I definitely do agree on you that it really is not boring to see these statistics, but it is very interesting to see how crime and race relate to one another. I believe that the media plays a big role in making people believe that minorities have the most crime because that is all you see in the news. But then you get other statistics and show that white people have the higher percentage in the Federal prison. I do believe that there is racism in the Criminal Justice system and that there a certain factor of race that plays a role into the system. I also do believe that a lot of the times, people who have done crime have also had bad influences in their early life that led them to commit crime.

Another issue that catches my eye is whether there is racism in the Criminal Justice system. The statistics were very surprising to me. I feel that in the media, there is a big focus of crime on minorities and not really white people. I find it interesting that the actual statistic of the Federal prison population is 57.1% white and 39.1% black. But then there are other statistics such as state prisoners who are 44.5% black and 34.5% white. I find that no matter what race you are, I find that where and how you grew up really affects who you are and what you do in the future. If you grew up in a bad neighborhood around drugs, you were more likely to end up into that situation and are more likely to commit a crime. If you grew up in the suburbs, you probably won’t be forced to deal with a situation around that type of crime. It really just all depends on your major influences and the values that they taught you.

I think one of the issues that I find interesting is the King of the Mountain idea that people who happen to be on top are usually there by luck and by inheritance. A lot of what happens in the world today is that who you know can really reflect your future or career. If you grew up with your parents rich or if you grew up with your father as Donald Trump, you are obviously going to have so many more resources than someone who grew up in the projects in Harlem. Even though I find it unfair, it is crazy to think that these people who are lucky enough to be born into money do not have to work hard for anything. They had parents, grandparents, or relatives who had already worked hard for them to live a very good and rich life. In article 17, you really get a sense of how much inheritance really affects today’s business world and how inheritance goes a long way. A lot of the major companies we know today are continually owned now by family generations. Nepotism really does affect Americans of every class, but really nepotism is very effective towards people with money. People with money usually have more resources.

This lecture started off pretty hilarious but it does bring out the issue of how much race and ethnic inequality in the world. You definitely jump to conclusions and start judging a person based on their appearance and what they look like or are wearing. I also find it true that no matter what you do or how you act, you will always have an outside factor that will affect what you do or say and your actions. People again will have something to say about an issue. If you do something out of the ordinary or something inappropriate, someone will act out on it and tell you that you are doing something wrong. Some things are just socially inappropriate to do in public like scratching certain areas of your body.

I do agree with you that education is the key to improving society because without it, it is very hard for someone to get around in life. Putting importance to not only education but also hard work and dedication will allow people to get far in their careers and in life. My family has always talked about how hard it is to come to this country and establish themselves also and I am very thankful to them because they have instilled the values of hard work in my head. I think that that alone with education can shape someone to be successful as a student or have a successful career. I also think that nepotism can help people out, but education and hard work has more to do with the success a person has.

7-7-2010
This lecture really made me seem how much inequality there is in the world today. The video with Oprah was very sad because a lot of students today don’t get the same equal opportunities as a lot of other students because of where they grew up. Even though the schools in the video were almost an hour apart, you can see huge differences on the quality of education. A lot of students are really cheated because they are not getting the equal opportunities and not learning in the same environment as other students in the same state, which can really affect the future of a student academically. Seeing this really makes me wonder how much I take my resources for granted, especially going to a school like Penn State. I feel that I am very spoiled because not only is it a very good school academically, it is also in a very nice and well-kept environment. A lot of the schools I visited where in very run down cities and I feel very fortunate to go to a school that honestly has a lot of money to make it how it looks today.

I also found this lecture to be an interesting one because it made me realize how people are affected by affirmative action and nepotism and how similar they are. I feel that 10% of all jobs, admissions to specific programs or schools is connected to some affirmative action program is a lot because it benefits people who may or may not deserve to get the job or into that program or school. In a way I find that it is good that females are getting benefits of affirmative action but I do not think it is fair that most of them are white women. It is crazy to think that affirmative action can really just be another program to help out white men, or white people in general when most people think that affirmative action is suppose to help people of color.

Nepotism is a word not often said but is widely used everywhere, especially at Penn State. Like Sam pointed out, one of the first things you hear coming into Penn State is that you should take advantage of the networking system we have here and that it is a lot about who you know. There are many networking opportunities even being in the Smeal College of business or any school of that matter because of the many socials and opportunities to meet so many alumni. Coming home for the summer from Penn State, I was able to experience how much being a Penn State student affected me. Just for part-time job interviews, I was able to interview with managers of companies who were Penn State Alumni. That alone gave me greater advantage than a lot of the people who also applied for that very same job just because I am a Penn State student and a lot of them were not.

I definitely have thought a lot about the things you wrote and agree with you on a lot of those issues. I am definitely a firm believer in immigration also because my parents were immigrants and have recently become American citizens. It is a tough situation for anyone to be in, living in a country of poverty and wanting to get out and come to America for a better life. It is especially tough when everyone and everything is telling them that they are not wanted in this country and to speak the language in a day even though that is not their first language. I am very proud of the many immigrants who have come and conquered all those obstacles because it makes America what it is today, a country of hard working, dedicated and determined people.

7-4-2010
I thought this lecture was strategically placed especially being that it is the 4th of July weekend. Before this lecture, I had never really thought of immigration of other cultures or from people of other countries besides my own. The political cartoons showed in the lectures about Native Americans and European people were pretty detailed. I really never ever think about the issues of Native Americans and how it was their land before the Europeans took over because I personally have never really been surrounded by Native American people. Because it has been such a long time that the Europeans strayed the Native Americans out of their land, I feel that people tend to over look the situation. It also does make sense that textbooks are not really detailed with some of the gruesome situations Native Americans endured while the Europeans took over their land. I was surprised to hear what Andrew Jackson had done to some of the Native Americans and I find it to be sickening that that is what our country is founded on, especially on this forth of July. It gives me a different perspective as to what we really are celebrating because many of our forefathers have killed so many innocent people to get where we are today.

Besides all the negativity, I do find it interesting and am proud to say that our nation has really been about how strong and dedicated immigrants have worked to make a better life for them. I think that for most people, they don’t really think about all the negativity in our past but really think that this nation has been about hard working people. Being that my family is one of them because they have migrated from a different country in search for a better life. Because of they’re hard work and courageous to leave their own country, I personally would not be here today and would not have the education and the opportunities that I have now. Stories like Jorge Munez’ one also makes me proud of people who are humble and have not forgotten where they came from and the struggle they endured to get where they are today. These are definitely the people who are called heroes, especially to people who have nothing.

I do find it horrific what the dog did to that poor man. It is pretty appalling to find numerous people trying to excuse what a dog did. I do agree what if he was not an immigrant, people would definitely react to the situation much different. It also is interesting that even if our country was founded by people of different ethnicities in culture, how so many people can discriminate towards those people. At one point in our lives, everyone has been an immigrant or has had family who has.

I can definitely relate to you on this one. I was also never taught by my parents that being gay was wrong either but I did go to a catholic school for most of my life before going to college. It was never really flat out said that LGBT was wrong, but you just got the vibe or it was sugar coded by many teachers and religious staff. I do also find it true that more colored people have a harder time accepting the LGBT group but I also find that older people find it harder to accept LGBT people too. I feel that it is definitely much harder to change an older person’s beliefs on certain issues, especially on LGBT.

6-30-2010
This lesson had a lot of unbelievable statistics. One of the statistics that stood out to me in the beginning of the lecture was the fact that more college graduates want to live in more diverse communities than high school graduates. I find this to be very true because many students who go away for college may experience a whole different life setting because so many new people, new ethnicities, and races surround them. Going to a school like Penn State and living in the dorms, especially at East, freshmen are put into rooms with many diverse students. This definitely a great way to learn and experience having friends of different backgrounds and ideas. It definitely does make sense that the high school graduate statistic is much lower than the college graduate because the high school student has probably not had much experience with living with other diverse people.

Another thing that stood out to me was globalism. People from all over the world come to the United States bringing in different cultures and ideas. Hip-hop music can definitely be a way for all different types of people to come together. The video shown is pretty cool because music is definitely a way to bring people together, whether it is hip-hop or classical. Music notes are read the same everywhere in the world, it is universal. There is only one format, or one language. Someone from Guam can read the same music notes as someone from Alaska. That is one of the things about music; it is everywhere and can bring people from different nationalities or cultures together.

What I also thought was interesting was the statistic on someone who has “shared saliva” with someone of a different race. More than half of the students have “shared saliva” or have shared considerably more than saliva. This is interesting to me because it shows that people are attracted to people of a different race than themselves. This shows that students are going out of the norm of their race and are going for people who are a different race. What was also interesting was the statistics on parents being okay with you falling in love with someone with a different race. This can definitely be a huge problem for many people and a big obstacle for assimilation.

As for the LGBT issues, I feel that a lot of people are uncomfortable with LGBT people because they don’t really experience it in their lives. I feel that people who are not okay with it are influenced by other major factors like the church beliefs. I feel that if everyone had a LGBT friend in his or her lives, they would feel less uncomfortable with the idea and start to realize that they are just people too.