The Revision Process

Revising a paper…where to begin? The revision process has never been one of my preferred parts of writing a paper. Actually writing a paper in general has never been too much fun and this last mediation paper was not any different. In general this paper was one of the harder ones I have written in my life simply because it had to be unbiased. I chose to do my paper on abortion, which may not have been the best idea, as that is a very hard topic to be unbiased about. However, I picked abortion because I wanted to learn more about both sides of the issue. When it came down to the actual writing, I had already done a little research and I sat down and wrote my rough draft, five and half pages, in two days. That’s what I do when I write a paper. I almost always sit down and write the whole thing at once. This was one of the rare occasions where I spread it over two days. After I write my rough draft I usually don’t go back and look at my paper for a couple days so that when I do come back to it I don’t remember everything I have written and I can look at it from a new perspective, almost as if reading someone else’s paper. I also like for my friends to read my rough draft, they can always catch mistakes that I can’t, spelling errors, capitalization, commas, I count on them for that. After I have given it a few days and my friends have read through my rough draft I go back to the computer with my rough draft and make whatever corrections they have found. Sometimes I do a little more research if I know certain paragraphs need a little more information or something like then I might work on certain paragraphs for a little while then take a break. When I get towards the end of writing my paper I always print out my paper so I can proof read a hard copy. I always do a better job editing my own work when it’s a hard copy instead of a soft copy, still on the computer. Editing a revising a paper is never something I actually enjoy doing but it is never too bad and always easier the better prepared I was for the rough draft.

Obama Speech

After listening to the Obama Speech I was again reminded of how good of a speeker he is. He never stumbles over his words or says "umm," he's just a smooth talker. I saw some of his speech when he was here on campus and thought the same thing then, he just continues to impress me with his oratorical skills. I think he handled the entire situation well and it was a sticky one. I thought it was good how he talked about his own life, not just the public. I think he did the best he could with the speech and it was a great oppurtunity to talk about diversity in American society.

Outdoor Attractions Near Clemson University

Paris Mountian State Park

fishing, boating, hiking, mountain biking

(http://farm1.static.flickr.com/205/480957603_a3468da3f6_b.jpg)

Devil's Fork State Park

fishing, boating

(http://www.byways.org/share/experiences/photo/203/thumbnail.png)

Jones Gap State Park

hiking

(hikingthecarolinas.com/scjack/jones_gap_trail.jpg)

Keowee Toxaway State Park

swimming, hiking

(http://www.naturalarches.org/gallery_files/PA-ArchSprings.jpg)

Lake Greenwood

swmimming, hiking

(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Mb0W8mm-NRo/RkSLXeo1QlI/AAAAAAAAACE/d6LVIgt95Ro/s1600-h/13A_014.jpg)

Caesar's Head,

Symme's Chapel, hiking

(http://www.stoneybrookcottages.com/images/photo_gallery/symmes_chapel.jpg)

Oconee State Park

camping, hiking, swimming

(http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/files/gallery/oconee_344.jpg)

Issaqueena Falls

hiking, mountain bkiking, horseback riding

(http://www.ncwaterfalls.com/issaqueena13.jpg)

Jocassee Gorge

hiking, swimming, boating, fishing
(http://www.ncwaterfalls.com/thompson72.jpg)

Table Rock

fishing, boating, hiking

(http://www.sciway.net/photos/table-rock-large.jpg)

Lake Hartwell

boating, water skiing, wakeboards, fishing, swimming

(http://www.sciway.net/photos/lake-hartwell-sunset-large.jpg)

Chattooga

kayaking, canoeing, fishing, hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding

(http://www.clemson.edu/cwc/image.php?file=images/MH_Dog.jpg)

Visual Rhetoric

The cartoon that I found is about abortion. I think the cartoonist is trying to get across that they don’t think the courts and the government should be involved in a woman’s decision to have an abortion. Some persuasive tactics of the cartoon are that the artist put the judge and the politician in the room with the patient and doctor while she was having an abortion to make it more personal. They also made the politician and the judge much bigger than the doctor to show their intimidation. I do

agree with the cartoonist. I don’t think anyone else should be able to tell you “No, you cannot have an abortion.” I don’t know that I would ever be able to have an abortion but I do think it should be the woman’s choice because you never the situation. The cartoon definitely does not address all the issues of abortion but it is not really saying whether abortion is right or wrong, it is just saying someone else shouldn’t be able to tell you whether it is right or wrong. I think this is a well done cartoon that makes a good point.

Do you think this is a good cartoon that gets the point across? What do you think the cartoonist could have done to make the cartoon better?

(cartoon from about.com)

Photo Essay

I found this photo essay about the life of Afghan women. It was appaling how horrible the lives of Afghan women is. I knew that it was rough but wow. On of the pictures shows a woman with severe burns on her neck and the caption says that a lot of women light themselve on fire, mainly with cooking oil. I cannot imagine what these women have to go through. this photo essay really opened my eyes to some of the horrors of the world.

grammar

I don't really have too many grammar questions but some that I do have problems with are when to use affect versus effect and also when to use who versus whom. When to use who/whom is something that no one has ever been able to adequately explain to me, come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever asked anyone. It only occurs to me that I understand when to use what word when I am writing formal papers, otherwise I'm really not concerned. I also sometimes have issues with passive voice and sometimes I am not sure whether or not I need a comma.