lol, internet

Instead of finding a single article, I found an entire racist website, which can be found here. (Hope this is okay, Mr. Wasserman) If you are easily offended, please do NOT click that link, and furthermore, please don’t come whining to me about it. Initially, I was disgusted that such a website exists, but after toying with the idea for a while, I came to realize that I wasn’t very surprised at all. I decided to try to dig a little deeper into why I wasn’t very surprised. It was over 100 years ago that slavery came to an end in the United States. A big mistake people often make with this is the assumption that with the end of slavery did NOT come the end of racism. In fact, now that I think about it, racism is a huge part of America, whether anyone chooses to face it or not. From police profiling to economics and job oppurtunities–racism is prevalent in the United States to day. It happens every day; some instances more subtle and subconcious than others. It is something our country will never be able to rid itself of, unless major policies are changed. The actual site above is filled with current events, rewritten from [very different] perspectives than what most are used to. Perhaps this site is an example of satire, and the creators simply want to show Americans that racism is still around and active (probably not, though). We see racism every day, in many different forms. Maybe that’s why I wasn’t so surprised.

I’d like you all to take a look at this video:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-921782153890090792&q=Colbert+Report

As mentioned in jwasserman’s original post on Satire, the Colbert Report is a wonderful example of Satire. In the particular clip mentioned above, Colbert goes after a domestic issue: marriage. I really enjoy the Colbert report; it is one of my favorite examples of Satire. Part of what makes it so funny is his ability to casually toss around extremely controversial issues. People use humor to criticize social problems because it’s a form of entertainment, and the general public seems to react well to entertainment. So, instead of writing a 50-page anaylsis filled with constructive cricism of America, people like Jon Stewart capture the attention of the public by using humor instead. It’s more enjoyable, and a more effective way of getting a point across.

Today’s essential question from class was this: Now that we have stirred conflict in Iraq, are we obligated to stay and help find a solution?

I believe we have a full obligation to stay and find a solution. We have radically changed their country, and introduced a new form of government to them, and the USA is currently the backbone of that government. If we pulled out now, the whole thing would collapse, and then there truly would have been no purpose what-so-ever for our involvment in Iraq. It would be unfair to Iraq and other countries involved to prematurely pull out. It would also make us look even worse than we already do, and we’d lose the respect and support of other countries. The mother hen analogy fits the situation perfectly–Iraq is not ready to be kicked out of the nest.

Here is a link to a news article I found which specifically connects race to the NYC police shootings which occurred in the beginning of December.

http://www.heraldnewsdaily.com/ViewArticle.aspx?id=31318&source=2

Although it is normally a pet peeve of mine when people immediately assume that racism is the central problem in a conflict, I have to agree with the article on this one. I truly believe that if that man was white, there would not have been the same problem. According to statistics given in the article, the majority of victims of questionable police shootings have been young, black men. It’s a sad truth that we have to face. Everyone, including police officers, stereotypes people. Unfortunately, people make assumptions and decisions based on these stereotypes, and the consequences, such as the ones from this event, can be fatal.

Scary Movie is not considered Satire for one reason: It does not take a stand on any issue what-so-ever. While, in my opinion, all the of the movies in the ‘Scary Movie’ series are really funny, all they are are paraodies on other movies. TV shows like the Simpsons clearly take an affirmative position on the “dysfunctional family”, and are therefore satire. I personally enjoy sattire very much, and I think it’s a very clever and effective way to deal with issues one feels strongly about. The potential is so great–in other words, forms of satire can range from very funny (Simpsons) to very gruesome and disturbing (A Modest Proposal). Sometimes it bothers me when people do not recognize satire when they see it. For example, the creator of the Simpsons feels very strongly about dysfunctional families, but many people skip right over that aspect of the show.