Who decides to take such graphic images with their cameras? It is seems criminal to sit and watch. I guess it could be considered better to take the photograph than to be in it. No one could prove you were there. You would be the only one with evidence that could incriminate you - the film.
Do we really believe we have changed that much? It is sad for me to admit it, but whatever has been a part of the human species from the beginning has not disappeared. Somehow, we choose every day to hurt those around us; some are people that we love, some are people we just happened to pass by, and others, who we scar for life, will never be seen by our naked eye. I wonder how easy it is to hurt others, how easy it is to go with the flow, how easy it is to hold your tongue rather than start a ruckus in the crowd? Why do we allow it, how can we stand for it?

Today people say horrible things about Hispanics immigrating to the United States of America. We talk about Arabs like they are all criminals. People do not accept those who do not belong to their social or economic class. Why? Is it the comfort level we feel? Do we live to exclude and build our own self-esteem while tearing down others? I do not understand why love and kindness are so easily excluded with the look in our eyes, the tone in our voice, the words that we use, our body language, and I could continue on and on.

Wow..Lianna, your words were very compelling in this posting, and brought up some interesting things in my mind. First of all, you make an interesting point about why the people who took those photos choose to do so. I ahve often wondered that myself. Why would you choose to be there to show violence and to show what's going on. I know documentation is important, but I feel that if I personally were there doing that job, I would not be able to bring myself to do that. On the other hand, I also thought about the possibility that maybe those people took those photos so their own personal name would be clear or that they would be able to prove they were not involved. However I think that if you stand by and watch these things go on an don't do anything to stop it, you are involved.

Another thing you brought up dealt with racism. Something interesting I learned in one of my other classes is that most of us, even those of us who profess not to be racist, are racist in some form. We say we aren't racist, yet when it comes to dating or picking a mate, we by default look at our own kind, which in and of itself is racist. That makes me question how many other unconscious decisions we make that are racist.

Lianna, I couldn't agree with you more when you raised the question in your post, Do you really believe we have changed that much? While watching the video I couldn't help but think in the back of my mind about the fact that my kids will probably be sitting in a classroom similar to ours watching the same type of videos. Ten years from now there will most likely be a film just like "Remembering Mai Lai" that focus on the hatred shown by Americans to the Arab or Hispanic population. I agree that everyday the human species chooses to hurt those around us, especially those who do not belong to our social or economic class. I do believe it is our nature as humans to automatically assume we are # 1, and all others who are not at our particular comfort level are lesser of the individual. Will this or can this ever be changed??

I definitely agree with what you're saying Lianna. I often wonder that myself, why we hurt those around us. It's a simple choice we can make. Yet, we often say and do hurtful things. What in us tells us to do these things? Why do we not put more thought into our actions? I guess it goes back to what Dr. Turner was saying, "It all involves us making choices, for good or for bad." That is what life mostly consists of, choices. We make choices everyday, and those choices lead to other choices. Therefore, I guess we could say choices are the most important factor to consider in everyday living. As human beings, we were given choices. I also want to attempt to answer questions A and B that Dr. Turner proposed in class. A. How do we decide what is the right thing to do? Well, I believe if being selfish is part of our innate human condition, then we will obviously choose what is easiest or is beneficial to ourselves. But, since life is all about choices, we can choose whether to be selfish or unselfish. However, if we have been taught (by those people who made the choice not to be selfish) that life is not all about ourselves, then we will find that making choices that benefit others can be most rewarding. B. How does one person decide to do what is right and another person decides to do what is wrong? There is no one reason as to why people do bad things, unless you want to get into religionwhich can explain a lot. This obviously all goes back to choices. I believe it can also be affected by our backgrounds and our experiences. For example, what choices we have seen others make, what choices adhere to our religious beliefs, and the list goes on. I just hope that we, as teachers, can make sound decisions in the classroom. By thinking critically, listening respectfully, and learning continuously, we can all make decisions that we believe will better benefit our students and their future.

From an art history perpective, many photographers after WWII and the depression were "straight" photographers. They took pictures that showed the things the way they were without manipulation in the dark room. Lots of these individuals were paid by the government. If you were in a depression and needed monry for food, you'd probably do the same thing. However, many individuals sought to capture the devastation and feelings associated with the events. They wanted to reveal the horrible things that were being done. It's their way of expressing and revealing what's going on and sharing it with other people. I don't think they were standing back and mocking the people or just taking snapshots and not getting involved. Their way of involvement was through sharing these terrifying pictures with the public. However the non-art people and standard public went wild with these images and used them for terrible purposes. I think some of the photographers who captured these events had good intentions. Of course, families or people who posed just to say "Hey, I was there and I watch that insert terrible word here die" did not have good intentions. The comments they wrote on the back of postcards is terrible. There's good and bad of both spectrums.