Ideology, according to Karl Marx, is the consciousness of an age, the dominant beliefs and values, which are to be explained in terms of the nature of the relations of the production and how ideas help stabilize those relations. The ideology of a society, in effect functions to help stabilize the relations of production to the degree that widespread acceptance of the ideology helps makes the domination of the ruling class appear legitimate. Every society has a ruling or dominant class, and the ruling class controls the ruling ideas, which gives the ruling class power.
In America, since the formation of the country, and even before that in other places and countries, men have been dominant over women. In this country it is evident through history, women had to fight for their rights. Women were not seen as equals as men, even though women were created to be companions for men, not to be dominated by men.
However, throughout history, women could not be silenced. It was a long and hard fight. Some women were killed fighting for equality. Eventually, it was won.... or so we thought so.
It is true, legally women now have the same rights as men and it is illegal to discriminate based upon sex. But are women really seen as equals?
No.
Women are still held to the stereotypes that they have been since the fight for equality began. To begin with, women are expected to be perfect. You can google "the perfect woman" and there are at least 10 pages on google about what the perfect woman is and what qualities she has. Women are supposed to look like supermodels all the time, which is of course unrealistic becuase the only people who look like supermodels all the time, are actually supermodels... and some people like to eat more than once a day. Women are supposed to be the caretakers of the home and children, and this is not considered work. And a good mom doesn't have to get a job outside of the home but she makes sure that her children are provided for.
Of course these things are unrealistic. Most of them I am pretty sure are so popular because of media. When television came on in the 50's, June Cleaver was all of the things a stereotypical wife and mother should be. In fact, the whole family was perfect. That was drilled into people's heads, but for most it wasn't a reality. How could these stereotypes still exist?
Fastforward to 2013 and women are dealing with the same stereotypes and more of them. The article the 10 Worst Stereotypes about Powerful women highlights some of the stereotypes women are dealing with today. For example, if a women shows emotion in the workplace she is emotionally unstable, but if she shows no emotion she is icy and unfeminine. Or, when women are single they are referred to as old-maids and viewed as not having a life outside of a job, while being a bachelor is the best years of a young mans life. Women are also stereotyped as being weak or being masculine while in the work place.
The truth is, there are more women than ever in the work place, but they are not being treated equally. Men are being chosen over women for jobs for a number of different reasons. Men might stay longer with a company because they will not be expected to tend to their families and men usually do not have as strong moral codes as women, which may be useful in making business decisions. Men also tend to get paid more than women.
There is still a divide in equality in the workplace between men and women. It may not be anyone's fault, it may be that men and women want to work together but they just do not know how. In the meantime, women are still fighting to be treated as equals in the workplace and not to be held to unrealistic expectations at home.
http://www.forbes.com/sites/jennagoudreau/2011/10/24/worst-stereotypes-powerful-women-christine-lagarde-hillary-clinton/
http://hbr.org/2013/09/women-in-the-workplace-a-research-roundup/ar/1
Saturday, December 7, 2013
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
KSU and SPSU merger
Budget cuts. A phrase that we have grown far too accustomed to hearing. The government is shutdown, budget cuts. The military is cut in half, budget cuts. People can't get food stamps or federal aid, budget cuts. Schools in Georgia are being consolidated....budget cuts.
In January of this year eight schools in Georgia were merged into four due to these budget cuts. Now even though the state has four less universities in the system, taxpayers are not saving any money. When the decision was made to merge these schools, Chancellor Hank Huckaby said, "More mergers are possible. It is not off the table but no decisions have been made yet".
Fastforward to November, almost one year later, and a decision has been made to merge two more schools in the state. The plan is to merge Kennesaw State University and Southern Polytechnic State University. The new school would keep KSU's name and President.
The news of the merger brought a lot of opposition, mostly from students at SPSU. Southern Poly and Kennesaw State are very different types of schools. Southern Poly is an engineering school while Kennesaw State is a liberal arts school. Most of the students at Kennesaw believe that they will benefit from the merger because it will bring more disciplines and revenue to the school. Students at Southern Poly believe much differently. Number one, they are afraid it will take away from the prestige of the school and of the degrees that they have earned. Although President Papp, from KSU has assured students that the quality of education will not be changed. Secondly, they are afraid about the enviroment of their school changing so drastically. Southern Poly is a very small school compared to Kennesaw State, they have 5,000 students while KSU has abour 31,000 making it the third largest school in Georgia. Students at SPSU have smaller class sizes and know their teachers on a first name basis, something that students at KSU aren't accustomed to.
There are groups on facebook and rallies that are being held by the students that will try and bring attention to the problems this will cause for the students and teachers at both schools. But how much good will these things really do?
The students are trying to be heard and trying to have an opinion on what will affect them, but ultimately the State Board of Regents will vote and make this decision. Will they keep the students interests in mind or is it all about money?
http://www.cbsatlanta.com/story/23865382/students-concerned-over-ksu-southern-poly-merger
http://www.macon.com/2013/11/03/2753905/hundreds-sign-petition-against.html
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/regents-give-final-ok-to-merge-georgia-colleges/nTqH4/
http://www.cbsatlanta.com/story/23865382/students-concerned-over-ksu-southern-poly-merger
http://www.macon.com/2013/11/03/2753905/hundreds-sign-petition-against.html
http://www.ajc.com/news/news/local/regents-give-final-ok-to-merge-georgia-colleges/nTqH4/
Tuesday, October 22, 2013
Mass shootings and Gun control
We all know that public shootings have been on the rise in the United States. Since the Columbine shooting in 1999, it has been reported that there have been at least 31 school shootings. Five occured between 1999-2003. Eleven occured between 2005-2009.Fourteen occured between 2010-2013; one school shooting happening as recently as October 2013. Some shootings may not have been reported, this list came from ABC News.
The problem with these shootings is that it the shooter isn't in one age group, that makes it hard to determine who is at more risk to become a suspect and go on a shooting spree. In the most recent school shooting, the suspect was a middle school boy, and he succeeded in killing and harming students and teachers at his school. Other mass shooters range in age from around 17- middle age and majority of the time they are male. What is making these people feel like the only way people are going to notice them is if they become violent.
Things that we know are commonalities between mass shooters are: (according to NPR)
So, who do we blame?
Is it Columbine High schools fault? Is it Sandy Hooks fault?
The Columbine shooters went to school at the high school, but the Sandy Hook shooter most certainly did not.
Do we just blow these people off and say that they have all been bullied and had a hard time, they have been bullied; do we let them off easy because they are mentally ill?
Is there no way to determine who is potentially at risk for something like a mass shooting?
Just because people bully you, doesn't give you the right to kill them, or kill yourself. I know there are extreme cases where people become so abused by their peers that it seems all they know is torture and the only way out is revenge and possibly death. I have never been in that situation. I can't totally atest to what that is like. But I think it is true that everyone has been bullied and at least been mildly depressed at some point. It is very important to learn to handle these situation the correct way. In my opinion these people were mentally ill and not treated properly, this was their escape. In these cases the people who may have known about what was going on in these people lives, including the suspects themselves are too blame. If you have the ability to fix a situation and you don't, you are guilty for whatever happens.
As for determining who may be at risk for becoming a suspect in a mass shooting spree, look for those people who are always unhappy. The people who are constantly being made fun of, they are always alone, or doing something that seems a quite a bit more than just a little strange. You never know when someone might explode.
If you are wondering what the point of all this is... you are about to find out.
"Consumed with his second- term liberal agenda, Mr. Obama exploits the deaths of innocent people to push for more gun control" . President Obama has used the prayer vigils for two of the most recent mass shootings: Sandy Hook and the Navy Yard shooting, into a campaigning effort in order to gain support to restricts Americans second Amendment rights. He claimed at the navy yard prayer service that the shooting should "obsess us" and "lead to some sort of transformation". (washington times).
Is it really fair for Obama to do this? These people who just lost their small children at Sandy Hook or just lost their loved ones or friends at the navy yard are now trying to be convinced that no one should have guns.
Of course, guns in the hands of the wrong people are a bad thing, just as we have seen many times since 1999. But there are plenty of law abiding citizens who are ready to do whatever it takes to follow laws in order to keep their guns.
Now is not the time to take guns away from law abiding citizens. Everyday on the news you can hear about someone who has been murdered or abducted. I don't want to be that person, I want to be ready to defend myself of my friends if I am ever in a situation where I need to do so. Americans aren't safer, even if Obama claims that we are. This is an obvious fact simply due to the increasing number of public shootings alone. Criminals aren't going to follow the law anyways and are going to maintain control over their weapons no matter what they are told to do.
To me, this seems like Obama and his administration see a tragedy as a perfect opportunity to attack a situation. They want vulnerability in the American people and they want control. We need to let our voices be heard and let Obama know that our guns aren't going anywhere.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/01/30/170669438/report-from-homeland-security-details-commonalities-in-mass-shootings
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/12/14/1337221/a-timeline-of-mass-shootings-in-the-us-since-columbine/
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/sep/25/miller-obama-tells-americans-to-obsess-over-the-sh/?page=all
http://www.schoolsecurity.org/
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/27/justice-funds-police-schools/2884271/
The problem with these shootings is that it the shooter isn't in one age group, that makes it hard to determine who is at more risk to become a suspect and go on a shooting spree. In the most recent school shooting, the suspect was a middle school boy, and he succeeded in killing and harming students and teachers at his school. Other mass shooters range in age from around 17- middle age and majority of the time they are male. What is making these people feel like the only way people are going to notice them is if they become violent.
Things that we know are commonalities between mass shooters are: (according to NPR)
- Nearly half of all shootings happened at a workplace
- All but one of the shooters were male between the ages of 17-48
- All but one of the attacks were perpetrated by single shooters. Columbine was the exception
- Most of the active shooters committed suicide or were killed by officers at the scene
- Only four were former military
- Most used semitautomatic handguns
So, who do we blame?
Is it Columbine High schools fault? Is it Sandy Hooks fault?
The Columbine shooters went to school at the high school, but the Sandy Hook shooter most certainly did not.
Do we just blow these people off and say that they have all been bullied and had a hard time, they have been bullied; do we let them off easy because they are mentally ill?
Is there no way to determine who is potentially at risk for something like a mass shooting?
Just because people bully you, doesn't give you the right to kill them, or kill yourself. I know there are extreme cases where people become so abused by their peers that it seems all they know is torture and the only way out is revenge and possibly death. I have never been in that situation. I can't totally atest to what that is like. But I think it is true that everyone has been bullied and at least been mildly depressed at some point. It is very important to learn to handle these situation the correct way. In my opinion these people were mentally ill and not treated properly, this was their escape. In these cases the people who may have known about what was going on in these people lives, including the suspects themselves are too blame. If you have the ability to fix a situation and you don't, you are guilty for whatever happens.
As for determining who may be at risk for becoming a suspect in a mass shooting spree, look for those people who are always unhappy. The people who are constantly being made fun of, they are always alone, or doing something that seems a quite a bit more than just a little strange. You never know when someone might explode.
If you are wondering what the point of all this is... you are about to find out.
"Consumed with his second- term liberal agenda, Mr. Obama exploits the deaths of innocent people to push for more gun control" . President Obama has used the prayer vigils for two of the most recent mass shootings: Sandy Hook and the Navy Yard shooting, into a campaigning effort in order to gain support to restricts Americans second Amendment rights. He claimed at the navy yard prayer service that the shooting should "obsess us" and "lead to some sort of transformation". (washington times).
Is it really fair for Obama to do this? These people who just lost their small children at Sandy Hook or just lost their loved ones or friends at the navy yard are now trying to be convinced that no one should have guns.
Of course, guns in the hands of the wrong people are a bad thing, just as we have seen many times since 1999. But there are plenty of law abiding citizens who are ready to do whatever it takes to follow laws in order to keep their guns.
Now is not the time to take guns away from law abiding citizens. Everyday on the news you can hear about someone who has been murdered or abducted. I don't want to be that person, I want to be ready to defend myself of my friends if I am ever in a situation where I need to do so. Americans aren't safer, even if Obama claims that we are. This is an obvious fact simply due to the increasing number of public shootings alone. Criminals aren't going to follow the law anyways and are going to maintain control over their weapons no matter what they are told to do.
To me, this seems like Obama and his administration see a tragedy as a perfect opportunity to attack a situation. They want vulnerability in the American people and they want control. We need to let our voices be heard and let Obama know that our guns aren't going anywhere.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/01/30/170669438/report-from-homeland-security-details-commonalities-in-mass-shootings
http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2012/12/14/1337221/a-timeline-of-mass-shootings-in-the-us-since-columbine/
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/sep/25/miller-obama-tells-americans-to-obsess-over-the-sh/?page=all
http://www.schoolsecurity.org/
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/27/justice-funds-police-schools/2884271/
Monday, October 7, 2013
Is college still the best choice?
An exciting time in many young adults lives is when they graduate high school and can begin to prepare for their journey through college. However, just over the past few years, college students have had to realize the harsh reality of the tough economy that surrounds them.
The price to go to college has skyrocketed in the last several decades. More and more students are pouring into colleges each year, and there really is not enough room on campus for all the students. So while the college will accept the student and the student's tuition, the student may not be able to find the classes he needs, find a room on campus (that is affordable), or even find a parking spot. A perfect example would be an ordinance in Cobb County that may force five roomates to move out of a home that they rent near Kennesaw State University. The five females decided to rent the house because there weren't any rooms available at KSU, the off- campus apartments are riduculously priced at $500-$600 per month per renter, so splitting the rent of a small home would be the most affordable option. However, an ordinace in the county forbids more than two unrelated people living in the same house. They county is going to be forcing these college students to pay way more each month than they can afford.
The good news is, when you cannot afford to pay for college out of pocket, the government will pay for you through financial aid. Wrong. Financial aid is still debt. It still has to be paid back. Approximately two-thirds of college students graduate with student loans.This is fine, as long as you are prepared to pay them back after college. The only problem is, graduates aren't getting jobs so they can't pay back their students loans.
Students are told that the only way to be successful in life is to go to college and get a degree. But what happens when tuition is just too expensive and when students do graduate, there are no jobs. The unemployment rate for adults under the age of 25 is 9%. Students who are in college or right out of college cannot get jobs because they have no experience. They can't get experience unless someone gives them a job! This leads some students to believe that there are better alternatives to the typical 4 year college degree and they begin seeking these opportunites.
This is also the same reason why businesses like Enstitute were created. The founders of Enstitute (Shaila Ittycheria and Kane Sarhan) base their start up company on the principle "learn by doing". They were both working in other companys before Enstitute was started. In these companies they found that newly graduated students who were taught so well in the classroom, really had no experience and therefore could not function in a work setting. So, they started their company, Enstitute, and when they put out the ad for help wanted over 500 applications were recieved from people who were not enjoying college and did not think college was a good fit for them. This start up company, like many others, pairs with other major companies, so interns are usually offered full time or part time work as a result of interning with the start up companies; no college degree necessary.
http://enstituteu.com/about-us/
http://www.businessinsider.com/facts-about-student-loan-debt-2010-12?op=1
http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/story/23594077/ordinance-may-force-ksu-students-out-ofhome
http://video.pbs.org/video/2365093612/
The price to go to college has skyrocketed in the last several decades. More and more students are pouring into colleges each year, and there really is not enough room on campus for all the students. So while the college will accept the student and the student's tuition, the student may not be able to find the classes he needs, find a room on campus (that is affordable), or even find a parking spot. A perfect example would be an ordinance in Cobb County that may force five roomates to move out of a home that they rent near Kennesaw State University. The five females decided to rent the house because there weren't any rooms available at KSU, the off- campus apartments are riduculously priced at $500-$600 per month per renter, so splitting the rent of a small home would be the most affordable option. However, an ordinace in the county forbids more than two unrelated people living in the same house. They county is going to be forcing these college students to pay way more each month than they can afford.
The good news is, when you cannot afford to pay for college out of pocket, the government will pay for you through financial aid. Wrong. Financial aid is still debt. It still has to be paid back. Approximately two-thirds of college students graduate with student loans.This is fine, as long as you are prepared to pay them back after college. The only problem is, graduates aren't getting jobs so they can't pay back their students loans.
Students are told that the only way to be successful in life is to go to college and get a degree. But what happens when tuition is just too expensive and when students do graduate, there are no jobs. The unemployment rate for adults under the age of 25 is 9%. Students who are in college or right out of college cannot get jobs because they have no experience. They can't get experience unless someone gives them a job! This leads some students to believe that there are better alternatives to the typical 4 year college degree and they begin seeking these opportunites.
This is also the same reason why businesses like Enstitute were created. The founders of Enstitute (Shaila Ittycheria and Kane Sarhan) base their start up company on the principle "learn by doing". They were both working in other companys before Enstitute was started. In these companies they found that newly graduated students who were taught so well in the classroom, really had no experience and therefore could not function in a work setting. So, they started their company, Enstitute, and when they put out the ad for help wanted over 500 applications were recieved from people who were not enjoying college and did not think college was a good fit for them. This start up company, like many others, pairs with other major companies, so interns are usually offered full time or part time work as a result of interning with the start up companies; no college degree necessary.
http://enstituteu.com/about-us/
http://www.businessinsider.com/facts-about-student-loan-debt-2010-12?op=1
http://www.myfoxatlanta.com/story/23594077/ordinance-may-force-ksu-students-out-ofhome
http://video.pbs.org/video/2365093612/
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