Assignment 4: Critical Thinking Paper Draft and Self-Evaluation 2

Assignment 4: Critical Thinking Paper — Draft and Self-evaluation 2

Once you have completed a draft which presents and defends your position for your chosen topic, look at your paper and pay careful attention to any arguments that you are using to support your position. (Note: If there are no arguments, then you have not written an argumentative paper!)

Self-evaluation

1. On a separate sheet (not part of the paper), identify the premises and conclusion of each of the arguments in your paper. Most papers will have one overriding argument and then several smaller arguments which “prove” the truth of the premises you are making in the larger argument.
2. Look at each of the arguments you have located in your paper. Carefully study them to see if there are any informal fallacies. If there are any fallacies, note the name of the fallacy beneath your identified arguments. Explain why each is a fallacy.
3. Carefully examine each of your arguments again. Even if there isn’t an informal fallacy present, is each of the individual arguments valid? Do the premises provide enough evidence to support the conclusion? If you are not sure, try rewriting each argument as categorical syllogism and then test for validity. Under each argument, identify whether it is valid or invalid.
4. Explain to your instructor how you intend to change these arguments in your paper in order to be certain that they are free from fallacies and are perfectly valid.
5. Once you have completed these tasks, continue editing and revising your paper in order to eliminate the problems that you have just noted and to make it more persuasive.

The self-evaluation should be at least one (1) page, 250 words minimum. The evaluation should be typed. APA format is not required for the assignment. Include your name and date.

Your self-evaluation will be assessed based on development and completeness in response to the questions.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

·  Devise an action plan for overcoming the hindrances to the decision-making process by applying problem-solving skills to personal, professional, and academic situations and experiences.

·  Use technology and information resources to research issues in critical thinking skills and informal logic.

·  Write clearly and concisely about issues in critical thinking using proper writing mechanics.

Grading for this assignment will be based on answer quality, logic/organization of the paper, and language and writing skills, using the following rubric.

1. What is your topic?

The war on terror has contributed to abuse of human rights

1. What are the possibly different main claims/positions related to this topic? (There will be at least two (2) possibly different claims/positions, but there could be more; however, one of them will be YOUR claim/position.)

Pro-Claim Position (For)

The war on terror is a politically designed instrument used to justify military infiltration into countries where the so-called liberating country has an economic or other strong interest. This has often led to gross levels of human right violations by the invading nations as has been the case of the United State involvement in Iraq where currently military officials are on trial for violating the rights of the Iraqi people.

The war on terror has often left countries in political disarray and in a worst social, political and economic condition prior to the infiltration of alien or so-called ally forces. Additionally, in the case of western powers, ally nations do not invade one another even when there exists claims of human violations as was the claims of “ethnic cleansing” Eastern Europe following the decline of the Soviet Union.

Con-Claim Position: (Against)

Anti-terrorist activities protect the universal goal of democracy and freedom in the world, as was the recent freeing of the Libyan people upon overthrow and the assassination of the dictatorial leader Moammar Gadhafi.

The people of countries with gross human rights violations expect and appreciate the advanced nations stepping in and ridding their country of dictators that steal the country’s wealth and who abuse the people without conscious.

1. What is your position regarding the topic?

It is my belief that is incorrect to infiltrate other countries and impose the foreign nation’s standards and definitions of freedom, democracy or other politically loaded terms. I believe that military behavior is often defined by a notion of national, human and cultural superiority that too often lends itself more towards human right violations than respect. Also, the efforts to stop terrorism in particular by western powers are often selective and determined by the possibility of economic benefit for the invading or foreign nations.

1. What “evidence” have you offered to support your claim/position? Have you included your survey results?

I will use primary research and readings that extend as far back to the United States invasion of Guyana in 1983.

1. Put your claim/position and “evidence” through the “Scientific Method” and “Proving a theory” steps. Are there any steps on which your claim/position and evidence do not measure up to the examination? If so, what can you do to make them more acceptable?

The strongest challenge against my position that war on terror has contributed to human right violations is probably the numerous immigrants that leave their country for the United States to escape dictatorships and human suffering.

They would certainly be appreciative of western assistance in helping their homeland to emulate the freedom and democratic principles of the United States. Also, following military invasions, such as the one in Iraq, there are many people who can be found that support and want the western powers to remain in their country.

However, the final determination is the level of life of the people during and after political transformation. Also, the type of government that is established following a power change does not always result in freedom from human rights violations.

To support my argument, specific cases will be examined that provide details on the condition of countries which following the departure of foreign powers proclaimed democracy and freedom was established. Guyana and Panama will serve as historical examples, and Iraq, Libya and Egypt as recent example in which foreign powers still occupy the nations.

Who is your intended audience? (This does not have to be specifically your instructor.)

My intended audience is my instructor and the students, the latter of whom, will certainly have an opinion on this topic especially considering the United States is currently removing troops from Iraq after a battle to end the threat of global terrorism.

1. What is your purpose? What do you want the audience to do, to feel, or to think? Remember that a persuasive paper is always asking for some sort of response from the audience.

I want the audience to really see how the fight against terrorism is often selective as it relates to military invasion. My goal is to get those listening to think about the topic and to consider the immorality of using human rights issues to carry out a national and ally-based global interest.

1. What words or phrases have you included to cause your audience to do, feel, or think the way that you want them to do, feel, or think? Include all of your motivational or empathetic “cues” for your audience.

I will use loaded terms to describe those nations assuming military stances in other countries such as infiltration, invaders, imperialism, ethnic chauvinism, selective interest, and present the people as victims often just as vulnerable to the foreign nations as the dictators in relation to human right violations.

9.  How can your position actually better meet the needs of your audience than other possible positions?

By providing detailed information that extends beyond the general terms that people agree, such as freedom and democracy without seeking definition or clarification in political meaning or military strategy.

10.  What more might your audience need to know before they believe that they need to do, to feel, or to think that what you are suggesting should in fact cause them to be doing, feeling, or thinking something?

My audience will need to know that evaluating western involvement in combating so called terrorism does not make them unpatriotic or disloyal to their own country. If the overall goal is human rights protection than as Americans, for example, we have a responsibility to fight human right abuses wherever they may exists.

11.  What position that is different from yours might cause your audience not to accept your position? (Note: There may be more than one.) Now that you have identified it, what do you need to add to your own argument to convince your audience that this alternate position should be rejected in favor of your own position?

Some people believe that freedom and democracy simply have one meaning and think that the United States system is best for all. I will try to get my audience to see the topic from a perspective different from their own, or more specifically from the point of view of many people living in the countries such as Guyana or Iraq whereas their viewpoint may be different, but nonetheless humanistic.

12.  Can you think of anything else that your audience might need in order to be persuaded by your argument?

Perhaps a video of hearing people speaking from their own words on how their human rights may have been violated by foreign powers supposedly fighting on their behalf will help persuade others toward my point of view.

Assignment 5: Critical Thinking Paper: Revised

Due Week 10 and worth 180 points

Your paper should present a reasoned, convincing argument for a position on a selected topic.

Write a 4-6 page paper in which you:

1.  Follow the five steps of persuasion: establishing credibility, acknowledging the audience’s position, constructing a rationale, transplanting root elements, and asking for a response.

2.  Clearly define your position and supporting evidence, including the results of your survey.

3.  Include all the necessary “evidence” for the reader to reach the expected conclusion in each argument in the paper (whether the overriding argument or one contained in an individual paragraph)