Irish and Proud of It

             My great-great-grandparents emigrated from Ireland in the late 19^th century. My grandparents told me they immigrated due to the fact that their religious beliefs were being prejudiced and the war overpopulated much of Ireland. They wanted to come to America to have freedom to follow their religious views, and they thought there would be more job opportunities.  Apparently, my great-great-grandparents weren’t the only people with this mindset. Between 1820 and 1860, Irish made up more than one-third of the immigrants and by the 1950’s Irish people were one-fifth of all foreign born population. Most Irish immigrants helped build canals and railroads and, because of these developments, American cities began to expand (Handlin). Not only did the Irish help expand American cities, they also helped bring religion with them.

            When Irish immigrants began to settle down they formed tight-knit communities. Many Irish immigrants were Catholics, so when the immigrated to America they brought along their Catholic views. Many of the earliest Catholic churches were built by and run by Irish immigrants. St. Patrick’s Day was also brought around when Irish immigrated to America. Many American’s viewed this day as a separation of Irish and American’s, but this day actually helped to bond Irish immigrants from all over America (Hirschmann). Unfortunately, not all American’s saw the immigrants as “worthy” people, and they weren’t afraid to express their opinions.

            Immigration has caused a lot of fights, arguments, and protests. After the Irish started immigrating to the United States, many Americans rebelled. The most popular form of rebellion was the burning of Irish-Catholic churches. American’s thought this was the one thing the Irish cared about most, it was one of their main reasons for immigration. Priests were also attacked and convents were destroyed. Also, with the great influx of immigrants, many believed that the immigrants caused the depression. Over 3.5 million immigrants immigrated in the 1800’s to the United States. This amount of people overwhelmed the United States and definitely could have threw them into a depression. But Irish weren’t the only immigrants in that time period, so the blame cannot be completely put on them.

            I am very proud to be Irish. My relatives may have helped to expand cities and bring water to different parts of the country. They may have also played a part in building Catholic churches, and maybe even part of some of the first St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. I feel like my ancestors for Ireland played an extravangant role in helping to build the United States.

Works Cited:

            Handlin, Oscar. A Pictorial History of Immigration. New York: Crown Publishers, 1972

            Hirschmann, Charles. "The Impact of Immigration on American Society: Looking Backward to the Future." Border Battles. 28 July 2006. Web. 28 Oct. 2010.       <http://borderbattles.ssrc.org/Hirschman/>.

Week 10 Blog Reviews

Justin:

Your traumatic freewrite was just that! I loved the voice and the story telling. It was really great. When I got to the end of the story my mouth dropped! It was such an unexpected ending and I sat there stunned for a moment. It was so great and you conveyed the emotions of those involved extremely well. This was a great blog.

Your 386 Directed Freewrite was also amazing. Your intro was very strong and I knew immediately what your blog was going to be about. I also agree with you that I don’t think women should be stereotyped. I don’t think anybody should be stereotyped and I am really glad that you portrayed your own opinions. Great job!

Rick:

All I can say is Oh My God!!! Your traumatic freewrite was so shocking! I loved your story telling, I was glued (sorry no pun intended) to your story the whole time. I couldn’t stop reading it because I wanted to know why your backpack was stuck! I loved that you kept me waiting to the very end to find out what it was. That is so horrible though, I can’t believe your story. I hope you bought a better backpack!

In your Is It What They Say It Is? blog I felt your intro could have been a little more specific.  I felt like you jumped right into your argument instead of preparing the essay. I agree with your blog completely. I think this music is totally degrading to women and I am actually glad to see that you feel the same way. You made a very compelling argument and your conclusion was very strong!

Can't Buy Me Love

            Materialism. One word that can mean so many different things to people. So is it good or bad, right or wrong, helping America or ruining it? According to James Twitchell, materialism has made this country what it is today. Materialism makes us happier and without our possessions we would be sad, lonely, depressed people. On the other hand, there are people who believe the opposite. Materials don’t make us happy, people make us happy. So who is right? It all depends on the person.

            According to James Twitchell, buying things is our source of meaning and happiness. As a culture, the whole world spends most of its time making new things to sell. Sadly, this has made American’s materialists. In the United States, we have more than four times as much stuff as people in Europe do. Why is this? Well, Twitchell believes that in every culture people buy, steal, collect, exchange, and hoard things. Most of the things that we do buy have absolutely no use to us; we just want them to make us feel happy (Twitchell 389).

            Twitchell also believes that commercialism isn’t the problem. It is only covering the more complex things that are hiding under the commercialism.  He said that if you asked teens today what democracy means they would say, “Democracy is the right to buy anything you want.” He also goes on to state that, “Freedom’s just another word for lots of things to buy.” (Twitchell 391) So did he completely take this out of context? From what I’m reading, when asked what teens think democracy means they could have said that democracy, to them, means freedom and that to Twitchell freedom means the ability to buy anything you want.

            Another thing that upset me was Twitchell stated that, “spiritualism is more likely a substitute when objects are scarce. When we have few things we make the next world holy.” (Twitchell 392) This completely threw me for a loop. I consider myself and religious and spiritual person. Does this mean I’m not happy and that I don’t have enough things? If I had more things would I still be a religious and spiritual person? To me this made absolutely no sense at all. He also stated that if we had fewer choices that we would be happier. I have to argue against that. My sister when to a private Christian school where they had to wear uniforms every day, and going from a public school to her new school was very difficult for her. She no longer got to choose what she wanted to wear to school. There was so self expression in her outfit and she looked like everybody else. According to Twitchell, this should have made her happier! She no longer had to choose from an array of clothing and she knew that nobody would be dressed better than her. I don’t know about you, but my self-expression makes me happier than my lack of choices.

            “Can’t buy me love” was one of the most infamous lyrics! In my opinion this is true! In Twitchell’s opinion, you can buy love and happiness and lack of spirituality. Sure, American’s are materialistic; I’m not arguing there. What I am arguing is the fact that one man believes that our materials make us happy, less anxious, determine who we are, and that debt is actually good for us. What makes us happy is knowing that we have choices, that we are able to buy and spend and do what we want with our money, even if that means saving it. How anybody can understand where Twitchell comes from is beyond me.

Corrupted Sounds A Lot Like Corporation

            Who is your favorite artist? Michael Jackson, Elvis, Linkin Park, maybe even 3Oh!3?? Every single one of these artists has been, or is, owned by one of the six major music corporations. The six major music corporations are: Capitol-EMI, CBS, MCA, PolyGram, RCA, and Warner. Each one of these corporations is controlling a portion of the music industry, and slowly destroying it. If you thought that an artist is discovered based off of their musical abilities and that the public makes them popular, you are in for a major shock. The music industry is not, in fact, about music. The music industry is all about profit, and if an artist is not helping to make a profit than they are cut. If music is for the consumers then why isn’t it what we want?

            The Six owned over 80% of the market in the U.S. by 1974 (Miller 367). When records were thrown out a replaced by CD’s , which was all thanks to the Six. Now, the Six are trying a new technology. DVD’s are their newest invention, and by doing this they are making us consumers choose between an old technology or spend money on this new technology. Unfortunately, now the music business is all commercial. The music industry is focused on profit more than the consumers and all they are worried about is making a quick return. They don’t want a musician who is going to take a while to catch on. They want an artist who will catch the public’s attention and be the next “big thing” (Miller 368). Have you noticed the newest trend? Young males with all about the same voice, same music style, same looks, and same attitudes are all over the radio. This is what the Six had planned! They want the next big thing, so first there was Taio Cruz, then came Jason Derulo, and who knows what’s next. Only the Six can decide.

            There are so many things that the Six could do to take the focus off of the profit and move their attention over to the public. They could go out and find something new and exciting, instead of finding duplicates of what is already popular. They could also take surveys of what the consumers are looking for. What music do they enjoy the most? Lastly, the Six can stop making new technology! I am so tired of having to replace my old technology for new technology. I remember when I had cassette tapes, then those were replaced by CD’s, and now I have an IPod. You don’t see people walking around with cassette players or CD players, instead you see them walking around with their IPods full of their favorite music. With IPods, we get to decide what we listen to, instead of listening to the radio which is only playing what the Six wants us to hear.

            The Six should focus their attention on the public instead of the profits that accompany the music industry. If the music corporations were more focused on us I think there would be more music that we like and enjoy. There would also be newer music styles. I feel like on my favorite stations I hear the same exact style of music over and over. What if the Six went out and found something new and tried that out. Then WE could decide if we liked them or not. This would make the music industry more diverse and, eventually, about us instead of the profit.          

Accidents Happen

            Car accidents happen every day. They can be the minor bumper accidents to the five car pile-up, very tragic. Most people have either been involved in a car accident or know someone who has been. I, unfortunately, can say I am one of those people. I have been involved in two car accidents in my entire twenty-one year long life. One of them was not my fault while the other was in fact my fault. Either way, they were both extremely terrifying and I hope to never go through it again.

            I was leaving my high school, getting ready to go home. It was only eleven thirty because I had the privilege of getting out of school early.  I was almost home when my mom called me. “Hey Tasha, what are you doing?” Of course my response was, “Ugh. I’m almost home. Why??” “Well do you think you can go to your sister’s school? They need me to sign something and said you could go ahead and do it.” “Of course!”, I said. I am the “good” child, so I will do anything for my mom. So I turned around and headed to my sister’s Christian school which was fifteen minutes away.

            Once I arrived I walked into the front office and explained my story. I told them I was there to sign paperwork for my mother and was in a hurry. I wanted to go home! They told me they had no idea what I was talking about, and something that should have taken two minutes ended up taking fifteen minutes. They called my mother; she talked to someone who talked to someone else and so on. Finally they figured it out and I signed the papers and was on my way.

            Driving home I decided to take a short cut and headed down Indian School to Miller. I was already in a bad mood because I had to turn around, so I was very excited to get home. The lunch hour traffic had arrived and Indian School was very busy. I was stopped at the light at Miller, behind a lot of traffic, and all I needed to do was turn left. So I snuck into the left turn lane, just like I’ve seen hundreds of people do, and I started to drive up to the light. Just then, out of nowhere, came a car. She had crossed across traffic and was also turning into the lane I was turning into and we collided.

            I was freaking out! Should I run?? Did she see my license plate?? Is it my fault?? What a bitch! How did she not see me?? Oh my god my mom is going to kill me! Everything was running through my mind. I pulled in behind her into the CVS parking lot. There I called my mom who called the police and told me to stay put. The girl, on the other hand wanted to exchange insurance policies and leave. I told her my mom called the police and we need to stay put otherwise we will get in trouble and it would be a hit and run. She agreed and we waited, not so patiently.

            The officer showed up the same time my mom did and I began bawling!!!! All the fear and emotions built up and the sight of my mom just made them explode. I was so happy to see her and have her help me figure out this mess. Her and I talked to the cop and explained my story. The cop informed me that it was both of our faults. I shouldn’t have entered the left lane early and she shouldn’t have cut across traffic. I was cited for driving in a two way left turn lane and had to go to driving school.

            I was so relieved to find out that I wasn’t going to jail! I had just gotten my license and was so excited to start driving. After my accident it took me six months to drive to Indian School. I was terrified I would get into another car accident and I didn’t want to relive the memories. This was one of the scariest things that has ever happened to me and I never want to experience it again.

Week 8 Blog Reviews

Darien:

Wow! Your “Mother Nature’s Open Mind” entry was amazing! The introduction was so strong. It would make a great thesis for your paper if you decided to choose that topic. Your entry was so strong and full of examples from the text, which I really liked! You also included your opinion. This was one of the best essays you have written so far. This was such a great entry. Good job!

April:

I thought your “Homosexuality in Human and Animal Society” entry was very strong. You had a lot of supporting facts from the text and really showed your point of view. I wish your opinion paragraph was a little longer. I feel that I only know a little bit about your opinion and why. I felt you could have just gone a little more in-depth with your opinion.

Ok, your “Chemical Connection” entry was AWESOME! Your intro was the best I have seen so far! Your story drew me right in and I didn’t want to stop reading. You should do something like this for your paper. It’s a great attention grabber, and you are really good at it. Your opinions came through strongly and your argument was strong as well. This was a really good entry!

Homosexuality in the Animal Kingdom

            So what is the big deal about homosexuality? Why do we have to label it and then follow those labels? Is it an exclusively human behavior or is it found in the animal world as well? There are so many questions that can be asked about homosexuality and what its purpose is, but in the end it doesn’t matter! As long as it makes the two people involved happy that’s all that matters. To answer one of the questions: no, homosexuality is not exclusively a human behavior. It is found all over the animal world.

            I love the intro to Kluger’s essay. “Giraffes do it, goats do it, birds and bonobos and dolphins do it. Human beings – a lot of them anyway – like to do it too.” (Kluger 337). After reading his essay, this is, in fact, very true. Homosexual behavior is not something that human beings explore. Kluger explained that bonobos, giraffes, dolphins, elephants, rodents, penguins, and many other animals explore homosexuality. Homosexual relations in the animal world also consist of both men-men and women-women, which can last for years. Plus, many of these species stay in homosexual relationships for 5, 10, or even 15 years! Many homosexual animals, such as bears, actually raise young in homosexual relationships. This sounds a lot like homosexual relationships we see between humans, whether man-man or woman-woman.  

            So, can we use animal examples of homosexuality as a way to support homosexuality? Why not? This just proves that humans aren’t the only species experimenting with same-sex sex. We think of ourselves as an experimental species. We try drugs, alcohol, same-sex relations, and thrill seeking; anything we  can that will give us an extra “high”. Other animal species aren’t really like that, and to see them forming homosexual relationships shows me that it is a naturally occurring thing that happens, not something humans decided to try. Not to say if animals are doing it then it must be alright, but I think this example of homosexuality really does prove that it’s a natural feeling.

            Now, someone who doesn’t believe in homosexuality can argue this to death. They could say “Well, animals don’t have sophisticated brains and thoughts. Hell, they throw their own poop. So how can we compare ourselves and our feelings to animals?!?!?” I can kind of agree, but animals don’t do as many stupid things as humans do, and animals don’t do things because they feel like it. Many animals do things due to their needs, thoughts, feelings, and their environment. I feel that homosexuality is a naturally occurring feeling that happens in all species, and we should embrace it, not shun it!

Women's Sexual Desires

I chose to do my blog on the writing assignment for page 311 #3. I wanted to do some research and see what I could find on sex and chemistry, and I found a lot of articles. One article that caught my eye was called Women’s Sexual Desire: A Feminists Critique. I wanted to see how other women perceive women’s sexual desires and what this article was all about.

In this article they talk about how male models are used as the “standard” for sexual desire. Women’s sexuality is compared to men’s and I think that is unfair. As most of us women know, sexually, men act differently then women. Most women want love and compassion, while most men want sex and someone to take home for a one-night stand. Now, I’m not saying ALL men and women are like this. There are some women who want one-night stands, and there are some men who want a companion that they can share secrets and feelings with. The one thing that the article does agree on is that sexual desires are very spontaneous, whether it is a man or woman.

Another thing the article talks about is what they called the “linear model of sexual desire”. This model shows phases of sexual desire and that there is only one correct way to experience sexual response. But, the author argues that this model is different for women. Women don’t always experience sexual desire as the precursor to sexual arousal, but men commonly do. They were also able to prove this in focus groups containing both men and women.

The thing about sexual desires is that is it confusing!!!!! There is no one-way to experience sexual desires and they differ, not only from men and women, but from woman to woman. Sexual desires are both part of the brain, heart, and chemistry. It involves many different “parts” working together to form a sexual desire. I think sexual desire is a very confusing topic, especially when it gets down to the chemistry level. I don’t know how it works, and I don’t really care to know how it works, just as long as it does!

Wood, Jill M., Patricia B. Koch, and Phyllis K. Masfield. "Women's Sexual Desire: A Feminist Critique." The Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality. 22 Nov. 2005. Web. 05 Oct. 2010. <http://www.sexscience.org/publications/index.php?category_id=439&subcategory_id=1846>.

Week 7 Blog Reviews

April:

I loved your essay on monogamous marriage. Your introduction was so strong and drew me in immediately! Your conclusion was also incredibly strong. I agree with you when you said that even though there is the urge to spread seeds, we know what is right and wrong. I though your entry was just a little short and though maybe you could have gone in depth with some examples from the book. I thought you could have used a paragraph to talk about Wrights examples and about evolutionary psychology views. Other than that your entry was amazing! Very strong!

Darien:

After reading your He said, She said, they said What? Essay I was impressed! I love your word choice and your essay was very organized. I thought your intro was a little long and not exactly strong. I felt you led right into the differences between males and females instead of forming a strong intro. Your essay ended very strong and was well supported with examples. I loved reading this essay because I felt like we had the same opinions!

Your second essay, monogamy, infidelity, and present society was also extremely strong. This intro was great! It was very strong and I knew exactly what you were going to be talking about. I loved your opinions throughout the essay and I agreed with you completely. I don’t think monogamous relationships should be abolished and if men had more responsibilities after divorce I think it would lessen the amount of divorces we have. Great job on both of your essays. I really love your writing style.