Allison Brock's Blog

            In John Rosemond’s “No, Guns Are Not the Problem”, Rosemond discusses what he believes to be the reasons for mass shootings today. Rosemond claims that when he was in high school, kids’ trucks were loaded with an armory of guns and everyone knew it, but no harm was ever done by these kids. He furthermore states that it is the absence of behavioral and emotional self-control discipline from parents and the modern ideal that children need to express their feelings that spurs school shootings in America.

            I am arguing that not only is Rosemond not “a member of the last generation of American children whose parents disciplined not only [their] behavior but also insisted [they] exercise emotional self-control,” but also the fact that Rosemond believes the expression of feelings is the cause of mass shootings. I will even argue against his claim in the title that guns are not the problem.

            I question why Rosemond believes he is a member of this so called “last generation” he talks about. I grew up in a very disciplined household, in terms of behaviorial and emotional self-control. If I misbehaved, I was disciplined. If I threw a temper-tantrum, I was disciplined. To me this claim seems paper thin.

In this assignment I was hoping to use my original adjective, “strong”. I had a very elaborate picture in my head of what I wanted to do… but was completely unable to execute the idea. I then picked a new word, “lovely” and also had a more elaborate picture in my head than my final product. Ultimately I was still able to use pink which is my favorite color. I struggled very hard with this assignment.

In my type assignment I chose the adjective “strong”. I chose the front Phosphate because as soon as I saw it, it reminded me of the font on the cartoon movie, Hercules. Since Hercules was the god of strength I thought this font was very fitting. I put the word in the middle of the page because that’s where I thought it was filling out the page the most aesthetically pleasing.

On my revised business card I did a few things differently. For starters, I changed the size of my circles so that they aligned and centered better with one another and also made sure the proximity between each circle was equal to all of them. I also played with the alignment of the text a lot before deciding to align the text on the left. I changed the font and font size as well.

I really enjoyed this assignment! I struggled a bit with InDesign though. I could not really figure out how to make sure the circles were centered with one another so I kind of had to eyeball it. I also struggled at first with the color differentiation between the circles and thought the colors looked too wonky and was going to give up and figure out a new design, but then I discovered the tint tool on the color swatch page. Once I found that I was able to make the differentiation between the circles the same amount and achieved the fade out effect I desired.

The last time I argued was just this past Sunday. I tried arguing my case to my parents to buy me tickets to Travis Scott’s tour, Astroworld. I begged and pleaded my case to my parents, hoping they would comply with my wishes for the concert tickets. However, since my birthday had just passed, I did not achieve my goal.

I would say this is my usual argument style. My style of argument is a combination of both the adversarial and consensual style. I tend to argue very directly and openly, reaching conclusions by the end of discussion and I love a good competition. I also find myself preferring individual opinions rather than group consensus. Much to the adversarial style, I am aggressive and love to win. However, more aligned with the consensual style, I prefer affiliation to conflict. I will also always choose discussion to fighting. I share my views on issues logically and emotionally, while trying to make connections to people, stories and anecdotes.

I believe many people have influenced my style of argument. I have grown up with an older sister, Amanda and a twin brother, Ross. For most of my childhood in order to be heard over my siblings, I would have to really try hard to voice my opinion and make my point. That is how I argue today as well. Growing up I played many different sports at many different levels, which ultimately made me a very competitive person. This has definitely translated to my argument style in that I constantly feel the need to win or be right. It is a quality I have to restrain at times.

What I like most about my argument style is that I never feel afraid of speaking my mind. I also like that I try to make sure all my thoughts are expressed in what I believe is a very level-headed and logical manner. I like to be organized and precise in all my arguments, regardless of the topic. I even try to make sure my emotional appeals are organized before make them. I believe I can become more flexible in my style by becoming a better listener to other people and their arguments.

I too dislike it. The slimy texture and bitter taste always throws me off. When I say “don’t put it on my burger” and my command is disregarded I begin feel my blood boil to match its fiery color. I dread the thought of it even touching my food or my hands. But worse than the sight of it and worse than the touch of it is the dreadful smell that pierces my nose. This dreadful condiment I dislike more than any other is ketchup, and surely you dislike it too.

Hi, welcome to my blog! My name is Allison Brock. I am 20 years old and from Houston, Texas. I have a twin brother, Ross, who attends the University of Texas at Austin. I also have a 23 year old sister, Amanda, who graduated from Dallas Baptist University. I am the first in my family to leave Texas for college. I am currently a sophomore at LSU majoring in Mass Communication with a concentration in journalism. Growing up I have always had a love for sports and played many different ones but my absolute favorite sport is definitely basketball. I aspire to work for a sports network, specifically ESPN. I am so excited for MC 2015. I have a little experience working with Adobe InDesign and Photoshop. My expectations for this course are to gain a better knowledge of the software and to better understand what Visual Communication is and its role in media.

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