Find an article on a current event and give me Marx's point of view on it.
- 1 paragraph summary of article.
- 1 paragraph using Marx's ideas to explore key points raised in the article.
- include the title, author, and web address of the article.
- to be completed in the comments section of this posting.
"Baltimore officials: No immediate decision in Gray case" Author: Not givenhttp://www.wbaltv.com/news/baltimore-officials-no-immediate-decision-in-gray-case/32659380
ReplyDeleteThere have been two quiet nights in Baltimore and with hopes of the riots being over they begin to look into what really happened to Freddie Gray. The police office will give all of their information and evidence over to the state authority by Friday. People do not understand that there will be no verdict given on Friday. They will be looking to how Gray died.
Marx would not agree with the unfair treatment of Freddie Gray and others who have been abused by police. But he would agree with the officers getting a fair trial like everyone else. Marx would agree and disagree with many things that are going on in Baltimore.
The article I read was an article dealing with the 50th anniversary of the assassination on Makcolm X. The article speculates on how Malcolm X would feel about modern issues. It reiterated the fighting spirit of the civil rights leader and helped modernize his works.
ReplyDeleteWhen looking at the life of Malcolm X one has to wonder what Karl Marx would think. Marx believed in fighting for the proletariat. In his own way, so did Malcolm X. Malcolm X fought for civil rights for the African American community during an era where they had few. A staple of Marx's philosophy was equality, the same goal Malcom strived for. Karl Marx would appreciate and praise the lengths Malcolm X went to to gain more rights for the proletariat. While many would criticize them both for being a little to extreme, both had very genuine emotions towards there cause.
Text to Text | ‘What Would Malcolm X Think?’ and ‘After the Bombing’
By MICHAEL GONCHAR FEBRUARY 25, 2015 2:30 PM February 25, 2015 2:30 pm
"One Company’s New Minimum Wage: $70,000 a Year" By PATRICIA COHEN APRIL 13, 2015 http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/14/business/owner-of-gravity-payments-a-credit-card-processor-is-setting-a-new-minimum-wage-70000-a-year.html?_r=0
ReplyDeleteMr. Dan Price, founder of Gravity Payments, has made a business decision that will cut his pay drastically. Mr. Price will reshape the wages of his company and make the minimum wage $70k as well as cut his own salary from 1 million to $70k. Marx would appreciate that the bourgeoisie in this situation, Mr. Price, would be willing to help out the proletarians of the company. This choice would make Marx happy because it restructures the social classes of the company and makes everyone equal as they all get substantially paid. There is not an insane influx in pay as the ladder goes up which is perfect for making the employees more equal.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/elections/2016/2015/04/30/bernie-sanders-campaign-announcement/26628537/
ReplyDeleteSanders says his campaign will focus on struggling middle class
A democrat by the name of Bernie Sanders is running for election. In the article Bernie states he will not have his election campaign sponsored by any billion dollar
company. Instead he will use his own money plus any money people are willing to donate to him. In addition he stated he won't be trying to ruin the image or carecter of any opponent as he wishes only to aid in what's important and not add drama to the mix. "If you raise the issues of all the hearts and minds of the American people, if you try and put together a movement that says "We have got to stand together as a people and say this capital our country belongs to all of us not the billionaire class." that's like raising an issue that's winning an election."
This here would be the best example of Marxism starting to make a play in life. Here there is a man who is viewed and also might be part of the bourgeois but is challenging the status of power in classes. He wishes to see how much influence the middle to lower classes are when it comes to a pyramid social structure like America.
This article is talking about the misfortunes that Latinos are experiencing. Not only are these misfortunes are being seen in the South majorly but they are starting to be more familiar nationwide. Latinos are being victims of abuse mainly because of poverty. And worse comes to worse they are borne into these misfortunes and are discriminated of them.
ReplyDeleteMarx I feel would disagree with the whole acts of discriminating the Latinos because of poverty. That this creation of a class due to their misfortunes is not by any means permissible. He would be infuriated if he heard of the mistreatment they go through on a day to day basis.
"Poor Latinos are victims of abuse nationwide" CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/04/22/latino.abuse/
Caste is not Past
ReplyDeleteBy Lavanya Sankaran
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/16/opinion/sunday/caste-is-not-past.html?_r=0
Modern day India class system is experiencing a giant change. No longer are the classes separated by money or education but rather marriage and politics. The reason for this is the availability of education for all classes not just those who are of higher stater. This leads to a change of the classes which those who are in high classes do not desire to happen. Therefore, the new way of separating the classes deals with social influence and marriage. The marrying someone from a lower class is frowned upon by the upper class because it raises people to a more political powers. "So that is the fascinating conundrum of Indian society: on one hand, caste is losing its virility as India opens up opportunities and mind-sets, while on the other, the forces of democratic politics ensure that it will thrive and never be forgotten as a crucial social index." (New York Times)
The caste system in India would cause Marx to go on a political campaign and most likely get him kicked out of India. While the fact the castes are no longer based off of education and money, could have pleased Marx. The fact still remains that the caste system is still in full swing, which in Marx eyes is evil. Marx would campaign for equality and the sharing for all. The Caste system promotes the wealth of an individual simply because he or she were born into a family. Adding to the democratic system which supports those who have great wealth. Marx would desire India to change beyond the point using the dialectical process, thesis, antithesis, combined to become a better, to a point the people are in control.
http://money.cnn.com/2013/11/12/news/economy/china-economy-markets/index.html
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Mark Thompson
China plans to have a bigger role in their economy while their market grows. This would allow for more job opportunities in their system. Their market will play a "decisive role" in the growth of their economy and their resources. Despite the fact that their economy is growing slowly at the time, China is planning on a boost in their market soon.
Marx's opinion on this topic would be that with the upcoming growth in their market, China needs to allow all jobs to be offered to everyone. He would say that the news jobs should be given put equally. The impact of the 10 million jobs that will be offered each year on the market will help it to continue to grow because the more jobs for everyone, the more opportunities for making money to be given out equally to the community.
"Freddie Gray death ruled homicide; officers charged"
ReplyDeleteBy Michael Pearson, Ben Brumfield and Eliott C. McLaughlin, CNN
This article basically highlights the breaking news of the charging of six officers involved with the Freddie Gray case. The writer goes on to report how the officers inhumanely threw Mr. Gray into the police van and because of such, Mr. Gray was injured greatly and he passed to due to injury. The Baltimore City State Attorney Marilyn Mosby stressed how these officers are culpable for their actions and will be tried as such. This finding and charging of the officers has relieved citizens everywhere over the city of Baltimore.
Marx's opinion on the matter can be seen through his view of the social classes. Marx would most definitely see Mr. Gray and others that were abused by the police as the proletariat class and the cops as the bourgeoisie. Marx would say how the cops most definitely need to be tried in order to keep social balance and make sure that everyone is equal and accounted for. However, Marx would also call for the police officers to be equally tried and treated as well.
"Feds Seize $62,000 From Innocent Organic Farmer Because The Bank Teller Gave Him Bad Advice"
ReplyDeleteBy: Daniel Jennings
In this article, a farmer from Southern Maryland was just a regular farmer, trying to sell his crop to a local farmers market. The farmer and his wife made around $62,000 from the market, and decided to put the money in the bank. They kept some of the money for on hand, to use around the farm but decided to deposit the rest in a bank account. The farmers wife had been told by the teller to deposit it in sums less than $10,000 at a time because it would save her and the bank from doing a bunch of paperwork. She listened to the the advice, and did so. Later finding out that the federal government had seized the money, considering the deposits to be "structured" in order to avoid paperwork for some reasons.
Marx would think that this is wrong because the farmer and his wife had been working hard for their money. He probably would think that the government has no right to do so, especially because of a technicality. This separation between workers, and the government is kinda like the social classes, because they worked hard, and the higher ups receive money they did not work for.
url: http://www.offthegridnews.com/current-events/feds-seize-62000-from-innocent-organic-farmer-because-the-bank-teller-gave-him-bad-advice/
President Barack Obama, making his eighth appearance Monday on the "Late Show," said that rebuilding trust with police has to be a central effort in avoiding the kind of racial tensions and rioting that took place last week in Baltimore. Through Marx he would be upset, because the President would rather speak through a shows perspective,but not go to the source of where it is taking place. To speak to the people as an inspiration
ReplyDeletehttp://business.time.com/2013/03/25/marxs-revenge-how-class-struggle-is-shaping-the-world/
ReplyDeleteMarx’s Revenge: How Class Struggle Is Shaping the World
Michael Schuman
This article talks about the impact Marx left on topics like capitalism and the economy in general. Then proceeds to talk about the tensions between classes. It states that the Marxist country has turned their backs on marx's. Also talks about the different classes in China and how different they are.
I feel at first Marx would be happy with how the government played out but then when they changed he wouldn't be pleased. He would also disapprove with all the tension in all the classes of people. He probably wouldn't like the all the change going on as well.
Title:Georgia mom has misbehaving 10-year-old 'arrested'
ReplyDeleteAuthor: Ben Hooper
Link: http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2015/05/01/Georgia-mom-has-misbehaving-10-year-old-arrested/9041430500189/?spt=sec&or=on
This article talks about a mom from Georgia that has her 10 year old son 'arrested'
In this article, it talks about how the child was misbehaving in class. The mom did not like this and set up and mock arrest. The child got scared and she recorded it. The child has learned his lesson she said.
Marx would see this article and probably think about his communist manifesto. He would think of this because there is a clear class separation between the cops that arrested the boy and the cops themselves. Marx knows how there are different classes and if he were to see this articles, he would probably question the ideas of some of the people in today's world.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-freddie-gray-statements-20150505-story.html#page=1
ReplyDeleteThis article is stating how within the death of Freddie Gray, one of the police officers is asking for the knife that he was carrying to be examined in the context of the law. The switchblade Gray was carrying did not violate maryland law, but did violate city code. With Freddie Gray having many drug deals known and running from police without them saying a word with a knife does bring forth suspicion. Even though this is the case, during the moment, police did not know about the switchblade and cannot be their reason for arresting Gray.
Marx would not agree with how the police treated Gray for no reason at all. Although they may have had suspicion about Gray due to his pursuit for no reason, Marx would see what the officers did as wrong. With the riots and the race issue in question, Marx would say that everyone should be treated and seen as an equal. Marx would probably be concerned as to why Gray fled in the first place for no reason, but this will never be known.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/baltimore-city/bs-md-ci-freddie-gray-statements-20150505-story.html#page=1
ReplyDeleteThis article is stating how within the death of Freddie Gray, one of the police officers is asking for the knife that he was carrying to be examined in the context of the law. The switchblade Gray was carrying did not violate maryland law, but did violate city code. With Freddie Gray having many drug deals known and running from police without them saying a word with a knife does bring forth suspicion. Even though this is the case, during the moment, police did not know about the switchblade and cannot be their reason for arresting Gray.
Marx would not agree with how the police treated Gray for no reason at all. Although they may have had suspicion about Gray due to his pursuit for no reason, Marx would see what the officers did as wrong. With the riots and the race issue in question, Marx would say that everyone should be treated and seen as an equal. Marx would probably be concerned as to why Gray fled in the first place for no reason, but this will never be known.
http://www.msn.com/en-us/money/inside-the-ticker/5-ways-mcdonalds-will-change-soon/ar-BBjaZKo#page=5
ReplyDeleteThis article is about the new changes McDonald's will undergo to improve the quality of the franchise. The CEO admits recent performance in the McDonald franchise has been low/poor. In order to change that they are willing to sell healthier items, sampling the drive through menu, and taking part in customer engagement. These changes will be made to eventually maximize profits. Workers will still be paid 7.25 which is below the living wage.
These things would disgust Marx because he would dislike big corporations such as McDonald's. The McDonald's franchise creates a war between the social classes which is one of his major points. The Upper class benefits from the disadvantages of the lower class. The lower class ( the workers) receives low income wages, while the upper class reaps the rewards. Marx believed that there would be a pivotal point that would pit the lower class against the upper class. In todays society this happened repeatedly with strikes to earn the correct compensation for their work.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/06/opinions/robbins-patriots-deflate/ind
ReplyDeleteBefore winning the Superbowl, Tom Brady and the New England Patriots were accused of deflating the balls during games. Coach Bill Belichek and quarterback Tom Brady heavily denied the allegations. The patriots went on to win the Superbowl, but they were sil under investigation .After extensive investigation, the NFL received text message that appeared as incriminating evidence from the cell phone of Tom Brady. After the Indianapolis Colts playoff game, Brady's phone activity with Jastremski picks up after the allegations of deflated balls. For three mornings in a row, the star quarterback was on the phone with an equipment assistant for over 55 minutes before Jastremski turned his phone over for the investigation.
Marx would believe that the patriots should be punished by being stripped of there title. He would dislike the fact that the integrity of the game would be compromised.At the same time, Marx would think that the proper punishment would be a decease in pay. This can be attributed to the fact that Marx didn't believe in big wealthy corporations, so the highest paid athletes should distribute some of the money to the rest of the players.
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-ed-freddie-gray-mosby-20150505-story.html Police charges in Freddie Gray case are incompetent at best by Page Croyder
ReplyDeleteSome of the officers arrested for the Freddie Gray case were charged unreasonably and did not deserve what they did. Not everyone was directly involved or involved at all in the death of Freddie Gray, but if they were present they can be considered liable. Due to the protesters, the police and courts had to take action fast. Their judgments and final verdicts on the officers was sloppy.
Marx would have to disagree with the sequence of events that happened in Baltimore with Freddie Gray. He was against the whole concepts of gathering evidence and coming to conclusions based off of people's bias perspectives, he would rather have the materialistic evidence given to him if there will be any consequences. The police officers were not all correctly approached in their punishment because not everyone played the same role. He would want the politics to desire the same end universally which is very hard to have.
This article is about how a study shows that Americans are becoming less and less Christian and turning more to secularism. Christianity is by far the most dominant religion in the United States but we see now that the numbers are dropping. The percent of Christians in the United States has dropped from 78% to 71% from 2007-2014. Meanwhile, the number of atheists during this time has risen from 16% to 23%.
ReplyDeleteKarl Marx was an atheist and it shows in the philosophical work. Marx says that religion is not necessary for life. Marx believed that putting an end to the structure of classes would also put an end to religion. To Marx, the abolition of religion would make people much happier.
The article I read was about a terrorist attack the took place in France. Seventeen people were killed by two masked gunmen who stormed into an office in Paris on January 7. A band of brothers would quickly take more hostages 30 miles from here and shortly be killed by French police, freeing the hostage.
ReplyDeleteMarx would have disagreed with the unnecessary attacks because he believed in proving a point rather than just posing as a threat. This was a ridiculous attempt and very unnecessary and uncalled for which Marx would have seen as pointless and silly.