Tuesday, February 20, 2018

            The saying "Society knows perfectly well how to kill a man and has methods more subtle than death" is so very true I have a hard time choosing one example. In many ways society limits individuals to not reaching their highest potential. For example, the way we are brought up and educated. A very high percentage of very good jobs and careers that a lot of people will end up falling into do not require a secondary education. Going to college for 4 years for something you don’t need is going to put you in serious debt. Going to college and coming out 40 to 80 thousand in debt is setting yourself up for failure. If you have a 10-dollar bill in your pocket and you have 0 dollars in debt, you are wealthier that a lot of Americans.
Depending on the situation we get into, there comes a point where we can't separate our civilized self from our savage self. I believe that in most situations our savage self will almost always come out. Fight or flight is a real phenomenon that occurs in our brain when put under stress. After reading LOTF I understand what the meaning of civilized vs savage is.  The kids started losing a sense of what was right and wrong, and they went off pure emotions and it was straight savage. Our lives are controlled by a compilation of attributes that make us who we are, and we have a natural drive to turn savage. 
Civilization is created by certain individuals who want power and other individuals who are willing to just let them take charge. So, you have people who start making rules and assigning people to jobs. Other individuals start putting their input in and eventually the society will grow. There will become other parts of the civilization with people doing things that they feel is relevant to the big picture. Most people conform and let society control them in ways that they still feel in total control. People will say well “I made the decision to do this or that” but, what made them feel comfortable with making that choice? Society plays a big role.

The LOTF wasn’t talking about anything. Simon was hallucinating so bad. He was being drove insane by being away for so long or he maybe found some fruit that was probably a pretty cool experience in the jungle but since he was kind of young it drove him bonkers. He was always alone so he had a lot of time to drive himself insane (maybe a lot of introspective thinking).  Or nobody else around to share the fruit with. 

Tuesday, February 6, 2018

1.      How long does the typical refugee process take?
It may take years
2.      The Obama administration had a goal of admitting how many refugees in fiscal 2017?
110,000
3.      Over the past decade most of the refugees have come from what 2 countries?
Congo and Syria
4.      How many Muslim refugees entered the U.S. in 2016?
85,000
5.      Most of the refugees were resettled in what 3 states?
California, Texas, and New York
6.      Looking at the bar graph (shifting origins of refugees over time) list 3 observations that really surprise you.
1980 was the highest, 2017 was the lowest since the 70’s, and
7.      Looking at the bar graph (religious affiliation) list 2 things that surprised you.
Europe had a lot of refugees
8.      Looking at the pie graphs (American generally don’t welcome refugees) why do you think Americans were more welcoming of Albanian refugees in 1999 compared to refugees in other years?
The people were in desperate need of help
9.      How have refugees changed in South Dakota over the years?  Most refugees today come from where?
It was Somalia for a while, then it switched around for a while, It is now Bhutan
10.  Using the map above what are 3things you learned about other states and their main refugee settlements.  (Ex. Ukrainian refugees and where they settled.)
They tend to stick to costal states. They went almost ten years without being on the map
11.  Look at the next link "Fewer Refugees arrive in U.S, with declines in 46 states." What is the ceiling for refugees decided by Donald Trump?
50,000
12.  Tell me one thing looking at the line graphs that you have observed.
Every state has endured a drop at some point in the recent past
13.  Look at the next link "Key Facts about the world Refugees." How many people are now displaced from their homes in the world?
1 in 100
14.  How many Syrian refugees are now displaced from their homes?
12.5 million
15.  What 2 countries in Europe are receiving record number of refugees?
Norway and Switzerland
16.  Do you believe the U.S., being a world power and first world country, has an obligation to help refugees and/or give them humanitarian aid?

They aren’t obligated to anything, but we owe everyone money so we act like good people.

Monday, February 5, 2018

            I feel that this article about the stolen boys is absolutely disgusting. The fact that the older powerful males have the right to treat little boys like that makes me feel uneasy. They made teenage boys dress up and dance for them. This ruined their lives. Not only physically and mentally, but in many ways. Their home life after this would never be the same, their parents would have a hard time taking them back. If they were girls, they would be left to die. Something needs to be done about this wicked twisted custom.

            It’s really difficult but I can kind of put myself in the men’s shoes. It is a twisted wicked thing that they like to do but I guess I can kind of see where these ideas are coming from. In some other cultures if you have a relationship with a woman, you are supposed to marry them. If they used little boys as a sense of pleasure they probably wouldn’t have to marry them. Personally, I feel terrible for the boys. Nobody should ever have to endure something being forced upon them even if it is an old custom. It makes no sense to me whatsoever.