Christian Kalweit - The ecstasy of influence

Jonathan Lethem's main point of the article is that a society which communicates with one another, sharing individual thoughts and information, will only result in benefiting the group as a whole. By providing information to the public by any form, it can serve to help an unlimited amount of people. The argument of the article is that copy writing has gone to the extreme, to the point where people can not take full advantage of what is being provided to them. Lethem's motive for writing the article is the disgust and annoyance that has developed inside of him directed towards copy writing and the intense focus on plagiarism in today's society.

Dan Hopkins - The Ecstasy of Influence

In this article I feel that Jonathan Lethem's main argument is that overall the act of sharing your knowledge and art with the world will in the future benefit everyone. I think the motivation for writing this came from the great extent of exposure he has of plagiarized works, he has seen how parameters and restrictions of one's copywrited work has stunted the growth of a reader's or viewer's creative thought. I liked this quote "Don't pirate my editions; do plunder my visions" (Lethem) I think it sums up how he feels pretty well.

John Brown-The Ecstasy of Influence: Learning Letter

I believe that Jonathan Lethems argument in this article is that plagiarism is something that is abundant in our society today and has helped shaped American culture throughout history. I feel that his motive for writing this stems from his own experiences with plagiarism and his time of being a writer where plagiarism is a major topic discussed amongst writers.

The Lottery - Shartrand

I've grown up in the Protestant church. I feel like, presently, I understand a majority of the rituals and practices in my faith. Though when I was younger, the church I went to participated in various Old Testament practices. We would not eat leavened bread (bread with yeast) for a week, which was appropriately called The Days of Unleavened Bread. When I was younger, I did this because I was told to, not because I understood the point. Right now, I am part of a different denomination, and I participate in New Testament practices. These rituals and practices have meaning to me, and to my faith.

All of my younger experiences allow me to see how and why the townspeople in Jackson's story participate in these yearly stoning sessions. They feel like they'll get something out of it, even if that idea is not based in facts, even if they've never really seen the benefits, they just believe eventually they'll understand.

The Lottery - Dan H

I had read this story in middle school and hadn't thought much of it. Back then it left me confused and disturbed. And not much has changed the second time I read it. What is the purpose of stoning a randomly chosen citizen? Is it because the town is too populated for it's resources? Religious purposes? Those are the only reasons I can think of. Otherwise it seems inhumane. I wanna know why??

Rituals

Generally, I do not mindlessly find myself entangled in rituals. Being Jewish I do try my best to fast on Yom Kippur and such, however, I have been taught the meaning behind those actions. I can only think of one instance where I almost religiously find myself trapped within a punishment of repetition. I was no older than nine years old and had been forced to take a trip with my mom, brother, and two of his friends. Now, this trip seemed like an eternity as did most car excursions of my childhood, although I am sure it lasted no longer than ten minutes. I can't remember exactly where it was we were headed, but along the way we passed a grave yard. With the sight of that first headstone, "Jack Rabbit" had been screamed from the backseat. I then turned around; puzzled by this new expression. My brother’s friend then began explaining that every time I see a grave yard I must repeat those two words to ensure the safety of myself and family. Since that day I cannot drive past a grave yard without saying “Jack Rabbit” in my head. Throughout my childhood, I was convinced that every time I avoided death, which seemed to happen rather frequently, it was due to that marvelous phrase I had been taught. Now, I am not a superstitious person, I mean I have a black cat so how could I be, but this habit has never left my side.

The Lottery-Brown

I'd say that i make a lot of sacrifices in hopes of finding good luck on a pretty regular basis. It's hard for me to think about why I may do this, because I don't see myself as a person with an external locus of control, but maybe I am. For example, when I'm snowboarding and I land a trick, I sacrifice trying a new trick because I feel like sticking to that same newly learned trick in hopes of it keeping me from falling for the rest of the day. But it's not only when i am snowboarding, if i go to the mac lab here at school, and find a computer that works good for me one time; I'll try my best to go and use that same computer every time I'm down there. I'm aware that most likely that computer isn't the best, in fact it may even be the farthest away from the printer, but since it worked good for me once, i sacrifice being close to the printer in order to use that computer. I think that even if you don't believe in external forces having control over your actions, you still are willing to make sacrifices in hopes of finding good luck.

The Lottery - Derfu

As far as sacrifices go, I can admit that I find it quite fanciful to sacrifice virgins in anticipation of apocalyptic rapture, but in a way it is also confusing. The reason for identifying virgins as sacrificial victims for such an effect escapes me, as the things are in no way related. In fact, I would suppose, given my current and expanding understanding of the ways of sacrificial ritual, that to honor with an entity more experienced with others in any and/or all ways will create greater connection via collective, so virgins seem to be the least apt by that ticket of the bunch. Furthermore, most of them are quite young, and ineffective for the process because of their limited repertoire of experiences that may occur over very long intervals, and which are quite elusive to those not accustomed, i.e. unadapted people and those adapted in the wrong ways.
"The Lottery," methinks, has very much more focus on ideas of civil obligations, duties to the state that must be done for it to succeed, but which are often unexplained in that consequence, and disparities that come about as a result of a society's failings, but are nevertheless considered "just." Should a vagabond in the gutters be caused to suffer for the delight and prosperity of achievers? Or should that very vagrant be treated to ritual indulgence at cost of the others? Let alone, these things are wild and inherently unequal. Fixed, their inequality is just as vast, but assigned an illusory regularity that makes them easier to decipher with a fixed perspective, but harder from a universal sight. Such security makes peace in faith, but danger in contemplation sometimes, and conscience. Sacrifices sometimes are so forcible and pointless, but often for the same purposes as any of the self. In general, I think people scarcely understand the effect of their actions before they commit them, and that may have something to do with certain misallocations of superstition (such as the specific of throwing salt when paprika was supposed to work just as well by early many, or a crux that only signifies position, or the inordinate misunderstanding of the truth of grimalkin, who have absolutely nothing to do with malicious magic favor, generally only a kind of indifference wrought from eternities of experience outside of feeble human life).

The Lottery - Kalweit

I have grown up participating in lent since i can remember, for my family it was a tradition that took place before Easter. For lent, my brother and i were forced to choose something to give up for lent, usually some sort of food or candy. Although it was not a life changing or drastic commitment, it reinforced the idea of religion being an everyday aspect of someone's life. For me the only reason that i took part of it was cause my mother told me to, i really did not have a choice. Once i got older it was taken so seriously, and the pressure from my mother had declined. It had turned into an event that my brother and I would look at as a betting competition. It was a time where I would give up something that i truly did not need, but I still do not know why I didn't think twice about participating in it.

The Lottery-Larsen

I also am not a religious person. However, I am very superstitious. For example, you won't ever find me spilling salt. However if I do, you can be certain that some salt is going to be thrown over my left shoulder. I wonder why I am like this, but honestly I don't know. Maybe it's because my parents are like this. So in a sense maybe me being superstitious is kind of like a religion. Religious views such as christianity are passed down in famalies, so why not superstitious views? I don't want my life to be unlucky, so that is why I take the necessary steps to avoid envoking bad luck. After all, what harm could come of trying to avoid bad luck?

The Lottery

I am also not a religious person, but I used to believe in christianity. The only reason for this was because my mom made me attend church and take part in lent. I wasn't properly educated on the religion, and it led to me doing things that I didnt believe in, or was ignorant about. Now, I dont have many rituals that affect my day to day life, but I am a believer in karma. I believe in karma because that was part of how my dad raised me. Believing in karma has made me more of a grounded person, and has helped me become empathetic in some ways. And it still holds through to this day. I think once someone establishes a certain ritual, it is hard to break especially if was part of how you were raised by your family. 

The Lottery- Pagano

I am not religious, so there are few ritualistic acts that I partake in. Although everybody does some sort of ritualistic act every day. For example, every time I comment on something good and I don't want the opposite to happen, I knock on wood. But why do I do this? I guess my answer to that would be 'why not?'. If people believe that because I said "wow what a beautiful day", it is going to rain, and the only thing to prevent this from happening is to knock on wood, then why not give it a try? What harm could it do to knock on wood? When I was trying to think of a way to explain what it is that would make me knock on wood, it took me a long time to figure out what to say. It made me wonder why it is exactly that I feel the need to knock on wood. "Why not?" is the only answer I can come up with. Or maybe just because my parents do it, and I've been doing it for most of my life.

The Lottery and Community

Can you identify any ritualistic acts (e.g. fasting for Lent/Passover/Ramadan)you perform without examining the reasons for or the consequences of your behavior? What motivates you?
If not...
Do you do anything such as make sacrifices to ensure good luck?
What set of beliefs motivates the sacrifice?

Learning Letter and Contact Zone

My personal contact zone is the waiting area of my psychiatrist, and this is for multiple reasons. All of those who are waiting in the doctors office could be doing much more entertaining with their time, yet they sit in awkward leather chairs while reading magazines that do not interest them. My parents are spending hundreds of dollars for me to talk to some guy that prescribes me medication that supposedly solves my problems, but i just don't understand it. I talk to the guy and he gets paid like its his job to take your money. Many patients feel the same way as i do, and this often brings frustration and aggravation. People who see a doctor can verily range, and in the waiting room this is can be proven. Everyone there is unhappy about spending their money, delaying their daily lives, and having to display extremely private information to a person who they have not known for all too long. Personally i hate the whole process if you could not tell by now, but everyone there is in the same position as i am, and have them same feelings as i do. Although our lives can be extremely different, patients feel the same frustration, aggravation, and pain that all the rest do. For this reason, i believe that my doctors office is a personal contact zone.

Contact Zone

I believe that there are many contact zones that we can find ourselves in throughout the day, but one of the most unpredictable contact zones i can think of is on the city bus. I know there was already a previous post about the bus station being a contact zone, but i feel like the bus just takes that contact zone to the next level. I have never really rode a city bus until i came up here to college. I've only really rode the bus several times, but out of those several times each time I have came into contact with some pretty diverse people. As said before, Burlington is a sort of "melting pot" of people, so you can imagine being on the bus theres a good chance your going to encounter some different people than you are used to. Bus's are especially intense contact zones because they are so close quartered, and you cant really choose who sits next to you. A good example of this is a time when i was on the bus in the fall. There were several college girls sitting down, and a homeless man came onto the bus and sat right across from them facing them. I had my headphones on during this time, but i was sitting in a place where i could see both the homeless man and group of girls. The man was making some kind of loud remarks, which in return made the group of girls laugh and giggle. This whole situation within the contact zone made the girls uncomfortable, and the only way for them to get over that was by laughing. To me this was just a great example of how much of a contact zone a bus can really be.

Contact Zone - Lockspur

The variety of interactions apparent and available via internet connection is grandiose and potentially unmanageable in exposure. Every global demographic is represented online, from the insecure teenager who posts about how much they hate their friends, to the middle aged business tech whose work load is just strenuous enough to distract them from Tetris and email for forty-five minutes a day, and the always lovable Nigerian prince willing to dump thousands or millions of dollars into anyone's bank account who will give him access. This is how I was exposed to the diversity of the world last week, when Prince Firfanirgus of the magical land of Ethiopia contacted me with an OMGURGENTPLZPLZREEDEPRONZXXXPLOSION message regarding his overseas fortune, and how I was necessary to preserve it. After giving the Prince all of my bank account information, my social security number, all identification and contact regards, and a superfluous notation of all of my dreams, aspirations, fears, and valued persons, I awaited my vast incoming subsidy. I still await, Dr. Prince Firfanirgus Pedurgus. I have been very patient, and that is wearing thin. I appreciate no toying, royalty swine. Moreover, this exposure taught me never to trust supposed medically recognised Ethiopian Princes in the future, as Ethiopia is primarily a parliamentary legislation in central structure.
My point is: all understanding a person could ever find necessary of an extranational group is there. I learned everything I need to know about Ethiopia from Prince Firfanirgus, and all about the history of Islam states from Vakhlalaka Bakbabaganoush bik Dirkata from the Antiliberty Salvation Front. Any more study is a waste of my time, as all that is necessary for the kind of precious "empathy" created by real "interaction" from different "perspectives" can easily be infered via email bound financial matters and amateur reporting from high school students in Taiwan. Besides, their "perspectives" are stupid, and mine are cooler. Scarf that, Doctors and Princes of far East Africa.

Contact Zones

As a way of encouraging you to respond to each other, please post a response to any one of the postings or my comments and offer your ideas.

For example, consider Ted's thinking about athletes.
Can you identify a space where athletes of varying cultures would meet for a common purpose and inevitably clash and grapple?

You may want to respond to one of the discussions about zones in Burlington.
Where and why do cultures meet?

Let me get some Contact.

Burlington is a melting pot of people from extremely different backgrounds.

As a note, a teacher last semester informed me that South Burlington High School has over 25 fluent languages being spoken at a time.

When visiting friends in college during high school, certain elements of Burlington made me sure that it was the right place for me. As a very social person, being able to walk the streets and meet other people who are willing to stop and have a conversation at any point of day is truly enjoyable. Of course, a melting pot of this magnitude will have its clashes, but for me the atmosphere of the area out-ways any small scuffle. I find true enjoyment in meeting and attempting to understand people from different backgrounds. Coming from a small suburb in Massachusetts, the culture shocks I experienced made my decision to go to school here completely worth it.

Chris Azzariti

Contact Zones

In the surrounding community I've noticed several different contact zones that I thought were particularly interesting. The one that interested me the most had to have been the bus station. The Burlington Gray Hound station, about a fifteen minute walk from campus, twenty if you depending on luggage. It's full of every kind of person you could imagine. Everyone rides the bus; rich people, poor people, old people young people. As soon as you walk in to get your bus ticket you see the people around you interacting and it could be a seven foot tall thug just chit chatting with a seventy year old woman, just laughing to pass the time. Emotions even manage to escalate in the Burlington Gray Hound station. I've seen people just sit out front screaming at each other, one of which is usually a stubborn employee who's being less than helpful. It's a great way to see all sorts of different people from different backgrounds interact at such an every-day kind of place like that.

Contact Zones

Burlington is one of the bigger contact zones I have seen. This is mostly because we are a place where refugees come to make their stay. We have people from many cultures and backgrounds. Burlington is a melting pot of people. Church st. is where you can clearly see the blending and clashing of different cultures. Just taking a walk down the street you can see all sorts of different people with different ideas. If you take a walk down church street any afternoon you will hear many different types of music. This shows just how diverse Burlington is.

Contact Zones: Work Places

I think simple, everyday places like the classroom are obvious contact zones. But I feel one particular contact zone is a workplace. In my own experiences I've found myself disagreeing, agreeing, and contemplating with my co-workers. I have seen others who have their primary contact zone in the workplace. My mother works in a preschool center, and comes in contact with incredible diversity. The children she takes care of, the families of those children, and her co-workers all provide her with a contact zone filled with varying culture, gender, identity, backgrounds, and personalities. My dad works an environment where immigrants work alongside him. This provides a contact zone for not only my dad, but my mother and myself, when he brings home stories of these people's experiences, thoughts, words, and stories. As common an idea as it is, the work place provides great contact zones for workers, and those who come into contact with those workers.

Cultural Convergence

After reading the definition of a Contact Zone, I came to the conclusion that generally everywhere can potentially be considered a place of social interaction where "cultures meet, clash, and grapple with each other". Personally, I feel as though the places which closely resemble contact zones in my current community are the more artistically centered settings. Creative and imaginative communities, such as galleries or art shows, tend to be ethnically and socially diverse, creating an atmosphere of exposure and communication. In a location where unity through art is promoted, the faces behind the subjective appeal of expression have a chance to voice their opinions, stories, or any other personal convictions. This format gives way to dialects and promotes inquiry based learning. This type of atmosphere, in my opinion, best represents the ideals behind a contact zone.

Contact Zones And Culture

The two main contact zones that I see in Burlington are Church Street, and classrooms at the college. When you go down to church street, there are many different types of people with different backgrounds. Whenever I walk down Church Street, I always see someone that catches my eye. I cant help but wonder what experiences this person has had and how their life may differ from mine. Also, since a lot of tourists come to visit, it only adds to the diversity. Its similar with the classroom. Most students are in that room for similar reasons, but they all come from different backgrounds with different experiences and opinions. Contacts zones are great especially when referring to a classroom because it enables the students to hear opinions from everyone. This can only help deepen a persons understanding about something, and shed light on a new perspective that has not been heard before. 

Contact Zones and Culture

In Burlington, the most identifiable contact zone would be Church Street. Individuals through the community, the state, and god knows wherever else, come to Church Street. Burlington attracts many tourists and residents in the surrounding areas to come for a day and shop, grab a bite to eat, and to see some extremely "interesting" people. Church Street is open to all, and allows individuals from all social, economic, and ethnic classes to gather together. Another contact zone located here in Burlington would be the waterfront area next to the aquarium. College students, families, even hobo's can enjoy the scenery from the beautiful body of water that our community is located around. It is open for all to enjoy and embrace, and is something that can bring people together from all walks of like.

Contact Zones and Culture

There are many examples of what I think are contact zones in my community, such as coffee house's, parks, town squares, etc. However, I would like to draw attention to a recent event that occurred at the Australian Open tennis tournament. After a match between Serbian, Novak Djokovic, and Bosnian, Amer Delic, an ethical fight broke out outside of the stadium. I would certainly think that this is an example of a contact zone because it clearly shows how two different cultures are clashing. The interesting thing about this is that just before the fight broke out, both players (who are friends) congradulated each other on a good match. I find it funny that a fight even happened after the fans of the players had seen this.

Contact Zones

Who has direct relation with southern culture besides Dylan?

Contact Zones and Your Community

Where in your community can you identify potential contact zones?

Letter from a Birmingham Jail

Entangling Roots: Online Gaming and the Effects on Their Players

As a person who has seen enough of his friends become addicted to MMORPGs, especially World of Warcraft, I really found this essay to hit home. The issue the essay brings up is whether or not online games truly are a social experience or if they drain what social skills the player may have if they weren't gaming. I believe that this issue isn't taken seriously and the victims of this addiction are simply categorized as "nerds" or simply "hardcore gamers."

I've seen my roommate here at Champlain College play World of Warcraft from 11am until 6am the next morning, breaking only briefly for no more than an hour. I've told him that he needs to get out and take a walk outside, but being at college, I find that many occasional gamers find that with their new found freedom, they can now play as much as they want to. I've noticed that most of the victims written about in texts regarding this issue are indeed college students who find they don't have many obligations to do anything but play games.

Overall gaming is dangerous. It's arguably more addictive than many drugs people are entered into rehabilitation clinics for. The United States or the gaming corporations need to find a way to regulate this problem before it effects too many other people.

Letter from Birminham Jail

Martin Luther King's "Letter from Birmingham Jail" was a very interesting little piece of writing. I never knew that there was such a specific hot spot for racism and segregation. It really taught me a lot about Birmingham in specific, and a lot more about the mentality spreading through the South like wild fire. It's strange to think that all of this happened just one generation ago. It seems like the world has come so far since then, and a lot of it is attributed to Martin Luther King's actions. The letter really caught my attention with it's bizarre perspective, King writing from inside Birmingham jail. Even while he was imprisoned he was speaking out for equal rights and a stop to the injustices. The statement written by the Alabama Clergymen was trying to quell the activist movements, but this letter completely flipped it on its ear. By giving lesser thought of sides of the story King was able to spread his message to those who did not understand what he was trying to say. In my opinion, the perspective of being behind bars gave King's argument a raw and completely unquenchable passion that showed that he would not stop until equal rights were granted and racial injustice had ceased.

Letter from a Birmingham Jail

Letters from Birmingham Jail

As opposed to going into great depth and expanding upon each sentence MLK writes, I wanted to keep it simple. Personally, I feel his point is to simply address one specific criticism with which he had been confronted. He clarifies his reason for being in the Birmingham City Jail and delves deep enough into the background behind his actions to get the point across. Through his letter he also hopes to share his beliefs in such a way that may potentially impact his readers.

MLK Birmingham Jail

Martin Luther King Junior's letter from a Birmingham Jail was an expression of his support for protest against established laws and a justification for his actions. King, a leader of a civil-rights group that supported protest against traditional views, encouraged protesting against tradition and established laws that are unjust. In his letter from Birmingham Jail King says:

"It was illegal to aid and comfort a Jew in Hitler's Germany. Even so, I am sure that, had I lived in Germany at that time, I would have aided and comforted my Jewish brothers. If today I lived in a Communist country where certain principles dear to the Christian faith are suppressed, I would openly advocate disobeying that country's anti-religious laws."

This extract shows that King backs-up protest because in some situations it is necessary, be it in Hitler's Germany, or any place in which injustices are going on. In the last sentence of the excerpt King openly admits that he would protest against established laws or traditions. He felt that the only way that these unjust laws and traditional beliefs would ever change would be by means of protest. He felt that without protest the laws and society would remain the same forever. The letter was written to his fellow clergymen to explain his prior actions and to attempt to justify them. In the letter he tried to explain to the clergy that his actions although illegal were justified and appropriate for the situation.

Letter From Birmingham Jail

I read this over the weekend, but felt oddly compelled to wait until Martin Luther King Jr. Day to post my response. The letter MLK Jr. wrote tangibly expressed the desperation of the Negro population to overcome this oppression which was upon them. I feel his whole point was to express, with utmost emphasis, that these nonviolent ways must be continued, and the white supremacy must be dethroned. He speaks of how he rarely responds to criticisms, yet felt that he must explain his actions to those who followed him. How noble, mature, and loving of him to respond, not with frustration at their doubts, but with knowledge and peace at their concerns.

In my own train of thought, I can't imagine writing a letter that long by hand. I guess, thinking about how far we as a nation have come in technological advances, I can correlate those advances with the civil rights which have been given to so many oppressed citizens since Martin Luther King Jr. wrote his letter. In light of the day in which we honor Martin Luther King Jr.'s awesome, powerful, and inspirational life, I look forward to our country's next HUGE advancement; inaugurating an African-American (I use this term simply because I will admit I'm not sure what the politically correct terminology is anymore. I personally call the race human.) into the highest position of power in the United States of America.

Entangling Roots

Entangling Roots is an essay that tackles a very strong debate in the gaming field today. The author Jeff Lessard, explores and expresses his views on online gaming and the effects on their players. What makes this essay "good" is that this essay really gets the reader thinking. I know it got me thinking. What kind of influence do the video games I play have on my life? Why do I play? Am I addicted to the games I play? What really makes a game addicting? Is it the game that is addicting or is it in my nature to become addicted? Okay, let me get back on track. The essay is good even if your opinion on the subject differs from Lessard's. Lessard's views on the subject are valid and agreeable for the most part. He backs up his accusations with plenty of proof and finishes it off with a strong clincher.

Letter From Birmingham Jail

After reading this piece, many things came to mind and I was able to get somewhat of an understanding of what Martin Luther King, Jr. was trying to say. In this letter, he emphasizes the need for nonviolent action in order to make unjust laws just. He also mentions how its time that everyone be treated as equal. "Past promises have been broken by the politicians and merchants of Birmingham and now is the time to fulfill the natural rights of all people to be treated equal." He says that if nothing gets done with these feelings and absolute needs of the African Americans, there will be violence and mayhem. I also found it interesting that I was reading this letter on the eve of Barack's inauguration speech. It will be interesting to see if he ties anything from Martin Luther King Jr. into his speech. 

"Fight for the Right" unfortunately proposed two compelling arguments, which both in multiple ways contradict and make it unknown which side the author Rebecca Schmidt is arguing. She starts out giving informing the readers on the development of HIV over time and some scientific evidence about the disease. She then states the argument that makes her seem as though the FDA has the right to withdraw the right for homosexual men to give blood, however a few lines towards the end of the piece made me as a reader question what side she is truly arguing for. Overall I thought the piece was somewhat effective, however its structure could have been greatly improved. It seemed as though she elaborated some of the insignificant parts and lacked informing on some more important parts of her arguments. I believe a simple review of the writing could have eliminated some of the confusion.

Letter From Birmingham Jail

While sitting in his prison cell, Martin Luther King Jr writes a letter addressing the clergymen of Birmingham. His letter is a response to a statement made by the clergymen, which consisted of a plea to end the demonstrations being made by blacks in the community. The demonstrations are considered to by untimely along with unnecessary. King's letter is a response to their statement, and provides evidence of why the demonstrations are happening, and why they need to happen. King expresses the desire for negotiations with the clergymen, but the disappointment of broken promises in the past. Reasons why segregation between the races is harmful is covered from all aspects, politically, economically and socially. King advocates respecting and obeying law, but classifies law into two types, just and unjust. Segregation is put under unjust laws, but the penalty's should be taken openly and lovingly. King's letter explains to the clergymen, and all others who support segregation, the harm that is being done by such. His writing is processional, and after reading gives an understanding to the behavior of African Americans within the community. The letter places the reader into the position where blacks were at the time, and sheds light on the strong emotions brought by it.

On "Letter from Birmingham Jail"

After having read Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s, “Letter from Birmingham Jail,” I feel that I have somewhat of an understanding as to what King was trying to say. On page 182 King writes, “There comes a time when the cup of endurance runs over, and men are no longer willing to be plunged into an abyss of injustice where they experience the bleakness of corroding despair. I hope sirs, you can understand our legitimate and unavoidable impatience.” I feel that this quote pretty much sums up King’s entire letter. I think that King is saying that white people have no idea how hard a negro’s life is which is why they can easily say that they are committing no injustices, but rather keeping justice intact. When King talks about the white man who wrote him a letter saying that colored people will eventually be treated as equals in due time, Kings response to this letter is perhaps one of the wisest things I have ever read. King basically says that this man has an interesting way of looking at time by thinking that any wrongs in life can be fixed simply by waiting. King also states that time is neutral and that it can be either destructive or constructive. To me, that is one of the reasons why King felt that it was necessary to express his and his brothers’ needs through protests, sit-ins, etc. Dr. King’s ideas in this letter are all very wise and true; I find it hard to believe that none of the white people were able to see the injustices that were being done to the negros. I find it even harder to believe that even today, black people are still not treated as equally as white people.

Online gaming article

I recently stumbled upon this article that is related to the essay "Entangling roots" and I thought it was pretty interesting. Check it out!

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20090116-online-gamers-in-china-must-soon-register-with-real-names.html

Entangling Roots Response

I thought this short essay was good for many different reasons. It made me think about why I play video games, and how they can have a negative affect on my life. Games can become so involving and addicting that your virtual world becomes reality. This seems to usually happen with people who get involved in RPG's. This is one of the first convincing pieces that I have read on this issue. The essay also talks about how video games can affect someone's social and behavioral skills, but only if these games are played for an extended period of time. Thats why games should be played in moderation in order to prevent these things from happening. This essay makes the issue of gaming relevant since most people play them. Thats why I find it interesting and effective because almost everyone in this generation can relate to playing games. 

on "Letter from Birmingham Jail"...

After reading Martin Luther King Jr.'s, Letter from Birmingham Jail, I believe that King made his point very clear and did it in a very organized and thought out manor.  I feel that King's main purpose in this letter is to disprove these clergymens biased thoughts and get them to look at these issues through the eyes of a negro. King states some of these issues on page 182, " when you are humiliated day in and day out by nagging signs reading "white" and "colored"; when your first name becomes "nigger" and your middle name becomes "boy" (however old you are)." These statements are there to get the clergymen to realize what a negro has to go through on a daily basis living in the segregated and prejudice south. As you can see in the clergymens statement, they are looking at these issues with only themselves in mind, not thinking about how a negro may feel about these issues. King takes every one of the issues the clergymen speak of and break them down so they can understand the issue through the eyes of a negro. With such intellectual and comprehensive writing, I would have found it very difficult to disagree with the ideas that King brought up throughout this letter.

Fight for the Right...

I know I am supposed to start this letter with why I feel the essay I chose is a “good” essay, however, in my opinion it falls short of being considered anything of the sort. I read “Fight for the Right to Save a Life” by Rebecca Schmidt, regarding the screening process for donating blood. She specifically focuses on the fact that homosexual men, who have at some point in their life been sexually active, are banned from contributing to the program. Initially, with the language she used, and the statistics she had found to back up her information, I was confident that she felt passionate about eliminating this outdated regulation. As I delved deeper into the reading, I noticed that once she made a strong compelling argument, she used contradictory words such as “but” and “however” to change her position and emphasize that of the opposing side. This, along with paragraphs upon paragraphs of useless information, made her essay impossible for me to read. In my opinion, a "good" essay clearly states and supports the thesis throughout its entirety, as opposed to dwelling on the fence of two extremes.

Fight for the Right to Save a Life

I thought that the essay Fight for the Right to Save a Life by Rebecca Schmidt was very well put together. She first spoke about the reason why she chose this topic and why it interested her; her reason being the protests at Champlain College against blood drives and their policies against gay men. She then laid out all of the facts. She spoke on behalf of the FDA and showed their reasoning. She explained why it was necessary that these policies were in place, and how it was not intended to be discriminatory, but was intended only for the safety of the people needing blood transfusions. She used a lot of statistics, as well as her own reasoning, which was thoroughly and clearly explained.

After showing the point of the FDA, she then showed the reasoning behind the gay men and the protesters. She proved that the policies in place were necessary, but that they could be changed slightly to be less unfair. Gay men are the only people who are never allowed to donate. Other people in risk groups, such as people who have had sex with people in risk groups, are allowed to donate, but only 12 months after the intercourse. This is because HIV can only be detected once the body produces antibodies to fight the infection, which can take up to twelve months. Rebecca's point was that gay men should be allowed to donate, but only twelve months after the last time they had intercourse. This makes their donations just as safe an anybody else's. If they do have HIV or any other disease, it will show up in the test, just like everybody else.

I agree with Rebecca's point. I don't think that the FDA was purposely discriminating against gay men. When the HIV/AIDS breakouts began in the 1980's, it was very prominent in gay men. At first it was actually believed to be a disease that only gay men could contract because they were the first people to get it. When the laws were passed about gay men donating blood, it was logical to not allow them to donate because they were the leading cause of HIV. Now the percentage of homosexuals with HIV is only slightly higher than the percentage of heterosexual individuals with HIV. The laws should be changed now that the percentages have changed, but precautions should still be used.

Letter From Birmingham jail

In this letter Martin Luther King was trying to convince his critics who said what he was doing was "unwise" that he was actually doing the right thing, and at the right time. He was trying to make people understand that what he was doing was the smartest thing that he could be doing at the time, and that it was obvious that he could not wait any longer, if he wanted to see a change he had to do it then, sooner rather than later.

Entangling Roots

I chose to read “Entangling Roots: Online Gaming and the Effects on Their Players” for multiple reasons. First, Jeff Lessard, is my RA so I figured it would be interesting to read something he wrote. The much more important reason is that I used to be an online gamer, so I figured I could relate to this essay.
Jeff obviously did his research because everything he wrote about online gaming is spot on. As I was reading the essay, I began to recall how awful my life was when I was an online gamer. I remember being glued to a bright computer screen for hours on end, and not being social at all. However, I was always good about bathing, eating, and school. Thankfully, I was able to escape from the “entangling roots” that are gaming and once again become a very social person.
When Jeff talked about the one person who shot himself over an online marriage, I couldn’t believe it. How could someone do that? I’ve always known that online gaming was a problem, but that example just takes it to a whole new level. If only there was a sure fire way of preventing gamers from losing their lives to this problem. On the other hand, who are we to criticize people for wanting to play games all the time? If that’s how they want to live their lives, then maybe we should let them. All in all, this essay is very well written and certainly makes one think about the consequences of online gaming.

On "Entangled Roots..."

In Jeff Lessard’s “Entangling Roots: Online Gaming and the Effects on Their Players” is an interesting look at the profound “addictive” qualities of the online gaming experience. I particularly liked this essay because Lessard sheds light on a relatively unknown and quite serious new craze that is effecting a huge portion of the community. He talks about how players use the game as an escape from the pressures of real life (Lessard 196). Essentially, these MMORPGS [Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games] are like a new drug craze, with some of the same disastrous results. In some instances, suicide, neglectful death, divorce, and job loss have all been reported as a direct result of an online gaming addiction (Lessard 197). This essay clearly and concisely gives the reader an in-depth look at the online gaming experience.

            I think this essay is good because it addresses an unknown yet serious issue in our society. When people admit to “missing classes and work, skipping meals, not bathing or changing clothes, staying up all night, and playing the game continuously for six or more hours a day” there is definitely something that needs to be changed (Lessard). Perhaps if any of these gaming addicts read this article they’ll gain a new perspective and see that their habits are detrimental to not only their health, but also their social standing and school work. 

Fight For The Right to Save A Life

Rebecca Schmidt's "Fight for the Right to Save A Life" presents a fact I personally did not know about the FDA and their policies for donating blood. This piece of writing is good because Schmidt provides intense detail and explanations of medical terminology. By doing this, Schmidt encourages the reader to continue with her story, despite terminology they may not have understood otherwise. She continues by going through the key steps of the blood donation process, and then provides statistical evidence of the percentage of people who actually do donate blood. She then culminates her whole argument at the ending of the essay. Her way of building up the essay with facts, statistics, and definitions entices the reader to read to gain knowledge. It's good because it provides analysis of facts to prove a point, as well as providing potentially new knowledge to readers.

Entangling Roots

"Entangling Roots" was a pretty interesting little article. I liked this essay because it was about a hastily growing issue that hasn't gotten a lot of attention in the past. I thought it was good because it was very clearly written and the examples were pretty startling. I thought this a really informative essay. I had a brief knowledge on the subject. I have a lot of friends who have fallen to the addiction of online gaming, none as bad as the examples in the reading. It's almost ridiculous that this type of thing could become what it has; elevated to the point of being an epidemic in ours and other countries around the globe. The world's first virtual sickness or disease. The amount of money these people make a month is almost sickening. I thought it was definitely smart to bring up the topic of "money is the root of all evil". It obviously plays a major role in any addictive substance. Anywhere from crack to video games, everyone's just trying to make a quick buck.

"Entangling Roots"

First off, the fact that this reading was written by a prior Champlain College student made it very appealing. I liked the stand point and opinion that this was written in. It was very informative of a subject that I had no real prior knowledge about. It was also written very clearly and to the point, without much fluff. Even though it was short, because of the clarity I was able to become completely educated about the topic.

John Brown's response to "Entangling Roots"

The essay I chose to read was “Entangling Roots: Online Gaming and the Effects On Their Players”. The first thing that drew me to this essay was that the author was from Champlain College, so why not read it? As a student at a college with a large game design program I am very glad to say that I am not addicted to video games. I found this to be such an interesting essay because this is an issue that is not so well known but now more than ever needs to be talked about on college campuses in the United States. Colleges spend so much time and money educating kids on the problems of drugs and alcohol in college but are the only addictive objects that are endangering they’re students? I’m not saying education on the dangers of drugs and alcohol isn’t important, but in this day and age gaming seems to be taking over the lives of children and adults all over the world more and more every year. Jeff Lessard made great points about the addictive traits of online gaming and his in-text quotations give his essay a lot of credibility. His opening sentences really helped grab my attention and introduced me to the problems he talks about later in his essay. Jeff took a subject that any college student can relate to and used great rhetorical techniques to engage the reader and persuade them to accept his point.

What's good writing?

So what makes writing worthwhile reading? Can you identify what it is that keeps you from giving up on a text?

In class tomorrow we'll decide what we mean by "good," but in the meantime, think about the essays you read (Schmidt and Lessard) and post a blog in which you identify a positive quality in the writing.