Just a rant?

I found the "Shift Happens" youtube video amazing! It is so hard to grasp all those concepts and think about how they change daily. One thing I think a lot of Americans particularly forget is the vastness of the other countries in the world. I know many of my friends do not spend any time thinking about life in China or India two countries which are quickly growing to become powerful countries and most likely will grow to be superpowers eventually. I think the hard fact of that is terrible. We live in a country that so rarely focuses on other countries (or at least has been my personal experience). Through grade school we continually learned about Virginia history, and US history, dabbled in some studying of the US government, and multiple times repeated the study of ancient cultures and countries which no longer exist. HOW IS THAT BENEFICIAL?? Sure going over those countries a few times is helpful, you need to know the history to know where you came from, to understand ancient ideas that we still have in practice today but I know nothing of Chinas more recent history, nothing of their current political system or really what an average street looks like. I can hardly even imagine the size of their population, a population that in my lifetime will continue to grow and will continue to make changes to my life.  I know even less about India. If you wikipedia "potential superpowers" a list appears accompanied by a map of the world with highlighted countries. Looking at this map if there were no key below it I do not think more than 5 of my friends could name the countries highlighted (these are friends with the same education that I have, using FCPS and the same local high-school). THESE ARE SUPPOSED TO ONE DAY BE COUNTRIES THAT INFLUENCE THE ENTIRE WORLD! The list includes Brazil, China, the EU, Russia, India, the US; through grade school I was taught nothing about any of these countries. OH WAIT YES I WAS: what seems like a million years ago Brazil had Indians living it and WOW that has helped me to understand the country so much better. The point of my rant is that I was educated in a country that today is considered a superpower, in fact I was even educated no more then 30 miles from the capital of said superpower and yet when it comes to the knowledge of the world, the other countries in it, the history of it all, and my knowledge of its citizens I am limited. HOW IS THIS HELPFUL FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE? I am lucky that I have two parents who focus on world news. My mother is now managing editor at the Center for Public Integrity after more than 20 years in the journalism field, and my father worked for Reuters, the AP, freelanced for the World Bank and lived in numerous countries throughout his life. I am lucky to have them in the sense that they do not let the world pass by, since I was a small child I have been exposed to world news; through work related conversations as well as NPR and the BBC but for children who are not as lucky as I, what do they know of the world? Today we live in a world that is quickly changing, yet my generation seems to nearly completely disconnected from the news. That is a problem. One day we will be tasked with running this nation, one day we will have to interact with the other countries in it and at the rate we are traveling at now we may have every means to do so, but very few will have anything to say.

Shift Happens

I found the "Shift Happens" youtube video amazing! It is so hard to grasp all those concepts and think about how they change daily. One thing I think a lot of Americans particularly forget is the vastness of the other countries in the world. I know many of my friends do not spend any time thinking about life in China or India two countries which are quickly growing to become powerful countries and most likely will grow to be superpowers eventually. I find that hard to grasp.

To me watching this video instilled yet another reason to learn more about the world, I knew China and India were far ahead of us in terms of population but I was not aware that it was that far ahead. I also knew we were making great leaps in technology however yet again I did not know they were that great. Although I do have to say while I did find those technology facts amazing, I did not fully understand them. I understand that they are great strides in the technological field however I am not sure how great.

I also found it interesting their look on jobs. They said that by the time a student is in their third year at a four year college the things they learned in their first year will be outdated. I do not fully comprehend that either. I find it hard to believe our knowledge will be outdated. If it just means our knowledge of technology okay I get that but if it means that new things are being discovered that quickly that is simply UNIMAGINABLE!

This video clearly shows us that the world we live in is changing rapidly, something which we should all embrace and try to understand a little bit better!

As to the worlds future this video just made me think of how unprepared my generation seems. I say this referencing my experience with kids around my age both as my friends as the people I work with. It seems to me that if I am subjected to an accurate sapling of people from my generation: WE ARE IN TROUBLE. I find that the people i am exposed too know very little about the world as a whole, and don't really care. That is a problem. What are we supposed to do when the country is left to us and we have to design our public policy, and interact with other countries? I have to say that I hope many other kids are a fair bit smarter!

One thing I do think that our government should fund more is education. Maybe instead of focusing for so long on ancient cultures that are now no longer part of our society we should instead focus on cultures that influence now and will do so in the future. Instead of learning about ancient China and the Emperors time and time again there should be a transition from ancient China to modern China. The same could be said for the study of India, although it would have to be completely added in because I do not remember studying India at all. I think that it is important to know about other countries especially when they are predicted to become superpowers, but I don't think that it should be limited to those countries. Genocides such as Rwanda may occur because of actions in a specific location but they continue and grow because of inaction and lack of knowledge. Also I think that more focus should be put into studying technology. Reading the clips from the video on technology they made no sense to me. I did not understand what was being said and if it is progressing as quickly as the video said then my lack of technological knowledge can't be good for me!

Suburbs, Cities, and Rural Areas

I have lived in two places my entire life Vienna Virginia and Miami Florida. While I lived in Miami which is considered to be a major city I lived within a part of that city which is very suburban Coconut Grove. It was very similar to the neighborhood in which I live today. In both places my neighbors have been friendly and open, when walking along the street people will stop to chat when passing by, when driving through people wave to each other, etc. Both places have a high cost of living although in Miami our neighborhood traditionally had smaller houses than those here. Here in Virginia my  mom is able to take the metro to work however with a metro stop just a mile away from our house, in Miami public transportation was shoddy and unplanned so she had to drive. That is a major difference that I notice. I suppose that Virginia also has much more traffic than Miami did, but I cant quite remember.

My cousins live in downtown Ottawa and downtown New York City. In visiting them several differences are made obvious, my Canadian cousins live in an older distinguished part of Ottawa where neighbors do still know each other and are friendly. My New York cousins are acquaintances with their neighbors in the city at best, and their neighbors in upper New York state at their country home are too far away to be of any relationship. The public transportation in both cities is better than that of the system here, in Ottawa busses are reliable and comfortable while New York has an excellent although dirty subway system. In upper NY state there is no public transportation, the only way of transportation is personal. 

In having some experience with all three areas I have to say that I enjoy the suburbs best. For me it is the best of all worlds, homes are far enough part that there is some privacy, neighbors are friendly enough that there is a feeling of a neighborhood, and one lives in close enough proximity to a number of things.

Who Has the Power?

The textbook defines democracy as "a political system that allows the citizens to participate in political decision making or to elect representative government bodies". According to this definition it is the people who hold the power either directly or through the election of representatives.I think that while representation is the only form of government that would work in a country as large and vast as ours it does have its faults. Once a person is elected it is virtually up to them on how to proceed. While they can take our votes and ideas into consideration it is impossible for a representative to satisfy everyone of their constituents. It falls upon these representatives to vote in the best interest of the people from the area in which they come, or to vote in the interest of the people overall. Of course there are times when this is not the case however given the power these representatives hold it happens quite infrequently. There are always ways in which to influence a representative including joining interest groups, and petitioning or protesting, however many of these avenues cost money. Not only does it cost money for people to influence these groups it also costs millions of dollars just to run for office. More often than not those running for office do not necessarily come from political backgrounds but instead from business or law backgrounds in order to fund their campaigns.  One idea that the book had that I do agree with is the idea that rich people rule the world. This can be seen throughout different periods of history both before and during the time of our country: political leaders often come from wealthy backgrounds. This idea that the power elite wields more power than the common man is one of Mill's many ideas on the political struggles of the world.He also stated that many of these political leaders come not only from money but also similar backgrounds often attending the same school's, being members of the same club's, and sitting on many of the same board's as other prominent political members. Another odd thing about the members of society which we choose to be our representatives is that they are rarely a true representation of their constituents. Domhoff's study in 71, 79, 83, and 93 proves that "the social backgrounds of those in leading positions are highly unrepresentative of the population as a whole". This is further proof that wealth is the ultimate governing force of the world. Those we put in office generally land there because of their expendable wealth that they can use in campaigning as well as their already prominent status in communities which helps to gather their supporters as well as contributors. 

Is Walmart Good for America?

Walmart has effected American both positively and negatively. It has provided millions of jobs for people but has also run many mom and pop shops out of business. It has encouraged the move of factories to countries in Asia because of their demand for low prices. Many of the employees of Walmart are not treated well and are not given enough hours to qualify for health care, they also are paid little more than minimum wage, while better than nothing it does not provide for an adequate lifestyle. The low prices that Walmart maintains allows Americans to keep money in their pocket but at a heavy cost to large companies. Companies such as Rubbermaid have suffered for not meeting Walmart's price expectations, because Walmart's main purpose is to buy in volume and sell at a low price they are able to establish rules in buying from companies that carries the power to hurt those companies.


A pro of Walmart is the one-stop-shopping that it is has established in America and other countries. It gives the advantage of only having to make a trip to one store in order to get all the items a person or family would need. Although Walmart prides itself on its low prices they do not always have the lowest price, this is equated by their one-stop shop accessibility. In fact Walmart has monopolized this market so greatly that other one-stop-shops have had to close, specifically K-Mart. The closing of these K-Marts has taken away from and hurt the job field in the United States.






Walmart has many more pro's and con's that are not listed above, the overall determination of Walmart's affect on America must be determined from which side you stand. Standing as a consumer there is no doubt that Walmart is a positive addition. It allows people to get nearly everything they need from clothing to groceries at a very low price all in one store. Walmart's affect on the small business owner is the opposite to that of the consumer. Small businesses can not keep up with Walmart's low prices due to their inability to buy in such bulk. This often runs small mom and pop shops out of business. The biggest debate on Walmart's national affects, seem to me, to lie in terms of their employees. Walmart employees millions of people annually, however these people are not always treated fairly and given the opportunity to create a well lived life. They often do not make enough money and can not afford health care or are not eligible for it. Walmart also inadvertently encourages the employment of underpaid factory workers because of its instance on low prices (many companies must use factories over seas in underdeveloped or industrial countries). While Walmart provides jobs it also takes away from the job market. It does so in the sense that when a Walmart is established a smaller store tends to shut down, this leaves their employees with no work, it is hard to believe however that Walmart negates more jobs than it creates. Another way it negates jobs is through its inadvertent relocation of factories overseas. This means that factories leave the States and while we are no longer an industrial nation those factories do provide jobs for some Americans. Taking into consideration all these facts makes it difficult to determine the overall effectiveness of Walmart on America.

The Domestic Division of Labor

The podcast gives us information on a theory referred to as "the second shift". This is the idea that today more women are both mothers as well as members of the workforce than ever before. These women work a daily job and then come home and have to begin their "second shift" so to speak as mother and caretaker. While this is not limited to single parents it is usually found that women still carry the majority of weight in domestic labor despite the belief that it is shared equally today. The working women of today are doing more than that of any generation through their "9-5" responsibilities followed by those to their family and households.

In filling out the "family duties" chart most of the responsibilities fell to my dad. My family is one that practices the untraditional form with a female breadwinner and male caretaker. My mom works hard to earn an income to support my family while my dad plays the role of Mr. Mom. It has been this way nearly my whole life, from the time my mom had to go back to work after maternity leave my father (a journalist) began a career instead as a freelance writer, this decision came about because my mother possessed more editing skills than my father and thus had the chance to make more money in the journalism field than he. For a short time my father did work steadily from home until I was about 7 at which point we moved and he began to take on fewer stories. As long as I can remember my father has been my main caretaker, he drove me to and from school, made my lunch, cooked dinner, helped me with homework, and ferried me to sports and after school activities. I thought very little of this until late in elementary school when I began to notice the majority of people doing the things my father was doing were moms. It didn't bother me in slightest, only made me think. In fact other than the fact that the breadwinner of my family is female and caretaker male they play their roles very traditionally. My mother comes home exhausted and somewhat drawn back, her intimacy with my sister and I is low (at least I feel so) and her stress level high. My father on the other hand is doting, affectionate, and involved. The reversal of their roles while making me aware of the equality women and men should and for the most part enjoy today, however it has not made me career orientated. My big dreams are those more of the 1950's housewife, to have a loving marriage, wonderful children and to be a stay at home mom.

World Religions

I think that the appropriate role for religion to play in terms of government is none. I believe that governments should be like the one here in the States and have a separation of church and state. The intertwining of religion and government, to me, screams PROBLEMS! All though countries will always have a religion that the majority favours I believe it is impossible to force everyone to adhere to restrictions that are formed on such a personal level. Thinking about this however it is hard for me to determine if I believe religion to be so personal simply because of its background, or because that is the way it is portrayed here. In further thought religion is really no more personal than a political affiliation, what is the difference in forcing people to accept laws and forcing them to practice a certain religion? although I do ultimately believe it should be kept separate from the state because of the emphasis most religions place upon personal connections with a higher being. I think it is difficult to insist that a person have such a connection, especially for a person like me who sometimes greatly struggles to understand religion. The combination of state and religion was the reason many groups fled England and other European countries as well as a basis for many revolutions. I have concluded through the writing of this blog that I do indeed believe the separation of church and state to be important, and cease to doubt the fact that there is a difference in conforming to a law and conforming to a religion.