Lee McKinnis (57)
Kristina Marynczak (37)
Killian Noonan (36)
Melissa Castillo (32)
NikoVelazquez (27)
Shannon Ratzel (23)
Michelle Reyes (22)
Kyle Barczak (21)
Maura Bilek (21)
Susan Bayaa (21)
For this last journal entry, I would like to reflect on the Act Out fair that we participated in. The fair went really well during our class time. When I got the chance to walk around and take a look at other people’s presentations, I thought they were all great. I listened in when they were answering questions and everyone responded with really good answers. All of the posters looked really good as well. They had a ton of information on them, some really cool pictures of where the group went, and they were all decorated nicely. When my group and I were around our poster, we were asked a lot of questions, which was nice. I didn’t think that a lot of people would actually care about what the presentations had to offer, but they did. Some people we had come up to us, knew a lot about the Sertoma Centre, and they actually knew a consumer or two there. A few people seemed really interested in becoming a volunteer when we told them what the facilities were all about. Laura Gardener, the lady we met from the Sertoma Centre, gave a speech about volunteering. I thought she had a very informative and persuasive speech. She talked about what it means to volunteer and why people volunteer. Perhaps the most moving part of her speech is when she talked about what it means to the consumers at the Sertoma Centre when they see volunteers helping them out. Overall, I think that the fair was very informative and successful. There weren’t very many people there but the ones that showed up learned a lot.
Citation
Updates from RSS Toggle Comment Threads | Keyboard Shortcuts
-
John Dougherty
-
John Dougherty
For my journal entry, I came across the story “Be Confident, Not a Know It-All”. The story comes out of “Why White Rice?”, and it was written by Mike McGuire. I really liked this story because I found myself relating to most of it. Professor McGuire begins with a personal story about how his six year old runs around thinking he knows everything. He says it is hard to get through to him because he always has the right answer. It seems that a lot of kids are like this because they want to feel smart and like they can actually provide someone with some information, when really; it is all in their imagination. He goes on to explain how students lack confidence in their writing and how certain statements hedge their writing. I tend to use the statement, “I think” a lot, and it is one of the examples he gives. I didn’t know that using words like this can make my writing less effective and eventually lead to other statements that can make my confidence levels seem even worse. McGuire teaches writers to speak with conviction and authority when they write. Obviously, this makes a writer sound more confident in what they are saying and the reader will get more out of the piece. But, if someone goes too far in finding their confidence, they may become cocky. McGuire says that this can be more of a problem. When the writer starts to use hostility and attacking others with criticism, this can be a sign of overconfidence. I definitely feel that this story will help my writing. Some of the things I would normally say in a journal entry or paper are statements that would affect my confidence level in a negative way. McGuire, S. Michael. “Be Confident, Not a Know It- All.” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Pub, 2010. 179-81. Print.
-
John Dougherty
Lending a Hand for Disabilities
There are numerous amounts of problems, concerns, and issues in our world today. Everyone needs help here and there. Service and volunteering are huge parts of getting things done and resolving these issues. When my group was introduced to this new service project, we had no idea where to go with it. It seems very difficult to find somewhere that you can volunteer so quickly and get all of your work done. We had so many ideas in what we were all interested in. It started off with animals, then alcohol, and then we landed at a place where we all felt needed the most help, people with disabilities. This is a huge concern all around the world and especially with my group because we are all affected by it. Whether it is mental, physical or just illness, everyone knows someone who suffers from these things or suffers from it themselves. The problem was, finding somewhere that we can give up our time to volunteer and learn more about the issue. Fortunately for us, we found a very credible place right away.
The Sertoma Centre in Alsip, Illinois deals with over 650 individuals with developmental, physical and emotional disabilities or mental illness. We knew this would be good for us because we could get hands on activity with the people who attend this place. The goal over at Sertoma Centre is to provide opportunities that empower individuals with disabilities to achieve personal success. These employees and volunteers work to get the disabled or sick people back into helping and providing for their communities. The Centre also provides programs such as autism services, senior programming, developmental training, job placement, school transition and residential housing to empower individuals to achieve their own personal successes. The disabled who are a part of the Sertoma Centre make little steps toward doing this. Without the help of volunteers, none of this would be possible. My group was very interested in all of these things because it is very inspiring to see these disabled and sick people make progress and succeed. Also, the Sertoma Centre runs a thrift store in Matteson, Illinois. Some of the volunteer work is done here as well. At the thrift store, lightly used and clean furniture is sold to make a profit for the Sertoma Centre. The profits go directly to supporting the 14 programs offered by Sertoma Centre. Their thrift store is also used as a program to train the disabled to work and be prepared for future work.
We got in touch with a very nice lady named Laura Gardner. She is the volunteer services manager over at the Sertoma Centre and she is very willing to work with us. We have been contacting her over email. Laura has been informing us on what we can do at the building, how we can help out at their thrift store, and giving us all the information we need about the corporation. Our group hopes that we can all get our times in at the Sertoma Centre or their thrift store. Obviously our group would like to get all of the fieldwork done together, but with all of our conflicting schedules, we are going to have to split it up. Hopefully, this can get us more of an insider perspective because we will be able to see and experience more. Also, we will be able to talk to different people each day we are there. All of our group members will be able to gather their own field research and when we compare, we will have so much more to go off of.
No one in our group has visited either location as of yet, but we are all scheduled to go within the next week. When I go, I plan to gather as much information as I possibly can. This includes taking detailed notes and journal entries. The more writing and recording of information that I obtain, the more research and knowledge I will have. My observations of my surroundings are important as well. It tells if the place is organized, clean, and workable. Details about how employees and the people who go there are crucial. Their behavior, looks, expressions, and movements can tell a lot about how they feel about the place. Our group plans to interview and talk to as many people as possible. The disabled are one of our main goals to get information from. They are the ones receiving the service and all of the help put into the place. The whole place was set up for them and we want to know how they feel about it and how it benefits them. We want to know about the quality of the service and how the people who are working with them act. Also, employees can help us get the insider perspective. They can help us understand how everything works and how the disabled react to their services. Their reactions are also important because it could help us understand how we might feel when we accomplish our volunteer work. My own reactions and reflections are very important too. I will provide all of my stories, research, and information when I do my volunteering later this week.
I am real excited to begin my volunteer work. Hopefully I will learn more out of this service learning. I think it has been proven successful so far. I look forward to making a difference in someone’s life and helping the less fortunate to become successful. It always makes someone fell like a better person when they put smile on someone else’s face. The knowledge and research I will receive in doing this project will definitely help me in the future and to become more active in volunteering. -
John Dougherty
For this week’s journal entry, I decided to go back to chapter one of “Why White Rice?”, and read a short story by Troy Swanson. The article, named “The Machine That is Replacing Me is Getting Cheaper Everyday”, was very interesting and a cool story to read. He starts off by saying that anyone who is taking their time to read their textbooks will eventually become successful in their class. The others, people who won’t read it, are either overloaded with work, dealing with other issues, or just simply don’t want to read. Swanson refers to this as wearing their blinders. This is a real interesting point because I find it to be very true. Our textbooks for this class and any others have very valuable information in them that can really help our learning. If you turn your head to the book, you will never soak up this information. Another point he touches on is that if you looked at your education in high school as a drudgery and pain, then that is most likely how it’s going to be. Most people were in clubs, sports, or other activities that consumed time. This left little time for school work and no one got anything done. I think that a lot of us as students looked at high school like this. Some didn’t like their teachers, thought they got too much homework, or just couldn’t make it to class so they stopped caring. The last statement he makes is that how you view your education will directly impact what you take from it. I think if you want to be successful and happy in the future, you have to value your education and make the best of it.
Swanson, Troy. “The Machine That Is Replacing Me Is Getting Cheaper Everyday.” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Pub, 2010. 27-29. Print. -
John Dougherty
For my journal entry, I decided to write about the article, “Why I Like Mike the Builder” by Troy Swanson. The short story comes from chapter six of “Why White Rice?” In the article, Swanson starts off reflecting on a story that Mike McGuire had written about building a playhouse with his son. McGuire says that he built the playhouse from scratch, and he has little knowledge of building anything. He went out and learned how to do it though, and Swanson says that anyone should be able to get the knowledge to be able to do something. I agree with him because if someone puts time into something and learn, they can accomplish anything. He then goes on to explain how everyone is capable of learning the same material. There is not one thing that one person can learn that someone else can’t. Swanson then refers to belief. If you believe that you are dumb or that you aren’t smart, then you won’t be able to learn the skills and things you need to accomplish things. But I you believe you are neither smart or dumb, you will be able to gain more skills to help you become more successful. You will go into everything with an open mind and you will learn more. I think that if someone thinks that they are dumb, they will never give themselves a chance on doing something they might not have been successful on before. That is why they think they will never be able to do or learn something, because they don’t want to fail again. However, as Swanson says, I think if you believe in yourself to be successful to learn something, you will become better at tackling the problem. I was never very good at writing, but by keeping an open mind and not calling myself dumb, I have become better at it.
Swanson, Troy. “Why I Like Mike The Builder.” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Pub, 2010. 134-35. Print. -
John Dougherty
For my journal entry this week, I chose to respond to “The Unfairness of the Thesis”, in chapter four of “Why White Rice?” The article by Troy Swanson is very interesting and he brings up some good points. What I found interesting is that he compared coming up with a working thesis to the scientific method. You have to come up with a thesis without doing any of the work, or research. It is like coming up with a solution to a math problem without doing the work. I like the comparison between these two things because it explains how you plan to write a paper. You have to come up with an idea or thought in your head, and then you make an argument to the idea. In the article, Swanson mentions that this method is slightly unfair, but that is just how writing works. Obviously he is a writer or has been in the position of a college student because he realizes that sometimes coming up with a working thesis can be a bit challenging. He refers to a researcher named Karl Popper, who believed the writing can only be deductive. But then, Swanson goes on to say that it has to be inductive at some point because the writer has to sit back and be the observer to watch what happens in the world and create ideas from these details. I really like the way that he puts this because I agree with him. Yes, writing is deductive, but anyone as a writer has to sit back and let things unfold to know what they are going to write about. If they are unaware of things going on around them, they can lose crucial details and bits of information that could really benefit their writing.
Swanson, Troy. “The Unfairness of the Thesis.” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Pub, 2010. 85-86. Print. -
John Dougherty
The article “Cycle of Socialization”, was a very interesting piece to read. Bobbie Harro brings up a lot of very detailed and well thought up, points and ideas. When people are born they do not choose their future. It is all basically carved out for them already. Everyone is recognized in many different ways whether it is gender, ethnicity, skin color, first language, age, ability status, religion, sexual orientation, or economic class. We have no choice to which role we will play in our lives. The things that define a person are given to them by their parents. I think that is wrong to pass judgment and discriminate on someone who might not be as wealthy as us, who doesn’t have the same abilities, or whatever it is for that matter because we did not choose to be how we are. Everyone has just as good a shot at anything as anyone else, and no one should be shunned or looked down upon. Harro says that we are taught socialization through many different ways. People we look up to like our parents, teachers, people from places of worship, social workers, and many others teach us how to behave. They tell us this that they want us to believe in and live our lives by. I agree with him when he says this for a number of reasons. People we look up to usually have more life experiences and have lived long enough to know what is right and wrong. All these people are trying to do is help us live a better life based on their knowledge. Also, these people know what success is. Whether they have accomplished it themselves, or they have seen others become successful, they teach us socialization based on this. They want us to succeed. I really enjoyed the author’s perspectives on socialization. It was really interesting to see how he presented what he thought and it made it a good story.
Harro, Bobby. “The Cycle Of Socialization.”(2012): 15-21. Splatter.writing101.net. Web. 21 Mar. 2012 -
John Dougherty
Sharing My Soles
Volunteering my time has always seemed like such a hassle and a waste of time. I never really thought about how people can volunteer a small amount of their time and help and potentially save so many more people than themselves. I really never believed that doing such a small thing can bring so much change. When I was introduced to the service project, I didn’t know what to think. I knew a little bit about the Share Your Soles Foundation because I live a few blocks away and my family donates shoes all of the time. I chose to go there over spring break so I did some research before I went.
The foundation was created in 1999 by Mona Purdy. She was traveling through Central America when she noticed kids painting tar on their feet for protection. These kids were getting their limbs cut off because of infections to their legs. If they had shoes, this wouldn’t happen. She gathered shoes with the help from a school and delivered them to a school in Honduras. She realized how much she had helped and she never stopped gathering shoes and going back. Ever since then, Share Your Soles has delivered over one million pairs of shoes to less fortunate parts of the world.
I honestly had no idea what to expect when I went there. From the outside, it looked like a huge warehouse that was most likely filled with shoes. But, when I first walked in, that wasn’t the case at all. It was actually not even a warehouse setting in the front. It was more like a colorful office building with a huge hallway. A large group of us were sat down to watch a video introducing us to Mona, and the rest of the foundation. It showed what they do, and how they do it. After the video, we were taken into the massive warehouse part of the building where there was boxes, bins, clothes, and of course every type of shoe you can imagine. However, it wasn’t nearly as many shoes as I expected. Maybe it was because they had just done most of the work a few days prior to the event, but I could be wrong. There was stuff everywhere in the building. The large group of us was split off into smaller groups to get more work done. The instructors didn’t have much for us to do since most of it was done. Some people set up a shoe sale, some cleaned, some arranged shoes into the categories they fit into, and some moved boxes around. I was sent to move boxes full of clothes, shoes, blankets, and other things people can use to basically stay alive and well. We moved the boxes to a loading dock where a truck would pick them up to be shipped off to people who need it. When this task was done, we were sent to do other things like organize the bins for collecting shoes, align the remaining boxes to go where they needed, and eventually clean.
The things I did at Share Your Soles didn’t seem like much since there wasn’t a lot to do, but I definitely feel like me being there made an impact. Seeing all of the things that could possibly help people being moved around and shipped away made me feel good about being there. Also, even though there weren’t very many shoes when we visited, I could tell that there usually are tons of shoes on the floor. Even aligning the boxes and wrapping the collection bins up made an impact because it will help future volunteers and make their jobs easier.
I feel like a few things at the Share Your Soles building could have been changed a little. I know that all of the people that work there are volunteers but they seemed a little confused on what people should be doing. They seemed like they didn’t care much for other volunteers. Don’t get me wrong though, they are doing a great thing by volunteering their time to help others. If I was in charge, one of the things I would have changed was getting the place a little more organized. There were things lying around everywhere and I think a lot of people were confused because they didn’t know what to do about it. Also, they didn’t have set tasks or really anything much to do to make the volunteers really feel like they made a difference. Of course, just by being there and doing the little things made a difference for me, but for others it might not have. The recent shipment of shoes might have been a factor but if they more of a set schedule on things for other volunteers to do, it would make it better. Aside from that, I thought that all of the people who were in charge were really great people. They were all extremely nice and humorous. It is nice to see people who actually care and that are taking such great action in what they truly believe in. Share Your Soles is a great place to be and lend your time doing such a great service. This experience relates very much to our class. When we talked about service, activism, and volunteering, I think that this is a great example of all of them. I took a lot of courage for Mona to step up and lead the way to delivering these kids the shoes they so desperately needed. We learned about a lot of great activists and I really think she is one of them.
I learned a lot from this experience. I said before that I didn’t believe much in volunteering. I thought I was a waste of time and that it didn’t accomplish anything. Clearly, I was wrong. I think volunteering and do services to benefit others who are in desperate need of it is very important. Everyone should take part in these activities. It made me feel better as a person knowing that I was helping out such a good cause. Do serious volunteer work like this for the first time really makes me want to do it again, especially at a place like Share Your Soles, which is very conveniently located. The volunteers here were given the opportunity to help make decisions and feel impacted by all of the things that were going on that it motivates me to want to participate more in things like this. In the future, I will look to become more openly involved in volunteer work, and maybe one day, become an activist for a great cause like Mona did.
Share Your Soles is such a great organization. By collecting shoes they are saving the lives of so many little kids in third world countries, and even our home country. Not everyone has the money to afford such luxuries like shoes to keep them from diseases and infection. They need their money for the basic necessities. Shoes are so important and so is the volunteer work to get them to these children. The people at this organization are all great people. They have changed the way I think about helping others and make me want to get involved more. I will definitely look into something like this for the future. The foundation has affected so many people and countries around the world because of their dedication and I believe that they will continue to grow and become a nationwide organization.-
Justyna Matyjaszczyk
Your reflection on Share your Souls is great. I like how you began with your feelings toward volunteering. You were skeptical on how one person can make a difference just by spending a few hours at an organization. You chose this organization not only because it was in your community but also because your family donates shoes to this location. I enjoyed reading the history of Share your Souls and how Mona Purdy began collecting shoes for those who are in desperate need of what most of us consider to be a want. I am one of those people who has the privilege to purchase a pair of sneaker solely for the reasons that I like them or because they look cute. In all reality in many countries it’s a need and demand so people can survive. Without shoes these children and adults have a great risk of injury, amputation of limbs and maybe even death due to the poor environment they live in. Mona Purdy took great notice to this issue and could not just stop at one donation. I think that is very inspiring and selfless. You then went forth with describing your expectations of the organization and what you expected it to be. You were pretty detailed of the work assignments. The jobs volunteers do are organizing shoes, preparing boxes of items to be shipped by truck, shoe sales and cleaning shoes. It’s cool to know the organization doe not only collect and distribute shoes but they have begun to collect blankets, clothes and other necessities people can use and need. It seems like Share your Souls is expanding and does not only focus on one issue. It is good to know they are branching out to provide other needs. One of the things that caught my attention is the place was not organized well and there was not much to do because it looked like most of the work was done previous to your arrival. I think that is good because the work is being done and the items are getting to where they need to be in a timely manner. You mentioned you have great ideas to help with how it can be ran a little better with volunteers. I think you should maybe write a letter to the organization explaining your ideas. This is a form of service because you are giving constructive criticism and suggesting ways for them to become more efficient with the use of volunteers. I believe if written and addressed in a profession and positive way you can make a big difference. After your visit at Share your Souls you have found a new respect and understanding on how one person, like yourself, can actually make a difference if at least to one person in need. It gave you a whole new outlook on service and activism. Also, not only did it give you a good feeling for helping those in need, cleaning and getting things together for the following day gave you a sense of accomplishment because you prepared the next group. Great essay.
-
James Jeszke
I like this paper a lot. You do not beat around the bush on alot of things. Take the very first sentence for example. It really has people thinking, is it a waste of time and why is it such a hassle to participate? But for most, until you actually put yourself out there and go and give back to your community, yes it does seem like a huge waste of time. When in reality, you save lives every single time somebody donates just an hour or so of their time. So many people out there are in diar need of help and giving back to our community is the least we can do other than giving a small donation. I like the fact that you chose this because it is a family matter to you too. Having a little bit of backbone to you wanting to do this, I think, pushed you do this that much more.
The information on Mona Purdy is very useful in this paper because it shows how she gave her time back to those who are desperate for shoes and portrays how most of us do not notice the little things like shoes for example because we take things like that for granted. Most people in third world countries need shoes for the harsh terrain they live to not only walk around but to survive as well. They risk injury and possibly death in the worst cases. Shoes are the protectors of our feet and without them, many day to day things we do may be impossible. It is in high demand in most countries but many people are struggling without jobs and money to pay for such a thing like shoes. You mentioned how you and the volunteers organized the shoes, prepared them in boxes for shipping, and cleaned some shoes too. This place not only deals with shoes but has many other things to donate to like blankets and clothes. The organization is clearly growing, not focusing on giving back only shoes, and becoming a nationwide standpoint on what you can do to help people in need throughout the world.
I liked how you told it how it actually was, like how you went to the place for Share Your Soles and most of the work was already done before you got there. The fact that it was unorganized too, was it because of the hectic days of getting everything together for shipping the days prior? Or because you think the place was just flat out unorganized? You mentioned a few of your own ideas to help out with this place and I think you definitely should talk to Mr. McGuire about this to help you get your ideas to the director of this place for consideration. It would be really cool if they took your advice and started actually doing what you thought of. I like how you found a more natural respect for people in the service community. Your realizations of how a singular person can make a difference in many peoples lives worldwide can lead to you giving back to your community more often, which is ALWAYS a good thing.
-
-
John Dougherty
For my journal entry this week, I decided to write about a story by Eric DeVillez in chapter two. “Quit Complaining-Go Back and Read the Damn Poem”, is a very interesting piece of writing. In the story, he explains that every poem has so many different interpretations and meanings. Even if you are very good with poems you won’t get the meaning of it on your first read. I hated reading poems and short stories when I was in younger grades, but now, I actually think poems are pretty cool and meaningful for this reason. People hide stories in poems and they give so much more information than what you are actually reading. He also relates poems to song lyrics because as you get older, so do the poems and they become more meaningful because of the life experience that could be in them. The really can tell someone’s life story and how they were feeling at a particular moment in their life through their poems just like how songs work. He goes on to explain how America doesn’t appreciate the arts. For example, he says if you open a newspaper, the first programs in schools getting the cuts due to money issues are arts and music. In the future, I think that by teaching these courses in schools will help bring out more artists and musical people. Believe it or not, these people are very intelligent and can show us ways to view the world how we have never seen it before. Rather, schools save the gym class for kids to stay active. From my experience, half of the kids in gym don’t participate because they are simply too lazy to move around. Art and music classes would benefit way more and America shouldn’t underestimate that.
DeVillez, Eric. “Quit Complaining-Go Back And Read The Damn Poem.” Why White Rice? Kendall Hunt.2010.p. 56. Print. -
John Dougherty
Letter to the Editor, Alcoholism Awareness
Dear Editor,
Day after day, stories involving alcohol related incidents have appeared in the news. Whether it is drunk driving, alcohol poisoning, or an alcohol related case that has escalated to a crime, it is all a huge concern to the community. Enough people die each year from alcohol related car accidents to kill someone every thirty minutes throughout the entire year. Alcohol seems to be the simple solution to today’s long term problems. Obviously, there is something wrong with that. Alcoholics turn to booze because it helps them get rid of their problems, tensions, and any other things they want to forget about. Alcoholics are slowing killing themselves, killing innocent people, and ripping everyone around them lives apart. Nobody wants to see any of these things happen and something needs to be done about it. There are tons of online programs and classes’ people can read up on and talk to others about to raise awareness for the problem. However, I think that the problem could be handled better within the community. Perhaps, the local police department can give a class on how to handle a family member struggling with alcohol problems a few times a week. This could help people better approach the one struggling with the alcohol problem. It may seem hard because some think confronting them will cause even more of a problem. Another thing is to hold a meeting for the actual alcohol abusers. Some who are on the verge of becoming an alcoholic can just simply talk about it with others going through the same thing. Most of the times, when groups like these are meeting; it is because the members have been in trouble prior to it. If the meetings were open to everyone, it could potentially save some lives. With all of this comes some money issues, but I think if a few people would volunteer their time, things could get done. I truly believe that issues like this need to be discussed in order to overcome them. Alcoholism and alcohol abuse are very serious problems that should be tendered carefully to hopefully, one day solve the growing issue.
Sincerely,
John Dougherty-
Justyna Matyjaszczyk
I think the letter to the editor is very nice and brings clear attention to the negative effects of alcohol abuse and suggests how to solve the issue. Alcohol abuse may cause death, poisoning, crime and drunk driving which can cause death if an accident occurs. All of these statements may tear family and friends apart. It creates harm and pain to those around the person with the problem. It also tears families and friends apart. Although these are great statements I am curious to know what the stats are. How often it happens, where and especially a good resource the numbers and facts came from. I would be more convinced it is all true. What are specific sources we can turn to if we chose to help? Who exactly can I talk to if I know someone with a drinking problem? How can I raise awareness on this issue? I love the idea of holding class at local police departments to raise awareness and educate those involved or in need of help. I think it would change the outlook of the use of alcohol because it is so acceptable in our communities. Even though most people know there are consequences to driving while under the influence of alcohol and health risks, I think people take this general information lightly. So, if there were classes available to the public I think it would be a wonderful way to get the facts and access to help to the community. It would definetly spread the word. Also, these classes will help cease a problem before it gets out of hand. This past week a friend was driving under the influence and got into a deadly car accident. He had three other passengers in the vehicle with him. Two in critical condition and one who was eject from the car through the windshield and passed away a few hours later. My friend walked away from the accident without a mark on his body. Unfortunately, every one has been affected by this accident, not only the family who has lost a wonderful person but also friends and the driver. The driver will now face charges of driving under the influence and the death of his friend and those injured. This is a very sad situation for everyone. I think if there are more ways to show and tell people to be more responsible and careful while using alcohol it would definetly make a difference at how it is viewed and abused. I also agree if the awareness classes are offered it would save lives and help people have a better understanding of alcoholism. I like the idea of fixing an issue before it becomes a legal problem. I notice you are against alcoholism and drunk driving. There are great ideas and explanations in the letter. I do think if you added your sources it would give your letter the credibility it deserves. This issue is a huge concern to many families, friends and communities around the world.
-
James Jeszke
For one, I cannot agree with your letter anymore. Getting the word out there on how to get help, I think, is very very important and is scarce. I rarely ever see ways to get help unless you search it on Google. Newspapers have small ads in the classifieds about this stuff, but that is not enough. I hope this letter gets recognized because it can help those suffering with current and former alcoholics, and family members who are dealing with this issue at home.
I have seen a lot of articles about drunk driving accidents and deaths related to alcohol. It seems like you have a strong relation to alcoholism because your last paper was about alcoholism and its effects like death because of car accidents and most of all, crimes. I despise people who drink and drive. So many innocent lives are lost because people aren’t responsible enough to call for a cab or call for a sober ride. I think that if someone can spend enough money to buy some beer, I think they should be able to save a little bit more for the cab ride home, which is not that expensive or call for a ride or have a sober driver home. It’s not hard to just call for a ride home or get one.
You mentioned the fact that you want to see meetings where people can come and talk about alcoholism in the home. I heard that AA actually allows people that deal with family members to come and talk about those problems instead of just targeting people that are alcoholics or recovering alcoholics as a whole. I would suggest looking up places that deal with alcoholics and people with family members who are suffering from it too. There are so many places out there that deal with this issue and I am sure you will be able to find one or two that are worth going to and talking about the problems you have. Leaking this news out to the editor could be a good idea too because he could possibly let the community know where to find help and find a person to talk to about domestic issues at home.
I like this idea and I think it serves a huge purpose in everybodys lives. Drunk drivers are a big problem and alcoholism is becoming an epidemic in homes nationwide. Responsibility is a big thing when drinking and most people lose that while intoxicated. They lose care in what is right and don’t even know the consequences of what can happen. Safety floats away when drinking and so does thinking straight. People need to get it in their heads that their life is on the line every time a bottle of booze hits their lips.
I would suggest adding a personal topic to make this paper stick in the editors mind but that is obviously all up to you. Which paper are you writing to? Also, add a few places that deal with therapy/talking about this situation so that a few places can get out there right away if this letter sticks in the editors mind. Minor stuff can be added to this that can make a difference I promise you. Good job.
-
-
John Dougherty
For my journal entry, I decided to write about a story in chapter five of “Why White Rice?” The article, “So-Is It Okay to Use Wikipedia, Then?”, by Eric DeVillez is a really good story about using Wikipedia. I really like the way Eric writes because he always throws a funny comment in there or uses humor to catch his reader. He started to article off with a short personal story about how he couldn’t remember an actor’s name when he was sitting around with his family. No one else in his family could remember it either and it was really bothering him. He opened up the internet and searched Wikipedia to find his answer. I often find myself searching Wikipedia for answers that I already should know the answer to as well. It helps find things that you already have prior knowledge on. DeVillez goes on to explain that Wikipedia is alright to use if you want to jog your memory or get a broad sense of an idea. Since the information is not always accurate it can’t be much helpful for anything else. He says that Wikipedia is a good source to launch off of, meaning find an idea and then get better sources from there. He mentions a funny comment about the White Sox and how if you search, you can find that they actually did win the Series in 2005. I think that when he references to things a lot of people like it gets a lot more attention. He ends off his article with saying that he would argue that you should not cite Wikipedia in your research paper. All of the information on Wikipedia can be found somewhere else. I think it is easy to get a bunch of useless info from the site, and people are too lazy to find it anywhere else. The main point of the story is that Wikipedia should be used with caution.
DeVillez, Eric. “So-Is It Okay to Use Wikipedia, Then?” Why White Rice? 121-22. Print. -
John Dougherty
In chapter five of “Why White Rice?”, Professor McGuire wrote a story named “Googling Is Not the Same as Thinking”. This story really caught my attention because not only is it completely true that students depend on the internet and their mobile devices way too much, but I sometimes find myself doing it as well. I think that this story is exactly what happens in the classroom. Nowadays, students get too lazy to think of an intelligent answer so we have to search for one. I think that most of us as students are perfectly capable of coming up with an answer or definition of some sort, but we just figure that if we can get something that is better than our answer basically handed to us, then why not? I think that by constantly looking stuff up on the internet, people are not thinking the way they should be. By generating your own ideas and thoughts makes you think outside the box rather than some very narrow definition. I think it is funny when he mentions that we will soon have to use Google to find out how we are feeling. If you think about the way that we depend on our internet and mobile devices, he might not sound so crazy. Soon enough, Google will be controlling our thoughts. Another point Prof. McGuire brought up was that students lack confidence in their thinking. I completely agree with this because some students don’t want to make themselves sound dumb by giving a ridiculous answer. Googling something reassures their confidence because it gives them a correct answer.
McGuire, Michael. “Googling Is Not the Same as Thinking.” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Pub, 2010. 119-20. Print. -
John Dougherty
Elevator Speech
Topic: Alcoholism
The growing rates of alcoholism and alcohol related incidents are rapidly increasing. Being an alcoholic has really become one of the biggest social issues there is. It is steering people away from the live that they could be happily living, and instead, alcoholism is ripping them apart from their families, work environments, and they are making bad decisions. Alcoholism is a very serious disease, but it can be overcome.
Why people turn to alcohol?
- Drinking for the effect, or to feel better.
- To get rid of and forget about problems.
- Release tensions they may have.
- Change their mood.
Why this social issue needs be minimized and stopped.
- It is harming the alcoholic’s body.
- It is tearing families apart.
- Alcoholics make bad decisions, including financial.
- Nearly 20,000 people died last year due to alcohol related accidents.
- Alcoholics hurt all of the people around them.
Everyone can step in and help.
- Call and talk to organizations.
- If you know someone who suffers from alcoholism or might be close, bring them to someone that could talk to them about their problems and inform them.
- Some people who have been saved organizations or other programs like to donate money to the place to get more support and necessary tools. Anyone can do this.
Alcoholism has been a problem for years and it is becoming more and more of a rising issue. Minimizing the number of alcoholics will help society out a great deal. People will be healthier, closer to their families, and less harm lime drunk driving will be done.
-
John Dougherty
Struggles With Alcohol
Overview of Alcoholism
As life moves on, some people run into problems that can change their life, change who they are, or affect them in a very dramatic way. They have no way to escape these problems. Unfortunately, some of these people turn things that will only make them worse off, such as alcohol. Alcoholism is a very serious disease that controls one’s life. It affects the way people live their lives, the people they interact with, and their decisions. The people with this disease can cause problems around the house and even financially. Drinking alcohol like this causes people to lose responsibility for them. They are not only hurting themselves, but everyone around them as well. It is a very scary thing to be affected by. Alcoholics have a strong desire for alcohol and cannot control how much they consume. They need the alcohol to make them feel good. It is a horrible drug. This is a very important and ongoing social issue because alcoholism is becoming more common and it is affecting a lot of people. So many people can be hurt by such a serious thing like this. Alcohol damages organs in your body and can get you very sick. This is an important issue that everyone should be aware of. Everyone has a possibility to become an alcoholic or they may know someone who struggles from this disease.
Many people pose the question that there should be more of a restriction on the sales of alcohol, or it should be banned all together. They say that alcohol is just as bad as drugs, in fact maybe the worst drug. Alcohol also contributes a great deal to crime rates. Alcohol related crimes are very high. On the other hand, people say that the amount of alcohol people consume is up to them. It is completely impractical to ban alcohol since it is part of so many social cultures. I think that there should be a much greater restriction on the sales of alcohol in order to reduce the number of alcoholics and to help solve this ongoing problem. Less people would be able to purchase and drink alcohol, so that would mean a lesser amount of people would be at risk for alcoholism.
Alcoholism Background
As you know, alcohol has been around forever, and where there is alcohol, there is alcoholics. As sad and unfortunate as it may sound, it is true. People who become alcoholics drink for the effect. They most likely have things or problems in their life that they simply do not want to deal with. They want to drink to change their mood and rid of all of their tensions. The drinker wants to feel good again, so they drink so intensely that their behavior takes a complete turn. Anyone, of any age can be affected by alcoholism. Men are more likely to become and alcoholic than a woman is. Over 9.8 million men and 3.9 million women are what are known to be problem drinkers. The numbers from men to women is a huge drop. Obviously, men need more of the help. People are between the ages of eighteen years old and twenty-nine are more likely to be the drinker as well (alcoholism-statistics.com). People at the ages of eighteen to twenty cannot even legally consume alcohol, yet they are the ones becoming the alcoholics. It seems as if people begin to deal with big life decisions at this age that can’t handle it. They turn to drinking and become addicted. Approximately fifty-three percent of men and women have claimed that either they or a family member suffers from alcoholism (alcoholism-statistics.com). These numbers are ridiculously high. You can see that alcohol affects so many people in our lives and it is so sad to see this happen to loved ones especially. Half of all traffic related fatalities have come because of drunk driving. Roughly 17,500 people died last year due to alcohol (alcoholism-statistics.com). That is nearly a death from alcohol related accident every thirty minutes, each day, in one year. It is scary to think about because one of those fatalities can easy be someone we care about or ourselves.
According to the U.S. National Library of Medicine, men show signs of alcoholism when they consume fifteen drinks a week and women when they consume twelve. You have an increased risk for alcohol abuse and dependence if you have a parent with alcoholism. A lot of research has said that alcoholism is in fact genetic. When someone in the family has this disease, you have more of a chance to get it passed down to you. You may also be more likely to abuse alcohol or become dependent if you have depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, live a stressful lifestyle, or live in a culture where alcohol use is more common and accepted. Alcohol abuse is rising. Around 1 out of 6 people in the United States have a drinking problem (U.S. National Library of Medicine). Depending on the size of the home, that is almost one person with an alcohol problem out of the average family.
Alcoholism Today
There is no question that alcoholism will be an ongoing struggle for people for the rest of our lives. As it has for years and years, people come up in the news everyday due to alcohol related accidents. “More than 200,000 people could die early from alcohol-related diseases, accidents and violence over the next 20 years, leading doctors have warned” (The Guardian). That is an extremely high number of predicted deaths and something needs to be fixed about this. Alcoholics can’t control themselves due to the excessive drinking so they make very bad decisions. These decisions will not only hurt them but others around them as well. Drinking and driving is one of the worst things that could possibly happen, but it seems like it is in the news almost every day. I lost a friend in the past year that was struck by a drunk driver. It is absolutely horrible for a family to endure the pain of losing a loved one due to an alcoholism related accident. I know at least it was hard for me and the people around me to get past the death. Other things like money and family issues come up as well. Fights between family members happen all of the time in the news because of alcohol or one of the members being an alcoholic. Sadly, some of these fights end in serious injury or possibly even death.
What’s Being Done About Alcoholism?
Fortunately, there are tons of different organizations and groups that are raising awareness about alcoholism. An organization called the International Center for Alcohol Policies is one that stood out to me. “Special efforts in alcohol education focus on individuals deemed at increased risk for harm. However, raising awareness among the general population and ensuring that those who choose to consume alcohol do so as safely as possible is another important outcome of education efforts.” One of the main goals is to educate on the effects of alcohol and alcoholism. They, along with other organizations get their messages and advertisements out by going through the mass media, information campaigns, school education, interventions, and warning labels on alcoholic products. This is a great way to reach thousands of people at one time. Everyone is engaged in their technology so the mass media has the capability of reaching so many people. When kids learn about alcoholism in school they will have a sense of what it is like and how badly it affects your life and body so they won’t do it. Interventions are great because it get people to share their experiences in order for the alcoholism to be less of a problem and to get their thoughts out. Warning labels make people who drink a lot think twice about what they are actually putting into their body. I think that this is one of the more extreme organizations. They are engaged in getting the necessary information out to people. They are hands on with learning and the use up to date technology.
The month of April is known as Alcohol Awareness Month. This was founded by the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence in 1987, and they have sponsored it ever since. The NCADD reaches out to communities across the nation “to bring the American public information about alcohol and alcoholism as a chronic, progressive disease, fatal if untreated and genetically predisposed” (NCADD). They believe by doing this they can effectively treat people and make them have a full recovery to live a happy life.
There are several local organizations raising awareness about alcoholism. The Chicago Area Service Office has a program called Alcohol Anonymous. It is a fellowship of men and women who share their experience, strength and hope with each other that they may solve their common problem and help others to recover from alcoholism. This is a great start to get on your way to be a long-term, recovering alcoholic. Sharing experiences with others is such a good way to realize that you have a problem that needs to be taken care of. There are places similar to this in almost every community around the country.
What Can I Do About Alcoholism?
One of the most important things someone can do to help raise awareness with alcoholism, is to recognize someone with this disease and refer them to someone. Anyone who is an alcoholic suffers very much from the alcohol and the problems they may be drinking away. By helping get to a rehab facility you may save their life and you are certainly saving them any more agony. It is hard to watch a family member or someone you love suffering from such a disease like this it would be silly not to get them the help they need. By stopping it early on, you will save many more problems down the road.
Other ways to help raise awareness about alcoholism is to get involved with a group or organization to learn about the effects of alcohol, and how it changes a person. By getting in contact with one of these groups, you can become more educated by them and learn everything they have to offer. Then, you will have the knowledge to be able to teach other people what alcoholism is all about. Being able to teach this kind of stuff will help save lives and make younger generations more educated so the rates will begin to decline. Also, talking to recovering alcoholics and inspiring them to become better people and to become successful in their life to come could work as well.
Contact Information:
- International Center for Alcohol Policies
Phone: +1.202.986.1159
Fax: +1.202.986.2080
Email: info@icap.org
- National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. (NCADD)
Phone: +1.212.269.7797
Fax: +1.212.269.7510
Email: http://www.ncadd.org
Lean More About Alcoholism
It is very important that everyone is aware and has some knowledge on alcoholism. This very dangerous disease can affect anyone in your lives including yourselves. There is not enough information that that one person can obtain on the subject to know it all. There is always something to learn. Alcohol affects everyone differently and in different ways. It is crucial to get to those people and stop them before it becomes a problem. Here are some places and sources that one can contact to further their knowledge of alcoholism:
Moelker, Wendy. “Alcoholism Stages and Causes of Alcoholism.” Web4health. 22 July 2008. Web. 19 Feb. 2012. <http://web4health.info/it/add-alcohol-how.htm>.
On this website you will find an article written by Wendy Moelker. She is a psychologist in an emergency center for mental health care. In the article you will learn about what it means to be an alcoholic, how people with alcoholism act and behave, and the development of becoming an alcoholic. Also, Moelker goes over specific details on drinking alcohol and how it affects people. This piece was intended for a general audience that knows little information on alcoholism. She gives a brief overview of what the disease is and how it works. This can help someone who is unfamiliar with the subject because she does a good job of explaining the basic outline of alcoholism.
Treatment Centers. “Alcoholism Statistics.” Alcoholism Statistics. Web. 19 Feb. 2012. <http://www.treatment-centers.net/alcoholism-statistics.html>.
This page is full of overview on alcoholism and statistics related to drinking. The Treatment centers is a privately funded informational site intended to give readers a knowledge of drug and alcohol abuses as well as the numbers on what goes on with these things each year. There are over fifty different statistics in bullet points on this site for people to read and share. This information helps realize how much alcoholism affects people and how much of a tragedy it is that we lose so many people to this abuse.
Nordqvist, Christian. “What Is An Alcoholic? What Is Alcoholism? What Is Alcohol Abuse?” Medical News Today. MediLexicon International, 10 July 2009. Web. 19 Feb. 2012. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/157163.php>.
This citation is an article written about alcohol abuse. The author, Christian Nordqvist, , is a journalist for Medical News Today. In the article, he briefly describes what an alcoholic is, and then he gets into drinking alcohol and how it is consumed. He compares the rate of drinking of an abuser to an alcoholic and shows the differences. Nordqvist explains how social drinking and drinking for an occasion can eventually lead to alcoholism. He includes some interesting and helpful statistics in his article. This could be a really helpful piece because it contains so much information.
Works Cited:
Board, A.D.A.M. Editorial. “Causes, Incidence, and Risk Factors.” Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Web. 19 Feb. 2012. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001940/>.
Association, Press. “Health Experts Predict High Rate of Alcohol-related Deaths.” The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 19 Feb. 2012. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2012/feb/20/health-experts-alcohol-related-deaths>.
“Alcoholism Statistics.” Alocholism Statistics, Alcoholism Treatment, Alcoholism, Alcohol Addiction, Alcohol Abuse, Alcohol Treatment,. 2004-2009. Web. 18 Feb. 2012. <http://www.alcoholism-statistics.com/index.php>.
National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence. “Awareness Months.” Welcome to NCADD. 18 Feb. 2012. Web. 21 Feb. 2012. <http://www.ncadd.org/index.php/programs-a-services/alcohol-awareness-month>.
“Welcome to ICAP.” International Center for Alcohol Policies. Web. 20 Feb. 2012. <http://www.icap.org/>.
Dixon, Thomas. “Should the Sale and Consumption of Alcohol – the World’s Favourite Drug – Be Further Restricted, or Even Banned?” International Debate Education Organization. 22 Aug. 2009. Web. 19 Feb. 2012. <http://www.idebate.org/debatabase/topic_details.php?topicID=107>.
-
Justyna Matyjaszczyk
“Struggles with Alcohol” is the topic of this essay and just the title alone drew me in because it is such a common and acceptable drug used in the United States and all over the world. The reasons for people turning to booze are very clear. When abusing alcohol it leads to many other problems such as irresponsibility, sickness, irrational decision-making, addiction and emotionally or physically hurting of others. I agree with these statements and we see this happening everyday amongst friends, family or strangers we hear about.
There are a lot of informative statements in the essay such as alcoholism does not discriminate. The disease can be in anyone and take over anyone no matter what color, religion, race or gender. I did not know that alcoholism is most common in young adults ranging in the ages of 18 to 29. These kids from 18 to 21 are not even legal to purchase booze yet it is so easy for them to gain access to it. The calculations for the amount of deaths due to alcohol related driving are ridiculous. I couldn’t picture the number of 17,500 because it’s just a number. When I kept reading that it’s about every half hour, once a day for one year, I could not believe it. That is an outrageous amount of alcohol related deaths due to driving under the influence. I am curious what the average age is for the car accidents due to driving under the influence of alcohol. I wonder if it is the 18 to 29-age range.
I have also heard the causes of alcoholism is genetic. But I kind of don’t believe that statement or research. I’m not saying you are wrong I just disagree with the overall statement. It may very well possibly be. What was interesting is who is most dependent on the drug. People who are already not in a good healthy mind-set seem to be the most reliable on alcohol. People with depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorders and anxiety. Also there are those who live stressful lives and who live in areas where alcohol is easily accepted in the societies. I agree because people do turn to other sources to deal with bad situations. A lot turn to anything that will subside the broken feelings and hurt inside them.
I have worked at a bar for a few years and I have seen a lot of customers pass from related alcohol abuse. It is very unfortunate and many of them did not admit they had an issue with excessive drinking. I thought it was pretty clear. Seeing them walk in at seven in the morning to start their day off with a shot or two of baileys in their coffee. About an hour later order their usual beverage, all of the bartenders knew exactly what they were drinking and in what order. As my shifts come to an end I walk out the door as they still sit at the bar drinking their booze day in and day out. It is very sad to see someone go through this.
-
James Jeszke
This subject hit home for me. It’s very interesting and I know several people with family members that are alcoholics and it seems like an everyday struggle for them. It seems to me that it effects the family more than it does the actual person. Even though the person will become dependent on liquor, the family will become dependent on that person getting better. Illnesses flourish within the persons body from sores to aches and pains as a result of alcoholism. It’s scary to think about having a scab-like sore on your body from drinking too much. I can only imagine what it would be like deterioration from the inside-out. I like the points you made about alcoholism ‘not discriminating.’ I thought it was very clever because it truly does not. It can be anybody that suffers from it and it is truly scary to think about. Its even scarier to think about the ages of alcoholism because I am in that range. The topic alone has so many subtopics that can be talked about and you did a very good job. I did not know that April is alcohol awareness month and the point you made about NCADD reaching out to communities is a good way to show how organizations are giving to the cause and fight of alcoholism. AA is a common organization that is open to the public and a requirement of DUI offenders and people convicted of drunk driving accidents.
Along with Justyna, I have also heard that alcoholism can be genetic. In psychology, I learned that how you handle yourself from ages 16-20 becomes apart of you and your DNA. By the time you are 21 your DNA is set in place and does not alter. That is why the drinking age is 21. I can see how this is because many do not want their children to become an alcoholic for obvious reasons. But the freedom that our country has should be a little different than not being able to drink a beer with your family on a holiday because your not 21 yet. I just do not agree with some laws.
I think that your paper is very good but lacks a few minor things. What can be done about alcoholism? You said to refer somebody that we know who suffers from it, but to who? How can these people who we refer an alcoholic to be trusted in truly helping a person who is suffering? And what about the families? Most families suffer from domestic and verbal abuse from an alcoholic and seeking help from the police doesn’t always help out to the full extent. Adding a few more things to that section can make your papers quality a whole lot better.
-
John Dougherty
When I came across the story, “You Can’t Dodge All the Bullets”, in “Why White Rice?”, I found myself very interested. The author of this piece makes a lot of good points that will help people not only as a student, but later in life as well. She mentions how her dad, as a police officer, comes across poorly written reports every day. These reports were written by well educated people with degrees. When you make drastic errors in any types of writing you do in your life, I think it is hard for the readers to take you seriously and respect the fact that you actually do have that degree. She continues on to say that writing is important in every single profession out there. Plenty of people will disagree with her because they don’t have to write long papers or use proper writing styles, but I agree with her. Whether you are writing a word, sentence, or simple paragraph, you should be able to do it right and make it effective. It makes you as an employee or whatever you are, seem like a more educated and knowledgeable person. Another point that she brought up was basically that you can fight your way through any problem that you might have, no matter how bad it might seem. Everyone has knowledge that they have not yet discovered. If you look into that knowledge by asking questions and using your resources, you can find your solutions. If you really want something, and you put your mind to it, I think that you can do anything.
Kinsella, Kate. “You Can’t Dodge All The Bullets.” Why White Rice? Thinking Through Writing. Kendall Hunt Pub, 2010. 80. Print. -
John Dougherty
Before class I had an idea what activism was but I wasn’t really sure. I assumed that activism and service were somewhat of the same thing. I was right to an extent. To me, service is more like volunteer work, when people are willing to work or give up their time for things that could be accomplished quickly. I look at it as a short term type of help or work. Things like go to soup kitchens, cleaning up garbage, or packing food for the needy is service work. Activism is more of a long term thing. I believe that activism is looking to find a solution to a problem that you strongly believe in. It goes further than just doing short term work. Activism involves going out, asking questions, researching, and eventually solving your problem or making it less of a problem. As an activist, someone may try to find out why the garbage in our communities is an ongoing problem and how we can keep it clean.
-
John Dougherty
“Village Voice” by Peter Hessler was a really good story. It told the story of Rajeev Goyal and his work with the Peace Corps. With his ambition and willingness, he goes out to a country that is less fortunate and helps them with their struggles. He develops and sets up a village named Namje, and bring water to these communities in an easier and more affordable way. This story is really inspiring because not a whole lot of people are willing to give up things like being a doctor, to go work with other countries. He went against what his family had set for him to do what he truly wanted. It is always great to see people who give back to what has made them who they are. Rajeev’s story shows that motivation can accomplish almost anything. I think this story goes back to our class because of the service learning we are participating in. It is a great opportunity to get started on helping others. These service learning activites will eventually form us into people who are more motivated and willing to help and do greater things just like Rajeev.
Hessler, Peter. “A Reporter at Large, Village Voice, The Peace Corps’s Brightest Hope.” The New Yorker. 2010. pgs 101-109. splatter.writing101.net -
John Dougherty
The article, “What It Means When a Crowd in a Faraway Nation Takes a Soldier Representing Your Own Nation, Shoots Him, Drags Him from His Vehicle, And Then Mutilates Him In The Dust” by Dave Eggers, is a very interesting piece of writing. In the story, Eggers begins to describe the anxiety and unease an older man seems to endure in his very normal day. His details are very precise and gives the reader a good idea of how the man is feeling and what he is doing. When the man is introduced to the disturbing photograph in the newpaper his day seems to come to a halt. I assume this man is a war veteran of some kind because clearly feels that this photograph should not be reality, when in fact, it is. The man feels these kinds of things should not be happening to people who are so well respected by their nation and he knows the pain because he was in the same shoes as this solider once was. It is horrible to hear about these things in the news. Things like this can have a great emotional toll on anyone, let alone another solider. The way that Eggers describes the frightening photo really paints a vivid picture in my mind without actually seeing it. He leaves you with questions and assumtions about the character in the story, making it interesting to read. You really have to think about what is going on in the story and you have to think outside of the box to make up your own details. I think that Eggers best writing trait is making you feel for the character. I felt a sense of shock seeing as to how this man felt towards the photo.
Eggers, Dave. “How We Are Hungry”, What It Means When A Crowd In A Faraway Nation Takes A Soldier Representing Your Own Nation, Shoots Him, Drags Him From His Vehicle And Then Mutilates Him In The Dust. McSweeney’s, 2004. pgs 17-18. Splatter.writing101.net 2012 -
John Dougherty
Live, Die, Kill
Everyone looks at life differently and from different perspectives. What one sees in their eyes could be so much different in our own. A lot of it has to do with what they believe in and what is important to them. Finding out what is truly important to someone is a key to figuring out who they actually are. The three questions everyone is responding to are the easiest way to answering this. What you live for, what you would die for, and what you would kill for really defines you. For some, these questions are very tough to answer. To me, these questions all seem to have similar answers.
Everyone has their own reasons to live and what they live for. There are a lot of things in this world that are important to me, my family and friends being one of them. My parents, brothers, sister, and other family members are the most important people in my life. They have supported me my whole life and they have shaped me into the person that I am today. Everything I have and all of my successes in life have come because my family members have always been behind me to back me up. They motivate and push me to do greater things that will help me in the future. I would never want to disappoint or lose them. The worst feeling is seeing someone in my family upset or hurt. I live to see my family be happy. Nothing makes me happier than seeing them happy. My friends are the same. They have been with me all of my life. Most of my biggest life experiences have been with my friends. Like my family, motivation is huge with my friends. We help each other through anything. I live to see all of these important people in my life happy and to be successful.
I also live for myself and the future. Anything that happens to me happens for a reason. I strive to do my best in whatever it is that I am doing every day. Making myself happy and accomplishing goals is what I look forward to. I hate failure. I live to be a successful person. Satisfying myself is very important because not everyone can always give or tell you what you want. I believe that change is possible no matter what. People and things change every day. There isn’t a single day where you can go out and not see something new or learn something new. The future is so unpredictable and you never know what opportunities or chances it holds for you. I live to grow into a better person as time goes on.
Death is one of the most feared things in anyone’s life. It takes a lot to tell someone you would die for anything. Most people joke around and say they would die or kill for something. But when I actually think about dyeing for something, only a few things come to mind. Obviously my family is one of them. I mentioned I live to see my family happy. I would do anything to protect and keep my family safe. If it involves taking a bullet for one of them, I would certainly do it. I hate to see any of my loved ones suffer or face hardships. Seeing my family happy makes me happy. If they can’t be happy because they are facing a near death situation or mourning the death of someone else, I would take that position without a doubt. If saving a loved one involved me giving up a heart or some other vital organ I would do it. My family means the world to me and if they can’t be happy, I don’t want to be happy. I can’t really say what else I would die for. I haven’t experienced life enough yet to have found something that means that much to me. At this age, people and things come and go way too fast. I haven’t been able to spend much time with anything other than family. Nothing can compare to the love and emotion I express for my family, therefore, making it hard for me to find something else to die for.
When I said all of my answers were the same for the questions being asked, I meant it. However, I would kill for a little more than I would die for. Saying you would kill for something is easier than saying you would die for something because everyone has so much to live for no matter how much they deny it. Once again, I would kill for my family, but I would also kill for anything that blocks me on the path for being successful in the future. Anyone who ever tried to harm my family in anyway certainly deserves a little smacking around. But if anyone ever killed or tried to kill any of my family members on purpose, I would kill them. I realize it is hard to say that you would kill someone and mean it, but I honestly do mean it. Yes, I do realize there are very tragic accidents that everyone has to live with, and that’s why I put on purpose. One of my biggest things in life is fairness. We all know this world is far from fair, but all of my actions are based on fairness. People argue that it only makes it worse to do wrong to another that has done wrong to you or your family. I hate that statement. That clearly isn’t fair. Letting someone kill someone and either get away with it and live happy or sit in jail for most of their life isn’t nearly as bad as what the family of the victim have to go through.
I mentioned that I would also kill for anything that got into my way of being successful in the future. My life is all about success. I can go ahead and tell you success to me is having all of the money in the world, driving a fast car, and living in a mansion, but I would be lying. Don’t get me wrong here, those things sound more than great, but that’s not what I care about. Success to me is being happy when I wake up in the morning and enjoying my life. I don’t want to hate myself for making the wrong decisions and living life miserably. When I say I would kill for anything that stopped me from accomplishing this, I mean anyone or anything that tries to harm me, steer me into directions to make bad decisions, or harming anyone I know that could get me places.
When I was first handed the paper with these three, short, simple questions I thought I was in for an easy paper. I was wrong. These are three very difficult questions for someone to answer. Indeed, everyone’s opinion will be different. Looking at these questions really helped me get a better hold on who I am and where I stand as a person. I didn’t realize how much I cared about my family and future until now. Everyone has so much to live for. It isn’t easy to say that I would die or kill for anyone because they are two scary things. They are tossed around and joked about so much. When you finally sit down and write about it, not a lot comes to mind. Family, happiness, and the future seem to be my main priorities.
-
Jenna McGill
I agree with a lot of the things you have written. I liked how you said all your answers were the same because mine correlated as well. Family and friends mean so much to me and made me who I am. I agree that these questions are difficult to answer. These questions shouldn’t be taken lightly. I see that you put thought into your essay and I can see what you value in life. I think you did a great job and I can see how much your loved ones mean to you.
-
Justyna Matyjaszczyk
After reading your response to Live. Kill. Die, I really enjoyed your thoughts on the “live” portion of the essay. You were organized, and you did a great job of explain your love for your family, their importance to your life and why it is you want to live for their happiness. I understand you willingness to die and kill for your family, but I would certainly like to know more about what kind of success you are willing to kill for? What is your definition of success? What does being successful mean to you? I think it would really help your paper if you added some examples, so that as a reader I have a more vivid picture of what is important to you. Also I would like more explanation on your statement about killing anything that blocks you on the path to success. I was very confused and left me with unanswered questions.
-
James Jeszke
Having strong family values can come to a point where a major decision in your life relies on what you think of them. It is important to keep them close at all costs. No matter how you put it, when all the smoke clears, your family will stick with you for life. Friends come as fast they can go too remember that. Keep your family close to you. It is the most understandable thing to live, die, and kill for. I would do anything for my family because they keep me sane and by the sound of your paper they do the same for you too. I understood where you came from when you said you’d kill for your success. You have to work for success because the world doesn’t come easy anymore. Looking at the big picture in life is something that is hard for us all.
All in all, I like your writing style. It gets straight to point and flows nicely. A few minor errors here and there but nothing that can bring your overall paper down. -
Jessica Cortez
I enjoyed reading the paragraph starting with Death. i really agree with this part because i also live for my family being happy. i think just having our families in our lives really gives us a reason to live and work hard for the things in our lives. i really like what you said about doing anything for your family. overall the paper really shows how much you care about your family, it shows how much love you have for your family and how much your family really means to you.
-
-
John Dougherty
I believe that ecological literacy means that you are aware of your environment and what happens around you. Understanding the functions of ecosystems , how life works, and realizing changes from time to time is all part of being ecologically literate. There are many differences one must see between human society and an ecosystem. It isn’t hard to become familiar with your environment and other ecosystems. To develop an understanding of being ecologically literate I believe people have to realize how other types of living things work. Just knowing what kind of animals live around you and what kind of trees you have in your backyard is a step. I think that I have a basic foundation of being economically literate. I understand why it is important to preserve and keep our communities clean, and I also know the differences between human communities and ecosystems. These things effect everyone, everyday. In order to keep our communities sustainable, people need to doing things like recycling and using public transportation. Less waste and less pollution in our environments would help so much to preserve the ecosystems. Other things like cutting down trees and using paper instead of plastic helps as well. If everyone got a grasp on being ecologically literate like Capra says, our communities and ecosystems would be a lot better place.
Capra, Fritjof. “From The Web of Life.” Splatter.writing101.net. Web. 25 Jan. 2012. -
John Dougherty
The grading contract seems like a good system. Everyone gets a fair chance at a good grade as long as they put forth the effort. Should be no problems.
James Jeszke, and 
Justyna Matyjaszczyk are discussing. 
Jessica Cortez, 
Justyna Matyjaszczyk 9:01 pm on April 23, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
The place you and your team chose is the Sertoma Centre in Alsip. This organization helps senior citizens and people with disabilities. It provides these people with the oprotunities of work and personal success such as training for work and job placement, housing, senior programs, school transitioning, residential housing and autism services so that these people may have an easier time of becoming a contributing person to their communities. The Sertoma Club seems to have a wide variety of programs to help many people who cannot do what we may call simple or every day tasks on their own. I think this is a wonderful organization and I have heard of it. This organization is in the city I live and I have been to a couple of their fundraising events and have donated money. Before your team found this organization you had a hard time finding one that you can volunteer with because of such short notice. My team and I had the same issue. We also wanted to volunteer and help to inform and educate those with alcohol problems. We could not find one near enough for us to volunteer with and or we ran into problems such as we needed a TB test or had to be certified in order to work close enough with those who needed the help. The Sertoma Centre seems like a very open place where you can get great hands on experience. You are allowed to work with the people who are in need and have a good inside look. Although you and your team are not able to attend and volunteer the same, I think this may give you guys the upper hand. As you stated you will are all scheduled to go on different days. But the positive of this is you will all collect information and be able to deal with different individuals. I am sure you will all end up having very similar information but have a different experience since you are not going the same day. It sounds very exciting to be able to speak to those who are being helped by the Sertoma Club because it gives you a deeper and more clear insight on how the place works, who the people are and how they are being helped. Also you may find out that some people would like something else form the organization or they are in need of something form them and you could become the person to make it happen. I think when volunteering this is the best way to do it, by having hands on experiences with those who use organizations such as the Sertoma club. You will also take many notes and ask plenty of question to those who are running and working with these individuals. You will be observing not only how the place is run but also how the people working for Sertoma act and treat each other and those who are taking advantage of the organization. This place seems like a great one to volunteer for.
James Jeszke 9:11 pm on April 24, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
The issue of helping others is in a lot of peoples minds. Retirements homes and nurses are a huge a help in helping the elderly that have come to the age where they are unable to take care of themselves. I have heard of the Sertoma Centre in Alsip before but to actually put forth the effort to move forward and help out with the is a huge step for anybody. Your groups decision with a nursing home surprised me because it is a very good place to do service and can be difficult as well. Many problems can arise like dealing with difficult people. The Sertoma Centre you chose seems to have a lot of different programs to help people that cannot do things on their own. My group came upon a whole lot of problems finding and organizing times to actually go out and do service. At the beginning, you seem to have had these problems as well. It was tough because many of the places were booked with volunteers and different things going on for the next couple of months. We eventually got in touch with a place that allowed us to fill a spot this week so we finally will be able to do some service. The fact that you are going a different day, you may have a different experience than the other people in the group. It may be a good thing though because you can have different questions that can be valuable to this paper. I like the fact that this place has fundraisers and donators. I have been to a couple of their events and they really are good people. Their mission is honest and they treat everyone with respect. It stands out in the crowd some might say.
I would suggest trying to talk to someone there and see how they like it while your doing the service too. The hands on experience is a more concrete way of coming back to it and writing about it later on. Try to be thoughtful with questions that can help you finish up on this. All in all, the paper flows well and you have a lot of good, valid information. It is clear that you show some care on this topic because the fact that your group each has personal issues on dealing with such things. It suits you and your group well. Having a great interest in something along these lines is critical in how your personality shows through your writing. Once you get started doing the service I’m sure that typing more will not be an issue whatsoever. I think that a little part is left and the words will be flowing.