Baltimore Riot Response

I chose to comment on Jacob Ybarra’s “Thoughts on theBaltimore Riots” post because I really liked a couple of his thoughts and I would like to add some of my own.

What really stuck out to me from Jacob’s post was that “peaceful protests…need more coverage”.  It’s becoming more and more apparent to me that news is not a public service and is nothing more than a ratings grab. I think this country could benefit immensely from shifting coverage to talking about the issue at hand while showing peaceful protests rather than focusing on the burning destruction.

I also agree that this is a cry for progress. Not all cities are as wonderful and accepting as Austin. I know there is still vast bigotry across the country. Equal rights and social justice is a fight we should all get behind. I believe it was Martin Luther King Jr. that said “rioting is the language of the unheard”. While I believe that to be true, I just think that the riots happening today really take away from the conversation that should be happening, no thanks to modern media.

I would like to stick up for law enforcement though.  Just like any profession, there’s going to be some bad apples and those should be dealt with accordingly. I don’t think it’s fair to group all police into a category of brutality and discrimination. I truly believe that the majority of police officers do great work. I think they risk their life every day to do their job and to protect and help citizens. And I think their job is getting harder because of the negative attention they are getting from the media. I think the idea of body cameras on officers is a great idea, as it can protect both citizens and officers.

Stressed and Standardized.

It’s something that’s been widely debated for a few years now, but only this past week did I start to question it myself. Standardized testing. Does it work? Is it accurate? Is it worth it?

Of course, growing up in the great state of Texas, I took the TAAS test then the TAKS test. I did well in school. In fact, I remember looking forward to test days because I would finish early and have several hours to read afterward. I don’t remember other kids being stressed out by the test but back in our day (wait, am I getting old?) I really don’t think the test was that difficult.

I work as a nanny part time for a wonderful family here in Austin as I work my way through school. Basically, I take care of the kids after school and make sure everyone gets their homework done and has a little fun before soccer practice.  The kids are bright; they’ve even skipped a grade. They are full of life and jokes and laughter every day after school. They tell me funny stories or tell me about what’s going on in school while I make them a snack. Over the last couple of weeks I noticed a huge difference in their moods, particularly when it came to homework. There was attitude and tears galore. When I got to the bottom of it, they told me they were worried about failing the STAAR test, they felt like they were dumb and wouldn’t pass.  We worked together on a review packet and this is when my anger set in. As I read through the problems I quickly realized that these problems were designed to trick the kids. There were a couple that were so vague and unclear, I wasn’t even sure how to solve them. It’s one thing to put too much information in a word problem and make sure the kid knows how to eliminate it to create the correct equation. But purposely wording problems to deceive kids is not the proper way to test students on their knowledge.

I could talk your ear off for an hour about how our teachers shouldn’t have to teach towards a test, and how students would learn better without the pressure of a standardized test, how each student is an individual and should be taught as such, but instead I’ll stick to the most concerning part for me; the stress. The fact that it drove my kids to tears… it’s just not a fair assessment of what they are capable of. I think the US government needs to enforce a pretest, and a posttest rather than one standardized test so we can measure our student’s progress. The government should form a committee of teachers to help make the tests. I would like to see America regain it’s status as a competing country in education, but I do not think standardized testing is the way to do that.

Minimum Wage Response

I first came across Kat's post because of Robert's well thought out response. While I mostly agree with Robert on this issue, I do have a couple of thoughts to add.

Like Robert, I tend to find the best in people. I believe people can overcome their circumstances if they choose to work hard. I think everyone is capable of making a contribution to society.

I do not, however, believe that the minimum wage should be a blanket setting. When I say that I mean I don't think there should be one minimum wage for all of America. I believe the minimum wage should reflect the cost of living in your city. Living in Austin, for example is much more expensive than living in a smaller city. I can imagine that a family in a city with high living costs could have a difficult time making ends meet. I certainly do not believe life on minimum wage should be comfortable. If you want a more lavish lifestyle, go out and work for it. Take the necessary steps to get yourself there. But if that family is having difficulties making ends meet, tax payer dollars are probably going to come into effect when they need to live in subsidized housing.

All I'm saying is that I believe it's important that basic needs can be met by living on minimum wage, because everyone needs to start somewhere. But like Robert said, perseverance, hard work, and motivation are everything in achieving a goal.

Time for Government to Care About Health.

According to the Nation Institutes of Health, more than 68% of United States Adults are overweight.  Our nation is preoccupied with fixing a health care system that focuses on caring for the sick. I believe the nation should shift our efforts towards preventive health care starting with education.  If our citizens were more educated in their health, perhaps our health care system would be less corrupt.

In September I started my own health journey. Growing up in a single parent home, my sister and I were responsible for making our own meals more often than not. I was never taught about health science or how to eat to nourish my body. Now that I’m older I’m having to educate myself to reverse years of over eating. So far, I’ve been successful and lost 40 pounds at home but I’m still struggling with a lack of nutrition information when I go out on the town.

It is time for the United States government to step in and give its citizens a few tools to better maintain health. I would start by proposing an update to “health class”.  Educating kids on what their bodies need to run properly should start in elementary school. Everyone should know how to read the labels on what they are eating.  We should be educating students about healthy mind, exercise, and nutrition practices. The next step would be to make those tools readily available everywhere. I am aware that the FDA currently has a proposal to require restaurant chains with more that 20 locations to have nutrition information available. This is a step in the right direction; Americans need to be informed when making decisions regarding their health. If our government ensures that tools are readily available for Americans to educate themselves on their food and health decisions, our nation would prosper in more ways than one.

Hate Takes the Bus

     Following a video that was posted showing The University of Oklahoma's Sigma Alpha Epsilon engaging in a racist chant on a bus, Charles M Blow posted an editorial to The New York Times with his insightful opinions on the matter. 

     College students, millennials, are considered to be a part of the most diverse, enlightened, and tolerant generation thus far which is why the video shocked the masses, but Blow claims he was not surprised by the hate displayed by the members of SAE. Blow establishes his credibility not only because he is a man of color but also by providing statistics supporting his argument that white millennials are no less prejudice than any other generation of whites. He points to statistics stating that 89 percent of millennials “do believe that everyone should be treated the same no matter their race” but believes the downfall in this statistic is that all millennials are grouped together without separating the white millennials from the rest. 

     Blow takes an interesting angle when he questions how much influence the fraternity systems have in our policy making up "85 percent of U.S. Supreme Court justices since 1910, 63 percent of all U.S. presidential cabinet members since 1900 and, historically, 76 percent of U.S. senators". His point being that if those trends continue, it could be people like those sitting on the bus chanting racial remarks leading our country in the near future.

     I believe the purpose of this editorial is to show the reader, regardless of age or race, that hate and discrimination is something that our country still struggles with, and it is something that needs to be addressed. While I agree with Blow's viewpoints on hate, I do not agree that millennials are just as prejudiced as other generations. I believe my generation truly is more accepting of diversity, even if we still need to work on it.

     I will leave you with a quote from Charles M Blow that really struck me. He says: 

"This is why the vileness displayed on that bus matters: It was a reflection of the distance that must still be covered, and the rigidity of racism and the casualness of hate. It can wear a smile and be set to a tune...What happened on that bus was bigger than just that bus; it was a reflection of where we are."