Please read ASAP==Wednesday, April 22nd--7 am

Unbelievable!
I just awoke with the stomach flu.

If you have a hard copy of your rough draft today, please place it in my dept. mailbox in Calaveras.

Monday, April 20, 2015--9:10 pm

Greetings--

Below you will find the assignment I explained in class today as well as a few adjustments in due dates.

DUE MONDAY, APRIL 27TH
1. Must be typed
2. Must not have any identification (no name, section number, etc.)
3. Title this: MUSINGS ON IMMIGRATION
4. While considering the term, immigration, record what comes to mind. There is NO minimum length requirement and no specific format. You may list by number or bullets; write in prose form; or?
5. When submitting on Monday, be sure to sign your name on the list I will provide on the front table.
6. This assignment is worth 25 points of the 50 points allotted for Group Work #3 next Wednesday.


ROUGH DRAFT (OPTIONAL) FOR OUT OF CLASS ESSAY #3
This is due on Wednesday, April 22, in class.
OR.
You may submit it to my dept. mailbox in Calaveras by Friday. April 24, before noon.
OR.
You may email it to me as a Word attachment no later than Sunday, April 26, at noon.


ALSO!
The final due date for out of class essay #3 has been changed from Monday, May 4th to Wednesday, May 6th.

Saturday, April 18th, 2015--7:30 pm

Greetings--
Just so there is no confusion, arrive to class on Monday having completed Packet 6 and 7.
Our last writing response will happen on Monday--Writing Response #4.

please read before class tomorrow, Wednesday, April 15th

Greetings,

as you probably have surmised, the in class essay 2--the practice WPJ exam--will take place tomorrow in class since Monday's session was cancelled. Remember to bring a blue or green book to class. Please plan to use pen, not pencil, to write your response.

Due to the slight change in the syllabus, Writing Response 4 will obviously not occur until Monday. Be sure you are caught up on the readings assigned for tomorrow and Monday when you arrive in class on Monday.

PLEASE READ--CLASS CANCELLED FOR MONDAY, APRIL 13TH

I deeply apologize--this is not at all what I had planned. But the weekend has been very tough personally and I feel it will be best to take some time for myself.
We will have in class essay 2 on Wednesday.

Tuesday, April 7, 2015--5:45 pm

Greetings, 

below you will find a copy of essay 3 assignment, distributed and discussed in class on Monday.

English 20, Spring 2015, Instructor: C. Fraga

Out of Class Essay Assignment #3 (200 points)

Assigned: Monday, April 6

Optional Rough Draft Due: Wednesday, April 22

(reminder—even if you submit a RD, there will not be time to revise this essay after I return it to you with the final score.

Due: Monday, May 8

Requirements:

• MLA format

• If you utilize any outside sources (besides for season 1) not required) you must follow MLA format for in- text citations, Works Cited page, etc.)

At the very least, you must have a Works Cited page that lists Season 1 of Breaking Bad. (If you have viewed other seasons, you may use material from them, but be sure to be clear that your evidence IS from another season)

• Attach your Viewer’s Journal (all 7 entries) to the back of the final draft when submitting. Reminder: if a Viewer’s Journal is not submitted, 20 points will be deducted from your earned score.

Before we began viewing the first season of Breaking Bad, I assigned a Viewer’s Journal. You were to record your observations and any other notes you wished in order to eventually select a character to focus on more carefully than others. However, as we have discussed, your first few journal entries, or perhaps more than a few, might just be summary plots and notes regarding several different characters.

This Viewer’s Journal will now be a valuable source as you write your last out of class essay for this course.

Assignment:

Write an in-depth character analysis of one of the six main characters in the first season of Breaking Bad. (Walter, Sr; Skyler; Marie; Hank; Jesse; Walter, Jr.)

Your essay must include the following:

• Assertion(s) about your character

• Evidence from the episodes that support your assertions (how did you come to the conclusion(s) you did regarding this character?)

Your supportive evidence might include but is not limited to:

• what others observe/say (or don’t observe/say) about the character—either directly or in private

• the actions of the character in particular situations

• the reactions/responses of the character in particular situations

• what drives this character

• what terrifies this character

• what pleases this character

• what does this character long for

• what does this character need

Your thesis must be assertive…it is YOUR opinion as a viewer of these episodes.

·      Whether or not you LIKE or DISLIKE this character is not an issue in this essay.

·      Whether you LIKE or DISLIKE the series is also not an issue in this essay.

Proving to the reader that this character has the attributes (good, bad, layered, shallow) that you assert he or she has is your goal.

Keep in mind that your reading audience HAS viewed each of the seven episodes so avoid writing extensive summaries of each episode.

Your thesis might read something like this:

Once Walter learns of his terminal cancer and begins cooking meth, he appears very unstable and irresponsible; however, his behavior ultimately represents a very determined, loving, highly intelligent and moral father and husband.

or…

Marie is a very insecure and lonely woman who is unhappy and uncomfortable living in the shadows of her power-driven DEA husband and her happily married and very bright sister, Skyler.

Suggested Vocabulary for Discussing Character

adaptable                                    daring                                                      industrious                                    sensitive                 

aggressive                                    deceitful                                    insensitive                                    serious

aimless                                    dependent                                    intelligent                                    shallow

alert                                                      determined                                    intolerant                                    shrewd

ambitious                                    dishonest                                    jealous                                    sincere

antagonistic                                    disloyal                                    kind                                                      sly

boastful                                    disobedient                                    lazy                                                      spiritual

bragging                                    energetic                                    loyal                                                      sportsmanlike

brave                                                      enthusiastic                                    mean                                                      stubborn

capable                                    envious                                    mercenary                                    studious

careful                                    extravagant                                    modest                                    sympathetic

careless                                    faultfinding                                    observant                                    sullen

cheerful                                    fearless                                    original                                    tactful

clever                                                      frank                                                      patient                                    temperate

commanding                                    generous                                    persistent                                    thorough

conceited                                    greedy                                    petty                                                      thoughtless

confident                                    helpful                                    practical                                    thrifty

conscientious                  honest                                    presumptuous                  tolerant

considerate                                    hopeful                                    proud                                                      truthful

cooperative                                    imaginative                                    punctual                                    unfriendly

courageous                                    impatient                                    purposeful                                    ungracious

courteous                                    impulsive                                    reckless                                    unjust

cowardly                                    independent                                    reliable                                    unselfish

credulous                                    indifferent                                    rude                                                      vain

cruel                                                      indomitable                                    sensible                                    wicked

Sunday, April 5, 2015--8:30 pm

Hello,

Below you will find the following:

Packet 6 assignment
Packet 7 assignment
Packet 8 assignment


PACKET 6:  (two readings)

1.  "Immigration Pros and Cons"
http://apecsec.org/immigration-reform-pros-and-cons/


2.  "Pro/Con:  Immigration
Moderated by Tom Sabulis

President Obama has announced that he will use his executive power to act unilaterally on immigration, allowing some five million undocumented immigrants to remain in the U.S. and work without the threat of deportation. His executive order followed a congressional stalemate over a bipartisan bill that was passed in the Senate but stalled in the House. Today, a local immigration lawyer and a member of the state’s immigration enforcement review board share opposing views of the president’s decision.

Necessary step to reform

By Charles H. Kuck

President Obama’s announcement Thursday certainly shook the ground in Washington, D.C. — and that is a good thing.

We have been living with a nightmarish immigration system for more than 25 years. I know this because I deal with it every single day. My clients deal with it every single day. This broken system not only limits economic growth, but destroys families, punishes businesses, clogs our courts and jails, and drives away talent from America.

The broken legal immigration system actually creates illegal immigration by not adequately providing for the supply to meet the American demand for labor, particularly in agricultural and service jobs. At this point, everyone of sane mind understands that we must do something to fix it, stop illegal immigration, stop employers from hiring undocumented workers, and use a good immigration law to support the American economy and families.

It has been more than 13 years since politicians have had a renewed push to “fix” immigration law, since George W. Bush campaigned on and promised a fix to our current immigration system. A bipartisan group of Senators passed a bill in July 2013 that would strengthen our borders, create more interior enforcement and fix the legal immigration system. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimated that this bill would create billions of dollars of economic activity. Yet, this common-sense solution to fixing the system has been sitting it the House of Representatives for more than 500 days without a vote.

The Congress and the Constitution give the executive branch the duty to enforce the law, and the authority to use discretion in its enforcement. Congress has also written immigration law very broadly and relies on the executive branch to interpret its frequently vague laws through regulations and policies. The Congress has also given the President only limited funds to carry out this enforcement. Yet, like every prosecutor, the President has to decide which laws to enforce, and how to enforce them with a limited budget.

As every President before him, President Obama simply announced a list of changes his administration is making in immigration regulations and policy (not laws) and enforcement, with the authority provided him by Congress.

These changes include both an incentive for undocumented parents of U.S. citizens and residents to come forward and identify themselves, go through a background check, and pay a fee; in return, they receive a temporary work permit with no permanent immigration status. He also has expanded deferred action for individuals who came to the U.S. under the age of 16, who graduate from high school here. It allows them to obtain a temporary work permit, again with no permanent status. These two changes alone are estimated to affect millions of families in the United States, including several hundred thousand in Georgia. We all know these families; they are our neighbors, our friends, and the people who work with us on a daily basis.

President Obama also announced a greater focus on enforcement (which you can do when you are not deporting people for a broken tail light). This focus puts even more emphasis on the border, heightens interior enforcement, and ensures that all undocumented immigrants with serious criminal convictions are held and deported much faster. To date, illegal immigration is at its lowest level in decades. These steps will reduce it further.

The executive action adds greater flexibility to immigration regulations by allowing investors and entrepreneurs to obtain quicker legal status in the United States. The plan also increases the time period that graduating foreign students can work in the U.S., thereby helping to ease the problem of the high demand for the artificially limited H-1B visa. There are more than twenty different changes to immigration regulations and policy, all within the President’s purview, that he is modifying or extending, in an effort to ease the pain caused by the broken immigration system.

Many do not like that the President acted without Congress, particularly without the House of Representatives. Yet, Congress can very easily resolve their concerns today — or in January, before any parts of the executive action are effective — by passing an immigration bill.

We all know that you lose the right to complain when you do not offer your own solution. Perhaps President Obama’s executive action is what is needed to get Congress to finally act in concert to pass immigration legislation that works for America and its people. We can only hope.

Charles H. Kuck is an immigration attorney in Atlanta, and the former National President of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

No respect for our laws

By Phil Kent

Everyone agrees that our broken immigration system needs to be fixed. But President Barack Obama’s “fix” is a blatant unconstitutional overreach of executive power which undermines the rule and law, and serves as a magnet for more illegal immigration.

His executive order “deferring” deportation for approximately five million illegal aliens — which means giving them work permits and Social Security numbers, as well as allowing them driver’s licenses — will encourage more illegal crossings through porous border areas.

Americans have seen it before. After all, experience is a great teacher. Ask U.S. Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa. He voted for the 1986 so-called “Immigration Control and Reform Act” based on the promise of a “fix.” But since it granted amnesty to millions of illegals first and promised border security and employer sanctions that never occurred, the senator admits he was “completely fooled.”

Let’s not be fooled again.

Our past president didn’t enforce some immigration laws and our current president not only doesn’t enforce laws, he “waives” parts of laws that he doesn’t like through executive fiat. Obama’s main justification for his order is that “Congress failed to act.” That’s not true. Congress did not fail to act. It chose not to act in granting such a massive amnesty. That’s the way our republic is supposed to work.

Greg Jarrett, a lawyer and Fox News analyst, cites three compelling reasons why the Obama order is illegal:

• It is a distortion of “prosecutorial discretion.” In past decisions the U.S. Supreme Court has cautioned the executive branch that executive orders may not be used to adopt a sweeping policy of non-enforcement of the law. Such discretion has applied only to decisions not to prosecute or expel specific individuals or small groups of people. Furthermore, Obama is bestowing this blanket amnesty not for reasons allowed by law, but for reasons purely political. He wants these low-wage illegals to remain here permanently, hoping that in the future they and their children will be voting predominantly for Democrats.

• It is a usurpation of legislative authority. The Supreme Court has declared that Congress has “plenary power” (meaning full and complete) to regulate immigration. Derived from Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution, the doctrine is based on the concept that immigration is a question of national security, relating to a nation’s right to regulate border policy. Yet this is usurped by a unilateral presidential directive.

• It breaches a president’s sworn duty. Article II, Section 3 requires that a president “shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed.” Current law specifically requires the deportation of illegal aliens when apprehended. A president cannot ignore or nullify such a law.

Consider what this executive order does, if not overturned or defunded.

• Most of the five million illegal aliens may stay permanently. It may be next to impossible to remove these “temporary” deferrals. It will depend on who the next president is.

• The “legalized” illegals, with their work permits, would compete directly in the job market with Americans — 40 million of whom are unemployed.

• By giving work permits to millions of low-skilled workers, many with limited English skills, wages will be depressed.

Consider, too, the impact of this new order on all 50 states. A 2010 study revealed that the burden of supporting illegal immigration with public benefits costs just Georgia taxpayers $2.4 billion annually (a figure that includes U.S. citizen children of illegal aliens). The taxpayer tab for the nation as a whole, according to Fox News business analyst Stuart Varney, is $113 billion a year — with most going to education and healthcare. With more potential illegal immigrants planning to sneak across our borders to enjoy everything from schooling to healthcare courtesy of Uncle Sap, the added costs are incalculable.

What would real immigration reform mean? First, repealing this damaging executive order either through a successful lawsuit or through the new Congress defunding as much of its expenditures as possible. Real reform also means enhanced border and internal enforcement, fixing the exit-entry visa system so we know who enters and leaves (to assist in thwarting terrorists like the Boston bombers) and streamlining our guest worker programs so that, if no American is displaced, a temporary foreign employee can fill the job.

Finally, think of the message this Obama decree sends to the world. How can we expect foreigners to respect our immigration laws if our own president doesn’t respect them?

Phil Kent is a member of the Georgia Immigration Enforcement Review Board.

******************************

PACKET 7:  (two readings)

1.  "The Deadliest Trip in America? Desperate Search after Immigrants Die in Desert."
by Isabel C. Morales, CNN
http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/17/us/immigrant-desert-deaths-dna/index.html

2.  "This Single Reform would Improve the U.S. Immigration System and Grow the Economy"
by Herbie Ziskend
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/herbie-ziskend/green-card-recapture_b_6984076.html?utm_hp_ref=immigration-reform

PACKET 8:  (one reading)

1.  "They Take our Jobs" -- Debunking Immigration Myths"
http://www.seiu.org/a/immigration/they-take-our-jobs-debunking-immigration-myths.php