Project One Revised
1 December 2014
Articles to be added to Second Edition of The Ethical Citizen
There it is. The four-hour flight is ready to emerge into the open air. Everything has gone smoothly, and then it comes around the corner slowly wobbling down the aisle. Eyes frantically look around to see if there is an open seat other then the one next to them. Panic sets in. The phrase, “please don’t sit by me.” is silently thought amongst everyone nearby. Then it happens. The oversized man plops his body right next to the unsuspecting passenger. It happens all the time…people judge another person by how they look before knowing a single thing about them. Does that make them a bad person? Ethics would argue yes. But what makes a person ethical? Everyone has his or her own idea of what makes someone an ethical citizen. For the second edition of The Ethical Citizen, three main components of what makes someone ethical should be incorporated into the book. These things include; responsibility, selflessness, and helping those in need.
Responsibility is something that humans in today’s world strive for; in many instances responsibility can be an instinct. In Kathleen Toner’s “Taking Out the Rivers' Trash, One Piece at a Time” Chad Pregracke devotes his life to removing trash from the Mississippi River and other waterways across America. Pregracke has removed 67,000 tires, 218 washing machines, 19 tractors, 12 hot tubs, four pianos and almost 1,000 refrigerators from various bodies of water (Taking out the Rivers' Trash). The article pinpoints instances throughout Pregracke’s life that leads him to decide that removing debris would be his career. Pregracke organizes 70 cleanups a year in 50 communities. In addition to cleaning up rivers, Pregracke also started a barge school where children can go to educate themselves on the dangers of trash and its effect on the planet. Pregracke is adamant on making sure his cause is not focused on what he is doing, but how any one can make a difference. The author quotes Pregracke to highlight his love and passion he has for his work. "(I'm) creating a chance for people to go out there and do something positive," he said. "Talking is great, but it doesn't do much at all. Action is what I'm about" (Taking out the Rivers' Trash). Global warming and dangers in the ecosystem are becoming more apparent everyday. Pregracke’s work to remove debris from bodies of water is a small way to help bring attention to the problems of littering and hopefully motivate people to help put a stop to it. Pregracke brings forward characteristics of an ethical citizen; his work with depolluting the river and then starting a barge school to educate next generation workers is admirable. He took on the responsibility of cleaning the rivers, and starting support groups to help the cause grow to what it is now. This article should be chosen to be apart of the second edition of The Ethical Citizen because it speaks to a large audience. It inspires people to believe they can make a difference in the world. For Girl Scout Troop 898 being selfless is second nature. In the Los Angles Newspaper article “Girl Scout Troop 898 Making a Difference” by Daphne Sashin the kindness and selflessness of the young troop is brought to attention. The girls have participated in activities such as donating to canned-food and clothing drives, donating Christmas stockings for premature babies, cleaning up trash on Earth Day, and even donating to 2003 Old Fire victims. Troop leader Sylvia Moreno describes the troop as “invisible helpers.” (Girl Scout Troop 898 Making a Difference) Moreno hopes to teach the girls that community service is about learning organization and compassion. "Part of the Girl Scout law is living it, promising to serve God and our country at all times, and helping one another," Moreno said. “The young girls in the troop are not even teenagers yet and already grasp the idea behind community service and how it positively affects the community.” ("Girl Scout Troop 898 Making a Difference.") One of the girl’s most recent charitable contributions was to the Humane Society of San Bernardino Valley. The girls walked dogs, gave out treats, and made sure water bowls were always full. Acts of kindness and selflessness are rare to come upon. Troop 898 helped the community not because they had to, but because they wanted to. The girls brought out the importance of helping others in a time of need. The second edition of The Ethical Citizen would benefit from this article being featured in it because people can relate to the girls in the troop. A large amount of the population has been involved in some kind of group, whether they did community service or not, the connection between the girl scouts and other citizens is there. The article would also benefit the second edition because of the simplicity it has to offer. The troop did activities that anyone can do, making the article inspiring. Art has become an essential part of today’s society. Whether in the form of videos, drawings, or paintings, art is appreciated and used in the world today. In Rick Jones’ article “Using Art to Help Develop Self-Esteem for Troubled Youth” music is used to help positively influence young girls at Indiana Girls School. Jones writes the article about his personal experiences and studies on this topic. The girl’s ages and backgrounds very greatly, each girl has been placed in the school for specific reasons including felonies such as robbery, car theft, and assault with a deadly weapon. Jones went into the school with no curriculum to follow. He struggled to find a way to teach the girls in a fun and enjoyable way, and still be effective and informative. He found success in discovery learning, working with a unique idea rather than strict instruction from the teacher ("Using Art to Help Develop”). Jones discovered that all the girls had come from different educational backgrounds and graded them on participation rather than how well they were able to complete the assignment. One of Jones’ most successful lessons used “Pop Videos” which used teamwork and creativity to create video art ("Using Art to Help Develop). After working with the girls Jones was convinced that working with different art medias would help build higher self-esteem for any student. This article pinpoints Jones’ love for his students and the hard work he dedicated into bettering their perceptions of themselves. He worked to develop learning techniques that would work to show off their strengths and work with different art medias to learn how to be apart of something. Jones inspired trouble teens to want to learn and be successful, if more teachers could incorporate Jones’ ideas of discovery learning and learning through art, then thousands of troubled kids could reap the benefits. This article would be a good addition to the second edition of The Ethical Citizen because of the uniqueness of the subject. Few people know about using art to teach in a different way. The article is also based on a real study and situation, which makes it more credible. All of these articles would contribute to the second edition of The Ethical Citizen. Each brings a unique and special story while showing moral ethics. With each one of these articles showing examples of responsibility, selflessness, and helping those in need. These articles would contribute additional information and examples that would only be beneficial to the message of the already existing ones. Nothing would be taken away my adding these entries. On the contrary, the stances would be supported.