BITTMAN “BAD FOOD? TAX IT, AND SUBSIDIZE VEGETABLES.

Set Up Your Notes

NameDatePeriod

Assignment #26: Bittman’s VocabularyEssential Question: How can I develop my vocabulary? (L6)

Assignment will include:• Vocabulary• Sentence frames • Questions

Summary

Vocabulary: one way to build a bigger vocabulary is

to copy down definitions• Tax: A non-voluntary payment to the state/government. • Sales Tax: a tax that is paid by the consumer at the

time of purchase-this makes the product more expensive to buy, but still cheap to produce (we know what the sales tax is, but do not visually see it on the price tag-- $.99)– Ex: food

• Excise tax: a tax that the producer/manufacturer pays (this makes it more expensive to produce, and then in turn more expensive to buy $1.07) (There could be/ still is state tax on top of excise tax)– Ex: Cigarettes

• Subsidize: financial support; to help someone pay the cost– Ex: The government wants farmers to keep making corn, so

they will pay farmers/ provide farmers with support, so that the farmers can afford to keep growing the corn.

– Ex: Obama care– the government will help pay portions of health benefits for those who are needy

• Indirect subsidy: when a business benefits from another person/company receiving a subsidy– Ex: Farmers receive a subsidy to grow corn– they have

too much corn, and corn is cheap– so Coke benefits by being able to buy corn cheap and therefore make their product cheaply.

• Deficit: the amount by which a sum of money is too small (in other words, how “short” we are)– The issue people often see with subsidies is, if we are

already in a deficit, how can we afford to give more financial support?

– They have to figure out if the cost of the subsidy, will be made up in savings (less spent on health care, less spent on prisons, more consumer spending generating more taxes, etc)

• Government: an office designed to over see and run the country effectively with the people’s best interest in mind– The issue– who’s best interest? Democrat or Republican?

Minority or majority? Wealthy or Poor? Person or Business?– One of their responsibilities is public health

• Ex: Surgeon’s general warning on cigarettes.

Reminder Claims: what the author is trying to prove.

• Major claims (thesis, overall argument),

• Minor claims (smaller arguments that support the major claim, think topic sentence),

• Counter claims (what the opposition would argue)

Reminder

• Organization: Problem-solution

– Problem would be introduction, background

– Solution would be a claim that he wants to prove• Problem would also be the claims with support

• Solution then part of the conclusion

• Read through Bittman’s text “Bad Food? Tax it, and Subsidize Vegetables”

• As you read, annotate:– Claims

• Hint: he gives us subheadings- how can we turn these subheadings into actual minor claims?

– Evidence • Focus on statistical (numbers,

research, data)• Focus on analogical (comparisons)

– Vocabulary words you just defined or other words that you want to learn• A second way to build vocabulary is

by seeing words in context.

--Sentence Frames--using vocabulary words

1. Bittman argues for a tax on________, but __________________.

2. Bittman feels it is the government’s job to _________, and history shows that the government has ___________

3. Bittman knows that a subsidy would _________________ while taxes would…

Questions

1. What is Bittman’s major claim? In which paragraph is it located? What reasons (minor claims) does he provide in order to explain why his major claim is true? Are these good reasons?

Questions

2. There are 5 paragraphs where Bittmanclearly addresses the opposition and various counterclaims to the idea of taxing bad food. In which paragraphs does he address the opposition? What are the counterarguments?

Questions

3. Does Bittman provide evidence to convince you that a tax on soda will benefit us econimally by generating extra revenue?

Questions

4. Does Bittman convince you that a tax could effectively work at lowering our consumption of bad food?

5. If the tax worked and we ate less, do you think it would be economically beneficial/ raise enough money in taxes?

6. Does Bittman fairly and unbiasedly address the issue? Does he make it seem harder or easier? Worse or better? Etc.

Set Up Your NotesNameDatePeriod

Assignment #27: Bittman’s WritingEssential Question: What stylistic choices does Bittman make? Do they affect his argument (tone, ethos, clarity)? (CCSS R.6, L.3)

Assignment will include:• Chunk the Text and questions• Style Questions

Summary

• Read through Bittman’sarticle.

• As you read, label the chunks/ sections of the text:–Paragraphs 1-5–Paragraph 6–Paragraph 7-8–Paragraphs 9-10

• If you had to give each section a “title” what would that title be and why?

• Paragraphs 1-10 all belong together.

• Despite their smaller titles, what do all of these paragraphs focus on?

• Read through Bittman’sarticle.

• As you read, label the chunks/ sections of the text:–Paragraph 11–Paragraphs 12-15–Paragraphs 16-18–Paragraph 19-20

–If you had to give each section a “title” what would that title be and why?

• Paragraphs 11-20 all belong together.

• Despite their smaller titles, what do all of these paragraphs focus on?

• Read through Bittman’sarticle.

• As you read, label the chunks/ sections of the text:–Paragraphs 21-22

–Paragraphs 23-25

• If you had to give each section a “title” what would that title be and why?

• Read through Bittman’sarticle.

• As you read, label the chunks/ sections of the text:–Paragraphs 26-29

–Paragraphs 30-32

• If you had to give each section a “title” what would that title be and why?

Questions:

1. In general, on what kind of evidence does the text rely? Provide examples.

2. What are two of the major shifts in the article?

3. Does paragraph 11 belong at the end of the introduction, or at the beginning of the section “justifying taxes? Why?

Questions

• Tone

–“to counter arguments about their nutritional worthiness, expect to see ‘fortified’ sodas… and ‘improved’ junk foods.” (Para 24)

1. Why is “fortified” and “improved” in quotation marks?

Questions

• Tone

–“(Yes, it’s SAD)”(Para 1)2. Why is SAD in all caps?

3. Why is this in parenthesis?

4. How does this affect his tone?

5. How does this affect his ethos?

• Structure and clarity

– Para 25 “there are predictions of job loss at soda distributers, but the same predictions were made about the tobacco industry, and those were wrong.

6. What conjunctions are being used? How many “parts” are there to this sentence? What is the subject and verb of each part?

• Structure and clarity

– Para 25 “there are predictions of job loss at soda distributers, but the same predictions were made about the tobacco industry, and those were wrong.

7. How is part one related to part two? (sequence, compare and contrast, problem solution, description, cause and effect?)

8. How is part two related to part three?

9. How is part one related to part three?

• Structure and clarity– Para 22 “the Historic tobacco settlement, in which the states settled health related lawsuits against tobacoocompanies, and the companies agreed to curtail marketing and finance antismoking efforts, was far from perfect, but consider the results.”

10. Is the subject near the beginning of the sentence? What is it?

11. Does the verb immediately follow the subject? (if so, what it is? If not, what DOES follow the subject?)

• Structure and clarity– Para 22 “the Historic tobacco settlement, in which the states settled health related lawsuits against tobacoocompanies, and the companies agreed to curtail marketing and finance antismoking efforts, was far from perfect, but consider the results.”

12. How many “parts” are there to this sentence? What “parts” are the most important?

13. Simplify- what is the subject and verb (what are the subjects and verbs)?

Testing/ Editing tip• Structure and clarity

– Para 22 “the Historic tobacco settlement, in which the states settled health related lawsuits against tobacoocompanies, and the companies agreed to curtail marketing and finance antismoking

efforts, was far from perfect, but consider the results.”

Testing/ Editing tip• Structure and clarity

– Para 22 “the Historic tobacco settlement, in which the states settled health related lawsuits against tobacoocompanies, and the companies agreed to curtail marketing and finance antismoking efforts, was far from perfect, but

(we should) consider the results.”