“Cassidy Hutchinson on What Comes After January 6th” – McCourtney Podcast Extra Credit Reflection

Avery Snowden

I listened to the McCourtney Institute Democracy Works podcast episode “Cassidy Hutchinson on What Comes After January 6th”, which consists of an interview with Miss. Hutchinson regarding her time within the Trump administration and her new beliefs and perceived role concerning the future of the American government. I thought that the background Hutchinson provides for her young interest in civic issues, presidential debates, and political parties was extremely interesting, as it is not particularly common for someone so young to be as interested in political discourse as she was. Her discussion of her family environment and the attitudes in her home towards the government and active political figures were extremely interesting to me, for as a political science student the roots of party identity development and political polarization are critical to a comprehensive understanding of American government. 

In particular, Hutchinson’s discussion of her attraction and later repulsion to the Republican Party was extremely intriguing, as she was drawn in based upon her family background and the ideologies she was surrounded with regarding the role of government and the importance of classic family values. This is an idea that extends far beyond Hutchinson, but it is an insightful point within the discussion that she asserts that the Republican Party of today is wholly different than when she had originally invested in the ideals t represented. This disillusionment and dissection of the Republican Party into something that even Republicans see as divorced from the original party intentions is incredibly fascinating to me, as while we certainly see increased levels of political polarization and an “othering” of those outside of one’s party, this phenomenon can also be seen within individual parties as groups diverge into more extremist factions. The piece of the interview that most closely relates to Hutchinson’s latest book “Enough” is how her values and moral beliefs eventually came into great conflict with the Trump administration, and throughout the interview, she characterizes the former president as a “seducer” of Washington and the nation who essentially drew people into his conspiracies by playing on their fears, anxieties, and already polarizing views of those with values different from their own. In my opinion, Hutchinson’s discussion of her experience in coming forward with the lies, betrayals, and abuses of power that occurred surrounding January 6th was extremely poignant, as she conveys the situation as not a bitter rivalry of herself against the Republican Party, but a moral crossroads between what she was told was the truth and what she knew to be morally correct. 

Miss Hutchinson’s outlook on democracy and public service was, in my opinion, incredibly admirable, as even within her initial work on Capitol Hill, she applied for essentially every political party and office she could when researching internships and employment opportunities, and she believed that working for the government should not be a partisan career, rather one focused on serving the country as a whole, regardless of party affiliation. She addresses this idea towards the end of the podcast, as she asserts that political tribalism is essentially a step towards the death of democracy, as partisan politics, belief systems, and individual values intersect in a way that should not be diminished by pitting people against each other in two political groups. I firmly agree with Hutchinson’s outlook on the future of democracy, as political polarization, increasing political extremism within the media, and the othering of those with differing opinions is ultimately the catalyst for a complete break down of democracy. 



Categories: RCLLeave a comment

“Post-Racial Fantasies and Zombies” Extra Credit Lecture Reflection

Avery Snowden

I attended a lecture by Professor Eric King Watts, an Associate Professor of Communications at Wake Forest University, regarding ideas presented within his new book “Post-Racial Fantasies and Zombies: On the Racist Apocalyptic Politics Devouring the World”. While the lecture was fascinating and provided a new lens to the zombie apocalypse genre that I had never considered, the material was incredibly dense and somewhat difficult to understand. Therefore, in this reflection, I am going to attempt to summarize and digest the material that Professor Watts presented so that I and others may be able to better understand it. 

Professor Watts begins the lecture by highlighting how a clip from the show Family Feud sparked his research, as in one episode, the participants are presented with the category “Name Something You Know About Zombies” and a white woman impulsively rings in and responds with “black”. Watts analyzes the nature of the program and asserts that the competitive pacing prevented the woman from truly thinking about her response, allowing him to establish that people see some inherent connection between zombies and race. He then establishes that his narrative frames a “post-racial” period in which racism is simultaneously very present, but seemingly less apparent in that certain post-racial fantasies are hidden within popular culture and bring racism into a whole new era within a greater cultural system. 

The example that stood out most to me was a scene that Professor Watts presented from the popular show The Walking Dead, where a white male named Merril beats up a black character named T-Dog for no apparent reason apart from Merril’s blatant racism and clear distaste towards black Americans. Contrastingly, Rick, a white police officer, comes to the defense of T-Dog and asserts that they must work together and abandon racial groups to best combat the active threat of the zombie apocalypse. Professor Watts then explains that Merril is representative of the active white supremacy movements within the post-racial world, as even in a situation where race does not matter as much as survival, Merril persists in his racist ideologies. On the other hand, Rick represents another figure in the post-racial world, as he advocates for a sort of colorblindness that will not truly resolve any of the racial conflicts within society, a fallacy represented by many “do-good” politicians in the current government. 

After establishing the tropes of individuals within the post-racial system, Professor Watts lays out a series of post-racial fantasies that are a reactionary response to growing racial tolerance and acceptance within America, such as the zombie trope of blackened biothreat bodies, rituals of securitization and weaponization, a need for the reclamation of white masculine sovereignty, and the idea that racism injects itself into black Americans until it burrows in like a mutant zombie virus and explodes. I enjoyed the depth of Professor Watts’ discussion of racial tensions in the modern world and thought that his connection of the zombie apocalypse genre to the current post-racial state of America was incredibly insightful. In my interpretation, the zombie is essentially a representation of abjection and enslavement, where individuality and personality are abandoned, human nature is compacted to primal functions, and the individual is eaten alive by the virus surrounding them. The historical connection of slavery and the horrific abuse black Americans suffered under systems of colonialism and colonization can certainly be connected to the idea of turning humans into zombies and represents a clear disparity of treatment of individuals within America.



Categories: RCLLeave a comment

The Vitality of Political Literacy

Avery Snowden

While I have mentioned my grandmother from Oklahoma and her somewhat wild ideologies before, for my final blog I felt that I wanted to really dive into the idea of political literacy and the detrimental effects of a lack of compromise, knowledge, and general understanding of political ideologies on the American population. My grandma certainly holds what many would deem to be extreme religious ideologies, but those very conservative viewpoints are also paired with a complete lack of willingness to understand opposing viewpoints. The best illustration of the severe divide between my grandmother and political realities is an encounter she had with a pro-choice protest regarding protecting a woman’s right to abortion in the state of Oklahoma. Oklahoma is certainly a more red-leaning state, but as I have mentioned, my grandmother falls towards the more radical right-wing side of the political aisle, so seeing the protest sparked a great deal of resentment and anger within her. 

When my grandmother called my mom, which she does about every 6 months when she feels like complaining or generally demeaning my family (if you didn’t see by now from my previous blogs regarding my grandma, she is not a particularly kind or loving person), she recounted the story of her interaction with the protestors. Essentially, my grandmother got into a verbal sparring match with one of the college-aged protestors, and ended up reciting her religious ideologies as a means through which to prove her points, whereas the protestors remained patient and provided her with statistics, testimonials, and evidence pointing to why abortion should remain a protected right for women within the United States. Although her religious convictions are extremely important to her, I feel that her anger and resentment towards the college-aged protestors comes from a place of frustration and stubbornness rather than a true hatred for the students themselves. I believe that her stubbornness is born from sources of news that I have scorned in the past such as social media sites like Facebook, as my grandmother has never truly sought out any sources to enhance her political literacy and enrich her comprehension of viewpoints outside of her own. Most importantly, I believe that my grandmother resented the protestors presence primarily because she was unable to comprehend the scientific reasoning and validity behind their arguments, as her own points are rooted in religious convictions which while important, in a modern society religion is not an effective means to reject scientific analysis and the experiences of women. 

All this to say, my grandmother is not singularly afflicted by a lack of political literacy, nor is it only conservatives who resent arguments from the opposite side of the political aisle. The vitality of political literacy within our society is, to me, best represented by my grandmother’s encounter with those different from her, as if political polarization and a perpetual lack of knowledge regarding opposing viewpoints continues at its current rate, compromise and peace within political society will become nearly impossible to achieve. Public policy and educational outlets such as unbiased media and public schooling systems are vital to halt the spread of political ignorance, as with the current state of our world, I believe that compromise will only ever be achieved if we can truly understand and acknowledge the viewpoints of others.



Categories: Personal is Political2 Comments

College: Not the Only Path to Success

Avery Snowden

While this title is contradictory to the path that I have chosen for myself, one of my best friend’s experiences with education certainly proves that while a college education is certainly still vital to many types of employment, there is another option post-high school that is actually more streamlined to particular careers: trade schools. Since we were 8 years old, I have always thought that my friend Blake had to be some type of genius. He was always fixing things, investigating mechanisms of machinery, and always seemed to know exactly which component parts of technology provided specific functions. As a humanities inclined person, Blake’s brand of knowledge and academic interest was always fascinating to me, as I knew I would never be able to understand machinery in the same way that he did.

Although Blake was brilliant, throughout elementary, middle, and high-school, his teachers did not see his curiosity and interests in the same way. Despite his gifts, my bright and incredibly talented friend that I had always seen as vastly intelligent, did rather poorly in school. At one point, his parents and teachers thought that he would be unable to pass his junior year of high school due to his issues with English class specifically. However, despite the negative attitudes of his parents and teachers, Blake did manage to pass his classes and graduate from high school, but after the horrific rollercoaster ride that was his high school experience, he certainly did not want to enter into college where he would undoubtedly face the same issues. Upon deciding not to go to college, Blake faced further scrutiny from many people who knew him well, as they thought that his mechanistic knowledge and gifts would go to waste if he didn’t go to college for engineering or some related discipline. However, just because Blake did not see college as the path for him, did not mean that he didn’t have a plan. He worked part-time waiting tables at a local restaurant, and now attends a trade school and internship program for aircraft maintenance and aerospace mechanics.

I have discussed the issue of academic pipelines and the stereotyping of some students interests as inferior or superior to others many times throughout these blogs, but this situation may be the one that irks me the most. Although I am certainly proud to be a college student, I think that the American education system certainly establishes that college is the proper path post-high school, negating the interests and talents of those who may want to enter programs that give them more access directly to their chosen fields like cosmetology, dentistry, mechanic, electrician, and even medical trade schools. With the incredibly vast array of career areas that have trade schools across the nation, it seems inconceivable that high schools would not present these alternative schools as options to students who may not be best suited for the typical college environment, but as I have discussed throughout my blogs, there often a severe lack of effort within school districts to understand that some students do not want the pipeline that schools deem most advantageous. Students like Blake should not be put down for their different types of intelligence and interests, and it is my strong believe that the American education needs to drastically reassess priorities regarding post-high school education, as the current system disadvantages and demeans students who may not think that the typical college experience is for them.

Categories: Personal is Political2 Comments

The Current State of U.S. Foreign Aid

Avery Snowden

According to the latest full statistics on U.S. spending from 2022, “U.S. foreign aid spending recently surpassed $70 billion in appropriated funds for the first time in 70 years, new data shows, fueled by continued support of Israel and a spike in funding for Ukraine amid the country’s war with Russia” (Haines). It should not come as a surprise that considering the current war status in both Ukraine and Israel that these two nations are the top recipients of U.S. foreign aid. Ukraine is currently the top recipient, with $12.4B, with Israel in second place at $3.3B. A critical difference between the aid given to the two nations is that the aid being provided to Ukraine is for the most part economic aid, with around 15% being military aid, while aid given to Israel is nearly 100% military aid. 

The current status of both Israel and Ukraine is a great topic of contention within the United States, so why exactly are these governments receiving so much aid from the U.S. if citizens are in disagreement over support? The current international climate and tensions certainly bring to light criticisms that U.S. foreign aid is highly politicized and is wasteful in that it does not truly help the people it intends to. Moving away from just looking at Israel and Ukrainian foreign aid, the U.S. has been increasingly criticized for the use of foreign aid to push social agendas that are contentious both within the U.S. and abroad such as issues of abortion, political polarization, gender policies, and diversity, equity, and inclusion practices. “U.S. agencies are creating hostile work environments for those who do not subscribe to their political ideology, negatively impacting agency hiring and promotion criteria” (Da Ponte). While foreign aid programs and U.S. embassies are seeking to bring the influence of American ideals regarding gender rights and DEI to countries in Africa, Latin America, and Asia, these nations often have vastly different ideas regarding these issues, and it is certainly a concern that the politicized nature of much of U.S. foreign aid could alienate us from the nations that we seek to help. 

Regarding American public opinion, a majority of Americans believe too much of the federal budget is spent on foreign aid, when in reality, less than 1% of the U.S. budget is spent on foreign aid. While there are many misconceptions regarding foreign aid highlighted within the Brookings article I have linked below, I feel that the main takeaway from the entirety of my research is that United States interests in foreign policy are often highly strategic and oriented towards allies interests in war, which is identified by Brookings as the least accepted type of foreign aid by the American people. Going forward, the United States should shape foreign policy towards the needs of countries regarding economic infrastructure, health, and education, as these are the key areas of foreign aid most desired by the American population, yet the U.S. must also keep in mind that some Western ideals may not be received well by other nations. 

Sources:

Countries That Receive the Most Foreign Aid From the U.S.

​​Witnesses Criticize Wasteful and Politicized U.S. Foreign Aid – C-Fam

What every American should know about US foreign aid | Brookings



Categories: Civic Issue2 Comments

The Value of Knowledge Diversity

Avery Snowden

For essentially as long as I can remember, my sister and I have butted heads over our difference in priorities. She prefers to hang out with her friends and socialize above maintaining high grades and excelling at extracurricular activities, whereas I have been known to deprioritize relationships with others in exchange for academic achievement and high positions within my extracurricular activities. While Ryann and I are the perfect example of opposing hierarchies of activities, goals, and relationships, each of our priorities are what make us who we are, and our difference in priorities does not make one of us superior and the other inferior.

In terms of academics and ultimate career goals, Ryann and I are again very different, as I am studying political science and Spanish with a goal to one day become a lawyer, whereas Ryann has a great interest in graphic design and digital artwork. As I mentioned before, we recognize that our differences in goals do not indicate that one of us is “better” than the other, yet the current high school education system does. In my alma mater, my sisters current high school, there is no shortage of core classes, AP courses, and electives for careers in STEM, law, medicine, and other more mainstream, known high-paying careers. However, for students with an interest in more creative disciplines, there is a startling lack of courses, electives, and even extracurricular organizations geared towards those topics. My sister is currently taking a multitude of elective courses such as law and justice, and environmental science, just to fill up her schedule, not to advance her knowledge of topics which she is actually interested in. When my sister approached her counselor seeking extracurricular options to advance her graphic design portfolio, she was essentially told that there is no options that the school could offer for her. The disparity between my high school education and my sisters is frankly disappointing, because although we are offered the same caliber of core classes such as English, math, and science, in terms of personal goal-oriented courses, our priorities are treated as unequal. 

I discussed the disparity between the treatment of STEM disciplines and Liberal Arts disciplines in my This I Believe Speech, but in my sisters experience it is evident that artistic subjects suffer the most in terms of low funding and disparities in opportunity in contrast to other subject areas. It is fundamentally unfair that some students priorities, such as my sisters, are essentially positioned as inferior to others, as school funding goes towards over-saturating the market of opportunities for some subjects, while neglecting and cutting funding towards artistic subjects. While some argue that artistic subjects should be cut, or funding should be taken from creative disciplines to provide more funding towards “core subjects”, this undermines the goals and priorities of some students in order to uplift more traditional careers. Students like my sister, and careers such as graphic design, while they may not be lifesaving like medicine, are still important, and should not be shut down for the sake of mainstream careers. 



Categories: Personal is Political2 Comments

Issue Brief Outline/Altered Introduction and Title

Avery Snowden

The Profit of Deception: The Impacts of Unregulated Greenwashing on American Consumers and the Environment

Introduction

In the summer of 2018, a new sustainability trend began to sweep the food industry on an international scale, as corporations discarded their stockpiles of plastic straws in exchange for “eco-friendly” paper straws (Houck). As paper straws continually replaced plastic straws, they were touted as a far more sustainable method of beverage consumption. In 2021, with a growing recognition of the environmental costs of many popular products, consumers searches for sustainable brands had risen by almost 400% in 5 years, with 72% of customers wanting more sustainability information to be available about brands and their products (Akepa). Though plastic straws are certainly identified as a large source of waste, with Americans alone using over 500 million plastic straws a day (Smith), as it turns out, paper straws may not be much better. In 2023, the negative elements of paper straw usage were exposed, as “Long-lasting “forever chemicals,” which are potentially harmful to people, wildlife and the environment, were found in 18 out of 20 brands of paper straws, Belgian researchers found” (Media/dpa). Additionally, according to BBC “much like plastic straws, paper straws typically can’t be recycled and an assessment by the UK government also concluded that paper straws emit more greenhouse gases when they rot in landfill compared with plastic” (Hirschlag). 

Advertising commending paper straw manufacturers, as well as corporations incorporating paper products over plastic such as Starbucks (Deena), are thus employing an increasingly prevalent marketing scheme targeted towards environmentally conscious consumers known as “greenwashing”. Greenwashing is a deceptive advertising strategy in which corporations promote products as environmentally safe or even beneficial without evidence to support those claims, often seeking to conceal a corporations unsavory environmentally damaging practices (Hayes). According to international environmental traceability monitoring agencies, paired with an increasing consumer desire for sustainable products, the amount of environmentally friendly labels could grow by 66% in the next 15 years, and currently “42% of companies sustainability credentials are exaggerated, false, or deceptive” (TE-Food). In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is responsible for combating the issue of greenwashing, yet currently only provides general principles on environmental marketing claims, suggestions for how claims should be substantiated for proper interpretation, and guidelines for corporations to decrease customer deception (Staff in the Office of Technology). 

Despite a growing international movement to halt the spread of greenwashing, with many European nations banning the practice altogether, the FTC is currently behind, with the “Green Guides” last update taking place in 2012 (Kertscher). However, in 2023, the FTC stated that in recognition of an uptick in greenwashing and deceptive advertising, it will be updating the “Green Guides”, incorporating an increasing pile of evidence of greenwashing and more fact-based guidelines for marketing. While these claims represent a movement towards increasing consumer protections, the FTC should seek to implement harsher regulations with realistic consequences in order to truly combat the deceptive nature of greenwashing and the detrimental effect that false marketing practices will have on both American consumers and the environment.

Concerns for American Consumers:

  • Taking advantage of goodwill to increase profits – green products can be marketed at a higher price
  • Toxic chemicals/false health initiatives within the food industry 
  • List examples of greenwashing corporations here: McDonalds, other fast-food industry tycoons, cereals, etc.

The Redirection of Blame Towards Consumers 

  • The idea that by purchasing eco-friendly products customers can “help” the environment, insinuating that it is the customers job to protect the environment, not the corporations
  • Carbon footprint calculators were literally invented by British Petroleum (BP)
  • “natural” packaging and images utilized in product advertisement to entice customers to “take a stand” and help the environment, by buying products from companies that do nothing to help the environment

Concerns for the Environment:

  • Misguided and unsubstantiated eco-friendly claims and practices ultimately cause further harms to the environment, paper/plastic straw example – unsustainable alternatives being presented as environmentally friendly
  • Greenwashing acts as a means for companies to negate their harm to the environment: Coca-Cola example, Starbucks example, Volkswagen example, etc.  

Connection to Human Rights Violations, deforestation, animal endangerment, etc

  • many brands that claim to be environmentally friendly in terms of their products and marketing have wildly irresponsible environmental practices
  • connection to PolitiFact Article referencing EU regulations to highlight other nations recognition of these issues
    • use this paragraph to highlight other nations that have banned greenwashing to transition to next paragraph

The Unprotected Status of American Consumers

Conclusion – why the FTC ultimately must enforce and create actionable regulations rather than non-binding guidelines

Works Cited

Akepa. “Greenwashing in Marketing & How to Spot It.” The Sustainable Agency, 6 July 2023, thesustainableagency.com/blog/greenwashing-in-marketing-and-how-to-spot-it/. 

Hayes, Adam. “What Is Greenwashing? How It Works, Examples, and Statistics.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 22 Jan. 2024, www.investopedia.com/terms/g/greenwashing.asp. 

Hirschlag, Ally. “Plastic or Paper? The Truth About Drinking Straws.” BBC News, BBC, 7 Nov. 2023, www.bbc.com/future/article/20231103-plastic-or-paper-the-truth-about-drinking-straws#. 

Houck, Brenna. “Why the World Is Hating on Plastic Straws Right Now.” Eater, Vox Media, 12 July 2018, www.eater.com/2018/7/12/17555880/plastic-straws-environment-pollution-banned-alternatives-ocean-sea-turtle-viral-video. 

Kertscher, Tom. “Red Light on ‘Greenwashing’? US Regulatory Agency Takes Fresh Look at Deceptive Climate Claims.” PolitiFact, Poynter Institute, 17 July 2023, www.politifact.com/article/2023/jul/17/red-light-on-greenwashing-us-regulatory-agency-tak/. 

Media/dpa, PA. “Study: Paper Straws Might Not Be Better than Plastic for Environment.” The Seattle Times, The Seattle Times Company, 25 Aug. 2023, www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/study-paper-straws-might-not-be-better-than-plastic-for-environment/. 

Robinson, Deena. “10 Companies Called out for Greenwashing.” Earth.Org, 4 Mar. 2024, earth.org/greenwashing-companies-corporations/. 

Smith, Ernie. “A Brief History of the Modern-Day Straw, the World’s Most Wasteful Commodity.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 19 Sept. 2017, www.atlasobscura.com/articles/straws-history. 

Staff in the Office of Technology. “Green Guides.” Federal Trade Commission, United States Government, 16 July 2021, www.ftc.gov/news-events/topics/truth-advertising/green-guides. 

Te-Food. “Soon, Traceability-Washing Will Become a New Trend  –  How Can We Avoid It?” Medium, TE-FOOD, 11 Oct. 2022, medium.com/te-food/soon-traceability-washing-will-become-a-new-trend-how-can-we-avoid-it-86c56bd62175.

Categories: RCL1 Comment

Issue Brief Introduction Section Draft

Avery Snowden

Greenwashing: The Profit of Deception

Introduction

In the summer of 2018, a new sustainability trend began to sweep the food industry on an international scale, as corporations discarded their stockpiles of plastic straws in exchange for “eco-friendly” paper straws (Houck). As paper straws continually replaced plastic straws, they were touted as a far more sustainable method of beverage consumption. In 2021, with a growing recognition of the environmental costs of many popular products, consumers searches for sustainable brands had risen by almost 400% in 5 years, with 72% of customers wanting more sustainability information to be available about brands and their products (Akepa). Though plastic straws are certainly identified as a large source of waste, with Americans alone using over 500 million plastic straws a day (Smith), as it turns out, paper straws may not be much better. In 2023, the negative elements of paper straw usage were exposed, as “Long-lasting “forever chemicals,” which are potentially harmful to people, wildlife and the environment, were found in 18 out of 20 brands of paper straws, Belgian researchers found” (Media/dpa). Additionally, according to BBC “much like plastic straws, paper straws typically can’t be recycled and an assessment by the UK government also concluded that paper straws emit more greenhouse gases when they rot in landfill compared with plastic” (Hirschlag). 

Advertising commending paper straw manufacturers, as well as corporations incorporating paper products over plastic such as Starbucks (Deena), are thus employing an increasingly prevalent marketing scheme targeted towards environmentally conscious consumers known as “greenwashing”. Greenwashing is a deceptive advertising strategy in which corporations promote products as environmentally safe or even beneficial without evidence to support those claims, often seeking to conceal a corporations unsavory environmentally damaging practices (Hayes). According to international environmental traceability monitoring agencies, paired with an increasing consumer desire for sustainable products, the amount of environmentally friendly labels could grow by 66% in the next 15 years, and currently “42% of companies sustainability credentials are exaggerated, false, or deceptive” (TE-Food). In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is responsible for combating the issue of greenwashing, and is meant to provide general principles on environmental marketing claims, suggestions for how claims should be substantiated for proper interpretation, and guidelines for corporations to decrease customer deception (Staff in the Office of Technology). 

Despite a growing international movement to halt the spread of greenwashing, with many European nations banning the practice altogether, the FTC is currently behind, with the “Green Guides” last update taking place in 2012 (Kertscher). However, in 2023, the FTC stated that in recognition of an uptick in greenwashing and deceptive advertising, it will be updating the “Green Guides”, incorporating an increasing pile of evidence of greenwashing and more fact-based guidelines for marketing. While these claims represent a movement towards increasing consumer protections, the FTC should seek to implement harsher regulations with realistic consequences in order to combat the deceptive nature of greenwashing and the detrimental effect that false marketing practices will have on both American consumers and the environment.

 

Works Cited

Akepa. “Greenwashing in Marketing & How to Spot It.” The Sustainable Agency, 6 July 2023, thesustainableagency.com/blog/greenwashing-in-marketing-and-how-to-spot-it/. 

Hayes, Adam. “What Is Greenwashing? How It Works, Examples, and Statistics.” Investopedia, Investopedia, 22 Jan. 2024, www.investopedia.com/terms/g/greenwashing.asp. 

Hirschlag, Ally. “Plastic or Paper? The Truth About Drinking Straws.” BBC News, BBC, 7 Nov. 2023, www.bbc.com/future/article/20231103-plastic-or-paper-the-truth-about-drinking-straws#. 

Houck, Brenna. “Why the World Is Hating on Plastic Straws Right Now.” Eater, Vox Media, 12 July 2018, www.eater.com/2018/7/12/17555880/plastic-straws-environment-pollution-banned-alternatives-ocean-sea-turtle-viral-video. 

Kertscher, Tom. “Red Light on ‘Greenwashing’? US Regulatory Agency Takes Fresh Look at Deceptive Climate Claims.” PolitiFact, Poynter Institute, 17 July 2023, www.politifact.com/article/2023/jul/17/red-light-on-greenwashing-us-regulatory-agency-tak/. 

Media/dpa, PA. “Study: Paper Straws Might Not Be Better than Plastic for Environment.” The Seattle Times, The Seattle Times Company, 25 Aug. 2023, www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/study-paper-straws-might-not-be-better-than-plastic-for-environment/. 

Robinson, Deena. “10 Companies Called out for Greenwashing.” Earth.Org, 4 Mar. 2024, earth.org/greenwashing-companies-corporations/. 

Smith, Ernie. “A Brief History of the Modern-Day Straw, the World’s Most Wasteful Commodity.” Atlas Obscura, Atlas Obscura, 19 Sept. 2017, www.atlasobscura.com/articles/straws-history. 

Staff in the Office of Technology. “Green Guides.” Federal Trade Commission, United States Government, 16 July 2021, www.ftc.gov/news-events/topics/truth-advertising/green-guides. 

Te-Food. “Soon, Traceability-Washing Will Become a New Trend  –  How Can We Avoid It?” Medium, TE-FOOD, 11 Oct. 2022, medium.com/te-food/soon-traceability-washing-will-become-a-new-trend-how-can-we-avoid-it-86c56bd62175.

Categories: RCL1 Comment

Why Financial Literacy Should be a Required High School Class

Avery Snowden

I have always been a self-proclaimed “anti-math” person. It’s not like I am particularly bad at math, but I am not particularly good at it either, and I have just never found any sort of enjoyment in it. I had always lumped all kinds of numbers subjects into the math category, like statistics, economics, etc., until I took a financial literacy class my senior year of high school that essentially flipped my entire view on numeric subjects, making me realize that even though I may hate math, it is necessary to understand the numbers game that is personal finance. I had very begrudgingly ended up in “Personal Finance 101” following my guidance counselors recommendation that I take at least one finance related class to round out my senior year courses. Despite my initial reservations, I can still vividly remember that first day of class, as my finance teacher Mr. Langue took a very intense approach to getting us to care about our finances. We started off the course by watching a documentary video about people who had bankrupted themselves and whose financial choices had led them to end up having to live with family members, shelters, or even on the street. While living in Pittsburgh, it is impossible to not realize the vastness of the issue of homelessness, yet that video being displayed in the context of personal finance allowed me to see the situation in a new light. I would have never thought that a teachers somewhat dark take on introducing students to financial responsibility is what would’ve got me interested in finance, but that video was certainly an effective scare tactic for a bunch of high school seniors about to reach independence at college. what was able to spark me into really caring about stocks, bonds, insurance, and the IRA, as we were shown in real time how quickly your life can be ruined by misguided financial decisions that you may not even think twice about. Over the semester-long financial literacy course, I ended up saving more files to my computer than I have in any course, even year long classes. From budgeting spreadsheets and car-buying organization tools, to price comparison worksheets and home-buying/apartment renting planners, in that semester long course I was able to gain more tools to secure my financial independence and educate myself on the importance of personal finances than I had even known existed. That last statement is the most powerful one, and the message of this blog post, as before I took that financial literacy class, I didn’t even know that most of the tools, strategies, and critical finance areas covered in the course even existed, as my parents generally aren’t ones to discuss finances with my sister or I. Honestly, if I hadn’t been pushed to take the class by my counselor, I don’t think that I would’ve ever opted to take a personal finance class on my own, so I will forever be grateful that my counselor encouraged me to join the course. All that to say, the lessons and critical financial responsibilities that are taught in financial literacy courses should be mandatory curriculum in all schools, as the lessons are not only vital to understand taxes, jobs, and make smart purchases, but are ultimately the key to a successful and prosperous life with financial independence. 



Categories: Personal is Political2 Comments

Arms Control and Nonproliferation

Avery Snowden

I became invested in this topic following my first ever viewing of Oppenheimer with some of my friends a few nights ago. Although nuclear weapons and long-rage ballistic missiles have been around since the 1940’s, the presence of weapons of mass destruction remains a major concern of United States foreign policy. The largest issue area of U.S. foreign policy regarding WMDs is the proliferation, or increasing number, of weapons of mass destructions on an international scale. While in today’s international order it is much less likely for one leader such as Putin or Kim Jong Un to take up the mantal of “death, the destroyer of worlds”, it is still widely perceived as necessary for the U.S. to defend itself through deterrence with stockpiles of nuclear weapons. However, despite the current fear-hoarding of nuclear weapons that Russia and the U.S. have partaken in over the past several decades, international agencies call for a dramatic reconsideration of these policies to promote peace and security for all nations, not just those holding increasingly-loaded nuclear guns pointed at each other. Secretary-General António Guterres of the UN asserts, “When each country pursues its own security without regard for others, we create global insecurity that threatens us all” (Guterres). Looking specifically into the United States assurances regarding nuclear weapons and arms control, the Department of State claims that “It is a strategic goal of the Department of State to counter threats to the United States and the international order. Ultimately, the Department’s work improves the security of the United States and all the nations of the world” (United States DoS). There is a clear disparity between the United States mission towards disarmament, and the status of negotiations and instability pointed out by the United Nations. However, this disparity is not just a direct fault of the U.S., but is a result of halted negotiations, current tensions in Ukraine and the Middle East, as well as somewhat of a dependence on a nuclear arsenal as a means of deterrance of war. With a lack of honesty regarding what countries have nuclear weapons, distrust over nations providing nuclear information to allied nations, and with nations refusing to back down from their own security, the standard of trust and transparency of international actors comes into question, only increasing tensions and decreasing the chance of successful disarmament negotiations. If the United States wishes to remain a nation that is seen as a beacon for democracy, disarmament must become a more vital element within foreign policy, as involvements in foreign wars have a destructive tendency to entice the U.S. to arm other nations rather than to support peaceful solutions to conflict. If the United States wants to be truthful to it’s mission of international peace and protection from weapons of mass destruction, it is imperative to aim foreign policy towards peace in this time of international conflict, and seek to halt the production and the dispersal of weapons of mass destruction. At the end of the day, I think that Francess Piagie Alghali, Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Sierra Leone, put it best when she asserted that “A nuclear war can never be won, and should never be fought”. 

Sources: 

​​Nuclear Warfare Risk at Highest Point in Decades, Secretary-General Warns Security Council, Urging Largest Arsenal Holders to Find Way Back to Negotiating Table | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases

Arms Control and Nonproliferation – United States Department of State

Nuclear Weapons and Non-Proliferation in the Middle East – Carnegie Endowment for International Peace



Categories: Civic Issue2 Comments