Sample Weekly News Response

This is an e-mail sent to me from one of your classmates. It's very strong for both the breadth of of news it covers and the balance of facts and opinion. It's exactly what I'm looking for.

If your e-mails have been shorter than this, there's no need to redo them, but please make your next couple of e-mails longer. If your e-mails have been longer than this, please continue the excellent work. If your e-mail looks exactly like this, thanks for giving me permission to use it as a sample.

The student response begins right after I type this colon:

This week I decided to again focus on Egypt and the Middle East in general.

The first article I read is called "Sinai raid could be a new deadly chapter"
This article is about how Egyptian citizens where surprised to learn
that Bedouins tribes possessed large numbers of weapons. If not
controlled, they fear it could turn into guerilla warfare. The
Bedouins are claiming to act on a religious basis, however, this is a
bit hard to believe because they have long been suspected to be
involved in human and drug trafficking.

The second one I read, "Fighting in Egypt's Sinai", is related to the
first. It is about how Bedouins were involved in an attack on Egyptian
soldiers. They basically only participated in them because they are
not recognized really as citizens by the Egyptian government and
therefor harbor resentment. It is my opinion that, if their government
would treat them better, they might not have the problem.

The third one I read is titled Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait
urge Lebanon Exodus." The countries mentioned in the title are asking
their citizens to move away from Lebanon because of a recent
kidnapping crisis. They fear that their citizens will be taken and
held for ransom. I would agree that it would be a good idea for
members of these countries to get out of a potentially harmful
situation.

The fourth and final one I will discuss is named "Yemen Secessionist
Leader "detained at Aden Airport". A former secessionist and
ambassador was arrested upon his landing in Yemen. His arrest angered
his supporters. I think that, although he may be causing problems, he
should not be arrested. This could spark anger and rebellion in this
already unstable country.

Lastly, I read on article on Yahoo News about a wife beating in
Afghanistan. The wife's beaters, her husband, mother in law, and
father in law, were sentenced to 10 years in prison for their crimes.
This is an obvious step in the right direction for women's rights in
Middle Eastern countries. It is my hope that they keep prosecuting
husbands and families that beat their children or wives.

I talked again to my mother about the articles. She helped me to
understand the articles and put them into perspective.

Post questions you have about the Justice Essay here ...

... instead of e-mailing them to me. That way, others can see your question and my response, and they might also add their own thoughts. Be sure to include your name in your post. (I love cut and paste!)

Post questions you have about Huck Finn here ...

... instead of e-mailing them to me. That way, others can see your question and my response, and they might also add their own thoughts. Be sure to include your name in your post.

Some controversial thoughts about Huck Finn

Huckleberry Finn is a difficult book, in part because of the controversial language Mark Twain uses. Below, you'll find a handful of interesting links about the book. These are optional readings, not required. Enjoy!

Read this article first:

"'Huck Finn' a masterpiece - or an insult," by Gregory Roberts of the Seattle P-I, November 25, 2003

Read this article second:

"Huck Finn: Controversy over removing the 'N word' from Mark Twain Novel," by Phillip Rawls, published in The Christian Science Monitor, January 5, 2011

And if you don't mind a few "bleeps" to imply profanity and a little innuendo, treat yourself to this short clip from January 11, 2011 episode of The Daily Show.

Feel free to use the comments to share your thoughts about any of these articles. Be sure to include your name in your comment.