Author Archives: alvarezj

Poor Decisions in Flint, Michigan

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A central authority is an important element in a country or a state. However, sometimes holding power over an entire community can be very dangerous. For example, every decision a president or governor makes can impact millions of lives. Therefore, a mistake could potentially cause severe harm towards the general population. An example of poor decision-making by the authority that led to a great damage would be the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. The state of  Michigan decided to stop buying water from Detroit and change to a different water system that involved getting their water for the Flint River. This decision led to a disaster because the water from the Flint River was contaminated with high levels of lead. Immediately, the civilians noticed a change in the water because it was brownish, had a bad odor, and caused illness to people as well as animals. The reason the state resorted to make this drastic change was because they wanted to save money on water for cost cutting measures. Essentially, the state of  Michigan was going through a financial crisis and they assembled emergency managers in order to find a solution. These managers believed it was very expensive to buy water from Detroit and therefore they chose to cut the connection with Detroit and save money by using the Flint River. This makes me question did the intentions proposed by the emergency managers justify the consequences caused from the Flint Water Crisis?

Changing the water supply from Detroit to the Flint River produced severe health issues. According to peditraition Mona Hanna-Attisha, “the percentage of children with high blood lead level increased from 2.4 percent to 4.9 percent” (Anna Maria Barry-Jester). This statistic is important because at time the state officials did not want to make this health problem known to the general public. Hanna-Attisha took it upon herself to make this problem by informing  several news journals. She made it clear that the government was hiding the water crisis. After reading “What Went Wrong In Flint” I learned that the state officials claimed they did not know about the lead poisoning in children until Hanna-Attisha released her analysis. However, I find this hard to believe because there were other issues revolving the water from Flint River such as the color and the bad odor. In my opinion, it is hard to not make at least the assumption that there is some sort of substance which could harm the welling being of people. Many civilians had already complained about the color or odor. This is important for answering my question because it demonstrates that neither the state officials or the emergency managers wanted to take responsibility for the harm caused by the Flint River water. Hanna-Attisha exposed the government when she told the community of Flint Michigan that this information was being released solely in press conferences when it should have been publicitized to the general public through the form of news journals. It was a severe problem that young children were being poisoned and the people who caused this problem did not take full responsibility. Therefore, my final answer is that there was no justification because innocent children suffered severe health issues and no action was made towards preventing the water crisis. Avoiding to address the water crisis proved that the people in power were not acting morally correct. Although the purpose of changing the water supply had right intentions it provoked consequences to the entire community in particular little children. If the government would have admitted their mistake and looked for new solutions to help the victims it would have been more likely to be  justified. However, this was not the case because the state chose to hide the issue and continue generating money leaving the public to suffer. Overall, the lesson to take upon is that while authority is essential in a country or state, holding power requires a great responsibility that one must be willing to assume in the best and worst scenarios.

 

The Selfish Nature of Men

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Good and evil are concepts that people today have trouble coming to an agreement with because everyone has different opinions. Subsequently, in today’s society there are several injustices that take place because people do not want to recognize the harm they cause others. In the film “Chinatown” directed by Roman Polanski the theme of injustice is presented through the lens of rape. This led me to wonder what meaning does the director want to convey in using rape as his central example of the injustice within society. After watching this film, I found that there are two primary examples that demonstrate the concept of rape both in a literally and metaphorical sense. The first example from the film that illustrates the idea of rape was when the audience finds out that the father of Evelyn Mulwray raped his daughter at the age of fourteen. This was a literal example of rape because Noah Cross took the innocence of his daughter by force for his own sexual pleasure. Another way the director used the concept of rape to demonstrate the injustice in society was with the water scandal. The criminals took away the water supply from the general population. Many viewers may be confused on how the director used the concept of rape in this situation. I would argue that the concept of rape was used metaphorically in the sense that water was grasped away from society. In further explanation, Polanski used the fact that the setting of the film is in California, a state that is going through a drought to illustrate the fact that Noah striped society from its water supply in order to gain profit and power over the city.

I noticed that in both these situations the attacker was a male character. Therefore, I believe that Roman Polanski tried to convey the message that gender inequality is driven by ambition and greed. Men in this film take what they want without considering the harm they cause others. Noah Cross is portrayed as an abusive selfish and power hungry man. His character depicts the idea that rape is manufactured by the desire to gain profit and power over others. The cops who are under the orders of Noah Cross support my claim because they end up killing Evelyn even though she had a good reason on why she wanted to escape with her sister/daughter. This scene shows how the males in the film believe that they hold power over women. At the end of the film, Noah maintains authority even though he is corrupt. This outcome poses the issue that men who rape in society sometimes have immunity because they hold power which protects them from suffering the consequences for their crimes.

Sinful Cleansing: The Correlation Between Sacrifices and Purification

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Every decision we make is an opportunity cost. Meaning that one is always sacrificing what they could have done for what they choose to do instead. Religion is a prime example of this concept because people choose to put their faith in a god, or several gods, and this sometimes involves a sacrifice. Whether it is faith, money or time one must sacrifice what they have to be apart of a religion. The Leviticus 14 reading has the blood of the innocent resemble the final act of cleansing a person who has a defiling skin. This idea led me to question what is the correlation between sacrifice and purification? In Leviticus 14, the theme of sacrifice is present in the majority of the story to demonstrate its importance to the Lord. I believe that the Holy Bible intended to leave the reader with the idea that sacrifice is necessary to be purified in the name of the Lord.

Leviticus 14 is about the cleansing of a skin disease that involves the priest having to sacrifice the blood of several animals as an offerings to please the Lord. Throughout the story, the reader realizes that the Lord demands offerings through the following descriptions of the priests duties, “Then the priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water in a clay pot” ,and “He is to slaughter the lamb in the sanctuary area where the sin offering and the burnt offering are slaughtered”(Leviticus 14). These quotes demonstrate how the Lord believes that the blood of these animals will fully purify the sinful skin disease. An interpretation of this quote could be that the  of sacrifice and purification contradict each other. These gruesome acts of spilling the blood of animals are being done in these clean and wholesome environments. Dirty unforgivable acts turn into the offering to be redeemed by the Lord. The idea of blood sacrifice led me to believe that one must give up their life to be reborn with life benefits. One can conclude, that performing sacrifices and partaking in offerings acts as a gateway for worshipers to be purified.

Master Through Practice

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Why do people believe that if you practice something enough you will become a master of the activity?

 

When in reality there are individuals that have access to better help and are surrounded by a more fortunate environment. Someone who is born from a luxurious family will have benefits that others cannot afford. Athletes with money will have access to professional trainers, equipment and supplements. On the other hand, individuals with a lower financial status cannot afford these privileges and will have to work with what they have. This changes the level of practice because better resources will produce positive results faster. In the novel “They Say I Say” written by Gerald Graff, he states, ”Performing this activity, in other words, depends on your having learned a series of complicated moves-moves that may seem mysterious or difficult to those who haven’t yet learned them”(page 1). I believe that it is difficult for people to learn these complicated moves because they do not have the resources to get the correct information on how to practice an activity. People with money can buy professionals that will show them the correct way to train. Everyone else, for example, may use the internet which can sometimes mislead the person from actually learning how to master the activity. Referring back to athletics, professional trainers are specialized in their career and will guide one to become fit. While someone else might be practicing the wrong exercises or going on a diet that does not work towards their goal.