Geek Squad

world. In the first section of the article, Fridman establishes that the terminology people in America use to refer to the intellectually curious is derogatory. Fridman references Webster’s New World Dictionary, providing a definition for the term “geek.” This reference demonstrates how disrespected intellectuals are treated in America. These derogatory terms are not just insulting to intellectual people, they are also damaging the way we see those intellectuals and place them in society. As…

misdirected society into one that upholds “nerds” so that the country can be successful in its competition with foreign countries that already have that mindset. Furthermore, Fridman elaborates on the problem by demonstrating the derogative origin of “geek” and its unjust application to the “intellectually curious and academically serious” (line 3). He then showcases how deep-rooted the corrupted anti-intellectualism within American society by juxtaposing a Harvard graduate and elementary…

Award-winning author and feminist Ursula K. Le Guin delivered a rhetorically complex speech to the Mills College graduating class of 1983, comprised almost entirely of women. Her speech came at a challenging time for women, as second-wave feminism began to dissolve into a myriad of disagreeing factions. The title of the speech, the “Left-Handed Commencement Address,” is a reference to her book The Left Hand of Darkness, which follows an androgynous race of space aliens. This foreshadows the…

You find yourself surrounded by a horde of flesh-eating zombies. You only have time to save one of two people, one a snob, the other a nerd. You know that each have their strengths and weaknesses. So who do you pick and trust with your life? Both snobs and nerds are generally chastised by society. Snobs are hated for their ‘’I think I am better than you attitude’’, and nerds are hated for their inability to relate with ‘’normal people’’. I am of the persuasion that being a nerd is a better…

When we think of the words nerd and geek, we think of a smart person with freckles and thick-framed glasses. They are usually bullied by the athletic people of a school and are at the lowest rung of the social ladder. But why do we also think about that same person being harmed and ridiculed? Why can’t we praise their intelligence and use it to improve our society? These questions are argued in Leonid Fridman’s “America Needs Its Nerds.” In order to do this, Fridman uses rhetorical strategies…

When I was younger, I considered “weird” the greatest compliment anyone could receive. The word's connotation may seem negative to some, but I believed it emulated only positive attributes. I believed being weird meant being different, unique, and even exciting. I considered "weirdness" one of my greatest qualities, and this self-proclaimed title defined who I was. I was weird, and I was proud. That is, until middle school – also known as the leading cause of pre-pubescent girl’s…

The number of exercises was absurd as well as the difficulty of them. At sundown the sergeants put our names on a board under squad numbers. We had an hour to group up and find our housing. After we found our squad, I was chosen to be the leader. The sergeant showed up to my squad and gave me a topographic map of the area. Our housing was marked with an X; we had half an hour left to find our housing before lights out. Wright-Patterson AFB was incredibly…

“Down, But Not Out.” “There it is Privates!” Drill Sergeant Gonzales yelled. As we all rounded the narrow and winding road through the Ozark Mountains, my heart began to race. All 250 of us slowed down to form a formation in front of what appeared to be the biggest climb we had seen and were not expecting to see for the next few weeks. Screaming at the top of his lungs, Drill Sergeant Galloway said “This is Engineer Hill, and starting in two minutes you all have thirty minutes to make this…

In post 9/11 America, it is not very common to see a book that doesn 't portray the men and women of the United States Military in a positive light. Most Americans regard all soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines as heroes who have a strong moral compass and always try to do the right thing. However the reality can be quite different. The reality of war is that it is dirty, ugly, and rarely, if ever, a glorious affair. All armies throughout history have had their share of incidents that they…

The critically acclaimed show Freaks and Geeks is a shining example of a TV show that ended far too early. Freaks and Geeks was a show that captured the awkwardness of adolescence, as opposed to the romanticized and nostalgic view typically portrayed on TV. Shortly after Freaks and Geeks ended, a spiritual successor arose in the form of the show Undeclared, created by Judd Apatow, a producer of Freaks and Geeks. Where Freaks and Geeks was more drama than comedy, Undeclared was a lighthearted…