Author Archives: bj130526

The Struggling Middle Class

In class we have been focusing a great deal on the differences in social classes as well as the emerging issues that are becoming more aware within each class. Issues such as the current poverty line America has calculated based on the minimal amount of food is need to survive, as well as the problematic concern over America’s 1%, whom interestingly enough owns the majority of America. Nonetheless, one controversy that largely stood out to me was the disappearance of the middle class. Initially, I didn’t quite think about it as much as I should have however as Professor McKinney continued with his lecture I found the topic to be more and more profound.  There’s no question that America has a lower class, some less fortunate than others, and also has an upper class, some who are also more fortunate than others, oddly enough. However, what about everyone else who falls in between? As oppose to the upper class and the lower class, where we can easily distinguish between the two social classed, the middle class as we know are slowly beginning to acknowledge themselves as an “upper-lower class.”

When we think of someone who is considered to be of the middle class, assuming we’re only judging based on their income and style of life, we imagine a family that isn’t struggling financially, yet aren’t living a lavish lifestyle either. In other words, for the past few decades the middle class has always been the class who lived “comfortably.”  They owned a home and didn’t struggle to pay for their over head, may have owned a car or two that wasn’t a struggle to maintain either, and were sending their children away for college.

However, contrary to popular belief, that style of living doesn’t quite exist any longer. As the video above shows, while the middle class family household income has been fairly consistent over the past few years, the cost of their overall living as sky rocketed. The cost of living has increased 56%, the cost of education has also risen. Thus, the income that allowed middle class families to live comfortable years ago, is now causing them to struggle.

Where r

Yeah T

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No Text is Worth Dying Over

One particular topic that grasped my attention from our class discussion on Chapter 9 was the issues surrounding social dilemmas – when individuals pursue their short-term interest which can potentially result in society’s long-term ruin – where the general public may unknowingly cause a severe amount of damage to society by performing in their everyday norms. Though we may not be conscious of our actions at that present moment, everything thing we “choose” to do has the likelihood of causing detrimental effects to society as a whole.

Such as throwing garbage on the streets, despite the fact that we may only look at the issue has we may not want to hold on to garbage or there isn’t a trash can in near site, if everyone thought this same way, the world we live in would be an unsanitary place. Likewise, if one us felt it makes no logical sense of paying taxes since they never call 911, they don’t have children enrolled in school and they don’t own  a car so the conditions of the roads doesn’t faze them.  Consequently, if we all so happened to live that same life and felt that same way then what would happen to those who did need the services offered by calling 911 or do use a car to drive from place to place. In short, though we may not realize it, some of our short-term actions can and HAVE caused horrendous effects.

In the video above are some commercial clips and a documentary of people whose lives have been alarmingly affected by ONE in individual whose chose to send a simple text while driving. Some text has simple has “Yeah” and “Where r” have caused individuals to lose their lives and suffer from permanent life altering injuries.  As oppose to waiting until they reached their destination, of even just waiting until they reached a stop light, some of us choose to answer a text that as no form of relevance and causing a severe amount of damage and pain to others. One text causes people to lose their lives, which cause families to live in unbearable pain, which may also cause those families to perform in uncharacteristic actions that may affect others. Hence, a mere “Yeah T” can result in a chain reaction of unfortunate situations that weren’t definitely not intended at the moment.

Jillian Michaels ruins their First Impression

We’ve all attempted to create the finest first impressions on those who we feel are imperative to our benefit. However, whether or not we thrive or fail are determined by those we try to make an impression on. Whether it’s the first day of class, the first day at work, the first date, or the first encounter we have with anyone where we feel our best vitally needs to be shown. Needless to say, though we may feel we look our absolute best and having the greatest conversation, the significant other may feel the complete opposite and can read through our “true colors.” Likewise on the first day of work or class, we may think we performing to or best abilities or and showing how studious and attentive we are, however our employer or professor may be able to read directly through our false impression, as a result doing far more harm than good.

Hence, though we may feel our first impression is indeed the best impression we can create, it is ultimately determined by those we’ve trying to induce. Depending on whom they are or the situation, either things that have worked successfully on others in the past may not be as charming, or similar to David Newman’s example in chapter six –try to impress in sister-in-law to be by playing basketball- where things can also go complete wrong and what you may have intended to do may have been perceived completely opposite to the other.

In the above video, a group of men who are marketing Jillian Michaels (a successful personal trainer who is famously known as a trainer on the Biggest Loser) GoDaddy.com profile when unexpectedly Jillian Michaels herself walks into the room. As shown and to say the very least, this group of middle aged men are not in the best shape of their life, hence with a woman who is known for being proactive about health and fitness, the first thought that occurred to them in order to impress her was to seem as if they were in some decent shape.  However, as most people we try to impress, Jillian wasn’t buying their front stage impression and comically barged into the room shortly after the group of men entered their back stage impression catching them in the act.  Thus, our first impression can sometimes be our worst impression.

Chilrden Do What They See

One of the most captivating topics we’ve discussed this week is the controversial concept of “Nature vs. Nurture. “ Which one is it? Has the society in which we live in molded us into the individuals we have grown to be? Or have we develop into who we are today due the upbringing of our parents? Some may argue behind the concept of “Nurture;” those who have raised us have had a significant impact on our personalities, traits and characteristics. Nevertheless, some may feel strongly about the idea of “Nature;” the “culture” in which we are a part of has influenced our perspective on life. In other words, the things we wear, what we eat, how we interact with one another, in sum, our everyday norms are due to the society we live in. First and foremost, I must say I was mainly in the midst of both theories. Though the world around us does have a vital impact on what we’ll become in the future, our perspective of the world depends on the perception we’ve received has a child.  Moreover, “Nature” is more so the dependent variable whereas “Nurture” is the independent variable as to what I’ll lives will shape into.  But more profoundly, after viewing the video above, which shows the outcomes an adult can have on a child, I am leaning more towards the ideas surrounding “Nurture.”

We’ve all heard the phrase “a child’s brain is like a sponge.” Hence as the video shows, children truly do absorb a vast amount of what is taken place around them.  The video, intensely, captures the awareness of children to in fact act out what they see by those closest to them. For instance, the scenes show a child abusing their mother after seeing what appears to be their father performing the same act, or a child smoking a cigarette along with their parent, interestingly enough they even throw some slight humor by showing a child flipping the bird to a driving after road rage between the driver and the child’s mother.  Nevertheless, the way children are nurtured truly does have a strong influence on who they’ll become, regardless the societal factors they’re placed in and culture they live. This video is a true testament to that..

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In chapter two of “Sociology: Exploring the Architecture of Everyday Life,” David Newman informs us on the magnitude those who surround us also have an impact on the lives we’ve lived, live and are going to live in the near future. In other words, everyone from family members, friends, fellow students and colleagues, all have a vital contribution to the configuration of our lives. Lil’ Wayne, who is widely known for his controversial music, reaffirms the idea behind social influence in his music video, “How to Love.”

The music video opens with a mother who becomes apprehensive about aborting her child and later gives birth to her daughter. However, while raising her daughter, the mother undergoes a variety of unfortunate events such as domestic abuse and visiting her incarcerated love one, all of which her daughter has to experience as a child. Furthermore, once the daughter gets sexually assaulted in the “safety” of her own home while her mother was asleep, the chain of ill-fated events begin to shape the life she lives as a teenager. Nonetheless, the daughter matures into a promiscuous teenager who shortly becomes a parent of what appears to be two children. She then “chooses” to become a nightclub dancer which eventually results into the use of drugs and alcohol in addition to prostitution. Above all, after years of witnessing and experiencing unfortunate situations, the daughter soon learns she has become affected with HIV.

On the other hand, when the daughter was raised in a stable home, assuming there weren’t any acts of violence, and witnesses a profound love between her mother and a man, her life takes an entire new course. The daughter becomes a studious teenager, prioritizes school over boys and “chooses” a career path in cosmetology. In short, everything we endure in life has a prolific way of determining the lives we live. Although it may not be as tragic as the example shown by Lil’ Wayne, but it will definitely play a significant role in the lives we “choose” to live.