Racism's Crashes

Officer Hanson exhibits racism when he is talking to Peter in his car. He doesn’t believe anything Peter is saying, and eventually gets fed up and tells him to get out of the car partly out of aggravation, and partly out of fear. This is like when Jean is yelling at her husband about getting scared of the two black men who stole their car; both are examples of being covertly racist in situations where one was warranted and the other maligned. When Hanson is trying to help Cameron out by letting him off the hook for speeding, this is similar to how Peter and Anthony are talking about how it makes no sense that white people should be scared of them just for being black. In both cases, the offended feel like the outsiders don’t really know them and are making assumptions ignorantly about them based on previous experience. This is also kind of like when the shopkeeper and his daughter were called Arab when they are really Persian. Many people are ignorant to differences like these, where someone from the Middle-East’s name must be Achmed and all “Arabs” are undoubtedly terrorists.

As the Peter was getting a ride home from Hanson, they made small-talk, and the Hanson stereotyped the brotha’ a whole bunch. Peter talked about writing a country song, which he sort of did, and Officer Hanson didn’t believe him. When Peter gets angry and tries to get out his replica of the cop’s dashboard Jesus, the cop assumes he is taking out a gun and shoots him. Peter was frustrated with how the cop didn’t believe anything he said just because he was a lower-class African American, and when he finally tries to provide evidence of his honesty, Matt Dillon shoots him.
After the stupid bitch gets her car stolen, she begins to think negatively about all the minorities around her. Since she’s rich and has servants, this is very bad news for them. Right after the car gets stolen and the mayor is having their lock replaced, she asks him to have the locks changed again in the morning because a Latino is replacing the lock. The beeyotch whispers extremely loudly, and the lock repairman hears her accuse him of being in a gang and untrustworthy. Daniel is obviously offended by this, but he keeps his dignity and also makes her look like a total bitch by giving her both the keys to the door, meaning he couldn’t possibly have kept a key for his chicharrones on the South-side.

When Graham says “You embarrass me; you embarrass yourself.” to Ludacris in the car, he is saying that his actions are shameful in their own right, and also that his criminal ways give cops reason to not trust honest black men like Graham. Stealing cars and carrying guns only perpetuate the stereotypes which Graham has had to deal with when dealing with the cops and his wife earlier on. Ludacris listens to this and takes responsibility for his actions when given the chance to sell the Cambodian immigrants at the junk-yard. Instead, he takes them to the center of town and lets them go free, which was a far nobler fate than selling them as if they were property. In the end, he feels good about himself, goes against the grain of the stereotypical black man, and gets a free car.

People look at others and see their race instead of the individual because humans observe patterns. We are one of the only animals to do this, and while it can help with things like learning languages or predicting rainfall, when we use it blindly with people and their race, our generalizations often prove to be false. Someone may observe in the news that there are many robberies by African Americans in New York City, but that does not mean it’s okay or at all reasonable to think that every black person who walks into a store is there to rob the place. When we judge people based on their race, we fail to take into account that patterns do not speak for everyone and that each person is independent of these patterns. At the very least, people are offended when thrown into a general grouping based on the color of their skin, but racial prejudice can make or break landing a job, affect one’s ability to get a loan, and even cost his life. When the brotha’ is trying to get his dashboard Jesus out of his pocket, the cop takes into account the stereotype that the news portrays African Americans as a dangerous, violent race, and shoots him with the conviction that he was getting a weapon from his pocket. When he threw Peter in with the pattern he had in his mind of black people, Officer Hanson grossly assumed his intentions incorrectly, and cost a decent black man his life.

I think it is in our genes to observe patterns and make generalizations about the world, such as the observance that beer tastes like piss, always has tasted like piss, and will continue to taste like piss till the end of time. However, when people start to apply generalizations to other humans, they oftentimes will find themselves mistaken, for humans have individual minds which make decisions not based on a species standard, but on a personal basis. Beer does not wake up each morning and say, “I’m in a rotten mood, I think I’ll taste like piss today.” People do. Also, part of the reason racism exists is the human desire to feel good about themselves, and what better a way to do that than to put other humans below you based on some physical nuance? If we believe that we are innately better than people of a different skin color, it boosts our status as human-beings, and allowed us in ‘ye days of yore to justify our maltreatment of Indians, Africans, Chinamen, etc.

Race is learned by both families passing along the stereotypes through words or actions, and also the media. In the South, African Americans were treated horribly during and still after slavery. This is because many racist white parents tell their children they are inherently better than blacks, and this belief is passed down from generation to generation. If a neighborhood is specifically avoided on a tour of a city, and a certain ethnicity is prevalent there, one might start to believe all individuals of that color are to be avoided. The media loves throwing down the race card whenever possible. They will take care to mention the race of someone who commits a crime, not making any conclusions themselves based on this, but this hint usually will help the viewers along in forming their own opinions about people of that certain race.

I do not believe it’s possible to completely put an end to racism, although it certainly has been declining over the years. I don’t want to make it sound like there’s no hope for humanity in a racial perspective, but I think the fact that it once was makes racism an indestructible evil. Being an idea you hold in your mind, it’s very hard to know of its particulars and not take some part in it. No matter how well we educate people about tolerance, there always will be those few who harbor racist sentiments towards others. Although, we definitely can reduce racism’s prevalence by introducing diversity to neighborhoods and schools, and teaching kids from a young age that skin-color does not have any predestinations.

Privileges of Wealth

All of the social classes have different privileges which others higher and lower don't have, yet it seems the privileges of the wealthy make life much easier than those of middle and lower class. With wealth comes the ability to make money, which speaks through the saying "It takes money to make money." In our REAL game of Monopoly, the wealthy had the money to buy up property to then make it all back through rent. People with less money couldn't afford the expensive properties, even when they were lucky enough to land on them, and certainly couldn't make houses/hotels if they managed to "acquire" a monopoly. In real life, the rich can buy property for prices only they can afford and become real-estate moguls.

The rich also have the privilege to not have to worry about where their children will grow up (mobility)/schooling. They can choose to live in the safest, cleanest neighborhoods, unlike the poor who tend to be forced to live in areas either in the middle of nowhere or in less desirable locations with others of the same class. Ehrenreich experienced this in her account "Nickle'd and Dime'd," as her choices of places to live were very limited by her income. Rather than being confined to the public school system, the wealthy can pay large sums of money to send their kids to private school to give them the best educations to get high-paying jobs which will keep the families rich.

Finally, with wealth, one can run his own business which offers more freedom than the typical 9-5 shift. As the owner of a corporation, far more time is spent on the start-up of the company than running it. There are people in high places who take care of managing all aspects of the company, so unless a company-crippling problem arises, the owner can sit at home, slowly stroking the arm of his red velvet throne-chair for hours on end. In the People Like US video, the obnoxious snooty rich guy with the comb over was excreting his high-pitched screeching sound in the direction of the cameraman's face during the middle of the day. Why wasn't he working? The cameraman had the right idea as he was on the job. The SRG either owns a few companies, which is how he could afford to not be working for the interview, or is unemployed. With great wealth comes little responsibility. Any responsible individual knows that having a comb over is a sure-fire way to get yourself made fun of both amongst your peers and teens in Sociology classes.

It would be difficult to fix these class problems and still keep the idea of the American Dream. You try to limit the wealth and the people cry "dictator." You try to redistribute the wealth of the absurdly wealthy and the people cry "communist." We don't live in a very egalitarian society anymore, as if you are born in a certain class, everything you learn in and out of school prepares you to survive in that same class. The only way I can think of to possibly help with this is making college and universities less expensive. I don't understand how Universities are so cheap in Europe, how my German friend can get a PHD in Halle for the same cost as 1 year at private college here. However they do it, the U.S. should follow suit, because we're limiting our progression as a society by only having those with money getting terciary education.

It doesn't matter what you do, as long as you do it with Class.. Specifically, your Class.

"What a man is depends on his character; but what he does, and what
we think of what he does, depends on his circumstances. The characteristics that
ruin a man in one class made him eminent in another."

With this quote, Shaw is saying that every man is to his own, but the specific kinds of things which he chooses to do and how people around him perceive those actions depends on his class. Certain things which are taboo or looked down upon in some classes make one a hero in others. This is especially true for wide class differences, such as from working class to "world-class." In the lower classes, women (and men too) are expected/encouraged to know how to clean up after themselves around the house, be it in the kitchen, bedroom, and even the bathroom. For the upper class, cleaning your own bathroom would be seen as a disgusting misuse of money, since everyone in the upper class should have maids. In middle class, parents will often say "Is there a maid here?" when a careless child leaves a mess on the table. Rich commie bastards say the same thing ironically, with their pointy-noses held high, if a child begins to clean up after himself. ('Cause they really do have a maid)

Also, Shaw spoke of the standards in each class of society. "Success" has many definitions depending on which rung of the social-ladder you are from. The lower-class would consider success as having a job and being able to get by with the bare necessities, and maybe 'un 'uh tham intertubes too. Middle-class wants not only that, but to move a step up compared to their parents both economically and socially. Success is being able to afford nicer things with savings, being an upstanding and respected individual in the community, and perhaps having a happy family. The upper-class wants money, wealth, and coin. Looking wealthy is extremely important to the wealthy, so success would be considered how prestigious a name one's family has. Everyone is capable of success, but due to character and economic differences, we are mostly limited to success within our own class.

Deviance Behind Bars

Deviance in general is a unique societal construct. In some cultures it would be considered deviant to walk around the house naked, but in American society this is the norm and is even encouraged in some households. This means that punishable deviance also is different in each society. In the United States, drug-related sanctions are far more severe than in say.. Columbia. Taboos can be a large part of these deviant societal constructs. Drinking in a dry county is no different than underage drinking on a college campus, but for the fact that alcohol is a taboo in one place and glorified in the other. Getting caught drinking in the dry county will get'cho ass in the clinker, while getting caught drinking in college usually results in looser consequences.

I don't believe these societal constructs are avoidable because they are a part of culture and one cannot simply change a single aspect of culture and keep it consistent with the rest of the world. Religion plays a key role in what kind of activities are considered deviant, and people can't just change their religious views on a whim. Euthanasia is unacceptable with a Christian belief system and is a punishable offense in most states. Shintoism in Japan has few qualms with assisted suicide, and therefor does not result in a court case by furious religious fanatics.

The U.S. court and jail system needs quite a few touch-ups. In 30 Days, Morgan Spurlock gets to experience living in two very different jail environments. The first jail kept the inmates inside for 24 hours a day and had basically no rehabilitation programs, for drugs or otherwise. The criminals were living in an environment where no reform was possible since all they did was sit around and do "nothing" for the duration of their sentence. I'd say this is a huge waste of taxpayer's money because the majority of jail inmates are repeat offenders, meaning our penitentiaries do not teach its residents how to live lives without crime. Morgan then visited the drug rehabilitation portion of the prison which was a completely different environment, where people actually got help for their problems in a positively-reinforcing system. It's amazing to me how two parts of the same jail can be so drastically different, and it makes it obvious that not all U.S. jails are made equal.

With the recent advent of the "War on Drugs," more people than ever before (Nearly 1/3) are in prison for having drug-related offenses. Keeping these people in prison is extremely costly, especially if no rehabilitation steps are taken. This is a big issue because more often than not, the prisoners arrested for drug abuse need psychiatric help, not to be behind bars.

Unfortunately, a person's social class, gender, and skin color make a difference in his or her chances of being convicted of any crime in general. People in poor neighborhoods are far more likely to sell drugs as a get-rich-quick scheme to escape the ghettos. Minorities tend to live in the poorer areas of town, where police activity is much higher, making it more likely for them to be arrested. Like we read in the "Saints and Roughnecks" article, people in the lower-class do not have as ready-access to a car, which makes crime very local, where the police expect there to be problems. 93% of all prisoners are male, showing how much better females are at escaping the long ride to the station with their tears and assets (Such as jewelery, doughnuts, a roast, etc..) with which to bribe the police officer with. Over 57% of prisoners are single, which is understandable because those in a relationship have others who depend on them, and therefor would be less likely to commit an offense which would hinder giving support to their families. The U.S. penitentiary system punishes people for society's defined deviance, yet we punish many for stereotypical reasons or those who should be given a second chance.

Status Power

In many ways, status power consumes the life of us teenagers because it is in essence the only true power we wield. This affects the way we act around our friends and acquaintances, and also who we choose to associate ourselves with. For example, a football player would guffaw at the notion of going to Interactive Gamers' Club. Status power makes people do things which they ordinarily would not, such as wearing obscene amounts of makeup or drinking till they pass out. My sister still watches MTV, even after years of me telling her that it's a channel of fluff and will turn anyone's brain to mush, just to be able to talk about the newest episode of "16 and Pregnant."

Socialization/Adolescence Final Blog

Today, I chose to wear plaid blue boxers, white Hanes socks, blue and white K-Swiss shoes, blue jeans, a grey Aeropostale shirt, and a green jacket. We aren't born knowing clothing brands or what matches what, so I would say style is basically completely by nurture. In the future, I want to be some sort of scientist, but the parts nature/nurture play in this aren't as clear-cut to me. My grandpa is a scientist, so maybe the science gene was in my blood. However, I also had 4 years from 7th-10th grade with amazing science teachers, who may have nurtured my love for ciencias.. Could a great teacher really have that sort of impact on what you want to do when you grow up? I don't think I showed any keen interest in science before 7th grade. It probably is a combination on the two in that case, with my grandpa planting the seed for success and the slew of memorable teachers watering it.

Adolescent social status power is as life-consuming as it is because for most teenagers, it is the only power they wield. Adolescents don't have much economic power because adults don't trust them to handle the kind of responsibilities associated with a real job. Also, we have to be in school until we turn 16, which means we can't work the same number of hours of a grown-up. This was not the case back in the 70's and earlier, where labor laws were more lax and it was seen as a socializing power for a teenager to work alongside adults at a construction job or in an office. Now we're stuck with silly jobs like working Summer Camps or Movie Theatres where the only people we interact with regularly while on the job are our teenage peers. Teenagers also don't have any political power either, as they are legally under parental control until 18 years of age. Social status power is the one power we can achieve and compete for with people our own age. Almost all teenagers strive to be the ideal character in their social groups/cliques. This affects the clothes we wear, the music we listen to, how we talk, the people we associate ourselves with, what "extracurricular" activities we participate in, etc..

Socialization for children has changed drastically since my parents were young, what with the television becoming a necessity in every household. Consumerism is on the rise thanks to constant bombardment of advertisements -- both on television and in real life -- which from a young age teaches kids they aren't happy if they don't have stuff. We're quickly developing a developmentally destructive lifestyle. Sitting down, turning your brain off, and acting comatose for many hours is not a scientifically proven way to lose weight in our increasingly obese society. Many parents are leaving the job of parenting to the TV or the internet, from which kids can't receive the physical in-person interaction of a parent or a friend. Once high-school comes around (Even starting in Middle school these days), the Facebook effect kicks in. We begin to think about life Facially, or what I like to call FaceThink. An example of how this works is how teenagers think about how they can't wait to get home and change their Facebook status to tell the world what they've just done. The majority of the time, absolutely nobody has any interest in these silly quips about your day. Attención horses can really go to town with FaceThink, typing up the most cryptic, embellished, woe-is-muah statuses possible. This is definitely not healthy socially. We spend time on Facebook when we could be hanging out with friends or learning a new hobby like artisan snow-cone making or inventing liquid cheese. (Someone really needs to get on that)

Gender differences impact how each gender perceives and feels about itself. At least in American culture, girls are told to be pretty or witty, men to be strong, charming, or funny. Boys far more often than girls take on the role of "class clown," and girls generally don't walk around with their pants (all 3 pairs) falling down in the popular gangsta' style of 'da boyees. These differences may partly be the fault of woman's subordinate social class standing in relation to men in our country's history. I like to cook. Stereotypes say the women should be in the kitchen, and although this obviously is a falsity which most acknowledge, when people ask me what I'm interested in, I won't always mention this because it might be seen as socially unacceptable or strange to someone who has just met me. Most of the gender differences are trivial, yet they dictate the hobbies and lifestyles socially "normal" individuals can partake in.

Sociolization doesn't apply to me. Yeah, I said it.

Alright, so maybe the title has nothing to do with this blog entry.. whatever. So, I am similar to my family in the following ways: My dad and I share the same sense of humor/music interests. I inherited some godly party-throwing powers from mom. Dad likes to work out, and so do I surprisingly enough. Mom likes to cook, and that has been passed along to me as well.



My friends also have influenced me in the long-run. Alex is my oldest friend who I still hang out with regularly, and he is another reason for my sense of humor. One of our favorite things to do is say some terrible joke or pun and then go back and forth, adding to each other's jokes for better or for worse, depending on the situation. Both of us love classic rock, and he has introduced me to a few contemporary artists such as The Beatles and The Who. Other friends like David and Andrew showed me how to be a Junior as a Freshman in high-school. I had the great advantage of friends who could drive during my Freshman year, which completely changed my perspective on how friendship flourishes. We would just sit in the van for hours (until the oxygen ran out) and just talk about life and enjoy good music. Most teens need constant input and entertainment, but those two friends taught me how to just enjoy company and outrageous conversations.



My parents realized I had a unique personality as soon as I "popped out!" At my first doctor's appointment, I peed all over the doctor, covering him in volcano-lava-hot urine, much to his chagrin. They could see I had some kind of sense of humor.



There are a few habits/attitudes of my parents which I do not wish to be a part of my personality in the future. For example, I don't want to judge people quickly to keep as many options open as possible for friendship and more. My old trumpet teacher once said, "Be nice to everyone you meet..." and I forget how he ended that great adage, but I remember its meaning every day. Also, I don't want to let assumptions and expectations stop me from trying great things, like my father. He occasionally discourages me from doing things I want to do just because he doesn't think I have time, but I always can make time for friends. (Even if it's at 3 in the morning)



I do think it's possible to work against both nature and nurture. While having grown up with my parents and all their customs and attributes being a part of my daily life, they did not impose any of these in an especially scarring (such as with Danielle, the feral girl) fashion, which I think would make it easier to kick a family trait like the ones I mentioned above. People may be predisposed to their future or habits, but in the end, it is people who decide to change. It's not easy to change, but then again, its harder to deal with the regret of not changing.

Life-Water™

Culture is both a visible and non-visible force which governs our actions in today's society. These non-visible forces can be seen as a sort of Life-Water, because we are immersed in it from day one, and like a fish in a fish-bowl, cannot see it as an insider looking out. An example of this water in my own life is how people in Stevenson generally assume that having more of something among fewer people brings the greatest happiness. I found this to be true in the discussion of Give'a'Thon in Honor Band. Completely ignoring the fact that the biggest class in Stevenson (over 350 participants) wants to cut back this year and set the bar at less than $1 per person in band, the topic came up of how big of a family and how many families we wanted to support. The overwhelming majority voted the band take on one small family of 4 people or less. I was appalled! Their Reasoning: Would it make people happier if they had $60 worth of presents spent on them or $30? I feel like that's what the band students personally would want to be spent on them, that we weren't thinking like less fortunate families. There are newly-destituted families in the Chicagoland area who would be happy to receive anything for the holidays this year, and it should be our duty to fulfill as many of these desires as possible, not splurge on a lucky select family.

Around this time of year, with Give'a'Thon starting up, peoples' generosity is easy to see, or in some cases, their lack of. Last year, I had Mr. Sherwin, a huge Give'a'Thawner, for my Human Geography teacher. We took on the challenge of shopping for one or more families per class, and the general student monetary and canned-gooditary response was overwhelming. However, when it came time to volunteer to go shopping with the collected money on a Sunday, the room was silent as a tree on a windless Summer day. The first to raise their hands after a prolonged minute of treeful silence were the two girls who were in charge of our class's Give'a'Thon in the first place. After another minute or so, I decided to spruce things up by volunteering myself. Americans generally are all for promoting and contributing money to venerable causes, but when asked for the ever-fleeting commodity of time, people tend to shirk from their original generosity. After buying the gifts for the families, Sherwin held a huge gift-wrapping party after school that Wednesday. Here are some demographics for that event: 16 girls, 2 men. One of those men was Mr. Sherwin, so there was nothing going for him with those statistics, but I on the other hand was one very lucky gentleman. Sometimes we forget that when we do nice things for others, there may be some unanticipated rewards in the end. (Indeed, it was an auspicious day in regards to the business of pimping for J-Wex) ; D

An American value I embrace is our stated value of the individual. It may not always be apparent, what with our "standardized testing", judging everyone in the exact same intellectual assessment, but I believe individualism makes America what it is today. There are people from all over the world living in the United States, and their own cultures and customs help create a worldliness at a local level. Even though America is in the process of homogenizing the world through globalization, I believe the Olive Tree will work together with the Lexus in the end, and if it doesn't I will be kinda' disappointed.

Another value I support is the idea of physical fitness. Just because we live in the richest country in the world doesn't mean we should use our wealth to become the fattest and therefore curtail our happiness. "Eat to live, do not live to eat." -Mark Twain And I don't believe in lame-butt walking for anyone under the age of 50. I'm talking real physical fitness here, like push-ups and sit-ups. Every man and woman should totally be able to bench twice their own weight with pure, rippling muscle. Unfortunately, I'm not quite at that point of physical fitness, so I'll save that idea for later.

Sometimes I have my gripes with the value of material comfort in the American lifestyle. For example, owning every new generation of iPod goes beyond material "comfort" in my book, yet for some consumers this a given. For some reason, I just don't always have the desire for more stuff, which some people spend their whole lives chasing after. Right now, I just want to hang out with friends who are in college, a want which cannot be purchased. Personally, I don't see the fun in owning new stuff that for the most part will be obsolete in the next 5 years. ('Cept for 80's Hair Rock band records, those will always be near and dear to my heart)

I also have issues with the value of expected external conformity. When asked "What's up?" we are expected to say "Not much." Smart-asses are expected to say "The ceiling" or something to the same clear-as-day tune. Seldom do people actually think to themselves what their personal response to that question would be if they put the effort into answering it. I choose to answer a different question in response to the previously asked, such as "How are you doing today?" or "How heavy is your preferred bowling ball?" (Which is 11 lbs., for anyone who's interested) What We, as Americans, are expected to keep our emotions on the inside all the time, and not let feelings of unhappiness or negativity creep into our countenances. Why not answer questions in our own way? Why not dress how we want to? Why not show how we feel? If we all conform to a single society's norms, there will be nothing left to hold in awe in lieu of the contrast with your own norms.

Our American Values

Last week, Mr. Smith gave us a list of 23 American Values and choose 5 values and describe how and if they still apply today, what sort of sanctions are issued if they aren't followed.

Material comfort is one value which Americans certainly take part in today, especially at a place like Stevenson. On the bus to school each day, I see no less than half the riders with trademark white Apple earbuds in their ears, listening to Apple iPods. We go to school until we're 18 years of age and then most go on to college, where we earn degrees to get high-paying jobs. With more money, Americans hope to buy more and more "stuff" to make them comfortable materially, at as cheap of prices as possible. (Hence our big box-mart stores and Chinese manufacturing) Americans like having things, without a doubt.

Racism and group superiority, while not the same as the kind of racism one would see back in 1965, still is an applicable American value today. Many Americans harbor racist feelings towards Mexican immigrants (both legal and not). We're going through an economic slump, so the first people to blame of course are the newest immigrants to come to our United States. "They're all uneducated and don't speak ingles, so they must be the cause of all our economic troubles!" Stevenson students also buy into the blatantly racist notion that Hispanics only do landscaping/janitorial work. We live in the country of opportunity, why should that apply only to "Americans"? (A blend of many cultures from all over the world)

While romantic love is a desirable ideal, it seems to be far less common in this country today. Divorce rates have soared over the past decade, showing that maybe people who thought they were in "romantic love" may not have been. It's easier than ever to get a divorce too. Kids at Stevenson are a lot more into having short term "hook-ups" than in years past, and relationships oftentimes are very short-lived. (Although maybe that always has been the case with high-school relationships) I'm going to have to take this value.. off the list. And now we'll take a quick commercial break!

*1 Dinner Later*

Physical fitness is very much a proclaimed American value to combat the little obesity problem America has. We see it in our commercials, in magazines, and other places in life. In high-school especially, the athletic/fit body is idolized socially. We have gym class still thankfully, and it is a commendable program unlike many others around the States. On the other hand, though, a lot of people have resorted to watching physically fit people playing sports on TV, all the while eating chips and other junk food. However, this practice, regardless of its popularity, is looked down upon, which supports our value of Physical Fitness = Good.

Finally, we have the value of caring for the environment. Recycling has become commonplace over the past decade, and polls show more people want to do something about slowing/stopping global warming. With the election of the Obama administration, efforts and capital have been put into researching alternative energy sources like wind, tidal, and solar energy. Gas mileage has become an important selling point for cars these days, demonstrated by the popularity of the Toyota Prius. (Although there also is an economic incentive to using less gas too) Huge gas-guzzlers still are common, especially in the South, but generally people now know that everyone wins when you get more miles to the gallon. It's a difficult concept for some to grasp, because if we reduce emissions by lowering the amount of factory production in the United States, we will fall behind in the shadow of China, which has unrestricted greenhouse-gas emissions. Overall though, the general will of the public is leaning in the direction of environmental-friendliness.

Collogero's World

Calogero lives in what appears to be a neighborhood with strong Italian ties, probably from immigration by Italian immigrants in the early 1900's. After an initial stream of immigrants, families most likely followed suit over the next few decades, becoming a part of the cultural tradition of Calogero's neighborhood. The organized crime scene, headed up by Sonny in the movie, was once needed to hold the 'hood together, and probably still was doing so in the movie. Sonny and his men, while an alarming and oftentimes dangerous crowd to be involved in, use fear and illicit funds to improve the neighborhood. (to their advantages, albeit)

Then there are Sonny's stupid friends in the little "gang" of their own. However, this is an example of a social club with no positive impacts on the community. They just sit around all day, ditching school, smoking, drinking, hollah'rin at fine ladies on the street, and beating up black people. This group collided violently with Sonny's real gang when they were caught trying to sell guns out in public and driving Calogero to a firey death, and luckily, Sonny saved him from all sorts of horrible fates on different occasions.

Finally, we have the black neighborhood in 'Da Bronx, where Calogero's lovely lady Jane resides. Race relations during this time were HOT in the bad way, so even simply by walking through the black 'hood, Calogero's life was in danger. Back in the 60's, blacks and whites were still segregated, and most who live in a world like that begin to accept it as the fitting reality, which is why he was shunned callously from the scene of his friends' "accident." His love for Jane certainly, at the time, was a radical idea, and although his Italian family and friends did not support interracial relations, Sonny told Calogero to follow his heart, which today would be much better advice than what Calogero's rather racist (Going with the times, not necessarily a cold-blooded racist) father told him.

All of the groups come together with Calogero serving as the common link between each of them. Some conflicts are for better, others for worse, but the social interactions between them all make up the world that Calogero lives in.

Where's the Gangsta's Soch Cred?

I thought the article on Venkatesh's "Gang Leader for a Day" was a really neat way to do some real micro-sociology work. As I read through it, I kept thinking, "Sudhir, you dumba**! You are an uppper-class Indian graduate student.. what the hell are you doing in the projects of Chicago?!!? This guy is naive in the gravest sense..." When they had him holed up on the stairwell as a "hostage", I was just amazed that he wasn't questioning the nature of his captors. However, once J.T. and him were all good with each other, I could tell this would make for an amazing sociological study; living the life of a gangsta in Chicago.

I think J.T. and his gang should be at the very least be given credit in the book if they weren't given such credit already, and possibly some sort of help to get them off the streets too. (Although probably not hard cash, since that would, if the past shows us anything, be spent on alcohol, cars, or "bling-bling") Then again, a lot of gangstas are on the streets because they don't want to live the normal life of working a 9-5 job, not "making bank", and not indiscriminately killing people who wear their hats differently than they do. However, J.T. without a doubt himself deserves a little extra-credit for not popping a cap in Mr. Venkatesh's backside when it seemed like Sudhir was a Mexican spy, and then showing him the ropes of being a gangsta as an outsider looking in.

"The Freaks and Geeks" of Stevenson

In Stevenson, the cliques are not nearly as confrontational as in "Freaks and Geeks." Being a TV series, they had to over-dramatize the conflicts between the groups, kind of like Greasers vs. Socs. At Stevenson, there's no group each person is trapped in like F&G's makes it seem like. There are jocks, nerds, alternative-stylers, rockers, sports-fans, sportards, people who like Aerosmith, people who don't like Aerosmith :|, floaters, and many more. I consider myself a "floater" because I float between a few of those groups, and am not really permanently grounded anywhere. Stevenson is such a massive school that no group has a significantly larger number of bodies than another, and no groups have much power. Well, except for the teachers, but that is a given in most high schools. In a way, it's nice that Stevenson is as enormous as it is, because that makes the kind of diversity we have here possible.

Silencio

A Study in Textual Silence:

Silence is a general lack of noise. This leaves for a bit of personal interpretation: To some, silence is walking through life without talking or being talked to by anybody. Noise exists in the world around them, but does not affect that individual on a personal level. For others, silence is the cessation of sound altogether, which is difficult to come by these days. Think middle of the Sahara dessert. However, for our purposes, silence can be considered a period of speechlessness.

Silence can be demanded, such as during standardized testing. (ACT/SAT) Breaking such a silence results in, of course, getting brutally beaten by your classmates after the fact, among other more academic consequences farther down the line. Such a silence can be considered a "healthy" one, because any length of time not spent in immense physical pain is a glorious time indeed.

Then there are the more poorly timed silences, or "awkward turtles." These curious creatures seem to show up at the worst times, such as at the dinner table.. But not your dinner table. Like your boy or girlfriend's parent's dinner table. The awkward turtle will then proceed to slowly make a hole in the atmosphere of a delightful homemade meal. NOBODY wants to eat chicken piccata after a turtle has swam through the sauce you had been working on all evening. If the inarticulate abomination is allowed to roam freely throughout the courses, it will no doubt affect the overall quality of the night, and bring up awkward questions like, "So.. when you take off your shoes, do you untie them or just leave them as is?" or "Hey.. where'd that turtle come from?" This is the bad kind of silence.

Finally, we have the normal silence which is a part of most people's everyday lives. Said silence (not of the reptilian variety) shows up at natural break points of a conversation, and is not awkward unless one or both of the parties make it awkward. Worse than making it awkward is when someone just talks to hear the sound of their own voice. Conversations in this style consist mainly of the word, "Like," and tend to be extremely shallow. Talking like that like, makes the, like, world, like. you know, like, the society around, like, us, like, me and like, you, maybe like, Mr. Smith too, like, chicken-waffles, and like, that's what she like said! The sound of my voice is like, offensive in itself! Don't be this person; let silence be. Healthy silence keeps our listening skills keen. Without constant noise filling our heads, it's much easier to listen when someone is actually talking.

I put way too much time into these entries when I don't have the time to give... TT_TT But it definitely is fun to type this stuff up!

Mayhaps an Explanation

Hey guys/gals, you may have noticed my last blog entry didn't make much sense gramatically/Englishly. There's one major reason for that: I didn't use the word "I."

These days, everybody is so caught up with me, Me, ME! Have you noticed that? And when I say "everybody," of course I don't mean that literally. When people are volunteering, it's shocking to hear someone is doing a good deed to "look good for college." Once college starts, is that the end of his or her volunteering days? We live in the top 2% of the world, so why can't we give back to the community to do just that? Is a reward other than that warm, tingly feeling you get inside (without getting high, of course) such a necessity for some individuals? This entry has just about reached the level of crazy old guy ranting.. let's get to the point!

I took out the "I" and found it a lot more difficult to get the point across, and almost impossible to do with proper English. Smith's whole silent treatment he gave us on day one got me thinking of something different I could do with the first blog entry. It took a lot longer than writing down what I wanted to get across without restrictions would have taken, but it was doable, (albeit waaaay slower) and I knew that from the start. The whole taking out the "I's" had nothing to do with that rant earlier on in the post, it was just to do something out of the ordinary. Now that I look back on the entry, I apparently also didn't use the word "a", and have no idea why that is. o.O

There you go, an explanation of my "different" first blog entry. I actually do know English! :D Feel free to comment with any thoughts or ideas you have on the whole ♫Me me me me me me me!!!♫ outlook on life.

The First Day of Sociology

It was interesting. Have Smith for APUSH too. Hand-shake on entry. Guess that's his thing. Smith silent for start of class. Kept drinking "clear liquid" from thermos. Started to freak people out. Thought he was psychoanalyzing whole class, being social-scientist. Found ourselves in awkward silence. Few kids read through Smith's "About me" on back of sheet for clues to end silence. Am pretty quiet myself, so did not feel too out of place. Began talking after 5 minutes. Told us reasoning: Give us something unexpected, not typical of teachers. Daily hand-shakes unexpected even, for most students. However, hand-shake offers student moment of metaphoric solitude with teacher. Solid idea for any professional. Obvious Sociology won't be typical from day one.

Then gave his "webby" lecture. Very funny, even second time. Am only student in APUSH class, not like he can make up new material just for one anomaly. Class has sense of humor, unlike most physics classes. Mostly seniors, but no big deal. Know very few juniors anyways.

Don't know how to end blog. Catchy movie-quote? Sudden outburst of unwarranted profanity? Do you say "goodbye" each time? People don't say "bye" on phone anymore, so probably not..