should all drugs be legalized? (argue: all drugs should be legalized on a federal level.) 

1) An online article titled "10 Years Ago Portugal Legalized All Drugs -- What Happened Next?", states that "drug use has plunged dramatically," when the rest of the world had originally predicted absolute disaster.

http://www.alternet.org/story/151635/ten_years_ago_portugal_legalized_all_drugs_--_what_happened_next

2) According to online magazine Urban75, prohibition is useless and only costs tax payers money.

http://www.urban75.com/Drugs/drugten.html

3) According to online magazine The Week, "prohibition enforcement also encourages infringements on civil liberties... and racial profiling...". They further state that racial profiling occurs "despite similar drug use rates."

http://theweek.com/articles/445005/why-all-drugs-should-legal-yes-even-heroin

Works Cited

Miron, Jeffery. "Why All Drugs Should Be Legal. (Yes, Even Heroin.)." Why All Drugs Should Be Legal. (Yes, Even Heroin.). The Week, 28 July 2014. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.

O'Neil, Tony. "Ten Years Ago Portugal Legalized All Drugs -- What Happened Next?" Alternet. The Fix, 14 July 2011. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.

"10 Reasons to Legalise All Drugs. Legalising and Declassifying Drugs." 10 Reasons to Legalise All Drugs. Legalising and Declassifying Drugs. Urban75, n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2015.

Comparing Articles with Sprigg's

When we compared our articles with Spriggs’ essay we all noticed that they all relate in a clear and explicit position that they stood by the whole time. They all had responses to what other people had said about the subject. Some of the differences were that an essay by Sophia A. McClennon was that she made general assumptions of information and didn’t have much specific evidence to support her statements in attempting to argue her position. There was a “straw man” appeal in one part of her text. In an article by Sean McElwee, he took a position on abolishing the death penalty. He had good examples of both sides but had a strong opinion on abolishing the sentence because he feels it is unjust. He used statistics and facts to help him have a strong position and to help us see how he feels. He used a lot of compares/contrasts to other Countries and how there have been a number of people in prison being proven to be killed by the death sentence but they turn out to be innocent. We noticed that the essays that were most compelling were the ones that effectively utilized other sources of information other than their own opinions, and the ethos of these articles were better established by those who did “their homework”.

3rd paper topic ideas (argument paper)

• gun control
• legalization of marijuana
• mac vs. microsoft

In-class labS: How Things Mean/Reading sources Critically

Reading sources critically:

1. What arguments does the author make?

• He argued that no other race should say the N word at all and that if you are in any kind of group that has an offensive label then you are the only person that can say the offensive label, and if you are outside of the group then it is not your place to say it.

2.    How persuasive do you find the argument?

• There is historical evidence of the argument he expressed, like how the term was used back in the day and how degrading it was and how “white folk” shouldn’t call their friends the N-word loosely. There really isn’t any citations or links, it was just Tim Wise at what it seemed a conference. He was citing that there actually is history how the term was used and it was offensive and how he sees people throw the word around when it shouldn’t be.

3. What is the author’s stance?

• He does use multiple examples of different types of people, “Black folk”, Redneck and also about him being Jewish, he didn’t only talk about the N word. He did have a particular bias about no one using terms that are derogatory or offensive even if they think it may not be offensive, people of that certain group like being a redneck can call themselves and others that but not people that are not redneck is what he says. He is using only one viewpoint saying that terms calling people a certain name isn’t okay.

4. Does the publisher bring a certain stance to the work?

• He brought up Jeff Foxworthy and how really all he talks about when he is doing comedy is redneck jokes and it is okay for him to do that because he is from the South and he actually is a redneck and he calls himself one so it is okay, if a different comedian Jerry Seinfeld were to crack jokes publicly then it is not okay.

5. Do you recognize ideas you’ve run across in other sources?

• Yes white people cannot say the N word. It should be common sense not to use offensive words like that.

6. Does this source support or challenge your own position -or does it do both?

• This source would support our own positions, we do not say the N word, or any other derogatory words that we know would offend or make others feel bad.

7. What can you tell about the intended audience and purpose?

• The intended audience would most likely be anyone actually because he does not only talk white people or black people the main purpose is to inform everybody of how to not be racist and to watch what you say, don’t use offensive terms and all people need to be aware that people do get offended by what others say and not to say words about labeling people in an offensive way.

Symbols of Patriotism

• What do they suggest? How do they suggest it? Which elements of each image work on the viewer in various ways?
• Eagle: the eagle has an outline of the US on it’s face and the US is covered by a picture of our flag. It suggests extreme patriotism just because it has 3 elements of our country that are core to our physical identity. This works on the viewer in various ways. It just screams America.
• Bulldog: The bulldog is a symbol of power for Great Britain. In this picture it’s in an English setting; a nice park on a lovely afternoon. It looks like he’s standing on the flag, so the whole thing reminds us of a protective guard dog, protecting the nation’s flag.
• Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite: These three words date back to the founding of France as a nation. The fact that they are enshrined in a building shows just how deep and long-lasting the meaning that those words have on the French. The words will never go away.

Peace Sign Buttons

• What do they suggest? How do they suggest it? Which elements of each image work on the viewer in various ways?
• Peace/Make Love Not War: There’s so much war in the world, these buttons suggest that we don’t need to keep fighting and that we can be happy with the Love and Peace that we have. They suggest that we have the power to change violent trends in our society. The circles of the button give the viewers a more complete feel, very inclusive.

Thesis: Both sets of pictures have powerful connotations to them although they represent two entirely different things.

Arguing a Position In Class Lab: Kayla, Laura, Charlotte p. 66

Ad 1:

• How does it appeal to you or why does it fail to appeal?
• Because even though some people do not stand for abortion or do not like it at all that is not what Planned Parenthood is about. It is for the importance of women to make their own choices about their own bodies and Planned Parenthood could be helping them even if individual people don’t agree.

• What kinds of words, images or sounds does it use as support for its position?
• This ad uses words like “fight, choices and mores” to show that people are fighting to get rid of a group who supports women when they really have no other choice in their mind and go to planned parenthood when they need help. Using these words help support its position because they state that the fight against planned parenthood is not about abortion because abortion is not everything that planned parenthood is about, the fight is really about women’s own sexual choices and their own mores.
• If you were going to revise it for a different audience, what would you do?
• If I were someone that is against planned parenthood I would not talk about women’s own sexual choices and mores, I would just bring up the abortions because that is what most people that are against planned parenthood are actually against, they are not against women having their own choices but the fact that women choose to have abortions.

• If you were going to create it in another medium, how would it be different?
• I would make this a short video with a young woman saying this exact sentence and looking straight at the camera. She would continue on and talk about how women’s sexual choices and mores are subject to change depending on the person. She would make it clear that there are no ‘right’ sexual choices or mores. That those kinds of questions (what is sexually correct and incorrect?) are complicated depending on the individual who is asking. She would make it further clear that no one in the world should have the right to tell women what is correct and incorrect to do with their bodies.

Ad 2:

• How does it appeal to your or why does it fail to appeal?
• Because the wording is so cut and dry. They stand with Planned Parenthood. The position they took is one in support of the organization.
• What kinds of words, images. or sounds does it use as support for its position?
• The words “I stand with Planned Parenthood” are in a speech bubble, making the statement personal to the reader. It makes it so that it is as if YOU are the person who stands with Planned Parenthood. The hashtag links the support of Planned Parenthood to something bigger; social media. The hashtag lets people know that the stance with Planned Parenthood is more of a movement than anything else.
• If you were going to revise it for a different audience, what would you do?
• If I were going to revise it for an audience that did not support Planned Parenthood I would add the words ‘DO NOT’ after ‘I’.
• If you were going to create it in another medium, how would it be different?
• If it was a poster or a billboard or a sign on the street I would make the background not bright pink, but a metalic, reflective surface so that when the viewer looked at the speech bubble, their face would be reflected right next to the words. So that it looks like the speech bubble is coming out of their mouths.

Ad 3:

• How does it appeal to you or why does it fail to appeal?
• In the ad below, Planned Parenthood has taken a story of a real woman and her journey, and how they helped her along the way. It appeals in a real, raw way that can be related to others, because it is purely true.
• What kinds of words, images, or sounds does it use as support for its position?
• It uses words such as “save” and “life” in the same sentence, which itself gets your attention. The image of this lady and her expression shows the power of Planned Parenthood and how they were able to help her. If this were a digital or video ad, it could use clips of her in her everyday life, and how this journey has beneficially helped her.
• If you were going to revise it for a different audience, what would you do?
• It depends on the audience directed, but if for example an audience that didn’t   support Planned Parenthood, I would have a different story for this ad, one that more people can relate to.  
• If you were going to create it in another medium, how would it be different?
• With this ad being from a true story, this could easily be changed to a video or commercialized ad. This woman could explain her story and how Planned Parenthood helped her, with her own words, her own emotions, and her own story.

Bibliography

“Planned Parenthood.” Advertisement. Planned Parenthood Planned Parenthood. 5 Nov. 2015. Print.

Arguing a Position p. 62 Response

I've taken a position on

• the presidential election
• whether marijuana should be legal or not in all states
• whether my hair look good or not
• whether my outfit is good or not
• the tv shows that I like or dislike
• the movies that I like or dislike
• if men and women should be equal in all aspects of life 
• what MLS team I want to win: Sounders FC
• what football team I want to win: Seahawks

People around me take positions on:

• the presidential election
• whether they will walk, drive or bike to work
• whether they like the people they associate themselves with or not (friends)
• who will win the world series
• who to pick for a Fantasy Football team
• whether to practice nonviolence or not 
• whether it's gentlemanly or oppressive to pay for a meal/open the car door/open doors...etc 

Ad Presentation - Media Violence (Laura, Kayla, Sarah, Elia)

http://www.jameswon.ca/node/9

Summary: The ad we chose shows a young boy and a doll, with a knife stabbed into it.This advertisement combines two extremes: disturbing violence and pictures of children. This portrays the negative effects of a stereotypically ‘innocent’ individual like a child being corrupted by violent imagery in media and TV. Showing these two kinds of images side by side contrasts something so negative and something so innocent in a way that incites feelings of protection and fear for young children in the viewer.

Paraphrase: When children are exposed to violent media, they can become violent themselves.

Quote: “Well over a 1000 studies...point overwhelmingly to a causal connection between media violence and aggressive behavior in some children”

1. James Won is the creator of the ad.
2. It is intended for parents and guardians to see how violent media effects children and how it isn’t harmless like they might think to show children frightening movies at a young age. Children don’t know right from wrong, and with the ability to see movies with violence and negative aspects, it gives some children a false portrayal on how citizens should act, what is appropriate, and what is not.
3. We can tell that this ad is intended for parents because it involves children and toys and how something as accessible as violence on TV can be a “gateway” for them to do violent acts.
4. The purpose is to warn parents that violent TV and movies can really affect their children from a young age, and that changing the way violent media is viewed can change their attitude towards the violent TV that children have access to.
5. James Won works towards the purpose with powerful imagery and a knowledgeable quote that draws a scientific line between what they are trying to prove and what they’re trying to get people to believe.
6. Red and black jagged writing gives the ad a very ‘dangerous’ kind of feel. They use images of small children and children's toys mixed with very violent images to destroy this idea of innocence within them.
7. As a group, these ads try to change the general public's attitude and realization towards media violence to one that is not so casual with it because in our society, they’d argue at least, that media violence leads to greater numbers of children with overly aggressive behavior.

Literacy Narrative Essay: Reading Books

I remember how over the summer we had to keep Reading Logs. I read over 60 books in one summer. I would read non-stop, for hours on end until I had finished the novel, or finished the series. I spent so much time reading and would completely envelope myself into whatever plot I had chosen to succumb to for the day. Books were my safe haven. They provided an escape to a comparatively boring life; one that completely lacked certain creatures, certain people, the certain friends that could only be brought to life via the vivid hallucinations that one has and feels when reading the words off a well-written page. My memory fades as I grow older, but the influence of all those different plots remains implanted into my very being. Reading all sorts of books instilled in me the value of a storyline. They instilled in me the value and power of emotion. Of feeling. Reading books while growing up, I think, helped teach me about the varying complexities of humanity in ways that one simply can’t experience in real life. They taught me to take control of my own life. I am my own life’s author. Books may works of fiction, but that doesn’t make the reading experience any less real. Books are a powerful and good escape to the horrors of our reality.

I’m in Japan. Downtown Tokyo. Train station. I’m sitting on top of my suitcase. It’s probably in the mid-nineties. I’m 10. Ugh. It’s so hot; I’m sweating. My dad brings us back a bento box with tempura and a perfectly cut ham sandwich. Two triangles of perfect looking white-bread. Crust is cut off. Japanese bento boxes are the best thing ever. Dad hands me a bottle of water. I’m so thirsty. I finish the bento box and bottle of water in record time. And then I go back to what I’d been doing in our waiting time between modes of transportation. Little House of the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  This is one of my most vivid memories while being in Japan. Traveling throughout the country and reading all her books. They took up a majority of my time in the first couple weeks of my 2 month stay in Japan.

I’m in our green Toyota mini van. We’re passing through Portland on our way to San Diego. The landscape outside is rolling hills of golden wheat. It’s a beautiful sight. The air conditioning is on, so we’re all at a perfectly comfortable temperature. I read through book after book on the 23 hour ride down to San Diego. I think it’s been 45 minutes and it’s been 6 hours. I cry a couple times. Reading in the car to pass the hours away.

I think it was The Phantom Tollbooth by Jules Feiffer. They were about to confront another intense riddle and all I remember is being shaken violently on my shoulder by my little sister.

“CHARLOTTE. DINNER TIME.”

I had been reading so intensely that I did not hear my name that had been being called for the past 5 minutes straight. I didn’t even have headphones on or anything. It almost feels like I’m hallucinating when I’m reading; I get so into the plot. Does that happen to you?

I don’t know how to begin to describe the feeling of living in a book. And I must confess, I seem to have lost my creative energy for reading. Not to say that it can’t be gotten back. But I miss the nights where I could be so enthralled by a plot that I stay up all night to finish reading it. I would argue that reading books keeps the mind sharp. In order to correctly read a book you must be able to get into the a plot. You must be able to relate to the characters and feel with and for them as a friend and as a helpless bystander. You can only read and watch as the story unfolds before you.

Reading a lot of books exposes you to the spectrum of human emotion. It makes you really think about the complexities between all of the characters. You become friends with them. At least that’s how it feels to me. It’s an experience. You can feel different lives. You can feel the intense sorrow of death. You can feel the heat of love and flirtation. You can feel and understand desperation and see how the inner workings of maniacs and villians and heroes and heroines work. You get know know the minds of so many people that you never thought you would.  It is an experience. Books can be life-shaping and life-changing. It’s beautiful.

Books and their stories have been there for me and in my darkest times. I’m not going to talk about how much they help the rest of the world since this is more of a personal narrative assignment. That said. Depression is a human thing. I’d argue that Humans suffer from Depression. Depression has taken the lives of countless individuals and it’s devastating that we as a society don’t discuss mental health issues in a brighter, more open-minded and cooperative light. All this said, I think books are a very powerful, therapeutic tool. Like I stated before, books transport the mind to a different place. They give you a break from our own heartbreaking reality. On bad days I’d force myself out of bed eventually, make my way to the shower. Then I’d kick back with a cup of tea and a good book and just lose myself.

I have lost my love of reading in the past couple years. High school really just takes that out of you if you’re not careful. Reading doesn’t become a leisure activity. It becomes required and it becomes a painful activity that you are dragged to do. At least that’s how it was in my case. And since then, my attention span has gotten worse. I haven’t read a book for fun in ages and because of that I think my mind has untrained itself to sustain prolonged period of thought like that. I need to retrain my brain. I am a walking warning to other growing children and even adults. My depression has gotten worse because of this. My inability to read a book. I told my psychologist one time that I wouldn’t be the mess that I am today if I could get into a book like I could when I was younger. I’m not sure what the problem is. But it vexes me. I miss the nights where I could be so enthralled by a plot that I would stay up the whole night just to finish it.

Reading provides a healthy, powerful and decidedly GOOD escape for all individuals, but me specifically. Books have traveled with me all over the world and the characters have been my companions in the darkest of places. I’ve been able to completely envelop myself in a book to the point where I can’t hear anything going on around me and when the only time I’m brought back to reality is when I take a break to find a box of tissues to wipe the tears from my bawling eyes. I miss those times and hope to retrain my brain back to that level of intensity. Books taught me how to be a sensitive human. They taught me how to be the evilest of villains. They taught me how to take control of my own soul and create my own destiny.

In-class lab 10/27: summary of ad, paraphrase and quote

http://www.jameswon.ca/node/9

Summary: Combines two extremes: disturbing violence with pictures of children. This shows more powerfully the negative effects of a stereotypically ‘innocent’ individual like a child being corrupted by violent imagery. showing these two kinds of images side by side contrasts something so negative and something so innocent in a way that incites feelings of protection and fear for young children in the viewer.

Paraphrase: When children are exposed to violent media, they can become violent themselves.

Quote: “Well over a 1000 studies...point overwhelmingly to a causal connection between media violence & aggressive behavior in some children”

1. James Won is the creator of the ad.
2. It is intended for parents and guardians to show how violent media effects children and how it isn’t harmless like they might think to show children frightening movies at a young age.
3. We can tell because it involves children and toys and how the child watching violent TV can show them to do violent acts.
4. The purpose is to warn parents that violent TV can really affect their children and they want to change the way violent media is viewed/their attitude towards the violent TV that children are accessible to.
5. They work towards their purpose with powerful imagery and a knowledgeable quote that draws a scientific line between what their trying to prove and what they’re trying to get people to believe.
6. Red and black writing, very jagged, gives the whole ad a very ‘dangerous’ kind of feel. They use small children and children's toys mixed with very violent images, kind of destroying this idea of innocence within them.
7. As a group, these ads try to change the general public's’ attitude towards media violence to one that is not so casual with it because in our society, they’d argue at least, that media violence leads to greater numbers of children with overly aggressive behavior.  

.

In-Class Lab pages 138/141

PAGE 138:

Decision in past year	How life was affected	info. gathered beforehand
move out?	tension with parents. but realization that I need to be able to stand up on my own two feet.	did math to figure out how much I need to save.
stay in school?	more tension with parents. but realization that I need a break from school right now and that I can always come back to it.	weighing pros and cons to staying in school.
do I go on a run/go play soccer?	making this decision is me deciding how healthy I want to be. it affects my health in all aspects (mental, emotional, physical). soccer is my outlet. the fact that I have to decide whether I want to go play soccer tells me that I’m not that passionate about it.	no info. gathered

what should I have for breakfast?	this decision affects the outcome of the beginning of my day. If I have a banana, then I start my day off pretty energized, but only for a couple hours.	what is a healthful breakfast.
should I go out tonight?	this decision affects my sleep time. which affects my overall state of health. if I go out every night then I lose sleep and it hurts me.	figure out what my plans are for the next day.
do I keep seeing my psychologist?	this will affect every aspect of my life potentially. It forces me to questions whether I still keep seeing him, like whether I actually need to or not.	weigh the pros and cons of seeing my psychologist. (con: remaining semi-dependent on a person)

This chart tells me I am an indecisive person. I still haven’t made the first two decisions and the last one I make that decision everyday. Sometimes I do the right thing and go on a run or go play soccer, and other times I don’t and choose to stay inside. Which doesn’t make it a worse decision, in all honesty… It does tell me that I can prioritize my comfort over my overall health though. I need to go on a run everyday. This chart also tells me that I am willing to do the work however to figure out where I need to go. I did the math and I'm beginning to budget in order to work towards moving out of my parent's home.

PAGE 141:

The two consumer-oriented websites that I chose were Yelp and Zomato (formerly Urbanspoon). These are restaurant rating websites and apps. Zomato is the go-to website for restaurant enthusiasts. It provides well-written reviews and people can take pictures of the food and post it to the website. Yum! Yelp on the other hand is a multi-use application and website. It not only gives you ratings and reviews on restaurants near you, it helps you find other things to do besides eat! Both of the applications and websites are well-formatted, I must say. They're both phenomenal rating and reviewing applications and websites, but I prefer Yelp simply because it goes above and beyond what you can do with Zomato. That said, Zomato is preferred by restaurant enthusiasts.

In-Class Lab - Literacy Narrative

1. Visual Description: “She was unable to shut the door against the brown rushing water. Horrified, she tried not to panic. Seeking higher ground, she climbed on top of her dining room table. It, like most of her furniture, had been handed down from her grandparents. The table was bulky and heavy; normally, it took three men to move it.” (paragraph 7, page 129/130)
2. Dialog: “I told them. however, that when I tried to confirm the rumor with the many recruiters who rang my cell phone, they’d say the only sure way to avoid another call-up was to join their unit, because they have non-deployable slots available well suited for someone like me, and would I like to join them?” (paragraph 10, page 119)
3. Sensory Descriptions: “Entering the large VFW hall, we were struck by the chemical odor of a cleaning solution so strong that it seemed toxic. The hall had no windows; only fluorescent lighting illuminated the large. Coming from the hot, humid weather outdoors, we found the inside uncomfortably cold from air conditionings. The cackle of television set was the only sound.” (paragraph 2, page 128)
4. Possible Topics:
1. I could write about the first ‘research paper’ I ever wrote. which was about my family tree. I could talk about the process (interviewing family. drafts on drafts on drafts.)
2. I could write about how/why I journal.
3. I could write about how/why I write poetry. I could write about fear of sharing artistry with others. Delve into that issue.
5. Purpose: I’d like to tell this story because I think it would be good for me to think back to that time of my life. It involved learning a lot about my family and its history which is interesting and I think would appeal to my fellow classmates. I can explore my past learning this way as well.
6. Audience: I think my audience will be receptive to this narrative. I won’t have to do that much extra explaining to them because it’s a pretty straight-forward idea. I’m willing to share everything with my audience. Ha ha.
7. Stance: I want to project a relatively neutral tone, I guess. Descriptive tone. I want the audience to know what my process was when I wrote the research paper. I wish to be sincere and serious, maybe a slight amount of humor. I want my readers to see me as a friendly, but studious homie who is dedicated to her family.
8. Media/Design: My narrative will be shared on paper. It will be written in size 12 font, Times New Roman.
9. Places QUESTIONS 9-13
1. My house
1. The walls are white. It’s kind of messy. Mail lies on the table. Coffee is being made. It’s a cozy setting and I’m sitting at the dining table, calling up relatives. I have note cards with questions on them for each person. I hear the coffee pot bubbling. I smell the carnitas that my dad is making in a CrockPot. Yum. I am content, but also nervous because I am calling up my elders. I don’t wanna come off rude, but they’re kind of old and I have trouble hearing them sometimes.
2. My school
1. My teacher helps up with the assignment day by day, week by week. We work diligently some days and other days we’re just goofing around. I hear the chatter of other kids as they go about their work day. I smell the lavender perfume of my teacher as she sits across from me, reviewing my first draft. I’m happy because I think I did well on the draft.
3. The library
1. It’s a quiet setting. There are tables strewn around the various rooms. Another cozy setting. I’m at one of the computers and I’m writing at a vicious pace because I’m in a zone. I hear the quiet shuffle of feet as people pass by me. I hear the clack of the keys on the keyboard as I write with a newfound vigor. I really like this assignment.
14. Describing People:
1. Mom: She smells like mom. Her face is friendly. She’s plump, and her face is really cheery.
2. Dad: He smells like tobacco pipe. It’s a comforting smell. His face reminds me of my dog, Paco. Which is not a bad thing.
3. Candice: She smells like chlorine because she’s swims. She walks with near perfect posture. She has olive skin and dark brown eyes. She’s a bitch. I love her.
4. Samantha: She’s white. The  whitest, up there with my brother, Marvin. She’s got hazel eyes and likes to cause trouble.
5. Sidney: He’s got hazel eyes as well.
15. I’ll look at the questions I asked my relatives and write them down in the narrative.
16. I wrote a family tree research paper. It took me over 6 months to do. I pondered. I laughed. I questioned. I learned. I wrote passionately. Sometimes hurriedly if I had to make a deadline.
17. The significance of this paper is that it’s the first serious research paper I ever conducted. It was with this paper that I really learned about all the correct ways to write. All the formalities. I also learned a lot about my family. My grandparents were really proud of me here which meant a lot to me as well. I think this paper helped to bring my family closer at a young age. (Because of interviews and questions… a 6 month process, if not more.)