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2099235 Responseshttp://www.racerelationsproject.org/2010/04/whyd-you-eat-the-second-piece/Why%27d+you+eat+the+second+piece%3F2010-04-09+01%3A49%3A11Sam+Richards to Why’d you eat the second piece?
Eating the second piece is about appreciation and waste. Those are oxymorons in a sense, but let me explain: I am sure there are some of you who have grown up with the phrase "Think about poor starving in [insert destitute county's name here]!" getting thrown around at the dinner table when food was discovered still on your plate. And like me, you probably begrudgingly ate the unsavory scraps so you could overcome the guilt of wasting what would have been appreciated in the hands of another. It's a nice gesture, but what would have been a more economically, socially, and heathfully sound thing to do back then was to ask my parents to cook fewer foods… or become a big fan of leftovers. That's just like people who felt discouraged to eat the second piece in the face of such misfortune. It helps take away some of that guilt, but there's better things those people could do with their newfound knowledge.____So how would I feel sitting next to a person whose "flesh" I held in my hand? I'm really not sure what I would be thinking in the moment, but one thing is for sure. There is no way I would be able to just toss it away.
I thought that the video showed in class about cocoa bean slaves was very powerful. It made everyone realize just how much cruelty is put into making chocolate. I can tell that it really hit people because once the video was stopped, the room was extremely quite. You could have heard even the slightest peep out of anyone, but you didn’t because everyone was so appalled at what they just saw.
It’s terrible how slavery is used to make these cocoa beans. I think that most people felt that way. I believe that the part of the video that affected people the most is when the boy said “people who are eating chocolate are eating my flesh”. It’s a horrific thing to picture. After the video, I looked around the room and not many people were eating their second piece of chocolate. How could anyone after seeing such a powerful video? Then Sam said it doesn’t make sense to not eat it unless you are vowing to never eat one again if it is made by slavery. I admit that I was not going to eat that second piece, but I knew that I would be eating them again within a few weeks. After that comment I chose to eat my second piece and I noticed many other people did as well. It’s hard to commit to never eating something that is involved in some type of slavery.
It’s not like it’s written on the package “this product has been made with the help of slavery”. Wouldn’t that be nice? To find that stuff out, you need to do a lot of research. I think that what most people think is that they don’t have time to do that. We all have tons of things going on throughout the day; it’s hard to find time to research something like that. I support abolishing slavery all over the world but at this point in my life I feel like I don’t have the time to commit to taking an active role with it.
Getting rid of slavery like this across the world is going to take hundreds and hundreds of years. At this point in time I don’t think that we have the commitment by Americans or by the governments of other countries to completely eliminate it. However every person that is willing to help out is a small part of a large positive influence on the world. Right now in the United States, I think we still need to focus on educating people on how much slavery really is going into the products that we use today. If only more people could see how that boy talked about how we were eating his own flesh, I think a lot more people would become active in the fight to eliminate slavery. I think that the government needs to start enacting laws, or providing a logo to put on clothing and food that guarantees the product was not made by slaves. This would make it much easier for people to help support the fight against slavery. If people won’t come to you, go to them.
Personally, I never really thought about it before, but then chocolate is only one the of the many items that we as consumers purchase without ever wondering how or who made these products that we mindlessly purchase everyday. Responding to the question posed by the girl in this video, I feel that the answer is far from simple. I believe the great majority of us would have eaten the second piece or even a third or fourth piece of chocolate if we were not informed that chocolate is a product of slave labor. The fact is that all of us have enjoyed the fruits of another’s labor. I do not really understand how you could blame people in the class for eating the second piece of chocolate after watching the videos when Sam perfectly described why it would be ridiculous to not eat the second piece. There is no question that I do feel a certain way for the slaves, but like Sam said in class, if we reject that piece of chocolate, then we should do so only if we reject all things made by slaves. It an impossible endeavor because we have incorporated slave made goods into our everyday life. I did not eat it at first, I thought yes of course I will not eat any chocolate but stuff made by the fair trade companies, because I did feel some sort of way about the slavery. Most of the problems we have talked about have been around since the beginning of time, and will never change as long as we are here. Slavery is one of those problems, no matter what we do there will always be some sort of slavery. Sam is showing us these videos to see the world in a different light and realize there is more going on in the world than what is on the front page of the Collegian. No one is going to stop eating chocolate for their whole life. Thursday’s lecture on slavery, in my opinion, was easily the most profound lecture that Sam has done all semester. Sam was able to present the current worldwide situation in a way that was very knowledgeable and realistic. It’s obvious that this issue hits Sam the most. It’ s obvious from the list of items that Sam put up that none of us will be able to completely get away from using products produced by slave labor, the list was simply too large and broad to think that we can. However by eliciting people to simply feel something after learning about the situation hopefully we can make small changes in some things we buy or more importantly have us feel a need to learn more about the situation as a whole.
i ate the second piece like most people did because if you didnt then your a hypocrite. as sam said unless you plan on to never eat slave choclate again then thats fine, but if you are then at lest eat it. and yes it didn't taste good going down, but at least i wasnt like you, who is now a hypocrite and probably forgot about this the next day and ate a big Hershey bar. it is obviously wrong and i will try to eat slave free choclate if i get the chance, but theres not much i can do for them. for those of you who didnt eat it, i would feel weird inside to not eat it because unless you plan on giving up choclate, you had the choice not to be a hypocrite, and yet you still were.
I consider myself to be a “chocoholic”. I can never turn down chocolate. Therefore, in class, as soon as I ate the first piece of chocolate, I could barely wait to eat the second piece. During the video, I was shocked at what is going on in other parts of the world. It made me very upset that to this day, there are still human beings that have to endure slavery. The way those people are tricked into thinking that they are going to be working a paid job, and then receive no money devastates me. The way they are treated is inhumane—no one should have to live life like that.
After watching the video, I personally did not feel guilty—I was not responsible. I have nothing to do with what is going on in that part of the world. If it was up to me, and I had the power, money and resources, I would end the slavery in a heartbeat.
As much as I love chocolate, I could not eat the second piece RIGHT after seeing the video! The images and information from the video were all so fresh in my mind. Nonetheless, I knew I was not going to give up chocolate. Why? I know that by giving up the kind of chocolate I love—Hersheys, Nestles, etc., would not make a difference in the world. Companies in the United States have already purchased the chocolate made. I knew that after some time passed, I would be able to eat the second piece.
The experience I had in class reminds me of another similar experience that I recently had the other day. As I was walking to the library, I could not help but see those unavoidable, huge signs that showed how animals are treated in order to be made into food for humans. It was very hard to see those disturbing images of animals being beaten, branded, skinned, and killed. I happen to have just purchased a turkey sub at McClanahan’s on my way to the library. I was planning on eating it while studying. I love meat; however, I could not bring myself to eating it after JUST seeing those images. At that moment I even thought about becoming a vegetarian. Then I realized that yes, of course I feel bad for the animals. Nonetheless, giving up meat is not going to prevent the abuse from happening. The meat is going to be sold and bought regardless. I also realized that it would definitely take me some time before I can enjoy meat again—just like how I knew in class that it would take me some time before I can enjoy chocolate again.
Although, I have continued to eat chocolate, the video certainly made an impact on me. It made me see the reality of what goes on in other parts of the world. It made me truly appreciate my life and made me feel very fortunate. I pray that one day the slavery will end.
To be completely honest I had no problem eating the second piece of chocolate. It does not bother me one bit where it came from, who made it, what is in it, all I know is that it tastes good and I am going to have no problem eating that piece of chocolate. I am suppose to feel bad because of some video that was shown in class about chocolate and not eat it? To be honest, I really did not feel too bad. Sure it sucks to be those kids but I am sorry it just did not bother me.
I am really sick of Sam trying to show us videos and trying to change our minds about so many things. Do not get me wrong I think Sam is a great guy and he has really opened up my eyes to a lot of things but my mind or opinion on things is never going to change. I am not going to stop eating chocolate just because I saw some kids in another country being held as slaves and were forced to make it. To be honest if these slave owners had not brought these kids in they probably would be dead. But they should treat them better because they are making them a profit. They should stop beating them and just let them do their work. Also, I hate when people were saying that they could not stomach the fact that this is happening or that they can not bring themselves to eat the second piece. Next week I guarantee those people were eating chocolate. That really upsets me when people act differently in class and then completely change outside of it. Do not put on a show, if you really do not want to eat chocolate because of what Sam has said or because of one video then that is a little weird to me.
When she talks about if I would be able to eat it if that person was every sitting right next to me I would say yes I would have no problem doing it. First of all the person who made it would never ever be sitting next to me and second of all why shouldn’t I eat it? Because he or she was forced to make it? If I were that kid I would want someone to eat it. He or she is going through all that work to make it then we should eat it. Sure slavery is a bad thing but it is not something that is going to bother me on a daily basis especially when it is happening in another country. It is not going to change my mind on things. Sam and people who believe this is bad, that is your opinion but I have to say my mind will not change.
How could lie to yourself and not eat the second piece. If you didn’t eat the second piece were you telling yourself that you would never eat chocolate again? And if so what is the actual probability that you will honestly never eat anything that has chocolate in it. Or in an hour or week will you have forgotten about the lecture and eat it. As for the question how was I able to stomach the second piece of chocolate, it was pretty easy if you thought about it and actually thought about the fact that I would be lying to myself if I decided to never eat anything with the possibility of having slave harvested coco in it. I do not really enjoy chocolate but every once in a while I do enjoy some. If you claim that you are never going to eat the chocolate again are you going to get rid of all your cloths that could have been made with slavery or any electronics? Would you give up your cell phone, Give up coffee? How about sugar or charcoal? There is a good possibility that all of these have some form of slavery in the production. I don’t know if it was right or wrong to eat the second piece. I just know that I would think of myself as a hypocrite to not eat the second piece that day and then eat chocolate cake next week. Why lie to yourself and everyone else and not eat the second piece. What is the difference between me (the person that ate the second piece)and someone that didn’t eat the second piece of chocolate but has a glass of chocolate milk tomorrow? The answer is not much only that I didn’t lie to myself and claim that I was never going to eat chocolate again. I know that I am not getting rid all of anything I own that could possibly have some connection to slavery so I think it would be a little strange to pick and choose when I am going to feel bad for the slaves and when I just want some chocolate so I will temporarily forget about the people that made that chocolate bar possible and what they went through to make that happen. I do not want make light of what anyone went through to make it possible. I really don’t have anything else to say about this subject but I need to get to four hundred and fifty words and I really ran out of things to say. I need about twenty five more words and have don’t have much of an idea on how to fill up this last couple of words.
Ok lets play a game. Were going to play in the neighborhood park. Yea you know which one, the one with the that new slide on the right side of the park. I was thinking we could play kings of the parks and we know that there can be only one king at a time and the other gets to be the great and super cool servant. Hey but before we go lets race to see who gets to be king of the park! Ready…Go! Wow you are fast but I think that you should let me be king this time because you are really fast and obviously the next time you will beat me and get to be king. Don't worry you will have a blast I promise to be the best king ever! You being played by this the innocent notion and optimistic light of a really good opportunity in store for you, you accept. The next time you go you get to be king and have a good time. Both decided to be fair and for the next few times each had his turn as king, and they played happily ever after.
Ha…unfortuneatley the truth of the matter is the moment you took him up on what could have been yours to begin with you loose everything. Because of something that drives us in human nature we were not meant to live in a matter of real coexistance but what we can live with is the idea that one of us has to be the better one and the other the weak. Maybe its just in our instinct to live. Or maybe it comes to play with the person we talk to and feed and clothe and trust: our ego. The real scenerio ends up like this. For the sake that this is has to reach a point about the topic that is being presented and thus must be accompanied by a response from me I will explain exactly what happens to you while at the same time making a comparason with to a point that I want to reach accross. There floats this idea of selfrightousness that we think we must experience at times but in the end turn back to what we do best: conform.
Note the everything in brackets [ ] is the direct comparison that I'm making.
What happens is the following. This other kid [me] has a plan. By this plan I have this. I want to be king. Its in my ego [money] and thus in my blood to rule [greed]. What do I do to feed that hunger that drives me? I invite my friends [thats right everyone of us sitting in Soc 119 and the whole world for that matter], poeple that you do not know, and in my scheme set the same deal that allowed my first turn in power. I allow them to win one way or the other. Either they beat you or I pour sweet innocent music into your ears and make you eat up the same soup [promises of a better future for you] that I feed you last time: you let them be king because "…they won't be here often you know you get to be king all the other times, let them be king just this once, please." My pattern of enslaving you little by little emerges. And one by one I let my friends Pretty soon all my friends [us the people who eat the choclate] get the same sweet talk about me [the oppressor] not being able to be king [enslaver] and eating it up let me build my empire [the market for chocolate]. I some how need you to let me keep doing this so I make it such a fun time [some promises that come true but not all] that you and everyone wants to come, and I ensure that my friends [us] come…always. Pretty soon you start to feel this respect [fear] towards me because you have no other friends and you realize that its best that I rule, because at least you get to have a good time [comformity to an unpercieved idea: slavery]. You will respect me so that pretty soon I have you doing things for us without it making it seem like you really are my slave. I convince you to sometimes bring those awesome brownies that you make[beginning of slavery] and me and my friends get to reap the benefits of your labor. My friends [us] get to enjoy brownies [chocolate] and pretty soon I realize that I can use these brownies to get my friends to possibly do things [money] for me to get brownies all the time. I have you making them and tell you [false promises] that when they bring stuff to trade or things [money] to do for us but the way I distribute these things don't come straight to you [slavery] Don't worry everything we get is for our benefit but because I am king I get to decide how things work. You [my slaves] understand right? As for my friends [us] you guys like this chocolate [brownies] and feel bad about it but at the same time if everyone is taking another bite and of chocolate and there is nothing I can really do then another one that you take won't hurt , right? Or does it?
This is when we conform and must realize that we can't be hipocritical because we know that deep down inside we are going to want to keep eating this cocolate. Unfortuneatley this is how its happening now in our time.
The video that we watched in class was really moving. The power behind the words “When they eat chocolate, they are eating my flesh,” was unfathomable. But where do you draw the line between trying to make a difference and living the life that you were blessed with having? Let me explain…
After watching the movie, obviously anyone with a heart would feel guilty about eating the second piece of chocolate. But who’s to say that the people who ate the second piece of chocolate are bad people? We were all blessed with being born into a life that has minimal struggles compared to many places in the world. But are we supposed to feel guilty? I personally felt sick to my stomach after watching the movie because never in my life will I experience hardship even remotely close to what the enslaved boys went through. The worst part is that their lives were essentially ruined for a long time so that we could indulge in our guilty pleasure of chocolate. It honestly makes me never want to eat anything that is not free trade again. And I mean that.
After learning about modern slavery, I feel so helpless. I wish that there was something I could do to rescue these people, but realistically I know that is not possible. What is even more frustrating is that the public awareness that modern slavery exists is very low, as far as I’ve found from the people in my life. People who eat non-free trade products probably have no idea what they are essentially supporting when they buy the products. If there were some way of getting awareness out there I think that it would really help to cut down on the slavery that exists today.
I think that people are wrong when they say that people should be ashamed of themselves for eating the second piece of chocolate. It seems really messed up that they would eat it, but it’s also messed up for people to feel like they should feel guilty for the life they have been given. If everyone felt guilty then the world would be a very sad place. It’s a matter of not being ignorant to what is going on around us that will really foster a change in the future. By knowing what is going on in the world today, people can change their personal actions to benefit others. I am sure that many of us wish that we could go help these boys that are having their lives ruined. But if we realize that every little bit helps then I think that we can cut down slavery little by little. Someday I hope slavery is truly abolished.
Why did i eat the second piece? I ate the second piece because i am not going to lie to myself and act like the son of god trying to save every one, i knew damn well that no matter what I would eat chocolate again so i am not one to lie to my self and try to act better then i am. Why did you not eat yet the second piece? I would be willing to bet that you have eaten chocolate since then you just like to think of your self as high and mighty, well you not. Like sam has said before that cell phone you use every day, is made my slave labor i am sure your not going to throw your cell phone away and never get a new one but you would love to bitch about it i am sure. Further more since you did not eat that piece of chocolate what did you do with it? so it is some bodies flesh so you essentially let some body die in vain. i know for damn sure if i died over a pice of chocolate i would want some body to at least enjoy the chocolate. you know what this is a perfect example of why women should stay in the kitchen. you like to think that you are better then everybody, how is the weather up there on your perch of greatness? if you feel so strongly about this issue you why do you not go and actually do some thing about it? i obviously in no way shape or form support slavery of any kind but i think it is extremely ignorant to act like your better then every one else just for not eating a piece of candy. why do you not say the same about you cell phone. or the shoes you are wearing or even your shirt. slave labor has a huge hand in a ton of industries so why do you not deal with all of those issues as well. its because people, american people, white american people especially love to act like they care and are doing something to help but in reality they do not and their not but i guess it makes them feel good if every one could just be honest with them selves, cause the majority of us are not going to do any thing about it, and just admit that we are not going to do anything about it the world would be a much much better place but what the hell do i know i just like to hear my self talk, but the one thing that i am one hundred percent certain of is that i am going to do so you know what i dont care
Eating the second piece is about appreciation and waste. Those are oxymorons in a sense, but let me explain: I am sure there are some of you who have grown up with the phrase "Think about poor starving in [insert destitute county's name here]!" getting thrown around at the dinner table when food was discovered still on your plate. And like me, you probably begrudgingly ate the unsavory scraps so you could overcome the guilt of wasting what would have been appreciated in the hands of another. It's a nice gesture, but what would have been a more economically, socially, and heathfully sound thing to do back then was to ask my parents to cook fewer foods… or become a big fan of leftovers. That's just like people who felt discouraged to eat the second piece in the face of such misfortune. It helps take away some of that guilt, but there's better things those people could do with their newfound knowledge.____So how would I feel sitting next to a person whose "flesh" I held in my hand? I'm really not sure what I would be thinking in the moment, but one thing is for sure. There is no way I would be able to just toss it away.
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I thought that the video showed in class about cocoa bean slaves was very powerful. It made everyone realize just how much cruelty is put into making chocolate. I can tell that it really hit people because once the video was stopped, the room was extremely quite. You could have heard even the slightest peep out of anyone, but you didn’t because everyone was so appalled at what they just saw.
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It’s terrible how slavery is used to make these cocoa beans. I think that most people felt that way. I believe that the part of the video that affected people the most is when the boy said “people who are eating chocolate are eating my flesh”. It’s a horrific thing to picture. After the video, I looked around the room and not many people were eating their second piece of chocolate. How could anyone after seeing such a powerful video? Then Sam said it doesn’t make sense to not eat it unless you are vowing to never eat one again if it is made by slavery. I admit that I was not going to eat that second piece, but I knew that I would be eating them again within a few weeks. After that comment I chose to eat my second piece and I noticed many other people did as well. It’s hard to commit to never eating something that is involved in some type of slavery.
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It’s not like it’s written on the package “this product has been made with the help of slavery”. Wouldn’t that be nice? To find that stuff out, you need to do a lot of research. I think that what most people think is that they don’t have time to do that. We all have tons of things going on throughout the day; it’s hard to find time to research something like that. I support abolishing slavery all over the world but at this point in my life I feel like I don’t have the time to commit to taking an active role with it.
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Getting rid of slavery like this across the world is going to take hundreds and hundreds of years. At this point in time I don’t think that we have the commitment by Americans or by the governments of other countries to completely eliminate it. However every person that is willing to help out is a small part of a large positive influence on the world. Right now in the United States, I think we still need to focus on educating people on how much slavery really is going into the products that we use today. If only more people could see how that boy talked about how we were eating his own flesh, I think a lot more people would become active in the fight to eliminate slavery. I think that the government needs to start enacting laws, or providing a logo to put on clothing and food that guarantees the product was not made by slaves. This would make it much easier for people to help support the fight against slavery. If people won’t come to you, go to them.
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Personally, I never really thought about it before, but then chocolate is only one the of the many items that we as consumers purchase without ever wondering how or who made these products that we mindlessly purchase everyday. Responding to the question posed by the girl in this video, I feel that the answer is far from simple. I believe the great majority of us would have eaten the second piece or even a third or fourth piece of chocolate if we were not informed that chocolate is a product of slave labor. The fact is that all of us have enjoyed the fruits of another’s labor. I do not really understand how you could blame people in the class for eating the second piece of chocolate after watching the videos when Sam perfectly described why it would be ridiculous to not eat the second piece. There is no question that I do feel a certain way for the slaves, but like Sam said in class, if we reject that piece of chocolate, then we should do so only if we reject all things made by slaves. It an impossible endeavor because we have incorporated slave made goods into our everyday life. I did not eat it at first, I thought yes of course I will not eat any chocolate but stuff made by the fair trade companies, because I did feel some sort of way about the slavery. Most of the problems we have talked about have been around since the beginning of time, and will never change as long as we are here. Slavery is one of those problems, no matter what we do there will always be some sort of slavery. Sam is showing us these videos to see the world in a different light and realize there is more going on in the world than what is on the front page of the Collegian. No one is going to stop eating chocolate for their whole life. Thursday’s lecture on slavery, in my opinion, was easily the most profound lecture that Sam has done all semester. Sam was able to present the current worldwide situation in a way that was very knowledgeable and realistic. It’s obvious that this issue hits Sam the most. It’ s obvious from the list of items that Sam put up that none of us will be able to completely get away from using products produced by slave labor, the list was simply too large and broad to think that we can. However by eliciting people to simply feel something after learning about the situation hopefully we can make small changes in some things we buy or more importantly have us feel a need to learn more about the situation as a whole.
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i ate the second piece like most people did because if you didnt then your a hypocrite. as sam said unless you plan on to never eat slave choclate again then thats fine, but if you are then at lest eat it. and yes it didn't taste good going down, but at least i wasnt like you, who is now a hypocrite and probably forgot about this the next day and ate a big Hershey bar. it is obviously wrong and i will try to eat slave free choclate if i get the chance, but theres not much i can do for them. for those of you who didnt eat it, i would feel weird inside to not eat it because unless you plan on giving up choclate, you had the choice not to be a hypocrite, and yet you still were.
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I consider myself to be a “chocoholic”. I can never turn down chocolate. Therefore, in class, as soon as I ate the first piece of chocolate, I could barely wait to eat the second piece. During the video, I was shocked at what is going on in other parts of the world. It made me very upset that to this day, there are still human beings that have to endure slavery. The way those people are tricked into thinking that they are going to be working a paid job, and then receive no money devastates me. The way they are treated is inhumane—no one should have to live life like that.
After watching the video, I personally did not feel guilty—I was not responsible. I have nothing to do with what is going on in that part of the world. If it was up to me, and I had the power, money and resources, I would end the slavery in a heartbeat.
As much as I love chocolate, I could not eat the second piece RIGHT after seeing the video! The images and information from the video were all so fresh in my mind. Nonetheless, I knew I was not going to give up chocolate. Why? I know that by giving up the kind of chocolate I love—Hersheys, Nestles, etc., would not make a difference in the world. Companies in the United States have already purchased the chocolate made. I knew that after some time passed, I would be able to eat the second piece.
The experience I had in class reminds me of another similar experience that I recently had the other day. As I was walking to the library, I could not help but see those unavoidable, huge signs that showed how animals are treated in order to be made into food for humans. It was very hard to see those disturbing images of animals being beaten, branded, skinned, and killed. I happen to have just purchased a turkey sub at McClanahan’s on my way to the library. I was planning on eating it while studying. I love meat; however, I could not bring myself to eating it after JUST seeing those images. At that moment I even thought about becoming a vegetarian. Then I realized that yes, of course I feel bad for the animals. Nonetheless, giving up meat is not going to prevent the abuse from happening. The meat is going to be sold and bought regardless. I also realized that it would definitely take me some time before I can enjoy meat again—just like how I knew in class that it would take me some time before I can enjoy chocolate again.
Although, I have continued to eat chocolate, the video certainly made an impact on me. It made me see the reality of what goes on in other parts of the world. It made me truly appreciate my life and made me feel very fortunate. I pray that one day the slavery will end.
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To be completely honest I had no problem eating the second piece of chocolate. It does not bother me one bit where it came from, who made it, what is in it, all I know is that it tastes good and I am going to have no problem eating that piece of chocolate. I am suppose to feel bad because of some video that was shown in class about chocolate and not eat it? To be honest, I really did not feel too bad. Sure it sucks to be those kids but I am sorry it just did not bother me.
I am really sick of Sam trying to show us videos and trying to change our minds about so many things. Do not get me wrong I think Sam is a great guy and he has really opened up my eyes to a lot of things but my mind or opinion on things is never going to change. I am not going to stop eating chocolate just because I saw some kids in another country being held as slaves and were forced to make it. To be honest if these slave owners had not brought these kids in they probably would be dead. But they should treat them better because they are making them a profit. They should stop beating them and just let them do their work. Also, I hate when people were saying that they could not stomach the fact that this is happening or that they can not bring themselves to eat the second piece. Next week I guarantee those people were eating chocolate. That really upsets me when people act differently in class and then completely change outside of it. Do not put on a show, if you really do not want to eat chocolate because of what Sam has said or because of one video then that is a little weird to me.
When she talks about if I would be able to eat it if that person was every sitting right next to me I would say yes I would have no problem doing it. First of all the person who made it would never ever be sitting next to me and second of all why shouldn’t I eat it? Because he or she was forced to make it? If I were that kid I would want someone to eat it. He or she is going through all that work to make it then we should eat it. Sure slavery is a bad thing but it is not something that is going to bother me on a daily basis especially when it is happening in another country. It is not going to change my mind on things. Sam and people who believe this is bad, that is your opinion but I have to say my mind will not change.
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How could lie to yourself and not eat the second piece. If you didn’t eat the second piece were you telling yourself that you would never eat chocolate again? And if so what is the actual probability that you will honestly never eat anything that has chocolate in it. Or in an hour or week will you have forgotten about the lecture and eat it. As for the question how was I able to stomach the second piece of chocolate, it was pretty easy if you thought about it and actually thought about the fact that I would be lying to myself if I decided to never eat anything with the possibility of having slave harvested coco in it. I do not really enjoy chocolate but every once in a while I do enjoy some. If you claim that you are never going to eat the chocolate again are you going to get rid of all your cloths that could have been made with slavery or any electronics? Would you give up your cell phone, Give up coffee? How about sugar or charcoal? There is a good possibility that all of these have some form of slavery in the production. I don’t know if it was right or wrong to eat the second piece. I just know that I would think of myself as a hypocrite to not eat the second piece that day and then eat chocolate cake next week. Why lie to yourself and everyone else and not eat the second piece. What is the difference between me (the person that ate the second piece)and someone that didn’t eat the second piece of chocolate but has a glass of chocolate milk tomorrow? The answer is not much only that I didn’t lie to myself and claim that I was never going to eat chocolate again. I know that I am not getting rid all of anything I own that could possibly have some connection to slavery so I think it would be a little strange to pick and choose when I am going to feel bad for the slaves and when I just want some chocolate so I will temporarily forget about the people that made that chocolate bar possible and what they went through to make that happen. I do not want make light of what anyone went through to make it possible. I really don’t have anything else to say about this subject but I need to get to four hundred and fifty words and I really ran out of things to say. I need about twenty five more words and have don’t have much of an idea on how to fill up this last couple of words.
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Ok lets play a game. Were going to play in the neighborhood park. Yea you know which one, the one with the that new slide on the right side of the park. I was thinking we could play kings of the parks and we know that there can be only one king at a time and the other gets to be the great and super cool servant. Hey but before we go lets race to see who gets to be king of the park! Ready…Go! Wow you are fast but I think that you should let me be king this time because you are really fast and obviously the next time you will beat me and get to be king. Don't worry you will have a blast I promise to be the best king ever! You being played by this the innocent notion and optimistic light of a really good opportunity in store for you, you accept. The next time you go you get to be king and have a good time. Both decided to be fair and for the next few times each had his turn as king, and they played happily ever after.
Ha…unfortuneatley the truth of the matter is the moment you took him up on what could have been yours to begin with you loose everything. Because of something that drives us in human nature we were not meant to live in a matter of real coexistance but what we can live with is the idea that one of us has to be the better one and the other the weak. Maybe its just in our instinct to live. Or maybe it comes to play with the person we talk to and feed and clothe and trust: our ego. The real scenerio ends up like this. For the sake that this is has to reach a point about the topic that is being presented and thus must be accompanied by a response from me I will explain exactly what happens to you while at the same time making a comparason with to a point that I want to reach accross. There floats this idea of selfrightousness that we think we must experience at times but in the end turn back to what we do best: conform.
Note the everything in brackets [ ] is the direct comparison that I'm making.
What happens is the following. This other kid [me] has a plan. By this plan I have this. I want to be king. Its in my ego [money] and thus in my blood to rule [greed]. What do I do to feed that hunger that drives me? I invite my friends [thats right everyone of us sitting in Soc 119 and the whole world for that matter], poeple that you do not know, and in my scheme set the same deal that allowed my first turn in power. I allow them to win one way or the other. Either they beat you or I pour sweet innocent music into your ears and make you eat up the same soup [promises of a better future for you] that I feed you last time: you let them be king because "…they won't be here often you know you get to be king all the other times, let them be king just this once, please." My pattern of enslaving you little by little emerges. And one by one I let my friends Pretty soon all my friends [us the people who eat the choclate] get the same sweet talk about me [the oppressor] not being able to be king [enslaver] and eating it up let me build my empire [the market for chocolate]. I some how need you to let me keep doing this so I make it such a fun time [some promises that come true but not all] that you and everyone wants to come, and I ensure that my friends [us] come…always. Pretty soon you start to feel this respect [fear] towards me because you have no other friends and you realize that its best that I rule, because at least you get to have a good time [comformity to an unpercieved idea: slavery]. You will respect me so that pretty soon I have you doing things for us without it making it seem like you really are my slave. I convince you to sometimes bring those awesome brownies that you make[beginning of slavery] and me and my friends get to reap the benefits of your labor. My friends [us] get to enjoy brownies [chocolate] and pretty soon I realize that I can use these brownies to get my friends to possibly do things [money] for me to get brownies all the time. I have you making them and tell you [false promises] that when they bring stuff to trade or things [money] to do for us but the way I distribute these things don't come straight to you [slavery] Don't worry everything we get is for our benefit but because I am king I get to decide how things work. You [my slaves] understand right? As for my friends [us] you guys like this chocolate [brownies] and feel bad about it but at the same time if everyone is taking another bite and of chocolate and there is nothing I can really do then another one that you take won't hurt , right? Or does it?
This is when we conform and must realize that we can't be hipocritical because we know that deep down inside we are going to want to keep eating this cocolate. Unfortuneatley this is how its happening now in our time.
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The video that we watched in class was really moving. The power behind the words “When they eat chocolate, they are eating my flesh,” was unfathomable. But where do you draw the line between trying to make a difference and living the life that you were blessed with having? Let me explain…
After watching the movie, obviously anyone with a heart would feel guilty about eating the second piece of chocolate. But who’s to say that the people who ate the second piece of chocolate are bad people? We were all blessed with being born into a life that has minimal struggles compared to many places in the world. But are we supposed to feel guilty? I personally felt sick to my stomach after watching the movie because never in my life will I experience hardship even remotely close to what the enslaved boys went through. The worst part is that their lives were essentially ruined for a long time so that we could indulge in our guilty pleasure of chocolate. It honestly makes me never want to eat anything that is not free trade again. And I mean that.
After learning about modern slavery, I feel so helpless. I wish that there was something I could do to rescue these people, but realistically I know that is not possible. What is even more frustrating is that the public awareness that modern slavery exists is very low, as far as I’ve found from the people in my life. People who eat non-free trade products probably have no idea what they are essentially supporting when they buy the products. If there were some way of getting awareness out there I think that it would really help to cut down on the slavery that exists today.
I think that people are wrong when they say that people should be ashamed of themselves for eating the second piece of chocolate. It seems really messed up that they would eat it, but it’s also messed up for people to feel like they should feel guilty for the life they have been given. If everyone felt guilty then the world would be a very sad place. It’s a matter of not being ignorant to what is going on around us that will really foster a change in the future. By knowing what is going on in the world today, people can change their personal actions to benefit others. I am sure that many of us wish that we could go help these boys that are having their lives ruined. But if we realize that every little bit helps then I think that we can cut down slavery little by little. Someday I hope slavery is truly abolished.
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Why did i eat the second piece? I ate the second piece because i am not going to lie to myself and act like the son of god trying to save every one, i knew damn well that no matter what I would eat chocolate again so i am not one to lie to my self and try to act better then i am. Why did you not eat yet the second piece? I would be willing to bet that you have eaten chocolate since then you just like to think of your self as high and mighty, well you not. Like sam has said before that cell phone you use every day, is made my slave labor i am sure your not going to throw your cell phone away and never get a new one but you would love to bitch about it i am sure. Further more since you did not eat that piece of chocolate what did you do with it? so it is some bodies flesh so you essentially let some body die in vain. i know for damn sure if i died over a pice of chocolate i would want some body to at least enjoy the chocolate. you know what this is a perfect example of why women should stay in the kitchen. you like to think that you are better then everybody, how is the weather up there on your perch of greatness? if you feel so strongly about this issue you why do you not go and actually do some thing about it? i obviously in no way shape or form support slavery of any kind but i think it is extremely ignorant to act like your better then every one else just for not eating a piece of candy. why do you not say the same about you cell phone. or the shoes you are wearing or even your shirt. slave labor has a huge hand in a ton of industries so why do you not deal with all of those issues as well. its because people, american people, white american people especially love to act like they care and are doing something to help but in reality they do not and their not but i guess it makes them feel good if every one could just be honest with them selves, cause the majority of us are not going to do any thing about it, and just admit that we are not going to do anything about it the world would be a much much better place but what the hell do i know i just like to hear my self talk, but the one thing that i am one hundred percent certain of is that i am going to do so you know what i dont care
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