BLog #15- "Border Patrol State"

Ironically enough I am studying this topic in my Social Work class right now, but we are discussing how the "dominant group" aka the whites set the norms and the ethnicities that dont fit in suffer from discrimination or prejudice. I completely agree with Ms. Silko and I see these same occurances happening in my home state and the state right next to me which is Arizona. Being from the West Coast there are many Mexican-Americans. As everyone is aware the state of Arizona recently passed a law saying that police officers can pull anyone over that they think looks suspicious as being an immigrant. This basically means that if you don't look white then they will pull you over in suspicion. Part of me agrees with this but I also don't at all because it is discrimination at its finest. Immigration is becoming a big concern not only on the West Coast but also Texas but I don't think that gives anyone the right to pull someone over based on what they look like. Something I experience that is related to what she Ms. Silko was describing in her story is the "check point" at LAX. When you are driving up to LAX to either get dropped off or pick someone up the police officers merge the lanes to one and will either allow you to pass through or will pull you over for suspicion. As much as people say it is random I do believe that the whole process is based on what you look like and your ethnicity. Especially since 9/11 I think these cops are suspicious of Muslims that come through when these people could just be ordinary American citizens trying to see family in another state or some basic thing. Another experience that I have gone through is I know many African American people that have been pulled over because of their skin color. My town back home is a small town where nothing happens and we all say the cops have nothing to do, and I have had a few of my friends tell me that they go another direction that is longer to get home just so they don't have to deal with being pulled over by cops. The term for this is "Driving While Black". I think this is dumb also, and that people shouldn't be pulled over unless the cop has a legit suspicion like a person swerving or they run their license plate and see that they have a warrant. As much as people believe immigration is becoming a problem discriminating against certain ethnicities isn't the way to solve it because America is referenced as the "melting pot". The "melting pot" refers to many different ethnicities and background making up the United States, therefore people shouldn't discriminate against different minorities because many of them could be American citizens just like everyone else.

Blog #14- The Things They Carried

The things they carried were largely determined by necessity.
        First of all I would definitely practice field hygiene like Dave Jensen and carry shampoo, soap, toothpaste, and conditioner. I could never imagine being out at war and being completely filthy. Therefore, I would definitely carry these things to make sure I could be as clean as a soldier can possibly be while marching or "humping" through cities. Other thing that I would make sure to carry would probably be letters from my parents. Being out there without any loved ones I would occasionally need a pick me up or a reminder of all the amazing things I was doing fighting for our country. Also I am very close to my family and since I would be so far away, letters from them would be the closest thing I have to seeing or speaking to them. Since my family and I would be writing letters back and forth I would need to carry a pen and paper to make sure I had something to write with and on. The last thing I would carry by necessity would be ace bandages or bandage wraps. I can only imagine the many cuts and wounds they get in war, so I would want to make sure that if I were to get into that situation I could prevent them from getting infected and also stop the bleeding.

What they carried was partly a function of rank, partly of field specialty.
        If I were to be in the army or at war I would want to be ranked a little higher up than everyone else, so I would want to be a First Lieutenant like Jimmy Cross. Since he guides the men around and determines their routes I would obviously carry a map and compass to make sure that I am leading them in the right direction. I would also carry a gun or two to make sure that if myself or anyone else in my platoon were in danger I could protect them, after all that is one of the jobs of a platoon leader, to watch after the people.

What they carried varied by mission.
        If we had a mission in the mountains I would definitely take bug repellent and mosquito nets because the men already carry enough diseases and so do bugs, so I wouldn't want to risk getting a disease from the bugs since that is one thing that I could probably prevent. Plus of course on every mission I went on I would carry a gun for protection. If the mission were tunnels or night missions I would bring a few flashlights, incase one of them went out.

The things they carried were determined to some extent by superstition.
        I personally am a very superstitious person so if I had something random in my hand or in my bag when something bad happened there is no doubt that I would take it out. One thing that I'm very superstitious about is my rings. One if from my sister that says love on it which she got me for Christmas and the other is a ring made of x's and o's from my mom and dad for my birthday. So, no matter where I was or what I was doing I would always have my rings on or at least turn them into a necklace.

Those are all the physical things I would carry, but emotionally I could only imagine all the thoughts that would be running through my head like all the men in the story. The biggest emotional baggage I would carry would be my fear of not making it home to my family and seeing my little sister and brother grow up.

Blog #12-Hawai'is Story By Hawai'is Queen

It was a beautiful sight; the waters were calm, each boat was ornamented with the Hawaiian flag, the royal standard fluttered from that of the king, and as we coasted along the shores, we could see the people on the land following our course and interested in our progress; there were, I think, twelve boats in all.

I simply picked this line because of the image it created in my head, while reading this was the only line that actually made me stop and painted a visual picture. The way she describes the water makes me envision looking at the beautiful blue water and seeing the boats pass by with their Hawaiian flag flowing and for some reason I can just picture the people standing along the shore almost in awe to see their king float past them. This line reminded me the times I had been to Hawaii and how amazing the ocean is, which just helped me envision this picture even better. The use of imagery in this line is amazing.