Race

Even though we have only watched the film Crash for one day so far, it is clear that racism is the main theme. Blacks, whites, Hispanics, Asians and more are all targeted for their race, while having their own prejudices as well. It's sad to think that this is what America is actually like, because there is so much racism and even violence occurring in the film. One example is when Sandra Bullock's character assumes the man changing her locks is going to give her key to his friends so they can rob her. In reality, we see that the man is hurt by Bullock and is a hardworker and a loving father who would never do anything to hurt Bullock or anyone else. Many Americans are truly not sociologically mindful and don't think about how others are affected by what these people say and do. I myself have often heard many kids and even adults being clearly racists and giving into hurtful stereotypes. One time when I was in the car with my friends we saw an Asian woman in an accident on the side of the road and one of my friends went on to say how they weren't surprised it was an Asian since they are typically such poor drivers. It is a shame to hear people being so openly racist and allowing stereotypes to be so prevalent in today's society. Many people don't stop to think about how they would feel if they were the ones being targeted for their race, which is something people have no control over and don't deserve to be ridiculed for. I feel that it is important for Americans to be more aware of other races and try harder to tolerate others and try to ignore stereotypes and give everybody a fair chance, regardless of their race.

Community Service

For my community service I chose to volunteer at a temple. I had other hours because I am a Class Board officer, but that isn't as meaningful to me as this volunteering was. Temple B'nai Shalom is not the temple that my family and I belong to, so it was more out of my comfort zone that it would have been to volunteer at my temple. On select Saturdays I helped work in the office, set up for Kiddushes, which are receptions held after services, and did what ever was asked of me. Setting up for the Kiddushes took some time, because I had to get food ready for a lot of hungry congregants. However I thought it was rewarding to be so heavily thanked and appreciated by many different people. The temple is fairly small, so I got to know most of the paid workers on a more personal level. At the temple I belong to the atmosphere is much different because it is so large and it is hard to make real personal connections in a congregation with so many people. Volunteering at B'nai Shalom felt special to me because its size allows everyone at the temple to know each other and helped make a more positive atmosphere and experience for me. Before my grandma became ill, she worked at this temple, so I felt that it was a really rewarding experience to get to see what she normally would do when she was able to attend work. Everyone treated me well because they know my grandma and welcomed me into their temple with open arms. Even though for my community service I didn't get to help people with disadvantages, or help people who were severely in need, I still think I learned a lot. Helping people at all and doing it out of the goodness of my heart was great because I felt really good after I left and thought about making a difference. I learned from this that you don't need to have a grand gesture to make a difference and even the little things you do count.

Congregation B'nai Shalom
701 W Aptakisic Rd
March 19, April 2nd 10am-2pm
Marsha Schelsky, 847-415-1370

Class Interaction

In the film we watched in class, it was interesting to see how people of different classes lived their lives and acted. However, what I found to be most interesting was seeing the way people felt about others in different classes. It was fascinating to hear nearly every rich person interviewed say that they only would like to associate with people who are just like them and that they don't understand, nor do they care to understand, people of different lower societal statuses. The one woman who was getting lessons on how to appear "high class" actually made me laugh. It seemed rather ridiculous that there was a woman actually getting paid to teach someone how to appear classier and wealthier than she was and probably would ever be. Americans greatly value status and materialism, so it makes sense that this woman would try to come off as something she isn't. I think this idea can be applied to my life, but also most other high schoolers. In my opinion, most people can relate to me when I say that I know plenty of "social climbers", or kids who were never satisfied with where they stood on the popularity totem pole. Many of my good friends from junior high felt that they were unsatisfied with their social status and needed to inch their way up to the "cooler" kids, even though a school as big as ours doesn't actually have a "cool" clique. In my opinion it's pointless for people to care so much about their social ranking and I believe that people would be much happier if they accepted who they truly are. If you can manage to be happy with the place you live, the friends you have, and the material items you possess, why feel the need to be better, cooler, richer, or anything of that nature? Be happy with who you are and what you have!

Justice System

The justice system in the United States seems to work against criminals in every single way. While more people who are jailed deserve to be, the odds will never be in their favor for nearly the rest of their lives. A startling statistic shows that 2/3 inmates will end up back in jail shortly after their release, and many people end up going back numerous times. Prisoners get stuck in jail's vicious cycle and the government doesn't seem to be doing anything to prevent this. My aunt and uncle used to work in a police department for over 15 years each. I visited them often, heard many stories, and even got to sit in a jail cell and see what it was like for prisoners who have to live their. From my aunt and uncle I learned how people at the station would come to know many prisoners because they were repeat offenders and were constantly getting in trouble. It's sad to see how these people can't ever seem to get their lives on track once they leave jail and aren't provided nearly any services to help them get rehabilitated and readjusted in the real world. I feel that it would be great if the government could try in some way to help inmates who really have a desire to better themselves so they can be productive members of society in the future.

Saints and Roughnecks

The two different groups, Saints and Roughnecks, will most likely always exist in high schools. Roughnecks are the "bad" kids with a reputation for always being in trouble, whether it be in school or outside of it. Saints are the kids that are well-liked, athletic, involved, and everyone thinks are model children. In reality, these kids are just as bad and act out just as much as Roughnecks, but it goes unnoticed or is ignored. When these kids get older, they learn to take on the roles that society has told them to, and so the Roughnecks will most likely end up not doing much with their lives, while the Saints will go on to succeed and be average citizens. I can definitely picture kids right now that have been in my classes at school who are both Saints and Roughnecks. I feel that everyone knows of notorious trouble makers and also knows "good" kids who get away with doing what the Roughnecks get caught for. I believe that while some Roughnecks may really just be bad kids, many feel that society dictates what they have to be and shapes who they are for the rest of their lives. If people ignore the wrongdoings of some kids and punish those of others, the kids who are always getting noticed and have poor reputations will eventually think that they have to keep those reputations and act out even more.

Age of Independence

Teenagers have always struggled to figure out what is expected of them and how they should behave on a daily basis. Adults expect teens to be very passive and refrain from all sexual activity, as well as be irresponsible and reckless. However, teens today are more assertive, challenge adults, and are often engaging in sexual activity much before adults would ever like to recognize or admit. It is difficult for teenagers to figure out whether they should listen to adults and act the way they tell them to, especially since adults do the complete opposite of what they expect teens to do. I usually have weekly battles with my parents over how they want me to act and how I want to act. One of our more recent fights was over being allowed to go to a concert in Milwaukee and my parents' concern for me being on the road at night being "reckless". I feel that parents and kids are always going to fight over how teens are supposed to act, mainly because adults are from a different generation that has very different ideals and values than the teens in today's society.

Body Image and the Media

The huge impact that the media has today on women is extremely negative and damaging to their self-esteem and body image. Every commercial and infomercial on t.v., in magazines, on billboards, on pop-up computer ads, and more are telling women how they should change their bodies and what they can use to do so. It is sad to see just how many forms of media are constantly telling women they aren't good enough and should change to either get more friends, find a man, or be happier with themselves. What's odd is that one of Americans' biggest values is individualism or independence, but these ads teach women to be anything but different. The media today is telling women to become clones of one other with perfect physical features, which is not in any way promoting women to be individuals. When I was younger, I can remember numerous occasions where my older sister would look at the women in magazine advertisements and say, "I want to look like THAT!" Little did she know that the women in those ads don't even look like that. Women base what they should look and be like off of computer generated images that are in no way real. How can we look like models if the models themselves aren't actually that pretty and perfect? It would be ideal if American women would take a step back and realize that there is no such thing as "perfect" and they should be happy and comfortable with themselves just the way they are.

The Un-TV and Consuming Kids

Most Americans don't realize how engulfed they really are in consumer culture, but the truth is that nearly every average American is surrounded by media influence 24/7. The statistic that more homes in American have a television set than a telephone is mind-blowing. People care more about watching their favorite shows mindlessly for hours than communicating with other real human beings. The Un-TV activity was a great way to see how people can sit around the television for hours and become mesmerized. Watching so much television causes us to be exposed to a greater amount of advertising, product placement, and other tricks of the marketers to make us want to buy their products. The same can be said for kids watching TV, as mentioned in the video Consuming Kids. Children are much more vulnerable to advertising and fall into the trap of marketers more easily because their brains are like sponges and absorb these messages better than adults. This relates to socialization because everything the media shows and teaches us shapes who we are and influences what we believe and what we like or want. When I was in 1st grade I used to have a blue Rugrats lunch-box that I loved and refused to go to school without. I used to act out Rugrats scenes with it and it was a huge hit at my table full of my 6 year old classmates. Thinking back on this, I know that the lunch-box was no different than any other lunch-box and I too had fallen into marketers' trap by thinking I had to have the Rugrats lunch-box because it was the "best".

The Growing Man

Whether people want to believe it or not, humans instinctually rely on others to survive. As babies, we need constant human interaction so we can grow up and be able to make proper connections and bonds for the rest of our lives. When we get older, we rely on others to share good times with us and to be there to help us during the bad. As we approach the end of our lives, we rely on others to keep us strong and help us make it to the end. Many people dislike the idea of relying so heavily on others, because one thing that Americans value greatly is our independence. Independence is one of the many values that our society cherishes heavily, because people like keeping to themselves and pride themselves on being able to handle their lives and be successful without help from anyone else in a private manner. A connection I can make to this concept involves my grandma. Her father died when she was only 17 years old, and she had to take care of the rest of her family and her mother until the end of my great-grandma's life. Throughout her entire life she has always prided herself on being so strong and independent. She recently fell very ill and now relies on my family to help her do even the most basic things that she never needed help with prior to her sickness. It took going through numerous surgeries and being forced to get help from others for her to realize that everyone needs the help of others at some point; that's just the way we are made.

Tuesdays with Morrie-Work

In Tuesdays with Morrie, the main character Mitch is so wrapped up in his job that he misses out on the great things in life. Mitch never can commit to marriage with his long-time girlfriend because his job is more important and he never has time for her because he is always busy working and making deadlines. At his graduation, Mitch promises his professor Morrie that he will keep in touch, but never finds time to do so due to his job until he finds out the Morrie is dying. This shows how much Americans value materialism and only focus on getting a good job and making a lot of money. I can somewhat relate to Mitch because I greatly value hard work and success and I always have. All my life I have pushed myself in school and worked as hard as I possibly could to get good grades. My parents have always told me that it's all right to take a break every now and then, but I personally have never let myself do less than my best because it isn't who I am. Even though I care so much about success and school, I know that it isn't worth it to let the other aspects of life pass me by, so I have always tried to find a balance between pushing myself in school and finding joy elsewhere in life. Success doesn't always come from making a lot of money or climbing a corporate ladder; sometimes success comes from living a happy and healthy life and simply doing what you love.

Our Subculture

Within every culture there are subcultures that have specific aspects that makes them stand apart from all of the others. Our school has certain traits that make it unique from other schools and make it a place that other schools look up to and want to visit. The values specific to our school shape every student and allow us to stand apart from kids that go to different schools. Our material culture, taboos, language, and more are all unique and things that mainly only we can associate with, since we are submerged in this subculture 5 days a week. One subculture that I am a part of is my religion: Judaism. Being Jewish sets me apart from many other people who have a different religion than I do because all religions believe different things and have their own traditions and practices. Being a Jew means that unlike Christians, I have been taught that "hell" doesn't exist. Many people might not know this belief of Jewish people but it's an interesting fact when you compare it to other religions that strongly believe your actions can send you to such a place in the afterlife. This fact alone doesn't define me, but being Jewish and sticking to my religion has shaped me differently than people of other religions, since religion is something that most people are always surrounded by.

Language

It's really interesting to think about all of the different countries in the world and how each one has one or many of their own languages spoken and all have different cultures. I think it is virtually impossible for someone to be able to properly communicate with and understand people from all of these different places. As we learned in class, something as simple as the "okay" hand gesture that Americans use means something extremely different and rather offensive to Italians. Most Americans, however, probably have no idea that this is the case and might give this gesture to an Italian without even thinking twice about it. Also, it is hard to think that some languages have words that don't even translate to English. We just assume that since we are Americans our language covers everything, but the truth is that many languages happen to have words that are not expressed in English. When I was in junior high I was talking to a friend who spoke Russian and she was trying to tell me a story about her family that she thought was hilarious. As the story went on, I found that it was going to be nearly impossible for her to tell it because she just could not figure out how to tell me what her family members said in English, because they also spoke Russian. It's important for people to be aware of how many different cultures there are out there and how many different languages other people speak. By being more socially aware, people from very different cultures can communicate better and learn how to understand one another in a simpler manner.

A Bronx Tale

The movie A Bronx Tale is a great story that tells a lot about how one's surroundings and world can greatly influence who they are. The neighborhood that Calogero is from was most likely formed when a group of Italians moved in and the generations of their families to follow continued to stay there and never leave. It is inevitable to have different groups within a neighborhood, because not every person is the same, and similar people will always stick together. One gang most likely formed a long time before Sonny's gang came along and the men kept the business in their families and continued the tradition. The people who chose to live an honest life were probably always on the outside since the formation of the neighborhood. Living next to Sonny's bar but having a dad uninvolved with Sonny's men and activities, Calogero was thrown in the middle of these two lifestyles within his world. Having to balance being an honest man and being a part of Sonny's gang is most likely something that many men before him had to deal with. In the end, Calogero turned out being a good kid and was extremely lucky that he did since he was a part of both Sonny's group and the group his father wanted him to be in. I feel that this scenario is nothing like my like or neighborhood at all. First off, my neighborhood is very diverse and has families of all races, ethnicities, and religions. Nobody "runs" the neighborhood and has more control than anyone else, and everyone is mainly shaped by their families and personal lives, not by what goes on in the neighborhood. I know personally that I am shaped more by my family, friends, activities, and religion than my neighborhood, even though many of my friends to live or have lived in my neighborhood.

Complex You

Whether people realize it or not, we are all part of many different groups that make us who we are, and have shaped us all of our lives. Friends, family, activities, and race are all examples of the groups that people are a part of, and most likely don't even realize. These groups don't necessarily define us, but they all influence who we are and who we become. People and things that we are constantly surrounded by will naturally end up shaping, or affecting, us whether it be positively or negatively. One group that I feel has shaped me the most is Judaism.  My friends might change and in the future I may switch clubs or sports, but I will be Jewish for as long as I live. Living in this community and going to Stevenson, I am surrounded by other Jewish people, and many of my friends are Jewish as well. Regardless of how often I go to temple or how often I pray, I am still Jewish and believe in everything that I have been taught from my religion. Personally, I have never faced any major conflicts in this group, but my sister has. When she first entered the University of Iowa as a freshman, her roommate, who is from Iowa, could count the number of Jews she had met before on one hand. Her roommate was accepting, but just couldn't understand why our family doesn't have a Christmas tree, or grasp the concept that we don't go to Church. I feel that it is my responsibility to stand by my religion and make sure others understand and accept it for as long as I live. This relates back to sociological mindfulness because all people should try to understand the beliefs and ways of those around them to create a world full of empathy and allow people to be enlightened.

Snowpocalypse

I think it's safe to say that I was as shocked as most other students and teachers at Stevenson that the storm hit as hard as it did. What was far more shocking was the fact that we got not one, but two days off of school! Seeing as how this storm was so bad and many people were even trapped in their homes, you would assume that the snow would have brought people in a neighborhood or community together. Unfortunately, I never saw this happening in my neighborhood, and my family members surely didn't see it either. My grandma lives down the street from my aunt and uncle, and at the moment she is currently staying at their house because of a recent illness. She's a widow and it would be too hard for her to get better and take care of herself in her own house without any help. After the storm hit, her neighbor whose house hers is connected to decided to only have their snowplow service plow her driveway and not my grandma's, even though they are literally connected. It blows my mind that someone my grandma has been friends with for so long would not help her out at all, especially since my aunt and uncle needed to get into my grandma's house but were blocked by a 3 foot wall of snow. This relates back to the idea that people are not sociologically mindful and they only care about themselves and don't think how their actions will affect others. It is events such as these that remind me how so many people are only interested in themselves and rarely think about helping or being there for others.

Sociological Mindfulness

Michael Schwalbe defines sociological mindfulness as, "the practice of tuning-in to how the social world works." He discusses how few people in today's world are sociologically mindful for various reasons. I agree with nearly everything that Schwalbe has to say on this subject matter. People are often too busy to take the time and think about how their actions affect others and how everybody's lives are intertwined. In addition, from a very early age people learn to focus mainly on themselves and only worry about things they know they have control over. It seems as if people are almost trained to be blind to the outside world and not to take the time to think about others, or actually try to fix problems that may seem difficult to fix, but are surely fixable. Thus far in my life, there have many occasions where people, and usually even my friends, are completely ignorant to how their words and actions affect the people around them, and even affect me. Many of my friends make jokes that play on stereotypes, even if the jokes are related to a group of people, or people of a certain race, that are present at the time. I have heard many Jewish jokes being told not only in front of me, but to me. Since I'm Jewish and all of my friends are aware of this, I'm not too sure why they think it is a good idea to be making those jokes to me of all people. The jokes don't really bother me anymore because I know my friends accept my religion and are most likely only kidding, but there is no doubt in my mind that the jokes offend plenty of other people that hear them. I think that the world would be a much better place if everyone could start to think less about themselves and more about others and how those people are affected by their actions. If Schwalbe's lessons could be taught to more people, there would be an epidemic of awareness that would only enlighten the minds of the somewhat ignorant humans that are living among us today.

Silence

After discussing our experience with Sal's silence activity on the first day, the entire class seemed to agree that the silence was awkward. But why was it awkward? What makes people think that silence is such an uncomfortable thing, especially in a classroom? Ever since we were children we have been brainwashed into thinking that if teachers don't get up in front of the class and lecture, or talk the entire time, that something is wrong. To students, silence is unconventional. It's not what is supposed to be. People need to stop having a problem with things, or in this case silence, that are out of the ordinary. Just because we aren't used to something, it isn't automatically bad or unacceptable. This situation is similar to one I was in over winter break. I asked my mom if I was allowed to stay out later than I'm normally allowed to and she didn't respond whatsoever. I am so accustomed to thinking that the "silent treatment" means I've done something wrong, when in reality she said yes shortly after. Humans are trained to think a certain way and often have a hard time adjusting to thinking in new and different ways. The saddest part about this is that most people don't even realize it has happened to them and nearly everyone around them.

Who Am I?

 It's hard to say what defines me as a person, because I rarely stop to think about what interests and qualities make me who I am. One of my biggest passions in life is music. I couldn't imagine life without my iPod and I wish I had more musical talents so I could be around music all the time. Up until freshman year I played piano and focused more on making the music, but now I love listening to other people make it. I could spend hours of my days searching for upcoming bands that I think might become popular, or just groups that I have never heard of before. Needless to say, I'm a music junkie. Starting my freshman year of high school I began to snowboard and fell in love with the sport. I can admit that I'm not very good at it, even after nearly 4 years of learning, but that is irrelevant to me. Snowboarding is relaxing(when I'm not face-planting into the snow) and it provides a necessary escape from the stresses of every day life. I try to live my life based on lessons that my parents have taught me and advice they have given me. Their opinions are extremely important to me, even if I may not let them know that at times, and they have helped me make numerous decisions in my life and have influenced my actions. By the end of my life, I want to be able to say that I lived life to the fullest and always tried my hardest at any task I was given. I always try to give one-hundred and ten percent, because if I don't try my hardest I know I'll regret it later on. Yes I can be hard on myself very often, but I would rather be that way than always wondering what life would be like if I had put more effort into things.