Changes in Society: Introduction

[John Simkin]

I thought it would be a good idea to create a section where people can discuss changes taking place in society. The idea is for people to identify these changes and to speculate on the possible consequences for society. It would be especially interesting to get comments from people from a wide variety of different countries. I believe this section could be very useful to students studying subjects such as social studies and sociology. On occasion it will also help students studying other subjects such as media studies, politics, psychology, etc.

[Vladimir Kalinin]

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I thought it would be a good idea to create a section where people can discuss changes taking place in society. The idea is for people to identify these changes and to speculate on the possible consequences for society. It would be especially interesting to get comments from people from a wide variety of different countries. I believe this section could be very useful to students studying subjects such as social studies and sociology. On occasion it will also help students studying other subjects such as media studies, politics, psychology, etc.

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Hi John,

You are right it is very interesting topic especially for us here in country in transition, I am from Belarus. We crushed socialism and are trying to build something ... nobody knows what-capitalism or again socialism or mixed society. Very sad that country is part of Europe but in full isolation at the moment and we continue to stay at iron curtain and view what are you doing in the west.

But it is nothing compare with terror attacks in Russia and former USSSR -Caucasus is the palce where terrorist have homeland and could prepare their horrible actions against peaceful people, children and women.

As you can see a lot of them from arab countries, just joined chechen gangs and have a lot of money to do their dirty business. I can't understand that a lot of them found residence in UK but their hands in a blood like Zakaev who is living in London and got status of refugee.So, now we are living in a society where we are not defended against terror and it could be happened in any country in the world if we all together will create a common policy and strategy how to fight terror.

[John Simkin]

Interesting comments Vladimir. I have started a new thread: “Changes in Society: Terrorism”.

http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=1577

I hope you will contribute to this debate.

[leslie simonfalvi]

Hello Everybody

I live and work in Hungary and we are experiencing more changes in all aspects of life than probably any other generation before us.

All these changes bring out from people around here both the best of us and the worst of us. There is a great danger that with all these quick changes we may jump over absolutely necessary developmental stages, both individually and as a society, and our children would suffer from the consequences.

We used to be fed up with the one-party 'system' and we have always wanted a choice in parties. Now the choices are there and we have to experience another big problem since we haven't learnt how to choose, and how to take the responsibility for our choice, and our fathers' generation have forgotten the same.

We used to be fed up with 'socialism' and we have always wanted the impossible, i. e. 'clean' capitalism, or 'humanistic' capitalism. Whatever we are having now is neither clean nor humanistic, and most people around here are both hurt and surprised because it comes with unemployment, and homelessness, and globalisation, and the rest.

We have always wanted to travel and now we can at last experience the great feeling that half our money is gone after buying the weekly pass at Heathrow. Earning money here and spending it over there means that your money doesn't go a long way, and it doesn't boost our self-esteem.

I myself experience it as a kind of culture-shock and it's a pity that the 'west' can see and will focus on our worst qualities, and totally ignore the rest, and we are learning the worst of their 'culture' and practices, and cannot reach the rest.