"I can live with doubt and uncertainty and not knowing. I think it is much more interesting to live not knowing than to have answers that might be wrong" (Richard Feynman)
Tuesday in class, Stephen Seymour (4:10 section) showed me a set of statistics on a study done at NYU that appeared in an issue of THE ECONOMIST. It said something like students at NYU were surveyed and would give up their right to vote for a year in exchange for an iPod touch and they'd give up their right to vote forever for free tuition (a free ride). I was stunned.
What's interesting is to compare and contrast the November 22nd print version that appeared in The Economist (very short):
For sale A poll of New York University students revealed that 20% would give up their vote in the next election for an iPod and two-thirds would do so for a year's college tuition. Half would renounce their vote permanently for $1m.
with the longer version dated November 14th that appeared in The Politico:
...66 percent said they'd forfeit their vote for a free ride to NYU. And half said they'd give up the right to vote forever for $1 million.
But they also overwhelmingly lauded the importance of voting.
Ninety percent of the students who said they'd give up their vote for the money also said they consider voting "very important" or "somewhat important"; only 10 percent said it was "not important."
Also, 70.5 percent said they believe that one vote can make a difference — including 70 percent of the students who said they'd give up their vote for free tuition.
The class — "Foundations of Journalism," taught by journalism department chairwoman Brooke Kroeger — polled more than 3,000 undergraduates between Oct. 24 and 26 to assess student attitudes toward voting.
Which version says more and what difference does it make to the reader? How might the shorter or longer version be better or worse for cultural perceptions of college students? In what way does each contribute to stratification along class lines and to concerns about wealth, power and prestige in the U.S.?
Ok here's the situation.That girl right there just gave her explanation.Now its upto me to tell you how,The different band societies work now.Ranging from thirty to fifty people,With no individual property ownership,These nomadic populations of food collectorsBased their bands on blood and kinship.They place high values on sharing and reciprocity.Probably the oldest because they're associated with forging technology.They handle their disputes with direct negotiation,So they can get along well with the population.Highly egalitarian, they had few differences of wealth,And took care of each other in really bad health.The people in the bands had little role specialization,Just like the fact that they had the same traditions.And because of the same traditions they had the same culture.And that same culture incorporated their good future.And then there was this band who spoke its own language.But it didn't matter to them as they all understood about it.And all the band members were independent of each other,So they could live in peace and harmony with their prodigal brother.And lastly there was this man from Kalahari.He was the headman of the tribe Ju/'hari.He carried his load on his own two shoulders,And its not because his heart wasn't colder.It just wasn't his culture to take favors,No matter how hard were his endeavors.His leadership role was very informal.It stemmed not from spiritual or physical powerbut based on his wisdom and being novel.So for all you people from distant landsI give you ma' brother Nick, i hope you understand....
How is it that Aaron Jackson, like Paul Farmer, is willing to pursue what seems impossible and make it look possible? How does traveling (as Jackson and Farmer did--fieldwork of a sort) a catalyst to change? How might your experience in the "field" with your mini-ethnography change you?
"CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute" -- hosted by CNN's Anderson Cooper with Christiane Amanpour -- honors the most outstanding viewer-nominated CNN Heroes as chosen by a blue-ribbon panel of world leaders and luminaries."
"These are some of the people among us who look around and see a world of possibility and hope. While they see people and places in need, they also see that their personal power can quietly accomplish remarkable things."
Medical Marvel: Aaron Jackson helps to provide de-worming medicine to Haitian children
I found this on http://www.ethnography.com/category/blogging-gems/. While at first it seems absurd and humorous, there is something dead on and thought-provoking about this animated video. This is a great little short film by Clemens Kogler.
From the YouTube description Le Grand Content examines the omnipresent Powerpoint-culture in search for its philosophical potential. Intersections and diagrams are assembled to form a grand ‘association-chain-massacre’. which challenges itself to answer all questions of the universe and some more. Of course, it totally fails this assignment, but in its failure it still manages to produce some magical nuance and shades between the great topics death, cable tv, emotions and hamsters.
The topic of the mini-ethnography that I am working on is about Indian Salon’s. My ethnography does not deal with a specific salon, but, the entire group of “desi” salons located in New York and how they exist in a diverse culture and help globalize. I used the term “Desi” Salons because “Desi” is a slang word that stands for the South-Asian community and a South Asian person will be fully aware of the existence of a desi salon in the area, while the same salon might seem like a just another salon to a pedestrian on the sidewalks of NYC. There are numerous salons in NYC, but nobody thinks of a salon based on a specific cultural background. These salons are separated from the usually salons because they use certain techniques that is only known to the South-Asian community and is popular amongst the South Asian public. For instance let us take an example of Henna Tattoos. Henna tattoos have been a part of the Indian culture since centuries, but, now it is becoming more popular worldwide. There are certain designs that are classified as traditional and the artists who know this can only be found in the “desi” salons in New York. Threading has been one of the famous techniques of eyebrow hair removal and in recent years and more people are becoming familiar to it. The ethnography will deal with who first started the Indian techniques in the United States and how it speeded out.
Show your comprehension and apply the new anthropological terms in a thoughtful response.
Cite pages of the terms you discuss and write ideas in your own words (avoid quoting).
Your post will count in the AMNESTY period as extra credit towards your blog/blackboard grade.
If you continue through December consistently, you could make up all the points you missed.
I want to offer some contemporary issues about the world system that are relevant to your future as prospective elites. Read the entire post and then respond to one of the two (2) questions posed below. Reading at least 5 other comments will augment the thinking in your post.
On page 237, Kottak states:
The modern world system is cross-cut by collective identities based on ethnicity, religion, and nationality (Shannon 1996). Class conflicts tend to occur within nations, and nationalism has prevented global class solidarity, particularly of proletarians....The current world stratification system features substantial contrast between both capitalists and workers in the core nations and workers on the periphery.
In 1999, the proletariat from around the world banded together in Seattle at the international meeting of the World Trade Organization (the WTO).
Where we are today: For a glimpse of how intertwined the US economy is with other countries including core, periphery and semiperiphery nations take a look at this Fact Sheet on the WTO from the Office of the United States Trade Representive. The two page document shows the results of cases filed against other countries and the results of cases filed against the U.S. regarding free trade agreements.
QUESTION #1:Given the stratification of classes within the US and the seeming separation of those in the US from the working classes in other nations, how might global class solidarity become a reality given new technologies, new classes of US educated international students, and the desire to resist global corporate power? How might anthropological methods assist us in learning solutions that benefit everyone involved?
In a journal article published in Human Organization by Weaver, Thomas Summer 2001 we get an interesting analysis of how the modern world system works:
The world economy is made up of "commodity chains"-forward and backward connections in the processing of a commodity within and across these regions. These commodity chains encompass the exploitation of raw materials, labor, its reproduction, levels of processing, transportation, and consumption. The capitalist world-system in this context forces unequal exchange that simultaneously promotes core development and peripheral poverty and dependence (Grimes 2000:34). The collaboration of elite classes between and within core and periphery supports this transformation [italics added for emphasis].
QUESTION #2: First, determine if the country in which you were born is a core, periphery or semiperiphery nation and according to what source? As a prospective "collaborator," as a future member of the elite class, what do you imagine you will do about the "unequal exchange" between the elite and the proletarian classes? How might anthropological methods assist us in learning solutions that benefit everyone involved?
In Chapter 10 on Religion (Kottak, Mirror for Humanity), the notion of witch hunts is raised as a powerful means of social control "creating a climate of danger and insecurity that affects everyone, not just the people who are likely targets." These accusations are often targeted towards the socially marginal and the anomalous (those who deviate from the norm) as a "leveling mechanism" bringing them back in line with the status quo. See Big Religion Chart for broader view of religion.
You might be interested in seeing a real-life crucifixion in contemporary Phillipines for a man who made an oath to be cruxified to save his daughter. This video is provided by National Geographic.
How might common superstitions work as a form of social control, as leveling mechanisms where social differences stand out? Which individuals or groups in our society might be affected by these superstitions (Remember the experiment 3rd grade teacher Jane Elliot did with the brown and blue eyes)?
* Friday the thirteenth is an unlucky day * If you walk under a ladder, you will have bad luck * To break a mirror will bring you seven years bad luck * To open an umbrella in the house is to bring bad luck * Step on a crack, break your mother's back * If you blow out all of the candles on your birthday cake with the first breath you will get whatever you wish for * An itchy palm means money will come your way * A beginner will always have good luck: beginner's luck * Crossing your fingers helps to avoid bad luck and helps a wish come true * After receiving a container of food, the container should never be returned empty * A sailor wearing an earring cannot drown * To find a penny heads up, brings good luck * To make a happy marriage, the bride must wear: something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue * Washing a car will bring rain * You must get out of bed on the same side you got in on or you will have bad luck
Each student agrees to post a comment at least once a week throughout the semester. Take this seriously. Stay on topic! No flaming, cussing, or advertising. You comments will factor into your participation grade. Be adult and enjoy the freedom to express any communication responsibly. Curious thoughts and questions are often the best conversation starters.
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