Race

After watching the video clip of the little girls and boys pick which doll they thought was the "nice" doll and which was the "bad" doll was very sad. As such a young age, race is stressed amoung our society. People are learing at such a young age the difference of skin color and expressing that through being a good or bad person. This only carries on through life and people become racist in other ways. From a young age we need to teach the new generations that skin color means nothing. Out society as a whole will be a lot stronger if we focus on other things then race.

Visitor

Two days ago we had a visitor come in to our class. He was telling us about his school compared to mine and I really realized how much I take for as advantage by going to such a good high school like Stevenson. It was so interesting to put the different stats together of high schools that are pretty close to each other. Going to a school like Stevenson, you don't think about really getting a job right after high school-college come first. In the school in Rockford they usually just get a job out of high school and very few go on to college. I also thought the ACT scores were very different. At Stevenson the average students wants a 25-29 or above on their ACT. Many will get tutored, and take the test 3 to 5 times before they get a score they approve. At the other high school a student got a 14 and was hoping to go up so he could get into a community college. We truly are very fortunate to go to such a well educated high school. I think college next year will be a different change for most of us. The demographics will be different and all different types of people of different race, religion and social class will be spread out among the campus.

thanksgiving

Thanksgiving to me this year felt different to me then the past- My family use to hold big thanksgiving dinner with my grandparents and Uncle and family but both my grandparents passed away that use to come and my uncle lives in Boston so this year he stayed back with other family there-therefore our family thanksgiving dinner was only us 4(mom, dad, sister and I). My sister and i have gotten very close since she went away to college(IU!). were four years apart so we use to fight a lot but now were best friends-i didn't realize how lucky i was to have her home and spend time with my family. We have yearly traditions we do on thanksgiving and i feel like this year everything felt very special to be able to be together. =)

Social Class and how we are viewed

People around America are viewed by their social class. We are judged by first glance. One of the biggest determining factors is where a person lives. The size of our house and area which you live separates people into groups. By going to a school like Stevenson, people would think differently of a student compared to a student that goes to a private school on the upper east side of Manhattan or a student who went to school in the south side of Chicago. Television portrays social class and how people are viewed. A good example of this is the TV show Gossip Girl. The characters categorize themselves with others who have equal wealth. Money displays a lot of the time if people are worth being around. The more money you have the more respect you deserve. I don't agree with this, but i cannot say that i don't judge people at all either. When meeting new people I usually ask where they live to get a better idea of the type of social class they belong to. As bad as that sounds i feel as if that is what our society has come to these days. 

Stevenson

StEvEnSon-
high school
groups
Saints
roughnecks
"good girls are bad girls that just get caught"
cheating-getting away with it
skipping school-excuses
LOP-4 weeks-parents call, 2 weeks
Having drugs on campus-expelled... lawyers call-5 day in school suspension
Is there any way at Stevenson that you cant get out of type of crime?

Election

2008
time of change
a new beginning
a new president
if it wasn't for the media and such a look upon society would people even realize the color of your skin?
Martin Luther King Jr. established this already, but do we as a society listen?
we generalize, judge, and are prejudice towards our political figures.
yes our new president looks different on the outside, but that is no reason to vote/or not vote for him
its about the views of each candidate
i think to many people this year were more concerned with the age and race of our president then their actually views on how to change this country
it will be an interesting 4 new years ahead seeing how the world will change

World Around Us

I think the media puts too much emphasis on growing up and trying to be something teens might not want to be. Songs and movies are stressful for teens because their lives don't always match up to the fantasies being displayed. Do you think there is a real way of life or a real way to grow up? How about is our future picked for us, or do we choose our futures?

I Am Not My Hair

When I read Sal's blog, I saw that he related his blog to the Indie Arie feat Akon song "I Am Not My Hair"
People everyday are constantly being judged, stereotyped, looked at from the outside not inside.
Why are people so influenced by what people say and by the media.
Little girls are fascinated by Barbie. The first doll many young girls receive is a Mattel Barbie doll. We are giving girls the image of a doll that if was made into a real person would not even be able to stand up, having estimated at 36 inches (chest), 18 inches (waist) and 33 inches (hips). This is an unrealistic image girls around the nation are looking up to as a role model. Why is the media putting images of unhealthy characters into young girls minds?
Why do we not except people in society to be different? To be unique? Why do we judge on first instincts and not give people a chance?
Stereotypes
Label
Categorize
Define
Mold
Standardize
Regulate
different

Bowling For Columbine

FEAR
its a four letter word
so is love
but these too words come across very different

"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself - nameless, unreasoning, unjustified, terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance."---- FDR - First Inaugural Address, March 4, 1933

I see FEAR in America during 9/11, at airports, around certain minorities, in big cities and many more places.
Americans fear life and the things that come their way that they are not comfortable with.
Why is this?
Things in our country happen to make other become fearful.
So how do we fix this?
Our country needs to become a safe place and Americans need to learn to be comfortable with the environment they live in

Tuesdays with Morrie

Death is a topic that people do not like to discuss. It happens to everyone in life eventually. Some sooner then expected, and some not the way they planned. Sometimes it happens quick, and other times death is known about but takes a while to happen.

Death is a word that is ignored, it is not a topic worth talking about. Why? Are people scared. If everyone knows its coming, why be scared? It is a natural thing about life.

We as a society don't like to bring up death. Dying brings tears, sadness, a loss of a friend, family member, sister or brother, mother or father, son or daughter. We build up our lives for what we are going to do in our futures, but when do we realize or future could end at any time?

Morrie knew he was dying, but that didn't stop him from doing what he loved most. Teaching. Sociology. Living. Being with the people he loved.

So why do we keep living if we know eventually we are going to die? We live for our family, or friends, for ourselves. We want to accomplish things in out life that we love. Well what is love?

"Love is a temporary madness. It erupts like an earthquake and then subsides. And when it subsides you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have become so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion. That is just being "in love" which any of us can convince ourselves we are.
Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident...roots that grew towards each other underground, and when all the pretty blossom had fallen from our branches we found that we were one tree and not two."- Captain Corelli's Mandolin6. "Love is the beauty of the soul."--Sr.Augustine

Culture

Around the world many things are done differently. I have had the opportunity to be able to travel to France, Czech, Italy, England, Canada, and Mexico in the past few years. In all of there countries their customs are different. To me, the biggest culture change is the language and the way people eat from country to country. It is cool to be able to say that I've tried different ways to do everyday American customs.
In class when we were looking at the different toliets I thought it was very interesting. The toliet in Japan was the coolest one. It is very interesting to have o many ways and styles to do the same task. That is what makes out country so diverese.

Movie

I think "C" belongs to many groups in the movie. He belongs to his family, his neighborhood crew, the bar friends, his girlfriend, and he is involved with his own group with Sunny. I think C would belong in both Sunny's crew and his own group just with him and Sunny. C and Sunny share a bond by themselves. Sunny has taken C under his wing and treated him like the son he never had. He taught him many skills of how to live during their time period and under certain conditions. C would also be in Sunny's crew because he hung out with them since he was little. He played the dice game in the basement with all "the guys". He was formed into Sunny's sidekick. I think C's master status changes through the movie because he changes throughout the movie. I think at the beginning of the movie he was prejudice and by the end he was trying to change his way because he liked Jane the African American girl. His master status would be friend and son. At the very end of the movie a connection of father and son is brought back. Also friend because he was always there for Sunny, even after Sunny died.

Groups

I didn't realize until the activity in class how I categorize myself. If I had to pick three words that people think of when they talk about me they would be: skater, leader, and friend. I have been skating since i was six and this sport has become a lifestyle to me. I am a leader by being captain of my team previous years, and being head of clubs such as FMP. I work very hard on everything i put my mind to because I like to get things done and perfected. People would say i am a friend because I will always put my friends first. I would do anything to support them and always have their backs. I am a listener when it comes to helping others with their problems.
I think we as people always categorize people before we get to know them. People who don't know me would probably call me a Jewish girl from SHS, when in reality i think that is a unfair stereotype. When these things might be true, it is a stereotype and until you meet the person behind do not judge. It is important to find out all the facts about a person before you jump to conclusions. Give everyone a chance, you never know the outcome.

9/11

Today is September 11th 2008. Its been 7 years since the tragedy. I think society was greatly impacted 7 years ago, but many people treat 9/11 now as a normal day. By ignoring the fact that our country was terrorized wont make it go away. I think the Presidential candidates should have all come together and done community service project to try and raise awareness of the troops over seas. Our Americans are fighting a war and giving up their lives for our country. The least we can do is acknowledge what they are doing.

Technology

To reflect on Sal's "Growing up Online" article, I think technology has a huge role in society today. I think teens have a lot harder time communicating with people their own age and older because they are use to always typing things out. Many teens probably don't have as high of a vocabulary because they are always sending short IM's or text messages. Yes technology is helping by keeping the world connected, but it is also hurting the youth of society by having the Internet. It is scary that anyone can find out your information online and a lot of teens put a ton of information on their facebook and myspace websites. It will be interesting to see when the youth becomes the people running the world and how much society changes.

Who am I?

Who am I? A question many people ask themselves. Is there a definite answer? Is it a one word definition, or a 500+ page novel filled with experiences and adventures? I am ME. I'm not one word, but I do have adventures and journeys that fill my life. I don't think anyone truly knows who they are until they go through a life changing experience. I haven't figured out my place yet, but I have a lot of things in my life that are very important to me. My family and friends mean the world to me. I stick up for what I believe in and wont back down. I speak my mind even if no one else agrees with me. I am independent, but also need my friends as strong support to help me achieve my goals. My skating team means the world to me. We travel around to other countries representing America as TEAM USA#1. It is the best feeling when our flag is raised and the USA National Anthem is played. My biggest influences in life are Olympic Athletes that train and compete for our country. Hard working athletes keep me motivated. My goal in life is to make a difference. If it is to one person or a community or the world, it doesn't matter to me. As long as I make an impact on someones life I will be happy. In my free time I enjoy doing charity work. I hope to do Habitat for Humanity before I leave for college.

I think a room of silence fills the room with more conversation than if everyone in the room was talking. Silence makes such an impact on people. It may feel awkward at first, but if people can sit in a room filled with silence than they are truly comfortable with their surroundings.

"We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends" MLK Jr

Eyes Wide Open