that 100 percent of the school qualified for government paid lunches. The only observation that can be taken from this fact is that these students are coming from homes of poverty. Many strings are attached when poverty is in the equation; the first one stated here is obviously money. These students are coming from extremely low-income backgrounds, which makes me wonder if they can even afford birth control or any kind of contraception for that matter. Also, up until now did the school have a sexual education program? It is extremely unlikely that a school in a poverty ridden neighborhood would have the money to provide its students with educational programs giving them knowledge about sex, STD’s, and pregnancy. The second fact that came to my mind when the news team stated this was a place of poverty was that addiction and abuse are extremely high in these types of areas all over the country not just Tennessee. Teens under the influence of anything from drugs to alcohol would not make the intelligent decision to either use protection or be abstinent. Also, if it is not these students who are abusing or addicted their family members might be. This can cause these students to run to the first person that seems to care about them to get them out of their homes. The third thought that came into my mind was the show “Teen Mom.” These girls are watching other girls just like them, other girls coming from absolutely nothing, become famous and making money off of pregnancy. I cannot help to think that some of these girls are watching this show and saying “well if she’s doing it and it’s ok I guess it’s okay for me to.” The world with these shows are saying it is acceptable for young girls to get pregnant in high school because it is entertaining. This number is extremely high and yes something has to be done. But before the world judges these girls we all need to take a look at the invisible strings that make them more likely to make the headlines for this type of behavior then those of us that come from nice communities. But also these girls need to take a step back and see that while they can take the easy road and follow everyone else, they can also see these invisible strings and try to be the difference. Wed, 26 Jan 2011 22:58:40 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/23/how-free-are-these-90-students/#IDComment123989443 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/19/rise-in-national-guard-and-reserve-suicides-whats-it-all-about-soc-001-blog/#IDComment122409340 It is apparent that the atrocities of war are taking its toll on millions of soldiers. This is evident in the current rise of drug use and suicide rates appearing across soldiers in the National Guard and reserves. These soldiers, as one man in the video stated, are afraid to go to sleep in fear of the images that might rush through their minds. War predisposes its participants to suicide and suicidal thoughts more then those of us sitting at home just hearing about the war from newspapers and television stations. The sights and experiences that soldiers go through when fighting in war are so terrible that many are choosing death then to go back and have to experience it again. Another fact that was presented in the video is that most of these suicides are taking place when the soldiers return home from combat. Soldiers that have just witnessed and/or performed murders, bombings, and so on are not mentally ready to come back to a society that has no idea what they have gone through. These soldiers are placed with people that are sympathetic and supportive but have the slightest understanding of what war really is. They are fighting posttraumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression, and even horrid flashback images each and every day, which also predispose soldiers to suicide and suicidal thoughts more than other people. This is hindering soldiers’ quality of life, making each day a struggle to get through. Soldiers are turning to drugs in hope it will erase their traumas and ease the pain. When these fail they feel that the only way to get relief is by ending their lives. They need psychological and therapeutic help, which is not being offered. Left with no one that understands, no one that has experienced what they have gone through leaving him or her with no one to talk to, and no professional help being offered soldiers are left helpless. This helpless depression lingers over the soldiers until they feel they can no longer take it, making the final decision of taking their lives. While in the end it is the soldier’s final decision to end his or her life, there is no debate that they are more likely to commit suicide than someone who did not serve in the war because war predisposes soldiers to much more mental and emotional trauma then everyday life could ever bare. Thu, 20 Jan 2011 02:13:51 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/19/rise-in-national-guard-and-reserve-suicides-whats-it-all-about-soc-001-blog/#IDComment122409340 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cp%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment122186141 soc001 Wed, 19 Jan 2011 02:17:06 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/01/10/last-name-%e2%80%9cp%e2%80%9d-%e2%80%93-intense-debate/#IDComment122186141