Photo Story Comments

Paying Tribute to Fallen Miners is a photo story that I find interesting; since, in my geology class I am learning how this nation gets it resources. We get them from oil, gas, and Uranium; all of these natural resources are attained by men that risk their lives everyday. This photo story portrays a recent incident that occurred in the United States, where honest and diligent citizens lost their lives. Thus, the topic for this photo story is very important. For that same reason President Obama is on 6 of the 8 images that appear on this photo story. In addition, local leaders of the mining community appear praying for the fallen miners and Gov. Joe Manchin III from West Virginia is also present in one of the pictures. These, influential and important leaders give this photo story more ethos or credibility. Because, such important people only meet for extremely important issues. Nonetheless, I think that President Obama being in so many pictures makes the photo story very redundant. Those pictures in excess could be replace with some more tragic events to increase the pathos to eventually provoke a feeling of pity or sadness. The attention getter was not effective because a man with a T-shirt that has a picture comes out. I think that something like a helmet or a fallen pick would’ve been better and more related to the topic. The attention getter and including more provocative pictures with relevance will improve this photo story.

The Opinion Piece Of A Well Know Economist.

I answered some questions to an opinion piece of the article that I found on a blog that I read daily. The writters are two well know economists. The article can be found in the link below.

http://uchicagolaw.typepad.com/beckerposner/2010/04/the-effects-on-children-of-the-decline-in-marriage-becker.html

1. How does the op-ed piece introduce the topic?
Becker a well known economist introduced his writing by defining marriage, in the next sentence he stated that marriage is important to nurture children. His thesis is that both parents are needed to educate the offspring.
2. The op-ed piece probably makes only one or two major points. What’s the major point?
The major point is the effect on children when parents divorce although the title says marriage decline.
3. How does the author defend the point? For example, what kind of facts, statistics and quotes does he or she use?
He claims that divorce rates are increasing and that people are now getting married at the age of 27 instead of 23. With his research he found out that children with single parents perform bad in school. He compared three ethnicities the African Americans, Anglos, and Hispanics. This is how the author defended his point.
4. How does the author recommend that the problem be solved?
Becker claims that government must do something to encourage marriage since both parents are essential to educate the child. He thinks that if we pay married people with welfare instead of giving money to single parents. Couples will have the incentive to stay married.
5. How does the op-ed piece conclude?
He closed his opinion piece by saying that government is worried about this issue. That it is crucial that we generate productive children to maintain or improve our country

Voices for Justice

I was running in the union I was running late. It was 6:00 in the afternoon I arrived late to the Diego Rivera auditorium late. To see the Voice for Justice speech. As I walked in I saw the prettiest girl from my speech class but I as I walked into the room I saw posters. I walked around I saw several. They dealt with injustices towards Latinos in the past. Now I will write in present tense because you cant write while you walk. Currently I am sitting in the Diego Rivera auditorium next to the pretty girl. She is explaining me how she is thinking into transferring to NYU. Because there are not many opportunities for students with Communications bachelors. The presentation just started, the speaker that is talking is a writer for Borderzine. Her name is Zita; she is talking and explaining the life of Felix Gutierrez, he has PhD in Journalism. He encourages young people a life in the journalism field according to Zita. With my notebook I feel like a journalist right now. Dr. Gutierrez, walked to the podium and he is giving a speech about how Mexicans wrote and how they expressed themselves. With the purpose to stop being discriminated, he says that El Paso was known as the Vatican for Latino magazines and newspapers publishers. He claims that in 1913 about 113 Latino writing were published here in El Paso. Even more he says that El Paso means the step and he says that it the first step to a better life in the U.S. and that his parents gave the first step in 1908. His father was a revolutionary who expressed himself against the racism and discrimination towards Mexicans. I just glanced back and I saw my mentor’s uncle he is wearing a green polo; as a matter of a fact I was thinking that I had to invite him. This is queer, that happens rarely you never know who you will see in the next corner. But I am glad he is here; after the presentation we might be able to talk because I like the way in which he expresses himself. I completed one paper I think that I will listen to what they are saying; since, I like Chicano history and I want to ask a smart question after the presentation.

Campaign Commercial

The commercial I chose is one that is posted in You Tube and the reason why I picked this one is because this is the only one I know since I don’t watch TV and I was a volunteer for her campaign. Regardless of my friendship with the Judge, her Ethos is excellent because she has credibility; like she said “I have been judge for 14 years [and...] my rulings have never been reversed by the court of appeals”. She has experience in her job and since her rulings have never been reversed; this means that the upper courts always agreed with her decisions. That represents integrity and fairness for a judge. Her Logos is good because she claims that she is confident and motivated to continue serving at her court room. Also, her arguments have logic because obviously someone with so many experience and reputation make her reliable and trustworthy. Her demeanor makes her pathos copacetic. Judge Gonzalez looks professional most of the time even the letters that appear look professional. They look like the letters that the great fathers of this country used to sign the constitution. Her Ethos, Logos, and Pathos made an excellent commercial.

Campaign

Drug War Zone Annotation

My topic is drug trafficking up to this point I decided that I will talk about both governments in specific about the laws. The source that I think is reliable and that has important information is the book written by Howard Campbell, a former professor at UTEP. The name of this book is War Zone and after skimming this book I discovered that it has information about laws. This book has over 100 pages worth of law enforcement; therefore, this book will be a good resource. Furthermore, this book is recent and Howard Campbell will be here at UTEP and I will have the opportunity to ask him any questions. More importantly, a friend of mine knows him very well and it would be great to create a friendship Mr. Campbell. What I like the most of this book is that it talks about Juarez in specific, this means that it has information about the sister city of El Paso as well.

References for Drug Trafficking Project

Recently I have started my research for my English Class and I have found interesting information. For instance, the CIA, FBI, and DEA are well known agencies that are reliable on information. In addition, Borderzine is a website that provides information about the sister cities of El Paso and Juarez; there I found information about another local agency that fights drug trafficking. The most recent book that I found was written by Dr. Campbell a man that is fighting against the cartels in Juarez through journalism and I consider that his book will guide to more references if I look at the bibliography of the book. By using the bibliographies of other reliable authors I can save time which will allow me to look at more books, journals, and magazines. This will increment the information of facts and I will be engaged in this paper more profoundly. My research paper will be written in the APA format and the elements of this format are: Author's last name, first initial. (Publication date). Book title. Additional information. City of publication: Publishing company.

DRUG TRAFFICKING IN THE BORDER

An issue that affects the communities of El Paso and Juarez is Drug trafficking. In general drug trafficking affects us as a city and more importantly as a nation, it is in our public interest to stop people from consuming drugs. The El Paso and Juarez border is the largest port in the United States and Mexico, eventually this becomes a community issue for the residents of El Paso and Cd. Juarez.
This issue is extremely important since it is in our public interest to have a world free from drugs. As we all know drugs are deleterious for humans physically and we don’t want a community that suffers from an illness caused by drugs. There are many problems linked to the consumption of drugs and it is important that I address these problems to show that drug trafficking harms people, families, and communities. What makes this topic valuable is that I will have the opportunity to compare the local government from Juarez and El Paso. Since ironically El Paso is the second safest city in the United States while Juarez is one of the cities with the higher crime rates. The crimes that take place in Juarez are connected to the cartels that transport drugs to the United States.
Some subtopics of drug trafficking might be several facts; for instance, the amount of drugs that crossed the border annually. Identify the different kinds of drugs that are imported to the United States. How much money was invested by governments to fight the drug trafficking issue. Another subtopic that I should identify is what the FBI and DEA are doing to stop this crime. Furthermore, I will do some research and perhaps, another local agency that fights drug trafficking might exist.
My goal is to apprise the readers and the audience of the facts that take place in our community and the importance of this issue. In addition, I would like to investigate what the leaders of both communities are doing or plan to do to stop this issue. More importantly what the government of El Paso will do to maintain this city and what Juarez government will implement to stop the violence which is caused by drug trafficking. Another accomplishment that I will attain from this project is knowledge about public policy which at this time I need desperately for the internship at Capitol Hill.
A new insight that I will provide to this project will be criminal law. In the United States it is federal crime to smuggle illegal substances and I will like to make some research on the type of punishment that exist against this type criminals. In addition, I will like to analyze those laws thoroughly. By locating this facts, I will consider if the laws to stop drug trafficking are aligned with the constitution and at the same time if they are efficient. Perhaps, I might discover a perfect model to punish this kind of criminals with justice.
Drug trafficking is an issue that must concern every El Pasoan since this is the largest port for drugs. Thereby, our mother, father, sibling, and even us are at risk of consuming drugs. It is assumed that drugs are more available here than in any other place of the country and for that reason we are in more danger of falling into a drug addiction.
Drug trafficking is an important issue in El Paso and Juarez. For that reason, I would like to analyze thoroughly and present my ideas in an organized and clear manner to my professor and classmates of English 1311.

Harvard's and UTEP's Website

Harvard is the best ranked school in general, most of our leaders attended that school if you revise their alumni it is a long list. On the other hand if you see UTEP’s website the alumni is not as famous as those in Harvard. The websites of both colleges are different they target different kinds of students with different abilities.
Harvard’s website is not colorful the background is cold and perhaps they don’t want average to people to apply. That could be assumed by the fact that the a admissions link is not as visible as others websites. This means that they don’t want to loose their time with knuckle heads so they make it a little more challenging. The dark colors convey a notion of seriousness and professionalism; although, it is my understanding that they are liberals. That is encouraging and it makes you ponder and consider whether “your Harvard material or not”. Also the information that the website transmits is impressive and different than any other website. By the fact that it just states the numerous victories that they had over the years in academics and sports. In addition, the website links you to their graduate and undergraduate schools. Every Harvard school has its own website; for instance, the website of Business School it states that it has 33 buildings and over 40 acres. Furthermore, they claim to have the largest business library in the world. All of this information is aimed at future leaders of the world and to those that have excellent academic skills. The designs and information tell us that they want the best from the best around the world.
UTEP’s website is colorful and it looks even more liberal and social. It has pictures of students walking and acting normal. In addition, it has several links right in the home of the website. They provide visitors with more information than Harvard and I think that they are more ambitious in accepting more people. There is a picture where President Obama appears and it is a great honor to receive his visitation. That apprises to visitors that our school has more prestige; for the reason, that President Obama came to visit.
It is an honor and privilege to be a student at UTEP and I think that school you attend doesn’t matter; it is all in the type of student you are. Anyhow, I consider that Harvard targets at the best of the best students. While UTEP has its doors open to a variety of people to make the institution more diverse.

A Discourse Community

A discourse community is a group of people that share same values and goals; this is possible through their similar forms of communication. Their communication process can be written and spoken; in addition, these communities have a terminology that identifies them. In my case, I am a member of the Law School Preparation Institute (LSPI) and members of that community share common goals.
Members of the Law School Preparation Institute have the same objective; our objective is to learn more about law and most of us are aspiring lawyers. To learn the law we have to read cases, analyze the facts, identify the issue, make reasoning, and give a conclusion. Sometimes we have mock trials and we get the opportunity to be a judge and the defendant’s or victim’s attorney. As a judge it is your duty to conduct the session in a formal manner, provide reasoning, and finally give a conclusion. If you are an attorney it is your duty to defend your party using valid arguments gathered from the cases you read. In occasions, our tutors gave us lessons in how to write like lawyers and the importance of applying dovetails to make legal papers more clear and specific.
The Law School Preparation Institute is a discourse community because we communicate by speaking and writing. In addition, we share common values like working hard to accomplish our goals. In this case, I and my peers share a passion for the law and someday we will practice the law.
“On Becoming a Writer” a small story by Russell Baker in which he explains his attitude towards writing. At first he was motivated but he thought that it was something beyond his reach but he enjoyed it like nothing else. He was discouraged by his professor because he had to follow a certain format; at one point of his journey he detested writing. One day he did free writing for one of his assignments and his teacher was impressed with the quality of the paper. Russell Baker was discouraged but he persevered especially when he noticed that cheese people like his professor liked his writing. Mr. Baker and I have similar experiences while pursuing our desired career, but, in my case it is the law.
When I was a sophomore in High School one of my teachers told me that I should be an engineer because lawyers need to speak English perfectly. Since my arrival from Mexico was recent my English was weak at that time. My teacher basically told me that learning proper English was something impossible for me because I was too old. His words ignited a curiosity, so I decided to go to the court house to confirm that lawyers are perfect speakers just like he claims. My professor was partially correct because indeed lawyers are excellent public speakers but that doesn’t mean that I can’t do it. That same day I introduced myself to several lawyers and a judge, to keep a conversation I told them about my dreams and that I was passionate about the law. One lawyer was thoroughly impressed with my courage and he offered me an internship during the summer eventually he hired me and I have been working for him for the last 2 years. During that time frame I have learned more vocabulary and his advice is valuable for law school and for real life situations.
My story and Mr. Baker’s story are parallel because both of us persevered. Ironically for both of us the persons that almost spoiled our dreams were the ones that generated and motivated us to continue with our goals. Mr. Baker is a successful writer and I will be a successful a lawyer; regardless of what people say or force me to do because now I am aware that what might see your destruction is in reality your salvation.

Top Ten Community Issues

1.) Voting Rates- About ten percent of the people in El Paso are registered to vote, people must exercise their right to vote. It is their opportunity to elect someone they support.
2.) Corruption- Recently I have read articles involving corrupt judges from this county; this is not fair for all citizens.
3.) Immigration- The wall is an embarrassment for Mexicans because most of us come here to the United States looking for a better work.
4.) Nonprofit Organizations- It is the third largest employer of El Paso and some Elected Officials are looking forward in making cuts. These organizations are there to help people in need.
5.) Taxes- As an economist I would like to find a model that could lower taxes for the upper class to encourage the inauguration of more businesses. But, I would also like to find a way to maintain some of those nonprofit organizations.
6.) Violence in Juarez- Affects trading with the United States and also the people that reside there live with constant fear and I have family in Juarez.
7.) Drugs and weapons trafficking- This is the largest port for drug and weapon trafficking in the United States. El Paso has been a peaceful place but we are at risk of becoming a violent community.
8.) Unemployment- In order for us to be successful as a country and as a community we need to fix the unemployment statistics.
9.) Education- As a former student of El Paso Independent School District I consider that the level of difficulty for the TAKS is very low and I think it should be higher to encourage competition.
10.) Teen Pregnancy- It shouldn’t be happening because young women usually go on welfare and government cannot be spending too much money on them.

My Information

My name is Marco Antonio Favela I was born in Juarez, Mexico. I am 18 years old and I am attending the University of Texas at El Paso I would like attend Law School after I earn a Bachelors in Finance and Economics. My goal is to be a Corporate Lawyer and I would like to practice Criminal Law as a hobby. The purpose of this blog is to improve my writing and analytical skills to eventually become a better speaker to present my ideas more clearly too any audience. This blog is a product of my English 1311 class and I look forward in learning new things through this class.