Many people believe that Donald Trump is a racist, bigot, jerk, idiot, etc. with bad ideas that will cause World War Three. For example how he treats women, makes fun of the other candidates, and talks specifically about different Religions.

Though he may come off that way, he still has many good ideas to better the United States of America. Wether you like Mr. Trump or not you have to think that he does have some decent ideas on boarder control, creating jobs, and ISIS. He might not be the best “face of America” but do we really need a “politically correct” face of America or someone who has no filter and gets the job done?

America is in trouble and needs a strong and smart leader with good ideas to do something to fix the many problems. There are many different problems that we are facing including ISIS, boarder control(especially the Mexican boarder), big companies leaving America for cheaper taxes and labor, and other things. Many people believe that Mr. Trump might be a bad president but have you taken a look at what the other candidates have to offer? They might be just as bad or worse with what they want to do with America.

Lets take a look at Mr. Trumps ideas and how crazy they really are. We can start with Mexico and building a giant wall. There are many illegal immigrants in the United States and tons of drugs pouring over the boarder. He says that he will build a wall and let people come in the legal way. This sounds like a great idea because we are getting taken advantage of by the Mexicans. For Example in 2014 there were 11.3million illegal immigrants in the United States and Mexicans made up 49% of that. Between 2008-14 illegal aliens accounted for 38% of all murders in 5 states when their population is only 5.6% total in those 5 states. But many people still think that building a wall is a crazy idea and not even possible.

Mr. Trump says that the Mexicans are sending over their worst people full of killers, rapists, losers, ect. He claims that they bringing the drugs over poisoning our people and we are sending a ton of money over to them in exchange. They are committing crimes, not paying any taxes and taking jobs. This makes no sense that the people in charge are letting this happen and should be stopped as soon as possible. It would also create many jobs to build the wall but the big question everyone has is who will pay for it. Mr. Trump claims that Mexico will pay for it which many find hard to believe. But many candidates agree with Mr. Trump when it comes to securing our boarders and think that it is a good idea!

Next lets take a look at his idea for bringing jobs back to America. In the past ten years 47 companies have left the United States for places like China and Mexico.This leaves many Americans out of jobs because of cheap labor in other countries. This is a big problem with many people not having jobs or having low quality ones here in America. The jobs that are leaving are well paying, well benefited, good jobs.

Mr. Trump has a solution for this problem, he says to tax the companies around 35% for every item that they sell. This is a good idea since most companies would either take the huge loss in tax(highly unlikely) or have to move back to the United States and start doing business again. But many people criticize Mr. Trump by saying that he himself has had companies in other countries. But this isn’t about Mr. Trump, he obviously will do what makes himself the most money in his personal life. It sounds like he wants to do whats best for the United States by trying to bring companies and jobs back to America.

There has been a lot of talk about the war on terror and our current president Mr. Obama. The biggest issue with this is how to combat ISIS and what we should do with Syrian refugees. As many Americans think Mr. Obama is taking a conservative approach to combating ISIS. He also wants Syrian refugees to enter the United States by the bunch.

Mr. Trump is the complete opposite. He says that he would whip out ISIS immediately by blowing up their fuel and other ways that he does not want to open the book too. He also said that no Syrian refugees nor Muslims should enter this country until we know what is going on and how to have them go through very strict security. Many people call Mr. Trump crazy and racist for his ways about ISIS and the refugees. But do most Americans feel safe with Obama as president? Or would they want a better conducted strong fight against ISIS and a thorough check on refugees? Im guessing the second one.

Is it racist to have no filter in trying to protect your country? Many do not blame Mr. Trump for saying the things that he does. There are things to back his thoughts up about some of the people that he talks about. For example have you ever heard about Sharia law? To sum it up it is a law that some Muslims follow, it means that their way/god is the only one and you should believe in it also. 1 in 5 Muslims in the United States approve of violence in order to institute Sharia. Mr. Trump also wanted to keep and eye on mosques in America. People also thought that was a crazy idea until one got raided in Europe and a bunch of weapons were found.

Most people say that the way that Mr. Trump talks is nasty, disrespectful, unfiltered, not politically correct. Is that a good thing or a bad thing in todays world? Lets look at the bad side first.

He could make an entire race, country mad and hate the United States more than they already do. He could make a leader very upset and start a war with us. He could also start riots and protests that turn into violence. Well lets just sum it up, he could ruin the entire country.

But on the positive side he does not care what people think and says what he wants compared to other politicians that are funded and say things because of who is backing them and what the people want to hear. He could get Americas economy booming by creating more jobs and bringing companies back to the US by lowering taxes. He could build a wall and tighten up the boarder making it hard for the bad people to get in and easy for the good people. I think of Mr. Trump as president just like I think of investing money and that is risk reward. You might take a high risk and lose everything but you could also make a great amount of money.

I believe that Mr. Trump would be a good president for many different reasons. I think that most of his ideas make sense when you think about whats at stake. For example I believe that building a wall would benefit the United States. Keeping drugs and illegal immigrants out is not a bad idea. It would create many jobs to build the wall and watch over the boarder. If people want to enter the United States they should pass strict security tests and come in legally. Also with what recently happened in Paris, many of the attackers traveled throughout Europe because of their weak boarders. Having strong boarders is a must have with what is going on in Mexico and in the middle East.

Mr. Trumps ideas to bring jobs back to America and to create more jobs could also work. This shows proof through his past on creating many jobs with his business background that he has. His idea to tax the companies very high will cause them to either come back or face the harsh penalty.

I think that his outlook on ISIS is powerful and not weak compared to Obamas. We need a strong leader not a weak one, obviously we don’t want to get into world war three. I think that denying the refugees is not a bad idea either, cant they find a country closer to them that will take them in? Do we, the United States have to be the whole worlds caretaker and policemen? I do not believe so. There is a difference between doing what is right and doing what is right for yourself. You have to look in the mirror and ask is this a good decision for me?

If you think that Mr. Trump is racist just because he calls all illegal immigrants bad people then go look at the statistics, you will probably agree with him. Or how he said to hold off all Muslims from coming into this country until we know whats going on. Why don’t you ask some family members who had family in the Word Trade center in 2001 about keeping an eye out for terrorists. Just because he has had a few run ins with women does not mean that he hates all women. He is a little on the agressive side of things when it comes to American safety but what is the problem with that? I hate going to the mall, sporting event, anything where there is a large gathering of people due to these terrorist attacks that have been happening. So yeah I agree with Mr. Trump on tightening up security a lot at the boarders, don’t you?

WRT 205/Spring 2016                         Grading Rubric: Unit III NYTs Magazine 

[1]  How well does the title provocatively focus the reader’s attention, as well as the lede? Is it thoughtful, creative, clever? Does it lead the reader into the text and provide some insight into the issue? Yes, I believe that it catches the readers attention as some will think “heck yeah!” and others will think “heck no!”. It gives a nice lead onto what is being talked about throughout the article.

[2]  How well does the introductory section of the article invite the reader into the paper, as well as offer up exigency?  How does it locate a problem or controversy within a context that provides background and rationale? It gives them something in common to relate to in their views wether they are with Trump or Against him. It also brings up a hot topic with the presidential election coming up and the different problems in America. It provides background and rational through all of the arguments and debates in the past and up to this point about Americas issues and fixing them between the different ideas of the different candidates.

[3] How well does the writer offer up a strong ‘idea’ that requires analysis to support and evolve it, as well as offers some point about the significance of evidence that would not have been immediately obvious to readers.? The writer shows ideas from both sides of the views but leans towards one side the whole time then at the end explains why.

[4] How well does the writer show clarity of thought; uniqueness of presentation; evidence of style; and historicized topics? The writer shows facts and his own opinion un a nice way to show both sides of the argument. His topics that he uses brings in old information on our previous president and uses him as a benchmark for the problems that need to be fixed in America today.

[5]  How well does the writer recognize that a NYTs Magazine audience will challenge ideas that are overgeneralized or underdeveloped or poorly explained? (that is, did the writer avoid cliché and vagueness or address points/issues readers are likely to have?)  How well did the writer decide about how to develop, sequence, and organize material? I think that the writer covered all bases of the argument that most readers will pick as side and agree with mostly what he has to say. I think that he did a good job at making the argument well rounded that people will find a side. The writer organized and sequenced the material nicely giving an overview of the topic and situation, switching into specific topics and then showing what his views are on the topic.

[6]  How well does the writer research a controversy, develop a persuasive stance, utilize research about the topic,  and join the ‘debate’ by making an argument of importance?  The writer had good research on the topic and knew what he was talking about. You could see that he did leaned towards one side of the argument for a persuasive stance. He used the research in good spots throughout the article where he needed credibility and he made an argument and talked about it at the end.

[7]  How well does the writer meet or exceed research expectations of assignment requirements (6 appropriate secondary sources, 1 visual source, (or more) and primary research? ). The researcher used many sources throughout the article and had a few visuals to go along with them.

[8]  How well does the writer integrate secondary and primary sources (that support and complicate the topic) effectively into the text, introducing and contextualizing them, and “conversing” (i.e. no drop-quoting) in ways that deepen and complicate the analysis? The writer does a good job at blending in the sources and using them to back up his information that he used. He uses many statistics as sources to backup what he is saying/trying to argue in the article.

[9 How well does the writer persuade an audience to consider claims made from a particular position of authority on which you have built your research?  How strong and effective is the writer’s use of rhetorical tools (ethos, logos, pathos)? The writer talks about things like fear, money, drugs, violence, etc. to get the readers at a personal level. He uses open ended questions about the things stated above to get the reader thinking about their self and family.

[10] How well does the writer select appropriate, interesting, revealing visual?  Has the writer placed a visual strategically in the essay and provided relevant commentary on and/or analysis of them?  Do the visuals contribute to the essay in meaningful ways (i.e. would the essay be affected if the writer took the visual away)?  He selects visuals related to the topic and even at a lower scale of some of the issues that he talks about. Yes the visuals contribute to the piece in a meaningful way using the main character of the essay as a visual.

[11] How well does the writer show development of final article using various drafts, in-class peer editing and workshops, and/or teacher comments? The writer took into consideration the main idea that was passed around class to comment on a sheet of paper. It helped a lot to create a better argument and add onto the draft to bring the whole piece together.

[12]  How well does the writer use hyperlinks—are they effective/appropriate?

He used links to show Donald Trumps website and the specific issues

[13]  How well did the writer edit for grammar, style, and usage effectively? Does the writer’s attention to sentence level issues help him/her establish authority or credibility on the issue?  I believe that he had a flowing piece with good sentences spaced nicely. Most sentences were strong to give him credibility and helped him with the issue.

Matt Nolan

Critical research

The American Food System

                                                                By: Matthew Nolan

Do you ever wonder where that cheeseburger that you picked up at McDonalds for lunch came from or what it is made out? Some do, some don’t but almost everyone is un informed on what they are putting into their bodies on a daily basis.

There are many different views when it comes to the American food system and how it is run. Many of these views are shown in the articles Food Inc., You Are What They Eat, Organic Illusions, and Resisting Food Safety. Theses articles all bring up things that go unseen to the general public that are the ones who are consuming the food and should know what they are putting into their mouths.
You may ask well, what is in jeopardy with the way that the American food system is being run today? The answer, there are many different things. But, the biggest one is the health of the American consumers. Most of the food being consumed on a daily basis in America is not good for the human body due to the practices of the food system.

The food industry is corrupted by big companies that are thirsty for money, forcing farmers to use GMO’s and specific feeds/farming techniques. A great majority of these things are bad for animals, humans, and the environment. The government(FDA,USDA) needs to do a better job at regulating and enforcing their rules on these techniques/practices used by companies and farmers. This leads to many unmoral things and sickness that could all be avoided if things were run correctly and morally. But is there a way to fix all of this and have a healthier food system for all of America or will we keep going down the same path?

Large companies have taken over the American food system single handedly in their desire to make the most money possible. How did they do this?

They have power and control over farmers by paying them good money to do what they want them to and to say nothing about it. If the farmer wanted to leave and be out on his own he would most likely go out of business due to all of the surrounding farmers working for the company that they once did. We see this in the video “Food Inc.” where the farmers talk about how they are controlled like puppets and doing things that they don’t believe in themselves. Companies also make seed deals that the farmers have to use and if you store the seeds or try and sell them you will have a lawsuit coming your way.  The feed that they force their farmers to feed to their animals is mostly GMO’s and other parts of chopped up animals. On top of all of this, most of the government and people above the big companies have money invested in the companies. This makes it almost impossible to change how things are happening now with the massive amounts of corruption.

The corruption, GMO’s, pesticides, etc. are bad for America, consumers, animals, and even the environment. How? There are many studies that have been performed to prove this.

Much of what is in the animals feed is very disgusting. That means that consumers are eating those animals that grew up eating that feed. “Our investigation raises concerns that the federal government isn’t doing enough to protect the feed supply and that as a result the food we eat may not be as safe as it could be”(CR Pg.26). The feed makes the animals unhealthy and many things are being thrown in that should not be like leftover pieces from other butchered animals, waste, and GMO’s.

GMO’s are in a ton of the foods that are being sold to consumers. As it says in the article GMO pig feed “Currently, no GE safety testing is required in the U.S. The long-term study revealed that pigs fed a GE diet suffered higher rates of severe stomach inflammation…”. This causes many problems that go unseen, for example gluten, many people in America do not know that they are gluten sensitive and it causes many different problems throughout the body. Pesticides and animal waste is being spread into fields and other places in the environment that leads to the polluting of water that all life drinks from on a daily bases. Workers are being mistreated in many of the facilities across America. They get paid dirt for doing dangerous and disgusting jobs. These are just some of the many things that are going on behind the scenes that is ignored by the food industry.

The government, USDA, and FDA are not doing their jobs to overlook the food industry and protect animals and humans. For example Nestle says that they have a lack of funding and manpower to do the job and keep up with the growing food system. The lack of manpower leads to a lack of inspections and oversight of practices that in turn are twisted and there is more room for error which leads to food borne illness and other things.

According to consumer reports, about 80% of seafood in the United States is imported and the FDA tests only about 2%. That is a ridiculously low percentage to be testing on all imports that could contain toxins and bacteria that could harm consumers. The FDA and USDA need to find a way to get more funding and employees to keep up with the changes in the food system for the good of the consumers. It is ridiculous that the consumers think that the job is being done in the right way and that they have nothing to worry about when it is being done poorly. The government, the FDA and USDA need to do a better job, its as simple as that.

There are ways to fix this mess that is going on with the food system in America. But no one can seem to agree and points fingers at everyone els for the problems. As Nestle says, the government(FDA,USDA) blames the corporations/companies, which blame the consumers and vice versa. Once we get over that we can start breaking down how to solve this problem.

As seen in the video “Food Inc.” one farmer did everything the natural way. For example the cows were in a field, ate the grass, and went to the bathroom and the cycle continued. “If the animals were on a grass diet would eliminate 75% of E coli in gut”(Food Inc.). If this was done throughout the US there would be less talk about feed and what environment that the animals lived in. Taking away the big companies that control everything would be another good idea.

    If food was bought locally that decreases the chances for bacteria and other things to grow with the less time that it is processed, shipped, and stored. Though some would disagree with this hypothesis like Blake Hurst. Hurst while talking about a study done at Stanford disagrees with the more natural way. “When a study finds no differences in nutritional value after 70 years of hybrid seeds, 60 years of chemical fertilizers, a half century of synthetic pesticide application, and almost two decades of GM seed, its a problem for the narrative of the organic industry”. This is definitely worth looking into but there would need to be more studies done since so many people would be for a more organic old fashioned way of farming. What happened to the old way of farming where there were minimal problems when it came to practices, GMO’s, pesticides, feed, etc. Will there be a day when we revert back to the ways that were less harming?

As you can see the American food system has many underlying problems that is blind to the consumers. American people are uninformed with what goes on behind the scenes and what they are putting into their bodies day after day. Starting with company corruption, GMO’s, poor practices, lack of government funding/manpower are all big problems that have to be looking into. There are many different ideas and ways that it can be changed for the good. But the American people need to step up and make it known that there is a problem that needs to be fixed. The people in charge will not do anything about it if they are making their money. Also having everyone involved with the food system blaming each other for the poor job is definitely not fixing the problem. So it comes back to this question do you believe that the American food system change for the good? Or will it always be in the poor non ethical state that it is now.

Reflection Questions

Unit I / 10%

Using the homework, in-class workshops, revision workshops, etc.

1.) Describe your understanding of the “writer’s project”? How were you able to identify the texts’ “project”? Discuss your own “project” as it pertains to this particular blog article.

I believe that the writers project brings attention to what is really going on with a song, writing piece, etc. I always listen to songs and try to figure out what they are singing about, I find that interesting. I look up lyrics and there is a site genius lyrics that kind of interprets the lyrics for you on what they are really trying to say. I think that my project works like this in a way that using the articles brings out what I am really trying to say in a way.

2.)  Describe your completion of the “Sorting it Out” workshop? What sections were most beneficial to the development of your ideas—and why? Discuss how this workshop assisted in development of draft and/or assignment organization?

It helped me know what each articles were talking about with the different words that each of them used. That helped me section different articles together. It also helped by talking about what argument each article was putting forth and so I could also use that to organize them with my own argument.

3.)  Describe your understanding of synthesis. What is its importance? How did it manifest within your drafts and/or final blog article? Provide examples.

At first I had a wide range on what I was writing about. Then after doing some of the exercises that we did in class with the synthesis I got more specific. For example “Consumers do not know what they are eating today” to “When you go to lunch at Burger kind do you know where that burger is coming from and what is in it?” opening sentences early and later. It helped me change to catch the readers attention and be a little more interesting.

4.)  Describe your own accomplishment (of something) during this unit.

Learning how to organize ideas better and how to write a blog compared to a usual essay.

5.) Discuss the evolution of the main idea. Where did you begin (include the example) and show its progress (again, include example) throughout the drafting/revision process. To what do you attribute its evolution?

At the beginning I had a broad idea as there were so many things that I was interested in to write about. But as we went along and did different activities I narrowed down my ideas! All of the exercises that we did really helped me to narrow down my idea and be more specific.

6.) Discuss what organizational strategies you implemented in order to structure this blog article. Provide examples from a section(s) of an earlier draft and other excerpts in later drafts to support your response.

I liked the activities that we did in class. For example sorting it out. I tried to break down my blog into different parts on what is wrong with the food industry.

7.) Provide an example of the final draft where you successfully synthesize 3 texts in a concise and direct manner. Discuss how this evolved throughout the drafting process for you.

“There are ways to fix this mess that is going on with the food system in the United States. But no one can seem to agree and blames everyone els for the problems. As Nestle says, the government(FDA,USDA) blames the corporations/companies, which blame the consumers and vice versa. Once we get over that we can start breaking down how to solve this problem.

As seen in the video “Food Inc.” one farmer did everything the natural way. For example the cows were in a field, ate the grass, and went to the bathroom and the cycle continued. “If the animals were on a grass diet would eliminate 75% of E coli in gut”(Food Inc.). If this was done throughout the US there would be less talk about feed and what environment that the animals lived in. Taking away the big companies that control everything would be another good idea.

If food was bought locally that decreases the chances for bacteria and other things to grow with the less time that it is processed, shipped, and stored. Though some would disagree with this hypothesis like Blake Hurst. Hurst talking about a study done at Stanford disagrees “When a study finds no differences in nutritional value after 70 years of hybrid seeds, 60 years of chemical fertilizers, a half century of synthetic pesticide application, and almost two decades of GM seed, its a problem for the narrative of the organic industry”. This is definitely worth looking into but there would need to be more studies done since so many people would be for a more organic old fashioned way of farming. What happened to the old way of farming where there were minimal problems when it came to practices, GMO’s, pesticides, feed, etc. Will there be a day when we revert back to the ways that were less harming?

8.) Discuss the evolution of the ‘lede’ in earlier drafts and its final version (provide examples of each): where did you begin, what feedback did you receive, and how did it end up in final blog article?

In the beginning I had a normal introduction. After we did the exercise on the lede I changed it to be more interesting and catch the readers attention. “Do you ever wonder where that cheeseburger that you picked up at McDonalds for lunch came from or what it is made out? Many people are un informed on what they are putting into their bodies on a daily basis.””

9.) Name a specific writing/researching/revision goal you’d like to work on during the next Unit projects.

I would like to work on making my blog smoother and easier to read. I want to learn how to break it down. For example if you see a blog you see a sentence or two then a space then a sentence or 4 space ect. ect. I want to really learn how to do that better.

Matt Nolan

Critical research

Draft 2/20

What is in jeopardy with the way that the American food system is being run today? The food industry is corrupted by big companies that are thirsty for money, forcing farmers to use GMO’s and specific feeds/farming techniques. Most of these things are bad for animals, humans, and the environment. The government(FDA,USDA) needs to do a better job at regulating and enforcing their rules on these techniques/practices. Is there a way to fix all of this and have a healthier food system for all of America or will we keep going down the same path?

Large companies have taken over the American food system single handedly in their desire to make the most money possible. They have power and control over farmers by paying them good money to do what they want them to. If the farmer wanted to leave and be out on his own he would most likely go out of business due to all of the surrounding farmers working for the company that they once did. We see this in the video “Food Inc.” where the farmers talk about how they are controlled like puppets. Companies also make seed deals and if you store the seeds or try and sell them you will have a lawsuit coming your way.  The feed that they force their farmers to feed their animals is mostly GMO’s and other parts of chopped up animals. On top of all of this, most of the government and people above the big companies have money invested in them. This makes it almost impossible to change how things are happening now.

The things stated above are bad for America, consumers, animals, and even the environment. How? There are many studies that have been performed to prove this. Many of what is in the animals feed is very disgusting. That means that consumers are eating those animals that grew up eating that feed. “Our investigation raises concerns that the federal government isn’t doing enough to protect the feed supply and that as a result the food we eat may not be as safe as it could be”(CR Pg.26).Workers are being mistreated in many of the facilities across America. GMO’s are in a ton of the foods that are being sold to consumers. As it says in the article GMO pig feed “Currently, no GE safety testing is required in the U.S. The long-term study revealed that pigs fed a GE diet suffered higher rates of severe stomach inflammation…”. Pesticides and animal waste is being spread into the environment polluting waters that all life drinks on a daily bases.

The government, USDA, and FDA are not doing their jobs to overlook the food industry and protect animals and humans. For example Nestle says that they have a lack of funding and manpower to do the job and keep up with the growing food system. Which leads to a lack of oversight and practices are twisted and there is more room for error which leads to food borne illness and other things. About 80% of seafood in the United States is imported and the FDA tests only about 2% according to consumer reports. That is a ridiculously low percentage to be testing on all imports that could contain toxins and bacteria that could harm consumers. The FDA and USDA need to find a way to get more funding to keep up with the changes in the food system for the good of the consumers.

There are ways to fix this mess that is going on with the food system in the United States. But no one can seem to agree and blames everyone els for the problems. As Nestle says, the government(FDA,USDA) blames the corporations/companies, which blame the consumers and vice versa. Once we get over that we can start breaking down how to solve this problem. As seen in the video “Food Inc.” one farmer did everything the natural way. For example the cows were in a field, ate the grass, and went to the bathroom and the cycle continued. “If the animals were on a grass diet would eliminate 75% of E coli in gut”(Food Inc.).If this was done throughout the US there would be less talk about feed and what environment that the animals lived in. Taking away the big companies that control everything would be another good idea. If food was bought locally that decreases the chances for bacteria and other things to grow with the less time that it is processed, shipped, and stored. Though some would disagree with this hypothesis like Blake Hurst. Hurst talking about a study done at Stanford disagrees “When a study finds no differences in nutritional value after 70 years of hybrid seeds, 60 years of chemical fertilizers, a half century of synthetic pesticide application, and almost two decades of GM seed, its a problem for the narrative of the organic industry”. This is definitely worth looking into but there would need to be more studies done since so many people would be for a more organic old fashioned way of farming.

How will the American food system be in 50 years? No one knows but the way that it is going with corruption starting at the top with companies and government and the bad practices who knows. Hopefully people will start to look into what goes on behind the scenes and what they are actually eating and try to make a change. People need to start being more informed about what they are putting into their body and not being persuaded by company ads and other things. All of there articles bring up great points about what is wrong and what is not wrong with the food system. As it will take a ton of consumers and people that want to do the right thing to make a change for the good of the American food system.