Captolo-what?

Despite its short length, I found the summary/analysis of Stuart Selber's article on Rhetorical Literacy to be a challenging read. After reading it several times, I realized that there were just too many concepts that I was unfamiliar with. For instance, I had no idea what "human-computer interfaces" or "captologists" were. I spent some time looking up these concepts and even exploring the meaning of the title "rhetorical literacy." I eventually stumbled upon Stanford University's Persuasive Tech Lab web site, where I discovered that captology is "the study of computers as persuasive technology" ("What is Captology?"). This is a brand new, cutting-edge school of thought that examines how web sites and computer technology influence people's behavior.

Since public writing is primarily done to persuade others, and many forms of public writing can now be found online, this new field of study is highly relevant to public writers. A very basic example of the kind of persuasion that they are studying can be found on their "trigger" page. A trigger is something that tells people to "do it now!" and succeeds in actually influencing a person's behavior/actions; the implications for public writing could be significant if we found a way to apply such principles to get people to make a difference in their community. Many of Stanford's Behavior Model projects are studying the persuasive rhetoric of social networking sites, but with so many people using these sites, the data and findings from these studies may be incredibly telling---and possibly useful for application in other fields.

Week 4: Tee-Shirts, Visual Rhetoric, and Publicity

"Join Hands," Mike Baird, CC BY 2.0

This image, to the left, is a picture from the "Hands Across the Sand" organization. This group regularly advertises for citizens to meet at specific times at beaches (for instance, 12:00 p.m. on June 25 in Misquamicut). Their purpose is to raise awareness of the ocean and beach pollution and it is a powerful sight to see a group of folks standing for miles joined in hands for a cause.

Nevertheless, this is just one example of a type of visual rhetoric you might employ to bring awareness to a cause, and one could easily imagine seeing a picture like this on a tee-shirt with the words "join hands". Just those three elements, the two words and the image would certainly be a great example of a visual argument (although that isn't a tee-shirt I am aware exists).

For this week's post, then, I ask you to upload a copy of the tee-shirt image you made in.gif, .jpeg, .tiff, or other image files. In other words, post your draft of the visual argument associated with Project 3. Use two-three sentences to describe the visual argument and how you would think others might "read/interpret" this argument if they were to encounter it in a public place like a supermarket or a restaurant. Then, pick one of the readings from either this week or last week that you haven't written about, yet. Explain in 2-3 paragraphs how the visual argument you've created connects to some element of public writing as defined/outlined in one of the readings. Then, you are asked to comment on a peer's visual argument and post. Explain what elements they might improve upon. For instance, perhaps, the font is hard to read or the argument as a whole may be too 'offensive' for publics? Use the comment feature to post a response to a peer's blog.  Your post due to Tuesday at 10 pm. Responses due by Wednesday at 5pm.

So, why the American debt? Really?

Senator John Kerry, the Massachusetts Democrat has suggested that when Congress passed a law cutting taxes for wealthy people (those making over $ 250,000) both in 2001 and 2003, the national debt increased and this would later lead to the deficit we have today. He further suggests that the economy would have had a surplus of about 6 trillion dollars by 2011 if the taxes on the wealthy had not been cut.. Fareed Zakaria, an author of Newsweek suggests the same thing.
But on the other hand, Brian Riedl of the American Heritage Foundation suggests that these tax cuts only caused 4% of the deficit. He further writes that taking away these tax cuts from the wealthy would only contribute about 700 billion dollars to pay down the now-13-trillion dollar deficit. So since taking away the tax cuts would only cut the projected deficit by 700 billion dollars, this means that taking away these tax cuts can neither help much with taking America out of debt, nor had much to do with the debt that the country has accumulated
So who is right here? What Riedl says is that the 6-trillion dollar surplus that Kerry suggested (for 2011) did not take into account that between 2003 and 2011, America would have terrorist attacks, two wars, natural disasters (remember Katrina?) and 2 stock crashes at Wall Street. This contributed to the debt crisis that America has today, according to Riedl. .
However, we regular folks think that if perhaps taxes had not been cut, we would perhaps have had some money to help with Katrina, the wars and terrorist attack emergencies. Isn't this what regular folks do? Put away some money for a rainy day at a time when you have plenty to spare? Furthermore, the unwritten implication that the tax cuts to the wealthy had little effect on the accumulated national debt and that recalling these taxes would do little to pay down the debt leaves out one major issue. What about the lost revenue when this money (read tax revenue lost to wealthy people) did not go to pay down the national credit card? When one does not pay their credit card dues, the interest grows and the total amount of debt balance on the card increases because of increased interest. That's a regular person's understanding of issues. Any disputes? Or corrections? I stand to be corrected.

Understanding Information

I was surprised to discover that most of the readings involved concepts that have been discussed in previous classes. The Wurman reading, “Business of Understanding” discussed ideas that were a challenge for me to grasp in the past. One of the concepts that I have found most difficult was a practice of altering how a subject may be approached called, tagmemics. I learned about tagmemics in my WRT 360 class last semester, and at the time it seemed to be very difficult to grasp. In time, I gained a greater understanding, but it’s still a rather confusing subject overall. The Wurman essay was very similar to what we learned last semester, yet presented the subject in a slightly different way.

Interestingly enough, the Wurman essay also presented concepts that I learned last year in ENG 350: Literary Criticism and Theory. When Wurman wrote about the way in which people perceived ideas, I found myself thinking of Fredrich Nietzsche. Both of these men believed that it was impossible for a person to perceive something free of outside influence or previous experiences. Wurman wrote, “[i]deas precede our understanding of facts, although the overabundance of facts tends to obscure this. A fact can be comprehended only within the context of an idea” (9). A lot of what Wurman wrote reminded me of theories presented by philosophers I’ve studied in the past.

The resource that I've chosen to share is a video about Frederich Nietzsche, a German philosopher whose ideas I found somewhat similar to that of Wurman. The video presents the concepts of Nietzsche in a way that is easier to comprehend. I think that exposure to the ideas of Nietzsche will give students a greater understanding of how ideas may be perceived. His theories present a different approach to thinking, and understanding the perceptions of others.

For me...A New Frontier

What has been a challenge to me so far in this course is not learning how to be public about my opinions--I actually feel confident in my self-expression and I can definitely "talk one's ear off." When I am sitting down with someone, face-to-face, I have no problems with communication. It's when I have to communicate with my fingers that I encounter difficulty.

I graduated high school in 2000, when computer access was limited to certain allotted hours in the computer lab in school. I didn't exactly hop on board. I spent the next few years living, working, and traveling before I began my college education. In "technology time" that might has well been a lifetime! Although I am proficient in online shopping, getting up to speed on how to use the internet and my laptop effectively has been a constant challenge. I have a Facebook account, but I'm not a particularly "active" user--I prefer to work on living my actual life then be so concerned with how it is perceived by my Facebook "friends"!

So you can see how this class could seem a bit daunting for me. The "Business of Understanding" article really struck a chord in me, because while I am skeptical of this new world, I am awfully impressed by it. I have difficulty even wrapping my brain around the vastness of the possibilities that the internet has to offer, and how my generation and future generations will be helped by it and also hurt by it. I have a great respect for public writing because of this--I think that if more of an presence is created by people who want to use the internet for good, this potential "hurt" could be lessened. So here I am, much like the "information architect," announcing my ignorance, my confusion, and my willingness to learn.

(As you can see, I fully support the use of imagery in my blogging! I think it is helpful for grasping the attention of the audience)

America's Credit Card; Tax our way out of Debt; One Solution?

Rep. Chaka Fattah (D, Pennsylvania) has proposed a way for the country to get out of debt. He says that for every transaction that is made in the country, there should be a 1% tax that will go directly to paying down the country's debt. So if you go to Subway and buy yourself a $5-sandwich, you will pay an extra five cents, which will go straight to paying down the country's credit card. This sounds like a good idea to me, if the details are well worked out by those financial wonks from MIT and the like.
The Congressman also says that this would do away with federal income taxes because managing this tax is far too expensive and does not yield the same amount of revenue as the 1% tax would. If the numbers are worked out and this works out fine maybe the country should try it. It surely beats the plan proposed by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) who proposes to cut the defiicit by cutting back on Medicare.

To use it or not to use it...that is the question

In thinking about which of the readings I was perplexed by would have been the reading of Visual Blogs by Meredith Badger. I wasn't as much confused as I was interested and surprised by what she spoke about. Prior to creating my own blog and reading any of the articles/readings I was sure that a weblog/blog were a area of space where someone could talk about anything they wanted to. I thought that mostly these blogs were comprised of writings or snips of writings produced by the author of the blog and told the reader something regarding the topic of the blog. Never had I imagined or even thought that a blog has any type of visual imagery. Meredith Badger opened up my mind to this idea and really taught me the significance of pictures and imagery in a blog.

According to Badger, "It is often images that present the most immediately obvious point of difference between one blog and the next" (Badger 1). I never really understood this concept until now and being introduced and now accustomed to the blogging world I really do see the difference a visual image can make. Even when the community blog for our public writing class started mostly everyone posted a picture or visual image of some sort along with their blog and just seeing some of the images I knew exactly what some people where going to talk about. What I also came to understand from this reading is the relationship between visual imagery and blogs. What I learned is that it is actually a dual relationship and a blog can benefit from visual images and visual images can benefit from a blog. Often the text supports the visual images but even so the visual images can support the writing as well. There was also another interesting aspect that dealt with pictures of bloggers themselves so that their readers and audience can get a better understanding of who they are. Visual images in this case can really help but not only that but one who doesn't post a picture of themselves but pictures throughout their blog, help their audience form a visual image and better understanding of the type of person the blogger truly is. What I also learned and was a bit confused with was whether Badger was stating that it is ok to use pictures and visuals alone to comprise a blog. She did use Kate Bingaman as an example and I felt that this blog really did work. The photos and visual images described her blog without any writing. In any case, I don't feel that every blog can succeed this way. I believe that when it comes down to political and more serious issues visuals and pictures just aren't going to cut it. In these situations text is necessary in order to effectively communicate to an audience about what the issue or political message may be and why it is that you are blogging about it. Badger offered great information and made me want to apply more visuals to my blog!

Photos, Visuals, Pictures...WHY WHY WHY. This piece of writing that I choose to offer to my fellow peers was a great resource and help for me which is why i choose to share it. After reading Meredith Badger's article this reading actually gave some great tips, advice and reasoning behind using visuals as well. It is difficult choosing the right visual imagery for a blog and it is always important to be ethical. This may be hard for some people and this site offers great advice as to how to do that. What is also great about this reading is that it gives a simplified version of why and how visuals enhance a person's blog. It also details the significance of why it is important to try and include visuals in your blog. I hope this offers some help and guidance for some of you!!

About URL's

I found the readings fine but what my main problem is so far is the linking, posting and the choice of whether I should go to sakai, twitter or blogger to do my homework.
When I click a link on twitter to get on the class blog, then I see all the postings and the names of all the people in the class. Then I want to make comment on someone's post and as soon as I have finished typing my comments, the drop-down menu tells me to choose whether I want to post my comments as e-mail or WordPress or googlereader or something else. I click one of them and then everything disappears.
This is only one problem. I am also unable to post the URL for my blog onto sakai! So I simply typed the link for my political blog onto a word document and filed it then attached it in the assignement forum!!
Why is it that on my word document the link to my blog can be accessed and yet if I type the same link onto the sakai upload forum, the link goes dead?
I'm new to all this stuff. Can someone please explain?
I have also looked at the assignement 2 postings on sakai (the ones where we need to do peer reviews) and before some posts I see a lot of computer jargon. What is this??
Can anybody explain this stuff to me please?
When I get on-line on blogger.com and ask for help on how to make links to other pages, the instructions are quite clear. However, when I follow them to the dot, I still cannot post that link directly here. If one is good with the linking stuff though, this is a good site to visit.
It is good to be able to hyperlink other websites onto one's own web log because this serves to provide even more information to the reader, without the reader having to go back to the major search engine like google to look up any information that is useful in understanding what one is reading.
Hyperlinking well is also advantageous in that if you have a tonne of information on your blog, there will be more traffic directed to your blog and you may consequently promote your causes and ideas better, or even get paid more for any commercials that run on you blog

Pedagogies and Social Turn in Technical Communication

The one reading that has been somewhat unclear to me so far is the one about common based pedagogies and the social turn in technical communication. As I was reading the article I was overwhelmed with the amount of information being given to me. I’m still not exactly positive what it had to do with public writing, and the whole concept of “waves” of technical communication went way over my head. I do understand that the article was talking about how to contribute to Wikipedia, and also the benefits of collaborative texts. I’m not sure I would consider contributing to a wiki would be a form of public writing because it isn’t the place to voice opinions or share experiences, it’s about stating facts. I suppose the article just had a lot of information to offer and I got lost while trying to understand everything.

I came across another article that discusses the importance of Wikipedia and writing pedagogy. It was a very helpful article because it was easier to follow and explained the concept clearly. While Wikipedia is not always the most credible source of information it does allow for people to practice collaborative writing in a public space. The article suggests that “any collaborative writing endeavor promises a representative articulation, a compromise of voices and points of view: eventually.” Essentially, it helps to create a more open mind and to be more accepting of other people’s ideas; public writing is all about being open to differing views and experiences. Writers can learn to appreciate others’ point of view, while improving their writing over time by practicing in a public space. I now understand the benefits to using Wikipedia as a practice for writing publicly, even if it isn’t necessarily “public writing.”

Visual Blogs

In the reading, Visual Blogs I found that it was interesting to see the different types of ways blogs may be set up. I was interested in learning about the visual blogs of just photos because I never thought about blogging to address an issue with just photos. The example of Kate Bingaman’s blog on different pictures she posted to show her purchases seemed kind of interesting, but I did not understand how this type of blogging can be used in a blog that seeks to address a political issue. My blog is on sex trafficking and although I find pictures that relate to my topic, I do not see how only using photos can be effective. I think in Bingaman’s case, it was more for entertainment, but as a tactic of public writing I do not understand how this type of blogging can target an audience that will becoming involved in a serious issue. I think as the article further addresses, “Illustrations in weblogs may initially appear to be less revelatory than photographs, as the artist controls the amount and types of detail included. Yet if we look at a site like James Kochalka’s American Elf we can see how illustrations, particularly those paired with text can actually create a very strong sense of intimacy.” I think this kind of blogging does make a deeper impact because it uses the text to illustrate what the picture is presenting and I think the use of text allows the reader to understand the point of what the picture may be and why the author may have chosen to use the photo.

                 As the article presented, visual blogs may be less revealing and may not have the same impact as those that use text. I did a search on google to find picture blogs used for political issues and there was not a match it brought me to other articles that addressed political issues themselves. I also researched picture blogs and many of the searches brought me to entertaining sites such as flickr blog. It seems to me that most of the blogs that are effective in addressing public writing in a political issue are those that use text. I then researched political blogs which I was able to find a website that had a list of different blogs on many political issues http://directory.etalkinghead.com/. Many of the blogs did use text instead of photos to speak about their issues. I think this is important to read because it gives many different examples on blogs that talk about different issues. This may help assist others on how to set up their own blogs and some strategies that can be used in their own public spheres.

Johnson-Eilola and Selber

I found Johndan Johnson-Eilola and Stuart A. Selbers article on Commons-Based Pegagogies and the Social Turn in Technical Communitcation a hard read to follow. After completing the reading, I found that I did not retain much or grasp the point of the article. I am still unsure of what the topic means and how it pertains to public writing. After completing writing in an online evironment, I am familiar with the Wiki platform, however, I still did not follow the articles emphasis and example using WikiHow.com.

For those without a similar previous knowlege on the Wiki platform, I assume that the article is difficult to follow as well. One way to help understand the article is to understand the title. Prior to reading the article, I was unaware of the meaning of "pedagogy," the function or work of a teacher; teaching. To further understand the article, I found another article on sciencedirect.com that I believe further explains the topic and includes a solid explanation of what a "Wiki" is. Similar to Joshnson-Eiola and Selber's article it discusses assumptions that include New media, collaborative writing, critical interaction, and online authority. The article offers different ways in which computers and writing scholarship is turning toward technical communication as a pedagogical, or teaching, model. The article is a valuble and benefical read for someone who wants to write about the public sphere because as Wiki defines public sphere, "The public sphere is an area in social life where individuals can come together to freely discuss and identify societal problems, and through that discussion influence political action."  Wiki is one of the various places where on can write on the public sphere by simply editing and contributing to different pages similar to that discussed in Joshnson-Eiola and Selber's article. Through the ScienceDirect article, the reader can learn more about what a Wiki is prior to using it as an example to explain a topic.  

ScienceDirect

Source for Public Writing

http://wps.ablongman.com/long_callaghan_mm_1/0,8239,1019865-,00.html
This is the site that I found that could be used as a resource for public writing. This website has a variety of information available on public writing. It goes on to define different areas of public writing, and the rhetoric involved. Its is written clearly and concisely, something that I appreciate because I have looking for information. This source goes on to discuss a variety of elements of a text, it continues to discuss the characteristics of personal, public, and academic writing. This provides another author's take on what defines public writing and other methods of writing. This site also offers help in self anilization of work. This is a moderate list that can help guide when writing, that you are hitting key points and including information that is pertinent to the public. This site also offers some assistance with matching rhetoric choices to your own writing purpose. This site concludes with a guide to recognizing public writing, private and academic. This site holds value and is worth while to look at because it re-enforces public writing and it shows another persons view on defining public writing.

In regards to specific questions about material this semester I think so far everything makes sense.

Week 3: Uploading, Reviewing, Composing

At this juncture, I'd like to take a moment to pause. Let's stop and look at what we've accomplished, and what we need to accomplish as we move forward.

First, if you haven't done so, you will need to upload a .doc copy of your project 2 into the appropriate Sakai forum. You will also need to make arrangements with a peer of your choice and follow the prompt for how to conduct the peer review.

Second, I ask that by the end of the day on Wednesday (let's say 10pm) I'd like for you to upload a hyperlinked URL in the appropriate Sakai forum for Project 1. I will be doing a preliminary reading of the blogs, and I will offer commentary and feedback on ways to work on improving them.

Third, as you may have noticed Project 3 has been uploaded to the assignments section of Sakai. This should be a fun and rewarding project: enjoy!

Fourth, as for reading, I've uploaded the Wurman reading into Sakai in addition to hyperlinking the remaining electronic readings on the reading schedule page of this blog.

Fifth, by Wednesday by 4 pm please respond to the following prompt:

At this point, you've read a number of articles and chapters. This prompt has two parts. First, identity one aspect of the readings that you are unclear about? Is there a concept you'd like to know more about? Is there something that doesn't make sense? Is there a theory that is just going over your head? Is there something missing in terms of what the authors have discussed that you think seems absent from a thorough discussion of public writing? In a paragraph please address these questions in some way. Then, for part two, find a resource that you think begins to address part of that--that resource may be a video, a hyperlink to a webpage, it may even be a print source. Once you've found a resource you are asked to write a one to two paragraph summary about why that resource is something that your peers should read and why it would be a valuable piece of information for a person who wants to write about the public sphere.

Blogging to Catch the Mind

I am going to use the informative form of writing, as described by Shamoon in order to highlight the style of New Leadership (my political blog) exhibited by Barack Obama. Both the good and the less flattering things, as I perceive them, which the Obama administration has done, will be mentioned. This is likely to be effective in catching the attention of the reader. Even though I made it clear at the start of The New Leadership, that President Obama had exhibited a new style of leadership that may catapult him to a good place among one of the greater leaders in recent history, it is still important to show the reader that I am impartial and will critique him where I see that this needs to be done. This would be in line with Rebecca Blood’s ‘Weblog Ethics’, in which she emphasizes the need for a responsible weblogger to be totally honest, lest we fall below the standards that are upheld by other media like newspapers.

Visual blogging is a good means to catch attention of the reader who has just a little time for the information I wish to convey. As Meredith Badger suggests, I may use quick images to convey my message. The images may be serialized to tell the story or just be presented individually.

Initially enlisting the audience of other parties interested or holding a stake in my opinions or beliefs is essential for me to use as a starter, just as Shamoon suggests. Like-minded people will automatically visit similar sites to the ones that I visit on the net. So automatically Kevin Kelly’s ‘We are the Web’ makes perfect sense in that on the web, one can reach a very large number of people if they have the same interests as one does. Now if the information that a weblogger gives is well presented and catches the interest of the reader, then all that Shamoon suggests is inevitable.

Role Model?

ROLE MODEL?

I signed up for public writing in order to get the credits necessary for me to graduate in August. I have to admit that I was enrolled in this course before I really understood what the requirements consisted of. These credits will enable me to graduate in August with a degree in psychology (this class is outside my comfort zone). Initially, I was scared to death when I found out that I would have to tweet, blog, and communicate via numerous outlets online, but after realizing that I had a lot to learn about this unknown territory, I became intrigued and excited about the challenge (this will be difficult for me).

The topic I chose to blog about this semester had to be something important enough to me that I didn’t mind posting my opinions for all eyes to see. My idea came to me after browsing a US Weekly magazine while standing in line at the grocery store; I was horrified to see the young girls from MTV’s reality program “Teen Mom”. Their faces and personal relationship struggles are plastered on the covers of these magazines as if they are movie stars. When I think about teen pregnancy, the word “entertainment” does not come to mind. The show Teen Mom formally called 16 and Pregnant is a popular reality program aired on MTV. The show was originally intended to show the life changes and hardships these young girls encounter after having a child. In 2008 MTV News reported a story about a Massachusetts High school that gained public attention after a few of the female students started a “pregnancy pack” and made it their #1 priority to get pregnant at the same time, which happened to be before they graduated from high school.

In 2008, if MTV’s goal was to educate young people about the seriousness of teen pregnancy than I have to say that MTV has changed gears and over the past three years has made an empire out of promoting and some would argue encouraging teen pregnancy.

I believe that the future generation of American woman should be a strong and driven, educated, and self-sufficient. I hope my blog can emphasize the importance of these issues. And I would like to clarify that my issue is not teen pregnancy it’s about fame and glorification being achieved this way. We live in a society that is obsessed with celebrity culture and need to endorse behavior that can benefit our future rather than promoting this behavior that according to CNN’s Melissa Henson, leaves families trapped in a cycle of poverty. To see entire article, visit my blog and follow the link that I have provided (this is all so new to me…providing links and sharing information this way). Shamoon points out that public writing can give direction to a public that already exists. I brought up the television show “Teen Mom” in different conversations and it is abundantly clear that others are also concerned about how this program can potentially influence it’s young impressionable viewers. It would like to make a positive change in what adolescence consider glamorous. "A recent survey of schoolchildren found that many teens today would rather be famous than smart; they'd rather be a celebrity assistant than the president of Harvard. Would it really have been so difficult for MTV to anticipate the possibility -- if not the probability -- that some star struck teenager might see those magazine covers and perceive getting pregnant and earning a spot on the show as her ticket to fame and fortune?" ( Henson, 2011).

http://articles.cnn.com/2011-05-04/opinion/henson.teen.mom.show

My Blog: http://mtv’sbabymamadramablogspot.com

A Positive Portrayal

For my blog this semester, I have chosen to write about U.S. military and veteran issues. As our participation in the War on Terror wages on, it’s vital that we provide our military forces with the support and appreciation they deserve. There is an overwhelming negativity in the media regarding our armed forces and their presence in combat zones. Because of this skewed media coverage, Americans are misinformed about what’s really going on and demean the efforts of our troops. In an attempt to ensure this doesn’t happen, I will use my public writing to showcase the selflessness of our armed forces, and the brave work they do on a consistent basis. People too easily forget the sacrifices of those who have given everything to maintain our country’s safety and security. Although the assassination of Osama Bin Laden has rekindled some military support in America, there is still a substantial amount of negativity. In a quest to improve this reality, I will present news stories, personal accounts, and other media works to convey the noble actions of our troops.

As Shamoon pointed out, public writing is often sparked by one person’s interest, and then that person may look to others with common beliefs for support. She wrote that people in the past “engaged in public writing to inform and stimulate sympathetic awareness among many different people, even though these individuals might never be directly involved in the project” (Shamoon 27). This is the approach that I will take with my blog: I want to appeal to the American people to raise awareness about our nation’s military, and write about the positive acts that aren’t broadcasted on national television. Because my boyfriend is a U.S. Marine, I have been exposed to a great deal of military families, supporters, and organizations that defend this cause. I can enlist the help of my family and friends to spread the word about my blog, and I can also talk to people I have met who are directly involved in the military. I can also contact a freelance writer I have spoken with, who was embedded with my boyfriend’s unit in Fallujah, Iraq and again in Marjah, Afghanistan this past year. By looking to friends and family for support, and “stimulating sympathetic awareness” of my audience, I’m confident that my blog will gain substantial success in the coming future.

Bridging the Gap: Lessons at Home and Abroad

The issue I've chosen to feature on my political blog is that of female literacy and education. It's a worldwide problem, although the disparities between male and female illiteracy vary from country to country and region to region. The overall fact still remains that 2/3 of all illiterate people on the planet are female. This is the driving piece of information that has fueled many efforts to increase female literacy and education. The topic has been taken up by many famous female political leaders such as Hillary Clinton and Laura Bush.

The main hurdle for my issue is getting people in the Westernized world to understand what it means to be illiterate and to actually care enough to do something about it. The vast majority of developed countries take for granted their 100% literacy rates. Others who are aware of the illiteracy rates in other countries might not fully understand the implications and consequences of being uneducated.

Click here for a concise list of why girls' education is important, compiled by The World Bank.

Click here for a table of all countries and their respective literacy rates (male and female), compiled by Mr.Downling.com. *Note the correlation with fertility rates.

A public writing piece that might be helpful in overcoming this hurdle would be a simple fact sheet, similar to the World Bank one, that outlined just WHY literacy is important. However, instead of bashing people over the head with more third-world statistics (haven't we heard them all?), I would present the facts in a way that kind of says "Hey, look what you're taking for granted." I think teaching girls in developed countries about their less fortunate comrades in the developing world would also make a big difference. True, fourth and fifth grade girls don't have any political power, but it will help to transform their generation---possibly preventing them from taking their education for granted, and maybe even spurring political activism once they're older. The key concept to keep in mind in any of these information initiatives is to try and make the issue relevant and relatable.

This idea of targeting similarly-aged girls from developing countries goes hand-in-hand with Shamoon's suggestion to "write locally." The issue, if presented appropriately, is very relatable to children of the same age. Young American girls can put themselves in the shoes of young Nigerian girls and perhaps---with emerging telecommunication technology in the classroom---vice versa. This teaching initiative will bridge cultural gaps, provide a truly rich educational experience, show America's youth just how fortunate they are, make them compassionate and empathetic towards less fortunate children, and hopefully foster a more informed and activist future generation. Such a unique classroom initiative would also make it's way into local newspapers and the children and teachers will surely spread the world as well; even a young student sharing their day with their parents would help spread the word about the importance of education and literacy.

Animal Cruelty

For my political blog I have chosen to focus on the issue of animal cruelty. It is an issue I have always felt very strongly about, mainly because I love animals and I feel it is necessary to defend helpless creatures that have no way of helping themselves. I’m sure I will never make a significant impact in putting an end to animal cruelty, but by making others aware of the severity of the issue I feel as though that would be making some type of progress. My political blog is a great way to reach others that share a similar interest in wanting to abolish animal cruelty. I am currently following PETA on Twitter, so I could provide a link to my blog or tweet about the topic by targeting other people that are also following PETA; Twitter is a great resource for reaching people that share the same interest. Another useful resource is definitely Facebook. I could create a group on Facebook and send it out to my friends asking them to join and support the fight against animal cruelty. It is easy to believe that our writing and opinions will never be heard by others, but with resources like Twitter, Facebook, and Blogger it is become easier to interact with others and have our voices heard.

Shamoon points out that “acting locally” is one way for public writing to be effective. Since I am focusing on animal cruelty I could potentially write up a fact sheet or pamphlet on the issue and distribute it to the local animal shelter; I would be reaching an audience that feels passionately about the issue and would take the time to read my writing. Shamoon’s concept of joining associations of like-minded people also goes along with the idea of using Twitter for my writing to be seen and read. I want to make sure I am targeting people that feel the same way I do about the issue of animal cruelty because together we can make more of an impact than I ever could independently. Even by “acting locally” on the issue, or using Twitter to be heard, there is still no guarantee that people will take my writing seriously because I am clearly not a professional. People might not take me seriously, but it will be nice to know that my blog is getting some exposure, which will in turn draw attention to the issue of animal cruelty.