Two Annotations

ELLENBOGEN, PHILIP. "Beyond the Border: A Comparative Look at Prison Rape in the United States and Canada." Columbia Journal of Law & Social Problems 42.3 (2009): 335-72. Web.

Ellenbogen examines and analyzes the background of prison rape and the current laws in place in both the United States and Canada. Ellenbogen then suggests factors that may contribute to the prevalence of prison rape in U.S. prisons compared to Canadian prisons. Ellenbogen concludes his study with the proposition of reforming prison rules to reduce occurrences of prison rape. This study will be very useful for my research on many different levels. The background of prison rape section brings to life the pain and struggle inmates suffer every day. For example here is a quote provided from a teen prisoner who was arrested for setting a dumpster on fire, “Since I was placed in prison… I have found myself to be more mentally and emotionally destroyed than I have ever been. I’m very sorry to end my life this way. But if I don’t do this, someone will. I’m saying I’d rather die of my own free will than be killed. I love you Mom and Dad” (Ellenbogen 335). Not only does this study discuss the psychological and physiological damage from sexual violence, it also provides specific information on the laws and practices that have been developed to end prison rape. This will be an invaluable source for my argument on the damages of prison rape and the need for it to be stopped.

Jones, Tonisha R., and Travis C. Pratt. "The Prevalence of Sexual Violence in Prison: The State of the Knowledge Base and Implications for Evidence-Based Correctional Policy Making." International Journal of Offender Therapy & Comparative Criminology 52.3 (2008): 280-95. Web.

This study discusses the debate on the prevalence of sexual violence in U.S. prisons and the significance of the problem. This study’s main focus is to “discuss the key methodological issues surrounding the studies that have addressed the prevalence of sexual victimization in prisons, in an effort to assess what the best estimates or prevalence of sexual victimization may be” (Jones and Travis 287). This source supplies me with the information to identify the flaws of studies that claim prison rape is a rare occurrence. I will use this source to support my argument that sexual violence and prison rape is a very large, significant problem that must be addressed.

Thesis Statements and Questions

1.     How has the television as an invention changed the American household and family life?

Life before television is something that many people can barely remember and for some cannot even imagine. Television has shaped the very foundation of American values and beliefs. Television also dictates how many Americans plan their time and even schedule their lives.

2.     Should college athletes be paid to play?

A very hot topic in collegiate football and basketball is whether or not the student athletes should be paid. I believe that a student athlete is just that, a student. Once they start paying collegiate athletes than high school players will want compensation. Only problems can come from paying students to play sports.

3.     Some standardized tests scores factor in to how much money a school will receive in the next fiscal year. Is this an ethical way to demand accountability from a school, or does this further punish lower-performing schools?

It is not ethical to fund a school less for lower test scores. By reducing funding they are only hurting the students who may come from low socioeconomic areas where little value is placed on education. Many children have enough struggles and receiving less aid than other children should not be one of them.

4.     Not considering the United States, what is the most powerful nation on the planet? Explain the criteria used in making this judgment.

This is a question that fascinates me because I’m not sure if there is a single correct answer. The obvious first thought would be China but I do not believe that is correct. In order to argue that any country is the most powerful I would have to define what power is and how countries attain it.

5.     Is sexual violence in U.S. prisons a major problem and how could it be stopped?

Although many Americans view male on male sexual violence in prisons as a minor or non-issue, prison rape is a large-scale problem that must have steps taken to reduce or stop its occurrences altogether.

Power Free Write

In attempting to write this essay I have been met with the great difficulty of simply not having a good understanding of the material. Reading Berger and Foucault makes me feel as if I just took Vick’s Nyquil, one second I’m awake, the next I’m out cold. But even when I do manage to read through consecutive pages without my eyelids drooping I still feel as though I am at a complete loss as to what is going on. Then there is Kanye West’s music video. I feel silly comparing Kanye West to Berger and Foucault. I also feel as though it is an injustice to credit West for all of the symbolism in the video when I believe he probably had very little part in it. Ok, that is the last of my complaints. For the essay I will try and show that power is something that can be created but not controlled.

Summary of Panopticism

Michael Foucault’s, “Panopticism” discusses the efficiency and productivity of power that takes place in Bentham’s panopticon. The panopticon is an “annular building: at the center, a tower; this tower is pierced with wide windows that open onto the inner side of the ring; the peripheric building is divided into cells, each of which extends the whole width of the building (285).” According to Foucault the panopticon can serve as a prison, school, hospital, or factory. In the panopticon power is created and controlled by the architectural design of the building rather than by a large number of guards. Inside the panopticon, individuals are placed in cells so that they cannot see or communicate with their neighbors. The central tower has blinds so that the individuals in the cells do not know if they are being watched at a specific moment, but are continually conscious of the reality that they may be being watched at any moment. This illusion of constant surveillance creates power over the individuals. The watchman in the tower is controlled by the power created by an inspector who may enter the tower at any random time to check on the watchmen. The inspector can be a single individual or society in general who is interested to witness the efficiency of the panopticon. These inspections erase any doubt of tyranny. Foucault uses the panopticon as a functional mechanism to explain how power becomes productive. Productivity is valued in society so Foucault concludes, “Is it surprising that prisons resemble factories, schools, barracks, hospitals, which all resemble prisons (309)?” Foucault believes that Power is a useful tool that is used to increase productivity throughout society.

A Response to Kyle Madsen’s "A Response to Michael Pollan”

Hello Kyle. I am very glad that you took the time to read my article. However, you seem to have missed a key point. At the beginning of my piece I said, “And even in the face of this derision I decide I am going to bother, there arises the whole vexed question of getting it right. Is eating local or walking to work really going to reduce my carbon footprint?” I then concluded, “If determining the carbon footprint of food is really this complicated… I’ll just buy the imported chops at Costco, at least until the experts get their footprints sorted out.” With these lines I was stating that calculating our carbon footprint is complicated and can be very inaccurate. These complications may dissuade or prevent people from taking the time and effort to reduce their carbon footprint. As a solution I recommend people garden in order to benefit the environment and themselves.

 In your response you said, “I would have liked him to discuss how we as consumers could buy more fuel-efficient cars, avoid plastic packaging, drink tap water, and buy products from green industries.” If I were to do this Kyle I would go against my entire argument. You wish me to be the scientist calculating the carbon footprints that I referred to in my piece. I am the confused consumer like you, not the scientist. My mission was to simplify the process for my readers and therefore I recommend that they garden. Also, you referred to gardening as, “hours of backbreaking labor.” I find this very interesting. Gardening is something my 75-year-old grandmother does for fun. I suggest that you put down your iPad and garden. From the sound of it not only will you be helping the environment but you will also be fighting the growing epidemic of childhood obesity.

Live Long and Prosper,

Michael “Faux” Pollan

A Summary of "Deep Play: Notes on the Balinese Cockfight"

Clifford Geertz and his wife visit a Balinese village where they are, “invisible men.” The village ignored them and refused to acknowledge their presence. One day the couple joined the village in running from police after a cockfight and hid out in a local couples’ home. After this event the couple received acceptance from the entire village. The Balinese were tickled by the foreigners running from the police and everyone in the village wanted to hear the Americans’ story. Through this acceptance Geertz was able to start learning about how important cockfights were with Balinese culture. Balinese men have a, “deep psychological identification” with their cocks and the, “double entendre is deliberate.” The Balinese men spend enormous amounts of time with their cocks, feeding them, grooming them, or, “just gazing at them with a mixture of rapt admiration and dreamy self-absorption.” Animal-like behavior is considered repulsive and babies are not allowed to crawl. In the cockfights this,”animality” and men meet and battle in a, “bloody drama of hatred, cruelty, violence, and death.” Geertz then shifts his essay to the rules and standard practices of cockfights. Cockfights are held in a ring and begin late in the afternoon and usually 10 fights comprise a program called a, “sehet.” The rules of cockfighting are written on palm-leaf manuscripts and have been passed down over the generations. Handlers tend to the cocks during the fight and will even resuscitate the bird. The umpire has absolute authority and Geertz never witnesses any villager complain or question an umpire’s judgment. Betting is also a very large part of the cockfights and can get very complicated. Geertz learns that the village always supports the local cock just as an American town supports the local football team. The cockfight embodies the culture, social networks, and rituals of Balinese life.

Quote from Clifford Geertz Deep Play: notes on the Balinese cockfight

"Whenever you see a group of Balinese men squatting idly in the council shed or along the road in their hips down, shoulders forward, knees up fashion, half or more of them will have a rooster in his hands, holding it between his thighs, bouncing it gently up and down to strengthen its legs, ruffling its feathers with abstract sensuality, pushing it out against a neighbor's rooster to rouse its spirit, withdrawing it toward his loins to calm it again. Now and then, to get a feel for another bird, a man will fiddle this way with someone else's cock for a while, but usually by moving around to squat in place behind it, rather than just having it passed across to him as though it were merely and animal."

To me this whole passage seems to be suggesting that there is some kind of perversion existing between these Balinese men and their birds. I also thought it was funny that Geertz refers to the birds as "cocks" throughout the entire work, except in this quote. Nice job dodging that bullet Geertz.