en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/763050 Comments by Yushi https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/300000-whats-it-mean-to-us__trashed/#IDComment69967988 Yeah I totally agree with you. People die everyday for a lot of reasons, and we just don't care about it. I mean, we do care about it. At least we sigh at some point, or we chatted with our friends about it just as some news. We seldomly shake our hearts for that. We seldomly have some sort of connection in heart with those families who lost members in the wars, in earthquakes, in floods...etc. I think it is our responsibility to help those who have lost families. We should share our hearts with them. We should do something, instead of just watch TV and talk about it as if it is just yesterday's movie show. . Fri, 23 Apr 2010 18:59:24 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/300000-whats-it-mean-to-us__trashed/#IDComment69967988 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-people-who-can-only-afford-hard-work__trashed/#IDComment69966707 We can show some sympathy to those poor people. I think Americans really care about others, look at the number of NGOs and Americans working in those poor countries-- but when it comes to shake a little bit of Americans' own interest, some of them just act intolerably. Isn't this a little bit controversial? Well it is also understandable. It is kind of a human nature to protect what you've get from taken away by the others. You may say that hey the Americans they first came here illegally, how come several hundred years ago they keep others from entering it. This idea makes sense at some point, but remember, in this world, "making sense" doesn't make any sense, what really matters is the power you have. That's why the US would be the most powerful country in the world. They fully understand this philosophy. Fri, 23 Apr 2010 18:48:21 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/what-about-people-who-can-only-afford-hard-work__trashed/#IDComment69966707 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/want-to-learn-chinese__trashed/#IDComment68426865 In my opinion, learning another language is always a good thing to do. No matter if you are going to use it or not. The process of learning a language helps you understand the culture and customs in that country, which helps you understanding the world on someone else' shoes. This is very beneficial. Actually I am on my way learning my third language Japanese. I found it really helps me understand something I didn't even think about before learning the language. And learning language always makes me feel happy. So start to learn Chinese guys-- no matter it's for a practical reason or not. Chinese market place is becoming more and more important to the world. Fri, 16 Apr 2010 21:00:35 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/want-to-learn-chinese__trashed/#IDComment68426865 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/creating-terrorists__trashed/#IDComment68425914 I have always been thinking about one question: what if the hate towards terrorism is misled by the US government? Many proofs can prove that point. The Iraq war is a good example. There weren't any direct evidence saying that Iraq had any relationship with terrorism. Actually the religion environment in Iraq is quite open compared to many other mid east countries. Is war the only solution? I doubt that. In my opinion, the war is unnecessary. There are more important things than that. The hatred is not a good thing. No matter you like it or not. Fri, 16 Apr 2010 20:52:32 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/creating-terrorists__trashed/#IDComment68425914 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/christian-invaders-the-turnaround__trashed/#IDComment68421368 This is the COOLEST class I have ever taken in the whole semester. It was really punching, and as what I observed moved some students in the classroom. I think war is a very complex thing, maybe the most complex human activity. There are always various reasons for a war-- for righteous, for freedom as many Americans say, for more lands, but most importantly, for the greatest interest of the country. A country is only gonna start a war when it believes that this war is going to benefit them. And that contributes to the nature of the war. As what I observed, people always tend to fight for resources because resources means money, and money means power, threatening power. I am not a guy against war. I do believe that there are wars must be fought, there are interests we must get, there are people we must rescue... But I do not support the Iraq war. Why? There are several reasons I hold. First, this war was not approved by UN, which means this war that the US fought was not agreed by most countries in the world. Don't forget the United States (and some other countries) built the UN mechanism to prevent unwelcome wars. And now the US just went against it and even threatened UN that if it doesn't let go the US will not continue to pay the fee. Second, this war didn't solve the problems in Iraq. Yes the war did end the dictatorship of Saddam in Iraq, but it didn't end the chaos situation in Iraq. Every week we hear something exploded in Bagdad again and again until we are all numb to these news. I think the situation in Iraq is even worse. Maybe the "liberation" is not really what Iraqi people want. Of course they didn't want to be oppressed by the Saddam government, but without the control, conflicts emerged. Like the conflicts between Shia Muslim and Sunni Muslim. Thirdly, US troops are now in a dilemma, they cannot leave there in the foreseeable future, but staying means a huge cost. Is it worth it? Fourthly, I remembered that the US government claimed that it found the Iraqi government had been secretly researching biological weapons. But they didn't find any evidence after the war was over. Now we seem to forget that this war was based a lot of untrue causes. Many of the causes that Bush government claimed weren't approved to be true. I don't know if they found any evidence that says Iraq has connection with terrorism. If not, then this is another excuse which was used to mislead the US people. So, I don't support the war in Iraq. I don't like liars. I have no problem with conquering others' land and grabbing their resources. But I don't like being cheated. Last but not least, have you ever thought of why those guys in the middle East hate United States? Fri, 16 Apr 2010 20:11:54 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/christian-invaders-the-turnaround__trashed/#IDComment68421368 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/this-is-totally-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment66860302 I am perfectly having no problems with these games. Before "hentai" video games, there were "hentai" mangas and hentai animes everywhere in Japan. Reading a hentai manga on a public train on the way home or to work became many adults' daily life. They have no problems with that . They didn't become some kind of monster, and it didn't increase sexual harassment cases in Japan at all. It is just like those shooting games. Game is a place to realize something that you couldn't realize in real life. If these games should be banned, so should COD, Battlegrounds so on and so force. I think most player won't kill people because the killed people in the game. They know that is wrong and horrible to let it happen in the real world. So why would you say these porno games is wrong? Especially they are sold to adults only. If any teenagers happen to download them, the government should take steps to monitor the Internet, not those game producers. Fri, 9 Apr 2010 19:36:20 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/this-is-totally-off-the-hook__trashed/#IDComment66860302 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/those-damn-dolls__trashed/#IDComment65287371 This video clip we watched in class was really heartbreaking... I saw how those little boys and girls struggled in their minds. This video makes me started to believe that the racial advantage really exists... before this video I didn't even think about it. What I don't understand is that what makes this happen? Is it a 100% aesthetic issue? or is it something else? This video makes me wonder. Are blond hair and blue eyes really "God's Gift"? How do we get out of all these thoughts ( or say, discrimination) to the beauty of the other races? I don't know the answer. Thu, 1 Apr 2010 20:11:10 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/those-damn-dolls__trashed/#IDComment65287371 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/how-can-we-ever-win__trashed/#IDComment65282787 This class is not about "winning". This class is about "understanding". I love this class because Sam let us see things from many different aspects, although some of them are quite offensive and rude, like those stupid comedians, I must say I have learned a lot. Hoping one course to "win" is not realistic. There is no way to change everybody's mind through a "class". There are too many people out there. Although Sam's efforts are very little, little by little we may see the hope for understanding each other-- at least among all of us who have taken this class. Sam is no more than a college professor and this class is no more than a class. I personally don't have any expectations for this class, but I do believe that during the process of continuously thinking, communicating and talking, the racial issues will no longer become racial issues. Thu, 1 Apr 2010 19:55:15 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/how-can-we-ever-win__trashed/#IDComment65282787 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65277319 In my opinion, race or ethnicity is a matter of self recognition, especially in a country like the United States. There too many cases in which people of different races living together and getting married and getting babies. To identify your your belonging solely by race category or ethnicity is somewhat impossible. The mix of blood is not only a mix of blood, but in many cases the mix of culture. As Sam talked about during last lecture, just choose the side that you feel most comfortable with. It is definitely true that you might find features of both side... So just simply choose one side. If you feel happy being recognized as a hispanic latino, then you are a hispanic latino. If you feel like to be called a white guy, then you are a white guy. The ultimate thing is not about the color, but about how to fly over it. When you don't feel uncomfortable with any racial problems, there are no racial problems. It is quite subjective I would say. Or maybe you could jump into the subgroup of mixed culture. I am pretty sure there are such things out there. There must be others like you who are half white and half Hispanic. They might have already started an organization... There were no roads at the very beginning, but with more and more people stepping on the land, there becomes roads. There was nothing but air in the beginning. You don't really have to find a "suitable case" for you-- anyways it still a case. You need to make one on your own. This is my opinion. Don't get lost in the forest of races, just be confident and I am pretty sure that you will find your own way to make it. More importantly, other than recognizing yourself, you will want to respect your own culture. As you mentioned in your comment, you grew up with your mother's side so you have been educated in a Latino way... You might stand with us at the brown and black side. (Actually I don't agree with roughly separating us into black/brown and white--- isn't it a little bit too general?) The Latino things are in you... The way you talk, the perspective you see the world, and the art talents should be all from the Latino side. ( I don't understand why Hispanic Latinos would be categorized into the black/brown team, aren't they Europeans and aren't they white? This is just my own personal thought. But anyways, you really should go far beyond the white team or the black/brown team thing. In the end, why all these topics matter is just to help you understand the process of self recognition. There are only 2 out of 7 steps different-- which means, hey don't panic at all, it doesn't really matter to be on either side. What matters is your confidence in you culture. Thu, 1 Apr 2010 19:35:55 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-about-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment65277319 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/is-this-just-a-few-bad-apples__trashed/#IDComment63903729 I don't know a lot about the TEA party, but I heard that they stand for "English Only". I think this is on the boundary of racism and conservatism. First of, not to mention Asian languages, Spanish existed for almost the same length to English in the United States. These people have no right to determine what language other people speak! They may say that they don't like liberalism, but they cannot force people to do what they don't want to do. Besides, rationally showing your opinion is a basic requirement for protesting. Although what they have done is legal, I still don't like it. They said Obama is Nazi? No, they are Nazis. Wed, 24 Mar 2010 20:52:55 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/is-this-just-a-few-bad-apples__trashed/#IDComment63903729 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment63901998 I might not be certificated to make this commet: I am an Asian too. To me, being an Asian in the United States is that I respect the American culture-- the fact that it is not purely written by white people. Most Americans know how to respect the others and respect their differences. This is what I really enjoyed. Also, very importantly, I cherish my own people's culture-- I speak Chinese to my parents and am learning Japanese right now. The oriental culture as a whole means a lot to me. It is the earth and water for me to grow up. Sometimes I think those who worry about the "skimmed air for the minority" really don't need to worry-- culture is all about personal choices, once you are interested in your own culture you will go to learn about it. Wed, 24 Mar 2010 20:39:21 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-are-all-of-you-thinking-about-asians__trashed/#IDComment63901998 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/native-hawaiians-ever-think-of-them__trashed/#IDComment63900131 Talking about Hawaii I can only think about the beautiful beaches, surfers, volcanoes, scenery,Japanese, and maybe bikinis... but I will never think about the Native Hawaiians. Just like many other races and ethnics in the world, they belong to the forgotten group. Actually on of my high school teachers' wife is half Hawaiian and half Asian. They both grew up in hawaii and got to know each other at the age of 20. There is nothing wrong with that I would say.Hawaiians are forgotten not because the majority group (say, the white people) intentionally forget them, but because compare to other groups, they are so small, both in population size and cultural impact to the world. These features make them hard to be wide recognized by the public. At some point, say, some hawaiian native just showed on TV for his or her great achievement on something, we may remember this group of people for one day, and that's everything about it. We might think "oh there is ANOTHER group of people living in Hawaii. But wait, they are in no way ANOTHER group, they are THE group of hawaii. With time goes on, they are tend to be more and more blurred. The group on edge-- this might be suitable for them. I don't know why, but all the native groups are tend to be on edge-- no matter if they are the Native Americans, the native Inuits, the native tibetans, nor the native Hawaiians... They all tend to be "pushed" off the cliff. I don't understand it. If you see their history, they are not as blank as you might imagine-- some of them did create very glorious past. For some reason they are not culturally strong enough to make some sound to the world. I think that might be the main reason for why they are always ignored by the majority. Productivity is a group's basic skill to keep alive. Then culture is its basic skill to live longer. Only when you created a great amount of cultural system, you can let your people's thought pass on and on. These minority groups are very proud of themselves. They have their own value to pursue. The problem emerges: how do we find the balance between protecting the minority's own culture and pushing our own value to them? Or do we just do whatever we want to do? This is a really tough question. When we are able to find out which way is the best for both people, we then are able to deal with this problem correctly. Anyways, there are always people gonna be forgotten, and there are always people who are on top of the others. If we can care about the others a little bit more, the world will become much more beautiful! "Embrace the difference!" Wed, 24 Mar 2010 20:24:07 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/native-hawaiians-ever-think-of-them__trashed/#IDComment63900131 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-happens-to-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment63028242 Exactly that is why Sam once said the category system was really absurd and it makes no sense. When we talk about race, we use the white, black, brown and asian to make a general division, in which way we could continue our research into some deeper part of it. If you really wanna say which category the half white half pueto rico guy belongs to, I would suggest to let himself choose. There are so many sub categories that we didn't include in that day's texting activity. Like the title says "people of color", but when Sam concluded, he simply said "black and brown people". So what about the Asians (I am an Asian)? Yea that is just the way it is I guess. Fri, 19 Mar 2010 20:13:36 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/what-happens-to-multiracial-people__trashed/#IDComment63028242 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment63026077 To be frank I was really disappointed about the texting screen. It was very disappointing to see how rude people are. It was very harassing to put those words on board. I don't quite understand those people's thoughts when they text those meaningless and impolite stuff to the screen. I couldn't understand because when in discussion group, everyone was very nice and always caring about the others. Like we talk in a straight way, but go through things very carefully and politely. It shocked me to see that people were actually rude when they can do it anonymously. I am not blaming the idea of texting screen. It actually a very good idea. Sam wants us to react to the lecture in a brand new fast way. But some of us just ruined his effort. Yes sometimes I think someone just need to be educated a little bit more. There are always values which everyone of us perishes. I don't understand why some of us just kicked its ass as if they are not members of human being. But from another aspect, now I partially understand how and why people are divided into different groups and forming the racial gaps. Some of the white guys are rude, so it offended some of the black and people of color. Some black and brown people are rude, and so it offended some white guys. Okay so now they just keep fighting against each other. I realized that "making peace in different colors" is no easy way. The texting thing changed my mind. I used to think that there were only misunderstandings between us. Now I realized that there are not only misunderstanding, but also hatred (or at least something close to that), and selfishness. I wouldn't think of the other races as "unadvanced" as some white guys posted on the screen. Also I won't think of the white people as "bullshit" as some black and brown people said. Sometimes we are just toooo short sighted. We have a long way to go. Think of human as a unity. We are so alone in the universe. May there be some other life format several million light years away from us. Think about these facts, then ask yourselves, why are we fighting against each other? Isn't it a little bit stupid? Back to this video question, I think they don't conflict: actually they aroused from the same point: the white guilt. The majority of the room is white, so when some white dudes posted some rude words on the screen, most of the white would disagree with them and there is "uproar" against it. Because they think it is wrong (or say, guilty) to say those stuff as a rich white man. When it comes to the black and brown people turn, the white guys know that it would be politically incorrect to criticize on the people of color because they stand at a lower society position as compared to the white people, and so they kind of have the right to say something not very good. Of course this was my guess only. Fri, 19 Mar 2010 20:00:03 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/does-this-rudeness-thing-cut-both-ways__trashed/#IDComment63026077 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/prom-or-no-prom-just-dont-let-the-queer-students-dance-together__trashed/#IDComment62497469 Yes. Just like the article said "Love knows no boundaries". Canceling a prom to prevent from lesbians attending it is stupid... Now it is 2010 and 2 years later the world will be blew up... Who cares about lesbian love anymore? That was just a joke. The really reason I don't support the idea of canceling the prom is that it is politically incorrect. No matter you agree or not, every day, every time when we make a choice, we tend to make it politically correct. It means maybe we don't 100% agree with the opinion/idea/ideology/philosophy/point, we still take an action to pretend that we support it. It is everyone's everyday life. It's no surprise to see a lot people supporting things they don't actually support, or going against somebody they instinctively won't. This political correctness system has worked in our society for a long time. Maybe from the early ages of the Roman Empire. It's part of the human beings' social behavior-- Ultimately, it derives from the basic pursuit of getting recognized by the mass. Hey even when you are showing off your own personality, you are seeking for people's applaud: "mmm this kid is so cool he has his own thoughts." From this aspect, being, or trying to become politically correct is inevitable for most of us. There may be some outstanding people telling you that they are not specifically seeking for this sort of correctness, they are seeking for something else, like freedom, like democracy, like blahblahblah... No then they are still seeking for recognition, they are still trying to be "correct". Wed, 17 Mar 2010 02:04:49 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/prom-or-no-prom-just-dont-let-the-queer-students-dance-together__trashed/#IDComment62497469 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/a-long-long-way-indeed__trashed/#IDComment59933985 I think that would be really crazy if the slave owners heard the hip hop music! They must be really mad! because in their minds, the African Americans are just some kind of animals and not valuable and talented artists. Well personally I don't like hip-hop music ( yes, I'm a metal head), but hip-hop is considered the most popular and wide spread music style! Hey look at it there are people singing hiphop songs in korean, in chinese, and in taiwanese! Hip-hop is everywhere. It represents a lifestyle. A fashion aesthetic. A way of communication. It connects the people in every continent and every country. This is how amazing it is. Rap is easy for entry, but hard for being really good at it. So that's why you see a lot people trying to do some hiphop songs and only a small part of them succeeded and got know by the public. If the slaveowners could live up to today, thay gonna be really mad.~ From this I can see that-- hey the society is taking its solid steps forward! It is improving itself every year. It is why the United States is so amazing. It is always improving itself. The abolishing of slavery was a very giant leap in its history-but not like the popular thinking, I personally don't just treat it as a sort of socalled "freedom for the black". I think the freedom part is just a very little part that president Lincoln thought about. More importantly, the freedom of productivity for the industrial revolution is what it is about. So many black slaves were freed from farming, that means they are able to work in factories and make money on their own. This is why the freedom of slaver is so important in American history. Instead of farming, now the black people can enhance the society's total productivity. With the freedom, now they can do things that have a much higher value (like becoming a hiphop singer). Once I remember a highschool teacher told us that never just look at things on its surface, but to see the “nature" of it. That is the nature from my point of view. the African Americans are just some kind of animals and not valuable and talented artists. Well personally I don't like hip-hop music ( yes, I'm a metal head), but hip-hop is considered the most popular and wide spread music style! Hey look at it there are people singing hiphop songs in korean, in chinese, and in taiwanese! Hip-hop is everywhere. So hail to the hiphop singers! Althought the music is not my dish, your music is still the best thing ever in the 21th century. In Taiwan, there are hiphop singers sing songs about freedom and democracy, in China, there are hiphop singers sing songs about fighting against dictatorship... The hiphop spirit is amazing, isn't it? Fri, 5 Mar 2010 20:23:36 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/a-long-long-way-indeed__trashed/#IDComment59933985 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment59890618 Well as a minority I kind of understand the feeling of the students there, but as a matter of fact I don't think it deserves a protest or something. As I knew the University of California has some kind of recruiting rules to recruit their students by races. There is a proportion for minority students which means if you are a minority, you might attend the school at a lower high school performance. Personally I don't think the noose part is very important. It is just an ironic joke from my point of view. What matters is how to solve the problem. I don't see any hope of solution from neither the student, the faculty or the chancellor. Okay so here we have the protest, and now what? I personally can't think of any valuable solutions. It just needs to take some more time to solve I guess. So don't panic or do things stupid. It will only make things worse. Fri, 5 Mar 2010 14:35:53 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/this-is-getting-to-be-too-much__trashed/#IDComment59890618 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59659217 Here comes again the issue of political correctness and human nature. In my opinion, people always struggle with the political correctness and the subconscious. Political Correctness basically means that people tend to act in a way that nobody's gonna disagree with you, though the mass might not 100% agree with you, they won't quarrel with you either. It is a blend of current morality, the majority's opinion, and the art of stating ideas . I think from the very deep inside of everyone, we still tend to see the people of the same color on TV, because they represent a similar culture circumstances.(at least people tend to think like that.) So that's why TV shows will always have white people as the main stream actors. We humanbeings are very contradict animals. On the one hand fighting for resources, like food and natural resources, is our nature, just like all the other animals, but one the other hand, we always seek for peace. On one hand, we always try be polite, on the other hand we hate who we hate... Thu, 4 Mar 2010 01:05:05 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/03/are-whites-the-only-people-willing-to-humiliate-themselves__trashed/#IDComment59659217 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/who-could-compete-with-this-woman-on-a-level-playing-field__trashed/#IDComment58872098 Frankly speaking I don't agree with Sam's opinion that the Europeans came to America because of pure luck. No the Europeans didn't come by pure luck-- they came here by the advanced sailing technology, by the strong support from their countries, by the politic revolution, by Renaissance... The discovery of the Americas might just be an accident, but in fact it was an accident of certainty. With the development of the capitalism in Europe, the productivity level has far gone beyond the small countries could take. So they sailed to the unknown world, they conquered their colonies, they fought for resources. You got that? This is not pure luck, this is a certain result of development of economies. Don't blame the Europeans anymore, they deserve what they got. (I am an Asian so I have no personal preference in this issue. ) Fri, 26 Feb 2010 21:07:42 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/who-could-compete-with-this-woman-on-a-level-playing-field__trashed/#IDComment58872098 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-two__trashed/#IDComment58869955 We human beings seem always fight against our human natures. We always try to lift the sense of sympathy. Don't forget one thing: the human beings as a whole, can survive and stand at the top of the food chain, is because we are fighting for living for every second. New technology, advanced science are always taking place of the old ways. No matter how you cherish the memory of the past, the tradition, the whatsoever, the wheels of history will not stop for you. So-- just take everything you've done as a fact. There is no way you can go back. I still believe in Marxism-- the philosophy part of it. Karl Marx stated that higher productivity will always replace the lower. That's why the Europeans took place of the Native Americans, that's why African American Slaves existed, and that's why slavery ended-- they all represent the highest productivity, or say, the format of production during their periods. The morality only exists for a very specific period of time-- there is no eternal/ never changing moral code for human beings. I am guessing maybe 1000 years later, people will say "oh my god how could entrepreneurs "hired" workers???" "How could workers ever exist in our human history??" It is very possible from my point of view. With the development of productivity, maybe in the future there won't be any "companies", maybe human being will be united and all are called "earthlings". You know, there is always possibilities. Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:51:30 +0000 https://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/02/native-americans-question-two__trashed/#IDComment58869955