Prosecutor Kym Worthy shows no sympathy toward Kwame Kilpatrick. Her speech speaks of the various mistakes made by Kilpatrick. She makes a point to inform the citizens of Detroit the exact offenses of their mayor. As a citizen of the United States, as well as Detroit, Kwame Kilpatrick, along with everyone else, is obligated to follow the American legal system. He is also obligated to deal with the consequences involved if ignoring to do so. Worthy accuses Kilpatrick of his wrongdoing on many levels. One reason for the persecution of Mayor Kilpatrick is based upon perjury, for the reason that Kilpatrick as well as Beatty lied when they were witnesses, thus violating the fundamental principles of the justice system. Worthy also accuses Kilpatrick of spending the pulbic money unlawfully due to his position in the police officer scandal. Worthy states that “Our investigation has clearly shown that public dollars were used, people’s lives were ruined, the justice system was severely mocked, and the public trust trampled on”. The mayor committed more than one crime, and made more than one mistake. His own selfish actions are what led him to the consequences he currently must face.

Throughout her speech, Worthy mentions the importance of the American legal system as well as the importance of equal justice for all citizens. The position of a person should not be considered when dealing with a legal matter. Worthy uses the rhetorical strategy of logos in supporting her position. She states that “Even children understand that lying is wrong. If a witness lies, innocent people can go to jail or prison, people can literally get away with murder, civil litigants who deserve money may not get it or may get money they don’t deserve. And
lying cannot be tolerated even if a judge or jury sees through it.” If children are supposed to know better, shouldn’t the mayor of a city know right from wrong as well? This assertion made by Kym Worthy logically addresses the fact that the mayor should have known better before choosing to partake in such wrongdoing, and now it is necessary that he deals with the consequences. The effect of his actions can damage a widespread amount of people. Innocent people can so easily become at risk of being convicted by one simple lie. A great amount of people have and could escape their own convictions through the process of lying, and in some cases, no one will ever find out. In some cases. Faced with perjury as one of the main offenses, it is only fair that the punishment imposed on Kwame Kilpatrick should be one and the same with the punishment faced by others under related circumstances.

Kym’s use of logos, as well as other rhetorical strategies such as description and compare and contrast, attributed in her construction of a highly powerful speech. The opinions that she expresses in her comments are strong and well-articulated, providing an apparent logical base of reasoning for the offenses now faced by Kilpatrick.

The 'Unscripted' Part Of Kilpatrick's Address

It seems now the mayor himself even admitted it; the little white lies are coming back to get him. It is clear to us as citizens that the mayor has been untruthfully dragging his way through this issue, and apparently one of his new excuses is that people are coming after him with "lynch mob mentality".

Along with this claim, Kwame complains of the death threats that have arisen throughout this scandal not only towards him, but his family as well. This presents a clear use of pathos. Instead of focusing on his wrongdoing, Kwame uses the appeal to emotion to ensure the citizens' feelings of remorse towards him and his family for "all they have been through". Because we should be the ones feeling bad, right? I don't think so.

Coinciding with his use of pathos, the rhetorical strategy of compare and contrast is also used in Kwame's speech. The mayor indirectly asks the citizens to look at the situation he is in as if it were from their perspectives. "I have to say this because it's very personal to me. I don't believe that a Nielsen rating is worth the life of my children or your children." Going along with his use of pathos, Kwame compares his feelings due to the threats that he has received to the feelings that would be present in any citizen that were in his position. He compares his children to the children of the citizens of Detroit. This evokes an uneasy feeling in those with the thought of this problem surrounding their own children and families. True, it would be a horrible thing to face if this occurred in your family, but I would prefer the mayor simply admitting to what he has done, and stop poising the issues he is dealing with as an effect of his own actions onto the people of Detroit.

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.

The True Meaning of Christmas

“Maybe Christmas,” he thought, “doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!” Hmm... Maybe. This quote explains what many people claim to believe today. Several Americans portray themselves as understanding the true meaning of Christmas, but as the cartoon represents, the actual meaning of Christmas continues to be forgotten each year. I agree with the view of Christmas presented by this picture. Although people try to convince themselves that Christmas is much more than a holiday of giving and receiving presents, they still become consumed with the many preparations and other things to go along with December twenty-fifth, without stopping to think of what the day is really about. When do you ever see a sign or advertisement proclaiming the birth of Jesus Christ? Instead, during this time of year, every commercial, every window sign, billboard, or coupon and magazine received in the mail proclaims the “best gift ideas” and informs us on where the “biggest sales” will be taking place. During this time, it is not made clear that Jesus was God’s ultimate gift to the world, given to us graciously and willingly at the expense of our sins.
The image of the Christmas shopper stresses the point that the importance of Christmas is soon forgotten around this time of year. Although it is clearly portrayed in the message on the screen that Christmas is about more than presents, the woman’s first thought is to purchase a gift with the phrase included on it. Hypocritical much? It seems that she is oblivious to what the quote means, and sees it simply as an idea for more presents; exactly what Christmas should be least about. The fact that her arms are filled with additional gifts only helps more in showing her lack of understanding of what the quote is talking about. Another visual that goes along with the main point is the whole appearance of the salesman behind the counter. His expression looks as if he can care less about what he is doing. In the Christmas season, shouldn’t an employee at least attempt to be in the Christmas spirit? He appears unhappy, unenthused, and unfriendly. This helps by once again, displaying nothing of the sort of what Christmas should be about.

The Death of Sean Taylor and The "Black KKK"

In his article, Jason Whitlock writes about the death of former NFL player, Sean Taylor. Whitlock uses Taylor’s death to support his assertion that the “Black KKK” is responsible for what has happened, and claims that they are still a threat to all black men today. He feels that “black men are targets of black men” and until the Black KKK has not been stopped, nothing will change. Whitlock also discusses the impact of hip-hop on the young black culture. He believes that it is responsible for giving them the impression to live in a “culture that celebrates murder, ignorance and incarceration”. Whitlock believes that this Black KKK is to blame for the death of Sean Taylor, and any black man or boy could be next.

Jason Whitlock argues that “if you're a black man living in America, you've been reminded once again that your life is in constant jeopardy of violent death”, and I disagree. Your life is not in danger simply due to the color of your skin. I do not agree that every black man is destined to a violent death, such as Whitlock claims. It is true that African Americans were once degraded, mistreated, and left undefended in United States history, however, it would be unacceptable for anyone to look at blacks in such a way now. They are no longer viewed as inferior members of society, and assumptions should not be made that they remain “in danger” and subject to “violent deaths” as a result of their race. Whitlock jumps to conclusions in assuming the present view on blacks in America.

An example of parallelism used in this article is the comparison between the “White KKK” and the “Black KKK”. Whitlock states that “rather than whine about white folks' insensitivity or reserve a special place of sorrow for rich athletes, we'd be better served mustering the kind of outrage and courage it took in the 1950s and 1960s to stop the white KKK from hanging black men from trees”. This strengthens the article by fulfilling Whitlock’s statement that the Black KKK needs to be stopped. His parallelism to the White KKK proves that it took courage to put an ending to this similar problem in the past, and it shows that maybe the same courage is what’s required in stopping the Black KKK today.