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:

Analyzing Political Cartoons

Follow this LINK to go to the website we looked at in class today.  (I figured out how to make websites bigger when I want to show you details in the future!)  You can practice with some of the other examples by clicking the 'Test Yourself' Link.  Bring in at least one cartoon next week and we'll look at them together (we'll pair up in groups).  Your presentations will begin in two weeks.

Don't bring your favorite - you don't want to use it up before your project!

Remember when you tell what your Political Cartoon is about and describe what it means I'm only holding you accountable for these techniques:

• Symbolism
• Labeling
• Exaggeration

If you want to on your own you can go further and talk about Analogies and Irony, but it isn't required.  As a quick review of these techniques take a look at the following cartoon  (Please know that I'm new at this, too.  I'm learning right along with you - and you may have better interpretations than me!):

Labeling:  (this is the easy one!)

The ship is 'Big Government', the cargo of the ship has many labels - these all were associated with causes for the current recession, the children have yokes around their necks so that you know who they are 'Future Taxpayers'.

Exaggeration:

The ship is not really out of proportion to the size of the children - ships are large, but when you juxtapose the two together it makes the size of the ship seem larger (or the children seem smaller).  Can you see that?  Is it really possible for children to pull a ship?

Symbolism:  (this is the the hardest one that I am asking you to work with)

The ship labeled 'Big Government' combined with all of the cargo and did you notice President Obama hanging over the bow, yelling?  Together these symbolize Obama's fiscal policy (his government spending).  Things like TARP and stimulus money and bailouts that he's trying to use to get the economy moving.

The children are wearing yokes.  Yokes are used on work animals like horses or oxen to pull things.  The yokes symbolize the tax burden that Obama's fiscal policies are placing on future generations.  (That's you guys in case you were wondering!)

My final Analysis:  President Obama's fiscal policies to get us out of the recession have increased the size of government and placed an impossible tax burden on future generations.  This is what the cartoonist is saying.  Once you understand him or her you can then agree or disagree!

(If you want to talk a bit about irony - notice that the ship is not in an ocean - it's in a desert!)

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?