The Political Right vs. The Politically Correct

This week, our class had a discernible focus on political correctness and its impacts. I noticed that it was hard to completely agree with one side, as each weakness had clearly visible flaws. This matches how I feel about the situation too. I don't believe there are black and white sides to, this issue, as there are different levels of political correctness that one can believe is the most beneficial to society. As people begin to see hurtful slurs and derogatory comments as "just words," then the mental health of the nation is brushed aside for efficiency. On the other hand, as policing of words becomes more and more common, the Orwellian thoroughness of the so-called "language police" masks the root problem by handing out a new, nicer, and less accurate moniker. What most people don't understand is that most issues all depend on context. Unless the problem is clear cut and easy to prove, then there is no always right answer. I have been accused of being too black and white myself, but it's a mistaken determination of how extensive my belief is. For example, if I say that I strongly believe that politically correctness can deter solutions and progress, it does not mean that I believe that political correctness strongly deters solutions and progress. This example also shows the power of words, and how interchanging only one word can result in an entirely different implication. Political correctness is being currently challenged by the government, but while I might be expected to agree with this, the reasoning behind this political incorrectness harshens the message so far as to be irritating, or disgusting to the ear. With such widespread usage of lowbrow rhetoric, another issue that needs to be worried about is the normalizing of this current climate.

A Climate of Ignorance

It seems like everyone is an expert these days. With just the slightest amount of research, an ordinary person can know just as much as someone who studies that subject for a living. At least, this seems to be mentality of many conspiracy theorists. With the growth of the dangerous science denial movement, climate change is at the forefront of topics that everyone seems to know about. At least, it appears that way. In reality, the only reason that people feel that they know everything is because of how shallowly they know the subject area. This is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect, and it states that  low ability individuals don't realize that they're low ability, or paraphrased, "if you're incompetent, you can't know you're incompetent." This seems to come into play in every conversation related to a trending scientific controversy, be it vaccines or climate change. Even the head of the EPA seems to fall victim to this phenomenon, as he has recently stated that he does not believe that CO2 is a primary contributor to global climate change. Belief doesn't play into science though. What matters is facts. The facts are that global warming is real, and that the rapid increase in global temperatures is caused by man. This counter-culture seems to be more popular than traditional trust in some places, and the rise in distrust and paranoia leads to a more unsafe society. With every new climate change denier, or radically aligned "expert" on vaccines, we march ever closer to a self manufactured dystopia.

Blind to Fashion

Earlier this week in class we had an interesting debate on the article we read, "There Is No Unmarked Woman." There were good points raised on both sides pertaining to the many relevant points of the article, but the part that interested me the most was the argument about fashion. Of course, I agreed with most of what Tannen wrote, but in the fashion area, my opinion was that women are marking themselves rather than some mystical overarching mark that transcends genders. My reasoning was that because men are less likely to notice what women wear than women are, then it is the women that determine what the societal standards and et cetera are for clothes. This acute perception of fashion is what drives women to buy clothes made by male fashion designers, like Armani and Louis Vuitton. The fact that the fashion designers are male is almost irrelevant. If not for the tastes of women, then people wouldn't buy their brand and they would go out of business. The reasonable next step would only be to relax the standards for clothing that women have. People complain about being noticed when their lack of makeup is noticed, but this would never happen if they never wore makeup. On the flip side though, I would even argue that men are even more limited by women, but not only by their gender. Men's clothing choices are often very influenced by the idea of masculinity, and to dress more feminine is seen as a statement or a bold declaration of individuality. Masculinity itself is determined by societal perceptions as a whole, not only men's ideals, so I believe that men have even less of a choice in changing clothing conventions than women.This isn't to say that I disagree with Tatten's piece though. I found that it had brilliantly argued out examples for the case of unwanted attention, such as the fact that a women writing the article makes it a feminine piece. I only took issue with the example of women's fashion, as I feel that her acute observations of other women were a detriment, as she became unable to consider the viewpoint of a gender blind to the intricacies of women's fashion.

Internet Biases

Earlier this week in class, we read the essay "About Men," its title simply stating its subject matter. I found it interesting how the essay discussed the differences between real cowboys and the medias's portrayal and general perceptions of the macho men of the west. In my blog, I've decided to tackle the issue of gendered space online. There are many different kinds of websites online, but some forums tend to be echo chambers filled with only those who agree with a certain viewpoint. I decided to consider the issue with one of the sites I use most often for news and entertainment, Reddit. Reddit is, as calculated by the Alexa ranking system, the 7th most visited website in the US. It also has 67 percent male users. Considering the disparity in gender percentages from real life, it helps if I take that bias into account when considering the accuracy of certain news articles. Unfortunately, the echo chamber effect is even more pronounced on Reddit due to the ability to make "subreddits" that allow you to talk to people that have the same viewpoint as you. Taking that into consideration, because subreddits like /r/news have 71 percent male users, my newsfeed may be completely shifted, and the more important developments aren't being brought to my attention. This isn't to say that gender makeup ruins the credibility of news, but next time you are browsing a website, at least take it into consideration as a confounding variable!

Real Weddings

American culture has become completely immersed in commercialism. Even simple declarations of love have turned into consumer services, as shown in the essay we read this week, "Marrying Absurd." In this piece, Didion criticizes the consumerist culture that has turned marriage into what it is today. I am going to refute her, and say that marriage was never such a pure and incorruptible thing. The actual event of marriage doesn't matter, because the relationship that comes after marriage is what really counts. Does it really matter how much a wedding costs or how romantic it is if the relationship itself isn't satisfying? Maybe offering a cheaper wedding service is what is needed for true love to shine legally, while still allowing people to enjoy themselves. Good weddings have never guaranteed a good marriage, so maybe letting a little absurdity shine through isn't too terrible. Even though young people only want to have their weddings in Las Vegas to emulate their ideas of a real marriage, letting them be foolishly happy doesn't hurt anyone. They would never be able to afford a real wedding in the first place, so this is the closest they would get. Maybe we don't have to criticize happiness for being based on something fake. Maybe the fake is of far greater value. In its deliberate attempt to be real, it's more real than the real thing.

American Outrage

When I look at America, I see a land of opportunity. Because of the openness of American markets, I am able to appreciate how large of a head start I have been given in the race of life. What I don't understand or appreciate is the intolerance and discrimination that at times seem to run rampant in our society. Taking a step outside America, and looking at our country today, there seems to much more negativity nowadays. On both sides of the political spectrum , there tends to be outrage over something or other.

In many cases, the outrage is completely justified, but because of the over saturation of this anger in media, I feel like I, along with many other people, have been desensitized to political scandals. This doesn't mean I don't feel strongly about politics, but that I find it too much of a hassle to talk about it. No matter what someone is saying about the current situation, it tends to require me to act angry over President Trump's new executive order or to laugh at "salty liberals." It all requires too much energy considering how tired I am nowadays. Going back to how America is full of opportunity, how free can a country really be if not everyone is given an equal chance to succeed? I know I work less hard than many other people out there, yet I can probably go to a pretty good college just because of the quality of the education that I have access to. I definitely work less hard than many teens who have to help work to provide for their families, yet my skills are recognized more than theirs. Given equal opportunities, there is no saying which of us would achieve more in life. This is why, even though politics tire me out, I recognize the need for people to protest for equality, and for science to win. This is why I support the protests, because people need to stand up for basic liberties, and for equal opportunity.

Growing Up

Recently, our class read the short story "Arm Wrestling with My Father." Reading this reminded me of my own relationships with my parents and sister. My relationship with my family has changed over the years. When I was little, I used to love hanging out and just talking to my parents. At dinner my dad would start talking about random stories or legends. Now our bonds have grown weaker as the need to interact with my family has lessened. I'm more focused on school and how to bolster my college applications. Whenever I come home, I stay holed up in my room doing homework or procrastinating for an upcoming test or competition.

My only interactions with my parents come at dinner time, or during the weekends. Reflecting on how my relationships have changed makes me sad, because I feel like there were more opportunities to connect. Through all of this though, I feel loved. My parents are supportive of my efforts to improve myself, and even though I feel tired all of the time, I'm still happy. Because of the loving environment I have been raised in, I realize the privilege I have been given over other people. My problem is that although I'm taking advantage of everything my parents have done to help their children, I barely give anything back. I've always told myself that I would pay them back when I grew older, but now I realize that the size of the debt that I owe them can't be repaid back in one lifetime. My perspective on family may be forced from the stress of this year, but I'm truly thankful for the opportunities that my family has provided me.