The Case for Nuclear Power

The Case (Still) for Nuclear Power

            The devastating earthquake that rocked Japan on March 11 was one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded. Damage from the quake alone is estimated in the billions and the death toll is still rising daily. On top of the earthquake, northern Japan was hit by a massive tsunami, furthering the damage to the country. But the major concern of the world was not about the safety of Japan’s populace, but on the safety and reliability of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power plant. Immediately following the earthquake, the plant shut down and ceased production of energy. The backup systems ran smoothly until the tsunami hit. This caused the backup diesel generators to flood and stop working, shutting down the cooling pumps that keep the fuel rods from overheating. When fuel rods are not cooled, they can heat up to astronomical temperatures and explode.

            Fortunately, the fuel rods did not meltdown at Fukushima. Modern nuclear power plants are equipped with multiple levels of security measures designed to prevent a nuclear disaster from occurring. Because of all the safety measures, nuclear power is the safest power source available to the world today. In the entire history of nuclear power plants, only three accidents have occurred. Today, the world is searching for more sustainable and green sources of energy as demand for energy explodes due to new industrializing nations in Asia and Africa. Eventually, the demand will exceed supply and a severe energy crisis will occur unless action is taken to prevent it. Coal, solar, wind, and natural gas are not sustainable enough to supply the world with power for the foreseeable future. If the world wants sustainable, eco-friendly electricity, then the only alternative is nuclear energy.

            Many people have a fear of anything that has the world “nuclear” attached to it. They automatically associate “nuclear” with nuclear bombs. This is an unfair association since it the way someone uses something determines if it is virtuous of malignant. To eliminate any prejudices that exist about nuclear power, I will explain the history of nuclear power and how it works. “Research into nuclear fission began in the 1930s, when Austrian-born Swedish physicist Lise Meitner and German chemist Otto Hahn first showed that uranium atoms could be made to break apart (fission) when struck by a neutron to release a large amount of energy”(Galenet). This energy could be harnessed to either produce electricity or make a very powerful bomb. The first time nuclear power was used was with the Manhattan Project when a fission chain reaction was successfully completed under the football field of the University of Chicago. This process was implemented into the atomic bombs that were developed henceforth. After World War II, the major powers of the world decided that nuclear power should be used only for peaceful purposes such as generating electricity. In 1954, the Soviet Union became the first nation to have a fully operational reactor producing electricity. Great Britain and the United States soon followed suit. “Since then, the use of nuclear power has continued to grow worldwide, in spite of highly publicized accidents at Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and in Japan”(Galenet). Nuclear energy has had a resurgence of popularity in recent years. Funding was set aside under the Bush Administration to build a nuclear waste storage site in Yucca Mountain. It was scheduled to be built in 2008, but the project was abandoned. In Europe, Germany is moving to shut down their nuclear energy program while France is now producing nearly 80% of its energy from nuclear power.

            The process of generating electricity from nuclear fission is a surprisingly simple process. In the process of building the atomic bomb, nuclear physicists wondered if the chain reaction they created could be controlled and harnessed to produce energy. There are two ways to generate energy from a nuclear reaction: “fission and fusion. Nuclear fission occurs when the nucleus of an atom is split apart into two smaller nuclei. In the process, a small amount of the mass of the nucleus is converted into a great amount of energy. Nuclear power plants harness this process in a controlled chain reaction, releasing energy in continuous and manageable amounts”(Galenet). This reaction produces very large amounts of heat, which is channeled into pipes boil water to produce steam that then turns a turbine. The turbine drives a generator that produces electricity. On the other hand, “in nuclear fusion, the nuclei of hydrogen atoms fuse together to produce larger nuclei, releasing energy in the process”(Galenet) Nuclear fusion is not used for generating electricity because the reaction is very difficult to contain once it starts.

The benefit of producing electricity with nuclear power is the miniscule amount of waste and risk that is produced in the process. First of all, no carbon dioxide is released in the process. No fossil fuels are being burned so no carbon is released into the atmosphere, therefore creating cleaner air. Second, nuclear power produces only a very small amount of radioactive waste for the amount of energy that is produced. The amount of waste generated by a family of four for twenty years would fit inside of a shoebox. There is very little waste to actually store. Most of this waste is also eligible to be recycled and turned back into usable fuel. The “recycling process, they argue, will not isolate pure plutonium, making it more difficult to convert the leftovers into a bomb. Specifically, the process calls for dissolving spent fuel in nitric acid to chemically extract the nastiest 1 percent-the highly radioactive elements plutonium, neptunium, americium and curium, also known as actinides-as well as depleted uranium. The uranium is then re-enriched, recombined with the actinides, and compressed into fuel pellets for state-of-the-art reactors”(Popular Science). This method of recycling nuclear waste protects the waste from falling into terrorists hands because less plutonium is produced. Recycling the waste also provides a sustainable method of obtaining nuclear fuel.

Another major benefit to nuclear power is an increased ability to produce hydrogen through the power plant itself. Hydrogen is a fuel that can be used to power cars. Honda’s Clarity is a fully functioning, long range zero emissions vehicle that runs on hydrogen. When hydrogen reacts with oxygen, it produces water, so the only emission the car produces is water. Hydrogen can be produced through a nuclear power plant by using electrolysis, a process that uses a direct electric current to cause a spontaneous reaction. This process, when applied to water, breaks the bonds that hold the one hydrogen atom to the two oxygen atoms, producing pure hydrogen. This is the most efficient way of producing hydrogen. Masao Hori, a longtime contributer to 21^st Century Science Technology and advocate of nuclear and hydrogen power, states in a report that “The merits of using nuclear energy for hydrogen production are that there is no CO2emission, a sustainable bulk supply capability, and a high energy density, facilitating energy security”(21stcenturysciencetech.com). The world is quickly running out of oil to power internal combustion engines. Hydrogen is a viable alternative to oil once more nuclear power plants are built. Nuclear power can produce electricity and fuel for personal transportation at the same time.

            To realize the significance of nuclear power, other alternatives must be examined in order to compare the relative costs and benefits. One of the most commonly proposed solutions to the energy crisis is solar power. While solar power appears to be a very clean resource, the carbon emissions that are produced during production of solar cells far exceeds the carbon emissions that would be saved by generating solar power instead using traditional fossil fuels. Solar panels do  not last very long and need to be replaced every 8-10 years. Efficiency is also problematic, since the output from solar panels is very small. Wall Street Journal contributor William Tucker, states  “that solar electricity (currently) can light one 100-watt bulb for every card table. Covering every square foot of every building in the country with solar panels would be enough to provide our indoor lighting—about 4 percent of our total electrical consumption—during the daytime.” Galenet). The most efficient solar panel only produces only 14% of the energy it takes in. Solar energy thus, is inefficient. The total cost of producing enough solar panels to produce twenty five percent of America’s energy needs would be tremendous. If someone buys a Tesla Roadster and wants to charge it up using only the solar panels on his roof, it would take more than a week to fully charge up the battery, considering the sun is shining twenty four hours a day. Thus, solar power is a weak alternative to fossil fuels.

            Another very bad alternative to fossil fuels is more fossil fuel. So called “Clean Coal” is a myth manufactured by coal companies to persuade the public that coal is indeed safe and non malignant to the environment so that they can stay in business longer. When coal is mined, the surrounding environment is polluted with soot and ash. Areas around coal power plants are constantly smothered by the thick black smoke produced in burning coal. When coal is burned, radioactive byproducts result such a chromium and uranium. These radioactive particles are then released into the atmosphere. People who live around these power plants have a significantly higher rate of asthma and other respiratory problems. What is worrying is the rate at which new coal power plants are being built in America. “According to a 2006 report from the US Energy Information Administration, US power consumption from coal is expected to rise 1.9 percent per year through 2030,”(Galenet). Coal is simply not a reasonable power source to use and is never clean source of energy.

            While coal is very dirty and damaging to the environment, wind power is a clean alternative to burning fossil fuels. The only problem with wind power is that they produce relatively insignificant amounts of energy. It would take a field the size of Kansas to be able to sustain the United States. Nathan Myhrvold, a Ph. D in theoretical physics and former chief technology director stated in a Newsweek article that “There’s a limit to how much you can deploy renewables, like wind or solar. People will talk about getting up to 30 percent of America’s power from renewables, but you can’t get to 100 percent because of their unreliability”(Newsweek).If the wind does not blow, then there is no power being produced from the wind turbines. Similarly, if the sun does not shine, solar panels do not produce electricity. When Myhrvold was asked if he thought any alternative energy source existed, he said “One thing you can do is fund advanced nuclear…Nuclear energy is a baseload—meaning it’s power that you can run any time you want, day or night—and carbon-free”(Newsweek). It then seems inevitable that the world will eventually rely on nuclear power to supply the world’s massive energy demands. But still, other alternatives exist.

            While nuclear power is the most efficient and abundant power source currently available, it is not powerful enough or energy efficient to completely rely on nuclear power. What is a more viable solution is a combination of  other low emission alternatives with nuclear power. Hydroelectric power plants are very efficient and produce no carbon dioxide minus the initial carbon released in the construction process. Though wind power produces only very small amounts of power, it is still a resource that can be used. Active solar water heaters can reduce  the amount of natural gas burned for heating. More research needs to go into solar panels and photovoltaic solar power to make the production of it more energy efficient. All of these resources combined with nuclear power is the answer to solving the energy and environmental crisis.

            There is yet one more aspect to the energy problem. While nuclear power combined with other renewable sources of energy is a treatment of the problem, it does not address the root of the problem. The world is increasingly wasting electricity. All of the appliances that continually display a clock or light are draining energy when not in use. New televisions remain in a constant stand-by mode, consuming power even when turned off. Abandoned office building’s lights are left on constantly, during the day and during the night. People must realize that they themselves are the cause of the energy crisis. People need to stop relying on their cars for transportation. They need to take the initiative to vote for more funding for public transportation. Lights in rooms that are not occupied should always be turned off to avoid wasting energy. Basically, people need to be more energy efficient while producing energy in an environmentally friendly way. If energy consumption habits do not change,  then energy supplied, will cease to meet energy demanded. 

Juvenile Justice in America

Juvenile Justice

America is facing a severe problem today. While many believe that the economy is the most significant issue, they simply do not see what has been plaguing America for far longer than the down turned economy. What is hurting America today is the rate of incarceration of children. In the past twenty years, resources have continually been taken away from California’s grammar schools, middle schools, and high schools. At the same time, there has been an exponential growth in funding to juvenile detention centers. This is reflective of what America values. Instead of educating and preventing people from committing crime, it would rather impose draconian measures to punish those who break the law. Since proposition 21 passed in California, more and more youths have been tried as adults and sent to federal prison. Mark Salzman, in his book True Notebooks, explores this idea through his characters that are in his book. Through the actions and dialogues of characters, Mark Salzman demonstrates what is wrong with the juvenile justice system. He does this mainly through the staff, like Sister Janet and Mr. Sills, the inmates, and Mark Salzman’s character himself.

     Many youths within the juvenile justice system are not hardcore criminals who are inherently evil people. Most are misunderstood or were never cared for properly when growing up. Some people see the children for what they really are: children. Sister Janet, a Catholic Nun who works at the juvenile center where Mark teaches his writing class, believes in the children. She says to Mark, “’These children are in crisis…Most of them never had a chance, never got the guidance and attention they needed from adults. Is it any surprise they join gangs?’”(26) She brings up a major social issue with this comment. Many children who end up in juvenile detention centers had very turbulent and depressing upbringings. Their parents were often victims of the justice system while they were growing up. Many never knew their fathers and had strenuous relationships with their mothers. As Frontuto states in his initiation poem, “Dad why weren’t you there?” many of their fathers simply did not have a role in raising them and were absent from their lives. These children never receive the lessons and morals that decent children receive.

It is unfair to treat these children as if they were hardened criminals and place them in the same facilities as hardened adult criminals because they have never been fully raised. “The system is herding these into the adult system where they don’t belong. Most of the youths sent to the adult system could be better served in the juvenile system” (74 Numbers of Juveniles Charged as Adults up). These children need to be educated in order to be rehabilitated. Sending them to prison is simply punishment and not rehabilitation. Instead of spending thousands of dollars on inmates per year to keep them housed behind bars, the state should spend money preventing them from ever ending up behind bars, through education and freedom of information. But what really matters in juvenile detention is the staff.

         Some people should never work in the justice system. As Sister Janet says, “you have a lot of people working in law enforcement who are in the wrong profession”(28). There are also many people who belong in law enforcement like Mr. Sills. He originally is portrayed as a disciplinarian who is strict and harsh toward the children. But as the story progresses, he demonstrates through his actions and letters that he is fit to be in law enforcement, especially with youth. He treats the inmates as real human beings, offering them barbeques and activities. His attitude toward Kevin Jackson is what really constructs his character. He favors him and mentors him as a son. In his letter he writes for the court, Sills says, “In the beginning when I met Kevin I saw him as a young kid who has wasted his life….I believe meeting Kevin was a blessing to me because he made me a better person mentally and spiritually”(310). Mr. Joe Sills belongs in law enforcement because he sees the inmates as human beings that have an effect on himself, therefore meriting them an opportunity to better themselves. Mr. Sills sees that these criminals are just children and need to be corrected and rehabilitated instead of being sent to adult prison. He wishes to raise their self esteem so that they will view themselves as people of value instead of criminals.

     The children that are incarcerated within the juvenile detention centers  have a very peculiar view of themselves. Common among them all is a notion that they are being dehumanized. Kevin Jackson, an African-American inmate accused of murder, states that “Bein’ locked up can make a person feel like they’re no longer a person. It makes you feel lower than people on the outside, and that can destroy your will to succeed”(99). This dehumanization is detrimental to the person’s self esteem. When someone has low self esteem, they are more likely to lash out with violence  and reject the idea of being corrected and rehabilitated. The children only view themselves as they think others view them.

    Javier Francisco sees himself by the way he thinks society views him. At first, he is one of the boisterous inmates, often speaking out of turn or causing a distraction in class. Francisco begins to turn around when he offers insight into his condition to Sister Janet when he says “They don’t know anything about us!….All they know is what the newspapers say. They don’t know the whole story”(64). Francisco explains how he thinks society views him and the other inmates in the juvenile facility. When he says “they,” he is referring to society in general. People do not generally hold favorable opinions of children in juvenile hall. They often view them as being bad and inherently evil people. Society thinks that these children have given up on life. But Francisco later says, “I wanna do something’ with my life, Sister. I pray to God every night, askin’ him to help me”(64). Fransisco thinks that society has given up on him but he wants to show the world that he has something to offer.

     Many people’s views of the children in the juvenile justice system are based not on racial prejudice, but on ignorance. Mark Salzman initially rejects the idea of teaching the writing class. He remarks first in a list that he thinks the “Students all gangbangers; feel unqualified to evaluate poems about AK-47s” (9). Mark puts down the students by prejudging them and assuming all the children were gangbangers. When he sees the boy brought into prison in the back of the police car, he says the boy “I presumed, needed to be digested a while before being shit into the adult prison system or puked back out onto the streets.”(15). His view eventually changes once he has been teaching the class for a couple of months. Mark is never able to give a concrete answer as to why he teaches a class to criminals. But he does eventually say that “After all I’d been through with the boys-some of it wonderful and some of it terrible-all I could say was that a little good has got to be better that no good at all”(323). Mark sees the children as criminals, but also as children. He believes that the work he does with them acts a beneficial agent in re-socializing the children back into society.

        In Mark Salzman’s book, True Notebooks, characters are presented to the reader with the intent to challenge the readers thoughts and beliefs on the juvenile justice system. Prior to reading True Notebooks, I viewed the juvenile justice system with skepticism. I believed that the children who commit the crimes should pay for what they had done even if that meant trying them as adults. At the same time, I did not believe in draconian punishment for children who had made their first mistake. After reading the book, I changed my mind about trying children as adults. I believe that children who are repeat gang affiliated offenders or have multiple convictions or commit treason should receive no leniency, even though they are only children. They are legitimate threats to the safety and stability of our civil society and should be punished for trying to upset the balance. But I have taken up the position that more preventative measures need to be taken by the state to educate and guide children in high-risk areas to avoid gangs and violence. I think that programs that are in effect like free day cares in New York and other big cities are helping to stem the problem. I realize that these criminals are still in fact children in their minds, and their minds need to be stimulated. I hope our government will follow Plato in viewing education as the pinnacle of the government. When a state has a strong public education system, crime and deviance disappear. Instead of treating the symptoms of the disease of crime, the government should focus on its causes. In conclusion, children should be tried as children, and treated accordingly. However, those who are repeat offenders or gang members should be subjected to the full extent of the law.

Identity's Inferno

    In Dante's Inferno, Dante is faced with three demons, each representing a different vice of humans that holds them back from salvation. The beasts of malice and fraud, violence and ambition, and incontinence are personified to make the reader identify with Dante and realize the virtues and vices of themselves. He says "the man who could escape (these beasts) must go a longer and harder way. First he must descend through hell, then he must ascend through purgatory, and only then may he reach the pinnacle of joy and come to the light of God." (Dante Canto I) One may wonder what this has to do with identity. The metaphors Dante displays can be used to explain how one forms their identity.

American society tends to believe that society is separate from the individual. It is commonly believed that everyone is an individual and different. But much like the crowd outside of Brian's window in Monty Python's Life of Brian, these members of society do not understand what being different and being an individual really means. All of the people outside of his window repeat what Brian is telling them. They all say in unison that they are different and individuals. These so called individuals are all the same and mindlessly follow societies norms and rules. Their identity is formed by the society in which they live. Society tells them that they are poor peasants living in Jerusalem, and they believe that is all they will ever be. The people cling to and worship Brian because he is telling them something they have never heard of before. He is telling them to break away from the social roles they are placed in, but they fail to do so. This is how many people's identity is formed; by society. But to truly find out who one is, they must embark on a journey like Dante.

To find out who one is, they must challenge who they think they are. Society likes to make people believe they must fall into certain roles and genres of people. TO challenge one's idea of who they are is challenging societies view of who they are. The individual has descended into hell once they realize that they are simply products of the society they live in. Upon realization of this false identity, the person can see who they really are. They can conquer the fraud and move beyond it. People simply live in a masquerade they perform in everyday. This is the fraud to be overcome as Dante puts it. The individual identity seeker can stop acting and just be.

Often times, people strive to be something they are not. This ambition to be something other than oneself is the second beast that needs to be conquered in order to find ones true identity. Pop culture throws images and icons at us that try to convince us how to properly live. When one has ambition to be what society says they should be like, they loose their sense of who they really are. They submit to social forces to fit in. Then a person must recognize their true talents. Our talents also make up who we are. Realization of what one is good at allows them to understand what kind of person they are. Now one is ready to move on and look within to see who they really are.
Dante's descent into hell can be symbolic of the great effort needed to recognize ourselves. It is in the darkest of times that one realizes who they are. Once one conquers their demons and movers past the pressures of conformity in society can one break through the ninth layer of hell and realize the true nature of oneself frozen beneath the sociological ice created to prevent one from thinking independently. When one thaws himself out, he can ascend to purgatory. Purgatory can be the acceptance of one's true self. He knows that he is destined for something great but still needs to work hard at who he is. Incontinence is a vice that sometimes prevents people from true self realization. People have a tendency to do what they are comfortable with. They can revert back to who society wants them to be. That is a step backward. But if one can retain this new found found sense of identity, then they can move on to eternal joy.

SO far I have described identity as a journey. After going through hell and purgatory, the next logical stage is heaven. One can venture past Saint Peter's gate and get into heaven that finding their identity is actually easier than thought. They can only reach true happiness when they realize that they just are what they are. The answer to "Who am I?" lies within everyone. They just have to look within themselves. People who go to Maui to find themselves must not be very observant people. They have been with themselves their entire life. They have failed to see that one is what they habitually do. Someone told me that one time and it really has stuck with me. There is another quote that says "by their actions you shall know them. One must look at the things they habitually do as these are things that make up their identity. For example, I habitually come home and do my homework even when I do not want to. This means I am a hardworking person since I make it a habit to work hard. I also like to criticize things so this means I am a critical person. Our virtues and downfalls come from things we habitually do. To change one's identity, one would have to change their habits. If someone wants to be hardworking, they should make it a habit to be hardworking.

The impact of society one people's identity is evident today on Facebook. People try to post all sorts of information about themselves to be different from others. They use art like music and films that other people have created to express their own individuality. In the long run they are all the same, conforming to the norms and formats of Facebook.
But society can benefit a person's identity as well. "Socialization brings the external world inside the individual," states Peter Berger and Thomas Luckman. Society can teach the individual what is acceptable and what is not by rewards and punishments. If one is not socialized, he will be a freak of nature, acting on desires and instincts. Society teaches someone how to control these urges and desires. A person needs to learn the norms and customs of society in order to be successful in that society.
Once and only once a man is socialized can he break away form society and be his own self. The journey through hell I spoke of earlier is only possible once one is socialized and realizes what society has made them. I believe a person creates their own identity, and only the weak allow themselves to be a product of society. MTV and reality TV shows are slowly sucking individualism out of society. Pretty soon every band will sound like the Black Eyed Peas and every girl will look like Snookie or a Kardashian. I usually pass on what is popular at the moment and instead focus on things that I like because I am an individual and I am different.

Crime and Punishment: A Radical Perspective

Crime and Punishment

            The political philosopher Thomas Hobbes describs the natural state of existence of man as the “State of Nature”, a condition in which no laws or moral restrictions exist.  In the state of nature, man is a violent and selfish creature, where it is man against man competing for resources that other men have. Elijah Anderson makes a similar argument in The Code of the Street about people living in low income areas. Crime is rampant throughout every low income area due to the lack of control that exists. Instead, the people make up their own laws and codes since those established by mainstream society seem to fail them. In his essay, “The Code of the Streets,” Elijah Anderson argues that street people resort to deviance due to lack of adequate social controls, exemplifying the control theory of deviance.

            Where functionalist theory argues that crime is a result of structural tensions and lack of moral regulation in a society, control theorists state that “crime occurs as a result of an imbalance between impulses toward criminal activity and the social or physical controls that deter it” (Giddens 162). In street orientated neighborhoods, the physical controls like police and justice systems are not present to deter crime. Instead, its residents have created a code of the streets, “a cultural adaptation to a profound lack of faith in the police and the judicial system”(Anderson 172). This system gives them a sense of control in an otherwise bleak existence. Pressures placed on them by the capitalist system of America essentially tell them that they have no value in a society that values wealth and possessions. The code of the street is a way for street people to acquire possessions. Since no material wealth exists in the streets, the people have placed an abstract value on respect. Everything about the code of the street is related to respect, as respect is the only belonging they feel they own. “Respect is viewed as almost an external entity that is hard-won but easily lost, so it must constantly be guarded.” (Anderson 172). This code of the streets that protects their respect necessitates violence in order to hold onto their respect. Since no physical controls exist, an external one is created that leads to violence.

            People who are born into poverty most often die in poverty. Their children inherit poverty and pass it on to their children. Much like poverty, people born into conditions in which control does not exist will pass on this notion of no control to their children.  Children born into poverty are often exposed and socialized by people who go against mainstream society. Elijah Anderson says, “These families, who are more fully invested in the code of the streets… may aggressively socialize their children into it in a normative way”(174). The children have no chance to be exposed to decent values since they are heavily socialized to believe that society is out to get them. This leads people to feel trapped, leading to deviance. The control theory explains that there are four types of bonds that would prevent someone from breaking the law: attachment, involvement, commitment, and belief. Growing up in poverty alienates a person from developing many of these bonds. Involvement does not exist in an impoverished area because people do not see the point in helping a community if the people are only going to tear down what they worked so hard to build. The values that impoverished children become attached to counter the values that society wants a person to hold. They become committed to the code, attached to it, and begin to believe it, almost as an ideology. If they live long enough to have offspring, they pass these views and values onto them, further breaking down the system and control.
            In decent and proper segments of society, status is attained through education, one’s vocation, or virtue of their character. In the society of the street, status is attained in a much different way due to the lack of controls that exist. Impoverished neighborhoods often have a lack of employment, leaving many people to be extremely poor. Though they are extremely poor, they are still covetous of luxury items like jackets, rims, and expensive guns. What ends up happening in ghetto neighborhoods is that mankind reverts to a state of nature, as described by Thomas Hobbes. In this state of nature, it is every man for himself, his only concern being his own welfare while not taking into account the welfare of another man. It is a violent and turbulent state, and is exemplified in street neighborhoods. Elijah Anderson states that people rob each other of their personal possessions and attain respect for doing so. In decent society, thit is a sign of disrespect and the perpetrator is labeled a criminal, a low status in decent society. But, “when a person can take something from another and then flaunt it, he gains a certain regard by being the owner of controller” (Anderson 177). What the street neighborhoods amount to is the purest form of capitalism. It is man against man, fighting for possessions. He with the most possessions and respect, rules.  Travis Hirschi, one of the best known control theorists, “argued that humans are fundamentally selfish beings who make calculated decisions about whether or not to engage in criminal activity”(Giddens 162). This selfishness is displayed by the people who commit the robberies and assaults. They desperately want to own something and will go to great lengths to attain them. But there is a dichotomy that exists in this hardcore capitalist system, “that is, the extent to which one person can raise himself up depends on his ability to put another person down”(Anderson 178). Hence, the essence of capitalism: while the rich get richer and accumulate more wealth, the poor get poorer and lose more wealth. Since no controls exist to protect private property of innocent people from deviant individuals, crime is rampant and people lose their possessions as quickly as they gain them. This battle to retain respect and status instigates violence among residents.

            Many people growing up in poverty tend to go for bad. Low income neighborhoods can be a very dangerous and depressing place to live. The public housing that was built in the 1950’s in places like New York City, Chicago, and Atlanta, can feel like prisons to the residents. People feel as if they have no place to go and no chance of escape. Many of them then go for bad. Youths growing up in an impoverished neighborhood often develop a cavalier attitude towards life, not worrying about death or suffering. Instead they see how they can become a harder person. They view prison as a rite of passage in which every hardcore criminal must go through to be considered legitimate. “Hence the system loses influence over the hard core who are without jobs, with little perceptible stake in the system”  (Anderson 180). Since social controls have withered away, people resort violence and crime to make a living. Prison is not a strong enough deterrent to keep youths and adults alike from committing acts of deviance. Since they feel trapped, they feel they have nothing to lose.
            While crime originates from a plethora of factors, a lack of social control is the prominent one. While no simple solution exists, a fanciful solution would be to eradicate the economic disparities that exist between social classes. History has always been defined as a struggle of classes against one another. If everyone were to have the same amount of possessions, no one would want to risk robbing someone for a plain grey jacket issued by the government. Though the abolishment of private property would solve this problem, it is very unlikely since American society is so entrenched in materialism and decadence. As society moves ever further into the twenty first century, it needs to reevaluate how it treats and views those in the lowest reaches of society. A society can be judged by how it treats its poorest, sickest, and ugliest in the worst of times.

Construction of Identity and Socializing Agents

America the Beautiful

Oscar Wilde once said, “Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.” He is saying that our identities are shaped by things outside of our own. Our identities are made up of a plethora of different socializing agents. Socializing agents shape how people think and behave; they teach us how to act in society.  The two different types of socializing agents, primary and secondary, socialize a person from birth until death. Everyone is shaped by society’s agents, but most do not realize to what extent they are being socialized. In The Farmworker’s Daughter, the main character Rose grows up in America and is shaped by the agents of socialization. She is subjected to primary socialization by her father and secondary socialization by the American Dream and through the education she receives. Much like Rose, I too have been socialized by the same primary and secondary agents of socialization such as parents, education, and the American Dream.

            Everyone has a biological father and a biological mother.  These are necessary to provide the blueprints for a person’s life. But there is a difference between giving life and being a parent. Rose was essentially raised by her mother from birth until around age six or seven. Her biological father did not take the effort to spend time with her and raise her. Parents are primary agents of socialization and are vital to the development of the child as a citizen and as a person. She did not have a father until her mother met Jose.  They married and Rose felt like “it was a natural flow. It was as if Jose had always been Papa and Tito was no more than a recurrent dream” (Guilbault 35). Jose married Marie Luisa because he loved her and wanted to help raise Rose.  It really says a lot about a man’s character if he is willing to raise a child who is not his. Rose looked to Jose as her father, as the title indicates. She becomes the daughter of Jose by accepting that he is a father figure in his life. She says that it was as if Jose had always been papa, saying that she considers Jose to be the primary agent of socialization that raised her. He instilled values in her like being frugal and putting family first. These values shaped Rose for the rest of her life.  Finally, Rose had a real father figure in her life that changed her idea of what a father is supposed to be like.

            I feel that I can identify with Rose in a certain way. I was adopted at birth and I am an only child. My biological parents were very young and poor and lived in the slums of Philadelphia. My real parents, as I call them, had such a desire to raise a child that they adopted me and made it their life’s work to raise a son. I can say I am very thankful for the parents that have raised me, but specifically my father. He is a man who has a very strong work ethic, much like Jose, but would always put his family first. He does whatever it takes to ensure the survival of his family. My father is a great person who holds no outward prejudices. I have greatly been shaped by him. Growing up I saw examples of chivalry towards my mother, a trait that I employ in my relationships.It is almost an instinct to open doors for my dates, bring them flowers before, and always pay for dinner. He taught me to never loan money to a friend, but instead just give it as a gift out of benevolence. My parents have been married for 25 years and have set a great example of what a relationship should be like. I know that when I eventually get married and have children, I will try to instill the same values that were instilled in me. My father has had an indelible impact on my life and I am forever thankful for it.
            School and education can play a large role in the formation of a person’s identity. For Rose, school was a place where she could learn about American culture and learn how to be successful in her new environment. Rose had a teacher who forever changed her life. Mrs. Rojas was a Mexican-American teacher who had immigrated to the United States from Mexico.  She instilled an idea in Rose’s mind. Mrs. Roja said, “I wanted to show world that a Mexican could be a teacher, and a darned good one”(Guilbault 87). Rose took these words to mean that she wanted to show the world that a Mexican could be just as or if not more successful than any white person could be. Rose became empowered to believe in herself and in education. Mrs. Roja recognized that every student had the opportunity to be great, but it took a certain amount of work to get them motivated.

            I had a similar experience with a teacher I had in high school. Mr. Nelson was my British Literature instructor my junior year. He would make every class interesting by thinking of creative ways to teach his lesson plans. I remember that he was a very smart man who seemed to know everything, even though he would often quote Socrates in saying “all I know is that I know nothing.” He sparked drive in me to learn and to become a teacher. Since then, I have become very interested in English and Literature. So much so that I plan on becoming a teacher after college in the hopes that I could be half as inspiring as this man was. One lesson I will never forget is when he told the class that “you are what you habitually do.” This has been a lesson I have often thought about in my day to day life. Our habits and our behaviors reflect a great deal about us. If one is habitually nice, then they are a nice person. If someone wants to change their identity, then they have to change how they habitually act.

             America has been called the land of dreams ever since its inception as a country.  Its resources and opportunities seemed endless to early explorers of the continent. The idea of the American Dream arose out of this notion that one could achieve their dreams in America. Rose Guilbault and her mother came to America searching for the American Dream to escape the rigid social structure and gender roles of Mexico. The concept of dreams is a motif in the story and is frequently alluded to. In Mexico, they lived a very hard and impoverished life. When they moved to America, Rose’s mother soon found work and a lover whom could support them and raise Rose. Once they started to accumulate money, they began to want things.  “A newspaper article would later describe the Sears catalog as ‘the best record of American material culture.’ But to many of us, this catalog transcended materialism. It was about making dreams come true”(Guilbault 55). The Sears catalog is a physical manifestation of the American dream. It was filled with pictures of happy families enjoying the product bought out of the catalog. All of the families lived in a nice house and wore nice cloths. Coming from nothing, Rose saw this catalog as a way of buying her dreams that she could never have fulfilled in Mexico. America’s economy depends on materialism to survive. Materialism is the life blood of the country. When Rose and her family began seeing the catalog as a representation of dreams, they began assimilating to American culture by chasing the American Dream, therefore altering their identity. . Because Rose’s mother, Maria, sought the American Dream, Rose was able to go to school and go to college so she could one day become a successful writer and journalist.
            The American Dream holds a special place in the heart of my family.  My father was born in Hungary under the ruthless rule of the Soviet backed communist government. Hungarian citizens were not free to move about and those that spoke out against this oppressive government would be killed. My grandparents decided that this was not the environment that they wished to raise their children. They risked death by fleeing through the woods to the north into Austria. My grandmother would often say “I could hear gunfire in the distance coming from Soviet rifles.” The Soviets did not want any citizens escaping their rule because everyone was treated as a means of production and had to play their part for the survival of the country. From Austria they traveled to London, then to New York City. From there they found a sponsor in Belmont and settled in the Bay Area. My grandfather was a skilled mechanic and worked at several body shops before being able to buy his own. My grandmother took business accounting classes and English classes so that she could be able to be prosperous in this new homeland. Through hard work, determination, and sacrifice, they were able to buy a home in Sunnyvale. They saved until they could afford to buy a second house, which they then rented out. They continued to buy houses until they owned over twenty five. My grandparents could afford to send their grandchildren to the best high schools and colleges in the country, allowing us to excel in our studies and eventually be successful citizens as well. I believe that the American Dream is real because I have witnessed it with my own eyes and have been directly affected by it. My family came to America with nothing and has achieved so much, instilling a value of hard work and effort that has remained part of me to this day. My identity has been shaped by the notion of the American Dream. I believe that anything is possible, so long as I work hard enough toward it.

            There are many aspects that make up a person’s identity. Most significant of them all are primary agents of socialization and societal forces like schools and the American Dream. Rose discovers and forms her identity much like I have through having a strong father to support her, an education system to inspire her, and having the American dream to drive her along the way. Like Oscar Wilde, I realize that I am what other people other have made me and that society has had a great impact on my identity. Socialization and assimilation to American culture, along with the formation of identity, is an ongoing and ever-changing process. In a time when media and technology are readily accessible to everyone, primary identity formation is shifting more towards secondary agents being the most significant socialization tool. I hope that people do not forget that underneath all of the social influences and pressures, there lies a choice between being the person they are or the person they want to be.