Information is often hardest to find when it is most needed. This is a classic lesson learned throughout the history of the world. If we had known Hitler had intended to invade Poland and Russia, would we have simply given him land from sovereign bordering nations to appease him? If the Native Americans had known that the European settlers had no intention of living up to land contracts would they have made it so easy for their land to be taken? That is why if I awoke with a super human ability tomorrow it would be the ability to read minds. Having knowledge of everyone’s real intentions could prevent exploitation and manipulation of the uniformed by the corrupted or untrustworthy. While not as distinguishing as a physical attribute, the capacity to deliver and then exploit the truth would ultimately lead to the advancement of the most crucial factor for the continual evolution and co-operation of out species knowledge.
What good are a super power and the person with it, if they are not able to know and trust their experiences? To be able to use my power to the best of my ability and its benefit I would start by investigating my past. Not in a sense of whom to trust but in a way to find out how I react and people react to me and various situations. Eventually coming to an understanding of yourself is necessary for you to achieve all of you newfound potential.
Building from there, the most enjoyable aspect of my power is the ability to exploit. I may never know if I lost that huge bet on at a poker game three years ago, but I will not be bluffed off the table every again. I would no longer have to sit around and wait for a phone call after a job interview, I would simply know as a left if I needed to continue looking or move on up. My boss would never lie to me about a raise again. Trivial issues of your personal life will fade though if you were to live with a super power. For as long as you may try to hide the fact that no one ever slips anything by you, one day you will err because you are human. So as enjoyable as the exploitation of immediate surrounding knowledge is, humans evolve, and so would I.
It has long bothered many that we do not know who killed John F Kennedy or at least why he did it and if he acted alone. Americans don’t know if the government covered up an alien crash. The world does not know if Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. Murderers and criminals go free everyday and innocent men are pumped full of lethal drugs due to liars and crooks. Nations are lied into and out of crisis from war to famine to oil. Pharmaceutical industries lie about drugs and banks lie about profits all the while you drive in a car which may or may not meet a minimum safety standard due to the price of a recall that will come after the necessary number of people die. The average person possesses little to none of the knowledge necessary in life to make safe choices in their homes and to make wise choices in their voting.
The worst can sometimes overcome the best even if they are in the smallest minority simply by controlling the information we receive. The masses cannot continue to operate unless they have a control source and as long as that control source can be corrupted so can the people. If I could tell what everyone was going to say or do or think I could stop many problems and injustices. I could stop lying drug lobbyists or false food safety reports. I could have stopped a Bernie Madoff. I could inform people that the next leader of an unstable European country has intentions of launching terrorist attacks or even worse an invasion. Being in the position to judge who is moral, ethical and reasonable will lead to the development of trust among all sectors of the human populations. Hypothetically, if I met with the correct people, there would be no government profiteering at least without the knowledge of the people. Wrongs will always be corrected as long as they are exposed. With my super power the corrupt and the heartless would have no way of attaining the positions they needed to exploit the unsuspecting decency of the moral world.
The ability to read minds would bring about significant personal gains which in time would lead to an ability to help many others. Sure at first I would recklessly gamble and pile up profits of wealth and personal knowledge, that is the allure of a super power. As a human I care about others and the ultimate betterment and survival of the species is what all humans should care most about, leave behind better homes, lives and dreams and it can all start with no more lies.

Opened Eyes
Information is often hardest to find when it is most needed. This is a classic lesson learned throughout the history of the world. If we had known Hitler had intended to invade Poland and Russia, would we have simply given him land from sovereign bordering nations to appease him? If the Native Americans had known that the European settlers had no intention of living up to land contracts would they have made it so easy for their land to be taken? That is why if I awoke with a super human ability tomorrow it would be the ability to read minds. Having knowledge of everyone’s real intentions could prevent exploitation and manipulation of the uniformed by the corrupted or untrustworthy. The power to read minds would eventually lead to change the world as I so desire. While not as distinguishing as a physical attribute, the capacity to deliver and then exploit the truth would ultimately lead to the advancement of the most crucial factor for the continual evolution and co-operation of out species knowledge.
The first priority for me having the ability to read minds is to eliminate as much greed as possible. Some greed may be a good thing; we need desire and innovation to perpetuate ourselves as a species. However, we also need to make sure that the fat cats of industry and Wall Street do not run ramp shot over the nation. That is why with my mind power I would investigate and then being in control, use my new powers evict criminals from high places.
Building from there, the most enjoyable aspect of my power is the ability to exploit. I may never know if I lost that huge bet on at a poker game three years ago, but I will not be bluffed off the table every again. I would no longer have to sit around and wait for a phone call after a job interview, I would simply know as a left if I needed to continue looking or move on up. My boss would never lie to me about a raise again. Trivial issues of your personal life will fade though if you were to live with a super power. For as long as you may try to hide the fact that no one ever slips anything by you, one day you will err because you are human. So as enjoyable as the exploitation of immediate surrounding knowledge is, humans evolve, and so would I. In the game of life the ability to read minds would enable me to exploit the political system and bring about change. The most important task is informing the American citizen. No longer would there be a question about facts and nations plans. There would be no need for lies and debates of trivial facts, reading minds can blow past all of that. Essentially, it redefines the justice system to where the mind-reader is the Chief Justice of the land. The average person possesses little to none of the knowledge necessary in life to make safe choices in their homes and to make wise choices in their voting and those facts need to be changed.
I would want to pull the eyes off of the American publics face. I would ask President Bush and Cheney, without the cloud of legal tape and carefully chosen words, what exactly were the exact reason so many Americans have died fighting a war that we were lied into. I think that knowing about the history of our nation would lead us to better confront future situations and challenges. So wherever possible, I would provide real answers and truth for the American public.
The worst can sometimes overcome the best even if they are in the smallest minority simply by controlling the information we receive. The masses cannot continue to operate unless they have a control source and as long as that control source can be corrupted so can the people. If I could tell what everyone was going to say or do or think I could stop many problems and injustices. I could stop lying drug lobbyists or false food safety reports. I could have stopped a Bernie Madoff. I could inform people that the next leader of an unstable European country has intentions of launching terrorist attacks or even worse an invasion. Being in the position to judge who is moral, ethical and reasonable will lead to the development of trust among all sectors of the human populations. Hypothetically, if I met with the correct people, there would be no government profiteering at least without the knowledge of the people. With my super power the corrupt and the heartless would have no way of attaining the positions they needed to exploit the unsuspecting decency of the moral world.
The American people would no not of the income tax. The inquiries I could make into the IRS would prove that the system is a sham. The legal ramifications and economic gains for our nation could be great as each person is now able to control their own destiny and make true choice. I would like America to be the most prosperous nation on earth, with no imposing taxes and I would push myself as far as I needed to go to accomplish this goal, stopping only when doing harm.
Mindreading could bring me significant personal gains, but ultimately I would want to help the greater good. Sure at first I would recklessly gamble and pile up profits of wealth and personal knowledge, that is the allure of a super power. As a human I care about others and the ultimate betterment and survival of the species is what all humans should care most about, leave behind better homes, lives and dreams and it can all start with no more lies.

To Boldly Go

If we can be honest, the beginning of this class was a total letdown. This is more so on my behalf than the class itself. I began by feeling cheated because I had received credit from high school for this class from another institution yet upon transferring I was informed I had to retake the class, setback number one. In addition I went through family and medical issues as well as one mediocre job and work schedule that were difficult to overcome. Finally, the general laziness and sense of complacency with school did not prepare me for the speed of the course itself.

As for the actual class, the instruction and teacher feedback I received was the best that I have received at this university, granted through only three classes. Though the workload was a little daunting, the completion was rewarding and the time put in was not as extreme as one would imagine. The out of class element was a large quantity of eye dedication to soak in, but many of the readings and especially the examples from former students guide you through if you falter as a student. Personally, despite some unnecessary conversation, the dialogue and discussion allowed class to pass more swiftly than a typical three hour class. I also enjoyed the fact that constant feedback and peer review options or at least guidelines were available. The writing center is available and Mr. Gasparo is also available to critique and funnel your musings into the form that will best suit your writing abilities.

Come to write. Usually, most of the first ten to fifteen minutes of class was free writing. It is not easy to open your brain after a day at work to a broad topic but at the end of time this creative thinking would guide the groupthink into the lesson plan. It seemed to keep some of the boredom of repetitive structure of some learning passable. I say passable because I am a test taker and not a writer. I prefer questions and speed to work and diligence. This class makes you work some and I felt like putting the time in on the rhetorical analysis actually gave me some self insight. Additionally, the argument essay, while tedious, expands knowledge of interesting social ideas and that is always beneficial.

I hope in the end I have learned how to better make an argument. Writing is about persuasion and telling a story. Making your writing more interesting through rhetorical tools and appeals expands your vocabulary and the depth of your reasoning. Many people will tell you how they feel; most people cannot tell you why they feel how they feel. That is what understanding rhetorical tools bring a person as a writer.

Wake up and realize you are at college. That is what I should have told myself in March at the beginning of class. If you do not like to work or think and want to find the easiest possible way to skate through TCC do not take this class, with this teacher, in an eight week period. However, while impossible to say I enjoyed class, it is possible to say that it was worthwhile. The pace of a eight week course forces a student to complete tasks on time or at least put an effort in. The class itself requires out of class reading, which guides you as a writer and thinker, and time researching, preparing a student for more college. I appreciated that aspect of this class. It is a refresher that college and life require work. The class was rewarding. Personally I do not like to go into detail about past experiences but the rhetorical essay provided me with a forum to open up and think critically about some things I have done wrong and still do wrong. English 111 benefited me personally; it expanded my knowledge of community resources, challenged my work ethic and hopefully rewards me further down the trail of my life.