Humorous Argument

My example of a humorous argument is a political cartoon from politicalcartoons.com. Here is the cartoon:













This cartoon is using humor to show how Barack Obama tends to focus on the past regarding the war in Iraq, especially in the presidential debate from Friday. When asked questions about the war he usually talks about how it was a bad idea and he opposed it instead of talking about the present and what needs to be done. In this case, humor is being used to point out a flaw. The author also parodies the popular movie "Back to the Future." This is an effective way to make their point because it is more light-hearted and is not neccessarily attacking Obama, so it should not offend his supporters.

Palin Can Handle the Heat

As soon as John McCain announced Sarah Palin as his running mate, the murmurs could be heard across the country. “But she has five kids…” “How can she take care of her children?” “What decision will she make when the phone rings at 3 in the morning and one of her kids is sick?” The fact that people are questioning whether Sarah Palin should run for vice president while having five children disturbs and disappoints me. Last I checked, this was the United States of America, one of the most forward-thinking countries in the world, where everyone is created equal. This sounds good in theory, but obviously some people still don’t truly believe it. Choosing Sarah Palin was a great move by John McCain and a giant step forward for women’s true equality in America.
The greatest disappointment to me surrounding this issue is the double standard that people still hold for women. Many Americans still think of women as the June Cleaver types who stay at home to care for their children while their husband brings home the money. Well, this isn’t 1950 anymore. Women are just as capable as holding a steady, consuming job as men, and they can still spend much needed time with their family. Male candidates are never questioned whether they will still have time to spend with their children when holding a high position of office, but as soon as women announces her campaign, everyone questions her character. Since when is someone who has a time consuming job abandoning their family? People are more than capable of balancing their time between work and family, and they know that family always comes first. It is time for one of the worst double standards to come to its much-needed death in America.
Many of the people that do not support the choice of Sarah Palin worry that she won’t be able to handle the pressure of raising five children and being second in command of the country. However, in my experience, women are actually better at multi-tasking and managing several things at once. My dad can usually only focus on one chore at a time, while my mom can do several without any problem. Missouri Western State University conducted a study earlier this year finding that women are actually better at multi-tasking than men. I can’t foresee Sarah Palin having any trouble balancing a heavy work load along with raising her children.
The United States is one of the most forward-thinking countries in the worlds, yet other countries are still light years ahead of us in terms of women in politics. Several countries have already elected women presidents or appointed prime ministers such as Switzerland, Germany and Chile. Even India, a country where many women are still discriminated against, elected a woman president last year. How can Americans not support a possible woman vice president? Are we not a country of equality? Looking at the examples set by other countries around the world, it’s obvious that America still doesn’t see women as complete equals to men, despite any laws that say otherwise. People can “talk the talk” by saying that women are just as capable as men in any capacity, yet they still do not “walk the walk” through their actions.
Even politicians don’t agree with the choice of Sarah Palin. Many Democrats are hypocritical in their opinions. First they supported Hillary Clinton, providing many steps forward for the equality of women, yet now they turn their back on Sarah Palin, consequently erasing those steps to put us back at square one. Granted this may be only because she is a Republican, but if so, they need to focus on criticizing Palin for her opinions on certain issues and not on her family or her character.
Almost 90 years after the woman gained the right to vote, women are still not seen as completely equal to men. The concern over Sarah Palin’s nomination to vice president shows that many Americans are still in their old, backwards-thinking mindsets. Palin should be applauded for her audacity in breaking stereotypes of the typical mother of five, not questioned of whether she still loves her family and can simultaneously handle the pressure of the job of vice president. Americans need to wake up and realize that we are living in a time that women don’t just need to stay home to take care of the kids but can also take on tough jobs and be successful just as much as men. Sarah Palin can handle the pressure. Can you?

Argument of Definition, Audience and Venue for Op-Ed

My example of an argument of definition is an article named "College admissions officers peering at Facebook pages." This article discusses how many admissions offices at colleges are now looking at applicant's Facebook and Myspace pages in order to find out more about the applicants. Some colleges have even rejected people based on something found on their Facebook or Myspace. Some people are wondering if this is an ethical way to accept or reject students. Some think that it violates a right to privacy while others see that anything on the Internet is fair game and available for their use.

For my op-ed, I have chosen the venue of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. I chose this because I want to reach middle Americans who are more conservative and support the choice of Sarah Palin as John McCain's vice president.

Argument of Fact

The article I chose is called 'Small Ohio towns play a hefty role' from USA Today. This articled discusses how rural areas of Ohio may be the deciding factor in the election. This is idea is based on the importance Ohio had in the 2004 election and the changing views of the citizens of Ohio. It talks about how John Kerry won many of the urban areas, but this couldn't offset President Bush's gains from rural towns. McCain and Obama are both fighting for these areas in order to lock in the win. The article says that McCain has an advantage, but it will be hard for him to match the numbers that Bush received in 2004. If Obama can switch enough voters from Republican to Democrat, he will be able to win Ohio. This articles fulfills the qualities of an argument of fact because it looks at the numbers from the 2004 election in order to back up its claim of the importance of Ohio. There are many examples of evidence throughout the article with different statistics and percentages.

Letter to the Editor Draft

To the Editor:
The subject matter of the article ‘Palin Hits the Motherload’ from September 10 greatly disappointed me. During the 21st century in the United States of America, how can people still be questioning whether women can maintain a full-time, consuming job while still maintaining a fulfilling relationship with their family? Just because a woman decides that she loves her work and continues her successful career, even if it means less time spent with her family, does not mean that she does not still value and love her husband and children just as much. The fact that people feel that Sarah Palin is not committed to her family because she is running for vice president worries me greatly. The worst part is that even women, including working mothers, also share the sentiment that Palin is not committed to her family. Why do women have to endure one of the worst double standards? The public never questions the commitment of working fathers to their families. The Democratic candidate for president, yes president, not vice president, has two young children of his own. No one has ever raised the question of Obama’s dedication to his family. Everyone just assumes that his wife will take care of the children while Barack runs the country. So why does this assumption not carry over to working women? Sarah Palin has a perfectly capable husband that can take care of their children while Palin does her job, just as I am sure he has been doing while Palin has held the position of Alaska’s governor. Todd Palin once said something along the idea of “men can change diapers too.”
Ruth Marcus questions why Palin would choose to try to juggle the consuming job of vice president while taking care of her children, but I say why not? Many people enjoy the challenge of trying to do seemingly impossible tasks. Palin is obviously one of these people. The fact that she is even willing to try this task proves to me that she is more than qualified and capable to be second in command of this country as well as being a wonderful mother. In my eyes, choosing Sarah Palin as his running mate shows that John McCain is willing and ready to create the many changes that Obama preaches he will bring to office. I thought that we had made giant steps forward with Hillary Clinton as a possible candidate for president, but it seems that those steps have now been erased since people are wondering if Palin can handle the pressure. I think that the citizens of America should realize that we are living in a time that women are capable of working at a full-time job and caring for their family. People always say that women are just as equal as men are, but they show through their concerns about Palin that we are still not at a time that everyone actually believes this. Stereotypes about women are still very prevalent and are shown through the public’s uneasiness of Sarah Palin’s selection as McCain’s running mate.

'Palin Hits the Motherload'

Palin Hits The Motherload__
By Ruth MarcusWednesday, September 10, 2008; A15
I was driving to school to pick up the kids, listening to conservative talk radio. The subject was, of course, Sarah Palin, and the villains were, of course, liberals. Not just any liberals, but feminist journalist turncoats who preach gender equality until Republicans practice it.
I was, it turns out, among them.
I'm not telling this story to brag of my notoriety -- I was far down the list -- or to boast about being the Good Mommy. As my kids would be delighted to tell you, I've been anything but recently, as the national conventions collided with the start of school.
But the moment captured the topsy-turvy nature of the Palin debate: The loudest voices in the usual stay-at-home chorus cheer Palin's careerism, while many working moms wince at the thought of a vice presidential mother of five.
Like a Picasso portrait with body parts askew, nothing in this political set piece is in its accustomed place.
My colleague Sally Quinn put it most provocatively. "Is she prepared for the all-consuming nature of the job?" Quinn wondered. "When the phone rings at three in the morning and one of her children is really sick, what choice will she make?"
Quinn was skewered, but she's hardly alone in her conflicted response. I watched a focus group of undecided married women convened in Las Vegas by a Democratic-leaning organization (Women's Voices Women Vote) react to Palin's speech. It took just a few minutes for the mommy debate to erupt, unbidden but fierce.
"She felt like she was one of us," said one woman, an office manager mother of four. "She has family, she works, she has earned what she's gotten instead of marrying into it. . . . I know there's some controversy . . . but a lot of us work and have babies and all that."
"But can you be president with a tiny baby and a big family and give both what they deserve?" interjected an accountant who works from home.
"Well, what if it was a man? . . . That's where it's a double standard," the office manager said.
"I've heard there are plenty of high executive women -- the job is first, the children have the nanny, the dad helps out, and they survive," offered another woman, a grandmother. "I think she can do it."
"Not if she's really committed to her family," said a recent retiree. "I think she's bitten off more than she can chew."
This is part of the never-ending conversation among mothers, working and stay-at-home, full-time and flex. Is there a mother around who heard Palin's story and didn't reflect on her own choices?
I don't question whether Palin can pull off the most impressive juggling act in the history of working moms, balancing, as she told People magazine, BlackBerry and breast pump. But I do wonder -- somewhat to my astonishment -- why she'd choose to, and I suspect many mothers feel the same.
Looking over my female friends -- educated and accomplished -- it is hard to think of one who has not trimmed her career sails to accommodate family life. Amazingly, I know more women who have opted out than who work full-steam ahead.
This is not what I expected. Fourteen years ago, pregnant with my first child, I listened to two female friends, then high-powered Capitol Hill lawyers, discuss their dream part-time schedules.
"Not me, ladies," I thought, smugly certain. Eight months later, maternity leave up, I was in my editor's office, announcing that I wanted to scale back to four days a week. In a few years, I was down to three -- and my friends had left their Hill jobs. Now I work full time, but not without ample agonizing and only because of a flexible boss.
My husband is a terrific dad, but the stark truth is that he does not feel the same homeward tug. He did a great job managing during the conventions, except for the unfortunate incident with the wrong doctor form for school, but when Julia needed to make lemon squares right away, I gave long-distance instruction from St. Paul -- on deadline, naturally.
I would not, in truth, have it any other way. Wondering about Palin's choice does not make me less of a feminist -- just a realistic one. When I got home, I took the day off to clean the kids' closets and get some meals in the freezer. Like Sarah Palin ditching the executive chef, I felt much better.

Editorial

The editorial that I have chosen is called "Palin Hits the Motherload." The article talks about how many people, especially mothers, think that Sarah Palin should not be running for vice president because of the fact that she has five children, including one that is pregnant and one with down syndrome. They believe that by running for vice president, it is like Palin is abandoning her children and not proving that her family comes first. I totally disagree with the ideas behind this article. I believe that Palin is totally qualified to be able to run for vice president as well as take care of her family. The only reason people are bringing this issue up is because Palin is a woman. No one worries about if Barack Obama will be able to take on the responsibilities of being president as well as taking care of his two young daughters. But that doesn't enter people's minds because Obama is a man, and they just figure that his wife will take of the kids. Well then why don't people realize that Palin's husband can also take of their children? I think that too many people are living in the past thinking that men go to work and bring home the money while women stay home and take of the children.

Issues in the Presidential Election

First of all, I think the most important aspect of this election is that everyone who is capable takes the opportunity to vote. If you are a legal adult citizen in America, you need to exercise your right to vote. People that don't use this opportunity to vote can't complain about anything that goes on in the government over the next 4 years because they had the chance to voice their opinion and decided to not take advantage of it.

Concerning political issues, one that I am most concerned about is the issue of the environment. I need to know what the candidates are going to do in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. and what steps they will take to make America less dependent on oil. I am also concerned with the problem of illegal immigrants. I have no problem with people from other countries coming to America as long as they go through the process to become legal. But because they are illegal, they are taking jobs from many Americans that are unemployed and are causing legal citizens to pay higher taxes in order to cover the illegal immigrants that do not pay taxes. I also think that that whoever becomes president needs to handle the war in Iraq in a sensible way. It is not reasonable to think that we can pull all of our troops out at one time or even to set a strict date when they will come out. Doing so will just cause more chaos in Iraq. We need to withdraw gradually but not set an official date when all troops will be out.

As far as the actual candidates go, I need to feel that the person I vote for can run the country effectively and will do what they are promising to do now. I know that they will not fulfill all of their promises as most politicians do not, but as long as they try to keep their promises and do not do the complete opposite, I will be satisfied. I need to feel that I can trust the candidate and that they are generally a good person.

Argument with Logos

I found an article titled "Obesity Epidemic" on the CQ Researcher database. The article makes the argument that obesity is one of the biggest problems facing the American society. In order to back up his argument, the author, Alan Greenblatt, uses many statistics and graphs. One example of this is a graph labeled "Diet, Inactivity Cause Most Premature Deaths." It shows that more than 300,000 Americans die prematurely every year due to unhealthy eating and inactivity. The other types of deaths listed on the graph are tobacco, alchohol, microbial agents, toxic agents, firearms, sexual behavior, motor vehicles and drug use. The graph also shows that the number of deaths due to diet and inactivity equals five times more than the number of Americans killed by guns, HIV/AIDS and drug use combined. Illustrating these statstics in a graph helps readers see just how big of a problem obesity is in America and helps to prove Greenblatt's argument.

Argument with Pathos

For my argument, I chose the Facebook group called "Feed a Child with just a Click!" This group lists different websites that people can click on during the day and money will be donated in order to feed children that suffer from malnutrition and starvation. In the group description, it states that it is hard for us to feel for people that we don't know, but if we just thought about all the children that go without food then we would feel the despair that these children go through. To help illustrate the importance of the group, the picture used shows a child that obviously does not get enough food. The child's bones are visible under their skin and looks very frail. It then has the words "Please Care, Please Click, The Result" and then shows a picture of children with food. Using this picture touches people's emotions by showing how performing the simplest of tasks can help starving children. Without the picture of the child, the argument would probably not be as strong. Actually seeing a child going through starvation pushes people to try to help more than just reading statistics about people they don't even know.