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.

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

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.

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.

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.

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.