Your ideal university is amazing! I love your ideas for the campus money applying to local restaurants, and maid service for the dorms would be ideal, wouldn't it? Your course structure is highly intriguing; I'm thinking you should be in education administration! I also love your CD ideas. I think you are the only student who suggested opera!

Blog #11

My ideal university is actually very similar to universities all around the world today. I would want a structured university that had real classes, with faculty and facilities. To meet all of the requirements, the university would recommend and support a 5 year plan. I like that I have a set of classes that I have to take, a set of classes the I can choose to fulfill a requirement, and a set of class having to do with my major and minor. Anyone can get into and take a class, meaning no class will be full at a certain time. No classes will start before 10 am, but can last until 10 pm. There will be classes offered on the weekend, but no one is required to take it. Every student will be required to take 9 or more hours of a foreign language and 6 or more hours of physical fitness. The last year will include major classes and an internship for a semester. The school will help set it up and could be future work place of the student.

The dorms would be like hotel rooms; a double or queen bed, a small kitchenette, a television. A maid that cleans up, make your bed, and there is a turn down service. There would actually be enough room to move around and breath. There will be rooms from singles to sextuplets; dorm, suite, and apartment style. All of the students, faculty, and staff would have a parking spot, not assigned, but enough for everyone to park. There will be many more dinning options on and off campus. For example; Noodles and Company will accept university money. There will be no meal plan, just money on your student ID that works like a debt system where money can be added and taken away. Student ID's are required for food, identification, and room access, but will be 10 dollars to replace. Athletic will be heavily supported and promoted, it is very important to have a sense of community and connection with the rest of the student body.

My ideal university would take aspects from universities all over the world, that I like, and implement them into one great university!

Blog #10

1. The rhetoric of these t-shirts is starting to appeal to the younger generation, helping religion make a come back after a short fall in participation. I personally think that these t-shirts are kind of cool. They express different aspects of a person while still showing their religious side. If you don't like these t-shirts, then don't buy one, but don't judge another person solely on the fact that they do or do not wear a religious t-shirt. Some people wear these t-shirts to attract attention to themselves, while others wear them to show their religion or that it can be fun and for everyone. The t-shirts seem the same appeal to me, but I myself would never wear one. The only times I go to church are for the Christmas service and the Easter sunrise service, though some times I wish I was more motivated to go and experience it. I definitely believe that my lack of exposure to religion has to do with the fact I find these t-shirts in no way appealing to me.

2. "Neither did anyone in the crowd, even though I didn't see anyone else wearing a t-shirt like mine. I expected someone to say something, anything. But no one did." (Mitchell). This quote shows that no one else in the crowd at The Big Day Out concert even cared that he was wearing a religious t-shirt. This use of religion on t-shirts has become a big hit, and is continuing to grow, but this is a good thing; which is helping the younger generation get back into religion. These t-shirts are not a bad thing.

3. If these t-shirts only had the text, they would not be as powerful as including the picture or the religious symbol. The picture is what really sells the shirts. Having a recognizable figure or symbol on these t-shirts is why people are buying them and continue to wear them. And oppositely only a picture might sell more, but both words and picture combination is the best.

4. I would think that having Jesus has a homeboy (aka friend) would be a good thing, meaning having him on your side and there when you need him. Coexisting with all of the religions, especially now a days, is one of the best things we could ask for. Jesus loving someone is just reaffirming someone's religion to the rest of the world, as with crosses, stars of David, and other symbols of religion worn or shown in some manner. Cartoon Jesus might lean toward the younger generation, while the realer looking Jesus would lean toward the truly faithful. The white or black background is simple. These t-shirts are good for religion today and should be considered special and unique for religion.

Blog #8

TUNES:
1. Allow Stem Cell Research - Classic Rock
This song explores both of the positives and negatives of stem cell research. This ethical debate involves creation, usage, and destruction of embryonic cells. The positives being that stem cells can grow into almost any kind of cell in the human body. The negative being that once used, the cell is destroyed and can not be used again. The song will end with a resolution of allowing research for select fields of study.

2. Let Women Choose - Opera
This song talks about the controversy of abortion. Letting a woman decide whether or not to keep a child or abort a child. Some people believe that a woman has the right to choose, but still others believe that at the point of conception it is a child and has a life and can not and should not be aborted or it is killing a person. The solution is abortion only available up until 13 weeks.

3. Don't Abuse Animals - Hip-hop
The abuse of animals is a serious issue in the world today. Animals have rights too, just like human beings. Some studies show that animal abuse can lead to human abuse, which is not a good thing. Most animals can not define themselves against the rage and anger of their master. Something must be done to help the animals.

4. Separate Church & State - Alternative
In the past it may have been okay to combine church and state for different matters, but in the 21st century it is unacceptable. The church deals with religion and is defined as a place to congregate and learn from a person connected/associated to God (or whoever one might believe in). While the state has to do with government/school and how they are both run and operated. When both are combined, the outcome is awful, meaning the church takes over and the state has no real say in things.

5. Bring The Troops Home - Country
In the United States, and many other parts of the world, the war on terrorism in the Middle East has gone on for too long. The troops need to come home and be with the ones that really need them, they have done enough for their country and its people. If they wanted our help they would have asked before, and so far as we know there is no actual proof of the nuclear bombs that were supposed to be there.

LYRICS:

- Allow Stem Cell Research - Classic Rock
Stem Cell Research is,
The testing of cells to,
Find their properties,
To find out what kind of cell they are.

Support stem cell research,
Support stem cell research,
They should allow stem research,
To help out those in-need.

Embryos can the only source,
To grow any kind of cell,
To help a human body,
But it is then destroyed.

Support stem cell research,
Support stem cell research,
They should allow stem research,
To help out those in-need.

Soon in the future,
This research could help,
Those who are in-need,
Of cell growth!

Support stem cell research,
Support stem cell research,
They should allow stem research,
To help out those in-need.

CD TITLE:

- Hot Topics of 2009

COVER DESIGN:
The cover design will be 3x3 boxes, numbered in order 1-9. Numbers 2, 4, 6, and 8 will be completely black. While numbers 1, 3, 5, 7, and 9 will be pictures in order of the play list above (Stem cells, A woman, Animals, Church and State, and Soldiers). In big white letters will be the title of the CD, Hot Topics of 2009. Inside the cover there will be a list of the 5 song titles and the information and what influenced the band.

Blog #5

1. My reaction to the video was of surprise and shock that there was actually no study to prove that steroids caused long term health issues for adult males. This video fails to talk about young males and females of any age using steroids and the effects to them. The video only interviews two adult males that have been using steroids for 20-40 years (off and on), but there are thousands of adult males steroid users out there that could have serious health problems. I do believe that steroids can be taken responsibly by those that know what could and what is happening to their body, and the possible side effects, but most people are responsible enough to make their own decisions.

2. Steroid use and distribution should be controlled and regulated by the government or some other agency. There should be an age limit to the use of steroids, maybe 25 when the body can handle them, by a licensed distributor. They should be banned in all high schools and colleges. They should also be banned in professional sports, national, and international competitions, and tests should be given before and after every event. I do not know a lot about body building competitions so I have no real opinion on their steroid rules.

Our culture has not pushed the demand for steroids. Our culture is based on honesty, freedom, and fairness, not on steroid use. Steroids are used by those who want an unfair advantage, they are cheating. If an athlete can not stand up to the pressure or standard, they he/she should leave or take a side seat, (coaching or training), before they use steroids. The non literal playing field of a sport is balanced when there is real and true sportsmanship, but when one, only one, person takes steroids the field becomes uneven and not real.

Georgetown Freewrite

Overview of Georgetown Universities Regulations
Over the past couple of years Georgetown University has been trying to reduce the number of parties and alcohol consumption on campus. Susan Kinzie writes in an article for The Washington Post, "Georgetown University is cracking down on drinking and parties in college-owned housing, with new crowd limits and registration requirements." The students do not like the sudden change in regulations by the University, they are protesting the issue. Some of the restrictions include; registering before Thursday 10:00 am for a party on the weekend, a limit of 25-30 people in an apartment or 50 people in a backyard, having two over 21 hosts, and the amount of alcohol is limited. The University has asked more police to get involved; now instead of handing out citations for offenses, officers will be arresting the students and putting them in jail. Local residents that live near Georgetown are complaining that parties have ended up in their back yards (Kinzie). The administration at Georgetown University knows that the new set regulations are a little much, but as Police Commander Andy Solberg states "Nothing has worked. . . . It's gone on too long now. " (qtd. in Kinzie). So for now the party regulations will stay in place at Georgetown University.

Against the new Regulations
I believe that the restrictions at Georgetown University are a little too harsh. Kayleigh Brown states in an interview, "But you can't just suddenly clomp down, put all these rules in after letting people do whatever they want for so long," (qtd. in Kinzie) There needs to be a meeting on common ground of the University and its students. The students want less restrictions for a more social and fun campus, while the University wants a safer and more community oriented campus for all of its students. The local residents want college students out of their back yards, while police officers want a better way to control the parties on and off campus. Matt Hammel disputes the restrictions, "I don't want to see people's lives affected long-term for a silly violation," (qtd. in Kinzie). Before the regulations Georgetown University had a lively and fun social scene, but now that the new regulations are put in place the campus has become a segmented and dull scene.

For the new Regulations
I believe that the new regulations for Georgetown University is just what the doctor called for. The students are getting out of hand, and these new party restrictions will help the University transfer from a party school to an academic school with a social campus life. "When student leaders took administrators on a late-night walk through campus last weekend, the first of the school year and usually one of the craziest, they stopped at a typical party spot and heard crickets chirping." reports Susan Kinzie. Some of the new party restrictions include; only one keg per party, registration before 10:00 am for a weekend party,

Paraphrasing

James D. Lester explains how students use direct quotes in their final papers. Students in school tend to use too many direct quotes in there final paper, because the notes they use to write their final paper is filled with those exact direct quotes. The final paper should only have up to 10% of the paper as direct quotes. In the future, while note taking you should moderate the amount of direct quotes.

Thesis for Portfolio #2

I believe that smoking should be banned on all university and college campuses because of the effect to the non-smoking student body, the littering of cigarette butts, and the influence toward younger students. Overall, the campus will be cleaner and healthier for all who attend that school.

*I'm not sure that this makes sense to someone who is not me.

Blog #4

1. The first article discusses the issue of action figures as too ideal of a male body for young boys. These boys play with the action figures, which have evolved from average, normal male bodies into large, muscular male bodies. This article uses actual measurements "of the most popular American action toys manufactured over the last 30 years." (Pope, Olivardia, Gruber, Borowieki, 284) There is real evidence that proves that the size and the unrealistic muscle definition has increased over the years. But there is no real connection to boys wanting to emulate their body.
The second article tries to disprove the issue of action figures and their influence on the young boys that play with them. The author argues that the action figures "are toys. We all know that. That's why we stop playing with them after we get out of grade school." (Franke-Folstad, 292) The author's article is a response to an article that was published by Harrison Pope. He also argues that "To suggest that even little boys measure manliness by taking a ruler to their G. I. Joes is comical." (Franke-Folstad, 292)

2. The first article's tone is of concern and intelligence. The article is broken up into the sections of Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. There are two pictures showing the evolution of G. I. Joe and Star Wars characters. There is a table showing the measurements over the years of popular action figures. The article was written by four people. This is a very scientific and logical way to debate the issue. The audience of the article was most likely people interested in the truth and credibility of the action figure issue.
The second article's tone is of mocking and disapproval. The article is very short with little, if any, evidence to support the authors side of the issue. He uses pathos rather than logos. The audience of the article was most likely regular readers of the newspaper.

3. My reaction to the first article was, why would some one spend time researching the effect of action figures on young boys, but when I finished reading the article I realized that it had some very important points. My reaction the second article was, thank you, because no little boy or girl is going to harm themselves to look like a TOY that they play with. A toy is usually a fictional character. When I was growing up I played with Barbie dolls, but I never wanted a waist as big as my arm. My parents never said no to a doll, but when my brother and I got older we were allowed to buy higher rated games. An action figure is a child's play thing, not an exact model of what a male or female has to look like when he or she is grown.

In-Class Freewrite

If I could change one thing in the world I would like to change the ignorance found all over the world, it also makes me very angry. Ignorance is the state in which a person lacks knowledge, sophistication, and/or intelligence about a certain topic. Most of the time that person will try to prove that he/she actually does know what he/she is talking about, but listening to their arguments and points on the topic will prove that they do not. A lot of ignorant people are set in their ways, no form of persuasion or argument can deter them or their opinion. Ignorance can lead to dislike, dislike can lead to hatred, and hatred can lead to violence through war or murder. That is a drastic measure, because most ignorant people will not go out a kill someone because he/she has a different opinion than him/her, but there are people who might take things too far.

I recently went to the Inauguration of Barack Obama. On the way to the National Mall, my friends and I heard men yelling but could not understand them. When we got closer we realized that there were actually a bunch of men with megaphones who were yelling into them. They were saying that Obama was going to lead the United States into blackness and evil, and the only way to save ourselves was to repent and join their group. Not to judge the men by how they looked, but the men all had long beards, clothes that were worn down and dirty all over. These men do have a right to protest, the first amendment, but why when President Bush lead our country to war and into one of the biggest debts in our history. The only reason that these men did not like Obama was because he and his family were African American, not white. They were being judgmental themselves. Almost everyone at the Inauguration walked right by and paid no attention to them and their ignorant ideas.

I truly believe that Barack Obama will be a great President for the United States of America.

*This is not the topic I will be using for my letter.

Blog #3

1. I firmly believe that pro-ana (anorexia) and pro-mia (bulimia) websites and blogs should be shut down. Those girls and boys that are visiting the websites are slowly but surely killing themselves. Eating disorders are serious things and should be treated medically. They can not be cured by talking to other people with eating disorders, that can only fuel and influence more of the same bad choices. According to "A Secret Society of the Starving" by Mim Udovitch, a pop culture critic, "About one in 200 American woman suffers from anorexia; two or three in 100 suffer from bulimia,", which is a staggering statistic. The eating disorder could just be masking a larger issue that needs to be helped. If a person was happy with their body and the way they looked, they would not be throwing up or choosing not to eat, they would be an everyday normal person who could eat whatever, whenever, and keep it down. The people need real help, not websites and blogs.

2. The websites and blogs about pro-ana (anorexia) and pro-mia (bulimia) should not be shut down. The people who are on these sites need help and talking who others going through the same issues can help. Many of them have had an eating disorder for many years now, and to try to stop will be more painful then the disorder, and could actually hurt them more. There are steps that can taken to help these people with eating disorders, but cutting them off from the people who are going through the same thing is wrong.

3. The websites and blogs about pro-ana (anorexia) and pro-mia (bulimia) should not be shut down, but they should some how be monitored by health professionals. The people who use these sites talk to others like them who are going through the same things, that connection can really help them. They can not just quit "cold turkey", it has to be phased out over time with slow and steady steps. Eating disorders are serious and need to be treated medically by those that know how and what they are doing. The websites help with eating disorders, because none who use them are drastic enough to really hurt themselves when they have someone counting on them and they have someone they can count on. This bond grows over time and they can help each other through bad times. The websites and blog should stay open, but monitored.

Two Class Fallacies

He's the manager, he doesn't know how hard his workers are working for him.
- Ad Hominem

Business people are slimy people. They can always get what they want, usually from under the table. We should make businesses have a Code of Ethics.
- Strawperson

Blog #2

1. My first reaction to the ad was that it was a funny, but at the same time untrue and almost an air of superiority toward joggers and people who do not run. The elements that stood out the most in the ad were the picture and the text. The picture shows a worn out shoe, suggesting a serious runner. The text is bold and takes up almost all of the ad space.

2. No, I do not run, I do other things for exercise. Although I am neither a runner nor jogger, the ad hints that if I run I would have a greater chance of finding a dead body, which would not be a good thing. But the ad has a persuasive side to it also.

3. The ad highlights the pleasures of running, like your senses come to life. The text takes up more than half of the ad, drawing the readers attention to the bold white text at the top of the ad, making the reader finish reading all of the ad. The ad influences those that do not run to get up off the couch and RUN!

4. The value of running is promoted in the ad, because it is a great form of exercise and your senses come alive. The ad discourages jogging, I guess it is not real.

5. In a way, Pearl Izumi does alienate the just joggers, but he did it on purpose. I believe that his intent was to alienate as joggers so that they might be influenced to become a runner.

6. The strongest appeal in the ad to me is emotional. Emotional is the best choice, because there is not much logic that can come from a opinionated ad, and because there is no credibility in an ad. The language and vivid descriptions make the ad emotional.

7. If I could choose one of the two ads for a magazine, I would choose the Reebok ad. I find it more appealing to the everyday reader. I would be more influenced to run relaxed and strolling, instead of running on trails and in back alleys.

Blog #1

1. The America's Army website used many forms of rhetoric to influence the viewers and readers. The layout of the website is key in grasping the viewers attention, it uses camouflage as the background. There are pictures of soldiers and game simulations all over. Once you click the media tab you are taken to a page that shows you exactly how the game works, starting in Basic Training and working you way through a "real" military base training. There is a tab called "Real Heroes" were real soldiers tell their stories of courage. The majority of the content on the website has to do with the game, but there are parts that have to do with real life. Overall, the website draws you in to find out more, and the rhetoric used is very persuasive.

2. The intended audience of the America's Army website are young Americans, boys or girls, who are thinking about joining the Army or any other military branch. The rhetoric used on the website is very effective in influencing and appealing its audience toward the military. The game shows you exactly what you could expect to go through in the real military.

3. I do not agree with Navy veteran Boyle. If someone goes out and buys or buys and downloads a war video game, that person already has the ideology of war in his/her head, the video game only shows what it would be like in the military. The media portrays the Iraq war in a negative light, because they are only reporting the casualties and disasters of the war, but positive things are happening every day over there, troops are being sent home, the Iraqi people are starting to run their own government, and the people of Iraq are happier. I do not know anyone who is currently fighting in the Iraq War.

4. I do not think that a video game or a movie about war is going to promote violence into those who play the game and watch the movie. In some ways, teens see the behavior and violence in the game/movie and in no way do they wish to copy it, it is wrong and they see that in the game/movie. My opinion is that some violence in video games is ok, but beating up a prostitue and taking her money is going too far.

I personally like to play video games, sometimes I watch when my brother and his friends play, and they do play violent games, but when the game is turned off, so is the violence attached to it. Also one of my good friends from High School just joined the Navy ROTC, as a nurse, at her college, she has never liked violent video games or movies, but she joined to help people.