Re-Re-Education

When I first checked the syllabus for my composition course, I was beyond happy to see that there was no final. I was happier to see that there wasn’t even an essay due for the final, only a blog.

Source: Wikimedia

Basically, I thought I was going to get away with an easy final project which I could finish without much thought. In short, I was wrong. Really wrong. Our prompt was to convert a research-type essay into a more casual blog, which meant I had to change my voice to become more casual. This was by far one of the biggest hurdles, and I’m still struggling to adapt. I have never had to support a thesis using a casual voice, so I felt like everything either came out too robotic or too try-hard.

Source: PublicDomainPictures.net

What I did

With that aside though, I feel like I didn’t do as bad on other elements of blogging or the assignment. I narrowed my targeted audience to college students who share similar political beliefs with me. In turn, I had to make more stylistic changes to my writing. But to a certain extent, my ideas became more genuine. What I said was more politically oriented and very biased, since I was trying to appeal more to leftist minds. Additionally, I focused my whole argument on how our economy is affecting students the worst, even though students are the backbone of any thriving economy. In other words, I made my arguments directly relatable and personal to my audience.

And since I would be included with you in my targeted audience, I felt like it was actually me talking about what I strongly believed in. I was able to hear my thoughts and actually know that they were something I would say outside of an assignment. I felt invested in what I was saying, it was nothing like talking to a void. It was fun to see my vision grow, but it was also an issue, since I could only write so much.

Source: Pixabay (Geralt)

I had to cut out a lot of what I initially intended to put in, alongside the new ideas that popped up as I went into details. Since my argument was more focused around the economy and not social circumstances, I had to completely get rid of my arguments on how minority groups are unfairly tied to their economic status, and how that affects minority students and minority communities. Being a minority, this could have only added to the personal connection I felt with what I was writing. But for all I know, that argument can be another story for another time.

Where am I now

Obviously, I’m still not an expert at this, not even close, but I feel like this isn’t a golden standard for being an “expert” at either. Sure, there are ways to improve your voice, or tools to make sure you can find good pictures which are licensed for reuse, but blogging is about speaking from the self. I feel like I did that well.

I definitely have to practice compressing my ideas, using transitions in such short paragraphs, and finding my casual voice, but I feel like I learned a lot about both the blogging community and myself. I see now just how sloppy blogging can be, but how effective it can be to brainstorm new ideas. I can see myself doing a blog-esque routine in the future to help think about and solidify ideas/arguments.

I’m still new to this, and probably not the best, but I look forward to using this blog more to learn about myself as a person, as a student, and as a writer.

Source: Pixabay (Tumisu)

Photo Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Canada’s_fireworks_at_the_2013_Celebration_of_Light_in_Vancouver,_BC.jpg

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/hledej.php?hleda=stress

https://pixabay.com/p-741507/?no_redirect

https://pixabay.com/p-494153/?no_redirect

In our current social aftermath of the 2016 Presidential Election, many people have already began to speculate what lies in the future for our country. With Donald Trump as the President-elect, standing with a conservative Congress, both the Left and the Right have shared their worries (and positive hopes). But all this talk about the future makes me feel like we are ignoring the present. Our current economic state isn’t very good, and we should accept that and do all we can to fix it before we watch somebody only worsen it.

Source: Flickr (Donkey Hotey)

Is the American Dream dead? Obviously, there are two sides to this argument:

No, the American Dream is alive and well, only today it is more focused around smart saving rather than lavish living. Those who can save, manage, and invest their money better will slowly see higher returns and safe growth.

Or (and this is the one I would have to agree with)…

Yes, our current economy makes it very difficult for different socio-economic classes and ethnic groups to “save smart” for a higher education, placing numerous people at a disadvantage.

Here’s the issue

In his article, “RIP, the middle class: 1946-2013”, Journalist Edward McClelland claims there are, “only two classes: aristocracy and peasantry. It’s an order in which the many toil for subsistence wages to provide luxuries for the few.” In other words, he agrees with Marx’s claims of the battle between the bourgeoisie and the proletarians. The “aristocracy” always has the upper-hand in opportunity. This is an economy where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

All of this ties back into education. There is no denying that, generally, people with a bachelor’s degree make more money than those without. Stephanie Owen and Isabel Sawhill support this in their report, “Should Everyone Go to College”, stating that, “23-to 25-year-olds with bachelor’s degrees make $12,000 more than high school graduates but by age 50, the gap has grown to $46,500.” These figures show how our economy rewards those with a higher education, which is completely fine. Skilled/specialized laborers should be able to make high returns on their educational investments, it promotes a healthy economy.

Source: Wikimedia

This is not the case, however, when the majority “peasantry” class struggles financially to make and maintain this educational investment. There is just no arguing that the student debt crisis is something we can just dismiss. I mean just look at it. Mark Kantrowitz’s article, “Why the Student Loan Crisis Is Even Worse Than People Think”, reports,

“Average student loan debt at graduation has been growing steadily over the last two decades. In 1993-94, about half of bachelor’s degree recipients graduated with debt, averaging a little more than $10,000. This year, more than two-thirds of college graduates graduated with debt, and their average debt at graduation was about $35,000, tripling in two decades.”

The accumulation of this debt scares people, causing them to drop out or not even peruse a higher education.

Source: Flickr (Donkey Hotey)

So, we live in an economy which rewards those with college degrees, but at the same time financially discourages the lower and middle classes from pursuing them. This creates the vicious feedback loop where more and more wealth becomes concentrated in the hands of the few, rendering the people and their democracy powerless.

The lower and middle classes, if they even chose to pursue a college education, start at a disadvantage, and end with a disadvantage. McClelland claims, “24 percent [of young people who graduated from college] defined the American dream as ‘not being in debt.’ They’re not trying to get ahead. They’re just trying to get to zero.” What kind of image is reflected on the country when a large portion of the country’s future leaders see the highest achievement in their nation as simply not being in debt?

What has to be done

Unless you have business ties with members in Congress, I doubt you can get any piece of legislation out single-handedly and in a speedy manner. However, we are the future of America. We must make our voices be heard. Whether you call your local representative, take to social media, or protest publicly, just make sure you are being heard. A system which suppresses millions of students as harshly as ours does does not deserve to go this far under the radar.

This socio-economic system is destroying our future and our American Dream. And if we stay quiet, we will be hit harder and harder and then it’s too late. Don’t let the people which are currently in power write our stories. If we want our future and freedom, we have to take our own reigns while we still can.

Photo Sources:

www.flickr.com/photos/donkeyhotey/24394211100

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States

www.flickr.com/photos/donkeyhotey/6304808136

Source : Wikimedia

Hello. And welcome… And most importantly, congratulations! You might be asking yourself how you found this treasure and what can possibly be inside. Answer: just another college millennial ranting to his heart’s content on the governmental and social forces which affect his life directly (as if there aren’t enough of us around).

I really didn’t begin to care about society or politics until some completely arbitrary awakening during my sophomore year of high school. No joke, I really just woke up one day and thought it would be a good idea to become interested in politics. So I did. Throughout my remaining years in high school, I began to focus a lot more on political theory when I went through my history courses. I even bought and read books which developed these theories, I built a genuine interest. And I figured out early on that I was more attracted to a leftist way of thinking (who would’ve guessed?). Kind of radical too. No, not like the USSR or some other single-party totalitarian dictatorship. I was more influenced by Marx and Engels, or Noam Chomsky, or Voltaire, or even Jesuit missionaries in the Colonial Era. It’s just what makes the most sense to me. I like to assume that entropy affects any and every system, so I believe that redistribution and equality is inevitable. I also believe that individuals and their societies are valued in relation to each other, so a society is valued based off of how well it treats its individuals, and an individual is valued based off of how they progress their society.

Source: Flickr (Andrew Rusk)

Obviously I’m not some revolutionary leftist philosopher who plans to spread his profound lessons through a grass root effect starting with this tiny blog. I’m just a middle-class college student with an interest and internet. But with these items, I want to share my perspective and give insight on society and its effects on education (focusing on economic and racial inequality).

Education is without a doubt the most important investment for a society. It (should) put all students on equal ground and give them the power they need to progress and lead society. It’s a win-win situation. Sadly, I can’t say that this ideal societal educational system is the one I find myself in, and many professionals would come to agree with me. So, I’ll give my two cents with what I and many others see as flawed and un-egalitarian.

Source: Chegoinc

My ultimate intention is, again, to just simply rant and spill raw thoughts. At the same time, I want my insights to almost serve as a collective call to action for my like-minded brothers and sisters. We should open our eyes and take control of the situation and slowly build toward reform. Or should I say… we have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

Photo Sources:

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Wikipedia_Hello_World_Graphic.svg

www.flickr.com/photos/andrewrusk/5599588702

http://chegoinc.com/services/paid-online-marketing/google-adwords/google-display-network/