Last post

7 Examples:
In Relationship, 
The phase 10 deck of cards was a good tie in, because she mentions it at both ends of the story, which seems to emphasize that it is an important part of her discussions with her friend.
The description of the birthday scene is extremely vivid, both in detail of the events, and of her feelings, which creates a strong appeal to our pathos.
The description of her feelings when she lied to her mom was especially good, since we can all relate to what it feels like to betray the trust of someone that important to us.

In Mistaken Procrastinator, 
The use of a direct ending, when she addresses the reader, was very helpful because it helped finish off the essay in a way to make it connect to the readers.
The Show and tell example was also a good one, because readers can relate to it.

In Don't take it for granted, 
The bathroom example was a good one because it furthers her point that people see our actions as who we are.
I liked the description of the events with Doyle. She describes his "Doubtful" expression, but then he ends up going with her, which reinforces her point about friends.

5 things for my essay
I may go into more detail about my fight with the "Lady," or I may take it out completely. It doesn't really do much for the story as it is, and i don't really see what it could add to it.
Im going to add more description of the jokes as they were outside of plot, and outside of the group.
I'm also going to insert somewhere descriptions about the jokes other members of the French group had to endure, even though they weren't actually French.
I may include a description of how I felt when they decided not to include the French into the story at all, even though it was my last year and they knew it was important to me.
I think i'm going to do what Mistaken Procrastinator  did, and have a direct ending where I make a plea to the four heads of fair.

Drinking research + thesis

Hanson, David J. "The Legal Drinking Age: Science vs. Ideology." Alcohol Problems and Solutions. State University of New York, 1997. Web. 02 Aug. 2011. <http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/YouthIssues/1046348726.html>.

This article will be useful to develop my Ethos, and it includes a lot of Pathos ideas I can either quote or use. He uses a lot of facts, and I can use this as a base from which to research more.

NYRA. "Drinking Age Solutions." National Youth Rights Association. NYRA, 2005. Web. 02 Aug. 2011. <http://www.youthrights.org/dasolutions.php>.

I can use this website to find facts that will appeal to both of my audiences: legislators, and teens. It provides alternatives to the current system, and offers ideas on how to educate teens about safe drinking.

Streppel, M. T., M. C. Ocke, H. C. Boshuizen, F. J. Kok, and D. Kromhout. "Long-term Wine Consumption Is Related to Cardiovascular Mortality and Life Expectancy Independently of Moderate Alcohol Intake: the Zutphen Study -- Streppel Et Al. 63 (7): 534 -- Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health." Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health. BMJ Journals, 2009. Web. 02 Aug. 2011. <http://jech.bmj.com/content/63/7/534>.

This website is the most informational of the three, and I will use it to back up my claims about the health related issues/benefits of alcohol consumption. It’s very straightforward, and offers comparisons between people who drink and people who don’t.

I am evaluating “drinking red wine with your parents from a young age” as a good thing because 1)it is healthy for you, 2) it teaches you to drink in moderation, and 3) it stop drinking from being a novelty in order to establish that France’s approach to teaching kids how to drink is better than the American approach of just making them wait until their 21st birthday.

Cultural Icons

* Think of three cultural objects of interest. Freewrite about why you think it is good of bad (or the epitome of mediocrity). What does it mean to you? Why are you interested in it? What are people saying about it. How have people reacted to it. Where has it been taken up and used or repeated? Where has it made the most impact? How and why?


Heavy Metal
Heavy metal music is relatively new in the music industry. It involves making as much noise, and having the least amount of sensible lyrics possible. Thankfully enough, heavy metal seems to be going out of fashion, but a few years ago, it was played really loudly in a lot of places. To me, heavy metal is as much crap as Lady Gaga's videos. It's just noise, and the quality of the sound makes it hard to hear people after you've been listening to it for a few minutes. Generally speaking, most heavy metal groups were American, although I have heard quite a bit of German heavy metal as well. (And the change in language didn't help this styles of music's cause at all) I think lately there has been a lot less interest in this industry, probably because there are better and quieter things to listen to. 


Star trek
Star trek was a great series of films, especially considering the budget/resources they had to create them at the time. I've watched most of the series, and then I watched the new one when it came out. Although they altered a lot of things, the producers of the new movie were pretty faithful to the story of the original star trek series, though with a lot of cooler effects. Unfortunately, Star trek is going out of style with the newer generations. Although the plots were amazing, our generation won't watch anything that doesn't have good graphics these days. I believe Star trek inspired a lot of the Star Wars films who are a bit more popular with the younger generations because of the newer three films, the last of which only came out a few years ago. 


Hummers
Hummers are the bane of the environment, and people's wallets. These heavy vehicles were originally designed for the army, and were so heavily plated that they consumed as much as a small tank. However, even without all the anti rocket armor plating, these vehicles, adapted to the civilian sector, still weigh more than other comparatively same sized vehicles. They became extremely popular for a short while, (though this popularity never left the U.S) but soon their bad environmental reputation outweighed the all american feeling of "Bigger is better." Another reason why Hummers may have fallen out of the spotlight is their mileage. Hummers have to be constantly refilled, although for most people who own hummers that may not be an issue. 

Gaga Post

The main article about Gaga brings up a lot of different singers and composers to pit them against her. Both authors argue that Gaga is part of a disappearing kind of compositors, and that her pro sex iconism is starting to disappear. I really liked how the blog was in a way an echo of the main article, since Gaga is referred in it as a "monster," and a "trickster." However, the difference between the two responses is that Paglia is trying to discredit Gaga completely, and does a good job of it, while Cohen is trying to twist facts to agree with her reality, which doesn't seem to work out very well...Paglia mentions on multiple occasions how Gaga's sex appeal has gone way down, until it has reached the "asexual" level. She mentions Gaga's facial expressions, and seeming lack of emotions as a way to distance her from the rest of the population. Cohen, on the other hand, is obviously a Gaga fan, and is trying to argue for multiple meanings to her video. I watched the video, just to see what Cohen was talking about, and I must say I agree a lot more with Paglia, and instead of enjoying the video, I became scared for the future of pop music.