Social Class

When Sal first told us we were learning about social class in the US I was a bit confused. I knew that there were levels of poverty, and that incomes played a role, but as we were watching the movie on social class, I felt as if Americans treated the income-class as if we were in India or another country that discriminates based on class or income. There were two parts in the movie that were most shocking to me. The first was the guy who was brought up and is part of the WASP society/social class. He was talking about people that he saw dancing and how he could not understand how they were let in when they were so fat and ugly. I seriously could not believe that he actually thought that way. I not only do not agree with what he was saying, but he was laughing and seriously could not understand why they were allowed to be dancing and so happy when they were that fat and ugly. I think it's pathetic that there are people in the "free" America that think that way and judge that way based simply on what someone looks like. The second part that was so shocking to me was the story of Tammy and her children. It was so upsetting to me to see Tammy fight so hard for her children, her life, and their well-being. Seeing her walk to work (Burger King) in the rain, alone, and soaking wet, made me want to cry. The living conditions of that family was also very sad. But that's reality. That's America and that's how the majority of Americans are living, or at least somewhat close to that. It made me think about how truly fortunate I am, and how I shouldn't take things for granted as much as I do now. I now realize the majority of things that I complain about are pointless and irrelevant in the long run. I think everyone should have to see what Tammy and her family's living conditions are like. People should have the determination to succeed that Tammy has. It's immoral to think the way the one WASP-society guy thinks like. It is not fair to anyone to be judged based on their income, their appearance, or anything else of that nature. People should see these examples of people from the extremes of American society and learn from it.

JAIL

While reading the article for this week, I was in complete shock. I could not understand the harsh jokes, horrible language, and brutality that came from the police to the inmates. The craziest part, was that the "inmates" were not even convicted yet. It was very hard for me to see how people are treated before even being convicted. It makes me pretty convinced that it's a lot worse when they are actually convicted. I really think that the system is messed up. People can buy their way out of jail, when committing the same or worse crimes as someone else who is poor. The big joke there is that the poor people have to stay in jail and stay in the worst conditions throughout the whole process of waiting for their court date and then still being sentenced to prison. I think people really need to think about how the system works and realize the way it is all run by money. Whoever has the most money and is willing to use it to get out of jail wins in this situation, which is really not fair. Why should someone who murders someone be able to get a good lawyer, pay bond and have a minimal sentence, and someone who was caught with drugs be in prison while waiting for trial, then get a very harsh punishment and go back to prison for a very long time? It doesn't make any sense and it just sucks that everything is based upon money; I really don't think it's fair.