YAHOO!!!

English 2010 is over! I can now use my blog for much more fabulous things such as telling the world about my riveting and intense life. I think I finished my class strong, now I just have to get through a weekend of working, pack, work, move, work....and finally relax! Life is a little crazy right now to be honest but I am going to get used to the schedule one of these days and actually get some sleep.

America the Beautiful: What We're Fighting For

D'Souza wrote a very patriotic piece about how the United States is perceived by other people and how we really are in "America the Beautiful: What We're Fighting For." I had a hard time getting into the piece, in the beginning I felt like the author was throwing a lot of facts at me about other cultures. I really enjoyed the ending. I felt that D'Souza made a good point that forced virtue only gives the outward appearance of someone being virtuous.
I also connected well with the part about 9/11. The author mentioned that even American's were surprised by how well the country came together in the aftermath of this tragedy. I had those same feelings. As I watched the news in the days following the attack, I often found myself getting chills at the things people were doing for others. I had similar feelings after Hurricane Katrina. Our country is tremendously strong because we have a desire for the greater good.

Comparison/Contrast Mode

In comparison and contrast mode, the writer will compare, contrast, or both, two separate topics. This is easily confused with classification mode that discussses two parts of a single topic.
The author should hold off their argument until the end of the essay in order to give accurate representation to the topic. The subjects should also be kept in separate paragraphs to avoid confusion and give fair representation to both.
The main body may be divided subject by subject or standard by standard. With subject by subject, the writer includes all that they know about one subject before moving to the next. With standard by standard, the author moves point by point discussing each subject in a paragraph before continuing on to the next topic.
Info may be found at

Research Paper Intro

In 2005, a local court ruled in favor the removal of Terri Schiavo’s feeding tube; leading to her death thirteen days later. Autopsy determined dehydration as the cause of death. The ruling also prohibited Terri’s parents from providing comfort measures such as oral care in the final days of Terri’s life. Doctor Kevorkian inspired euthanasia to relieve suffering of the terminally-ill; however, ethical dilemmas arise as the requests for euthanasia increase. Active euthanasia holds no place in medicine, while passive euthanasia may be beneficial; examples of Terri Schiavo, Karen Quinlan and Doctor Kevorkian set standards for the use of euthanasia.

Apostophes and Acronyms

I am never sure if I should put "s" or "'s" following an acronym. It has become my habit to add an apostrophe before my s, such as ABC's, CD's, CNA's, etc. I would guess that many of you may have the same question.
I would love to be able to answer your question but it seems that the jury is out across the board. WSU it was suggested that it is acceptable to use an apostrophe; however, Rutgers suggested that the apostrophe should be avoided.
Answer: find out your professor's preference. As for me, I am going to begin to leave off the apostrophe because it is really not necessary to have it there.

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

Shelby Steele wrote an interesting piece on race. He elaborates on the white and black perspective of race and "seeing for innocence." He gives many interesting examples of this through the Bill Cosby Show, Louis Armstrong, and more.
It was a difficult read for me, some of the sentences didn't flow that well for me and some of the words used, I didn't know the meanings of. It is a narrative piece, yet I find it hard to believe that he used the term heretofore frequently in conversation.
The ideas presented were intriguing. I think it may limit the piece slightly that he only speaks about whites and blacks when there were other ethnic groups struggling to find their place in our culture just as much. I feel that we have come a long way as a society since this time. The idea of the Huxtable family is now easily a reality, you can see that as you walk the halls of our hospital. It was a very interesting piece though.