Open-Minded Liberals?

In his article, Larry Elder proves the drastically different viewpoints between liberals and conservatives, as well as their spiteful views of one another. Throughout the article, Elder uses many “they say” strategies to criticize liberals. One specific point that he uses is when he speaks with the man in the barber shop. He makes sarcastic retorts back to the man’s accusations, which helps him in proving his point to mock liberals and their open-mindedness. When the man claims that Bush and Cheney ran for public office to commit murder, Elder responded with “For what reason? To get rich? They already were”. Another piece of the conversation with this man shows the same mockery. “‘Finally, I sighed and simply asked, ‘How do you function day by day?’ ‘What do you mean?’ ‘How do you get up in the morning thinking that somebody in Washington, D.C., wants to murder you?’ “. Elder’s response to the man’s assertion causes him to look foolish. He uses the views of this man as a “they say” strategy by representing his voice as a whole for liberals, and Elder’s quick replies are what mock him. This example supports Elder’s closing statement: “Bottom line: Conservatives consider liberals well-intentioned, but misguided. Liberals consider conservatives not only wrong, but really, really bad people”.

So deep-fried pork rinds, bacon, and jelly donuts wouldn't be the combination that you would normally consider when ordering food, but the message that this comic portrays is pretty clear. America's obesity levels are rising as fast as hamburgers and fries are being served through drive-thru windows nationwide. It seems today that with such high levels of obesity among children as well as adults, Americans just don't care. The cartoon states that the food "comes with a mandatory liability waiver", which is like the warning so many of us choose to ignore. Even though people know that certain foods are bad for their health, and can see themselves and their children gaining weight, they proceed with their daily lives, unaffected by the consequences of their decisions to maintain an unhealthy lifestyle. The way the cartoonist shows the lack of really any emotions of the characters goes along with his point that Americans just don't care about their health. Both characters seem unalarmed by the food choices, as if it's something that's natural to them, like it has become to most of our society today.

Detroit Tigers Win 2008 World Series

In this article, Michael Rosenberg discusses one of the major assets that will be attributing to the victorious team of the 2008 World Series. The team? The Detroit Tigers. The player? Miguel Cabrera. He comes in the form of an exceptional third baseman, and is one of the best hitters in baseball. Even prior to the start of the 2008 season, Rosenburg refers to him as “the best pure hitter on this team”. What Cabrera has accomplished only resembles that of current Hall of Famers, including Hank Aaron, Ken Griffey Jr., and Frank Robinson. After viewing Cabrera’s stats, its can undoubtedly be said that he will only heighten the Tigers’ past two years of dominance over the rest of Major League Baseball.

I am proud to say that I have been a Tigers fan since before 2006. I also am proud to say that I have complete faith in my Tigers for the upcoming season. After hearing the results of the recent trades that have taken place, I made up my mind that we had basically already won the World Series. Not only are the Tigers picking up the great Miguel Cabrera, but they have also gained Edgar Renteria and Dontrelle Willis. The addition of an astounding pitcher will hopefully reduce Todd Jones’ chances of entering gameplay often. Also, the removal of Maybin from the team has eliminated any possibilities for the spot of my personal favorite, the most amazing Curtis Granderson, to be occupied. As stated by Rosenburg, with the “only lineup in baseball that might make the Yankees jealous”, the Tigers are pretty much guaranteed to having successful season.

This article is pretty straightforward, but it could be slightly altered to target an audience besides baseball fans. If I were writing to a group of fourth grade students, I might take out some of the specific details. Keeping it simply at “he is one of the best hitters in baseball” would seem to cover the main point when addressing it to fourth graders. I would not include facts such as “Cabrera has contended for a batting title, finished in the top five in his league in on-base percentage and pounded 50 doubles in a season”. Also, I would further clarify how closely Cabrera’s stats resemble previous players that are now in the Hall of Fame. This will help to give a fourth grader an idea of the talent of Cabrera. Last, I would include more information about players that were chosen to be interviewed about Cabrera. I would mention a few of their own accomplishments in baseball. If a fourth grade classroom understood that other great baseball players are speaking so highly of Miguel, they would have a better chance of understanding how significant this trade is going to be for the Tigers.