What Defines An American?

Vargas Antonio, Jose. “ My life as Undocumented Immigrant.” The New York Times, InsideNYTimes.com. , June 22,2011. Web, 9 Sep. 2011.

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Jose wants to prove that being American doesn’t mean having the proper documentation, it means living the American way of life. That no matter how much he feels like an American he still has to live in constant a fear that has been with him since he was 16. This made him live his life under the radar in a career that is all about the spot light. He compares the idea that being an illegal citizen is still much harder for him to come out about than it was to admit that he was gay. Which came out rather easily even though it carried large consequences, the ability to keep in his deepest secret is a difficult battle that will never go away as long as he is in America. His successes no matter how great and varied from his graduations, articles, and awards; still wouldn’t make him a legal citizen. The life he has in America is worth the constant fear of deportation; all of the jobs from prestigious newspapers made it all worth it. But there is a breaking point where he becomes tired and just wanted to tell the world his secret, to see his family he left when he was just a boy to see the life he almost lived if it wasn’t for his illegal time spent in America.
The struggle he felt is the struggle that is one that is felt by some 12 million illegal immigrants. The perception of illegal immigrants is that they are destroying America, when several million workers are strawberry pickers, maids, and waitress that just wanted a better life for both themselves and their families. Even some of Jose’s educational and career prestige still could not find a way to become a legal citizen. The article is really something to think about, should there be a reform law to include citizenship through education? When he revealed he statues to his bosses they were shocked to think of him as an illegal immigrant, someone’s as brilliant and high functioning member of society to be here illegally. I personally have some knowledge on this subject; I worked a summer job at a land scraping company where I met Mexican workers here without visas. I had the view that Jose mention on peoples view towards illegal’s, after working a hard job together we learned that we weren’t so different we liked sports, girls, and our families; we bonded. Just like Jose and the other immigrants have bonded to America.

When Will the Forgotton Day Arrive?

Berry, Wendell. “Faustian Economics: Hell Hath No Limits.” Harper’s Magazine. The Harper's Magazine Foundation, May 2008. Web. 25 Aug. 2011.

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The end of an era... Wendell Berry is experiencing a rationalization that the end of America's perception of unlimited resources, "spending, wasting, and driving, as before, at any cost to anything and everybody but ourselves" is going to come to a point where it has consequences that are inevitable occur, the ones people seem to just to be trying to delay or profit off of. Wendell Berry knows that the American way of life will never be able to sustain itself completely; we will only be able to find short term alternatives such as our national coal reserve, that will eventually run out just as the debt, oil, and lust for greater technology will. As a man who farms his food and can identify draws the question is all the new technology a good thing or will it be the destruction? With the idea that unlimited consumption is the end all, he thinks the people think there is a “possibility of limitless growth, limitless wants, limitless wealth, limitless natural resources, limitless energy, and limitless debt” but that’s just not true.

The fantasy of uncontrolled consumptiveness makes Wendell try to find the origin of this idea, in order to find how a culture was formed you must first look to the past. His search takes the reader into look into the way the New World’s morals were set up, showing a culture that thrives on greed which is a honorable way to live. He’s trying to show that there has to be limits; and show there is different ways to live. His idea needs to listen to; he shows in great depth how our ways will catch up to us. Wendell’s article makes you take a step back and try to view America not as an American or a human, but as a being of the world. To really take a deep look into the destructive ways of the new normal of life, trying to prove we can live within the limits of our resources, economy, and of energy. To stop trying to live on the cutting edge and take comfortable step back, to not be appalled by the thought of living a smaller more content life.

Practice Test 2

Graeme,Woods "Secret Fears of the Super-Rich." The Atlantic Magazine The Atlantic Monthly Group, April 2011. Web. August 18 2011.

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First

Second

Article Resonse Test

Berry, Wendell. "Faustian Economics: Hell Hath No Limits." Harper's Magazine. The Harper's Magazine Foundation, May 2008. Web. 18 August 2011.

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First paragraph here.

Second paragrapgh here.

Practice Post

My first impression of Blogger is how much better and easyer it will be to turn in the article responses, it's a great alternative to paper and pen.