Quick comment on Sports

I just wanted to make quick comment on Denny's post about Sports. I was unable to comment in class since it was getting late and people still needed to do their presentations, so I figured i'll make a post to help boost my word count. Anyways, what I wanted to say in class is that I am a big sports connoisseur. I have played football and basketball in high school, softball leagues during the summer, and have recently picked up individual sports such as golf and tennis. In addition to that, I am an avid poker fan, just like Truman. However, I agree with Denny in that poker is not a sport. Poker does not require any physical skill, although the mental skill required in poker ranks up there with other games such as chess. There is also the notion that golf is NOT a sport, and I agree with Aaron and his disagreement of that statement. Just this June, Tiger Woods arguably had the greatest individual golf performance by winning the U.S Open with a BROKEN leg and I think torn ligaments he had suffered before. Having sprained ligaments in my knee before playing basketball, walking was like hell, and to be able to play 18 holes of golf 4 days in a row, then play one more round on Monday for overtime, is remarkable.

In my opinion, any game that requires physical and mental skill is what is considered a sport, and that includes golf.

Derogatory Terms

The word derogatory is a term used to demean or degrade a person or thing. To use a derogatory term on someone means that you are implying that they are below you, socially and racially speaking. Derogatory terms such as chink, beaner, terrorist, Jew, white trash, redneck, and the n-word are terms of hate; terms that cut through skin and can be more hurtful than physical pain itself. Not only are there derogatory terms for race, but also terms that are gender specific such as hoe, bitch, gay, and slut. Looking back, when those derogatory terms were created, they were created specifically to put down certain people or races. As of today, rarely is anybody allowed to shout out racial slurs in public without garnering negative attention from someone, and rightfully so thanks to the Civil Rights Movement, Feminist Movement, and other small movements that were inspired by the Civil Rights Movement.

However, today and for the past 20 years, derogatory terms seem to have reached a crisis point. Derogatory terms have turned into a paradox; certain derogatory terms’ connotations have changed from that of contemptuous to that of endearment. Take for example the n-word. FYI, to this day, I still feel uncomfortable saying or typing the n-word so the word will be referenced as n___-a or n___-er (you fill in the blanks). Anyways, n___-er is a word that still strikes a blow of hatred to those who use it. However, the connotation of the word n___-a has been flipped to a term of endearment and becoming a synonym for “homie” or “friend”. The phrase “Wassup my n___-a” during a greeting is prevalent in the rap culture and inner-city culture. Listen to artists such as 50 cent, Jay-Z who has a song titled “N___-a What, N___-a Who” or even as Aaron stated in class Nas who wanted to name his album “N____-er”. It seems as if the word n___-a has removed the seriousness and sting from the n-word. It has been said, from comedians and rap artists, that they justify using the n-word because what they are doing is making the word counter-productive, and that by redefining the connotation of the n-word they are also removing the hatred that came from the past and that it is their way of having their own “movement”.

Yet, this notion of redefining or removing the seriousness of derogatory words is a slippery slope. There are people who are unwilling to accept the radical idea of using racial slurs to remove racism in society, while others, mostly the younger generation, have no problem with it, mainly because they were not directly affected. Younger generations did not live through the Civil Rights Movement so they may not have felt the strongest sense of hate that came from the word n___-er prior and during the Civil Rights Movement. Furthermore, the n-word seems to be the only racial slur that has been able to change its connotation. Gay, white-trash, beaner, etc. still has a negative connotation. I don’t think you would hear two Mexicans saying “Hey, beaner” or two white people saying “Hey, white-trash” and have it be acceptable, showing that this new idea of using racial slurs to remove racism in America is an extreme and radical idea that somehow is used for the n-word.

Furthermore, one has to question if racial terms will ever be acceptable to use in everyday language without fear of reprimand. Going back to Truman’s thoughts, he likes to make racial jokes with his friends because he knows his audience and that his friends will not overreact to his jokes. This notion also reminds me of what Parika said yesterday that certain people in certain situations are allowed to say things that other people cannot. Comedians such as Chris Rock, Dave Chapelle, and Richard Pryor have often brought up the n-word humorously, while Michael Richards AKA Kramer’s tirade on the n-word was not as well received and has essentially been black-balled. George Lopez, Carlos Mencia, and Paul Rodriguez are known for making fun of Hispanic culture, while Jeff Foxworthy and Larry the Cable Guy plays on redneck culture. In essence, making fun one’s own racial slurs has been done before on the comedic circuit, but the intentions on why it is done remains to be solidified. Sometimes a comedian may be making social commentary, while others are just looking for a good joke, while some it’s a mixture of both. A question that was raised up in class was “Is a joke racist if nobody takes offense to it?” So, just because someone doesn’t take offense to a racial joke, means the joke is not racist? This train of thought was somewhat disturbing to me because we would be ignoring the social injustices and trivializing the struggle people have made throughout the world to eradicate these racial terms.

Ultimately, this notion of derogatory terms and their usages is a confusing subject. This ambiguous line that separates demeaning and endearing in certain racial terms has raised a plethora of questions. Often, it is hard to tell the context with which a racial term is used, and one has to ask themselves if there is a medium or standard which should be laid out for people to understand.

Reflection

Just like everyone else, I was dreading this day ever since I’ve been holding off on taking this class since my sophomore year. I realized this summer would be the perfect opportunity to finally take this class so begrudgingly, I agreed.

The first day of class was very unusual. Coming from a biological sciences perspective, all of my courses have a straight path with a strict lecture schedule to adhere to. There was no freedom to voice your opinion, rather, it was writing notes or going to sleep. So when Chris said that this class would be mostly a discussion forum, I did not know how to react. On one hand, this is a change to the college norms to what I am accustomed to, but on the other hand, this change would be intellectually stimulating.

As I look back on writing the blogs, I’ve noticed several things. First, I’ve noticed an increase in quality to my posts. My first post was probably the first time I have formally written something for school in a year. It was a nice, easy topic to transition into the writing mode for this summer, and I feel that my writing and the thought process that goes with it vastly improved. The second thing that I noticed was the topics that I chose. All of the topics I wrote about were ideas that were interesting to me. I think part of the problem of other uwp101 classes is the fact that not everyone has the opportunity to choose what they want to write about, and that in turn affects their writing. Personally, my writing is better if the topic is something I am passionate and for the most part, this class has allowed me to do this effectively.

With regards to the in-class discussions, I think the fluidity of the discussions has its advantages and disadvantages. The discussions were very intellectual-stimulating, and I find myself just digesting every word Chris or other students had to say and think to myself, “Hmm…” This “forum” to discuss our thoughts on key topics raised the quality of the discussions to where I have never experienced before as a science major. In science, there is not much to question, rather just facts, but in this class, every idea we talked about was deconstructed and questioned.

On the other hand, I think the fluidity of this class has its disadvantages. I noticed during class that we seem to wander from talking about the keyword and instead talk about something else that is somewhat related. I think a better idea would be to spend half the class talking specifically about the essay I the book, then the other half the fluidity would take over.

Overall, I loved this class. I think this class is truly innovative and with a few tweaks, this class could be the writing class of the future.

Self-Perception

This past week, one of our keywords was “image”, and while reading through my classmate’s blogs, I noticed Arlen commented on image as well. In his post, Arlen states that an image is “…an image. It’s what people, who don’t know you, see you as. Only when the person really gets to know you, the image of you they see is actually what you truly are”.

This statement relates to the notion of people who are self-conscious of their outward appearance and thus present a façade to the outside world; a façade that is concealing a person’s true self. The idea of self-perception has a long history dating back to Adam and Eve in the Bible, where Adam and Eve become aware and ashamed of their nakedness after eating the fruit from the forbidden tree, so this idea of self-image is nothing new.

Although this idea is not new, it seems to be more prevalent because of the media. In Arlen’s post, he writes “for example, when an individual (usually a famous one that is in the spotlight) talks about needing to clean up his/her image, he/she wants to change the way people see and think about him/her”, and I agree wholeheartedly. For instance, celebrities are always in the public eye, and therefore must present a proper self-image of themselves in fearful of being scrutinized, an example being Michael Jordan. Many kids including myself looked up to Michael Jordan as a role model, and he constructed a clean image of himself so that he can be a marketable athlete, but what people don’t know was that Jordan had an extramarital affair with another woman, and was a compulsive gambler.

Another example would be myself. Random people often come up to me and say “Wow, you’re big and tall” and probably assume that I am a tough, firm person. Unfortunately, that is my public perception, but in reality, inside of this shell is a caring person who likes to make people laugh.

Roller Coastin'

This is a picture my mom took a couple of weeks ago at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in Vallejo. It was my birthday so I invited my cousins to Six Flags to hang out, have some fun, and enjoy the day. I have to admit, heading to this day, I was a bit uneasy since I had not been on a roller coaster in 2 years, so I completely lost the memory of how riding a roller coaster felt like. Once we got to the park, we were debating on which ride to go on first: Medusa, arguably the best ride in the park, or a “pre-ride” ride that is not as thrilling but perfect for easing the transition to more thrilling, scarier rides.

Alas, we finally decided to go on an “easy” ride since this would be my youngest sister’s first time riding on a roller coaster. Essentially, the first ride that we rode did not travel on a track like other coasters; instead it made loops so you are basically going upside down, again and again, for 1 minute. It’s funny how our whole group decided we should ride an easy ride to start the day, yet at the end of the day, that first ride was probably the most physically challenging. In other roller coasters, the speed of the coaster turns the experience into a blur filled with non-stop screaming, whereas this coaster would make the loops slow so as to be suspended upside down for at least 3 seconds without moving before finally finishing the loop and repeating itself again. During this ride, I felt blood rushing into my head, nausea building up from the McDonalds breakfast and overall a not-so-good feeling. The ride was scary at first, but then after a while, it got boring and that’s when I was thinking to myself “This needs to end ASAP!”

In this particular picture, our faces capture the emotions heading into the roller coaster. In our faces, especially my face, you can see that there is a sense of anxiousness before riding, and rightfully so. I think what caused me to be anxious is the fact that I hate feeling trapped, but not to the point where I am claustrophobic. It had been a while since I was in a harness so all I was thinking about at the time of the picture was how tight the harness was going to be.

Everyone has different emotions heading into a ride, and in this picture, my cousin’s facial expression is more of eagerness and anxiousness rather than nervousness. Beside me is my younger brother who you could barely see, and the girl to his right is my cousin’s girl-friend who he decided to bring. To the very left of the picture is the first row where my cousin (pictured), other cousin, and my youngest sister were seated. Here, you can see my other cousin reaching for the harness, but little did he know that it would be at least another minute before the harnesses would lock into place, so you could say that his eagerness is showing in this picture. Another aspect of this picture is that if you look at the rest of the seats, they are empty. Two reasons can account for that fact: 1; the park just opened, and 2; nobody wanted to ride an old ride.

What I liked about this photo was that it was spontaneous and not contrived. Spontaneous photos truly capture the essence of the moment, the emotions of the people involve, and provide a visual to a story that can be told later on in life. As I get older, hopefully I will be able to one day show this picture and tell a story about my birthday at an amusement park.

LIVESTRONG

I remember one time in class there was a discussion about Livestrong bracelets that Danielle brought up and ironically I, just like every other day, was wearing one on my wrist. And so, I read up her post, and I found it interesting on her take on the phenomena of charitable consumerism.

I can recollect back to the summer of 2004, and I was at the Nike outlet in Vacaville. As I was checking out my purchases, I noticed a box near the cashier selling yellow bracelets for $1. I asked the cashier what it was and she told me that it was a Livestrong bracelet, a fundraiser with the proceeds going towards Lance Armstrong’s cancer research foundation. I thought to myself “Hey, if it’s for a good cause, why not?” and bought 5 bracelets that I still use today.

What was interesting about Danielle’s post was when she stated that “LIVESTRONG attracted a new type marketing to consumers; feel good about what you buy because you are donating to an organization”. I have to agree, and noticed that people buy it just to be like “hey, look at me! I’m a socially conscious person and I donate my money to charity.” On the other hand, other people are not so ostentatious and don’t have the inclination to look good for other people by visually showing via Livestrong bracelets that they care. In essence, Livestrong has almost become a status symbol for the self-conscious person; a symbol seen worn by pretentious, fake people.

However, not all Livestrong band-wearers can be grouped into that description. There are always people who wear the bracelet because they are personally affected by cancer and it reminds them of the struggle and courage it takes to overcome it. Some wear it just because they like Lance Armstrong as an athlete, and some just wear it because they use it as motivation, and that’s acceptable.

I think in these situations, one has not to be cynical but rather question the motives of the companies for allowing the commercialization of a fundraiser, because after all, Nike and Gap is in the business of making money for themselves. However, in my personal opinion, I think organizations like Code Red and Livestrong are truly honest about their intentions of helping out and are just using the extra exposure and commercialization to promote their foundations.

Finally, with regards to Livestrong bands, I’ve come to the conclusion that many people have different reasons to wear the bracelets, and I cannot judge someone on their intentions of wearing it, and rather just worry about myself and “do me”.

Street Ethics

One of my favorite shows on T.V right now is The First 48 on A&E. The basic premise of the show is a reality-based crime scene investigation where actual cases from Memphis, Miami, Dallas, Detroit, etc. are followed. In these cases, the show highlights the delicate balance between detectives, witnesses, and suspects. The cat and mouse game between the detectives and key witnesses is intriguing because it is a microcosm of the cultural differences and similarities occurring between the inner city and the suburbs.

Usually, whenever a key witness knows about the situation or knows the suspect, they are uncommunicative to the detectives. The idea of not “tattle-tailing” has been engrained since our childhood. From grade school, “tattle-tailing” is considered a bad thing and that everyone should mind their own business. Back then, there were no racial preferences and preconceived notions to who “tattle-tailed”; an Asian, Latino, African-American, or Caucasian kid were all equally liable to “tattle-tail”. However, in The First 48, this idea is conveyed to the extreme because people have died. This is not a harmless game, but rather a torture to the victim’s family because no one wants to fess up.

In essence, those living in the ghetto are living by the street code of “no snitching”. Those brought up in the inner city are afraid to come forward and speak on the crime because of the fear of being retaliated by the gangs. In this situation, there is a cultural difference because the main minority depicted on the show is African-Americans, thus providing an impression that only African-Americans living in the street culture undertake the “no snitching” code. To me, this represents the reality of the differences in cultures and how certain things (tattle-tailing) can be twisted into something more radical (no snitching).

This phone, the Sidekick III from T-Mobile, symbolizes what it means to be a mobile user; this device allows for unlimited connectivity to your buddy list via AOL Instant Messenger and the ability to text message instantly and seamlessly. This device is very popular because it utilizes a program such as AOL Instant Messenger, typically reserve to use on computers, and transplanting it onto a phone, creating the ultimate mobile device and allowing unlimited connectivity to your friends. This phone has been wildly popular since its inception, particularly among the 16-24 age demographic where being connected is viewed as an important element to ones own life.

However, although one may see this as being beneficial, there are pitfalls to this technology. How connected is too connected? Is being seamlessly connected to your friends a vital feature that one cannot live without? Has our sense of mobility changed from being able to be reached to being seamlessly connected? This device makes users to being prisoners of instant connectivity, thus in turn creating a sense of disability to one’s own self-identity.

I think what is revolutionary about this device is because unlike mobile phones, the Sidekick allows for instant connectivity. What I mean is that for mobile phones, you can chose to ignore a phone call, allowing some sense of separation, whereas in a Sidekick, because you are always connected, anybody can contact you at any time with a text message. For example, I’ve seen users of the Sidekick text in inappropriate places such as Church. As I witness that, I thought to myself, “Has our life come to the point where we cannot even hold off talking to our friends for one hour, even for Church?”

I have owned a Sidekick 3, and although it was very useful, I ironically felt restricted in being seamlessly connected to whoever wanted to talk to me, thus losing my only sense of seclusion from the outside world.

The West End Parking Structure

It’s 4 P.M, class just got out, and I’m leaving the science lecture hall after a long day of classes. Dispersing from the lecture hall, I find myself power walking to parking garage structure. The streets are busy with an influx of bicyclists and pedestrians mixed in cars. I pass through the crowded Lake Blvd. bus stop and finally reach the entrance of the parking structure. From there, just like Neo in the Matrix, I have 2 choices: take the stairs or take the elevator. Seeing as how I parked on the 5th floor, I opted on the elevator, and so did a lot of people too. Entering the elevator, I see ambiguous foot stomp marks on the top of the elevator door, obviously a work of art done by a prankster with really good flexibility. On the floor were trash and extra party fliers from the weekend before.
After finally reaching my car, trying to disperse from the parking structure straight after class is a slow and arduous process filled with many obstacles. The arrival of cars looking for a parking spot and waiting for you to leave adds to the disorder. After finally leaving the spot, I then approach a backup. It takes 10 minutes to finally exit the parking structure; all because of the light to make a right turn onto Hutchinson Blvd. is horribly short. I wait at the front of the intersection, and at the sight of green I turn right and off I am into my next destination, thankful that I did not hit the bicyclist that ignored the pedestrian lights.

Prisoners of the Moment

For the non-tennis fans, this past Sunday the “greatest match” ever to be played in the history of tennis occurred in the Wimbledon Final match up between #1 ranked Roger Federer and #2 ranked Rafael Nadal. Roger Federer, widely regarded as the best player EVER at age 26, is going for his 6^th straight Wimbledon Championship, surpassing Bjorn Borg. Also, the 22 year-old Rafael Nadal is looking to become the first player since Bjorn Borg to win the French Open, where he beat Federer for the 2^nd straight year and 4^th straight overall, and Wimbledon in the same year. So as you can tell there was much anticipated hype. It was an amazing and exquisite display of exceptional shot making, unfiltered emotion, and raw guts and determination. After all is said and done, Rafael Nadal was able to beat Roger Federer in a thrilling 5^th setter that was the longest game with the most games played (Rules of Tennis), and tennis analysts and commentators are immediately commentating about match, exclaiming that this is the best match ever in the history of tennis.

Although the statement about the match is most likely true, it reminds me of a sensation going on in the sports world and that is people becoming “prisoners of the moment”. I think people want to be able to boast about witnessing “history” and that in doing so they fail to properly examine the event and place it in its proper historical text. This is especially prevalent in Sport Center telecasts which sensationalize certain events in order to attract viewers.

An example would be Super Bowl XLII, where the NY Giants defeated the heavily favorite New England Patriots, who were undefeated entering the game. Sure, the game is considered an instant classic and that is synonymous, but to consider it the greatest Super Bowl after 1 day is doing a great disservice to the history of the NFL and Super Bowls. Another example would be Kobe Bryant scoring 81 points against the Toronto Raptors 2 years ago. Again, people are so quick to proclaim it “the greatest offensive display in the history of the NBA”, but aren’t people forgetting that Wilt Chamberlain scored 100 points? Aren’t people forgetting about the individual performances from Michael Jordan during the playoffs and NBA Finals where the magnitude is much greater than a regular season game?

If we witness something great, just enjoy the fact that what we witness was astounding, and just let the event place itself in its proper historical context instead of us immediately proclaiming it to be something that is not.

What is rational is actual, and what is actual is rational?

As I was reading the essay on the word “reason”, I came upon the phrase “what is rational is actual, and what is actual is rational” by Georg Hegel, and I was immediately perplexed at what the statement actually meant. That statement stuck with me the whole day just like an annoying commercial song. As I contemplate on what the phrase meant, I was also browsing eBay on shoes and then it finally clicked.

The statement that actions that appear to be “irrational” are “rational” because it actually happened, although confusing and counter-intuitive, is actually true. Rationality is based on relativity, and what an action a person deems is rational is relative to that person’s beliefs, morals, and culture.

Take for example my post about lining up the night before for Air Jordans. Some may say that lining up for a pair of shoes is “irrational”, but apparently it is “rational” if people are willing to do it. What some people fail to realize is that rationalization and relativism are correlated with each other, and that an action that is perceived to be “irrational” or “rational” is only based on how they perceive it to be and that perception is different for different people. To sneaker aficionados, lining up for limited-edition sneakers is completely rational, whereas others may feel is irrational, and that is fine.

As with anything, there are problems with the belief that what is actual is rational. Some may use it as an excuse in inexcusable circumstances such as murder, stealing, adultery, and other heinous crimes. I often see interviews of murders and prisoners in documentaries where they have no remorse for what they have done because they truly believe that they did nothing wrong, and that is where I believe the statement does not apply. In these instances, prisoners are merely manipulating the statement as a cop out.

As a whole, I truly believe in the idea that “what is rational is actual".

Keeping Up with the Joneses?

As the days get closer and closer to the ever-anticipated release of the 3g iPhone on July 11^th, there has been much debate, from phone enthusiasts, technology connoisseurs, and regular people alike, of the usefulness of the iPhone and the direction of where phone technology and technology in general is headed.

In this day and age, the line between conspicuous consumption and staying current in technological advancements is a blurred line that can be interpreted in different ways. However, I think that in this technology-saturated culture we live in, investing in new technologies is not a form of conspicuous consumption where it is only used to display wealth, but rather it is a necessary adjustment to adapt to the world we live in. For example, 3-4 years ago, HD TV’s and HD channels were not as big as it is today and many people were content with their analog channels and TV’s. People including my Dad wouldn’t buy a new TV just because a new technology is being popularized. However, fast forward to today, there are many channels being broadcast in HD, and by February 2009, all channels will be broadcast in HD, making analog TV’s obsolete. This just shows that you have to be willing to adapt change.

If you look at the history of technology, you can see that there are several dramatic shifts that influence the way we live.

1. Radio to TV
2. Cassette to CD
3. VHS Tapes to DVD
4. 56k to high speed internet
5. Analog to HD

All of the shifts have or will have a profound influence, forcing us to adapt and modify how we live.

The problem that arises is defining what a “need” is in this hi-tech culture we live in today. iPhone’s concept is that all of the things they offer are essential tools needed by the modern man to live in this modern world. We were able to live without Hi-speed wifi at your fingertips and fully-functional GPS, but just like the iPhone commercial, “How?” Based off experience of using a friend’s iPhone and owning an old Motorola Razr, the iPhone was much more useful and practical than I thought. Now, I’ve come to the realization that technology is changing and I must adapt and become more receptive to the changes.