Essay 2 and 3 Reflection

The most significant difference I experienced while composing Essay 3 was that in order to craft an argument that I believed would persuade someone who was opposed to Universal Healthcare I had to consider far more in depth how they might think. Constantly I had to imagine myself in their shoes so that I could theorize there most likely rebuttal to points I made, with this information I could then go on to disprove their likely thoughts. In essay 2 I did not have to do this, I only had to analyze what I saw in front of me and display my thoughts in a way that might appeal to my audience. Essay 3 also provided far more room for passion. It is much easier for me to write an essay on a topic that I feel strongly about than it is to give analysis to the colors found in old ads. Credibility of sources was also a problem unique to Essay 3. Even though I found many statistics that supported my view I could not use them due to a lack of credibility, unlike in Essay 2 where very little citation was needed at all. Overall I enjoyed Essay 3 more but found Essay 2 to be easier due to its arguably more objective nature.

Essay 3 Final Draft

“When they favor the access of other people to education and health care, the countries of the North not only demonstrate generosity or solidarity, but also implement the principles of respecting and promoting human rights.” Omar Bongo, former President of Gabon

            At some point in American history it was decided that if a person’s house were to catch fire it was an obligation of the state to douse it regardless of whether or not that person had any money to give in return. Instead it was expected the people of the nation would all pay their share to keep a socialized fire department in place. Similarly, it was also decided that if a crime was committed against someone the police would assist regardless of the individual’s wealth, for how can there be justice in our nation if it only exists for those who can afford it? So why is it still that in America if someone falls ill we allow for it to bankrupt them? Just as various private sectors have already been publicized for the greater benefit of our nation, it is now time for health care to become universal.

            To many this is a radical idea, one that could only be conceivable in a communist dystopia, but that is simply not the case. Many may be surprised to hear, but steps towards universal healthcare have already been taken decades ago and continue to be done. The incredibly effective Medicare and Medicaid programs are in essence socialized healthcare. Roughly 50 million American Citizens currently are enrolled in Medicare (KFF) and roughly 8.7 million are enrolled in Medicaid (Medicaid), although it should be noted there is sizable overlap between enrollees of the two programs. The vast majority of these people are elderly, sick, disabled, and/or impoverished and would be unable to afford health care without these programs. Although these programs are steps in the right direction they are not enough. Even those who implemented many of America’s current health care programs such as Lyndon B Johnson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Barack Obama have shown support for the eventual adoption of universal healthcare and it is with no surprise. The only surprising thing is that the US is one of the only major countries, joined only by China and India, to have not yet instituted universal healthcare.

When it comes to economics many may disagree over which system is the superior one but in terms of morality there is little room to dissent on the statement that Universal Health Care is by far the most moral system. To tie the health of an American citizen to his or her income is inherently immoral, to have the wealthy few favored while the impoverished many scorned is an unjust system that a government which is said to be by the people, for the people should have no business in supporting. A common argument is that collecting taxes to pay for a health care program is by nature immoral since enforced taxation is no different from thievery. There is merit to this claim, but by its logic all taxation by which the government operates on is inherently immoral and should be ceased immediately, resulting in the complete elimination of the American Government. Although this stance on universal health care is a valid one to take it is not one that can be held without also favoring for an entire government shutdown indefinitely, which is sure to do far more damage than benefit. Others may argue that taxation itself is fine but taxation in order to support entitlement programs for those deemed unworthy, or freeloaders, should not be allowed. Once again if this logic is to be continued that would mean other programs such as public schools, the fire department, and the police should all be discontinued. If a 6 year old hasn’t contributed to society then why should we have to pay taxes to send him to first grade?

            Some may argue that universal health care is inherently inferior to privatized health care, without the competition of the free market doctors will provide subpar treatments and raise prices. In theory this makes sense but in practice it is proved wrong. Countries such as Sweden, Denmark, the UK, and many more all have socialized there health care to a high degree and consistently score at the top of every conceivable health care rating. On the contrary the US consistently scores near or at the bottom of health care rankings for major countries. How can this be? As Bill Frist said, “America has the best doctors, the best nurses, the best hospitals, the best medical technology, [and] the best medical breakthrough medicines in the world. There is absolutely no reason we should not have in this country the best health care in the world.” It defies all logic that even despite the US’ clear advantage in nearly all medical resources that we do not have the best health care in the world. So what is the disconnect that occurs between having the best resources yet some of the worst results? It all comes down to our government’s allowance of private companies to seek profit even at the expense of the American citizen. Currently the cost of total health care per capita expenditure in the US is 9,146$, while the cost of many better performing countries ranges from 3,500-5,500$ on average (World Health Organization). Despite our lower health care quality and lower health care enrollment rates we still expend far more money than any other nation. So where does this excess money reside since it is obviously not being committed to the actual provision of health care. Quite simply it goes to company executives, advertisements, and various other unnecessary expenditures. It may seem counterintuitive but allowing for the health care market to be privatized does not drive down costs for the consumer but instead drives them up. Private companies will first and foremost work to secure their own profits, they will charge as much as possible to the consumer to accomplish this. If every health care company decides to charge more than necessary to increase profits for themselves there is little in place to stop them. This is exactly what is happening now in our current system, leading to billions being wasted every year. If not for the Affordable Care Act mandating that 80% of all money held by health insurance companies be committed to the provision of health care even more would be wasted. As is, health insurance companies straddle the 80% line as closely as possible, often passing below it effectively through the use of loopholes and inefficient bureaucracy networks. Even though some restraints have been placed on insurance providers by the government, the same has not been true for other health care industries such as the pharmaceuticals. In pharmaceutical companies only an average of 17.9% (Statista) of all funds is spent towards research and development of drugs, while the remainder goes towards executive pay and self-promotion of the company. In essence this means less than 1/5 of the entire pharmaceutical market goes towards the actual provision of pharmaceutics. In a universal system practically all funds of pharmaceutical industries go towards the provision of pharmaceutics since there is no need to advertise a company when there is no competition nor is there a need to pay or employ executives when they do not exist. This is what the majority of other major countries have done and it has been proven to work.

            Maybe it is just coincidence that the implementation of Universal Healthcare has worked so well in other countries. Perhaps doing the same in America would even end up being more expensive. An analysis by Gerald Friedman, Economics Professor at the University of Massachusetts, determined that implementing a universal health care system would add 15 trillion dollars of expenditure to the government over the course of 10 years, or about 1.5 trillion per year. This is completely true, incorporating Universal Healthcare would raise government expenditure by about 15 trillion over the course of ten years, but what many forget to mention when citing such a statistic is that it will save over 5 trillion net dollars in the same amount of time, to put it in perspective this is enough money to eliminate all government deficit for the next ten years if it continues at the current rate. Even though more money is being spent by the government in order to support a universal system, less money is being spent overall. It is predicted that currently over the course of the next 10 years an average of 20 trillion dollars will be spent in the public sector for programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, while in the private sector another 20 trillion will be spent. This results in a net of 40 trillion net for our current health care system. Now looking back to the Universal system, a total of 15 trillion will be added to the public sector but all private sector expenditures will be eliminated, meaning the net will end up as 35 trillion, 5 trillion less than the privatized system, all while insuring absolutely every American citizen in comparison to the only 88.96% that are insured currently (United States Census Bureau), which equates to roughly 45 million American residents currently being completely uninsured or gravely underinsured (AMSA). There is no doubt that a Universal system is more cost effective than our privatized system.

            To allow for the wealthiest government to have ever existed to not fulfill the role of which democratic governments were created for, to seek to fulfill the common needs shared by the majority of citizens, is a failure of democracy. To allow for 5 trillion dollars to be wasted over the next 10 years to support a corrupt system, one that is found wanting in even its insurance of the general population, is a failure of economic policy. To allow for millions of families to be lacking of the health care they so desperately need, but cannot obtain because of their poverty, is a failure of morality. The decision to implement Universal Healthcare is not one that requires hesitance.

Citations

Chua, Kao-Ping. "The Moral Case for Universal Health Care". American Medical Student Association. American    ………..Medical Student Association. Web Mar. 2015.

           

http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.78?lang=en

“Health Expenditure Per Capita”. Global Health Observatory. World Health Organization. Web 12 May. 2015.

https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2015/demo/p60-253.pdf

Smith, Jessica and Medalia, Carla. “Health Insurance Coverage in the United States” United States Census Bureau. ………..United States Census Bureau. Web Sep. 2015.

           

http://www.statista.com/statistics/265100/us-pharmaceutical-industry-spending-on-research-and-development-since-1990/

“Spending of US Pharmaceutical Industry for Research and Development” Statista. Statista. Web. 2015.

http://kff.org/medicare/state-indicator/total-medicare-beneficiaries/

“Total Number of Medicare Beneficiaries”. The Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation. KFF. Web. 2013.

http://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid-chip-program-information/by-population/medicare-medicaid-enrollees-dual-eligibles/seniors-and-medicare-and-medicaid-enrollees.html

“Seniors & Medicare and Medicaid Enrollees”. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid. Medicaid. Web. 2015.

In Class Lab: Analyzing an Argument

Anthony Heaps:

1. The claim is that meditation and other stress mitigation techniques should be incorporated into early education. The thesis is clearly states multiple times.
2. The reasons given are that stress management skills lead to healthier, happier, more productive members of society. Much evidence is provided, a mix of statistics and testimonials. The reasons prove to be sufficient
3. There are mentions of dissenting opinion and the author deals with them fairly in his deconstruction of them. He acknowledges and responds to them reasonably and respectfully. His own arguments are appropriately qualified though sometimes broad.
4. They are used to validate claims he has made beforehand. They are mostly credible although .com sites are mentioned. They are all current
5. The author assumes very little except for some common sense in the reader. His language is very inclusively based. I sense we share the belief that a happier less stressed population is a better one.

Josh Miller (absent):

1.The author is trying to make the point that the legalization of recreational marijuana benefits us through taxation. The thesis is stated explicitly.
2. The primary reason he applies is that the taxation of recreational marijuana can be put towards many great programs that help children, effectively causing more benefit than harm. He provides ample statistics that show just how much money has been put towards programs because of recreational marijuana. They provide sufficient support for his reasons.
3. There are acknowledgements of counter arguments, the author deals with them through fair rebuttal, in a  respectful way. His arguments are appropriately qualified.
4. The sources of authority he provides are statistics and they are used to qualify his own claims. They are credible and unbiased being as they are publicly released numbers by State Governments. They are current.
5. The author makes no assumptions of the readers knowledge on the issue. His language is neutral, neither excluding nor including the reader, although it leans slightly more towards inclusive. I sense that the author and I both share the belief that recreational marijuana should be legalized and taxed and also that funding education programs is very important.

Universal Health Care Argument Rough Draft Version 2

“When they favor the access of other people to education and health care, the countries of the North not only demonstrate generosity or solidarity, but also implement the principles of respecting and promoting human rights.” Omar Bongo, former President of Gabon

At some point in American history it was decided that if a person’s house were to catch fire it was an obligation of the state to douse it regardless of whether or not that person had any money to give in return. Instead it was expected the people of the nation would all pay their share to keep a socialized fire department in place. Similarly, it was also decided that if a crime was committed against someone the police would assist regardless of the individual’s wealth, for how can there be justice in our nation if it only exists for the rich? So why is it still that in America if someone falls ill we allow for it to bankrupt them? Just as various private sectors have already been publicized for the greater benefit of our nation, it is now time for health care to become universal.

To many this is a radical idea, one that could only be conceivable in a communist dystopia, but that is simply not the case. Many may be surprised to hear, but steps towards universal healthcare have already been taken decades ago and continue to be done. The incredibly effective Medicare and Medicaid programs are in essence socialized healthcare. Roughly 50 million American Citizens currently are enrolled in Medicare (KFF) and roughly 8.7 million are enrolled in Medicaid (Medicaid), although it should be noted there is sizable overlap between enrollees of the two programs. The vast majority of these people are elderly, sick, disabled, and/or impoverished and would be unable to afford health care without these programs. Although these programs are steps in the right direction they are not enough. Even those who implemented many of America’s current health care programs such as Lyndon B Johnson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Barack Obama have shown support for the eventual adoption of universal healthcare and it is with no surprise. The only surprising thing is that the US is one of the only major countries, joined only by China and India, to have not yet instituted universal healthcare.

When it comes to economics many may disagree over which system is the superior one but in terms of morality there is little room to dissent on the statement that Universal Health Care is by far the most moral health care system. To tie the health of an American citizen to his or her income is inherently immoral, to have the wealthy few favored while the impoverished many scorned is an unjust system that a government which is said to be by the people, for the people should have no business in supporting. A common argument is that collecting taxes to pay for a health care program is by nature immoral since enforced taxation is no different from thievery. There is merit to this claim but by its logic all taxation by which the government operates on is inherently immoral and should be ceased immediately, resulting in the complete elimination of the American Government. Although this stance on universal health care is a valid one to take it is not one that can be held without also favoring for an entire government shutdown indefinitely, which is sure to do far more damage than benefit. Others may argue that taxation itself is fine but taxation in order to support entitlement programs for those deemed unworthy, or freeloaders, should not be allowed. But once again if this logic is to be continued that would mean other programs such as public schools, the fire department, and the police should all be discontinued. If a 6 year old hasn’t contributed to society then why should we have to pay taxes to send him to first grade?

Some may argue that universal health care is inherently inferior to privatized health care, without the competition of the free market doctors will provide subpar treatments and raise prices. In theory this makes sense but in practice it is proved wrong. Countries such as Sweden, Denmark, the UK, and many more all have socialized there health care to a high degree and consistently score at the top of every conceivable health care rating. On the contrary the US consistently scores near or at the bottom of health care rankings for major countries. How can this be? As Bill Frist said, “America has the best doctors, the best nurses, the best hospitals, the best medical technology, [and] the best medical breakthrough medicines in the world. There is absolutely no reason we should not have in this country the best health care in the world.” It defies all logic that even despite the US’ clear advantage in nearly all medical resources that we do not have the best health care in the world. So what is the disconnect that occurs between having the best resources yet some of the worst results? It all comes down to our government’s allowance of private companies to seek profit even at the expense of the American citizen. Currently the cost of total health care per capita expenditure in the US is 9,146$, while the cost of many better performing countries ranges from 3,500-5,500$ on average (World Health Organization). Despite our lower health care quality and lower health care enrollment rates we still expend far more money than any other nation. So where does this excess money reside since it is obviously not being committed to the actual provision of health care. Quite simply it goes to company executives, advertisements, and various other unnecessary expenditures. It may seem counterintuitive but allowing for the health care market to be privatized does not drive down costs for the consumer but instead drives them up. Private companies will first and foremost work to secure their own profits, they will charge as much as possible to the consumer to accomplish this. If every health care company decides to charge more than necessary to increase profits for themselves there is little in place to stop them. This is exactly what is happening now in our current system, leading to billions being wasted every year. If not for the Affordable Care Act mandating that 80% of all money held by health insurance companies be committed to the provision of health care even more would be wasted. As is, health insurance companies straddle the 80% line as closely as possible, often passing below it effectively through the use of loopholes and inefficient bureaucracy networks. Even though some restraints have been placed on insurance providers by the government, the same has not been true for other health care industries such as the pharmaceuticals. In pharmaceutical companies only an average of 17.9% (Statista) of all funds is spent towards research and development of drugs, while the remainder goes towards executive pay and self-promotion of the company. In essence this means less than 1/5 of the entire pharmaceutical market goes towards the actual provision of pharmaceutics. So much for a free market bringing down costs. In a universal system practically all funds of pharmaceutical industries go towards the provision of pharmaceutics since there is no need to advertise a company when there is no competition nor is there a need to pay or employ executives when they do not exist. This is what the majority of other major countries have done and it has been proven to work.

Maybe it is just coincidence that the implementation of universal health care has worked so well in other countries. Perhaps doing the same in America would even end up being more expensive. An analysis by Gerald Friedman, Economics Professor at the University of Massachusetts, determined that implementing a universal health care system would add 15 trillion dollars of expenditure to the government over the course of 10 years, or about 1.5 trillion per year. This is completely true, incorporating universal health care would raise government expenditure by about 15 trillion over the course of ten years, but what many forget to mention when citing such a statistic is that it will save over 5 trillion net dollars in the same amount of time, to put it in perspective this is enough money to eliminate all government deficit for the next ten years if it continues at the current rate. Even though more money is being spent by the government in order to support a universal system, less money is being spent overall. It is predicted that over the course of the next 10 years an average of 20 trillion dollars will be spent in the public sector for programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, while in the private sector another 20 trillion will be spent. This results in a net of 40 trillion net for our current health care system. Now looking back to the Universal system, a total of 15 trillion will be added to the public sector but all private sector expenditures will be eliminated, meaning the net will end up as 35 trillion, 5 trillion less than the privatized system, all while insuring absolutely every American citizens in comparison to the only 88.96% that are insured currently (United States Census Bureau), which equates to roughly 45 million American residents currently being completely uninsured or gravely underinsured (AMSA). There is no doubt that a Universal system is more cost effective.

Conclusion not finished.

Citations

Chua, Kao-Ping. "The Moral Case for Universal Health Care". American Medical Student Association. American Medical Student Association. Web Mar. 2015.

http://apps.who.int/gho/data/node.main.78?lang=en
“Health Expenditure Per Capita”. Global Health Observatory. World Health Organization. Web 12 May. 2015.

https://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2015/demo/p60-253.pdf
Smith, Jessica and Carla Medalia, Carla. “Health Insurance Coverage in the United States” United States Census Bureau. United States Census Bureau. Web Sep. 2015.

http://www.statista.com/statistics/265100/us-pharmaceutical-industry-spending-on-research-and-development-since-1990/
“Spending of US Pharmaceutical Industry for Research and Development” Statista. Web. 2015.

http://kff.org/medicare/state-indicator/total-medicare-beneficiaries/
“Total Number of Medicare Beneficiaries”. The Henry J Kaiser Family Foundation. KFF. Web. 2013.

http://www.medicaid.gov/medicaid-chip-program-information/by-population/medicare-medicaid-enrollees-dual-eligibles/seniors-and-medicare-and-medicaid-enrollees.html
“Seniors & Medicare and Medicaid Enrollees”. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid. Medicaid. Web. 2015.

Universal Health Care Argument Rough Draft

“When they favor the access of other people to education and health care, the countries of the North not only demonstrate generosity or solidarity, but also implement the principles of respecting and promoting human rights.” Omar Bongo, former President of Gabon


At some point in American history it was decided that if a person’s house were to catch fire it was an obligation of the state to douse it regardless of whether or not that person had any money to give in return, instead the people of the nation would all pay their share to keep a socialized fire department in place. Similarly, it was also decided that if a crime was committed against someone the police would assist regardless of the individual’s wealth, for how can there be justice in our nation if it only exists for the rich? So why is it still that in America if someone falls ill it can bankrupt them? Just as various sectors have already been publicized for the greater benefit of our nation, it is now time for health care to become universal.

To many this is a radical idea, one that could only be conceivable in a communist dystopia, but that is simply not the case. Many may be surprised to hear, but steps towards universal healthcare have already been taken decades ago and continue to be done. The incredibly effective Medicare and Medicaid programs are in essence socialized healthcare. Roughly 120 million American Citizens currently or recently were enrolled in these programs. The vast majority of these people are elderly, sick, disabled, and/or impoverished. Although these programs are steps in the right direction they are not enough. Even those who implemented many of America’s current health care programs such as Lyndon B Johnson, Franklin Roosevelt, and Barack Obama have shown support for the eventual adoption of universal healthcare and it is with no surprise. The only surprising thing is that the US is one of the only major countries to have not yet instituted universal healthcare.

When it comes to economics many may disagree over which system is the superior one but in terms of morality there is little room to dissent on the statement that Universal Health Care is by far the most moral health care system. To tie the health of an American citizen to his or her income is inherently immoral, to have the wealthy few favored while the impoverished many scorned is an unjust system that a government which is said to be by the people, for the people should have no business in supporting. A common argument is that collecting taxes to pay for a health care program is by nature immoral since enforced taxation is no different from thievery. There is merit to this claim but by its logic all taxation by which the government operates on is inherently immoral and should be ceased immediately, resulting in the complete elimination of the American Government. Although this stance on universal health care is a valid one to take it is not one that can be held without also favoring for an entire government shutdown indefinitely, which is sure to do far more damage than benefit. Others may argue that taxation itself is fine but taxation in order to support entitlement programs for those deemed unworthy, or freeloaders, should not be allowed. But once again if this logic is to be continued that would mean other programs such as public schools, the fire department, and the police should all be discontinued. If a 6 year old hasn’t contributed to society then why should we have to pay taxes to send him to first grade?

Some may argue that universal health care is inherently inferior to privatized health care, without the competition of the free market doctors will provide subpar treatments and raise prices. In theory this makes sense but in practice it is proved wrong. Countries such as Sweden, Denmark, the UK, Norway, and many more all have socialized there health care to a high degree and consistently score at the top of every conceivable health care rating. On the contrary the US consistently scores near or at the bottom of health care rankings for major countries. How can this be? As Bill Frist said, “America has the best doctors, the best nurses, the best hospitals, the best medical technology, [and] the best medical breakthrough medicines in the world. There is absolutely no reason we should not have in this country the best health care in the world.” It defies all logic that even despite the US’ clear advantage in nearly all medical resources that we do not have the best health care in the world. So what is the disconnect that occurs between having the best resources yet some of the worst results? It all comes down to our government’s allowance of private companies to seek profit even at the expense of the American citizen. Currently the cost of health care per capita in the US is 8,508$, while the cost of better ranking countries ranges from 3,500-5,500$. Despite our lower health care quality and lower health care enrollment rates we still expend far more money than any other nation. So where does this excess money reside since it is obviously not being committed to the actual provision of health care. Quite simply it goes to company executives, advertisements, and various other unnecessary expenditures. It may seem counterintuitive but allowing for the health care market to be privatized does not drive down costs for the consumer but instead drives them up. Private companies will first and foremost work to secure their own profits, they will charge as much as possible to the consumer. If every health care company decides to charge more than necessary to increase profits for themselves there is little in place to stop them. This is exactly what is happening now in our current system, leading to billions being wasted every year. If not for the Affordable Care Act mandating that 80% of all money held by health insurance companies be committed to the provision of health care even more would be wasted. As is, health insurance companies straddle the 80% line as closely as possible, often passing below it effectively through the use of loopholes and inefficient bureaucracy networks. Even though some restraints have been placed on insurance providers by the government, the same has not been true for other health care industries such as the pharmaceuticals. In pharmaceutical companies and average of 15-20% of all funds is spent towards research and development of drugs, while the remainder goes towards lining the pockets of executives and self-promotion of the company. In essence this means only 1/5 of the entire pharmaceutical market goes towards the actual provision of pharmaceutics. So much for a free market bringing down costs. In a universal system practically all funds of pharmaceutical industries go towards the provision of pharmaceutics since there is no need to advertise a company when there is no competition nor is there a need to pay or employ executives when they do not exist. This is what the majority of other major countries have done and it has worked.

Maybe it is just coincidence that the implementation of universal health care has worked so well in other countries. Perhaps doing the same in America would even end up being more expensive. An analysis by Gerald Friedman, Economics Professor at the University of Massachusetts, determined that implementing a universal health care system would add 15 trillion dollars of expenditure to the government over the course of 10 years, or about 1.5 trillion per year. This is completely true, incorporating universal health care would raise government expenditure by about 15 trillion over the course of ten years, but what many forget to mention when citing such a statistic is that it will save over 5 trillion net dollars in the same amount of time, enough to eliminate all government deficit. You see even though more money is being spent by the government in order to support a universal system, less money is being spent overall. It is predicted that over the course of the next 10 years an average of 20 trillion dollars will be spent in the public sector for programs such as Medicaid and Medicare, while in the private sector another 20 trillion will be spent. This results in a net of 40 trillion net for our current health care system. Now looking back to the Universal system, a total of 15 trillion will be added to the public sector but all private sector expenditures will be eliminated, meaning the net will end up as 35 trillion, 5 trillion less than the privatized system, all while insuring absolutely every American citizens in comparison to the only 88.1% that are insured currently. There is no doubt that a Universal system is more cost effective.


Conclusion not finished.

Essay 3 Bibliography In Class Lab

http://www.amsa.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/CaseForUHC.pdf

Chua, Kao-Ping. "The Moral Case for Universal Health Care". American Medical Student Association. American Medical Student Association. Web Mar. 2015.

In an online article, the American Medical Student Association states, "Currently, more than 45 million Americans lack any form of health insurance, and millions more are “under insured”"
(Quotation from an online magazine with no page numbers.)


http://www.jci.org/articles/view/42964

Turka, Laurence A., and Caplan, Arthur L. "The Right to Health Care". The American Society for Clinical Investigation. The Journal of Clinical Investigation. Web 19 Mar. 2010.

In Laurence A. Turka's paper published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation, he indicates that the cost of forcing the uninsured to avoid medical consultation until their ailment progresses to a dangerous degree ultimately costs society more than having presentable diseases be stopped early on. (Paraphrase from an online magazine with no page number.)



http://www.amazon.com/What-Social-Classes-Each-Other/dp/1605977187/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1447987205&sr=1-3&keywords=what+social+classes+owe+each+other

Sumner, William Graham. What Social Classes Owe to Each Other. New York: Harper and Brothers, 1911. Print.

According to William Grahams Sumner, a past sociology professor at Yale University, “We shall find that every effort to realize equality necessitates a sacrifice of liberty.” (32) In his Book What Social Classes Owe to Each Other, Sumner tells us, “Liberty is an affair of laws and institutions which bring rights and duties into equilibrium. It is not at all an affair of selecting the proper class to rule.” (12).

In Class Lab 11/19

Both of our articles and Spriggs made their positions clear not only in the introduction but also in the conclusion. The writers of our articles determined the importance of the argument by invocating Paris attacks and 9/11, while Spriggs instead invoked what could happen. Our articles also explicitly state their positions when they explain how they believe that taking certain steps will help prevent terrorism. Spriggs used anecdotal evidence more than our articles, citing her families farmer friend. She also responded to varying views more often, such as how buying local can have negative environmental effects. All of them mentioned articles and statistics from other reputable news sources in order to support their stance, such as Spriggs citation of CNN. Spriggs first paragraph talks about how Americans can eat fruit that naturally would not be in season which by turn of causes consequences to local farms and the worldwide environment, our other articles acted similarly for their own stances, one of them claiming that lax gun control laws contribute to hundreds of deaths every year. Spriggs was also better at showing how things have changed over time, such as how the number of cows a farm milks has increased drastically from industrialized farms, something that other articles mostly neglected, instead focusing on more recent times. Sprigss also appealed to the values of the readers by citing how local farms create 10% more jobs than large ones, our articles appealed to the viewers values by mentioning the expensive toll of the Iraq and Afghanistan war, in terms of life and wealth.  The author of our articles also uses the ignorance of the general public concerning the word "terrorism" to springboard his own stance and condescension towards detractors in opinion to develop a tone of authority while Spriggs developed a tone of authority through proving her competence, not by capitalizing on condescension.

Pg 80

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/nov/18/terrorism-gun-control-immigration-refugee

Pg. 100 Questions

1. It is clear the topic matters to Katherine Spriggs and she has done a good job at convincing me that it matters through use of statistics and logic. Spriggs establishes the importance of her topic through tying it to things such as global warming and local economies that most readers will find very important.
2. She considers the view that food she bought from where it best grows because it saves time and energy and she agrees that is true in some cases but that people should strive to buy as much food locally before buying food from elsewhere.
3. When Spriggs says "If strawberries were sold only in the summer, they would be more specfial and we might even enjoy them more," her argument is rather ineffective because it has no real support or logic to it. Whether or not we would enjoy them more or see them as more special is completely subjective, the best evidence she could provide for this would be anecdotal.
4. For example, the two pictures that feature a poly culture and mono culture farm, respectively, do a good job at contrasting the two styles. While the mono culture farm appears lifeless and boring the poly culture farm has people outside and a close up of the crops, making it far more interesting and casting poly culture as a much more humane and relate-able system.

Pg. 70 Question

Recently in my English 101 class I was required to write an essay the analyses 3 ads. The motivation for writing and my position are made very clear. In the introduction I have a well defined thesis that outlines the message of the essay. This thesis is then supported and reiterated throughout the rest of the essay. Finally in the conclusion I once again restate the thesis to make clear what motivates writing and my position.

Yes We Can Blog Post

Taking snippets of Obama's Yes We Can speech and having them repeated and sang not only brought them back to the watchers mind multiple times during the video, but even after the video finishes the messages replay in the form of a catchy song. Written words like "Hope" and "Yes we Can" helped to solidify the message the video was sending. The black and white color scheme added to the atmosphere and the addition of more people singing as the video goes on contributed to the theme of people coming together to complete their goals.

Argument Topic Ideas

Whether or not Universal Health Care should be incorporated into America

Which candidate should become president

Whether or not free college should be incorporated into America

Whether or not women should be banned from certain US military combat roles

Whether or not women should have stricter or looser physical tests for joining the military

Two Sisters Tragedy In Class Lab Summary

From the video about the Two Sister Tragic, it had an emotional appeal because in the first line it established that the video was about grief. Secondly, they establish an emotional aspect to it they always have the parents “red-faced” with tears with the dog and with clips from their childhood. This video also had a logical appeal because the bottom line is that drunk driving kills and promotes driving lessons and they provide free transportation to insure safe driving throughout teenagers. This video showed ethos through the use of the video clips of their childhood to show that these people are just average and normal people, and that this can happen to anyone.

Two Sisters Tragic Story Summary and Analysis

In the video the Parents of Shauna and Megan Murphy detail the tragedy that happened to their daughters. They explain that they had gone to a party and gotten drunk, afterwards deciding to drive while incapacitated. The two sisters and their friend got into a car crash, only the friend survived. Finally they promote their organization that gives free rides to drunk people in order to promote safe driving.

This video was designed with the purpose of persuading watchers to never drink and drive and to also make sure their family and friends do the same. The video mostly utilizes Pathos in order to sway the hearts of the watchers. Some examples are how the parents are always on the verge of tears, a sad looking dog sits between the two parents, the only survivor appearing regretful, and dramatic black and white transitions. Ethos is also used to make the two sisters seem more real to the watchers, making their story seem like it can happen to even the average person. Ethos is built through anecdotes on the sisters, home videos of them as children, and photographs of them not long before the crash. All of these make the sisters seem like people you could have known, making the tragedy seem like it could happen to you and those around you. Some Logos was also included at the end when  describing their company. They explained that it gave free rides, no questions asked, in order to keep drunk people from driving and putting people's lives in danger.

In Class Analysis 11/9

Thesis: Advertisements generally strive to bring groups of people to consensus, appealing strongly to their emotions.
Peace Symbol Analysis.
The overall statement of both buttons is to reject war, and provide support for peaceful means of reaching agreement.
They make their statement through visual representation.
Left Button
· The “melty” font of the statement creates the allusion of a melting heart, or one open to suggestions.
· The circular peace symbol could represent the world, further explaining the buttons point for world peace. The outside ring is circular, meaning that it has no endpoints. This can be related to an eternity symbol.
Right Button
· The peace symbol stands out against the black background. Putting down any thoughts of war.
· The bold font makes their statement more prominent and credible.


Symbols of Patriotism
Eagle
· The bald eagle is the nation’s national mascot.
· The flag coupled with the eagle creates an even greater plea for patriotism. Seeing that the flag has been known to represent our country for ages. It an added sense of loyalty and pride.
· The piercing eye is ever watchful. In protecting its citizens and holding them accountable for their loyalty.
Bulldog
· The English bulldog is Great Britain’s National mascot.
· The dog standing on the flag is expressing protection.
· Seems larger than its surroundings making it a more dominant force in the world..
French Wall
· It’s the national motto of France.
· Set in stone.
· Camera gives the effect that they are watching over their people and keeping an eye on other countries.
· The parallel line create a feeling of steadiness and reliability.
· Brotherhood sets the image that they are all equal.

Reading Sources Critically

The argument the author makes is that white people cannot say the n-word. He uses examples of how other races i.e. jewish comedians may use “derogatory” jokes about themselves but if someone whom was not of that culture made those jokes they would be considered racist towards that particular community.



I find the argument to be quite persuasive. The arguments he makes are very clear; you can talk about your people, but no one else should. essentially saying jokes towards your group doesn't necessarily mean that other people from outside your group can make the same jokes toward your group.



The author’s stance is mainly towards common group relations and the use of certain language and speech toward other groups. Author also acknowledged rednecks and jewish people and the humor related to those two groups and how they can be considered offensive if miss used.



The publisher brings the stance of cultural diversity to the college at which he is presenting (Boston College.)



I do recognize the idea that you shouldn’t joke about a community that you’re not a part of. If you aren’t Jewish, you shouldn’t make Jewish jokes, etc.



This source supports my position because I personally feel that if you aren’t part of that community, or have not been personally slighted, then you have no right to try to reclaim words that have been used as slurs.


I can tell that the intended audience are those of different cultural backgrounds other than those of the African American community, and the purpose is to bring awareness of the cultural diversity and etiquette.

Pg. 66 Lab

This ad appeals to me because it makes its point through provoking thought instead of explicitly stating its position. This gun control ad states "One child is holding something that's been banned in America to protect them. Guess which one." The purpose of of the text is to make people immediately assume it is the gun that  has been banned since it  is clearly more dangerous than the dodge ball, but after thinking thinking they will realize it is the other way around and question why that is. The shocking image of a child holding a gun draws the eyes to the image and encourages people to give attention to it. The high contrast of the children's clothes in comparison to the drab background brings attention to them and the green on the left and orange on the right gives of a sense of duality just like the argument for or against gun control. If I were to revise it for an audience of academics I would incorporate statistics in order to give supported logic to the ad. If I were to revise it for a video format, I would narrate the text instead of having it on the screen and I would add a slight amount of motion to the ad to keep peoples eyes focused on it.

"Guess Which One," Moms Demand Action, 15 Apr.
       2013. JPEG File. Web. 5 Nov. 2015.


This ad is appealing because it uses repetition of a powerful sentence to get a point across. The prominent gun in the center draws the eyes and the constitution behind it gives credibility to the ad, if the audience is american using the constitution to back up your argument will be very effective. Having We the People in large text in the upper left also has a powerful effect. The use of red text after 4 lines of white text helps to bring attention back to the thesis of the ad, which is gun rights shall not be infringed. The final line is also very powerful because it directly challenges any dissent among the audience. If this ad were for an audience of mothers I would make it less insulting and not feature a threatening looking gun in the center. If this were in video format I would have close up shots of the 2nd amendment, highlighting "shall not be infringed."

Farnan, Ed. "Shall not infringe." Downing Post News,
      15 Apr. 2013. JPEG File. Web. 5 Nov. 2015



This Star Wars Meme was on Facebook as a meme about politics. I chose it because I found it interesting as it depicts the differing perceptions of those involved in the political process. The meme is appealing because it presented the topic of politics in a humorous way. It uses characters from the Star Wars franchise to make the point of the way in which individuals on differing sides of the issues perceive each other as it relates to their political candidate positions. The meme uses familiar characters from the franchise and uses their most associated characteristics to relate to the audience the point of how they may be being perceived. The third point of view that is addressed is how those whom are not directly involved in the political discussions that may be taking an outside perspective may see the issue. This is the view that is being communicated by the use of the characters from the franchise. The use of fictional characters allows the reader to to take the outside viewers perspective that the author is attempting to communicate.



Tommiesmonkies. How you See Your Candidate. September 2015. imgur


The quote about the differences between love and like to illustrate a particular perspective by
the author of the image was appealing because it uses an image to illustrate the understanding
of the the meaning between the differences based on the quote. The poster itself uses the image of the watering of a flower such as referred to in the quote by the Buddha. I like how the author of the
image used a quote from someone who explained it clearly them self as opposed to simply stating it them self. The quote is also from a well known figure. I would have made the artwork or image of the flower being watered show a little more by adding a little color to the flower that is being watered. In this way it would show more effectively the underlying meaning of how "love" nurtures what is loved as opposed to the mere collecting of the object that is liked.


The Mind Unleashed. The Difference Between Like and Love. 6 August 2015. Facebook.

Pg. 62 Post

Myself

During political discussions

Talking about which game is the best

Talking about opinions on other people

Deciding which foods to eat

Deciding which way to take to school

When writing an essay

When siding with someone in an argument

Talking about which song is better

Talking about which movie is better

Talking about which TV show is better

When deciding how to spend money

During a discussion about what the project group will do

Others

When others take a political position

When others talk about which media item is the best

When others talk about their opinions on people

When defending their point of view

When deciding the best way to spend money

When discussing what a group should do

Peer Paper #2 Review

In Response to Clifford’s Analysis

1. The opening captures the audience attention by stating the earth’s resources have been decreasing and by mentioning environmental movements we have all heard of.

2. The subject description meets what is necessary and occasionally excels past it.

3. From what I can tell the targets of the ads are the American people in general.

4. The point of the essay, which is we should all work to save the environment, is somewhat unclear in the beginning but is well defined in the conclusion

5. The evidence provided is sufficient, the analysis makes ample use of historical evidence and logical arguments.

6. The sources listed, such as “Maine Woods”, seem credible enough.

7. Other perspectives are occasionally considered

8. The tone seems to be a positive call to action, accurately conveying the stance that we should work to save the environment.

9. The analysis seems to be effectively designed, the images are clear and the body paragraphs analyze them well.

10. The analysis is organized decently but the transitions are sometimes lacking.

11. The style is appropriate

12. The conclusion is well done and fits fluidly into the analysis

13. The title states clearly what the analysis is about and the portion of the title in parenthesis, “Trendy or True?” does well to draw in readers.

Response to Joshua Rentz’s Analysis

1. There is no clear question for the analysis, although one is not necessary for its subject

2. The opening captures the audience’s attention by beginning with an anecdote. Next it defines the analysis’ stance on the environment and makes clear what it will center on.

3. The subject is described in sufficient detail.

4. The insights on the ads are stated explicitly and are well supported and completely acceptable.

5. The point of the analysis is clear, that we should attempt to conserve the environment, and is stated in the introduction.

6. The evidence provided is good. The use of historical context, statistics, and logical arguments give strong support to the essays claims.

7. URL’s and the advertisements themselves are included and seem to be credible.

8. Other perspectives are not directly stated although the analysis does seem to imply them.

9. The tone seems mostly neutral with a slight bias towards positive or a call to action. It does well to convey the stance.

10. The design of the analysis is effective although the images themselves should be moved next to the body paragraphs that analyze them.

11. The style is semi-casual. It is somewhat appropriate but it could stand to be more formal to better fit the subject.

12. The conclusion is somewhat sparse currently.

13. The title makes it clear that the analysis will revolve around a subject that will affect the future but it does not explicitly state what that subject

Taking Stock Essay 2

1. To analyze the ads I examined each line of text to try to discern the reason the advertisers included them, how do they persuade the audience?. I used a similar process for the images although I examined colors and positions of the subjects instead of text.
2. I began drafting my essay by writing down everything I could examine from the three ads. Next I wrote a general thesis for which my essay would center around. After that I began to string together all the observations into coherent paragraphs. Finally I made the introduction, conclusion, and smoothed the transitions.
3. I feel my analysis was decently organized. To improve it I could make my thesis more prominent in the introduction and also improve the overall transitions within the analysis.
4. I believe I provided sufficient evidence, although most of it was based on logic so I may include historical documents to support the assumptions.
5. I believe my overall examinations of the advertisements was well done.
6. I could improve my Introduction greatly and also my transitions.
7. My visuals were the ads, they added quite a bit because they were what most of my writing was on.
8. The reader responses made it apparent my introduction and title need to be reworked
9. Next time I would choose ads with a bit more scope because writing almost entirely on race for the analysis probably began to bore my readers.
10. Overall I am pleased with my analysis, I don't particularly want to pursue any other soap ads but I might consider reading more of Rudyard Kipling's works to better understand the perspective of the time.
11. The analyzing skills I gained from this assignment will be very useful in future jobs and the entirety of my academic career. The technical writing skills gained will be useful in the same areas.

Group Ad Summary Paraphrase Quotation

Summary
Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) has come together to create an advertisement in which Colonel Sanders is featured holding a bucket of KFC fried chicken, with two women standing next to him while smiling. The advertisement is to simulate two homemakers, delighted at the prospect of less kitchen duty during the hustle and bustle of holiday season, by buying KFC chicken instead.


Paraphrase
In KFC's 1968 Christmas ad Colonel Sanders is seen standing in the center of the frame, holding a bucket of KFC chicken, with two smiling house wives at his side. All three of them are dressed in Christmas clothing. During the busy holiday season it can often be difficult to balance the daily chores and activities among the added tasks of holiday shopping and preparing holiday meals. KFC is claiming to offer an effective solution by making meals for you. Like they said, "who's got time to fix dinner during Christmas rush?"


Quotation
The 1968 KFC Christmas ad claims that their chicken will, "give you a rest during the rush."

Summary:
In Rubin's analysis of a Coca-Cola ad she examines the various elements within the ad and their reason for being there. She goes further and makes the claim that the ad is so effective since it represents the unattainable American dream.


Paraphrase:
In her analysis of a 1950's Coca-Cola ad, author Melissa Rubin's how Coca-Cola managed to appeal so greatly to the general public. Initially she notes the most obvious design elements. White, fluffy clouds on a blue sky, giving the appearance of peace. A red Coke machine towering over the skyscrapers in the metropolis behind it, implying that it is more important than them. A cheery mascot gesturing for the reader to take a sip. Continuing on she goes further into detail, analyzing the mindsets of the American people in the fifties. She points out that at the center of the congregation of people in the ad are three service men, highlighting their importance and Coca-Cola's support for the military, a tactful popularity move. Next to them are blue collar workers and their bosses, implying that Coca Cola is a relaxing drink for all hard workers to enjoy together. Delving deeper, she explains the lack of gender and racial diversity in the ads. In the background only a few women are featured and in casual dresses instead of working clothes, Rubin claims it "represents the assumption that women played a less important role in society--or at least in the war effort and the workforce."(Page 179). More glaringly though there is no racial diversity in the ad entirely, showing that Coca-Cola as did most American citizens still though of non-whites as insignificant people and unworthy of spots on a Coca-Cola ad. In her conclusion she states that, "The message: theirs is a life to be envied and emulated, so drink Coca-Cola and life that life yourself,"(Page 180)


Quote:
In Melissa Rubin's analysis, she makes the claim that we, "can learn a great deal about [a] culture by looking closely at the deliberate ways a company crafts an ad to appeal to particular audiences."(176)

Group Ad Presentation Analysis

In the ad the women are happily smiling, clutching Colonel Sanders arms as if he is a family member or love interest. In their hands are presents, while in Sanders hands is a bucket of Kentucky Fried Chicken filled past the brim in the center of the frame implying that it is the most important present. On the Colonel's head is a Santa hat which matches his snowy white beard, making him appear almost like Santa Claus himself, bringing presents and joy every Christmas in the form of KFC chicken. His white suit giving great contrast to the golden brown chicken he is holding. All 3 people in the frame are dressed in the image of the ideal American on a Christmas day in order to appeal to those who desire to achieve that image. Perhaps if they eat KFC  they can be like them. In the upper right corner it says "Who's got time to fix dinner during Christmas rush?" implying that a person as busy as the homemakers reading the ad should give themselves a break and buy KFC for dinner. Later on it says it is "ready in minutes at over 1900 locations all over the nation" to emphasize its convenience. At the top of the page in bolded letters it says "He'll give you a rest during the rush", a very persuading proposition for the busy housewife during the holiday bustle.

In Class Lab: Textual Analysis Paper

1. The publishers are PETA, Freedom For Animals, and Mercy for Animals.

2. They are intended to affect the general consumer that use products that were tested on animals in inhumane conditions, or for consumers of products such as fur coats and other animal products.

3. Each ad is directly denouncing a product or company that involves animal mistreatment.

4. To raise public awareness about animal cruelty involved in many consumer products in order to help further the cause through mass boycotting.

5 and 6. They are attempting to make the consumer feel more directly connected to the issues such as animal cruelty and animal testing. They do this through emotional devices such as a sad dog face, disgusting blood in hair, and a silently judging pug. They also use logical devices like "If you wouldn't wear your dog please don't wear any fur."

7. They persuade the general public to be less supportive of companies, products, and behaviors that promote inhumane treatment of animals

Rubin Summary

In her analysis of a 1950's Coca-Cola ad, author Melissa Rubin's how Coca-Cola managed to appeal so greatly to the general public. Initially she notes the most obvious design elements. White, fluffy clouds on a blue sky, giving the appearance of peace. A red Coke machine towering over the skyscrapers in the metropolis behind it, implying that it is more important than them. A cheery mascot gesturing for the reader to take a sip. Continuing on she goes further into detail, analyzing the mindsets of the American people in the fifties. She points out that at the center of the congregation of people in the ad are three service men, highlighting their importance and Coca-Cola's support for the military, a tactful popularity move. Next to them are blue collar workers and their bosses, implying that Coca Cola is a relaxing drink for all hard workers to enjoy together. Delving deeper, she explains the lack of gender and racial diversity in the ads. In the background only a few women are featured and in casual dresses instead of working clothes, Rubin claims it "represents the assumption that women played a less important role in society--or at least in the war effort and the workforce."(Page 179). More glaringly though there is no racial diversity in the ad entirely, showing that Coca-Cola as did most American citizens still though of non-whites as insignificant people and unworthy of spots on a Coca-Cola ad. In her conclusion she states that, "The message: theirs is a life to be envied and emulated, so drink Coca-Cola and life that life yourself,"(Page 180)

Pg 181 1-4

1.Through Rubin's analysis she reveals that Coca-Cola prime position that it currently has in the soft drink market is due to the popular appeal it gained during the war times. She also notes how racial themes were used throughout Coca-Cola's early advertisements and how Coca-Cola tried to display the American life as ideal in its ads to encourage foreigners into drinking it in hopes of becoming more American-like. She uses old ads and statements done directly by Coca Cola to support her analyses.

2. Historical context is included in her numerous quotes and the full page ad. Her additional synopsis of the mindset and life of the average man of the period and the importance of historical events such as labor unions to Coca-Colas development also help to give context. These contribute by grounding her analysis more firmly in reality, allowing readers to better connect with the narrative.

3. Other questions that can be answered through ad analyses are: Who were the primary buyers of the time period, what was the ideal lifestyle of the time, what advertising techniques were effective against people of the time period?

4. A large number of ads that feature anything from dishwashers to jeans depict an American family of 4 living in a sizable middle class house. This shows that an ideal life for our era is having a stable family, home ownership, a quiet suburban life, and a steady income. Compared to old Coca-Cola ads things have not changed to much. Although ads now focus more intensely on family life, both still feature primarily middle class workers relaxing and enjoying life due to their product.

10/20 Group Lab

1. We all agreed that Heather's main point was that Mad Men was a ideal representation of American Society, using the revered 60's as the setting to further represent the ideal. We think that Mad Men is a stark contrast to the stillbirth that is the American dream currently.  We reached consensus that this point was defined early and later elaborated on throughout the body paragraphs.

2.  We can now see after reading chapter nine that she tailored her thesis to better relate to the American audience by giving brief anecdotes of an American dream that is no longer apparent.  She carefully defined her main point and then analyzed the components of Mad Men that supported her agenda. During an analysis considering the audience is important and since the main readers are an American audience her narrative was polished to better relate to its readers and evoke an emotional reaction from them. Analyzing the larger context is also vital, she did this by noting the various characters that represent forms of femininity in the world and connecting their overall success in life back to this in an effort to articulate that independence is an important trait to women in the modern world.

4. This essay fits the criteria for an analysis paper because it considers the audience, articulates its purpose, considers the larger context, and considers design. Being that a narrative about the treatment of women throughout the years by the media will be mostly read by feminists, the author quite clearly adjusted his writing to strike upon many feminist talking points. Some of these include objectification of women, increasing independence and education of women, and the gender role of being required to be youthful. His point is articulated rather clearly at both the beginning and end, with some implication of it in the middle. The author also points at trends in the larger context, noting on how ads began to use more stats and science based persuasion techniques as time went on and women became further educated. Finally, the author goes into great analysis on the various design elements used within the respective ads.

Page 175 Mad Men

1. The author's main insight about the show Mad Men is that it is a wish fulfillment fantasy modeled after the American dream. This is seen on page 170 "The American dream ... less attainable than ever," page 174 "Everyone and everything is gorgeous to the point of luminosity," and page 174, "The ambition and conflicted desires of these characters in their pursuit of happiness is what makes Mad Men such a singular and resonant reflection of a particularly American puzzle." The main point is made initially in the first passage, that is that the American dream is less attainable than ever. Later on in page 174 Mad Men is noted on being "gorgeous to the point of luminosity", a steep contrast to our dreary reality. Finally the last quote links the two together directly, stating that Mad Men's idealistic form of the American dream is particularly resonant for American's.

2. Havrilesky's casual show of intense knowledge on matter pertaining to Mad Men, such as deeply describing a characters emotion and motivations for actions, and her mentions of having watched the seasons establish her authority to write about the show.

3."This is the automobile a man of your means should drive. This is the liquor a happy homemaker like yourself should server to your husband's business guests." This passage reveals subconscious messages that all of her readers have likely been entrenched in for their entire lives, this allows for readers to connect deeply to her writings. "Slowly we come to view our own lives as inconsequential, grubby, even intolerable." This passage brings out the deep rooted disappointment the readers have in their own lives. The author also describes the various characters in a very humane, easy to relate to way so that their own emotions rise and fall as their stories are told.

4. I was not very familiar with it before but I know feel I understand at least the basic premise of the show, although I do not feel compelled to watch it. I believe I understand it because the author gave a very in-depth view into the personal lives of the character, their interactions, and also gave a apt description of the setting the show is in.

Personal Literary Narrative

I never failed tests. I rarely even dipped below an eighty percent. But still in front of me was my essay with 2/9 written in red ink.

It was the first week of my AP World History Class and my teacher had just announced a surprise essay. Neither I nor the other students had expected any work so early into the year. Some of my classmates already looked anxious, but I was calm. I knew essays were a strong point of mine so I was determined to kick off the year with a good grade. My teacher slid the essay prompt to me and I began. The concept was straightforward enough, I just had to analyze 7 short historical documents to answer the essay question. Quickly I started writing. Within a few minutes I had my thesis pinned and was beginning to craft the supporting arguments. I identified the 3 articles that were the most useful and launched a highly detailed analysis of each. After finishing the body paragraphs I seamlessly began the conclusion, retouching upon all my previously made points. Before I knew it the allotted 50 minutes had passed. Being left handed the side of my fist was dry from being covered in graphite dust. I viewed it almost as a badge of honor; it was proof I had pressed out 3 pages so quickly. With my left hand I confidently brought my essay to the front of the class and put it in the pile that was reluctantly being filled by my classmates. I left the class feeling sure that I had scored well; I must have if I had written 3 pages while others had struggled to do half that. A week passed and this confidence remained strong

Getting back my essay was a slap to the face. I looked around the class and to my minor comfort I saw everyone else had done roughly the same, with no one getting higher than a 4, but this raised the question of what it was that everyone had done incorrectly. Confused I looked through the notes my teacher had written on my essay. Every other line seemed to be crossed out in red ink. I turned to the last page and scrawled at the bottom was, "Less words, more Answers."

I was unsure what exactly my teacher meant by this but before I could ask he had already taken position at the front of the class. He looked out at us and began his lecture, "Many of you are likely wondering why your scores are so low. Well, it's because this is a technical essay. All any of you should be writing about is the answer to the prompt. When you take the AP test at the end of the year your essay grader will not care if you can write beautifully but only if you answer the question efficiently. Any inflation to your essay through useless information or excessive explanation will detract from your score. Only write what you need to."

In the wake of that day we would have another prompt assigned every month or so and each time I would try to improve, attempting to heed my teacher's advice. During the first three months my score increased only marginally, eventually raising to a 5. Although my score wasn't satisfactory it was at least passing. I tried many ways to improve my writing, everything from trying to merge sentences together, making them a little shorter, to leaving some of what I was trying to get across to implication. Eventually I found the most effective technique I could apply was removing my voice completely from my essay, only writing what the prompt asked for. Any personal commentary or insights were edited out, leaving the paper dull and devoid of personality. Ultimately whoever would grade my essay could not care less about who I am so it did not matter. It was almost insulting when my first essay using this style was returned to me. I had scored a 7/9, jumping up two whole points from my last one. Most would be overjoyed, but having distanced myself so far from my writing I could no longer take any personal pride in the improvement. I continued to practice and by the time the AP test was near I could score 8's and 9's consistently. On the day of the test I went in confident. Two months later when the results came back I found out I had gotten a perfect score. It was all thanks to technical writing.

This event impacted how I viewed and exercised literature greatly. Leading up to that essay I had always thought of good writing as descriptive and beautiful, explaining everything that could be. It opened my eyes for I had never seen writing as a tool to be used with precision, only saying what needed to be said. Ever since then I can look back on old writing that I have done and see flaws on every page. For instance in Middle School I could never leave a simple sentence alone, it had to be ornamented with metaphors and adjectives. I would write, "The tires kicked off against the road, barreling us forwards. Growing closer were starkly angular peaks, jutting out of the forest in varying shades, all unified by their icy painted caps." As is evident I described far more than necessary, even to a point where my readers might not understand what it was I was trying to describe anymore. In this case, writing, "we drove towards the ominous mountains" would be just as effective and far more efficient. Ever since I got my essay back I have actively worked to trim flowery prose like this from my writing, only using them frugally in order to make their occasional appearance powerful. Working on my technical writing has definitely helped to improve my creative writing but more importantly it has allowed me to be better prepared for the style of writing that makes up the majority of the professional world. Although creative writing is enjoyable and should be taught in schools I find technical writing to be far more important. Being able to write a concise resume or clear instructions are exercises to be done often throughout one's life but for the majority of us once we leave school we will no longer be called upon to write a descriptive sentence on how we drove towards mountains. When we look back on eras past often the famous literary works of the time springs to mind. Who can recall the post World War 1 era without Hemingway's works entering their thoughts? It is undeniable that creative writings can define time periods and are an essential asset to any society but it is far too often overlooked that it was the seemingly insignificant technical writing carried out by the average person that allowed for the societies to exist at all. For this reason I believe technical writing is the most important form of literature one can learn.

Page 138 and 141

Decisions Page 138:

Attending OC:
The decision to attend OC has made a massive impact on my daily and academic life since it essentially defines them with its schedule. The decision to go to OC over staying at my high school has also effected my social life because it changes greatly the people that I am often around. Before making the decision I had to research what classes are available here, how well they transfer to other schools, how my attendance here would affect my university applications in 2 years, and whether or not to take more than 3 classes.
When to schedule classes:
This decision effects my daily schedule because it dictates where I am and what I am doing at given times. I had to research what times each of my classes was available, determine how long it would take to drive to each one, and decide whether I wanted daily or bi-weekly classes.
Whether to study for the SAT or ACT:
This effects my academic life greatly due to its large effect on my college applications. I had to research which each respective test primarily evaluated and compare it to my strengths. Also I had to determine which one had more study material available and when each test is available to take.
What computer parts to buy:
This effects my daily life because it dictates the types of things I can perform on my computer and also how much loose change I have on me. I had to research which parts have better price to performance rations, which ones have longer life spans, which one had longer warranties, and which ones were compatible with each other.
What major to take:
This will effect my academic and daily life for the next 6 years or so due to the fact it determines which classes I will be taking in pursuit of a degree. Before making this decision I had to research median entry-level wages of fields I am interested in, the intensity of each major, grade requirements for entry to programs for each major, the versatility of each degree, and which ones will get me a job I enjoy doing.
Analysis
This chart shows academics are a priority of mine, determining the image of most of my life currently and for the next 6 years, and that computers are a hobby of mine, effecting how much spending money I have and the various tasks I can perform on my computer, such as rendering and gaming.

Page 141

http://www.anandtech.com/show/9659/fable-legends-directx-12-benchmark-analysis/6
http://www.pcgamer.com/amd-radeon-r9-fury-x-tested-not-quite-a-980-ti-killer/
Anand's analysis of the two GPUs is more effective due to its use of comprehensive graphs, videos, and concise language. Overall it is much easier to understand for new computer enthusiasts due to its varied mediums used to convey information on both GPUs. The line graphs are very easy to look at because of their white background and simple design and there clean comparison of the two products highlights the differences between the two.
To make the other site's analysis more effective I would shorten the overall amount of text to make it easier to read, alter the bar graphs to be easier to look at and larger in resolution, and also include a comprehensive explanation of the hardware specs listed for those who do not know the technical terms and acronyms. Also the bias towards the GTX 980 TI from the writer should be toned down to make the analysis a more professional, technical article.

Taking Stock of Your Writing

1. My main point is that everyone should learn how to write technically because it is an important skill to be utilized throughout everyone's life.

2. I assumed my audience would be my professor. Since she is grading my paper I made sure to make my main point clear and to keep language formal. I also made sure to incorporate advice from our text book because she is most likely grading our papers based off of many of the points the book makes.

3. The only feedback was from a classmate who gave  positive feedback so their was not to much to make use of.

4. I learned to actively try to keep the readers attention while also making sure to get the main point across and write according to the assignment. It was interesting to mix formal and personal writing styles into one essay.

5. I don't have any questions on the assignment. I think the strength of my paper is its clear progression of improvement. Also I think the message got across well. For weaknesses I think the somewhat inconsistent flow of time, a few shaky transitions, and the abrupt switch between telling the story and concluding the essay are the major ones.

Literary Narrative First Draft

I never failed tests. I rarely even dipped below an eighty percent. But still in front of me was my essay with 2/9 written in red ink.

It was the first week of my AP World History Class and my teacher had just announced a surprise essay. Neither I nor the other students had expected any work so early into the year. Some of my classmates already looked anxious, but I was calm. I knew essays were a strong point of mine so I was determined to kick off the year with a good grade. My teacher slid the essay prompt to me and I began. The concept was straightforward enough, I just had to analyze 7 short historical documents to answer the essay question. Quickly I started writing, and before I knew it the allotted 50 minutes had passed. Being left handed the side of my fist was dry from being covered in graphite dust. I viewed it almost as a badge of honor; it was proof I had pressed out 3 pages so quickly. With my left hand I confidently brought my essay to the front of the class and put it in the pile that was reluctantly being filled by my classmates. I left the class feeling sure that I had scored well; I must have if I had written 3 pages while others had struggled to do half that. A week passed and this confidence remained strong

Getting back my essay was a slap to the face. I looked around the class and to my minor comfort I saw everyone else had done roughly the same, with no one getting higher than a 4, but this rose the question of what it was that everyone had done incorrectly. Confused I looked through the notes my teacher had written on my essay. Every other line seemed to be crossed out in red ink. I turned to the last page and scrawled at the bottom was, "Less words, more Answers."

I was unsure what exactly my teacher meant by this but he had already taken position at the front of the class before I could ask. He looked out at us and began his lecture, "Many of you are likely wondering why your scores are so low, well it's because this is a technical essay and all any you should be writing about is the answer to the prompt. When you take the AP test at the end of the year your essay grader will not care if you can write beautifully but only if you answer the question efficiently. Any inflation to your essay through useless information or excessive explanation will detract from your score. Only write what you need to."

In the wake of that day we would have another prompt assigned every month or so and each time I would try to improve. During the first three months my score increased only marginally, eventually raising to a 5. Although my score wasn't satisfactory it was at least passing. I tried many ways to improve my writing, everything from trying to merge sentences together to make them a little shorter to leaving some of what I was trying to get across to implication. Eventually I found the most effective technique I could apply was removing my voice completely from my essay, only writing what the prompt asked for because ultimately whoever would grade it could not care less about who I am. It was almost insulting when my first essay using this style was returned to me. I had scored a 7/9, jumping up 2 whole points from my last one. Most would be overjoyed, but having distanced myself so far from my writing I could no longer take any personal pride in the improvement. I continued to practice and by the time the AP was near I could score 8's and 9's consistently. On the day of the test I went in confident. 2 months later when the scores came back I found out I had gotten a perfect score, and it was all thanks to technical writing.

This event impacted how I viewed and exercised literature greatly. Leading up to that essay I had always thought of good writing as descriptive and beautiful, explaining everything that could be. It opened my eyes for I had never seen writing as a tool to be used with precision, only saying what needed to be said. Ever since then I can look back on old writing that I have done and see flaws on every page. For instance in Middle School I could never leave a simple sentence alone, it had to be filled with metaphors and adjectives. I would write, "The tires kicked off against the road, barreling us forwards. Growing closer were starkly angular peaks, jutting out of the forest in varying shades, all unified by their icy painted peaks." As is evident I described far more than necessary, even to a point where my readers might not understand what it was I was trying to describe anymore. In this case, writing, "we drove towards the ominous mountains" would be just as effective and far more efficient. Ever since I got my essay back I have actively worked to trim flowery prose like this from my writing, only using them frugally in order to make their occasional appearance powerful. Working on my technical writing has definitely helped to improve my creative writing but more importantly it has allowed me to be better prepared for the style of writing that makes up the majority of the professional world. Although creative writing is enjoyable and should be taught in schools I find technical writing to be far more important. Being able to write a concise resume or clear instructions are exercises to be done often throughout one's life but for the majority of us once we leave school we will no longer be called upon to write a descriptive sentence on how we drove towards mountains. For this reason I believe technical writing is an important life skill for everyone to learn.

5 Characteristic Features

In my personal narrative I will be writing on how I learned to become a more efficient writer. It will be focused around the event of how I scored poorly on a technical essay and how I struggled to improve at writing efficiently in a short amount of time. It will take place entirely inside a History Class room. It will be told from a first person perspective and will remain that way throughout its entirety. The point of my story is to emphasize how important technical writing is as an asset to everyone.

Literacy: A Lineage

The author immediately declares how important her father was to her path to literacy, indicating that these two elements are the focus of the story.    Page 132 Paragraph 1

She gives great detail to her story by including the poem at the bottom of the bell tower, making the tale feel real to the reader.    Page 132 Paragraph 2

The passage of time is made clear as the author accounts how her father has began to come less often to the bell tower. It is also implied that her love for literature has grown since she will go to the bell tower alone to recite the poem in any weather.    Page 133 Paragraph 2

She fleshes out her fathers character by repeating some of the quotes he loved to say the most.
Page 133 Paragraph 4

The perspective switches to first person as she tells of how her and her family went to the library.
Page 134 Paragraph 3

Using her relative unfamiliarity with French, she develops her point that tradition is an important part of appreciating a language, hence her preference for English.    Page 135 Paragraph 2

In the final paragraph she declares the stories message, that the tradition her father passed on to her is what made her truly literate.
Page 136 Paragraph 1

1.”She described it as “rushing like the Colorado River.” She knew that if she went outside, she would be swept up in the current and drown. There was no one in sight.” Page 129, Paragraph 3

2.”After about a year of waiting, I hereby tender my unqualified resignation.” Page 121, Paragraph 5

3.”Her tongue became dry and her lips were cracked, but she only was aware of being terrified of the water.” Page 130, Paragraph 2

“The chemical odor of a cleaning solution so strong that it seemed toxic.” Page 128, Paragraph 2

“We found the inside uncomfortably cold from air conditioning.” Page 128 Paragraph 2

4. Learning how to write efficiently for Standardized Testing

Discovering new genres of books

Learning to type quickly on a keyboard

5. In my story I want to tell how I became an efficient technical writer in the days leading up to an AP World History Test. My narrative will serve somewhat as a lesson to those who inflate their writing but it will mostly just be myself reflecting on my past, hopefully in an interesting manner.

6. My audiences consists of workers, students, and a professor so they will be able to relate to the message of my narrative, which is the necessity of technical writing. I will have to do a fair amount of explaining but seeing as most of them have been in a similar situation I can leave a lot implied.

7. I plan to favor a neutral tone with self-criticism mixed in. I want my readers to see me as someone who has learned from my mistakes.

8. This narrative will be displayed in print and on a blog so I will keep my type face generic and clear since doing otherwise would not add to my message.

9. The walls are thin and tan. Motivational posters hang. From the window an empty parking lot can be seen. Students hunched over their papers, just as I am, are in sight.

10. The room is mostly silent as classrooms often are during an essay. The scratch of pencils is continuous and the shuffle of papers a bit less so. Occasionally a student will sigh in frustration as they watch the allotted time dwindle.

11. I don’t remember any smells from the time.

12. I feel anxious but I am far too focused writing to give time to it. The left side of my left hand feels dry and discolored by the graphite it has been dragged along for the past thirty minutes.

13. I don’t remember any tastes from the time.

14. My teacher speaks concisely as he outlines the criteria of the essay. He is dressed semi formally and his expression is almost sympathetic as he gazes at those who had not expected an essay in the first week.

15. “You only have one hour to write, get to the point and don’t explain anything the prompt doesn’t ask for. The person reviewing your essay does not care if you can write beautiful prose.”

16. He handed back my essay and I let it slide across the table before I turned it over. On the top in red ink was a two, but the essay was scored out of nine. I was stunned, I could not remember the last time I got a failing grade on an essay, but I was not discouraged. I looked around myself and saw that others had received similar scores, but it did not console me. I was determined to know what it was that merited this score, my writing had been descriptive and flowing. Gazing on the pages I looked at the red marks that crossed out seemingly every other line I had written. At the end of the essay the teacher had left a note, “only write what you need to”.

17. This event was impactful for me to say the least. Leading up to that moment I had always thought of good writing as descriptive and beautiful, explaining everything that could be. It opened my eyes for I had never seen writing as a tool to be used with precision, only saying what needed to be said. Ever since then I can look back on old writing that I have done and see flaws on every page. For instance in middle school I could never leave a subject alone, it had to be attached to metaphors and adjectives. I would write, “The tires kicked off against the road, barreling us forwards. Growing closer were angular peaks that jutted out of the forest in varying shades of blue, all capped in an icy paint.” As is evident I described far more than necessary and added essentially nothing to my narrative since it was one about hiking, not driving towards mountains. In this case “We drove towards the mountains” would be just as effective and far more concise. I actively make an effort now to trim flowery proses, only using them occasionally, from my writing because they serve little purpose and will sometimes even detract from a narrative. In my previous example I spent so much time trying to describe driving towards mountains aesthetically that one might not be sure what it was that I had wrote about in the first place. When description reaches a point where it hinders the ability of writing to convey a message it should be removed.