Freshly Squeezed10/14/2018 There were a lot of things that I agreed on, especially what the psychologist said. She suggested that when people have differences, especially during political debates, you can’t control what people say so the only thing you can do is to understand them. Sometimes, it is necessary to think and discuss in a different perspective. She called it “Trading Place” that allows two parties to reach concuses, and that’s what the politics need right now. Sometimes, people are lack of empathy, that they are not able to stand in another person’s position. When this situation happens, one should respect the other sides’ position but still argue against it. Then the three people discussed the status quo: they stated that nowadays, no one listens on social media, that people just blindly argue without clear thoughts. And it is crucial for both parties to realize their own sides’ problems and bring the balance back without being passive. The politics now is getting more and more polarized, that people are kind of forced to take a side (either red or blue). There four people there wanted us to realize that people can actually agree on other side’s view and that’s ok.
They talked about a thing which I think is pretty new and interesting, which is, to create the everyday democracy. They suggested to create and practise political debates which are real, and useful debates instead of the status quo- which is, instead of trying to convince the other side, they just wanted victory. They also mentioned the use of language, that in politics it would be better to put your own values aside in order to achieve consensus, which I don’t necessarily agree on, since sometimes, depending on the situation, people’s own values still matter and it could be inevitable. At last, this event is pretty relatable to the Simon Hart class. The game he asked us to play was basically about thinking in a different perspective. I think, if people would achieve this goal in politics, there would be less useless arguments and more informal ideas.
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Summer Reading9/16/2018 There are several aspects that I really like in A Path Appears. First of all, it gives specific instruction in how to contribute to the society. For example, the author would make a mini conclusion after a few stories on the instruction of funding charities. This is efficient because it demonstrate how the readers can act out and it interacts with the audience as well. Also, the authors do great in telling stories that are both entertaining to read and meaningful to think about. I especially like the story of how a normal girl can make change in terms of bringing water to the poor areas. That story, and a few others, have taught me that even as a citizen, one can still make contributions to the world. What I remember clearly is the story of a disease that can reverse people’s lashes, which make them have eye infections. I have a friend who had that disease but luckily, she had the money for the treatments. It is inspiring that even a rare disease like this would call attention to people who want to help. However, what I don’t like about this book, is that the stories are rather repetitive- they have too many stories that belong to the same category. Therefore, it is boring to read; I would like it better if the authors categorizes in several sections. The book connects to global study goal by “Demonstrating civic and community engagement,” due to the fact that the whole book is about how people help those in need in the community. It also create the sense of empathy throughout the whole book. After reading it, I feel like I should start helping from the small things around me, and gradually interact more with the community.
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