en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/763007 Comments by slc5259 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/letter-from-an-inmate__trashed/#IDComment70046128 I am very intriguied by inmates and I really hope that I get to visit with some in the future. This has actually come to my attention before Sam and Laurie brought it up in class. My friend jokingly posted a “write to an inmate” website on my facebook wall because he said I could “find a lover”. I was interested in checking the website out and I read some of the stories. Most, if not all, were extremely touching. These were real people that I was reading about. They have feelings and families and everything I have. But the what is different about them is that they are in prison for life and they are never coming out and will never experience the things that I will in my future. I couldn’t stop reading their stories and their mistakes. What I found very interesting was that not one of them said they regret what they did or they would change the wrong they did. That did not scare me or make me hate them, but it makes them seem stronger or a better person in a way. Murders and things are definitely not acceptable but when people accept their wrong doings and accept their fate it definitely makes them seem like a good person. They cannot take back what they have done but they are responsible enough to accept their punishment and deal with the consequences. I could not imagine living my life in a jail cell and living knowing what I had done to get myself into that position. I know that not every prisoner is like that but I do feel strongly that most of them are really not that bad. With this article, I actually feel bad for this prisoner whose son died. I don’t know how he is able to go on knowing that he will never see his son again. He was not able to see his son much since he was in prison and now he never will ever again. Prisoners still have feelings and I definitely feel sorry for him. There is nothing he can do and no family he can just run to and talk to and cry with. I think the website that I visited is very good. It is kind of creepy that you can talk to someone who commited a horrible crime but at the same time it gives them some one to talk to because they still deserve the right to talk to people. I have never written to a prisoner yet but I definitely think that it is something I will do in the future when I have time to make frequent emails to someone. Everyone deserves someone to talk to. Sat, 24 Apr 2010 01:21:17 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/letter-from-an-inmate__trashed/#IDComment70046128 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-health-care__trashed/#IDComment70038117 Why is this even a question? I feel that not allowing immigrants to receive health care is totally bizarre. If they came to this country legally then why would they not receive some type of health care just like everyone else? It would be extreme racism and disrespect if we did not allow immigrants to receive health care. They are people too and if they come to the United States they are most likely trying to receive better opportunities. I feel that this is kind of a stupid question and pretty immature. Denying health care to immigrants is a horrible idea to me. Sat, 24 Apr 2010 00:51:33 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-health-care__trashed/#IDComment70038117 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-people-who-can-only-afford-hard-work__trashed/#IDComment70036665 I kind of swing both ways with this topic. I definitely think people should become legally become a citizen of the United States when they migrate here. But I do understand that sometimes there are people who just can’t afford to do that and they come to the United States for better opportunities. I think that if they are hard workers then they should be able to migrate here and not be scrutinized for it. After they make enough money to afford the legal part of it then they should get that done. There are always going to be people breaking that system but that’s just what happens. Sat, 24 Apr 2010 00:46:02 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-people-who-can-only-afford-hard-work__trashed/#IDComment70036665 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/want-to-learn-chinese__trashed/#IDComment68453056 Mandarin seems like such a hard language to learn. I do agree with Sam when he says that it would be beneficial to know in the future. Not many school offer it though, especially high schools. In my high school we only had the option of taking Spanish, French, and Latin. Adding Mandarin to the curriculum would totally be beneficial and probably a lot of fun. It would mix things up and probably help a lot of young adults in their future endeavors. Personally, I would want to learn Mandarin but I just do not have the time to do so. Sat, 17 Apr 2010 01:00:52 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/want-to-learn-chinese__trashed/#IDComment68453056 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/creating-terrorists__trashed/#IDComment68452706 Wow this was horrific and sad to watch. It blows my mind that suicide bombers are willing to kill themselves like that. It blows my mind that someone even has the guts to blow themselves up. Revenge is sweet, but killing yourself to do so is not. Her husband probably did not deserve to die, so it’s understandable that she felt some sort of way about his death, who wouldn’t? But trying to kill innocent people along with yourself is definitely not the way to go about getting revenge. I think suicide bombers are selfish individuals and I do not see through their perspective what so ever. Sat, 17 Apr 2010 00:57:34 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/creating-terrorists__trashed/#IDComment68452706 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-the-men__trashed/#IDComment68451500 I definitely think men face the same things women do when compared to what society’s saying. I do think women have it a little bit harder, maybe that’s because I am a woman, but I think men also face the same things and have that idea that they need to look or act a certain way. I never really thought of it until now because this topic is usually about women. I asked a couple of my guy friends how they felt and they definitely all agreed and said that they feel like they need to conform to what society wants them to. Fitting in is something that everyone wants to accomplish. It’s just part of human nature to want to be like everyone else and not be the odd one out. The media definitely has had a major affect on what is “normal” and what is not. Women especially face this problem. Just go to a grocery store and go to the magazine isle. There are hundreds of magazines with skinny, tall, fit women. Of course when an average woman sees this they are going to critique themselves and feel some sort of way about it. Celebrities are a big factor too. Actors and actresses do come in all shapes and sizes but most of them are very thin and are very similar with their bodies. Modeling is another thing that’s horrible for the perception of the woman’s body. How is it that the anorexic skinny look looks good in their eyes? This just makes young girls and women strive to be like that which affects health amoung a number of different things. Men definitely have this to battle with too. I don’t think it’s as strong as women though. In ads and movies, most of the men that win over women’s hearts are the handsome, tall, built men. We see it over and over again. Of course there are going to be exceptions, but for the most part that is what we see. I think men do a good job at covering up ther insecuriteis more than women can though. This helps with the idea that maybe men don’t go through these emotions and insecurities. The desire to fit in is pretty much inevitable and probably will never go away no matter what anyone tries to change. I think the thing is with this, no matter men or women, people need to just accept who they are. No one is perfect, everyone has a flaw or something they do not like about themselves. That’s what makes us all human. When people stop worrying about their weight, or height, or hair color, or anything like that, then the people in the media will not matter. Sat, 17 Apr 2010 00:45:23 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-the-men__trashed/#IDComment68451500 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/i-really-want-to-know-also__trashed/#IDComment66577645 I definitely think that Sam has opened my eyes to new ideas. I was totally unaware of some of the things going on in the world and this country today. Some of the things Sam talks about have made me think differently about issues. I feel more comfortable with the race topic and I feel a lot more educated about it. I’m very surprised that you don’t seem to be phased by anything we learned. I understand that you don’t have to agree with him, but I feel that you have had to learn something that you didn’t know about this semester. Thu, 8 Apr 2010 14:00:55 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/i-really-want-to-know-also__trashed/#IDComment66577645 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-white-minorities__trashed/#IDComment65687294 I am actually very interested in what’s to come down the road. Before reading this article I had no idea about the racial and ethnic population of the United States could see a shift. I can’t say I am surprised though. With more and more immigration happening, it’s definitely inevitable that more minority births are going to be occurring. Eventually if whites so become the minority, I am dying to know what this country will be like. If I had to guess, I do not think anything will change. I think that white people will still be seen as “on top” by people of different ethnicities. Although I feel that way, I also think that if black or brown or Asian people became the majority then maybe racism in this country will finally come to an end. Because what it all boils down to is skin color. It doesn’t matter where you’re from, a person is a person. I definitely think that there are some people who will be absolutely appalled, especially the older generation, that would think of white becoming the minority as the end of the world. But really is it a big deal? Recently we have been seeing more and more interracial marriages which have led to mixing races and less purely white children being born. I think that this is wonderful. I think my generation is more adapted and open to new cultures and ethnicities that it really won’t be such an issue in our future. Now if this was happening in this day and age or even 20 years back then there would definitely be some sort of uproar. I’m actually quite open and even excited to see this happen. I find different ethnicities intriguing and I love to learn about different cultures. I think it would be beneficial to our society to have new things to learn about and new relationships to form with things that we are not so much familiar with. I definitely cannot wait to see what is going to happen when and if whites become the minority of the United States. I’m wondering though if today’s minorities will somehow try and “strike back” against the white people because of what has happened to minorities years back. That is the only thing that I am some what scared of. I could understand how they would feel, but as a white person who was brought up not judging people by what they look like and having a family who supports minorities, I just hope that nothing like that happens. I can’t wait to see what the future holds and I hope I’m not the only white person who is actually really interested and excited about this idea. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 02:46:57 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/the-white-minorities__trashed/#IDComment65687294 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65680738 Honestly, it’s totally up to him. This is something that really bothers me. The fact that he needs to choose what “team” he wants to play for and he has to constantly decide what he wants to categorize himself as. If I were in his shoes I would probably also categorize myself with the black/brown team because he did grow up mostly around his mother’s side of the family and interacted with people on the black/brown team more so than the white side. I really don’t like this idea of “teams” and stuff but I guess it’s something that we just have to live with. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:49:32 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65680738 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65679512 I want to start by saying I do not think that cutting welfare is a good idea at all. I do although think that there needs to be certain restrictions and what not. I do not think that cutting out welfare in this country all together would change any of the social statuses what so ever. The poor will still be viewed as poor, and the people that used to receive welfare are still going to be seen as poor. They might even be viewed worse if welfare was cut because then they would really have nothing to rely on or to support them. I don’t think we should get rid of welfare because some people really do need help. I think that there are many people who abuse the system, but for the people who do work hard but still need help cutting welfare will be horrible for them. Sat, 3 Apr 2010 01:40:28 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-if-we-got-rid-of-welfare__trashed/#IDComment65679512 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/is-this-just-a-few-bad-apples__trashed/#IDComment64138442 I have to say, I am not that surprised that things like this happened. I’m not saying it should, but there are people in the world who disagree with things and do not know how to handle things in the proper way. I think that protesting is an individuals right but sometimes it gets to the point where it is taken too far. In this case, I believe it’s gone too far. Some of the signs that people were holding were down right nasty. To compare Obama to Hitler was really the icing on the cake to me. I’d really like to ask that person what he or she thinks Obama has in common with Hitler. I hope that that person can read pick up a history book one day and find out that they are quite different to say the least. I fully understand that people have the right to voice their opinions, but to go about it in this manner is embarrassing and just disgusting. Using derogatory terms, comparing our President to some of the most evil individuals in history, and making racist comments just shows how immature a person could be. How can someone have the nerve to really stand out there and say such horrible things to someone. It gets to the point where enough is enough but I’m not really sure how anyone can go about it to take care of this issue since everyone has the right to their opinion. I hope that people could take a step back and really know what they are about to say about someone or something before they just start going crazy and acting like immature little children. When I read the article it disgusted me to hear how some people even spit in some politicians faces. Are you kidding me? Do you really think that spitting on someone is the answer to all of your problems and it’s going to do something to change anything? I don’t think so. I respect these politicians who have to put up with such scrutiny and this childish behavior. I would love to see how well the people actually carrying out these rude mannerisms would handle it if someone were to do it to them. I don’t think they’d be able to handle it what so ever. So before they throw that ball, they should be able to catch it. Threatening officials using signs should be out of the question and illegal. That’s where it does become scary because who knows what person is actually quite serious about it. I understand that rallies and protests like this will continue and I think they are fundamental to our society. But I hope that they will become less violent and demeaning because there is really no point to be that way. Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:31:16 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/is-this-just-a-few-bad-apples__trashed/#IDComment64138442 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/whats-the-big-deal-with-periods__trashed/#IDComment63887152 I feel like a lot of people handled the topic of women’s menstrual cycles very childish. This happens to all women, so it’s not like it’s some weird phenomenon. I think the term bleeding was really strange. I don’t really feel like women say “hey I’m bleeding”, and I feel like it’s more of a guys way in saying it. I think the thing that makes it an uncomfortable topic is that it does only happen to women. So when Sam compared it to someone being hungry it was not the same because both men and women can be hungry. I kind of was confused as to why this topic even came up in the first place. Wed, 24 Mar 2010 18:39:34 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/whats-the-big-deal-with-periods__trashed/#IDComment63887152 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment63885925 I was just thinking about this in class on Tuesday. We do always compare brown/black people with white people, but Sam doesn’t specifically call out Asians as much. In my honest opinion, I know that my friends and myself included have a hard time distinguishing Asians with Asian Americans. Where I am from there are not many Asian Americans and most of the Asians I meet are foreign. So coming to Penn State really made me open my eyes. I think the biggest thing that separates them for me is language. When I hear a person speak is the only thing that can make me tell an Asian apart from an American Asian. Wed, 24 Mar 2010 18:30:13 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment63885925 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-to-do-about-white-guilt__trashed/#IDComment63034894 Most of the history books these days are all about “white” history. I think it would be silly for us to even feel guilty about our history books being all about white citizens. We are the ones who found this country most of the minorities just happened to come here for a better life. It’s not our fault that our country is a much better place to live than most people of different races that move here. But we did bring people over here to be our slaves. So it doesn’t balance out. I do think our history books need to be changed. Fri, 19 Mar 2010 20:59:49 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-to-do-about-white-guilt__trashed/#IDComment63034894 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment62993221 I found it interesting to see the vast differences in the responses to this question. The white people basically said that it’s just a skin color, means nothing different. Which is kind of a cliché thing to say. But colored people were very quick to use stereotypical responses. It was somewhat eye opening because for me being white I never really took the time to think about what it meant to be white. It is obvious though that race is still an issue if colored people still have these stereotypical responses to what they think it means to be white. Fri, 19 Mar 2010 15:42:41 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment62993221 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment59990953 Wow this is disgusting. People need to grow up. When is racism going to end? I honesty never thought that racism was still this prevalent in today’s society. The video about the noose being hung is disturbing. To know that people still have these feelings of hate is a scary thing. Now whether it is a joke or prank it still does not change anything. Racism is not something to joke about which I thought was a no brainer, but apparently I was wrong. I definitely agree with Sam when he says that just two representatives’ opinions from a very large group of people cannot further the conversation or take it to depths that it should be taken to. The article that was posted was just as sickening as the video. I can’t believe that someone of a minority would stoop to the level of hanging a noose in a public place on campus. The woman said it was an accident and not meant as a harmful, discriminatory act. But how can you let this type of “accident” occur after other incidents of racial discrimination have been going on at your school. I just don’t understand what goes through people’s heads. The KKK hoods being found around the San Diego campus are just as disgusting. What are the people putting these things around campus trying to accomplish? I really wish that people would wake up and smell the roses. We live in 2010. Our nation has come a long way from where it started when it comes to race. I’m not saying our country is at a great place in terms of accepting different races because we still have a long way to go. But for actions like this happening this frequently is appalling. The other thing that makes me mad is that this is happening on a college campus. The people on college campuses in present time all grew up in a time where race was never an issue. I understand that some people were more sheltered than others, had racist parents, or whatever. But hating racial differences was not something we were taught about growing up. After reading this article and watching this video, I can’t help but wonder if things like this are occurring on the Penn State campus. I would like to believe that they’re not, but now I have my doubts. I honestly think that people are entitled to their opinions and no one should have the right to make a person change what they believe, but when your negative opinions are showed through public displays is when it begins to cross the line. This nonsense needs to come to an end. Race, color, whatever.. it should not and does not matter. People are people no matter what their differences are. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 04:41:39 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment59990953 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59988311 I guess I really never thought of race when I watched The Bachelor. Race isn’t something that I automatically think about while watching these types of tv shows. But the point you make is very valid. It is interesting that there is not much diversity on this show and the majority of the people involved have been white. But there are shows somewhat like The Bachelor that are just on different stations that have different races involved. It is kind of offensive that ABC has primarily white people on this show. Now that this has come to my attention, I would like to see different racial groups come into play on this show. Sat, 6 Mar 2010 04:14:46 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59988311 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/whats-with-the-theme-parties__trashed/#IDComment59451700 I totally disagree with you. I know plenty of people that are not white who have hosted theme parties. I also disagree that the theme parties are geared toward black people. I’ve been to an anything but clothes party, highlighter party, beach party, ugly sweater party, and the list goes on and on. I have never been to a party that had anything to do with race. I can think of one theme party generated toward black people which would be gangster. But these theme parties aren’t made to make fun or discriminate people. They’re just for fun. Lighten up a bit. Wed, 3 Mar 2010 01:09:55 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/whats-with-the-theme-parties__trashed/#IDComment59451700 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/who-could-compete-with-this-woman-on-a-level-playing-field__trashed/#IDComment58746845 This story is amazing. Yvrose Jean Baptiste is an incredible woman. I cannot believe that she has this entire system of work with only a fifth grade education. It is sad to hear about how she lost all of her capital because of the earthquake destroying businesses and killing her customers. It seems like bad luck that her bank happened to survive the earthquake and they are still expecting her payment. I feel extremely sorry for her to have to be in this situation. I think that more Haitian people need to take about Yvrose. By no means am I saying that Haitian’s are lazy, but maybe they just need a little push. To get that little push I do understand that they need better education in their country which will not come. Hopefully one day down the road we can see a change. Although Yvrose is very ambitious and talented, I do not think she would survive if she came to the United States. It’s a whole different playing field here. With her small level of education and her lack of money, I do not think it would be possible for her to get very far or be compared to the smartest business men and women here. For Americans to get on top, you need to have a strong education and Yvrose just does not have that. It is incredible, though, the amount of knowledge she has about business. By no means would she be under-priveledged with her ability to manage everything, but I don’t think she would be up there with the top. Now if I switched spots and went to Haiti, I have no idea how I would survive. I feel so priveledged after hearing this story, but I also feel somewhat selfish and lazy. I feel that with an education, it is very easy for Americans to get jobs in the United States and be well off without being overly ambitious. If I went to Haiti, I would need to definitely improve my talents and ambitions and strive to even survive. I think the United States takes for granted everything we have. Most, not all, really aren’t doing so bad for ourselves, even if we think we are. A lot of what we get and what we end up having has to do with our parents also. We cannot compare our determinism to the people such as Yvrose in Haiti because they come from poor families who literally have next to nothing and have no way in helping their children. I hope that this video inspired some people to be more ambitious and not take things for granted. I wish Yvrose nothing but the best and hope that good things will eventually come her way. Fri, 26 Feb 2010 04:31:59 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/who-could-compete-with-this-woman-on-a-level-playing-field__trashed/#IDComment58746845 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-one__trashed/#IDComment58598496 If education is what will help with this issue with Native Americans then something has to be changed. At a young age we all learned about the “indians”. That is our first impression. We did not learn about their troubles and immigrant people taking over their land. We only learned their culture and somewhat of the good side of things. I think that young children should be taught about more of the Native American aspect instead of the Indian one. Also, a lot of education we get about Native Americans are the way they are portrayed through movies and television. Thu, 25 Feb 2010 04:31:59 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-one__trashed/#IDComment58598496