I'm Going to Change the World

"Those who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world are the ones that do" 

- Steve Jobs

I am 100% crazy in the fact that I have every intention of changing the world. I have a heart for helping others and making a positive impact on their lives. I love people, being around people, and meeting new people. So taking this and using my strengths to, as my parents like to say, "save the world" won't be that hard, right? 

Well here's my plan. It starts with graduating with a degree in International Studies, which has a focus on Latin American politics and diplomacy. From here I'll use my degree to find a position in the non-profit, humanitarian aide, international development agency communities; this provides a pretty impressive spread of different opportunities. One thing I know for sure is that I do not want to let myself end up behind a desk for the rest of my life. I am aware that I will certainly have points in my career where this will be inevitable, but I won't last long enclosed in an office. 

The best way to phrase what I want to do is that I want to be the "hands" of one of the groups. I want to be on the team responsible for bringing the changes that are development in the office and making the dreams of the people I work with come to life. One day I hope to have my own non-profit that benefits a place on the earth that takes part of my heart. I have an overwhelming passion for changing the world and I dream of being the individual that comes into a community at its weakest, works with the people to make improvements, and only leaves once it is thriving.  

Lately, I've had to reassure myself that as crazy as my dreams seem now, they will pan out to be the aspirations I have been setting for myself throughout my life. I like to think that if your dreams don't scare you then they aren't big enough, this may be asking to make some outlandish goals for myself but I can't let myself sacrifice my passions to make my journey easier. 

"Bunny Man Bridge"

Yes, you read that right. Bunny Man Bridge. This was an urban legend that circulated around my suburban neighborhood when I was growing up in Northern Virginia. I was one of the older children of the families that made up our community so it was my job to help pass along this legend to the younger kids. We obviously did this to scare them as well.

This legend has been carried on since the beginning of the 1900s and has even brought Clifton, Virginia into the national spotlight. Here is how the story goes:

After the Civil War, an insane asylum was built in the Clifton area. The residents didn't like this and petitioned to get it relocated. While relocating the residents the bus got into an accident and some of the residents escaped. Two men were never found. While on the search police would find random mutilated bunnies. They then found one of the escapees hanging from the bridge and dubbed the lone escapee, Bunny Man. 

Things slowed down for awhile until the townspeople started seeing dead bunnies again. Then one Halloween night some teenagers went to the bridge and do what teenagers back then did. At midnight they were all murdered and left hanging from the bridge. This was said to have happened within a blink of the eye by the soul of the Bunny Man. 

The myth is that every Halloween when young people go to the bridge they will be murdered by the Bunny Man come midnight if they are directly under it. If they choose to stay in the vicinity of the bridge, not under it, they will survive. 

It is now a popular and terrifying game to go to the bridge on Halloween and see who has the guts to go under the bridge and wait; I can't say that I've ever done this. 

This is the link to a rendition of the "full" story:

http://www.castleofspirits.com/clifton.html

This is just another example of an urban legend and how long the history can be. Since the early 1900s this myth has been circulating communities. Upon learning about this as a pre-teen, I had the desired reaction. Every bridge I saw brought chills down my spine and I no longer had the desire to venture outside after dark. I have to admit I have never been too keen on going outside after dark, anyway. This story just added to my hesitance, though. 

What do you think the moral of this story is? What strategies were used to engage the audience? Is this legend similar to those that you've heard throughout your life? 

The Drone Debate

There's a new debate in the world of warfare. This time it is about silent warfare. The drones that have been created for "targeted killing" and will open the door to a completely new side of warfare. These machines are programmed to target a certain person that has been deemed an enemy of the state. They are given this title because of secret evidence that the CIA and government compile, this is how the ACLU, or American Civil Liberties Union, describes these machines.

The ACLU blog offers factual evidence in the form of lawsuits regarding this debate. The blogger uses the logos appeal to pull in the reader with these court case synopsis's. The list of potential "enemies of the state" are referred to as "kill lists" on the blog. When describing how one is added to this list, the author focuses on the secretive aspect of the process. The diction used draws the reader's attention to this and then causes them to doubt the decisions made by the government.
Using the court cases is also an example of using the pathos appeal. Upon learning that one of those killed by a drone was a 16 year old American citizen the readers are certainly going to question their stance on this debate; this is certainly what the blogger is hoping for. The tone of the blog is one that is trying to convince its readers of the faults in this new military strategy.

A similar blog is that from the Huffington Post. The header "Murder Machines" runs across the page in large, bold, red print. This is the bloggers first attempt to get the readers' attention. The tone is already given with these two words. It is obvious that the blogger intends to inform the readers of the negative impacts of these drones. The blogger addresses the killings done by American soldiers that is very rarely looked into. By using statistics, such as the amount of weaponry the U.S. owns, and how much we have spent on it, the blog gains credibility and the information adds to the debate of the drone decision.
The blog then uses a story of a U.S. Staff Sergeant killed in action. When reading about a fellow American being killed in war one would feel the need to retaliate, correct? Army officials argue that if a drone was overhead there would have been a spared life. So the blog then uses the appeal of pathos, but in a more conflicting manner. Do we use drones to protect lives? Are they really "murder machines"?

This is an extremely heated debate that is intertwined with politics, military strategy, and American welfare and safety. My reason for looking into such a controversial topic was because I was expecting to find blogs that used many strategies to convey their message, and that is what I found. I also learned quite a bit of information that I did not know before.

So would these strategies have worked on you if you were reading these blogs? If a blog is so deep in politics does it even need several strategies? Or does the amount of emotions involved in these debates suffice?