Civil Cents

America the Beautiful: What We're Fighting for

I enjoyed reading this writing by Dinesh D'Souza. The author took a very complicated topic and made it easier to understand in just a few pages. The United States is the best country in the world. It is not perfect, but it is the best. We embrace differences in race, religion, social and political views, and others with open arms in a way, and on a scale, that no other country ever has. This diversity brings us strength. Our country is a melting pot for culture, ideas, invention and innovation. As D'Souza suggests, this is part of the problem. In some parts of the world our successes are looked on with envy, distaste, and even hatred. Our recent conflicts with Radical Islam is one example. Aside from not understanding our society, many Radical Islamic people see our society as an abomination to what their strict religion demands. In their religious views we are "the great satan" as they say. This mixed with the lack of opportunity for employment, education, security and lack of access to non-biased media in the middle east has created the animosity between their culture and ours. I don't know if anyone can honestly say they have a solution. I have been over to Iraq and Afghanistan and talked with enemy combatants, through an interpreter, after their capture. I don't see a way for it to end any time soon. The fastest way is to make them the same as us, but that will take generations of American occupation and enforcement of a democratic form of government in Iraq. I don't think our country has the patients for an Iraq project that will last that long. So we will come home, they will eventually devolve again, and we will continue to fight. America has tried again and again to change countries to be more like our own, and to spread Democracy, but we usually don't stay the course and put in the time, money, and effort to really make a change. Some people say it is not our business to try to change other countries to be more like us. I say, we are the strongest nation the world has ever seen and if other countries abuse and murder their own people we should overthrow thier leaders and teach the people how to govern themselves. I believe we have a moral responsibility to help liberate those who cannot liberate themsleves. The U.S. Special Forces Motto explains why our special forces exist and says it best: "To Free The Oppressed."

grammar post

I haven't used colons much in my writing. I decided to research them this week so I have another punctuation tool in my writing belt. According to:

http://www.esc.edu/ESConline/Across_ESC/WritersComplex.nsf/wholeshortlinks2/Punctuation+Points+Menu

There are four main ways to use a colon:

1. To signal a list.
2. A colon signals and emphasizes a comment or explanation that follows.
3. A colon shows that long quotation is coming.
4. After a greeting in a business letter.

This website also has links to instructions on many grammar subjects and punctuation.

Grammar Post

In writing my rough drafts for English 2010 I have caught myself making the same mistake at least half of the time. I usually include the author of a work toward the begining of my posts. As I type I find myself referring to the author by several different titles and their full name, last name, and first name. I have had some feedback that this makes my writing hard to follow because it is not always clear who I am talking about. In writing my papers, where there are several authors or works, I find myself getting confused. The easy way to fix this is to always refer to the author the same way. I now always use the author's last name or the title author. Dartmouth's websight lists this as one of their top 20 common grammar mistakes. To see this and the other 19 and solutions here is the website.

www.dartmouth.edu/~writing/materials/student/ac_paper/grammar.shtml

I'm Black, You're White, Who's Innocent

Shelby Steel's writing I'm Black, You're White, Who's Innocent? Was not one of my favorite reads. It seems that Steel is too close to this issue to be objective. The writing would have been more effective if it was written more like a scholarly work and not as a narrative. Steel's constant use of phrases like "I think" and "I believe" detract from the work and constantly remind us that it is based mostly in Steel's opinions and personal experiences. While these would be powerful in a different format, they weren't here. Race is a complicated issue that has existed forever. In my travels I have noticed drastically different opinions of race and different levels of racism based on geographical locations. I lived in southern Georgia on and off for 6 years during my military career. Georgia was a shock to the system after growing up in St. George. I think there were probably 20 kids out of 350, I'm guessing, who were a race other than white, and race was never an issue. When I moved to Georgia at age 17 I learned that race is still a big issue in some places. It is not just limited to the United States however. As Americans we tend to look at our "American" society and discount others. I have been to 27 countries and some are as "racist" as can be and in some countries I didn't see any evidence of racism. We also tend to think of racism in the US as White, African American, Hispanic etc. There are countless races across the globe and many discriminate against others. It is not just an American phenomenon or problem. The prevalence of racism throughout the globe for as far back as history is recorded suggests that race is a complicated issue, and one not easily explained or solved. The United States has made great progress in treating all people fairly with regard to race. I think as a country we have arrived at equality, and in some cases have maybe overcompensated. Sadly small pockets of our society however, continue to harbor racism, and I believe they always will to some extent.

Grammar Post

I made a mistake this week when I ment to type write and instead I typed right. I sometimes have a problem with the right spelling of a word that sounds the same but is spelled different and has a different meaning. Some of the ones I have to double check sometimes:

rite, right, write

sight, site

to and too.

One of the tools I have learned to use to make sure I am using the right form of a word is a thesaurus. The auto thesaurus in word processing programs helps, but if there is still a question a printed or online thesaurus can help a lot. There is a good one at:

http://thesaurus.reference.com/

Killer Culture

David Kupelian's Killer Culture. Wow. Kupelian starts out talking about some basic rebelious behaviors. Different ways teens dress and talk. The type of music and culture teens are exposed to including rap, hip-hop, and MTV. The writing builds to a climax of terror and hoplessness as Kupelian describes teens who actively try to get aids and who hang from celings by hooks poked through their flesh. I don't understand what the big suprise is. There have always been a small number of wierd crazy people on the planet, I'm talking about people who hang from meathooks and get AIDS on purpose. We have also always had serial killers, rapists, murderers, adulterers, and people who abuse children. These are all terrible things, but things that have existed since recorded history began. I see the argument that modern media can reach more people and make some undesirable behaviors, fashion, and rebelion seem mainstream and in some cases it does, but Kupelian's solution is laughable. Kupelian suggests creating a "new" culture for our children by homeschooling them and sheltering them from all of the bad things in the world. What the heck does he think will happen when the kids turn 18 and move out of their protective bubble? God forbid they wear baggy pants or get their belly button pierced!!! The world might end. I agree, in part, that sometimes the media goes to far, but I totally disagree with Kupelian's solution. Children need to be taught to be virtuas, couragious, moral, and honest with themselves and others. How can we truly teach them those qualities by sheltering them from the world they will eventually live in. In my opinion segregating kids from the outside world teaches them only to run away, to be ashamed of thier beliefs and to fear people who are different than them. It doesn't teach them how to stand tall and stand up for what they believe in. It teaches them to hide and fear.