Blog 9

No one should be exempt from the law, including those who enforce it.

Last March, Indiana’s former Governor Mitch Daniels signed into law an amendment allowing citizens the right to use deadly force against public servants who unlawfully enter their homes, according to an article by Bloomberg News.

Indiana is the first state to allow the use of lethal force against police officers in circumstances of unlawful intrusion. This is a huge step forward in respecting the citizen’s right to self-defense, as well as the rights of the homeowner.

The measure amends the 2006 Castle Doctrine Bill, which allows deadly force to stop illegal entry into a home or car. Essentially, the term "public servant" was added following the court's ruling in order to encompass all people under the law – badges or not. [DASH TO EMPHASIZE LAST ELEMENT OF SENTENCE]

The law was revised after the Indiana Supreme Court ruled that there was “no right to reasonably resist unlawful entry by police officers," according to the Indiana Law Blog.

The ruling in question was in response to the May 2011 Indiana case Barnes v. State. It was a domestic violence call that resulted in the assault of the responding police officer. Before the amendment to the law passed, citizens like Barnes had no right to protect themselves from abuse at the hands of authorities.

Proponents of the Second and Fourth Amendments – those who support the ownership of firearms and security against unlawful searches – are celebrating the recent revision. In today’s increasingly totalitarian society, it is necessary to honor the ideals of the Constitution and fight for the rights given to us by America’s forefathers.

Although the revision passed both chambers of the legislature by wide margins, the amendment has been met with an uproar of opposition from police organizations. [ONE-SENTENCE PARAGRAPH]

According to an article by Bloomberg News, Tim Downs, who is head of Indiana’s largest police union, opposes the revisions by arguing it opens the door for assaults on police officers. Downs states, "It just puts a bounty on our heads."

Do police officers really believe people are going to start shooting cops just because it is legal? [RHETORICAL QUESTION]

This argument gives the impression that Indianans can wantonly open fire on police officers and be under the protection of the law. However, this is not the case. [USE OF HOWEVER]

The revision clearly states, “A person is justified in using reasonable force against a public servant if the person reasonably believes the force is necessary,” according to the Senate bill.

The word “reasonable” appears multiple times in the revision to the Indiana law in order to stress that the amount of force a resident chooses to apply must be reasonable according to the circumstances. If a police officer walks onto a person’s lawn because he heard something suspicious, Indiana residents do not have free rein to immediately shoot him down.

The only reason police officers are opposed to the revision is because it weakens their power and diminishes their image of supremacy and provides another means to hold them accountable for violating citizen rights. [SIMPLE SENTENCE WITH COMPOUNDED VERBS CONNECTED WITH ANDS]

If you do not think police often overstep their authority then type into the Google search bar, “police officer abuse of power.” [USE OF THEN] You will be shocked at the type of stories you will find that popular media sources choose not to cover.

Police officers have shot and killed countless innocent people, blaming the dim lighting of the room or the glinting wristwatch that looked like a gun. In nearly all of these situations the officers were cleared after prosecutors determined they made a reasonable error in judgment given the circumstances. Now in Indiana, citizens will finally be permitted the same consideration.

Society has granted members of law enforcement enormous power over citizens to preserve social order and keep the peace. They are allowed a great deal of freedom when deciding which laws to enforce, when and against whom. Yet, how much freedom should they be allowed, and at what level of responsibility? [REAL QUESTION]

The problem is many police officers have forgotten that they are merely common citizens appointed to maintain order. Police officers are beginning to view themselves as more than enforcers of the law, but rather as the law incarnate. [USE OF THAN]

If you still doubt the United States has evolved into a police state, look at recent headlines: NSA spying program, mass incarceration for drug possession, drone programs and SWAT teams knocking down doors for anti-government comments on Facebook. [LONG SENTENCE] The clear confirmation is terrifying. [SHORT SENTENCE]

The formation of a police state and Orwellian society is not on the rise; it’s already here. State legislators and citizens can no longer afford to sit back and fail to take action while we are being stripped of the few rights we have left.

We should applaud Daniels for pushing the revision of Indiana’s Castle Doctrine law and encourage other states to follow his lead. It will protect the rights of the homeowner and help to limit the abuse of the power of the badge. Stand by the principles of our liberty-seeking nation; no one is above the law.

Blog 8

Just from reading the title of the novel, readers can gain some level of understanding of the two main characters of the story. Ari, the narrator of the story, shares his name with Aristotle, the Greek philosopher [APPOSITIVES SET OFF BY COMMAS]. Readers quickly learn that Ari embraces the legacy of his name by being some sort of philosopher himself. He often talks about figuring out the secrets of the universe, and questions everything by asking questions, such as, “Why do birds exist, anyways” (Saenz 54). Prompted by this question, his friend Dante, who shares his name with Dante – the Italian poet – replies “Birds exist to teach us about the sky” (54) [APPOSITIVE SET OFF BY DASHES]. Dante has many poetic, beautiful, and romantic answers to Ari’s questions throughout the novel, and loves reading poetry as a hobby [ADJECTIVES OUT OF ORDER]. The author (Benjamin Alire Saenz) has created characters that closely match their names, yet their names are seemingly the only thing they fit into [APPOSITIVE SET OFF BY PARENTHESIS].

Both boys struggle with their Mexican-American ethnicity and the stereotypes they associate with it. One day Ari blatantly asks Dante, “It bothers you that you’re Mexican, doesn’t it?” (39) Dante replies with an honest “Yes, it bothers me,” (40). This is a common struggle for new generations of mixed ethnicities, who feel as though they are a hybrid subject that does not belong to the country of their ancestors or the country they grew up in. Dante explains their struggle when he says, “my dad’s parents were born in Mexico. They live in a small little house in East LA and they speak no English and own a little restaurant. It’s like my mom and dad created a whole new world for themselves. I live in their new world. But they understand the old world, the world they came from – and I don’t. I don’t belong anywhere,” (88). The old world vs. the new world binary that Dante discusses reveals his feelings of being lost and not “fitting in” to either of them. The two Mexican-American boys, caught somewhere in the third space of the binary, struggle to find their place in the world [PARTICIPIAL PHRASE]. Characteristics of the third space are: establishing alternate ways of knowing, creating alternative ways of producing knowledge, and refusing to look at things as either black or white [APPOSITIVE SET OFF BY COLON]. Dante and Ari constantly challenge what is considered to be normal. They do not to see things as black or white, but find a gray area for their ideas and thoughts to live in. 

Blog 7

“Dora Learns to Write…” pages 59-71

In the article, "Dora Learns to Write and in the Process Encounters Punctuation" by Pat Cordeiro, we explore what one teacher does and does not do to help her students learn punctuation and syntax formation. The method the teacher uses to help Dora learn how to correctly punctuate the end of her sentences is to start, she asks Dora to talk about her writing and read out loud what she has written down. The first time around Dora does not see anything wrong about her punctuation. NOR DOES DORA RECOGNIZE HER AWKWARD PERIOD PLACEMENTS [USE OF NOR]. The teacher has Dora compare her writing to the writing she sees in her reading books. While looking at the book, the teacher points out the spaces between the words. Then both the teacher and Dora use their hands to frame the words in Dora’s story in order for Dora to physically see that each word should have its own place and be separated from other words. The next time the teacher has Dora read aloud, she introduces the idea of how punctuation sounds out loud by taking pauses for periods to show the end of the sentence.

Throughout this learning process, the teacher often relies on the reading books Dora and her peers use in order to let them gain a visual understanding of punctuation. By having the teacher point out the use of periods in the reading books, Dora and her friends notice on their own that there are too many “dots” in their writing compared to the writing in the reading book. They slowly start thinking of them as “periods” instead of “dots,” and start putting them in their writing fewer times. THE TEACHER LETS DORA CONSULT HER PEERS OFTEN, THOUGH SHE SPENDS ONE-ON-ONE TIME WITH DORA AS WELL, IN ORDER FOR DORA TO RECEIVE FEEDBACK FROM BOTH HER TEACHER AND HER PEERS. [THOUGH INTERRUPTS MAIN SENTENCE] The teacher allows students time to formulate their own ideas together in groups after hearing what the teacher has to say and looking at the books. Even if Dora and her peers all start doing something incorrectly, the teacher never demands to know whose mistake led the group down the wrong path. BECAUSE THE TEACHER UNDERSTANDS IT IS A COLLECTIVE WORKING PROCESS, SHE DOES NOT HOLD ANY INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTABLE FOR NEW MISTAKES. [START SENTENCE WITH BECAUSE CLAUSE] The next time the teacher reads out loud with Dora, she points out how “we let our voice drop down” (Cordeiro 62) for periods. THE TEACHER UNDERSTANDS THAT PUNCTUATION IS SOMEWHAT NEGOTIABLE BETWEEN THE READER AND THE WRITER, THEREFORE, FOLLOWING GRAMMAR RULES CAN ACTUALLY HINDER A STUDENT’S LEARNING; UNDERSTANDING THE USE OF LANGUAGE IS MOST IMPORTANT. [LONG SENTENCE CONNECTED TO SHORT ONE WITH SEMICOLON]  By following these in-class practices, students will learn when punctuation sounds right.

DURING THE LEARNING PROCESS, THE TEACHER DOES NOT HAND OUT PUNCTUATION WORK SHEETS FOR STUDENTS TO COMPLETE; DURING THE WRITING PROCESS, THE TEACHER DOES NOT CIRCLE STUENT’S PUNCTUATION MISTAKES AND THEN HAND THEM BACK TO CORRECT. [COMPOUND SENTENCE MIRRORING EACH OTHER WITH SEMICOLON] The teacher believes it is harmful to force Dora to follow certain syntax rules on day one. THE TEACHER ALLOWS DORA TIME TO COME TO HER OWN UNDERSTANDING OF PUNCTUATION BY, FIRST, GUIDING HER THROUGH QUESTIONS ABOUT HER WRITING; SECOND, COMPARING HER WRITING TO THE WRITING SEEN IN HER BOOKS; AND, THIRD, READING OUT LOUD TOGETHER. [SEMICOLON AS SUPER COMMA] The teacher understands that there are a lot of different ways punctuation can be used, and it is usually not right or wrong; the punctuation can be unique to the writer. The author’s unique writing style is not limited to what words they use but also the way they employ periods and commas. THEY OWN THAT PUNCTUATION BECAUSE THE MEANING IT CONVEYS IS THEIRS. [END SENTENCE WITH BECAUSE CLAUSE]

 It takes Dora awhile to start applying the concept of sentence-end-marking because she needed to develop a workable hypothesis that made sense to her – not a strict rule that seemed foreign or confusing – but something that she understood and appeared to devise herself. At the beginning, Dora was concerned with the unit word, and consequently, she would mark the end of each word with a period. However, overtime Dora learns that writing concerns itself with larger units.

Learning about syntax is a long series of trial and error, and has important implications for language learning in general, thus the teacher does not try to hurry the process. As Cordeiro said, “in the world of period placement, every sentence is a new experience” (65). 

"Dora Learns to Write..." pages 59-71

In the article, "Dora Learns to Write and in the Process Encounters Punctuation" by Pat Cordeiro, we explore what one teacher does and does not do to help her students learn punctuation and syntax formation. The method the teacher uses to help Dora learn how to correctly punctuate the end of her sentences is first, she asks Dora to talk about her writing and read out loud what she had written down. The first time around Dora does not see anything wrong or awkward about her punctuation, so the teacher has Dora compare her writing to the writing she sees in her reading books. While looking at the book, the teacher points out the spaces between the words. Then both the teacher and Dora use their hands to frame the words in Dora’s story so she can physically see that each word should have its own place and be separated from other words. The next time the teacher has Dora read aloud, she introduces the idea of how punctuation sounds out loud by taking pauses for periods to show the end of the sentence.

Throughout this learning process, the teacher often relies on the reading books Dora and her peers use in order to let them gain a visual understanding of punctuation. By having the teacher point out the use of periods in the reading books, Dora and her friends notice on their own that there are too many “dots” in their writing compared to the writing in the reading book. They slowly start thinking of them as “periods” instead of “dots,” and start putting them in their writing fewer times. The teacher lets Dora consult her peers often, and allows them to formulate their own ideas together after hearing what the teacher has to say and looking at the books. Even if Dora and her peers all start doing something incorrectly, the teacher never demands to know WHOSE mistake led the group down the wrong path. She understands it is a collective working process and instead tries to correct them individually.  [NEEDED TO INCLUDE POSSESSIVE PRONOUN] The next time the teacher reads out loud with Dora, she points out how “we let our voice drop down” (Cordeiro 62) for periods. The teacher understands that punctuation is somewhat negotiable between the reader and the writer, so a learner’s understanding of the use of language is more important. Through this, they will learn when punctuation sounds right.

What the teacher doesn’t do during this learning process is hand out punctuation work sheets, tell Dora when she is wrong, or force her to follow certain syntax rules on day one. The teacher allows Dora to take her time and come to her own understanding of punctuation by guiding her through questions about her writing, comparing her writing to the writing seen in her reading books and reading aloud. The teacher understands that there are a lot of different ways punctuation can be used, and it is usually not right or wrong; the punctuation is just YOURS. The author’s unique writing style is not limited to what words they use but also the way they employ periods and commas. They own that punctuation, and the meaning it conveys is THEIRS. [NEEDED TO INCLUDE POSSESSIVE PRONOUN]

 It takes Dora awhile to start applying the concept of sentence-end-marking because she needed to develop a workable hypothesis that made sense to her – not a strict rule that seemed foreign or confusing – but something that she understood and appeared to devise herself.

At the beginning, Dora was concerned with the unit word, so she would mark the end of each word with a period. However, overtime Dora learns that writing concerns itself with larger units.

Learning about syntax is a long series of trial and error, and has important implications for language learning in general, so the teacher does not try to hurry the process. As Cordeiro said, “in the world of period placement, every sentence is a new experience” (65).

Blog Post 1: My Goals

For two years now I have worked as an opinion columnist for The Daily Evergreen, and every week when I turn in my column my editor scrutinizes my writing and tells me what I am doing wrong. As frustrating as it can be sometimes to see my column rearranged and torn apart by another person, it is helpful to see what specific things I can improve in my own writing.

One thing that I have learned from my editor is that I need to watch my usage of commas. In order to be printed in the newspaper, articles and columns need to be SO CLEAR-CUT, SO DIRECT, SO CLEAN AND PRECISE [series of adjectives connected with commas and no and's]. If sentences start running on then cut them in half; if descriptions are too elaborate then remove the decorative punctuation marks and excessive adjectives. Those are the rules of the game.

For example, one piece I turned into my editor included a sentence that originally contained four different commas. The sentence read, “However, with these new policies, students might be afraid to return back to their dorm room after a night of partying, in fear of being labeled as ‘at risk,’ and suffering the consequences.”

After my editor was done critiquing my piece, there were no commas left in that sentence. He explained that with newspaper columns, the reader should pause as few times as possible to avoid losing interest, so the sentences and ideas should flow easily without unnecessary interruptions.

While working at The Daily Evergreen has helped to improve my writing in many ways, it was also made me fairly hesitant to use a variety of punctuation in my writing. So, in addition to getting a handle on my comma usage and only including commas when it is necessary, I would like to work on employing other types of punctuation marks such as dashes, semicolons, parentheses and virgules in my writing.

It is obvious from the blog post I am writing right now that I essentially avoid using a variety of punctuation marks at all costs, seeing that the only punctuation marks regularly used in this post are periods and commas (but of course). Hey, parenthesis! I am making progress already.

My hopes are that this grammar course will teach me the proper usage of a wide range of punctuation marks so that I will feel confident enough to employ them in my own writing. The editors at The Daily Evergreen may have instilled a fear within me when it comes to using any kind of punctuation, but this class can help me to extinguish that irrational fear now.

Although a clean-cut writing style may be appropriate for newspaper articles and columns, I would like to feel confident enough in my grammar usage to be able to transition into different writing styles when called upon.

The last thing I want for my writing is for it to simply be IDEAS AND FACTS AND STATEMENTS [series of nouns connected with and and no commas] with no extra mechanics to set my writing style apart and engage the reader. I want my writing to be exciting to read, and I think including different punctuation marks will mix things up.

I hope that by the time I am writing my last blog post for this class I will have gained enough confidence and knowledge about proper grammar usage that my writing will include a variety of punctuation marks and will prove more interesting to read.