Wired: Beers in Baghdad: Remembering the World's Most Dangerous Bar

                Know for its more unusual articles, Wired Magazine recently published an article about how a business managed to thrive in Baghdad for about a year illegally. In “Beers in Baghdad: Remembering the World’s Most Dangerous Bar”, journalist Spencer Ackerman takes a look into how two men were able to create a surprisingly successful bar in a country predominantly against alcohol consumption.

For Americans, many are glad that the struggles of Americans in Iraq have for the most part concluded with the final withdrawal of soldiers. During the tumultuous times in this Iraqi war, particularly during the violent years from 2006-2007, it seems only natural that soldiers would need a way to blow off steam: to have a drink. However, General Order #1 forbids US soldiers from alcohol consumption. Despite this, British former paratrooper James and Baghdad local Ajax created an illegal and thus secret bar in the Baghdad “Green Zone”; this “Baghdad Country Club” thus became the place of relaxation for mostly UN members and sometimes mercenaries. This was not only difficult because they were defying the national laws but also doubly challenging because they were in the demilitarized Green Zone, where the US Military held control. Eventually, the duo had to disband because IZ (international zone) police were constantly barging into the bar with full military gear, checking the credentials of each individual who was there.

Ackerman makes a strong play to humor, writing this article out in the form of a humorous interview and writing out several sarcastic comments. This was written in a spatial context, in that he is referencing an event in the past, and is written for readers of Wired. Throughout the interview/article, Ackerman allows specific use of narration to tell the story, as he has the interviewee “Bearman” speak about his experiences with Baghdad Country Club. Rather than perhaps dully reporting the information in an article, Ackerman writes out the words of the interview to make it not only more engaging but also to add a sense of realism to the piece. 

http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/12/baghdad-bar/

Sports Illustrated: NFL expected to discuss helmet hits

                One might imagine that in a game of football, it is a no-hands-barred where players fling their entire bodies in attempts to stop quarterbacks or running backs in their tracks. While certainly hits are still an integral part of the game, there have been regulations and additional discussions as to the manner of the hits. “NFL Expected to Discuss Helmet Hits”, an article from Sports Illustrated, takes a holistic examination at what is going on currently and what regulations may be passed in the near future regarding the dangerous practice of “launching”.

NFL officials are drawing the line when it comes to a form of hitting in football known as launching, in which a player leaps with both feet and attacks a player onto his helmet. Currently, flagrant helmet hits result in a 15 yard penalty for the instigator. The first implementation of this program came about with Steelers’ James Harrison’s hit on Browns quarterback Colt McCoy. As a result, Harrison was suspended for a week.

Officials are noting progress in terms of less risky hits, as more and more players are starting to hit with their shoulders and not leading into helmets or heads. Atlanta Falcons President Rich McKay, who is also the co-chairman of NFL’s competition committee, notes that this regulation and stop on helmet hitting would also protect those instigating as well. "When we are trying to deal with an issue like the launch, we are trying to protect the runner and the hitter," he said. "Some hits, a defensive player is leading with his head and not using his arms and really is exposing himself to injury as a flagrant foul is committed."

As a more varied source of information for this Article of the Week, there was actually a rhetorical style and arrangement very similar to the ones found in more “professional” sources, such as the New York Times and TIME Magazine.  A very formal write-up included elements of establishing ethos, logos (facts and figures about helmet hits), as well as a certain pathos when discussing the overall protection and safety of the NFL players. Perhaps the most useful rhetorical device used was the definition arrangement; by going through each part of the regulation, such as defining “launching” or “defenseless players”, Sports Illustrated presents an article that even those unaware of the specificities of football can understand and appreciate.

IRB: 50 Essays: On Dumpster Diving by Lars Eighner

                This section’s Independent Reading Book is an anthology of fifty essays selected by Samuel Cohen. The reading that I chose from this anthology is On Dumpster Diving by Lars Eighner, a blunt yet perceptive process analysis essay that explains the travels that Eighner had on the streets, homeless and as the title suggests, diving in dumpsters for food and other necessities.

                Eighner begins by describing what foods are safe to eat. He notes that the telltale signs of “safety” are obvious imperfections on the food, as “he [the diver] is constantly reminded that most food is discarded for a reason…Yet a lot of perfectly good food can be found in Dumpsters”. Canned foods, yogurt, candy, and even cold pizzas served as much of Eighner’s diet during his three years on the street. In addition to food, Eighner tells of how a scavenger (as he prefers the term) goes through certain stages, starting with self-disgust and then ending with a “dissipation of the shyness”.

                Not only does a scavenger find his sustenance through dumpsters, but also often unintentionally discovers surprises about those who discarded the trash or predicts where the best disposed items will come from. Eighner states that the college campuses are often the best sources of good items, and after a discourse on the oddities he has discovered in dumpsters, ends on this note: “…this is an attitude I share with the very wealthy- we both know there is plenty more where what we have came from. Between us are the rat-race millions who have confounded their selves with the objects they grasp and who nightly scavenge the cable channels looking for they know not what…I am sorry for them.”

                The strength in Eighner’s rhetoric of process analysis is simply the blunt and clear manner in which he describes what for many may be a less-than-appealing topic. On Dumpster Diving was written for his “rat races” that he mentions and written with the purpose of informing and making a statement about dumpster diving, as well as the wastefulness of society in general. The process analysis stands prevalently as piece by piece, Eighner takes apart different aspects of dumpster diving that makes it simpler and easier to understand: in effect, even sometimes more appealing to the common man.

Video Game Review: The Highs and Lows of Skyward Sword

                Beyond the music and movies of today’s culture, there also rests a vibrant video game community that lives through not only play but also video game review. This particular review, “The Highs and Lows of Zelda: Skyward Sword”, by GeekDad editor “Z” for Wired Magazine, displays a level of rhetoric and depth characteristic and comparable to those in the NY Times editorials. A new game for the Wii gaming system has added another adventure to the already 25-year-old Legend of Zelda video game series. “Z” turns this seemingly trivial topic into one of great discussion and analysis, one that even those who do not play video games can enjoy.

                In the series of Zelda, the games’ stories have similar plots: a boy sets out on an adventurous quest to save a girl stolen by dark forces. The only things that he has are a sword, shield, magical helper, and “an unbreakable spirit”. “Z” analyzes the new game, Skyward Sword, through both its technical and content materials. “Z” comments on the changing controls of the game, of how Wii’s Motion-Plus controls finally “live up to Wii’s long-neglected promise”. Noting that now the game takes into consideration which direction the Wii mote is swung, “Z” also explains that perhaps its success is because of the low-graphics level of the game itself. Skyward Sword takes on a cartoon-style graphics that for “Z” sometimes is overdone but sometimes compliments the game play. “Z” then delves into the content matter of the game, of exactly how engaging the story and plot is for the players. Aside from the traditional plot of all Zelda games, he notes that it has new adventures and the additions of outside influences to the game add to its uniqueness. However, “Z” also states that its dungeons (boss areas) are sometimes too repetitive, having to backtrack oneself over and over to accomplish some small task.

                “Z” uses a classification and division arrangement to appeal to not only readers of Wired Magazine, but also to appeal to the massive fan base that Legend of Zelda has. Rhetorically, “Z” always introduces a point that adds to the game play, but then notes an aside that has detracted from the game’s enjoyment. His purpose itself, as a video game review, adds to the rhetorical style expected for this. Because it is a rather informal review, “Z” uses the second-person and writes in a spatial context, always making sarcastic remarks and keeping the tone engaging all the while.