Free Press Article

I think the article by Senator Leahy was a good one. I agree that there should be a stronger federal legislation over hate crimes. States are still in charge of themselves when it comes to most cases, but this provides back-up as in addition to the state laws. I think it is a good idea to push hate crime legislation because crimes motivated by hate should have zero tolerance. Bigotry is not a value of this country and we should take whatever measures necessary to get rid of it. I do not think it will get to the point where every little will considered a hate crime, but many others do. I think at some point you must draw the line about what is reasonable.

Observation Journal # 5

This observation journal was the worst one because I was the perpetrator myself in this case. I was having a party at my house this weekend and I was calling some people to tell them about it. I called up one of my friends and told him it was going to be a good time so he should stop by. He told me that he was home this weekend in mass. I jokingly said “man, you’re a fag.” I did not mean homosexual by this. I have a few friends who are gay and I have no prejudice against gay people. However, I found myself saying this and realized immediately what I had done and how ignorant I sounded. I think what really happened is that I am so used to hearing it that I threw it around like it meant nothing. I know it was bad and I should not have used the word but sometimes I find myself saying things like that by accident. I believe it is because it is so commonly used in society that the meaning is lost. People use the word “fag” and other offensive words all the time to describe someone who is an asshole. People are not meaning to say anything about homosexuals, but rather describe something negative that they don’t like. This is not good and it shows that in our society being gay has a negative connotation.

Reading Reflection # 9

“Just like societies of the present, future societies are molded and shaped by human action."
Chapter 9 talks about an interesting concept with the future of inequality. He states that differences will eventually no longer exist between people. This is unrealistic although the author has good intentions. Differences between people are what make the world unique and it is important to value these differences. Discrimination against people in regard to class, race, sex, is wrong, but that does not mean that these things should be forgotten. It is impossible to advance in society if everyone is the same. I don’t think it is possibly to truly achieve equality amongst everyone, but it is important to try.
I think it is also a good idea to be realistic when facing hypothetical situations. The above quote seems a little bit idealistic. Though many things are possible, it is pretty rare to make an enormous impact as one person and being realistic about the world should be taken into account as well. This chapter was interesting to read what at least one person sees as the future of society and it was kind of nice to examine that, even if I do not always agree.

Reading Reflection # 8

“It’s ironic that a society like ours which extol the virtues of equality and justice is also perhaps the most stratified in the world.”

The above quote says a lot about this chapter and the inequalities that one faces at work. We talk about equality, but the gap between the rich and poor is growing and the middle class is shrinking. Newman offers some valid points about this and goes on to talk about how employment has an impact on perpetuating inequalities.
In the beginning of the chapter, it is brought up that the military is a way for the underprivileged can get more opportunities, livable wages, schooling, and skills in life. He is reminded of this when his son gets a letter about signing up for selective service around the time of his eighteenth birthday. This brings him to other points about North America and Western Europe making ten times more than less developed countries in the world. We are privileged in that sense because poverty is a huge issue in today’s world. Even in the U.S. it is hard to survive in a family unless both parents are working and making decent wages.
Occupational segregation is another concept that is addressed citing that women and minorities are paid significantly less than white males for the same job. This is something that is beginning to change, but there is still a struggle. The same problems exist for homosexuals and those in lower classes. Although open discrimination is less common today, there are still factors that contribute to it. Affirmative action is a model that also contributes to changing these things in society.
Throughout this chapter, Newman touches on some really important issues regarding stratification and employment inequalities. I felt however that some of the chapter was repetitive and restated a lot of the same things in different ways. For the most part though, I felt that it was a valid and valuable read. It is true what he talks about and it is definitely reflected in society and can plainly seen.

Observation Journal # 4

I was at work the other day and a co-worker of mine told me about something sexist that happened to her recently. As one of the few female workers at my job, she was working with a few guys the previous day. One of the guys had told her to go back to her post and stay away from him and another employee for a few minutes. At first she obeyed, but later came back angry and demanded to know what was going on. One employee was showing the other dirty pictures of a girl he had sex with on his camera phone that was half his age. This made the female employee uncomfortable and she left. She reported what she had seen to the supervisor and the two were disciplined.
I think that this was inappropriate for the employees to act like that at work. The two of them were not professional and made the female feel discriminated by making her leave. Even if they had not asked her to leave, it still was not appropriate to conduct themselves that way at work and single out someone because of their sex. If I had been put in the situation, I would have told the male employee to stop what he was doing because I did not want the female to get upset and tell the boss. Something like that at work is too serious to be ignored, especially for my jobs sake.

Reading Reflection # 7

“In my mind it is not a great revelation that if officers are looking for criminal activity, they’re going to look at the kind of people who are listed on crime reports.”
This chapter actually had some good information in it for once. The last few I’ve felt had been pretty boring and one-sided. Newman actually brings to light some good points in this one, although I feel they could have been more in depth. You have to see all aspects of something before jumping to conclusions. Violence and racial profiling are some of the big ones I felt needed to be addressed and I liked that he touched on them. This chapter seemed to be offer a lot of information on controversial issues in society.
There was actually some statistics in this chapter that backed up many of Newman’s points and I felt like that is what some of his other chapters lacked. This made many of his points more persuasive to me and I found myself more in agreement.
He went on to talk about the criminal justice system in this country and made several good arguments for his position for it. I’m not sure exactly what to believe because I’m sure there are many injustices in society. I feel that people do however exaggerate the subject and that the government is a lot fairer than most people make it out to be. If you think that there are problems within society, offer a solution instead of just complaining about how wrong it is. How can you expect something to be fixed without coming up with a way to fix it?
The above quotation conveys the truth that there are patterns in criminal activity and it there is a reason why officers are more cautious around certain kinds of people. Is this discrimination? I would say yes, but if I was a police officer I would be much quicker to discriminate than potentially risk my life. This is built into the system because it is a reality and people are going to trust what they know. Whether you like it or not it is the truth.
For the most part, I enjoyed what was presented in the chapter and felt it was more effective than previous ones. It touched on some really controversial issues and I found them valuable. I feel like I have a lot more to say about these topics, but I at least got to put in on the ones I felt were the most important.

Reading Reflection #6

“The undeniable fact about the American health care system is that the poorer you are and the darker your skin, the worse the health care you’ll receive.”
The chapter this time was about healthcare in and out of the U.S. It talks about equality in the health care system and how only those who can pay for it can get it in today’s world. It is true that people should all get healthcare, but is it realistic? Nothing is done for free and these services cost money. These expectations are not going to happen any time soon, at least with the current policies set in place. Newman should have thought his argument through first before making such unfounded statements.
He also talks about health in a world today, where many countries (including out own) have trouble feeding people and giving them their basic needs to survive. On the other hand, weight issues also arise when diet and exercise are neglected. Everything is a lot easier than it was these days than it was previously and this promotes laziness.
He goes to talk about diseases and efforts to stop them across the globe, but what it all comes down to is money. Without the resources, we cannot do much to stop these kinds of problems. I feel Newman has the right ideas about these problems, but doesn’t take a realistic approach to solving them. It is true that these are things we should all have, but the trouble is that without the money, nothing can change. Newman’s ideas are much too biased to take seriously.