I am now starting a segment in this blog which will be called “A Break”. I call it this because talking about politics can be draining. It is draining to the reader and writer and no one, who is healthy, can be serious all of the time. So, without further adieu, I start the first “break” segment with a discussion of senioritis.
So, what is senioritis?
Is it neither the process of becoming a senior citizen nor being a Mexican Mr. It is rather, the an imaginative ailment that effects students who are about to graduate.
Some may see this as being in one’s own mind and therefore it can be cured through discipline. This is true but this does not mean it does not exist.
Strangely it manifests itself in many form throughout our culture. Take for instance, a boss who is leaving his/her job in a few months. It would be expected that they would be more apathetic towards disciplining the people who work under them.
Another example would be a teacher who is in his/her final semester of teaching. If the students and teacher both know this is their final semester then it is likely that this too can result in apathy in the classroom.
So, maybe it is better understood as almosttotheenditis; one form of this being, senioritis.
Disclaimer: None of this means we students can be more lazy than normal. It simply means that we need to understand what the problem is so that it can be fixed.
p.s. this is my last semester and college never seemed so hard…haha
How is it that major urban areas can be left to rot while suburbia is thriving?
A major reason for this is voting. Everyone must remember one thing about politicians, they are always going to try and be reelected. Therefore, they must always pander to those who vote.
Unfortunately, poor inner city people vote at a much lower rate than middle and upper class people do. Voting is directly tied to education. The more education a person has, the more likely that person is to vote.
Making matters even worse for those living in the ghettos is that they tend to vote for one party. The democratic party is very strong within inner cities, and among the poor in general.
Therefore, the Democrats do not have to work to get the vote of the inner city and this makes for a deadly combination.
So, the schools stay broken in the ghettos of America. A good example of this can once again be found in Antioch. The High School is at 120% capacity. They have asked for money to be allocated from the state but did not receive the funding.
The sad thing is, this is not unusual in America’s cities. Rather, it is the norm.
I must point out, the topic of inner cities is way more complicated than I am “leading on”. However, there is a very simple solution. It seems insane that such a complicated issue can be resolved without much effort, however, believe it or not, the answer is right in front of our noses.
We will discuss this solution next time.
The proliferation of the modern American ghetto began after World War II. After the war the process of what is called “white flight” or suburbanization began to take root in America.
Before WWII urban areas were mixed environments with many different neighborhoods scattered throughout. Jobs inside urban areas were only secured with the ability to travel to that job. Therefore, most affluent people lived and worked in the community.
However, affordable automobiles changed that. No longer did an affluent person have to live near his job. He could drive a car from miles away.
With the ability to travel further distances; rich and upper middle class Americans began to form their own niche communities outside of the urban center.
The morning and afternoon commute quickly became an American tradition.
Unfortunately the majority of people left inside the urban centers were poor. The rich had taken their tax dollars elsewhere. These taxes paid for better schools, better roads and a better decor for suburbia.
This process quickly “gutted” the urban center. All that was left were poor individuals, with more needs, and less tax dollars to spend in their benefit.
An example of this can be found very close to home. Nashville is one of the few cities who attempted to alleviate the problems caused by suburbanization. In the early 60’s a process began in which mayor Beverly Briley proposed to expand the boarders of Nashville city. He succeeded in creating Nashville-Davidson or Metro Nashville. This kept tax revenue more evenly distributed over the Nashville area and has led to it being one of the most financially stable cities in the United States.
A stark contrast to Nashville can be found three hours to the Southwest. Memphis handled suburbanization in much the same way as the rest of the country. They simply did nothing. It is, to this day, one of the poorest cities in America.
It probably seems to most people, especially those in our generation, that American life has always been this way. They would be partially correct. There have always been “imaginary lines” dividing American society.
However, suburbanization is different because those lines are no longer “imaginary”. They are, in fact, very real. A quick glance at the difference between schools in Franklin and Antioch should be all that is needed to confirm the reality of these lines.
I lay out all of this information, probably scattered with opinion, in hope that someone will pass by and read it. The wheels will turn and I will have one more person who is aware of the situation facing us locally all over the United States.
So, I leave you with one last comment on this portion of the topic. Next time you hear someone say, “how come the richest nation in the world can have so many poor people?” I want you to answer with this one word: Suburbanization.
Now I will leave an open ended question for us to discuss next time.
How can such a process be allowed to exist without much scrutiny? In other words, why doesn’t anyone do anything about this?
There are many problems in this world which many believe are unsolvable. A debate about an “unsolvable” topic is usually met with a response of “that will never change”.
This blog will be devoted towards possible solutions to these problems. The topics will cover any number of issues. Some will be as far away as the Middle East and some will be as close to home as our campus.
With such a wide variety to choose from, I would love the first discussion to cover an issue that I care deeply about.
The problems most inner cities encounter are not something many college students concern themselves with. This is not surprising, however, because most college students were not raised in what many people consider “slums” or “ghettos”.
We come from predominantly middle and upper class communities. Many of which, when compared to inner cities, have little crime, better teachers, better supplies, more money, and are overall better places to live and raise a family.
It seems as though it would be those with the most resources available who would “step up” and take care of those who are in the most need. However, it has now become accepted as the norm that a child born in a ghetto will most likely fall behind.
He/She is not expected to reach the same level of achievement as those who are raised in more affluent communities. Should we not, as Americans, be alarmed at the thought of those children’s lives?
Maybe, perhaps, we think the solution to these problems only belong to those who live with them. Well, I propose, that only as a nation are the solutions to these problems going to be found.
There has been much academic research on this issue. However, I will only propose a question to start things off. Of course everyone should feel free to discuss and debate the question proposed. I will not, however, leave this question hanging without giving my own opinion, but that will be left until tomorrow.
How did the American ghettos originate?
