RCL Blog

This advocacy project covers the global water crisis.  The global water crisis refers to the growing scarcity of clean water available and how it negatively impacts people across the globe.  According to statistics provided by the WATERisLIFE organization, 1.8 billion people lack access to safe drinking water and 2.5 billion lack access to adequate sanitation.  These numbers alone pose a clear exigence for change.  Water is a necessity for survival and no one should be deprived of that right.  To express the importance of dissolving this issue, I have designed a website which briefs the issue and presents a clear call to action.

Everything throughout the website is done with a purpose.  For instance, the home page displays a photo of several children in a developing country playing around a water pump.  This picture acts as a hook as it uses an emotional appeal to make its audience more interested.  This theme continues throughout the webpage with several positive images of happy children, apart from a few images that are used for statistical purposes like the one found on the about the problem page.  Additionally, the use of a blue background behind the text fits the water theme of the website.  The blue also compliments the pathos provided by the images nicely because it gives off this calming mood alongside the happiness seen in the images of the children.

The website itself is laid out in such a way that the audience gets hooked, educated, and engaged.  After being hooked by the attractive visuals on the home page, the reader is then drawn to learn more about the issue.  The “about the problem” page uses statistics provided by credible sources to further establish the exigence of the issue.  The image on this page is very powerful because not only does it provide information, but it also creates an emotional appeal, making the audience want to become more invested in helping stop the problem.  After being well informed on the issue, many people will be wondering how they can get involved.  That is why immediately following the “about the problem” page is three pages regarding engagement.  The first page informs people on how to get involved, the second is a list of organizations that are committed to solving the issue, and the third is a link to make a pledge.  By pledging to be a part of the solution, people will feel more obligated to play a role in solving the issue.

The target audience of this advocacy project is anyone who is willing to donate or get involved in the issue.  The goal of the website is to raise awareness of a serious issue in our global society.  Another goal of the website is to educate readers on the issue and to get more people involved in the cause.  As more and more people get involved in this issue, everyone’s small contributions add up to create a huge difference.

This website can be used as a brief for those who are unaware of the issue.  For those who are really interested in becoming more involved, several organizations are listed within the website.  So realistically, it would make sense for the website to be partnered with a multitude of organizations committed to solving this issue.  After all, it is not like they are competing for profit.  In fact, most if not all the organizations listed in the website are non-profit organizations.  In summary, this website can act as a hub for all those who are just learning about the water crisis.  The purpose, as previously stated, is to educate and engage readers.  With that being said this website would work perfectly as a top result for someone searching “global water crisis” on Google.

The advocacy organization I would hypothetically partner with is Water.org.  Water.org is an organization founded in 2009 by Matt Damon and Gary White with the mission of providing people with access to clean water.  Water.org believes that by providing the less fortunate with access to clean water, it opens the door for better health, education, and living.  Rather than having to walk miles to the closest water source, this time spent turns into time saved.  More time allows for improvement in other fields like education and health.

Although the organization was founded in 2009, its mission began 19 years prior in 1990 when Gary White created WaterPartners International to aid Latin American communities in the water crisis.  After meeting with Damon at an international conference on global poverty, Water.org was born.

Water.org is committed to providing water to the impoverished through a program called WaterCredit.  WaterCredit grants small repayable loans to those in need.  Through this program, Water.org has already affected over 16 million lives in a positive way.  According the CEO of Water.org Gary White, millions of families must spend more than 20% of their income on water.  The WaterCredit Initiative is a solution to this problem.  By granting people access to these affordable loans, Water.org has empowered millions to be a part of the solution.  According to the Water.org website, 99% of loans are paid back.  This grants Water.org the ability to grant even more families with access to safe water.

Water.org appeals to all different kinds of people across the globe.  First and foremost, it largely appeals to those in need of clean water.  As described in the previous paragraph, the program is empowered by a high repayment rate.  Those who need access to water pay off their loans, allowing Water.org to empower millions more.  Water.org also appeals to potential donors.  There are several tabs throughout the website where donors would be attracted to give the organization monetary benefits.  Lastly, the organization also appeals to those who would like to volunteer for the organization.  Because the website is so well rounded, it draws a large crowd and it is quite well-known for what it does.  Additionally, having well-known actor Matt Damon as the cofounder certainly makes the organization more appealing to any public onlooker.

The link below will take you to a page on the water.org website where they share several stories of the people that this fantastic organization has impacted.

https://water.org/our-impact/all-stories/

                This past Tuesday, I attended my roommate’s deliberation which discussed the value of a modern college education.  Attending college after high school has become so normalized, that almost all students coming out of high school intend to further their education by attending college.  There has been an evident shift in the idea behind attending college.  Over the past thirty or so years, the question has transitioned from “Are you going to college?” to “Where are you going to college?”  This deliberation discusses in detail as to if going to college is worth it, and if not, how it can be made worthwhile.

            The first approach that they took was to create a lock-in or balance the increase in tuition rates per year.  By doing so, students will have, relatively, the same tuition every year for their four years attending the university.  This could be very beneficial because students would be choosing their majors based on interest rather than if they can afford it or not.  Tuitions for different colleges within a university vary as well.  For example, it costs more to be a nursing major because of all the equipment and lab costs that need to be covered, rather than a communications major which requires little equipment use.  If the costs are the same for every major and they are locked in for the four years, students will be more compelled to choose a major that interests them.  The major drawback to this program is the university will have to scale back on other programs and make budget cuts so that the costs are the same university wide, which would limit the resources available to students.

            The second approach doesn’t deal with the financial aspect of college, but rather making the experience more worthwhile.  Approach two states that students should be required to complete a community-service project regardless of degree or major.  This would certainly give students an edge when going to apply for a job.  Having a community-service under your belt, especially if it pertains to your intended major, would most certainly look fantastic on a job application.  Not only this, but it will strengthen the relationship between community and university.  If students of the university are actively going out and helping to create a better community in the surrounding area, the community will most likely return the favor to the school, creating a very healthy relationship between the community and university.  The major drawback to this approach is that students might see it as another assignment rather than a valuable lesson.  If students have this mindset going into the service project, they may not work as hard as they probably should.

            Approach three doesn’t really address any financial burdens, but rather makes the life of a student much less stressful.  Approach three discusses the idea of general education classes being pass/fail rather than having such a heavy weight on a student’s GPA.  Students come to college with the intention of focusing their education on something they are genuinely interested in, they don’t want to be burdened with work for a class that they will never think about again after taking it.  Therefore, to relieve this stress, it has been thought to make general education course pass/fail rather than a letter grade.  There are some serious benefits to this approach, as it certainly relieves stress on the student, and students would be more willing to take classes that interest them rather than taking that “easy A.” While a major drawback might be that the professors who teach these courses will be much less motivated to teach a higher level if the grades the students receive don’t matter, making the classes rather dry and unappealing.

            All these approaches certainly have their benefits, but every single one of them has a huge vice in their drawbacks.  I’m sure the college experience could be improved financially and academically, but  it is key to find the perfect balance between these three approaches in order to make college more worthwhile.

            After reading and listening to a few sample “This I Believe” speeches and bouncing some ideas around the room for Civic Issue Blogs, I believe I have figured out what I want to discuss in my blog and my speech.  Considering I am not very politically involved, it wasn’t easy trying to figure out what I wanted to write about.  Most of my beliefs don’t fall far from the middle of the spectrum, as I continuously find myself agreeing with both ends of the political spectrum or, at the very least, seeing where the opposition might be getting their beliefs.  Therefore, for both projects I have decided to discuss something more abstract rather than physical and concrete.

            For my Civic Issues blog, I was thinking of doing something along the lines of the misconception surrounding the term, “American Dream.” Millions of immigrants come to this country with the hopes of having a better life and living what is called the “American Dream.” I would like to analyze the connotation of the term “American Dream” and what it means to an immigrant when they hear this term.  I know this isn’t exactly an “issue” per se, but I also know it has the potential to be a quite compelling topic.  Some constructive criticism in the comment section below would be much appreciated.  I would love to cover a topic like this, but if I cannot tweak it to have the “issue” aspect which it requires, my backup idea is to discuss Trump’s Wall, and more specifically, the potential effects of it.  I’ll be covering questions such as: What kind of message is being sent by the border wall? How does that make the United States look as a country? Isn’t the wall against what the founding fathers intended this country to be?

            For my “This I Believe” speech, I have only thought of one idea and I’m positive it is what I want to cover.  I was inspired by the example speech “There Is No God” to counter the presented claim.  Throughout my whole life, I have been raised understanding that there is life after death and that there is an all-knowing, almighty, and all-powerful entity that is responsible for our life here on earth.  I was baptized and confirmed in the Catholic church, and the lessons I have learned in church have guided me through life.  I have very strong religious beliefs and I have decided that I am going to write my “This I Believe” speech, “There is a God.”

After some in-depth discussion during class, I have concluded that my paradigm shift will focus on the shift in political ideology due to a sharp increase in mass shootings.  Throughout the past 2 decades, Americans have seen an incredible increase in mass shootings, primarily starting with the Columbine shooting in 1999 up until the Parkland shooting in Florida this past February, with plenty of other tragedies in between with equivalent weight.  These mass shootings have caused many politicians to float towards changing gun laws.  The 2^nd Amendment states that citizens have the right to bear arms, but when hundreds of lives are being lost due to shootings, does the government have to step in and regulate this right?

Prior to the shift, many people were very pro-2^nd Amendment.  There were a lot less restrictions on gun ownership and a lot less paperwork to go through to own one.  Background checks were easy to pass; if you were of the age and didn’t have a criminal record, you were pretty much good to go.  The problem with these background checks is they do not account for family history; they do not ask if there are people in the household that would cause issues if they got their hands on the firearm.  There is also this problem where people can purchase weapons under the radar through unlicensed sellers or a black market.  The columbine shooters got their firearms from their friend who purchased them at a gun show from an unlicensed seller.  There were several rallies following the shooting; people demanded change in Washington.  All the shootings that followed had the same general pattern, except each one after showed increasingly more support.  This change in support shows a significant shift in overall political ideology on gun control.

It’s no doubt that background checks need serious improvement, but that’s not where the issue really lies.  The issue is within the fact that people have access to these underground markets where they can purchase weapons with no background checks whatsoever.  Politicians can do what they can to regulate legal gun purchasing, but there is no legislation that can be passed to decrease illegal gun purchasing.  In fact, if there is a significant increase in background checks and paperwork for legal gun ownership, more people are going to start purchasing guns illegally simply to avoid the hassle of doing it legally.  This puts politicians between a rock and hard place: Do we increase gun control and allow the illegal market to flourish, or do we leave things the way they are, not solving anything?  Regardless of the situation, there has certainly been a significant shift towards increased regulation of guns due to these awful acts of violence.

Upon reflecting about what we have been discussing in class for the past couple days, it has dawned on me that there is a general theme to the politics of today’s day and age.  Now, I am not very politically involved, but I do know that there is a significant divide in our country today and it is tearing us apart.  In this blog I will discuss how this divide applies to the situation we have been discussing in class and what it means for the future of our country.

In class, we have mainly talked about a group known as the Proud Boys, a well-known alt-right group known for this tagline: “Western chauvinists who refuse to apologize for creating the modern world.”  The only thing the Proud Boys love more than displaying their conservative views and causing bloodbaths is mudslinging at the left and liberal media.  After some in depth thought to myself, I finally realized that there is one main theme in current politics, regardless of the issue: the widening gap between the left and right.  The biggest thing I’ve noticed is this “I’m right, you’re wrong, and there’s no way you can change my mind” attitude on the political stage, and we see this right here with the Proud Boys.  The Proud Boys are so stubborn in their ways that they feel the need to shame the views of the opposing side.  When it comes to politics, generally no one is wrong—there’s just more than one way to go about solving a problem, and based on your upbringing and morals, people align with one side or the other.  The problem is not that there isn’t common ground, but that no one is willing to find it.  It’s one way or the other, and no in between.  No one wants to compromise because they are so blinded by their polar views that they simply can’t see it being done.

When our founding fathers created this country, it was with the intentions of unification not separation.  The Proud Boys mudslinging at the left, that’s separation; riots in the street during what is supposed to be a “peaceful transfer of power from one party to another,” that’s separation.  There is one quote from John Adams that I wish to leave you with which is more than relevant to today’s current conditions:

“There is nothing I dread So much, as a Division of the Republic into two great Parties, each arranged under its Leader, and concerting Measures in opposition to each other. This, in my humble Apprehension is to be dreaded as the greatest political Evil, under our Constitution.”

-John Adams

October 2^nd, 1780

Two years after his speech and induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, Lou Gehrig died two weeks before his birthday at the young age of 39 on June 2^nd, 1941.  70 years later, after 7 decades of technological development, a fad was sweeping the internet called the “ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.”  Basically the challenge entailed recording oneself dumping a bucket of ice water on their head, stating who challenged them, and challenging 3 other people to do it.  If the 3 nominees don’t complete the challenge within a 24 hour period of being challenged, they must make a donation to ALS research.

The Ice Bucket Challenge didn’t originally start as a fundraiser for ALS, rather, the first few actually went towards cancer research.  It wasn’t until July 2014 that the first recorded Ice Bucket Challenge was linked to ALS.  At this point, the challenge had not yet been linked with ALS, challengers would simply donate to a charity of their choice.  After the challenge began to be linked with ALS, it spread like wildfire.  By the time the fad began to die out, over 2.4 million posts had been made to Facebook along with thousands of donations to ALS research.  With plenty of ALS foundations across the globe, donations amounted to approximately $250 million.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge just goes to show the lasting impact that Lou Gehrig has left on the world.  Although it is rather indirect, the disease would not have had this much publicity at this point in time if it weren’t for him.  These foundations wouldn’t have been as well known, ALS would have never become known as “Lou Gehrig’s Disease”, and they wouldn’t have raised nearly as much money in that summer. It’s quite amazing how one person, one action, one little piece of history can still have so much relevance over 70 years later.

Celebrities like Tom Hanks completed the challenge, causing it to go even more viral.

Lou Gehrig, nicknamed the “Iron Horse”, was a New York Yankee legend who, little known fact, was a member of “murderer’s row”, the name for what is widely considered one of the best teams in history.  To top it off, he batted in the cleanup spot for this incredible team.  The cleanup spot is usually designated for the team’s most powerful hitter.  Lou Gehrig held the record for most consecutive games at 2,130 for 56 years until Cal Ripken, Jr. broke it in 1995.  After 13 incredible years with the Yankees, the “Iron Horse” began to rust.  At the age of 36, Gehrig was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), now better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, in 1939.  Regarded as one of the most emotional and powerful speeches in all of baseball history, Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech was sure to bring tears to Yankee fans’ eyes on July 4^th, 1939.  Lou Gehrig’s speech is arguably one of the finest displays of gratitude in all of baseball history.  What’s even more special about this speech is that he wasn’t planning on talking at the memorial service that day.  His speech truly came from the bottom of his heart and that what made it even more special.

On the 4^th of July in 1939 the Yankees held a ceremony for Lou Gehrig between a double header that day.  Many well-known Yankees, like Babe Ruth,  and several others stepped up to the podium that day and thanked Gehrig for all he brought to the team and the positive impact he left on the franchise.  Lou Gehrig was so overwhelmed with love and joy, he was too flustered to step up to the microphone and address the 60,000 plus fans watching him with watery eyes.  Thousands rose to their feet chanting “We want Lou!” as the ceremony was coming to a close.  Lou Gehrig was still reluctant, but the Yankee’s manager at the time, Joe McCarthy, gave him a few words of encouragement, and Gehrig finally stepped up to the podium.  As Lou Gehrig approached the podium, applause of encouragement turned into focused silence in a matter of seconds.  The following 274-word improvised speech would later be recognized as one of the greatest speeches in baseball history, and talked about for years to come.  His speech highlighted his gratitude and love he had for not only his teammates and the rest of the Yankee franchise, but everyone who helped him along the way.  Fans, friends, family, all those listening to that speech that day were flooded with emotions.  If anyone is to know one line from that speech, it’s this: “Today, I consider myself, the luckiest man, on the face of the earth.”  To be able to call himself the luckiest man in the world after being diagnosed with a deadly disease at the young age of 36, that shows an awful lot of humility and grace from Lou Gehrig.  His ability to be so grateful for everything in this horrible time in his life is truly a testament to his impeccable personality.  The speech just ties together how he is as a person.  Lou Gehrig has always been an optimistic, upstanding, and incredible person on and off the ball field.  The speech continues as he begins to list out all the things that he is grateful for—big and small.  From the gifts he receives from his fellow teammates and coaches to the unconditional love and support from his wife and family, Gehrig ties together his gratitude in the final line of the speech: “…I may have had a tough break, but I have an awful lot to live for.”  What Gehrig means by this last line is that just because he has been diagnosed with this fatal disease, it doesn’t mean he’s going to give up; it’s not going to stop him from living his life.  The fans showed him so much love and support that it just goes to show how much he really has to be thankful for.  After this final line, as he stepped away from the podium tears not only began to build in the eyes of thousands of fans, but in his as well.

79 years later, critics still talk about the amazing display of gratitude that occurred on that day in 1939.  Gehrig’s ability to step up to the podium after being overwhelmed with love and appreciation, shows how grateful he is for everything that has been provided to him in his life.  The speech does an excellent job of highlighting what Gehrig is truly grateful for.  These things that have played such a huge role in his life allows him to say “I have an awful lot to live for” at the end of the speech.  The fact that this speech was improvised only adds to its emotional effect as well.  Lou Gehrig displayed his true colors that day and he left 120,000 eyes tearing up and 60,000 hands clapping in a showering of applause after the speech came to a close.

Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech is arguably one of the finest displays of gratitude and humbleness in all of history.  Lou Gehrig was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in 1939.  Midway through the season, on July 4^th, 1939, thousands of fans packed into Yankee Stadium to hear Lou Gehrig address for the fans for the last time.

Rhetorically, this was one of the finest speeches in sports history.  Lou Gehrig primarily uses pathos to evoke emotion out of his audience.  Keeping in mind that his main audience is a crowd of Yankee fans and the press, it wasn’t exactly hard to get to their soft spot, considering Gehrig’s reputation as a ball player and even as a person.  Not only did his rhetoric “act” but it “acted” so well that even 75 plus years later, sports journalists and historians are still considering it one of the if not the best speech in Major League Baseball history.  The speech was a mere 273 words, yet it was still so powerful.  Not only did he use pathos effectively, he also used an optimistic tone all throughout.  To consider himself “the luckiest man on the face of the earth” when he knew the disease he had was sure to kill him, he was expressing his gratitude towards the fans and everyone else in his life who was near and dear to him.  To top it off, his use of parallel structure emphasizes his gratitude and humbleness.  Throughout the speech he states something he is thankful for, and ends the sentence with, “that’s something.” By doing so, he is able to prove how “lucky” he truly was.

Lou Gehrig’s speech most certainly “effected valuable changes in reality” because he urged his listeners to be grateful for what they have, and to always count their blessings.  He not only inflicted valuable changes in his fans, but to whoever else was listening (except maybe Red Sox fans).  His speech wasn’t intended for Yankees fans alone, his message behind the speech can apply to absolutely anyone.