Rich vs poor

This week in sociology we focused on differences in income rates and the huge gaps between the rich and the poor. I was really surprised to find out that where we live, we are in the top 5% of the united stste's income. Also, when compared to the rest of the world, americans are richer than 95% of the worlds population. These statistics were really shocking and scary because it made everyone realize how sheltered we are from the rest of the world. A lot of us only look up when thinking about social class an forget about everyone living on less than a dollar a day. Maybe if we all did a little more to help the less fortunate, we could change the gap between the rich and poor.

Poor vs. Rich

During sociology this week, we've been learning about how certain groups of people are almost set up for failure right at birth. Our society guarantees success for the elite and the rich. However, for all the normal people who don't meet these standards- life is difficult. For example, someone living in an upperclass suburb is less likely to get in trouble for being involved in drugs than someone living in the projects. This is because those living in lower class societies are initially more suspected of being involved in such acitivity. People in lower social classes are given less opportunities than their rich counterparts and as a result, it is much harder for them to rise above and achieve a greater level of success in their lives. We also read about what life was like in jail and how those who end up in jail almost always go back. Society has labeled these criminals as criminals for life. So, instead of correcting their behavior, jails serve as environments that inevitably suck in those more susceptible to this kind of a life (the lower class). I wish this wasn't the case for most societies, but, sadly, individuals in lower classes are almost always stuck. I hope that sometime in the near future, our government will develop new programs to help these people or that the rich will eventually develop the sympathy to see the poverty around them.

Corrupted Research

During sociology this week we focused mainly on a certain article in class. The article we read for this week dealt with reasons why white middle class males kill. Most researchers believe that these killing sprees go on due to mental issues. However, recent sociological research has led observers to believe otherwise. These children are raised in environments that cultivate this sort of behavior. The boys are usually facing some kind of bullying during school and come home to parents who promote violent habits. Also, the boys living in these environments are taught to always conform and follow the social norm. To those around them, it isn't alright to look or act abnormal. Many of kids can't handle this level of pressure and as a result, face abuse from those commenting on their abnormalities. It isn't always the kids themselves who are mentally insane, instead, it actually has more do with these aspects of their lives. In a lot of the shooting cases, the students didn't show any remorse after what they had done. They targeted the people in their lives who had done them wrong and these people were usually their attackers or bullies. I'm not trying to make it seem like the events going on in these situations should be deemed as okay because of the environment the boys grew up in. I'm just offering a reason for WHY this happened. Now, hopefully, school officials will use this information to learn how to prevent shootings.

A damaging culture

This week we watched a really interesting video in sociology. It focused on how the media effects us negatively. The main speaker showed her audience various examples of media images that severely damage female self esteem. She explained to us that the media brainwashes us into believing that the only way to be beautiful is to be light skinned, skinny, and much more. A lot of the aspects are just plain unattainable. For example, I'm black, so I know there is no way I will look like the light skinned girls in all of these high fashion magazines. I'm also not annorexic like these models, so I don't look rail thin like them. But, the speaker explained to us that even trying to look this way is ridiculous. We all look different and I definitely think it's better that way. I hope the media eventually finds a way to stop obectifying women and focusing on this image of beauty that isn't even realistic. Maybe then we will see a decrease disorders related to self esteem and an increase in female confidence.

Shriners

This past Wednesday, I went on another Shriners trip. It was really fun and I learned a new wheel chair game, "murder ball." This is actually just another name for rugby. Before that, I had no idea it was possible for kids in wheel chairs to play rugby. But, these young kids we were playing with were really good. I also found another friend on this trip. She was only 6 years old and she was at the hospital with her grandmother. While I played candy land with her, I found out that they were actually from Louisianna. The grandmother told me all about te special celebrations they do there- like mardi gras. I ended up finding out a lot about people much different from me. They had really southern accents and didn't like the cold much, but I found out that I was still able to continue an enagaging conversation with them.