What did I take from Soc 119? This is a very open ended question but can be answered simply. This class taught me how to think and how to always keep an open. Walking into the class I thought I pretty much had all my views set on all of the subjects that Sam brought up during the year, but every time he was able to get me to review my stand on a topic. I thought I understood racial inequalities when I first walked in. I knew that being black put you at a disadvantage, but I would never have thought that it would be to this extent. Race plays a role in everything it seems like; from school to jobs to if someone calls a cop on you for taking a bike. To this day I think Sam’s most important lesson was the one about determinism versus free will. There are so many factors that you do not have control over that effect your life. With these factors we have the free will to decide what we want to do with them. From what I learned in class I believe the free will is the more dominant factor. No matter what you are dealt with it is still your decision to decide to whether you will work with it or not. If you are black in a lower class neighborhood the only thing that is stopping you from getting a higher education. You have to work harder than the average person but if you want to reach your goals that’s what it is going to have to be done. It might not be an upper echelon school but an education is an education. From gaining that education you received at a lower level school you are still at a disadvantage because of the school you went to, which means you have to work harder. It is a never ending scenario. The way I’m putting it is similar to the way that Sam said the lower part of the economic chain is oppressed by the higher part. It’s a system that we have to play and work with. We must deal what we are given to get ahead in life. Sam touched on many subjects where one person’s free will became another’s determinism. Prime example is the issue with Native
Americans. People from Europe used their free will to journey to the Americas which lead to the determinism for the Native Americans. To this day the Native Americans are under the poverty line and the issue as a whole has been swept under the rug. Every action comes with a consequence. Through this class I have learned that to become a better society we must be aware of our actions.

First off it is obvious that the average person will kill another human being to save someone they truly love(family, friend, etc.), so to really judge what it would take for someone to kill someone else you have to take out that factor. For me personally, if it came down to it I will kill to preserve my country’s way of life. One life is not more important than the preservation of a country. I believe that I will give my life up for my nation if it is needed. This is the same with if I had to drop a bomb and I was sure I was going to take out the main target of the mission, I will deal with the casualties that may come with the dropping of the bomb civilian or not. Is it fair to those innocent people that died, no it is not, but if that one person that we aimed to kill has died the amount of people that will be spared is greater than the lives loss. So I will kill 30 innocent people to get that one war leader or evil doer because the amount of people that will be saved if he or she is dead. This may sound harsh but this is the realist view on the subject. To stop killing you have to kill, it is a sad truth but the truth nonetheless. If no one defended their country there would be no sense of pride in one’s nation. Not everyone could kill or will kill for that matter. Many people believe that to kill you have to lose all emotion which may be true but in the end if killing the enemy results in the greater good than it becomes a tactical response where emotion is disregarded anyways. I wish there was a way to avoid killing to solve global issues but this so far has proven to be the most sufficient way. Living in an era where mass genocides, wars, and terrorism we see a lot of violence and the violence potentially being solved through violence. Until we fix the way we as people go about solving the issues we have between one another killing and showing off power is the only way to solve conflict. Those that wouldn’t kill another cannot blame those that will because if certain people were not killed certain situations would not be resolved and if certain things were not resolved well you get the picture. Life wouldn’t be the same if we didn’t kill those that opposed us. This sounds real bad but it’s the truth. So to end this I will personally kill someone, press the detonator, or give myself up to save the nation. No one will actually ever know what they will do until they are in that scenario.

Sam did something that many teachers try to make their student do which is put themselves in another person’s shoes. Not an easy task to do since many of us already have our way of thinking about many of life topics. The way the media portrays things, in this case the people of Iraq, you cannot blame people for their way of thinking. It is hard to keep an open mind when you are constantly told that this group of people is out to destroy our way of living, the only response is to create a form of hatred toward that group of people. Now the only way to keep an open mind on this issue is to try and see it from the other group’s perspective. The way America is being seen is as Christian invaders who want to change their way of living by taking their oil and converting them to the Christian religion. They are being shown negative views of America the same way we are being shown negative views of Iraq. So the question is can we really blame them for their hatred? They have anti-American protest the same way we have anti-Iranians protests. Sam showed us what is aired in Iraq that makes many look at America as the enemy as if the bombing and the reaping of natural resources wasn’t enough to make America look bad. The point I’m trying to get at is that they have as much right to be against us as we have to be against them just based off how media depicts both countries. Now many people may argue that our media speaks the truth while the media in Iraq is twisting the story, those same people are close minded to the fact that maybe our media is the one twisting the story. Regardless of the area the media will show what benefits the country. This being said if I was a Muslim citizen in Iraq and I see that a Christian American wants to invade my country I would be against any American just based off what I heard. These Americans who claim they are here to better our country but are taking our natural resources and trying to convert us to their way of living. Sam asked how many of us would join the rebellion if were in that situation? I don’t see how someone can say no when another country is coming into your territory and changing everything based off their own goals for their country. This is the same way I feel from the American point of view, I support the troops who are after the top terrorists who attacked our country. The theme here is that you must look at every situation from every perspective.

The idea that the majority of donations are given back to the very people who donate them is unethical. The point of a donation is to do a selfless act to help a cause. The gain you should get from donating is the gratitude of helping another person and also the satisfaction of the good deed. This brings up the question do we really help the people we donate to? I know it is not our responsibility to help those in need but if we decide to, it would only be fair to allow those we plan on donating to receive the full amount of the donation. We are usually not the cause for any other countries downfalls so if people do donate it should be a full donation. This was a shocking discovery for me because I thought that the U.S donates the most to countries in need. Our country is looked at as the best country but we take back any donation we give out. We should stop giving out any donation and let countries survive on their own if we reap the donations anyways. If foreign policy is causing such an issue we should only worry about the gain of the U.S. We have our own issues that we seem to put aside to help other countries issues to only be ridiculed by the same countries we help. It is surprising at how not many have caught onto this situation. Usually, with donations to a country, one should see some kind of progress from that area. If that area doesn’t show any significant change, shouldn’t one be worried about what is the cause? It is the moral aspect of the circumstances that continues to drive us to continue to donate to countries that are less fortunate to us, but if we look at it from a realistic side we have too many problems to take care of in our own country. We still have the lingering issue with the Native Americans living under the poverty rate in the U.S. but we decide to help other countries. Another problem that the U.S. is going through the over use of natural resources for energy, unfortunately we do not invest enough money into solving this problem. The point that I am trying to get at is that if we do not really donate money to other countries we should focus our attention more on the issues we have in our own country. If we want to claim that we are the best country in the world we have some work back home to do. Other countries are in turmoil but to help them we have to make sure we are living up to our standard at home.

Abortion is a topic that has been debated over for years and will always be debated over until we realize that it is needed. The big difference between those who are for abortion and those against it is the act of taking a human life. You cannot look at as taking a human life but as protecting another. The child that was to be born may have been put into an unfit living situation and the parent to be was most likely not ready to be a parent. The mother to be could have practiced safe sex but even that can lead to an unwanted pregnancy. The mother has the right to an abortion; it is her body and her decision if she is ready to bring this child into the world. That may sound harsh but it is her body and she is allowed to decide what the best decision for her is. With the scenario of someone being raped there is no doubt that abortion should be allowed for rape victims. Regardless if the person is related to me or someone I never will meet that person is still allowed the right to abortion. If someone was raped is it fair to the mother to have to have the child? Better yet, is it fair to the child to be to be born under these circumstances? People need to stop looking at abortion as a murder but more as a way out of a terrible situation. The mother will most likely feel the pain of actually killing a child. (Both literally and figuratively) If my child was raped or even had a teen pregnancy I would want her to have an abortion. There is no need to have to go through with an unwanted pregnancy when we have the technology to prevent the problem. Once again I know it may be harsh to say but abortion can help many women. If every girl who was raped and had a pregnancy because of it had to go through with it, both the baby and the mother will have to go through unnecessary hardships. Not everyone has the finances to support a child at any given time. We need to step away from the moral aspect and actually look at the most logical situation when it comes to abortion. Now morals are important with this topic but, is it moral to allow someone who wasn’t ready for the life of a parent? Morals can support both arguments in the case of abortion. Abortion is due to advancement in technology, if the technology is there to help an individual it should be used. Sam is right on the way you have to think about this, you must ask yourself the question would you want your child to get an abortion if she had an unwanted pregnancy.

Hearing that many beliefs by society are based on assumptions is not that surprising. People jump to conclusions without actually doing any background research on the topic. The media, family and peers, and other societal shaping factors are to blame for citizens making assumptions without checking the facts. These assumptions lead to false acquisitions and prejudice thoughts. The drug use statistic is a good example. Many people assume that minorities use more drugs than white people when actually it is white people who lead in the drug use category. Sam also used the example of child abduction to prove the point that misinformation creates nonfactual assumptions. As a class, we believed that child abduction was higher than it really is when only 100 children are abducted by a stranger every year. Because of our thoughts toward child abduction we assume that many more children are abducted than actually are. The habit of false assumptions starts at a young age and if you choose not to look at fact to back up your beliefs it will continue as you get older. We learn a lot from the groups in society (parents, peers, community, etc.) that influence us the most. Some of what we learn is assumptions, so you can say that assumptions are passed on from generation to generation. Even with new information being discovered those assumptions are still believed in. Since the assumptions are being passed down, prejudice thoughts will always come up. Since the common thought is that minorities lead in the drug use category than it will always be believed that minorities use the most drugs. This is also the same with crime, that minorities are more dangerous than white people. Assumptions lead to inequalities like in the video with the two boys trying to steal the bike. The black kid was stopped immediately because of pre-assumptions of black people. For anything in society to be corrected we must remove these assumptions by using facts to back up beliefs. It is election time, so if people were to make their decision of an assumption of who is a better president that would hurt us as a country. Reading up on the goals of each candidate and on how they plan to reach these goals is the only way to accurately choose which one is the better fit for your beliefs. Now I’m not saying to go look up facts for every single assumption you may have if you don’t want to, just be aware that your assumptions will be false due to the true facts. Like I said assumptions lead to poor decisions that can affect your life or someone else. Backing up your beliefs with fact won’t only help yourself individually but everyone else as well.

If I was asked this question back in high school I would be more shocked at the stats than I am now. Growing up in a pretty diverse high school I thought racism and inequality was a thing of the pass. My time at college though showed that wasn’t the case. The classes I’ve taken and experiences I’ve been through prove that those statistics are very true. To know that a white man with a criminal record is more likely to get a job than a black man without one is dishearten, especially as a black man. Just to think that in today’s world it isn’t about who is most qualified but still about what race that person is or what skin color that person has. Inequalities will continue to exist until we as people recognize them and actually try and fix them. Even with the video of the two boys trying to steal the bike. There was a lot quicker reaction to call authority on the black guy than the white guy. Even when the viewers were asked if race mattered they said that it wouldn’t matter what race the person was they would have done the right thing. Clearly the tests say otherwise. People believe one thing then act subconsciously against their belief. Regardless what others may say I consider that racism, even though it could be a subconscious act. I always look back at how I would always say everyone has equal opportunities, and now I look at it with a more realist view. There are inequalities that help the minorities and inequalities that play against the minorities. These stats show the negative effects of inequalities so many may forget that there are some positives that come out of it. The loans and scholarships many people are able to apply for are race based. Scholarships that minorities are rewarded white people are not even offered. White people are hurt by inequalities as well, not a significant as minorities but it is still there. Regardless of the situation people should have the mindset that they are going to work hard for what they want whether it be a job at a convenient store or degree in science. Working hard is the only way to get by the inequalities of today. If you don’t get one job or one opportunity just keep working hard to get the next one. The only way to get ahead is to accept the inequalities of today and work with them. When you are able to accept them they will not become an issue in your life plans. You can either complain about the inequalities that did not allow you to get ahead or you can just move on from that downfall and keep working hard. I’m not saying it’s easy to accept the inequalities but that’s the only way to succeed until there are no more inequalities. So stop asking questions and start making answers.

The argument between free will and determinism again, I say again because I was the kid in the front taking all the heat from Sam and some other people in the class on my view that it is free will that dominates what we do in life. Now I am thankful for the views against mine from class, one it was fun to be up in front of class and two it did make me think. The main argument against my view was that the free will can only get you so far, that I would already need something in place that was already out of control to help me get to where I wanted to be. I took that into consideration and I still believe that free will is the way to go. Let’s look at this, so we didn't choose to be born into whatever situation we were born into. Many of us didn't get to pick the high school we wanted to attend or all the drama that went on through those years( people say we don’t have control of it but we do), but the one thing we all had in common no matter the situation was how hard were we willing to work. The mindset is vital to my whole view. If you have the mindset that I’m going to work hard and get good grades so that I can make it college and beyond, well its more likely to happen than to sit back and make up excuses about the things you didn't have control over holding you back. With whatever you are dealt with you have to make the best of it. My life personally isn't a glamorous one; both my parents didn’t finish high school but both work jobs that allow us to get by and enjoy a life in a nice warm home. I am able to say in a nice warm home because both of my parents worked with what they had. Now I graduated from high school with a 3.5 GPA. I knew with my parents’ income alone I was not going to be able to pay for Penn State. I applied for scholarships and loans to get me to where I am at today. I accepted the situation and I continue to work hard to better the situation. I chose to get that 3.5, I chose to apply for those scholarships and meet the requirements, and I chose to continue working hard in college so I can be successful. With the loans and grants, I can thank what I was born into with that, if my parents made more than what they do make I wouldn't be getting these loans, still it was my choice to take some of the loans into my name and same thing with them to take on their loans. So I look at it as two choices, you can either complain about the situation you’re in or work with the situation you are given, now tell me that isn't free will.

The guessing game in class brought up a lot of common nature things that we as humans use to judge other humans. We tend to make assumptions based on how they look. We think we know someone’s nationality and where they are from based on facial structure, hair texture/color, and skin color. This works only so often because people do get physical traits based on where their family originated. Like Sam said people adapted to different locations which is why people have different traits. These physical traits that link us to whatever racial group also link us to whatever stereotype that is linked to the racial group. Jokes about black people having burnt skin, Asians not having peripheral vision, or white people being really pale are based on the physical traits that we had no control over. Our primitive ancestors did what they had to do to survive which in their case is adapting to their environment. In today’s time unless there is some catastrophically disaster, we won’t be adapting and people can be of any nationality. One of the girls that were part of the guessing game looked like a regular white girl; she turned out to be Saudi Arabian. You can’t just assume someone is something based of their physical appearance, you have to ask them where they are from. That old saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover” holds true in this sense. I know this is over the computer, but people that I meet for the first time think I black and some other random thing because I am light skin. I am Jamaican and German, I am the first generation to be born in America by my family. I don’t think anyone would have guessed that if I was in the guessing game. Sam is always saying that people need to get to know other people, this would solve a lot of problems (or something along those lines), we as a class feel like we do but this game proved that we really don’t. We are more accepting of each other’s backgrounds than past generations, but we still use stereotypes to try and figure out where someone is from. Now I’m not saying it is a tragic thing to try and guess where someone is from based of their physical traits that is actually the best way to make a guess. I am saying that we use their physical traits to make the assumptions of where that person is from than we jump to conclusions about them. This is what we need to stop we need to actually talk to one another to better understand each other. Everyone has their own story that makes them unique.

They way men look at women when considering body hair is shaped by society. Women who have excess body hair excluding the hair on their head are looked at differently. At a young age the media, society, and our families begin to shape how we will perceive things. We are shown what is considered beautiful and reject everything else that doesn’t match up to the image we already have for beauty. This is similar to noticing or being put in a situation that is out of the ordinary. Let’s say you invite your friend over for a sleepover for the very first time. Your friend has a different routine before he or she goes to bed, maybe he or she brushes their teeth than takes a shower but you do the vice versa. When your friend does the routine differently than you, you question why and look at it as if your friend is doing something wrong other than looking at it as that is what your friend is comfortable with doing. When a man sees a woman with excess body hair most of the time they consider than woman not beautiful or weird without even talking to the woman. This is because we are given an image of beauty from such a young age and since that woman doesn’t match the image we conclude that there is something wrong with her. Sam said in class that it was because men don’t have the balls to say that this is the person I’m attracted to if it doesn’t fit the image that we all have come to make of a beautiful woman. This is true because of the fact everything in our life has been shaped at one point from society. The only way to make our view of beauty our own is to actually sit down and really think about it and still at that point we will still have the image we already perceived. I personally wouldn’t want to be with a woman who makes her body hair grow out. This is how I was raised and a woman with a vast amount of body hair is not attractive to me which am similar for most men. I think the main issue is if you discriminate to those who look different than the norm. You don’t have to be attracted to them but you should treat everyone the same. Like with the comments of girl whose religion is to not shave any hair after she has been baptized, they were unnecessary to make. Whether it is a personal choice or religious requirement another person should respect their decision. You can’t change the fact that you were shaped by society but you can always change how you treat people in society.