[Your Name]
Student
High Tech Middle Media Arts
Your Address
[City, ST ZIP Code]
May 2, 2008
Susan Davis (San Diego) or Bob Filner (Chula Vista) or Brian Billbray (Del Mar and North)
Representative 53rd District
[Street Address]
[City, ST ZIP Code]
Dear [Recipient Name]:
I am writing to……MAKE A CASE FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY! URGE SUSAN DAVIS TO INTRODUCE NEW LEGISLATION!!!!
Things to include in a persuasive letter/ piece:
1. Introduce yourself (grade, school, where you live, why you are important)
2. Start out positive. Thank the representative for what she has done so far…
http://www.house.gov/susandavis/
3. Make a STRONG case for renewable energy (talk about dangers of not using renewable energy, and the benefits of switching)
4. Organize your writing (divide it up perhaps by argument…ie. Paragraph #1 is on the economic benefits of renewable energy, #2 political, #3 Social)
5. Be persuasive!!! (pull on her heartstrings…paint a picture of what may happen to future generations)
6. Post writing to blog so that myself and others can edit it before sending
Any other ideas? _________________________________________________________
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
Monday, May 12, 2008
Thursday, May 8, 2008
Thoughts on Nature
I wrote this at 6th grade camp two days ago. Enjoy. :)
A gentle breeze sweeps across my face
As the sun beats down my back
In the distance an endless cloud covering
Stretching into the great unkown
Stillness, so hard to find
My thoughts are racing
Away from the hustling and bustling of fast life
Time moves slowly, almost stops
Nature greets me, the happy host of a tranquil party
Providing none of the banal distractions of her restless sister,
Technology
While technology wines and dines,
Providing short term pleasure
It is nature that offers sustaining peace
And this is what my heart longs for
Perhaps I have found it, or perhaps not
What I do know is that we are now one
Joining in union our underlying core
I belong no more to her, than she to I
We are interdependent and carefree
At least for a little while...
A gentle breeze sweeps across my face
As the sun beats down my back
In the distance an endless cloud covering
Stretching into the great unkown
Stillness, so hard to find
My thoughts are racing
Away from the hustling and bustling of fast life
Time moves slowly, almost stops
Nature greets me, the happy host of a tranquil party
Providing none of the banal distractions of her restless sister,
Technology
While technology wines and dines,
Providing short term pleasure
It is nature that offers sustaining peace
And this is what my heart longs for
Perhaps I have found it, or perhaps not
What I do know is that we are now one
Joining in union our underlying core
I belong no more to her, than she to I
We are interdependent and carefree
At least for a little while...
Monday, April 28, 2008
Being a Freak
When in your life have you felt like a "freak?" How did it feel? Why did you feel like a "freak?" Have you treated anyone else like they were a "freak?" What does it mean to be a "freak?"
I think feelings of being a "freak" are inflicted by both oneself and the people around them. People usually capitalize on the insecurity/ vulnerability we feel ourselves. I found middle school to be one of the most vulnerable periods of my life. As my body changed so too did my perception of myself. Capitalizing on this insecurity, people re- affirmed my own self belief. I was clearly different. I was dorky, awkward, socially unaware and sheltered. To top it off I was a quadruplet! A "fourth of a brain," or "Wagner #3." At other times, because I was so sheltered, I was called "Flanders." It's quite hard to embrace these qualities when they are what bring you the most harassment/ ridicule.
I guess these labels all made me feel like a "freak." I was an outsider. I had few friends and little self confidence.
But everyone was feeling this way. And everyone got harassed for something. And given time, the oppressed became the oppressors. Unfortunately, that's what I did. I transferred my insecurities onto others in the form of ridicule. Like the human food chain, I picked on weaker more vulnerable species. To this day, I still remember calling this girl Camilla "retarded." People laughed and I thought I was a hot shot, until I experienced the same torment myself.
All things change with time however. As time passed I began feeling more comfortable in my own skin. I could embrace the diverse qualities of others as well as the great qualities about myself. I am awkward, outspoken, dorky and lovable. These qualities are what make me unique. I almost invite people to call me a "freak." I would wear such a label as a badge of honor. People try so desperately to fit in, even if it means sacrificing who they are. Why hide it? I am a bit strange/ peculiar. Wouldn't we all be if we acted on the surface how we felt deep down?
I think feelings of being a "freak" are inflicted by both oneself and the people around them. People usually capitalize on the insecurity/ vulnerability we feel ourselves. I found middle school to be one of the most vulnerable periods of my life. As my body changed so too did my perception of myself. Capitalizing on this insecurity, people re- affirmed my own self belief. I was clearly different. I was dorky, awkward, socially unaware and sheltered. To top it off I was a quadruplet! A "fourth of a brain," or "Wagner #3." At other times, because I was so sheltered, I was called "Flanders." It's quite hard to embrace these qualities when they are what bring you the most harassment/ ridicule.
I guess these labels all made me feel like a "freak." I was an outsider. I had few friends and little self confidence.
But everyone was feeling this way. And everyone got harassed for something. And given time, the oppressed became the oppressors. Unfortunately, that's what I did. I transferred my insecurities onto others in the form of ridicule. Like the human food chain, I picked on weaker more vulnerable species. To this day, I still remember calling this girl Camilla "retarded." People laughed and I thought I was a hot shot, until I experienced the same torment myself.
All things change with time however. As time passed I began feeling more comfortable in my own skin. I could embrace the diverse qualities of others as well as the great qualities about myself. I am awkward, outspoken, dorky and lovable. These qualities are what make me unique. I almost invite people to call me a "freak." I would wear such a label as a badge of honor. People try so desperately to fit in, even if it means sacrificing who they are. Why hide it? I am a bit strange/ peculiar. Wouldn't we all be if we acted on the surface how we felt deep down?
Friday, April 25, 2008
Suffering
Does suffering stem from not having
Or rather from the WANT of something we do not have?
While the former is popular it is the latter that drives us mad
From the day we emerge
To the moment we die
We are constantly searching for truth, a lie
Searching, searching and finding no answer
For as I grow old I find myself wanting more
Surely there must be a great treasure in store
My car is clean, the bills are all paid
Yet the desire still remains
Tormenting me daily
What's peace but a passing moment
Just like all the rest
Freedom
A word that flows so easily from unfree lips
For I am a slave to my desire
Rid me of my want
Convince me there is nothing I do not have
Maybe then I will know peace, maybe then I will find my heart glad
Or rather from the WANT of something we do not have?
While the former is popular it is the latter that drives us mad
From the day we emerge
To the moment we die
We are constantly searching for truth, a lie
Searching, searching and finding no answer
For as I grow old I find myself wanting more
Surely there must be a great treasure in store
My car is clean, the bills are all paid
Yet the desire still remains
Tormenting me daily
What's peace but a passing moment
Just like all the rest
Freedom
A word that flows so easily from unfree lips
For I am a slave to my desire
Rid me of my want
Convince me there is nothing I do not have
Maybe then I will know peace, maybe then I will find my heart glad
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Pedagogy of the Oppressed
This is not light reading. The prose is very theoretical.
In short this work is a dissection on the ideology of the oppressed. People are oppressed for a number of reasons. The first of these is wealth. Those who do not possess great wealth by default risk being oppressed. They have little power. Money moves people. Without money, one is confined to living day to day. Their future is uncertain, in turn affording them little freedom when making demands.
The second "oppressive" factor is education (or lack thereof). Ignorance is breeding ground for oppression. The oppressor (who is generally well educated) takes advantage of the oppressed' lack of knowledge, using this as a way to meet their own desire. For example, I could eat hamburgers everyday of my life thinking they offered me nutritional value because Mcdonald's claimed to use "organic" ingredients.
People are also oppressed because of race or gender. History has afforded them only minor gains in terms of dignity and self worth. These people are oppressed simply because society was set up to maintain an oppressive power structure.
Freire bases his thoughts on a hearty idealism rather than hardened experience. By his own admission he has never been to places he speaks out against.
He also speaks very highly of "radicals." Radicals he concludes are "pure" and "committed to human liberation." Sectarians on the other hand are "blinded by irrationality." Sectarians naturally polarize since their agendas are both abundant and superfluous. Radicals on the other hand are focused only in elevating human beings to a status worthy of dignity and pride.
Given Freire's clear bias and subjectivity, I know this reading will be tough. I am committed however to absorbing his knowledge, no matter how theoretical it proves to be.
In short this work is a dissection on the ideology of the oppressed. People are oppressed for a number of reasons. The first of these is wealth. Those who do not possess great wealth by default risk being oppressed. They have little power. Money moves people. Without money, one is confined to living day to day. Their future is uncertain, in turn affording them little freedom when making demands.
The second "oppressive" factor is education (or lack thereof). Ignorance is breeding ground for oppression. The oppressor (who is generally well educated) takes advantage of the oppressed' lack of knowledge, using this as a way to meet their own desire. For example, I could eat hamburgers everyday of my life thinking they offered me nutritional value because Mcdonald's claimed to use "organic" ingredients.
People are also oppressed because of race or gender. History has afforded them only minor gains in terms of dignity and self worth. These people are oppressed simply because society was set up to maintain an oppressive power structure.
Freire bases his thoughts on a hearty idealism rather than hardened experience. By his own admission he has never been to places he speaks out against.
He also speaks very highly of "radicals." Radicals he concludes are "pure" and "committed to human liberation." Sectarians on the other hand are "blinded by irrationality." Sectarians naturally polarize since their agendas are both abundant and superfluous. Radicals on the other hand are focused only in elevating human beings to a status worthy of dignity and pride.
Given Freire's clear bias and subjectivity, I know this reading will be tough. I am committed however to absorbing his knowledge, no matter how theoretical it proves to be.
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