Sunday, October 2, 2011

People Like Us Discussion

So on Thursday we watched "People Like Us" which was a very interesting view into the lives of different people and how they handle wealth and social status.  I think one of the stories that touched me the most was the one about the woman who walks a ridiculous distance to work everyday and still gets called terrible names because she can't afford to drive.  I think that part really shows to me how our country focuses on someone's wealth rather than their determination, which is really terrible because there are so many people who work very hard justi to maintain a lower middle class status, but then there are people who barely do anything and still manage to be able to throw away millions on things they don't need. 

One part that disgusted me was the part about the woman whose grandmother told her "not to let the poor people touch her" as though poor was a disease. 

As far as the quote goes, I really don't agree with it at all.  The woman I talked about in my first paragraph I viewed as acting very rationally.  It is not her fault so much as it is the economy's, and she is trying as hard as possible to work her way to a better future.  I think there are cases in which people who are poor spend the little money they have on frivolous things, because there was someone who worked with my brother (who is autistic and needs extra help)  who could barely take care of herself and her child, and yet she was spending much more than necessary on video games and christmas presents.  So there are times, but I do not think that there's a reason to generalize and stereotype.

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