Post a link to a webpage that you think contain a good example of an argument about one of the following types of proposition: fact, value, policy, definition, or interpretation. Include a brief explanation of how you see the example working and of where it occurs on the page. Complete this by the night before class.
21 thoughts on “Examples of Key Propositions”
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https://www.ted.com/talks/mia_birdsong_the_story_we_tell_about_poverty_isn_t_true?language=en#t-739692
Mia Birdsong’s TED Talk is about a proposition of policy. She is challenging current claims of the best course of action against poverty.
At minute 11:17 of fifteen Mia Birdsong is arguing to change our policy approach to poverty. She suggests a change from “fixing it” and “imposing solutions” on people to “fueling their initiative.” There is an opportunity to let go of flawed strategies and instead to look for new ideas from the people most affected by poverty themselves.
http://www.businessinsider.com/donald-trump-tax-plan-2015-9
Donald Trump’s Tax Plan
On Monday September 28th, Republican Presidential Candidate released the first version of his tax reform policy. The highlights can be found in the middle of the page but there are 6 main points:
1. Eliminate income tax entirely for some Americans
a. Single works earning less than $25,000 or married couples earning under $50,000 pay 0% in income taxes
2. Eliminate some tax brackets
a. Currently there are 7, Trump would like to go to 4 or 3: 0%, 10%, 20% and 25%
3. Lower business income tax rate to 15% or lower
4. Eliminate estate tax
5. Reducing loopholes and deductions
6. Corporate repatriation tax break
I think the 3 points that pertain to me; reducing the number of tax brackets and eliminating the estate tax, are very good examples of proposition of policy. As my husband and I continue to earn more money, we take less and less home. This even causes us to consider not pursuing higher paying jobs because of the negative net affect it will have on us after taxes – should it move us up into another bracket. Reducing the number of brackets would give us the freedom to pursue higher paying jobs without the fear of jumping up a bracket.
I also think that the 1st point is a great idea. So much is being made about raising the federal minimum wage because people cannot live off the current minimum. Whereas one of the reasons the minimum wage is too low is due to the amount that these individuals must pay in income taxes. By not having to pay income taxes, these individuals or couples would keep a much higher percent of their income which would allow them to move to nicer neighborhoods, put their kids in better schools, and contribute more to the economy as consumers and possibly allow them to get off of government assisted food and housing programs.
The ongoing debate over the keystone pipeline serves as both an example of policy and value, although I view it as more of a value proposition. Here is an article discussing the arguments: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/19/us/politics/what-does-the-proposed-keystone-xl-pipeline-entail.html
Much of this debate comes down to what is more valuable to Americans, an increase in jobs, improvements to the economy or regulations to restrict global warming. As this article mentions, there is a lot of debate over these finer points and what the pipeline may or may not accomplish. However, its representative of the broader debate happening now over global warming: which is more valuable to us – protecting the environment, creating jobs or cheap energy? Until we figure that out, its difficult to have a clear stand on policies such as the keystone pipeline or other environmental issues.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHy-z_zxnYc
The clip above is a video interview of Hillary Clinton using a policy proposition to support her arguments in regards to student loan debt and college costs throughout our country. She clearly discusses her two main problems with this issue; too many people are in large amounts of debt with high interest rates and college is not affordable for future students. She suggests policy changes such as increasing income based repayment plans, refinancing existing debt, lowering college costs, and finding more money for financial aid as solutions for this problem. She recognizes that this is a huge issue and ends by stating that this crisis is “not good for individuals and not good for our country.”
http://www.slate.com/blogs/moneybox/2015/09/29/how_educated_are_immigrants_they_re_way_more_likely_to_have_a_college_degree.html
The article “Cool Fact: Immigrants Are Way More Likely to Have a College Degree Than People Born in the U.S.” is a good example of propositions of fact. The article is written based on a new Pew Research Center report out this week. Although short, the article manages to disproof the incorrect notion that “immigrants as a whole aren’t a particularly well-educated group” with graphs and statistics.
Based on census data, the report shows immigrants over the age of 25 who arrived within the past five years completed at least a bachelor’s degree at a higher rate than the native-born, 41% to a 30% respectively. The same trend occurs for post-graduate degree, recent arrivals have a completion rate of 18% as oppose to 11% for the U.S. born.
The statistical values presented on the article, derived from recognized sources, make the information presented factual.
Here is the link to a series of Gecico commercials that uses value proposition to highlight the benefits to their service:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vq9ap6JuXuc
Geico’s ” Fifteen minutes could save you 15 percent or more on car insurance,.” statement is a great value proposition because highlights the benefits of switching services and reducing cost. The company takes an evaluative stance and ask the consumer to compare services. That said, the company strategy,which stresses the reduction of cost while ensuring excellent customer services, makes their value proposition very marketable.
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/jeb-bush-calls-for-ending-crude-oil-export-ban/
The link above is an example that Jeb will discuss about his energy policy proposal. This will help our economy in job growths and to take aim at President Obama’s “Clean Power Plan” which he re-brands “Obama’s Carbon rule. The policy focuses on the fact that he will lift a U.S. ban on crude oil exports and life restrictions on natural gas exports that have made it difficult to export energy to other countries. He states that “more domestic energy leads to more jobs, higher wages, lower gas prices and smaller electricity bills,” meaning he will be able to create thousands of jobs and lower energy cost. He states that he will produce thousands of jobs, but he does not say what country would be doing the hiring. He fails to acknowledge and value about the scientific consensus about the contributions these actions can cause to global warming. In addition, this brings in more revenue for our politicians to abuse and the common people will pay more of it.
Sustainable energy is a subject of long-term economics. Sustainable energy is important because majority of our electricity comes from coal. Coal can cause damages to the environment where it is mined and the pollution air where we breathe in. In addition, another big source of energy is oil. We are using more oil than we have access to. We are increasing the amount of energy use as the population grows. The resources we are using are limited and damaging to our environment.
http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/full-text-of-jeb-bushs-foreign-policy-speech/2240942
Jeb Bush’s foreign policy speech given at the Reagan library some weeks ago is an example of a policy. A foreign policy typically looks at America’s relationships and interactions with nations around the world. The speech Jeb bush gave sounded more of a speech on the war on terror and the Middle East. His speech was designed to play to his republican base. It lacked value and he presented nothing new, his solutions in his policy proposal were not much different from the current failed policies of the Obama administration. He failed to address China and Russia who have in recent months lunched numerous cyber attacks on the United States. On the military front he did not address China’s military expansion in the South China Sea and the threat it poses to America’s allies in the region. Neither did he address Russia’s roles in the escalating conflicts in Syria and Ukraine.
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/video/super-bowl-extended-commercial-amy-poehler-best-buy-18400277
The link above is a 2013 superbowl commercial from Best Buy. This is a clear example of the proposition of value. Best Buy is clearly showing the value in have a sales associate available to their customers at all time. They are showing through the many questions being ask by Amy Poehler that any customers with any questions can trust in their customer service.
I post again the recent video about Planned Parenthood: Even if we accept the premise about planned parenthood in this (and other) videos (which I do not necessarily) the argument of those who find the video’s offensive is inductive: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/sep/1/ninth-planned-parenthood-video-from-pro-life-cmp-g/
While I said that the conclusion that this one piece of evidence is generalizable is perilous I find that this is also an example of a “fact” in that it is not a “fact” but more than that I see this a values issue. For some, this is an unethical practice, even if protected by the law, and while the video’s may not be factually correct, they speak to a values system. A values system that I think may also be willing to disregard the facts in favor of their passion of conviction for a practice that they think may be morally bankrupt.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/01/business/dealbook/senator-warren-to-join-call-to-alter-sales-of-distressed-loans.html?ref=politics
The New York Times Article is an example of value proposition. Elizabeth Warren takes the side of Housing advocates pushing to have the federal government change its policy, where it sells distressed mortgages to private equity firms and hedge funds at a discount.
Warrens argument is that Wall Street is only interested in profits, not in finding ways to have people keep their homes. Warren shares a value with Housing advocates, that people receive a chance to keep their homes when they come into financial difficulties.
http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/bd4379a92ceceeac8525735900400c27/b18112371b9d3f8985257ece0057f07a!OpenDocument
EPA Updates Standards to Increase Safety and Protect the Health of America’s Farmworkers/Revised standards give farmworkers health protections under the law similar to those already afforded to workers in other industries
Proposition of Value: Found in first paragraph, third sentence.
The quote states a principle of value that makes an ethical assessment. Deduction is used to make the statement of value, then a connection is made to show how the consequence of the EPA update improves the lives of farm workers.
Principles for a Progressive Foreign Policy
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/2015-06-08/principles-progressive-foreign-policy
The link above is an article on the foreign affairs website written by Chris Murphy,Brian Schatz and Martin Heinrich. This is a proposition of policy that calls for some form of action from the congress. This article makes a persuasive argument about a course of action regarding a public concern and controversial issues that is foreign policies in relationship to the the Middle East issues. More so , it is a policy argument in that they’ve came out with about seven(7) solutions that they think will be both beneficial to the US and Middle East. For example, they write “First, we believe that the United States needs a new Marshall Plan for at-risk regions.We should create a five-year plan to significantly improve quality of life in developing Middle Eastern and African nations threatened by terrorism, as well as vulnerable nations near Russia and China, and fund every dime of the plan.” Furthermore , aside from proposing solution, this article is a policy statement in that they make use of the word ” should ” to stress that this situation is a serious problem and urges congress to take an immediate action. “This policy
Congress can no longer stand idly by, simply reacting to world events. It “should” reclaim its constitutional prerogative and work with the White House to shape foreign policy. “
Why Go Vegan?
https://www.vegansociety.com/try-vegan/why-go-vegan
The Vegan Society has a clear objective: to convince the public that veganism is a life choice that positively impacts the world on a multitude of levels. This article is a proposition of value, as it aims to convince the reader that a) the criteria of personal values set forth by The Vegan Society are acceptable, and b) acceptable criteria of value are fulfilled when the choice set forth is adopted by the individual. The personal values proposed to be acceptable include the many benefits of veganism for one’s own health, for animals, and for the environment. The article appeals to the concept of the greater good for humanity and ties “going vegan” with the fulfillment of these values, effectively proposing that embracing such a choice makes a meaningful impact on our individual ability to literally save the world.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/sep/28/senator-elizabeth-warrens-speech-black-lives-matter
The link above is Senator Elizabeth Warren’s speech on racial inequality. Senator Warren’s speech reflected her support for the”Black Live Matter Movement.” In her speech Senator Warren discuses the progress that America has made in giving African Americans more rights. But while more rights have been given, the results of current events (such as the 2008 financial crisis) has only continued the oppression of African Americans and minorities as well. This speech is an ethical assessment of the oppression of African Americans which makes it a proposition of value.
http://www.truth-out.org/speakout/item/32998-on-dealing-with-a-climate-change-rogue-state
This Op-Ed details the policy of clean energy in regards to the US-China Joint Announcement on Climate Change. DH Garrett highlights the significance of this policy agreement by evoking assertions made by scientists who consider the situation to be dire. Garrett concludes that this policy is inadequate because it doesn’t consider the little amount of time civilization has to eliminate these harmful emissions. Using the observation that the policy at hand doesn’t consider time as a major factor disqualifies its effectiveness. This is inductive reasoning because the observations of scientific research claims there is not enough time gives weight to the general claim that the joint announcement between the U.S. and China is inefficient.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r0XG-ETx5fk
The underlying racism of America’s food system: Regina Bernard-Carreno at TEDxManhattan
Dr. Regina Bernard did an amazing job of showing food disparity and gentrification ( 1:36). Her argument was one of fact, value and policy. It is a fact that lower income families do not have access to healthy food options in low income neighborhoods. While we have a value for good food, it’s not always available. The government does not have enough policies in place to eliminate food disparity. This entire video is informative and necessary to understand just how major the issue is of food insufficiency.
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/apollo/apollo11.html
In this website, NASA described the activities of the stepping on the moon. They explained each moment of that day of July 20, 1969. Neil Armstrong also talked about his feeling on stepping on the moon in this website.
I think this is an example of proposition of facts especially proposition of occurrence. In this article, it states that “Neil Armstrong was the first man to step foot on the moon”. NASA showed a video in their website to show that great moment of Neil. This stepping down had been the greatest achievement of the NASA. Although stepping down on the moon is a fact given from the NASA, some people still disagree about this propositional fact. They think that nobody did not step on the moon yet. They questioned about NASA’s accuracy of information in this issue. Their argument was that Neil Armstrong might stepped on some other planet. They questioned NASA why other astronauts do not go to the moon after 1967.
http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/30/politics/russia-syria-airstrikes-isis/
hese articles on the recent Russian airstrikes in Syria are accompanied by clips of speeches given by Chairman of the Armed Service Committee Senator John McCain and Secretary of Defense Ash Carter supporting the proposition of policy. The United States are overtly condemning the Russian airstrikes in Syria. Claiming these action are not best practices and do not represent the greatest course of action in destroying ISIL. I see the example working by using aggressive diction by both McCain and Carter they are getting their point across and persuading the viewers. These air strikes according to both Senator McCain and Secretary of Defense Carter are a complete contradiction of what Russia is claiming they are trying to prevent. By supporting the take down of ISIL while too supporting Bashar Hafez al-Assad without what Carter refers to as a “Parallel political position” would “add fuel to the fire” in Syria. Best practices to assisting Syria would be to destroy ISIL and create a new political leader in Syria according to the US.
1 . “FCC commissioners voted 3-2 in favor of upping the broadband threshold, and pretty dramatically too: Now service providers will have to offer speeds of 25 Mbps down/3 Mbps up if they want to apply that label” (http://www.engadget.com/2015/01/29/fcc-redefines-broadband-speed/).
The Federal Communications Commission recently changed the definition of broadband internet service. It used to be services providing 4 mbps of download and 1 mbps of upload capacity. The new definition is clearly a proposition of definition because it lists characteristics a service needs to have to be called broadband.
2. “Fewer than one-fifth of middle schools — and half of high schools — are teaching all of the sex education topics recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a new study reveal” (http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2015/12/10/457281553/the-cdc-gives-u-s-schools-low-marks-in-sex-ed).
This NPR article opens with a proposition of fact; this is also a preposition about an occurrence. The statement explains that a Center for Disease Control study found that their recommended curriculum in sexual education is not being taught in a vast number of schools.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/01/opinion/privilege-pathology-and-power.html
Paul Krugman’s weekly column from January 1st, 2016 posits a couple propositions which advance his ongoing argument against allowing the economic disparities between America’s rich and everyone else to continue. First off, he presents a proposition of value in his opening sentence by stating “wealth can be bad for your soul.” This is a strong statement which he backs with statistical evidence that suggests the wealthy are less likely to feel empathy and respect social norms and more likely to cheat than those less well off. Empathy and fairness are values accepted by the majority of the US population, regardless of their political leanings. Demonstrating that the obscenely wealthy feel no obligation to follow these customs and thus have different values from the rest of the population, is a good way of making a case for limiting the power they can exercise over our political system. This proposition of value gives way to his proposition of policy, his proposal to limit the power of money in politics (presumably through the repeal of Citizen’s United or the creation of a small donor matching fund system, although he doesn’t specify). This is a proposition that many public intellectuals on the progressive left have been advocating for some time now, usually with similar arguments to that being advanced by Krugman. It’s a powerful argument that resonates with readers but until specific actions or policy recommendations are proposed it is unlikely that propositions like these alone will foster the legislative change necessary for change to occur.