I thought Sam’s lecture yesterday was pretty amazing to put it simply. It made me look at the United States’ presence in Iraq and the Middle East in a whole other way. It made me think a lot about why we’re there, because I was still under the assumption that it was still because of the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11 and to bring peace to the region, but it’s mostly just because we’re trying to gain control of the oil in the region. First off, that’s just wrong in itself that we’d do that and second off I think even if we did gain control of the oil that would be far from the end of it. In the clip he showed of Senator John McCain, McCain said that once we get control of the oil we could stop sending our troops over there to die. I just don’t see how that can be true though, because I doubt the insurgents will ever stop as long as we’re there and there’s no way we cannot be there and control the oil.
The video Sam showed by David Horowitz didn’t really instill fear into me nearly as much as it infuriated me. It made me want to find the nearest recruiter and get on a fast track to fighting the insurgents in the Middle East. But then he turned it around and put us in their shoes. At first I didn’t think it’d be possible for me to empathize with them, but Sam did a great job of making it realistic. He turned the tables on us and made us realize what they’re going through in the Middle East. He put it in terms we could relate to with the Chinese invading us analogy and made us the feel the things they must go through over there. Then he showed several video clips that demonstrated how the media can completely misconstrue the image we perceive when we think about Muslims and the Middle East. These clips really made me think personally as well as the perspective he gave us about how I would feel if I had to live under the same circumstances that these people do. We see clips of extremists and many of us think that all Arabs are like that when in fact most aren’t extremists at all. Something tells me that if the people of the United States were thrown into the same position that many of these Muslims are in there would a much larger percentage of our population that would be fighting back. So this says something about the tolerance of these people when all they want for the most part is just to be left in peace. It’s very difficult to comprehend this topic from a neutral standpoint without stepping outside of our ethnocentrism. Personally, I think Sam definitely met his goal of making us understand.

The video Sam showed by David Horowitz didn’t really instill fear into me nearly as much as it infuriated me. It made me want to find the nearest recruiter and get on a fast track to fighting the insurgents in the Middle East. But then he turned it around and put us in their shoes. At first I didn’t think it’d be possible for me to empathize with them, but Sam did a great job of making it realistic. He turned the tables on us and made us realize what they’re going through in the Middle East. He put it in terms we could relate to with the Chinese invading us analogy and made us the feel the things they must go through over there.

I thought Sam’s lecture yesterday was pretty amazing to put it simply. It made me look at the United States’ presence in Iraq and the Middle East in a whole other way. It made me think a lot about why we’re there, because I was still under the assumption that it was still because of the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11 and to bring peace to the region, but it’s mostly just because we’re trying to gain control of the oil in the region. First off, that’s just wrong in itself that we’d do that and second off I think even if we did gain control of the oil that would be far from the end of it. In the clip he showed of Senator John McCain, McCain said that once we get control of the oil we could stop sending our troops over there to die. I just don’t see how that can be true though, because I doubt the insurgents will ever stop as long as we’re there and there’s no way we cannot be there and control the oil.
The video Sam showed by David Horowitz didn’t really instill fear into me nearly as much as it infuriated me. It made me want to find the nearest recruiter and get on a fast track to fighting the insurgents in the Middle East. But then he turned it around and put us in their shoes. At first I didn’t think it’d be possible for me to empathize with them, but Sam did a great job of making it realistic. He turned the tables on us and made us realize what they’re going through in the Middle East. He put it in terms we could relate to with the Chinese invading us analogy and made us the feel the things they must go through over there. Then he showed several video clips that demonstrated how the media can completely misconstrue the image we perceive when we think about Muslims and the Middle East. These clips really made me think personally as well as the perspective he gave us about how I would feel if I had to live under the same circumstances that these people do. We see clips of extremists and many of us think that all Arabs are like that when in fact most aren’t extremists at all. Something tells me that if the people of the United States were thrown into the same position that many of these Muslims are in there would a much larger percentage of our population that would be fighting back. So this says something about the tolerance of these people when all they want for the most part is just to be left in peace. It’s very difficult to comprehend this topic from a neutral standpoint without stepping outside of our ethnocentrism. Personally, I think Sam definitely met his goal of making us understand.

Then he showed several video clips that demonstrated how the media can completely misconstrue the image we perceive when we think about Muslims and the Middle East. These clips really made me think personally as well as the perspective he gave us about how I would feel if I had to live under the same circumstances that these people do. We see clips of extremists and many of us think that all Arabs are like that when in fact most aren’t extremists at all. Something tells me that if the people of the United States were thrown into the same position that many of these Muslims are in there would a much larger percentage of our population that would be fighting back. So this says something about the tolerance of these people when all they want for the most part is just to be left in peace. It’s very difficult to comprehend this topic from a neutral standpoint without stepping outside of our ethnocentrism. Personally, I think Sam definitely met his goal of making us understand.

I thought Sam’s lecture yesterday was pretty amazing to put it simply. It made me look at the United States’ presence in Iraq and the Middle East in a whole other way. It made me think a lot about why we’re there, because I was still under the assumption that it was still because of the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11 and to bring peace to the region, but it’s mostly just because we’re trying to gain control of the oil in the region. First off, that’s just wrong in itself that we’d do that and second off I think even if we did gain control of the oil that would be far from the end of it. In the clip he showed of Senator John McCain, McCain said that once we get control of the oil we could stop sending our troops over there to die. I just don’t see how that can be true though, because I doubt the insurgents will ever stop as long as we’re there and there’s no way we cannot be there and control the oil.

I thought Sam’s lecture yesterday was pretty amazing to put it simply. It made me look at the United States’ presence in Iraq and the Middle East in a whole other way. It made me think a lot about why we’re there, because I was still under the assumption that it was still because of the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11 and to bring peace to the region, but it’s mostly just because we’re trying to gain control of the oil in the region. First off, that’s just wrong in itself that we’d do that and second off I think even if we did gain control of the oil that would be far from the end of it. In the clip he showed of Senator John McCain, McCain said that once we get control of the oil we could stop sending our troops over there to die. I just don’t see how that can be true though, because I doubt the insurgents will ever stop as long as we’re there and there’s no way we cannot be there and control the oil.
The video Sam showed by David Horowitz didn’t really instill fear into me nearly as much as it infuriated me. It made me want to find the nearest recruiter and get on a fast track to fighting the insurgents in the Middle East. But then he turned it around and put us in their shoes. At first I didn’t think it’d be possible for me to empathize with them, but Sam did a great job of making it realistic. He turned the tables on us and made us realize what they’re going through in the Middle East. He put it in terms we could relate to with the Chinese invading us analogy and made us the feel the things they must go through over there. Then he showed several video clips that demonstrated how the media can completely misconstrue the image we perceive when we think about Muslims and the Middle East. These clips really made me think personally as well as the perspective he gave us about how I would feel if I had to live under the same circumstances that these people do. We see clips of extremists and many of us think that all Arabs are like that when in fact most aren’t extremists at all. Something tells me that if the people of the United States were thrown into the same position that many of these Muslims are in there would a much larger percentage of our population that would be fighting back. So this says something about the tolerance of these people when all they want for the most part is just to be left in peace. It’s very difficult to comprehend this topic from a neutral standpoint without stepping outside of our ethnocentrism. Personally, I think Sam definitely met his goal of making us understand.

I thought Sam’s lecture yesterday was pretty amazing to put it simply. It made me look at the United States’ presence in Iraq and the Middle East in a whole other way. It made me think a lot about why we’re there, because I was still under the assumption that it was still because of the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11 and to bring peace to the region, but it’s mostly just because we’re trying to gain control of the oil in the region. First off, that’s just wrong in itself that we’d do that and second off I think even if we did gain control of the oil that would be far from the end of it. In the clip he showed of Senator John McCain, McCain said that once we get control of the oil we could stop sending our troops over there to die. I just don’t see how that can be true though, because I doubt the insurgents will ever stop as long as we’re there and there’s no way we cannot be there and control the oil.
The video Sam showed by David Horowitz didn’t really instill fear into me nearly as much as it infuriated me. It made me want to find the nearest recruiter and get on a fast track to fighting the insurgents in the Middle East. But then he turned it around and put us in their shoes. At first I didn’t think it’d be possible for me to empathize with them, but Sam did a great job of making it realistic. He turned the tables on us and made us realize what they’re going through in the Middle East. He put it in terms we could relate to with the Chinese invading us analogy and made us the feel the things they must go through over there. Then he showed several video clips that demonstrated how the media can completely misconstrue the image we perceive when we think about Muslims and the Middle East. These clips really made me think personally as well as the perspective he gave us about how I would feel if I had to live under the same circumstances that these people do. We see clips of extremists and many of us think that all Arabs are like that when in fact most aren’t extremists at all. Something tells me that if the people of the United States were thrown into the same position that many of these Muslims are in there would a much larger percentage of our population that would be fighting back. So this says something about the tolerance of these people when all they want for the most part is just to be left in peace. It’s very difficult to comprehend this topic from a neutral standpoint without stepping outside of our ethnocentrism. Personally, I think Sam definitely met his goal of making us understand.

I thought Sam’s lecture yesterday was pretty amazing to put it simply. It made me look at the United States’ presence in Iraq and the Middle East in a whole other way. It made me think a lot about why we’re there, because I was still under the assumption that it was still because of the terrorist attacks that took place on 9/11 and to bring peace to the region, but it’s mostly just because we’re trying to gain control of the oil in the region. First off, that’s just wrong in itself that we’d do that and second off I think even if we did gain control of the oil that would be far from the end of it. In the clip he showed of Senator John McCain, McCain said that once we get control of the oil we could stop sending our troops over there to die. I just don’t see how that can be true though, because I doubt the insurgents will ever stop as long as we’re there and there’s no way we cannot be there and control the oil.
The video Sam showed by David Horowitz didn’t really instill fear into me nearly as much as it infuriated me. It made me want to find the nearest recruiter and get on a fast track to fighting the insurgents in the Middle East. But then he turned it around and put us in their shoes. At first I didn’t think it’d be possible for me to empathize with them, but Sam did a great job of making it realistic. He turned the tables on us and made us realize what they’re going through in the Middle East. He put it in terms we could relate to with the Chinese invading us analogy and made us the feel the things they must go through over there. Then he showed several video clips that demonstrated how the media can completely misconstrue the image we perceive when we think about Muslims and the Middle East. These clips really made me think personally as well as the perspective he gave us about how I would feel if I had to live under the same circumstances that these people do. We see clips of extremists and many of us think that all Arabs are like that when in fact most aren’t extremists at all. Something tells me that if the people of the United States were thrown into the same position that many of these Muslims are in there would a much larger percentage of our population that would be fighting back. So this says something about the tolerance of these people when all they want for the most part is just to be left in peace. It’s very difficult to comprehend this topic from a neutral standpoint without stepping outside of our ethnocentrism. Personally, I think Sam definitely met his goal of making us understand.

I think this is a very fair and relevant question and my answer to it is without doubt a resounding yes. There have been countless issues that Sam has brought up that have really made me rethink the way I view myself, others, and the entire world in some cases. From the issues we covered on slavery to raising money for Haiti I’ve had my eyes opened many times. This class has gone a long way towards making me much more grateful for the things that I have. Sam was spot on the first day of class when he said this class would make us think. I know for me it has certainly made me think a lot about several issues and I’ve discussed them with my friends outside of class. This may not be the case for everyone, but this is my favorite class I’ve taken at here at Penn State to date and in my opinion the most interesting. I can actually take things out of the classroom here and think about them outside of class unlike my other classes where I usually struggle to stay awake.
The most recent issue we covered was slavery and it has been something I thought and talked about since the second class when went over the answers to the opening day quiz. I was amazed with the amount of people that live in slavery today. It really made me think a lot about how corrupt people can be and how they can exploit others and treat them that terribly. I knew there was a lot of sweatshop labor and mistreatment of employees with all the outsourcing of jobs to foreign countries. I really do feel for those people and I can’t imagine how they get along in life with the little bit of compensation they receive if any at all. It’s truly a terrible thing that they’re subjected to this kind of treatment and for the most part the general public in this country isn’t privy to this information. You can hardly buy any products anymore that aren’t those of slave labor or sweatshop labor.
I feel compelled to try and change the way this system works, but it has so much momentum and it is such a large system of corruption. It’s unreasonable to stop buying things all together, because so many products that are involved in our everyday lives are tainted by slavery. There are small steps be taken such as the contracts that some universities have signed to hold the apparel companies to the agreement that their products will not be from sweatshops. This is certainly a good thing being done, but it is not enough on its own to make a dent in the system. I don’t have the answers for what we should do about it, but I feel like something should happen to combat slavery.

Personally, I don’t think that this article is doing much more than reporting on a trend that I think most of us are well aware of. The majority, and I say majority with no ethnic meaning, simply everyone regardless of racial background, of people in this country have a pretty solid grasp on the fact that the minority groups in the United States are growing at an astonishing rate. Also, they compare all minorities together, as a whole, against white non-Hispanic people. So, even if all of those minorities together reach the halfway point, being 50 percent of the total population of the United States, or beyond, white, non-Hispanics would still be the largest racial group in the country.
As a white non-Hispanic, I don’t feel concerned about what’s happening too much and I don’t think there’s that much to be concerned about as far as the minority groups growing in the United States. I don’t think immigration is a problem as long as it’s done legally, but it’s well known that there is quite a bit of illegal immigration going on every day. Based on principle alone, I don’t think that we have the right to deny anyone access to this country, because it wasn’t ours to begin with. Europeans came in and conquered the Native Americans, completely stealing their land out from underneath them, so we have no right to say that this is so wrong of other minority groups to come in. It would be highly hypocritical to do that, but at the same time we almost have no choice, because it is getting so out of hand. This leaves us with quite a dilemma in which the only way to deal with it is to go against what is morally right.
The biggest problem I see is with the overall population growth. There are only so many resources in this country and on this planet for that matter. The statistic that there were ten Hispanic births for every one Hispanic death is pretty mind-blowing. Sadly, they’re just making it worse on themselves for the future, because I would be willing to bet that the majority of them are not being born into families that are particularly well off. I think that it’s also a pretty significant statistic that only 39 percent of Hispanic children under 4 years old have two native born parents. This just goes to show how fast people are pouring into our country and how recently it’s been occurring. I’m all for people bettering themselves and trying to benefit their families and many people do that by trying to seek refuge here in the United States. I’m not against people trying to get ahead, but unfortunately we must consider at what cost that comes.