Most recent public comments by Madison Ruddy https://nowcomment.com/users/18807 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505832 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505832 This would be interesting. You would also have to look at the criminal justice system and specific markets in a different country. For instance, is there as strong a need for drugs in a third world country? You might think it would be even easier for drug trafficking in a third world country with unstable institutions. We also could view a city like Amsterdam. This would be an intriguing study. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 05:47:20 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505830 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505830 Alexander draws parallels between mass incarceration today and past systems of racialized social control like Jim Crow. Both systems legally discriminated against citizens and were formed by the racist views of those in power. How do we cure the "colorblindness" that Alexander addresses? In my opinion, talking about race (the way in which we do in this class) must become honest and transparent. Ending mass incarceration will require a grassroots movement of people, white and black, criminal and non-criminal, demanding peace and prosperity for all. Clearly, this isn't something that happens magically over night. How do you think the media (namely, news media and its disproportionate reporting of black criminals) can work on finding a cure for this "colorblindness" ? Tue, 05 Apr 2016 05:26:52 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505787 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505787 For one, great great song... a couple lyrics later, the Avett Brothers sing, "Decide what to be, and go be it." Sounds so simple and inspirational-- the ideological "American Dream." For several us, we believe that this is possible-- that our lives won't change from the man that's elected, that we can be whatever we want to be with hard work and perseverance. But individuals shown in The Wire and this reading (such as Cotton) can't exactly decide what to be and "go be it." Their lives are restrained by a number of institutions, and, their lives may very well be affected by the man that's elected (on terms of welfare and the economy). How would an individual such as Cotton interpret this song? What's to be said about the types of music (and incorporated ideologies) that different racial/social classes might listen to? We see rap as a rejection of institutions (the criminal justice system, politics, etc.) on occasions. This would be an interesting study. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 04:12:43 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505773 https://nowcomment.com/documents/52798?scroll_to=505773 Beginning with slavery and continuing with Jim Crow segregation, mass incarceration places entire groups of people into discriminatory positions in society, permanently. For a paper for another MDST class, I am writing about racial bias in the media (which we have additionally discussed in The Wire). Something that I found applicable is how the media continues to perpetuate racism. A scholarly study found that 1)Blacks (and Latinos) are more likely than whites to appear as lawbreakers in news—particularly when the news is focusing on violent crime 2) Blacks (and Latinos) are more likely to appear as perpetrators than victims and 3) Blacks are overrepresented as perpetrators of violent crime when news coverage is compared with arrest rates. An additional study found that long-term exposure to local television news, wherein African-Americans are depicted frequently and stereotypically as criminals, predicted increased negative implicit attitudes toward African-Americans—“Viewers who watched more local television news demonstrated more unconscious negative attitudes toward African-Americans.” Racism is not dead, and the media plays a large role in it. Tue, 05 Apr 2016 07:16:07 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=481136 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=481136 I like your last statement. Definitely true about Namond and Randy. The Wire illustrates that institutional forces do limit individual's means of upward mobility and general "success." "Positive thinking" and one's definition of "success" are based upon the individual. Therefore, it is hard to say that "positive thinking is recommended" because as we see throughout The Wire, it is not a solution. Mon, 29 Feb 2016 04:49:26 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=481135 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=481135 I agree. We can relate this back to when Professor Williams paused the episode at a scene in Nikki's neighborhood--an almost panoramic shot of the vicinity with beat down industrial buildings in the background. It is clear that Simon wants us to see the level of poverty the individuals in The Wire are in. The imagery in the intro to The Wire gives us a run down of the town as well--drugs, violence, crime, and poverty. Mon, 29 Feb 2016 04:32:50 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479435 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479435 Death does appear to be part of this culture. Mainly, it is part of the "game." In total, at least 87 characters in The Wire die. A common theme in The Wire is that there are (somehow) always replacements because death is a commonality. Fri, 26 Feb 2016 03:55:53 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479434 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479434 The discussion of "old heads" to help encourage and socialize and act as a leader, and, in times, "surrogate father" to a child seems to be what Anderson might describe as a good father. Your connection is solid, in that D'Angelo does act as a part-time father--providing for his children, but not acting as a fatherly figure and good influence for his son. Fri, 26 Feb 2016 03:49:57 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479430 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479430 Reading this, I wonder how much Leap's personal experience actually compares to that of the "gangs" we discuss in this course. Yes, race and class are distinguishable feature of a "gang", but I find her Greek comparison a far cry from black urban, violent gangs. Wed, 02 Mar 2016 02:36:42 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479428 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479428 I commented on this statement as well. As we discussed in class, media coverage tends to make much more a deal of of white, middle/upper-class issues (especially dealing with death and shootings) versus similar incidents with poorer black individuals. A question that I have always had concerning this idea is because shootings are much more prevalent (as we see with statistics from class) in poor urban communities, does the media avoid frequently covering them because they are commonalities? Do they not want to cast a poor shadow on these less privileged communities? Or is it that mainstream media coverage is top-down from a majority of elitist white perspectives, who may not even know the incidents happening in theses areas? Fri, 26 Feb 2016 03:27:30 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479415 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479415 The distinction between ‘decent’ and ‘street’ cultures shows in the way that the black cops interact with some of the people they bring in. When Carver is playing good cop with Bodie, he tries to relate to him, explaining that he knows about coming up hard as well. Yet, it doesn’t matter to him how Carver was raised, because as a police officer, Carver is “decent” now and Bodie would be violating the code of the street in talking to him. Tue, 01 Mar 2016 12:47:06 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479399 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49884?scroll_to=479399 In season 1, Wallace seems to be shaped by this idea of codes. Specifically when we get an inside look into his life with his family, we learn that he is an orphan who has taken on the role of primary caregiver for his many siblings because his parents are no longer around. Wallace balances the code of the family with the code of the streets. Both of these codes are established by generally accepted societal rules of the institutions that are most prominent in Wallace’s life. The punishment for breaking "the code" turns out to be worse than breaking a rule or law, in many cases. We see this phenomenon later on in the season with Wallace when he finally decides to detach himself from the code of the streets, which ultimately leads to his death. Mon, 29 Feb 2016 09:42:57 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479372 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479372 This ties in directly with our discussion of media coverage of whites versus blacks in shootings the first week of class. We discussed the Sandy Hook shooting, which received massive attention throughout the media. Yet, Sandy Hook was a school full of white children. Thousands of black students are killed every year in gun violence, but not addressed even close to as much as whites are. This statement presents the sad realities of media attention to class and race. What makes the story of the death of the cop more important than the shooting of a poor black mother? This conversation shows that there is no difference, but reveals the tragic realities of media coverage. Wed, 02 Mar 2016 02:47:58 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479366 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49881?scroll_to=479366 Law enforcement in The Wire appears to additionally have this view. Those that join the gang in Baltimore, specifically focusing on the "corner kids," are predictable. We are unsurprised when Dukie, who we see much potential in, ends up participating in drug deals. The odds are against him with his surroundings (family and peers). Yet, Leap argues that while the cyclical violence of gang life is a reality, redemption is not impossible. What are potential means of redemption in this case? Tue, 01 Mar 2016 01:52:22 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=479360 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=479360 This seems to depict the downward spiral that many of the characters that are high school drop-outs go through in The Wire. Eric only cared about his sports, and when he couldn't keep the grades to play sports, he had no care for school. He was unable to get a job and unable to join the military because of his grades, so where else would he turn? His teacher's tried to offer help, but ultimately it was his decision that school was not for him. Unfortunately, and predictably (with what we have learned in class), Eric is bound to end up going through the same cycle in adulthood and wind up completely homeless, or dead. Did Eric have the potential to stick through with school like his sister did? Was this really a case of doors closing all around him? Sun, 28 Feb 2016 06:01:22 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=479348 https://nowcomment.com/documents/49882?scroll_to=479348 This statement goes hand in hand with Dukie's character in Season 4 of The Wire. He is an intelligent student under Prez and promoted to the 9th grade (although he is not quite socially ready). Yet, with lack of support from a family and friends, he can't get himself to class and eventually drops out of school. His living conditions with drug addicts (and lack of running water) basically constitute him as homeless. A goal in The Wire is to show that kids in this predicament go in the direction they do not from personal choice, but from doors shutting all around them. With support from a real family, do you think Dukie would have still given into peer pressure and quit school? Wed, 02 Mar 2016 08:40:15 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451873 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451873 Who is "we" in your comment "as we begin to favor entertainment..."? Our generation? The median age for cable news viewers (CNN, Fox, MSNBC) is between 59 and 68 (as cited from my News Media class), so it may not be a warranted claim to make, unless you are specifically talking about our generation. However, I would agree that the new media environment has evolved, and those of our generation may tend to favor entertainment media over cable news. Tue, 02 Feb 2016 10:08:54 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451441 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451441 This is definitely something we all can relate to, as we were a part of it first hand. As I mentioned in my comment earlier, Simon takes on a unique approach, combining his journalistic experiences with entertainment TV. If "The Wire" were nonfiction, do you think Simon would run into several more issues? Tue, 02 Feb 2016 02:25:18 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451405 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451405 Bowden unmasks David Simon's bias and personal "prejudices" in "The Wire." In my opinion, with the "erosion of journalism" we have discussed in class and in readings, Simon takes on a unique approach in combining journalism with entertainment TV. This type of journalism causes reactions, and sometimes outrage. Because the production is fiction, however, do you feel Simon may be met with less criticism? Thu, 04 Feb 2016 01:08:15 +0800 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451390 https://nowcomment.com/documents/46407?scroll_to=451390 If I were to answer this myself, I would say that sometimes it is hard to plainly state one's own opinions and deep-rooted beliefs without being met with judgement and criticism. One doesn't have to be a politician, a judge, or a teacher to create change. Fiction television has the potential to act as a social platform for change without direct criticism. It can spread ideologies to promote awareness and address issues in social, political, and economic arenas. Thu, 04 Feb 2016 13:21:12 +0800