Armando Said:

Who wants to help me with my writing assignment for history?

We Answered:

Looks like your question hit some sensitive spots.

Similarities? Sure. We make up history. Whether people like it or not, our black ops actions are largely public information in the digital age. Our government supported death squads. Our government is responsible for overthrowing democratic governments.

We're not always the good guys. Sometimes our enemies didn't need to be our enemies.

In 1984, a made up language was designed to short circuit thought. You can see it happening here on the boards. Whether it's "family values" only including some families or "Rape" meaning "a consensual affair with someone who would be legal in many states", there's no shortage of people who are happy to parrot the latest approved talking points instead of thinking for themselves. Don't think Democrats are immune from trying it either - "African American" is offensive to every single black person I've met from the Caribbean.

Last, but not least, the simple act of making love is outlawed. For many members of the GLBT, that still hits close to home. It wasn't until 2003 that they won the right.

With that said, nothing happening in this country is as horrible as what people like Stalin and Hitler did.

We may lock up more people in the land of the free than China, for horrible reasons ranging from teenagers sending each other nude photos to concerned citizens recording the police violating human rights...

But you have no reason to fear that you and all those you love could wake up tomorrow, dead...

Or raped.

I'll take our flawed system over Communism or radical Islam any day...

Morris Said:

What would be a good short writing assignment for 5th graders about not judging people by their appearance?

We Answered:

Have them rewrite the story of the Ugly Duckling to connect with modern audiences.

Nathan Said:

Can someone help with a writing assignment?

We Answered:

What type of writing assignment is it?

What's the topic? What issues did you have with it before?

Nathan Said:

What does it mean when a writing assignment writes, "Literature reviewed" as a question?

We Answered:

In my experience, a literature review with regard to an experiment article lists the sources and literature the authors consulted prior to beginning their experiment. For example, a person doing a psychology experiment about power might have consulted the work of Zimbardo on the Stanford Prison Experiment. Usually, the authors will discuss the previous literature on their subject before they begin discussion of the actual experiment itself. I have no idea what your TA is talking about, because this is what literature review always meant in our articles. I did a lot of article analysis in my Sociology classes in undergrad, so I hope this helps!

Peter Said:

Help with an idea for a writing assignment?

We Answered:

One of my favorites is how the horse feels when the saddle is on it's back. Another one would be the deer in the headlights. One could be the dog being mad about a collar around it's neck.
You could do yourself as a multibillionaire or famous actor.
Or even a tree in a forest that is being cut down.
How about the birds watching the world from above?
Hope these are some ideas to get you started!