Blog Post 2 Logan White

Strack's e-letter is a clear example of the country's downfall in recent years in relation to the way people treat each other. People have become much more aggressive in many different areas. Strack mentions sports, business, and politics as three very good examples of where people have recently grown very assertive and aggressive. In every area young up and comers learn by example that it is a dog-eat-dog world in today's society.

He also mentions the media in the way it attempts to boost ratings by reporting stories that are intended to induce different feelings, usually at the cost of more important issues. But this has an adverse effect because it increases cynicism and reduced trust in the government because if people cannot trust the media, how can they trust the government knowing that the government controls the media.

Blog 2:Kisan Chhotalal

I chose the points Strak stated at the end of his e-letter; which are, “not all issues have two equal sides”, “an opinion is a valuable resource” and “don’t be scared to speak up.” These points clearly help acknowledge the polarization in America. When stating an issue, it can have multiple sides to it, rather than just two. Also opinions are valuable resources, without them you can’t be open to suggestions. Speaking up also helps get your opinion out to the people. If you don’t speak up then no one will hear what you have to say, and you will have to settle for other people’s opinions.

I can say I have contributed to our argumentative culture. When I tend to play sports or just do any normal thing. Like when I was young the littlest things would anger me and I would go off on anyone. In sports I would tend to argue with the players and take out my frustration on the other team. Most of the time I would get into trouble and have to think about my actions, but now I’ve learned to control it and I don’t get as angry anymore, but there are them times.

Blog Post 2 Chad Isenhart

Strack states that our agonistic culture encourages us to face the world and its people in an adversarial frame of mind. Some examples that might suggest that we Americans contribute to both "the appetite for and the rise in polarization, conflict, and argument" personally would be argument might just be instinct. I don't know about you but I have the desire to pick on and annoy my little siblings. I always find myself hungry for the appetite to drive my little sister up the wall. Politics are always trying to to raise conflict and argument wether they know it or not. Especially all the debating they do in Congress. I have not contributed to this polarization in an ways at all. I don't know how I could make an impact to counter America's argument culture but I could start by maybe creating a website that acts against polarization and argument. I think its a fairly easy way to say something and spread word.

Polarization in America -- Andres Acosta

In Strak's e-letter he talks about the growing culture of polarization in America. He states that as we move into the future, many people have become much more assertive and willing to argue to get what they want. I totally agree with what Strak is trying to inform because I work for Best Buy and many times we get customers who just want to come to the store and give us a hard time. Many customers ask for help and when they are given help they go completely against our recommendations! I ask myself, "Why do they ask for help then!" "Haha, we are all trained and know what we are talking about and yet they go against our recommendations!" This really makes me angry, yet it just makes me laugh at the ignorance of people these days. With an ever growin economic crisis in America today, people are starting to look for the easy way out to many problems. Many customers are buying "cheaper" and when warned that you get for what you pay they often do not listen! Next thing you know they are back in customer service asking why that $299 laptop crashed on them or why it wont run fast! All we can say is "if it's not defective what else did you expect from a $299 laptop, thats why we offered the better one for $200 more!"

Other times, we have customers who ask for help and they learn from what we have to say about a product and then bring their 11 year old son claiming he is a "computer specialist" and that what we told them was a lie according to the 11 year old "specialist". This just provokes laughter inside of me, as if they did not know that half of us are trained and with some sort of degree in computers in the department.

This is why I agree with Strak, this culture is changing, and for the most part it is getting worse. Like many people have said, it was better in the old days when children had one parent in the home to teach them the right ways, but with economic struggles, more parents are gettin harder jobs and more women are leaving the house for jobs and children are left alone to learn from the wrong crowd!

Blog 2 Zachary Hoffmann

Today's world arguments are definitely becoming apart of Americas culture. In Straks' e letter he has some good points. Straks quoted Vince Lombardi saying "Winning isn't everything. Its the only thing". He said that at first he was appalled but then after it being used numerous times as a motivation he began to accept it. It quote is true not just for sports, but for just about everything in life. Everyone wants to be the best and have money and power. I believe that the world today argues a lot more then in the past but I don't think that in the past everyone was nice. That quote is from the 1970s so even almost 40 years it was about being the best. He also brings up a good point with women in the work field. He states that "what if, after absorbing the more aggressive, confrontational approaches at work, these same women unconsciously manifest similar attitudes at home raising not just their little boys but their little girls?" I don't think that it only affects little girls. I think the same thing goes with little boys too. There are times where I see little kids yelling at there parents and telling them no and being disrespectful to other adults. I do believe that America has gotten worse with the amount of arguing going on but I don't think that there was a time where there was none. There has always been arguing. Chances are if there are two people together long enough they will eventually find something to argue about not matter what time frame it was in.

Blog 2: Jerry Strack's e-Letter on Tannen's Book The Argument Culture, By, Joey Ruggiero

Jerry Strack's letter gives you all the information you need and more about Tannen's book and brings a real understanding to how argument has become a apparent issue. He points out how it has been around forever but lately it has been making sports more violent and advocating bad sportsmanship. Such as how he comments on Vince Lombardi's famous saying "Winning isn't everything.Its the only thing!" Which point blank frames out an argument that winning is the only thing and there is no losing but the fact of the matter is that losing has a great deal to do with winning. Nobody wins before they lose at least a couple of times. A true winner loses as many times as it takes to find out what they are doing wrong so they can fix it and succeed. For me though arguing isn't my strong suit and I never like to but, when people argue with me on certain things that I am very passionate about it becomes difficult to hold back. None the less if I find myself in this kind of situation I tell my self its better to be nice than to win an argument and look like an ass... Which if the rest of America came to terms with this and ended the polarization then we wouldn't have this issue in the first place.

Blog 2-- Lisa Melchiorre

Three things that Strak points out are that “not all issues have two equal sides”, “an opinion is a valuable resource”, and you should speak up and give your opinion. I believe that all of these points can help counteract polarization in America, because we know just by writing different argument papers that there aren’t always just two sides to a problem. Also opinions of others should be taken into consideration, but should also be treated just as opinions and not warped into facts. Hearing an opinion that they believe to be a fact and it creates conflict between individuals and/or communities can upset people. Also stating your opinion about any topic that you feel strongly about will allow others to know where you stand and hopefully just respect it. It seems at times there are people who are looking to start an argument and they will find any type of means to do so. I know that when I become agitated with someone I sometimes just look for something that they do wrong so I can criticize them, which usually creates a conflict between us that I really don’t want in the end. I think that by taking a step back and looking at all the other sides of an argument people will realize that there is always more than one side of things. It seems like people are too self-caring to realize that everyone can be happy with their own thoughts and ideas, it doesn’t have to be just one way or another.

Blog 2 Andrew Corke

Sean Hannity, Mark Levin, Glenn Beck, Laura Ingraham and Rush Limbaugh screaming in my head. Reading this made me think of the main reason I hate to visit home. My Grandma has lived with us in our house since 1994. She is now 88 years old and she is extremely bias.  She Is also is hard of hearing, I don’t know if it is because of the radio she sits next to all day blaring on 100 volume or of old age. She is completely right wing to the point she is like radical talk show host’s who wont take one minute to hear the other side’s opinion. I try to speak reason to her but she believes such things as “Obama is going to turn America into Africa and we will be fighting with spears” and “Obama is going to jail all the whites”. So when Tannen mentioned “the age of blue and red states” it pertained to me directly. I have heard the screaming of these radical republican talk show hosts for 16 years. All of my best friends, my 3 roommates, my boss and my coworkers are Democrats so I also hear the other side of the argument, things such as “Obama will save the world”. I am an artist, and when it pertains to these maters I try my best to be neither red or blue but grey. I realize these either “red or blue” sides has been a part of us since the creation of this country with the Federalist and the Anti-Federalist’s, but it is clearly evident of “the appetite for the rise in polarization, conflict, and argument” today in America. I have sat and listened to Mark Levin take a liberal caller and freak out at them on the phone before they have even uttered a word; then disconnect them, yelling “Get out of here you stupid Idiot” as soon as they start talking. I believe this environment that I grew up in ultimately shaped who I am today, I completely hate arguing and rather take the compromising approach to these issues. 

Post 2: Strak's e-letter

Strak's review shows main arguments put forward by Deborah Tannen. In this discussion Stark talks about America's aggressive way of thinking. He points out that many Americans are taught from a young age to "stand up for yourself", which has lead to people "sticking to their guns" and not allowing themselves hear the other side of the argument. This type of mentality, as Stark points out, can be very negative towards establishing common ground and arriving at a compromise in an argument. America loves its winners, making people think only of wining, but at what cost? Stark also points out in his review that women have become more aggressive in the business world trying to survive in a male competitive world, in turn transferring that aggressive behavior to their kids. I personally, don't believe there's nothing wrong with being aggressive, until you start clouding your thoughts and judgement, and not wanting to even hear the other side, as if it was evil. Politics is a big arena where polarized thoughts are seen with immense intensity. Having only two political parties makes a great recipe for this kind of polarized thinking, since you can easily pick out your enemy. having multiple political parties makes for an exemplar democracy, where different beliefs can be discussed and applied to help maintain balance and fairness within a government. however, when you have two parties unwilling to listen to each other, because one is pulling too far right and the other too far left, then you are left with disorder and a government that is malfunctioning because no one is willing to listen.

I see myself as someone who is always willing to listen to other people's opinion. Of course that doesn't mean that I see eye to eye with everybody. I believe that in order to learn we need to close our mouth and open our ears, and that means listening to what others have to say. you can learn something new, or see an argument in a different light. You don't have to agree with everyone, but you can try and put yourself in their shoes and see where they are coming from. this way you can at least look at both sides and judge fairly and come to a compromise where the majority benefits.

Strak's thoughts

Strak's concept about our nation having a "decreasing sense of community" (Strak), is completely right about our country growing into a more headstrong and proud group that thinks they are too good for apologies since it will be degrading for them. Instead of apologies, people now take the argument to court, and sue for money, and not confronting the person with their thoughts. Strak also brings up the idea that winning is the only thing quoted by Vince Lombardi. Losing is not an option, and that thought has been drilled into kid’s minds about everything, sports, grades, leadership positions, and much more. No kid thinks that it’s alright to get second, third, and definitely not last. Strak also states that women of today are becoming more involved in the business world and are losing sight on being the mother that past generations have set their minds too. Girls today instead are taught that they can be the one to bring home the most money, and let the husband be the stay at home parent.

I have definitely contributed to this by being a very aggressive player in any sport, even if it was track. I always look for first, even if I know I will be beat. This was put into my mind as a kid that I can do anything and should always look to be the best on the field or court. Plus I can get angered easily, and strike someone back in retaliation, when instead I should play it cool and not let it get to me.

Blog 2: E Letter by Deborah Tannen

The subject of the world becoming a crueler, more evil, and arguementative has been in debate for as long as I can remember back. The prices of food and gas are rising and the job market is slimming down makes this world out to be more competitive. I have always been encouraged at a young age to set my goals high but never pushed by my parents to diminish my morals to achieve my goals although my case could just be an exception to the rule. Jerry Straks reviews the book by Deborah Tannen and pulls out the most important points to the book. She uses an example of how the general population approaches the world with the following quote, "the argument culture urges us to approach the world-and the people in it-in an adversarial frame of mind." To me this quote is saying that instead of embracing what the world has to offer, we are taught to tackle the world as if we are in some sort of wrestling match. This approach can shoot the average worker to the top of the company but there will be casualties and broken relationships along the way. Another concept that she uses is the media and how it constantly focuses on the negativity throughout the world and pushes the triumphs to the side. During political campaigns you can observe news stations turning democratic or republican. Last time I checked the news station's job was to inform us, not to persuade us. The topic of parenting is also another heated debate. Are mother's teaching their daughters to be more assertive with male dominant values or are they merely preparing their daughters for the harsh world? It reminds me of the question did the chicken or the egg come first? Is the world getting more polarized or are parents teaching their children to have thicker skin? The only way to change directions is to start with yourself. One must choose how they will handle themselves before confronted with an issue. Will you conform to the polarization or will you choose to take the road less traveled?

Blog Post 2:Jerry Straks Arguement Culture E-Letter, Zack Newman

Deborah Tannen and Jerry Strak agree almost completely in the view that our society is based almost solely on arguing and polarization. When it comes to this view I am in one-hundred percent agreement with both Strak and Tannen. The most obvious and controversial example that comes to mind would be our involvment in the Iraq situation in the Middle East, but conflict strikes much closer to home in many ways. Think of Affirmative Action, abortion, Gay Rights, or even smaller issues like drinking ages. On almost every issue that comes to mind we are split down the middle with only two sides to every issue; for or against. Two sides to an issue is far too few to approach anything because we don't live in a completely black and white or 2-D world. Our world is full of color and dimensions we don't even know about so any limit to sides of an arguement would be absolutely obsurd. When we make things so black and white it is obvious that WE HAVE ALL created this culture. Everyone is guilty of taking sides and aiding to this "arguement culture" that exists in our present world. Since we are all guilty it is obvious that I have aided to this and so have you. No one is free from responsibility. I personally can account on several times a day in which I have taken one stance on a subject matter or only saw one single side to an arguement. The most intense way to reverse or counteract our personal affects to this societal trend would be like that of the efforts of Deborah Tannen, but no everyone is capable of that. Another, less extreme, way to counteract the trend would be to take into personal account that we must all be able to see many sides to an issue, whether or not we agree with them, we must accept that each issue has infinite angles of approach.





Click to watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8e-i2D-2GAc


I feel that this video supports my claim that our world has become overwhelmed and consumed with the feeling that there are only two stances to each arguement and issue; good and bad, wrong or right. In this video you will see the extreme case of two sides becoming so consumed with being right that they resort to all out war.

Blog 2: Polarization

In this day and age, money and power have become one of the most important achievements in life. Everyone wants to have their opinion be right, so that everyone else will agree with them. Some people use their power of pursuasion negatively. One examples is lawyers. Their job is arguing to prove their point. However, not all lawyers are doing their job for the greater good. Some are arguing for something just to obtain money in return for their services. In the E-Letter, Jerry Straks make a very interesting point;"She (Tannen) points out that in a variety of ways we in the UnitedStates unconsciously contribute to both the appetite for and the rise in polarization, conflict, and argument. Little of this serves the pursuit of truth. Most of it actually
derails the very results we purport to seek."(Straks 1) I think that many lawyers have forgotten the real reason why the study of law is so important. The need to win an argument has clouded the objectivity of finding the truth. The increase in lawsuits also supports the need to win in argument to obtain funds.

Blog 2: Jerry Straks E-Letter Sara Rieveley

Jerry Straks persuaded me in his beliefs that our culture is having an increase in argumentation and violence. He states that he has seen a great increase in lawsuits that in earlier eras would have been resolved in two simple words, "I'm sorry!" In sports Jerry uses the example of the old Green Bay Packers coach, Vince Lombardi. Vince Lombardi stated, "Winning isn't everything. It's the only thing!" When Jerry heard this quote he was appalled by the lack of sportsmanship; however, he followed it during his sports career. Jerry also comments on the medias use of polarization. The media has a tendency to release bogus or distorted information.
When Jerry stated that our agonistic culture encourages us to face the world and its people in an adversarial frame of mind it made me think of the recent war the U.S. is fighting. The War on Iraq made American citizens start conflicts. It divided the country by people who wanted to be in the war against people who did not want to be in the war. Wars make people more aggressive because of all the fighting and conflicts going on. I also remember my friends telling me about a fight that occurred in their church one day. Someone had said something to upset another, and right in the middle of the service a fist fight broke out. Church is meant to be a peaceful place for most people to get away from confrontation and arguments. What is this world coming to? In this video I found, a fight broke out in Chuck E Cheese, which is a place for children to go and have fun!

Click to watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YLqbE0elMs


I believe that girls live for argumentation. It is what most girls do best, so of course I have been one to be a part of polarization. However, it was usually over stupid stuff, like not calling one another or boys. Now, I have learned who to stay away from to not have to deal with it anymore. I mean everyone has arguments every once and awhile, but I believe I have helped myself and the culture by getting away from it.

Blog post 2: Stephanie Kumetz (last part that didnt go throug)

My last part of what I wrote didn't go through so here it is!


I guess because I sometimes depending on the day, time, temp, cloud positioning, have a short-fuse, I could end up at some point and time contributing to polarization. I could just complete ignore ignorant people, or just learn that when the clouds are positioned in that certain way i just keep my mouth shut. ^^

Blog 2 Brad Duffy

NOTE: I searched and searched and searched and was unable to find the link to the situation I will be writing about.


The three things I took from this, is that your opinion no matter how much you may or may not like something, is not always the what you should base your thoughts on, on the other hand one mans trash is another mans treasure. I also will have to agree 100% that society in general is far more harsh then 10 years ago. Literally I have heard major legal lawsuits ranging from the classic finger in the Wendy's Chili incident to individual state governments, actually going against federal laws (California medicinal marijuana laws).

The most recent even I can think of that brings this article home, is about little girl whose mother allowed her to wander around a Dillards department store. In this case the little girl was wearing a dress and crawled onto the escalator, the dress got caught in the escalator and she lost a solid chuck of hair. The mother sued the department store for 1.2 million dollars(which she later wins). The mothers case went to the stores lack of safety, which resulted in her daughter loosing most of her hair. I personally think the mother should have left it alone and been happy all that resulted was some hair loss vs. a finger, however I feel that the Mother should have been the one to blame, but I guess with the right of money you can do anything.

Blog post 2: Stephanie Kumetz

If you look at the media, and watch channels like CNN and MSNBC, you will notice that they are always have debates. But they also do not always give you the whole truth on a story. They only want you to hear what will make them look good, especially during times of voting. They will tell you what is good what their candidate and they will tell you what is bad about the opposing candidate. They want to try to get people to see it their way. If you look at the most watched movies and favorite games, you will see that they have some kind of conflict or violence in them. Strack made a good point when he pointed out that we have more lawsuits now then we did 10 years ago. No one knows how to say sorry, or how to do a job right. You have to take legal action which is just saying your to go into a room and argue about something that once could have been solved by a simple sorry, or some common sense. Strack wrote, "She [Tannen] points out that in a variety of ways we in the United States unconsciously contribute to both the appetite for and rise in polarization conflict, and argument. Little of this serves the pursuit of truth. Most of it actually derails the very results we purport to seek" (1).

Women In The Business World

I'd like to start this post by saying that the e-letter written by Mr. Straks was written in such a manner that made him seem arrogant and snobby, having said that, he raises some very good points. He discusses the fact that we as a country are becoming more an more prone to fighting and forcing our way into finding new things to argue about. He also speaks about women's role in the business world and how that is effecting their parenting skills. This argument seems very outdated considering that we have very few single income families anymore but maybe he has a point. Maybe these young girls are not learning how to be young ladies but ruthless, sometimes even harsh individuals. He asks his audience in his letter if "women are changing business or is business changing our women?" Is business making our women more aggressive? Are they losing their values to become more aggressive, confrontational beings to compete in a "male dominant" business world? If this is true then what role does this play in the raising of today's little girls? Their sense of nature verses nurture could be thrown way out of whack, for lack of better words, and could throw off our entire society. Yes women should learn to be more assertive and stand up for themselves and their rights but where do we cross the line? Where do we stop before this effects our entire argument culture. Women, as well as men, need to learn to leave business at work and turn on that parenting switch when they come home to their families. These children need to learn values, morals, right-from-wrong, and their place in society. They need to learn respect and most of all they need to learn how to function as people; as friends, parents, role models; not big important executives or business people. What if they grow up and decide not to go into business? What if they want to create beautiful paintings, or sing in front of thousands of people, of act in the next big blockbuster? They won't have that sense of self or creativity, all they'll have is ruthlessness and a thirst for money and power, and the notion that everything is a struggle, a fight or an argument that has to be won. I don't think this is what we need in our society.

As for me, I would like to think that I don't much contribute to our argumentative culture but probably have a big impact on it with my extremely competitive nature. With the sports I play, when tension is high and emotions are running wild, I'll admit I may make a point to be an instigator just to shake things up a bit. I could definitely save a lot of verbal and physical fights by spreading a better sense of sportsmanship throughout my athletic endeavours.

Blog 2 Mary Dalla Costa

In strack's e-letter, he talks about various situations today that really add on the the whole scenario that we are becoming more aggressive and argumentative. There are more law suits, women are in the business world now and they have become more assertive and demanding, even sports are becoming incresingly violent and less tolerant for losing. I see unnecessary confrontation daily. I work in a before and after school program with children. Just yesterday, a parent flipped out on my boss because his daughter wasn't in out care. It wasn't our fault. I think people take less and less responsibilities for their own actions and many don't swallow their pride and apoplogize. "I'm sorry"...two little words that can end so much. Even children today are so different from me when I was younger. They seem quicker to talk back and not listen. They keep theirselves occupied with violent video games and act them out with their friends. Is it possible that the parenting techniques are lacking and are at fault? I think there's a possibility. A lot of parents seem to have that "oh no...not my kid" mentallity. Their child is always perfect. If you could go back in time and compare a typical household decades ago, there would definately be a huge difference. I believe it definately has something to do with the way confrontaion is dealt with today. I try to do my part by being a good care giver and in the future, I hopefully will be a good teacher, too. I don't think I add on to the issue. Hopefully, I help lament it.

Blog Post 2: Jerry Strack's Review of Deborah Tannen's Book Argument Culture

Go to the Week 9 lesson folder and read Jerry Strak's e-letter in which he reviews Deborah Tannen's book The Argument Culture about the growing polarization of America.


Extract three important concepts Strak discusses in the e-letter. In the review, Strack states that our agonistic culture encourages us to face the world and its people in an adversarial frame of mind. Provide examples from the media, from politics, or from your personal life which supports the theory that we Americans contribute to both "the appetite for and the rise in polarization, conflict, and argument" (Strak).

Have you contributed to this polarization in any way? What could you personally do to counter America's argument culture?

Feel free to upload a graphic or a video which supports your claim that there is a growing polarization in America.

Respond to at least two of your peers posts by using the comment function.

E-Trade Commercial Commercial Analysis by Vanessa Warble

For my blog post, I used the commercial for E trade. This advertisement consists of a baby using E Trade on the computer while he is on a webcam. It shows the baby talking as if he were an adult but he is explaining how easy it is to use Etrade and even a baby can do it. This commercial uses the Testimonial approach using a baby's fictional acedote. The humorous dialogue of the baby keeps viewers coming back for more. They have made multiple commercials using the same baby because this commercial attracts so many people and the baby has become a sort of a mascot for the company.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiF-4LbgHn4

Andrew Corke World of Warcraft Commercials

For my blog post I chose the World Of Warcraft commercials, there are 4 I know of that I posted. These commercials take obvious use of the testimonial advertising technique. The Commercials features well-known celebrity’s such as Verne Troyer, Mr. T, Ozzy Ozbourne and William Shatner. In the commercial they introduce themselves and what “class” or type of character they play in the game.  It is also mentioned quite allot is that 9 million people play the game, using sort of a bandwagon approach. In the commercials end they take use of glittering generalities when they say the catchy phrase, “what’s your game?”

 

Mr. T http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqJE5TH5jhc

Verne Troyer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ae6U-WAJ1mw

Ozzy Ozbourne http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQO5hlv0KKA

William Shatner http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5AF1lPRWG8