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nevermind i found it
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Shannon Ratzel
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Shannon Ratzel
does anyone know what the headings had to be for Action Project #5 the big essay about your own service learning project? this would be the only one i dont have….
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Shannon Ratzel
After listening to the speaker on Monday talk about her time in Ireland I was rather intrigued on what “The Troubles” were. I know that there was some sort of conflict in Ireland but I didn’t know much about it. The Troubles refers to approximately three decades of violence between foundations of Northern Ireland’s nationalist community who mainly self-identified as Irish or Roman Catholic, and its unionist community, who mainly self-identified as British and or Protestant. Use of the term “The Troubles” has been raised at Northern Ireland Assembly level, as some people considered this period of conflict to have been a war. The conflict was the result of discrimination against the Nationalist Catholic minority by the Unionist Protestant majority and the question of Northern Ireland’s status within the United Kingdom. The violence was characterized by the armed campaigns of Irish republican and Ulster loyalist revolutionary groups. This included the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) campaign of 1969–1997, intended to end British rule in Northern Ireland and to reunite Ireland politically and thus create a 32 county Irish Republic; and of the Ulster Volunteer Force, formed in 1966 in response to the perceived erosion of both the British character of, and unionist domination of, Northern Ireland. The state security forces the British Army and the Royal Ulster Constabulary were also involved in the violence. The British Government’s view was that its forces were neutral in the conflict, trying to uphold law and order in Northern Ireland and the right of the people of Northern Ireland to democratic self-determination. The Troubles were brought some sort of an end by a peace process. This included the declaration of ceasefires by most revolutionary organizations, the complete decommissioning of the IRA’s weapons, the reform of the police, and the corresponding withdrawal of army troops from the streets and sensitive border areas.
As I was reading into the history of The Troubles I noticed it was a very long and complicated story, for lack of better wording. I didn’t really know that the Irish really had that many problems. I thought most of the problems in the world resided in Asia and The Middle East.-
Shannon Ratzel
“The Troubles, 1963 to 1985.” http://Www.bbc.co.uk. BBC 2012, 01 Feb. 2007. Web. 2 May 2012. .
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Shannon Ratzel
why the eff is this coming up green….
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Killian Noonan
This paper obviously if you have read any of my other post caught my eye. I don’t know how I didn’t see it till now, perhaps because my Splatter was acting up. Anyway one thing I must say is you took a very neutral standpoint. Which I thought was good, many of those who do not know about the Troubles, tend to side with the British. One thing also you should take away from this all, is that this conflict is in fact not about religion. It is a struggle of national sovereignty. I just wanted to clear that up with. You did do a good job clarifying that Irish nationalist/republicans happen to fall under Roman Catholic category, and Ulster Loyalist/ Unionist fall under the Protestant category. One major argument I myself make for the whole Catholic versus Protestant debate, is that Theobald Wolfe Tone who in fact was an Irish Protestant, is one one the founding fathers of Irish Republicanism. Likewise was Robert Emmet who came after him the Rebellion of 1803. One thing also that I must say is that although the war between Sinn Fein and the Brits may be over, due to their shortcomings and sell out of the Irish fight for freedom, the war is all but over. In fact what Sinn Fein have done is backed British policing and further administered British rule. In fact the police are all but reformed and still follow age old tactics of internment and harassment. Even though you took a neutral stand point, it is always good to point out that even though Sinn Fein may have sold out, there are still many armed groups and political parties. These armed groups and parties all follow the same principles and fundamentals that were present at Easter Rising 1916, and in the Irish War of Independence. In fact the Good Friday Agreement, which you made mention of has gotten the Irish no where! It has been 14 years since its signing and there has not been one milestone in Irelands freedom. Sinn Fein would like to call us the dissidents, however we are the one’s that stand-fast to the Proclamation of 1916 democratically endorsed in 1919, it is they who are the traitors! There is still an ever present British presence in the North of Ireland. In the words of Padraic Pearse famous Irish Republican and signatory of the Proclamation of 1916, “Ireland un-free shall never be at peace.” Quick question was this speaker at the act out fair?
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Shannon Ratzel
Rean Carter is the name of a five-year-old little boy from Sunderland, England, who donated his long locks of blond hair to raise money. His mother for the longest time didn’t want to cut his hair because she thought it was too beautiful. He had long curly blond hair. People often mistook him for a little girl. He didn’t mind because he loved his hair. Recently, when Rean started school kids would bully him for his hair and call him girl or make fun of him. He started to hate his hair. One day, he came home crying because he couldn’t take the evilness of the children at school. His mother couldn’t see him in pain anymore so she took him to Rean’s uncle’s barber shop. In just a few minutes, Rean looked like a brand new boy with a striking new haircut. They noticed how heavy it was in a bag and realized it must have been a relief for little Rean to finally be free of his pounds of hair. When he finally attended school again his classmates were in awe at his transformation. Rean used his hair to raise $500 for the Children’s Ward and Sunderland Royal Hospital where he was once treated for impetigo. I thought it was sad that kids are so evil and would tease another little boy about his hair but I thought it was absolutely wonderful that he donated his long hair to a hospital that helped him out before. It reminded me of St. Baldrick’s that we do here in the United States.
“Boys Cuts Off Tresses for Charity.” Msnbc.com. Ed. Laura T. Coffey. MSNBC, 23 Mar. 2012. Web. 18 Apr. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
Habitat for Humanity
Stacks of field writing? Psh…my memory’s sick.
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Selina Littlefield
First of all, I love reading your papers because you tell it like it is. Your not afraid to voice your opinion on something that you have strong feeling for. I can relate to you a lot! I am sure a lot of people were feeling the same way. I think you did a good job describing what exactly you had to do. Some thing that was included was not necessary. You could have added more info about what led up to your groups decision on doing this certain organization. I would like to know more, like did you guys run in to some dead ends? How did you hear about the organization? What about the communication with them setting up the whole meeting? “Doug explained to us that he was a construction worker who was unemployed for a long time. His friend who had been working for Habitat got him a job working as a construction designer and worker. Now he gets to see his hard work pay off when the families move into their new homes. He explained that people are usually so grateful that they’re brought to tears. It was a very touching story.” Doug seems like a stand up guy and it nice to see that there are actually good/ amazing people still left in this world. It was nice to see all of us from extremely different backgrounds come together for one cause. “We had Doug, the man running the show, Jadwiga, who is from Poland, Su Min, who is from South Korea, Mark, who was born deaf, and me who seemed like a brat compared to everyone else. We sat and talked about where we came from and our struggles with life and what Habitat for Humanity meant to each of us.” I thought that it was wonderful that you got to get to know other people that come from different walks of life. You got to share each others experience and ethnic backgrounds. I was happy to see the diversity within the group. I was glad to see you actually presented info about the organization. You made it clear what they were all about and what their goals were. I can defiantly relate with you about cutting the grass. I have never mowed the grass before in my life and I do not plan to as long as I can lol. I really admired your charity of choice because they are an excellent cause. I would not have mind painting, and it seemed like you had more fun then you thought you were going to have. That just shows us through life we can not knock it until we try it. You thought the day was going to be dreadful and you actually enjoyed it and it helped a family in need. Overall, this was a very amusing paper and you really kept my attention as always. I like the way you keep your papers fresh and comical all at the same time.
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Susan Bayaa
I can honestly say I really enjoyed reading this paper. It was amazing. I do not like doing peer reviews and I always wish we never had to do them but I really did enjoy reading this essay. From the beginning you had my attention. I was surprised and very interested. I have a hard time trying to pay attention when I read but I really had no problem this time. I was interested in finding out what was going on and what was going to happen next and what you were going to do. I did laugh when you did mention saying being on the roof or doing something with electricity. I do not know why I found that very funny and amusing. I did like how in the begging you did actually start from the beginning. What I mean is that from when you first woke up until when you were done. I can relate to not wanting to wake up in the morning and also trying to take off work. My problem was my job is very strict and we are not able to take off work or it is a write up. I would have also been worried about what I would have had to done if I was in your position as well. Whenever we have something like this I always wonder what we may have to do and in the end it does not really turn out as bad as I thought it would. I felt like I was there the whole time I was reading it. It had great detail and description that I was able to follow and I could picture the whole thing in my head. That is good that you had someone really nice and informing about what you guys were doing. I think that helping people that need homes or a place to stay is something very thoughtful. Taking time out of your plans to help other people out is nice. I am glad you were also able to enjoy working there as well as helping the people that are going to be staying there. I would like to do something like that because that would actually be fun. I would like to paint a room and know that I am helping someone out like that. I wish we thought of something like that but I did enjoy learning about my project too. What I understood is that you guys helped make a home more comfortable to the people who really need it. Isn’t that a TV show. I’m not sure but I did find it interesting and you again were very good at showing me how your experience went because this was a very well thought out project and written essay and I enjoyed reading every part of it. I also did want to say I’m sorry that you got paint on your hair and could not get it out for a couple of days. That might have upset me.
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Shaun Smith
The organization you went to work for sounds like it is really promising. Habitat for Humanity is doing something that is saving so many poor families from losing homes, and making them more affordable, and through my eyes that’s a job well done. Now a days no one can even touch the housing market because every house is so highly priced, which in all due respect comes from our poor economic times. I really love the idea that people are there to help one another out, and I think this is what community service is all about. The truth is I have never heard about this organization before, and I like the idea that we can present these places to so many other people to volunteer at. I think if we promote them highly we can help get more volunteers and start making a bigger difference in the community. The one thing that separates your paper from everyone else is the fact that when you guys had lunch time, you all sat down to learn about each other. I hope your experience went well in your stand point, because as a reader I feel as if it did. No one has written about how they would get to know their peers through the whole experience, and when you wrote about it that helped to make it a more personal story to you, and not just another deal of community service. Overall your paper was well formatted, and definitely kept my attention throughout the entire thing. The two main focus points of the service you actually took part in, and the personalization of the paper helped to make this a good piece to read. If you can I would really like to learn more about this organization, and if possible spread the word so they would acquire more help. They have a strong message that they are trying to get across. I think your heading in the right direction, maybe just some grammatical errors here and there but overall it is a good paper.
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Shannon Ratzel
Of course everyone knows the story of the Titanic. If not, you’ve been living under a rock…RMS Titanic was a British passenger liner that sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912, after colliding with an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York City. The sinking of Titanic caused the deaths of 1,514 people. Titanic was the largest ship afloat at the time of her maiden voyage. One of three Olympic class ocean liners operated by the White Star Line, it was built between 1909–1911 by the Harland and Wolff shipyard in Belfast and carried 2,224 people. Its passengers included some of the wealthiest people in the world, as well as over a thousand emigrants from Great Britain and Ireland, Scandinavia and other countries seeking a new life in North America. On April 14, 1912, Titanic hit an iceberg at 11:40 pm. The glancing collision caused Titanic’s hull plates to buckle inwards in a number of locations on her starboard side and opened five of her sixteen watertight compartments to the sea. Over the next two and a half hours, the ship gradually filled with water and sank. Passengers and some crew members were evacuated in lifeboats, many of which were launched only partly filled. Just before 2:20 am Titanic broke up and sank bow-first with over a thousand people still on board. Those in the water died within minutes from hypothermia caused by immersion in the freezing ocean. The 710 survivors were taken aboard from the lifeboats by the RMS Carpathia a few hours later. Titanic has been a worldwide obsession since it’s sinking and many museums are opened in its honor. The 100th anniversary of the sinking shall be remembered around the world. James Cameron re-released his 1997 smash film of Titanic in 3D. I went to see it and cried my eyes out. Titanic still fascinates me.
“The Ship.” rmstitanic.net. RMS Titanic, n.d. Web. 11 Apr 2012. Web. .-
Killian Noonan
This caught my eye. What many people do not know is that many more people could have been saved. The life boats in Belfast were tested using full grown men. The average number of people I believe was 70 men per life boat. When the actual event happened boats carrying as few as 12 people. The sad reality the power of one’s class holds. I often wonder if that would happen today? Have we as a society truly broken away from the superior thinking of what class we are in. On a lighter note, the 3D version was pretty cool, I’ll admit I went to see it.
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Shannon Ratzel
Sunaura Taylor was born March 21, 1982 in Tucson, Arizona. She is an American painter and activist for disability and animal rights. She currently resides in Oakland, California, and has taught classes at the University of California, Berkeley. I learned of her in the film Examined Life where she and Judith Butler discussed what it meant to “take a walk.” Sunaura Taylor’s work has been displayed in the Smithsonian and in galleries across the United States. In 2004, she received the Grand Prize in the VSA arts Driving Force juried exhibition for emerging disabled artists. A portion of her work deals with animal rights issues. Taylor was born with arthrogryposis. Arthogryposis is a term used to describe a number of rare conditions characterized by stiff joints and abnormally developed muscles. She has been active in the Society for Disability Studies and has participated in marches for disability rights. I decided to take a look at Sunaura Taylor’s art and it’s rather disturbing. A lot of them have dead animals. I know she does a lot of work for animal rights and she is also a vegan. I thought during Examined Life, Judith Butler and Sunaura Taylor made some good points. They made the points that we all are interdependent and that we should have no problems helping each other but for some reason we do. They pointed out that our bodies can do wonderful things. Sunaura uses parts of her body to paint and carry things in ways that people aren’t used to, but they still work. I don’t think we should live in a world where we’re afraid to ask for help.
Taylor, Sunaura. “Cirriculum Vitae.” Sunaurataylor.com. Sunaura Taylor. Web. 4 Apr. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
After taking time to read “The Cycle of Socialization,” my eyes hurt from staring at the screen and comprehending it. In the long run it makes sense but it took a second for it to sink in and for me to understand it. I agree with the fact that we shouldn’t judge someone on where they come from because they didn’t have the choice of when, where, and who they were born into. They didn’t choose their circumstances. It’s interesting to think that at the start of your life you listen to everything your parents tell you like their word is law. It’s also interesting that they’re only trying to teach you what they know because of what they grew up with. Then as you start to grow up your form your own path and start asking questions and questioning the things and people around you. You start getting influenced by school, sports, and friends. The article makes a valid point when they say that a lot of how you think is because of what we learn in school. Some examples were that certain students get special education because of how they think and only certain races go out for certain teams. “If we are members of the group that benefit from the rules, we think nothing is wrong with them.” You see that happen so many times just in everyday life. One I can think of now is teaching assigning a ton of homework and then not seeing what’s wrong. Well that is because they are not affected by it. I think this was a very enlightening article.
Harro, Bobbi. “The Cycle Of Socialization”. 2012; splatter.writing101.net Web, 28 March 2012 -
Shannon Ratzel
This weather has been absolutely amazing! I hate winter and I love when you can finally see the grass turning green, the flowers budding and blooming, and the trees sprouting their leaves. It’s weird to think that at this time last year we had snow on the ground, winter chill advisories, and no motivation to leave the house for anything but the most necessary things. Why has this Midwest winter/spring transition been so wacky? No, it’s not the end of the world you doomsdayers…it all has to do with the jet stream over North America. The jet stream that defines weather in North America is controlled by the North Atlantic Oscillation and the Arctic Oscillation, climate patterns that reflect differences in sea-level pressure across certain stretches of the world. The pressure differences this year have been incredible. For the North Atlantic Oscillation, this year saw the most extreme difference ever recorded in December, and the second most extreme for the Arctic Oscillation. This positive pressure difference has drawn warm air from the southwest over the Eastern United States, rather than the usual chilly air from the Arctic. Last winter’s pressure differences were huge as well, but in the opposite, negative direction, so lots of cold air poured down and we had tons of snow. In fact, the last six years have been generally strange for the Arctic Oscillation, with the two most extreme negative values and two most extreme positive values on record. So, hopefully this won’t cause some weird ice age but I’ll enjoy the weather while it lasts.
Greenwood, Veronique. “Why This Weather Is So Crazily Warm.” Discover Magazine. Kalmbach Publishing Co., 12 Jan. 2012. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
A Critical Reflection of Service
People say that community service is an important activity every person should embrace as they are growing up; at least that is what my high school told me. I guess that is why I had to do twenty four hours of it before graduating. They said that doing community service, a person will find themself and be exposed to the lifestyles of other people, which also tends to make the volunteer more aware of the needs of the less fortunate. I definitely do not think so. Ha, maybe that’s why I hate it so much. Finding time to do community service when you work six days a week is almost impossible. I did not have time and I do not think it is selfish that I just did not want to take my day off to go do something I did not want to do. It is a great thing that this spring break I was presented with such beautiful weather. 80 degrees in March? I will take it. Over the break I got a group of friends together to pick up trash around my neighborhood. I live in a pretty nice neighborhood in Tinley Park and you would not think that it would get too messy around Tinley but to our surprise there was a lot of junk. On Wednesday, March 14, my group of friends took to the streets. We picked up trash cans, floating newspapers, cigarette butts, fast food bags and wrappers, bottles, just about everything. We got real dirty ;). We did not need much. We collected the bottles and the cans into separate bags so we could recycle them after we were done cleaning the neighborhood. Let’s just say the recycle bins I have at my house were nice and stuffed.
What we noticed was that a lot of the trash we collected was a result of laziness. It seemed as though people around our neighborhood were just too lazy to hold onto a can or bag or find a garbage can that we had at our local park. It is not that big of a deal to keep some trash in a bag or hold on to it until you get home. Maybe things were flying out of people’s garbage cans? I am not sure but all I know is littering can be prevented very easily. We found bottles and cans in the lake by my house. We found paper in the grass and stuck on trees. The worst thing we found was pop cans in the lake and cigarette butts littered around our neighborhood park. Animals could be getting injured from the cans or getting stuck in can rings. If we took the time to actually throw our garbage where it is supposed to go we would not have garbage all over our parks and neighborhood. Maybe if we had a few more garbage cans around our neighborhood there might not be such a problem. Tinley Park may be a big area but I know there are people around my neighborhood who are specifically employed to keep my neighborhood clean, why aren’t they doing their jobs? Maybe we should take this to Tinley Park council. Maybe we should complain that they are not doing their jobs. I think it is also up to us to make sure that our neighborhood is clean. I mean we are the ones who actually live there. I have always been taught that littering just should never be done. I was taught that if you have garbage, you hold onto it because it does not belong on the street. I will continue to have this attitude forever. I do not like when people litter. I tend to speak up when people litter or pick up when I see trash on the ground. Oh yea, I am that annoying one that is like, “Oh, are you going to pick that up or what?” Our earth is beautiful and I do not think it should be covered in trash because people are too lazy to take it to a trash can. Yes, I know that there are garbage dumps and all that but those are set aside specifically for that. We can do our part now and keep the small parts we have around us clean for animals and children so they are not playing and living in filth.
A lot of people do not like the fact that we have garbage dumps and that America and the World needs to “go green”, or dedicated to finding solutions for the sustainability of the planet. There are many ways to go green including showering in less time, carpooling or biking to work or school, and unplugging appliances that are not in use. Part of our community service helped our neighborhood go a little green. Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day as well :P. If everyone had the discipline to pick up after themselves hopefully our neighborhoods and streets will be a little cleaner.
I think taking the time to clean my neighborhood says a lot. It says that I care about the neighborhood that I live in and the streets I drive and walk on. I care about the place I grew up and I hope that the kids growing up have a nice area to live in as well. I hope one day they take the time to walk around Tinley Park and pick up trash or have the common decency to throw away their trash properly. I strongly encourage the people of Tinley Park and other Chicago land neighborhoods to recycle. I even encourage the United States to recycle. Recycling is processing used materials into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution from incineration and water pollution from landfilling by reducing the need for conventional waste disposal. I think Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction. Recyclable materials include many kinds of glass, paper, metal, plastic, and electronics. We recycled a lot of paper, plastic, and aluminum. You can start recycling by setting aside bins in your house for certain recycled materials. Then contact Homewood Disposal, if you live in the area and find out where you can drop your recyclables off or even have them come get the bins. http://www.homewooddisposal.com. If you cannot recycle hopefully at least you just pick up your trash.
I still hate community service but I feel that if you do it with friends and find something you really care about you might have a good time. I had a good time making me neighborhood a better place. I feel like we really made a difference. We ran into a mother walking in the park and praised us for our work. She told us that she was going to bring her kids to the park later that day and she was happy knowing it was clean. It instilled a sense of pride in us that someone was happy. We signed up for the park district’s day of cleaning on April 7. The day of cleaning is doing exactly what we did just in other neighborhoods in Tinley Park and not just our own. I think it should be fun and bring back the memories we made the day we cleaned up our own neighborhood. Hopefully a lot of people will join and we can make a difference by making Tinley Park an even more beautiful and spotless place.
well that sucked….
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Selina Littlefield
The beginning of your pape4r really caught my eye. You said, “People say that community service is an important activity every person should embrace as they are growing up; at least that is what my high school told me. I guess that is why I had to do twenty four hours of it before graduating.” At my high school I did not have to do any type of community service. It was not required of us to give go out and help a charity. I have mixed feelings about that because you should have a choice whether or not you want to go out and help. I believe going out to help people should be out of the kindness of your heart, not just because you need the hours to graduate. “Finding time to do community service when you work six days a week is almost impossible. I did not have time and I do not think it is selfish that I just did not want to take my day off to go do something I did not want to do.” That is very true. People have a lot of responsibilities that they need to tend to first, after all we do have lies. I am saying all this in the most positive, unselfish way. I have nothing against helping out with the community, but we have to do it when it is convenient for us the people that are helping out. Do not get me wrong, it is a beautiful thing to take time out of your day to put something positive back in the world. I applaud the people that devote all their time to aiding others that are in need of help. Thinking about other people and not just yourself is very important because if you give, you shall receive in return. I think it is wonderful that you took the time to clean up your neighborhood. You did not treat it as a chore but as something fun for you and your friends to get involved in. “What we noticed was that a lot of the trash we collected was a result of laziness. It seemed as though people around our neighborhood were just too lazy to hold onto a can or bag or find a garbage can that we had at our local park.” our generation is very lazy. Something so easy as just throwing your trash into a bin is very hard. People want to be rid of their trash at that moment and do not realize what they are doing to the community. Every time I finish eating something I wait and hold on to it until I find the proper disposal to get rid of it. It is simple, but yet difficult for some people. They are not the ones to pick it up, so they do not care. Over all, I really liked your paper and we have some of the same views on charity. I like that you add humor to your paper, which makes it less boring.
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Rami Ali
First of all I’m really glad that I did not go to your high school. I would have hated to do twenty some hours of community hours to graduate. I personally don’t have time for community services simply because work and school take up to much of my time,I just can’t wait to have a day off and sleep all day. Tinley park as one of the cleanest cites I seen and still can’t believe that its that dirty,but then again I know how lazy people are. The people that were probably littering were the younger crowd just because we don’t care were things go these days. A clean city is really important,it show that people who live there who they are. Chicago use to be one of the dirtiest cites around but lately it’s one of the cleanest. The cites laws put in so much money to keep chicago simply clean because its really big and one of Americas best cities. This also shows the tourists who come to chicago who and how us Chicagoans are! You did a great job on this paper showing how dirty cities are,especially the nice ones. It was great of you and your friends to take time from your busy schedules and work on a need in your city. This paper was good,it just needs more information talking about how other cites are dirty and how it can effect our planet.
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Susan Bayaa
I agree that we have become dirty and just let our community get nasty. I see people all the time throwing things on the floor and flicking their cigarettes. I am not going to lie I was one of the people that would flick my cigarette. But it would only happen when I am driving. When there is a smoke tray or whatever you call it nearby I would throw it in there. I did realize that that became a problem and was really bad for our community so I did buy an ashtray for my car. But it is not only about people throwing their trash on the floor or anywhere thy can really they also need to separate it. We really need more people pushing the whole you have to recycle and it is better for our community kind of thing. We don’t take what is happening to our world because of how dirty and inconsiderate we have become. That is not a good thing. We never want where we live to be dirty. That is something that is going to affect us so why not try to help out our community by mot littering and trying to recycle as much as you can. I know a lot of people that just say someone else will do it, but why not do it yourself. This is one issue that I feel we can never get people to understand until it is too late and honestly I don’t want that. It is bad to litter, I just don’t understand why people would not want to be living in a clean community and are so careless into messing it up. We used to have such a clean earth and now it has become filthy and people don’t even care. The funny thing is once it becomes ridiculously bad and affecting them that is when they will start caring and that is horrible. We really have become so inconsiderate that we just don’t care about anything but ourselves. That is not right because it will come back and bite us. I do agree that the people in charge of that are not really doing their jobs and should do more about it. They should let or make people understand how bad it is really. I think I remember it once being a big issue but then it was just let go. Issues like this need to be reinforced. They need to be brought up again and again and again until people have it memorized in their head to try to help out with stuff like this and try to recycle and let people understand that it really need to be done before it has reached it maximum and cannot be fixed anymore. That is when people usually start caring, when it is too late and there is nothing anyone can do about it anymore. We need to raise awareness about this subject too. I care about where I live and I don’t want to see it looking nasty and being filthy.
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Shaun Smith
First off, where did you go to high school that you had to do community service to graduate? I graduated out of Sandburg and we had to do twenty fours hours in order for us to finish. I don’t blame you on hating community service, for some people it’s really just not their thing. For me community service is boring unless you find something that you actually want to partake and get involved with. As for people today, throwing trash out their cars is being seen more and more on a consistent basis. Many of us are just simply too lazy anymore to walk ten feet and dump out their trash. I think the same can be said for smoking cigarettes too. A lot of us smoke now a days and instead of finding somewhere to throw out the butt we just simply throw it out our car window. Theses things really do pile up after a while, and then we might start accounting for our actions. We won’t seem to notice anything wrong until our trash piles up and starts effecting our daily lives. Thats why the idea of landfills is a secure one, if and only if they are environmentally protected. Their are a lot of dangers that can come from landfills, but if they are treated and put in properly then they can do so much for our environment. Americans just need to realize that we don’t necessarily have all the space that we like to think we do. Each day more and more houses, buildings, or any kind of structure is being built. In return we destroy environments that halp us just because our population is spreading. We need to start looking after the place we live in order to make it better for the future, but as of right now the only thing we can seem to think of is not our problem.
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Shannon Ratzel
I, like other Americans, know that Africa has not always been in the best state. Whether it is their government, their lack of food or money, we all know about it. We all know about the child soldiers in Africa just like we knew about everything else. I never paid much attention to it until now. There is a video campaign going around called ‘Kony 2012′. It was created by an American filmmaker by the name of Jason Russell. He is part of the humanitarian group called Invisible Children. Invisible Children foundations started off when three filmmakers traveled to Africa in search of a story. What started out as a filmmaking adventure became much more when the film makers stumbled upon Africa’s longest-running war which was a conflict where children were both the weapons and the victims. They produced the documentary Invisible Children: Rough Cut in 2005. In 2006, Invisible Children, Inc., became an official non-profit organization. Kony is wanted on 33 criminal charges including 12 counts of crimes against humanity. There are also charges including murder, enslavement and rape. The United States considers him one of the world’s most wanted terrorists. The Invisible Children foundation is now working towards the capture and imprisonment of Joseph Kony. They are working towards him being captured by the end of 2012. At first, Jason Russell could not get our government to send troops to Uganda to help the Ugandan forces to find and capture Kony. They worked and strived with citizens of the United States to go to their representatives and protest until something was done about it. Finally something is being done and there are 100 troops in Uganda working towards finding Kony. This is an amazing story and the first cause I’ve had any interesting in partaking in.
“‘Kony 2012′ Aims to Raise Awareness of Joseph Kony.” Myfoxphilly.com. Fox News, 07 Mar. 2012. Web. 7 Mar. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
Dear Editor,
After learning that Birth Control was going to be free in 2012 I thought it would be a good idea. There’s too much overcrowding in the world and not enough people being responsible about their sex lives. Then I read an article about a girl complaining she couldn’t afford birth control because she was attending an Ivy League school. I already have to pay taxes for those schools, my own schooling, my car, my cell phone, my over-priced gasoline. Now, why should I have to pay for the choices that college students make and the fact that they chose to have sex? If you want to have sex you need to pay for it and every consequence that comes with it. If they do not have the money, maybe you should not be having sex. Just saying… Also, there are Planned Parenthood locations that hand out free condoms and in most health centers in colleges; they hand out free condoms as well. If they are going to be picky and not take the condoms because they really want the pill then again, they do not deserve to have sex. If there is a medical need for the birth control then yes, it should be given for free. I do not ask anyone to pay anything for me so why should I have to pay for the decisions this girl has been making? I congratulate her by having the courage to get up and speak her mind when she knows she will get bashed but still…I’m not paying for her mistakes. Do you really want to have to pay for it?
-Shannon Ratzel
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Kristina Marynczak
What do you mena pay for her mistakes? Your tone sounds like u liked the idea of free birth control… a little lost on your message.
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Selina Littlefield
I totally agree with you on having safe sex and it should not be our responsibility to help destroy a life when the person that decided to do it was being irresponsible their lives. I too believe that if you would like to participate in having intercourse then you should pay the price and be aware of the consequences. I am totally against abortions. I guess there are some cases such as rape and what not. In general I do not agree with it one bit. If you lay down with somebody you should also lay with the choice you made to have unprotected sex. If the couple just had protected sex then it would be way more cheaper than an abortion. I do know that abortions also take a toll on people. Knowing that you had a living being in your body growing and just giving rid of it is heartless. “I read an article about a girl complaining she couldn’t afford birth control because she was attending an Ivy League school” That is just ridiculous because if you cant afford to buy protection then do not do it unless you are fully ready to have a baby. It is not the child’s fault for dealing with the poor choices that their parents made. These are innocent babies that are involved when having an unwanted pregnancy. I do believe if you cant afford it, do not have it. Also, being picky with what birth protection that is given to you. I believe you should do whatever you need to do just so the conclusion of getting an abortion is not an option. “I already have to pay taxes for those schools, my own schooling, my car, my cell phone, my over-priced gasoline. Now, why should I have to pay for the choices that college students make and the fact that they chose to have sex?” I agree with you fully because it is not fair for us to have to suffer for things that do not involves our self. We are basically paying for the immature and poor decisions that others have made. If you want to take the chance of getting pregnant, go right ahead. As long as you are perfectly ready to take on the huge responsibility of taking control of another persons life. Many people get sick and depressed after getting abortions and this can effect them mentally and physically. Having an abortion could prevent you from having kids when you are actually ready. When the time comes in your life where you want to make a family and have a happily ever after. Having an abortion could mess you up for the rest of your life. Guilt and regret is a high emotion that occurs to most women having taking on this major procedure. Many people look down on the women that decide to go through this because they are just using it for a scapegoat. I know lots of girls that have gone through more than one and its just sad. Overall great paper and is something serious that needs to be talked about.
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Shaun Smith
I agree with you on the focus of your idea. Overcrowding is an issue that seems to go unnoticed now days and we take for granted how much space we actually have to live in the world. We need to set new plans to control our ever growing population, but we haven’t yet had the mind set to do it. The idea of birth control being free is a scary one though, mainly because the pill does not protect against any STD’s. If we begin to give the pill for free then it may encourage children at younger ages to have sex. This would be mainly because they would have easier access of obtaining it. MY focus point is sexually transmitted diseases have become a big issue as we progress. In our generation many teens and students now act as if they are invincible, and don’t try to control these problems. The idea of having to pay for the pill is a good one indeed, but how much would be the cost, and would it really solve anything? If the amount is too high to pay for it then nobody would buy it, and we would be right back to where we started. If the cost is too low then the ease of access to it is a good idea, but then that gives the younger generation the ability to buy it through other people. The fact that they would want to make people pay for higher taxes is a horrible idea. College students can barely afford the books, supplies, and even credit hours as it is. The Government would have to set the price of the pill at a stable one to avoid either of these problems, and they would have to keep a watch on how much of the supply went out to each individual to keep tabs on if they are sending it to someone else. The idea in all is a good one, but has some major flaws that need to be fixed. If we can control these problems then the ease of access to the birth control pill would be beneficial to everyone.
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Rami Ali
Shannon,your right I really don’t want to pay for someone else’s bad moves,especially when it comes to sex! I agree with you,if you want to have sexual inter-cores then you should be able to handle the consequences. You win one you loose one. When it comes to abortion we don’t really know other peoples predicaments their in,maybe they don’t have money to raise the child or they simply just can’t. Would you rather have them have them baby and then they can’t afford to feed the poor thing or just prevent it before its to late? This is a very great letter and I thing a newspaper should post more onto this topic.
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Shannon Ratzel
Our winter has been unusually mild this year. Ponds and lakes all around the Chicago land area had not frozen over like they normally had. On February 16, 2012, Robert George of Third Lake, Illinois rescued four teenagers that ventured out onto the normally frozen pond. The pond was usually used for ice skating and other winter activities during the previous winter seasons. He was working on his computer when his kids and brought to his attention that someone had fallen through the thin ice. There were already people trying to help. Some people were trying to go onto the ice themselves and some were trying to throw them a rescue rope. Neither of the options seemed to be working. Three of the four teenagers escaped the icy water but the rope method was not working for the fourth teenager. George quickly plunged into the water and rescued the sixteen year old boy. None of the teenagers who were involved were hurt Robert George was not hurt either. He is considered a hero in his small town and I have a feeling this act of heroism will not soon be forgotten. I’ve been through something similar to this. I fell in a lake as a child and my grandpa had rescued me. He was always a hero to me after that. I think that this will make kids think twice about venturing out and doing something so dangerous. They were very lucky that Robert George had thought quickly and was not afraid of the cold water.
Moran, Dan. “Four Youths Rescued after Falling into Frozen Pond in North Suburb.” Suntimes.com. Chicago Sun Times, 16 Feb. 2012. Web. 29 Feb. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
Elevator Speech
What’s the problem, yo?
Gay people have been praised and hated throughout history.
- Burned at the stake
- Condemned
- Religions kicking people out of churches
The real problem
Civil partnership lacks what a real marriage has
What can be done?
Many of the states are allowing gay marriage
Pride parades
Adoption laws
Trevor ProjectOverview
Trevorproject.com -
Shannon Ratzel
An elderly woman named Lelia Boroughs living in San Francisco always felt the need to help the homeless people who “squatted” outside her apartment. She would buy them groceries and was never rude to them. She saw it more that San Francisco was a really hard city to live in so everyone deserved a chance to survive. She did everything she could to help them. Unfortunately, Boroughs died at the age of 84 this year. In her will it stated that she didn’t have any family or friends to leave her estate to. In her will it also stated that she wanted to leave her condo to the homeless so it could be turned into a homeless shelter. If it wasn’t suitable to be turned into a homeless shelter, the city of San Francisco was given the permission to sell the condo. If the condo was sold, it could be worth up to $500,000. The money could help up to 150 families get into housing or help families about to lose the homes they already live in. Not many people knew about Lelia Boroughs but her legacy will live on in San Francisco and hopefully many people will follow in her footsteps to help out those in need. I think what Lelia did was a wonderful thing. Instead of cooping herself inside and being afraid of the homeless people outside her building, she made herself aware of the situation and helped them. Quite possible she could’ve considered these people her friends.
Rosato Jr., Joe. “Lelia Boroughs Donates Home to Homeless.” NBC Bay Area. 06 Feb. 2012. Web. 22 Feb. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
You Say You Want a Revolution
So, What’s the Issue?
Homosexuality has been a piece of human culture since earliest history. Generally, and most famously in ancient Greece it was accepted part of cultural normalcy. It has also been frowned upon since early history as well. Particular sexual activities were disapproved of, even as other aspects were admired. In cultures under the authority of Christian, Islamic and Jewish religions, the law and the church established sodomy (oral and anal sex) as an offense against divine law, a “crime against nature” practiced by choice, and subject to severe penalties. Most times they were punished by means of fire so as to “purify” the unholy action. In the development of the twentieth century, society began to discuss homosexuality, especially after the modern gay rights movement began in 1969. Once viewed by authorities as a pathology or mental illness to be cured, homosexuality is now more often investigated as part of a larger impulse to understand the biology, psychology, politics, genetics, history and cultural variations of sexual practice and identity.
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Selina Littlefield
I really liked your paper a lot. I liked how you formatted it and it defiantly made it more interesting to read. Since we are not given a specific format on how to write our paper, I think you did a very creative job with switching it up a bit. You did a great job explaining about the history of homosexuality. I too did my paper on this subject and I think its great that we share the same opinion about this subject. This paper was very relatable because I do have a best friend that suffers going through having to deal with people negative remarks and feelings towards being gay. It is a shame that we are judged because of our sexual preferences. It is not our fault who we find attractive and who we naturally want to be with. “ History has also shown that gay people have always been discriminated against. Not only were gay people denied of equal treatment in court, but they also have been victims of violence and harassment in our own society on the base of their sexual orientation.”
This paper was very relatable because I do have a best friend that suffers going through having to deal with people negative remarks and feelings towards being gay. It is a shame that we are judged because of our sexual preferences. It is not our fault who we find attractive and who we naturally want to be with.
“The current federal government denies openly gays employment to federal institutions like the CIA, FBI, or the National Security Agency. People tend to think that the marriage of same-sex couples will ruin the sanctity of marriage.” People shouldn’t have to hide how they truly are just because they might be a little different. This country is suppose to be the land of the free. We should be free to be whoever we want to be and not be judged upon it. I couldn’t imagine living day to day hiding who I really am just because it is not accepted by society. I feel that this hatred is a form of racism. This hatred is not hatred of a persons nationality or skin color. Its just simply other peoples belief on how others should act or behave. Im pretty sure that a person suffering from bullying and hateful remarks wouldn’t choose to be the way they are. I feel like its something that a person is born with and its something an individual cannot help. I don’t understand why it is so important for others to speak so badly about someone being gay because its not them. The straight person doesn’t realize what effects they have on other people. People should just seriously mind their own business and worry about their self. I liked how you gave interesting statistics on what is going on in the recent years. You did excellent on showing how others can go out and help. Getting involved is very important and hopefully soon this phenomenon will be simply normal. -
Shaun Smith
You definitely have a unique and different approach to this research assignment. They way that you ask the questions in between paragraphs I think is a way to help the reader understand what issues you are covering with that paragraph. You definitely have a good amount of information to back show the roots of homosexuality, and it goes to show that you have put a lot of time and effort into your paper. I had no idea how far homosexuality had dated back, and knowing this gave me a better understanding of its past. You helped the fill in the holes of history, and it also opens up your readers eyes a bit more when they are trying to process this topic. Also, the other nice thing I would like to comment on is how you put your contact information for each center right after the paragraph in which they were listed. I like the fact that you were able to provide them with information about each center before you went on to show their information. You certainly show a lot of passion when it comes to this subject, and I know it is very hard for some people to write about because it is so sensitive to touch on. I think you have hit the nail on the head and covered every major point in your article. there is nothing left making me wonder why, or what about this specific thing. Your knowledge about it was unquestionably deep, and you put a lot of heart into your writing, and for that it makes it that much better to read. The facts about homosexuality is that no one really does raise their voices when it comes to being heard about an issue, but rather they will just sit back and let things continue on as they are. The way you wrote these paragraphs shows us how we can actually get involved without having to create a new movement ourselves. That for me was the most important thing I think because not everyone wants to go out about an issue and become the next world’s Ghandi, or Martin Luther King. My own opinion is that homosexuality is not a bad thing, I believe that it is natural cause. If others have different opinions about who they fall in love with then why should we be the ones to deny them the rights to marry. I think at the point of birth is you are not doomed to like certain things. Throughout life you have choices, and different opinions, values, beliefs that you yourself had made. Homosexuality is one of those choices, and to most people out their they believe it is a mistake only because through their eyes they deem it as immoral. The person you fall in love with is not immoral, rather you just stand against it because you cannot stand to see it together. That is why I believe so many people are against it today.
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Rami Ali
Your paper was very interesting and I can tell u put in great time and effort into your writing. Many students wrote about the same topic but your paper was one of the best I read so far. I like the way how u went back in the past and showed us how long people have been fighting this. Many people are against homosexuality because they are afraid and think that it might cause many disease,but in our constitution we have something called freedom of speech. This gives all human beings living in the united stated a freedom to say and belief in what ever they want. And till this day many states are against gay marriages,but will this ever be legal? I believe not. That because this civil war is been going on for many years and if there are changes there minor or not really that strong of rules that can’t impact a whole society. Everybody has there own believes and if a person believes in something that is worth fighting for,then they should never stop and continue until there satisfied.
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Shannon Ratzel
Seriously thought the writing talk today was pretty cool.
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Shannon Ratzel
To me, a service is a remedy for an immediate need. There are starving children so we put boxes together for the kids to receive and eat. Does that solve world hunger? No, but that’s what activism is. Activism helps something change over time. It gets to the deeper root of the problem. A service can be provided with pay and something that isn’t necessarily volunteered. Activism is a bit more dangerous because you have to devout more time to the work needed because it changes things over time. A service is perishable as well. A human service eventually has to end because you either don’t have a need for the service anymore or the human service provider has exhausted its energy. Also, that box of food I was talking about earlier will eventually run out. When I think of activism it usually has to do with something going wrong socially, politically, economically, or environmentally. Forms of activism can take a wide range of forms from writing letters to newspapers or politicians, political campaigning, boycotts, rallies, street marches, strikes, and hunger strikes. Activism I feel tends to be a little more violent and way more deliberate though a service might include being a hit man. Activists don’t tend to call themselves activists. It’s like hipsters; they don’t want to be called hipsters either because it would defeat the purpose of what they are. They are similar in the fact that they both help a cause that usually needs changing. They can either both be good or bad and pass or fail.
“activism.” Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. 14 Feb. 2012. . -
Shannon Ratzel
So many people are always worried about other countries and whats going on with kids in Africa or Asia. Don’t you realize there are millions of starving kids and people and gang violence and things that we should concentrate on in the United States before we go anywhere else? Don’t mean to bash corporations that help the world but I’m just saying we should work on us before we work on others.
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Klem Bachleda
I do agree with the point you are making, but the argument shouldn’t be whether or not we should concentrate on stopping gang, violence and drug use here at home, it’s HOW we should attack this kind of situation. It’s always easier helping people (or countries) that want and desperately need help. Another reason is that it makes the US look good. That’s why we concentrate on helping other countries.
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Shannon Ratzel
I can’t believe how dedicated Rajeev Goyal was to increase the budget for the Peace Corps! It is absolutely fantastic to hear about someone so young being so passionate about something to the point where he went against his parents’ wishes and persuaded so many members of congress. He did what every politician does, which is persuading people with facts or even lies that come across as true. Except Rajeev actually did his homework. The connections he had with people were remarkable. It is truly amazing the time and effort Rajeev put into making the water pump for the people in Nepal. He used his resources to find someone who could help and made sure that it could be finished. Of course there were people who were literally shitting all over the idea but he didn’t get discouraged. It was really great to hear that the pump worked in the end and somewhat humorous that they added in the part about slaughtering the goat for “politically correct” response. I was so happy to hear that he found someone he loves doing something he loves. It’s like a movie. It’s interesting to read that just one person changed so much in this one village. No matter what hardships Rajeev and the village faced, they got through it together. He was so determined to make a difference in this village that nothing could stop him. It’s interesting to think about what the world would be like if everyone had the work ethic to do good things for humanity. If you had the opportunity to change things like Rajeev did, would you?
Hessler, Peter. “A Reporter at Large, Village Voice, The Peace Corps’s Brightest Hope.” The New Yorker. 2010. pgs 101-109. splatter.writing101.net -
Shannon Ratzel
The “Who Would Survive” project was very strange. Even though it was hypothetical, it was hard to choose who would die and why. That’s not something that is ours to decide. I think our group made the best choice of who would be kicked out of the bunker. We chose the entire Lang family and Dr. Garcia. Seriously, you should hear Roberto Kobik’s speech… he made the best point that the Lang family should be knocked out because if you take out one of them, the other two would be affected. It is best to take them all out. Dr. Garcia was too old and his health was dwindling. The others would be able to work together to make a new society. There would be those who could help repopulate, rebuild, and help keep the others healthy.
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Shannon Ratzel
“Your Mother and I” was probably the cutest story I’ve read in a long time. I liked how it seemed to be written as he was speaking to his daughter. “Oh, don’t give me that face. What? Did I cross some line? Don’t you want to know when your seed was planted? I would think you’d want to know that kind of thing. Well then, I stand corrected. Anyway…” (Eggers). It was particularly interesting that a lot of the issues that were solved by the mother and father in the story are the problems in the world today. They all seemed to have relatively simple solutions to them. If only it was that easy to send lobbyists off to Greenland or increase the life expectancy to 164. What made me laugh was how all of the problem solving the couple did together made them more passionate about each other. He couldn’t contain himself and shared his sex stories with his daughter. It’s interesting to read is what got fixed and what didn’t. The man in the story shared that the AIDS virus still wasn’t cured, only that the inhibiting drugs were available worldwide. I wonder who these people. Are they politicians? Are they part of a monarchy? Who are these random people who came about and changed the world? Are they putting those recipes together in the story to get ready to change the world in some other way? Why is “Frank” speaking in Spanish? I really enjoyed this story and I think I’ll find more stories by David Eggars.
Eggers, Dave. “Your Mother and I.” pgs 115-123. Splatter.writing101.net 2012 -
Shannon Ratzel
Angels Among Us.
Go easy on me I had a hard time with this. hahaa.
There’s not too many things that mean a lot to me in this world. I’m not very sentimental. I don’t have a hard time not speaking to people if we fight. I can disconnect from those who aren’t of any importance. There are certain morals I uphold and certain people who I’d do anything for. There are these people I consider my everything. They have been there for me through the hardest times in my life. They have shaped me into the person I am and will be for the rest of my life. There’s not much I can do to repay them but love them unconditionally as they have loved me.
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Shaun Smith
I believe that your essay is incredibly realistic, as for many of us we didn’t put too much thought into our writing. That is what makes it a remarkable piece of work. I feel that you could use some other subjects to talk along with it though, mainly because it is too centered on one thing. I take into consideration that they are remarkable people in your life, but I think it would be beneficial to see more of a side of you. I am certainly not trying to knock your writing, I just believe that your writing should focus a little less on Brandon and his accomplishments, rather then what has shaped you. Essentially you are on the right track to your writing process, you may just need to tweak some of your paragraphs here and there like all pieces that you write. I do like the fact that you praise so highly of your boyfriends family, and I understand that you do not necessarily condone your own, but I think in order to make this a stronger piece that you should add just a few things about your family. Again you are slowly moving away from the main focus of the writing assignment. What do you like for describes you, and you just need to switch your attention towards yourself rather than other people. I like the fact that you are relating this to real life situations you have had to face in the past, and I think you have done a great job with keeping them flowing throughout your paragraphs. The fourth paragraph was well written, and has such good flow to it that it simply helps to tie everything together. It helps because I don’t feel like I am reading an expository essay. You did a wonderful job with holding it all together, and not making the reader feel that this was simply a laid out blue print. You have helped me realize what I have done wrong in my essay as well, and can use this to my advantage when it comes to my revision. As a brief overview I think you just need to focus this essay more on yourself rather then your boyfriend, even though you strayed from the topic it was a well written piece of work. If you add a few things about your family, and take out some of the things on his family then you will have a grade A paper. I do admit that it would just help people relate to the paper better if it was your personal experiences. For example, you had talked about how Brandon had made the choice to stay near home and go to school, but what did you give up too in order for that too happen? You have written about other people and what they have done, and I would leave those in for your revision. I would just add some length to it instead of already chopping up a well written article.
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Selina Littlefield
I admired the fact that you do not hold grudges because in life we should never take the little things too seriously. How ever I did not really understand what the title had to do with the subject. You explain a lot of stories and memories you had with your boyfriend and his family. You did not really explain thoroughly about different things in your own life that u would live, kill, and die for. I relate to you loving your families boyfriend because I love mine boyfriends family also. They are the most nicest and giving people ever. And I to absolutely love hanging out with them also. “I live to make others happy. I’m not okay with myself if a friend of mine or someone who is close to me is suffering. I will do everything I can for someone to either make them comfortable or just be there for them to talk when they need it.” I agree with you I am always there for my friends and family when they need me. They can always depend on me to be there in their time of need. It truly is sad when you hear about the bad news of someone being shot and killed to death. Someone that had potential to change the world has been robbed of their souls. Everyone deserves a chance at life and it is up to no one to take it. When hearing about rapists beating cancer it is unfortunate but it is Gods will and he makes no mistakes. “Sometimes I truly believe though that karma is real. What goes around comes around and everything happens for a reason. That man will get his one day. “ I agree with you that what someone gives they will receive it right back in the end. You can not change what your faith is. You just have to live life to the fullest and hope for the best. You stated in your draft that you initially thought you would die for your boyfriend. I agree with you that if one of you died it would be a hard situation to deal with anyway. I would die for my mother, I know that she is always going to be there for me and has my best interest at heart. I know that she would do the exact same thing for me if the situation was presented to her. Hopefully no one would have to face that problem ever in life. The draft was presented in the first point of view. I believe the energy of the writing was kind of nonchalant before she met her boyfriend. The generalizations are slightly appropriate to the subject but could have been better. Their could have also been more examples to illustrate what exactly you would live, kill, and die for. I related to you at many points in your writing and it was kind of interesting. The introduction could have been a lot stronger and have more reason to relate to the subject.
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Rami Ali
I understand were your coming from in choosing the real friends over the fake firends. If you choose the wrong friends then its going to come back and bite right back even harder. Sometimes you need hard times in life to see whoes going to be there for you and whoes not. Its always healthy to be around a pleasent group of people with positive attitudes. These days not to much caring people like your boy friends family exists. People with great hearts are needed in life to teach everybody else theres still room to love and care,other the jelousy and hatred. I think everybody can tell how much love you have for your boy friends family and you just showed it in two paragraph thats amazing! Life is never fair theres always those metally retarded people that get lucky,but karma is one very unlucky pay back. Im sorry about the kids that were all abused,I hope they handeled it the right way as they were growing up. Death is something unexpected, I would think that everybody would take a bullet for someone they love. I rather not think about dying for some one but cherishing every second we are allowed to spend with them. Never think of what might happen and start enjoying what is happing now. This was a great essay with lots of passion put into it. you did an exellent job. Oh yea word to the wise about friends that care and friends that dont care”always have your enemys close and your friends closer” your still young this will help in the future.
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Shannon Ratzel
I think ecological literacy is the understanding of our world and how we work together. One can become ecologically literate by reading the news or taking part in their community. I don’t feel as though I’m very ecologically literate because I try and steer away from the news. I am up to date on current events but I like to focus on the positives. I would say our whole street helps each other out. If one of us is having a hard time shoveling a driveway after a heavy snow fall, we will help. Teenagers will help take in trash cans on a blustery day. We’re not too close of friends but we do like to look out for each other. There is no self-aware in ecosystems, no language, no consciousness, and no culture; therefore no justice and democracy; but also no greed or dishonesty (Capra). We can definitely learn from the ecosystems around us. We don’t always have to focus on ourselves. It is nice to know that someone somewhere is really there for you; someone who’s not going to lie to you. It’s true in the sense that we all somehow depend on each other. We depend on the neighbor next door to cut his stray branches so they don’t fall onto a house in a storm. We trust that our neighbors will not be the ones trespassing onto our property. We depend on each other to make sure that the other is safe because that’s what each of us expects from one another. It’s like the golden rule; do onto others as you would have them do onto you.
Capra, Fritjof. The Web of Life. Web. .
Kristina Marynczak is discussing. 
Killian Noonan, and 
Shannon Ratzel are discussing. 
Shaun Smith, 
Susan Bayaa, and 
Selina Littlefield are discussing. 
Rami Ali and one other person are discussing. 
Klem Bachleda is discussing. 
Kristina Marynczak 8:27 pm on May 2, 2012 Permalink | Log in to Reply
found not even a minute later…lol