Blog Post 3

Our topic speeches covered a lot of hot topics in the news. My topic was gun control, and I think that I did a mediocre job at delivering my information to the class. I was losing focus while I talked and couldn’t organize my thoughts into a coherent string of words. I didn’t think that I needed a notecard or anything to keep my thoughts organized for a one minute speech that I was so passionate about, but now I feel that I was wrong. I remember having so many ideas in my head and so many directions that I wanted to take my speech, but I drew mostly blank when it came time to deliver my speech. In addition to the lack of coherent thoughts that I possessed in front of the class, I was also fidgety when I was in the spotlight. I have never been good at public speaking, and this wasn’t a big surprise to me when I watched the recording of the speeches. Overall, I think that I delivered the main points of my topic, but there was definitely a lot of room for improvement and I will be working on that the rest of the semester.

WRD 111 Blog

1-24-14

                                                                        Post #2

One topic that I can think of doing my speech on currently would be immigration. I would want to do a different angle on it, like why they are coming over to the United States in the first place, or something like that. I would include the conditions they are trying to escape and the opportunities here.

            Another topic could be the legalization of marijuana. I would present the pros and cons found in the states that have already legalized it, and why it should or shouldn’t be legal. I haven’t picked a side yet.

            Another possible topic could be the NSA’s use of monitoring systems relative to our communications. I would present the facts of why they are doing, and show pros and cons. Is it necessary for our safety? Or is it too invasive? Should we try to stop it, or is it a step in the right direction for the greater good of the country?

January 20th, 2014
                                                                   Blog Post 1

When we drive down the road on any given day, we pass by numerous billboards off to the side, towering above most things around you. They are clearly visible, and present to you a product or service that can be purchased by you as a consumer. We may not realize the argument that these billboards present whenever we see them, but having one right next to my work has given me the time to examine them. The billboard by my work is an advertisement for the UK federal credit union. It shows a UK basketball player dribbling, and a portrait style photo of coach Cal. I didn’t think much about it before, but I can now see that the argument shown on the billboard is that the UKFCU is the best. Everyone loves the UK basketball team and we are the winningest team in college basketball, and they attempt to associate that with their bank and their services. They are arguing that they are the best.

There are also arguments in places that we wouldn’t expect or don’t really think about like in the packaging of products. There are so many facts and features that are showcased on a package for something. When you buy something, they don’t give an essay of why their product is better than a competitors. They give facts and features of their product as if to say that this is why you should buy this. I recently bought a GPS as a gift, and the packaging was saying that it came with lifetime maps, and that the GPS had an easy user interface, and was accurate to within a couple of yards. This representation of information is an argument to buy the GPS over another that doesn’t have quite the same features.

Another argument that I have found is just the everyday disagreement. On the surface, a disagreement in opinions isn’t seen as an argument all of the time, but it is in fact an argument. My run in with this form of argument was with someone at work when they said that iPhone was better than the Galaxy series of phones. Our disagreement was followed with reasons for our thinking and opinion. This was an attempt to persuade each other to think the way that the other was thinking. We were presenting an argument to each other to change their views.

The second to last argument that I have noticed is a newspaper. A newspaper has many potential rivals. It is easy to get information on current events online or numerous other places, so newspaper editors need to put a catchy title or cover story on. The Kentucky Kernel is no different in its approach. The newspaper argues that their newspaper should be picked up and read instead of other forms of current events. When the Kentucky Kernel puts interesting stories on the cover, they are arguing to read their paper.

The last thing that I saw that presented an argument was in a song title. The titles of songs are a recap of what the song is about, but more importantly it presents an argument to people of why they need to listen to the music. The title argues that the song is interesting and that it would be fun, or interesting to listen to. It peaks interest in the audience and argues for them to listen.