Evaluating Evidence

The first blog I chose talks about health care for government officials. The author, Jim Hightower, discusses how their plan is more socialized and how we, the American people, are funding their care. Hightower is very emotional in his blog and passionate about his opinion of socialized medicine. This leads to strong remarks targeted to a specific audience, the Blue dog Democrats and Republicans who are against a socialized health plan. He mentions specific examples of Congress officials who are staunch against the plan and those who are determined to serve and deliver a better plan to their constituents. These examples provided more insight to his opinion and were relatable. For example, Sherrod Brown (D-OH) refuses to take congressional coverage until everyone in America has equal coverage. The way he presents his examples backs up his opinion and informs the public. He crafts a unique writing style. By this, I mean his writing is informal and easy to read but at the same time, sharp, compelling, and almost addicting. I found myself wanting to hear more at the end of the blog post. Clearly, his writing style attracts many because he had several constructive comments regarding his post, which, to note, was posted yesterday. Highwater asks a few thought-compelling questions that tend to stem from his passionate writing style. His emotion builds up, he offers examples and statistics, and then poses a question to the reader as if he is looking for feedback. His noteworthy credentials back up his strong post. A columnist, author, national radio commenter, and public speaker for nearly three decades, Hightower seems to know a lot about Congress. His statistics show that he has done research and can make comparisons between studies. He can accurately refer to the FEHBP and can explain the issue at hand regarding this program to any reader. Highwater’s credentials, writing style, knowledge, and passion for his topic enhance the blog’s credibility and subtle use of sources.
link to blog: http://www.truthout.org/1028095

Another blog that also relates to health care on the more health aspect stance is a Healthy Kid’s Pediatric Blog on stress. The blog talks about stress, its causes, how it can negatively affect us, and then addresses how this can affect others around you. Dr. Deborah Z. Bain, the blogger, points out several stressors that affect nearly everyone’s lives. This makes the post relatable and keeps the reader interested. Bain makes the story personal because she writes the post as if it were a public diary. Her reflections on the week brought her to write about the topic and her personal encounters with breast cancer make her argument believable. She gives statistics on breast cancer, but her implications that stress is linked to breast cancer were a bit confusing. At first, I thought the blog was specifically addressing stress and how to overcome its negative effects, but she transitioned sharply into its links with breast cancer. A smoother transition and more statistics or cited research would have made her argument more convincing. I do not know if stress is at all linked to cancer-more research would have helped readers to understand this. She offers a different view of how to address breast cancer.

"As we all buy our breast cancer awareness t -shirts, mugs, and jewelry to support "finding a cure," shouldn't we be asking ourselves what we can do to prevent cancer from developing in the first?"

I found her different viewpoint compelling because it actually addressed direct prevention, not just finding a cure. She poses some bold questions regarding a sensitive issue that does in fact affect many, towards the end of the blog. Bain’s credential as a doctor, her use of examples and statistics, and her ability to make a relatable subject even more personal keep the reader interested and makes her story plausible. However, more statistics and exposed research would have enhanced her credibility and maybe attracted comments.
link to blog: http://www.healthykidspediatrics.blogspot.com/

Overall, what makes evidence credible and believable includes credentials of the author, specific examples, visible research and use of statistics, relatability to the story, an easy to follow but sharp writing style, simple but still interesting word choice, and use of compelling questions that make the reader want to find out more about the subject or question their view of the topic.