HW #9 cultural analysis

Sam Weston

Comp 101

Dr. Dories

04/13/2014

                                                Cultural Analysis of the IUP Tooters

 

            Everyone, no matter the background is part of something bigger than themselves Every experience one has with a group of people defines the culture they are apart of. It could be a country, friends, family, a team, ect. Every group has its own culture and traditions. One such group that has its own culture is the IUP Tooters, the rugby team for IUP. An event that describes the culture of the Rugby team is Sugar Cup. Sugar cup is a celebration of the Alumni players and is the center event to pass down and teach new players the team traditions.

            It was a hot and sunny day in April, and the men’s rugby team accompanied by the woman’s rugby team congregated at the sugar cup rugby field. In preparation for the Alumni, a pig began to be roasted above a large bonfire. The alumni arrived around noon dressed for game day in their cleats and jerseys. The field erupted in conversation as the players greeted their old friends. After the meet and greet the traditional game against the alumni starts. The competition was fierce but was friendly behind all the aggression. After the showdown ceased, the roast was ready to be feasted upon. Around 200 of current and former Rugby players lined up and devoured the pulled pork sandwiches made from the cooked pig. As the feast came to a close a familiar chant filled the air.

“Aye-oh Zulu Warrior!” Chanted by everyone. Excitement filled the air as the warriors lined up and took the symbolic lap around the rugby pitch as they were all announced by name. The run was the team’s way of honoring the players that have achieved their first tri, or score, and show how much the team appreciates the dedication of its players. After the Zulu run the newcomers were taught the IUP Tooters chant, the source of the teams Identity. The newcomers were separated into groups, each being taught by two seasoned veterans of the team. The chant is only to be passed down orally on the day of sugar cup each year, and is never to be written down. Teaching it any other time of year would be taboo. After completing the chant ceremony the new players were welcomed to the team and were officially named IUP Tooters. The celebration came to a close and the atmosphere became very surreal intense. The feeling of finally being officially welcomed to the team was a feeling that couldn’t be replaced.

            The Sugar Cup game and traditions have always been the center of the IUP Tooters identity and culture as a team. It is an event that is exclusively done by the Tooters and has been passed down for decades. It symbolizes the aggression, loyalty, passion, and brother hood that the team is made up of. Sugar Cup shows the love and respect that the alumni deserve. There was two rules of brother hood the team made long ago were: “The IUP Tooters are family”, and “A Tooter once is a Tooter for life.” Those rules accompanied by the identity of being aggressive, intense, and unified players sums up the identity of the Tooters.

HW#8 (part 2)

Samuel Weston

Comp 101

Dr. “DJ Jazzy” Jeff Dories

04/06/2014

 

                                                Obesity: Influence vs. Government control

Obesity is a huge problem in America today, and it is constantly escalating. Obesity also contributes to a number of other medical issues of varying severity. Not only does it put the individual under a lot of stress but also it is also hurtful for the family to sit back and watch. The good news is that obesity is a problem that can be controlled; however there is controversy in how to go about that. The main problem solver that has been discussed is a Government control. In this government control it is said that there should be even stricter regulations on companies that produce food for stores on how much fat content is in the food. It is even said that fast food restaurants should have to reduce the fat content and calories of their products or face fines. Instead of relying on the government, there should be more public influence of the importance of exercise and being healthy. Both would be effective but public influence would be a better approach.

Although government restrictions on the production and quality of the food supplied to the public would work in a way, it is not the correct path for America. Showing such leniency to the government would show them that the American people are okay with the government having so much control. It could cause more policies as invasive as this one to come about and control many other aspects of the private sector. It isn’t the businesses fault that people are obese, it is their own doing. So punishing the private sector for producing the food that they under the constitution have a right to do, and potentially hurting their business is not a fair trade off to helping some people lose a few pounds.

            A good ethical step to helping the obesity problem would be to put more influence in society on the importance of exercise and choosing a healthy lifestyle. By taking this approach it would keep the government from getting involved with free will, and it would also not interfere with personal business. Also, the reason for weight gain is simply taking in more calories than you burn, and the body stores the excess as fat. So if more people were to understand the importance of exercise and a healthy lifestyle this problem could be avoided. The bottom line is that food doesn’t make people fat; they make themselves that way. So they should understand what they need to do in order to control their own weight. And it isn’t just about weight either. It would also help prevent the health problems that coincide with obesity. If people are made more aware of those consequences of obesity and unhealthy living, than they should be able to make better decisions on what they should eat and how they should exercise. Some argue that government restrictions should be the answer because people in the inner city can’t afford healthy food and it makes them turn too fast food. There are a couple things wrong with that argument. They could use food stamps more effectively by choosing healthier options than soda and chips. A girl named Stephanie Weston used to work at Shop n’ Save while in college. During that time stories were told of people coming in to use food stamps and using them on multiple bags of chips and multiple bottles of soda. That money could easily be used on healthier food and the food stamps could be used on other things. The other problem with the argument that the poor have to choose fast food and it makes them obese is that the obesity could still be avoided even with the unhealthy diet. It is okay to eat fattening food as long as it is understood how much exercise would be needed to burn the calories off. It doesn’t cost money to exercise, anyone can do it, and it can be done anywhere.

One of the biggest problems in America is obesity. It is a problem that is rapidly accelerating in intensity and causes a variety of other health problems. It is said that there should be even stricter regulations on the companies that produce food for stores and on fast food restaurants to have to reduce the fat content and calories of their products or face fines. The better  solution would be to put more of a public influence on the importance of exercise and choosing a healthy lifestyle. It would help control obesity without having the government get involved with the private industry.

HW#8 (part 1)

Sam Weston

Comp 101

Dr. “DJ Jazzy” Jeff Dories

04/05/2014

                                                Perseverance With a Wet Finish

Everyone in life will experience events that assist in shaping them, and give deep insight into who they really are. When reflected upon, these events can give even the most lost soul a sense of identity. For one young man by the name Devin Hay, such an event ended up being the day he joined the East Butler Volunteer Fire Department. On this day there was something about the summer air, wet hoses, and conversations between the band of fire battling brethren that struck a chord deep inside young Devin.  A look into the thoughts going through the head that day will hopefully give insight to why this day had such an impact.

In the summer of the 11^th grade year Devin made a decision that he would join the Volunteer fire department down the road from his house. The day was bright, there was not a single cloud in the sky to provide relieve from the heat. When Devin arrived, the firemen were hard at work doing the hose testing. Out back of the station he watched in awe as the firemen easily changed lines, inspected them, and tested the flow by shooting water through them. The firemen were in full gear including bunker pants, helmets, and tall boots. However Devin was just in regular clothes, causing him to feel somewhat out of place. An order was relayed to him by a tall man named Jake, whose rough five o’clock shadow, large hairy body, and strong muscular features made him seem just as intimidating as his loud, booming voice.

 Jake exclaimed,” Devin, I need you to go grab a coupling for me immediately. Double time!” At this moment Devin’s young ambitious heart began to sink,

            “I’m sorry sir, but I have no idea what a coupling is,” Devin replied. A feeling of worthlessness began to creep up on him. However ignorant and unknowing the young bull was; the hulking hose was calling out to him. With the new hose held firmly in hand a feeling of excitement began to grow. A jump in anxiety began to overtake the feeling of excitement when five others clutched on to the hose putting their trust in a new recruit. A weathered looking man called out,

“Start the test!” The liquid furry began to flow through making it ever so much harder to hold on to. The sudden rush of water pulled at the arms in such a way that the shoulders were in danger of dislocation. It’s a good thing that the hose was being possessed by a strong young man, or else it could have been a messy situation. An annoying splash back began to sting the face, the water ran down the face and soaked into the eyes making it impossible to see clearly. A familiar voice echoed over the sound of the hose and exclaimed,

“kill the flow!” Like the sudden end of a storm, the hose fell limp. The new fire exterminator was soaking wet from head to toe handling the large boa constrictor like hose, the will suppressing fatigue was beginning to be felt amongst all the well-conditioned men; as well as even the most seasoned veterans. One of the vets that everyone referred to as gramps, and older gentlemen whose skin was rough and weathered from years of battling the great destructive blazes that plagued Butler, was heard screaming:

            “Well damn, its hot as balls out here ain’t it?” The entire department erupted in laughter at the ridiculous comment made by the old man. A more laid back atmosphere was beginning to set in. After the cleanup it was time for the socialization aspect of the firemen’s routine. Through the carrying on and what they call “BS-ing” he got to know a lot of the department’s population and made a lot of friends This experience made him a stronger individual mentally. He was able to overcome his disadvantage of ignorance, and used his quick decision making to improve his performance. It was that day that a young man discovered a strong sense of identity within himself, and impacted him ever so deeply in a way he will never forget.

HW#5

1. Two of the main themes described through your text was that of war and rebellion. War was related to your life by paralleling it to living in the inner city and explaining how at times it was like a war zone. Rebellion was related by trying to rebel from your parents.

2. The message of the song was that people are expected to do certain things with their life and conform to it. By saying they were trapped in boxes means that they are trapped in the expectations of their parents and society. by playing this for your daughter it was a way of saying that she can be whatever she wants to be and she won’t be trapped necessarily into being what society wants her to be. 

3. One song that has influenced my identity was the song “Ill be” by Edwin Mckain. it has influenced my identity by at a young age effecting how i treat women. It helps instill being faithful and being there for their emotional needs. Its a powerful song and makes you think about it. Judging by its popularity it has to of effected many people

         Another song that has influenced my identity was “Can’t be stopped” by Roy Jones Jr. That song was my main “pump up song” before rugby games. it has influenced not letting anyone pushing me around and standing my ground. It instilled toughness,  and aggressiveness, which is exactly what i need on the field. It has made me a stronger person and has made me way more aggressive.

4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoCOg8ZzUfg

HW#4 Individualism as a Cultural Value

1. Three topics that most americans find rude to talk about include rape, race, and sexual orientation. The reason for this i believe is because they are highly sensitive topics for a large number of people and most are worried about offending someone.

2. In thai culture more focus is put on family, morality, and moderation. In contrast, the american culture promotes individualism in many ways such as emotionally, physically, and financially with less emphasis on family closeness.

3. According to the reading, many of the values America has been asociated with are Individualistic. In support of that argument an incident or two in my own life may cause forieners to feel that way about my values. Another individulaistic thing that a foriegner could see is that i tend to rebel against things that are expected or things concidered to be status quo. I choose to act how i want to without a care about how another may think, being different and having that sense of individualism is what makes it feel like im my own person. that kind of value that i have deeply chosen my not be agreeable by people of other countries.

HW#3 Gospel

1. A quote from the president of the National Association of Manufacturers, John E. Edgerton, reads,” Nothing, breeds radicalism more than unhappiness unless it is leisure.”  A solid interpretation of this could be that he is trying to explain that making things to “easy” at the work place could potentially cause problems, which seems like a plausible cause for concern. For example, when it comes to unions, workers that have tenure a lot of the time start to slack but cant be fired because the unions protect them. Another example is it could make workers lazier, which could cause them to be less disciplined at work.

2. Kellogg cut employee hours from 8 hour days to 6 hour days for 4 days a week so he could hire more employees during the depression. He added bonuses and raised the hourly rate to make up for some of the pay lost through decreasing hours. What he did was a smart idea and payed off, as far as doing that in this day and age its success is hard to judge. It could probably work, the only problems that could arise would be that since the cost of living is so much higher now, some families may not be able to afford the slight cut in pay. Also if a union is involved the cut in hours could cause strikes. The exact odds of those things happening are hard to put a figure on, its just something that would need to be taken into consideration.

3. As far as lifestyle goes, relatives in the 40’s didnt have the kinds of things available to buy as we do now. If people now were to only work 2.7 hours a day such as what was suggested the quality of life wouldn’t be near what it is now. In my family, large amounts of work has payed off. although both my parents work long to semi long hours it has allowed them to afford a better quality of life for them than how they grew up, and has allowed them to give me and my siblings opportunities that they didn’t have. This kind of thing wouldn’t be possible I’ve everyone only worked less than 3 hours a week.

4. A quote from Edward Bernays reads the following,” we are and should be governed, our minds…molded, our tastes formed, our ideas suggested, largely by men we have never heard of.” By that he is referring to the fact that people that are higher up in power indirectly give us instruction on how to act and how to think by the examples they set, the speeches they make, and ect. He is also implying that the human race needs this kind of direction by his use of the word should in the quote.

HW# 2

1. i would pick Bill Gates as most admirable.

and after the reading my idea didnt change. This is mainly because even after reading i still felt confident in my opinion about his acomplishments and character.

2.

HW#1 Social identity theory

1. Categorization, belonging to, and comparison

2. When i got here at IUP i joined the Rugby team, which is a tight knit group of guys. i conformed to the group by abiding by the teams tradition. I also made sure i got to know everybody to break any cliquey barriers. This team helped me to lay some stereotypes to rest and give a great amount of trust in people. It has been a great experience overall.

3. in sixth grade i was kind of on the nerdy side. i always had longed to be on the in crowd. A lot of them were really stuck up. This may have formed a stereotype for me to judge all popular people as stuck up. However eventually i began to renounce this stereotype. All people should be given a chance without prejudgudice.

4. 30% of the time, i don’t let groups affect my personality and decisions, and the group wanted me to smell some girls hair and i said no im not doing that. they politely said okay and didn’t make me do it.