I think that a lot of what makes women like self concious and all about body image is the people that are around us. What is in the magazine and what society put on what women should wear and what they should look like. There is pressure to be skinny and have large boobs based on what society has said is pretty and what is not based on the magazines. If being fat and having very small boobs was what is advertised in the magazine then that is what people would want to wear. Women see what is in the magazine and they try to mask that. Every girl wants to have a nice body, have a great completion and dress in really nice clothes and society tells you that you have to.

The topic also came up in Sams' class if women dress up for other women or other men. I think that women dress up for both other women and other mean. I think it is a combination of both. When women here go out to parties they dress up and look good for two reasons. One of the reasons is they dont want to be upstaged by other women and dont want other women to judge them because women do care a lot about what other women time. They dont want to go in a party and another girl look at them and be like "ewww she wore that, what is wrong with her, she looks a mess" or "she is such a dirty whore" so in that way, women dress for women. However, women do care about what men think as well. When girls go to parties they go for other men and they want men to look at them and think they look good. I mean when my friends go out they go out to get guys to want to dance with them and be all on them. They dont want the guys to be like, "she looks like such a slut" or "did she not not she came to a party, with guys?" So in cases like that I think women dress for men. But the funny thing is most men could care less with what the women are actually wearing, which is what makes it funny/

But I ultimately think women just dress to what makes them look good. They dont want to look bad, whether it is for men or women, they dont want to feel uncomfortable and feel like they are being judged whether it is men or women. I think that everyone should just dress to their body and as long as they are comfortable in what they are wearing, what other people think shouldnt matter but of course it does.

I have actually thought about this before, I always have wondered like what makes someone eligible for welfare and why the government lets people who are most of the time lazy go on welfare. I mean I obviously now know what it takes to be put on welfare from like a financial stand point but some people that are on welfare in my opinion are just working out to beat the system and in some cases they have. Some people are just determined to have kids and go on welfare, because I believe that you need to have kids to be on welfare, while others desperately need welfare in order to support their family. In some other cases some people who could really use welfare don't go on it because they have too much pride and they don't want to be another welfare case. But I think if we got rid of welfare it would probably make a noticeable difference. By that I mean I think people will use their potential more and go out and try to make something of themselves because they will no longer have welfare to fall back on and maybe people will be smarter about what children they bring in the world because they wont have welfare to support them. I think that it will increase the amount of people who are homeless and more people will be in poverty. I also think that the crime rate will increase because people will need to support themselves or there family some way if they don't have welfare to fall back on and can't get work. So with "survival of the fitess" in mind I do believe that people will start robbing others and maybe selling drugs in order to provide for themselves and family. There will probably be more prostitutes and pimps so that women can support for their kids if there is no father figure or no one to help support them. I think that although some people abuse welfare and use it to their advantage because they are lazy and not actually in serious need of it because they are trying to make a life for themselves, for them and other people that actually need it and use it, there could be something seriously out of control and the people who use welfare but that wont be able to have it make have to look at alternatives for survival and they may not be the best way to make a life for themselves and their family, but will be the best way that they know how and that could make our world crazy. If people are stealing and selling drugs are crime rates will go up and it will be terrible for our society as if it is not already bad. But in my opinion although welfare can and has been abused it is a good thing, because it helps a lot of people who need it and keep alternative ways to get money that may lead our society into the crapper down.

First of all seeing this video was just so sad to me. My sister was the same when she was a child. She always choose the white dolls in comparison to the black dolls and I am obviously a black girl and so is my sister and me and my parents never really realized why she was always trying to play with the white dolls and would always throw the black dolls away and get mad at my parents if they got her a black doll and would refuse to play with the doll if it were not a white doll. Seeing the thing in class just made me think that it is terrible that young kids only think that white is pretty whether they are white or black and that is sad. The dolls looked exactly the same from their features to there outfit to the style of there hair and everything and the kids only wanted to play with the doll that was white. I couldnt believe that but that is what society does to people and for that to be a kid at such a young age thinking that white is better than black is very depressing. Society puts this thing on people that says lighter skin is beautiful and darker skin is less attractive and it sucks to think that is what young kids believe because that is not true. And when Sam googled beauty and all the people that showed up were white or light skinned people it proved that society teaches us that being white or light skin is preferred and because people live knowing that, they fall in to the pattern of making light skin more attractive. They also associate being black or dark with being bad. Like when the black children were like that they would pick the white doll as being good and the black doll as being bad, showed that society is telling them that black is bad and white is good. What made it worse is that these kids are young and shouldnt even be able to tell what is good and what is bad as far as skin, especially when they can choose between color. And like as far as my sister she always picked white dolls but now I am sad to say that she does not really like people who are not in her race, she prefers people who were black and seeing the clip in class made me think about when I was a kid how I didnt choose what I doll I wanted to play with based on color, I just picked the cooler doll and now I am open to all races. I dont judge based on race however I do prefer to date outside of my race but I have always been open to things where as my sister is not and she always choose white dolls. It is making me think that when those kids who picked the white doll get older they are not gonna be open to other races when they learn how society teaches us to like white or black and will pick black people, I dont know, prob a generalization from my sister, but the point is it sucks that kids think that way and society should not put such an emphasis on being white as good and black as bad.

Okay I totally agree with what my friend Vinny is saying and yeah he is my friend, what category do mutiracial people fall into. I mean they are both white and colored. They can be either or there i snot really what they are is more like who they are. They may be raised by a just colored parent or or just a white parent but does that make them white or color? I mean it is really hard to think about it like that. How people are classified just on what, what are we necessarily basis it on, like we are saying it is all about "color" we are and not necessary what we are. If a person of color is white like there is skin is white, does that make them white or black, I mean like what does that mean? Now I am really confused what makes a person colored or white? Does it have to do with skin pigment or just the way they look, I mean what is it? So I mean if I have all of these questions I ma sure a person who is multiracial does to. But as far as people who are multiracial I feel like what ever they want themselves to be, whether they want to be colored or white. I know people who are multiracial and they pick one race to be they either consider themselves white or black if they are multiracial. So I feel like it can be whatever people want, or they can be both. They have both culttures, but parents they have two different outlooks on things because their race is more than one thing. I think that if I was put in the situation where it was apparent more on what my race was as a multicultural race, which I am I would probably go with what I identified more as, or what I felt people identified me as. If I was half white and half black I would go with what society saw me as because that is where the question is, if u are white but people see you as spanish then you are what it means to be spanish, not white even if you are, it is all just based on what people and society sees you as and that is what I think Sam was trying to ask. If you look white but are spanish than that is what it means to be white, how people treat you and not necessarily what it means to be spanish. I personally feel as if it shouldn’t mean anything to be a race, it should be based on your personality however people don’t see that they judge you based on what race you are and judge you based on that. All that matters is what you look like, if you never put on paper but you look like another race, whether you are or not, people will think that you are they want and treat you as such. I feel like everyone just be treated on how they act, and if they break the mold or something or what is expected of there race, that’s whats important.

Now as a person who is all for interracial relationships and engages in them herself, I like to see things mixed up. I like to see people of all ethinicities coming together because it doesnt matter whether you are black, white, brown or albino, people are people. Now I was not sure if it was the network controlling this and trying to keep colors from getting mixed up, maybe trying to gear it to a specific audience so that people, who dont condone in interracial relationships, which there are people like that, they didnt want to offend them or maybe it was the best candidates for the show just so happened to be white, I was not sure. But I think that more minorities should be in shows like this, whether the host is a minority or part of the majority(Part 3).

On the bachelor there didnt look like diversity at all, but in Rock of Love, every season there is two black women on it, that have the rocker mentality and they never stick around very long nor do I ever see Bret Michels kiss them or anything of that sort and in other shows I have noticed the same trend. And also with a host that is white like with the Bachelor and Rock of Love and everytime they never pick anybody that is of another race other than themselves, however people that are of dfferent ethinicity other than white, they always seem to have people on the show that are different races than themselves and they pick based off vibes(Part 2).

As a watcher of several reaity television shows such as Flavor of Love, I Love New York, For the Love of Ray J, The Bachelor and even the Bachelorette, I have seen them all and ones that I didnt even name like Frank the Entertainers Basement Affair, I know exactly how these shows work and I have noticed a tread. WIth the shows like I Love New York and For the Love of Ray J where there is a person of color choosing who they want as there girlfriend or potiential main squeeze, the diversity of the contestants is at an all time high. There are people who are Asian, White, Black, Hispanic, Indian, of every nationality and all over the world and each person is given a fair chance no matter there race, and who the host picks is based on there connection with them and they normally have a really diverse cast. However on shows like Rock of Love and the Bachelor there is really no diversity at all in the contestants, and I didnt know if it was because the producers who pick the contestants didnt add diversity to the cast or if the host was not interested in people other than there race, which is white(Part1).

Personally I have never understood why lesbians or more accepting than gay men. I myself believe in gay rights. I have a few friends at home who are gay and bi and here at school and I believe that gay men, lesbian women, bi-sexual people, have the right to love whomever they feel like loving or love. I feel like if you love someone and they love you why can’t you be with them. I talk to them and I really always try to understand where they are coming from. I am not bi or bi-curious or lesbian I but I have always wanted to understand why people can be attracted to the same sex. That was something that always seemed to puzzle me a bit. I just really couldn’t fully understand why people liked the same sex and then I realized that it is not meant for me to understand. And all I need to know is that if you love someone you love them, no matter what. But back to the topic of discussion, me having a few friends who engage in same sex partnerships and relationships, I have always realized that the gay men were more quiet about being gay and they women who were into girls were more open about being with girls or women. In my high school we had a lot of people who were into same sex couples and especially a lot of lesbians. There were a few guys that were openly gay but for the most part there were several girls that were open about being lesbians. Having gay and lesbian people go to my school I have never been the homophobic type however, I would crinch at the site of seeing a girl kissing another girl, but at my school that was fully acceptable. A girl could kiss another girl in the hallway and there was nothing wrong with it however, if one of the gay guys my school would kiss there boyfriend or something it was HUGE deal and everyone thought they were gross. Me personally I don’t want to see anyone kiss, whether the gay, straight or bi, public display of affection just isn’t something I want to see. But if it was too girls, the guys would cheer it on and the girls would look at it like it was nothing, however it was two guys kissing the straight guys would make fun of them and act weird and the girls would be grossed out. I think that is more acceptable for a woman to be lesbians because women are more delicate and affectionate. Even straight women hug their girl friends and kiss them on the check, but guys will rarely hug another guy let alone kiss them. I think it is more or less like women are looked at to be less dominate so it is okay for two girls to hook up but guys who are macho and manly they shouldn’t love another man. I think it is all weird to tell you the truth, I don’t think there is a difference, either you like the opposite sex or you don’t and in the event that you don’t like the opposite sex if you like the same sex or both sexes whether you are a male or female it should both be looked at the same, because you are liking something that is similar to your body.

I completely agree with the statement that every time we start talking about race, ethnicity or culture the whole black and white thing has to come up. People are always comparing black people to white people and white people to black people. In my opinion the only that really separates a black person from a white person is color. The rest is a generalization. Not all white people are wealthy and not all black people are poor and or ghetto. Just based off of what majority of people see, that white people are rich and smart and black people are ghetto and brought up to be hoodlums, that is just a portion of what it actually is. Although I have not been out of the country I have been several places in the United States and seen several things. I have come to realization that it all depends on where you are from or how you were raised, but in some instances, they're rare and I would like to consider myself that rare portion that you can be the exact opposite of where you are from. I am from a predominantly black area and statically I would fit the stereotype of black people and most of my friends would be black but I am in fact the complete opposite I don' even date inside of my race at all. But majority of people act the way that they do because of the way they were raised. And yeah I am probably getting off topic, but the point is everything comes back done to race and race has nothing to do with the way that you act, most of it comes from where you are from and the experiences that you have been through.

With all of this being said it makes me a little upset when everyone draws it back to a white and black thing. I looked at the Black vs. White argument and most of the conversations do seem like they follow this pattern. Every time you turn on the television there is always something putting colors against each other. I just recently watched "Bringing Down the House" and it is about a black, accused convict, that pretends to nanny for a white lawyer, so she can get her name cleared and throughout the entire movie it is comparing white people and black people. In the movie they put the white people on a nice platter and they are well respected whereas the black people are treated like gangsters and looked to be untrustworthy just by the color of their skin. This movie, hilarious was also insulting because I don't believe in the whole black versus white thing. I am who I am because of my experiences not because I am black or white. I also feel like there is always the black and white comparison and other races are completely shut out. With all that we have been through with Civil Wars and fighting racism we are still making everything black and white even in the movie the movie what 100% black and white. There also was a lot of misconceptions about white people and black people that occurred in the movie. I feel like you have to see people for who they are and not what color they are because that has nothing to do with who they are. But I do agree that there is a lot of black versus white and black and white talk in today's society as well as the media. Whether it is in a movie or a just on the everyday news. Even the Oprah show Sam showed in class was a black and white thing. The kids in the nice school were predominantly white, although there were black kids in there I am sure no one focused on the fact that there were a few black kids in the school, nor did they focus on the fact that there were a few white kids in the poor school that was predominantly black, but people saw it as white people are rich and black people are poor. We have to stop using generalizations and people need to seen as people and who there are despite there color.

When I first heard about the movie Avatar it didn’t really seem like my kind of movie. My boyfriend was like "come on, it is going to be a good movie" but because I am not with the whole animated, cartoon thing, it wasn’t on my list of what I wanted to see at the movies, so I told him no. Then I talked to my step-dad about the movie and how my boyfriend wanted me to see it and he said, "well it looks like a good movie, and you know how picky I am about movies," so I decided to maybe give Avatar a chance. So that night I told my boyfriend that I wanted to see it and we both went. As the movie started I was a little apprehensive about seeing it and it didn’t really seem like my kind of movie, but within the first five minutes I really began to get in the movie. When I left the movie, I began to tear up because of the love story that was in it and I am kind of a sap for a good love story. But I left the movie theatre in awe, it was am AMAZING movie and I am glad I got to watch a movie that had such a good love story despite my initial feelings toward the movie. Although rather long, the movie was one of the best movies I had seen all year, maybe besides the Ugly Truth and Hangover, but I wanted to see those from the beginning so that doesn’t count. But anyways, it was a great movie.

All of this being said, I can also agree with David Brooks when he says that there is some Messiah complex within the film. Although not initially noticing the Messiah complex, because I was so captivated by the love story within the movie, now that he brings it up, I totally agree. You have the avatar people that are one with nature and care about people and then you have the money hungry, greedy humans who are seeking to take the one thing that all of them have lived there whole life for, the nature that surrounds them in search of riches that lead them to being evil. They use the man in the wheelchair that is able to move normal as an avatar. The man represents the Messiah and he is able to learn the ways of the avatar people and impact the entire people while saving them in the end all for the love that he has for one of the other fellow avatar that taught him all the ways of the people. In the movie it kind of puzzles me being the people that are good and helping were the avatar people, which were tribal people of like African or Native American tendencies and the people who were bad, were predominantly white. None of the human thought to learn about the culture of the avatars, they just were out to invade the avatar being for their land, so it could benefit them, just as Americans did to the Native American several years back.

The film was more of a love story when I first saw it but now I have analyzed the movie a little better with what David Brooks said I think there was a deeper message. I think the film was supposed to show how people of the white race oppressed a group of people just as there was oppression to Native Americans several years back. It was kind of reinventing it. I think the message is rather troublesome, but I think that this is what David Brooks was trying to convey. Without reading what he said I would have never even though of the movie in this sense but since reading it, I have looked at the movie in a different light. Not saying that I totally agree or totally disagree but I think this is what he was trying to point out to people reading what he had to say, and now that he points it out, it kind of makes sense.