So, here is the foundation of the final paper, I will be woking on this for the next couple of week. Lots of rough spots, but I can see where I want to go with this and have been happily pecking away at this all night. YEAH! More to come.
Having been lucky enough to explore so many ideas about graduate school, I am gratified in the prospect of having finally found at a true passion behind many compelling interests, I want to effect progressive change in my community, I want to create an environment of hope and action. I do not worry that change cannot happen, rather I would rather work to find the correct attitude communicated through correct messages in order to create a successful vehicle for change—this is all with out forgetting that the big questions still exist, what is the correct attitude and message
Effective communication is invaluable. It is a tool under represented in so many aspects of civilized life. The ‘disconnect’ that is apparent in the stratus of work and society is inherent in the nature of the class systems, yet I tend to think that not necessarily does the class distinction have to stay- unplugged- especially when we have so many modern communication tools and styles. Is it possible to create a message that is not just grassroots but also commercially sound?
To use an example of global warming, in 2000, the Bush administration outright denied to participate and sign on to the G8 summit while also changing even the language of global warming by political advisor Frank Luntz recommended the Bush Administration adopt the term "Climate Change" in preference to global warming.(Wikipedia). So the the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, which sets binding targets to reduce emissions 5.2 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.(pew center for climate change)was ‘dissed’. But because of the obvious bad new of the truth about global warming, now in 2007 Bush is giving speeches on how American will lead the discussion with the major ‘emissions and green house gas producers’. This is not to say that Bush cares at all about the serious trouble our environment is in and how much worse our nation’s policies have gotten since the Bush Whitehouse, but, what has changed is what, on a national level is allowed to be talked about. Global warming has now entered the colloquial realm of big business and with out any real choice, a public government interest.
So has the descent over the Abstinence Education in the classroom. With numerous reports rejecting abstinence education’s legacy, I am embolden to step up and speak out and seek ways to educate as many youth as possible about reproductive health while at the same time if possible express this cause as a true case of first amendment rights. This freedom is not free and speaking out about this freedom takes practice.
With this being said, how do I effectively communicate needs that to me, seem so obvious to the informationally impoverished community, have the community acknowledge the problem and begin to work together in order to create progressive solutions?
Knowing more about what it means to be human and to be a modern human is an important aspect to message receptiveness. Which leads me to think that a communications degree could hold a great deal of value beyond the strictly theoretical training I have received as a philosopher. With action being of vital importance in the second part of my passionate search for meaning in these last six months. For, I can think as much as I would like to about a problem, I can theorize about a solution, but I must be able to enact so sort of a solution, even on the smallest scale, in order to find a usefulness in my angst.
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2 comments:
It's so wonderful to see the development and progression of your thought process, Danielle! I think that the merging of abstract Philosophy and concrete action (perhaps inspired by rollerderby?) into Communications sounds great. And using the Abstinence Education model as a way to make these connections seems perfect.
I'll be excited to see where this all takes you (and your humble readers) next!
Go, Danielle!
:-)
I agree with that Kris says, especially in terms of merging the abstract and the concrete. In English Studies, we might call this merger "discourse" (a fancy term of language, but emphasizing the idea of language as social action, something people do, not just an ideal structure), and Communications shares that emphasis. Many of spend a lot of time and effort figuring out how to express our own opinions and ideas, but necessarily how to communicate: that is, connecting with others by understanding their realities and their languages.
That simple goal--how can two separate people reach a point of understanding--is easy to say but infinitely complex to execute, yet as you are saying it really is at the heart of social change, and every positive movement in this area is a step forward. We are seeing that the attraction of communicating through missiles and improvised explosive devices, while attention-getting, has some very serious limitations.
It looks like you've had a real breakthrough, Danielle!
John
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