Blog 3 Response to Michael Terzian

       While reading your blog I found myself wanting to watch one of my favorite movies The Hurt Locker. Your blog paints a better understanding as to why Staff Sergeant James removes his protective bomb suit after popping the trunk of a car only to find enough explosive to level multiple square blocks. In that sense I can understand wanting to remove your protective equipment if one absolutely knows it will be useless to wear vice the possibilities of feeling comfortable. I absolutely agree with you when you mention how risky war is and that not all equipment can stop a soldier from being hurt or even killed for that matter. I also agree with you in the sense that the speed and agility of a soldier could help maintain security and survivability. Though I am not an infantry Marine and have not been in the direct line of fire, I have had to take cover from indirect fire from rocket and mortar rounds fired into our air base in Al Asad, Iraq. Harry on Dumb and Dumber put it quite nicely when after being shot realizes if he had been shot in the head instead of the chest he would have been dead. The moral of my story would have to be that yes I would much rather wear a flak jacket and helmet or any other protective equipment to better my chances of surviving the war zone. The enemy will not always give you all they got being that they are also human and often make vital mistakes which could be used against them. Soldiers have also been known to be killed by small fragments of flying debris which could have been prevented if the proper gear was being worn.          

Blog 2 Timing is Everything

When thinking of kairos I remember back to a cell phone commercial I have seen which depicted a certain provider its’ audience should use. In this commercial there was a group of workers who were all sent the same joke on their cell phones while car pooling to work. As three of the four workers received the message first and began laughing, it left the fourth worker out of the circle being that his provider was not as fast as the others. It was not until a few moments later that the fourth worker fully received the message and began laughing which led the other three looking at him like he was insane. This implicit argument focused more on persuading the audiences’ view towards buying their service being that they portrayed offering a faster and more reliable data plan. Though the kairos in this commercial could be looked at by pointing out the timing of the downloaded message and responses, it can also be recognized by looking at all the other services coming out with their new plans at the same time. With commercials like this sticking out more than most it tends to play deeper in the mind of the consumer as he or she goes out to purchase their next product.

            I often find myself using kairos on a daily basis as I talk to young men and women about their career opportunities. At any given moment if I am to veer off a relative subject an applicant was looking for, the kairotic moment for keeping the individual interested may be lost. As I have quickly found many ways to strengthen my skills in determining the right time and appropriateness to build better kairotic moments with applicants, I don’t necessarily have that same ability with my wife. I am regularly told by my wife that I hardly think before I speak and in doing so I usually dig myself a hole to climb in. Page 116 of the Writing Arguments explains that considering using proper kairos helps the effectiveness of an argument to increase. I can only imagine if I were to use the proper timing and appropriateness when talking to my wife on certain occasions how much more caring I would be considered. 

Blog 1 Tugging at the Heart Strings

While looking back through out the Writing Arguments course, I can really only think of one thing that directly stands out to me. As we recently studied about how to effectively write an argument, my focus was solely on the ability to not only create a tight bond between me and others but also learn more about the possibilities that emotions can play on one another. This trait which may commonly be looked at as a barrier between many is one that most individuals could easily overcome by simply building some rapport amongst one another. On a daily basis I find myself coming in contact with perfect strangers who have no idea of my true intentions until after we have begun to know a little about each other. Building rapport has been the simplest way for me to gain pathos while coming in contact with random people on the streets (or as page 63 of the text book Writing Arguments describes as the “audience”) I talk to.

As I occasionally find myself being turned away by many individuals who I try to influence with new and exciting career opportunities, I do not look at it as being the end of the world.  I have found in many situations that using emotional ties have often help regained the attention of those I am trying to influence with opportunities. After reading more about what makes up pathos in chapter 3, I have discovered that without this key part of the rhetorical triangle an effective argument can not be made. This portion of the rhetorical triangle is the one that is intended to go after the feelings, beliefs, and values of the speaker’s audience (Ramage). Though sometimes it may seem like a selfish trick to use in order to gain the attention of others, I genuinely use this persuasive appeal to open the eyes of individuals who often may see the world in one color.  

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. "Chapter 3." Writing Arguments: a Rhetoric

with Readings. Eighth ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2010. 63. Print.

Building The Military

       There is not a day that goes by in which people around the world propose new and exciting arguments in order to try and change the way the world turns. Case 2 on page 310 of the text book Writing Arguments quickly gained my attention when I noticed the proposal argument. This specific argument proposed a possible solution to increase the Army recruiting efforts due to their crisis in supplying enough soldiers to serve around the world. Though the Army is not really my style, I do have a complete understanding of the stress they often endure during recruiting men and women into the armed forces. As the recent economy crisis has shown many of us how critical job seeking can be today, many individuals have realized that the military maybe the only way to survive these tough times. With guaranteed pay and health benefits in an economical downfall, many people would be foolish to not try and use this opportunity to their full advantage.

       At the time this proposal argument was published, U.S. Forces were being tasked with many conflicts around the world. Two major well known conflicts were Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan. With these two conflicts alone, it took every ounce of effort recruiters had on a daily basis to supply new men and women to training camps in order to replenish soldiers, sailors, and Marines who were returning home to separate from the military. I believe the proposed possible solutions on page 310 and 311 are a poor idea in that it discusses lowering enlistment standards, doubling bonuses, and reinstituting the draft to name a few. As a Marine for over nine years and a recruiter for almost a year, I have personally sighted these ideas slowly coming to reality. After seeing this proposal, the only thing I could really think of was America's enemies.

       Our enemies these days have no standards except to do as much damage and harm as possible until they are eventually stopped. If we lower our standards it could give the enemy more advantages over our troops as well as possibilities back onto American soil in which more civilian lives could be lost. If training standards of new service members are left at stake, young men and women could lose out on possible life saving techniques in which not only their life depends on it but so does the service member to the left or right of them. As increasing bonus money for enlisting has become a hot topic these days, I simply turn individuals away when they directly tell me that they want an enlistment bonus. Don't get me wrong, I am all about money but I have witnessed to many people “window shop” as we recruiters call it to try and find more money for their services. These individuals in my point of view end up doing no justice in the military being that they generally show a sense of greed right away. Last but not least I have a strong believe that if a draft was reinstated; those individuals brought into the military would do no good for a few different reasons. I feel in order to get a productive result from an individual, that person has to want to be involved in the line of work they are performing. Yes the military can be known for its' harsh way of getting results from individuals but in turn if someone is forced to do what he or she does not want to do, what quality would come of their work.

       As I have picked this proposal apart, I want to conclude by making a proposal myself. I propose to maintain the highest of standards and demand only the best effort from all the individuals that I come in contact with who wants to be a U.S. Marine. These men and women are our next line of defense for this great nation of ours. In doing this I believe that only those future Marines who prevail will not only carry on the highest of standards but will also enforce them in turn. This will at least help me feel safe once I have separated from the military and rely heavily on the next generation of young men and women to carry on the traditions of the Marine Corps.

A Proposal From My Wife

            Thinking back to a few proposal arguments that I have heard makes me think of only one in particular and it happens to be one that my wife recently made. She sure can make a good point. This effective proposal was while discussing my recent re-enlistment into the Marine Corps. My original intention in high school was to enlist in the Marines. After doing so, I planned to continue on until I reached my twenty year retirement eligibility date before getting out and continuing onto another career path. Approximately two years ago I told my wife that I wanted to get out of the military to begin a new career choice in the Oklahoma Highway Patrol. With this career choice being one that I planned on having either way, I left out one big piece of my master plan which was to retire from the military.

            As my wife and I began discussing my idea to get out of the military and move on the other things, she made the continual opportunities and benefits that I was leaving behind quite evident to me. She reminded me of how expensive college tuition would be for us if I was to separate from the military. One huge benefit we have been able to take part of was continuing not only my education but also her education with the military paying for both our tuitions in full. While we have both begun our journey to continue our education one other benefit has come our way in which we have been stationed closer to home due to my current duties which was a main factor on why I was looking to get out of the military after all. It has not been long after my wife made a very effective proposal argument that I found our lives affected for the good in the choice to continue my military service. The major way this has affected me has been the opportunities that we will have in our future due to the both of us continuing our education with just myself being directly in the military. I would have to say that yes I did response in the exact way that my wife had proposed due to her trained eye to map out the success in our future goals.

Response to Ryan Tupps

       As I was thinking of what proposals that have been most effective to me, the animal commercial was not one that quickly came to mind. It honestly wasn’t until you posted about it that I soon realized how similar our points of views really are on this matter. If you were to ask anyone who knows me, they would tell you that I would try to help anyone in their time of needs. I personally don’t agree with the way this commercial or even the Feed the Children commercials have there way of trying to make you feel guilty with the many misfortunes of life. I have given to a few of charities in the past, to include Feed the Children. I did so believing that I was doing the right thing either way.

      It was not until last year when I was doing a research paper for another college class that I found out that there was a big scam going on with the Feed the Children program. The money that was being donated was found being used in other ways than intended for. I have never understood why some individuals try and use the needy to their advantage when it comes to making a buck. This to me is very unethical though it has seemed to become more common in the world today. I think I will just stick to helping out the local charity groups by donating my time rather than money.

Blog response to Yeh's "The Bad influence"

I couldn't help but completely agree with your outlook on this matter. On several occasions I have talked with many individuals who could not carry on a complete conversation due to a lack of public socialization. As I try and communicate with young men and women I find myself lost in their ideas being that I grew up playing outdoors as a kid and had very little Atari or Nintendo time indoors. Though I hope this doesn’t outdate me, I do hope it paints an understanding on how much I am into video games. As I witnessed in the long run a few of my cousins who played video games on a regular basis, I found a huge difference in how we have lived our lives. As they were constantly in and out of trouble, I stayed away from trouble for the most part as much as possible. If you were to compare our “rap sheets” you would understand the trouble I talk about getting into was nothing close to what they would get into. The video game world these days in my opinion have allowed kids to focus more on technology to get by than the regular necessities that the real world requires. I would like to admit when it comes to the patriot songs you mention, I have used those on many occasions myself to do exactly what you describe. Most often though it’s not necessarily patriot songs as much as heavy metal music which gets the adrenaline pumping.

The truth is in the evidence!

            Evidence has proven over time that no matter what, the truth is out there. While an individual sits down to produce a story or argument, many things come into play. Though not all stories need backed up with evidence, most arguments tend to rely heavily on this critical key factor. As chapter 5 of the Writing Arguments text book describes, using persuasive evidence can easily help make any argument effective to its’ audience. As I often find myself dealing with skeptical individuals who are interested in a military career, I always reach for my evidence. The evidence I use takes many forms and depends clearly on the person I am conducting my interview with. Most of my evidence falls under my personal experiences whether over seas in foreign countries or state side in a non-deployed status. At times when some may not feel my experiences are sufficient enough, I bring on my visual aides whether it is my Marine Corps Opportunities Book or even personal pictures. While I personally prefer visual aides over anything else, my target audience are generally the same way.

            As the old saying goes, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Many live by this saying and can relate to the many pictures they come across daily. Even when the angle of vision might be misconstrued, the audience visualizing the scene has the ability to normally see exactly what he or she wants to see no matter what. While some writers may find themselves “framing evidence” to misguide their audience, I have come to realize most the time the audience can see right through them. This tends to be the case if the writer does not effectively use the STAR criteria developed by Richard Fulkerson. This criterion is described on page 90 of the Writing Arguments text in which it represents Sufficiency, Typicality, Accuracy, and Relevance (Ramage, Bean & Johnson, 90). Though many people may not even realize they are using this technique, the evidence clearly shows.

Work Cited

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. "Chapter 3." Writing

             arguments: a rhetoric with readings . 8th ed. New York:

             Pearson Longman, 2008. 90. Print.

Rhetorical Triangle

            It was not until I learned about the rhetorical triangle that I realized on a daily basis it is not uncommon for me to utilize this structure to conduct my military business. As a U.S. Marine recruiter, my job too many entails being that annoying individual who calls at the most inopportune time to solicit a person to join the military. To me on the other hand, I am that individual who is calling to offer career opportunities with many available advancements and benefits that most people are undereducated about. As I usually start my conversation with a small introduction to build what’s known as ethos or a character reference for my audience to look up to, I tend to gain their attention quickly with my title as Sergeant in the Marines. Even though the person in which I maybe talking too may have never seen or heard from me before, they generally have no problem listening to what I have to say being that the title has evolved over time and have built a fair amount of respect and trust. After I have presented who I am, I move into trying to figure exactly what my audience is interested in so not to waste their delicate time with irrelevant subjects. As I work on building rapport and getting to understand my audience I generally tend to use a key piece of the rhetorical triangle that always seems to help me bond with my audience. In my point of view, pathos have been the meat and potatoes of my daily “arguments” on how the Marine Corps has proven to be very beneficial to men and women around the globe when it comes to deciding which military branch to serve in.

            As many men and women typically argue that the Marines just issue guns and send you straight to war in the most direct manor to be a bullet catcher, I must argue back and explain that we are more than just your average gun club. Many people often are misleading on what the Marines really have in their arsenal when it comes to benefits, jobs, and opportunities. As approximately 7 out of 10 people normally explain to me that they would much rather join another branch so they can take full advantage of educational benefits, I quickly bounce back with the fact that the Marines can offer those benefits as well. Though many are still very skeptical on this subject, I describe the route I have taken over the past 3 years to work on obtaining my bachelor degree and explain how the Marines have helped paved my way as well as my wife’s way to one of the most well known universities in the United States. As I focus on making the conversation as personal as possible, I find myself explaining to my audience the jobs I have been a big part of as well as the many opportunities I have been able to take hold of while using them for my success. Though I had no idea of what pathos were all about, I quickly realized that on a daily basis I bring many of my conversations to a personal level to gain the interest and emotional ties of my audience in hopes of showing them the many ways they could benefit from this career opportunity.

            Last but not least, logos are also a big part in my conversation being that as I utilize this concept I continually use logical reasoning in explaining why our boot camp and training courses are known for being as tough as they are. Though there are many aspects of being a Marine that are tough, the one issue that often arises from parents is why we put their sons and daughters through intense training cycles. As I usually take a few moments to catch my train of thought, I know exactly what I’m going to say but like to let the parents realize what they are really asking before I answer them. As I often find myself with this question, I always find myself asking the parents in return how bad they want their son or daughter to return home. After hearing their response I work into my answer in that we too want our Marines to come home in one piece. This is why we make them sweat in peace (boot camp and training) so they don’t bleed in war if they were to find themselves overseas in a hostile zone. As I found myself learning more about the rhetorical triangle, I have gained a better understanding of how to “enhance my credibility and trustworthiness,” in which this makes up what’s known as ethos (Ramage, Bean & Johnson, 62-63). I have also learned if one effectively uses logos, they can build their argument to gain the audiences attention easier than others who ineffectively support their claim with improper evidence (Ramage, Bean & Johnson, 63). As both ethos and logos make an effective argument, you can not count pathos out being that this is how you can grasp your audience’s attention by making the argument more personal and emotionally appealing (Ramage, Bean & Johnson, 62-63).

Work Cited

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. "Chapter 3." Writing arguments: a rhetoric with

             readings . 8th ed. New York: Pearson Longman, 2008. 62-63. Print.

Waiving Requirements

           As I believe every man and woman should have equal rights in this world, I also believe with that being said, every man and woman should pull their own weight along the way. In the Petition to Waive the University Mathematics Requirement, I sympathize with Gordon Adams. This man has shown the many accomplishments and goals he has in mind and seems to have outstanding intentions for his tribe. I fully agree with his reasoning in that he does not believe he will need nor use ASU’s algebra required course. On many occasions through my course of study through high school and now on into college, I have found myself saying many times that I would never use these courses again. In the military, this though has rang true too many times. On the other hand one must realize that even though you may never think to use certain material again in your lifetime, it has been placed in the curriculum for one reason or another.

            As a recruiter for the military, we too have rules and regulations that everyone must follow to include one of these regulations consisting of required education. On any given day it is common to get a call from a kid wanting to join the military only to find out that they don’t have the required education. In the petition to ASU, Mr. Adams explains his educational journey in which he started out with just a General Equivalency Diploma (GED). As it is expressed on how important it is for him to continue on with his college degree, the military has also expressed this feeling. As I hear too many times from not only myself back then, but also kids that now come through my office door saying “Why do I need a high school diploma, ill never use that stuff again.” Requirements are just as it should sound. As I said before, I do sympathize with the petitioner in that his request sounds very noble. If the board was to accept his request then they should have to drop this course for everyone else in the same sense or just do away with the course altogether. Where do you think this would lead? I think it would lead to too many people requesting other exemptions in the same manner in hopes of getting where they want quicker. Let’s face it, yes time is critical but everyone should face the minimum requirements. As a military service member, we are faced with many hardships along the way. With that being said I don’t ask for many things, all I ever ask of anyone is to pull their own weight.    

Yeh's Blog: Writing is like FaceBook

I can understand the reasoning behind feeling that writing is like Facebook. I can remember the first time I got my Facebook account. I first would like to say that I am not too computer savvy and tend to just stick to the basics on these things. With that being said, I was completely happy with my MySpace account until all my friends up and switched over to Facebook. Let’s face it I was “attracted, excited, and frightened” with the new website that everyone was so hooked on! Being in the military, I have used these websites to maintain contact with family and friends throughout my travels everywhere I go. I can relate to your idea of this website being intimidating due to the material people tend to make public. Some things I do feel should stay between separate parties in the sense that there is too much drama most the time. But as I mentioned, this has been a great way for me to interact with family and friends. I say though honestly, I have seen a lot of people post things on their “wall” that does depict their writing abilities. I do believe that writing skills can come with time and practice. I can understand your feelings on the feedback from strangers….. I too used to have this issue. I will admit that I don’t feel I am a strong writer but you can count on me if you need any help along the way. People on Facebook come and go, if they don’t appreciate you for you why not let them go? Confidence takes time to build in itself as well. Just believe in yourself and you will do well no matter what.

Writing is like a flowing river!

Writing is like a flowing river. Though this river may not always flow smooth, clean, or fast enough sometimes, it is still like a flowing river. Just as a river begins, it may not know where it will eventually end up. This is similar to the way I feel most the time when I want to put on paper the thoughts and feelings I often have about various subjects. Sometimes I catch myself trying to force words into places they don’t belong in hopes of quickly getting through yet another section of what may seem like a raging rapid area of a river. This is most often the time in the river I decide to make my way quickly out of the rough currents to shallow ground in order to finish walking in the opposite direction.

As I eventually realize that I’m making my way back into smooth currents, it usually dawns on me that even though there are rough currents in making this journey, there are just as many smooth currents along the way. Looking back on old times in grade school, my English classes were never my strongest subjects due to possibly my fears and doubts while traveling up and down these rivers. It is clear to me now that on many occasions I may have been making this journey without a paddle, in the sense that I never put much work and thought into where I was on this river and where this river could take me. With mentioning that these currents are not always smooth, it is easy to say now that with the proper tools, techniques, and time, any river of the magnitude can be traversed no matter where it flows.

Just as anyone can attest that a smooth river is easy to travel along, the same person will most likely agree that a clean river is just as important. With that being said, time and hard work are usually what help make this a possibility. On many occasions I have taken my turn at fishing random spots along a river’s edge not knowing what exactly I was going to come home with at the end of a long day. This is very much like the thoughts I always have when sitting down to start a writing project. There are times I come home with fresh fish to fill the freezer as well as those times I stop at the store so I can buy fish to bring home to fill the freezer. On those long days that would redirect me to the store before returning home, I would still catch random stuff mostly sunken logs and moss that would tangle my line to the point I would cut my lines (this is similar to the many wadded up pieces of paper in my trash can after a writing project).

With the ever changing currents of these rivers playing a huge role in where most of these rivers could end up, so does the pace of a writing project. On most occasions, words tend to not come to my mind fast enough when needed while when they are not needed and I’m doing daily tasks and not thinking about writing, the words are plentiful. Just as a fast flowing current can cut through the edges of a river bank, a slow current has the same opportunity and power. As I have learned on a few occasions in the past, throwing a fast paced writing project together can do more damage than good when it comes to the critics while a slow pace project thrown together normally wins the heart of its’ reader. Though both these types of writing assignments have the same power, the fast paced or rushed assignment usually lacks the proper requirements to hold up to the standards.

So as I began this blog, I had very few ideas where it would end. I again thought of it as a river and as I can now tell along the way, it has nearly reached its’ end. In my mind, it took longer than it probly should have to put these words on paper, and along the way it took some turns and twists but eventually got here. With some sections of this river coming to my mind smoothly, clearly, and fast, there was a great deal of the sections that had me in a whirlpool trying to find the shallow escape. Now with all this thought of writing being like a flowing river, I do believe I will grab a fishing pole and build a dam up here at the end to try and catch a fish or two.