An African American Economy

The Africans were brought to America and striped of their culture. Very few people know that Africans were among the first people to develop civilizations and nation states. They had a good salt and gold trade so their economy was good. Once they arrived to America they were striped of their culture and taught that black was inferior. Kids were separated from their parents as they were treated like cattle and passed from one plantation to the next as slave owners bought and traded slaves. 

America became a large industrial nation-through its doctrine of 200 plus years of slavery, it was thorough its serves and ideology that made the United States what it is today, without it, many people doubt it would have the financial clout that it has today. After the abolishment of slavery many freed became well-educated and invented in products that bettered the American economy and processes. Yes, people lost the free labor in the fields and household, but it's a small price to pay for some the things that came out of the freedom of African Americans. 

After 1865, the Afro Americans were still searching for freedom within human rights which consisted of same pay conditions, without racial segregation, rights to vote, etc. The mainifestation of their voices eventaully broke out through gospel music, blues, jazz and rock n roll, raking in billions of dollars for record companies.One of the many great contribution blacks made to America was through the Arts: music, dance, theatre and later literature, which hence in later years influenced new movements throughout the world.

America is what it is today from the contributions of all its ethnicities. No matter how great or how small. This is what makes us so strong. Our diversity. African Americans played a large part but not the only part and surely not the most important part.

A Material World

This country has always been about materialism since the industrial revolution which has lead to the capitalist title of our economy. Materialism has become a way of life, the more we have the more we want. Where does it end? When is enough, enough? We live in such a specialized economy we have access to things we would never be able to have if we were all self-sufficient producers. As people we access to the the best that money can buy; luxury cars, computers, big flat screen televisions, cellphones, and designer clothing. Many of these items have become a basic necessity or need and have made life comfortable and or convenient for our current society. 

But materialism comes at a high price. The negatives are much harder to see and sometimes take time to accumulate, especially since we are blind as to the production and logistics. This greed and materialism leads the seller to often lie to the buyer who has unreal expectations of what a particular product will deliver. One ends up with personal immorality and the other with dissatisfaction and disappointment and frustration. Because of materialism, many people are constantly searching for the newest and or best thing so they forget to look at what's already there and appreciate it. And because the bar is constantly being raised for what is the newest and best, people become depressed that they're so far behind and can't keep up. This obviously leads to crime, as people try harder and harder to get what they can't afford. In my opinion materialism has caused our society to become more and more depressed and stressed and has made the path to happiness harder to find.

When we realize there is a whole lot more to life than what is seen with the naked eye, then we do not desire the things of this world anymore. Excessive greed and materialism have lead to desires and attachments to that which does not last, wanting more than we need and misinterpreting "wants" as "needs". Materialism has long been a plague that humankind has sought to over come without apparent success.

Week 10 Blog Reviews

Morgan Paulson

Immigration and Cultural Music Trends:

I enjoyed reading your Immigration and Cultural Music Trends post. You started off strong which immediately grabbed my attention and made me want to keep reading. You displayed a nice even flow through-out you're writing, which made it easy to read. I also like that you raised some very interesting points, I can tell that you really understood your subject matter. I noticed that you did not give any current examples in today's music that would back-up your claims, and you also had a few grammar errors with a few misplaced comas, but other than that you did a good job on this post.  

High-Heeled Madness: 

Your High Heeled Madness was very entertaining. The telling of your story flowed nicely and made me feel like I was right there with you. You did a great job describing and sequencing events. I am also tall, 5'10, so I could really relate to your story with the high heel and towering over everyone. Its one of the reasons why I stick to flats, converses, flip-flops, and anything with a low heel. I really enjoyed reading this post. 

April Page 

Product Failure:

I enjoyed reading your Product Failures post. I can really relate to your story about your phone. My phone does some of the same things. I will be talking or texting someone and the next moment I am staring at a blank screen, its one of the worst things about having a cellphone. You did a great job describing your events, it did however get a little confusing at the end. For me it wasn't clear if the guard or the fall was the reason for your teammates broken ankle. But other than that you did a great job with this post. 

Corporations and Creativity

In the past 40 years, the music industry has gone from hundreds if not thousands of regional recording companies searching for local talent played on local radio stations, whereas now there are six main labels that control all national distribution to major record store chains. The major distributors consist of Capitol-EMI, CBS, RCA, Polygram, MCA, and Warner. These record companies have become more concerned with making money than actually making good music. They achieve this by catering to the lowest common denominator. That's why the public continues to steal music from them by downloading songs illegally because who wants to pay for an entire album when there are only 1 or 2 good songs on that album. That's why ipods are so popular because people want to listen to their own music rather than the radio which plays all the same songs that passes off as music these days.

These music chains have such a hold on mainstream music and radio that it is becoming harder for talent to shine. The quality isn't really declining. The problem is that you won't hear many new artists, or older ones for that matter if they don't fit a certain genre that is radio friendly. When you talk about music in the 60s, it was very free form radio. Any half way decent station would be willing to take a chance and play anything that sounded good. Didn't matter who the artist was or what type of music it was. This is how some of the best musicians of the time got to be known. 

It all comes down to money. If a radio station is willing to pass the big bucks for good talent, it's out there waiting to be heard. Sadly money rules the airwaves. It is all about making that almighty dollar, not that it wasn't always like that to some degree, but not at the cost of creativity and producing real quality music. Whatever happened to the good old Rock n' Roll? In the sixities and seventies musicians used to form bands, write songs, tour there butts off, gather a following, and eventually garner the interest of a record company that would help them distribute their sounds.

I think its time that music returned to some of its earlier roots. A time when most of the record companies were ran by people who liked music just as much as the money they could make and this allowed musical creativitiy to flourish. Instead of nowadays, were record compainies are all consumed with big profits.

The Book and the Buck

In today’s society our technology is more advanced than ever before. So far advanced is our society, that we can easily use cell phones to speak to anyone, anywhere and at any time. For example, we can use cell phones while driving, or speak to someone in another country. We can use them in the business world to conduct meetings or to rely vital information to co-workers or to conduct trade with other businesses. Today’s American culture relies heavily on the use of cell phones. The recent growth of  cellular phone usage is a phenomena that defies all gender, racial, and age boundaries. Cell phones are more than just the latest electronic gadget on the market. They are essential parts of our business and personal lives. 

So when my manager Sara bought her "chatty Kathy" of a son a pre-paid cell phone for emergency purposes only. This way, no matter what, her and her husband could reach him. To their surprise, he did a great in using the phone for its intended purpose. Ten minutes lasted all the way up until the expiration date. Those minutes were due to expire on September 9th. So that day, she picked up a pre-paid card. Her son added the minutes, they were accepted, and then he texted his mom to let her know he'd put them in. Later that evening (all this happened in the same day), a company that begins with an A and ends in a T de-activated the phone. Sara called and was informed that she would now have to go and purchase another sim card because she waited too long to add new minutes. Sara asked why she was never informed and the representative told her that she should have been notified by a recording. Sara informed the rep that she never heard this recording and was told that her son should have. She then asked to speak to a manager. After being put on hold for over fifteen minutes, the manager never came. Instead, the rep came back on and argued that she never added minutes. When Sara informed her of the date they were added, the rep put her on hold again. When she came back on, she acknowledged the new minutes but informed her that there was no guarantee on what time the de-activation would take place. It could be anytime within 24 hours of that expiration date. The rep also explained there was nothing she could do until Sara went out and purchased another sim card. To put it nicely Sara was outraged. She asked to know where this was explained in the booklet that came with the phone and the rep became rather rude and told her that it doesn't have to and that it was her fault for being stupid enough to give a prepaid phone to a teenager.

Since the phone call, Sara has filed complaints with the FCC, who does regulate Wireless Telecommunications and she posted a blog and emails everywhere and anywhere until she get some sort of resolution for this. She is trying to get others that have encountered this same sort of problem with this phone company. She suggests they do the same before this becomes the "norm". Forcing a consumer to purchase additional products just to keep the products they purchased working as promised is wrong and against the law.

Week 8 Blog Reviews

Justin:

Post 10/5 was well thought-out and organized. I agree with a lot of what you wrote. The increased divorce rate and infidelity its hard to support the idea of monogamy as the social norm. I enjoyed reading your 10/7 post. You used the quotes from the reading very well and there was a nice flow to your essay as well. You had a lot of interesting points, especially at the end of your essay. You state that we have to fully understand homosexuality in order to fully understand its social and natural purposes. I thought that that particular statement was very cleaver and enlightening. The one thing I would change about your essay, is that there was a lot of facts, next time try to elaborate on those facts so that the audience gets an understanding of the material. 

Armando:

I enjoyed reading your 10/5 post. You're writing was clear and your ideas were well thought-out. Post 10/7 was interesting to read, you really made your personal opinions known at the end. But, you really didn't share your thought on what the author wrote, you just sort of summarized the article. I would have really liked you to gone more in depth and shared your opinions on the authors findings. I know you didn't really agree with the Kluger ideas, and I think because your viewpoints were so different this post would have been amazing to read. 

Animal Anomalies

Is homosexuality natural? That depends on what you define as "natural". If you prefer to define "natural" to mean "within the nature of a thing", then it is. Despite our protestations, all things do what is in their natures to do. According to recent studies of homosexual animals observed in nature and captivity, especially in mammals, it would seem homosexuality is a perfectly natural occurrence since it often occurs in species we do not see as having enough intelligence or subtlety to make a "choice" in the matter, but rather follow their instincts to where they lead. 

Besides, naturally speaking, if it was anti-natural for humans, we wouldn't be able to do it. It would be impossible. We would not have the capacity. If you believe in natural laws, then you must understand that we cannot break them, and are tied by them. We cannot be unnatural, such is outside our ability. It's like flying, we can't do it without mechanical assistance. So saying that humans being gay is unnatural is like saying that there's humans that can fly. Regardless of how we end up feeling about the situation, though, it seems that creative forces behind the Universe have larger and more complex plans for sexuality than mere reproduction can account for, and that nature will continue being true to itself even if we don't care for its plans.

Perhaps it doesn't have to with each individual, but the whole species as a group. Procreation is necessary for the species to continue, but with 8 billion people on the planet now, procreation is not the biggest concern for survival. I believe for the species to continue, we need to "back off" from the high breeding rate as it is now, before we consume all of Earth's natural resources. We just can't keep growing like this, we will run out of room, and perhaps homosexuality is the answer to "slow down" this ever increasing breeding rate.

What’s Chemistry Got to Do With It?

Do you remember the moment you knew you were in love? You looked into your partner's eyes and for a moment, everything was perfect. There was nothing in your relationship to find fault with your mate was beautiful, funny, intelligent, there was no other man or woman in the world that you could imagine being with. 

The beginning of a relationship is infused with chemicals so powerful, that the brain scan of a person who is in love looks similar to that of someone who is clinically insane. Love does that, according to scientists, being "in love" releases chemicals that are so powerful every ounce of reason is lost during those initial stages of romance. Our brains start to release oxytocin, which is like a happy chemical, that allows us grow more sensitive to pheromones from our significant others. Love itself or being in love, helps create the bond between people but many scientists believe that being in love is somewhat of a cruel joke, mainly caused by hormones, dopamine, oxytocin and other brain chemicals. According to science, these chemicals are designed to get people together to procreate, people literally become addicted to 'love'.

This addiction to 'love' would probably have a definite affect on relationship, marriage, and other traditional institutions in society. I think marriage would be hit the hardest from this new scientific view on relationships. Marriage would have no cultural relevance. If marriage were abolished, procreation would be casual and not be taken seriously, and there would no longer be a social stigma to being single.

I believe that science does play a role in establishing physical connections, but love and relationships are mostly based on emotion and chemistry. Love and even relationships, cannot exist without chemistry. Real chemistry consists of strong physical attraction and attraction to mannerisms, tone of voice, the ability to have comfortable and fulfilling conversations, that can bring the two people closer together emotionally. We can use scientific approaches to romance but without chemistry and passion, those in the relationships will not be motivated to do all the hard work needed to nurture that relationship.

Week 7 Blog Reviews

Justin:

9/28-9/30

I really enjoyed reading your post on 9/28. I personally found your story of you helping your brother with his problems a great example. It showed the subtle differences in the way males and female talk with one another. 

I also liked reading your post on marriage, it had very strong opinions and ideas. I agreed with a lot of your views, that marriage is an old traditions that is not really necessary for survival in today's society. I think that you can improve on expanding some of those great ideas. This post was a bit vague you didn't go into great detail. There were also a few spelling mistakes, second paragraph, last sentence you said that, "Divorce is over fifty prevent in this country" and I think you meant to say percent. Other than that you did a really good job. 

Armando:

9/28-9/30

I enjoyed reading your post this week. In your 9/28 post you gave a great example of the differences between males and females, communication between the two can be difficult and awkward at times, and the scenario you wrote showed that perfectly. I think there are a few things you can improve on. I noticed that in both your posts this week your introduction were a bot dull and they could be stronger. Try getting a little more creative with your introduction so that the audience wants to keep reading. 

I liked your 9/30 post it was straight-forward and to the point. You let the audience know the main focus of your essay, the introduction was set up very nicely. One thing I think you can improve on is your transitions between paragraphs, there was no fluidity between your thoughts.