Evolution of teenage wasteland

In Reading “Teenage Wasteland” Donna Gaines discusses the issue of teenage suicide and why this has become such a growing problem in society. The focus of Gaines study on teenage suicide is on suburban youth. These kids that are leading down the road toward suicide and bodily harm have been labeled as “burnouts, druggies, and losers”.   These kids are near the bottom academically, economically, and socially. As Gaines puts it, “”these groups have signified young people’s refusal to cooperate”. They just don’t really fit into any really niche in there schools such as the preps, jocks or brains. Therefore they feel like they have nowhere to turn and no one that understands them. Gaines explains through this article how she is trying to figure out there mindset and she wants to understand the reasons for why teens are turning to suicide and whether “this is a cult, a fad, a hobby, or something else”. 

Teenage wasteland reading left me in a some what emotional state, to a point i felt like anything i wrote or said would be met with venom in my mouth, and i had to step away and view this from a sociologist perspective. in actuality I know and some how forgotten what it meant to be the ''outcast'' or better yet the "burnout" never really fitting in or understanding why i just didn't.. One of the major reasons many believe teens are resorting to suicide is because of boredom. They feel isolated and have nothing to do. However I don’t agree that boredom should be consider a reason for turning to suicide. You need to make an effort to find something you enjoy. You can’t be expected to have everything given to you. Suicide should never be the answer for boredom. Although I do see some truth to this, because boredom can lead to depression if you cant find happiness. When these so-called “burnouts” are bored that’s when they turn to doing bad things, whether it is drugs, drinking and other bad activities. They are basically just trying to have enough fun just to get through the day and “their way of fighting back is to have enough fun to kill themselves before everything else does” 

Through out the reading i kept asking myself why and when the answer a raised i was met with another questions... in chapter two it explained the norm of common sense and basically tradition, why people didn't question things or try to at least find the truth they base their answers on biased observation and interpretation of the truth, blaming there role models and the clique they were in. Donna Gaines used empirical evidence to find somewhat of the truth or better yet a better understanding of this social group called the ''others'' i couldn't help but wonder if society has to much exceptions for us,we,me,you, the other are we burden with the simple legacy to hit the ground face first, with our destiny already written for us or should we say FUCK SOCIETY and be who we truly are just Different in every sense of the word... A GREAT SCHOLAR ONCE SAID WE DESTROY THE THINGS WE DO NOT UNDERSTAND'. Gaines concludes her article by giving her explanation for why she believes so many teens have been committing suicide. She believes that teenage suicide will not go away until kids’ bad lives go away.

Blog #2 The Essences of Sense and nonsense about surveys

  Social science survey data is commonly reported in the news, you read about the use of survey data in Howard Schuman’s article “Sense and Nonsense About Surveys” He explains It is rare to watch television news or read the paper without learning the results of a recent survey. Given the proliferation of surveys, it is important to know more about their characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses. Schuman’s talks about surveys involving two distinct steps: selecting cases and then presenting those cases with a Predetermined set of questions.

The first step, often called "sampling," is critical. In most situations, we want to

Be able to make generalizations about a "population" (all the cases of interest) based on a subset of that population, our "sample." How we choose cases for our sample determines the confidence with which we can make statements about what is likely to be true of the population. But it is also important to attend to the questions that are asked in surveys.

 "Sense and Nonsense' it explained the difference surveys and outcomes but also it left me with the in depth view how survey takes place every day, in every aspects of our life's from simple conversations and social interactions, also it shed light that views and answers are always changing from different cities, gender, age, sex, etc., I learned that even though survey questions resemble questions we ask ordinary it still brings problematic because of wording and context of the questions that is asked   Howard, Schuman asserts understanding surveys is Critical to being informed citizen.

In chapter 2 it went in depth on how a sociologist warrants answer to a question and how sometimes one answer bring up another question, but also explained people reasoning to things. In the reading the idea of unquestioned acceptance of ‘common sense’ how it was okay for children to think Santa exist because it was traditional belief. It made me think back to a short story ‘The Lottery’ by Shirley Jackson. Jackson explore the idea that mankind follows traditions wilily and without question, and from a sociologist point a view I ask why.

WHO I AM

I am a poet, a singer, a believer, a seeker, a day dreamer, a seer but also a listener. I am on the outside looking in trying to come up with a master plan to take over the world an never ending cycle of finding me, I was born in Thessaloniki Greece split between two worlds and obligations. I grew up in Beverly Hill California with a very blessed lifestyle not truly seeing the big picture of the world thinking this 4 by 4 wall is all that existed, and all I needed, it took me a long time to realize that the world wasn’t black and white but multi colors and sounds. I have been bless to travel the world and see different things but still that wasn’t my breaking point that finally define me, and I guess I don’t really have an explanation either I just woke up in the middle of the night yearning for something more needing something more. So I went searching, out of my element and comfort zone I started to volunteer at soup kitchens and one of the family I was fortunate to meet was a mother with two kids over the course of a few weeks she told me stories, her story how she and her kids left in middle of the night to get away from abuses husband and father in the dead of winter. And honestly this might not make sense but I felt her pain truly felt her pain and I wanted to do more than just give her food and someone to talk to. A couple days later I invited her to the mall and she was surprise when I told her whatever her and her kids pick up I will pay for no questions asked the expression she gave me I could never put into words or how I felt, like my heart was going to burst out my chest because I have touch someone that needed to know that people still care, but I have come to a realization’s that human being have stop being the thing we once was, humans. My Grandmother always told me some people are born to be great and some people become great  and I know I was born to be more then great I’m destine to leave a mark that will last an eternity ( I AM HIGH I KNOW ) i am not the person I use to be some days I feel like an alien always looking for reasoning to people actions and out comes that effects everyone, also I see the world differently in all honestly I guess my eyes are wide open and I see the true nature of a beast.