Resilience SRC

Summary

In his “The Profound Emptiness of Resilience,” Parul Seghal wonders about the true meaning of the word “resilience”. The word is constantly being used in company mission statements and political campaigns. In 2015, the buzzword has taken on a more hollow meaning because of its overuse. Seghal focuses on the irony of the our world’s contradiction. While true resilience on college campuses has gone down tremendously, the usage of the word resilience as an adjective to describe people in 2015 has gone up! Seghal uses James Kirchick’s piece in Tablet as proof. Kirchick talks about how true resilience was exemplified by James Meredith, who went to Mississippi University as the first black student enrolled. Meredith exhibited supreme bravery and courage, standing tall above the racial slurs and criticism that came his way. Kirchick is astounded that today’s college students could feel “marginalized” in 2015, because their current plight pales in comparison to Meredith’s situation.

Response

I tend to disagree with Seghal about the overuse of “resilience” in 2015 and that it has lost its meaning. It all depends on the circumstances. During the civil rights era, it was acceptable for an African-American to be taunted on a university campus. Today, all races are presumably treated equally. However, this is not always the case. In these racial harassment cases, victims have the right to report and get upset. Even though their suffering is incomparable to that of Meredith, they are still being negatively affected by the color of their skin. As a Jew, I especially disagree with Seghal’s observations. There are always anti-semitic incidents and anti-Israel movements on college campuses. Jewish high schools and youth institutions take special care to instill a strong “resilience” in their Jewish teens, because that strength is necessary to succeed on higher education campuses. Time and time again, Jewish college students exude that resilience and it helps them feel comfortable with their religion on campus. It is okay to report instances of racial discrimination. It does not mean you are soft and do not have resilience, but it shows a logical response to the bully.

One of the mantras of Martin Luther King in his civil rights push was “civil disobedience.” This is defined as the peaceful resistance of racial discrimination. In other words, fighting back in a violent way is not going to help anyone, rather it will strengthen animosity on both sides. The answer is nonviolent pushback, such as rallies and boycotts. This is what you see on college campuses today. Instead of fighting back violently, which is not the answer, you see more rallies and speeches. This is still resilience. It is excellent resilience, contrary to what Seghal says in his article. Resilience is shown each and every day by African-American and minority college students who are at a social disadvantage each and every day.

Citation

Sehgal, Parul. "The Profound Emptiness of ‘Resilience’." The New York Times. The     New York Times, 1 Dec. 2015. Web. 4 Dec. 2015.

The Last Lincoln Blog

In his “Second Inaugural Address” (1865), Abraham Lincoln asserts that the Civil War was God's punishment and judgement of both the North and the South, and, to the fault of the southern region of the United States, the War had gained too much momentum to stop now. He makes this clear by detailing how the war came to be, contrasting the South as the region who sought to “dissolve the Union,” describing their sin of slavery, and explaining how the North played a faulty passive role and accepted the war rather than extinguishing it. His purpose is to let the people know that the government has done all it could possibly do, God has judged their wrongdoings with a magnifying glass, and that the unnatural and unjust wrongdoings of man to his fellow have been unabashedly committed by the South and unacceptably ignored by the North. His audience is the entire nation of the United States of America.

I applaud and agree with the things Lincoln wrote in his Second Inaugural Address. He was upfront and honest to the people instead of trying to be cheesy and unrealistic. He gave them the business. It is kind of like the teacher who gives his class an opportunity to be quiet for five minutes straight, and if they fail then they get no recess for the day. Without hesitation, one kid screams out and everybody else joins with him. Abraham Lincoln is telling his nation, “You guys have lost your recess privileges and are never getting them back.” After Lincoln gave his First Inaugural Address, he was very conciliatory and tried to coerce the people to peace. They refused to listen to him, and now he has had enough. No more Mr. Nice Guy. The American people have failed in a major way and Lincoln makes sure they know it.

This is just one of the many attributes Lincoln possessed which made him the excellent President he was. He always led by example and the people always knew they were being led by someone who understood and lived a moral lifestyle. When Lincoln bashes the people like this, they listen and they are ashamed because Lincoln was a highly respected person. When you are respected, ears perk up when you open your mouth. Some Presidents were never successful because they did not have the trust of the people and this led to people not listening to them. This was never an issue with Abraham Lincoln. Come on, I’m just being honest.

Kristof: "Winds of War in Gaza" Precis and Response

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/08/opinion/sunday/nicholas-kristof-winds-of-war-in-gaza.html

Rhetorical Precis

Nicholas Kristof, in his "Winds of War in Gaza" (New York Times, 7 March 2015), asserts that Gaza is held under an unjust siege by Israel and Egypt, the quality of life there is subpar, and many innocent civilians are at a disadvantage under the stranglehold of the bordering, more powerful countries. He uses the pathos appeal by bringing in the story of 8-year old Rabah, who dreams of being a doctor but has no shoes to wear, and dreams of having toys to play with but because he does not, he plays with the remains of the rockets Israel fires in his neighborhood. Kristof proceeds to use anecdote to show that even though Hamas is the only threat coming from Gaza, the innocent citizens are being unfairly targeted. His purpose is to persuade the reader that what is going on in the Middle East is unjust, and his audience is everyone in the United States, as he pleads in the last paragraph for help from the United States to urge the surrounding countries to ease their blockade.

Personal Response

A great man once said: "There are two sides to every story." While Kristof's piece evokes some sympathetic feelings for the Gazans and their suffering, I know personally that there is much more to this picture. Since 2005, rockets have been fired into Israel non-stop, especially in small towns such as Sderot and Ashkelon. There have been over 11,000 rockets fired, with only 15 seconds to find shelter when the alarm is heard around the area. In 2014, Israel invented the technological juggernaut Iron Dome, a rocket interceptor which successfully blocks incoming rockets if it detects that the rocket will land in a populated area.
Many times in these situations, the more powerful force is believed to be the "bad guy" because they impose their will on the underdog. Just because Gaza does not have the resources to defend themselves and attack Israel properly, they cannot expect to host one of the most dangerous terrorist organizations in the world, Hamas, and go untouched by the affected countries. It is unfortunate that Gazans are living under low quality conditions, but instead of doing everything in their power to fix Israel, they should maybe look at their own country and see if they are doing things to help their own cause.

Lincoln Blog

What is going on currently in the American government is unsettling. Personal pride and party loyalty have led to a dysfunctional Congress which fails to accomplish anything notable. In Lincoln’s first passage, he touches on the frustration a good citizen feels when his governing body "offers them no protection." In this situation, Lincoln points out, these citizens have a right to become "tired and disgusted" with this government and would not be "averse to a change in which they imagine they have nothing to lose."

Perhaps Lincoln had some foresight into what would be unfolding in his own country hundreds of years later. The inability of Congress to pass productive bills and laws has citizens questioning its legitimacy. When the people do not feel protected, they will rebel, as Lincoln pointed out above. Up until now, not much unlawful activity has occurred in opposition to Congress, but stirrings and riots have been in the works. In this country, however, it only takes one mistake to make people go from civil disobedience to unrelenting violence and unrest.

In my opinion, there is no place for the good citizens to gather and take matters into their own hands if they feel that their government is not doing a good job. Granted, Congress is having difficulty getting things done right now, but maybe they will figure things out. If anything, there are more divides among the American public than within the government. Even if the public went to unlawful measures to challenge the government, there would be no structure and it would be a mess of people fighting for a voice

"Israel in a Post-Deal World" Precis and Response

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/08/opinion/israel-in-a-post-deal-world.html?ref=middleeast

Ami Ayalon, in his “Israel in a Post-Deal World” (Sept. 2015), asserts that Israel needs to accept the Iran nuclear deal and use it to come closer to the United States and be ready in the event that Iran misuses their privileges and proceeds to develop a nuclear bomb. He supports this by reminding us how important the Israeli-American relationship is and how ineffective it is for Prime Minister Netanyahu to be in conflict with the White House, while also touching on Iran’s tendencies to be unreliable in the past and explaining that when the day comes when Iran violates the deal, a military option should be considered because sanctions have already been put into place. His purpose is to help readers and Israelis understand what the reality is, in order that they will be ready and able to respond effectively if the deal falls apart. His audience is anybody who wants to be educated about the current conflicts in the Middle East, and he forms a relationship with his audience by appealing to logos and showing what Israel needs to do from a logical and reasonable perspective.

I find myself agreeing with much of Ayalon’s statements in his New York Times article “Israel in a Post-Deal world.” To the dismay of many, President Obama has garnered enough Senate support to move forward with the Iran nuclear deal. Ayalon makes a great point when he urges us that this challenge is something that should bring us closer, not pull us apart. Our relationship with the United States should only grow stronger, because when that day comes when Iran violates this deal, we need to know how to take action. America by our side will only be beneficial for us.

We need to take heed of the idea that “we must prepare a viable military option.” I mean, how far do we have to go? America has already imposed hefty sanctions on Iran’s economy. Now, they are being lifted on the condition that Iran complies with the deal for a certain amount of time. If they proceed to violate it again after that, it is time to turn to a last but necessary resort. There is no time to play games when it comes to a country like Iran, because in eight short years they will have a stock load of ballistic missiles. However, when America and Israel join together in military force, Iran doesn’t hold a candle to the things we can do.

Sometimes in life, things don’t necessarily go as planned for you. The key is adapting as you go along, making the most of each situation and adjusting accordingly. For Israel, a potentially nuclear Iran is far from ideal. However, it is time to move on from a stage of “we need to prevent this deal from going through” to “we need to do whatever we can to make sure Iran stays in strict compliance with the rules of the deal.” Together with America, we can ensure that will happen.

Mac Vs. PC Commercial Rhetorical Precis JJ/Efraim

Apple, a computer software company, in its commercial “Choose a Vista” (2007), argues that Apple’s software package encompasses everything you need in one computer, while Windows has many different options, none of which combine product and price like Apple. They develop this claim by comparing the different Windows options to a spin wheel, in which there is no perfect option, while the Apple representative sits content with the software he has. The purpose of the author is to put down Windows in order to highlight the flawless Apple package, with the ultimate purpose of selling Apple computers. The audience is all consumers, and Apple tries to establish a trust relationship by using humor which appeals to pathos.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5Yt30wrbl4

(commercial starts at 1:30 and ends at 2:00)

Kristof Rhetorical Precis and Personal Response

Rhetorical Precis

Nicholas Kristof, in his “Kristof: Lessons From the Virginia Shooting” (New York Times, 26 Aug. 2015), asserts that America needs to start taking gun violence seriously and strengthen it’s gun restrictions. First he brings in statistical data to highlight the damage guns have caused over the years, using logos, then he appeals to ethos by bringing in the story of the shooter in Virginia and how he was “waiting to go BOOM!!!!” He then tries to theorize about possible solutions and restrictions, and he used the analogy of the car to represent how America goes to such far lengths to ensure the safety of drivers, so why are guns ignored? His purpose is to persuade the reader and America that we need to do more, because guns are taking away countless lives each year. His audience is the American public and the government, and he excludes anyone that is not in our country.

Response

Nicholas Kristof’s opinion article, “Kristof: Lessons From the Virginia Shooting,” opened my eyes to the real dangers of gun violence in America. The data he provides is astounding. The fact that more Americans die by gun homicide or suicide every six months than have been killed in the past twenty-five in every terrorist attack and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan combined is absolutely shocking and troublesome. It seems to me that whenever I open up Yahoo or the Commercial Appeal, there is another story about a little child playing with his father’s gun while he is sleeping and inadvertently shooting his father to death. How are we standing by and letting this happen? Something needs to be done. These are kids that will have to live with the reality that they took their father’s life for the rest of their own. Additionally, the lack of security and precautions regarding guns in America is also stunning. Kristof remarks that “if someone steals an iPhone, it requires a PIN; guns don’t.” How is it that we go to such extreme measures for a measly cell phone, yet we sit back in the face of human life? Something has to be done.

Dr. Walter Palmer: A Modern Criminal

I have very mixed feelings about the actions of Dr. Walter Palmer. Dr. Palmer came under blazing fire for his recent killing of a beloved African lion named Cecil. Palmer was simply practicing a hobby, hunting, and ended up shooting an arrow into the wrong beast. Social media exploded with criticism and hatred-filled comments directed at Dr. Palmer, incriminating him for being reckless and insensitive to animal life. Dr. Palmer feels like he was just doing something he loved, legally hunting animals.
While watching the video and reading the article on CNN, I became very bothered by Dr. Palmer. On the one hand, hunting is legal and doing it responsibly is not condemned by the general public. Additionally, it would be difficult for me to get upset over the fact that the animal Palmer happened to shoot was one that was beloved by a whole country. After all, in this matter all animals should have equal worth. At the end of the day, I do not think the protesters are upset that Palmer specifically killed Cecil. The fact that that specific lion was one so dear to their hearts is just something that sparked their emotions on the situation.

Please examine the above picture, which shows Dr. Palmer with his buddies. If carefully looking at that picture for ten seconds does not cut deep into your heart, I am not sure you have one. This man goes out on a Sunday with his fancy equipment, in his beautiful Lexus, and kills large animals, just because he has the money to do so and he enjoys it. Not only that, but after the murder is executed he takes a picture with the dead, helpless creature just to show how big, strong and superior he is. I mean, are you a human being? Maybe nobody would have cared if he hadn't killed Cecil, but that was the breaking point. At the same time, the people that are enraged are not upset over the fact that he killed Cecil. They are appalled by these pictures which go against everything they stand for.
After his murder and wrongdoings went public, Palmer went underground to block the deafening noise coming from all angles. Upon knocking on his multi-million dollar home, there was no response. His dental practice has been shut down for a while now. It shows you how in this day and age, you have to be smart. Don't expose yourself doing something like Palmer did, especially if you did it in the cocky and pretentious way Palmer did it. This man made for himself a life in which he will not be able to walk down the street without being berated for a being a heartless monster. His wife and kids will also have to deal with that reality. Don't be like Dr. Walter Palmer. Have a heart and make educated decision.
Oh, and don't kill Cecil the Lion.