Asking the right questions...

I have several goals in teaching this class and one of those goals is in encouraging you to struggle to find the right questions that we as Christians living in America should be asking.  I began the year with that idea when I asked you to read your very first article on American Exceptionalism.

Yesterday during our online class I briefly spoke about my goals for you in the Current Event component of the class.  I'll post a summary of those goals at a later point, but I was surprised when I mentioned the Occupy Wallstreet movement in relation to the First Ammendment and no one had even heard of it.  I hope that you take the time this week to find out what is going on in this movement.  Take a look at their demands HERE.  

Early this morning I watched a documentary film called 'The One Percent'.  (This is available as an Instant Play selection on NetFlix.)  It is not in any way I don't think a part of the Occupy Wallstreet protests - it was released in 2006.  It was made by a grandson of the Johnson and Johnson corporation as he is grappling with being from one of the wealthiest families in our nation and yet he sees the disparity between the wealthy and the poor and realizes that he's a part of that.  I don't know that this film presents any clear answers and I think that's why I like it.  It causes one to ask questions and to struggle with what are the right questions?  There are viewpoints in this film that I clearly disagree with, there are one maybe two viewpoints in this film that I find I do agree with, but that's not the point really.  I like it because it's not propoganda - someone else telling us what we should think - I like it because it's a painful portrayal that puts us face to face with a struggle in our nation and forces us to think about what we believe.  I also like it because of it's relation to a conversation we were having just this week. 

This week we were talking about the struggle that John Adams had in the first congress and what his role in the government was going to be as Vice President.  We talked a bit about why others felt he was making an argument for aristocracy and why America  and Americans were so opposed to the idea of aristocracy.  This film talks about aristocracy, and one of the questions we might ask is, is the idea of aristocracy still a repugnant idea in America?

This film plays into our economic discussions as well.  We will talk more about free markets and more about the differences between capitalism and socialism.  There is a reference in this film to 'Progressivism'.  That is an idea that we will begin next year with - as we look at Roosevelt's 'New Deal'.  I'm still struggling to figure out exactly what it means and what the implications of it are.

If you do watch it (and I hope you will) keep in mind it's POV (point of view) - who it was made by, why it was made, and what do you think he's trying to accomplish.  Do you think he answered any of his own questions - how is it going to change how he lives his life?  There are several men in this film that he could use as role models (sons born into wealthy corporations) - who do you think a good one might be?  Does it change how you view your future at all?  What's the goal of your education?  What's the responsibility of being a Christian in America?

You could look at the drastic contrast between this film and his life and choices with those of this young girl who has written a book that has been on the NY Times Best Seller list for 12 weeks now:

Alabama Immigration Law - State Laws vs. Federal Laws

One of the major points of conflict in the writing and ratification of the Constitution is State's Rights vs. Federal Powers.  Whose laws are preeminent?  Did you think this issue was resovled way back in the 1780s?  Maybe you thought it wasn't resolved until after the Civil War?  Well, it's still not resolved!  The following Federal Court Case regarding Alabama's Immigration Law that they passed this week is a case in point.  This case may quickly wind up in the Supreme Court, and it may be one of the biggest Supreme Court Decisions in our lifetime.  Here is an excerpt from an article in the NY Times:

(Alabama students protesting the Federal Court's ruling)

A federal judge on Wednesday upheld most of the sections of Alabama’s far-reaching immigration law that had been challenged by the Obama administration, including portions that had been blocked in other states.
The decision, by Judge Sharon Lovelace Blackburn of Federal District Court in Birmingham, makes it much more likely that the fate of the recent flurry of state laws against illegal immigration will eventually be decided by the Supreme Court. It also means that Alabama now has by far the strictest such law of any state.  (Read the rest of the article HERE.)

Ground Zero

If you remember 10 years ago this day at all your memories may be vague ones.  I hope, though, that as you look at this picture of our President and former President side by side and reflect on the meaning of this day, you realize how blessed we are to live in a country where political power is transferred from one President to another peacefully. 

Our presidents willingly give up their power as the head of our nation because of words written on paper over 200 years ago.  Words that you are now watching being birthed in your reading.  We and our fellow citizens may have strong feelings toward these men, but they are standing at the end of a long line of men leading all the way back to President Washington and those who governed under the Articles of Confederation before him. 

You are listening  to the stories of Oliver Cromwell and the English  kings who came before and after him over the next two weeks.  When you read of General Washington kneeling before Congress surrendering his army at the end of the Revolutionary war and refusing more than two terms in office, remember the stories of Cromwell and the kings.  Remember too, the story of these two men - Obama and Bush.  It was Washington's surrender more than two hundred years ago which birthed this picture.

Tick Tock the National Debt Clock

We are all aware of the current debate over the national debt limit.  Current events will be a strong component of this class, and as this topic is likely to go on through the fall I would like my students to take a look at it now.  This is also a thread that we will follow through the history readings in our text (it is not a new debate) and will be a portion of the economics segment of the class. 

 

Take a look at the counter for the US National Debt.  It is  a bit overwhelming to look at - there are many different counters on this page, but if you look in the top left corner, the second number down is the number we are all interested in titled 'US National Debt'.

  

To help students understand such large numbers I have located two videos on YouTube:

 

What is a Billion?

 

 

How much is a trillion?