Modern Day Triangle Shirtwaist Factory

As we discussed in class, The Triangle Shirtwaist factory was clearly unequipped for hazards such as fires. The fire escape in the building was indeed approved by the fire department, however, the doors on certain floors were locked to ensure that none of the workers unionized or escaped during the course any given day. After a fire hit and hundreds of workers died, mainly because of the poor fire equipment, the Triangle Shirtwaist factory was remade. One may think that the management would have learned their lesson after the fire struck the eighth floor, but in their new building, they still proceeded to cover the fire escape with a sewing machine. This finally caused the fire department to disapprove of the factory’s fire equipment.

After learning of this terrible situation that occurred in 1911, I completed some research to investigate if similar events are still happening in modern day situations. I was shocked to find a related situation that had occurred last April in India.

In Mangalore, India, very minimally paid laborers are, “hired to dig trenches in Atturkodi area in Kutherthoor village by the Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL)” (Mondal). These laborers were hired last spring to search for an oil-leak. The trenches that were being dug had been polluted by hydrocarbons. Supposedly these hydrocarbons have caused the trench diggers to begin to develop severe skin conditions. These laborers have repeatedly told their management of these skin problems, and even, “requested the officials of the refinery for protective gear but nothing had been done in this regard” (Mondal). One worker developed a dangerous burning sensation on his legs and hands. However, the officials threatened him after he told a television station about the skin conditions that the laborers are developing.

This modern day situation greatly reminded me of the Shirtwaist Factory in that the management did not care about its workers, but only the job they completed. This situation Mangalore greatly saddened me to know that people have still not learned from the mistakes of the Shirtwaist Factory. In 1911, a sacrifice was made, and I wish the world could learn from those mistakes. However, because similar situations are still occurring today, it causes me to believe that maybe this attitude will always remain in human nature. However, people should learn from events such as these and begin to care more about people than the work that they complete.

Can the Stimulus Package Help Susie American?

Last week in class, we discussed an average scenario that the majority of Americans are living today. This is the scenario of Susie American. In case you don’t remember, Susie was a single mother of two who bought a house for $100,000 and then later used the home “flipping” strategy to sell the house for $150,000. After selling that home, Susie hoped to do the same with another. But the bank told her that with a loan, she could buy a $200,000 home. With Susie’s reasoning, she had thought that she could make more money buying the $200,000 home because the interest would grow faster with a more expensive home. Unfortunately for Susie, and many other Americans, the price of the home did not rise as expected, but it greatly fell because too many people, like Susie, took out loans from the bank that they could not afford. Then, because the entire country was in financial turmoil because of situations similar to this, Susie lost her job and was left with a home she could not pay for, a large loan that she could not afford, and two children to provide for. The question is, what are the government and president going to do to make Susie, and millions of Americans like her, become financially stable again?

Obama’s new housing plan unfortunately does not focus on the many Americans like Susie, instead, according to cnnmoney.com, the plan focuses more on helping around 9 million people that owe more than the home’s value, but can still afford the payments. Unfortunately, “The program does virtually nothing for the unemployed, who often don't have enough income to make any reasonable monthly payment affordable” (Luhby). This is very unpleasant news for Susie and a large mass of Americans who recently became unemployed due to the financial recession that the country is currently in. However, the article did later mention that those who were currently unemployed could potentially benefit from Obama’s bill in the future because Obama’s $787 billion economic stimulus package “is expected to create or save up to 3.5 million jobs” (Luhby). After reading about the stimulus bill, this appeared to be the only benefit to the large amount of people living with similar situations to Susie.

This seems to be a very terrible thing for the majority of Americans, and I hope in the future, there will be a bill that focuses on helping the mass of Americans instead of the small amount the this bill supposedly helped. Unfortunately, this bill realistically may not appear for months, or maybe years. Therefore, I suppose that one important thing Americans can do is look at what exactly caused the housing market to crash and the economy to fail, and learn from our mistakes, ensuring that it never happens again. Until the next bill, focusing on a greater mass of Americans, arrives, it seems that all Americans can do is become self-reliant and attempt to solve their own financial problems. As mentioned before, this is an unfortunate situation, but one that can be solved with several bills and efforts that will hopefully arrive in the future.

Reverse Discrimination

As I watch this country’s progression from before the Civil War until now, it is apparent that the United States is moving closer and closer to ending racism by the decade. With this progression, I realized that some people might feel discriminated against because some companies and universities are now required to have a certain percent of diverse people in order to prove that racism is no longer prevalent in America. With this requirement, some people, particularly Caucasian males, are beginning to feel discriminated against because they feel that some diverse people are less qualified for an occupation, but are receiving the job instead of the Caucasian males due to the diversity requirement that is now in place in certain parts of America. For example, in New Haven, fire fighters were required to pass a test in order to receive promotions. Only 17 Caucasians and one Hispanic passed the test, so the test was “scraped” because it was a requirement to have a higher percentage of diverse people to be promoted. The fire department then promoted some of the diverse people instead of the Caucasians because of this requirement. Some of the Caucasian males called this “reverse discrimination” because they felt that they were being discriminated against because they could not receive the job that they were qualified for due to their race. The fire fighters who passed the test then sued the city because they felt that they were being discriminated against because of their race. This case is currently being taken to the Supreme Court because, “the city violated [the fire fighter’s] constitutional right to equal treatment” (Richey).

Another Caucasian middle class male writes about this issue of “reverse discrimination” in terms of college scholarships. He states that in his search of finding a college scholarship, one website stated, “Guess what? Nearly everyone's a minority. It's likely that you fit into at least one of the growing minority scholarship categories—nearly everyone does, by some scholarship definition. We'll prove it: African American, Hispanic, Native American, Asian, Female, Multi-racial or Multicultural, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) Have we left anyone out?” (collegescholarships.org). His response to that question was that Caucasian males were left out, and he did not understand the reasoning for this. He was astounded that women fell into the category of a minority when they account for 49.2% of the population, and he felt as if the college scholarship program was specifically targeting the Caucasian male group to be the only one that is not eligible for a scholarship. He then argued that people should receive scholarships based on merit. If one person is hard-working and their results illustrate their efforts, they should be given a scholarship regardless of their race.

I completely agree with his idea. I think that race should not even be a factor when it comes to an occupation or a college. In the future, when people apply for an occupation or a college, I think that they should not even be required to provide their gender or race because these things should not determine a person’s success. Unfortunately, this idealistic proposal will probably never happen. So maybe the law that requires a certain percent of diverse people should exist in order to ensure that racism does not occur. Maybe it exists to continue to illustrate the progression that the country has made since the Civil War, to show that the descendants of slaves can now have the same or better jobs than the descendants of masters.

A Life Changing Phone!

It has been called many things such as, life changing, a device of the future, and “The Jesus Phone” (Net Profits Inc). But is the iPhone truly what it is hyped up to be? This past weekend I went to the AT&T store to purchase a new phone. The salesman, who told me about each cell phone, advised me to buy the iPhone. He said, “The iPhone is truly amazing, its technology and the way it operates are redefining the electronic world”. While I initially found the phone to be intriguing, I soon realized that I already have an iPod and camera, so all I really need a phone for is to make calls and send text messages. So, instead of buying the iPhone, I bought a far cheaper device that fulfilled my practical needs. However, when I arrived home, I saw an iPhone commercial, advertising the speed and applications on the phone, so I began to think that the phone may be overly romanticized, due to the fact that it seems to be overly praised and discussed. I looked at various reviews online, and most described the phone as, “…so sleek and thin, [making] Treos and Blackberrys look obese”, and “fast, beautiful, menu-free, and dead simple to operate." One blogger even describes it as, “…pretty phenomenal. Life changing. This is one of the most polished products [he has] ever used”. With all of these positive reviews, I had to ask my brother if I could use his iPhone for about an hour, so I could see what everyone was talking about.
When I used his iPhone, I played some of the games he had downloaded from the application store, and I personally found them to be fairly boring and trivial. It may be possible that some of the more expensive ten-dollar games are more enthralling, but I could never see myself playing some of those games in my spare time. I then tried to use the Internet, and I found that it worked far slower than advertised. In fact, an iPhone commercial in the United Kingdom was even banned due to the false advertisement of the speed of the iPhone. Later, I tried to type on the small touch screen keys, and with about ten typos, I realized that the iPhone keyboard would be difficult to get used to and very inconvenient for my needs. Then I asked my brother how he liked it, and he stated that he really enjoys the phone, but it is not what it is romanticized to be. He says that the touch screen often has trouble working in the cold, and sometimes he misses phone calls because the switch on the side occasionally silences the phone when he places it in his pocket. While some believe this phone redefines the entire technology world, I consider the phone as an interesting device, but far less “life changing” than people build it up to be.

Discrimination in 2009

When America welcomed President Barack Obama into office on January 20, 2009, the country seemed to act as if his inauguration marked the end of racism and discrimination in the United States. Patricia J. Williams states, “[Obama] truly does seem to transcend race because his mother, after all, let’s not forget, was white” (Williams). While at first I tried to agree with the idealistic theory that one person could suddenly transform the beliefs of all Americans, and transcend race, I then realized that this might be impossible. It may be too optimistic to believe that one person will change the views of millions. I realized that America has moved forward in multiple aspects of discrimination and racism. There are no longer slaves like Frederick Douglas who never knew their birthdays or mothers. There are no longer masters who, “...at times seem[ed] to take great pleasure in whipping a slave” (Douglas). However, although discrimination in the United States seems to have ended, maybe it has simply disguised itself in other forms. While American’s are clearly not as racist as they were many years ago, daily discrimination still takes place in America.

Recently, the election took place. Not only was the president elected, but other important decisions were also made. For example, Proposition 8 allowed Californians to decide whether or not same sex marriages should be allowed in California. While it was an apparently very close vote, “...Millions of voters went to the polls... and said YES to bigotry, YES to discrimination, YES to second-class status for same-sex couples” (No on Prop 8 Campaign). While there seems to be an end in sight for racism, gays in America still appear to feel very discriminated against. They seem to feel as if others are controlling their decisions, just as slaves felt controlled by their masters before the twentieth century. The article, “Final Statement from No on Prop 8 Campaign”, states, “Victory was not ours today. But the struggle for equality is not over” (No on Prop 8 Campaign), indicating that same-sex couples still feel discriminated against, and not equal in 2009. While Americans may believe that there is no more discrimination in the United States, people, such as same-sex couples, still feel discriminated against and unequal. The election of an African American president is just one step among many that must occur in order to have a more equal America.

Online News Progress???

Recently, I was shocked to discover that one of Chicago’s arguably most popular newspaper companies, The Chicago Tribune, has just filed for bankruptcy on December 8th. While many people may believe this bankruptcy was caused by the current economic crisis that the world is currently facing, an article detailing the bankruptcy states, “[The Tribune] is the first major newspaper publisher to file for bankruptcy protection since the Internet plunged the industry into a struggle for survival” (Chase). This suggests that the Internet and the many articles to be read online have rapidly been taking over the news industry, and are beginning to make newspapers become obsolete. Multiple people may argue that the Internet and the availability of news articles online is illustrating progress through being environmentally friendly, inexpensive, and easy. However, Nicholas Carr author of article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid” argues that online articles are causing him to lose his capability of reading texts offline by stating, “…What the Net seems to be doing is chipping away my capacity for concentration and contemplation. My mind now expects to take in information the way the Net distributes it: in a swiftly moving stream of particles. Once I was a scuba diver in the sea of words. Now I zip along the surface like a guy on a Jet Ski” (Carr). While in this context Carr may not be directly stating that online newspaper articles are making him less intelligent, he is indicating that with the larger presence of online resources, people are becoming more incapable of reading offline texts. With newspapers such as The Chicago Tribune becoming obsolete, the online news industry becomes more successful and popular, which, according to Carr, could potentially make people even less smart by skimming through the topics of various online articles.

Aside from potentially lowering people’s maximum intellectual capacities, the expansion of online news articles also may not be seen as progress because this causes multiple people in the newspaper industry to become jobless. The article regarding the bankruptcy stated, “Tribune already has made hundreds of layoffs” (Chase). But the downfall of one industry is the rise of another. While many people that work in the newspaper industry are becoming jobless, multiple people are most likely being hired for online news articles. In the essay, “Self-Reliance”, Ralph Waldo Emerson writes, “Society never advances. It recedes as fast on one side as it gains on the other” (Emerson), the newspaper industry is the side that is currently receding, while online articles are becoming more popular. When looked at together it appears Emerson is correct, no side is causing society to actually progress or advance, instead, society is simply changing its method of news distribution. Personally, I find that I enjoy both of these methods of news circulation for different reasons. I occasionally like to eat breakfast while leisurely reading through the articles on the cover of the newspaper. I find that I enjoy reading the paper when I relax, whereas I like online news articles for their convenience whenever I am curious about something. However, if every “progression” has both positives and negatives, and Emerson’s argument that society does not advance is true, then is there a point in attempting to advance at all?

Toys vs. Coats

This past week, I have completed a lot of work regarding the charity program, Adopt-a-Family, with several other members of my advisory. While shopping for the people in the family that my advisory adopted, I noticed what while we did give each person a few toys and other nonessential items, the majority of the budget for each family member was spent on basic necessities such as clothing and warm winter jackets. During the shopping trip, a few people in my advisory picked out an inexpensive winter jacket for one of the children so that we could have more money for toys, however, my advisor quickly told them to exchange the coat for a higher quality, warmer one, and sacrifice a few toys. She said, “It’s better to be warm. If you are sick and cold, there is no point in toys anyway”. So, at the end our shopping trip, I viewed all of the purchased items together. I saw multiple boxes filled with coats, warm clothing, gloves, hats, socks, and scarves, but only a few boxes filled with toys such as Barbie’s and action figures. At first, I had thought that it may be possible that the children that we are giving these various presents to would be upset for the lack of toys that we are donating. However, shortly after this thought entered my mind, I realized that people probably would rather receive things that they need instead of items that they may want. This impoverished family that we are “adopting” does not have the money to fulfill basic necessities such as clothing, therefore, when each person opens up their gifts, they may in fact be more happy opening up an essential item instead of an unneeded toy that the children may grow out of.

This experience made me think a lot about Henry David Thoreau and his book, Walden. In the chapter, “Economy”, Thoreau states, “The necessaries for man in this climate may, accurately enough, be distributed under several heads of Food, Shelter, Clothing, and Fuel” (Thoreau, 8). While my advisory was unable to provide food, shelter, or fuel for our family, we tried our best to fulfill the basic need of clothing. Thoreau continues to state that excessive amounts of these needs become unnecessary as well, therefore, my advisory attempted to purchase practical forms of clothing. The Adopt-a-Family experience made me realize that Thoreau was correct in thinking that any excessive items after needed items are unnecessary, and it made me think of all the things I own and don’t need. People who have all their needs fulfilled should be more thankful because some, such as this family, do not even have necessary items. Thoreau argues that the only thing people really need are the four necessaries listed above, so I hope the family my advisory “adopted” will be pleased while opening gifts that they need, and not necessarily want.