Deeper in the Hole

I read the article "This is your great-grandfather's recession. and no end is sight", by Paul Krugman in the San Jose Mercury News. This article is basically saying that this is the worst recession we have seen in decades, and it is not going to end any time soon. Krugman talks about what he calls our "father's recession" which lasted from 1981-1982. He says that this is far more severe than that. Our recession is on the brink of a depression, much like the Great Depression. He says that things are going south fast and we can't save ourselves fast enough.

Krugman also goes into detail about how pessimistic the government is being about this recession, and he says that they have a right to be pessimists. The only reason we pulled out of the Great Depression was because of a war, which no one wants to happen again. The unemployment rates are spiraling out of control. Everything is becoming a domino effect.
Krugman gives us some hope though. He demonstrates different ways that the economy will pick back up. Eventually housing demand will outweigh the economic troubles and people will start buying houses again. The same goes for automobiles and bigger purchases. This will create a turn around in these industries and more jobs will be created. Krugman compares this recession to the recession that came after the Panic of 1873, which lasted five years, followed by another recession. So yes, i agree the government does have a right to be a bit pessimistic about this all.
I agree with basically everything that Krugman said. Our economy is spiraling out of control. I have fallen into the same economic struggles as everyone else. I lost my job with only a one week notice and have been unable to find work since then. There is no doubt in my mind that it is going to take a VERY long time for us to pull out of this recession.

In the meantime, let's all move to Australia :)

AVODAH

Advocacy is a word that is often times just thrown around by people. I have never really thought about the actual meaning of the word until reading this chapter. While I was reading I kept thinking to myself, 'What does advocacy mean to me?' I came up with my answer: advocacy is taking a stand for or against something. One can be an advocate for something that directly benefits themselves or their community. What we are advocates for is typically determined by our background, our history, our beliefs, or our religion.
Most religions encourage believers to help others and to be "good" people. They encourage people to reach out to those in need. This shapes people into being advocates for the needy. Certain beliefs of a religion shape advocacy. Take for example abortion, many religions encourage their followers to be Pro-life. Many people who advocate for pro-life have their background rooted in some type of religion.
AVODAH is an advocacy program founded on Jewish beliefs. AVODAH is a service group which recruits an exclusive group of Jewish people every year. This group goes out to the inner cities to work in poverty stricken areas. These people are advocates for social change. When they go out they are not necessarily trying to convert people to Judaism, but they are trying to make a change. AVODAH is the perfect example of advocacy with its roots in religion.
Advocacy come is many forms, but for the most part, advocacy is based on religion, or a lack thereof.

Going, Going, Gone

Our state is in debt and our education system is getting the brunt of it.  Budget cuts are hitting schools harder than ever.   I read the article, "Applications to South Bay private schools shoot up" in the San Jose Mercury News.  Parents are fearful that the budget cuts are going to dramatically affect their children's education.  Schools in the bay area have seen a significant increase in applications for next school year.  Despite the recession, parents are willing to enroll their children in a private school because it will be worth it in the long run.  Parents do not believe that their children will be able to receive a quality education in an overcrowded classroom at an understaffed school.  

The topic of budget cuts interests me because it has a huge impact on my education.  I attended a private university for my first year of college, but transferred to San Jose State because I wanted to save money.  Now, with the budget cuts, professor lay offs, and tuition hikes I am wondering if it was worth it.  I am very interested in finding out more about the budget cuts concerning education.  

A Learning Experience

Usually when I read textbooks I am very uninterested in what I am reading and tend to get bored easily. This chapter kept me very interested in what I was reading. Each example showed how pathos, ethos, or logic can be used to persuade a reader. The examples were each about a completely different topic, which helped to keep my attention. I did not feel like I was reading the same essay in different styles.
Robert Baptiste's article about the No Child Left Behind Act was quite interesting to me. I remember hearing a lot about this act in high school. This article made me think about how my school executed this act. They followed it very strictly. Textbooks for every student, qualified teachers, and benchmarks. There were no exceptions to the act as there was in Hawaii. I believe that people benefit from the experiences of others. Hawaii is doing a great thing by integrating culture into education. It is important that students learn the heritage of their land and where they come from. I do not believe in is necessary to have a degree to speak in a classroom. I think that if my school had allowed for some exemptions to the act like Hawaii did, my cultural experience would have been greatly enriched.
Another editorial that really caught my attention was Montini's "Who would call warrior 'squaw'?" This article focused on the word 'squaw', which is considered a derogatory way of saying Native American woman. Some people do not believe the squaw has a negative conotation, yet when the first Native American woman died in combat in Iraq, no one called her a squaw. This article got me thinking about the Iraq War. My dad served overseas in this war twice before retiring from the Navy. He has seen soldiers die in combat, and he wouldn't dare call a Native American woman a squaw.
This chapter opened my eyes to the different styles of writing editorials. I was eager to read it and felt like I got a lot of solid information out of it.

Blogging Assignment

My favorite blog to read was Carlton Clark's blog.

While reading the different takes on blogging I found a few that I really enjoyed reading.  Angelina Karpovich’s blog, “I Blog, Therefore I Am” was my favorite to read.  Her blog was a very easy read.  She seemed to explain what happens to almost all bloggers.  They create a blog for a specific reason, but it always turns out to be a relationship based blog.  You find old friends and reconnect with them.  Now, your blog goes from being academic to being a recap of the past few years of your life, including a very detailed entry about your present.  Karpovich seemed to understand and acknowledge that blogs become very personal.

            My favorite blog to read was Carlton Clark’s blog “I Don’t Really Want to go into Personal Things in this Blog”.  The style of his blog was a lot more relaxed than the other blogs.  It was definitely the easiest blog to read and to truly understand the author’s intentions.  Like Karpovich, Clark said that blogs become personal.  He seemed very open in his blog, which was good.  He demonstrated in his blog how his students really opened his eyes.  Teachers should be more personal with their students, it helps us to connect with them better.

            Overall, these blogs all sounded the same.  The authors didn’t want their blogs to become personal, yet they did,