Sense of Place
Essential Questions:
- How does energy production impact place?
- How does your sense of place, environmental ethic, and understanding of our energy needs influence your perception of man's use of Earth's resources & your own lifestyle choices?
Artist Statement
I spent the majority of my essay talking about my environmental ethic and man’s use of Earth’s resources, and when talking about my sense of place, never limiting it to one specific place. I used the little girl in my visual to symbolize mine and future generations, creating a silhouette to take away any individual stuff associated with the girl so it represents the broad group of younger generations. She is holding a balloon which is the earth, and possibly appearing to let it go, to kind of get the meaning across that the future of the world is in their hands. The background is a picture from a natural disaster to kind of force the point of what could possibly be from the effects of our use of earth’s resources, the result if the girl lets the balloon go and float away out of control before it would pop. The visual is in black and white to show how lifeless the world could be but the in the picture the earth is left in color to represent that it is covered in and supports life, and is glowing to pop out more and also represent energy production. The girl is also glowing to stand out from the background a little bit.
I already explained the reason of why the picture is in black and white except for the earth, and the reasons for the outer glow around the girl and earth. I applied some artistic filters to the background to make my visual look more aesthetically pleasing but also kind of blurry and dull because it is supposed to be a possible lifeless glimpse into the future. After making the girl silhouette I refined and feather the edges slightly and then lowered the opacity by about 15% so it didn’t look like an obvious cut and paste over the background. The glow of the earth is yellow because it is in color and living, and the girl’s glow is white to stick with the black and white theme. The little bottom part of a balloon on the earth actually has some clouds on it because I drew it by cloning and stamping it from the earth so it would match better than using the brush tool with blue. I drew the balloon string’s path by hand with the free form pen tool and then used the brush tool to give it stroke then erased it underneath the hand because it did not look right do to the lowered opacity of the girl.
My work was inspired by my essay and all of the ideas in my brain relating to the essay prompt. The destruction came from when I talked about the worst case scenarios and walking dead looking cities. The girl came from all the talk of future generations and the world balloon is a way to show that the future is in their hands.
I spent the majority of my essay talking about my environmental ethic and man’s use of Earth’s resources, and when talking about my sense of place, never limiting it to one specific place. I used the little girl in my visual to symbolize mine and future generations, creating a silhouette to take away any individual stuff associated with the girl so it represents the broad group of younger generations. She is holding a balloon which is the earth, and possibly appearing to let it go, to kind of get the meaning across that the future of the world is in their hands. The background is a picture from a natural disaster to kind of force the point of what could possibly be from the effects of our use of earth’s resources, the result if the girl lets the balloon go and float away out of control before it would pop. The visual is in black and white to show how lifeless the world could be but the in the picture the earth is left in color to represent that it is covered in and supports life, and is glowing to pop out more and also represent energy production. The girl is also glowing to stand out from the background a little bit.
I already explained the reason of why the picture is in black and white except for the earth, and the reasons for the outer glow around the girl and earth. I applied some artistic filters to the background to make my visual look more aesthetically pleasing but also kind of blurry and dull because it is supposed to be a possible lifeless glimpse into the future. After making the girl silhouette I refined and feather the edges slightly and then lowered the opacity by about 15% so it didn’t look like an obvious cut and paste over the background. The glow of the earth is yellow because it is in color and living, and the girl’s glow is white to stick with the black and white theme. The little bottom part of a balloon on the earth actually has some clouds on it because I drew it by cloning and stamping it from the earth so it would match better than using the brush tool with blue. I drew the balloon string’s path by hand with the free form pen tool and then used the brush tool to give it stroke then erased it underneath the hand because it did not look right do to the lowered opacity of the girl.
My work was inspired by my essay and all of the ideas in my brain relating to the essay prompt. The destruction came from when I talked about the worst case scenarios and walking dead looking cities. The girl came from all the talk of future generations and the world balloon is a way to show that the future is in their hands.
Can Mankind Create a Sustainable Future?
Miles Rivera
Abstract: The way I am defining sense of place in my essay expands beyond the location itself. By my definition, a sense of place develops after spending a period of time experiencing events and interactions in that place, to truly get a sense, or feel, for that place. When you remember that place you will remember the feelings and senses you had there. My environmental ethic is sustainability; I believe that we should make decisions while thinking of future generations and other life on earth. A quote that shows my sense of place and my environmental ethic is “Every time I visit the city, I notice the massive grey cloud of smog from a long distance away, and then feel disgust seeing cars packed together as far as I can see, all empty except for the driver.”
To be honest, I take too long of showers and leave my computer and music running when I am not home. I am undoubtedly guilty of wasting energy and taking my first world privileges for granted much of the time, but so are all of you. I believe that being mindful and aware of my actions is the first tiny step to changing a current lifestyle that is destructive to our planet. But realistically, America and the world will not be able to change the methods in which we produce energy, or the habits of how it is used with just the good heartedness in each individual. To reach the point where humans can live sustainable and energy rich lives will take a large amount of time, starting right now by educating the masses so we may move past our selfish, outdated ideals and hysteria associated with energy.
Ideas and attitudes attached to our knowledge of climate change and lifestyles are very diverse, but I think one simple idea can be shared and agreed on by the majority. My brother and I have heard it multiple times from our parents and their friends, “Our generation f**ked it up for you guys.” Always spoken very concise and with such calmness that it seemed to be a sarcastic and even funny statement, so I treated it accordingly by laughing it off and then telling myself that nobody really knows what will happen and that if my future is inevitably doomed then why worry about it? But I always kept the words of my elders somewhere in the back of my mind. Now, having outgrown my premature 5th grade brain, I can start to understand the real meaning behind that once laughable statement. My parents and their generation failed us by not questioning what impacts their actions could have on the planet and future generations. Really, every generation before me could have failed that same way ever since we invented farming and moved away from our animal instincts of hunting and gathering, if it wasn’t for that decision, all life on earth could have lived in peace until the sun dies. But becoming more intelligent and attempting to improve our quality of life shouldn’t be a crime. The reason my parents’ generation is guilty is because that is when our society and way of life became dependent on energy resources that are damaging to the planet, became aware of the problem, and haven’t done anything substantial to fix it. We now know that the effects of climate change will be our demise and we are all accountable as long as we continue to power our wasteful lifestyles with harmful energy sources.
Anybody reading this has lived a life where our basic needs such as food, water, and shelter, are met because of energy. While you might have gone three days without food, our generation has never had to truly struggle to survive in the same sense as our ancestors or other animals we share this planet with. A life in a first world country during the 21st century has provided me with everything a human needs to survive, and every new technology makes a task easier and creates new opportunities for the human race to grow. Seriously, when I need to “let the dogs out” I have a private, enclosed space, protecting me from the elements, where I can enjoy the feeling of warm air on my skin despite the dark and chilling weather outside. There is a seat constructed out of a smooth, unnaturally white and shiny material, shaped to comfortably rest my buns on. Then by pushing a small lever, the device will clean itself and any slightly unpleasant scent or image of digested food vanishes. Wow I’m spoiled! This uninteresting, simple technology helps to allow humans to live together in massive numbers, not possible when we were pooping on the ground or in a community hole. Since then, advancing technology has brought us to the point where the human population currently is not being restricted by predators, disease, food, land, or any natural factor that keeps an ecosystem balanced. Energy enables the human population to grow, and then our demand for energy grows with it. This cycle will not change, but we have the ability to continue and live energy fueled lives if we change to sustainable sources of energy.
It is not an easy task to change our current lifestyles to become sustainable. Change isn’t possible in just energy production, it will have to happen in nearly all the sectors contributing and controlling our lives. Strict laws must be put in place to force our society so switch from coal and oil, to nuclear power, renewables, and other alternative sources of energy like natural gas to fill our needs. Unfortunately, that cannot simply be done while greed overpowers just doing the “right thing”, and the majority of the population is constantly struggling to stay in the race of the world’s economy. So our constantly growing inequality gap must shrink by first advancing beyond current conservative ideals. Finally, all of this change must start with education! If the masses of our generation and future generations can be better educated to make these decisions we will start to fix all of these problems in our society and move on to becoming more sustainable. I believe that having sustainable lives will of course also include rebuilding and keeping ecosystems intact, implementing strategies to reduce methane emissions, and using more public transportation. Every time I visit the city, I notice the massive grey cloud of smog from a long distance away, and then feel disgust seeing cars packed together as far as I can see, all empty except for the driver. Growing up in a mountain town has spoiled me, so when I experience the realness and size of the problems contributing to climate change, I lose some hope in humanity and its future, but also become more motivated to try to justify myself by changing my own habits and lifestyle.
I do want to protect the beautiful area that I have been raised in because I have developed sentimental attachments to Durango and southwest Colorado. Much of my enjoyment and happiness comes from snowboarding the rolling snow covered slopes of Purgatory, and mountain biking on the steep switchbacks of Raider Ridge, but the concept of NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) is one of the ideas we must get rid of to have a successfully sustainable future. Rejecting a sustainable source of energy or some other development that is beneficial to the world because of a personal desire is selfish and allows other harmful energy sources and developments to thrive in areas that can’t fight back. I think I am able to believe this do to my sense of place. My sense of place doesn’t come solely from the location I am in or am connected to; it comes from the experiences, events, and interactions that occur in that place. When I am in a new place that I have not been to before I might think it is beautiful or really cool or but I don’t feel attached or have a sense for that place. I could be hiking large mountains completely covered in green, surrounding a stunning view of the valley laying underneath me, and then trip and break my leg. While still being able to admire the place it would be harder to be happy there and so I would have a negative sense of place there. Having a strong sense of place with Durango because it is my home definitely motivates me to take care of the environment here by picking up litter when I come across it or not leaving the trash out for the bears, but I would still be willing to sacrifice an area of land if it was for a reason that is beneficial to the greater good of the world.
Even though I believe that I do have a good grasp and mindset on climate change and man’s use of earth’s resources, I still feel some guilt for not doing more to help out the environment. We will not know how drastic or even what exactly the consequences will be from the harm we have done to our planet and its atmosphere until we live through it. Most major changes in history have happened because the point was reached where change was absolutely needed to keep order and move forward, like our constitution for example. The image and ideas of our future that have developed in my head include deserted cities and destruction with people fighting to survive by scavenging the remnants of civilization. But it is always easiest to jump to worst case scenarios and seeing every episode of “The Walking Dead” definitely contributes to my thoughts. Living in the same conditions that Detroit is in right now is probably not so farfetched though. I think that we will eventually be forced to deal with climate change more seriously when the problems become more real but educating ourselves and future generations so we may change many of the social issues that currently restrict us is the first step to creating a more sustainable future.
Miles Rivera
Abstract: The way I am defining sense of place in my essay expands beyond the location itself. By my definition, a sense of place develops after spending a period of time experiencing events and interactions in that place, to truly get a sense, or feel, for that place. When you remember that place you will remember the feelings and senses you had there. My environmental ethic is sustainability; I believe that we should make decisions while thinking of future generations and other life on earth. A quote that shows my sense of place and my environmental ethic is “Every time I visit the city, I notice the massive grey cloud of smog from a long distance away, and then feel disgust seeing cars packed together as far as I can see, all empty except for the driver.”
To be honest, I take too long of showers and leave my computer and music running when I am not home. I am undoubtedly guilty of wasting energy and taking my first world privileges for granted much of the time, but so are all of you. I believe that being mindful and aware of my actions is the first tiny step to changing a current lifestyle that is destructive to our planet. But realistically, America and the world will not be able to change the methods in which we produce energy, or the habits of how it is used with just the good heartedness in each individual. To reach the point where humans can live sustainable and energy rich lives will take a large amount of time, starting right now by educating the masses so we may move past our selfish, outdated ideals and hysteria associated with energy.
Ideas and attitudes attached to our knowledge of climate change and lifestyles are very diverse, but I think one simple idea can be shared and agreed on by the majority. My brother and I have heard it multiple times from our parents and their friends, “Our generation f**ked it up for you guys.” Always spoken very concise and with such calmness that it seemed to be a sarcastic and even funny statement, so I treated it accordingly by laughing it off and then telling myself that nobody really knows what will happen and that if my future is inevitably doomed then why worry about it? But I always kept the words of my elders somewhere in the back of my mind. Now, having outgrown my premature 5th grade brain, I can start to understand the real meaning behind that once laughable statement. My parents and their generation failed us by not questioning what impacts their actions could have on the planet and future generations. Really, every generation before me could have failed that same way ever since we invented farming and moved away from our animal instincts of hunting and gathering, if it wasn’t for that decision, all life on earth could have lived in peace until the sun dies. But becoming more intelligent and attempting to improve our quality of life shouldn’t be a crime. The reason my parents’ generation is guilty is because that is when our society and way of life became dependent on energy resources that are damaging to the planet, became aware of the problem, and haven’t done anything substantial to fix it. We now know that the effects of climate change will be our demise and we are all accountable as long as we continue to power our wasteful lifestyles with harmful energy sources.
Anybody reading this has lived a life where our basic needs such as food, water, and shelter, are met because of energy. While you might have gone three days without food, our generation has never had to truly struggle to survive in the same sense as our ancestors or other animals we share this planet with. A life in a first world country during the 21st century has provided me with everything a human needs to survive, and every new technology makes a task easier and creates new opportunities for the human race to grow. Seriously, when I need to “let the dogs out” I have a private, enclosed space, protecting me from the elements, where I can enjoy the feeling of warm air on my skin despite the dark and chilling weather outside. There is a seat constructed out of a smooth, unnaturally white and shiny material, shaped to comfortably rest my buns on. Then by pushing a small lever, the device will clean itself and any slightly unpleasant scent or image of digested food vanishes. Wow I’m spoiled! This uninteresting, simple technology helps to allow humans to live together in massive numbers, not possible when we were pooping on the ground or in a community hole. Since then, advancing technology has brought us to the point where the human population currently is not being restricted by predators, disease, food, land, or any natural factor that keeps an ecosystem balanced. Energy enables the human population to grow, and then our demand for energy grows with it. This cycle will not change, but we have the ability to continue and live energy fueled lives if we change to sustainable sources of energy.
It is not an easy task to change our current lifestyles to become sustainable. Change isn’t possible in just energy production, it will have to happen in nearly all the sectors contributing and controlling our lives. Strict laws must be put in place to force our society so switch from coal and oil, to nuclear power, renewables, and other alternative sources of energy like natural gas to fill our needs. Unfortunately, that cannot simply be done while greed overpowers just doing the “right thing”, and the majority of the population is constantly struggling to stay in the race of the world’s economy. So our constantly growing inequality gap must shrink by first advancing beyond current conservative ideals. Finally, all of this change must start with education! If the masses of our generation and future generations can be better educated to make these decisions we will start to fix all of these problems in our society and move on to becoming more sustainable. I believe that having sustainable lives will of course also include rebuilding and keeping ecosystems intact, implementing strategies to reduce methane emissions, and using more public transportation. Every time I visit the city, I notice the massive grey cloud of smog from a long distance away, and then feel disgust seeing cars packed together as far as I can see, all empty except for the driver. Growing up in a mountain town has spoiled me, so when I experience the realness and size of the problems contributing to climate change, I lose some hope in humanity and its future, but also become more motivated to try to justify myself by changing my own habits and lifestyle.
I do want to protect the beautiful area that I have been raised in because I have developed sentimental attachments to Durango and southwest Colorado. Much of my enjoyment and happiness comes from snowboarding the rolling snow covered slopes of Purgatory, and mountain biking on the steep switchbacks of Raider Ridge, but the concept of NIMBY (Not In My Back Yard) is one of the ideas we must get rid of to have a successfully sustainable future. Rejecting a sustainable source of energy or some other development that is beneficial to the world because of a personal desire is selfish and allows other harmful energy sources and developments to thrive in areas that can’t fight back. I think I am able to believe this do to my sense of place. My sense of place doesn’t come solely from the location I am in or am connected to; it comes from the experiences, events, and interactions that occur in that place. When I am in a new place that I have not been to before I might think it is beautiful or really cool or but I don’t feel attached or have a sense for that place. I could be hiking large mountains completely covered in green, surrounding a stunning view of the valley laying underneath me, and then trip and break my leg. While still being able to admire the place it would be harder to be happy there and so I would have a negative sense of place there. Having a strong sense of place with Durango because it is my home definitely motivates me to take care of the environment here by picking up litter when I come across it or not leaving the trash out for the bears, but I would still be willing to sacrifice an area of land if it was for a reason that is beneficial to the greater good of the world.
Even though I believe that I do have a good grasp and mindset on climate change and man’s use of earth’s resources, I still feel some guilt for not doing more to help out the environment. We will not know how drastic or even what exactly the consequences will be from the harm we have done to our planet and its atmosphere until we live through it. Most major changes in history have happened because the point was reached where change was absolutely needed to keep order and move forward, like our constitution for example. The image and ideas of our future that have developed in my head include deserted cities and destruction with people fighting to survive by scavenging the remnants of civilization. But it is always easiest to jump to worst case scenarios and seeing every episode of “The Walking Dead” definitely contributes to my thoughts. Living in the same conditions that Detroit is in right now is probably not so farfetched though. I think that we will eventually be forced to deal with climate change more seriously when the problems become more real but educating ourselves and future generations so we may change many of the social issues that currently restrict us is the first step to creating a more sustainable future.
Link to Chemistry Page: http://mriveradp.weebly.com/chemistry.html
Project Reflection
This project was about learning about environmental ethics, nature writing, and how to define a “sense of place” for ourselves. Leading up to this project we read a lot of papers and studied a lot PowerPoints and lectures about environmental activists, Edward abbey and elements of nature writing, and tips on how to write our essays. We did one Socratic seminar during this project and were also very privileged to have three guest speakers in the energy industry come speak to us and educate us about their job and how they relate to climate change. We then had to write an essay based off of the essential questions given to us and then create a visual piece to go along with our essays.
To write my essay and create my visual piece, I had to spend a good amount of time reflecting and forming ideas that I could write about that connect to the essential questions. For a very long time I put off writing my essay because I couldn’t decide on a place for my sense of place and couldn’t think of creative idea that I would like to write about. Eventually I formed all of the opinions I needed to write my essay and just persevered through my writers block to write my essay. I don’t think I grew at all as a person from this project but I did get some new knowledge on these topics. After my essay my idea for my visual peace came pretty fast and I used Photoshop to complete it.
I am very proud of my essay for this project mainly because it was such a challenge for me to write it but I eventually finished it and liked it. I think I did a great job of incorporating my environmental ethic and answering the second essential question about man’s use of earth’s resources and our own personal lifestyles. I am also proud of my visual piece because I think it looks really nice and represents my essay and the essential question pretty clearly.
When reflecting on the interdisciplinary process of this project, I didn’t really enjoy this project compared to other projects that we did this year and other years here at animas. I wasn’t super interested or engaged in any of the stuff we were learning about, so I didn’t much inspiration when we had to create our projects so getting this project done was really hard for me. I am happy and proud now that I have finished but I still don’t feel like I gained anything from this project other than the knowledge that I learned about energy production and current issues about this topic. It was cool having two classes kind of doing similar stuff but other than working on similar topics, none of it was together or truly combined, but I think it is fine that way I just expected it to be different when I first heard about the project.
This project was about learning about environmental ethics, nature writing, and how to define a “sense of place” for ourselves. Leading up to this project we read a lot of papers and studied a lot PowerPoints and lectures about environmental activists, Edward abbey and elements of nature writing, and tips on how to write our essays. We did one Socratic seminar during this project and were also very privileged to have three guest speakers in the energy industry come speak to us and educate us about their job and how they relate to climate change. We then had to write an essay based off of the essential questions given to us and then create a visual piece to go along with our essays.
To write my essay and create my visual piece, I had to spend a good amount of time reflecting and forming ideas that I could write about that connect to the essential questions. For a very long time I put off writing my essay because I couldn’t decide on a place for my sense of place and couldn’t think of creative idea that I would like to write about. Eventually I formed all of the opinions I needed to write my essay and just persevered through my writers block to write my essay. I don’t think I grew at all as a person from this project but I did get some new knowledge on these topics. After my essay my idea for my visual peace came pretty fast and I used Photoshop to complete it.
I am very proud of my essay for this project mainly because it was such a challenge for me to write it but I eventually finished it and liked it. I think I did a great job of incorporating my environmental ethic and answering the second essential question about man’s use of earth’s resources and our own personal lifestyles. I am also proud of my visual piece because I think it looks really nice and represents my essay and the essential question pretty clearly.
When reflecting on the interdisciplinary process of this project, I didn’t really enjoy this project compared to other projects that we did this year and other years here at animas. I wasn’t super interested or engaged in any of the stuff we were learning about, so I didn’t much inspiration when we had to create our projects so getting this project done was really hard for me. I am happy and proud now that I have finished but I still don’t feel like I gained anything from this project other than the knowledge that I learned about energy production and current issues about this topic. It was cool having two classes kind of doing similar stuff but other than working on similar topics, none of it was together or truly combined, but I think it is fine that way I just expected it to be different when I first heard about the project.
Happiness and Meaning
Essential Questions:
1. What is the purpose of your existence?
2. What is happiness and what makes you happy?
3. What does it mean to live a meaningful life?
4. To what extent can literature shape your personal philosophy on happiness and meaning?
Project Description Handout: https://docs.google.com/a/animashighschool.com/file/d/0B5ktO3NLUDlcems1NU1kbjZudWM/edit
Personal Reflection
I gained some new insights from this project, and I used what we learned to really shape the insights I already had. The Stranger was probably the biggest help for me because my ideas were leaning toward existentialism probably because of the atheist side of me. The insights I got from that is that as far as we know, life is meaningless and random, so the only meaning that we have is the meaning that we chose to give ourselves. I also said in my literary analysis essay that first you must accept the meaninglessness of the universe before you can give yourself your own meaning. That is a lot more of what Camus was saying in The Stranger. Another new insight that I got was from the movie Happy. I did not know that so much of our happiness depends on our genetics and that we can only ever be a certain level of happiness. I also learned that a lot of happiness comes from community. Denmark is the happiest country in the world and one reason is because they have a lot of people living in community housing. In community housing people live together as an accepting family and that gives them happiness.
Further Questions:
1. What do my genetics say about my happiness?
2. What kind of career do I want to pursue, meaningful vs stress free?
3. How possible is it to judge whether another's life has meaning?
4. What career would generate the most happiness for me?
I gained some new insights from this project, and I used what we learned to really shape the insights I already had. The Stranger was probably the biggest help for me because my ideas were leaning toward existentialism probably because of the atheist side of me. The insights I got from that is that as far as we know, life is meaningless and random, so the only meaning that we have is the meaning that we chose to give ourselves. I also said in my literary analysis essay that first you must accept the meaninglessness of the universe before you can give yourself your own meaning. That is a lot more of what Camus was saying in The Stranger. Another new insight that I got was from the movie Happy. I did not know that so much of our happiness depends on our genetics and that we can only ever be a certain level of happiness. I also learned that a lot of happiness comes from community. Denmark is the happiest country in the world and one reason is because they have a lot of people living in community housing. In community housing people live together as an accepting family and that gives them happiness.
Further Questions:
1. What do my genetics say about my happiness?
2. What kind of career do I want to pursue, meaningful vs stress free?
3. How possible is it to judge whether another's life has meaning?
4. What career would generate the most happiness for me?
The Stranger Seminar Prep: https://docs.google.com/a/animashighschool.com/file/d/0BxfxBUusM-zjdHlNSkpubFJmZGM/edit
Happiness and Meaning Seminar Prep
Miles Rivera
Part 1: I think the Happy documentary addressed the essential questions pretty well because they are all essentially based on happiness and meaning, which is very much connected to happiness, and the movie went pretty in depth into positive phycology and happiness and meaning.
The source that best answers the first essential question is probably The Stranger. In The Stranger the main character is a person that is very indifferent to everything and is very confident that nothing really matters or makes a difference in the large schema of things. His answer to this question would be that life has no purpose and is just there kind of, it is what it is and nothing more. I currently cannot pull quotes because I am absent from school at home and do not have The Stranger with me.
I am 100% confident that the source that best answers the second essential question is the Happy documentary. It is all about happiness and what makes us happy. Being happy is a chemical reaction In the brain and very many things bring us happiness. Such as feeling that our life has meaning, having supportive friends and family, and having our basic needs met so that means money. But after our basic needs are met with money having more money generally does not increase our happiness. Examples from the movie would be that Cajun people are happy because they have supportive family. Or community housing in Denmark for the same reason and a lot of their needs are met because the government offers freed education through college and free healthcare for life.
The source that best answers the third essential question in my opinion would be The Lesson of The Moth. I chose this source because it is very upfront and has a very easy answer to this question. The moth would say that to live a meaningful life would be to spend it doing something you love and find beautiful, instead of spending it just existing. The moth states this when he says “we get bored with the routine, and crave beauty, and excitement” and “it is better to be a part of beauty, for one instant and then cease to, exist than to exist forever, and never be a part of beauty”. That is a very straight forward answer to what is a meaningful life.
Part 2: Choice, Happiness, and Spaghetti Sauce
- Don’t choose the best/most popular thing, chose a variety of things.
- People’s personal choices make them happy, not settling on a compromise of what is popular.
- Make people happy by giving them something to aspire to.
- Embracing the diversity of human beings is a sure way to happiness.
I thought this ted talk was interesting but I don’t think it had a very big lesson for all of the examples that were given. This ted talk was extremely long and nothing philosophical or important was mentioned until half way through, and then still it was just example after example of what this one guy did in the food industry. The main idea that I got from it which was the last bullet point I wrote above does make sense to me and I agree with it, everybody has their own needs and desires and we can’t group everybody together to find the “best” solution. But I can’t get over how annoying and long this ted talk was just for this one small idea that was barely even mentioned throughout the talk. It was more of a biography of that one guy’s career in the food industry and not about happiness.
Does options are you grateful for in your life that brings you happiness?
Miles Rivera
Part 1: I think the Happy documentary addressed the essential questions pretty well because they are all essentially based on happiness and meaning, which is very much connected to happiness, and the movie went pretty in depth into positive phycology and happiness and meaning.
The source that best answers the first essential question is probably The Stranger. In The Stranger the main character is a person that is very indifferent to everything and is very confident that nothing really matters or makes a difference in the large schema of things. His answer to this question would be that life has no purpose and is just there kind of, it is what it is and nothing more. I currently cannot pull quotes because I am absent from school at home and do not have The Stranger with me.
I am 100% confident that the source that best answers the second essential question is the Happy documentary. It is all about happiness and what makes us happy. Being happy is a chemical reaction In the brain and very many things bring us happiness. Such as feeling that our life has meaning, having supportive friends and family, and having our basic needs met so that means money. But after our basic needs are met with money having more money generally does not increase our happiness. Examples from the movie would be that Cajun people are happy because they have supportive family. Or community housing in Denmark for the same reason and a lot of their needs are met because the government offers freed education through college and free healthcare for life.
The source that best answers the third essential question in my opinion would be The Lesson of The Moth. I chose this source because it is very upfront and has a very easy answer to this question. The moth would say that to live a meaningful life would be to spend it doing something you love and find beautiful, instead of spending it just existing. The moth states this when he says “we get bored with the routine, and crave beauty, and excitement” and “it is better to be a part of beauty, for one instant and then cease to, exist than to exist forever, and never be a part of beauty”. That is a very straight forward answer to what is a meaningful life.
Part 2: Choice, Happiness, and Spaghetti Sauce
- Don’t choose the best/most popular thing, chose a variety of things.
- People’s personal choices make them happy, not settling on a compromise of what is popular.
- Make people happy by giving them something to aspire to.
- Embracing the diversity of human beings is a sure way to happiness.
I thought this ted talk was interesting but I don’t think it had a very big lesson for all of the examples that were given. This ted talk was extremely long and nothing philosophical or important was mentioned until half way through, and then still it was just example after example of what this one guy did in the food industry. The main idea that I got from it which was the last bullet point I wrote above does make sense to me and I agree with it, everybody has their own needs and desires and we can’t group everybody together to find the “best” solution. But I can’t get over how annoying and long this ted talk was just for this one small idea that was barely even mentioned throughout the talk. It was more of a biography of that one guy’s career in the food industry and not about happiness.
Does options are you grateful for in your life that brings you happiness?
Literary Analysis Essay:
Creating Meaning as a Meaningless Amoeba of the Universe
Miles Rivera
During most people’s lives they reach a point where they question their existence, and the purpose or meaning of their own life, and would probably call this a mid-life crisis or an existential crisis. In The Stranger by Albert Camus a character named Meursault goes through his life while being mostly indifferent to the events that take place in his life and shows little emotion or ambition in anything. He has the attitude that nothing matters and one life is not any better or worse than another. I believe that Camus shows the sign of a well lived life with Meursault’s transformation and the idea of the absurd throughout the book. A well lived life is one in which the individual recognizes the meaninglessness of life and then strives to create their own meaning outside of society’s expectations.
For the first half of The Stanger Meursault is a very passive character with a very simple and narrow attitude towards life. On page 24 Meursault says, “It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over, that Maman was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that, really, nothing had changed.” His mother had just died but Meursault never seems to get very emotional and says that nothing had changed because she wasn’t living with him anymore anyways. He looks almost from an outsider’s perspective at life because he is an observer. Camus writes on page 28 “‘I’ve got some blood sausage and some wine at my place. How about joining me?’ I figured it would save me the trouble of having to cook for myself, so I accepted.” Instead of choosing to eat with a friend for enjoyment or other good reason, Meursault joins Raymond just because he doesn’t have a good reason not to. Meursault is not trying to create meaning out of his life at this time during the book and instead just merely exists.
At the end of the first half of the book Meursault kills an Arab man seemingly irrationally, and for no clear reason. Meursault is thrown in jail and put on trial resulting from the crime he committed. At this point in the book the events that start to happen in Meursault’s life eventually change him. Amidst the trial Camus describes the interaction between the prosecutor and Meursault on page 88, “The prosecutor […] would like to know whether I had gone back to the spring by myself intending to kill the Arab. ‘No,’ I said. Well, then, why was I armed and why did I return to precisely that spot? I said it just happened that way.” The trial represents the Absurd in the way that the prosecution is searching for meaning and reason for why Meursault killed the Arab but Meursault just states that there was no meaning and that it just is what it is, very similar to his general view on life. Meursault recognizes the meaninglessness of life, which is the first step to being able to live a meaningful life in the way Camus shows with the book.
Meursault eventually transforms his view from passive contentment to finding meaning in his life when it is very close to being over. While in his jail cell he thinks of his mother, and her decision to take a fiancé at the end of her life, “So close to death, Maman must have felt free then and ready to live it all again.” (122) His mother had recognized the absurd and felt free to do what makes her happy and give her meaning, even if others might have thought it to be strange to do at the end of her life. After contemplating this in his cell, Meursault also develops Camus’ definition of a well lived life.
“As if that blind rage has washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself – so like a brother, really – I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate.” (123)
Camus shows with the closing lines of the book Meursault’s final transformation into having a well lived and meaningful life. By embracing the world’s indifference to him, and accepting his imminent death, Meursault feels happy, and to fulfill his life he only wants to feel less alone, even if the passion towards him from others is not positive. He is creating his own meaning in his final moments outside of society’s expectations of him.
Although The Stranger is fiction the transformation that Meursault goes through is very real and happens to many people at some point in their life. The life that Camus shows with Meursault is one of meaning and purpose. By understanding the absurd and the meaninglessness of life we become free to give ourselves our own meaning without the pressures and expectations society puts on us.
Creating Meaning as a Meaningless Amoeba of the Universe
Miles Rivera
During most people’s lives they reach a point where they question their existence, and the purpose or meaning of their own life, and would probably call this a mid-life crisis or an existential crisis. In The Stranger by Albert Camus a character named Meursault goes through his life while being mostly indifferent to the events that take place in his life and shows little emotion or ambition in anything. He has the attitude that nothing matters and one life is not any better or worse than another. I believe that Camus shows the sign of a well lived life with Meursault’s transformation and the idea of the absurd throughout the book. A well lived life is one in which the individual recognizes the meaninglessness of life and then strives to create their own meaning outside of society’s expectations.
For the first half of The Stanger Meursault is a very passive character with a very simple and narrow attitude towards life. On page 24 Meursault says, “It occurred to me that anyway one more Sunday was over, that Maman was buried now, that I was going back to work, and that, really, nothing had changed.” His mother had just died but Meursault never seems to get very emotional and says that nothing had changed because she wasn’t living with him anymore anyways. He looks almost from an outsider’s perspective at life because he is an observer. Camus writes on page 28 “‘I’ve got some blood sausage and some wine at my place. How about joining me?’ I figured it would save me the trouble of having to cook for myself, so I accepted.” Instead of choosing to eat with a friend for enjoyment or other good reason, Meursault joins Raymond just because he doesn’t have a good reason not to. Meursault is not trying to create meaning out of his life at this time during the book and instead just merely exists.
At the end of the first half of the book Meursault kills an Arab man seemingly irrationally, and for no clear reason. Meursault is thrown in jail and put on trial resulting from the crime he committed. At this point in the book the events that start to happen in Meursault’s life eventually change him. Amidst the trial Camus describes the interaction between the prosecutor and Meursault on page 88, “The prosecutor […] would like to know whether I had gone back to the spring by myself intending to kill the Arab. ‘No,’ I said. Well, then, why was I armed and why did I return to precisely that spot? I said it just happened that way.” The trial represents the Absurd in the way that the prosecution is searching for meaning and reason for why Meursault killed the Arab but Meursault just states that there was no meaning and that it just is what it is, very similar to his general view on life. Meursault recognizes the meaninglessness of life, which is the first step to being able to live a meaningful life in the way Camus shows with the book.
Meursault eventually transforms his view from passive contentment to finding meaning in his life when it is very close to being over. While in his jail cell he thinks of his mother, and her decision to take a fiancé at the end of her life, “So close to death, Maman must have felt free then and ready to live it all again.” (122) His mother had recognized the absurd and felt free to do what makes her happy and give her meaning, even if others might have thought it to be strange to do at the end of her life. After contemplating this in his cell, Meursault also develops Camus’ definition of a well lived life.
“As if that blind rage has washed me clean, rid me of hope; for the first time, in that night alive with signs and stars, I opened myself to the gentle indifference of the world. Finding it so much like myself – so like a brother, really – I felt that I had been happy and that I was happy again. For everything to be consummated, for me to feel less alone, I had only to wish that there be a large crowd of spectators the day of my execution and that they greet me with cries of hate.” (123)
Camus shows with the closing lines of the book Meursault’s final transformation into having a well lived and meaningful life. By embracing the world’s indifference to him, and accepting his imminent death, Meursault feels happy, and to fulfill his life he only wants to feel less alone, even if the passion towards him from others is not positive. He is creating his own meaning in his final moments outside of society’s expectations of him.
Although The Stranger is fiction the transformation that Meursault goes through is very real and happens to many people at some point in their life. The life that Camus shows with Meursault is one of meaning and purpose. By understanding the absurd and the meaninglessness of life we become free to give ourselves our own meaning without the pressures and expectations society puts on us.
Project Proposal Questions:
1) The only meaning and purpose of our lives is the meaning that we give it and strive for.
2) Visual piece, or poem.
3) I don’t think there is a median that representative of myself, or none could be more representative than any other median. All of the medians are going to be creative.
4) I want them to think my project looks good and is quality, If they could remember that then it probably doesn’t matter as much if they remember what it is.
5) Well it could be a poem, probably something simple, not backwards, not spoken word, have some rhythm to it. If it is a visual piece it will probably be photoshopped or something different that I can’t think of right now, not drawing or painting though.
6) My biggest obstacle is right now, and it is deciding what to do and getting my first general idea of what it is. Once I get an idea I like it can evolve and change and I can do it.
7) Computer with photoshop or word, or something else I don’t know about yet.
8) NOoooooo idea. Probably as much time that is possible would be nice.
9) Help thinking of and deciding on an idea that I like and then feedback to refine.
1) The only meaning and purpose of our lives is the meaning that we give it and strive for.
2) Visual piece, or poem.
3) I don’t think there is a median that representative of myself, or none could be more representative than any other median. All of the medians are going to be creative.
4) I want them to think my project looks good and is quality, If they could remember that then it probably doesn’t matter as much if they remember what it is.
5) Well it could be a poem, probably something simple, not backwards, not spoken word, have some rhythm to it. If it is a visual piece it will probably be photoshopped or something different that I can’t think of right now, not drawing or painting though.
6) My biggest obstacle is right now, and it is deciding what to do and getting my first general idea of what it is. Once I get an idea I like it can evolve and change and I can do it.
7) Computer with photoshop or word, or something else I don’t know about yet.
8) NOoooooo idea. Probably as much time that is possible would be nice.
9) Help thinking of and deciding on an idea that I like and then feedback to refine.
Korematsu vs. U.S (1944)
Francis Biddle Witness Bio
Miles Rivera
My name is Francis Biddle, I was born May 9th, 1886, and I am currently the United States Attorney General, I hold the power of an attorney in representing the government in all legal matters. Before this job I was a lawyer, judge, and private secretary for the Supreme Court. I earned my degrees from Harvard University, and I was also in the United States Army during World War 1. At the time of the Pearl Harbor attacks I was only attorney general for three months.
After I had taken office, I soon found myself dealing with alien related issues. The Justice Department had already built a series of internment camps for enemy aliens and held some 2,000 German and Italian nationals in custody. I also testified in favor of H.R. 3, which called for an expansion in the ability to detain aliens without hearings or due process, but the bill did not pass. After the attacks on Pearl Harbor, the Justice Department began rounding up enemy aliens. 2,300 enemy aliens were arrested by December 10th, of which 1,300 were Japanese. Later in December, the Justice Department approved searches of any household where an Issei lived without a warrant. I will admit that little was discovered in these searches. I also did issue a press release on December 10th calling for an orderly roundup and for other Americans not to mistreat resident Japanese Americans.
Over the next two months I fought against DeWitt's Western Defense Command, who was pushing for harsher measures. I called a meeting with the War Department leaders on February 1st where I proposed a joint press release issued in the two departments stating that the present military situation does not at this time require the removal of American citizens of the Japanese race. But I received many attacks after this, and was threatened and pushed to approve mass removal of Japanese Americans. So I reiterated my opposition to mass removal but also left the door open by stating that the military must determine the risk and undertake the responsibility for evacuation of citizens of Japanese descent. I wrote a final memo to the President reiterating my opposition to mass removal at which time the president informed me that he had already granted approval to Stimson, ending my opposition. Later that day, at a meeting at his house with War Department leaders, I announced that I had earlier agreed to mass removal. Then Executive Order 9066 followed.
I have regretted my part in the Japanese American removal and incarceration. I was new to the Cabinet, and disinclined to insist on my view to an elder statesman whose wisdom and integrity I greatly respected. Decisions were not made on the logic of events or on the weight of evidence, but on the racial prejudice that seemed to be influencing everyone.
http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Francis_Biddle/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Biddle
Miles Rivera
My name is Francis Biddle, I was born May 9th, 1886, and I am currently the United States Attorney General, I hold the power of an attorney in representing the government in all legal matters. Before this job I was a lawyer, judge, and private secretary for the Supreme Court. I earned my degrees from Harvard University, and I was also in the United States Army during World War 1. At the time of the Pearl Harbor attacks I was only attorney general for three months.
After I had taken office, I soon found myself dealing with alien related issues. The Justice Department had already built a series of internment camps for enemy aliens and held some 2,000 German and Italian nationals in custody. I also testified in favor of H.R. 3, which called for an expansion in the ability to detain aliens without hearings or due process, but the bill did not pass. After the attacks on Pearl Harbor, the Justice Department began rounding up enemy aliens. 2,300 enemy aliens were arrested by December 10th, of which 1,300 were Japanese. Later in December, the Justice Department approved searches of any household where an Issei lived without a warrant. I will admit that little was discovered in these searches. I also did issue a press release on December 10th calling for an orderly roundup and for other Americans not to mistreat resident Japanese Americans.
Over the next two months I fought against DeWitt's Western Defense Command, who was pushing for harsher measures. I called a meeting with the War Department leaders on February 1st where I proposed a joint press release issued in the two departments stating that the present military situation does not at this time require the removal of American citizens of the Japanese race. But I received many attacks after this, and was threatened and pushed to approve mass removal of Japanese Americans. So I reiterated my opposition to mass removal but also left the door open by stating that the military must determine the risk and undertake the responsibility for evacuation of citizens of Japanese descent. I wrote a final memo to the President reiterating my opposition to mass removal at which time the president informed me that he had already granted approval to Stimson, ending my opposition. Later that day, at a meeting at his house with War Department leaders, I announced that I had earlier agreed to mass removal. Then Executive Order 9066 followed.
I have regretted my part in the Japanese American removal and incarceration. I was new to the Cabinet, and disinclined to insist on my view to an elder statesman whose wisdom and integrity I greatly respected. Decisions were not made on the logic of events or on the weight of evidence, but on the racial prejudice that seemed to be influencing everyone.
http://encyclopedia.densho.org/Francis_Biddle/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Biddle
Ralph Lazo Witness Bio
Miles Rivera
My name is Ralph Lazo, I was born in 1924 in Los Angeles, and I am of Mexican and Irish descent. I was recently drafted into the army in August of 1944. Some previous jobs that I have had have been delivering mail, and being a recreation director in Manzanar. I grew up in a multi-ethnic neighborhood and had many Japanese American friends. I was stunned when they had to evacuate and be taken to camp. I was 16 at the time. I thought it was immoral and wrong because those people hadn’t done anything that I hadn’t done, except for being Japanese and going to Japanese language school, we are all Americans.
I didn’t want to be lonely, and one of my friends almost jokingly invited me to go to camp with them. So I went down the old Santa Fe Station and signed on to go to camp. I didn’t lie about being of Japanese ancestry because nobody asked me, being brown sometimes has its advantages. When I told my dad I was going to camp he thought it was more of a weekend thing and he didn’t find out where I was until he read a newspaper article about me. I still don’t think he minded though because he knew I was safe and with friends, I let him know that I was still going to school and being well fed.
Many of my friends were sent to Heart Mountain but I was sent to Manzanar, so I did have to make some new friends. I was very happy being with people I admired and respected. Everybody accepted me, and all of the older bachelors that I lived with were like my Issei parents even though they spoke no English and I didn’t speak Japanese. Even the camp director, Ralph Merrit, said it was fine with him if I wanted to stay. There were 10,000 of us in one square mile, so one more didn’t make a difference.
In camp I played football and helped organize Friday night dances. I even got to leave camp once to represent Manzanar at a YMCA conference in Colorado. The only other time I have gotten to leave is recently when I was drafted.
Info from Ralph Lazo Manzanar ID booklet.
Miles Rivera
My name is Ralph Lazo, I was born in 1924 in Los Angeles, and I am of Mexican and Irish descent. I was recently drafted into the army in August of 1944. Some previous jobs that I have had have been delivering mail, and being a recreation director in Manzanar. I grew up in a multi-ethnic neighborhood and had many Japanese American friends. I was stunned when they had to evacuate and be taken to camp. I was 16 at the time. I thought it was immoral and wrong because those people hadn’t done anything that I hadn’t done, except for being Japanese and going to Japanese language school, we are all Americans.
I didn’t want to be lonely, and one of my friends almost jokingly invited me to go to camp with them. So I went down the old Santa Fe Station and signed on to go to camp. I didn’t lie about being of Japanese ancestry because nobody asked me, being brown sometimes has its advantages. When I told my dad I was going to camp he thought it was more of a weekend thing and he didn’t find out where I was until he read a newspaper article about me. I still don’t think he minded though because he knew I was safe and with friends, I let him know that I was still going to school and being well fed.
Many of my friends were sent to Heart Mountain but I was sent to Manzanar, so I did have to make some new friends. I was very happy being with people I admired and respected. Everybody accepted me, and all of the older bachelors that I lived with were like my Issei parents even though they spoke no English and I didn’t speak Japanese. Even the camp director, Ralph Merrit, said it was fine with him if I wanted to stay. There were 10,000 of us in one square mile, so one more didn’t make a difference.
In camp I played football and helped organize Friday night dances. I even got to leave camp once to represent Manzanar at a YMCA conference in Colorado. The only other time I have gotten to leave is recently when I was drafted.
Info from Ralph Lazo Manzanar ID booklet.
Francis Biddle Witness Questions
Direct Examination
Part 1: Witness Examination Question and Answer
Q: State your name, profession, and age.
A: Francis Biddle, 58, and I am currently the United States Attorney General.
Q: How long had you been the Attorney General before the bombing of Pearl Harbor?
A: Only three months.
Q: What was your profession before you were the Attorney General?
A: In addition to Attorney General, I have also been a judge, a lawyer, a private secretary for the Supreme Court, and I was in the Army in WW1.
Q: Beginning your job as the Attorney General what was your knowledge and awareness of the Constitution?
A: As a lawyer and a judge, you know the Constitution very well. You do not have to be the attorney general to know the Constitution well.
Q: What was your reaction to the Pearl Harbor attacks in relation to alien enemies?
A: After the bombings, I did a press release calling for an orderly roundup of suspicious enemy aliens and for fair treatment of resident Japanese Americans.
Q: What did you do to show your opinion?
A: I fought against DeWitt's Western Defense Command, who was pushing for harsher measures against enemy aliens. I proposed that the present military situation did not at this time require the removal of American citizens of the Japanese race.
Q: Your honor, may I approach the witness? I am handing you what has been marked as Defense Exhibit _; Without telling the Court what it is, do you recognize the exhibit?
A: Yes.
Q: What is it?
A: This is a letter that I wrote to the President in a last effort to convince him that the mass evacuations of the Japanese Americans were not necessary.
Q: Does it appear to be complete and accurate?
A: Yes.
Q: Your honor, I move for admission of Defense Exhibit _.
Q: Will you please read the last sentence of the first paragraph for the court?
A: Reads: “My last advice from the war department is that there is no evidence of imminent attack and from the F.B.I. that there is no evidence of planned sabotage.”
Q: What was the President’s response to your letter and what happened afterwards?
A: The president informed me that he had already granted approval to Stimson, ending my opposition. Later that day, at a meeting at the President’s house with War Department leaders, I announced that I had earlier agreed to mass removal. Then Executive Order 9066 followed.
Q: What caused you to change your standpoint on the mass evacuations?
A: I was new to the Cabinet, and I didn’t want to disrespect my elders and their opinions, which I greatly valued and respected.
Q: Summarize your current beliefs about the mass evacuations of the Japanese Americans on the west coast.
A: I have regretted my part in the Japanese American removal and incarceration. Decisions were not made on the logic of events or on the weight of evidence, but on the racial prejudice that seemed to be influencing everyone.
Part 2: Evidence
Biddle’s Letter to the President - http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/archives/pdfs/internment.pdf This is a letter that Biddle wrote to the President in a final attempt to convince the Presidet not to evacuate the Japanese Americans on the west coast.
This evidence could hurt my case because Biddle had already allowed prohibited areas to be designated. He was not against controlling the Japanese, just isolating them in such an extreme manner.
Part 3: Cross Examination
Q: You were only Attorney General for 3 months before the Pearl Harbour Attacks, so with your small amount of experience you were right to agree with your colleagues.
A: Yes but before this job I was a lawyer, judge, and private secretary for the Supreme Court, so I am very experienced and have a lot of knowledge of the constitution and the rights given to citizens..
Direct Examination
Part 1: Witness Examination Question and Answer
Q: State your name, profession, and age.
A: Francis Biddle, 58, and I am currently the United States Attorney General.
Q: How long had you been the Attorney General before the bombing of Pearl Harbor?
A: Only three months.
Q: What was your profession before you were the Attorney General?
A: In addition to Attorney General, I have also been a judge, a lawyer, a private secretary for the Supreme Court, and I was in the Army in WW1.
Q: Beginning your job as the Attorney General what was your knowledge and awareness of the Constitution?
A: As a lawyer and a judge, you know the Constitution very well. You do not have to be the attorney general to know the Constitution well.
Q: What was your reaction to the Pearl Harbor attacks in relation to alien enemies?
A: After the bombings, I did a press release calling for an orderly roundup of suspicious enemy aliens and for fair treatment of resident Japanese Americans.
Q: What did you do to show your opinion?
A: I fought against DeWitt's Western Defense Command, who was pushing for harsher measures against enemy aliens. I proposed that the present military situation did not at this time require the removal of American citizens of the Japanese race.
Q: Your honor, may I approach the witness? I am handing you what has been marked as Defense Exhibit _; Without telling the Court what it is, do you recognize the exhibit?
A: Yes.
Q: What is it?
A: This is a letter that I wrote to the President in a last effort to convince him that the mass evacuations of the Japanese Americans were not necessary.
Q: Does it appear to be complete and accurate?
A: Yes.
Q: Your honor, I move for admission of Defense Exhibit _.
Q: Will you please read the last sentence of the first paragraph for the court?
A: Reads: “My last advice from the war department is that there is no evidence of imminent attack and from the F.B.I. that there is no evidence of planned sabotage.”
Q: What was the President’s response to your letter and what happened afterwards?
A: The president informed me that he had already granted approval to Stimson, ending my opposition. Later that day, at a meeting at the President’s house with War Department leaders, I announced that I had earlier agreed to mass removal. Then Executive Order 9066 followed.
Q: What caused you to change your standpoint on the mass evacuations?
A: I was new to the Cabinet, and I didn’t want to disrespect my elders and their opinions, which I greatly valued and respected.
Q: Summarize your current beliefs about the mass evacuations of the Japanese Americans on the west coast.
A: I have regretted my part in the Japanese American removal and incarceration. Decisions were not made on the logic of events or on the weight of evidence, but on the racial prejudice that seemed to be influencing everyone.
Part 2: Evidence
Biddle’s Letter to the President - http://www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/archives/pdfs/internment.pdf This is a letter that Biddle wrote to the President in a final attempt to convince the Presidet not to evacuate the Japanese Americans on the west coast.
- “My last advice from the war department is that there is no evidence of imminent attack and from the F.B.I. that there is no evidence of planned sabotage.”
This evidence could hurt my case because Biddle had already allowed prohibited areas to be designated. He was not against controlling the Japanese, just isolating them in such an extreme manner.
Part 3: Cross Examination
Q: You were only Attorney General for 3 months before the Pearl Harbour Attacks, so with your small amount of experience you were right to agree with your colleagues.
A: Yes but before this job I was a lawyer, judge, and private secretary for the Supreme Court, so I am very experienced and have a lot of knowledge of the constitution and the rights given to citizens..
Ralph Lazo Witness Questions
What’s your name, age, and current occupation? Ralph Lazo, 20, and i was recently drafted into the army.
Are you of Japanese descent? No I am hispanic.
Tell me about the events leading up to the relocation of the Japanese. I grew up in a multi-ethnic neighborhood and had many Japanese American friends. I was stunned when they had to evacuate and be taken to camp and i was 16 at the time. I thought it was immoral and wrong because my friends hadn’t done anything that I hadn’t done, except for being Japanese and going to Japanese language school, we are all Americans.
What made you decide to go to the relocation camp? I didn’t want to be lonely, and one of my friends almost jokingly invited me to go to camp with them. So I went down the old Santa Fe Station and signed on to go to camp. I didn’t lie about being of Japanese ancestry because nobody asked me, being brown sometimes has its advantages.
What relocation center were you sent to? I was sent to Manzanar but many of my friends were sent to Heart Mountain.
Did you feel threatened by any of the people while at Manzanar? No, I was very happy being with people I admired and respected. Everybody accepted me, and all of the older bachelors that I lived with were like my Issei parents even though they spoke no English and I didn’t speak Japanese.
Hand out pictures
Ralph Lazo, you are holding what has been labeled “Defense Exhibit F”. Without telling the court what it is, do you recognize it? Yes I do.
What is it? They are pictures of a classroom in Manzanar, and our shelters as they were being constructed.
Do the pictures appear to be complete and accurate? Yes.
Your honor, I move for admission of Defense Exhibit F.
Tell me about this picture 1. This is a classroom in the camps, they were small and we didn't have desks or many materials that we would have in a school outside of camp.
Tell me about this picture 2. These were our living quarters when they were still being built. Internees had to build them themselves. They are very simple, cramped and uncomfortable. There were many people living in each building with no room for personal space.
Part 2: Cross Examination (Summary)
Q: You voluntarily went to camp and chose to stay there, so you must have been enjoying your time there.
A: Yes, but i could have enjoyed myself more if my friends didn’t have to be evacuated and i could have done all the same things in a normal, less restrictive setting.
Evidence: Manzanar Pictures
Pictures of Manzanar classrooms and shelters that don’t look very happy.
This helps our case by showing how unhappy and poor/restricted Manzanar was.
http://abcusdcerritoshsmarzo2.weebly.com/uploads/2/8/7/9/2879085/8681918_orig.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Barrack_Construction.jpg
What’s your name, age, and current occupation? Ralph Lazo, 20, and i was recently drafted into the army.
Are you of Japanese descent? No I am hispanic.
Tell me about the events leading up to the relocation of the Japanese. I grew up in a multi-ethnic neighborhood and had many Japanese American friends. I was stunned when they had to evacuate and be taken to camp and i was 16 at the time. I thought it was immoral and wrong because my friends hadn’t done anything that I hadn’t done, except for being Japanese and going to Japanese language school, we are all Americans.
What made you decide to go to the relocation camp? I didn’t want to be lonely, and one of my friends almost jokingly invited me to go to camp with them. So I went down the old Santa Fe Station and signed on to go to camp. I didn’t lie about being of Japanese ancestry because nobody asked me, being brown sometimes has its advantages.
What relocation center were you sent to? I was sent to Manzanar but many of my friends were sent to Heart Mountain.
Did you feel threatened by any of the people while at Manzanar? No, I was very happy being with people I admired and respected. Everybody accepted me, and all of the older bachelors that I lived with were like my Issei parents even though they spoke no English and I didn’t speak Japanese.
Hand out pictures
Ralph Lazo, you are holding what has been labeled “Defense Exhibit F”. Without telling the court what it is, do you recognize it? Yes I do.
What is it? They are pictures of a classroom in Manzanar, and our shelters as they were being constructed.
Do the pictures appear to be complete and accurate? Yes.
Your honor, I move for admission of Defense Exhibit F.
Tell me about this picture 1. This is a classroom in the camps, they were small and we didn't have desks or many materials that we would have in a school outside of camp.
Tell me about this picture 2. These were our living quarters when they were still being built. Internees had to build them themselves. They are very simple, cramped and uncomfortable. There were many people living in each building with no room for personal space.
Part 2: Cross Examination (Summary)
Q: You voluntarily went to camp and chose to stay there, so you must have been enjoying your time there.
A: Yes, but i could have enjoyed myself more if my friends didn’t have to be evacuated and i could have done all the same things in a normal, less restrictive setting.
Evidence: Manzanar Pictures
Pictures of Manzanar classrooms and shelters that don’t look very happy.
This helps our case by showing how unhappy and poor/restricted Manzanar was.
http://abcusdcerritoshsmarzo2.weebly.com/uploads/2/8/7/9/2879085/8681918_orig.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Barrack_Construction.jpg
The Morality and Politics of Justice
Artist Statement
My political campaign poster represents my perspective on GMO’s which is, It is unclear if studies regarding the safety of genetically modified organisms are credible, but we should not let big business decide what is safe for the population, it is violating our equality and creating a government for the business, by the business. I used Walter White in my poster to symbolize Monsanto and how they are both power and money hungry and do some very shady stuff to get what they want and they both exploit and hurt many to benefit themselves. My poster has a lot of pathos because most fans of breaking bad, or anybody that at least knows what it is, will see Walter White in this image and know that he is cruel and evil and then will make the connection to Monsanto and GMOs and then have similar feelings. My poster has ethos because nobody knows more about lying and deceit than Walter White, so if Monsanto is compared to him they must be similar. I decided to use this picture because it is dark, and has a chemical kind of feel to it with the green over everything. Walter White is also a chemist so that applies to genetically modifying things. I replaced the boxes of meth with GMO corn to make a statement and it is probably the second thing noticed after Walter and the stacks of money. I wrote Monsanto in the corner with the breaking bad font because it looks awesome and makes a statement because without it people would not connect the main things to the business side of GMOs as easily. I think my poster looks very refined with the way that everything fit behind other things and the edges still looked clean. I also adjusted the color balance and contrast with the things that I put into the original image and it made it look like everything fits together and belongs there. I think that people will easily connect my poster to my perspective on GMOs and the business that is behind GM food.
My political campaign poster represents my perspective on GMO’s which is, It is unclear if studies regarding the safety of genetically modified organisms are credible, but we should not let big business decide what is safe for the population, it is violating our equality and creating a government for the business, by the business. I used Walter White in my poster to symbolize Monsanto and how they are both power and money hungry and do some very shady stuff to get what they want and they both exploit and hurt many to benefit themselves. My poster has a lot of pathos because most fans of breaking bad, or anybody that at least knows what it is, will see Walter White in this image and know that he is cruel and evil and then will make the connection to Monsanto and GMOs and then have similar feelings. My poster has ethos because nobody knows more about lying and deceit than Walter White, so if Monsanto is compared to him they must be similar. I decided to use this picture because it is dark, and has a chemical kind of feel to it with the green over everything. Walter White is also a chemist so that applies to genetically modifying things. I replaced the boxes of meth with GMO corn to make a statement and it is probably the second thing noticed after Walter and the stacks of money. I wrote Monsanto in the corner with the breaking bad font because it looks awesome and makes a statement because without it people would not connect the main things to the business side of GMOs as easily. I think my poster looks very refined with the way that everything fit behind other things and the edges still looked clean. I also adjusted the color balance and contrast with the things that I put into the original image and it made it look like everything fits together and belongs there. I think that people will easily connect my poster to my perspective on GMOs and the business that is behind GM food.
Do You Know What Goes In Your Food?
What will it be like in 40 years when people have lived their lives entirely on genetically modified food? Will cancer and other health risks be rampant, causing hospitals to overflow with patients, or will we be as healthy as ever? It is unclear if studies regarding the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are credible, but we should not let big business decide what is safe for the population, it is violating our equality and creating a government for the business, by the business.
The U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have assured the American public that their process for evaluating bioengineered foods is one in which we can have confidence. As John Timmer said in an article on “Arstechnica.com” “The worries about GMO foods largely focus on their safety, but much of the debate ignores the extensive studies that have been done to understand both the potential risks and what we've learned about them.” All food production companies conduct rigorous tests on their GM food products. We have been eating genetically modified food for over a decade so “why aren't North Americans dropping like flies?” (Hirschler and Kelland).
Monsanto Company is a massive American chemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation. On March 26th 2013, a bill was signed into law to provide funding for various federal agencies through the end of the 2013 fiscal year. One of the provisions included in that bill in the section for "Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and related agencies" was Section 735, also known as the Monsanto Protection Act (Snopes). This bill allows large biotech companies like Monsanto to avoid legal challenges. If we discover that GMOs cause health problems in the future, Monsanto can never be touched because their crops were already given approval by the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Michael R. Taylor, is the Deputy Commissioner for Foods at the FDA. He is a lawyer, and for the last few decades he has moved between working for Monsanto, the FDA and the USDA. Taylor is the man that helped Monsanto pass rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone). Studies indicate milk from cows treated with rBGH may contain elevated levels of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IFG-1), which can increase the risk of breast cancer and other types of cancer in humans (Epstein). Taylor must be blinded by his bias for Monsanto in order to ignore these health effects, and is most likely willing to risk our safety for money. Immanuel Kant, a philosopher of Deontology, would say that Taylor and Monsanto’s decisions are unjust. Even if they believe that they are delivering more product to consumers for a cheaper price, their main goal is to get more money and they are endangering the health of their customers, they are using people as a means to an end, not treating them as an end.
In Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission (2008) the Supreme Court ruled that political spending is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment. This gives corporations with deep pockets like Monsanto a huge amount of power in our political system. This is the reason why Monsanto has such good connections in the government and can pass their products easily. In fact, the FDA has a policy that says it’s up to the biotech companies to determine the safety of genetically modified foods. The government agency in charge of protecting U.S. citizens lets biotech companies, who stand to make billions in profits from GM foods, conduct their own “voluntary safety consultations” (Kaldveer).
Possibly the scariest thing about genetically modified foods are the health risks. Numerous health problems have increased after GMOs were introduced in 1996. The percentage of Americans with three or more chronic illnesses jumped from 7% to 13% in just 9 years; food allergies skyrocketed, and disorders such as autism, reproductive disorders, digestive problems, and others are on the rise (Institute for Responsible Technology).
One study done on 168 pigs raised from piglets until they were fattened and ready for slaughter, fed half of the pigs non GMO feed and the other half ate feed made from GMO corn and soy. The vets examining the pigs did not know if they examining a pig fed GMO feed or not. 32% of GM fed pigs had severe stomach inflammation versus 12% of non GM fed pigs. GM fed pigs’ uteri was also 25% heavier than non GM fed pigs (Gillam).
Another study done on 100 lab rats that were fed Monsanto corn suffered premature death, organ damage and mammary tumors. 50% of males and 70% of females suffered premature death versus 20% and 30% in the control. Rats that drank Monsanto’s herbicide at levels legally allowed in the water supply had an increase of 200-300% in tumor growth (Adams). Unfortunately, all independent studies with results that conclude anything negative about genetically modified foods is immediately attacked and criticized. If you google “gmo study” you will see more results of industry funded articles criticizing studies than studies themselves.
Despite all the controversy over the legitimacy of safety testing on both sides of this issue, the American public must acknowledge the possible health risks associated with genetically modified food. It is hard to stay fully informed with the ways in which companies are obscuring their ingredients but everybody should have the ability to make their own decisions on GM food. The first step to taking back our power is to know what we are fighting for. It is an injustice that big business is dominating our political system and risking our security for their personal gain.
Works Cited:
Adams, Mike. "GMO Corn Linked To Cancer Tumors." FOODMATTERS® | Natural Health & Nutrition | FOODMATTERS®. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://foodmatters.tv/articles-1/gm-corn-linked-to- cancer-tumors>.
Epstein, Samuel. "Monsanto's Hormonal Milk Poses Serious Risks of Breast Cancer, Besides Other Cancers, Warns Professor of Environmental Medicine at the University of Illinois School of Public Health." Contact Us. Cancer Prevention Coalition, 21 June 1998. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.preventcancer.com/press/releases/july8_98.htm>.
Gillam, Carey. " Scientists say new study shows pig health hurt by GMO feed| Reuters." Business & Financial News, Breaking US & International News | Reuters.com. N.p., 11 June 2013. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/11/us-gmo-pigs-study-idUSBRE95A14K20130611>.
"Institute for Responsible Technology - 10 Reasons to Avoid GMOs." Institute for Responsible Technology - . N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.responsibletechnology.org/10-Reasons-to-Avoid-GMOs>.
Kaldveer, Zack. "Five Ways the FDA Has Failed Consumers on Genetically Engineered Foods." Organic Consumers Association. Organic Consumers Association, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_27143.cfm>.
Timmer, John . "What science tells us about the safety of genetically modified foods | Ars Technica." Ars Technica. N.p., 4 Oct. 2013. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://arstechnica.com/science/2013/10/what- science-tells-us-about-the-safety-of-genetically-modified-foods/>.
"snopes.com: Monsanto Protection Act." snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/mpa.asp>.
What will it be like in 40 years when people have lived their lives entirely on genetically modified food? Will cancer and other health risks be rampant, causing hospitals to overflow with patients, or will we be as healthy as ever? It is unclear if studies regarding the safety of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are credible, but we should not let big business decide what is safe for the population, it is violating our equality and creating a government for the business, by the business.
The U.S Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have assured the American public that their process for evaluating bioengineered foods is one in which we can have confidence. As John Timmer said in an article on “Arstechnica.com” “The worries about GMO foods largely focus on their safety, but much of the debate ignores the extensive studies that have been done to understand both the potential risks and what we've learned about them.” All food production companies conduct rigorous tests on their GM food products. We have been eating genetically modified food for over a decade so “why aren't North Americans dropping like flies?” (Hirschler and Kelland).
Monsanto Company is a massive American chemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation. On March 26th 2013, a bill was signed into law to provide funding for various federal agencies through the end of the 2013 fiscal year. One of the provisions included in that bill in the section for "Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and related agencies" was Section 735, also known as the Monsanto Protection Act (Snopes). This bill allows large biotech companies like Monsanto to avoid legal challenges. If we discover that GMOs cause health problems in the future, Monsanto can never be touched because their crops were already given approval by the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA).
Michael R. Taylor, is the Deputy Commissioner for Foods at the FDA. He is a lawyer, and for the last few decades he has moved between working for Monsanto, the FDA and the USDA. Taylor is the man that helped Monsanto pass rBGH (recombinant bovine growth hormone). Studies indicate milk from cows treated with rBGH may contain elevated levels of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IFG-1), which can increase the risk of breast cancer and other types of cancer in humans (Epstein). Taylor must be blinded by his bias for Monsanto in order to ignore these health effects, and is most likely willing to risk our safety for money. Immanuel Kant, a philosopher of Deontology, would say that Taylor and Monsanto’s decisions are unjust. Even if they believe that they are delivering more product to consumers for a cheaper price, their main goal is to get more money and they are endangering the health of their customers, they are using people as a means to an end, not treating them as an end.
In Citizens United vs. Federal Election Commission (2008) the Supreme Court ruled that political spending is a form of protected speech under the First Amendment. This gives corporations with deep pockets like Monsanto a huge amount of power in our political system. This is the reason why Monsanto has such good connections in the government and can pass their products easily. In fact, the FDA has a policy that says it’s up to the biotech companies to determine the safety of genetically modified foods. The government agency in charge of protecting U.S. citizens lets biotech companies, who stand to make billions in profits from GM foods, conduct their own “voluntary safety consultations” (Kaldveer).
Possibly the scariest thing about genetically modified foods are the health risks. Numerous health problems have increased after GMOs were introduced in 1996. The percentage of Americans with three or more chronic illnesses jumped from 7% to 13% in just 9 years; food allergies skyrocketed, and disorders such as autism, reproductive disorders, digestive problems, and others are on the rise (Institute for Responsible Technology).
One study done on 168 pigs raised from piglets until they were fattened and ready for slaughter, fed half of the pigs non GMO feed and the other half ate feed made from GMO corn and soy. The vets examining the pigs did not know if they examining a pig fed GMO feed or not. 32% of GM fed pigs had severe stomach inflammation versus 12% of non GM fed pigs. GM fed pigs’ uteri was also 25% heavier than non GM fed pigs (Gillam).
Another study done on 100 lab rats that were fed Monsanto corn suffered premature death, organ damage and mammary tumors. 50% of males and 70% of females suffered premature death versus 20% and 30% in the control. Rats that drank Monsanto’s herbicide at levels legally allowed in the water supply had an increase of 200-300% in tumor growth (Adams). Unfortunately, all independent studies with results that conclude anything negative about genetically modified foods is immediately attacked and criticized. If you google “gmo study” you will see more results of industry funded articles criticizing studies than studies themselves.
Despite all the controversy over the legitimacy of safety testing on both sides of this issue, the American public must acknowledge the possible health risks associated with genetically modified food. It is hard to stay fully informed with the ways in which companies are obscuring their ingredients but everybody should have the ability to make their own decisions on GM food. The first step to taking back our power is to know what we are fighting for. It is an injustice that big business is dominating our political system and risking our security for their personal gain.
Works Cited:
Adams, Mike. "GMO Corn Linked To Cancer Tumors." FOODMATTERS® | Natural Health & Nutrition | FOODMATTERS®. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://foodmatters.tv/articles-1/gm-corn-linked-to- cancer-tumors>.
Epstein, Samuel. "Monsanto's Hormonal Milk Poses Serious Risks of Breast Cancer, Besides Other Cancers, Warns Professor of Environmental Medicine at the University of Illinois School of Public Health." Contact Us. Cancer Prevention Coalition, 21 June 1998. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.preventcancer.com/press/releases/july8_98.htm>.
Gillam, Carey. " Scientists say new study shows pig health hurt by GMO feed| Reuters." Business & Financial News, Breaking US & International News | Reuters.com. N.p., 11 June 2013. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/06/11/us-gmo-pigs-study-idUSBRE95A14K20130611>.
"Institute for Responsible Technology - 10 Reasons to Avoid GMOs." Institute for Responsible Technology - . N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.responsibletechnology.org/10-Reasons-to-Avoid-GMOs>.
Kaldveer, Zack. "Five Ways the FDA Has Failed Consumers on Genetically Engineered Foods." Organic Consumers Association. Organic Consumers Association, n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_27143.cfm>.
Timmer, John . "What science tells us about the safety of genetically modified foods | Ars Technica." Ars Technica. N.p., 4 Oct. 2013. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://arstechnica.com/science/2013/10/what- science-tells-us-about-the-safety-of-genetically-modified-foods/>.
"snopes.com: Monsanto Protection Act." snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. <http://www.snopes.com/politics/business/mpa.asp>.
Project Reflection
Our task for this assignment was to do independent research on a current issue, create an op-ed article about our views on that issue, and create a visual piece to accompany our writing. So I read a bunch of articles and studies about my issue and then formed a more solid opinion on it than I already had. Our op-ed had to include a connection to a moral philosophy that we studied as a class before we started the main project. In my op-ed I included the main principle of deontology by Immanuel Kant, which is to treat people as an end and not the means to an end. The political campaign poster, our visual piece, had to have a connection to our op-ed and our thesis but show it in a visual way.
I have grown personally throughout this project in a few ways. Learning about rhetoric and the different ways it is used, ethos, pathos, and logos, will help me express my own beliefs in a more convincing and affective way, by balancing the three types of rhetoric. It will also help me understand other’s beliefs and how they are being presented. I have also learned a lot about how to do my own research on an issue and form an opinion about it, even if it is the a similar opinion to what it was when I started, I will understand and be able to defend my opinion better. More directly, I learned a lot about my issue, genetically modified food, and will likely keep this knowledge for a long time to come.
Based on the rubric for the op-ed article I think my op-ed’s strongest category was probably evidence. I used many types of evidence including studies on the safety of genetically modified food, information on government agencies relationship with Monsanto, and laws that have been passed that relate to GM food. All of my evidence was set up correctly, including my works cited section. My strongest section for the poster was probably rhetorical impact because it is provocative and eye catching for many because of its connection to breaking bad, and it includes ethos and pathos. The weakest part of my op-ed is Moral Philosophy content. I did not include a quote from a moral philosopher even though it was optional, and I think this section could have been better if I devoted a whole paragraph to connect GM food to a philosophy instead of just writing a few sentences. Based on the rubric for the visual piece my weakest part was probably integration. My poster does not include a quote from a moral philosopher, so I probably should have included one.
If we were given another week to work on our article and poster I would probably only make a few small changes. For my article, I would probably dig deeper and try to find an independent study that is in support of GMOs and use that in my first paragraph or somewhere else in my essay. I would likely only make one change to my poster. I would go through many quotes from moral philosophers and find one that I could make a clear connection to my poster and perspective on my issue, and then put that quote on the top of my poster. I think it might not look as aesthetically pleasing to have a quote just pasted on the poster but I would still do it for the grade.
Our task for this assignment was to do independent research on a current issue, create an op-ed article about our views on that issue, and create a visual piece to accompany our writing. So I read a bunch of articles and studies about my issue and then formed a more solid opinion on it than I already had. Our op-ed had to include a connection to a moral philosophy that we studied as a class before we started the main project. In my op-ed I included the main principle of deontology by Immanuel Kant, which is to treat people as an end and not the means to an end. The political campaign poster, our visual piece, had to have a connection to our op-ed and our thesis but show it in a visual way.
I have grown personally throughout this project in a few ways. Learning about rhetoric and the different ways it is used, ethos, pathos, and logos, will help me express my own beliefs in a more convincing and affective way, by balancing the three types of rhetoric. It will also help me understand other’s beliefs and how they are being presented. I have also learned a lot about how to do my own research on an issue and form an opinion about it, even if it is the a similar opinion to what it was when I started, I will understand and be able to defend my opinion better. More directly, I learned a lot about my issue, genetically modified food, and will likely keep this knowledge for a long time to come.
Based on the rubric for the op-ed article I think my op-ed’s strongest category was probably evidence. I used many types of evidence including studies on the safety of genetically modified food, information on government agencies relationship with Monsanto, and laws that have been passed that relate to GM food. All of my evidence was set up correctly, including my works cited section. My strongest section for the poster was probably rhetorical impact because it is provocative and eye catching for many because of its connection to breaking bad, and it includes ethos and pathos. The weakest part of my op-ed is Moral Philosophy content. I did not include a quote from a moral philosopher even though it was optional, and I think this section could have been better if I devoted a whole paragraph to connect GM food to a philosophy instead of just writing a few sentences. Based on the rubric for the visual piece my weakest part was probably integration. My poster does not include a quote from a moral philosopher, so I probably should have included one.
If we were given another week to work on our article and poster I would probably only make a few small changes. For my article, I would probably dig deeper and try to find an independent study that is in support of GMOs and use that in my first paragraph or somewhere else in my essay. I would likely only make one change to my poster. I would go through many quotes from moral philosophers and find one that I could make a clear connection to my poster and perspective on my issue, and then put that quote on the top of my poster. I think it might not look as aesthetically pleasing to have a quote just pasted on the poster but I would still do it for the grade.
This I Believe
Essential Question: What do I believe and why?
Push Yourself
Miles Rivera
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than the things you did do,” said by Mark Twain. If you stop pursuing and pushing yourself you will regret that decision for a long time.
I believe to keep on pursuing. As a small child, life was simpler, school was easy, sports were relaxed, I never had many responsibilities to worry about and my parents could help me in almost everything I did. This belief was taught to me and I think it is taught to almost all young children around the world, to do your best and work hard. But I don’t think most people learn until they become older as life gets harder on them and they have the ability to make more of their own decisions.
I really started to understand this belief a year ago. I understood that my grades were very important in high school so I worked very hard sophomore year to keep my grades high. This is the first time it became a big struggle because the work load increased, I worked a job multiple nights a week, had sports for most of the fall and the winter, and I was also dealing with some health problems that bother me every day. I felt close to burning out, but I didn’t. Every time I thought about it and wanted the relief I knew it would probably screw me over in the long run. Even if giving up on sports or work or school did help me, it would most likely increase the work load and stress when I would want to start again.
I didn’t know how to give up. I think giving up takes a lot of guts to do, because people know it’s the wrong choice, the choice you shouldn’t make, and it’s hard to go against what you know is right on purpose. On the other hand and something that is worth mentioning is that there is a limit and a point where everybody quits and it’s not healthy to push yourself as hard as you can.
If I had decided to not do my homework every other night because I was frustrated and I went snowboarding instead or just took a break I could have fun for a little while and I would only have a few consequences but I would feel guilty the whole time knowing that I quit what I was supposed to do. Some people don’t feel guilt when they ditch something but I always seem to. In the end it all ended up alright anyways because I would eventually find time to have fun and it felt better knowing that I got everything done.
To keep pursuing what you know is right and what you want is usually hard work, but to keep persevering usually gives you the greatest benefits.
Miles Rivera
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than the things you did do,” said by Mark Twain. If you stop pursuing and pushing yourself you will regret that decision for a long time.
I believe to keep on pursuing. As a small child, life was simpler, school was easy, sports were relaxed, I never had many responsibilities to worry about and my parents could help me in almost everything I did. This belief was taught to me and I think it is taught to almost all young children around the world, to do your best and work hard. But I don’t think most people learn until they become older as life gets harder on them and they have the ability to make more of their own decisions.
I really started to understand this belief a year ago. I understood that my grades were very important in high school so I worked very hard sophomore year to keep my grades high. This is the first time it became a big struggle because the work load increased, I worked a job multiple nights a week, had sports for most of the fall and the winter, and I was also dealing with some health problems that bother me every day. I felt close to burning out, but I didn’t. Every time I thought about it and wanted the relief I knew it would probably screw me over in the long run. Even if giving up on sports or work or school did help me, it would most likely increase the work load and stress when I would want to start again.
I didn’t know how to give up. I think giving up takes a lot of guts to do, because people know it’s the wrong choice, the choice you shouldn’t make, and it’s hard to go against what you know is right on purpose. On the other hand and something that is worth mentioning is that there is a limit and a point where everybody quits and it’s not healthy to push yourself as hard as you can.
If I had decided to not do my homework every other night because I was frustrated and I went snowboarding instead or just took a break I could have fun for a little while and I would only have a few consequences but I would feel guilty the whole time knowing that I quit what I was supposed to do. Some people don’t feel guilt when they ditch something but I always seem to. In the end it all ended up alright anyways because I would eventually find time to have fun and it felt better knowing that I got everything done.
To keep pursuing what you know is right and what you want is usually hard work, but to keep persevering usually gives you the greatest benefits.
TIB Project Reflection
For this project we had to find and write an essay on our core beliefs. To do this we looked over and analyzed several official essays that have been published on thisibelieve.org. We also did some brainstorming activities to help us decide our own core beliefs and what we wanted to write about. One of the important things we learned from analyzing other essays is we learned about narrative coherence, so the writing flows, communal relevance, to make sure it connects to the reader, and authentic voice so our essay sounds like we wrote it and its unique. These things helped us understand what a “this I believe” essay is and that they should be personal and tell a story but also be brief. I used a similar structure in my essay to example essay that I read on the organizations website.
At first it was hard for me to decide in a core belief that I strongly believed in, I thought I didn’t believe in anything. But after we did the brainstorming activity, I reflected on it and found a quote that was on it that I really liked and I kind of turned it into something I believed in. I don’t think I ever realized that I actually believed in my belief until I wrote this essay and I realized that I have been living by it most of my life just like many people have.
I am very proud that I was able to find a belief that I like and strongly believe and that everybody can relate to. I think I did a great job on the articulation of belief on the rubric because I never really get off track and all of my real life examples such as when I talk about how my belief is taught to almost all young children, all connect to my belief and have good communal relevance. All of my supporting details fit in well and I really like how my essay came together.
If I was planning on sending this to NPR and publishing it, I would probably spend some more time thinking of a catchier, cleverer title for my essay. I would also probably find a different quote for my hook and try to find it from somebody that I actually look up to if I could. What I have definitively works for my essay, but I think those things take a little bit away from my authentic voice. I’m not the kind of person that is going to be yelling at people or trying to convince others to work harder; I keep that more to myself. I also have not read any of Mark Twain’s books, so these things are not really like me and you could see it would be my voice better if it was a quote from somebody I really like.
Through this project, I have come to understand my belief that I was never really aware that I had. This project forced me to think for hours on what I believe and why, and it hit me after I reflected on the brainstorm a few times and looked over other essays. Now that I understand my belief and some things that others believe I think I have a better perspective at looking and respecting others’ beliefs. I also will probably reflect on this project and my belief more when I need it and I feel more strongly about it.
For this project we had to find and write an essay on our core beliefs. To do this we looked over and analyzed several official essays that have been published on thisibelieve.org. We also did some brainstorming activities to help us decide our own core beliefs and what we wanted to write about. One of the important things we learned from analyzing other essays is we learned about narrative coherence, so the writing flows, communal relevance, to make sure it connects to the reader, and authentic voice so our essay sounds like we wrote it and its unique. These things helped us understand what a “this I believe” essay is and that they should be personal and tell a story but also be brief. I used a similar structure in my essay to example essay that I read on the organizations website.
At first it was hard for me to decide in a core belief that I strongly believed in, I thought I didn’t believe in anything. But after we did the brainstorming activity, I reflected on it and found a quote that was on it that I really liked and I kind of turned it into something I believed in. I don’t think I ever realized that I actually believed in my belief until I wrote this essay and I realized that I have been living by it most of my life just like many people have.
I am very proud that I was able to find a belief that I like and strongly believe and that everybody can relate to. I think I did a great job on the articulation of belief on the rubric because I never really get off track and all of my real life examples such as when I talk about how my belief is taught to almost all young children, all connect to my belief and have good communal relevance. All of my supporting details fit in well and I really like how my essay came together.
If I was planning on sending this to NPR and publishing it, I would probably spend some more time thinking of a catchier, cleverer title for my essay. I would also probably find a different quote for my hook and try to find it from somebody that I actually look up to if I could. What I have definitively works for my essay, but I think those things take a little bit away from my authentic voice. I’m not the kind of person that is going to be yelling at people or trying to convince others to work harder; I keep that more to myself. I also have not read any of Mark Twain’s books, so these things are not really like me and you could see it would be my voice better if it was a quote from somebody I really like.
Through this project, I have come to understand my belief that I was never really aware that I had. This project forced me to think for hours on what I believe and why, and it hit me after I reflected on the brainstorm a few times and looked over other essays. Now that I understand my belief and some things that others believe I think I have a better perspective at looking and respecting others’ beliefs. I also will probably reflect on this project and my belief more when I need it and I feel more strongly about it.