What are the parallels?

When I think of race and parallels, I think of a simultaneous breakdown in society in which people are grouped based on physical characteristics, such as skin color, facial features, and family origin. I identify myself as being Southeast Asian. My parents emigrated from India, and though I was born in America, my rich cultural roots have shaped who I am today. Growing up in New York, I never really considered how different I was from my peers because it never seemed to be an issue. It wasn’t until around middle school when race came into play in my life. In school, most kids don’t really distinguish South Asian students. Mistaking me for being a different race (specifically that of the terrorists), some student at school called me a terrorist. This opened my eyes to the ignorant and uneducated nature that comes with the issue of race parallels. With race parallels, many assumptions are made. Furthermore, many of these assumptions that are made are wrong and usually don’t have any substance to them. Everyone is held to that same standard, no matter what your race, religion, color, or ethnicity. So when a person talks about the parallels between genders of two races, there are many things that aren’t accounted for that should be. Race parallels shouldn’t by any means govern the way people live.

Race parallels is something that is misunderstood. It is something so complex that when it comes down to its elements, none of us really know much about it. The parallels of race are also something that is very misunderstood. There are a ton of parallel between white standard males and males of other races. In both groups, people try to become superior and by doing so, try to maintain a higher standard of living for not only themselves but for people of their ethnicity as well. When considering this parallel, one this that is not accounted for is that many people do not realize how similar the lifestyles of white men and colored men really are. Whether people perceive it in the correct way or not, many things that men do are similar, in terms of abilities and qualities. So what can be done to change the way these parallels are perceived? Can you ever explain to someone that race parallels is so complex, that to try to make parallels is pointless? It can be generated towards any type of person, no matter who you are. If you ask a 10 different people in a room what parallels in race means to them, each person will say something different. One out of every two people has probably said or thought something racist at some point in their lives. Whether we choose to except or not, race has been misunderstood as have parallels in race relations.

What stops you from telling the truth?

After being with a girl, one of two things can happen. You can either take the relationship further and explore new depths as a couple, or move on an forget the girl or boy ever existed. For me, both of my sexual encounters involved taking relationships to the next level. Girls who I was dating previously, and who took my virginity asked me how enjoyable sex was with her. I said very much but hesitant to give a real truthful answer on the issue. The truth was that my ex girlfriend was a little crazy and at times, I did not feel any sense on sexual excitement during our sexual episodes. Many times, she would be in my dreams but by no mean were they wet dreams. I will provide an example. My dream began in a limousine. Sitting in the back seat, I look out into the blackness. A couple minutes, or what seemed like minutes, passed. I found a shotgun in my hand but no idea how it got there. I got out of the limo and observed my surroundings. After seeing nothing but darkness, I walked a few blocks on foot to see what I could find. I found nothing. After getting back in the limo, more time passed. I opened my eyes and found myself in my bed. Within a swift second, I saw my ex girlfriend running at me with a knife. Quickly, I got up and started running. As blackness surrounded me, I huddled into a corner. Next thing I know, I woke up forgetting how I got to that point within the dream.

This particular dream imprinted itself in my mind. Unresolved issues could be a key indicator of why I tend to have such dreams. The extent to which me and ex girlfriend fought may have also influenced the extent to which this dream took place. After a long two-year relationship filled with good times, repressed memories of her seem to take over my dreams. I often find myself wondering why I have such dreams. One thing I have concluded is that I may still have feelings for her, a reason that may cause my dreams to revolve around her. This also may heavily contribute to my consistent lack of orgasms when being with my ex girlfriend. However, the thing stopping me for asking her if she felt the same is wondering if she would be more truthful than me in her answer. And if so, what exactly would she say in terms of my ability to please her. With so many questions popping up in my mind, it becomes confusing on whether on honest answer is really the best way to handle a situation such as this.

Why reform immigration, why not reform education?

Immigration and education are both very important and impactful parts of society. When people think of immigration, very little comes to mind. People often seem to think of immigration are people running across the border or living here illegally to do a mediocre level job at a restaurant or small shop. What people don't see when they here immigration is the countless stories of kids who get separated from there families, and people who are barely making a living while trying to feed a family in poor living conditions. People who emigrate from different areas tend to do so when job opportunities or economic issues arise. These people come to America looking for something more than this poverty stricken life that has been forced on them. They are looking for a better life for themselves and there families. So when immigration is spoken about, it is a very misunderstood and touchy topic. People tend to make generalizations which are or aren't certainly true which causes a large amount of controversy on the subject of immigration. When I think of the word immigration and reform in that aspect, a lot comes I mind. I have an older sister who is a lawyer and is currently working under a judge. Coming out of law school however, my sister worked doing an internship in immigration law. From what she had to say on immigration after this experience, I could tell that her working experience had a large impact of her perception of immigration and the policies on immigration in today’s society.

She worked with a lady who worked her and raise her kid’s here will working at an underage job at a factory. This was just one of many cases where this was happening for a family to be supported by a hard working mom. The teaching assistant Erik asked Sam that the end of class why education isn’t reformed as an alternative to immigration policy. This is mostly likely since it is cheaper for us to continue current immigration policies than to reform education all of the United States in terms of schooling. It would cost millions and millions of dollars to reform education a way where everyone would have an equal opportunity to thrive and gain a complete understanding of what school has to offer. Reforming education is something that needs to be done desperately here in the United States. One of the things I hate most about this country is the fact that students who are smart and deserve to be in college are something forced into minimal paying jobs because of the education and the economic situation. And when you ultimately think about it, the two things are intertwined. Those kids with better economic situations will usually end up having a better education are will be more likely to go on to college.

Can all groups benefit in some way?

In today’s society, there is a huge division between different groups of people. When I use the word division, there is a lot of meaning behind the specific word. By division between groups, some factors included, as well as the main causes of this division are race, economic standing, and surrounding environment. In many cases, a group of people at a lower standing is society often are in that position by factors outside their control. This is not to say that every person who isn’t prospering in society is the victim of a highly divided society. In many cases however, people of a lower class with less money are unable to move forward in society. There are many examples of this where a person who rightly deserves a job or a raise who won’t get it because of factors outside his or hers control. Sam gave a perfectly good example of a situation where this has happened. When Sam was younger and was a working me, he was working in an office. Many times, him and his fellow white workers would do mediocre work while the only black employee at the company did exceptional work though out the year. Later on when it was time to give out an executive position within the company, Sam got the position over the hard working black person. In lecture, Sam admitted that this was one situation where his ethnicity played a huge role in employment and how successful he was.

The tools poor people have or are given are insufficient to uplift this standing in society, mainly economically. At times such as this where certain people in society are not given an opportunity to move upward, the United States government steps in. Often times, the United States feels are though it is there responsibility to take care of its citizens. This constant behavior by the United States led them to become a superpower and the world police in a crazy sort of way. In many situations, American aid has benefitted America, usually more than the country who aid was being given out to. In situations such as this, an important essential question comes into play. Who much does aid really benefit the country it is being given out to? And if aid isn’t helping, then what is a viable solution to poverty in areas that need some form of aid? In my opinion, aid in terms of monetary value does very little for a country. A country that lacks stability really needs something much more than aid. It needs the people to have more stable lives, occupations, and so on. As we have seen in countless situation all around the world, giving aid has done really little, and countries do not seem to have a genuine interest in creating jobs or helping people how can move up in society.

Should America give out aid to other countries?

Giving aid to other countries is something that America has done for decades and decades. Dating back to the 1800’s, America would take responsibility for aiding other countries in need. This constant behavior by the United States led them to become a superpower and the world police in a crazy sort of way. In many situations, American aid has benefitted America, usually more than the country who aid was being given out to. In situations such as this, an important essential question comes into play. Who much does aid really benefit the country it is being given out to? And if aid isn’t helping, then what is a viable solution to poverty in areas that need some form of aid? In my opinion, aid in terms of monetary value does very little for a country. A country that lacks stability really needs something much more than aid. It needs the people to have more stable lives, occupations, and so on. As we have seen in countless situation all around the world, giving aid has done really little, and countries do not seem to have a genuine interest in creating jobs in 3rd world countries. So when asked the question of whether or not America should be giving out aid, I would respond with no. My answer however, is complex being that I feel like monetary aid is not a way to solve countries problems. Problems in 3rd world countries are related to poverty, healthcare, and environmental issues and usually tend to be deep rooted in society.

In fiscal year 2011, the U.S. government allocated aid that was divided among multiple aspects. Total economic and military assistance came out to a total $49.5 billion dollars. Military assistance totaled $17.8 billion while economic assistance allocated $31.7 billion. When considering these amounts of money, there is a small but important factor that many people don’t consider. That factor is how the money allocated to giving out aid actually in turn helps the United States earn money and revenue through different means. Sam presented a clear example of a situation where the United States has benefitted from giving aid during a previous lecture. In Haiti, the farmers are in a very bad situation. The United Stated has place high subsidies on Haiti, which has led the farmers to lose business. By not being able to produce cheap enough rice for the Haitian people that they are capable off, many farmers are out of work and getting dominated by imported rice from United States, which dominates global trade economics with Haitians. In a situation such as this, our aid, monetary and so on, does very little to truly help the people of Haiti. Rather than allowing a pay-off to be considered a good form of aid, creating jobs and actually making a difference is the key.

Is giving aid that really beneficial to others?

Giving aid is something the U.S has done for a very long time. Dating back to decades and centuries, the U.S was involved in giving aid and relief to countries in alliance with them. Whether this was done merely to have support in different parts of the world or out of the pure kindness of our hearts, giving out aid to nations in needs have been a reoccurring theme. When exploring how much aid actually does to put a country back on its feet, many important factors aren’t taken into account. Some of these factors include what unknown relations we have with the country and how much our aid is really just a front for something much much larger. One good example of this is Haiti where poverty is a something more than half over the people, 2/3’s of the people there to be exact, as living below the poverty line. After the earthquake struck Haiti, there was an urgency to help did the country back on its feet. The very artist doing free concerts to Haiti fundraising, Red Cross Haiti relief, and much need support Haiti advertising. The U.S donates approximately 30 million to support Haiti. Furthermore, we subside one of Haiti most prominent and rich crops, rich.

The Haitian farmers are losing their jobs as the citizens of Haiti are forces to by the U.S rick products. With such high tariff prices on imports for the U.S, Haitians have no choice but to be in a level of poverty that they can’t work out of. When you talk about work, it brings up a whole different point in the situation of giving aid. When you help a person with monetary things, they will be ok for a little while. But if you teach them how to make a living, the can be ok for life. That in essence is why creating jobs is the number one way of being beneficial and helping a country regain its stability. Stability can only prosper with deep rooted work and effort. Handouts that have been witnessed in the past in numerous cases have proven to do a bad job at eradicating a bad situation. So in the end, aid simply does what needs to be done a small scale which will not truly help the greater cause that needs to be dealt with in areas where stability must be regained, such as Haiti. There are many viable options in going about the regained stability of Haiti. In us as U.S citizens could put ourselves in place of the Haitian citizens who are feeling the hard hitting reality of poverty; we could see what the most beneficial way to jumpstart the economy would be.

Are you afraid to die after today?

Death is a very complicated, yet very simple thing. In almost every case, people fall heavily to either one or the other side of the spectrum when it comes to death. Some people fear death to the utmost degree, and this is probably entangled with fear of the unknown. On the other hand, some people will embrace death as the end of one journey and the beginning of a new one. These are two completely different outlooks on death, yet the share one thing in common. The one thing in retrospect is the unknown. In a recent sociology lecture, Sam began by telling us that he knew what would happen once we died. Furthermore, he said that real people experienced death from anywhere to 30 seconds to a minute to even a half an hour. The way this worked was that blood would get pump through the body to revitalize frozen organs, leaving a person on the edge of death in a regained state of consciousness. He also went of to say that these people experience a higher power, warm feeling, and some even felt as though they were floating above there own bodies. What can this mean? Does that mean that the human soul truly does exist. If the human soul does truly exist, does it hang around far past our due date? Insight into the unknown on this matter is inconclusive, not matter what studies have shown. Insight into this topic simply draws more questions, which makes the human mind wonder more what life after death truly is.

After today’s lecture, my perception of death didn’t change. In my mind, I knew that death is much more complex than just a heart giving out or the inhibited flow of oxygen. To me, I always felt there we external factors beyond our control as humans. Before the lecture Sam gave on death, I was afraid of death but only to the slightest extent. I felt as though if I died, my only regret would have been that I missed out on doing this I felt I needed to do before I passed away. Every other aspect of death, whether it is missing loved ones, or no longer being on the plant earth, didn’t scare me one bit. After Sam’s lecture, my perspective on death shifted but in the strangest way. Instead of fearing not being after to complete all my goals, I embraced it. A new unknown quest came to me; a quest to find out what lays ahead after the human body gives out. If I were to pass away today, I would have no regrets. Instead, I would embrace my life, every success, every failure, and every day I spent on earth.

Why is there so much negativity towards Muslims?

In today’s day and age, Muslims are often viewed with hatred and discomfort in the United States. Furthermore, there are many reasons that can be attributed to the underlying cause of this hatred. The reasons for our general perception of Muslims include both internal and external factors. Being from a Indian strictly Hindu family, I can speak on behalf of some of the internal reasons that exist. Muslims and Hindu have always had tension, dating back decades and decades ago. Whether it is for ownership of the land in Kashmir or the Indian Pakistan riots in the early 1900’s, Hindus and Muslims have always clashed. So the next question is what carries on this hatred from other conflicts to here in America. The reason for this is simple. When a certain ethnic group feels strongly about another group, tension often leads to loud mouthing. Loud mouthing then leads to rumors and rumors lead to negative perceptions. So is it wrong for us as a nation to negatively view Muslims for acts that we feel exemplified their nature? When the common American is asked to give the first thoughts that come to mind about Muslims, they think terrorism. They think fighting, bombing, warfare. Why do people immediately stumble upon these ideas upon the mere mention of the Muslim culture? The answer to this is also simple. Encounters with Muslim people from the past has shaped and molded their persona in our eyes. Most of these encounters have been negative, ranging from terrorism to war to religious conflicts and riots. Some examples of these encounters are the suicide bombers we hear about on the news and the Iraq war we were involved in only a few years back.

The other reason that negativity has been directly mostly towards Muslims the past few decades it the terrorist attacks that took place on September 11, 2001. The day changed everything in U.S history, ranging from our policies to foreign nations in the Middle East to our general perception towards Muslims as a nation. Before 9/11 occurred, Muslims weren’t really noticed, every though most community still held negative feeling towards them. After 9/11, everything cascades and negativity towards Muslims shot through the roof. In a time of fear, disparity, and mostly anger, the American people need to direct their anger towards something or someone. This is where the negative perception of Muslims played it role. Generalizations of Muslims became common in many areas, and racism towards this race skyrocketed. This is not to say that all Muslims are bad, or even that all Muslims are good. What’s more importantly noted here is the directed anger in a state of chaos that has led to mass discrimination towards Muslims.

How did your feel about the Iranian girl?

The Iranian girl in our sociology class stood up and claimed that everyone in the class hated her. When you’re in a class full of 700 people and have the guts to say just a general statement such as that, it takes guts. So why would this girl that none of us knew say that she was so hated among us. Little did we know, she went on to find out from her dialogue that her assumptions about our liking or disliking of her were race related. She went on to say that when she identified herself as an Iranian or of Iranian descent, she was looked at with hate from all angles. On the contrary, if she identified her ethnicity as Persian, everyone found it intriguing and was interested to find out more. So where do this leave us in terms of the truth and validity behind her statement?

When a person makes a claim such as “ you all hate me “, one can’t help but to question why. With this issue, it really comes down to more than just race relations. The Iranian girl who made this strong statement all talked about how she wished that the U.S government would talk to her and normal people of Iran about issues and opinions, rather than the government that operates above the people. And when we come upon this issue, how can we truly blame this girl. All she must know of us as American citizens is that we live good lives, eat big-portioned meals, and care for no one but ourselves. All over the world, that is the perception of U.S that has been given outside of our 50 collective states. Furthermore, are these people really completely wrong when they say this about America? I don’t think they’re completely off, considering the number of times we have invaded or took military action on a country for reasons other than maintaining and restoring world people. Whether I was our involvement in Iraq and Iran, or our need to create a war in Vietnam for completely unjustifiable purpose, our country has done many terrible things. What’s even worse and harder to believe is that our whole nation was founded on the basis of doing terrible things. When we as Americans first came to this nation. We kicked out the Indian Americans and put them onto reservations. So evidently, it can be seen that Americans are known for ruining people’s way of life, time after time after time. So when this girl says things, such as “you all hate me” or “your country doesn’t care about our peoples opinions”, I can understand her. Not only do I understand where she is coming form as a person, I also understand what that means on a larger scale for nations and their government. A nation can truly never represent its people, given the large scope of opinions.

Why would or wouldn't I join the military?

I would rather opt not to join the military if given the chance. The military in a sense promotes war. Without men and women signing up for the militaries around the world, there would be nobody signing up to be killed, nobody signing up to back the wars of their countries’ governments. Backers of war would argue with me and say that these men and women are signing up to defend their countries and should be looked at as heroes giving us the gift of freedom. Personally, I disagree. It would be one thing if the military was there for strictly defense and would act only in moments of attack or threat on their homelands. But that is not the case. The United States Military willingly and knowingly goes into other countries and kills civilians. These people whom some consider heroes actually kill innocent people in other countries. I consider a hero as someone who promotes peace and equality, not someone who commits acts of terror when taking orders from a higher position.

From the soldiers in combat to the highest ranked officials, the military stands for everything but peace and this is proven time and time again. They condone violence and terroristic acts and even put them to use. Also, the United States has been at war almost non-stop for decades. That backs up the fact that the military is not defending our country like some people claim, but glorifying war instead. They would rather be at war for years promoting violence than actually defending our country and promoting peace and equality. Instead of approaching things with a peaceful mindset, the United States gets into one war after another. In my opinion there is not even a need or motive for war besides the thirst for power and greed. I question why there is even war in the first place. A world without war would be a step closer to a world with peace. I feel as if many people in this world don’t realize that. If every person in every military just stopped and went home, there would be no more war. With no aggressor there is no need for a defender. Looking at things from that perspective is what makes me personally not want to have anything to do with joining the military and certainly not anything to do with war. I cannot understand the mindset of those who promote the military and the concept of war. I believe everyone should strive for peace. A quote from John Lennon – Imagine. “Imagine there’s no countries, it isn’t hard to do, nothing to kill or die for, and no religion too, imagine all the people, living life in peace.”