I recently learned in government class that the government is imposing new laws where people can only vote if they have a photo I.D. This new legislation will leave a lot of potential Democratic voters from voting; many poor, young, and elderly people do not have access to getting such an I.D. since they do not have a driver's license. I was neutral in my views, but I have now leaned more to being against it. It's true that since you have to show an I.D. to get on an airplane, use a credit card, and many other important tasks, then it should make sense to provide one for something so important as voting, but the Republicans are clearly not passing legislation for the right purposes of for the benefit of the public.
I feel that the Republicans are not trying to do what they claim this new legislation to be for. They say that it is to prevent voter fraud. However, from articles that I have read, voter fraud is so minimal that it makes little difference in elections. The Republicans are directly targeting Democrats so that they can win elections since although we cannot assume that the Democratic Party has a monopoly for the elderly, minorities, or the poor, it is true that most of the people in those certain groups support the Democratic Party. I think that this is an unfair way in which the political elite is trying to take advantage of those that are politically inferior.
Friday, October 21, 2011
RE: to Nancy's My Neighbor Totoro
This relationship creates a more of a minor relationship that Miyazaki always creates in almost every movie. -Nancy Tieu
Looking at Nancy's posts brings back many memories of my childhood. My Neighbor Totoro is one of my favorite films of all times; I used to have to DVD and watch it over and over again, but I lost it somehow :(. This shows really appealed to me; Totoro and the cat were to big and fluffy. It was interesting how the kids could see the spirits. It shows that kids are capable of seeing things that adults cannot. My favorite parts were when Totoro helped the two sisters to overcome their obstacles. He helped their plants that were showing no signs of growth to sprout. It was touching how the two sisters got into a fight and the Totoro and his friends helped the older one find the younger one who went to deliver somethng to her mom at the hosptal.
I also love all the other films by this director such as Kiki's Delivery Service, Castle in the Sky, Howl's Moving Castle, Porco Rosso, Ponyo, Spirited Away, and Spirited Away. After watching all these I'm not surprised that Hayao Miyazaki is so reknowned. His films have also been translated into many other languages. It is amazing how he can come up with such appealing lots. I also have to mention that the original soundtracks are excellent due to the compositions by Joe Hisaishi. All of Hayao Miyazaki's films are must watches; his films are so creative and intrigung that you get so dragged into them that you will just want to watch them over and over again.
Looking at Nancy's posts brings back many memories of my childhood. My Neighbor Totoro is one of my favorite films of all times; I used to have to DVD and watch it over and over again, but I lost it somehow :(. This shows really appealed to me; Totoro and the cat were to big and fluffy. It was interesting how the kids could see the spirits. It shows that kids are capable of seeing things that adults cannot. My favorite parts were when Totoro helped the two sisters to overcome their obstacles. He helped their plants that were showing no signs of growth to sprout. It was touching how the two sisters got into a fight and the Totoro and his friends helped the older one find the younger one who went to deliver somethng to her mom at the hosptal.
I also love all the other films by this director such as Kiki's Delivery Service, Castle in the Sky, Howl's Moving Castle, Porco Rosso, Ponyo, Spirited Away, and Spirited Away. After watching all these I'm not surprised that Hayao Miyazaki is so reknowned. His films have also been translated into many other languages. It is amazing how he can come up with such appealing lots. I also have to mention that the original soundtracks are excellent due to the compositions by Joe Hisaishi. All of Hayao Miyazaki's films are must watches; his films are so creative and intrigung that you get so dragged into them that you will just want to watch them over and over again.
CE:Anti-government TV channel fined in Venezuela
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/americas/2011/10/20111019111835149737.html
The Venezuluan government is purposely trying to get rid of this last anti-government TV channel. They are trying to do so indirectly by fining it a massive amount of $2.16 million, to fine it out of existence.Though its broadcasts can lead to public anxiety, I think that the public should have the right to know that there are prison riots going on in their nation. It seems like there is nothing wrong with people knowing about riots or maybe I think that becasue the political culture of Venezuela differs greatly from that of the United States. If the government hides things from its people, then it might not be making the right decisions regarding those situations without the influence of public opinion. The government must be doing something wrong or else they should not have to worry about such types of channels.
In the Constitution of the United States, we all have the right to the freedom of the press. However, there are still things that the government does not expose that mostly have to do with foreign policy.It is dfficult to draw the line to what should be allowed for people to see and what shouldn't be allowed since some things could lead to unnecesary panic and undercover work needs to be kept top secret. I wonder what type of people are running the TV channel since they set out to condemn the government. It leads me to question whether they want to overthrow the governemt and start a revolution.
The Venezuluan government is purposely trying to get rid of this last anti-government TV channel. They are trying to do so indirectly by fining it a massive amount of $2.16 million, to fine it out of existence.Though its broadcasts can lead to public anxiety, I think that the public should have the right to know that there are prison riots going on in their nation. It seems like there is nothing wrong with people knowing about riots or maybe I think that becasue the political culture of Venezuela differs greatly from that of the United States. If the government hides things from its people, then it might not be making the right decisions regarding those situations without the influence of public opinion. The government must be doing something wrong or else they should not have to worry about such types of channels.
In the Constitution of the United States, we all have the right to the freedom of the press. However, there are still things that the government does not expose that mostly have to do with foreign policy.It is dfficult to draw the line to what should be allowed for people to see and what shouldn't be allowed since some things could lead to unnecesary panic and undercover work needs to be kept top secret. I wonder what type of people are running the TV channel since they set out to condemn the government. It leads me to question whether they want to overthrow the governemt and start a revolution.
Friday, October 14, 2011
Essay on Going for the Look, but Risking Discrimination
In the society we all live in today, where outside beauty is emphasized more than inner beauty, businesses have realized how to utilize that view to their own benefit They have looked at trends and realized that it is profitable to hire those with outer beauty. However, since certain businesses are only hiring certain ethnicities in order to project that image, it has been questioned whether these businesses are discriminating. In the article, Going for the Look, but Risking Discrimination, it says that " hiring attractive people is not necessarily illegal, but discriminating on the basis of age, sex, and ethnicity is." The companies cannot help it that only certain types of people fit their marketing image and their hiring strategies are not exactly discrimination because they have nothing else against other people except that they aren't selling material. Although it might be seen as discrimination in only hiring certain types of peoples, I agree with Cohen that it is a smart move to hire based on image because if is an effective marketing strategy.
Image plays an important role in determining how much certain products can be sold. The differences in the prices of the clothes sold in for example, Walmart, and those of Nordstrom or Neiman Marcus is due to image. When you walk into places that look cheap and wear the clothes there, you do not feel all that glamorous. However, in designer stores, where all the models are what we call chic and all the products are in a fancy arrangement, everyone feels compelled to buy the product so that they can look like a million bucks. Also, chic models are featured in designer magazines such as Bazaar that give the impression to readers that if they have these certain items they can also be beautiful Because of this, Gucci,Louis Vuitton, and other brand items that are considered designer items can be sold at the price of thousands of dollars. This is beneficial for businesses because they can make a lot of money from items that do not take much to produce and also come from cheap labor probably. No one buys those bags because they are of particular good quality but just because the brand name tells others that you are "in" and that you are possibly rich.
Looks are attractive to the eyes; that is human nature since it is the strongest sense and will not likely be subject to change. The first impression that someone always gets from another person is fbased on the way they look. Everyone basically has the same view on what is pretty and what is not and that view influences their decisions on what to buy. In a society where most people care about what they look like, it is essential for companies to portray an image that is attractive and makes the person want to look that certain way. Abercrombie and Fitch is an example of a store that excels at doing this. They hire buff guys and attractive white girls to portray a preppy, American style to be models and sellers. They also attract customers by appealing to another important human sense, smell; they spray the store with an intriguing perfume. When girls see good looking guys, they would want to walk into the store to check them out and the same for guys toward girls. This gives them an opportunity to also look at the clothes at the same time. This leads to increases in sales that generate profit and future profit. For the future profit, I mean that if many people go to a certain store, it would soon turn into a trend. Those that shop at the store would influence their friends to do so too.
In some cases, businesses have to hire for image. If they do not do so, things become awkward and may not reflect a business's culture. Since the United States is a diverse country with many ethnicities, this situation applies directly to this nation. Throuhout ths country, there are many restaurants that are designated to sell certain types of food such as Japanese, Chinese, Mexican, and many others. There are also areas that are designated to certain cultures such as Chinatown and Japantown. When customers walk in to those restaurants or areas, they immediately think that they should see people of a certain ethnicity working there. Also, the setup of the table and other decorations also seeks to portray a cultural image that influenced people's views. Ths might seem stereotypical, but it has its practcalities. This cultural image gives the consumer an impression that the food made or the products sold are authentic, which is the whole reason that they visit those cultural places in the first place, which is to get a taste of other cultures.
Cohen is correct in that hiring for image is essential for good business. It must be effective since all businesses pursue to do so. Hiring for image leads to the increased prices of product, increased sales of products, and can give the impression of authenticity which eventually leads to what businesses want, profit. It also is an important aspect in attracting the teenager group which is a large portion of consumers; Teens are well known for wanting to have a good image due to peer pressure and to be popular at school. The claim that businesses are discriminating are unreasonable; they may only be hiring certain types of people , but that is uncontrollable in pursuing to satisfy their customers' wants and needs. They are only trying to do what they think will generate the most profit. If most people ask themselves, they would rather choose a place with good looking people than without. However, although it is beneficial for companies, the question of whether is it moral is another question. Is it right to not give others a chance just because they are not attractive even if they have more experience? That's a very deep question that I think is very debatable.
Image plays an important role in determining how much certain products can be sold. The differences in the prices of the clothes sold in for example, Walmart, and those of Nordstrom or Neiman Marcus is due to image. When you walk into places that look cheap and wear the clothes there, you do not feel all that glamorous. However, in designer stores, where all the models are what we call chic and all the products are in a fancy arrangement, everyone feels compelled to buy the product so that they can look like a million bucks. Also, chic models are featured in designer magazines such as Bazaar that give the impression to readers that if they have these certain items they can also be beautiful Because of this, Gucci,Louis Vuitton, and other brand items that are considered designer items can be sold at the price of thousands of dollars. This is beneficial for businesses because they can make a lot of money from items that do not take much to produce and also come from cheap labor probably. No one buys those bags because they are of particular good quality but just because the brand name tells others that you are "in" and that you are possibly rich.
Looks are attractive to the eyes; that is human nature since it is the strongest sense and will not likely be subject to change. The first impression that someone always gets from another person is fbased on the way they look. Everyone basically has the same view on what is pretty and what is not and that view influences their decisions on what to buy. In a society where most people care about what they look like, it is essential for companies to portray an image that is attractive and makes the person want to look that certain way. Abercrombie and Fitch is an example of a store that excels at doing this. They hire buff guys and attractive white girls to portray a preppy, American style to be models and sellers. They also attract customers by appealing to another important human sense, smell; they spray the store with an intriguing perfume. When girls see good looking guys, they would want to walk into the store to check them out and the same for guys toward girls. This gives them an opportunity to also look at the clothes at the same time. This leads to increases in sales that generate profit and future profit. For the future profit, I mean that if many people go to a certain store, it would soon turn into a trend. Those that shop at the store would influence their friends to do so too.
In some cases, businesses have to hire for image. If they do not do so, things become awkward and may not reflect a business's culture. Since the United States is a diverse country with many ethnicities, this situation applies directly to this nation. Throuhout ths country, there are many restaurants that are designated to sell certain types of food such as Japanese, Chinese, Mexican, and many others. There are also areas that are designated to certain cultures such as Chinatown and Japantown. When customers walk in to those restaurants or areas, they immediately think that they should see people of a certain ethnicity working there. Also, the setup of the table and other decorations also seeks to portray a cultural image that influenced people's views. Ths might seem stereotypical, but it has its practcalities. This cultural image gives the consumer an impression that the food made or the products sold are authentic, which is the whole reason that they visit those cultural places in the first place, which is to get a taste of other cultures.
Cohen is correct in that hiring for image is essential for good business. It must be effective since all businesses pursue to do so. Hiring for image leads to the increased prices of product, increased sales of products, and can give the impression of authenticity which eventually leads to what businesses want, profit. It also is an important aspect in attracting the teenager group which is a large portion of consumers; Teens are well known for wanting to have a good image due to peer pressure and to be popular at school. The claim that businesses are discriminating are unreasonable; they may only be hiring certain types of people , but that is uncontrollable in pursuing to satisfy their customers' wants and needs. They are only trying to do what they think will generate the most profit. If most people ask themselves, they would rather choose a place with good looking people than without. However, although it is beneficial for companies, the question of whether is it moral is another question. Is it right to not give others a chance just because they are not attractive even if they have more experience? That's a very deep question that I think is very debatable.
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Free: A response to the video on Occupy Oakland
From the video, that I watched today in English class, I recall that Zac said that he believes that the United States should not have a representative democracy because it has failed to represent the people, and instead we should have a pure direct democracy. I do not really agree with that because from what I learned in government class, it would be inefficient and it would not protect minority rights. In a direct democracy, everyone would be able to vote in every single matter. If national votes were taken on a daily basis, then issues would be stagnant. Also, if everything was based on majority rule, then minorities would definitely be at a disadvantage. Say, if people wanted to get rid of all people in a general category, that would be unjust. This would lead to "mob rule". The government was not made to satisfy the opinions of the public, but to do what it takes even against people's wishes to make the public better.
In response to the video, I think that corporations should be taxed higher. From a video that I watched on Elizabeth Warren, she said that millionaires and billionaire, should be obligated to give back because without other people they would have never reached the positions that they were in now. It is definitely not fair that such a small population has a big chunk of the money when there are people that are practically on the brink of survival. However, one can also argue that it would be a bad idea to tax corporations because that would discourage them from hiring more workers. I think that that is a poor argument since most corporations are just hoarding money that could be used to hire more people. If the government raises taxes, they can use that money to sponsor more public jobs.
In response to the video, I think that corporations should be taxed higher. From a video that I watched on Elizabeth Warren, she said that millionaires and billionaire, should be obligated to give back because without other people they would have never reached the positions that they were in now. It is definitely not fair that such a small population has a big chunk of the money when there are people that are practically on the brink of survival. However, one can also argue that it would be a bad idea to tax corporations because that would discourage them from hiring more workers. I think that that is a poor argument since most corporations are just hoarding money that could be used to hire more people. If the government raises taxes, they can use that money to sponsor more public jobs.
RE: to Angela's "Friend"
"There was sometimes that I see a couple ofpeople as good friends (or even important friends), but found out that they speakill of me behind my back. That was a horrible feeling, feels like some one stabhardly on my back with a knife, some one that I do not expect." -Angela Zhou
http://1socs.blogspot.com/2011/09/re-friends.html
Getting betrayed by your friend, especially your best friend, is one of the worst feelings in the world. I am sorry that Angela had to experience that and I can relate to her because I have experienced those types of situations too, but I feel that it is too personal to tell them aloud. It really takes an emotional toll on me and I feel like it is something that I will never forget for the rest of my life. I will never feel the same about that person again. I have to admit that I am a hypocrite though; even though I hurt a lot from other talking behind my back, I have to say that there are situations where I do that too. Sometimes I am two-faced, but
I hope that I can get rid of that habit.
Being betrayed makes me feel ignorant and stupid. When you are all smiling at a person and thinking that this person is so nice, you would never think that they actually don't like you. It also makes me question that maybe its not his/her fault, maybe its mines. Maybe I am mean, insensitive, and just not a good friend in general. I hope to better myself so that others will have nothing bad to say about me. I also hope that the people that I will be friends with in the future will be genuine friends that don't take that stab at me. However, I am also thankful that right now, I am pretty confident that most of my friends are genuine ones :).
http://1socs.blogspot.com/2011/09/re-friends.html
Getting betrayed by your friend, especially your best friend, is one of the worst feelings in the world. I am sorry that Angela had to experience that and I can relate to her because I have experienced those types of situations too, but I feel that it is too personal to tell them aloud. It really takes an emotional toll on me and I feel like it is something that I will never forget for the rest of my life. I will never feel the same about that person again. I have to admit that I am a hypocrite though; even though I hurt a lot from other talking behind my back, I have to say that there are situations where I do that too. Sometimes I am two-faced, but
I hope that I can get rid of that habit.
Being betrayed makes me feel ignorant and stupid. When you are all smiling at a person and thinking that this person is so nice, you would never think that they actually don't like you. It also makes me question that maybe its not his/her fault, maybe its mines. Maybe I am mean, insensitive, and just not a good friend in general. I hope to better myself so that others will have nothing bad to say about me. I also hope that the people that I will be friends with in the future will be genuine friends that don't take that stab at me. However, I am also thankful that right now, I am pretty confident that most of my friends are genuine ones :).
CE: Trial of 'underwear' bomber begins in US
http://english.aljazeera.net//news/americas/2011/10/2011101122443158336.html
Reading this makes me feel ignorant because I have no idea of the things that are going on in the world around me. I had no idea that such an event had happened back in 2009. This makes me question whether the airport security is tight enough these days. Most people think that it is already a hassle to be checked so thoroughly and you are only allowed to bring a limited amount of liquid with you in your luggage. With a bomb being able to slip by security, I might think that sooner of later, they are gonna check people's clothing thoroughly also.
I do not understand how Al-Qaeda is able to convince people to give up their lives in these situations and that of 9/11. I wonder what kind of ideology must be imposed to them for them to think that it is right to take so many people's lives. Luckily, the plan backfired, which I think is due to karma. Al-Qaeda tried to inflict damage at its peak by choosing to have those people die on Christmas day which would be especially devastating to family members; those people were probably going back home to spend the holidays with their family.I noticed that the suicide bomber was a man from Nigeria and that does not make much sense to me because from what I know, Al-Qaeda only involves the Middle East. I guess that shows that many countries have bad relations with the United States, probably because it exercises so much police power in the world.
Reading this makes me feel ignorant because I have no idea of the things that are going on in the world around me. I had no idea that such an event had happened back in 2009. This makes me question whether the airport security is tight enough these days. Most people think that it is already a hassle to be checked so thoroughly and you are only allowed to bring a limited amount of liquid with you in your luggage. With a bomb being able to slip by security, I might think that sooner of later, they are gonna check people's clothing thoroughly also.
I do not understand how Al-Qaeda is able to convince people to give up their lives in these situations and that of 9/11. I wonder what kind of ideology must be imposed to them for them to think that it is right to take so many people's lives. Luckily, the plan backfired, which I think is due to karma. Al-Qaeda tried to inflict damage at its peak by choosing to have those people die on Christmas day which would be especially devastating to family members; those people were probably going back home to spend the holidays with their family.I noticed that the suicide bomber was a man from Nigeria and that does not make much sense to me because from what I know, Al-Qaeda only involves the Middle East. I guess that shows that many countries have bad relations with the United States, probably because it exercises so much police power in the world.
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