So everyone is posting pictures of beaches from their own hometowns. Here is the best it gets back in Detroit. The Rouge Factory, Detroit MI.

Writing Canter

I honestly believe I was too far along in the process to use the suggestions they gave me. Either I would have to go a different direction from where I am, or I would have to abandon the type of logic I like to use in my writing to conform to the guidelines they suggested.
If I had gone earlier in the process, I might have been helped by those in the research lab, but I believe hard work on my part--or at least competence in the Google Scholar function--is more effective than suggestions made by the tutors.
I think the labs are a good resources for some, but not for others.

Four Sources

A world language: will it be English?

A scholarly article written to an audience of English speakers. Upholds the idea that English is the language of those who are successful.

Kidnapping and Hostage
Survival Guidelines

Though it seems unrelated at first; this article establishes the idea that to survive a hostage situation, the best thing to do is connect with one's captors. Just as it is hard for a captor to kill a someone he is acquainted with, it is hard for friends to kill each other and the first step to building friendship is communication.

English as a Global Language

An explanation of how English came to have the global power it has in today's world. A scholarly article also written to English speakers to justify the dominance of English.

Native Speakerism

Stating that even among English speakers there is contention, Holliday argues that the prejudice against "non-native speakers" must me addressed. Shortly after September 11, the nationalism felt had negative consequences against "non-native speakers" and for true unity we, as a people, need to change the paradigm of disunity we live by. 

English: The Language of Unity

As the people of Nimrod showed when defying God as a population, the most unifying thing a race can hold together is language. When God cursed the people and made them unable to communicate, he provided the ultimate barrier—the inability for a man to understand his fellow beings. Because of this, the wars and disputes of the past 10,000 years have sprung up and resulted in the death of billions of human beings. It seems that the first step in World Peace is not to accept diversity, but instead to create unity by standardizing the language of the human race.

IP (Yes, that is the official acronym for this paper)

English: The Global Language
Should we, as the human race, adopt a uniform language?
Would this uniformity among all peoples create a better world with less war and contention?
If an international language is adopted, should that language be English?

Solving the issue of no child left behind (possible satire)
Realizing that it is impossible to have a society where every child is above average--or even average for that matter--stop expending resources on the "duds." There is a place in this world for everyone, and while for some this may be a university, for others it is not. Tier schools and have an exam to determine which school a student will attend. Then, the real stars will shine because they are not held back and the others will be able to have a job suited to them

Appropriate response to Iran's nuclear weapon development program
Iran wants the bomb—atomic bomb that is—and the rest of the world doesn't know what to do. While the Israeli's are threatening with air raids, the French (who, coincidentally, are a lot further away from Iran than Israel)  are supplying Iran with gaseous diffusion chambers for uranium enrichment. While something must be done, the real question is what, exactly?

The Intolerances of a Tolerant Society: An In-Depth Analysis of Mark Steyn's "Komen Has its Awareness Raised"

When relating about the non-profit organizations of today that are supposed to epitomize the postmodern tolerant society we live in, Mark Steyn’s "Komen Has its Awareness Raised" makes use of rhetorical devices such as humor, tone, and irony to show how the diversity and tolerance movement are just an illusion to mask increasing intolerance and uniform ideals of organizations such as Planned Parenthood and the Susan G. Komen Foundation. Steyn cites evidence and makes assertions to increase his credibility and repeatability to the reader.

To begin, Steyn presents two occurrences, one that takes place in Sweden and one in Canada, to draw an emotional reaction from the reader. In Sweden, as Steyn states, it is illegal—even in a church setting—to “express a moral objection to homosexuality. Steyn also states an incident in Canada where a Catholic high school attempted to refuse a homosexual couple attendance to prom. The school was taken to court, however, and the court ruled in favor of the couple. While it is popular in today’s society to be tolerant, Steyn reverses the situation and calls into question the injustice of being unable to be a homophobe. While this is a bold move, it is done quite well because the reader realizes that the freedom, not to be homosexual, but to be homophobic is taken away. Realizing his audience consists mostly of conservative Americans, Steyn draws out angry feelings when he shows people’s rights are being infringed.

Steyn also shows how humorous this awareness ribbon business has become when he talks about the “periwinkle ribbon for acid reflux.” While acid reflux may plague many Americans today, making ribbons to support its awareness seems almost comical. In essence, Steyn argues that the only awareness being raised at this point is the awareness for colored magnetic ribbons.

Steyn then attempts to appeal to the reader’s own logic by stating inconsistencies in the practices of these supposed pro-feminist organizations. While not openly sharing his own opinion, Steyn shows what he believes by the information he presents. He contrasts two organizations, Planned Parenthood and the Susan G. Komen Foundation, and shows the inconsistencies, even borderline fraud, that occurs in such organizations. The fact that Cecile Richards, the president of Planned Parenthood, a non-profit organization, makes over $580,000 per year and that the top eight executives of the same organization make over $270,000 per year, is outrageous. The reader doesn’t need Steyn to tell him that. While Steyn appeals to the emotions of the reader, it is still an obvious use of logos because of the facts Steyn presents to the reader.

The next incident described is one where, under testimony, Cecile Richards claimed that her organization provided the “life saving mammogram” while on the contrary, the organization does not. Because of this lie, the Komen Foundation stopped donating money to Planned Parenthood. An attack on the Komen website occurred shortly thereafter. In preparation for a marathon, the slogan “Help us get 26.2 or 13.1 miles closer to a world without breast cancer” had decorated the website. This was replaced with “help is run over poor women on our way to the bank” by some Planned Parenthood workers. This is another instance where Steyn, while not clearly sharing his own opinion, causes the reader to come to one logical conclusion that these pro-feminist organizations are not as honest and non-profit as they would like one to think. Instead, each organization has its own agenda and motives that may not always be what is best for the people that the organization is intended to serve.

Steyn also uses jargon and vocabulary that appeals to the reader. His writing style may be somewhat pompous and over the top, however, he captures the essence of the postmodern tolerant movement. When referring to the salaries of the top eight executives at Planned Parenthood he says “$270,000 . . . makes them officially part of what the Obama administration calls ‘the one percent’.” Because jobs and salaries are a big part of the upcoming Presidential Election, this type of phrasing is common to many Americans. Also, when speaking of the “Obamacare” policy, he states that the requirement for Catholic institutions to provide contraceptives and sexual education is “more to do with the liberal muscle of Big Tolerance enforcing one-size-fits-all diversity.” This captures the idea as a whole that in all, our tolerant society is becoming increasingly intolerant towards intolerance—ironic, right?

Lastly, Steyn connects with the reader well. Though he is a Canadian-born Brit who was educated at a prep school in London, he seems to speak the mind of a die hard, true blue American. While few Americans can connect to him in biography, it is not difficult to connect to him in ideology. Although he does not state his opinion openly, he presents facts that are concise and well picked to bring the reader to a similar conclusion as his own with only an incompetent person seeing a view dissimilar to his. While many persuasive writers attempt to argue based on superior logic, Steyn picks his facts well enough that the reader believes he is drawing his own conclusion, not that they are playing right into Steyn’s hands.

In essence, Steyn does a thorough job bringing the reader to a view similar to his own. Through his reasoning and evidence, Steyn makes a convincing argument that the liberal ideals that non-profit organizations such as Planned Parenthood stand for are really quite nonexistent; likewise, instead of really being concerned about the issue, the leaders of such organizations only have their own personal interests at heart.

Steyn's Article:
http://www.ocregister.com/opinion/komen-338772-planned-parenthood.html

RA Process

I highly disagree with the concept of a Rhetorical Analysis. Though rhetoric is an underlying factor to logic and reasoning, to simplify something so complex as a persuasive analysis into three different types of reasoning is almost offensive. When writing a Rhetorical Analysis, almost all creativity and skill is taken away from the author as he must follow stringent guidelines to fulfill the flawed rubric of the Rhetorical Analysis process. Likewise, I believe it near impossible to write a quality Rhetorical Analysis because it is in such an equation-like format. Since, our instructor has also showed his dislike of the assignment, it is discouraging to be required to complete it.