Plagiarism is ILLEGAL - and that's because you're using someone else's words - hard work - and calling it your own. I don't know how some people can plagiarize a paper, and fall asleep at night before it's due (thinking that they won't get caught). Like someone said in class yesterday, I probably wouldn't a) Be able to do that, b) sleep that night, c) get any sort of sleep for the next few weeks until I received my paper back (and EVEN THEN, I would feel SO guilty). When I finish with a paper or project and it has MY NAME on it, I have this sense of pride: I accomplished this! I did this!
After partially plagiarizing the paper, especially after having ghost-written for someone else, it just reinforces the idea that this is SO wrong on SO many levels. Claiming ownership and the sense of accomplishment for something you didn't even do! How could anyone feel good about that? I think this is where the line is drawn for me: for presidential candidates/presidents/anyone else in politics, it's OK to have a ghostwriter. Here's my rationale: the president is the one who ultimately delivers the speech - puts his own twist on it, elaborates on certain areas, emphasizes certain phrases that personally tug at his own strings (or he knows sound EXTRA good). I'm okay with people who ghostwrite for politicians, and people who ghostwrite for those who aren't as articulate (but need to get their story published - example off the top of my head - a Mexican immigrant conveying his side of the story - about how he/she has mouths to feed, how the Mexican Government is so corrupt, and how the economy sucks in Mexico. How is he different than any other immigrant in the US pursuing the "American Dream"? Yet he is the one who is protested against - CONSTANTLY). If he is illiterate but wants to educate those bigoted Americans who are ignorant and/or racist, sure - get someone to ghostwrite for you. But I still think that the ghostwriter should still be listed as an author. EX/It says the author is Miguel Higareda as told by/in collaboration with blah-blah (insert name here).
I mean, seriously people, it's not THAT hard to give credit where credit is due... is it?
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I said very similar things such as how could you sleep at night and not be haunted by it the rest of your life? Check out my blog, did you plagiarize it with the a) b) c)? haha just kidding- isn't that weird though? One of my fears is plagiarizing things that I don't even know exist
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