Get Out Your #2 Pencil

In may eighth year of retirement? Naw.....I mean, no thank you.

Great idea, Virginia John. I'm marking this with my no.2 pencil. Back when I have time. Ah, come on C.I. you could write a book about your travels.

Letty, As a matter of fact a couple of our friends planning a trip to Argentina came over "to pick your brain." They also suggested I write a book. I responded that a list of all the places I visited would make up the volume. LOL

C.I. then give it a try, Juan Peron and Eva are gone.

Hey realest of Johns. Will a topic be provided, or are we to do our own?

Visited Eva's tomb twice, and as far as we are told, she's in that tomb - and it's not a sure thing, because her father didn't want her buried there.

Ah, another history mystery.

I'll wait until RJB gives the topic and then I'm an army of Arnies.

RJB, I just heard the news on Peter Jennings. Finally, college boards recognize the need for creative thinking, but the topic will be a secret until the actual exam time. Soooooo, that means that you, as monitor, will have to provide us with one.

My thinking is that we will use the actual topic that is given to the test-takers. I don't know many people that age so I'm hoping yall can help out. If yall know someone who might know someone who might know the topic assigned, please relay it.
Please rethink your response, cicerone. The whole point of this exercise is to see how we, older and wiser, or older and stupider, might react to the notion of having to write something cogent in a short period of time.
(BTW, my friend Gothboy will be sitting for the SAT tomorrow. But that's another story. Gothboy thinking about going to college? Bizarre).
SO WE NEED TO KNOW THE ASSIGNED TOPIC befrore we can move on.
Thanks.

Well, John. That's the entire point. The young folks taking the test will NOT know the topic until test day.

Let's just suppose for a moment that the topic would be:

Write a persuasive essay on something that you feel strongly about.

My thesis would be:There should be a moratorium on SAT's.

Bet Gothboy would tear that one up.

Essays are an interesting way to grade on knowledge of topic and grammar. However, both are subject to the subjective background of the grader, and therefore an "A" may be somewhat unreliable to the university that is using it to accept or deny that student.

My thinking was, when I started this, is that someone could find some kid on Sat afternoon at the mall and find out what the assigned topic was. And then we could all take a whack at it. See what we old folks would write about the same topic.
Perhaps I was too obtuse. The "old" SATs were, in my opinion, not a good guide to a kid's ability to contribute to the diversity of a college environment. Is the addition of the essay in the "new" SAT's going to improve things? cicerone's concern (which I would paraphrase as being able to mouth cookie cutter phrases in order to please some grader) is well stated.
I doubt that gothboy will score high enough on the math and English part of the SAT to get into UVA, but I'm looking forward to reading his essay. And yalls. -rjb-

Okay, here is the topic as I have been told:

DO YOU AGREE WITH THE SYSTEM OF MAJORITY RULE?

Think about it for a few minutes and then, if you are so inclined, give us a couple of paragraphs.

Oh, my Gawd, Virginia John. Politics? How can that be considered a creative essay?

Be gentle in your criticisms.
***************************
DO YOU BELIEVE IN THE SYSTEM OF MAJORITY RULE

No. I also do not believe in singular rule, because both are extremes of the same problem, but there are some exceptions.

The reason majority rule does not work is the fact that the majority is not always right in making the right decision for all concerned - whether it be at the family level, school level, church level, local level, state level or national level.

Let me explain.

At the family level, the decisions should be made by the parents, and not the children no matter how many children are in the family. The parents must follow established legal and social standards in the way they treat their children, so that in a manner of speaking, they also have limits on their decision making and what they are allowed to do.

At the school level, it is not the majority of students that should rule what can and cannot be done in the school environment. We would have chaos if the children ruled at school.

At the church level, it is not the majority of parishioners that should rule the religious teachings of the church. On the same token, it is not the majority of any religion that should dictate what other people should follow concerning religion or atheism.

At all levels of government, it is not the citizens that dictates the laws. It is the representatives of the people who are elected to office and/or appointed. There are strict rules of behavior they are required to follow.

The exceptions to majority rule has its place in a democratic republic where voting has it?'s place. It does not guarantee that the majority is always right, but we must accept majority rule as the deciding factor for our elections. Accepting the results of an election does not mean that we must follow the elected officials blindly in whatever they do if their actions differ from our own ethics and morals. It's up to each individual to decide whether to become a political activist or not if they disagree with the actions of our government officials. That's what makes a democracy strong.

A quick response to C.I.

C.I. the body of your essay is quite persuasive, but the introduction should state your thesis.

There are several reasons that I do not believe nor condone singular rule.

Too much going on in my life right now to write more. I will try again later, RJB

Just watching :-)

Thanks, ci. I thought your contribution was pretty darned good. I don't understand what Letty's criticism was, but I'm confident she will come back to that tomorrow.
Come on, paulaj, let's see your submission.

Brief explanation, RJB. an introductory paragraph is needed in any essay. C.I. simply opened with "No." I'm certain he knows what I mean.

My submission through the eyes of a senior in high school.

To many of us, the rule of the majority is specific to politics. That is, however, not always the case.

To me, the term "majority" also includes the idea of peer pressure.

For a young person, awaiting to be accepted into the college of my choice, I would suggest that this question needs to be rethought.

First, the subject has to do with many, but does not address the identity of one person in the masses. As long as achievement tests are designed to measure and predict success of a large group, the fault will continue to lie in the disregard of the single individual who strives to be, not only educated, but creative.

Next, It is only through preservation of the single mind that we can hope to keep a nation, a state, a community strong. Some of the world's greatest thinkers have stood alone, but have given to us a sense of self worth. Therein lies the crux of the "majority".

It is my hope to be able to sit in a university and absorb what others have taken so long to experience, but it will not be through the mechanics of achievement tests, it will be through interaction and a final realization of our place in society as an individual.

Then, and only then, can the measure of a future citizen of the world be analyzed.

Do I believe in the consensus of the majority? Under certain circumstances, yes, as long as it does not infringe upon my right as ONE person.

As Thoreau observed: "I am a majority of one."

I like RJB and this thread is kinda neat. Maybe I'll write up something sometime.