The Lost Art of Movie Dates

My girlfriend and I recently went on a date to see a movie, Tim Burton's "Big Eyes," a film about Margaret and Walter Keane. Margaret was an artist who painted pictures of kids with big, sad eyes (eyes that inspired the Powderpuff Girls) , and Walter sold her art in her name and took credit for it. The movie was good, but as we left I was more enthralled with the idea of going out to the movies than the picture itself. 

Seeing a movie seems like a passive thing to do. You just sit there in the dark and look at a screen, and your partner or family or friends do the same. However, there is something very special about going to a theater and sharing a film with a friend or girlfriend or any person. You and the other person get to share the silence, and both become enthralled in the film together. Perhaps the best part is the silence. The world, especially for teenagers, is a never-ending stream of meaningless noise. When a film is projected on-screen, the theater is like a cathedral, and the movie becomes a personal and almost spiritual thing. 

Perhaps the best part of going on a movie date is talking about the movie during the car ride home. There are such few opportunities for intelligent conversation that the post-movie "Did you like it?" feels like a sigh of relief and offers a good way to get to know the other person. 

I think that most teenagers feel the need to be literally doing something when they're with their friends or significant others, whether it be partying or shopping or playing a sport or going to Applebee's, everyone is always doing something. And doing nothing is something that I think a lot of people don't appreciate. It seems to me like the happiest couples amongst my friends are the ones that are able to thoroughly enjoy laying around and talking. The movie date is an under-appreciated way to do something and do nothing, and enjoy the presence of another human being, as you share the wonderful experience of the movie theater.   

7. Van Goghs of today- holiday depression

The holidays can be a very stressful and sad time of the year for some. Imagine yourself as Vincent Van Gogh, consistently thinking you're not good enough for anything and having to spend the holidays in an asylum. That would be make me even more depressed. There are people out in the world today that live like that. Not just the ones in asylums but the homeless, mentally ill or terminally ill. The holidays are about sharing love with the people you know but many people don't get the love passed to them (like Van Gogh). Some ways to prevent holiday depression, set aside differences to make yourself feel like you don't have anything hanging on your shoulders. There is a large number of people who aren't diagnosed with depression and seeking help can be mentally difficult. It takes a lot of self confidence to talk to a professional about how down you're feeling and/or the thoughts flouting around in your mind. In the book My Life & Love Are One, quotes excerpted from Van Gogh's autobiography Dear Theo: The Autobiography of  Vincent van Gogh, van Gogh says 

How much sadness there is in life! Nevertheless one must not become melancholy. One must seek distraction in other things, and the right thing is to work.

     which is said when he begins to see his work as a sense of purpose, he is accepting his life. Reading some of what van Gogh wrote in this book, it seems that some points in his life he was accepting what his life was about and that he was happy with just having art and nature of his side. 

Personally, Vincent van Gogh is someone I always think about. I always wonder what he would think about things and what his works would have looked like if he lived longer. I love that he was so unique. He had a lot to deal with throughout his life, sadly there were many obstacles he could and couldn't conquer. But I will always give him 2 thumbs up for his beautiful works he did.

6. Racism

Racism has been the big topic with all the news on the subject. here i pose a question some other people might be thinking: why does someone automatically judge just because of color? Everyone is human and has feelings. Hearing people talk about "blacks" in a negative way will certainly stir emotions. That is very offensive, any white person would get offended if something was said negatively about "whites". These pictures express a lot of emotion. Though these are kids, they don't know what racism is, they just see each other as people. The first saying "nobody is born racist" is very true. Racism starts with opinions. Nobody is born thinking that all blacks are dangerous, someone has to tell them what they think. In the second picture, the babies are smiling at each other! Thats fantastic; once they are old enough, their parents can tell that story and that can start a friendship. Racism is also based on appearance. The news doesn't talk about personality, the police don't sit down and talk to people before they kill.

A quote from http://catholicismandracism.weebly.com/causes-and-effects-of-racism.html

The study finds that black people may have poorer mental health as a result of two mechanisms: Firstly; chronic exposure to racial discrimination leads to more experiences of daily discrimination and secondly it results in an accumulation of daily negative events across various domains of life, from family, friends, health and finances.

There are so many pictures I could put in this post but these are just a few that i think can really inspire someone. 

blog 7

This political cartoon represents poverty in the US. The people in the hole represent 1 in 7 Americans who are suffering from poverty. They are looking for help from Uncle Sam who represents the government. Uncle Sam is saying that he can not help them, poverty is their own problem. -tristan

Stereotypes: For A Reason? (6)

We often hear excuses coming from those who embrace traditional stereotypes such as "stereotypes exist for a reason". While some stereotypes may be rooted in truth the excuse is used even for those with no real meaning behind them. For instance one of the most well known stereotypes is the association of African Americans and fried chicken. The only real reasoning for this is a) the popularity of fried chicken in the South and b) a scene from the 1915 silent film Birth of a Nation in which a white man in blackface furiously devours a piece of chicken. The stereotype that Asians are better at math than others has nothing in particular to do with race. Studies have shown that the Chinese language actually assists children in learning math based on the construction of numbers, or a more left field theory is that an Asian's diet affects their breast milk causing them to be better with numbers as they age. So the excuse is correct, there is a reason for most stereotypes, however the reasons aren't likely what you think they are. Mostly stereotypes are simply perpetuated by society and media until they become true on their own simply because that's what people expose themselves to.

So what about the big stereotype lately, why are black associated with violence to the extent that they are targeted? This is perhaps a bit more complicated. A common stereotype is that young black teens are heavy drug users, however studies have shown quite the opposite, that blacks are less susceptible to drug use than other races. This eventually evolved into an association of blacks with crime and violence, which was only taken by the media to be chewed and spit back. An underlying association already existed in America rooting in slave times when slaveholders would blame blacks for most crime in order to justify their captivity.

Does this stereotype exist for a reason? Yes, several reasons actually. Does this mean that blacks are prone to violence, however? Not necessarily. We have to take into account that while more blacks are arrested, this may also be a result of racial profiling and the numbers may be skewed. Also, poverty stricken areas tend to have higher African American populations than other areas, which may be a reason for heightened black crime.

Q2 Post 2

One important topic that is spoken about on and off is the illegal immigration from Mexico. There are many disanvantages occurring because of these immigrants. The illegal immigrants are working off the books and are not even paying taxes. They are breeding and having children here so that their offspring are legal citizens and can go to school in te states for free. Another problem is the idea that they are stealing legal citizens jobs. The big issue in this is that illegal immigrants are doing work that legal citizens do not want to do and are doing it for a lot cheaper. The illegal immigrants have earned some of my respect because of what is shown in the cartoon above and that is that they work their butts off.

Racism disection (7)

Numbers don't lie.  In light of Michael's post, there is no denying the truth in his statistics, which linked African Americans to violence and crime.  Facts are facts.  However, is that all that is to be said about the issue?  Can human actions be truly understood simply by compiling numbers and creating statistics?  Of course not; the nature of life has never been, and will never be, that simple.

I am a true believer that all men -and women- are created equally, in the sense that we should all be treated with complete respect, and that one individual is not superior to another simply because of his race or ancestry.  Racism and prejudice are inhumane and wrong, but why is it that so many of us are able to accept the ethnic bias that we are faced with: that certain races are more likely to be dangerous?  The answer is not always just that we were brought up to think that way.  We can see it with our own eyes- more blacks than whites involved in gangs, talking in "ghetto" slang, rapping about drugs, sex, and violence, etc.  This physical evidence, along with statistics and word of mouth, make it easy for an individual to link African Americans to this stereotype.  But then, are we assuming that, when an African American baby is born, he or she is already more likely than a white baby to become a violent criminal?

To simply state that a black man or woman is more likely to commit crime because that is how they are wired is a closed minded act.  After all, as Danielle has pointed out, we all share the same genetic code.  Internally, there are so few differences between the white man and the black man.  Sure, there is some variation, but there is basically just as much between germans, italians, pols, etc.  A more plausible argument, however, is that the defining split between races comes from nurture rather than nature.  

I do not believe that I am capable of making perfect sense out of the origin of the African Americans' negative stereotypes.  If it were that simple, we would not be having this discussion.  Still, the origin is most clearly understood when starting at the present and taking backwards steps.  Lets focus solely on one aspect of this stereotype.  As I previously stated, it is more common to see a black individual in a gang than a white individual.  However, in many areas of the country, and especially those closest to us, it is more common to see blacks living in impoverished "ghettos" than whites, generally speaking.  That being said, it is not more likely that a young black man, living in poverty, would seek a sense of security and a way to protect his family and join a gang?  So why are these people living in ghettos in the first place?  Are they too lazy to get a sound job? Again, not that simple. Taking another step back into the past, we must remember the undeniable oppression that African Americans faced not too long ago in America.  Without going into much detail, because this post could go on for pages, I'd like to assume that everyone is aware of the harsh social divide between the blacks and whites.  This pushed African Americans into seclusion and made it harder for them to make a stable living.

There are so many different possible viewpoints on racism, and so many prominent voices speaking out on the issue, so it is easy to get swept away into believing one side over another.  What I am trying to get at more than anything is simple: always keep and open mind and never take anything for its face value only.   

Blog #7

With the recent discussions we have been having in class about poverty, and the holidays on their way, I decided to write my blog this week about a topic that relates to both: poverty during christmas time. 

Over the years, I have always been fortunate enough to have parents who are able to give my siblings and I so many generous gifts on Christmas. I can't ever recall a Christmas morning that I woke up and was disappointed with the presents under my tree. I am aware that this is not the case for many other children though. 

This week, I went on my laptop in search of something that would help me to gain a better understanding of this topic. Of course, everyone knows that there are usually people who are" less fortunate" than them, and this awareness causes most people become a bit more generous during the holiday season: buying non-perishable food items for a church, donating gently used coats, giving money to the guy dressed as Santa Claus outside of the supermarket. All of these actions show that a person is aware of and is sympathetic towards people who are struggling economically during this time of year. The real question is though, how many people really understand what it is like to be in a situation where their family is struggling during christmastime? 

In my search, a few of the things that I read that really stuck out to me was a fiction story called "Christmas is a Sad Season for the Poor," a blog post called "Poor Kids and Guilt at Christmas," and an online forum titled "Christmas for Only Rich, What About the Poor?" Although some of these sources are not sources that teachers would typically approve of, I found that they helped me to learn a lot. All of them had to do with experiences that people had during Christmases when they could not afford many of the luxuries that a lot of us take for granted. 

As I previously stated, I was always aware that there are many people who are not as fortunate as I am during the holidays, but reading about specific experiences in the first person point of view really showed me how hard christmas can be for some. I encourage anyone who is interested in gaining a better understanding of the actual emotions that these people feel to check out any of the sources that I mentioned, or even do your own search. It really puts things in perspective, and I'm sure that after reading, you will really recognize how thankful you should be for what you have

7. The "Joy" Of the Holiday Season

Years ago, the Holidays were taken as a time of happiness, allowing those to have a peace of mind and to experience life with their loved ones. It was a time of great joy, an era we as a nation should strive to reconnect to, rather than to drift away from our old traditions and customs as we are currently enforcing today. Rather, we should try to enjoy the season for what it truly means deep down, not as a materialistic holiday, but as a means to get closer to one another.

From the month of November, to the few weeks following after Christmas, the time for great deals and good bargains is upon us. Ranging from Black Friday near death experiences to the last minute panic of trying to get all your holiday gifts together, the excitement of the holidays really puts pressure on ones mental well-being. 

On Thanksgiving Day, my father had saw a deal for a 50' flat-screen on the television at Walmart, I'll admit that it was a good bargain, but the requirements in order to obtain said item were pretty harsh. You had to wait in line during the time frame of 6pm-8pm, which was the exact time we as a family were going to enjoy our dinner, but instead half of my family had to miss out and the table was barren. Stores make it so a good deal overrides the importance of family, and ends up turning the holiday into just a means to make profit. It's quite disgusting to think about actually, the fact that stores stay open during prime time for family gatherings in order to make money, and make other people work rather than spending time with their families. 

Even the day right after Thanksgiving, advertisements for holiday deals were already being made. The holiday season isn't seen as family bonding time, or carrying out old traditions, instead it's been made into a commercial holiday strictly for profit and fuel for materialistic measures. It's even heartbreaking to think that some people don't even see the holidays for religious reasons, for example calling Christmas, Xmas instead. Getting rid of the "Christ" makes the holiday practically lose all meaning. 

Personally, I'm not heavily religious, but I still believe it's quite disheartening to see people only celebrate a holiday in an attempt of only to gain. People to find joy in giving rather than receiving anymore, and it's all because of the media and the way the manipulate and family centered time of the year in a way to make quick money.

Racism (6)

After discussing about it in class, I was asked if there is racism in Italy.
Unfortunately, I believe racism is a worldwide issue and I think I can't define any country in the whole world as racism-free. The 'targets' could be different but humans always seem to find a group of people within themselves to depict as 'different' and therefore, for some reasons, to discriminate.
What I found interesting is that some racist general opinions and stereotypes are the same here and overseas, like that immigrants steal other people's jobs, that 'black' is dangerous and you shouldn't go out at night, or that you shouldn't be friends with that kid, he's southametican and 90% a drug dealer.
Similar is also the people attitude towards racism, I think that the majority of people wouldn't describe themselves as racists but feel comfortable making distinctions between races and hide themselves behind that 'I am not racist but..' Because if you need that introduction you're clarly going to say something racist but trying to explain yourself, maybe mostly to yourself than to someone else.
What I find really sad is how closed people are towards what's different. Discriminating someone or not giving someone a chance to prove you wrong, will end up hurting yourself more than it will hurt anyone else.
We're making our society into a big clothing store, we're judging people by their tags without even considering that maybe they're worth more than the price written on them, and it doesn't make sense to put everyone into the same basket because one size will never fit all.

If It Happened There

The other day I stumbled upon a blog entitled "If It Happened There." A journalist for Slate, an online magazine publishing thinkpieces and news, named Joshua Keating started this blog to report current events in America as an American reporting on other countries. In other words, Keating takes the perspective of a journalist from a different country reporting on the happenings of the United States.

After the grand jury indecision in the case of Eric Garner and Daniel Pantaleo, Keating produced a scathing piece at Slate (link at bottom) that showed the level of dysfunction that has come to characterize the United States of America. He begins by referring to the police as "heavily armed security forces," and to the nation itself as a "highly militarized country," both of which are far from hyperbole.

Throughout the rest of the article, Keating points out both how the American public refuse to acknowledge that their home country is not the paradise they like to think it is, and that America has problems on par with those of the rest of the world.

America is a militarized "prison state" just as Keating suggests, with 2.3 million Americans behind bars. It is also "increasingly intolerant to dissent," with protesters being tear gassed and locked up. We, as Americans, tend to dislike this kind of stark language, but as the events of recent weeks have shown, we need to realize that the only way to think about the state of America, and move forward, lies in the sometimes unpleasant truth.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_world_/2014/12/03/eric_garner_grand_jury_how_would_we_cover_the_decision_not_to_indict_a_police.html

http://www.slate.com/topics/i/if_it_happened_there.html

The CIA: A Secret to the Government

As you all know, the CIA recently released, in short, their interrogation tecniques used against suspected terrorists in the  defense of national security. I have not read the entire 500 pages but i was able to skim over the highlights of the report.

Not cool guys, really now. I get that they might be terrorists and such but come on.

I dont know, but water boarding is some pretty crazy stuff. I you don't know what that is, its placing a rag of a persons face and then pouring water over it which simulates the effects of drowning. There was a case of one man being chained to the wall and soon freezing to death overnight due to the CIA's actions in taking his clothes and turning the temperature down to critical numbers.

Many cases of "rectal rehydration and feeding" which is, well you can imagine. Basically eating in the opposite direction. This would be used to keep the prisoners alive if they had refused to eat. Forcefully keeping people alive in a way.

Oh and sleep deprivation. Yeah, no sleeping. Up to 180 hours without sleep. Most prisoners experienced vivid hallucinations due to lack of sleep. One prisoner was forced to stay awake for 7 and a half days and was kept standing in most of the time. Whenever deprived of sleep, the prisoners were usually shackled to the wall with their hands above their heads.

Two "detainees" had suffered from injuries after being seized. One had a sprained ankle and the other a broken foot. They were then shackled to the wall in a standing position which forced them to wieght on their injured appendages until they collapse under their own pain.
The biggest controversy is that should the CIA be allowed to do these things. Personally, no. Yes, I don understand that they might be terrorists and we must defend the country. But a huge part of America is the integrity and pride we have for being civil. But when things like this are allowed to happen, we seem very foolish.
 Even the United Nations is shunning the United States for carrying out such horrible acts. And to top it off, during the Bush administration, their CIA openly said to congress and the people of America that such acts were not occurring. Basically just full blown lying. The only reason such acts were approved by President George W. Bush was that the CIA bundled the go-ahead with the torture in addition with other simple documents. The president unknowingly skims through and signs off on it all.
I somewhat perturbed at that there are no protests of these horrible actions going on. I mean I know I'm rather upset at the fact that the United States government approved of such "interrogation methods". We should all be appalled at the fact that the CIA lied to the people about the events going on beyond closed doors. It makes you wonder everything else that could be happening in  the United States and the American people have no clue about. Or even a group such as congress for that matter.

Q2 Post 1

As we have been talking about racism in class, I decided to look up racism in sports and this was an image that popped up. The NFL is guilty of having many individuals who have a criminal background play in the league. These players who are outright racist should not be either:

A. Allowed to play in the NFL
Or
B. They should be looked over carefully for many young children look up to these men

We need to keep a careful look over these "role models" because if we let them act like Ray Rice or Adrian Peterson act...the children of America will think that is the right way to act.

Black Friday: An American Tradition

So i do know that this is rather late, but i did need the time to formulate this idea.
So Black Friday.
We can all agree that its pretty disgusting. Making people work on thanksgiving. People being killed and injured over deals that are the same the following week. Not the best time.

We can all sit around and discuss how people fall for the tricks of big business saying "40% off!" when in reality, they altered the prices so the deals all cost the same.

The way I look at it, people are stupid, but not that stupid.

I believe that most of the shoppers on Black Friday know that the deals aren't the greatest. That they can go in a week and still get their grifts. Those who i talk to who go shopping, they say things such as "yeah i'm going out with my friends" or "well we went last year too".

Perhaps at first, black friday was a clever way to trick customers to buying more or simply just getting first in line. But in todays holiday season, I believe that most shoppers just do it as a holiday tradition.
Similar to decorating the Christmas tree or making the traditional Christmas breakfast.

As much as Black Friday is kinda horrible and people get injured and such, it has evolved into a yearly tradition of the holiday season. Interpret the fact that its "tradition" as you will.

ONE HEART POST 7

I thought of this image in my head while we were learning about the recent cases that have been on the news that have to do with racism. WE as people all need to remember one thing... WE are all human. WE all have the same beating heart. It doesn't matter where you're from, what color skin you have, your hair color,ect...we are all HUMAN. No matter what nationality you are, WE all have one thing in common, our ACTUAL race. The HUMAN race.

Why Cops Have the Worst Job

In today's world, cops have the worst job.  Not solely because they risk their lives to keep the public safe, but because of how they are always in a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation.  Take Officer Wilson for example, if anyone reaches for your gun in an assault, and that person is a suspect of crime, any officer would shoot him.  Wilson shot him, like he would anyone in that situation, but because Brown was black, suddenly everyone cared.  Those that fought for justice for Micheal Brown, what about other teenagers, not just white, that have been shot by cops?  And those who weren't even assaulting officers?  Or those who weren't criminals?  Or how Officer Wilson had to resign and flee the state with his family?  Where is the Justice in that?  Cops don't go out with the intention of picking off minorities, but that's how people portray them for some stupid reason.  If a white cop is in a crime ridden colored community, people will be in outrage for anything that cop does.  And i'm sure that today, cops are hesitant to do their duty properly in colored communities.  Cops are ridiculed for ANYTHING they do to a colored person, and they probably say to themselves "If I harm or arrest this man, what will the media or the community say?  Do I want to get involved in this?"  Are actions taken by cops any more or less necessary just because of skin color?  No.  So why isn't the shooting of a white teen under the same circumstances taken more seriously than a black teen?  So I guess i'm just trying to say that cops have it real rough today, just because of race.  It should be about the crime and the actions, not about skin color, but for some reason people always bring it up.

7?????????????

As the Holidays approach we tend to get stressed out and lose sight of whats important. For many this time is about spending time with loved ones, giving and getting gifts and running around for last minute things. This time is supposed to be about spreading cheer but how many of us forget to be kind when it comes to this hectic season. Many people don't have much family to count on or aren't as economically sufficient to keep up with the latest trends and this season is a big reminder. Everyone is trying to make the most out of what they have and i think we should all remember to be as kind as possible because everyone is just trying to make the most out of their holiday this season. A lot of ways to get involved to help are giving trees that most schools and churches set up to help families in need, the salvation army collection donations outside every shopping mall and grocery store. Even if you don't have much to give spreading cheer and kindness is free and that's what we should embrace this Christmas. Everyone is so caught up on materialistic things and what new gifts they can get but we need to remember that the most important part is spending it with people you love and that make you happy

Holidays? #7

As the holiday season comes to a tipping point, you may ask yourself why? Why are traditions such as Christmas celebrated to such a magnitude. A popular belief is that the holiday is the celebration of Jesus’ birth, but this is not the case. The traditions we celebrate each year can be traced to the Saturnalia Festival. A pagan tradition beginning in early Rome. It was a week long event when the government would punish no misdoings. Also a single person was chosen to indulge themselves only to be sacrificed at the end of the week. Other popular holiday activities such as caroling began as naked people signing from door to door in the streets. And what about those sweet and crispy gingerbread cookies? Oh those are the ancestors of cookies resembling humans which would also be consumed during the holiday. But what does this have to do with Christmas or even the holidays?

As school children we are taught and told that the holidays are a time to be close with family (or if you are a college student your finals). You create drawings and poems of thanks and family love and get togethers. Yet as of recent decades the holidays seem to be a huge market scam. An intricate ploy to coax people out of their homes to spend money on gifts and trinkets for those around them. But it doesn't have to be this way. The holidays should and can be what we drew as kids in art class. Donating food to local food drives and volunteering at a shelter are just some small things that can make a huge difference.

Not only the effects of being an involved community member can be felt by those directly receiving or giving the actions of kindness but the community as a whole. I mention this because, although many including myself celebrate these holiday traditions; few would consider their actions of pagan intent. It is for this reason that humanity needs to take a step into the future, to each to help out their fellow man.

I’m not sure how i’ve come to drift so far from my topic, but what i’m getting at is whatever you hold dear to you this year cherish it. It may be the last memories you hold with that person so make them special and bright. I whomever is reading this that you have  wonderful holiday and that all your snowy nights glow bright.

Coach Carter #7

 A few weeks back on the bus ride up to the State Championships our team decided to watch a movie. After a heated debate of what was to be put on from Batman to the Miracle on Ice it was finally agreed upon that we would watch Coach Carter and what a great decision it was.

For those who do not know already, Coach Carter is a movie based on the true story of Ken Carter, an unorthodox basketball coach at Richmond High School. Carter is astounded by the lack of discipline and utter ignorance of the players to their school work and academic learning. Because the area around Richmond High is one of the poorest and most minority heavy areas in the state, many of the players feel as though there is no hope for them, that no matter what they do they are doomed to be failures both on and off the court. It doesn't take long for Carter to whip them up into a dangerous team to face on the court, but success in the classroom and outside of school was still very scarce.

Carter goes to extremes by locking the team out of the gym and forfeiting their biggest match just so he may teach these kids a lesson, that if they apply themselves and seriously put in the effort they can accomplish something meaningful. It takes a lot of work, almost getting fired, and board meeting filled with furious parents but he finally gets through to the kids and convinces them of what can become of them.

Why I am saying all of this is not to give you a plot summary of what I consider to be one of the greatest inspiration sports movies of all times (although I would highly recommend watching it if you have not already), but rather to reveal the fact that just because one is brought up in a bad area, a slum, a ghetto, whatever it may be doesn't mean there's no hope for them. Carter showed that with enough dedication anyone can accomplish their dreams. Prior to Carter only 1 player on the team even considered college, his son. After the season was through 6 of his graduating players went off to pursue higher education.

Coach Ken Carter should truly serve as an inspiration for all to get involved and help out those who need it. Sometimes all it takes is a little motivation, a helping hand to make a difference not only in the life of an individual but across an entire community of people as well.

Poverty #9

  Though the United States struggles with poverty; if you travel to India, the poverty is much worst. Like the real circumstances that exist in "slumdog Millionaire" In India you see people who literally have not a dime to their name. They literally have no food to eat. A bit different than America even though the welfare system is not very good here, we don't actually have mass starvation. So poverty in America is relative.Even though we don't have starvation, we do have an amount of poverty that leads to malnutrition, that leads to a series of diseases that we don't tend to associate with First World countries.

   
Some possible causes. I would say the rampant inequality. The bottom 20 percent of the workforce has seen a real income decline by double-digit amounts since the Nixon years. The 1 percent at the top, or the 0.1 %. What it means is political access is concentrated at the top, and as soon as that happens you end up with a political class that doesn't respond to the needs of ordinary people. The biggest problem is that everybody who is poor is overlooked because everybody who is poor in America is reduced to a set of stereotypes. A stereotype many people seem to stray away from as it contains such a negative connotation. 

   
 America is the wealthiest nation in the world, yet it has higher levels of poverty than any other western democracy. Its poverty rates compare more with a country like Romania than with countries like Canada, France or Germany. It doesn't have to be that way. There is a major problem in our country that is like no other. We have a problem that is a bit more manageable than some third world countries. We have the resources, but why do we let people continue to struggle? I could not find an answer. I believe politicians should make this more of an initiative than ever before. I haven't seen much of a push in a while. We need someone who will take a string stance on such an important issue. Though many presidents make an effort problems continue to exist. Something "New" needs to be done and it's not happening now with our current lame duck president who is currently preoccupied  with many other issues. 

The Legend of Tumbleweed: A Great American Drifter (#8)

I was out Christmas shopping this weekend when a thin gentleman of average height and advanced age with a long, scraggly beard and even lengthier ponytail walked into the same store as I. He was carrying two heavy motorcycle jackets with him, which he was trying to sell.

"These were my old lady's, and she's passed away," he told me. I had to know something more about him - here was an old biker, one of the last vestiges of a bygone generation, and I knew I had to speak to him.

He told me that he began riding in the '60s, back when Easy Rider was popularizing the biker culture. He said that life on the road was not much different than that which was portrayed in the film; many people disliked bikers just because of who they were: drifters. Many gangs had bad reputations, but those who rode solo or with maybe one other person were often out just for the adventure.

"I rode cross country a couple times," he told me. When I asked him what made him ride, he said, "My grandmother, she was a very wise woman, she told me that anything you want to do in life, do it while you're young, because when you're old and you've got the money, you're not going to want to leave the living room."

One story he told me, though, struck a particular chord:

When he was down in Texas - "back in those days, it was like cowboys and Indians down there" - he had stopped at a convenience store, looking to buy cigarettes. The proprietor and customers didn't even look at him, completely ignoring his business simply because he was a biker.

Now, having gotten to know him, I'd say he was a pretty harmless guy, but because of how he dressed and the reputations that other people with the same hobby as him had, he was not allowed business at this store. Not only was this an instance of moral injustice, but a foolish loss of revenue for the convenience store.

This just goes to prove how much clothing and style says about a person - sometimes how you dress can cause greater prejudice than race. Had this man walked in wearing a suit and tie, having driven up in a Cadillac instead of on a Harley, I'm sure the situation would have been different. Prejudice and profiling wears many different masks, some of which can blur the lines even further.

As I was getting ready to leave, the man gazed ahead and said (to myself and the lady behind the counter, though not directly to either of us), "My name's Tumbleweed. Everybody calls me Tumbleweed. Even my kids. I guess I'm just a drifter."

And off he went, tumbling into the distance.

Tamir Rice #7

            The death of Tamir Rice, a 12-year-old boy who was shot last month by a Cleveland police officer who authorities say mistook the child's air gun for a real firearm, has been ruled a homicide. The November 22 shooting outside a Cleveland recreation center is under investigation, and Tamir's family has filed a lawsuit against two officers and the city over his death.
           The homicide finding indicates that Tamir was killed by the police officer, rather than dying accidentally or by natural causes or by suicide.
           Rice was pointing a pellet gun at people outside the recreation center before he was shot, police say. A witness called 911 to say that a black male, "probably a juvenile", was pointing "a pistol" at people, but added twice that the gun was "probably" fake. Officer Timothy Loehmann shot Tamir, and the boy died the next day.

Imagine theres no... #6

"Imagine"

Imagine there's no heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today...

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace...

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world...

You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one 

 

This song by John Lennon states that what if there weren't things in the world that tear us apart in the first place. Hunger, possessions, greed, countries or religion. All the things people fight about or disagree leading to an argument. What would happen if there wasn't any of this stuff? Would we be a better more peaceful  lace, or more unorganized and stressed out?

The Color of Crime

The following facts are from a study done by New Century Foundation called "The Color of Crime".  I hope this will shed some light on the reasoning behind black people being stopped by police more then white people and should make you ask yourself why the media doesn't report the black on white crimes. 

• Blacks are seven times more likely than people of other races to commit murder, and eight times more likely to commit robbery.

• When blacks commit crimes of violence, they are nearly three times more likely than non-blacks to use a gun, and more than twice as likely to use a knife.

• The single best indicator of violent crime levels in an area is the percentage of the population that is black and Hispanic.

• Of the nearly 770,000 violent interracial crimes committed every year involving blacks and whites, blacks commit 85 percent and whites commit 15 percent

• Blacks commit more violent crime against whites than against blacks. Forty-five percent of their victims are white, 43 percent are black, and 10 percent are Hispanic. When whites commit violent crime, only three percent of their victims are black.

• Blacks are an estimated 39 times more likely to commit a violent crime against a white than vice versa, and 136 times more likely to commit robbery.

• Blacks are 2.25 times more likely to commit officially-designated hate crimes against whites than vice versa. 

Simply look at these numbers and try to tell me that maybe you shouldn't be slightly more suspicious of an African American than a white male. If I didn't tell you which race was which and asked you which race is more dangerous it is very clear which one is more prone to crime. 

I have nothing against black people at all but don't try to make their whole race a sob story just because of the way the media portrays them all as defenseless victims. 

Blog #7

Racism- "a belief or doctrine that inherent differences among the various human racial groups determine cultural or individual achievement, usually involving the idea that one's own race is superior and has the right to dominate others or that a particular racial group is inferior to the others. "

Agreeing with Kara's post, just because someone is not attracted to someone with freckles or with dark skin, does not mean that they are "racist".  Your environment plays a role in physical attraction.  It makes sense for someone in Eastport to say that they can't imagine themselves dating a black person solely because that is not what they are surrounded by.  Same argument goes for someone in Harlem saying that they can't imagine ever dating a white person.  I don't believe that those statements are particularly racist.  A statement stating that a specific race is ugly is racism.  You cant force yourself to be attracted to someone, therefore saying I couldn't imagine dating someone with green eyes or tan skin isn't racist. 

Sensitive people may disagree and take offense to simple statements like that.  I know if someone would to say that they are not attracted to girls with curly hair, I wouldn't care, but if someone says girls with curly hair are ugly I would be pissed off.  It is how you phrase a sentence to consider it racist or not. Looking back at the definition above from dictionary.com, attraction is not stating that a group of people are superior to others.  Everyone is different and are attracted to different people.  Your entitled to you own opinions.

Racism is a tricky subject.  Just because you "cant imagine" doesn't mean you could happily fall in love with someone.  People shouldn't go into society close minded.  Maybe if someone said I would NEVER date someone that is Mexican might be considered racist.  Cant imagine and never are too very different scenarios.  Again the use of word  can take some statement to the next level.

Blog Post #7

I thought I'd just sit down today with nothing to really reference because I do that much too often for this class when I focus on the facts, statistics, and history. I really do have a lot on my mind with this class discussion of race because I encounter it much too often with this world we live in as technology cuts its size nearly in half. With the weird things that I am into, it'll make sense later, I face gender issues daily, but race is always a shadow in the background that varies in size with the topic or the people that I am dealing with. Because I spend most of my time writing for work about Drag Queens and LGBT issues and occasionally night life, a job which many of the people in this school are probably too aware about because it is what I truly dedicate my life to (and I never shut up about it), I have been given the opportunity to meet resilient and unique individuals from all around the world from a million different walks of life. This path I have fallen into has given me the chance to develop an incredibly open mind to talk to everyone and to give everyone a chance past first impressions no matter their appearance or choices.
This brings me to the statement of "I would never date an Asian." My personal view on this is that if you believe this or any statement adjacent to it, it is racist, but the only person you are hurting in the grand scheme of things is yourself. I do not think anyone could convince me otherwise because it just reflects close mindedness if you are not even giving the person a chance. I understand that we are teenagers and we are attracted to shiny things and scantly-clad females, but there comes a point where you can't decide who you want to be with solely based on looks. The least aesthetically pleasing could be the most brilliant and mentally stimulating person in the world to you and the most attractive could be the most banal and vapid. You are completely neglecting at least 75% of the person if you base what you desire in a partner solely on looks, and if you continue to chase this perspective, you will only end up empty inside. Surely, this works sometimes, but only in the smallest percentage of cases and that is why I'll always give people a chance to talk before I make my judgement into if I should associate myself with this person of not. Shallowness concerns me, but it truly should not because it does not affect me. If you are shallow and avoid to be friends or to date a person who is black, for example, you are not even giving them the chance to showcase their inner selves. Their personalities and thoughts could be on the same wavelength as yours and maybe after a few conversations you could start to develop a link with them that could lead to a strong relationship, platonic or not. If this is your way of thinking, you are only hurting yourself because you are living with a closed mind and these individuals who you dislike aesthetically who will be saved the trouble of having to deal with your thinking. Sure, it is not the worst thing in the world, but it is still something to consider before you judge a book by its cover.

most likely post #7

I didn't discuss this in class because I was conflicted as to what my opinion was on the phrase "I would never date an Asian person". I feel like it isn't racist because it's based on appearance. It's the same as saying "I would never date a blonde" or "I would never date a short guy". These comments are all based on physical attraction, and is grouping them together as a whole. I feel like when I was younger I would say "I would only date a white guy" but now since I'm older I feel like my opinion has changed. As long as they have a good personality, and possess all the qualities I look for in a guy, then I don't see why I wouldn't date them, no matter their appearance. It's not that fact of not liking the actual race of Asians, just that you don't find them physically attractive.
      On the other hand, I can see how this phrase would be considered racist. You're putting the entire race together and saying they're all the same and being biased about a particular race. It would be the same if someone were to say "I would never date a white person", it doesn't matter if its the minority or majority group being in question. So starting this post I was conflicted as to whether it was racist or not, but I think I've chosen a side. I feel like that phrase is just about appearance, unless whoever said it is actually racist and against that particular race. It's the same as saying "I would never date a short person", which isn't racist or really too frowned upon, because its just about how they look and what you look for in a person. I think that I would prefer to date a white guy, but I wouldn't be against someone of a different race. I don't know if that makes me racist or not, (I hope not), but I'm just being honest.

Photojournalism (5)

Photojournalism begins at the end of the 19th century. The first interview made by only photographies and completely cutting off the use of text was made in 1886 and in 1890 an American magazine published a copy made of just pictures.
But it was just at the beginning of the 20th century that the first real photo reporters start to appear in the communication world. Photographers like Matthew Brady went to those places where the American secession war took place and risked their lives to get shoots of the camps and the battles. Those pictures though couldn't be printed on the newspapers because such a technology wasn't available yet.
Thanks to the following technological innovations, such as the first portable camera, photography could be introduced on the pages of our newspapers, with the objective to "tell" people about facts happening in far away places.
In its "golden age", between the two world wars, photography became a form of social reporting, mostly in Germany and in the United States.
In class we talked about Jacob Riis, he was born in Denmark and emigrated to America when he was 21. After some years he became America's first prominent photojournalist also because of his early adoption of flash photography.
He's known for using photographic and journalistic talent to help the impoverished in New York city. He experienced poverty himself, became a police reporter and wrote about the quality of life in the "Slums". He attempted to alleviate the bad living conditions of the poor people by exposing them to the middle and upper classes.
Riis published a book: "how the other half lives" that contains many pictures taken in the streets of New York city and for the first time people saw a photograph of the poor, before that they had seen just paintings.
Photojournalism completely changed the way news and social issues are reported, photographiess can tell about events in a more powerful way than words ever could and give the readers a sense of realty they had never experienced before through written paper or paintings. I believe this is why Jacob Riis' photographies are so effective: they got to show people for the first time how was like to be poor in a city like New York in the late 1800.

The Boondocks (#7)

For those of you who are not familiar with the television show, The Boondocks, it is an animated series created by Aaron McGruder that centers around two African American boys, Huey (ten years old) and Riley (eight years old) who live with their grandfather in a largely white suburban community near Chicago's South Side.

While watching the pilot episode of the series, an interesting realization occurred to me. The central characters of this show (generally) revolve around a strong belief that the societal differences between African Americans and white Americans are inherent and are not meant to be changed. There are certain things that simply go unquestioned.

For example, Granddad (the grandfather, clearly), tells his grandsons often how they (as African Americans) should act around white people, as though there were some certain form of etiquette needed to be in a white person's presence. Riley, the younger boy, embraces what Wikipedia refers to as "Urban Gangster Rap/Hip Hop" culture as though it is just the way of the world, despite its self-destructive tendencies.

Huey, however, does not side with his brother or the rest of the majority of the cast. He tends to speak out against social/racial injustice, often to his grandfather's chagrin. In fact, on more than one occasion he suggests to Riley numerous ways of avoiding either falling into stereotypical traps or getting himself into trouble as a result of them.

While I cannot speak as to whether or not this accurately represents Chicago's South Side (or any similar community for that matter), I can say this, as I have seen it in reality as well: there are some people who embrace the stark societal and racial differences between African Americans and white people. However, there are others who stand strongly against it, as they consider it not a natural order but racial injustice. Both viewpoints are held by people of both races.

This all goes to show that some people are not led to the point of view that states that racial injustice is wrong: some reach the conclusion that it just is, and cannot be avoided. They embrace it, though it poses a strong moral dilemma; those with the opposing viewpoint fight it, though it still presents a variety of messy situations.

Just as a final note: The Boondocks has often been criticized for it's negative representation of African American culture and historical figures. Despite this, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) nominated the show for their Image Award for Outstanding Comedy Series in 2006. Food for thought.

Poverty by Jane Taylor

Poverty

BY JANE TAYLOR

I saw an old cottage of clay,

   And only of mud was the floor;

It was all falling into decay,

   And the snow drifted in at the door.

Yet there a poor family dwelt,

   In a hovel so dismal and rude;

And though gnawing hunger they felt,

   They had not a morsel of food.

The children were crying for bread,

   And to their poor mother they’d run;

‘Oh, give us some breakfast,’ they said,

   Alas! their poor mother had none.

She viewed them with looks of despair,

   She said (and I’m sure it was true),

‘’Tis not for myself that I care,

   But, my poor little children, for you.’

O then, let the wealthy and gay

   But see such a hovel as this,

That in a poor cottage of clay

   They may know what true misery is.

And what I may have to bestow

   I never will squander away,

While many poor people I know

   Around me are wretched as they.

I chose this font because it is from a different time period and different country. Jane Taylor lived in England during the 18th and 19th centuries and still saw the same poverty we do today in America. She describes small ramshackle homes filled with absolute misery, the same kinds of homes that were documented in the American Midwest during the Dust Bowl, and the same we see in images from the slums of India and other foreign places. I thought the poem represented the universality of poverty and even the similarities of human beings and human society across the globe. 

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Midnight Runners

I recently traveled to Albany with our schools student government for a leadership conference. There I received tons of information and different ideas that we could implement within our own high school. One idea stood out to me the most, a program called "The Midnight Runners." One of the other high schools that had attended this conference implemented this program in order to fight poverty and hunger.

They would organize a food drive within their school and collect everything they could. They would choose a date and on that day load up a bus full of students and the food collected. When it was close to midnight they would travel into NYC to Central Park. There they would break up into groups and hand out the food to the less fortunate, in hopes of spreading not only nutrition but a sense of hope.

Although this idea may not be the most practical I thought it inspiring. It is good to know that there are people who are trying to make a difference and that we have not totally lost the war on poverty.

Charitable Organizations We Should Donate Too (BLOG 6)

I recently had done some investigating in what Long Islanders as a whole have to offer to the less fortunate people that take up a fair amount of our communities where we live. After browsing through various foundations, I found the perfect one we should donate too; Make a Difference - Long Island Cares, Inc. Long Island Cares not only collects food supplies for individual families on Long Island who are desperate for meals, it also provides hunger education, job training, children's nutrition, mobile outreach, pet pantry, school tools, emergency response and recovery, vet services, and several other services to people who are in need and/or willing to help. A main goal of theirs is to provide immediate food relief for people on LI. Not only can you donate food to this organization but you can also donate time and efforts into Long Island Cares as well. This organization is constantly hosting events such as Stuff a Truck that took place on November 24, 2014 in which a total of 8,500 pounds of food was raised throughout the whole day. Precisely 89% of their income goes directly to the charity and the remaining 11% goes strictly to advertisement and fundraising. If we decide we are interested in this organization, we are able to donate money as a class on their website listed in the link below. There is loads of information on their website and i feel that we should definitely consider this charity in the running as to what we donate to this holiday season.


www.licares.org/make-a-difference/ways-to-give/

6. Beyond a shell of a man

  

 Modern day society disregards the struggle of poverty and the rigorous economic situations that others are infested within today. We have a natural tendency to judge simply based upon appearance rather than looking beyond the outer shell and what lies within. Jacob Riis, author of How the Other Half Lives  and the one to shed light on the state of poverty in 1890's New York City. He himself had struggled in his past with his appearance in landing a job as a journalist. Lucky him, rather than receiving money, he was able to receive a suit and a nice set of shoes, allowing him to be presentable and able to land a job. He was the same man, just simply a different change of clothing. The saying "don't judge a book by it's cover" was not applied at all back, as is still the same now. If anything, it's just gotten worse.     

Jacob Riis however, wasn't one to jump to conclusions, having a rough past attempting to make it in America as an immigrant, he himself had sympathy for others. He would look beyond the outer shell of someones physical appearance, and view what was inside. His one true known act of sympathy was through his photography, showcasing the struggles a real live people of all ages, living on the streets and just barely making it alive.

“When nothing seems to help, I go look at a stonecutter hammering away at his rock perhaps a hundred times without as much as a crack showing in it. Yet at the hundred and first blow it will split in two, and I know it was not that blow that did it, but all that had gone before.” - Jacob Riis

      
 Poverty is just like a rock being split in two.It doesn't just all happen at once, it takes many smaller blows to a larger spectrum of it to take it down. Each crack representing an individual whose fallen victim to the word. People have the ability to crack, they themselves are able to break apart, to shatter into two. Jacob Riis was aware of this, maybe having seen it himself in his days, he wanted to help those in need before they completely shattered in two. He was able to see the cracks that they were made up of, able to feel the hits they took, and above all was able to capture such difficult components in a simple of collection of pictures that would change the way society viewed them.

#5

As a class, we talked about donating to a charity. I did some research to find a charity. I came across many charities for poverty but there was 1 that really stuck out to me, Oxfam America. This organization isn't just about trying to feed hungry families but help with poverty and injustice. Helping with injustice helps the people feel safer in their own community. Oxfam America is America based and works all over the world. This link goes right to their homepage. http://www.oxfamamerica.org I recommend everyone looks at this and explores the website. To explain the website, there are 3 tabs, Explore, Take Action and Donate. Explore brings you to all of the stories Oxfam America has been involved in. There are different categories. Take Action gives different options to help out and spread the word. There are options to campaign, host events and more. Donate is pretty self explanatory. Donations can be money right to the organization or if you click Oxfam America Unwrapped that brings you to a store where a water pump, building of a girls' school, school supplies, soap, first aid kit, ducks and goats, planting of a vegetable garden and more can be bought. This works because we pick what we want to buy, whoever helped you would get a free card showing your appreciation and the gift would be sent to a country that needs that help. I think this is a great organization we could look into.

There is also an organization called Comic Relief. Comic Relief is based in the UK and helps children get vaccinated against 5 major diseases, malaria included. Comic Relief is based on 5 themes: better futures, healthier futures, safer lives, stronger communities and fairer society. The goals are women ages 15-49 and children under 5 have improved life, disadvantaged children and adults again access to and attain, a good quality of education, women and girls are equal and respected member of society, slum dwellers have an improved quality of life, children and young people at risk are safer with greater opportunities to increase skill, people affected by HIV have an improved quality of life and poor people can improve their income through trade, enterprises and employment. Comic Relief is very big, they started Red Nose Day. It’s the day, every two years, when people across the land can get together and do something funny at home, work and in school. This is a great organization also.
I read into so many charities and here are some links. The first is an article about weapon distribution throughout the Southern Sudan and its becoming very unsafe. The rest are links to webpages. This is a big issue but we can help end this!

• https://news.vice.com/article/weapons-are-streaming-into-south-sudan
• http://www.oxfamamerica.org
• http://www.comicrelief.com/about-us
• http://ar.care.org
• https://www.sendacow.org/how-we-work

While researching poverty I came across some eye opening statistics that left me in disgust. Did you know that nearly 49 million Americans struggle to put food on the table every night? Or half of all Americans will live in poverty sometime before they reach 65 years of age. Or even that 1 in every 5 U.S. children lived in homes without food at some point during 2010 and again in 2013. African American children are three times are likely to live in households with incomes below the poverty line as their white "equals". Latinos are double as likely to live in poverty as their white "equals". In 2013 26.4 million (13.6%) of people in poverty were ages 18-64. That is literally people our age to people our grandparents age. In 2011 4.8 million seniors over the age of 60 were food insecure. Nevada is the most food insecure state at 9.8%. New York is 14th of 50 with 7.7% of our population food insecure. The average USA income for 2012 was $51,017. In New York to live "comfortably" you must make a yearly average of about $80,000. The starting teaching salary ranges from $45,500 dollars to $74,000 in New York. Which is both below what is recommended to live "comfortably" and "modestly". Seeing that the family average is a husband and a wife with 2.5 kids. (2 children and a pet) and each child by the time they are 18 have wasted (haha) nearly a million dollars, that sounds unreasonable and unfair to only make $80,000 a year and have a family of your own. Living expenses along with education expenses, health expenses and food expenses are far overpriced and with inflation is getting worse by the year. The average private university has gone up $10,000 in the last five years. Basically what I'm getting at is, living in America is pretty horrible because the value of a dollar is so low and the price of living is so high. Cash LITERALLY rules everything around me.

Ferguson's Lasting Results on Black Communities

             Ferguson was a disaster.  There is no other way to describe it.  Most of the people involved in this "protest" were not even from Ferguson, but people that just wanted to be involved in riots.  The whole event was just upsetting to watch, because whatever race you are, white, black, yellow, red, there is no excuse for that kind of response.  They had the right to protest and organize, but not the right to set fires, tip cars and ruin innocent peoples' businesses.  But back to the point, every person interviewed in Ferguson stated that they are tired of the "racial tension" in the community between cops and residents.  Do these people not think that rioting will make things worse?  They were set on the world stage, if they peacefully organized in a constructive manor, maybe things could have gotten done to make sure a cop never shoots an unarmed civilian, regardless of race.  But instead they protested and completely screwed over their community and others around the world.  And regardless of race, there should be a much higher level of respect for officers of the law.  Officer Wilson knew about a robbery and Brown's appearance matched the description (at the time we did not know he was the perp).  If he had walked to the sidewalk as asked, handed over the cigars, and according to Missouri law, would have been a Class A Misdemeanor and would have been charged with a fine no more than $1,000.   Brown was not a child as the media depicts him, he is a grown 6' 5" 280 pound man set on going to college, he can make decisions on his own.  He made the typical "screw the police " move and paid with his life and there is nothing else to blame it on.  Sorry for another tangent, but the summarizing point is that Ferguson completely screwed up reputations of black communities all over the country, not just Ferguson.

Ferguson (#6 i think)

It's been a little over a week since the up-rise  of protests in Ferguson and there is still violence going on. I don't understand why society thinks that looting, burning and damaging  their own community is going to help. In no way does this effect or show respect for the Death of Michael Brown. Everyone wants "change" the system and our 'corrupted' government but no one wants to put in the time or effort to become these police officers, lawyers, etc.... maybe Michael Brown should not have died the night he did but the way the community is reacting is not bringing any peace to his name, if anything Michael Brown is just going to be remembered as associated with this new social out roar over racism and injustice. This isn't the way a positive change is going to occur

War on Poverty (6)

 “We fought a war on poverty and poverty won.”-Ronald Reagan


Since we, as Americans, have begun truly counting, the percentage of people living in poverty was at its lowest value in 1973, at 11.1%.  Ten years later, this number grew to 15.2%, but decreased back to 11.1% in 2000.  Today, we are back to 15% of the population.  How is this so, despite our many attempts to help the poor?


It is a fact that several movements to hinder the effects of poverty have been met with success.  These efforts include social security, food stamps, earned-income tax credit, and many more.  Although poverty is at an all-time-high, programs such as these have still cut down the numbers, as poverty would now be nearly doubled without them.  As the New York Times puts it, "To say that 'poverty won' is like saying the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts failed because there is still pollution."  Our current attempts are simply not moving at a great enough speed to combat the constantly growing numbers of poverty.


There are a great deal of factors that come into play when considering why more and more people are categorized as poor in America.  First off, many people are living on the income of low-paying jobs.  According to the most recent data available from the Census Bureau, 104 million people — a third of the population — have annual incomes below twice the poverty line, less than $38,000 for a family of three.  This may be because a higher education is too expensive to come by, or simply because of the current competitive state of the job market.


Although i have not experienced it first hand, I have seen and heard about job displacement caused by this competition.  Because my mother is a teacher, I have seen individuals who are willing and able to hold a job with the school district getting laid off simply because the district needs to save money and these individuals were not working long enough to have tenure.  These people may have been forced to settle for a lower-paying job as a result.  Additionally, I have seen the outcome of outsourcing in my father's field of work.  When he was a software engineer, his company decided it would be cheaper to allow work to be done overseas, and as a result my father's American colleagues were no longer needed to work, again forcing them to search elsewhere to make a living. 


It is undeniable that the job market has taken a hit, but what is the answer? I am no historian, but I feel that we can learn a lot by looking to the past for help.  It is possible that what worked then could work today and, if not, could inspire new ideas.  In response to outsourcing, however, my opinion is concrete: WE SHOULD ENCOURAGE AND SUPPORT AMERICAN BUSINESS!

The Power of Color #6

Jacob Riis is known mostly for his publishing of How the Other Half Lives. He was a photo journalist who captured those who were overlooked and quite literally thrown into corners. Mr. Riis’ black and white stills hold a certain emotional atmosphere that the viewer climbs into when they view his work. He photographed in black and white not by choice but because that was how photography was still developing during his time. However the lack of color helps contribute to the gloomy feeling in the photos.  Today black and white photos are used for formal occasions, and serious events that just have to saved on film. But these photos often don’t carry much emotional baggage along with them, in comparison to Riis’ work. Why is this, have we been sensitized to color photos? Or is it purely the content that drives the photographic experience?

                Lets conduct a small test. Look at both of these images, which one do you feel more of any emotion from? The one on the left or the one on the right?

Both photos are simply of a man in a rocking chair, and not much else but why does the photo on the left feel like it is more than just a man in a chair. It may be due to the lack of color which in turn can be contributed to emotion. The void of color doesn’t provide much of a base for the eye to grab onto, and instead the brain takes in the image in a different way. The photo now draws in our eye but not because of the color but because of the content.  When the viewer looks into the photo and directly into the content of the piece, they may tend to stray for a deeper meaning even if there isn’t one. And on the chance that the piece functions as a method to inform people of something such as a social injustice. This leads to the emotional feeling(s) experienced and pairing that with a black and white color scheme and that makes for a truly memorable photo, that can be used to express a topic that people might feel uncomfortable discussing with words.

  In Jacob Riis’ case his photos captured not only a colorless void but also a compassionless void as well. These two factors are what made the photos Jacob took so compelling even today.