Opinion Article Analysis

In Ruth Wade’s letter of the week “Sorry Jennifer. You’ve got it wrong” (The Land, November 3rd 2011) she effectively refutes Jennifer Marohasy’s attempt to “malign the rice industries water efficiency achievements”. By using statistics to support her statements and a clear knowledge of her situation Wade has created an intriguing response to Marohasys article. To begin making her point Wade, executive director of the Rice growers’ Association of Australia,throws at out that “unlike Jennifer Marohasy[they] understand [the] reality” of the delicacy of this situation. By doing this Wade is forcing the reader into an attitude of distaste against Marohasy and her claims in her “strange piece last week”. When Wade mentions the “widespread public support for the returning of water back to the environment” she is attempting to show the reader that they have taken all things into account and they do understand every aspect of what Marohasy has said but they still believe she is wrong. “For every mega litre [of water] purchased for the environment” explains Wade “the more the economic base of our industry and our community is eroded” this statement target the readers understanding of proportions and how for things to work smoothly some industries need more water than others. Wade then puts out the striking statistic that “Australian rice crops produced enough to feed 20 million people around the world every day for a year.” Those kinds of numbers appeal directly to the heart of the readers as it makes them think of the number of people who rely on this rice as a daily source of food. Then by adding “this year it may be more” it pushes the reader into supporting their statements as it could be more beneficial to our society than it already is. Wade is adamant that they “make an important contribution to food security” as they “thinly [trade] on world markets”. The fact that not only is the rice industry great for our country itself but it also creates a good name for