Rhetorical Activities 2 and 4

2)Oh! Have I encountered the horrible theatrics that are simulated arguments! Back home in Charleston, almost every popular morning radio station does the same thing. They will "argue" over the daily headline news. When I say headline news, I refer to articles like "What's Britney Doing with Her Life?," or "Who is better Branjolina or the Beckhams?" How about this. Get a real life. When I say that I don't direct that to the disk jockeys, I say it to the people who call in and agh it on. The listeners are the ones who eat it up. It is my belief that if the listeners would show less interest, the less the DJ's would use this tactic in their morning performance. ESPN Sports Center is another great example. The sports casters spend their time on the air "debating and speculating" as to whether or not certain athletes will be heroes or zeros in times to come.

One key observation that I have made many times that is just a dead give-away to its theatrics is the ending of the so-called debate. At the end both parties will leave the argument open-ended. "Well I guess it's up to the viewer/listener to decide..." Another give away is the overkill of facial gestures and body mechanics used on television. People screaming and raising fists in the air over celebrities' personal lives and sports predictions are just unneeded and embarrassing.

4)The people in my community are most easily persuaded through mostly action or threats of negative results. For example, myself- at this point in my life, I feel that I have a good head on my shoulder, and I almost ALWAYS make the right decisions in life. However, I have been known to be wrong. It was only after the event had transpired that I realized that I was dreadfully wrong and the other person was right. It was then that I sucame to persuasion. Results of an action is usually what persuade people around me, too. We are a stubborn society. We believe we are all-knowing and all-forseeing.

When it comes to life choices like religion, habits, and racial toleration. They all usually are persuaded by some outside tower of knowledge; whether it be parent, sibling, close friend, or spouse. People look to others for security in their decisions, so they compare themselves to people they revere as equals or superiors. A 19-yr-old in Morgantown has at least once or twice participated in under age drinking. Why? Because everyone else does it, including his friends, and probably siblings(given the fact that they are the same age or older) as well. Immulation and immitation of peers and superiors is a common human trait and a powerful when it comes to persuasion.

Fear is also used when trying to persuade people. If a doctor tells a man/woman that he/she has 3 years to live if he/she doesn't stop smoking, then more than likely the patient will cease the habit. The threat of greenhouse gases is also another good example. Al Gore said that if the world does not alter its ways of existing, then the ozone layer will cease to exist, and harmful UV rays will eventually kill every living thing on the planet. Has has since then persuaded hundreds of millions to reduce toxic emissions. Again, this a prime example of persuasion through impending harm or fear.