Public Speaking

[Matt_French]

I am in a public presentations course in uni...and i have to come up with a persuasive speech. Any topic ideas? Keep in mind it should be something controversial...and because i am Canadian, not about the US gov't.

[jonnyUTAH]

Best Topic to piss off your professors:

Giving University Professor’s Tenure is the closest thing to socialism in our “free market” system.

Haha!!! You will win No support with that one.

[Dave Barousse]

Matt_French,
You can do it about the NBA brawl. Try to show who was most at fault (players or fans). Just an idea since it is a current hot topic.

[Vance Collins]

Parky's sponsers.

haha jk

Since your from Canada, im sure your a hocky fan, do somethuing about the strike.

[Matt_French]

jonnyUTAH, i like that....i like that alot...hahahha...what should my main arguments be?

[xboard32x]

Matt_French, look at jonnyUTAH's post in the non wakeskating thread.

[Matt_French]

xboard32x, what exactly am i looking for?

[jonnyUTAH]

Matt! You helped out Sattelyte, so I figured that I’d reciprocate.

I’ve got University papers on topics such as: International Law, Politics, Eastern Philosophy, Film, Physics, and Economics. Let me know, and they’re yours!

I figured the following would be the most up-to-date and profound topic. Whether or not it will be persuasive will depend on you.

I have not written this as a paper; I actually formulated it on the commute home from work. It is open to the public and could perhaps qualify for a Master’s Degree Dissertation in Theoretical physics – ya right?!

TOPIC SENTENCE – HOW IT RELATES TO YOU
“The jerks over at the U of W and their friends at RIM (makers of the handheld Blackberry) are either incredibly brilliant or incredibly stupid for investing tens of millions of dollars in a new research center for Theoretical Physics.”

ARGUMENT - THESIS
“Theoretical Physics is either the single most important field of study or a complete waste of time.”

ARGUMENTS IN FAVOR - THEORETICAL PHYSICS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT SUBJECT EVER
1) It is the study of everything – the Universe.
2) It is completely open. Physicists have no idea what makes up 90% of the Universe. One theory is that 90% of the universe is made up of Dark Matter/Dark energy. They know that this matter exists by measuring the speed with which galaxies spin. Basically, the rate of spin is greater than the amount of visible mass in a given galaxy. Force = Mass X Acceleration. Some sort of mass is responsible for a galaxy’s high level of spin (force) but they don’t know what the mass is.
3) The fate of the Universe (perhaps the greatest discovery of all time) is still undecided? The Universe is either Opened or Closed; it will either keep expanding or crunch back on itself depending on the amount of mass within it. Current findings which measure the red shift of supernovas suggest that the Universe is, in fact, expanding at an accelerated rate. In which case, we live in an infinite Universe which will keep expanding beyond time and space.
4) Physicists have yet to come up with a theory of everything. A Unifying theory of everything is one which combines Einstein’s Relativities (General and Special) with Modern Quantum Mechanics. The closest thing to a theory of everything is Super-String Theory, and it, like the topic of this essay, is either a brilliant theory or complete crap (this then leads into the opposing argument).

ARGUMENT AGAINST - THEORETICAL PHYSICS IS CRAP!!!
1) Theoretical Physics is exactly that – THEORY! Theoretical = “Restricted to theory; not practical: theoretical physics.”
2) Super-String Theory (the closest thing Physicists have to a Theory of Everything) is not only bulljive; it can never be proven. In order to make the math work so that Relativity and Quantum Mechanics join, String Theorists keep adding new dimensions to fug out the numbers. String theory requires 14 dimensions in order for it to work. Given that most Phycists believe that mathematical equations should be eloquent and concise (i.e., E=MCsquared), String Theory is a mess. Moreover, the strings which supposedly control all aspects of the Universe are too tiny to measure, so it is impossible to prove their existence. Super-Strings = a bulljive theory which cannot be proven.
3) Knowing the fate of the Universe will have no direct bearing on our day-to-day lives, so why waste our time trying to solve it?
4) Modern Physics is completely irrational. As such, what makes it any different than Voodoo Magic? Example: Bell’s Theorem, considered "the most profound discovery of science" (look it up on the web), proves that REALITY IS AN ASSUMPTION. Because all theories are based in reality, they are thus flawed because they are based on an assumption. Consequently, in order for a theory to not be based on an assumption, one must base one’s theory in a world beyond reality. If one were to base one’s theory in a world beyond reality, however, how would that be any different than Voodoo Magic? As such, Physics (and science as a whole for that matter) is crap!

CONCLUSION
It depends on how you look at it (relativity)! You can end it with a little Eastern Philosophy, “Add what man knows and it is no where close to what he does not know.”

Do what ever you want! The above is just a suggestion.

Regardless! Sattelyte is helping to throw a Skate Board movie showing at the Ward Skate Park in Guelph this Sunday at 7. Come check it out!

http://www.sattelyte.com
http://www.skatetheward.com

[HarleyBoy#1]

I just release the alpaca within

[kento911]

here ya gojonnyUTAH,

Sex, Love, Guns and, Elvis….

“I ain't no fag, but Elvis is prettier than most women. I'd chickity china the chinese chicken Elvis… when he was alive I mean, not now,” with this piece of Tarantino inspired dialogue, begins Tony Scott’s True Romance. True Romance the story of a twisted whirl-wind romance between two lost souls, Clarence and Alabama, and the journey they embark upon to realize their perfect romance. Along the way they are confronted, and assisted by many colorful, and potentially dangerous characters, Including Drexl a white pimp with two different colored eyes, a ruthlessly smooth Sicilian gangster named Vincenzo Cocotti (Col-1), Elliot Blitzer a yuppified Hollywood director’s assistant, and Floyd a catatonically oblivious stoner. Through his interactions with the films diverse cast of cohorts and enemies Clarence is transformed into a hero of dubiously mythic proportions. Through careful review of the ten points necessary to creating a successful hero myth presented by Linda Seger in “Creating the Myth” It is evident that True Romance is a traditional hero myth. However the writer’s and director’s blurring of the lines between the Hollywood idealism of the ten points, by taking advantage of it’s generality, and the uneasy portrayal of the characters as not merely black or white, but closer to the true, grey moral tendencies of real people, gives the movie an unsettling realism that is not only responsible for it’s cult classic status, but is also to blame for it’s lack of commercial success.

In the beginning of the film Clarence is established as a “regular joe” (Seger 318) doing every day things, obviously this is relative within the context of the main character. In the case of Clarence the ordinary and mundane consists of going to the bar on his birthday, and attempting to find a girl interested in going with him to a Sonny Chiba kung-foo film festival, as always he ends up sitting in a theater nearly alone in the same lonely and monotonous fashion with which he has celebrated it for years. Enter Alabama a beautiful blonde from Tallahassee Florida. Alabama becomes Clarence’s love interest, but also acts as his call to action, Linda Seger would qualify her as the “catalyst that sets the story in to motion.” (Seger 319) Clarence is forced out of his reluctance, and in to taking his journey by his elimination of Drexl, Alabama’s former pimp, and obtaining a suitcase full of cocaine.

Clarence’s helpers materialize first in the form of his father, Clifford Worley (Col-1), and later as Floyd, Elliot Blitzer, Dick Ritchie, Lee Donowitz, and Elvis, in the form of a Mentor, some of these people are also simultaneously combined with the mobsters, and policemen to form the obstacles Clarence must overcome. All of this leads up to “the black moment” (Seger-320) where Alabama is brutally beaten by Virgil (Col-1), with the final confrontation, and chase scene being combined into the scene in Lee Donowitz’ office, with the resolution being the closing scene in Cancun.

One of the of the mot noticeable quirks in the story, is that not only is Alabama the person Clarence is trying to “save” filling the role of the Princess in a fairy tale, she is also the cause of conflict much like the ring in Lord of the Rings, she is both the problem and the goal. This paradox gives the audience mixed emotions about her character often leaving the audience doubting her intentions. This is further exemplified by Tony Scott portraying her as a stereotypical slightly promiscuous dumb blonde, making her an essentially shallow character, leaving the audience with no depth of character, with which they can discount the doubts that they feel about her. This contributes greatly to the unsettling realism of the by blurring the lines between good and bad, much like real life Alabama’s role is left in a grey area. This creates a problem for the audience, making Alabama neither a pressed white virgin, nor a hooker with a heart of gold, it presents her in a manner befitting of a “real” call girl who would marry a man at the drop of a dime, making her in essence a bitter pill of a character that doesn’t go down smoothly.

In contrast to Alabama’s character is Clifford Worley, Clarence’s Father, Who also serves as another uneasy dose of realism. In the scene between Vincenzo and Clifford, where Clifford is implored by Vincenzo to tell the location of his son, and makes it clear in no uncertain terms what the consequences will be if he refuses. Clarence and his father haven’t spoken in over three years; despite this fact it is obvious that Clifford feels that he is honor-bound to protect his son even at penalty of death. This scene shows the audience that although Clarence is the hero of the film he is not the most heroic person in the story, making his validity as a hero somewhat questionable. This detracts from the impact of Clarence’s transformation from a normal guy to a hero, making him seem much more like a real person, once again leaving the audience with the uneasy feeling, that not only is the damsel in distress not as she seems, but neither is the hero, making him just as hard to digest as Alabama.

One of the most appallingly realistic scenes in True Romance is the scene where Virgil brutally beats Alabama in an attempt to gain information on Clarence’s whereabouts. Many viewers at this point have allowed their doubts about Alabama to fester and weaken their view of her, so much so, that for most of this scene the viewer is left waiting for her to break, to cut her losses and betray Clarence. It is in this scene where we see how truly strong Alabama is as a person, not only does she protect her love, but at her darkest moment when, death seems inevitable, she finds the strength and courage to over come incredible odds and defeat her attacker, saving not only her but Clarence as well. Less obvious is the extent to which Clarence’s character is transformed by this scene, not only does he not come to Alabama’s rescue, but she actually ends up protecting him. After Clarence and Alabama flee the scene we see even more of this role reversal, now Clarence is nursing his protector’s wounds and reassuring her that they will make it after all. This part of the scene shows the depth, and duality of their two characters, giving us this one last dose of reality, neither person is the hero, they are both just two people fighting to make it, neither any more heroic or in distress than the other.

True Romance is a film that never achieved box-office success or critical acclaim, yet it is an enduring film, achieving cult status that rivals that of such films as A Clockwork Orange, and Fight Club. Although Tony Scott’s film pays homage to the hero myth by addressing all of its facets and meeting its requirements, it takes full advantage of the loopholes allowed by its generality. True Romance achieved a level of realism that is very rarely seen in film; it actually achieved what most films and novels emulate, it placed normal realistic characters in extraordinary conditions, and through sheer will and luck allowed them to overcome. So why did it not achieve box office or critical success? Very simply because audiences go to movies to escape, and movies like True Romance that remind us what our reality is, we live in a grey world there are no pure white heroes, or solid black villains, a world where morality and purity are qualities that generally don’t equal success, and that is a bitter pill for us to swallow about our culture as a whole.

[jonnyUTAH]

A good essay always begins with choosing a good topic, and I think you got a good one.

True Romance, as a movie, has an"an unsettling realism that is not only responsible for it’s cult classic status, but is also to blame for it’s lack of commercial success."

Do all Cult Classic's have an unsettling realism?
Taxi Driver
Clockwork Orange
Fight Club
Donny Darko
Rocky Horror Picture Show
Forbidden Planet
Blade Runner
Evil Dead
Bad Taste

I don't know about "unsettling realism", but they do have something real about them. Real the same way that getting your front teeth knocked out of your face is real.

"Cult Films have limited but very special appeal. Cult films are usually strange, quirky, offbeat, eccentric, oddball, or surreal, with outrageous, weird, unique and cartoony characters or plots, and garish sets. They are often considered controversial because they step outside standard narrative and technical conventions. Most cult films cut across many film genres (science fiction, horror, melodrama, etc.), although they can be very stylized, and they are often flawed or unusual in some striking way. "


My one critisism is that you could have tied your topic sentence back into your conclusion. You spoke of Elvis in the title and intro, but then you sort of just let it go.

You could have pointed out that no matter how glits and glamour your life is, there is still a very real chance that you'll die a fat messed up bastard, and that's life; unfortunately, people don't want to be reminded of that.