APOLOGY

The apology that I am going to incorporate into my writing assignment #4 is the apology the government is giving the Native American Indians. The Senate has voted to apologize to Native Americans for historical injustices. The apology is known as the Native American Apology Resolution. The resolution extends a formal apology from the United States to tribal governments and Native American people nationwide. It is aimed at making amends for years of "ill-conceived policies" and acts of violence against Native Americans by U.S. citizens. It also asks President Barack Obama to "acknowledge the wrongs of the United States against Indian tribes" in order to encourage healing. In this case the use of an apology could never heal the wounds and oppression the Native American Indians suffered. An apology could begin the healing process for these people. There were so many wrongs committed that were never brought to justice. An apology would serve as a start to make immense for these injustices. The apology was acceptable and I believe that the United States is truly embarrassed for the actions bestowed upon such special individuals. The apology is very appropriate. Along with the apology many Native American Indian tribes are compensated with money; however, there are still numerous tribes still living under oppression and poverty. The United States issued the apology and that was the correct position of them. Above all the apology should be a public spoken statement because this is a very serious matter.

Big Box Stores

"Can Wal-Mart Get Any Bigger? (Yes, a lot bigger... Here's how)" by Bill Saporito is an article that I read and here is the summary. Wal-mart has extended to other countries like China, Brazil, Germany, and Mexico. Wal-mart is the largest retailer in the world and just keeps gaining market or in other words expanding. Wal-mart sells just about everything from PC’s, ceiling fans, fashionable clothing, to gasoline, even cars. The goal is to have a 30% share of every major business Wal-mart is in. The company has super centers that have products that range from hardware products, to groceries and also over the counter drugs. The centers can get up to 180,000 square ft. in size. The long term strategy of Wal-mart is “To be where we are not”, in more blunt terms to consume and produce everything possible. The company plans to fatten profits by becoming more of a producer and even designer of its goods, especially clothing. Wal-mart has spread a disease of grieve among small hometown businesses and to some of history’s biggest retailers (i.e. Sears). It is important to the company to keep it simple. Keep the right products in stock and maintain a smooth checkout system. They call it “Take the money”, what is the point of low prices if the consumer cannot pay for their items quickly. Wal-mart has pushed responsibility and information to the lowest ranks. Wal-mart is all about NONUNION labor. The average wage at Wal-mart nationally is less than 10$ an hour before bonuses. The most frequent complaint made by Wal-mart employees is low wages and morale-killing store managers. Wal-mart was found guilty of requiring associates to work unpaid overtime. A refute to that argument was that Wal-mart offers health care and ample opportunities for advancement. Two-thirds of its managers come from the ranks of store associates. Wal-mart expects not only to save money on the buy of products but also cut down on inventory by speeding up the supply lines. Wal-mart makes factories in countries and in doing so is to be held more responsible for their factories social and environmental policies. Wal-mart gets 6 billion $ worth of goods from China. Their expansion has gone well in Mexico. Wal-mart has stumbled badly in some other countries like Germany. Lastly this article talks about a Wal-mart store in China that introduced the Walton Institute, a program to teach local managers the master’s Three Basic Beliefs: 1. Respect for individual, service to our customers, and strive for excellence. 2. The 10 foot rule (service for customers within 10 ft. of you). 3. The Sun Down Rule (any employee or customer request must be addressed before sundown. I can use this article to both help form my agruement that "big box" retailers present a threat to American communities that should be curtailed and this artcle can help me establish a good refute to my counter-agruement.

Wal-Mart "The high cost of low prices"

The film "The high cost of low prices" was a film regarding the many aspects of corruption that Wal-mart is consistently allowing and performing. This film explained numerous accounts in which the Wal-mart company has failed to maintain the REAL standards of quality and commitment a company should have. The Wal-mart company states that the company is a wholesome company with low prices that helps families bugdet money while receiving good quality products. In actuality it seems like Wal-mart is the complete opposite of that. This film clearly explains that Wal-mart is destroying America. To begin with the corruption the film documented that Wal-mart does not treat their employees with respect. The company actually underpays their employees and illegally tampers with employees hours. Many women employees stated in the film that the discrimination against women is happening everywhere and all the time. The employees of the many Wal-marts said that even though Wal-mart offers healthcare benefits the amount taken from each employees check is unlivable. Wal-mart is destroyig small businesses. In small town with privately owned family businesses, Wal-mart is wiping out all sources of income and jobs. Another thing that was mentioned and documented were the live journals of factory workers working for the wal-mart company. These people in china and also in other parts of the world are working tedious, long hours for less than 3$ a day. Their working conditions are horrid and unimaginable. The last thing I wanted to mention about the corruption is the lack of security that Wal-mart fails to provide. The film really emphasized the amount of crime happening in the Wal-mart parking lots. Kidnappings, robberies, murders, all of these are occuring in the parking lots of Wal-marts. When I saw this film I had no idea that the Wal-mart company was doing such a bad job conducting their muli-billion dollar company. One would think that with all the money that Wal-mart brings in that they would do more to ensure good service and practices. Now that I have been informed of these facts I would really like to be a part of a movemnet to stop the effect of Wal-mart on America. I found that the message of this film was that something needs to be done about this Wal-mart capitalism. Wal-mart is about property not patriots and is about profit before safety. The film had a very pwerful delivery from all ages and races. It really made an impact on me! This film was very convincing!!!!!

Critical Thinking #2

During my own personal history of education I have noticed that the majority of my studies have not incorporated the idea of critical thinking into their curriculum. The way that things have been presented and instructed to me have been done so through verbatim. Most of the work done in my prior education has been entirely from the book. Read the book due the bookwork. That is the usual way things went. I can say that we seldomly looked at critical thinking as a major element of education, when in actuality I believe that critical thinking is a part of everyday life skills. When I did complete all of my studies I retained many individual aspects of critical thinking that were not implied to me. So the statement that I am making is that education has done a poor job of incorporating and teaching the idea of critical thinking. With this said there needs to be some movement towards the incorporation of critical thinking in our education department. Even though critical thinking is not the easiest form of thinking it needs to be advocated in our studies. How does society expect to gerd up a new generation of doctors, scholars, political parties, historians, etc. The futue of this country depends on the people who take it upon themselves to further educate and broaden their minds.

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking in my opinion has many definitions. The important thing is the one giving the definition. My definition of critical thinking invovles three elements: Logic, analysis and explanation. First logic is needed to explain critical thinking because logic has to do with using the brain power that you have to first identify the underlying concept of what is being critically thought out. Next is analysis, when you analyze something you disect it or in other words pick it apart. When using critical thinking you must analyze all the possible outcomes that could happen, and then use the information you gathered to go more into depth. Explanation is the last element that I think helps define critical thinking. After your brain starts working and using logic and you have analyzed the outcomes of the logic, then you explain what it is that you have discovered. Critical thinking: Using logic to identify a concept, then analysis to disect the concept and in end explaining what it is you discovered. I think that critical thinking over time can be learned and if something can be learned than it can be taught. As I have gone through all of my years of schooling I have learned that critical thinking is not the easiest form of response to a question. Back when I was in Jr. High school the critical thinking question on the homewrk or the exams was a BIG OH NO!! At first I had no idea how to answer critical thinking question. Over time my teachers would give instructions that involved structure that could help define a critical thinking question. It takes structure and practice to become good at using critical thinking.

Good Public Space in General

The Question is, what makes a good public space in general? A good public space must have all the vital necessities. First there must be drinking fountains and restrooms. The public population does not want to be in an area that confines them from the everyday life comforts. Next, the public area has to have landscape and waste management maintained. Or in other words the public space needs to be pleasant to look at and clean. It is always important to maintain a nice facility so that the facility attracts the right type of people. Activities are an important factor when considering what public space to visit. People come and go to different places for specific purposes. If there are not many things to do at a public space then what is the point of spending precious time there. Another element that is important is accessible walkways and efficient parking conglomerations. If you cannot walk or park the purpose of this public space is defeated. A good public space in general has a balance of security and openness. The people that are visiting the public space want to feel like they have freedom, but also feel that the premises are secure. People don't like being told what to do they want to feel in control at all times. The compromise is to set boundaries and the way to mark off public spaces can vary. A good public space is marked off with the premises of the public space visible by sight. With an attractive gate that allows people to see through it, trees or nature landscaping, signs designating that there is a public area around, etc. The things that could prevent a public space from being functional: poor air-quality, homeless people, gang activity, unclean premises, no trashcans, no parking, no shade, etc.

Public Spaces

The objective here is to go to any public space and give an analysis of the surroundings or area. I decided to go ahead and analyze Bouquet Canyon Park located in Saugus, California. I chose this public area because it suits the eye and offers a feeling of relaxation as you enter the park. To start off my analysis of this park I wanted to make sure that the essentials to a public space were up to quota. When you first enter the park the entire premises is available visually in one shot. Being aware of your surroundings is important when choosing to spend your time in a particular area. The next thing I noticed was that there was more than enough shade covering the park. Having a place that is air- circulated and clean can affect your choice when visiting a public space. Included in the essentials of the park was a fair amount of parking, accessible, clean walk ways to navigate to the play areas, plenty of trash cans to throw away garbage, some water fountains, and lastly restrooms that are visible and close to the play areas. In ordinance to activities and the purpose of taking part in this public space; there is a recreational play area for children, there is a baseball field playng area, the is a space to play soccer, there are tennis courts, and enough area for picnicing. I did not choose this space because it is a big booming place of attraction. This place is a place to be together, whether it be with your friends or with your family. I conclude this short analysis with the improvement ideas. I think there could be a little more parking, there needs to be a changing table to accomidate people with infants in the restroom, there needs to be more drinking fountains to hydrate, and lastly there is no security watching the premises on a regular basis.