Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Mid Term Paper


Taylor Martinez

Dr. Preston

Expository Reading And Writing

11-12-13

 

 

Racial Profiling Goes On

Racial profiling is a popular method used by law officers in order to hypothetically enhance crime prevention by targeting minorities, because they are more likely to commit a crime.  Racial profiling according to Wikipedia, is the use of an individual's race by law enforcement personal as a key factor in whether to engage a person or not.  Personally I can't think of an easier way to stop crime by using racial profiling.  I know in some cases it's bad practice to use because if you use this method of preventing crime on mostly Mexicans and or Blacks, you're more likely to assume that they might commit a crime.  If you stop them more than you stop Whites or Asians, then you're going to assume the Mexican did the crime before you assume the white guy did it.  Who knows?  Maybe the white guy did do it and the Mexican is just in the wrong place at the wrong time.  Personally I think that Racial Profiling is misused a lot.  People just assume instead of trying to find that facts out first. 

            I personally have never experienced racial profiling (at least that I can remember of).  I'm not going to lie and say that I have never been racist and or used racial profiling before, but I can understand the method that law enforcement officers use.  Mainly because you don't see a lot of white people in gangs, living in the projects or bad neighborhoods.  You mostly see Mexicans or Blacks in the bad neighborhoods or in gangs (in Santa Maria at least).  It's too bad that they're automatically accused of committing a crime or being gang affiliated.  I just read this article about a Black teen buying a pricy bracelet from a store called Barney's and it said that this teen  was arrested and handcuffed after he/she left the store.  See, I don't know what exactly happened after the teen left the store, but the fact that he/she was arrested for buying a pricy bracelet is kind of ridiculous.  Just because he/she is a teenager, doesn't mean that they didn't save up the money or worked for that money to buy that item.  I know the average teenager won't save up money for an expensive bracelet because they would rather buy other stuff, but maybe they are more interested in buying  jewelry than they are buying a video games or other things.  But assuming that that teenager can't afford that item because he/she is a teenager is ridiculous.  Who cares what race or age they are, if they the money for it and they want to buy it, let them have it!  You have it in the store for a reason, because you're trying to make money by selling it. 

            It got me thinking to wonder how racist America is compared to other countries like the United Kingdom, China, Japan, Germany, Iran, The Netherlands, Canada, etc.  I did some research and found out that the top 10 most racist countries (including hatred against religion, minority, skin color, etc.) are #10 India #9 Pakistan #8 Russia #7 Israel #6 Germany #5 Japan #4 Rwanda #3 Australia #2 United Kingdom and #1 United States of America.  What I found out was that Africans have it the worst when it comes to racism.  I'm kind of surprised that some of the top 10 countries are in the top 10.  It's a shame that America has to be number 1 country in the world in racism.  I found out that racism in America is the most common in the South.  Mainly because of the times when Slavery was a big deal back then.  I guess because of all the hatred that was built up between the Whites and Blacks, still to this day people treat each other poorly because of it.  I think that I just won't understand what a white person from the South feels like when they see an African American in the town/city that they live in just because I wasn't raised up in the South or by a white family that used to own slaves back then.  It's ridiculous that the mindset of the Americans that live in the South hasn't changed.  I mean they should know that they're not going to get their family's slave farm back.  So why do they still need to treat them like crap?  Or say mean or derogatory things about them?

            In class we talked about hate speech, saying racist things and the 1st Amendment.  We also talked about how hate speech is said.  It's not always said so direct.  Some people try to say it in a more clever way so you  don't realize its racism until the end of the confrontation or if you really listen to how they say it.  It doesn't matter how you talk about someone in a racist way, it's still racism no matter what.  According to Wikipedia, hate speech is, outside the law, communication that vilifies a person or a group based on discrimination against that person or group. I think that it's sad when someone says they don't belong in this country just because of their skin color, religion or ethnicity.  Yes their ancestors aren't originally from here, but that doesn't mean they don't deserve to be here. I think that it's stupid how Whites think that they are originally from America.  If you think about it, if think far enough back, we are just as foreign as Africans, Asians and Europeans.  Sure Whites have been here longer than the other races, but that doesn't mean that we belong here in America and Africans, Asians, and Europeans don't. 

 

Bibliography

Negi, Dimple.  "Top 10 Most Racist Countries in the World".  List Dose.com  Web date:  June 27, 2013.

Nockleby, John T. (2000), “Hate Speech,” in Encyclopedia of the American Constitution, ed. Leonard W. Levy and Kenneth L. Karst, vol. 3. (2nd ed.), Detroit: Macmillan Reference US, pp. 1277-1279. Cited in "Library 2.0 and the Problem of Hate Speech," by Margaret Brown-Sica and Jeffrey Beall.

Joshua Correll, Bernadette Park, and Charles M. Judd Bernd Wittenbrink, "The Definition of Racial Profiling".  The Police Officer's Dilemma: Target Ethnicity and the Decision to Shoot, University of Colorado at Boulder/University of Chicago, http://psych.colorado.edu/~jcorrell/SPSP2002.pdf  Web date: November 23, 2005. 

Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Vocabulary #9

Ultimate: being the best or most extreme example of its kind. 

Interactive: influencing or having an effect on each other. 

Principle: a fundimental truth that serves as a foundation for a system of belief. 

Guidance: to guide someone or something. 

Collaboration: the act of working with someone to create something. 

Formative: serving to form something. 

Summative: the process of adding something together. 

Racism
: the belief that all members of each race possess characteristics to that race. 

Intelligence: the ability to acquire knowledge and skills. 

Hyperbolic: of or relating to a hyperbola. 

Consent: permission for something to happen or agreement to do something.

Doctrine: a set of beliefs that is taught by the church. 

Hunch: a guess based on intuition instead of known facts. 

Predominant: present as the strongest element. 

Discretion: the quality of behaving in such a way so that you don't cause offense. 

Provision: the action of providing something for use. 

Seizure: the action of capturing something. 

Warrant:a document that is issued by a legal official for police use. 

Infraction: a violation of law. 

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Filter Bubbles

I learned that filter bubbles aren't always a good thing when it comes to searching for things in the internet. Mainly because it puts you in a catagory that it thinks you should be in based off of recent searches that you've made. 

 This doesn't really change what I see, but I will now know that what I see isn't what should be seeing. It's editing out the stuff that I might be looking for and that just makes it hareder for me to find the subject. 

This video raises questions like, is there a way they can tweak the filter bubble by not editing out stuff it thinks we don't want to see? Will they ever take off the filter bubble or will there always be one? 

I think I can improve the effectiveness of my searches by going on Duck Duck Go.com instead of going on google. 

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Verbal, Nonverbal, Para verbal

Verbal: the actual meaning of all the words that are being said. 

Nonverbal: body language/facial expressions/ hand gestures. 

Para verbal: how someone uses their voice to talk about something (tone, volume, pitch; pauses when they talk, etc.).  

Friday, October 4, 2013

Arguing

The arguemeant isn't about the arguemeant, it's about if the other person really cares. Why do people argue? Is it because they like to argue, is it because they feel like they have to prove someone wrong or is it because they feel like the other person isn't understanding their opinion? 

Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Value of Life

Reading the module wasn't very interesting because I think I was very interested in the subject.  There are a lot of things you can say about life, but when people talk about living life to the fullest, I don't believe everyone is.  If you truly are living life to the fullest, you'll either be famous or be really good at what you do.  I don't know right now what my life holds for me, but I hope there are crazy good things in store for me.

Vocabulary: Fall List #7

Cursory: going rapidly over something. 
Impetus: a moving force. 
Pinnacle: the peak of something. 
Contumely: insulting display of something. 
Bereavement: a period of mourning after a loss. 
Cache: a hiding place. 
Consummation: completion.  
Calamity: great misfortune or disaster. 
Avarice: insatiable greed for riches. 
Fortify: to protect or strengthen. 
Erratic: deviating from the usual or proper course in conduct or opinion. 
Ubiquitous: existing or being. 
Fortitude: mental and emotional strength in facing difficultly. 
Nonchalant: indifferent; not excited. 
Affect: to act on. 
Effect: something that is produced by action or cause. 
Misappropriate: dishonestly or unfairly using something. 
Pragmatic: dealing with things sensibly. 
Metacognition: higher order thinking that enables understanding. 
Devoutly: devoted to divine worship. 

Saturday, September 28, 2013

Freedom Of Choice

The freedom of choice has its pros and cons.  The pros to making your own choices is that you get to learn from your own experience and you get to choose how you want to do them.  The cons about freedom of choice is that you don't know what the outcome of the choices you made are.  If you have someone else make the choices for you, you're just going by what they know and you don't get to make your own path. Its almost like you're just following somebody's path instead of making your own.  That's why getting to choose what you want to do is such an important thing.  Sometimes its a good thing to take risks and be able to figure out your problems by yourself because it makes you more confident and you now know that if you can figure out that difficult problem by yourself, you can do it again and again.

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Vocabulary: Fall List #5

adroitclever or skillful in using the hands or mind.

amicable: having a spirit of friendliness; without serious disagreement or rancor.

aversehaving a strong dislike of or opposition to something.

belligerenthostile and aggressive.

benevolentwell meaning and kindly. 

cursoryhasty and therefore not thorough or detailed.

duplicitydeceitfulness; double-dealing.

extolpraise enthusiastically.

feasiblepossible to do easily or conveniently. 

grimacean ugly, twisted expression on a person's face, typically expressing disgust, pain, or wry amusement.

holocaustdestruction or slaughter on a mass scale, esp. caused by fire or nuclear war.

imperviousnot allowing fluid to pass through.

impetusthe force or energy with which a body moves. 

jeopardydanger of loss, harm, or failure. 

meticulousshowing great attention to detail; very careful and precise.

nostalgiaa sentimental longing or wistful affection for the past, typically for a period or place with happy 
personal associations.

quintessencethe most perfect or typical example of a quality or class.

retrogressgo back to an earlier state, typically a worse one. 

scrutinizeexamine or inspect closely and thoroughly.

tepid(esp. of a liquid) only slightly warm; lukewarm.

Vocabulary: Fall List #4

accedeassent or agree to a demand, request, or treaty.

brandishwave or flourish (something, esp. a weapon) as a threat or in anger or excitement.

compriseconsist of; be made up of.

deftneatly skillful and quick in one's movements.

destitutewithout the basic necessities of life.

explicitstated clearly and in detail, leaving no room for confusion or doubt.

extirpateroot out and destroy completely.

inopportuneoccurring at an inconvenient or inappropriate time.

ironicusing or characterized by irony.

mustyhaving a stale, moldy, or damp smell.

officiousassertive of authority in an annoyingly domineering way, esp. with regard to petty or trivial matters.

ominousgiving the impression that something bad or unpleasant is going to happen; threatening; inauspicious.

pinnaclea high, pointed piece of rock.

premeditatedthink out or plan (an action, esp. a crime) beforehand.

rampantflourishing or spreading unchecked.

solacecomfort or consolation in a time of distress or sadness.

statelyhaving a dignified, unhurried, and grand manner; majestic in manner and appearance.

supplebending and moving easily and gracefully; flexible.

suppressforcibly put an end to.

venalshowing or motivated by susceptibility to bribery.

Monday, September 9, 2013

Vocabulary: Fall List #3

accomplicea person who helps another commit a crime.

annihilatedestroy utterly; obliterate.  

arbitrarybased on random choice or personal whim, rather than any reason or system.

brazenbold and without shame.

catalysta substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change.

exodusa mass departure of people, esp. emigrants. 

facilitatemake (an action or process) easy or easier.

incorrigiblenot able to be corrected, improved, or reformed.

latentexisting but not yet developed or manifest.

militantcombative and aggressive in support of a political or social cause, and typically favoring extreme, violent, or confrontational methods. 

morosesullen and ill-tempered.

opaquenot able to be seen through; not transparent.

paramountmore important than anything else; supreme.

prattletalk at length in a foolish or inconsequential way.

rebutclaim or prove that (evidence or an accusation) is false.

reprimanda rebuke, esp. an official one.

servitudethe state of being a slave or completely subject to someone more powerful.

slapdashdone too hurriedly and carelessly.

stagnanthaving no current or flow and often having an unpleasant smell as a consequence.

succumbfail to resist (pressure, temptation, or some other negative force).

Thursday, September 5, 2013

Vocabulary: Fall List #2

TObesity: the condition of being grossly fat or overweight. 
Accumulate: gather together or acquire an increasing number.  
Mass: a coherent, typically large body of matter with no definite shape. 
Disease: a disorder of structure or function in a human, animal or plant. 
Diet: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself.
Prevalence: the condition of being prevalent; commonness. 
Stigma: a mark of disgrace associated with a particular circumstance. 
Preventable: capable of being prevented. 
Adolescent: in the process of developing from a child to an adult. 
Cardiovascular: of or relating to the heart and the blood vessels. 
Excessive: more than is necessary. 
Mechanism: a system of parts working together. 
Sedentary: tending to spend to much time seated. 
Predipose: make someone liable to a certain attitude. 
Syndrome: a group of symptoms that consistently occur together. 

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Myths

1. The world doesn't move step by step so you can be prepared for each step. 

2. We can't really multi-task because you can't put your full attention to two things at at once. It's impossible. 

3. You don't learn from your own experience. 

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Vocabulary: Fall #1

expositoryintended to explain or describe something.

composition the way in which a whole or mixture is made up.

assuagemake (an unpleasant feeling) less intense.

decadencemoral or cultural decline as characterized by excessive indulgence in pleasure or luxury.

hackneyedlacking significance through having been overused. 

coalitionan alliance for combined action, esp. a temporary alliance of political parties forming a government or of states.

transcendbe or go beyond the range or limits of (something abstract, typically a conceptual field or division).

meritoriousdeserving reward or praise.

luridvery vivid in color, esp. so as to create an unpleasantly harsh or unnatural effect.

petulantchildishly sulky or bad-tempered.   

5 GO-TO SOURCES FOR GOOD NONFICTION

1. www.goodreads.com 

2. www.modernlibrary.com  

3. thegreatestbooks.org 

4. www.listmuse.com

5. http://tetw.org

My Big Question

What does our future behold for us?  How should we prepare ourselves?