Mike Tyson/Freddie Gray

Mike Tyson-

            I feel that in a way, society let down Mike Tyson, but he also let himself down. He did not have the best home life at all and you would think that the rest of his neighborhood would realize that, but nothing was done about it. Also, in school and after they would get home, kids would pick on them and bully them, but yet again nothing was done. So, in this case, I think society let down Mike Tyson because there were all these signs that he was not really being raised properly and had no one there for him, and no one did anything for him. We are lucky enough where we live that there for sure would be other parents who would step up and do something for this kid and help out in any way. Where he lived, society did nothing, and he was pretty much just on his own.

            However, on the other hand, he kind of let himself down. He liked to pick fights, thought it was fun, and he brought a lot of stuff on himself. When he was just young, him and his friends were carrying around guns trying to fight other kids. He did not really have a parent to tell him right from wrong, but he should have obviously known that you do not carry around guns in hopes of fighting someone. Even after he was in trouble and had to go to a juvenile detention center, he would still take on fights and get into even more trouble. He said that after he beat the kid who took his bird, the kids would instead of asking, “Can Mike play with us”, they would ask, “Can Mike Tyson play with us”. I think a big part of how he acted and turned out was because he did not have any attention at home, so he had to go other places to find it. Being in fights and winning was a way for him to get attention and respect since he did not have it anywhere else.

            I think one of the only things that could be done is to pay more attention to the children’s home life. I think that if someone would have stepped up and took him in and gave him better parenting, I do not think he would have turned out the way he did.

Freddie Gray-

            I think the issue with Freddie Gray was mostly society and the government’s fault. The biggest issue with where Freddie and his family grew up, was probably with where they lived. There were a lot of people who ended up with lead poisoning from the paint on the walls which caused a lot of problems. Some people could say that it is their own fault because they are the ones who chose to live there; however, if you do not have a lot of money, it is kind of your only choice. Freddie got into quite a bit of trouble with the law too. I am sure part of it may have been his own fault because he should have known right from wrong since he did have at least one parent for sure that actually cared, but the lead poisoning is a cause of this. Because of the lead, it caused some learning problems and other behavior problems, so he is not all to blame for being in trouble.

            There are many things that the government could have done differently in Freddie’s case. A big thing that there is probably controversy over is how Freddie was arrested the last time. Even though the officers denied that they physically harmed Freddie, there is proof on a cellphone video. This is still a big problem with police officers accused of being too rough while arresting someone. In Freddie’s case, the officers should have had on a body camera, because that would have been definite proof. Also, no one should be allowed to live in homes that have lead paint. Lead paint caused a lot of problems. I think the government should have had better homes for people who could not afford to find their own. Where Freddie was born and grew up, I am sure there were a lot of people in that area who could not afford nice, fancy homes. The government had public housing units, but even those had lead-based paint. No one should allow people to live in such run down places. So I think the government played a big part in what happened to Freddie Gray; from when he was born and what environment he had to live in, to what happened to him when he last got arrested.

LOTF

      1.)    I agree with this statement; our society knows many ways to kill a person without death. A lot of times people just get into someone’s head and make them think they are not good enough, there is no reason they should be alive, etc. Doing this is a lot subtler than physically killing someone but it can be a lot more painful, having to live with thinking that you aren’t good enough to live. This kills a person’s self-esteem, their self-worth, but it doesn’t kill them physically with death although a lot of times this person commits suicide which does this. This is the bad thing about society, we are so rude to people, it is a cruel world we live in these days.

      2.)    If we can’t separate our civilized self from our savage self, I think our savage self would definitely take over. As much as we would like to say that we want what is best for our society as a whole, there is always that part of us that wants what is better for ourselves and that is the more dominant part of us. I think LOTF shows a good example of this. Instead of all the boys working together to do what was best for the group, they started turning against each other and doing what was best for themselves instead. So their savage selves definitely took over because they started being aggressive towards each other and killing each other.

      3.)    I think that people are controlled by society. There are all of these rules and norms that people follow, not only because it is the ideal thing to do, but also because most people do not want to stand out from others or be the center of attention (most people anyway). Society controls us because we want to be like everyone else and fit in; wear the same brand clothes, have the same things, etc. and if we do anything out of the norm, people just shut us down because it is different. It could go both ways though, that we control society also. How are there all of the rules here? Because people made them and the rules control society to make it work. I however, think that still, society control the people more.

      4.)    He is basically saying that Simon should quit trying to do what he can to help the group because they aren’t going to be rescued.

      

      Simon has been trying to lead the group and have them do things that will help them to be rescued and he’s not making things fun instead.

      He’s talking to Simon and not the other boys because he’s in Simon’s head. Simon is pretty much the only one trying to do things to help the group as a whole, unlike the other boys who are their savage self, doing only things to help themselves which is what the LOF wants.  

1. How long does the typical refugee process take
1. Up to 18-24 months
2. The Obama administration had a goal of admitting how many refugees in fiscal 2017?
1. 110,000 refugees
3. over the past decade most of the refugees have come from what 2 countries?
1. Burma and Iraw
4. How many Muslim refugees entered the U.S. in 2016?
1. 39,000 refugees
5. Most of the refugees were resettled in what 3 states?
1. California, Texas, and New York
6. "Shifting origins" bar graph:
1. There were a lot of refugees from Europe throughout the years and they started to get less towards the recent years
2. 50% of the refugees were from Somalia, etc.
3. A large majority of refugees are from Asia.
7. "Religious affiliation" bar graph:
1. Christian and Muslim religions are fairly equal
2. There's not a lot of refugees that their religion was unknown
8. "American generally don't welcome" refugees graph
1. Things are more accepting now and things are changing
9. How have refugees changed in South Dakota over the years? Most refugees today come from where?
1. Over the years, they usually come from either Africa or Asia. 
2. Africa
10. 3 things about map:
1. all the refugees from Africa all kind of settle together in groups
2. the refugees from Europe (Ukraine), they are spread out
3. A majority of refugees are from Africa (Dem. of Republic of Congo, and Somalia)
11. what is the ceiling for refugees decided by Donald Trump?
1. 50,000 total refugees
12. 1 thing from line graph:
1. The amount of refugees settled decreased throughout the year until March it rose. 
13. How many people are now displaced from their homes in the world?
1. 1 in 100 people
14. How many Syrian refugees are now displaced from their homes?
1. 6 in 10 Syrians
15. What 2 countries in Europe are receiving record number of refugees?
1. Norway and Switzerland
16. I think we should take in refugees and help them since we are a first world county, but so should other first world countries. 

Bacha Bazi

After reading this article, it just makes me sick to know about the things going on in other countries. No one can do anything about the torture those boys go through every day, some of them even have to dress as girls just to get away from that abuse but still run in fear of being caught again and having the same thing done to them. There are people from America and other countries that go over to Afghanistan and knowing about this just have to sit there and not do anything about it. It is a custom to be able to do this to those men and it just bothers me that there is nothing we can do about it. It takes all of their freedom away, it disgusts me how people can find enjoyment in doing things like this.

There a lot of different places I could put myself in for this. If I was in the place of people from other countries that go over to Afghanistan, I would feel disgusted, very bothered, and just sick to my stomach. Being over there and knowing that this was going on right before my eyes, I would try to do anything to somehow get it to stop. If I were in the place of the men that this is happening to, I do not even have a clue how I would feel. Very violated, afraid, angry. I would be full of mixed emotions.

It’s terrible the things that other people have to go through in other countries, it makes me feel very lucky to live where I do.

Barnga Blog

1. If you could describe the game in one work, what would it be?
1. frustrating
2. What did you expect at the beginning of the game?
1. That is was something to confuse us or make us mad at each other. 
3. When did you realize that something was wrong?
1. When I went to the next table and they weren't playing the same way as us. 
4. How did you deal with it?
1. I waited for them to let me know if I won.
5. How did not being able to speak contribute to what you were feeling?
1. It was frustrating when I went to the next table and I couldn't ask what they were doing.
6. Is my title above appropriate for the game of "culture". Why or why not? (it's all a game or sort of)
1. yes, you can tie pretty much anything into our culture.
7. Is a universal language and set of customs necessary for wold peace and harmony?
1. Yes, it is hard to communicate when you don't understand what the other person is doing and you can't ask them.
8. What can a simple card game teach us about our culture?
1. That we get angry at each other for the smallest things, it's hard to communicate without all talking the same or knowing what the other person means. 

Radical Experiment

Starting out in the video, it was super confusing and I had no idea what he was getting to or what the point of the video was. I eventually started to realize that he was talking about how countries feel because of what other countries do to them. For example, when he talked about how China came over in search of coal and shipped it back to China and became wealthy, while back over in the United States we were all in poverty and despair. The whole point is basically empathy. You need to put yourself in someone else's shoes and see things from their point of view. I really started to understand it when he started talking about Arab-Muslims. It is the same thing with oil in their country like it was with coal and our country. They are in need in another country's resources that they can't get so their country goes down hill because they can't get it. Like with the United States, we needed coal but China took it so our country went down hill. It's all about empathy, sometimes it is hard to put yourself in someone else's shoes though. The quote, "One country's terrorist is another country's freedom fighter", I really agree with that. The United States military is going to other country's for wars and to that country we are the terrorist but we think it's okay because those people are fighting for our country's freedom then whenever someone comes to the United States and sets off bombs or whatever we consider them a terrorist; however they are just doing the same things we do, trying to fight for their country. It is sometimes really hard for me anyway, to put myself in another person's place and that's something I need to work on. The best example I can think of is with my siblings and the rest of my family. The frustrate me and anger me easily and I probably don't handle it in the best way, which instead I should think of how they feel and understand from their perspective. Lastly, I see myself fitting into society by just being a helpful person and being there for people.

Freaks and Geeks

1. Thoughts and ideas from pilot episode

            a. I thought this was a really good show to show us the different sociological perspectives in real life. 

            b. Functional Theory: Lindsay's relationship with the "popular kids" Conflit Theory: Jeff making Lindsay join the math group or get a punishment. Symbolic Interactionism: Lindsay's army jacket

2. What are the groups and what functions do they serve? Are there negative influences from any of the groups (dysfunctions)?

a. Nerds, bullies, populars, smart kids. They help us understand how the different sociological perspectives happen in life. I think the popular kids have a negative influence because everyone thought they were cool and Lindsay wanted to be like them and she kind of drifted away from the people who actually cared about her. 

3. Who has the power in the episode? How or why do they have power? How do they use it?

            a. I think the counselor, Jeff, has the power because he is trying to help Lindsay make better choices, basically about who she is hanging out with. He uses the power by holding a punishment over her when she skipped school

4. What are the important symbols in the episode? Note that they symbols might be an object, but also might be an idea, and event or something else. How do the characters act based on the symbols they find important?

           a. Lindsay's army jacket is one of the symbols in the episode. She is always wearing it so it symbolizes her character and who she is as a person, rebellious. That's how she acts too, she rebels against her parents

5. Can you relate any of these theories to your own life? How can the things you do be interpreted through one of these theories?

           a. Yes, mostly the conflict theory because i am always conflicted with myself between decision. But also the functional theory because the decisions I make can also affect the rest of society.