30 days in minimum wage

Morgan Spurlock has a lot of courage to do all the things he does. He experiances what average americans go through every day, from prision to minimum wage. His show has no strigs attached- he pretty much leaves his real, successful life behind him in every way and ventures out into the world to experiance things in a genuine fashion. I always figured it would be hard to survive on minimum wage, especially if there is more than one person in a household, but the extent that Spurlock went to to save money was astounding. His fiancee walking to work every day to save on bus money, eating rice and beans every day, and passing on a 6.50 conservatory ticket are little things that he had to go through. And he did it for just thirty days. Imagine an entire year, or an entire lifetime trying to save money, living paycheck to paycheck. I know we are blessed here in Lake County, but its really eye opening to see (almost) first hand what a minimum wage life is like.

Those poor people

The video in class has really opened my eyes to a less fortunate America that I am not exposed to in any way at all. All my life i have been very priviledged to grow up in the area that i live with the family that i have, with no dysfunction at all. It is very eye opening to see these families in trailors struggling to get by on a Burger King salary, without even a car to get u there. Its a shame because these people are in fact hardworking, and they dont know any way else to make a living, in part because of a lack of education (which might not have been their fault) or a lack of support. And the number of people living like this is greater than the number of people living like us. Poor/working class America is something i have no exposure to, because i have been sheltered my whole life in a very blessed neighborhood. The community service project and this video has deepend my exposure and my understanding of these people, even if it is to a smaller degree.

Deviance

Society is too proper. Way too proper. Not just in Lincolnshire, but in general. So much of society is based on image that people change their normal behavior just so they are perceived in a certain way. For example, I was reading an article in ESPN The Magazine about Alex Rodriguez discussing how obsessed with his own image. The author mentions how he went to dinner with Rodriguez, and Rodriguez ordered his meal based on how the reporter would perceive it, and not what he actually wanted to eat. That is very deviant. Its not normal. Its weird. Its all because society has these boundries on normalcy and ARod doesnt want to do anything that could ruin his reputation to the extent of ordering a different meal. This is ironic because that in itself is weird and makes people think ARod is a nutcase. He is. 

But this offense isnt that serious at all. So what if ARod orders a normal meal when he wants something weird, its not against the law. Society goes to the length of making extremely deviant behavior against the law, and can make u do seriuos time if you are caught in the act. Its stupid. Im not necessarily saying all laws are stupid, because many are necessary. But just because Illinois thinks marijuana is deviant they can have a state wide ban on it while in California just a short 1500 miles away its 100% legal (for medicine). None of it makes sense. Have some uniform laws and let people decide their own fate. 

Gender

I'll start by sayin this is last weeks blog, sorry sal for not bloggin. Last week the primary focus in class was on gender. We talked about different roles and characteristics of the two different genders as perceived by society, and many of the girls were outraged. The characteristics list for females seemed insulting, listing unintelligence, passiveness, physical weakness, among others. Males on the other hand were listed as dominant, competitive, primary breadwinner, intelligent and creative. Needless to say this made girls in the class angry while the guys in the class were demonstrating their competitive nature (because they seemed to win the gender battle on paper) by shouting praise. This list is no doubt controversial, but it is at least fairly accurate. It would probably be more accurate in the 50's, with the classic stay at home mom taking care of the children while the father was working. Fifty years ago, not many women challenged their apparent duties as a women and did different things. It wasnt necessary to have a proper education, or to be decesive or to have a job. But now, more and more women are changing their roles in society and becoming more career oriented instead of being family oriented. Roles for males has not changed much. Still today, as with 50 years ago, men want to be the primary source of income for their families and support them. Its a sign of worth and importance that no man wants to give up.