These articles which we had to read this week were more complex than the ones from last week.  One thing kept on going through my mind while reading the articles that came off of e-reserves.  It's this technology that we are faced with today and how it changes our ways of gathering knowledge.  There are just so many different ways that you can gather information this day and age.  I look at this and know more on how I've been left out of the loop.  Three years ago was the last time that I had a cell phone, so when I got my new iPhone I was surprised at all the different things that were available to do on it.  The newest thing was text-messaging.  All of the abbreviations, yea I was confused, but this is a way that technology is changing us.  Even school children are using these types of text in their academic papers.  With this new technology I believe that rhetoric is not looked at anymore (the meanings of words) or in easier terms our society is dumbing itself down.  

Challenger

The articles about the space shuttle challenger are upsetting to me.  I understand that different types of discourse are used between the engineers and the managers, but one would think that these are professionals.  They both have vasts amounts of knowledge that should let them communicate better than the way that they did.  Their knowledge comes from different backgrounds of academia, but they should know that they are working on a great scale, which should let them be able to communicate with some rational.  I could only imagine that if these people were not just trying to cover their asses with different forms of rhetoric, than maybe there might of been a better outcome.  

I know while reading these articles I took them slightly personal, because if things like this happened in Iraq there would be a totally different outcome.  I dealt with lives in Iraq, just as these people did, but they are looked at differently.  In my mind if someone would speak up than maybe things like this would not happen, sorry, or better yet, if you know that there will be repercussions to pay than ones work ethics might change.  I didn't care about losing my job while in Iraq, but I still made sure that my Marines were always safe, NO MATTER WHAT!  These people should be held to the same scale.  

Thoughts about a Project

While reading these articles I kept on having reoccurring thoughts about the language used pertaining to the space shuttle (or covering of ones ass).  I kept on thinking of what I just went through in Iraq as a similar scenario, but I look at where I was stationed in Iraq (Haditha).  I've watched how the Haditha massacre has been thrown around the media with no resolve at end, which reminds me on how these articles on the space shuttle situation (O-rings) took place.  It's amazing on how so many people can change things around just to keep their job, but not worry about the livelihood of others.  I've just bouncing around the idea of the Iraq war and the rhetoric that surrounds it.  It might be really nice to see what is going on between rhetoric and war.

Understanding

Well, here I go back into school and the knowledge I am trying to grasp is vague.  I don't know if this will make sense to everyone out there, but as I read these articles I understand them but in some form I don't understand them.  Rhetoric is a topic that seems to the point with me, but can be a broad topic among other people.  This seems as if I am learning this for the first time.  

"An Overview of Rhetoric"  is something that is more knowledge based (something that I do understand). I follow along with how rhetoric is broken down into different steps.  Rhetoric and Persuasion is something that seems true, true that in order for rhetoric to work you must persuade.  Ok, persuasion is a powerful tool and without this tool you will not far with a research paper or even as simple as talking to someone.  

To let everyone know this is a difficult task to me, with just coming home from Iraq, I guess going from military life back to college is quiet a shock.  But I know I will enjoy this blog because throughout the semester I will be able to see how my progress will take shape. 

nathan