Assignment 10

“Patriotism is probably the strongest noneconomic motive for organizational allegiance in modern times. This age is sometimes called the age of nationalism. Many nations draw additional strength and unity from some powerful ideology, such as democracy or communism, as well as from a common religion, language, or cultural inheritance.” THE LOGIC OF COLLECTIVE ACTION Public Goods and the Theory of Groups, MANCUR OLSON.

This passage is mentioning one the easiest method to bring people together. Patriotism is seen to be used in any business, from a small business to a large corporation.  People have a natural sense of loyalty to their nationality, the religious beliefs they were brought up with, and the list can go on continuously. The unconditional loyalty strength is astonishing, with many people sacrificing their lives being part of the military group to protect their fellow countryman. Besides patriotism, ideology can be a powerful tool and work as effectively if the population can be influenced and informed effectively the belief that is being introduced. Because of patriotism and ideology, countless amount of groups are formed in America which ranges from race to business interest.

From my understanding, patriotism is very powerful. I moved from Brazil to the United States at age 7, and did not really grow up in Brazil to fully embrace the culture. But, my natural loyalty is undeniable and I am emotionally connected to my origin and I always feel the want to give back if I can. In the United States, businesses uses patriotism and ideology as a strategy for profit. For example, many manufacturing jobs were sent overseas due to cheaper labor costs and now we have a dilemma that many American citizens want to buy American made goods to support the local job market. Many corporations and small businesses uses American made slogans part of their advertising campaign to gain market shares. The same applies to ideology because a local supermarket will cater to religious holiday demand to sell items.

 

 

Assignment 8

“To our sister republics south of our border, we offer a special pledge—to convert our good words into good deeds—in a new alliance for progress—to assist free men and free governments in casting off the chains of poverty. But this peaceful revolution of hope cannot become the prey of hostile powers. Let all our neighbors know that we shall join with them to oppose aggression or subversion anywhere in the Americas. And let every other power know that this Hemisphere intends to remain the master of its own house.” Inaugural Addresses of the Presidents of the United States.  1989.

In this quote from John F. Kennedy’s inaugural Address, he pledges to the Latin American countries to take action on the good promises that were made by the Unites States. During this time, the U.S had a tremendous political and economic influence over Latin America that was always abused for self-interest or the loosely used term national security.  The majority of these countries lagged behind the U.S socioeconomically and were in dire need of economic assistance, but the big corporation in the U.S wanted protect their business interest in these countries at any cost to the host nation.

The president continues to elaborate that although the U.S is willing to have a peaceful dialogue with the South, it will not tolerate any powerful nation to influence the Americas. The Soviet Union was a great power during this time and they were going head to head with the U.S in its goal to spread communism and weaken capitalism.

I chose this quote from the president’s inaugural speech because I believe that JFK was truly attempting to find a middle ground for everyone in the U.S and the World in which we all can work together to improving every aspect of life.

Assignment 7

“What's at stake, after all, is citizens' representation in Congress. Partisan gerrymandering undermines the whole notion of a representative government.”

What the author is explaining in this part of his passage can be easily understood. The politician has created a system to stay in power. But, at what cost? Are the constituents actually being looked after? One district the author mentions is the Sevenths district in Pennsylvania. The shape of the district has transformed from 83rd to the 113^th Congress, It is unrecognizable. As he said, “While a compact district may be desirable, it doesn’t necessarily reflect how people live or what county and city boundaries look like." Or, as John succinctly puts it, "Representation is about people, not polygons."  

I believe gerrymandering is an issue that has a solution. Like any law, citizens or politicians will do their best to make the law benefit them as much as possible. Democracy is being hurt by this because the politicians are focusing more on reshaping the districts on the map instead of serving the people who placed them in power. The problem is that the office-bearers understand that to control, they must gerrymander or at least understand it. I can understand why this action is being taken and it is because it is an old game that the rules has not been changed. The government needs to be more progressive with actions to benefit the people and change the rule of this old game in the political arena.

Democracies in America has matured in many ways and there is still a lot that can be done to improve it. The system has to be pegged to the interest of the people, not map making.

Assignment 6

 

 

“Present organizations may perish, but the cause will

go on. That cause has a life, distinct and independent of the organizations

patched up from time to time to carry it forward. Looked at apart from the

bones and sinews, and body, it is a thing immortal. It is the very essence of

justice, liberty and love. The moral life of human society—it cannot die, while

conscience, honor and humanity remain. If but one be filled with it, the cause

lives.…If there be but one such man in the land, no matter what becomes of

abolition societies and parties, there will be an anti-slavery cause, and an antislavery movement.…”

 

                In this quote Frederick Douglass explains to his listener that groups in society who fight for freedom of slaves may disappear overtime due to many factors, but the cause is immortal. People from generations to generations will continue to fight for equal treatment. He furthers elaborates that a society to thrive it must obey the natural laws and slavery was coldblooded.  I believe he wanted his audiences to understand that freedom was not a perk, but essential for a fellow human being.

 

                I chose this quote because Frederick Douglass poetically made his case for freedom without expressing any aggression. I believe many people during their life time will reach a point that their goals will be more difficult to achieve. What should he or she do? They should not succumb to their fear and low morale. But to continue strive for success and foresee the benefits of the future.  The fight for human rights will never die and to pass on and educate the next generation to continue the fight will keep the fire ignited.

 

Assignment 4

"In a democracy, no one person should wield so much power for so long. Article III of the Constitution provides that federal judges “shall hold their offices during good behavior.” In practice this language means they serve for life absent voluntary retirement or impeachment. Were we to draft the Constitution today, we would be wise to reconsider this provision." Jamal Greene.

In this quote, Jamal Greene is expressing his concern with the Supreme Court judge’s lengthy career with no term limit. But why is he worried? Well he believes that after certain age, a person cannot make the same sound decisions as they would have if the person was younger and vibrant. Basically, as we get old, our bodies and metal state weakens because of the natural process of aging.

One other argument he makes is that "in a democracy, no one person should wield so much power for so long". As the president and others that hold positions of power in the government have terms, he thinks that judges should not be above these term limit. By establishing these laws, we are preventing any abuse of power or not letting someone who has become less capable of making a good decisions because of the natural process of aging to hold the position until they decide not to. He wants the judge to be in the position to protect the laws, not serve the men who placed them in the position.

I chose this quote because of how it is just plain common sense for a modern democracy to have strict term limits. The founding fathers did not create the constitution because they believed that mankind are naturally good, but instead understanding how evil mankind can be. They fled the old world to the new world to pursuit freedom and understood that men cannot be trusted with power for too long. It is mental prison for society to have a person in a position that can stagnates progress because the world is changing as fast as I can type letters in this essay and not to have a new brain in the highest court can be detrimental.  

Assignment 3

“The latent causes of faction are thus sown in the nature of man, and we see them everywhere brought into different degrees of activity, according to the different circumstances of civil society. A zeal for different opinions concerning religion, concerning government, and many other points, as well of speculation and practice; an attachment to different leaders ambitiously contending for pre-eminence and power; or to persons of other descriptions whose fortunes have been interesting to the human passions, have, in turn, divided mankind into parties, inflamed them with mutual animosity, and rendered them much more disposed to vex and oppress each other than to cooperate for their common good.”

The passage explains that men are going to naturally have interest, special interest as said. President Madison explained that it can reach any level of society and the best defense against it is diversity. America is an enormous country that has attracted people from all parts of the world. These people have different background, belief, race and so on, but they are allowed to fight for the right to protect their community. This dynamic in the government has evolved since his time and the battle to maintain a fair society can be difficult because of the power of money. Many Americans have been complaining of the diminishing middle class in the country and that this is allowing the rich 1% to control everybody else.

I chose this passage because of how important it is to us. As I said before, millions traveled to America for freedom and to be able to see their fellow countrymen live in the same spirit. I believe to continue progression and protect the core values of this nation, we need to have a strong middle class that can unite and maintain the balance of power and interest.   

Assignment 2

“In other words most people never challenge their own superficial first impressions and are content with getting by on that. This second reaction he regards as clearly better than aggression or hostility, and argues that under certain conditions amusement can be constructive.” “What is America?” in the book What I Saw in America, by British writer G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936)

My interpretation of what the author is saying is that Americans use superficial stereotypes to a lot of times create a first impression of an individual. This thinking mechanism makes it easier for people to establish a safe opinion that is somewhat generally accepted. He continues to elaborate about people emotions and that using stereotypes makes people feel like they are right and it is sufficient for people to be self-confident. Furthermore, he explains that this type of thinking mechanism can be “constructive” because “it is better than aggression or hostility”.  

I believe the main focus of the passage can be explained by a personal example from our modern day society. Initially when I first moved to New York City at a young age, I became aware of the mass diversity in the city. As I familiarized myself with the residents of the city, I learned of how people perceive each other by stereotypes. Residents are strongly opinionated and most of the time are satisfied with these labels as form of describing someone in a factual manner.  Also these labels can be a form of breaking the ice and it “creates conditions of amusement that can be constructive” as Chesterton said.

I chose this quote because I was fascinated by how people’s ways thinking now are somewhat similar to Chesterton times. This quote relates to the class because I think our politicians use “superficial first impressions” and are “content with getting by with that”.