With the hope of becoming a copy editor, I’m taking an online course that includes short essays for practice. Below are three that I’ve written, with the subjects being from thoughts on my mind in a given week. I’ve enjoyed the course, refreshing my knowledge of grammer and learning from the feedback of these essays. The instructor, author Kim Catanzarite, has given a wealth of insights in the course, and I’m gaining confidence in the field. A special thanks to her and everyone in recent weeks who have given me encouragement in this endeavor!

1. A Love for Baseball in Minnesota

Watching the Minnesota Twins play baseball from the view of a company suite was like living a dream. The cabin offered cushy seats overlooking third base, while a buffet offered heated entrees in the dining area. The weather was perfect; the waitresses attentive; and the restrooms, clean and spacious. Then, of course, there was the game itself. Cheers for home runs and diving catches arose through the night, and a close score kept us on edge. The Twins lost, but it didn’t take away from the magic. The luxuries of baseball and life had filled suite number 40 of Target Field.

After the game, my wife and I strolled through the halls to admire art that honored the team. Oil paintings depicted baseball in action. Pencil sketches highlighted the careers of past ball players, and photos showed games from the past 100 years, with history lessons in every caption. For lifelong fans like me, it was Heaven on Earth. As James Earl Jones said of those going to the Iowa ballpark in Field of Dreams, “The memories will be so thick, they’ll have to brush them away from their faces.” The nostalgia filled me with joy, and on this night, you couldn’t tell me baseball was just a game.

As we were about to leave, a firework display ended the night. Stadium lights dimmed as the explosions burst above center field. Country music blared, and my wife and I watched the fiery colors with gratitude. The Minnesota Twins was more than a baseball franchise. It was part of our home, a place that continues giving fun to its fans and honor to America’s pastime.

2. The Lottery: a Blight on Society

I submit to the legislature that it is a moral imperative to close the state lottery. It is a repugnant system of wealth transfer, taking from the poor while selling false hope that numbers on a ticket will save them. People in poverty will stay there while organizations in abundance will thrive from their money. The lottery shows our tolerance—our promotion—of harming the poor for the benefit of higher classes.

While arguments for the lottery will focus on issues of state funding, we must consider the source of those funds. Many will give the few dollars they have for a fool’s hope of escape. Families of addicts will suffer as tickets from gas stations prove too tempting, and entire neighborhoods will surrender precious resources. It says much of us as a society if our government entices them to give what little they have. Meanwhile, universities thrive from funds, legislators run pork-barrel programs, and sports teams ransom the state for new stadiums. It’s an abhorrent system for the state to promote, all in the name of revenue .

The lottery also sells a detestable message to the public: to spend money on a pipe dream. In an age that offers a myriad of ways to waste money, the government offers the most alluring of all. Buyers hope to win big, but week after week, they come away empty. If we condemn corporations for selling false goods, then how can we support our government selling something that gives people nothing? Please consider what you’re promoting by supporting the lottery: a lie that many cannot afford to bear.

3. Political Contempt and its Influences

We shouldn’t ignore the media in discussions of political violence. Contempt is “the feeling that a person or a thing is beneath consideration, worthless, or deserving scorn.” Anyone with a platform can inspire this, whether it’s an online post to thousands or a podcast to millions. Audiences will come to sneer at their neighbors, and a few will act on their disgust. Two weeks ago, this happened when Vance Boelter assassinated Minnesota Speaker of the House Melissa Hortman. The violence of that day is the continuing result of contempt shared for those we disagree with.

Pundits can express their contempt in a variety of ways . There are nicknames, like “Tampon Tim” for Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. There are comedic jabs, like conservative Ben Shapiro saying that Supreme Court Justice Sotomayor writes her dissents in crayon. And then there’s profanity, like hosts of the podcast Pod Save America calling Mike Pence a piece of s—. While insults may seem harmless, contempt breeds more contempt. In time, viewers will think less of others, and some will aspire to violence against them.

While this isn’t to blame media for the violence, it’s worth noting their ability to sway. If chaos theory says that a butterfly’s wings can create storms, it’s not a stretch to think that mockery can help inspire the worst. With this, it would be interesting to know who pushed Boelter to his rage. Who did he listen to, and what did he take to heart? Media stars have every right to argue for their points with passion, but they should bear in mind a responsibility for what they express. If they did, political contempt might be less, and the Hortmans might be alive today.