Comedians: Extra Credit

The stand up comedians at your local cafe aren't important in the grand scheme of things. Chances are, they'll never make it to a platform big enough to make a true social difference. Nothing against your local Adam Sandler but being a famous standup comedian is rare. Just think about how many comedians you know. Kevin Hart? Trevor Noah? Jon Stewart? there's probably about 10-15 comedians that are truly known. Now I don't want to discourage any up and coming comedians because their jobs are truly important. They talk about issues that no one else will and they make topics that are boring to many, and make it entertaining. 

I encourage you to watch the following video over your break: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUizvEjR-0U

This whole video is Jon Oliver talking about a disastrous event that no one else seemingly wants to truly talk about. He discusses the problem of Flint, and although it's a grim subject, he's able to make you laugh but also be outraged of the atrocities occurring. This is why comedians are important. They make necessary news accessible to the public. How will there be true change without an informed public? Comedians have an important job, they can really make a difference. 

In our PC culture many comedians are criticized for going "too far". Fact of the matter is, the truth hurts. I believe this is a good thing because they are pushing social boundaries. "Stories and expressions that are normally unacceptable are met with laughter and agreement when they are told on stage. The fact that the content is encrusted in humor is like a sugar coating to bitter medicine. The laugh takes away the sting."(Cohen)

Of course, some jokes may go too far but most of the time these offensive jokes have an underlying message that many people don’t see. Instead of being offended right away and complaining about a joke, perhaps these jokes should be taken past surface level because they may reveal something more. So to all the local Letterman's out there, keep doing your thing. Keep telling jokes. We are going to need laughter. Make America laugh again. 

Wealth and Happiness

Money isn't bad as everyone says it is. Money isn't the root of all evil, money is the root of all people. Every goal, whether good or ill revolves around the almighty dollar. Money DOES buy happiness. So don't listen to those people who tell you chasing money is pointless! It's not pointless. You can't take money to the grave? No way, you can definitely be buried with it if you know the right people at the funeral parlor. Would you rather go to work on a bike or in a custom made mass produced italian luxury sports car? Don't let anyone tell you that your materialistic goals are empty. They are not! Think about it. Why are richer countries happier than poor ones? 

Why do you do the things that you do? Do you take ap classes because you love a higher paced education? No you do it so you can get into a good college. Why do you want to get into a good college? So that you can get a high-paying job after. What do most of your goals revolve around? What's the final outcome? Sure you  want to be a doctor or a lawyer, but why? Do you actually love helping people? More likely than not, it's the fact that they make good money. "But no David!! I love science!" OK, so would you do it for the salary of a teacher? Money makes a difference. 

Money is the true decider of our life. Everything is based off of a piece of paper and it's disheartening and I realize it. I know money wont buy me happiness but I still crave it. I still crave something that has no real value. I still strive for the thing that I know won't do anything for my happiness. We all do. We all know money doesn't create happiness but still it is the motivator behind all of our actions.

Growing Up

"Arm Wrestling With My Father " is a story all about the ever-changing growth and complexities of his relationship with his father. In many ways people can relate their own relationship with their parents to what Manning is saying in some way. Every child has the realization that their parents are getting older and that they won't live forever. The story is more about the effects of time on their relationship as well as showing love for his father. Time changes parent-child relationships because eventually roles are reversed and the child is now the caretaker.

As I get older, this is always in the back of my mind.This complexity affects my relationship with my mother more than eve. As we both get older we realize that we should spend more time together. My mom realizes that in a year I will be off to college and I realize that they we won't spend much time together. As i entered high school, my mother and I spent less and less time. I started taking ap classes, I studied more, I got a job, and slept whenever I had free time. This combination was detrimental  to our relationship. Eventually I realized that I needed to spend more time with her. Growing up changes a lot within the mother-son bond but there should always be time left over for the loved ones in your life. Brad Manning misses the time spent with his father just as I miss the time spent with my mother but we both realize that soon even more time will be lost. Unfortunately this comes with growing up. Everyone has to experience it and for me, I wish I realized this when I was younger.

Disability and the workplace

As I was working last night I took a look around the restaurant. I was trying to analyze if anyone could possibly work or even eat here if they had a disability. As I looked in the kitchen, there was nothing to help aid anyone that was physically disabled. The restaurant has lots of tight spaces, no wheelchair ramps, and nothing else that could help anyone disabled. Perhaps it's just the work needed and perhaps a disabled person couldn't do the tasks needed. But as I pondered about this on the way home, why couldn't a physically disabled person be a waiter? Why couldn't they make sandwiches in the back? Why couldn't they be a manager? I realized that there is no reason, it's just that the restaurant made the conscious decision not to do so and to not implement helpful things for disabled people. I tried not to be too critical of my workplace, so I went ahead and went to three different restaurants after work. Mcdonald's, chipotle, and bahama breeze. At all of these locations there was absolutely nothing there to help disabled people work there. No ramps. No railings. Nothing.

It made me sad because I realized that disabled people can be turned down just because the workplace can't accommodate for them. For me, I was only able to look at the restaurant industry. Hopefully in other service and manufacturing industries, there are more tools available to help disabled people work there. All in all, there needs to be a change in the restaurant industry at least. There needs to be resources available to those who need it. There needs to be equal opportunity for the physically disabled.

Blockbusting and Redlining

The raisin in the sun displays the effects of institutional racism on African Americans during the 50's and 60's."Them houses they put up for colored in them areas way out all seem to cost twice as much as other houses. I did the best I could"(act 2) In that quote mama describes how hard it was for blacks trying to buy a home and pay for it. Whites created the inner city ghettos we see today, due to the practices they enacted in the past. Two prominent strategies they used were redlining and blockbusting.  redlining is "the practice of denying services, either directly or through selectively raising prices, to residents of certain areas based on the racial or ethnic composition of those areas." While blockbusting is "an illegal practice in which licensees or others encourage homeowners to sell because of an influx or expected influx of minorities into the area."

In many people's opinions these practices created the ghettos of America today. Statistics also show a stark contrast between the living conditions of black neighborhoods in comparison to white neighborhoods.  The scariest fact is that redlining still occurs today. A study done in 2002 showed that "small businesses in black neighborhoods received fewer loans, even after accounting for business density, business size, industrial mix, neighborhood income, and the credit quality of local businesses"(Immergluck) The grocery store video also proves this point even more. Racism still exists and racism still affects the living quality for blacks. Just look at flint, it’s a perfect example of environmental racism. The irony in all of this is that whites created the ghetto but expect blacks to fix it immediately? 

Money and Being Morally Corrupt

In the Diamond as big as the Ritz we could all see that the washingtons were morally corrupt and it was discussed in much detail in class. I couldn't help thinking about a question about the washingtons though. Are the washingtons morally corrupt because of their wealth or are they wealthy because they are morally corrupt? It's a perplexing question, but in this blog post I'm going to compare both views and I want you to decide in the comments.

So let's look at wealthy people today, most of the moderately wealthy people go to school and get a 4 year degree and make good money. That's the traditional route. Other ways of making lots of money is through sports and owning small businesses. These are all honest professions and don't necessarily need corruption to get to the top. On the flip side though there are people who have used corruption to get to the top and make loads of money. Bernie Madoff and Jordan Belfort are two examples of that.

Well what exactly happens when you are at the top and you are making lots of money? Well, according to scientists the answer is corruption. There have been numerous times where the public have seen this unfold. Tiger woods and Warren Buffet are two examples. They both made their money honestly and reached the top but with all this money at their disposal they both became corrupt. Tiger Woods cheating on his wife, while Buffet has partnered with goldman sachs who is another company known for their corrupt and dishonest ways. He has been evading taxes as well.

So in terms of The Diamond As Big As The Ritz I believe the family was corrupt because of money.  They were born into it, but what's your opinion? Do you think more money just exposes the moral corruptness we have anyway? Or does money create the corruption?

My Favorite Gatsby Passage

“In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I’ve been turning over in my mind ever since.

“Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,” he told me, “just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages that you’ve had.” (Chapter 1)

         This passage is my favorite in the book. It's quite powerful and probably applies to the majority of us in Troy. It definitely applies to me. At times I complain about something quite trivial and then I sit back and realize that my problems arent really problems at all. I may be irritated with a person and may dislike them but everyone has a background that we don't know about. Someone may cut me off because they are in a hurry to the hospital. Someone may be arrogant to hide the fact that they are extremely insecure about themselves. Someone may be rude because their day is just awful. The point is that everyone is going through something we don't know about. Some bigger than others, but nonetheless, Fitzgerald's aphorism is great. 

        

          Criticizing others is something we all do and this passage really reminded me of thoughts that I always have. I understand that I do have advantages over many people. I go to the best high school in michigan, I live in the safest city in michigan, and I have basic necessities, which is something much of the world does not have. Yet, at times I find myself always castigating others. I wouldn't say I'm mean I'm just very analytical and it can come off as pretty selfish. 

          This book offers a lot of lessons and this is just one of the few that I took away from it. my mom always tells me to be grateful and up until this point I don't feel that I have been grateful enough. However who do I be grateful to? How can I possibly show how much my mom means to me? This is something that I've been turning over in my mind ever since.