Tim Wise’s Argument Analysis By Tim Wise had a different childhood than most, he was raised by the phrase “Race matters. ” As a pre-schooler he was sent to a mostly black school and learned to respect black authority figures. This resulted in him being more racially aware while growing up. His main argument was that racial inequality still exists today. As he went through college, he became very involved in a group that advocated for better rights for people in Africa. Several weeks later, he was asked what he had done to address racism in his own city, New Orleans.
He then realized he hadn’t done anything in his own town. He began working for the next twenty years to advocate for racial equality still exists. The argument is made that white people are blind to their advantages and privileges. According to Wise, white privileges is built into our system and has helped us without us knowing. White people in the US have had many more privileges compared to people of color, it’s just built into the foundation of our country. History in the US has proven to be racist, for example the social security act.
This act only provided benefits to those who had jobs mostly white people have. Better job opportunities, better housing, better education but also psychological not racially profiled. People thought that the election of president Obama would end fascism. This however, wasn’t as simple as many thought it was going to be. The quote “Race issues are going to move to the periphery. ” was introduced and the point; until we confront racism we won’t stop it. This film was very compelling because it made me realize white privilege exists in our country as well as racism.
It does provide advantages for whites. It is a problem because people are being discriminated against and even violently attacked. The greatest weakness wasn’t in my opinion so huge but it was that he spent so long advocating for his cause. The Corporation documentary explained how big corporations are like part of a jigsaw in society, if you remove it everything stops. But if it’s the only thing in a society, nothing works. The cooperation is like a family unit, they work together for a common goal.
One main argument made in this documentary was that corporations are monsters that will literally do anything to devour as much profit, no matter what the expense. “An agenda that is trying to take over the world. ” was mentioned as the motives that most big corporations have. Another was that they are a group of individuals working together to achieve one goal, which includes making as much profit as possible. At the time of this documentary, the workplace hadn’t changed from since the Industrial Age other than the fact they make more items per hour.
The business plot was brought up which was an alleged exploitation against a corporation. Different words to describe corporations are preferred by many people in the business word; company or business community can replace it. | agree with what this documentary is trying to prove, corporations are doing everything in their power to make profit and they have been for decades. The exploitation alone is enough but their overall actions are horrific. Third world countries have little idea how badly they are being used for profit by the first world corporations.
As we discussed in class, they will never know what they could have the potential of because of the constant pressure from the first world. But in order for people in the first worlds to continue living the way we do, we have to exploit people. The solution to end using the sweat shops would change the dynamic of the first world. In order to stop what we are doing to the third world we are going have to change something here. While in the Birmingham city jail, Martin Luther King JR. wrote a letter that advocated for equality in a non-violent way.
His huge involvement with the Civil Rights movement made his letter explode, although this was the reason he was even in jail. The extreme racism still occurring bothered Martin Luther King JR. especially because it was such a big problem in Birmingham. He goes on to state the reason he was in jail was because of the injustice located in Birmingham. There are four steps to achieve a non-violent campaign. Through these steps promoting your cause can be successful but still have been done in a peaceful way. He goes on to talk about how denying someone the right to vote is ridiculous.
Later he talks about how law can seem just until its application, he’d been previously been charged with parading with out a permit, even though it was peaceful. The whole idea of fighting for equality in a peaceful way was one of the many reasons MLK was so highly respected. Tagree with his argument, that there are ways to get your points heard without using violence. Law can be unjust sometimes and can see unfair, it’s people like MLK who defy the odds and advocate for what society really needs. Society as a whole need more people like him.
“Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever. he goes on to say. This statement alone describes MLK and all he promoted. The extreme want for freedom from oppression. He uses his religion to gain the side of many who wouldn’t normally believe in this. Biblical allusions help MLK make his point and appeals to many Christians. In the last paragraph he relates to the clergyman by calling him a “Christian brother” which makes him seem nice to this man.
Overall. Dr. King’s points were valid in my opinion and I agreed with them all. James Rachels argued that people use the Bible to justify themselves and that people only use select assages to do so. When the Bible is used in support of a controversial subject, many times only parts that support that issue are used. For example, Rachels used the famous scripture from Leviticus; “You may not lie with a man as with a women; it is an abomination. ” Many people use this scripture to justify themselves and what they believe towards the LGBTQ community. But little do most know, if you keep reading further in the chapter; Leviticus also bans eating fat & women going to church 42 days after they’ve given birth.
We don’t typically take the last two seriously but why do we do so with the one involving homosexuality? Rachels said it best, people “interpret” scripture to justify what they think is right. He later brings up that the Old Testament refutes the New Testament in some ways. According to the Old Testament, being rich is a sign of being in God’s favor, however in the New Testament this changes. Wealth and the idea of being more Godly when in the possession of it is no longer. There are more than one of these contradictions.
If someone does believe this, there would be another situation about justifying yourself with only one part of the Bible. I think that many people do this, including me. Until this article, I didn’t realize what Leviticus continued to say. Many Christians find verses and chapters of the Bible to justify what they believe in. If we don’t take the little parts of the Bible seriously, why do we take the phrase about homosexuality seriously? Then argument about “it being a different time now” pops into my head.
If this is true, shouldn’t we leave the negative statements about homosexuality in the past, due to the fact that we don’t live by the verses about not wearing jewelry or having piercings? Using passages of the Bible to justify actions and things I believe in needs to be something I consider more. The Holocaust was a horrific event that took place only 70 years ago, through this document we learned the psychological tolls it took on its prisoners. Every prisoner in the camp was treated just as a number and their heads were shaved.
Starved to death, they had to fight to keep living, fight o get their bread every day. This struggle as well as the whole idea that you could die any day, changed the minds of the prisoners. Psychologically they were never the same as they were before. Those who did survive, lived a very different life than if they were not to have experienced this. Some, lost their will to live and just wanted some cigarettes to enjoy with their last days. Viktor E. Frankl was one of the lucky ones, he made it out alive. He was the author of this book and talked about the psychology of being the camp for years and years.
His main argument was that the conditions that they had to live with were insane and took a toll on people. He goes about by describing phases prisoners experience while living at the camps. The Holocaust was a historical event that should not have taken place and can’t be justified. People who go through this kind of trauma can never be the same again. From being cooped up with fifteen hundred other captives to being escorted around by the pointing of guns, people will change. Captives began considering suicide to exit from this literal living hell.
I agree very much so with Frankls points, psychologically this was not healthy for anyone. If they even started to consider suicide this is a huge warning sign. Death hung above them all along with a sense of hopelessness. Just thought that today could be your last night can make a mark on someone. This isn’t healthy for a person and can result in long term problems. The fact that Frankl survived and went on to write about his experiences, although it was probably tough, is a big reason to look up to him. He is inspiring and he gave me a bigger idea of what really happened at the concentration camps.