Comments for Jessica Levold's Weblog

Comment on About by Etnom Repooh

Etnom Repooh — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 22:03:18 +0000

I very much like your blog. It is most interesting. I believe I may have seen you around campus and the U Dist, Are you very tall? You are, yes? And you like flowers. I am sure it is you, but you have now moved away, you I don’t see anymore.
i too am vote for Obama.

Comment on Real politics made for real people. by khairup

khairup — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 23:27:33 +0000

Lorin — that’s a really interesting idea to have something like the American Idol voting system. But, I am not sure how fair that system would be if it is through phones. People can own multiple cell phones and can vote for the same person many times. This doesn’t seem like a fair voting system. However, if this kind of voting system was online it could work. They can ensure only one vote is being casted per IP address. But again, if there are multiple people residing in a home that would not seem fair either.

This brings me to the post I recently made about the codes and other laws in cyberspace (http://khairup.wordpress.com/2008/05/22/code-and-other-laws-of-cyberspace/) where the author suggested that we have digital ID’s. I think that would ensure a fair voting sytem online.

Comment on Voting like our lives depend on it. by kegill

kegill — Thu, 29 May 2008 00:23:04 +0000

Hi, Jessica!

One way to make this article stronger is to hit the return/enter key after that first sentence. Let the white space stand out around it to give it punch.

Good to link directly to the research page with your data. Help your readers by defining ‘youth’ (18-29).

And great idea to plug the wiki!

Comment on Breaking down ethics, one blog at a time. by kegill

kegill — Thu, 29 May 2008 00:19:36 +0000

Hi, Jessica!

This is a little shorter than most persuasive posts — but you do pack a lot of opinion into a small space! Most folks need a little more evidence for arguments if they don’t hold an opinion or if they hold a different opinion.

Comment on Whose thought is it anyways? by noltes2

noltes2 — Mon, 12 May 2008 06:37:02 +0000

Great response! I definitley agree with you that groupthink can be a great thing in certain situations, as well as a horrible thing. For example, groupthink could be great when rallying together to make voices heard. It can be a bad thing when we stop thinking as individual people. I wish that our society took greater action towards the government. There are so many issues we disagree upon as a society and I wish people no longer feared the power of “taking it to the streets.”We have the power, and groupthink can help us to that position of demanding the greater good of the governement.

In response to your question – does it really matter who’s idea it was as long as the best decision is there in the end? I don’t think it does matter, as long as the good of the whole is reached. It may matter in a sense, but only to credit the person that was the creative genius…

Comment on Is it time to say good-bye to American Idol? by kegill

kegill — Tue, 06 May 2008 14:54:04 +0000

This is a good link post — but it’s not related to the class topics. You might want to set up another category for posts that aren’t relevant. This isn’t reading! Also, your class link posts should be categorized “assignment.”

Comment on Here comes Obama! by kegill

kegill — Tue, 06 May 2008 14:52:22 +0000

Hi, Jessica! Remind me to show y’all how to offset with block quotes.

Comment on Real politics made for real people. by nicology

nicology — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:51:40 +0000

A creation of a new physical space using computer labs is an interesting thought. Although there are internet cafe’s around, I feel like they aren’t being utilized by a larger amount of the population. But it all comes down to people who are willing to take the time and effort to participate PPOs and if American Idol incites them more, one needs to come up with a strategy to get that target market interested in PPOs. Since texting is one way to gather votes on the show, maybe PPOs should have a SMS application?

Thanks for the clarification!

Comment on Real politics made for real people. by Whitney

Whitney — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:50:07 +0000

I think this could be a great way to get more people involved in the voting process in the U.S., especially as a way to get people away from voting for American Idol and instead voting for the American President. The PPO seems to be to a sort of online caucus where people can talk about their opinions and why they are voting the way they are. The only problem I forsee is that people tend to focus on emotions more in a caucus (at least the ones I’ve attended), is this something that is necessary in a blog or is it just taking up space? Furthermore, Is there really any way to get rid of the more ‘emotional’ side of politics and focus only on the issues?

Comment on Real politics made for real people. by Faith

Faith — Thu, 01 May 2008 18:49:21 +0000

I agree that groupthink mentality is not necessarily bad as research has shown that opinion leaders have a greater influence than mainstream media or politicians in advocating an idea. What I am concerned about is whether this groupthink mentality will be a double-edged sword. It can be a good way to get opinions from well-respected people, it may also lead to barriers to other forms of opinions as everyone think alike or fear to voice out against the common opinions, which ultimately goes against the goal of an online community-which is to allow a platform for discussions.