Category: Authors SP18

Rebuttal-Dohertyk9

Questioning Consent

Say Jane and John have intercourse. They discuss nothing before or after regarding whether or not they give consent. Is there consent? Now assume they’ve had consensual sex before. Now is there consent? And if Jane and John are married, does that mean they have both consented? What if I told you Jane was completely drunk? Consent still? Now how about if John was equally drunk?

If John and Jane did have perfectly consensual sex without saying a word, what if John then says he does not consent? Is consent revocable? If so, is it revocable only during sex or after the fact as well?

Consent is one of the most ambiguous concepts for humanity to define. Unlike murder and assault, rape is surrounded by far less intuitive boundaries.

While The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention take into account incapacitation due to the influence of drugs/alcohol, the FBI considers rape to be “penetration, no matter how slight” and ignores drugs/alcohol in its count. The result is that the FBI counted only 85,593 rapes in 2010, which is markedly different than The CDC’s count of 1.3 million.

Wikipedia explains the problem in its own terms even as it reports this data in its article titled “Rape Statistics”:

Inconsistent definitions of rape, different rates of reporting, recording, prosecution and conviction for rape create controversial statistical disparities, and lead to accusations that many rape statistics are unreliable or misleading. In some jurisdictions, male-female rape is the only form of rape counted in the statistics. Countries may not define forced sex on a spouse as “rape.”

The article, “Denying Rape but Endorsing Forceful Intercourse: Exploring Differences Among Responders”, in the book, “Violence and Gender, Volume 1, Issue 4”, contains a table that further illustrates the ambiguity of rape’s meaning. Table 1 indicates that 31.7% of the participants in the survey would be willing to force a woman into sexual intercourse, yet only 13.6% of the participants would rape a woman.

The further the definition of consent is considered, the more unclear it seems. Inversely, the definition of non-consent becomes ever clearer.

But how can non-consent be clear if consent is so difficult to define?

Simple; because consent is invalid if it is not constantly expressed in a clear and explicit manner, non-consent is any situation in which this is the case.

The video “Tea and Consent” on consentiseverything.com claims that consent is ‘as simple as tea’. It uses the analogy of making someone a cup of tea to explain consent and non-consent. The video states that “unconscious people don’t want tea,” further explaining that even if the person was awake when asked if he/she wanted tea, this does not mean that he/she wants tea while unconscious. According to the video, consent given before the person became unconscious is invalidated as soon as the person falls asleep.

But has every person that has ever been unconscious during sex considered it to be rape?

The website offers at bulleted list of ultimatums about consent:

Make sure the other person is participating freely and readily. You can confirm if you have consent both verbally and by checking the other person’s body language. Someone on drugs or too drunk to make decisions doesn’t have the mental capacity to give consent. If someone is on drugs or seems too drunk to consent, or you’re not sure, stop. Wait until they are sober and ask them again. Somebody who is asleep or unconscious cannot give consent. Other things can also affect a person’s capacity to consent. Examples include a serious mental health problem, learning disability or a head injury. Having capacity means the person can make and communicate a decision, understanding the consequences and knowing they have a choice. If they cannot do this they cannot give consent. Your partner has the right to withdraw their consent at any time. Once consent is withdrawn you must stop engaging in sexual activity immediately.

But what if someone does not realize that his/her partner is not sober? And what if a person’s consent is withdrawn, and his/her partner stops, yet the person still charges for rape?

The video also claims that nothing short of an enthusiastic “Yes!” qualifies as consent. Anything along the lines of “okay” or “sure” would therefore not be valid. But again, has every person that has answered in such a half-hearted manner felt as though they were raped?

The only way to be certain that every case is treated similarly and fairly is to use the aforementioned definition of consent (clear, constant expression), which would create a very structured, almost robotic approach to one of the most human acts in existence.

The alternative to such a restrictive definition is to choose one of the many definitions of consent and apply it as objectively as possible. However objectively it is applied, it is nearly impossible to be consistent from case to case, and very difficult to be fair to every party involved. Although a restrictive definition is impractical in its application in daily life, it would certainly simplify and standardize court rulings on the matter.

 

 

References

Edwards, S. R., Bradshaw, K. A., & Hinsz, V. B. (2014, December 15). Denying Rape but Endorsing Forceful Intercourse: Exploring Differences Among Responders. Retrieved March 18, 2018, from https://www-liebertpub-com.ezproxy.rowan.edu/doi/full/10.1089/vio.2014.0022

#Consentiseverything. (n.d.). Retrieved March 18, 2018, from http://www.consentiseverything.com/

Rape statistics. (2018, March 15). Retrieved March 18, 2018, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_statistics

 

Rebuttal – PaulaJean

-Raymond Nickerson blames ineffective medical procedures. If a patient recovered, doctors counted the treatment as successful instead of looking for alternative explanations. Example: The disease had actually just run it’s course but the treatment was still unsuccessful.

-Confirmation bias may also cause doctors to perform unnecessary medical procedures due to pressure.

-According to Aaron Beck, biased information processing is a factor in depression. He suggested that you treat every problem equally.

Phobias and Hypochondrias have been shown to involve confirmation bias for threatening information.

Confirmation bias is often described as a result of automatic, unintentional strategies rather than deliberate deception.

On social media, confirmation bias is amplified by the use of “algorithmic editing”, which shows individuals information that they are more likely to agree with, while excluding opposing views.

Nobody likes to be wrong…

Wording of a sentence triggers confirmation bias and allows the reader or audience to subconsciously believe that what’s said is true.

Prior goals or thoughts will influence how one reacts.

 

Reference

Arguing against confirmation bias: The effect of argumentative discourse goals on the use of disconfirming evidence in written argument. (2016, July 18). Retrieved March 19, 2018, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0883035516300453

 

Causal argument-jdormann

Injuries in high impact sports have been found tube more detrimental than in years past. The players that are effected may not be aware of the complications until it is too late for them to recover. Lives are negatively effected and even ended any terrible injuries that could possibly be prevented.

Football players are exposed to concussions from head to head and head to ground impacts. The injuries they suffer can be immediate or long-term. For example, top level players, like Junior Seau, have taken their own lives because of CTE complications.The NFL has turned a blind eye for too many years to these injuries and complications because of them. People that participate in football and other high-impact sports are accepting of life changing injuries when they agree to play the sport, but they do not expect it to be life ending.

Rugby players do not suffer as many concussions as football players because of their body awareness on the field of play. They are taught to tackle differently and not use their heads as a device to bring down the opponent. When a rugby player uses their head in a tackle, they are susceptible to being knocked out and immediately learning that they need to change their technique.

Football players are padded, and they do not receive as much of an immediate effect from high-impact head injuries. The small amount of pain or “ringing” is brushed off as a good hit. The player then goes on to receive countless of these impacts which eventually manifest into permanent brain damage and at the worst, CTE.

Spinal injuries are more typical to rugby players. When good techniques are used, it is not always good enough. Bringing down an opponent at full speed is not always easy and safe. The pure inertia of stopping someone running full speed can compress the spine and cause immediate or future complications. Also, when players are involved in a scrum, they are susceptible to above average forces acting on their body, specifically their spine. In a scrum, eight players from each team essentially line up in one large group and push straight into each other for the ball. One can imagine what happens when their technique is not perfect or something goes wrong. The spine and major muscles in the body take the brunt of the torque and power applied. When there is  by so many men exerting tremendous force.

Rebuttal- LBirch

Rather Be Safe Than Sorry

It is a great responsibility to be a homeowner, to actually be cautious of the safety of the all the occupants. The one main safety feature that seems to go unnoticed is a smoke detector. To some homeowners, they seem to think it is a good idea to put their detectors up and completely forget about them. The main argument in favor of wired smoke detectors is that they will stay powered forever and there is no need to change the batteries. But they never seem to think about if the power goes out, or the back-up batteries aren’t properly functioning. According to an article on Do It Yourself, the detector will begin to go off when the power goes off and the back-up battery (if there is one) is dead. So why have a hardwired detector if it will not work in all scenarios? This does prove that no matter what type of detector you have, hardwired or battery powered, proper care and maintenance is needed.

New and improved detectors are always coming onto the market, usually advancing with technology. In a article by Haramis Electric, these detectors will alert emergency services automatically if a smoke detector is activated in your home. Of course these new detectors will cost more, but in the end the price of a detector is worth it. But there are some disadvantages to these “smart” detectors. The main disadvantage comes when the power goes out. Some new systems run on WiFi, but are no good when they are getting no power.

Of course, we cannot argue all detectors are a hazard and we should not use them. They save many lives a year from house fires. But we can argue certain aspects are dangerous, such as when the power goes out. Safety does come first, no matter the cost, so detectors should not go unnoticed or forgotten.

Work Cited

Advantages/Disadvantages of Smart Smoke Detectors. (2016, September 08). Retrieved March 19, 2018, from http://www.haramiselectric.com/blog/advantagesdisadvantages-smart-smoke-detectors/

Smoke Detector Beeping: Maintenance Is Likely Required. (2009, June 22). Retrieved March 19, 2018, from https://www.doityourself.com/stry/smoke-detector-beeping-maintenance-is-likely-required

Rebuttal – picklerick

Teaching Students to Really Read

When it comes to teaching students to read, many teachers have the wrong idea. It’s a popular belief that in order to show kids the joy of reading, they should be assigned to read whatever they want. Valerie Strauss of The Washington Post claims, “the easiest path is to make independent reading at least half of every day’s homework by putting strict limits on subject matter assignments.” This seems logical; giving students freedom to read what they want will make them more attached to the story, right? As it turns out, there are actually significant downsides to letting students read what they want. As Mark Pennington explains in his article from the Pennington Publishing Blog, “Students often choose books with reading levels far below or far above own their reading levels and so do not experience optimal reading growth.” If you give a student the assignment to read freely, of course they’re going to choose a book that’s simple to read. Also, as a teacher, you have no way of knowing whether or not the student comprehended the text. This is why it the best method to teach kids how to read properly is to insure that they have the close reading skills necessary to read books that are on their reading level. The best way to do this is to assign them short, nonfiction texts which challenge their ability to analyze, comprehend, and make inferences.

 

References

Strauss, V. (2014, September 08). Why kids should choose their own books to read in school. Retrieved March 17, 2018, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2014/09/08/why-kids-should-choose-their-own-books-to-read-in-school/?utm_term=.a1d60b23343c

Pennington Publishing Blog. (n.d.). Retrieved March 17, 2018, from http://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/why-sustained-silent-reading-ssr-doesnt-work/

Dakin, C. (2013). The Effects of Comprehension Through Close Reading (Unpublished masters thesis). St. John Fisher College.
https://fisherpub.sjfc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1238&context=education_ETD_masters

Rebuttal- Ugandanknuckles

To many, the biggest issue with mantras is that they are ineffective and limited only to the chosen few who devote their lives to it. A study done by The University of Waterloo and The University of New Brunswick is in support of that idea as it says,

“…present results suggest that for certain people, positive self-statements may be not only ineffective, but actually detrimental. When people with low self-esteem repeated the statement, ‘I’m a lovable person,’ or focused on ways in which this statement was true of them, neither their feelings about themselves nor their moods improved—they got worse. Positive self-statements seemed to provide a boost only to people with high self-esteem—those who ordinarily feel good about themselves already—and that boost was small.”

Scientific proof of this common claim is enough for most people to shut out mantras completely, but this concern is flawed as it was never argued that mantras would work for just anyone. Also, mantras are more than just saying a basic statement of “I’m a lovable person,” as most would seem to believe it is.

Mantras are made to work for people who have high self-clarity. Self-clarity is defined by Melissa Dahl as, “how well we know our own strengths and weaknesses, as well as our ability to accept them.” This is where most people run into trouble. They think that self-esteem is the key. For the most part, self-esteem is overrated. Melissa Dahl, a writer for the New York Times, states that,

…high self-esteem inflates your ego, which can make the reality of how others see you harder to bear. With high self-clarity, though, you can see and accept yourself much more easily–even your flaws. But this form of self-acceptance doesn’t leave you there, gaping at your imperfections.

Boosting our self-clarity is important to using mantras because we need to be in-tune with ourselves. We have to have a good understanding of who we are on the inside before we can look introspectively for positive energy and power. Self-clarity can be learned through embracing mistakes we have made, and realizing that everyone makes mistakes. Changing ones’s philosophy from that of a pessimist to that of a realist isn’t necessary, but looking at things from a neutral standpoint rather than a negative one is key.

Mantras harness the power of sound, and Gabriel Axel wrote a great article on how sound effects the body on October 2, 2013, in the US News Website. Different sounds have different meanings, such as a car screeching to a halt followed by a crashing sound is connected with an accident and all that entails. Axel states that the word mantra is Sanskrit for “sound tool,” and that many languages evolved to include onomatopoeia to make use of the movement of energy through those words.

This evocation is qualitative and subjective and is linked with interoception (inner body sensations) and emotional sense of self, both predominantly represented in the right hemisphere of the brain. Conversely, the narrative strand of sounds in which we give them meaning is done predominantly through the left hemisphere.

Sound itself, from a physics standpoint, will resonate in different parts of the body and mind before it is assigned a meaning. The different areas where the sound resonates can make you feel different emotions, or remember old memories. Feelings and effects will vary from person to person, but the best effects are found in people who know themselves. The better the condition of the body and mind, the better the outcome. People who become well versed in mantra usage can eventually not even have to use their voices because the feelings produced by their voice can be replicated through their thoughts alone.

Horton, A. P. (2018, February 16). Positive Self-Esteem Is Overrated, Here’s What You Need Instead. Retrieved March 17, 2018, from https://www.fastcompany.com/40531879/positive-self-esteem-is-overrated-heres-what-you-need-instead

Click to access 03_wood_etal_selfstatements_psychscience2009.pdf

Axel, Gabriel. “Your Brain on Om: The Science of Mantra.” US News, 2 Oct. 2013, 11:27, health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/2013/10/02/your-brain-on-om-the-science-of-mantra.

Rebuttal Essay – summergirl1999

College: Grand Slam or Scam?

Every student has the choice to attend college. Getting asked the question “Are you going to college?” can be challenging for some students. College is a big decision to make and it comes with many factors. College can benefit or drawback students, depending on the specific student. (Student A and Student C.) In American society, a college degree in American holds weight. Working towards a college degree shows employers that students are motivated to succeed. A college degree can determine raises, well-paying careers, and most importantly success. Students encounter their own personal and financial issues, and college can have the effect of leaving students in sticky situations. Even with a college degree, a career and well-paying stable job in the student’s field of study is not guaranteed.

Students will make more money from attending college. Students attend college so they can make themselves more marketable to the career field, and to also make a good and stable amount of income.

“A college graduate earns more than a non-graduate.  Plain and simple.  Studies have shown that there is an average of $25,000 earnings difference between grads and non-grads.  Furthermore, this gap is widening every year.  The bottom line is that pursuing a degree increases the ability to find work in the same field, increasing experience and earning potential” (CBD College.)

Having a college degree can give a graduate the opportunity to receive higher paying salaries and stable incomes. A college degree can also give a student the potential to receive higher raises. Not every student who receives a degree gets a stable income. Student A attended college, received a degree, and found a career that had a stable salary. Student C attended college, received a degree, and found a job that offered salaries that do not pay enough to pay off student’s expenses. The push to try to make students attend college is leaving many students optioning out the “build your own business” idea, which is the idea many of the billionaires in today’s society had.

“25 of the top-paying jobs that don’t require a four-year degree and their average salaries, based on data from the BLS and CBSSalary.com It is important to note that some of these jobs DO require some kind of a degree, just not a 4-year degree. As many have commented below many of the jobs do require formal training of some kind or even a two-year degree” (Seed Time.)

College graduates can potentially have better employment opportunities. Students go to college so they have a high chance of getting a career in their field of study. Many college graduates (Student A), take-out loans or pay the expensive college tuition because the money they can potentially make from their careers after college is worth it.

“College freshman in 2015 said they attended college to “be able to get a better job.” In Jan. 2017, the unemployment rate for college graduates aged 25 and over with a bachelor’s degree was 2.5% compared to 3.8% for those with some college or associate’s degrees, 5.3% for high school graduates, and 7.7% for high school dropouts” (Pro Con).

After college, graduates use their degree to get a career in their field of study that they potentially could not get if they did not go to college. Although many people get to use their degree for their benefit by obtaining their “perfect” or/and “dream” career after college (Student A), not all students get to use their degree for their benefit. Even with a college degree, after college not all graduates are able to get a career (Student C.) There is a lot of comparing applications for the job position. The work place is very competitive, potentially thousands of people can be applying for the same position.

“This is a real issue unique to this generation called ‘a quarter-life crisis,'” said Cyrus Williams, a licensed professional counselor and an associate professor at Regent University in Virginia. Millennials are “struggling in terms of milestones, getting jobs, parenting, finding jobs, having too many choices, and having debt coming right out of college” (CNBC.)

College tuition is very expense, most college students take out student loans which they are obligated to pay back approximately six months after graduation, so not being able to get a stable, well-paying job after college can lead to major set-backs for college graduates. Graduates who do not get jobs after college are required to pay for necessities such as rent, utilities, and food. Even if graduates are not using their degree they are still obligated to pay back their student loans as soon as six months after graduation.

Student loans are not as bad as they seem. Since college tuition is outrageously expensive, most students do not have the money to pay for it. But there is a solution to that problem, to take out student loans. Students who do not have the money for college, take out loans from banks so they can attend college. Banks loan student’s money in return for the students to pay them bank monthly after the student graduates.

“Average monthly student loan payment (for borrower aged 20 to 30 years): $351. Median monthly student loan payment (for borrower aged 20 to 30 years): $203” (Student Loan Hero.)

The goal for after college is to acquire a stable career that comes with a stable salary, so the monthly student loans will become manageable for the graduate (Student A). That scenario makes attending college worth it and beneficial. On the other hand (Student C), students take out student loans from a bank for a four-year university. After college, many students cannot find a job in their field of study but they still have to pay for necessities so they are forced to get minimum wage job which pays approximately $7.25. Students attend college so they can get a career where they can earn raises and move up in the company, not a regular job. People have their own personal and finical problems, so without a steady paying career can lead graduates to make certain decisions they potentially would not make if they had stable income.

References

9 BENEFITS OF EARNING A COLLEGE DEGREE. (2016, December 09). Retrieved March 16, 2018, from https://www.cbd.edu/9-benefits-college-degree/

[Create AP-style references to match the edited model above. —DSH]

https://christianpf.com/paying-jobs-without-degree/

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/08/millennials-face-life-after-college-finding-a-quarter-life-crisis-instead-of-dream-jobs.html

https://studentloanhero.com/student-loan-debt-statistics/

https://www.forbes.com/sites/financialfinesse/2016/08/07/why-your-student-loan-debt-may-not-be-as-bad-as-it-seems/#61095a8218b8

Class Canceled THU MAR 07

Keep Calm

One advantage of the blog is that we can communicate even when nasty weather keeps us apart.

I will post my Rebuttal Argument here for your benefit. I’ll also update today’s Agenda to reflect the fact that we did not meet in person.

Enjoy your break. Return refreshed. I’ll bring donuts, beverages, and breakfast sandwiches for all voters when we return on MON MAR 19.

Safer Saws-Nreina34

  1. Manufacturers

Finger-saving SawStop has been around for a decade, but tool companies aren’t interested

1a.)  In an article written by Jeff Blagdon it states,  But despite SawStop effectiveness, the big tool companies still haven’t added it to their products. Meanwhile, saw-related injuries result in some $2.3 billion in medical bills, lost wages, and other societal costs every year. Fair Warning investigates why the power tool industry has so far failed to license the SawStop technology or implement its own alternative. ‘If the manufacturers had to pay the cost of those injuries,’ says inventor Stephen Gass, ‘they would have adopted technology like this within months of the time they heard about it’”.

1b.)  The inventor, Steve Gass, makes the claim that manufacturers do not want the liability of the saw to not work.  They do not pay for the medical bills of their customers now but if they were too implement this saw, it opens up a world of lawsuits and bills for the company.

1c.)  This is a factual claim made by this article and Mr. Gass.  Manufacturers do not want the responsibility and the headaches that this saw may bring, at least Steve Gass’ invention.

1d.)  I agree with the claim brought up by Steve Gass and how big companies don’t want to pay for things they do not have to.  But, if this is such a big issue then why is Steve Gass taking the chance and manufacturing these saws? The problem is right now is that the technology is too ineffective and inconsistent.  Approximately, 2,000 people have been injured from this saw out of 300,000 table saw emergency room visits since 2002, when the company opened.