Ok so because I'm so swamped again this week I'm gonna put off the army post one more week and make this short again. I guess I'll discuss the rhetoric of weed just because it was what I researched for my part of the project. In particular i'm gonna talk about this movie I saw when I was researching about weed. Actually I didn't find it one of my friends showed it to me. It was really funny. The title of the film was Super High Me, a spoof ( kinda) of the famous documentary Super Size Me. The subject is a comedian whose act is all about him being high all the time. He doesn't smoke for 30 days then smokes all day every day for another 30 days. In the experiment he tests his medical condition, his test taking abilities, his memory abilities and even his psychic abilities (buuulll shit). Anyway its a good movie and it gives a lot of information on the legalization of marijuana in California. Its a pretty interesting film that I would encourage everyone to see not just because its absolutely hilarious, but because its actually pretty informative.
Anyway there's lots of Rhetoric surrounding weed both good and bad. Personally I'm one of those guys that doesn't see anything wrong with it even though I don't usually partake when my friends indulge. There are people on both sides of the spectrum: those who say smoking is bad and the majority of young people who really don't see it as a bad thing. Regardless we all have that friend that gets high all the time and thanks to him we all know the terms: weed, Mary Jane, pot; then we have our strains with all their lovely names: super lemon haze, white widow, afghan kush and all that jazz. Then you got your paraphernalia: bowl, bongs, vaporizors, blunts joints and the like. Anytime you hear any of things you know right away what that person is talking about. Weed has it own language of grams headies and joints that is universal in it's underground world. But weed is a universal thing that we all know about. we all have friends who smoke it and most of us have ourselves. So the rhetoric of weed is something that we all have been influenced by. In many cases we don't even see people smoking and yet we know what is going on simply through context clues. So yeah... weed... woo...
So I'm gonna postpone my last focus on military rhetoric and instead write a short entry this week because
i'm swamped with work and not feeling to well. So I thought I would talk today a little bit about Spring and the rhetoric you see around this time of year. I love spring. It is by far my favorite holiday. Its warm but not hot. The flowers are coming out and its absolutely breathtaking the views. I come from the mountains and in springtime right after all of the flowers pop open and the rain has fallen the the views are stunning. You can see for miles just pinks and yellows and greens and reds. And the best part is you want to. I love my home. I bash it a lot because there isn't much to do but in the end it really is a wonderful place. Especially in the Springtime. About this time of year you'll begin to see posters and billboards for the Hudson River Valley or the Adirondack or Catskill mountains. The "Live at 5" concert series down by the river begins to advertise on TV. And perhaps one of my favorite parts of Spring begins: Lacrosse season.
Where I come from Lacrosse is big. Everyone plays it and everyone loves it. the season usually goes from march to late may when the weather is beautiful. I can remember going to games and playing under the sun, smelling the turf or grass depending on where we were playing. Up until my accident it was my life. I would go to the local UAlbany games or go see my recently graduated team mates play at Siena college against teams like Johns Hopkins or Duke. I remember the thrill of beating the state champion Niskayuna or the sorrow after the loss to Shenendahowa. I remember going to Saratoga to play. The best part was turning on the TV and seeing my school in the news. I never really appreciated how big apart of my life Lacrosse was until my accident. See it tore my ACL and both miniscii in February of last year in a preseason game last year. It destroyed me. But out of it came some good. I decided to join the drama club where I met my current girlfriend. I learned to experience and love spring for more than just the lacrosse. Most importantly I came to love my home in the Hudson Valley. I know I really haven't talked much about rhetoric here but, in a way i have indirectly. Nature has a rhetoric all its own and spring time in the Hudson Valley is sweet music to all who can come and enjoy it.
So I'm finally getting to a branch I know about: the Marines. I have had extensive encounters with the marines and they're recruiting tactics. More so in fact tan with any other branch besides the Army. As I mentioned before I went to a military high school. Even though we were an Army JROTC school we had a Marine recruiting station right next store. They often came to visit us, not only because we were a military school but because we were already partially trained in basic military dress and drill, as well as physically capable due to our daily PT regiment. In addition to the reciters the two teachers that I was closest too were retired Marine corps vets. Both my history teachers as well as my coaches I established a strong bond with them. One a retired 22yr marine sniper who had served in desert storm, who i had both my sophomore and senior year as a European history and micro-economics teacher and was the coach of my mock trial team. The other a captain who had been injured in the course of duty during Vietnam and was my football coach as well as my freshman history teacher. Both of these men demanded respect, discipline, thoroughness, but also had a greater knowledge of the world they lived in, and a wisdom that few could hope to obtain. I was very very close to applying for NROTC here and going the Marine option because of these two men, and would have had I not destroyed my knee. So with that in mind I will begin my discussion on the recruiting style of the US Marine Corps.
Now for all you military people out there, I understand that the Marines are still technically a sub-branch of the Navy. However, this is simply because they answer to the Sec of the Navy. They have their own officer corp that does not have any obligation to the highest ranking admiral in the Navy. So for all intensive purposes I will be treating them like a separate branch. The Marines are different from other branches because they pride themselves on being the most verscetile and the fiercest warriors the US has to offer. Indeed they're slogan alone says it all: "The Few; The Proud: The Marines." These words are all they need to represent they're power. They are an elite fighting force that are proud to serve their nation. They are one of the oldest "special ops" groups in the world if you will, being founded shortly after the Navy during the American Revolution. They have an old and honored tradition of being the fiercest fighters, a reputation that comes primarily from the time in WWII where the Marine corps was the primary fighting force to defeat the entire military of the Japanese empire. This tradition is a source of honor for the Marines. They are tough, aggressive, smart and above all courageous. They undergo the hardest training, endure the worst conditions and are paid lousy for it. So then what appeal would the Marine corps serve?
This is what makes the achievements of Marine recruiters so spectacular. The Marines unlike other branches are the most selective in their recruiting. They are looking for a certain kind of person. They want someone who is strong, tough, has good common sense, but will take orders without question. They also need somebody who is willing to die. The Marines endure the most dangerous missions. This coupled with the brutal training and low pay tends to turn many away. However, this actually makes a reciters job easier. It weeds out those who do not have the dedication to do what is done. Recruiters want someone with motivation. Often times this means appealing to the recruits sense of honor. When people see a Marine they give that person respect because of the reputation that being a Marine has with it. Marines are associate with greatness and recruiters appeal to peoples pathos by fulfilling their need to be liked, respected and needed. Unlike other branches where they try to sell people an the education they can receive or the job skills they will have for the future the Marines focus on honor associated with their branch... primarily because they can't offer the rest. But the honor is really enough for most people. Having USA Marine Corps on your resume is enough to get many jobs.
As far as commercials go the Marines are very basic. They aren't like the other branches where they show flashy planes or special ops teams in combat. Mostly its just the marines in formation or doing drill in full dress. They know their reputation and therefore don't really need to show all the flashy stuff. This also shows the discipline that goes with the Marine Corps. The straight lines the slow precise movements with the rifles. The Marines make they're job look easy in their commercials even though they can be the most difficult. As of lately the Marines are actually displaying their achievements. They are talking about the great things they have done in the recent wars and displaying on billboards small scenes of combat.
I have great respect for the Marines. Not just for what they do, but for the men that actually have gone through the hardships and come out. They have seen heard and done more than most men I know and have come out scarred. However they are also the strongest most dignified men I know. We should be proud to have men like them serving for our freedom. I know I am.
