GEOG 2300: Clothes labels
I would guess that most of my clothes come mostly from third-world countries. I’m guessing places like Haiti and Thailand will be big ones, and other countries that have cheap labor. I am hoping that a number of my clothes will say “made in the USA.”
After investigating my t-shirts I found numerous interesting facts. I have a large number of JERZEES and GILDAN t-shirts, and almost all of these shirts were made in either Haiti or Hondoras. This makes sense because in 2009 Russell Corporation became faced with a controversy of labor code violations at their Honduran sweatshop. I feel that this small activity is going to force me to pay closer attention to the places where my clothes were made. Although, it does make me happy that I found that many of my t-shirts were made in the USA.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)American Society: GEOG 2300
The United States is absolutely self-centered, hedonistic, and wasteful of resources. The ecological footprint of the average American is huge. We use so many more resources compared to the rest of the world. We are a country based upon total hypocracy. The founders of our country proclaimed that “all men are created equal,” while at the same time they lived lives of degrading other men to be their own personal slaves. Still, today, hundreds of years later, we continue to fight a battle of segragation and discrimination. Moreso, there are countless American citizens across the country that live with this mindset that “we are the best.” There are people so blinded with nationalistic pride, or other beliefs, that they don’t know what is truly good for their lives. There is an unfortunate aspect of American society that is most Americans do not know how to think for themselves, they don’t know how to make their own decisions. Take the electoral college, for example, we use a voting system where the popular vote doesn’t matter. Over the course of American history we have seen presidential elections where the winner of the election did not with the popular vote.
Looking at my own life, I know that from time to time I don’t respect the resources that I use. I find myself wasting electricity by leaving house lights on, and I know I don’t recycle as much as I should. I don’t pay enough attention to national news and the problems throughout the rest of the world, so in that sense I know I can be somewhat self-centered. However I don’t drive a car, and I use a bike as my main mode of transportation. I feel as an American society we have to be willing to admit that we are not perfect, and we must keep our minds open in order to better ourselves as a society.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comments (2)Ethnicity, GEOG Blog #4
I feel ethnicity isn’t overly important to me, but it definitely plays a role with my relationships, politics, etc. I have to argue that it is extremely important to separate the terms ethnicity and race in this sense. I believe having pride in one’s ethnic culture, and background, is extremely important. Individuals need to have an understanding of who they are and where they actually come from. In this sense race has nothing to do with ethnicity. One of my roommates this past year was fifty percent asian, but he also celebrates his Irish and German background. The first generation of my family in America came over on the Mayflower. I believe I am the seventeenth generation of my family living in America. My background is rooted in the formation of this country, but that doesn’t change the fact that my ethnic background will always be a combination of Welsh, Irish, English, and Scottish culture. I am a member of the catholic church, and my family has probably been catholic for hundreds of years. When it comes to relationships it definitely helps to share an ethnic background. Many of my friends are Irish, and I love finding out that a peer of mine has a similar ethnic background. I think an individual’s ethnic background plays a huge role on how that individual lives their life. Take holidays for example, I love St. Patrick’s Day and St. David’s Day, but I don’t blink twice at the thought of Cinco De Mayo.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)GEOG 2300, Post 3, Religion
Religion plays a huge role in my life. I’ve grown up as a member of the catholic church. I was baptized as a child, and went through the normal celebrations of the catholic church. In this sense I live life as many christians do. I celebrate Christmas, Lent, Easter, Etc., and I feel it is extremely important to help the less fortunate. As I’ve gotten older I have come to realize that the official religion an individual partakes in is less important than that individual’s relationship with God. When I was younger I was more judgemental towards people who didn’t share my religious views. As I’ve matured I’ve become much more open minded, and becoming open minded is directly related to my religious beliefs.
Filed under Uncategorized | Comment (0)