Nonfiction Reading Response

Article: "Watching You" by Patricia Smith, The New York Times Upfront Newspaper

Part 1

    This article is about government surveillance in the United States its effects, and citizens thoughts on this surveillance. According to Smith, after the deadly 911 terrorist attacks government has grown immensely in security. Most people have become accustomed to this security and believe that it should be done to keep everyone safe, but others believe it is a violation. Although this way of security/surveillance has already stopped a terrorist attack, some people still think it should be stopped because it is an invasion of privacy. They believe that they should be given privacy as states the constitutions fourth amendment. The fourth amendment “protects unreasonable searches and seizures” and people believe this is a violation of the amendment.

Part 2

    In the first half of the article, the author shows that most people with power believe that “you can’t have 100 percent security and also 100 percent privacy and zero inconvenience,” (Smith 1). They believe that the nation should be safe and to be safe it has to have this type of security. Since the author wrote this, I believe that her opinion is that this type of security is needed to keep everyone safe. In the first half she also talks about how a terrorist attack was already stopped because of the company that inspects emails, and chats (Prism). It stopped an Al Queda operative that was planning to backpack bomb the New York subway because they were able to intercept through an email. On the other hand, in the other half of this article Smith shows regular citizens opinions, all of them are about privacy violation. This made me think that maybe she was against this type of security. She wrote about how this type of security violated the fourth amendment. The fourth amendment states that police need a court-issued warrant to look in your home to listen to phone calls and a probable cause to search your care. In the end I think that the author wants the readers to think that the security is needed because it has already stopped a terrorist attack and if people want to keep safe then we need this type of security.

Part 3

    This article gave me many thoughts on the government and if this amount of security is actually needed in the United States. Because already government has stopped a terrorist attack with this “type” of security, I believe that this is a good thing. In my opinion if it will keep us safe, it is worth it. This article reminds me of the 911 attacks and if they could’ve been stopped if there was this much security at that time. 

Revised Reading Response

Critical thinking question: How does this story address the points of view (perspectives) of other groups, especially those who usually don't get to tell their side?

    So Much Closer by Susane Colasanti is about a girl named Brooke who has a gigantic crush on a boy who barely knows she exists. I chose this critical thinking question because Brooke is just a regular teen that no one would think of paying attention to. This book is written in a very unique point of view (Brooke's). People may think that she's just a geek with no social life and no problems, but she like most teens does have a social life and social problems. The boy Brooke has a huge crush on, Scott has to move to New York. Brooke decided that she has to follow him and go to New York too. It was easy for her since her dad lives there. In New York she learns many important things about life.
    Brooke is just a regular teen, as I said before. She's one of those quiet kids in school who never talks. That is one of the things that makes the point of view in this book unique. Brooke is like all other teens in many ways, she crushes on boys, she goes shopping, but no other girl would follow her crush all the way to New York from New Jersey. Brooke decided that since Scott was moving to New York she would go and live with her dad in New York. She was convinced that Scott and her were meant to be together. "But then there's The Knowing. I know that I belong with Scott" (Colasanti 21). According to Brooke, "The Knowing" was always true. This is something very unique about Brooke, not many other teens would have this theory. "The Knowing" was one of the main reasons that she moved to New York. No other person would follow a crush all the way to a different state.
    Brooke is a very unique girl who learns things in very unique ways. She moved all the way to New York because her crush moved there. You wouldn't believe all the things she learned in NY. She met new friends and people she could trust. NY became more of a home to her than anywhere else. She knew that she could trust the friends she made there. In NY she learned not to take things for granted. "If you're lucky enough to find that person, never let them go" (Colasanti 21). In the end this person was not Scott it was a person she met in NY, John. She knew she had found the right person because he loved her and she trusted him. Brooke found the people she trusted by following her crush. Her being unique, lead to her finding her real home. Everything happened in its own way. Nobody would've expected this from just a regular teen girl.
    This book is about a teen girl that is very unique, she finds her home in a very unique way. Brooke is a teen that has a typical lifestyle, no one would expect all this drama to be in her life. This critical thinking question fits the book perfectly. This book was written in a different point of view, one that not a lot of people would be expecting.