Rehtorical Analysis of Editorial

Who- The government officials of Washington DC put this law into action
What- 5cent tax on all disposable bags from stores (primarily grocery stores)
When- The fee started New Years Day but was in the works and development stage long before that. Talks started as early as 2007.
Where- Washington DC
Why- To reduce the use of disposable bags and lower the pollution in the Anacostia River
Identify the editorial’s claim, reasons, and the kinds of evidence it uses as support.
In this editorial the author clearly shows both sides of the argument. However, they do take a more firm stance on the offensive side of the argument. The author puts more objective statements in the article and shows the negative reaction that the state is having to imposed law. They use the story of a woman who goes into a store and spends $20 on sushi and rejects the bag to save $.05, only to drop the sushi because she didn’t have a bag. When asked why she refused to use a bag she said “this is where my zeal for conservation runs into my passion for small government. The bag tax makes me batty; I'll do a lot to avoid paying it." This article shows a lot of the downsides to the bill and the outrage that has developed. It used the point-of-view of a Duke University economics professor to explain what will happen to the economy of grocery stores in DC. The article does justify why the government put this into action, to save the Anacostia River and that in the few days it has been in effect it has cut pollution 50%, but it still manages to hold a negative bias to the law.
Does the author acknowledge and respond to other views?
The author does acknowledge both sides of the argument and they show how each side is viewed, but they do support the defensive or negative approach to the piece of legislation.
How does the author utilize logos, ethos, and pathos?
Logos- They appeal to logic by showing where this law came from and why it was put into action. The idea came from San Francisco and was put into action to save the Anacostia River.
Ethos- They appeal to personality with story of the woman that wouldn’t use a bag because of her morals regarding the situation. Also, they attempt to show credibility by using the views of a Duke University economist.
Pathos- They appeal to emotions by stating that shoppers are willing to go to VA to buy groceries even though there is a higher food tax, but in VA there is no bag tax. So consumers are more willing to pay more for the food itself rather than pay a little amount for the disposable bags.
What are the argument's audience, occasion, and purpose?
Audience- The audience is really anyone in the United States. This article was posted in the USA Today so it was really published for all to read, process, and refute or support. However, it is mostly going to be read by adults interested in environmental news.
Occasion- The occasion would be to be a part of an editorial section. It was published in the editorial section and is meant to be read and reacted upon.
Purpose- The purpose was to inform mostly those, outside of DC, but some inside, of the piece of legislation that has been put into action in the area and how it is going to affect everyone. The author set out to show how this is negatively affecting the state and that shoppers are going to great lengths to avoid this tax, ultimately protesting the law.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2010/01/is-bag-tax-5-cent-highway-robbery-/1

Link to Editorial

This article is about charging a fee for every plastic bag you are given at stores across the nation and world.

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/greenhouse/post/2010/01/bag-fee-elicits-heated-debate/1

Bag Charge

For my topic I have chosen to write about the fact that America will soon be adopting some of the actions of of European neighbors. North America is currently in talks of putting a charge or "tax" on using plastic bags. They want to charge 30 cents for every new bag that you would take/use from grocery stores, malls, or food restaurants. Currently many European countries have already adopted this way of life and they seem to have benefited from it greatly. Not only have they cut back consumption of plastic bags and packaging, but they have also taking in some revenue from this idea. Many buyers are now bringing their own bags which they have purchased for local grocery stores for less than a dollar. Stores are really starting to turn on to the idea of selling reusable bags and they are getting creative with it to draw in customers and turn a profit on this. This tax on bags can only lead to bigger and better things and I think it's a step in the right direction for the environment and the economy.

Editorials

What kinds of issues are you seeing addressed in editorials today?
The editorials that I found online were mostly articles about the current state of the economy. There were a lot of editorials about President Obama, the multiple bills he has proposed/put into action, and where the economy is now and is headed in the future. There were also multiple editorials written about the environment and how it is changing, the impact it is having on the world’s climates, and the extreme weather patterns seen around the world.

Which issues are you most passionate about or interested in?
Through the editorials I have seen already, the ones about the environment interest me the most. I love hearing about what types of extreme weather is occurring around the world because it just makes you think about what’s happening to the environment. I find it fascinating how there can be tornados and hail the size of mangos in one part of the country and less than 100 miles away it can be sunny and warm. I also find reactions to the environment interesting. A lot of people are starting to invent and invest in new technology that preserves the environment and I like to hear about how people are trying to fix the already disastrous environment.

Which issues bore you or intimidate you?
I think it’s hard to find an issue that bores me because I am always looking for a new way to learn about the world that I all live in, but a lot of topics do intimidate me because they force us all to think about the tough times we have ahead. The articles concerning the environment expose the many problems this world is continuing to develop. As much as I enjoy leaning about the climate changing, it is also scary to think about. Take Haiti for example, one action by the earth, and an entire nation is destroyed and devastated. It was so quick and simple and that’s what intimidates me the most about the environmental change. Also, when I read about all of Obama’s plans there are just so many details that it’s overwhelming at times.

Which issues do you want to learn more about?
I would love to learn more about local news and things that will truly impact my life. That may sound selfish but I love learning about what’s going to happen in the environment and I like to have as much information about that as possible. I would also like to learn more about people’s sports opinions. I have a passion for football and I find it entertaining when people try to justify their horrible football picks. Also, gaining more information regarding the hospitality field would be nice. I want to go into that field when I graduate so I would love to gain as much information as I can now before I officially enter that field.

I don’t know a tremendous amount about these topics but they all interest me and I hope to find a topic that is closely related to the environment or sports fields. My response is really going to depend on the topic and tone of the editorial but I look forward to finding a way to express my opinions.

Childhood Book

When I was a little girl my mom and I would always sit down and read a book at night and while she pushed me to start reading more chapter books all I ever wanted to read was “The Big Green Pocketbook”. The main concept of the book is a little girl spending a day with her mother in their hometown. As they travel from place to place, running errands, the girl picks up little trinkets at each stop and puts them into her big green pocketbook. By the end of the day she has collected enough things to fill up her bag and she now has a pocketbook full of memories from her day with her mom. However, on the bus ride home she forgets her bag on the bus and she gets upset because all of her memories from that day were in the pocketbook. In the end, the bus driver returns her pocketbook to her house and the little girl is able to regain all of her memories from her wonderful day with her mom. When I look back on when I read this book with my mom the part I remember the most is the smell and other sensory details. When the little girl in the book would go into the bank with her mom, I remember the pages smelling exactly as a bank would smell. I also remember thinking that the little girl in the book was just like me. I would always run errands with my mom when I was little and after reading this book with her I would always pretend to be this little girl and go around collecting little things from around town to put in my bag, but luckily I didn’t forget it on the bus. I think I loved this book so much because it was so realistic and I could put myself in the character’s shoes. Now when I go back and read this book I am able to focus more on the imagery and detail that the author puts into the story. This is because now that I’m older, and have moved past relating myself to the character, I’m able to see how each place is described and depicted rather than just look at the pictures to see what I should be doing to make my day just like hers. The author was very through in describing each scene so that it was a realistic setting that both the kids reading it would be able to understand and also the adult would be able to relate to.