en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/3627755 Comments by thejohnseybold http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/29/voices-from-the-classroom-83/#IDComment231790126 If this is what we are doing over there in the Middle East to an ordinary civilian; of course the Arab Muslims would think we were wrong. The other point in the lecture that I enjoyed was the example with the Chinese invading Pennsylvania in order to take our coal, which we have a lot of. From this point I can see even more clearly how when you flip the situations or even put yourself in someone else’s position, the judgments in your heads are no different. Overall, Sam did make me realize that this whole entire war between The United States and The Middle East is completely due to the oil that The Middle East has and that we want. Fri, 2 Dec 2011 19:19:23 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/29/voices-from-the-classroom-83/#IDComment231790126 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/29/voices-from-the-classroom-83/#IDComment231790024 If anything the United States needs to lower our dependence on fossil fuel and start looking towards other methods of getting energy. I have a best friend who is currently in the Marine Corps and went over to Afghanistan last December for this war. That brought me to more attention to what has been going on there especially from hearing stories from my friend. But the other thing is that I can’t believe my friend is risking his life over oil which I use for my daily life. Seeing this from someone else’s shoes, I can understand why they are so angry with us “invaders” coming into their land and taking what is not ours. This lecture had taught me to keep an open mind and always try to see the issue from another viewpoint because it will give me a better understanding and also help me make sense of everything. The video yesterday with the American soldiers using their tank to crush the man with the stolen wood’s car upset me. It seems as if the American soldiers were having fun in harassing a civilian. Fri, 2 Dec 2011 19:19:05 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/29/voices-from-the-classroom-83/#IDComment231790024 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/29/voices-from-the-classroom-83/#IDComment231789939 The lecture Sam gave the other day did not change my view on the war because I thought the whole way he approached it was incorrect. He kept saying that the oil in the Middle East was “our” oil. It is not my oil. It is the people how live on it and own the land that is it on. Therefore, it is the countries in the middle east’s oil. Sam’s lecture on the war in the Middle East definitely changed my eyes and to the point now that I agree that the war is all for oil. Being in the United States, we have the largest energy consumption out of all the other countries and with the growing population, it is only going to expand and so is our need for oil. In the sense that we are going over to a land that is not ours and stealing something to our benefit is horrible. From the standpoint of an Arab Muslim, I would hate what the Americans are doing in my land. It makes no sense for us to just go over and start a war, wasting our army just so we can get a few extra gallons of oil. Fri, 2 Dec 2011 19:18:50 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/29/voices-from-the-classroom-83/#IDComment231789939 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/15/voices-from-the-classroom-79/#IDComment223561764 It would be a lot easier to believe or settle on the fact that Sandusky did these horrible acts if he was a different race. As sad as it is, it is true. It is what our society has categorized people as that allows people to judge them. Not only would it be different if Sandusky was a different race, I think it goes for Joe Paterno, Tim Curley, Graham Spanier, and Gary Shultz, and all the other people that are involved that are white. I think support especially for Joe Pa would be less if he were Black. It would be easier for people to point their finger at him if he was a Black man. It would be easier for people to realize that his morals were in the wrong. The race of someone partially defines who they are whether they like it or not, it is what society does. That’s just how this society is. Thu, 17 Nov 2011 21:37:25 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/15/voices-from-the-classroom-79/#IDComment223561764 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/15/voices-from-the-classroom-79/#IDComment223561487 Most police focus their time and energy where there are more broken windows and run down houses-mostly lower SES areas. Criminals that are caught end up mostly being Black or Latino because police focus on the areas that they live. It has been proven that most drug -elated criminals are whites, yet mostly Blacks are in jail for drug crimes. Our society is more trusting of white people and believe they are nicer. Even children of different races will pick a white doll over a black doll, even if the child is black. Stereotyping makes a black or Latino man walking down the street more threatening than a white man. Since Sandusky was supposedly a “white collared” man, people trusted him better. People put faith into what he did. I’m sure it was hard to believe that someone of this stature was doing such horrible things. Yes, the race of the man definitely made the scandal more shocking, since white men are never supposed to be seen in such a bad light. Thu, 17 Nov 2011 21:36:39 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/15/voices-from-the-classroom-79/#IDComment223561487 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/15/voices-from-the-classroom-79/#IDComment223561412 I think Sandusky will eventually get it pretty bad, most likely a life in jail or end up committing suicide. But the fact that he isn’t in jail right now, or the fact that he is on bail is ridiculous. And unfortunately I think things would be different if he were black. In questioning if there would be a difference if Sandusky were Black or Latino, one must look at the stereotypes that exist in society. Sadly, but true, I believe that our society would be not as shocked if they found out the scandal was done by a Black or Latino man. It goes back to the video we watched in class with the bike stealing. Everyone saw the white man blatantly stealing a bike, yet most people did nothing. Once the black man was stealing a bike, most people acted. They told him to stop, threatened to call the police, asked what he was doing, or called the police. People suspect black and Latino people to commit crime more often than whites. This is due to more black and Latino populations existing in lower SES housing. Thu, 17 Nov 2011 21:36:25 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/15/voices-from-the-classroom-79/#IDComment223561412 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/10/voices-from-the-classroom-73/#IDComment220194769 Everyone who was involved needed to be out. Which is why I don’t understand with Mike McQuery still has his job. That is completely absurd that Joe would be fired before McQuery. But that is beside the point. All in all I think unfortunately our reputation as Penn State students has diminished, but I also think if this situation is fixed, by hiring a whole new coaching staff and president, and is fixed quickly, our reputation can easily be restored. Because after all we are Penn State, and always will be. Fri, 11 Nov 2011 03:57:13 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/10/voices-from-the-classroom-73/#IDComment220194769 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/10/voices-from-the-classroom-73/#IDComment220194679 That was only a handful of students here and the media took that and blew it up to make it seem like everyone was partaking in those violent crimes. I am embarrassed (at a professional stand point) to say I am a Penn State student. But as a teenager looking for a crazy time, I am extremely proud to be a part of Penn State. I am just upset because, as Sam said, I think the rest of the world is looking at the 80 percent of us (who agree that Joe Pa was treated unfairly) and saying, “wow! You kids are insane.” I am a part of the 20%, not because I don’t like Joe Pa, but because in order to restore the reputation of this university and be able to have some what chance of bringing in a great new coach (Urban Meyer!? Hint hint) the board of trustees needed to clean house and act fast in order to show the rest of the world that we are committed to fixing what has gone on here. Unfortunately, that decision is at fault to the legendary Joe Paterno, and unfortunately this incident is going to tarnish what this man has done for this university. Fri, 11 Nov 2011 03:57:01 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/10/voices-from-the-classroom-73/#IDComment220194679 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/10/voices-from-the-classroom-73/#IDComment220194607 Unfortunately, I think for people that don’t know Penn State and have never experienced what normally goes on here, they most definitely are looking down on us as Penn State students. This isn’t because of what happened here in terms of the case, it’s because of how we reacted in the riots that most of us partook in last night. And they are most definitely attaching a negative connotation to our reputation as Penn State students because of how the media (particularly ESPN) portrayed it. After I got home last night from the riot, I turned on ESPN to find kids being interviewed and a video of the news car being flipped on repeat. To the rest of the world it seems like last night was more violent than it actually was. Now don’t get me wrong, last night was extremely violent, but only after midnight. The first part of the rally (when it was on beaver avenue) was somewhat peaceful and just a bunch of students showing their pride for Joe Paterno. Then, after many of the students left, the students that remained decided to go crazy and flip over a news van. Fri, 11 Nov 2011 03:56:49 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/11/10/voices-from-the-classroom-73/#IDComment220194607 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/27/voices-from-the-classroom-58/#IDComment213187958 Now some white people and probably the majority of the older generation will not like this very much and will not like being the minorities because they have lived their whole life in a way that has been centered around whites, but I think it will be a good opportunity for our society to become closer together and to root out the discrimination and racism that still exists today even though people do not want to believe it. Overall, I do not think that whites will become the minority in America. But, if they do, I actually believe that the power will stay with the white people because essentially we are the ones who made this country what it is and how powerful it is, and no one can take that away Thu, 27 Oct 2011 23:53:16 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/27/voices-from-the-classroom-58/#IDComment213187958 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/27/voices-from-the-classroom-58/#IDComment213187879 . And that’s why this is kind of a silly topic to be talking about because I do not think white people will ever become the minority. I think Sam brought this topic up during the class that was being filmed on purpose because he knows our answers will be more conservative and “politically correct” even if we gave an answer at all. But if whites were to become the minority, I do not think whites being the minority in the future will be a bad thing nor is it something that I am concerned about or scared of. By having the whites as the minority I think the United States of America will start treating everyone more fairly and equally. I know we have made tremendous strides as a country since the 1950s and so on, but America is still a white centered society. By having whites be the minority I think we will see more colored people get into office as president, rather it being another white person every year. Thu, 27 Oct 2011 23:52:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/27/voices-from-the-classroom-58/#IDComment213187879 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/27/voices-from-the-classroom-58/#IDComment213187809 We don’t know for a fact that white people will be the minority in the future; Sam was just hypothetically speaking about how if that were to be case how people would react (especially white people.) Since I am white, I will say my thoughts on how I would react if white people were the minority of the future (even though I strongly disagree that this will happen.) Sam seemed to be looking for a scared reaction from all the white people in class. I don’t think anyone would have a reason to be scared, it just would be different because all of the white people of my generation would have already experienced being the majority and would know how the new majority race feels. For me, (and I think I speak on behalf of most white people) I wouldn’t be mad or upset, but more surprised. Thu, 27 Oct 2011 23:52:46 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/27/voices-from-the-classroom-58/#IDComment213187809 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/20/voices-from-the-classroom-51/#IDComment210707335 I feel that people are called posers based on what it looks like from the outside and many times the person calling someone a poser does not even know the person or his/her personality. The whole concept of poser is absurd. Overall, I think the whole issue of being considered a poser is a complete nonissue and a joke. If you are concerned with people referring to you as a sellout because you enjoy hanging out with another race than your own, don’t be. Because honestly I don’t think that it really happens that often and it’s not that big of an issue. Now I am not a person who hangs out with people outside of my race, not because I am afraid of becoming a poser, but I am just drawn to the people of the same race as me. Fri, 21 Oct 2011 23:16:53 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/20/voices-from-the-classroom-51/#IDComment210707335 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/20/voices-from-the-classroom-51/#IDComment210707242 If a white male has a majority of black friends and hangs out with them all the time, then who are we to tell him that he is wrong and should be hanging out with more white people? This white male probably just enjoys his friends company and they probably have similar characteristics and hobbies as him. Why is it such a big deal that we must ridicule this person and call him a sell out, when really he is just hanging out with people who he can identify with and enjoys there company. I believe that people who enjoy the company of other races are just very comfortable with their own race (stage 6 maybe) and are not posers at all. I think it is better when you take time to hang out with more people of a different race. It gives you a different perceptive on issues that before you may not have seen. The main message is that race should not matter at all. By calling someone a poser is calling attention to different races. Fri, 21 Oct 2011 23:16:39 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/20/voices-from-the-classroom-51/#IDComment210707242 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/20/voices-from-the-classroom-51/#IDComment210707110 If people hangout with a group of a different race does this make them a poser? I would have to say no, hanging out with different racial groups other than your own does not make you a poser. I am a white male and I do not believe that if you enjoy hanging out with a majority of different races or if the majority of your friends are from a different race that you are not a poser. How many times are we told that race does not matter it is the person. We are also told to not judge a book by its cover. So why should a black or white male be ridiculed and called a poser or a sell out just because they enjoy spending time with different races. In a way isn’t that a bit racist? Fri, 21 Oct 2011 23:16:12 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/20/voices-from-the-classroom-51/#IDComment210707110 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/13/voices-from-the-classroom-46/#IDComment207532238 . Like Sam said in class, if someone were ask me to describe myself, I would think as white as one of the descriptions of myself. So race definitely exists in my life, yet I haven’t fully explored it and that is why I consider myself stage 2. I can’t see myself really leaving stage 2 either. Unless something life changing happens, I will most likely be in stage 2 for the rest of my life. Fri, 14 Oct 2011 19:05:58 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/13/voices-from-the-classroom-46/#IDComment207532238 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/13/voices-from-the-classroom-46/#IDComment207532165 When I was in 7th or 8th grade a law was made in my township that we had to create lower income housing and have a certain percentage, while still small, of these lower income housing available. This brought an influx of black people into my middle school, and I had a few black friends before this, but a made friends with more after. None of my absolute best friends are black, and I usually surround myself with white people (i.e I am in a fraternity of over 80 brothers and only 2 are black) but I would say for the most part I really haven’t had any problems with a black person and simply blamed it on their race. But that’s where it stops. I really don’t make any strides to do anything about the racism I see in the world, I kind of just lay back and the people of color that are around me I treat with basically the same respect that I would treat any other person. Race is definitely in my life my I don’t view it as a bad thing, I just know it exists. Fri, 14 Oct 2011 19:05:45 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/13/voices-from-the-classroom-46/#IDComment207532165 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/13/voices-from-the-classroom-46/#IDComment207532100 If I had to pick a current stage that I am in would have to be stage 2. This is the stage where you become aware of race and you think about “us” versus “them.” I have always been in stage too I think. The fact that I am taking this class has opened me up more than I was to race and issues regarding race, but I was in stage 2 before I was in this class. I am not oblivious to things going on around me in terms of race like people on stage 1 would be. However I have not reached the point where I am doing anything about the things that I see. I have never caught myself getting overly angry at other white people for being racist, or angry at the way things seem to be unfair in the world. I would say I am at the point where I am beginning to understand how things work, and am beginning to make myself a better person and try and be careful of the way I handle race issues. At home I was raised in a predominately wealthy area that was overwhelmingly white for many years. Fri, 14 Oct 2011 19:05:30 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/13/voices-from-the-classroom-46/#IDComment207532100 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/06/voices-from-the-classroom-36/#IDComment204409032 They also get the attention of the female population by getting talked about be they “look good” or some women may even talk behind ones back and say she looks slutty, but the women does not care because she wants attention and does not care what kind of attention it is. It is interesting to think about. Society has molded these girls into dressing with less cloth and thinking that is the norm. If you were to ask a girl why she was wearing an outfit like that she would respond “ it looks cute. I like it.” Fri, 7 Oct 2011 15:54:08 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/06/voices-from-the-classroom-36/#IDComment204409032 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/06/voices-from-the-classroom-36/#IDComment204408961 It is these same women who only hours ago are taking women studies and talking about wanting to be treated as people and not sex object. These are the same women who want to be treated with respect and yet they go out of their way to make sure they dress in a fashion that will allow not only men but any person to treat them with less respect. I believe that women dress a certain way because it is what society has trained them to do. Society has made it known to women that dressing in short dresses and high heels are what men think is attractive and it is what the celebrities dress like. Women, in my opinion want to dress in a seductive or slutty way because it gets them attention. It gets the attention of the male population because men are constantly thinking about sex and the less clothing a women wears the better the odds the male will come up and start talking to that women, giving her the attention she so desirers. Fri, 7 Oct 2011 15:53:57 +0000 http://www.worldinconversation.org/2011/10/06/voices-from-the-classroom-36/#IDComment204408961