A Blog-tastic Semester

When I look back upon the semester, I see many things: writing papers, using rhetoric, and blogging. A blog is often described as an online diary or a place for a person to type out his or her thoughts, and allows others to view and comment on these entries. This semester I was forced into writing blogs without my consent.

Before this I took this class, I had never blogged before in my life. So, remembering to check an additional website, other than the website I was already forced to check for other classes’ homework, was a difficult task for me. I forgot to submit many blogs simply because I forgot that there was homework in blog form. Homework that was due on days that I did not attend class was challenging to submit as well. Having a paper to turn in would have been much easier to keep track of, rather than an online journal entry to submit at midnight. I suppose blogging might be worth the amount of trees we saved by not using paper to turn in every assignment. Yay, trees! Keeping track of papers would be more difficult for you, as opposed to checking blogs. But is your convenience worth the plumeting grades of your students? I would hope not.

In addition, I felt as thoughWordPress was more of a place to dump my homework, rather than a place to share my thoughts with the world. Last semester’s system of blogging/submitting homework was more beneficial for me, than was this semester’s system. I felt like I could not easliy access my classmates’ blogs to use as a reference. If I wanted to look at their page, I would have to first go to your page, find what their blog was called by clicking each and every one on the list, then find out whether or not the were in my class. I felt like Blackboard was a more user-friendly webpage. If I were to ever consider blogging as beneficial, it would be in reference to last semester.

If a blog is considered an online diary, isn’t a diary supposed to be personal and confedential? Why would you want someone to be able to read your most personal thoughts? Not only are people able to read your thoguhts, but they can also comment on what they think about your thoughts. That takes the whole element of trust away. You can trust a journal or diary with every cognition because it cannot speak. It will not tell your secrets to any other living soul. Displaying your personal thougths for the world to see, then having people subject you to their own thoughts is a frustrating and scary thought in itself.

Another scary consideration is that you have no control over who is reading your blogs. Many questions pop into my head when I start to ponder this topic. How many people are reading my blog? How much do they really know about me? What do they think of me? Are they stalking me? They could be reading your most personal thoughts from every entry, getting to know you, while you have no idea that they even exist. When we wrote blogs about marijuana and YouTube, some people got comments from Tim Wu himself. This goes to show that you never know who is reading your blog.

Because of this class, I will never blog again. IfI ever find out a teacher is using a blog site as a means of turning in homework, I will drop that class faster than you can say “rubber baby buggy bumpers” five times fast. Overall, I found the blogging experience to be annoying and inconvenient. As the guinea pig of this unethical experiement, I highly suggest that this blogging system not be used in the future, unless, of course, you agree with cruel and unusual punishment.

QUESTIONS!?!?!

How are we supposed to memorize what all those verbs mean??

What is the topic of our essay?

Are we going to have to “insert verb here” a reading? Or are we just going to have to reply to a prompt?

Is there a page minimum?

Will we be able to use “I”  and “You”??

Is anybody else freaking out about having to take ANOTHER timed essay test?

What sort of information are we going to have to study/know to do well on this exam?

Are we going to have any multiple choice/matching/ short answer questions?

Essay Exams… Now I know.

I learned a great bit of information for this text. There are three main skills needed for writing an essay exam which are:  being able to remember and recall information that applies to the test, analyzing and making a response to a question, and not stressing out (p. 714). You have to first know the information you are going to be tested on before you can even think about wirting an essay over it. “Identifying and learning main ideas” are a great way to cram the information into your brain (p. 715).  Essay exams are very narrow and focused with the knowledge of the information that needs to be expressed. Many times your own views on a subject are required. If a random quote needs to be addressed or incorporated into the essay, use clues from the rest of the prompt (p. 717-18). How to organize your essay is often shown through how the questions are asked, for example, question one is the topic that should be addressed first. PIck out key phrases from questions that are long. Also pay attention to what kind of verb is used for how to address the topic. The verb is very important because it directs the tone and content of your essay. Sometimes a summary of the information is necessary before the issue can be discussed.

Why I hate essay exams…

I hate essay exams because the stress that my body produces when it is forced to write an “C” or above paper under strict time restraints, is phenomenal. My anxiety sky rockets through the roof. My palms start to sweat. My brain ceases to function in a normal manner. I hate essay exams because my thought process takes longer than the average human being. My train of thought travels the “high way” instead of “my way.” I somehow manage to … I hate essay exams because I feel like I am always leaving something out. I tend to be very forgetful, and if a thought pops into my mind, and does not get written on paper immediately, then it is like it never existed. Important thoughts like this tend to dissapear quite frequently on my essay exams.

Counter Argument!!!

When considering the legalization of marijuana for medicinal uses, its purpose has to be kept in mind at all times. Medical marijuana would be used for relieving pain in patients who could find no other relief in any other pain medications commonly prescribed today. A mother speaks about her daughter’s pain due to reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome, “If someone touches her arm, it swells up and she’s in agony. Just a few puffs help to lessen the pain and the swelling goes down in minutes” (Perrefort, par. 8). This is a perfect example of when marijuana could be used in a safe, controlled, and responsible medical manner. Indravudh explains typical uses of medicinal marijuana in California, “From subduing chronic pains to increasing a patient’s appetite, the chemicals found in marijuana have proven therapeutic and beneficial in certain illnesses, such as cancer and arthritis” (Indravudh, par. 5). Along side the decreasing of pain in some patients, marijuana can also affect other functions such as increasing appetite in recovering cancer patients. The relief found can often outweigh the negative side effects for patients who have run out of options.

Despite scientific evidence, there are still many people in America that oppose any use of marijuana. One thought that challenges those who believe in its use is, “Marijuana is too dangerous to be used as a medicine. Over 10,000 scientific studies have shown that marijuana is harmful and addictive” (Marijuana Policy Project). Accusations such as this are false considering it has been proven that marijuana is not addictive. Marijuana as a medication has also already been approved in some states. Although it has been deemed in theses states as medicinally legal, it is not to say that marijuana does not still have some harmful qualities. Long term use of marijuana can produce side effects such as increase risk of heart attack, cough, and depression (NIDA InfoFacts). Some of theses side effects can be looked passed for the patients because they may already be experiencing symptoms like depression due to his or her pain inflicting disorder or disease.

Who is my audience?

1. Who is your specific audience?
   1. I choose for my audience to be the doctors of America. I will write to every doctor in America that is allowed to prescribe pain medication to their patients, specifically targeting the doctors that deal with patients in extreme pain due to cancer or lack of appetite due to the treatment of their cancer.
2. Why did you chose them?
   1. I decided that that would be the most effective audience to sway in my favor. The doctors are the ones prescribing the pain medication. If they think that marijuana is a reasonable and effective drug in reducing the pain in patients that cannot receive relief from any other drug, then it will be easier to convince the legislature. The doctors have more ethos than I do. If I have the doctors on my side, I will be able to make a more credible argument in the future.
3. How will your audience affect your argument?
   1. I will be able to use medical terms  with ease. My argument will need more medical evidence. More emphasis on logos and ethos than on pathos will be necessary.
4. Which fallacies will you need to focus on keeping from your argument? Why are these (individually) important to consider in  your argument?
   1. Hasty Generalization- Everybody who wants pot to be legalized is only a pot head. The only reason they want it legal is so they can smoke it all day.
   2. False Analogy- If pot is equivalent to smoking 3-5 cigarettes a day, then the smoker is 3-5 times more likely to develop lung cancer.
   3. Ad Hominem (Against the Person)- All of these people who want it legal are just a bunch of pot heads, what do they know?
   4. Appeals to False Authority and Bandwagon Appeals- Many other states are already legalizing marijuana for medical use.
   5. Non Sequitur- Because pot is legal, children will hate their parents.
   6. Red Herring- The crime rate due to drug related crimes will be affected..
   7. ***Slippery Slope*** If marijuana is legalized, eventually every other drug is going to be legalized, which will lead to increased drug abuse, high crime rates and we will all become drug addicts.
   8. Equivocating- leading the audience down the wrong path because you leave out important words Anderson-”marijuana has been legalized in 8 states” legalized? what does that mean?
   9. Overreliance on authority- The experts say that weed is terrible for you and should not be used under any circumstance.
   10. Over simplification- This is an easy decision because there is no point in keeping it illegal.

prospectus

Overview of the argument

• • What issue are you examining and why is this issue important to you?
    • I am researching the legalization of marijuana usage for medical and personal reasons. Many people from all around the world agree that marijuana is a substance that can have many benefits mentally and physically. Others disagree strongly and protest the usage of this “drug” at any point in time. There are many people that I know that have widely varying opinions what the law should be. I would like to formulate an educated opinion on this topic and do enough research to be able to defend my side of the argument logically. This is a topic that indirectly affects my life.
  • How recent is this argument? How easily can you find the materials needed for the research?
    • Marijuana’s legality has been an issue since the 1930s. It is a topic that is still being discussed today. Resources can easily be found via the Internet and second-hand sources/users can be located with ease as well. Surveys or questionnaires can be used to get a feeling for small-scale statistics.  

• Summary of the pro side of the argument
  • For those on the pro side, what arguments do they use (Why should you be “for” this)?
    • Pot relaxes and calms you down. It reduces stress. It can also reduce pain in cancer patients when nothing else does the trick. No one has ever died from smoking weed. Most people who smoke marijuana are regular people, and not criminals.

• Summary of the con side of the argument
  • Why should you be “against” this argument? What does the research say?
    • It damages your lungs. It impairs your short-term memory and motor skills, similar to alcohol. Marijuana is a “gate-way” drug. It causes people to be lazy. It stunts the growth in children.

• • Are you pro or con? Why?
    • I am against legalizing marijuana for personal use, but for it to be legal for medicinal purposes.
  • What you have learned in your research thus far?
    • There are surprising amounts of people that support the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

• Provide a brief summation of the research you have completed.
  • Have you found statistics?
    • Yes, some.
  • Have you found support for your side of the argument?
    • Yes, most of the support is for the legalization for medical use. I have not found many sources that are sufficient in providing support for keeping marijuana illegal for personal use.
  • Have you found counterarguments you can use?
    • There are plenty of counter arguments for medical and personal use.

• What you still need to find in your research?
  • I need to find sources that are against personal usage.

• What statistics do you still need to find?
  • How many people have tried smoking marijuana to relieve pain, and found it effective?

• What testimonies would be helpful?
  • I intend to get statistics and/or testimonies from a survey I will create. These results will be helpful.

• Do you need to interview somebody to get an expert’s testimony?
  • I could interview an expert pot-smoker or a medical doctor that has prescribed marijuana, but both of those experts would be difficult to locate since they are considered criminals according to the law.

• What is your timeline?
  • In this section, I want to have a detailed list of upcoming major deadlines for your other classes and I want to see how you plan to work your paper around these deadlines. I specifically want to see when you will have your research completed, rough draft completed, when you plan to revise, and when you plan to proofread your essay.
    • March 29- Government Critical Analysis due
    • March 30-April 1- in Nacogdoches for photography gig
    • April 2- History Exam
    • April 3- Behavior Therapy Exam
    • April 5- Government Test/ Write rough draft
    • April 7- Mommy’s Birthday/ Clean up Arbor Hills Nature Center
    • April 9- Abnormal Psych Movie Review Paper due
    • April 10- Behavior Therapy Brochure due
    • April 11- Make revisions
    • April 12- Visit Write Site
    • April 13- Dr.’s appointment
    • April 16- Sister’s birthday/ Abnormal Psych Exam
    • April 17- Government Critical Analysis due
    • April 18- Die from ridiculously high stress levels/ stay up till the butt-crack of dawn finishing essay
    • April 19- Sometime in the wee hours or the morn force roommate to proofread my essay and make finishing touches on essay
    • I work M/W/F 1:00- 7:00 pm
    • Church on T/Th 8:00- 10:00pm or 11:00pm and on Sunday morning
    •  Boyfriend time on weekends because we live an hour apart. (Usually all day on Saturday)
    • Monday nights, after work, I have intramural soccer games

    prospectus and bibliography

Static Encephalopathy

This article is in question and aswer form to give parents a basic understanding of what static encephalopathy (SE) is. There is a general definition of SE. SE does not get worse, but does not always mean that the child will get better. There is some room for improvement, but usually with some limit to their development. In the breakdown of the words, static means permanent or unchanging, encephalo means brain, and opathy means damage. In all it means unchanging brain damage. SE is only in the brain and no where else in teh body.

Symptoms depend upon the individual. If the part of the brain that controls the muscles is affected it is often called cerebral palsy because teh way the person moves with their muscles is not normal. If the speech area is affected, the child may have trouble learning to talk or understanding speech, and could possibly be a degree of mental retardation. Seizures may occur due to irregulartiy in the electrical waves in the brain. If vision and hearing are impaired in teh brain, the yes and ears may work properly, but the signals do not compute properly in the brain.

Cerebral palsy (CP) is a form of SE, but SE is not always mean CP. If SE affects different parts of the brain ohter than where it controls the muscles, then it is not CP because there is no impairment of the muscular function. In SE a child can sometimes learn a motor movement overtime. In CP they cannot, it is an abnormal movement all the time and cannot be fixed.

In diagnosing SE a medical history, initial tests, and a series of many otehr tests can help the disorder be diagnosed. Tests must be run to make sure the disorder originates in teh brain and not anywhere else in teh body. If it comes from anywhere else, it is not SE. Tests are taken over time to make sure the abnormalities are not getting worse.

Many tests can be done to diagnose someone with SE including:

• EEG- to measure electrical activity. Seizures can sometimes been seen on an EEG. EEGs are not the most effective tests because there are many flaws in the way the machine receives and spits out information.
• CT or MRI- to look at what the brain looks like. This is only a measure of what the brain looks like, not how the brain works. They can possible provide excellent info on what area of the brain is being affected. Sometimes there are abnormalities in the brain even if the person is normal. These tests are not always accurate because they are just pictures and cannot tell us anything about how the brain is functioning.
• Blood and Urine Tests- for genetic problems. Abnormal chromosomes are not always the reason or cause of SE. It is important to obtain a medical history from both sides of the family. Mother or father may be a carrier but exhibit not signs or symptoms. Being a carrier of a genetic disorder can affect multiple generations.
• Vision and Hearing- sometimes vision and hearing can be regained or relearned
• Muscle and nerve tests- if there is an abnormal amount of muscle enzymes in the blood, this can mean it is a muscle disorder such as muscualr dystrophy. Nerve conduction velocity can be done to see how fast teh nerves travel from teh brain to the muscles. Biopsies are also done to test for diseases.

The cause of SE varies from person to person. Trauma to the head, bleeding in teh brain, birth defects, infections, lack of oxygen, and a difficult labor are common obvious causes. Most of teh time the cause is unknown.

There are many methods to treat SE including:

• Medication- to control certain features of SE like seizures, short attention span, and hyperactivity. Meds should be carefully monitored and on an individual basis.
• Therapy- physical, occupational, and speech therapists are often used to help people with everday functioning activities.
• Teachers- can help young children how to cope with the sensations of everyday life that kids will experience in school. Special education programs are also a help to some kids.
• Surgery-is extremely individualized and depends on the situation.
• Vision and hearing- glasses and hearing aids can help in some cases, but not all.
• Nutrition, medical and dental care- regualr health care as well as specialized health care is needed. General check ups are necessary.
• Counseling- can help child cope with feelings of being different, and increase their feeling of self worth and socical interactions.

Not all children with SE are handicapped. Everyone with SE is disabled, but not necessarily handicapped because they are still able to live a normal life. All of the information given in teh article should be used to guide further research of SE.

I would use this article in my argument about ASHLEY X becuase it talks about children with SE don’t necessarily get worse, but they can improve and still learn new things. This would make the actions that Ashley’s parents took unethical because there was always room for improvement. Her parents physically impaired her so that she would not have any room for improvement, physically or mentally.

FOCUS!

Legalizing Marijuana

• How would its legalization and taxation affect the economy?—Some say that it would help the economy, others say it wont? Money spent on war on drugs vs. money gained by taxing it if it was legal
• Who would it affect? How would it affect them?—Previous smokers would love it because they would be able to smoke freely with out the worry of cops busting them… to an extent. Parents would be affected because marijuana would become more easy to come by and children might be more exposed (than they already are today) to pot.
• Would there be an increase in the demand for marijuana if it was legalized?— I would like to take a poll/survey of the class and whomever else I can get to take it to see: if marijuana was legalized, would you either want to try smoking it or would you increase the amount you already smoke? YES or NO
• Would there be an increase in the abuse of marijuana?
• How would it be regulated? —Police would have a whole new way of patroling the streets. They would look for HOW MUCH weed a person had as opposed to if they had it at all.
• How much is legal? —They say about an ounce would be legal to carry at one time.
• What are its medicinal uses?—People with glaucoma or cancer would use it to ease their pain. Maybe it cold be used as a de-stessor.
• Do the benefits outweigh the disadvantages? —Thats for the audience to decide from the amount of evidence that I provide for them.
• Would people really be “resposible” with it? Or will they abuse it like they do with alcohol?— People still get drunk everyday and drvie, have wrecks, kill innocent people, and the list can go on. Even though alcohol is legal doesnt mean that it is not abused. Hello AA meetings. Hello Smokers Anonymous!
• Is the current strategy working to decrease the amount of users of marijuana?— War on drugs, is it working? Who is winning?
• In Amsterdam, how does legally selling weed work? What are the statistics there for its use? Is it a big deal like we americans like to think that it is?

Clarification:

I was kind of brian storming between the two topics, war on drugs and marijuana legalization, and was just throwing ideas out on to my blog. I intended to update my blog before anyone could write on it, but, yeah, that didnt happen. So i have chosen to do legalization of pot and nothing to do with the war on drugs, unless i decided to mention something small in my paper about it. thanks for all your comments though. it was helpful in my decision making process.

The Legalization of Marijuana

Are you writing on an issue that is actually controversial?

The legalization of marijuana is indeed a controversial issue that has been debated over for many years. The smoking community strongly pushes for its legalization while many others strongly oppose its use at all. The drug has been used for many years by an enormous amount of people. It was officially banned in 1938. The more conservative parts of society look down upon its use (considering it is illegal) because of the poor examples people give when it is used irresponsibly. The more liberal parts of society look at it as a relaxing drug, and only look at the examples of “responsible” use. It is often compared to alcohol consumption.

Are you conscious of both sides of the argument?

Nearly everyone has an opinion on whether or not it should stay illegal or become legal as soon as possible.

On the side of those that oppose its legalization, there are many reasons to back their decision.

1. it distorts your way of thinking
2. it can cause lung cancer
3. it’s a gateway drug
4. crime rates would increase
5. marijuana abuse would increase

Those who seek its legalization also have their reasons.

1. can be used in the medical field
2. relieves stress
3. enhances creativity
4. no one has ever died from smoking pot
5. could create a new market in the economy

Is this a topic that needs to be expanded or narrowed so that you are not burdened with covering information in your essay?

This topic is a narrow subject that can be discussed thoroughly in a decent amount of time in a paper. There is most likely no need to expand or narrow the legalization of marijuana.