The video that is posted is and can be easily understood by most Americans, especially the images that are permanently engraved in our minds from September 11, 2001. As an international student, I have come to understand how these events have impacted the world much quicker than the average American citizen cares to realize. In comparing America, we have been in large part isolated from terrorist acts of violence and have had to play catch up very quickly with our government agencies.The Germans had the Munich games terrorist incident with the killing of Israeli athletes, the killing of the head of the Mercedes-Benz auto manufacture, the hijacking of multiple planes. The first of these terrorist incidents prompted the Germans forming an elite counter terrorism unit, the GSG-9. These incidents have taken place twenty plus years before any form of radical terrorism hit the “land” of the United States. This is not including the embassy bombings because it never truly had an impact on the average American citizen in their daily lives or mental frame work. Another case of terrorism is the train and school take over outside Amsterdam, in Holland where political terrorists took over a train and a school in the hopes of gaining the Dutch government’s support in forming a country in the Philippines. Counter Insurgency is a problem the world is facing and American is playing a very quick catch up after the September 11 attacks in 2001. There was warning signs that were not heeded in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing which killed six and an unborn child. This was a warning of things to come.
I understand how the Middle East will look at the “West” with how the industrialized western nations dominated the world and in many ways set up policies that forced developing nations into giving up natural resources and then selling back items to the developing nation with the value added. Also, many of the problems and board disputes that occur in the Middle East can be traced back to the British and French splitting up the Ottoman Empire after World War 1. From Saddam invading Kuwait with the thought that it was part of the Basra distract and gassing of the Kurds in the North by his general “Chemical Ali.” In many ways, to me, there is anger at the prosperity of western nations at the thought of the expense of the Middle East. How once the Middle East was once the center of the world and how it has fallen seems to be an underlying anger to many. I read a report a few years ago in Time magazine that underlined a major problem in the Middle East. Oil aside, the Middle East produces less economically than the Scandinavian country

“The Cost of Empire” was an interesting video to view in that the video provided open criticism of the United States Military. It gave facts that have been published by the government so that they are true. Most of this information is not stuff that the average American citizen will hear unless they want to dig for it. It did however surprise me that the Obama administration is increasing the military budget because traditionally the democrats cut the military budget as under Clinton. The United States Military is in a very precarious position right now in that it seems to have a very real potential of over extending itself, which could lead us dangerously exposed. The presence of U.S. soldiers across the 130 countries is not always a good thing. It means those countries will then look to the United States for stability if anything does in fact cause instability in a region. Recently protesters took to the streets in Bahrain, where the fifth naval fleet of the United States is located, where criticisms were leveled with how the government dealt violently with the protesters. There was some criticism that U.S. forces did not play a role and that the soldiers from neighboring countries that were brought in did not respond well to the situation.
It is easy to understand how some of the comments made can be seen in past historical events. The Roman Empire over extended itself and thus it contributed to its down fall. The rental leases that the United States pays is excessive and that was for one base that I couldn’t even find on a map. The jump from 2 million to 20 million is clearly excessive and that doesn’t include the money it costs to house, feed, or transport the troops there. That doesn’t include the 100 million that we offered in aid as well to the citizens of the country. I think that we need to stop viewing ourselves as a global policeman because we are being viewed negatively for it. People have seen through our cover story and know that the big United States only goes into a situation if there is a potential for the United States to benefit. Coming from another country its easy for me to view the country in a different light. I find it sad that the country as a whole does not understand global events and how they play an impact on the rest of the world and yet doesn’t ever change the day to day life of an American unless it has to do with gas prices going up.

I have heard about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder before from my uncle who teaches at Sandhurst, England’s military college. It does not surprise me that the units that are from the National Guard have higher rates of post traumatic stress disorder. I would think this way because the adjustment from life in a modern, industrialized nation, with a family, to combat in rural Afghanistan is about as far away as possible on the two spectrums. The mental stress on a person in going from having very little to no fear or thought of death on a daily routine, to constantly thinking about death must be incredibility high. The National Guard soldiers are not on military base every day and being exposed or trained in order to be as prepared as those who are in the full time Army, Navy, or Marine Corps.
For both the National Guard and regular Army, and Marine Corps units the amount of time thinking about death in a day can not be forgotten. This daily stress seems to almost provide a natural high that keeps the body on a constant state of readiness. I believe that it is this that is the hardest part of the transition back to life in modern America. Some of the soldiers interviewed did actions in search of going on the same type or a type of high that they experienced in combat.
The military culture is slow to change since the top of the military are always stuck fighting the last war and it takes considerable time in order to adapt tactics that will bring about a successful outcome. This usually is at the expense of boots on the ground or the regular soldiers. I think this is the case with the culture in the military surrounding the Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in military personal. The culture exists where soldiers are expected to be hulks and superman and let nothing stand in their way. They are scared to be viewed as cowards by other members in their unit because of the organizational culture that has be created by the higher up personal from previous war experiences. This makes individual soldiers unwilling to ask for necessary help which puts the military at a loss.

Another example of not understanding any other way to live or the invisible strings that are placed on a human right from birth even is the statistics that show people rarely ever get out of the social class they are born into. This was briefly mentioned in class but is very true. Professional sports figures who come from poor or impoverished backgrounds have a difficult time understanding and controlling money. This is seen in the fact that 60-80 percent of all professional sports figures file bankruptcy or are in financial difficult within five years from ending their professional careers. With the average NFL career being only three years this is a very real possibility for many players. Two of the latest former professional football players to meet this situation are Mark Brunell, back up for the New Orleans Saints (when they won the super bowl), and Tiki Barber, who played for the Giants. This is also seen in a very high proportion of lottery winners because they do not understand how to have money and therefore spending it all away on luxury items not needed and usually end up back where they were or worse off.
Part 3

For example, Michael Vick owned a dog fighting ring at his home and hosted fighting competitions. This largely by the American public is consider barbaric and outside the normal social standards. With Michael Vick being a professional athlete (first overall draft pick by the Atlanta Falcons), he is much more high profile and his income levels are or were very high. Growing up in impoverished Newport News, Virginia (the same area Allen Iverson came from) Michael Vick was exposed to a violent upbringing with drive by shootings, drug deals, and dog fighting seen as common place. It is only natural that we can expect him to continue a live style he knows and understands when he is an adult. There is only one problem, he is now a public figure and a wealthy one at the and is expected to act along new social boundaries. Well, this is difficult to do when these new social standards that you are expected to live by are completely foreign. This brought the attention of government officials who eventually shut down not the dog fighting ring but more so his lifestyle. Is he a bad guy for doing the dog fighting? I don’t know that is up to personal opinion but I just don’t think he understood any other way to live.
part 2

As Sam is asking us to look more into what we are talking about in class and how the sociological structure of our country divides wealth, I think it is necessary to understand what is going on completely. We are born into a certain social class and it is what we learn and understand. We think the actions that are acceptable in that class are what is considered to be normal behavior. Through hard work some people find the ability to raise their economic standing. Weather they understand it or not, the invisible strings that are in play are still effecting them.
Part 1

Over all it seems like our education system is behind the times. Lucky enough for me I grew up in a family that was from abroad and the value of money was taught to me as well as global( another grip that I have with Americans not understanding global politics and how with a global economy it the actions in Iraq have directly affected the outcomes and mindsets of Egypt, Syria,, Yemen, Libya pertains to us). I understand the direct impact of my credit score and why it might cost me thousands of dollars if it is not good during the rest of my life. I just believe that some of these lessons shouldn’t be taught by parents because some parents go through their lives not knowing and there for cant pass knowledge of how important it is to their future generations and thus making it harder to have a better life.

Buying a house is something almost every person does during their life time. It does not necessary happen right out of high school but it is something that is done along the course of life. Why doesn’t an education system that says it is prepairing you for life teach you the process. It is the biggest purchase in your life and something that is going to put you in debt for most of your natural born life!

Another area that our public schools could do better on is getting rid of stupid “classics.” Read this book just because every generation read it and it gives you something to talk about with them. Who freaking cares! Seriously! When your 20 years old and don’t truly understand how APR works on a credit card it is much more scary animal. Generations previously did not have to deal with many of the problems we face daily today in society so they are not taught in a school system resistant to change. Does a inner city child that is lucky to have a high school degree really give a flying shit about something he will never talk about again in the future? No so there for they don’t read it. Now I’m not saying that all inner city, well all students in the US for that matter will see the value in being taught money management but certainly more will be graduating with a better understanding of how not to be ripped off by a credit card company and be in debt their whole life. Understanding will keep more money in people’s pockets instead of credit card companies.

That means understanding credit card rates, how to manage a check book, how to cook. Why some of these things? Well start off with cooking. With a big focus on medical spending and the rises numbers of obese Americans and the chronic expensive medical conditions it causes, why not teach people how to eat a proper diet and do so on a budget. This would make people better consumers and also a healthier society. People look for quick meals because life is so hectic and there is not much time in a day to have sit down family meals. Well instead of hitting Mc Donald’s on the ride home people growing up now should have a base to understand a variety of meals to cook and how to shop on a budget? This could prevent two major problems this country is facing in cost of medical care and obesity.