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Essay 3

In my third essay for this class, I begin with a lengthy introduction summarizing the main points of my essay. For the most part, my body paragraphs follow the same train of thought as my introduction. To start, I introduce the history of standards based education and high stakes testing beginning 30 years ago, and what decisions and perceptions ultimately led to the education system based on standardized tests seen today. In looking at the current system, I first review the idea of high stakes testing and discuss research done on the negative impacts high stakes testing through accountability pressure and other factors, keeping in mind the main arguments of testing advocates. I also talk about how these factors influence teachers and students directly in the classroom. I then lay out various other problem associated with the current system of high stakes standardized testing and how results of these tests can easily be misinterpreted, how teachers feel about these tests, and so on. Finally, I lay out the steps experts in educational reform believe will fix some of the problems seen in the United States' current educational system and present my argument against high stakes testing in favor of a new approach including investment in music education and music in the classroom and how research and literature shows it can benefit students and teachers. My argument relies heavily on literature to support the main points presented throughout the essay, and I tried to present a well thought out, persuasive argument that makes sense. 

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Logos in Politics

There are various assumptions being made over the course of the video that make this a rational appeal. For one, this politician is clearly under the assumption that the residents of Alabama watching this video speak English as their primary language. The is apparent in the first statement made in this video, "This is Alabama, we speak English." This statement in itself is an example of an inconsistency in his facts. Obviously their are people residing in Alabama that come from different backgrounds and don't necessarily speak English as their first language. One way the speaker tries to make his argument seem reasonable to the targeted audience is by directly addressing this specific demographic in the advertisement from the very beginning and appealing to them by generalizing the state's demographic as a whole as English speakers. In reality, as previously stated, not all voters in Alabama are English speakers, although the majority or target audience for this commercial may be. Following this generalization, the politician again makes an effort to make his argument sound reasonable and fair to the target audience, saying that since the assumption is made that "people in Alabama speak English", it is justifiable and reasonable to make all residents of Alabama learn English for their drivers license test. This kind of reasoning is essentially saying, since English is the language everyone in Alabama speaks and is a part of our way of life, if you don't know it and you want to come to this state and drive, you have to learn it. In addition to the obvious generalizations that make this argument seem justifiable, the politician points to business as the potential reason why this test is made available in many different languages, when in reality this is a misleading claim because there could be completely different reasons for this. One reason I find this commercial to be surprising is because of the ever-increasing cultural diversity in the United States. Immigrants are what make up this country, and in coming years it will be expected that populations such as Hispanics will see a large increase in our country. This being said, it will be increasingly important for politicians to adopt a more culturally diverse attitude to attract more potential voters. 

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Is the Internet becoming an invasion of privacy?

An article written by Bruce Schneier on Cnn.com addresses a serious security concern affecting essentially everyone who uses the internet. Companies like Google, Facebook, and Apple have the ability to track users in a variety of ways including through their email, cell phone, web browser, and and search engines. Additionally, it is becoming so easy for us to be tracked that it's virtually impossible to have any sort of anonymity. We, as consumers, have little choice in the matter. The things we do on on the internet, for example, on a daily basis are being recorded, collected, studied, and  passed to companies who find this information to be relevant. The lack of privacy on the internet is a problem that hasn't been addressed appropriately and is here whether we like it or not. 

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Justification

The topic I am planning on writing on is the use and abuse of prescription drugs in the United States. This is a problem that affects not only the people who are abusing these drugs, but also everyone involved in the creation and distribution of these drugs, the doctors and other health professionals who prescribe these drugs, the friends and family of those facing addiction to these drugs, the people who are prescribed the drugs, and the lawmakers who make laws and try to limit the abuse of these drugs, among others. The main reason this topic is important is because prescription drugs are the most widely abused drugs in the United States besides marijuana for essentially all age groups, and prescription drug abuse has been classified as an epidemic by the CDC. Not only is addressing this problem a priority for public health, but also is an essential step in helping those abusing these kinds of drugs find resources to help them overcome addiction and lead healthier, more productive lives. The reason I chose to write about this topic is because I know many young people personally who are dealing with addiction to prescription drugs and I have seen how these drugs can change lives of those addicted. These drugs are no different from the street drugs more commonly associated with "drug addiction", they are just chemically altered variants of these drugs that are produced by pharmaceutical companies. Two things that I know to be true are that abusable prescription drugs are readily available to anyone who wants to pay for them and that these drugs are highly addictive and can be extremely difficult to quit. In order for this problem to be addressed effectively, the problem must be tackled at multiple levels. The most common ways these drugs are abused is through the improper prescription of these drugs by health professionals to those who don't actually need them and through the distribution of these drugs by prescription holders to family and friends. Some serious thought will need to be given to how these kinds of prescription drugs are prescribed and distributed to prescription holders in order to limit the availability of these drugs to potential abusers. Personal privacy concerns will also need to be addressed because no one is going to want someone standing over their shoulder telling them when to take their own drugs. These are all important factors to consider in my lit review, but I will make my focus the way in which these drugs are created and why they are legal, but basically identical street drugs aren't. 

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Google Glass

The latest technology from Google, called Google Glass, will revolutionize the lives of many. If you haven't heard of this, it's basically a durable, lightweight headset that sees what you see and can instantaneously share information, take a picture or video on demand, give you directions you can see literally right in front of you, translate things for you, send messages, answer questions, and provides relevant information such as your flight status, among other things. In the modern world where the processing of sharing of information is a part of everyday life, this special technology from Google will allow you to share, learn, ask questions, and much more on the go. One question that may need to be considered given this new technology is how will this technology impact our lives? The age of smart phones has already resulted in a revolution in the way we process and share information, everyone now has a smartphone and at the click of a button can share information with others and communicate in ways that were previously impossible. This is great, but is it changing the way we communicate in general? On a separate weekly post, I wrote about how technology is changing the way we interact with others. Nowadays it's more common to send a text message than talk to someone in person, and seemingly in every social situation the majority of the time is spent checking our phones. Sure, it will be cool to wear these glasses and be able to take advantage of the functionality, but at what cost to human interaction? 

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Prescription Drug Abuse in the United States

Most Americans take the medicines they are prescribed by their doctor for legitimate health related reasons. However, it's estimated that about 20% of Americans have used prescription drugs for non-medical reasons. The prescription drugs in question can be highly addictive, and generally include narcotic painkillers, stimulants, and sedatives/tranquilizers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has classified prescription drug abuse as an epidemic. Research also suggests that individuals 12 and older are now much more likely to have first abused a prescription drug than in previous years, while the use of drugs like Cocaine has seen a marked decrease in recent years. Statistics from research also point out that many people are getting ahold of these prescription drugs from a family member or friend. 

There are various issues associated with prescription drug abuse besides just the obvious potential health risks that spur from prescription drug abuse. What research has made clear is that abusable prescription drugs are readily accessible by Americans of all ages. If our country wants to combat the epidemic, serious consideration will need to be given to the way in which these prescription drugs make their way into the hands of non-prescription holders; fundamental privacy and personal responsibility concerns will also have to be addressed. Additionally, treatment options and various other resources will need to be made available for those facing addiction to prescription drugs. Another issue to consider is the rising number of young people in America who are exposed to prescription drug abuse, pointing out the obvious need to inform kids about the abuse of prescription drugs, hopefully preventing them from abusing these drugs in the future. Prescription drug abuse is a large, growing problem in our country and needs to be addressed on various levels.

There are many stakeholders associated with prescription drug abuse in our country, the most obvious being the prescription drug companies themselves. Since the prescription drugs in question account for such a large amount of money for drug companies, these companies obviously have a big stake in the business and will be greatly affected by any legislation or actions by our country to address the problem. Another stakeholder is the federal government, which will be the one coming up with and enforcing legislation to combat this problem. The people who abuse the drugs as well as the family of those who do obviously also have a stake in the issue. 

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What Your Tax Dollars Pay For

In an article posted yesterday by CNN, details emerged about what the news station has deemed a "rash of sexting" among FBI employees on Tax-Dollar funded cellular devices. The extent of the problem involves not only sending lurid text messages between employees, but also the sharing of nude photographs with coworkers and engaging in prostitution. One such incident involving involved an FBI employee, drunk, at his mistresses house in a scene of a domestic dispute. Another employee visited a massage parlor where they had prearranged to pay for a sexual favor from the masseuse. This kind of behavior is obviously unacceptable for FBI employees, and the fact that it happened inside and outside of the workplace means the employees may not have been doing their job. It is also surprising that many of these employees only received temporary suspensions, despite the fact that there is have been many similar incidents occuring in recent years. It seems like an organization like the FBI shouldn't even be having to deal with these type of issues. I would only want the best, hardest working people possible to be responsible for the duties carried out by the FBI.

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Stasis Theory and "The Elusive Big Idea"

The first main point laid out in the article is the changing perception of what an idea is. Gabler suggests in the article that ideas aren't what they used to be, and starts to talk about the impact of what ideas used to be. The impact of an idea is what results from the creation of that idea, whether that be the societal response to the idea, controversy resulting from the idea, how that idea changes the perception of others, or whatever else results from it. In modern society, big, thought provoking ideas are given less value. What Gabler is really talking about are the big, thought provoking, encompassing ideas like Einstein's theory of relativity that sparked controversy and debate and revolutionized society.

In our technologically advanced society today the amount of information made available to the general public is more than ever, but even with this abundance of information little is gained unless the information is converted into something useful to us. However in today's world, society seems to be more focused on obtaining information instead of taking the information, processing it, and transforming it into something new. This is probably a bad thing, because new ideas can be useful and revolutionary. One other thing to consider is that modern day societal conventions are essentially unchallenged, with little radical or different ideas having the ability to obtain any sort of traction to compete with them. What is for sure is that more and more information will flood into the internet and our society as time goes on. With no one to think about this information and create thought provoking new ideas, and no one who cares to hear them, the days of intellectual thinkers who transformed this information into something new and important are over. The right course of action to address this pertinent problem hasn't been determined, but what is for sure is that if nothing is done the problem will only grow as the age of not thinking gains steam. 

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Weekly Post - Technology and its Impact on Society

In the first world today, technology is becoming an increasingly important aspect of everyone's lives. Gone are the days when not everyone had access to internet on their mobile device. For better or worse, our society is also becoming increasingly dependent on technology. One area of life where the impact of technology is most apparent is our social lives. The other day, I went out for dinner with someone. One habit I noticed myself doing over and over was constantly checking my phone instead of paying attention to what really was important at the time, the person I was with. I found that I actually had to force myself to keep my phone down and maintain a conversation with the person. The worst part was, once I started doing it, the other person did too. This made me realize that the days of talking face to face with someone the majority of the time are over.  One negative result of our increasingly technology-dependent society is the lack of a true face-to-face relationship, which in my opinion is essential to a healthy and real relationship. If you don't look someone in the eyes when you talk to them, for example, the emotional connection is lacking. Our mobile society affects everyone, and it's impact is global. People need to take a step back and think about how the use of technology has impacted their lives in a significant way. 

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Peer Review Letter

To Whom It May Concern,

My name is Harper Anderson. I’m your peer, and my job in this letter is to provide the most helpful feedback I possibly can give. I hope through the feedback I give you will know exactly where your essay needs work and can make the necessary improvements. The first thing that struck me in your introduction paragraph was the lack of an actual thesis or reading of the text you wrote about. Although you did offer some context and plot summary, you didn't lay out the main points of the essay or introduce me to what you are planning on talking about. This is an essential first step to formulating your essay. Once you figure out what you want to analyze or discuss, I would try to restructure your essay and find evidence to help support your argument or reading of the text. One additional thing I would point out is the excessive amount of plot summary you use in your essay. Although some plot summary is ok, you don't need to summarize the entirety of the text in your essay, just the aspects of the text you are referencing/ talking about. 

One potential area you could expand on in your essay is the "virtual groups" existent in the cyberspace. From what I read in your essay, these virtual groups are very different in what they stand for and what their purpose is. You could potentially expand on these cyberspace groups and talk about how the differ. There are also some significant events that occur in the plot of the text you are writing about, you can talk about these and why they are significant. 

Overall, I would focus on restructuring your essay and figuring out what you want to analyze or talk about in the text you wrote about. You talk about what happens in the essay, but think about why the things that happen happen, what the author of the essay was trying to say in their work, and how it relates to you or your personal experience. Just look at what you wrote and try to formulate an argument, then work from there and find effective evidence to support your reading of the text. 

Sincerely,

Harper Anderson

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Malcolm X Speech Response

The first things that I noticed when listening to the speech was the large audience and political and religious connotations of what Malcolm X was talking about. This man is a Black, Muslim minister who is the forefront of a radical, black supremacist movement of the civil rights era. However, there is more to the speech than just this, Malcolm X was at the forefront of the civil rights movement as well and in the speech he delves into the topics of segregation, freedom from religious persecution, and racism apparent in the United States. Malcolm X himself was a witness of all of these things, his dad and uncle being victims of hate crimes and X himself dealing with the racial injustices all around him.

Another thing I noticed was how engaged and motivated the largely black audience was to what Malcolm X was trying to get across. When listening, I could almost envision myself in the audience being captivated by the revolutionary man that Malcolm X was. The words of X clearly had a profound effect on the audience, and this is apparent simply from listening to the speech. One thing that X did especially well in the speech was drawing together the audience as one, saying that they all have a commonality between them, that being the color of their skin. He also pointed out the necessity of political activism in the black population, which was obviously extremely important because the audience was clearly uninformed and uninvolved politically. Another important point X made was that the black community needed to unify and work together to achieve a common goal. By unifying the community and talking about basic steps that needed to be taken by the Black community, X gives them a real plan of action and a means of achieving it.

My response to the Malcolm X speech is largely a result of my background knowledge of black history, the civil rights movement, the man that Malcolm X was, and my much different religious upbringing in the 90's as a Roman Catholic. This obviously shapes my perception of Malcolm X. 

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Graffiti

Graffiti is defined as writing or drawing scribbled, scratched, or sprayed illicitly on a wall or other surface in a public place. Graffiti has dated back to the ancient Roman empire. The graffiti piece seen above was done by my cousin in Santa Fe, NM. I bet you wouldn't have guessed he's also a government contractor in his work life working as a chief systems technician. When people think about graffiti, usually the first thing that comes to mind is that it's illegal. However, people like my cousin actually get paid to do their art on predetermined walls or canvases. Also, graffiti isn't easy to do. In order to produce the amount of tedious detail found in the graffiti work of my cousin, the spray paint used in the process must come out of the can in a specific way to produce a specific visual effect in the artwork. This process can take days, weeks, or even months. 

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Senseless Violence

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/23/us/texas-college-shooting/index.html?hpt=hp_bn1

After numerous school shootings in the past several months, including the horrific rampage in Newtown, another completely unnecessary act of senseless violence in Houston, Texas left 3 wounded and more unanswered questions for the United States and its failed gun control policies. Harris County Sheriff Adrian Garcia cast the blame on the "immaturity" and "stupidity" of the suspects, who decided to settle a personal dispute with a campus shootout. In the article, CNN presents just the facts about the situation in Texas. In doing so, the news organization maintains its reputation as being objective and unbiased, also appealing to a large potential audience, but really offers no context of the underlying problems the United States is facing. Telling the story is easy, working to find a solution to the problem . This article's audience is people around the world, but especially US citizens, who watch as our radicalized Congress and lobbying organizations butt heads in an attempt to quell the recent outbreak of senseless violence with gun control legislation. However, besides gun control and congressional immobility, factors like mental health also important to the overlying problem. This issue is one that is not going to be resolved easily and will take cooperation, courage, and action by our country.