This is so cool! I mean, these people are living in conditions that I have never seen in this country and they’re coming up with such creative solutions! Around here, we think that people who can get an A on a test is smart, but it takes some real intelligence and craftiness to be able to do something so great with so few resources. I have so much respect for people who can get by in any situation. I’m pretty inspired by this! A cell phone charging station? I think that’s brilliant. And he’s making kids happy. Way to go dude!

I can’t get over the simplistic beauty of this letter. I’m so touched by the last two paragraphs! The author is absolutely right, we all have such negative preconceptions about inmates and we rarely stop to realize that they too are people capable of change, of learning, of emoting. And it’s not just jailers that we consider in this way it could easily be any other group of people. A lot of people make bad decisions every day, and some of them get caught. It doesn’t give us the right to judge people without knowing their stories or their background. The author of this letter seems like a wonderful person, and I’m sure that if I met this individual in any other setting I would assume that he was a bright, decent man.

I understand what you are saying. It really is awful that something so massive can happen and everyone just goes on with their lives. But what would be the right thing to do? And how much time do we commit to doing the right thing? You proposed taking a year off if someone in your family died, but is that appropriate for someone you have never met? Where do we draw the line? I spent a couple of minutes each day reflecting about what happened any time I heard a mention of it. I donated some money. I wish I could have gone down there to help, but how can I leave my $40,000 education behind? I don’t think that it’s a bad thing to go on with your life if you’re unaffected by the tragedy. Sure, we are all one world and we should feel something when someone suffers, but when do you think it’s okay to stop feeling that sorrow?
So let’s say that you just found out your best friend’s cousin’s wife’s brother just died in a really tragic event. You’ve never met the guy before and don’t know a thing about him, other than what’s in the news and what your friend says about him. Would you really be as affected by his death as you would be if he were your own brother? Most people would feel some sort of sadness, but they are not going to take off a week and mourn for someone they don’t know. I think a lot of people do feel terrible about what happened in Haiti, but how can they stop their lives for people they don’t know? The best and most they can do is to make a few donations, think about what happened, and feel sorrowful. So although 300,000 people is a lot of people, if your life wasn’t personally changed by any one of them, then it’s doubtful that your life will change a whole lot when they are gone. It is a really sad way to think about it, but I don’t think that there is much more that people would want to do if they don’t have a direct association to the event.
College students have a harder time involving themselves in events such as Haiti, which is acceptable. It is a little selfish, but at this stage in our growth we are allowed to be selfish. We are trying to build our own lives, so it is hard to be affected by something we are unfamiliar with. Additionally, we don’t have many resources to effectively help out. Of course we all donate a few dollars, or maybe our time to a significant cause. We help the best we can. Taking a year off, or even a week off is really out of the question. We have invested time and thousands of dollars into our education, so how could we just leave for a week to mourn for people we don’t know?

I totally understand this sentiment…and it definitely sucks. I think it is so ignorant when someone sees a person of a specific group and then assume that they represent everyone that belongs to that group. I have plenty of Muslim friends and they are obviously nothing like Osama or Saddam. It is really unfair that these amazing people are represented so poorly, but when you think about it, people are represented poorly all over the world. I mean, look at how Americans are portrayed in different parts of the world. We’re usually seen as either rich, fat pigs or scantily dressed sluts.

Why would men be exempt from feeling like they have to conform to society's expectations? I think their expectations might be slightly healthier than what is expected from women, but of course they still have the weight of fitting in on their shoulders. Women might aim to be thinner than necessary or have to try harder to look presentable, they could have but men do too. They are expected to have defined, muscular bodies and high paying jobs. They think the way to be “cool” is to drive nice cars and buy expensive stuff but obviously that’s a pretty high expectation to live up to. Yeah, men definitely have it as tough as women do.

Well, if the first step is acknowledging the information that is presented to you and accepting it as the truth, then the second step should be making a decision about how you feel about that. This doesn't necessarily mean that you have to take any action; it simply means that you have to take a stance on the situation. There is no right or wrong decision either. If you really are uncomfortable with eating chocolate after seeing that movie then you have to figure out what that means to you. Maybe it just means you need to buy fair trade chocolate, and maybe it means that you have to stop eating chocolate entirely. If you thought that it sucks for the slaves but doesn’t really affect you then your next step would be really simple…you decide to eat any chocolate you want.

I grew up with a variety of friends, as well. I had a lot of diversity exposure at a young age and I am very thankful for that. I think it helps me understand other people’s perspectives better. I do not have a hint of white in me, but I somehow experience the feeling of white guilt. I guess that could be a result of feeling like an American, and not a visitor to the country.
In response to the Disney comment, I do not think Disney intended to make a negative reference to Africans. Not all of Disney’s characters are human. Ariel was a half fish, and the Beast was…well, a beast.

I think this is a really interesting point. I do not see how there will ever be a resolution to this problem, though. I feel like someone is always going to be offended by either a lack of a term or an inclusion of a term. The important thing to keep in mind though, is that you can check more than one box. I guess most people assumed you can only check one box, but you can check off anything that you want to check off.
When I fill out the census I am going to take into consideration how I perceive myself. Although I am not white, I was brought up in a community with a large percentage of white people. Sometimes I feel like I know those customs better than I know my own parents’ customs. However, my favorite culture is the Hispanic culture, because I feel like I relate to that culture the best. Even though no one in my family is Hispanic, I feel the most at home when I am with my Hispanic friends or when I am traveling in a Latin American country. I love their music, their dances, their food, and their language more than I love any other culture’s. Does that make me Hispanic?
And what about the children of immigrants? My parents immigrated here when I was two months old. I have spent my whole life here and as a result, I am a mix of various cultures. Are they over going to have an option for that? Can you just put “American” in front of or after any other ethnicity and make it applicable to children of immigrants? Vietnamese American, Indian American, Chinese American. I think more of my friends could identify themselves as _____ American.
In reference to the term “negroe” on the census, I think that it will eventually be replaced in time. Once the older African American generations have passed on, the term will not be used to the same degree that it is being used today. I understand why some people would be offended by it, but I think most people are really just surprised that it is on there, not exactly offended.
The best route for the government to take here is to include every option. I think more people would be offended if they thought that their race or ethnicity was forgotten on the census completely. Like they mentioned in the video, some older African Americans would be completely confused if they did not see “negroe” on the census because that is how they are used to perceiving themselves. I think that this was the route to pleasing the most people.

If you grew up in a Hispanic home and know that culture better than any other culture, then that is your ethnicity. People may mistake you for being white because of the way you look, but what really matters is how you want to see yourself. If being called a white boy makes you feel uncomfortable, if it makes you feel like you are denying your Hispanic upbringing then you are Hispanic. When I look at you I see someone who looks like they are of mixed ethnicities. I guess it is unfair of Sam to ask you questions on behalf of the white team.

Wow, free tampons? That would be incredible. Unfortunately, I do not think that tampons would be free even if men could have menstrual cycles.

Really though, it is important that men understand what is going on with menstrual cycles. I don't think that the majority of men really understand the hormonal changes that occur and the dramatic effect they have on a woman's body. I know many elementary schools start teaching their students about sex education in fifth grades, and I think it is very important. But I think that by drawing a boundary around it and labeling it "sex education" allows it to be more stigmatized. I say that they just incorporate the material into biology/science classes and make it a regular part of the curriculum. They sooner they learn about it, the more at ease they are when they start encountering "blleeding" girls.