TOW # 17: Ukraine Shows the "Color Revolution" Model is Dead by Anne Applebaum

Recently, the Ukrainian government has passed some dubious legislation that seems aimed at suppressing any recent civilian resistance. Some of the new legislation criminalizes all forms of "slander", which might include disagreement with the government, or a right to assemble. These new laws seem to reflect a growing Russian influence that the Ukranian government seems to have had. When citizens took to the streets to protest these new laws in Kiev, things turned violent and so far five people are dead. The surprising strength and ruthlessness of the Ukranian government seems to show that the "color revolutions", or more peaceful overturning of power, is in the past. So far, the United States has done little to address this issue, which may make the citizens want to use more violent means. The United States needs to reconsider its policies when it comes to dealing with governments like these.
The author uses various rhetorical devices in her argument. She uses the repetition of the word "they" when talking about the Ukranian government. Applebaum writes, "They have the cash to bribe a parliament’s worth of elected officials. They have the cynicism to revive the old Soviet technique of selective violence....They have also learned to manipulate media (as the Russians do) to multiply their money in Western financial institutions (as the Russians do), even to send threatening text messages. They have crafted a well-argued, well-funded, alternate narrative about Western economic decline and cultural decadence." This repetition acts as a sort of list to show how powerful the Ukranian government has become. Applebaum also uses humerous quotes to mock the lack of U.S response to this issue. Quoting a Canadian diplomat, she writes, "It's like watching a hockey game with only one team on the ice."
Overall, I think Applebaum achieved her purpose of attempting to show this problem and urging the United States to reconsider its policies in that area of the world. However, I think she underestimated the difficulty of the situation, especially the power of Russia. Her position, though well-intentioned, seems a bit naive.
Anne Applebaum is a Pulitzer-winning author and the director of the Global Transitions Program in the Legatum Institute in London.

TOW # 16- Hiroshima by John Hersey

Hiroshima follows the lives of six people who survive the desolation of the atomic bomb on their city. The first character introduced is Reverand Mr.Kiyoshi Tanimoto, followed by Mrs. Hatsuyo Nakamaru, Dr. Matasakazu Fujii, Father Wilhelm Kleinsorge, Dr. Terufumi Sasaki, and Toshiko Sasaki. This section picks up to trace the lives of the people after the initial dropping of the bomb. Many of the major characters suffer minor injuries, but there are descriptions of those who have died and those who are gravely ill due to the fallout. It ends with a epilogue that includes a visit by the author many years later to see how each of the characters has been affected.
It seems clear that the author's purpose in writing Hiroshima was to inform the American public about the effects of the decision to drop the atomic bomb. This book, published in 1946 a year after the event occurred, sought to put faces on those who suffered at Hiroshima. There is a great appeal to pathos in this second section. For example, Hersey writes, "Mrs. Nakamura lay indoors with Myeko. They both continued sick, and though Mrs. Nakamaru vaguely sensed that their trouble was caused by the bomb, she was too poor to see a doctor and so never knew exactly what the matter was. " (pg 99). Hersey achieves his purpose by factually detailing the events that occurred and leaving out his own emotions in favor of the much more powerful emotions of his six characters. This is what ultimately affects the audience more.
Overall, I think that Hersey did achieve his purpose of objectively describing the lives of people affected by the dropping of the atomic bomb. He never once inserted his own opinion into the piece, he merely shared their stories. And that was a more powerful force than anything just one opinion could evoke.
John Hersey was a Pulitzer Prize-winning American journalist who wrote for Time Magazine and The New Yorker.

TOW #15: "How Can We Help Men? By Helping Women" by Stephanie Coontz

In her article about the position of women in today's economy, Stephanie Coontz argues that rather than first looking to help women shatter the glass ceiling (the forces keeping women from entering the higher rungs of the corporate ladder despite their accomplishments) the nation should focus on "the sinking floor", which  is the growing problem of both men and women struggling with poverty. She says that female-based models to address this will be more effective, rather than the former masculine-based model constructed around the idea of a male breadwinner. In the past, it was mostly women who have worked the lower-wage jobs, but now, an increasing number of men are facing the same problems. By helping reduce the wage gap through implementing a "livable" minimum wage, establishing a wider safety net, and prioritizing child care, both men and women can be helped.

Coontz appeals to logos and uses repetition to further her argument. She says, " 2009, one in every four American workers earned less than two-thirds of the national median hourly wage, the highest proportion of low-wage work in 19 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development countries, according to the economist John Schmitt of the Center for Economic and Policy Research." Coontz also establishes that the highest proportion of stay-at-home moms are married to men in the bottom 25% of wage earners. These statistics show that by helping the lower wage earners, men and women can both be helped. Towards the end she repeats the phrase "putting women first", which means that these policies are directly linked to putting women first but will greatly benefit men at the same time.

Coontz does not fully achieve her purpose because her "although" type thesis spends too much time on the "although" part and therefore slightly confuses her reader as to whether or not we should continue to pursue female-oriented policies even though women seem to be clearly doing better despite after the recession while men are still struggling. Her audience is probably policy-makers but also the general public.

Stephanie Coontz is an author, historian, and faculty member of Evergreen State College.