"If Black Isn't A Language, then Tell Me, What Is?"

In this essay, author James Baldwin addresses the topic of language. He states that the language a person speaks reveals who he or she is. He states that language "is the most vivid and crucial key to identity. To open your mouth you have confessed your parents, your youth, your school, your self-esteem, and your future." Although there are common languages among certain locations, a person may be speaking a "subtly and different language" than one that is from another location. Baldwin provides an example of this through his observations of those who speak the French language; "A Frenchman living in Paris speaks a subtly and crucially different language from that of a man living in Marseilles; neither sounds very much a like from a man living in Quebec although the 'common' language in all these areas is French." Because each man is from a different area of the world, their way of speaking French is unique to them and their identity.

Baldwin also addresses the evolvement of the African American language and how it has influenced the language of the White Americans. He provides evidence of this with his example of how the White Americans have adopted the Jazz Age. Throughout history, African Americans have only been viewed as slaves to their masters; they are servants with nothing to contribute. Therefore, Baldwin addresses his argument: "If this absolutely unprecedented journey does not indicate that black English is a language, then I am curious to know what the definition of language is to be trusted." At the end of his essay, Balwin provides us with information that White Americans were not interested in educating African Americans; if a child was to be educated that he could no longer be black and that he knows he could never be White. But if the White American language is influenced by the African American language, why would an African American child need to be educated by a White American? The purpose of Baldwin's argument is to inform his audience about this issue and for the black English language to receive recognition.

Annotated Bibliography

Hanson, Mary E. Go! Fight! Win! Cheerleading in American Culture. Bowling Green: Bowling Green State University Popular Press, 1995.

This book addresses many aspects of cheerleading. It informs us with the history of cheerleading, how it began and how it has evolved. This book also provides its audience with information on how cheerleading is linked with the media and advertising and also the symbols, meanings, and how people have come to interpret "the cheerleader".
Mary Ellen Hanson is the author of this book. She has been a cheerleader herself in the past and is now employed at the University of New Mexico. Through her experiences in cheerleading and the history of its past, she has conducted research in this area.
The purpose for publishing her book was for her audience to be informed of what cheerleading really is. She provides information covering history to its symbolism and meaning, and to its purpose in advertising. In addition, she has shown evidence from its evolvement how it can be associated as a sport.
This book was a very useful source to me. It provided lots of information that I could use to support my argument. This book covered lots of materials that went further into my topic.

CRAAP Test

In "Dihydrogen Monoxide in the Dairy Industry", Tom Way discusses the issue about dihydrogen monoxide in milk. The purpose for the website is to inform readers about the risks of dihydrogen monoxide(DHMO), but according to the CRAAP test, this website does not pass the test and is unreliable. On the homepage of this website, the date of when it was last updated is displayed at the bottom of the page, showing that it was last updated on March 11, 2008. This shows that this website is still current. The ideas present on the page are not consistent, therefore showing no relevance to the issue at hand. The first five paragraphs go into the dangers of dihydrogen monoxide, that it is a contaminant in milk. Then the next paragraphs go into the use of a photograph of a cow taken from another corporation. The author of the website is Tom Way. According to the website www.cvc.villanova.edu, it states that Tom Way specializes in the field of computer science. To make sure that it was the Tom Way I was looking for, I went through the website and sure enough, the website provided a link to the dhmo.org website. Because Tom Way specializes in the field of computer science, he does not have the qualifications to talk about health. Therefore, Tom Way quotes Dr. Donna Maria Waltz, who specializes in the field of dairy nutrition. In the article, there is a link under Dr. Waltz's name to her webpage. On her webpage, she claims that she has a bachelors, masters, and a Ph.D degree under the title of her name. She gives us a link to the company where she had worked before, but the link is not functional. She also gives us two links to the schools from where she got her degrees, but only one is functional. Dr. Waltz does not provide a lot of information about her and at the end of what she has posted, she states "That's all I'm going to say about myself and my vocation. :-)" which doesn't show seriousness about her profession. Most of the links to the special reports on the homepage do not make much sense (for example DHMO plays a role in the formation of cancer), considering that dihydrogen monoxide(DHMO) is just another name for water. According to the American Chemistry Council, dihydrogen means two hydrogen atoms and monoxide means one oxygen atom and therefore comprises H2O. Although the information provided sounds intellectual and is supported by one source, that one source is unreliable and there are no other sources to back up the claim. As a result, because the contents of this webpage does not pass the criteria of a reliable source, this website is a bunch of crap!

Logical Fallacies

The article I chose to analyze is "Cure More, Spend Less" by Tommy G. Thompson. This article goes into detail about the need for our presidential candidates to put focus towards health care as one of the ways our government can perform more efficiently. Because he is a Republican, he especially feels that the Republican Party has a strong position on the issue of health. Thompson also states his opinion on other topics that he feels people should focus on such as problems with the Food and Drug Administration(FDA), setting goals to find cures for breast cancer, prostate cancer, and colon cancer, and the possibility of creating a flat tax.
Although this article is mainly of Thompson's opinion, it does carry some logical fallacies. In the article, Thompson jumps from health care to the FDA, then to the cures for certain cancers, and then taxes. This shows the use of the Non sequitar fallacy. The article does not follow from the previous statements. The author goes from one point to another point and leaps to another point that had nothing to do with the original argument. The author has left out information that could have linked those ideas together. In addition to the Non sequitar fallacy, the Red Herring fallacy is also demonstrated in this article. As the author introduces another topic, he gets the reader off track at what the real issue at hand is.
The end of the article states that Thompson is a former Republican governor of Wisconsin and secretary of health and human services. Upon reading this, many people would think that Thompson is a reliable source because of his credentials. Where he argues that campaigns should look at the possibility of creating a flat tax to replace our progressive tax, he assumes that our taxing system now is counterproductive. He does not provide evidence of how or why it is counterproductive. Therefore, this demonstrates the Appeal to Improper Authority fallacy. Thompson is an expertise in the field of health but argues about taxes.

Middle-schoolers get the pill

In this article, the main issue addressed is whether or not it would be a good idea to let middle schoolers have access to contraceptives. One perspective of this argument is that "Some children are having sex anyways...so shouldn't we keep them as safe as possible?" This perspective is supported by providing information that King Middle School is made up of poor and immigrant students; some of the girls who attend this middle school are already sexually active. Because they are poor, they are not able to afford "the same kind of health services available to teenage girls who can afford private gynecologists". Therefore the district wants to make these kinds of services available to these girls. While in the process of obtaining birth control, the Boston Globe states, "No one, moreover, is simply handing these girls the pill. Girls requesting birth control must 'first travel a long--even arduos--road of conselling'", where they are informed by the nurses of the risks of underage sex.
The counterargument is that 11 year-olds shouldn't be having sex anyways. This perspective is supported by arguing that providing contraceptives is like encouraging middle schoolers to have sex, as stated using the analogy "It's no less absurd than dealing with the reality of teen smoking by handing out low-tar cigarettes to the seventh grade," said M.D. Harmon in the Portland Press Herald. But both perspectives level off, as stated in the article "the evidence supports a 'combined approach'...urging kids to delay sex until they're older, but also helping them to avoid getting pregnant or a STD if they listen to their hormones, instead of to lectures by adults".
One perspective that was overlooked was the part of the parents within this issue. Although while obtaining birth control, the nurses do urge those girls to speak to their parents, but those girls are still able to receive birth control without the consent of their parents. I think at that young of an age, the role of the parents should be taken into consideration, especially since sex is a sensitive, but also serious issue. It could lead to many threats, such as STDs, and responsibilities for the action. Although the girls will be informed of the risks of their actions by the nurses, their parents should also play a part in educating their daughters about sex.