I believe that illegal immigrants should not have the right to healthcare coverage, however, in the case of life or death anybody should receive the immediate care that they need in order to live. On one hand, it seems very financially unrealistic to provide healthcare for anybody that enters our country, because technically this could mean anybody on Earth. It is just unreasonable to think that the United States government can afford to take on the financial responsibility to provide health care for all people including immigrants. Even citizens of the United States are not guaranteed health care, so we must first provide health care to actual citizens and legal immigrants before we can even consider guaranteeing health care for illegal immigrants. By establishing a stipulation that can be easily determined such as “life or death” might be hard on the medical side of this issue. However, I believe that it is just plain unethical for our country to deny somebody the right to health services that can save their life. I would foresee my idea causing trouble in the system, because people would argue that “quality of life” that is on the downward slope for somebody might lead to essentially a life or death operation. However, I still believe that it is our responsibility as citizens of the United States to stand by our belief that “all people are created equal.” I also would argue that our country has made decisions to provide military services to help people in other countries, so how is that much different than helping save the lives of people on our own land.

There are other issues to consider when taking this topic into consideration. When I look at the other side of things I think about issues like, what if illegal immigrants carrying in diseases or illnesses that could be spread to masses of people if not treated? What do we do in that situation? Or what about illegitimate marriages in order to gain citizenship and healthcare? We need to consider what ethics come into concern and what ways in which people may do things to get around laws. We do not want a government or system that encourages people to make bad decisions in order gain access to health care, and in many ways that is the environment of the health care industry in the United States today. The other thing I keep thinking about is wouldn’t it turn in all of the illegal immigrants because all health care needs to be thoroughly documents. How would they set up a system in which health care would be provided without alluding to the fact that someone was an illegal immigrant? This is an issue with many sides to address and will be a very complicated topic to resolve.

I do not thing the goal of Sam’s lectures is to change our opinions. I think he makes it really clear that he does not want you to change your opinion but rather have the background and knowledge to back your opinion up. We should all be appreciative that Sam does not want us to change our opinions; he instead is giving us the tools to back up our opinions so we do not look like idiots. Having an opinion without any back up is meaningless to any intelligent individual. Have you thought that maybe he is just providing you with the information so you don’t sound like unintelligent closed minded person? I find it really hard to believe that you have not taken anything away from this class. Sure, some topics are far less interesting than others but these are serious issues. Although I do not think this class has dramatically changed my opinions on racial issues, it has helped me understand the issues much more thoroughly. To be honest, I think you might be a little self involved. How could this class not broaden your outlook on life? It does not need to change your outlook but rather give you a wider scope. You probably have opinions that are convenient to your lifestyle. I am going to assume that because racial issues have never affected you, you could care less about them. But since it is clear that you do care a lot about yourself could you at least acknowledge where you fit into these issues. I am a white female, and probably from a similar background as your own. One thing that has definitely stuck with me throughout this class is that the way our society has been set up, some people are born with advantage over others. I previously liked to believe that you if you work hard you can do anything. I still believe this to some extend but I know that there are certain things in life that can assist you in getting ahead. This flip camera response was taken after the lecture about affirmative action and nepotism. Knowing certain people and coming from certain backgrounds can definitely give certain people advantages. I was born into this society in a position that has absolutely given me advantages. I am not going to quickly say that they are unfair because I do believe that my parents worked hard to give me the head start. At the same time I am not going to say that my advantage is fair. What I can say is that I can at least acknowledge and appreciate my advantage. This class has certainly made me aware of the advantage I have. I think if anything this class is going to teach you to think a little more about your opinion and what you say.

Why does it matter if you know your race and ethnicity anyway? While I know this is broad, I thought the whole point of race relations is not to define people by their race or ethnicity. There are so many other important characteristics about who people really are other than their race or ethnicity. I suppose knowing your personal heritage is important to people but I do not think it defines who you are. Who you are is based upon your life experiences and what you do, not what you look like. I think race and ethnicity might help people define their culture which your culture maybe a large defining characteristic of who you are. I think maybe you should embrace the unknown of your race and ethnicity and let that become the definition. I think it is pretty cool that you can be on both teams. That your life experience has given you the opportunity to see both sides. I am sure since you were raised near your Mother’s side of the family, culturally you are more likely to identify as being whatever they are but would it be different had you grown up closer to your Father’s family? Would life really be that much different? Does your race or ethnicity really influence life and who you are that much? Why does it really matter which team you are on anyway? I checked the white Caucasian box on my census form, but that does not define me at all. I have been told my ancestry and heritage from family members and all I know is that I am a mix on eastern European, so that clearly does not define me either. I do not like how in class we are supposed to be on one team or another. I understand Sam does it to make a point and he is not being serious but sometimes I think it is just unnecessary. While yes, I identify as white, but there are parts of life that we can all relate to each other about. I think being on one team or the other makes it seem like just because we are on one team does not mean that we can relate to the other team. There are definitely members of the white team who have experienced racism and ignorance that ideologically they identify more with the other team but are not included just based on the color of their skin, or the perceived color of their skin. I think we should stop trying to define who we are in class based on which team we are one. I think there are definitely much more important characteristics that define who we are.

I am slightly confused why menstruating is a topic of conversation in a race relations class. In what way does this tie into what we are discussing in class? Well, regardless of my understanding of why this is a class topic I think it is weird in which that people are reacting to it. While I not the type of girl who opening discusses my period with everyone, it has never been something I have ever felt ashamed of. Even at the awkward young age of thirteen when I first got my period it just was not something I ever felt weird about. I think people are confusing shame with personal. I think bodily functions like menstruating or whatever are just personal things. Not everything needs to be openly discuss in public. I think there need to be personal things that are not openly discussed to keep some things sacred. Open discussion about everything is not always a good thing. I think also that while I might not feel embarrassed or ashamed of my period that does not mean other people feel differently. I mean let me just be honest, it is not the most desirable thing. It can definitely be uncomfortable and just make things feel all together blah but I think after having it for ten years you get used to it.
I agree with this post that it does signify a really amazing thing, to be able to give birth to children. Although, honestly it is pretty much the last thing I think of when I think of periods. I think when I am ready and planning on having children I will regard it as something more desirable. Unfortunately, just because women get their period every twenty eight days does not mean they can necessarily have children. This is something that I feel is increasing in our society, that women can not have children naturally, and is something I worry about more often than being ashamed of having my period at all.
I think this whole discussion about periods became such an issue in class because it was uncomfortable to hear Sam speak about his wife’s period. I agree with the comment made in class that it is not his story or life experience to share with 1000 students. I never questioned that she probably knew that he openly discusses this with people and I figured it did not make her feel uncomfortable. What I did think, is that it definitely could make other people feel uncomfortable. While Sam is obviously very close to his wife, the rest of the class is not. It is uncomfortable to hear about such personal aspects of life about someone who I don’t even know, and is not even present. I think it would have been a whole different situation if she came into the class and wanted to share that information with us.

I am not a religious Bachelor or Bachelorette viewer but I will admit I have watched the show in past seasons. When I think back throughout the seasons I have watched, I can not even think of a contestant who was not white. This is quiet a peculiar situation. I would assume ABC has had this situation brought to their attention before. Disney owns ABC. In recent month, Disney released the movie “The Frog Princess,” this past fall. This was the first time ever that Disney had an animated feature film with an African-American princess, Princess Tiana. I first heard about “The Frog Princess,” on the Tyra Bank’s talk show. She had three young girls, all about age 8 of different races. It was really interesting watching her talk about race with girls of such a young age. I was amazed of how conscious of race the girls were. They all projected a wonderful openness and sense of the color of each others skin being meaningless. At one point it almost seemed as if the girls had been told what to say but either way it showed a hope that one day our society will hopefully be as open as these girls appeared to be. It was also nice to see how excited the girls were to have an African-American princess. This shows that making multicultural entertainment is definitely in the consciousness of Disney/ABC. So where is ABC missing this link in the production of the Bachelor? I would think at this point, they would have had a main contestant who is not white. This is just strange. It makes me question the morality and awareness of the Bachelor’s producers and writers – yes; there are absolutely writers on this “reality” show. As I acknowledged it has to obviously be on the consciousness of ABC/Disney executives but maybe their ideology is not flowing through to production of the rest of their entertainment. When thinking of reality television and being multi-cultural I quickly thought about the show, “Keeping Up with the Kardashians.” While obviously their projected lifestyle is not realistic or for any person to base their life off of, but there are many positive messages the show sends. Relating to this discussion, two of the three Kardashian’s are in biracial relationships. I have thought about this before. In some ways the Kardashian’s are making a breakthrough in crossing race relations lines in reality television. It is nice to see the mass media finally having a reality show that has biracial couples as the main focus. While the Kardashian’s show is not realistic to life in any sense, I think it does show a much more realistic representation of relationships in America.

It is a really interesting subject to debate why people speak up in certain situations and why they do not speak up in certain situations. I do not think this issue has anything to do with the way you are brought up or raised by your parents. I think it would be hard to find parents who do not list teaching their kids to be respectful as a main goal of parenting. Everyone wants their kids to be respectful. There are many different aspects of this issue that affect the way people do or do not speak or stand up for others. I think the way parenting affects this issue is more in mannerisms. I think parents who teach their kids to stand up for themselves are more likely to have kids who are willing to stand up for other people. Soft-spoken, mild mannered people are just less likely to speak up in these situations. I think some people, whether it is considered ignorant or not, just do not want to get involved in other peoples business. It could be their closest friend or even a family member, and they just do not want to get involved in the situation. I am not sure that it is ok to blame these people just because they may have more introverted personalities than others. When thinking about this situation, I think it is hard to understand why people’s emotions do not kick and make them react, regardless of personality type. There are other reasons why people might not speak up in these bad situations. I think when face with something so awful and disgusting people close up. They go into some what of a shock because they do not want believe what they are seeing. Watching a human being treat another human being with such disrespect is scary. I think many people feel threatened for their safety in these situations. They often do not know how to react or if they are going to react, they don’t know what to say.
When people actually do step up and speak out in these situations I think it has a lot to do with confidence. They have the confidence in themselves to stand up for what they know is right. I think that most people believe discrimination is wrong but they are not always confident enough to back up that belief. There are probably a number of reasons why people question their own values and beliefs. The people who do step also feel confidence in the given environment. They feel strongly not only about their beliefs and views but also they feel confident in their surrounding. Personally, I am a pretty outspoken person. I am willing to talk to anyone and about anything. I think this makes me more likely to say something. I would like to think I would always speak up but I do not know how I would react if face with this circumstance.

This video deeply saddened me. Here are two loving, capable people who want to raise their children. Why are these individuals being attacked when there are abused, abandoned children living all across the United State? This issue seems like it should be address more in the public forum. I have thought a lot about LGBT issues and immigration issues but never considered the two together. This issue is never brought into the public spotlight and I think it obviously needs to be covered more by the mass media. Only then will the public pressure cause the government to make the necessary changes.
In order to rectify situations like these two political debates must be resolved: gay marriage and immigration. First, I believe that gay marriage should be legalized. Any two, consenting, loving adults should be titled to the privileges and rights that come with marriage. Second, any immigrant that has an established life in the United States, whether through work or family, should be entitled citizenship and granted amnesty, especially in cases like these. It is clear that Jay and Shirley were positively contributing to American society. All immigrants with established life, positively contributing to society should never be question on their status as citizens. I think deporting immigrants has a negative impact on society. In order to have a more cultured society, we need to constantly bring in new ideas and new people. The children should be thought of first and the pain and distraught caused by the government’s mindless actions was evident in the video. There are too many families ripped apart by divorce, why rip apart a loving family? What kind of message is that sending to the children? Many people involved in the marriage debate focus their argument on the sanctity of marriage. In my opinion, marriage is when two people love each other, and tearing happy, loving families apart is just the opposite of the sanctity of marriage. The United States should support any marriage, regardless of sexual orientation or ethnicity.
While this video pointed out the problem of LGBT immigration flaws, several questions were brought to mind that could affect cases like these. I am very interested to know if one of the mothers is the biological mother, if they adopted, if Shirley is their biological mother or if Jay is the biological mother. If Shirley is the biological mother why does she not have the legal right to stay in the United States? If they adopted, how did they successfully pass this rigorous procedure? Did the agency know that one mother was not a citizen? If Jay is the biological mother, does Shirley have custody rights? I think I could understand this issue better if these questions were answered.

I’m having a mixed reaction towards the loss of languages. My first reaction was sadness. It is sad to lose anything, but especially something like language. Language is very sacred to people. Primarily because it brings people together and is the basis of love and bonding. These dieing languages are the languages of the people’s childhoods and memories. I would imagine they feel as if their memories are dieing alongside with their language. I can not even imagine what it would be like to lose my language. There has to be a great feeling of tragedy and disconnection from the rest of society. The BBC article talked about the Johnny Hill Jr. learning English as a path away from isolation but now, isolation is exactly what he feels. I am slight confused about this specific circumstance. Was he the only child of his generation in his family’s tribe? How could he have possibly been the only member of his generation to learn the language? He did explain that he was always trying to teach his children his language but it never happened. I would imagine now, after filming a documentary and gaining the international media spotlight, someone out there would be more than willing to learn or at least record his language. Although I will never know the answers to these questions, I know something happened in some part of his surrounding culture that extinguished his language. If we are aware that languages throughout the world are dieing, why are people not recording them. I think it is important to have historical documentation of these languages even if no one will ever speak them again.
While I feel sad about the loss of languages, I also understand the reason why it is happening. I agree that we are living in a time of rapid social, environmental and economic transformation but there are many positive aspects to this transformation. For example mass communication has never been easier or more accessible to people ever before. Modern communication like Facebook, Twitter and text messaging has brought people together who never before would have been able to communicate. People from across the world can share stories thus spreading and sharing their culture with people throughout the world. I would have never been able to hear Boa Sr’s language if it modern communication technology like YouTube did not exist. In many ways the transformation of society is enabling people to share their culture and educate the world. Society’s transformation obviously has costs as well as benefits. Not only are we losing thousands of languages but we are risking losing other aspects of human interaction. Many of today’s forms of technology require no form of face to face interaction. I can not even imagine what society would become if we eliminated all personal interaction.

This whole situation makes me wonder if our culture has lost touch with religion and spirituality. In many other countries prayer is built into their daily schedule. So if religious observance has almost completely left American culture, what has replaced it? Where life once revolved around religion, life now must revolve around something else. I think maybe government has possibly taken the role of religion. If not government maybe our culture’s ritualistic way of checking our iPhones or Blackberrys to fill our obsession with checking our e-mail, facebook and news. Or could religion have been replaced with our cultures obsession with sports and celebrities. Something has definitely replaced religion in our culture.
Maybe with this story in mind we should try to figure out what personally is taking place of religion in our own lives. Even as a Rabbi’s daughter, I have definitively lost touch with my religion and observance. I’m not sure what I am filling the gap with. After thinking about this situation, I am going to try to seek to find more meaning in my religious observance.

This for good reasons makes my Mom nuts. The stress of trying to make a flight topped off with my Dad insisting on this ritual, makes her frantic. As we discussed the story my Mom told me she once made the stewardess keep the airplane cabin door open so my Dad would make the flight. While this is even odd to me, it is quite normal for others. When traveling to Israel on the over nine hour flight, it is quite common for religious men to pray with teffilin on the flight. In fact, the flight staff expect the religious people to pray at specific times. Obviously in Israel this is a typical situation.