Another Side of the Foreign Worker

     Hiring foreign workers is a common practice in the United States. A portion of these foreign workers are from Canada. Sean is a friend of mine who is a foreign worker from Canada that I interviewed to find out more about the immigration process. Sean has his Engineering Bachelors Degree from a University in Canada. He was contacted initially by an engineering firm in Arizona to come and work under an H-1B visa. An H-1B visa is a three year visa that can be renewed for an additional three years. This visa is issued for the designated highly skilled areas of scientist, engineer and computer programmer. A bachelor degree or higher is required for employment. This visa allows the educated foreign worker to obtain employment in the U.S from an employer who has certification from the Labor Condition Application. Each year there is a capped amount of visas that can be obtained by U.S. employers. For the year 2011 it is 65,000. As of October 22, 2010, 44,300 petitions have been filed for H-1B visas. Sean is on his second renewal, which will be his last. He has been trying to get his green card, proof of being a Lawful Permanent Resident, which will then lead to citizenship in the United States. He came to the United States to work and live. When he compared Canada to the United States, economically he is better off living and working here. His salary would be lower in Canada for the same type of job, he would be responsible for 50% tax on his wages, and as high as 14% tax on everyday purchases. For Sean, he considers Arizona his home now, but he anxiously awaits the permanence of citizenship. In the meantime, he continues to work and go through the process of getting his green card with the assistance of his employer and lawyers. It is a tedious and time consuming process. If Sean is unable to stay, he will need to sell his house and return to Canada with his Canadian wife and United States native-born daughter, because in two years his H-1B visa will have expired. More than likely his employer will again seek out the highly skilled foreign worker to fill his position through the H-1B visa program.

     A study was conducted by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) centering around 76 technology companies in the S&P 500, citing companies like Google, Intel, Lockheed & Martin that hire foreign workers. Smaller companies were also included in the study. This is a program that stimulates the American economy by: [1] Bringing foreign talent to the U.S. so we can remain competitive with other countries. [2] It increases employment for Americans, “The data show that for every H-1B position requested, U.S. technology companies increase their employment by 5 workers” (H-1B Visas and Job Creation, 2) Whereas it is a slightly higher increase for smaller companies. [3] It keeps the companies in the U.S. from going abroad. [4] H-1B Visa holders are not cheap labor, they are paid comparable to or slightly more than their US counterparts. The visa holders are actually a cost for the company in legal and government fees. [5] For each hired H-1b visa holder, the employer must pay $1500 into a scholarship and training fund that benefits future American college students, elementary level math and science programs, and Department of Labor training programs for U.S. workers.

     There is a trickle down effect when companies are more successful in the United States. As the companies make more money, they pay more taxes, which benefits our communities. Companies who are successful financially also tend to contribute more to charities. This type of program is economically positive for the U.S. and foreign workforce. Foreign workers like Sean are important to America’s economy and technological future.

Works Cited

"H-1B Visas and Job Creation." National Foundation for American Policy. Mar. 2008. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. <http://www.nfap.com/>.

"The U.S. Economy Still Needs Highly Skilled Foreign Workers." Immigration Policy Center. 13 Feb. 2009. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. <http://www.immigrationpolicy.org/just-facts/us-economy-still-needs-highly-skilled-foreign-workers>.

"USCIS - H-1B Specialty Occupations and Fashion Models." USCIS Home Page. 7 Oct. 2010. Web. 29 Oct. 2010. <http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=73566811264a3210VgnVCM100000b92ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=73566811264a3210VgnVCM100000b92ca60aRCRD>.

P. 418 #1

Materialism, as defined by Twitchell in Two Cheers for Capitalism, is “getting and spending” and he equates it to freedom, happiness, and meaning in our lives (389). America is the pied piper of consumerism and other countries scurry to catch up. In varying degrees, it is the ‘lifestyle’ we choose to participate in, regardless of social class. Even the poor aspire to a lifestyle of consuming; “what the poor are after is what we all want: association, affiliation, inclusion, magical purpose” (393). Materialism fulfills these roles for us because of the meaning we attach to the spending and getting.

Ultimately, the path America has taken and the choices that have been made and instituted have resulted in the lifestyles we possess. The Industrial Revolution and Capitalism paved the way. We no longer toil at home making our own bread and butter, we know go out and get it by having careers so we can bring home the bacon and buy what we need and want. And with these purchases we carve out our niche: the homes, the cars, the gadgets, the clothes- the things that define our lifestyle and place in our community.

I agree with Twitchell that there is a sense of ‘inclusion’ because of the neighborhood I live in and the things I consume. Our children feel this too. It was not long ago that my own grandparents who lived through the Great Depression; a time of barely spending for needs, little alone wants; had a goal in mind. That goal was to raise children who had it better than they did.

One piece may be missing from Twitchell’s writing, and that is the education and the hard work needed to “get and spend.” This lack of motivation is a definite negative to materialism. The precursor is missing when raising our own children now in the age of materialism. Possibly this is where the debt comes in : “easy credit = overbuying =disappointment= increased anxiety” (392).

Materialism will perpetuate itself. It is a “happiness” that makes the world go ‘round. I contend there are varying degrees of materialism. Not everyone desires to “keep up with the Joneses” (394). But we do desire to have a better lifestyle and be happy, which materialism can afford us in a Starbucks Latte or Mercedes Benz. Until a devastating event takes place and disrupts your ‘lifestyle’, you may never know the motivation behind materialism or the true value of the one priceless commodity : your life. In the meantime, be happy and decide if getting and spending runs your life.

Week 10 Blog Review

Hilary Cummings- I am looking forward to reading more of your work!

Women in Music 10/21

You made a good argument with supporting opinions and quotes. I agree that different genres of music positively regard women-like Bruno Mars. Your argument could have been even stronger if you found a dance hall or hip hop song that did the same as Bruno. In paragraph one, sentence three, they should the. Otherwise your structure and grammar was well written.

The Joys of a Consumer 10/18

This piece is so enjoyable to read! I love the use of your pictures. Your article is easy to relate to as a consumer. I am thinking of everyday products that I have mishaps with as I am reading your story. You really brought me into your writing and captures my attention. Great job!

Grammatically: ‘he spent the rest of the night’. You don’t need a comma after thanks in the last sentence, it creates a different type of emphasis then I think you were going toward.

Katie Kosturik-I look forward to being in peer group with you!

What Happens In Vegas... 10/19

Great introductory paragraph and setting the stage for your article. You may have been able to break paragraph 2 into two paragraphs- one about the first room and another about the 2^nd room and all that was wrong with it. Although your conclusion was short, it was to the point and did its job summing up your experience.

Grammatically: in paragraph one, I was more than ecstatic when the five of us had arrived at our hotel and excited to start my vacation. You stated you were ecstatic, so excited is redundant…possibly reword : I was ecstatic to start my vacation when the five of us had arrived at our hotel. Or you could make it into 2 sentences to clear it up.

Sidenote: Once I stayed at a resort in Hawaii---off the beat and path---also thinking I would save money (not!) and our room was full (dozens) of huge Daddy Long Leg Spiders! We got our room changed, it was a lot smaller, but no spiders! I feel your pain.

10/21 no post to review

Dear Peer Group: I will be posting late due to some unforeseen circumstances. I apologize but will post feedback for you as soon as is possible. Do not feel obligated to review my "tuesday" post as it will not meet the deadline. Thank you in advance. Amity Connolly

Sing it

p386 “Directed Freewrite” 

   Music and its lyrics are storytelling for the times. They chronicle society and what is happening politically, religiously, and culturally. All genres of music have morphed with the times. Specifically, Jamaican Dancehall music and Hip-Hop are rooted in cultures from other countries and have morphed into what they are today in the United States. These types of music and lyrics are more sexually explicit and contain gender stereotyping themes that portray the culture and the times.

   George Lipsitz’s article World Cities and World Beat: Low-Wage labor and Transnational Culture, discusses the gender and stereotyping or misogyny in these genres of music in relation to the specific culture and their experiences with the global economy (379). The male artists sing about their real life situations in the hip hop and dancehall lyrics. Andrew Ross, Carolyn Cooper and Luois Chude-Sokei all share the same view that “citing the overt and uninhibited demands for sexual pleasure by women in dancehall music as a positive alternative to gangsta rap’s demonization of women as “ball breakers” and “gold diggers” (379).

   Yes, I think that women are exploited and stereotyped in all genres of music. Some genres to different degrees. In the 21^st century there are many female counterparts in the music industry that do the same thing towards men. What would artists write about in their songs if not a love or sex interest? We live in a capitalist society and corporate America is looking to make the big bucks. It is plain and simple: sex sells. What would we sing in the car if it weren’t for the top 5 Billboard Radio Songs? Bruno Mars Just The Way You Are, Usher feat. Pitbull DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love, Katy Perry Teenage Dream, Taio Cruz Dynamite, and Fareast Movement feat. Cataracs, Dev G6. All of these share a theme of sex and love.

Top Ten Radio Songs: Billboard Chart. Billboard. New York. Web. 21 Oct. 2010.

The Tragic Events of Recall

pp363 Directed Freewrite

     It was the summer of 2007. The news came on CNN…Jane recalled it all started with the Thomas the Train Tank engines. The toys made in China had excessive levels of lead in the signature blue paint used. But that’s okay, she thought to herself. Her precious is a girl, no Thomas the trains in this house. Whew!

     Then other recalls of toys, also made in China, slowly trickled in each day on her newsfeed: the Easy Bake Oven severed fingers, the Mag Stix Magnetic Building Sets choked kids, and then it hit home- Elmo. The red furry friend was now a foe. How many times had her precious put that in her mouth? Made in China. Lead based paint. And the lists went on from Fisher Price and Matel.

     This is when the floor slowly slipped out from under Jane. Jane realized that she had to protect her precious. And to Jane this meant vacating the playroom of all toys; plastic and otherwise made in the United States. This left a bare playroom as you may well think. But she had the ability to repopulate it with all American made toys, specifically wood. Wood kitchen and wood food from Melissa and Doug replaced the otherwise plastic kind. Puzzles were good and made of wood.

     It did not stop there. Again Jane was slowly becoming obsessed with anything made of plastic or made in China and its’ need to be eradicated. All kitchen utensils and dishes were gone and replaced with appropriate made in the USA items. The house was repainted with “green” paint. The perfectly good carpeting was hauled away and replaced with “green” wood flooring. Even the PVC plumbing throughout the house was replaced with copper piping where it could be. Anything to protect her precious. But she did not have the heart to tear out the newly laid synthetic grass or the Little Tikes Playland of fun in the backyard. It stands alone in the backyard, a sort of icon to the Recall Summer of 2007.

Week 8 Blog Reviews

Mary Bak

10/5 Love?? P. 310 #1

Hello Mary. I am wondering if you had a problem while uploading your blog. Week 8: Beetles pg. 310 #1 is misplaced after the first paragraph. The first 3 paragraphs flow nicely into each other, setting up your discussion about how viewing love and relation ships from a science view point affects our beliefs about “the dance”. After you got to infatuation I am wanting to read more and supportive information is missing. The question on page 310 was not fully addressed and your conclusion is omitted.

10/7 no blog post.

Mary-I hope all is well. I hope to read more from you soon.

Jessica Chee

10/7 Homosexual Nature Page 339 Critical Reading #1

Hi Jessica: Critical Reading was not a choice, although you answered the question well for Critical Reading. The syllabus states: Blog post: Choose one of the following prompts to answer thoroughly -(Beedles) p339 “Class Discussion” #1, p340 “Directed Freewrite”, or p341 #3. 

You picked out some good examples for describing the animal behaviors that were most shocking to Kluger, and his surprised tone. There is a typo in the 2^nd quote, 2^nd paragraph “years of even life” “of” should be “or”.

10/5 Love: A Science? p. 310 #1

Jessica, you really write well. Just a few housekeeping tips. In the first sentence, the verb have  is missing. People have always been intrigued, desired, or possessed by love throughout time. Paragraph 2 has a great transition sentence from chemical to biological love.  Paragraph 3, another great transition sentence referring back to chemical and biological love. It also flows nicely into divorce from the marriage topic in paragraph 2. In the 6^th sentence of paragraph 3, delete it after because. In your conclusion, it may be stronger if you used love consistently as I think you are linking love and divorce and marriage. We marry because we fall in love, the love dwindles, so the natural progression is divorce if we are basing it on the chemical and biological reasons in the articles. Substitute out the word “need” for “love”: However, looking at the reason why Americans marry, it makes sense that as we change, we may no longer need that person. You could also consider using the timeframe it takes for “love” to become neutral that was in Fishers article on pg 305, 36.

'Pandora's Box'

p340 “Directed Freewrite”

     Sexual orientation defines humans in our society. Homosexuality is sexual attraction or behavior with the same gender. The debate goes on about nature vs nurture trying to explain the reasons why a human has a certain sexual orientation. Do we choose same gender relationships because of our environment or is it a natural process that we are born with? Jeffrey Kluger’s article The Gay Side of Nature supports the notion that homosexuality in humans may not be “a uniquely human phenomenon” but is a natural occurrence.

     Scientists use animal observation and compare these observations to humans. Animal behaviors have an explanation for human monogamy, courting, mate choice, parenting, socialization, and now same-gender sexual orientation. We are accepting of the afore-mentioned behaviors, so why not include sexual orientation? There are “scientists who find it simplistic to equate any animal behavior with human behavior” (Kluger 338).

     Author Bruce Bagemihl opened ‘Pandora’s Box’ when he wrote and published Biologocial Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity in 1999. Bagemihl let out of the box all the documented animal homosexual observations that he could find in journal writings and interviews. Previously, these findings seemed to always find their way out of the original observers publishing’s.

     Since nature is evolving, it is not far off to contend that homosexuality is a viable natural orientation. Of the 2000 species that have been observable in regards to sexual orientation, 450 of these have documented same gender sexual activity. The examples include the bonobos, giraffes, dolphins, elephants, rodents, and macaques. There are also examples of these same-gender animals establishing long term bonds: 6 years for the Humboldt penguins, 15 years for male greylag geese, female bears choosing to raise their young together. The bear example is a strong supporter for same gender couples who can still have children through alternate means and raise their children in a family unit.

     On the other hand, homosexuality can be argued as an unnatural orientation. For one, it does not propagate the species. It should also be noted that there are 1 million species on earth. The 450 species observed are a minuscule number to establish a pattern of same-gender sexual activity when compared to the 998,000 species that did not have their sexual orientation observed. Since animals share similar characteristics : how were the observers always able to tell if it was same gender activity if they look the same. Other items that can refute homosexuality as a natural orientation include the actual behaviors. The same gender sexual activity observations were misconstrued as animal kingdom communication. In the animal kingdom, “sex serves many nonsexual purposes, including establishing alliances and appeasing enemies” (Kluger 339).

     Homosexuality and heterosexuality have the same goals in the human and animal kingdoms, we all desire a mate for sexual pleasure and reproduction. A dual definition for natural orientation should include homosexuality and heterosexuality. We may not understand in the human kingdom everything that goes on in the animal kingdom, but it has been established that we do have similar ways.

Love: It’s Only a Matter of Time

p310 #1

     The science of love and relationships is well documented and supported. Chemistry and biology can explain the mystery of our attractions, how we court one another and ultimately how we fall in love. The cycle of finding a mate culturally leads us to a pair-bonding which we express in the institution of marriage. The goal is to pass on our genes by closing the circle of love with new life: our children.  We are equipped with the scientific information that explains away those feelings of love at first sight, and the “circle of love” is actually a timeline with an expiration date. What effect could this have on our beliefs and behavior?

     The courtship. We will know how to select the best mate possible using the steps outlined in Fisher’s article entitled After All, Maybe It’s…Biology. The men can ‘chest thrust’, preen themselves and strut around, while the ladies avert their gaze (Fisher 300). We can stay in tune with our olfactory senses and follow our ‘love maps’ by picking out the most financially endowed male and the most fertile female so we can keep up with the evolutionary psychology goal of having children that can be supported. But keep track of the time because the infatuation will fade. Passion has an expiration date, T minus three years, and that is the maximum afforded until neutrality kicks in (Fisher 305).

     The institution of marriage is here to stay, even with a known expiration date. Some brides will still pine away for the wedding dress and cake topper. Divorce will still exist. The biological realizations may tweak the institution just a little. Maybe the marriage vows will be altered slightly. Instead of ‘til death do us part’, the new vows can realistically read ‘til divorce do us part’. Unless of course there are multiple dependent children because “it appears that the more children a couple bear, the less likely they are to divorce” (Fisher 308).

     There can be a happily ever after if we create an acceptance to what science has to offer our future loves and relationships. The physical connection between the emotional centers of the brain and heart can only take us so far. It can be an acceptance of the short cycle that love takes and then move on, or it can be an acceptance of the short cycle that love takes and decide to stay. It is up to the individual and their mate. 

Week 7 Blog Review

Mary Bak

Directed Free Write pg 246

Wow Mary, great job in the length of your post! You were able to discuss thoroughly how your communication with your brother reflected the views of the author. Housekeeping : A comma is not needed before the parenthesis or between….communication,” (Beetles, 242). If you are citing the author, Tannen, I would use Tannen instead of Beedles. Missing a word in the 4^th paragraph: It drove me crazy my brother was not looking directly at me. It drove me crazy when my brother…

Week 7 : 9/30

No post to review. Hope all is well Mary.

Jessica Chee

28 September 2010-Page 246: Directed Freewrite

Very nice Jessica. You have a very clear and descriptive first three paragraphs explaining your conversation that took place. Great examples of the male listening role as described by Tannen: the lack of eye contact and listener noises. Yet a successful communication. I only noticed the indent for the 1^st paragraph is just not as pronounced as the rest (could be the blog site). I did not find any grammatical errors.

30 September 2010- Page 292 #2

I really enjoy reading your writing. Paragraph 1: You have chosen a very specific thesis. Upon looking into this fundamental institution and patterns over time, heterosexual, monogamous marriage should be preserved if we want more, overall functional families, specifically that relating to the well-being of children. This sentence may be written a little clearer. The overall idea of your thesis is good : preserving the heterosexual, monogamous marriage for the benefit of the family unit and the children. Possibly adding “what” pattern over time- marriage as an institution :’its patterns over time,…’ Also, instead of more functional families, possibly stronger functional families that raise children. Paragraph 2: A comma after be. To make this paragraph more descriptive, include a definition of evolutionary psychology for your audience. You may consider combining paragraph 3 and 4 because they both are supporting a heterosexual monogamous marriage for the children’s well being, which supports your thesis. Lastly, Paragraph 3 & 5 : I would avoid using the same quote twice “the most precious evolutionary resource: love” (289).