Does the 14th amendment combine with the earlier “no religious test” clause to guarantee a vision of a diverse and equitable society with no government discrimination?
Yes. The 14th amendment is a statement that provides equal citizenship, equal apportionment of Representatives, equal chances of getting into an US office, damages produced by lost slaves are not paid for and the congress has the right to enforce the laws stated. Religion does not play a role in enforcing these laws. Both article 6 and the 14th amendment avoid discrimination against religion, race and gender. The 14th amendment helps slaves become citizens of the US and article 6 does not expect specific religions from the federal employees of the US office.
Amendments 12, 13, 14 and 15 are often referred to as a major turning point in US government policy. Explain the importance of these amendments.
Amendment 12: Presidential Elections
Provides the procedure by which the president and vice president are elected.
Amendment 13: Abolition of Slavery
Officially abolished and continues to prohibit slavery and involuntary servitude, except as punishment for a crime.
Amendment 14: Civil Rights
States and maintains civil rights of people of the US.
Amendment 15: Black Suffrage
Prohibits each government in the US to prevent a citizen from voting based on the citizen’s race.
These amendments were the major turning points in the US government because these amendments structure our government. It gives us a guide on how to elect a president, gives everyone equal rights of living without slavery, maintains everyone’s civil rights and allows everyone to vote no matter what race they are. It helps make the government a more equal establishment.
Describe the amendment from the rest of the list (16-27) that you find most significant and make an argument for why we should consider it especially important.
Amendment 16: Income Taxes
Amendment 22: Term Limits for the Presidency
Amendment 17: Senatorial Elections
Amendment 23: Washington D.C. Suffrage
Amendment 18: Prohibition of Liquor
Amendment 24: Abolition of Poll Taxes
Amendment 19: Woman’s Suffrage
Amendment 25: Presidential Succession
Amendment 20: Terms of Office
Amendment 26: 18-year-old Suffrage
Amendment 21: Repeal of Prohibition
Amendment 27: Congressional Pay Raises
I feel that amendment 19 is the most important amendment out of amendments 16-27 because it states that EVERYONE has the right to vote no matter their sex. This grants women the right to vote after so many years of being denied of this right because men thought women were not as accomplished as they were. In relation to amendment 15, all races have the right to vote, amendment 19 is a symbol that everyone in the US is becoming more equal to one another.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Part B
“Full Faith & Credit” What does that mean for the gay marriage? Explain.
The Full Faith & Credit clause states that Judicial decisions rendered by the courts in one state are recognized and honored in every other state. Every state honored the legal marriage between a male and a female. However, Hawaii restricted marriage to only be between a man and a woman in 1993 which led to state sanctioned same sex marriages. Only some states allowed same sex marriage. If one state restricted marriage to only a couple of man and woman, as Hawaii did, then all other states have to honor their decisions due to the Full Faith & Credit clause of Article 4 section 1. Not every state agreed with that statement so now separate states have different views on same sex marriage and in result, same sex marriage is only legal in certain states. But if a gay coupled was married in a state where it was legal and they moved to a state where gay marriage is not legal, the state would have to consider them a married couple because all laws of other states have to be recognized and honored by all other states according to the Full Faith & Credit clause.
What is the significance, in your opinion, of the “No religious test” clause?
The “no religious test” clause states that a person does not need to go through religious tests in order to acquire a job in the U.S office. It is an important clause because it shows that the United States is not based only on religion. It is also significant because it shows the people living in the U.S. that they can believe in whatever religion they want and they have the right to practice it freely. In my opinion, I think the no religious test clause is a good clause because a federal employee should not be required to believe in a certain religion so they can work in office.
What do the 6th and 7th amendments show about the US fears of a bad government which would use its powers to unfairly arrest and convict innocent people?
The 6th and 7th amendments were written to make sure that every suspect has certain rights. They make sure that every person arrested has the right to a speedy and public trial by a jury. The suspect is to know all the charges against him/ her, have witnesses both for and against him/ her and the help of the Counsel. The accused is also given the right to a lawyer who will represent them in court. The 7th amendment states that the accused have the right to be tried by a jury that do not have biased views of the case and the people involved so they can make their decision solely based on the information given to them during the trial. This shows that the fears of the US having a bad government because specific strategies are put forth to make both parties of the trial equal with lawyers and a jury with no biased views on the case.
What does the 10th amendment say about the national government powers? Can the federal government take over the public school system? Can the Congress pass a law allowing gay marriage or denying it?
The government’s powers are limited to the powers granted in the constitution. The 10th amendment declares that congress can’t use/ abuse their power in a way that interrupts the state to be an effective federal system. The federal government cannot take over the public school system because that power does not belong to them; it belongs to the board of education. Congress is allowed to pass or deny a law allowing gay marriage; they have most of the power in the government system.
The Full Faith & Credit clause states that Judicial decisions rendered by the courts in one state are recognized and honored in every other state. Every state honored the legal marriage between a male and a female. However, Hawaii restricted marriage to only be between a man and a woman in 1993 which led to state sanctioned same sex marriages. Only some states allowed same sex marriage. If one state restricted marriage to only a couple of man and woman, as Hawaii did, then all other states have to honor their decisions due to the Full Faith & Credit clause of Article 4 section 1. Not every state agreed with that statement so now separate states have different views on same sex marriage and in result, same sex marriage is only legal in certain states. But if a gay coupled was married in a state where it was legal and they moved to a state where gay marriage is not legal, the state would have to consider them a married couple because all laws of other states have to be recognized and honored by all other states according to the Full Faith & Credit clause.
What is the significance, in your opinion, of the “No religious test” clause?
The “no religious test” clause states that a person does not need to go through religious tests in order to acquire a job in the U.S office. It is an important clause because it shows that the United States is not based only on religion. It is also significant because it shows the people living in the U.S. that they can believe in whatever religion they want and they have the right to practice it freely. In my opinion, I think the no religious test clause is a good clause because a federal employee should not be required to believe in a certain religion so they can work in office.
What do the 6th and 7th amendments show about the US fears of a bad government which would use its powers to unfairly arrest and convict innocent people?
The 6th and 7th amendments were written to make sure that every suspect has certain rights. They make sure that every person arrested has the right to a speedy and public trial by a jury. The suspect is to know all the charges against him/ her, have witnesses both for and against him/ her and the help of the Counsel. The accused is also given the right to a lawyer who will represent them in court. The 7th amendment states that the accused have the right to be tried by a jury that do not have biased views of the case and the people involved so they can make their decision solely based on the information given to them during the trial. This shows that the fears of the US having a bad government because specific strategies are put forth to make both parties of the trial equal with lawyers and a jury with no biased views on the case.
What does the 10th amendment say about the national government powers? Can the federal government take over the public school system? Can the Congress pass a law allowing gay marriage or denying it?
The government’s powers are limited to the powers granted in the constitution. The 10th amendment declares that congress can’t use/ abuse their power in a way that interrupts the state to be an effective federal system. The federal government cannot take over the public school system because that power does not belong to them; it belongs to the board of education. Congress is allowed to pass or deny a law allowing gay marriage; they have most of the power in the government system.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Trampled Walmart Worker
The other day in class there was a discussion about the incident on black Friday where a Walmart employee was trampled and died when opening the doors to the store. He died of a heart attack. I think this shows that some Americans can be so greedy and selfish that they would commit insane and immoral acts to satisfy their needs. Jacara argued that the article was not based on the point of views of shoppers but my point is to show that some Americans can be immoral. Of course i cannot judge all Americans based on this one account of immorality. In this case people are bum rushing a Walmart for what they think are "big savings" waiting inside but in reality they're all fooled because there is so much bullshit about black Friday being the day with blowout sales. Black Friday seems more of a hoax to me. People make it seem like there are a lot of savings but stores are not necessarily lowering they're prices, most of them are jacking up the prices beforehand so when theres a "sale" the prices are close to the regulation price.What happened in Walmart is a tragedy but if the government isn't always hyping people up for sales to help the economy, non of this would have happened.
Monday, December 1, 2008
what happened today in class
Today in class we started off with an article about how a Wal Mart employee was killed by an angry mob that wanted to get in the store. We separated in different groups and spoke our feelings about what happened and how this plays into the AWOL. Afterwards we had a large group discussion about it and i dozed off for a little bit. I woke up a heated debate between two classmates. I did not know what was going on and did not care much for it because it seemed like they were arguing over something stupid. I soon find out that there was miscommunication and Andy brought up the idea that no one decided to interfere and looked at it as a way of entertainment. Personally i did not feel the need for me to interfere with the argument. I did not want to get myself involved in something that i did not know the full extent about. As for everyone else, i felt that they did not want to interfere for the same reason, they did not want to get themselves involved. As students who have experienced heated arguments with the likes of today's, we know that it will soon die down and that there is no point in interrupting because the people involved are not in the state of mind to take into account other people's opinions. When in that kind of argument, the people involved are all for themselves and will keep arguing until they are satisfied with the case that they make for themselves.
Thanksgiving/Black Friday
Thanksgiving:
When Thanksgiving came along, I was asked more than once the question, "what do Chinese people do for thanksgiving?" When proposed with this question, i did not know how to respond. I can not speak for the entire Chinese race, there's a lot of us. But i can speak for myself. My family has what people may call a "tv dinner." We all sit down to a big dinner with a lot of family. We spread our food on a red table cloth and begin making our plates. I would have to say that my family is pretty Americanized since my brother and sister came to America at an early age, they learned about the "American way of life" through stories from friends. When i was born, my siblings were the same age as i am now. Therefore they wanted to provide for me the "American" life that my parents were not able to provide for them. As i grew older i became only aware of the "American way of life" and do not know how traditional Chinese families celebrate American holidays. My life only became more "American" when my brother met an American when i was at the age of 7 and she became more of a mother figure to me than my chines workaholic mom. We began decorating the house for every big holiday and we even hosted parties for them. I felt that i was living the American way of life when asked that question.
Black Friday:
A couple years back , my family and i decided to leave the house at 1:00 am after thanksgiving dinner to go shopping upstate. It was one of the worse decisions we ever made. We shopped for over 7 hrs straight and i was extremely tired, not to mention, it was also a drag to wait on a long line for ever different store we went to. Ever since then we have never gone shopping on black Friday as a family ever again. People have gone separately to different stores by themselves but no one really wanted to go shopping, they just went out to see how it was. I went out to the city this past Friday and i was shoved multiple times by busy shoppers in the streets. I also regret the decision to walk through a crowded street just to save myself a few extra blocks to walk. I vow to never go shopping on black Friday.
When Thanksgiving came along, I was asked more than once the question, "what do Chinese people do for thanksgiving?" When proposed with this question, i did not know how to respond. I can not speak for the entire Chinese race, there's a lot of us. But i can speak for myself. My family has what people may call a "tv dinner." We all sit down to a big dinner with a lot of family. We spread our food on a red table cloth and begin making our plates. I would have to say that my family is pretty Americanized since my brother and sister came to America at an early age, they learned about the "American way of life" through stories from friends. When i was born, my siblings were the same age as i am now. Therefore they wanted to provide for me the "American" life that my parents were not able to provide for them. As i grew older i became only aware of the "American way of life" and do not know how traditional Chinese families celebrate American holidays. My life only became more "American" when my brother met an American when i was at the age of 7 and she became more of a mother figure to me than my chines workaholic mom. We began decorating the house for every big holiday and we even hosted parties for them. I felt that i was living the American way of life when asked that question.
Black Friday:
A couple years back , my family and i decided to leave the house at 1:00 am after thanksgiving dinner to go shopping upstate. It was one of the worse decisions we ever made. We shopped for over 7 hrs straight and i was extremely tired, not to mention, it was also a drag to wait on a long line for ever different store we went to. Ever since then we have never gone shopping on black Friday as a family ever again. People have gone separately to different stores by themselves but no one really wanted to go shopping, they just went out to see how it was. I went out to the city this past Friday and i was shoved multiple times by busy shoppers in the streets. I also regret the decision to walk through a crowded street just to save myself a few extra blocks to walk. I vow to never go shopping on black Friday.
Part A
Paraphrasing the preamble:
In order to come together as one nation, the people of the united states need to be fair, stay peaceful without chaos, defend ourselves, stay healthy and bless ourselves and the coming generations and create a constitution to make this happen.
Legislative: The Legislative Branch makes the Law. It is made up of the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Congress. They have control of the taxes and they have the power to declare war.
Executive: The executive branch is responsible for enforcing the laws of the land. The president is the head of this branch, he can veto laws, suggest laws, and is also head of the country.
Judicial: The judicial branch is responsible for interpreting the laws passed by the legislative branch. It is responsible for interpreting the laws of the land. They have the power to declare a law unconstitutional or create court laws.
While I was reading the constitution and taking notes at the same time, I was extremely bored. I even dozed off at times. Its not like it was all that hard to understand, since there was blue text to help, it was just in old English and very boring text.
Insights/Questions:
~Why can't we change the constitution?
~Why don't civilians have a say in what is in the constitution?
~What are the pros of the constitution?
~What are the cons of the constitution?
~will the people of America be able to meet the requirements of the preamble to for a more perfect union?
In order to come together as one nation, the people of the united states need to be fair, stay peaceful without chaos, defend ourselves, stay healthy and bless ourselves and the coming generations and create a constitution to make this happen.
Legislative: The Legislative Branch makes the Law. It is made up of the House of Representatives, the Senate, and the Congress. They have control of the taxes and they have the power to declare war.
Executive: The executive branch is responsible for enforcing the laws of the land. The president is the head of this branch, he can veto laws, suggest laws, and is also head of the country.
Judicial: The judicial branch is responsible for interpreting the laws passed by the legislative branch. It is responsible for interpreting the laws of the land. They have the power to declare a law unconstitutional or create court laws.
While I was reading the constitution and taking notes at the same time, I was extremely bored. I even dozed off at times. Its not like it was all that hard to understand, since there was blue text to help, it was just in old English and very boring text.
Insights/Questions:
~Why can't we change the constitution?
~Why don't civilians have a say in what is in the constitution?
~What are the pros of the constitution?
~What are the cons of the constitution?
~will the people of America be able to meet the requirements of the preamble to for a more perfect union?
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Response to the election
The presidential elections of 2008 were very intense. Many people were not too sure of how it was going to turn out. We were either going to have an old Republican president or a black president. In my personal opinion, i thought many people took this election to a racial level. Many americans voted McCain only because the other candidate was black and all the others voted Obama because he was black. When voted in class everyone voted for Obama. I was not too sure of who i wanted but i was favoring Obama only because McCain had a vice president who wasnt too bright. Sarah Palin is not smart. She only spoke about how she was involved in foreign affairs only because her hometown, Alaska, is right next to Russia. Honestly i feel that if McCain had a better vice presidential candidate, he would have had a much greater chance of winning the elections.
This election was the most involving election ever. Many people were interested in and keeping up with how the polls were going. Everyone was keeping up with the presidential speeches also. I feel that under the different circumstances of this election, many people who usually dont care much for politics were involved in this one. My brother and sister in law usually dont care much but they paid very close attention to this elcection. My sister in law voted McCain only because he was white and she did not trust that Obama would follow through with the views that he proposed. My brother did not vote at all this year. He could not decide if he wanted to vote for a black president or the possibility of a woman president who isnt too bright. He did not want to chance it so he decided not to vote.
This election was the most involving election ever. Many people were interested in and keeping up with how the polls were going. Everyone was keeping up with the presidential speeches also. I feel that under the different circumstances of this election, many people who usually dont care much for politics were involved in this one. My brother and sister in law usually dont care much but they paid very close attention to this elcection. My sister in law voted McCain only because he was white and she did not trust that Obama would follow through with the views that he proposed. My brother did not vote at all this year. He could not decide if he wanted to vote for a black president or the possibility of a woman president who isnt too bright. He did not want to chance it so he decided not to vote.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
What do people think about the “American Way of Life”?
When asked the question, what they think about the American Way of Life, many people responded differently. When I asked my brother and my sister in law, they were very interested in answering my questions. My Brother thought that the American way of life is to just get rich 
but on the other hand my sister in law gave me a list of what people typically go through in their American way of life. She said that people go to school then start working then get married then have kids and that’s that. That was her interpretation of the American way of life. When I asked a woman in the street, she had less patience to answer my questions but she thinks the American way of life is just living free, there may be rules but we are all still living freely.
I feel the same way. Everyone is free to do whatever pleases them as long as it does not break a law. Sure there are limits to what you can do but you can still do virtually everything you can think of. Free to love, free to live, and free to laugh. 
When asked what were the pros and cons of the American way of life, a woman on the street thought a pro was that everyone is able to make their own choices but she thought a con would be the way people decide to make those choices.
When I asked my brother and sister in law, they gave similar answers, they both thought a pro would be freedom but the cost of that freedom is a con. Money plays too big of a role in American lives; people are constantly concerned with the money aspect in their life. The truth is, who wouldn’t be? Money is what makes a life easier; everyone in the world wants an easier life. Two patterns that I found were that people gave similar answers as to what the American way of life mostly revolved around, money, and the other pattern is that they don’t seem to be living typical American lives. My sister in law made the American way of life sound easy but all of the people I interviewed did not make life look easy, they were all of working class and thought long and hard about whether or not they lived the American way of life. I don’t think they live the American way of life, I think they are below
their own standards, they are all too worried about money and how to get a lot of it. I highly doubt many people live the “American way of life.” People are working too hard to be living the American way of life. The American way of life is played out as the good life; it is played out in movies and on television as easy stress deprived lives. Nobody is happy like that. Nobody lives the life shown through cameras.
but on the other hand my sister in law gave me a list of what people typically go through in their American way of life. She said that people go to school then start working then get married then have kids and that’s that. That was her interpretation of the American way of life. When I asked a woman in the street, she had less patience to answer my questions but she thinks the American way of life is just living free, there may be rules but we are all still living freely. I feel the same way. Everyone is free to do whatever pleases them as long as it does not break a law. Sure there are limits to what you can do but you can still do virtually everything you can think of. Free to love, free to live, and free to laugh. When asked what were the pros and cons of the American way of life, a woman on the street thought a pro was that everyone is able to make their own choices but she thought a con would be the way people decide to make those choices.
When I asked my brother and sister in law, they gave similar answers, they both thought a pro would be freedom but the cost of that freedom is a con. Money plays too big of a role in American lives; people are constantly concerned with the money aspect in their life. The truth is, who wouldn’t be? Money is what makes a life easier; everyone in the world wants an easier life. Two patterns that I found were that people gave similar answers as to what the American way of life mostly revolved around, money, and the other pattern is that they don’t seem to be living typical American lives. My sister in law made the American way of life sound easy but all of the people I interviewed did not make life look easy, they were all of working class and thought long and hard about whether or not they lived the American way of life. I don’t think they live the American way of life, I think they are below their own standards, they are all too worried about money and how to get a lot of it. I highly doubt many people live the “American way of life.” People are working too hard to be living the American way of life. The American way of life is played out as the good life; it is played out in movies and on television as easy stress deprived lives. Nobody is happy like that. Nobody lives the life shown through cameras.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Video Comments
cindy said...
Hey jacara i liked how you incorporated both your school life and your family life in your video.insight: you cherish both your family and friends
October 29, 2008 6:57 PM
cindy said...
hey sandy i liked hoe you had so many different parts in your life involved. you had school then family and traditions. i didnt know you liked to sketch ourfits and draw like that, thier really good drawings.
October 29, 2008 7:02 PM
cindy said...
i like your video. a lot. i liked how everyhting flowed together. you include family and friends and it was just a good video to watch.i also liked how you had videos in the video and the ending was great.
October 29, 2008 7:10 PM
cindy said...
i love how the picture of the train station you have is of my train station and nowhere near your place. But other than that i like how all your friends and family are included and i also liked how you had a little section dedicated to your multiracial background.
October 29, 2008 10:17 PM
cindy said...
nice vid maxi. i liked how you had pics of everysingle person and not just groups photos. i like the song, i actually know it. overall a pretty cool vid.
October 29, 2008 7:25 PM
Hey jacara i liked how you incorporated both your school life and your family life in your video.insight: you cherish both your family and friends
October 29, 2008 6:57 PM
cindy said...
hey sandy i liked hoe you had so many different parts in your life involved. you had school then family and traditions. i didnt know you liked to sketch ourfits and draw like that, thier really good drawings.
October 29, 2008 7:02 PM
cindy said...
i like your video. a lot. i liked how everyhting flowed together. you include family and friends and it was just a good video to watch.i also liked how you had videos in the video and the ending was great.
October 29, 2008 7:10 PM
cindy said...
i love how the picture of the train station you have is of my train station and nowhere near your place. But other than that i like how all your friends and family are included and i also liked how you had a little section dedicated to your multiracial background.
October 29, 2008 10:17 PM
cindy said...
nice vid maxi. i liked how you had pics of everysingle person and not just groups photos. i like the song, i actually know it. overall a pretty cool vid.
October 29, 2008 7:25 PM
Redid Version of the Synopsis on Capitalism
Synopsis of the Dominant View of Capitalism
DICTIONARY.COM
cap⋅i⋅tal⋅ism–nounan economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.
ANDY SNYDER
"An economic system in which the overflowing majority toil for the profit of the tiny majority 'we work, they profit' 'takes money to make money'"
OFFICIAL
An economic system in which goods and services are produced and comsumed and distributed through the mechanism of free markets based deeply on the right to private property and profit motive.
I did not have a strong grasp of what exactly capitalism is based on your definition and the official definition so I searched it up on dictionary.com and that is the definition I got. According to the definitions provided, I concluded that capitalism is the buy and sell of products owned by private companies but also fexible in the free market. Capitalism is basically the right to buy and sell stuff through felxible prices in the free markets but the product itself is part of a private company. Many people like capitalism because lower class people are able to afford things more easily and higher class people just get more money. Everyone is happy because everyone is content with the way that their lives are going. The rich are happy that they do not need to pay extra taxes to help the poor and the poor are happy that they are able to provide themselves and their families with the neccessary needs of everyday life. While the rich people are more inclined to spend their extra money on boats and country houses, the lower class people are more than happy to have prices lower so they are actually able to buy the products needed. They do not care they the products they are buying are benfitting the rich people of the privat companies, all they care about is getting what they need. I agree with the ways of capitalism because from my point of view everyone is happy and able to benefit from it. Many people do not like capitalism, usually the lower class, because they are not happy with the idea that the rich are getting richer and the prices are only getting lower as if it was pity for the poor. They are usually people who are too bitter to realize and celebrate other people's happiness.
The Daily Orange
Capitalism Good for Everyone – Drew Bland
I agree with Drew Bland. I feel that capitalism is a good system for everyone to follow. Bland suggested that people should open up their minds and actually think about the way capitalism works. Many people think capitalism is the suggestions of “imperialist arrogance and treacherous elitism.” In other words, they think capitalism is a dangerous display of loyalty to a selected group who care mostly for themselves.
CATO@LIBERTY
Capitalism Saves
I also agree with this article because I also think capitalism is the reason why people have been able to afford more and more necessities. People are more able to afford pills and other medications that help improve their health. There are also new medications provided to help new problems that develop. Everyone is also happier, life is better for people, it is less stressful. The article suggests that capitalism is the main cause of people living longer healthier lives and I completely agree with the findings.
DICTIONARY.COM
cap⋅i⋅tal⋅ism–nounan economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.
ANDY SNYDER
"An economic system in which the overflowing majority toil for the profit of the tiny majority 'we work, they profit' 'takes money to make money'"
OFFICIAL
An economic system in which goods and services are produced and comsumed and distributed through the mechanism of free markets based deeply on the right to private property and profit motive.
I did not have a strong grasp of what exactly capitalism is based on your definition and the official definition so I searched it up on dictionary.com and that is the definition I got. According to the definitions provided, I concluded that capitalism is the buy and sell of products owned by private companies but also fexible in the free market. Capitalism is basically the right to buy and sell stuff through felxible prices in the free markets but the product itself is part of a private company. Many people like capitalism because lower class people are able to afford things more easily and higher class people just get more money. Everyone is happy because everyone is content with the way that their lives are going. The rich are happy that they do not need to pay extra taxes to help the poor and the poor are happy that they are able to provide themselves and their families with the neccessary needs of everyday life. While the rich people are more inclined to spend their extra money on boats and country houses, the lower class people are more than happy to have prices lower so they are actually able to buy the products needed. They do not care they the products they are buying are benfitting the rich people of the privat companies, all they care about is getting what they need. I agree with the ways of capitalism because from my point of view everyone is happy and able to benefit from it. Many people do not like capitalism, usually the lower class, because they are not happy with the idea that the rich are getting richer and the prices are only getting lower as if it was pity for the poor. They are usually people who are too bitter to realize and celebrate other people's happiness.
The Daily Orange
Capitalism Good for Everyone – Drew Bland
I agree with Drew Bland. I feel that capitalism is a good system for everyone to follow. Bland suggested that people should open up their minds and actually think about the way capitalism works. Many people think capitalism is the suggestions of “imperialist arrogance and treacherous elitism.” In other words, they think capitalism is a dangerous display of loyalty to a selected group who care mostly for themselves.
CATO@LIBERTY
Capitalism Saves
I also agree with this article because I also think capitalism is the reason why people have been able to afford more and more necessities. People are more able to afford pills and other medications that help improve their health. There are also new medications provided to help new problems that develop. Everyone is also happier, life is better for people, it is less stressful. The article suggests that capitalism is the main cause of people living longer healthier lives and I completely agree with the findings.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Questions for Video
1. What have you included in this video? 2. Explain how different parts of the video relate to your way of life.
In my video I included the birthdays of family and friends, pictures of family and friends and everything else I love in my life. Birthdays are important to me because they are the birth dates of people I love and would be hurt to lose. They represent the days that they were brought into the world and that day is a very special day, that is the day that they started their life where I am included. I provided pictured of my family and friends because they are the most important people in my life. I would not have the life I have if it weren’t for the support from my family and friends. Sure there are people out there who don’t care about me but I know I will always have certain people to always depend on if I ever needed everything and that is a very important aspect of my life. In the “everything else” section of my video, I have pictures of my extended family (sister in law’s family and dogs). I love animals and I have plenty of pictures of four different dogs in my life, they are each special to me and I would be very sad to lose them. I also have pictures and videos of the time spent at the property my extended family has upstate. I love it up there and that will always be an important part of my life. The air is much better than the air in New York City, it is not polluted by multiple different fumes. It is very nice to go up there and just relax.
3. What’s seems good about your way of life? What’s bad? What’s neutral?
Good- My life has many twists to it, there are many things in my life that people wouldn’t expect from me based on my race. For example, people normally would not have guessed that I have a Caucasian sister in law therefore granting me many privileges that other Asian children have. My mom is a very traditional person but when my sister in law was brought into the family nine years ago, my mom eased up a little bit and I now have more privileges but also more responsibilities. I am still expected to do good in life and bring pride to the family but I am not expected to bust my ass over school work. When I get too stressed out my mom understands and allows me to have a little time to myself rather than some Asian moms who force their children to study every night and expects them to get 100% averages.
Bad- My life is not what it may seem. I seems that I live a pretty relaxed life but truthfully, my life is just as stressful as anyone else’s. I have to deal with everyday problems that probably every single teenager is dealing with. For example, school grades, I am definitely not doing good in your class but I am very stressed out in trying to make up all my work before you close them on November 1st now that I finally got my blogger to work. I have yet to post up my video because it is not working on my computer. I am currently trying to do it in school and with Jacara. There is also the parent factor; every teenager in the world is dealing with their parents. Most teens are rebellious and have many issues with their parents while some others, mostly Asians, are dealing with the disappointment from their parents because they did not bring home respectable grades from school. I am stuck dealing with both situations, I am rebellious in ways that I feel is correct in my mind but not in others, such as my curfew. Like most teens I am not happy with my curfew and try to argue it but never come to an agreement. I am also dealing with the grades, my family knows me as a good student because I am able to get myself together and pull my grades up but my grades have been slipping since I entered high school. This may seem typical and like sucking up to you to bring my grade up but to tell you the truth I’ve been busting my ass for your class, I have never worked so hard for a class before and I know I am most definitely not doing well but I am willing to do whatever it takes to pull my grade up. Yes this sounds typical but this is coming from the heart, I beat myself up when I and unable to accomplish things and your class has beaten me down the most.
Neutral- Nothing seems to stay neutral in my life. I guess I would have to say my daily routine stays the same. Wake up, school, afterschool, home, repeat. In the summer, wake up, go out with friends or go to work, go home, repeat.
4. What would you have liked to have included, that is important to your way of life, but weren’t able to?
I would have wanted to include pictures of my dad and some of my Chinese traditions into my video. I was not able to because I am not close with my dad because I hardly see him and I have not been able to catch any of my Chinese traditions on camera. If I ever get a chance I will try to show you some of the things that we do on our special days. Chinese traditions are very important to my way of life because my family wants to practice them all the time and keep the traditions going. Yes, over the years some of the traditions have started to slip and seem less and less important, such as the full moon. Yearly there is a certain time of year where we pray to the moon with special moon cakes, incense, and fruit. But this year my mom bought the cakes but was too lazy to care to pray. This is one tradition that slipped from our hand this year. One tradition that will never disappear in my opinion is Chinese New Year. This time of year is just as important to us as New Years is as important to everyone else.
ANALYSIS & INSIGHT
5. What’s going on with your way of life? What seems to be the general pattern or direction or point or situation?
I do not see a general pattern in my way of life. Things are constantly changing and I am constantly changing. My attitude is always changing; the attitude of others against me is always changing. If I were to find a pattern, I would say that was the pattern, that my life and everyone and everything in it along with the important aspects are always changing.
6. How do the good, bad, and neutral in your way of life fit together?
None of it fits together, that is why my life is so hard. Everything is clashing together, at the end of the day, everything is not ok. There are always worries and fears and stress.
7. Does your way of life seem like a “typical American Way of Life”? Why or why not?
My way of life is definitely not the American way of life. I have to juggle school with family, family values, high expectations and multiple traditions that need to be followed. I would say the American way of life would just be juggling school with family and expectations. None of all the extra stuff. I would like to say that ALL ASIANS DO NOT LIVE A TYPICAL AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE, but of course I cannot judge the life of other people solely based on my own interpretation of my life.
8. What aspects of your way of life seem really interesting to you – you’d like to think about them more deeply, figure out how this sort of thing developed historically, what’s going to happen to this aspect of your way of life within your lifetime? What questions do you have about these really interesting aspects of your way of life?How did it happen that I can not do any “real” work and still live so easily? Who is doing the real work for me? In what ways is my life now reliant on complicated and ultimately fragile social arrangements?
Interesting/ questions– how I live it. How I interpret it. How others interpret it.
What’s going to happen? – I really honestly don’t know things can change in the blink of an eye.
I live easy because I am not an adult yet. I have all the support and help of family and friends.
I am very reliant on the support of the people in my life. I love them all dearly and will not trade their support for anything. If I didn’t have them constantly on my back and helping me, I would have fallen apart a long time ago and would never put myself back together.
In my video I included the birthdays of family and friends, pictures of family and friends and everything else I love in my life. Birthdays are important to me because they are the birth dates of people I love and would be hurt to lose. They represent the days that they were brought into the world and that day is a very special day, that is the day that they started their life where I am included. I provided pictured of my family and friends because they are the most important people in my life. I would not have the life I have if it weren’t for the support from my family and friends. Sure there are people out there who don’t care about me but I know I will always have certain people to always depend on if I ever needed everything and that is a very important aspect of my life. In the “everything else” section of my video, I have pictures of my extended family (sister in law’s family and dogs). I love animals and I have plenty of pictures of four different dogs in my life, they are each special to me and I would be very sad to lose them. I also have pictures and videos of the time spent at the property my extended family has upstate. I love it up there and that will always be an important part of my life. The air is much better than the air in New York City, it is not polluted by multiple different fumes. It is very nice to go up there and just relax.
3. What’s seems good about your way of life? What’s bad? What’s neutral?
Good- My life has many twists to it, there are many things in my life that people wouldn’t expect from me based on my race. For example, people normally would not have guessed that I have a Caucasian sister in law therefore granting me many privileges that other Asian children have. My mom is a very traditional person but when my sister in law was brought into the family nine years ago, my mom eased up a little bit and I now have more privileges but also more responsibilities. I am still expected to do good in life and bring pride to the family but I am not expected to bust my ass over school work. When I get too stressed out my mom understands and allows me to have a little time to myself rather than some Asian moms who force their children to study every night and expects them to get 100% averages.
Bad- My life is not what it may seem. I seems that I live a pretty relaxed life but truthfully, my life is just as stressful as anyone else’s. I have to deal with everyday problems that probably every single teenager is dealing with. For example, school grades, I am definitely not doing good in your class but I am very stressed out in trying to make up all my work before you close them on November 1st now that I finally got my blogger to work. I have yet to post up my video because it is not working on my computer. I am currently trying to do it in school and with Jacara. There is also the parent factor; every teenager in the world is dealing with their parents. Most teens are rebellious and have many issues with their parents while some others, mostly Asians, are dealing with the disappointment from their parents because they did not bring home respectable grades from school. I am stuck dealing with both situations, I am rebellious in ways that I feel is correct in my mind but not in others, such as my curfew. Like most teens I am not happy with my curfew and try to argue it but never come to an agreement. I am also dealing with the grades, my family knows me as a good student because I am able to get myself together and pull my grades up but my grades have been slipping since I entered high school. This may seem typical and like sucking up to you to bring my grade up but to tell you the truth I’ve been busting my ass for your class, I have never worked so hard for a class before and I know I am most definitely not doing well but I am willing to do whatever it takes to pull my grade up. Yes this sounds typical but this is coming from the heart, I beat myself up when I and unable to accomplish things and your class has beaten me down the most.
Neutral- Nothing seems to stay neutral in my life. I guess I would have to say my daily routine stays the same. Wake up, school, afterschool, home, repeat. In the summer, wake up, go out with friends or go to work, go home, repeat.
4. What would you have liked to have included, that is important to your way of life, but weren’t able to?
I would have wanted to include pictures of my dad and some of my Chinese traditions into my video. I was not able to because I am not close with my dad because I hardly see him and I have not been able to catch any of my Chinese traditions on camera. If I ever get a chance I will try to show you some of the things that we do on our special days. Chinese traditions are very important to my way of life because my family wants to practice them all the time and keep the traditions going. Yes, over the years some of the traditions have started to slip and seem less and less important, such as the full moon. Yearly there is a certain time of year where we pray to the moon with special moon cakes, incense, and fruit. But this year my mom bought the cakes but was too lazy to care to pray. This is one tradition that slipped from our hand this year. One tradition that will never disappear in my opinion is Chinese New Year. This time of year is just as important to us as New Years is as important to everyone else.
ANALYSIS & INSIGHT
5. What’s going on with your way of life? What seems to be the general pattern or direction or point or situation?
I do not see a general pattern in my way of life. Things are constantly changing and I am constantly changing. My attitude is always changing; the attitude of others against me is always changing. If I were to find a pattern, I would say that was the pattern, that my life and everyone and everything in it along with the important aspects are always changing.
6. How do the good, bad, and neutral in your way of life fit together?
None of it fits together, that is why my life is so hard. Everything is clashing together, at the end of the day, everything is not ok. There are always worries and fears and stress.
7. Does your way of life seem like a “typical American Way of Life”? Why or why not?
My way of life is definitely not the American way of life. I have to juggle school with family, family values, high expectations and multiple traditions that need to be followed. I would say the American way of life would just be juggling school with family and expectations. None of all the extra stuff. I would like to say that ALL ASIANS DO NOT LIVE A TYPICAL AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE, but of course I cannot judge the life of other people solely based on my own interpretation of my life.
8. What aspects of your way of life seem really interesting to you – you’d like to think about them more deeply, figure out how this sort of thing developed historically, what’s going to happen to this aspect of your way of life within your lifetime? What questions do you have about these really interesting aspects of your way of life?How did it happen that I can not do any “real” work and still live so easily? Who is doing the real work for me? In what ways is my life now reliant on complicated and ultimately fragile social arrangements?
Interesting/ questions– how I live it. How I interpret it. How others interpret it.
What’s going to happen? – I really honestly don’t know things can change in the blink of an eye.
I live easy because I am not an adult yet. I have all the support and help of family and friends.
I am very reliant on the support of the people in my life. I love them all dearly and will not trade their support for anything. If I didn’t have them constantly on my back and helping me, I would have fallen apart a long time ago and would never put myself back together.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Synopsis of the Dominant View of Capitalism
DICTIONARY.COM
cap⋅i⋅tal⋅ism
–noun
an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.
ANDY SNYDER
"An economic system in which the overflowing majority toil for the profit of the tiny majority 'we work, they profit' 'takes money to make money'"
OFFICIAL
And economic system in which goods and services are produced and comsumed and distributed through the mechanism of free markets based deeply on the right to private property and profit motive.
I did not have a strong grasp of what exactly capitalism is based on your definition and the official definition so I searched it up on dictionary.com and that is the definition I got. According to the definitions provided, I concluded that capitalism is the buy and sell of products owned by private companies but also fexible in the free market. Capitalism is basically the right to buy and sell stuff through felxible prices in the free markets but the product itself is part of a private company. Many people like capitalism because lower class people are able to afford things more easily and higher class people just get more money. Everyone is happy because everyone is content with the way that their lives are going. The rich are happy that they do not need to pay extra taxes to help the poor and the poor are happy that they are able to provide themselves and their families with the neccessary needs of everyday life. While the rich people are more inclined to spend their extra money on boats and country houses, the lower class people are more than happy to have prices lower so they are actually able to buy the products needed. They do not care they the products they are buying are benfitting the rich people of the privat companies, all they care about is getting what they need. I agree with the ways of capitalism because from my point of view everyone is happy and able to benefit from it. Many people do not like capitalism, usually the lower class, because they are not happy with the idea that the rich are getting richer and the prices are only getting lower as if it was pity for the poor. They are usually people who are too bitter to realize and celebrate other people's happiness.
cap⋅i⋅tal⋅ism
–noun
an economic system in which investment in and ownership of the means of production, distribution, and exchange of wealth is made and maintained chiefly by private individuals or corporations, esp. as contrasted to cooperatively or state-owned means of wealth.
ANDY SNYDER
"An economic system in which the overflowing majority toil for the profit of the tiny majority 'we work, they profit' 'takes money to make money'"
OFFICIAL
And economic system in which goods and services are produced and comsumed and distributed through the mechanism of free markets based deeply on the right to private property and profit motive.
I did not have a strong grasp of what exactly capitalism is based on your definition and the official definition so I searched it up on dictionary.com and that is the definition I got. According to the definitions provided, I concluded that capitalism is the buy and sell of products owned by private companies but also fexible in the free market. Capitalism is basically the right to buy and sell stuff through felxible prices in the free markets but the product itself is part of a private company. Many people like capitalism because lower class people are able to afford things more easily and higher class people just get more money. Everyone is happy because everyone is content with the way that their lives are going. The rich are happy that they do not need to pay extra taxes to help the poor and the poor are happy that they are able to provide themselves and their families with the neccessary needs of everyday life. While the rich people are more inclined to spend their extra money on boats and country houses, the lower class people are more than happy to have prices lower so they are actually able to buy the products needed. They do not care they the products they are buying are benfitting the rich people of the privat companies, all they care about is getting what they need. I agree with the ways of capitalism because from my point of view everyone is happy and able to benefit from it. Many people do not like capitalism, usually the lower class, because they are not happy with the idea that the rich are getting richer and the prices are only getting lower as if it was pity for the poor. They are usually people who are too bitter to realize and celebrate other people's happiness.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Response to "I, Pencil" - By Leonard E. Read
In the story of the creation of the pencil, a pencil itself is describing how it is made. The story is a desription of how a pencil is never understood. A pencil describes how it is always thought of as a simple object used everyday by everyone in the word but nobody actually knows how to make it. It describes the whole long process that it took to make it. The wood it needed, the lead it needed and the little bit of metal it needed along with all the other things used for finishing touches. It tells us about the different people needed for every part of the pencil and what their role is in the making of the pencil. The pencil starts of by saying its a simple object that nobody knows how to fully make to how the government has control of an activity such as the making of the pencil.
"Simple? Yet, not a single person on the face of this earth knows how to make me."
"Don't overlook the ancestors present and distant who have a hand in transporting sixty carloads of slats across the nation."
"Once government has had a monopoly of a creative activity..."
These three quotes support my summary of the story by showing the three different aspects of the story. About how a pencil merged each topic into the other so smoothly. The pencil seemed to have a lot of personal views. It likes how everone likes it but he argues that nobody really knows it. It argues that although everyone may like it, no one knows how to make it. It shows through its story that it cherishes the process at which it has come. It explains the making of each part of him from the finished product to the end product very clearly. He starts with the finished part of him, persay the little piece of brass, and ends with the people who are involved in the coming of that piece. For example, to get the brass, people had to mine zinc and copper and have the skills to make shiny sheets of brass. The quotes are a representation of the thought process of the pencil as he is writing this story. The pencil is comparing the making of things to its final product. from raw materials to pencil, from the human voive to its visual deliverence to its destination. The story is of the deliverance of things in one piece to its final destionation from its original form as multiple pieces.
"Simple? Yet, not a single person on the face of this earth knows how to make me."
"Don't overlook the ancestors present and distant who have a hand in transporting sixty carloads of slats across the nation."
"Once government has had a monopoly of a creative activity..."
These three quotes support my summary of the story by showing the three different aspects of the story. About how a pencil merged each topic into the other so smoothly. The pencil seemed to have a lot of personal views. It likes how everone likes it but he argues that nobody really knows it. It argues that although everyone may like it, no one knows how to make it. It shows through its story that it cherishes the process at which it has come. It explains the making of each part of him from the finished product to the end product very clearly. He starts with the finished part of him, persay the little piece of brass, and ends with the people who are involved in the coming of that piece. For example, to get the brass, people had to mine zinc and copper and have the skills to make shiny sheets of brass. The quotes are a representation of the thought process of the pencil as he is writing this story. The pencil is comparing the making of things to its final product. from raw materials to pencil, from the human voive to its visual deliverence to its destination. The story is of the deliverance of things in one piece to its final destionation from its original form as multiple pieces.
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