Nodes on the Stayt of Vurjinya

Many of the ideas that Thomas Jefferson pushed in the late 18th century as our fledgling country expanded tended to have a very "Do as I say, not as I do" approach. Jefferson, just like everyone else, was very human in that he knew what was best for both him and his country, but did not really want to change his actions in order to achieve these goals. Just like a vast amount of our nations' founding fathers, Jefferson at times showed a desire to end slavery, but he wanted this to take place well after he had died. Also, before declaring Jefferson a hypocrite bastard for what he wrote in the Declaration of Independence despite his slave ownership, one must remember that hindsight is 20/20 and that many things in today's society that are totally unacceptable were considered in Jefferson's time to just be "how life worked", such as challenging people to duels, wearing stupid powdered white wigs, and even owning slaves. I'm not trying to absolve Jefferson from his wrongdoings throughout his life. All I'm saying is that Jefferson was really no different as far as hypocrisy than the other prominent politicians of his era and should be looked upon as such.

Alger Cruise

In the story of Steven Cruz, we find a man who has risen through company ranking and has received high praise from his peers. However, Cruz is judged based on his accomplishments compared to other members of his race, who have been stereotyped to not be as successful or as hard working. This makes Cruz fairly unsatisfied with his situation, and even though he has achieved many things, he does not attribute them to his work, but rather to his race.
This is quite a contrast to the ideas presented in "Ragged Dick"by Horatio Alger. Alger's position is that with hard work and perseverance, anyone can achieve great things in America. However, Cruz's situation contrasts in the way that his position was not earned or judged on merit alone. Although this does not make him unworthy of his position in any way, it does present the fact that the world is not judged on an even plane and in some places, there will be biases that put some at an advantage over others.