Blog Post 15

Dear Ms. Silko,
In your essay titled "Boarder Patrol State" there were many things that struck me.  I definitely agreed with this essay.  The boarder patrol in the South Western states are ridiculous.  I am from Southern California and I do often see the Boarder Patrol in action.  I have seen on various accounts someone being pulled over by Boarder Patrol and they have had to have their cars searched while the owner was sitting on the curb.  I do not necessarily agree with all of the illegal immigration into the United States though.  Because I am from a bordering state, I do often see lots of illegal immigrants.  I don't agree with how the Boarder Patrol is going about handling this situation but I do believe that something needs to be done about the mass amounts of illegal immigrants in general though.  I don't think that the way the Boarder Patrol are operating now is respectful at all and it is quite racist and judgmental.  It is not okay in my opinion to stereotype and assume someones race or citizenship and it certainly isn't okay for any type of abuse to be occurring.  Overall, I think action needs to be taken by the United States government to make sure that this unfair abuse is forbidden and stopped.  This is not like American Citizens to be racist and abusive.  I am so sorry to hear that you were personally victimized by these unfair acts.
Sincerely,
Paige

Blog Post 14

If I were a solider the possession I would carry would be most similar to the notes that were carried.  I would be carrying something that was representative of my family and loved ones at home.  I would carry a picture of my family and maybe some letters from my loved ones back home.  I feel like in a war type situation, almost everything is taken from you.  I could not do this without knowing I had the support of my family back home.  To have the access to look at a picture of them and see their happiness would be the closest thing to home I could obtain during the war.  I would know that I am fighting for them and I was in the war in their honor.  Seeing their faces would be the only motivation I could think of.  It would also be nice to have some words that have been written from them to me.  It would be reassuring to look at the notes and see how much they loved me and how cared for I was.  It would be nice to know I was being missed as much as I was missing them.  I don’t think I could personally make it that long without my family especially knowing I could ultimately never see them again.  These few items would be the closest I could get to them and therefore that is why I would be carrying them.

Blog Post 13

The quote that stands out to me is near the beginning of the story.  It reads "large men, with heavy bundles in their hands, halted near by and riveted their glassy blue eyes upon us.  I sank deep into the corner of my seat, for I resented being watched."  Right off the bat this is already showing the lack of American Dream. "Their blue eyes upon us." This portion of the quote lets the reader know what kind of man is watching over her.  It is depicted that they are white males and American.  This comment about the blue eyes subtly demonstrates that point.  She is talking about being watched right at the beginning which is clearly not part of the American dream.  This paragraph goes on to describe the mockery made of her Native American appearance and explains their new infatuation with her clothing and belongings.  As Americans, we are free.  Freedom denotes not being judged and being judged was exactly what was happening.  Her surroundings were clearly uncomfortable and foreign and I felt the awkward tension for her when reading this.  Her story is no where near the American dream and this is obvious from the beginning of the piece.

Bonus Blog!

I guess when I think about our readings on Imperialism, the first and most bizarre thing that comes to my mind is the character Editha.  She as a person distresses me.  I felt I related to George's mother because of the fact that my Grandfather was in the army.  Editha's push for George to join a war he did not want to join absolutely puzzled me.  I guess the fact that she was so symbolic of America made sense though.  Her lack of right mind all made it clear though.  I feel like in most war families, the man or the one at war is the one often not in the right state of mind due to his or her war experiences and here I feel as though it was a flip flop.  The note she writes to George is another thing that puzzled me.  "There is no honor above America with me."  This was very normal for the time though, I believe.  America was, and still is, peoples number one priority.  Just like in The War Prayer by Mark Twain, even though it was very sarcastic, it is shown the overwhelming love and devotion for the country.  Although The War Prayer was written ironically, it is still quite true.  The overwhelming appreciation people had for war heroes was amazing, and I definitely do feel as though war heroes should be strongly saluted and thanked, but I feel like today there are many more people who are against war. I just find it very interesting to see these different representations of the type of Americans and their support.

Blog Post 12

"That while four-fifths of the population of our Islands was swept out of existence by the vices introduced by foreigners, the ruling class clung to Christian morality, and gave its unvarying support and service to the work of saving and civilizing the masses?"
This quote is very strong.  There is so much passion within this line and a hint of anger.  The feeling of being deceived reins through this quote.  It is concise, but still so powerfully strikes the message of resentment that she has for the United States and their reforms placed upon her home.  These cutting lines throughout her story are what give the story so much feeling.

Blog Post 11

Response to Samantha Wood :)

Blog Post 10

My Aha! moment was definitely prevalent when reading the poem by Frances EW Harper titled "Learning to Read".  As I sat down to read my Religion book the other night I can remember complaining to myself and mourning the fact that I had to read.  This poem really gave me a reality check about my views on reading.  In stanzas three and four it is shown how hard they tried to scrape up whatever they could to read.    I take for granted everyday the availability of books and my ability to read.  In stanza eight the Bible is mentioned.  This reaffirms everything we have been learning in class about suppression and religious hypocrisy.  Slaves were taken of their rights to read and practice religion because owners were fearful that they would become too intelligent.  This is obvious in stanza two:
"Our masters always tried to hide
Book learning from our eyes;
Knowledge did'nt agree with slavery--
'Twould make us all too wise."
Personally this stanza sums up not only the poem but a majority of our class discussions.  I now see how different things are today.  Today that is the exact opposite.  People are encouraged to read and gain knowledge.  I guess sometimes it takes things like this poem to remind you of your good fortunes.  This poem has reminded me how great of an honor it is that I am able and educated enough to read.  Even though sometimes there might be more entertaining things to do than read, I will always feel fortunate to have the ability and option to.