Responce Post to Communication

I read an interesting blog post from Amber Chan entitled "Communication."

"I can no longer remember the days when I used to have to send mail or make a phone call from the house phone to talk to a friend or relative that didn’t live very close to me, or just meet with them face to face. "

I feel this is true. Much of our society relies primarily on technology to communicate with others, whether they are friends or not. This is the new standard. Unfortunately, for many, it is a communication breakdown. Communicating solely with the use of internet and face-to-face are two majorly different forms of communication. With the internet, you can talk and have interesting conversations, but really, you will not be able to truly understand a person, their feelings, etcetera. Face-to-face allows people to truly communicate with each other and understand each other. Now, people are more and more relying on internet for communication.

With technology in use for communication, you cannot sense or feel any emotion between one another. A new language is also being created, such as what you use when  you text or IM. Unnecessary words are being removed and messages are usually very short to the point. With that, feeling is removed too. Eventually, people will not know the difference between "you" and "you're;" "there," "their," and "they're." Hopefully, humanity will not rely on pointing and grunting in the future. I feel it is much more pleasant to express yourself with talking with other people; that is true communication; not "?" for "I have a question," and "<3" for "I love you." As anyone can see, that is not true communication and never will be.

What most have forgotten is the fact that you can do what is called grammatically writing one another with correct vocabulary and expressing feeling with one another, through texting, IMing, and even emailing. Our standards for communication have changed and should not because with that change, society will be impacted for the worst. Emotion will no longer exist. I have even read a book call "1984" by George Orwell and in that book, lack of communication is used to control society. Communication is an art that we cannot loose.

Ender Game Post 3

At the beginning of "part 3," one of the most important event in the book happened. Ender was progressed to the position of being a commander. He is now forced to give orders, and to discipline. This new role change showed me an important connection; Ender is very very similar to Colonel Graff. In particular cases, Ender picks on a "launchie" named Bean. Although it may seem like he is pointlessly doing so, he truly cares about him and wants to help him. Ender believes Graff is using him, but does not know that Graff wants to help Ender too and cares about him. Some manipulation must be used to train his army, like Graff used to make Ender a commander.

Because of Ender's newfound success, Ender has made enemies. He truly is competing with the teachers, not the other armies. He wants to beat them. However, Ender's anger with the teachers caused him to make enemies, one in particular named Bonzo. He is eventually forced to fight him, and severely hurts two people. Immediately after the fight, he is forced to fight an impossible battle. This in a sense seemed to break Ender. He no longer cared about winning afterwards; he only cares about having no more enemies. When he left Battle School, the similar feelings of indifference towards life returned.

Ender again returns to school, this time Command School. He does not want to go back because when he does, he is forced to become Peter again. When he destroys the Buggers, he is the only one who does not celebrate because he is sad he destroyed another enemy. He simply wants to have no enemies. Ender also felt manipulated because he never knew he was actually fighting the buggers; he just destroyed their humanity. Although the was was justified, Ender is the only one who thinks humanity could have been saved without war.

When Ender leaves, he colonizes to the bugger worlds with Valentine; Peter would use him if he returned to Earth. He dedicated his life to understanding the Buggers and they both come to the understanding that they never meant to harm one another. The buggers forgave Ender for what he did because they knew he never wanted to hurt them. Ender finally finds his freedom because he has chosen the path he wants to follow, not someone elses.

Responce To Luise's blog post on substitutes

I found an interesting blog post that Luise wrote about substitues.

"I hate it when people try and take advantage of substitutes like if they do not even know the rules of the school. In my old school, taking advantage of substitutes continuously happened throughout the year. I admit it I also used to take advantage but sometimes there is a limit. Some people take it too far."

I have the same feeling about taking advantage of substitutes.  Many if the substitute teachers I have encountered at ASTI are extremely nice. They constantly try to give us meaningful information and do their best when subing, rain or shine. I find that whether or not students like a substitute or not, they still take advantage of them.

An example of a great substitute teacher at ASTI is the one Mrs. Corbally always hires. He is a great English teacher in general. He always has great topics and ideas to discuss regarding lesson plans and never asks much of us. He unfortunately cannot control a classroom properly. Literally, when he talks, no one listens to him; they talk in their own conversations. Yes, he may be boring, but the fact is, he wants to teach us and cares about what we learn. Does nobody understand that? When you are extremely disrespectful to a substitute like him, you are disrespectful to your own education.

I feel that no one respects substitute teachers because socially, that is accepted. I feel this is wrong. Substitutes were once teachers too. The only difference is their job is temporary now. They still care about us and our education. For example, Ms. Corbally's substitute has taken the time to learn all of our names. I have never seen a substitute ever do that. He also takes the time to try and teach us meaningful information. In a sense, you are almost slapping a sub in the face if you disrespect them like many do.

Subs want to help us and care about all of us. We need to in turn show our care for them too. If you don't appreciate your education, leave the classroom instead of wasting the sub's time. Teachers are extremely important figures in society and everyone should realize that; they care for our future, even subs.

Ender's Game: Post 2

As I have continued reading "Ender's Game," I have come to truly realize the importance Ender has concerning the fate of mankind. At the beginning of each chapter, a discussion between Colonel Graff and the highest official of the I.F. takes place; this shows the importance that is placed upon Ender. Everyone is concerned with his progress. Obviously, Graff's faith in Ender is well placed; he has made extreme progress through all the tests that he has been put through. One of the biggest breakthrough's he mad was become accepted throughout battle school by his peers. 


Ender is constantly put into situations where he has to save himself, which usually involves breaking the rules. Throughout battle school, he plays a simulated game that challenges him in certain situations. Throughout the game, he was forced to break rules in order to progress. Much of this is because Graff has put him in situations like this. Ender needs to be pushed in order to become a commander and save humanity. Graff even creates such situations as to make the battleroom scenarios unfair so that Ender can face situations like real war. This compromises the integrity of the entire school, but this again shows the emphasis on how important Ender is to humanity.


With the progress Ender is making, he is also beginning to realize that he is like Peter, and is hating himself for it. This is because Graff is pushing him to become like him. Even Ender's sister Valentine is realizing the same truth. As Ender begin's to realize this, Graff asks Valentine to send Ender a letter which basically allows Ender to "realize" that he has lost his most precious possession in life in life, which pushes him further. Ender is again pushed into becoming a commander.


One of the biggest steps forward for Ender in the book is when Ender becomes promoted to a commander of a group of children for the battle room. This gives Ender a new perspective on battle school because he is allowed to give orders. Ender is in the final stages of training to become what he was meant to do. Ender has realized that he is being manipulated throughout his progress as a commander. The only way for him to become a great commander is for him to blame his teachers on what happened to him, and he is right to do so.

Responce to Mercedes Post

I though Mercedes Thorne's blog post was extremely interesting so I decided to respond to it.

Argument is the root of all evil. A force opposing your own. And idea, a feeling, a person, an opinion. No, argument does not always escalate into something big, but it often turns your opponent more against you than they were before you fought.

I am in total agreement with Mercedes's opinion on arguments. These are a big issue on blogger. Arguments are widely caused over small response posts that turn in to controversial arguments. I too am tired of this. This is an unneeded source of problems. Everyone should recognize that these are only opinions and are not meant to be directed towards anyone. Everyone has the right to be opinionated; you can too, but why in such an attacking and negative manner? Blogger is a place where people can express themselves, not a place where people attack one another.


I feel that this is a problem that is naturally in humans. We are all defensive and argumentative. It is human nature, as Mercedes said. Being argumentative is fine, but not when you are specifically trying to attack someone and cause trouble. 

Enders Game: Post 1

Ender's Game by Orson Scott is a book based on a future society on Earth and that has been at war with an alien race called the "buggers." This war has greatly shaped this society. Everyone is considered to go to battle school at young ages to fight the buggers; Ender is one of these people. He is considered a genius and was taken by the I.F. to train and become a commander.

For Ender to become what he was "destined" to do, Ender was manipulated. Earth is desperate; they need someone who is able to command and lead victory against the buggers. They do this by isolating him from everyone because he cannot conform. He needs to be different. Although what has been done to Ender is immoral, the I.F. sees it as being for the great good of humanity. I feel they are right. Ender is their last chance and they must take every necessary step to ensure Ender saves humanity.

For Ender, leaving Earth to go to battle school was partly a relief and partly saddening for him. Ender is in constant psychological torment because of all the hatred and bullying he had faced throughout his life. Firstly, he is a "third" born; this society looks down on thirds because it is no allowed by the government. Also Ender has had a monitor(a device that has watches him) on longer than any of his other peers. These two factors caused everyone to hate him, but his sister Valentine. Valentine truly loved Ender. She was the only person Ender had. This became a conflict as to whether Ender should leave, but he decided to go when he came to the realization that he could possible become the one who would save humanity from the buggers.

Battle school for Ender became his former life on Earth. As I stated before, the I.F. wanted him to be isolated; they did this by turning everyone on Ender. Everyone hated him and looked down on him. Again, he was put in a situation where he had no friends and only enemies. The only way he could gain friendship was if he proved himself in his training. Training consisted of academic learning, and battle preparation. In battle preparation, children fought in a zero gravity room with fake guns and space outfits. It is extremely strategical. Ender needed to prove himself in order to allow everyone to like him and the I.F  new this.

Garcia Girls Essay

The experiences people face in life shape their personal identity. In “How the Garcia Girls Lost Their Accents” by Julia Alvarez, the four Garcia girls lives are shaped by the influences they have faced throughout their lives from the cultures and societies they lived in. Their lives are constantly altered by the surrounding influences in their lives.

The Garcia girls first grew up in the Dominican Republic. They lived a very sheltered and luxurious lifestyle. They grew up as ordinary girls, exploring their lives and culture. As they grew older, they found talents within themselves that they felt compelled to peruse in their future lives. The Dominican Republic culturally shaped their current lives.  

"It seemed with so much protocol, I would never get to draw the brilliant and lush and wild world brimming over inside me. I tried to keep my mind on the demonstration, but something began to paw the inside of my drawing arm. It clawed at the doors of my will, and I had to let it out. I took my soaking brush in hand, stroked my gold cake, and a cat streaked out on my paper in one lightning stroke, whiskers, tail, meow and all!"(247).

The four girls discovered themselves in their culture. They began to shape their future lives in the Dominican Republic. In the quote about for example, Sandra describes her compulsion to draw and explore her artistic talents. These talents are shaped by surrounding society the are influenced by. Sandra represents the Garcia girls cultural development in the Dominican Republic. 


Unfortunately, the Garcia girls were forced to leave when their father, Carlos, gets in trouble with the secret police for agitating against the military dictatorship. They are forced to leave the Dominican Republic and flee to the United States. There, they are obligated to shape their lives based on United States culture and society. This sudden cultural change in the girls lives brings about many issues, unforeseen to the family at first.

"Our next workshop, no one understood what my sublimated love sonnet was all about, but Rudy's brought down the house. Suddenly, it seemed to me, not only that the world was full of English majors, but of people with a lot more experience than I had. For the hundredth time, I cursed my immigrant origins. If only I too had been born in Connecticut or Virginia, I too would understand the jokes everyone was making on the last two digits of the year, 1969; I too would be having sex and smoking dope; I too would have suntanned parents who took me skiing in Colorado over Christmas break, and I would say things like "no shit," without feeling like I was imitating someone else."(94-95).

The girls soon became lost in the American culture. As life went on in America for them, they became exposed to the unforeseen part of the American culture. America became a place more than just where to find your dream. These troubles came from their old Dominican Republic cultural heritage. They were trying to adjust and expose themselves to American culture, while trying to keep their old heritage. In a sense, they became "lost in translation;" they were forced to find a mid ground between old and new cultures. The girls had difficult times adjusting and found trouble in this; an example of this is the quote above. Yolanda felt inferior to other Americans based on her cultural status and her inexperience in life. This inner turmoil caused a traumatic episode in her life in which she came to a realization of what a lonely life she would live in the future. She knew no one would be able to understand her mix of cultures (Hispanic and American styles). Also, people looked down on their old culture and heritage, which reinforced this idea in all the sisters. 


As their lives progressed, two of the sisters, Yolanda and Sandra, have mental breakdowns. I feel this is because of the cultural loss they experienced throughout their lives and the hardships they faced trying to transition into American culture.  They did not have a solid culture and were lost in their lives as a result. For them, life went on painfully. They were constantly haunted by their past and the memories of their old culture. 

"I grew up, a curious woman, a woman of story ghosts and story devils, a woman prone to bad dreams and bad insomnia. There are still times I wake up at three o'clock in the morning and peer into the darkness. At that hour and in that loneliness, I hear her, a black furred thing lurking in the corners of my life, her magenta mouth opening, wailing over some violation that lies at the center of my art."(289-290).

The cat Schwarz was a big part of the book because it is a representation of the girls childhood and their loss of culture. Memories like these are important to the girls because they can revisit them in an attempt to make sense of their present day life.

Yolanda tried to revisit the Dominican Republic in her later life. She wants to reconnect with her cultural roots and heritage. When she arrives, many of the family thinks she is crazy because she is so much more different than them. When she goes driving alone and is confronted by two men, she panicked and spoke in English instead of Spanish because she felt more comfortable. This is a sign that she had lost her Spanish culture and could never regain it. The shift in cultures during her younger life permanently changed who she was as a person. 

The Garcia girl's lives had been permanently changed by the cultural change in their younger lives. They became lost in two different cultures. They became unsure of themselves and saw themselves as inadequate and inferior to others. This cultural change reflects immigrants in the United States. Many new immigrants coming to different countries go through these troubles and faced with similar feelings throughout their lives.