Blog Assignment 7

I found on Snopes.com various things pertaining to the world of politics. From rumors that Obama was from Kenya to conspiracies that Dubya was behind 9/11 Snopes has taken on all the mythos. Now as for bias I didn't really seem to see a lot of bias, but I did search for "snopes.com bias" and it came up with a page about Snopes being accused by everyone of being a shill for one side of the political spectrum or the other. Ultimately I think Snopes has a reality bias, where if someone is stretching the truth, they will get called on it. And sometimes stretching the truth might be good, where you need to sell an unpopular but necessary policy that the majority of people don't understand is good and needed. All in all, I think Snopes can be said as non-partisan.

Blog Assignment 6

While reading the local Kennesaw State University newspaper, the KSU Sentinel. On the website they host many opinion pieces and various editorials ranging on topics from gun rights to political civility. One particular editorial was about LGBT rights and the new "religious freedom" bill that was voted on in the state senate. In the bill, the law is made clear for discrimination on religious grounds so that way privately held businesses of the devout can deny service to people based on things out of their control, such a skin color, sexual orientation and religious beliefs. While the article had a clear bias again the bill, it must really be asked if such an issue really has two legitimate sides. After all, social justice is about doing the right thing, not the comfortable thing. Another article was about gun rights on campus. While opponents of gun rights have talked about how having guns on campus makes some people feel uncomfortable, other people suggest it's a safety issue. Leaving people defenseless in the face of criminals shouldn't be done, gun advocates complain. Ultimately this article was pro-gun but somewhat balanced as well.

Blog Assignment 5

In a letter to the editor at CapX.co, David Boaz wrote to gripe about the media's refusal to call Raul Castro by his rightful title, that which is 'dictator' or 'tyrant', not 'president'. Harping on how even the vaunted Wall Street Journal miscalled Rual Castro a president, he bemoans how people like Gen. Alfredo Stroessner, the dictator of Paraguay, are rightfully called tyrants but how the media nowadays refers to tyrants by their chosen name, instead of their correct one. Boaz goes on to point out how Stroessner even held election, and that though they were rigged, it made tyrants such as Stroessner and Pinochet more 'presidential' than the Castros ever could be. The article that he refers to is a Wall Street Journal article that refers to Raul Castro by his 'proper' title, president. Going into detail about the succession of Fidel Castro by his younger brother Raul, the article talks more about the political changes made to the communist economic system. Talking about how people have more economic freedom, but little political freedom, the author goes on to say that despite the fact that Cuba remains politically restrictive, it has changed.

Blog Assignment 4: My Relationship with Literature

Previously at my high school, we wrote about all sorts of things. In my 10th grade literature class we wrote essays on our personal interpretations on books such as Of Mice and Men. For my eleventh grade literature class I wrote about the judicial interpretations of the Constitution of the United States. Neither are things that I particularly enjoyed, but at least for the legal written work I gained a cursory understanding of the law and how it is made, as well as an appreciation of history of the United States that I did not have before. For me, I enjoy assignments that allow me to take my own position on literature, such as the persuasive assignments on the Constitution. It always interested me how unlimited the literature on such a finite document was. For me, a literary analysis is somewhat of a chore, because I usually don't get to pick the topic. I prefer to pick my topics, no matter what the subject is. Even if it is limited in scope, it still give me some variety. When I have a limited amount of choices, then I have a hard time doing the assignment.

Blog Assignment 3: What Major Will I Choose?

Initially I was a Political Science major, but switched to Education because I didn't see a future in Political Science. I switched to education because I want to help kids learn, and to do so I determined the best way to accomplish that would be to become a high school teacher. For me high school was not a good experience, simply because the instructors that I had didn't care about the course material, nor were they fond of their students. It was the ultimate academic trap, where kids that weren't cared about didn't receive and education because the only thing more apathetic than them were the teachers. To get more information on that, I went down to the Department of Education down at Kennesaw State and asked how I could achieve what I wanted to achieve. I talked with several former teachers and they helped me plan out a course guide to what I should accomplish and when. I selected Kennesaw State because it was closer to my family, it was located in Georgia and it was an affordable option for me. Kennesaw State is more than just a new school, it's a whole new experience. It's my first four year university that I have been to, and it's actually really helpful for me to be able to see a future for myself, because I have not had that my whole life. I always thought my education was going to end in high school. Now that I'm here at this point in my life, I'm ready to continue on with it and help others as I do so.

Blog Assignment 2: Everyday Research

Every day I am constantly reading about the political world that goes on all around us. From when I wake up to when I go to bed, I'm always reading about history, politics and current events. I start out my day reading Real Clear Politics, looking for interesting editorials that have been aggregated on there and checking the RCP polling averages for president. Next I'll check Politico US and Politico EU to get current on political events happening both in the United States and Europe. For my final check of my morning routine, I'll check Governing Magazine for policy proposals that happen on a local level in the US states, in case there was something I missed. Occasionally I will check the Diplomat or 538.com, as they have interesting world views that are published from time to time. At the end of the day when I'm done with work and school I'll read my books, perhaps the only academic sources I read. My current reading list includes Bloodlands by Timothy Snyder, A Mad Catastrophe by Geoffrey Wawro, The Ordinary Men by Christopher Browning and finally The Drowned and the Saved by Primo Levi. My final reading incursion into the real world consists of reading the Wall Street Journal till finally it is time to climb into bed.

Cat Food Advertisements

When it comes to advertisements, no ads are more cute than cat food ads. Take for example this Whiskas cat food ad campaign, which are all universally playful in their use of cats to convey their message.

The advertisement shows a cat eating Wiskas cat food while a mouse dangles next to the cat. This shows that the cat food is better than the mouse, which historically cats have been known to prey on for food.

This Whiskas ad shows a cat and a tiger next to one another, with the cat being show as this feisty creature versus a timid tiger. The message implicitly means that if your cat eats Whiskas cat food, your cat will have the energy of a tiger.

This final ad shows that Whiskas cat food is again good enough for a cat to be pointing the way too. Eager to eat the food, the cat is in a standard foxhound position used to indicated birds that would be shot down by hunters. The Whiskas company seems to advertise that their cat food enhances your cat with its beneficial health qualities.

This advertisement here shows Exelcat advertising its food. The ad shows that a cat will clearly do anything for this food.

This ad by CORE shows a cat meditating, trying to be healthy with their cat food, implying that CORE cat food makes your cat healthy. All of the above ads had been advertised on the streets and on websites such as Amazon. These two venues are extremely broad and have an extremely diverse user base. The ad uses pathos in the sense that there's a playful emotional appeal to the decision to buy the cat food. It also displays connections to logos, with the advertisements appealing to the viewer on the basis that logically you want your cat to be as healthy as it can be, thus it is wise to buy their cat food. There's no one demographic to appeal to with cat food, because the only demographic that matters are the owners of cats. Cat food maintains a universalist appeal in order to be marketed the broadest, because it is unwise to pigeonhole your customers.