WEEK NINE - Government Post

This week's theme is all about political ads. You may choose 1 of the following 2 choices. Please do not answer both prompts in your original response, but you may respond to anyone's post, regardless of whether they answered the same prompt you did.

Choice 1: Attack ads are a common and controversial aspect to most political campaigns. Do you believe attack ads are appropriate in campaigns? If so, is there a "line" that shouldn't be crossed? What is that line? Please explain. Then, find an ad from any current campaign (don't limit yourself to the presidential election) on YouTube that exemplifies your definition of an attack ad. Share the link and explain what worked or was inappropriate in the ad.
Choice 2: Campaign managers play an integral role for any political candidate. A successful manager is often rewarded with a position on their candidate's advisory team once that person is in office. Choose any current candidate and find 2 ads that candidate has produced; 1 ad should be one that you deem successful and the other one that you believe needs improvement. Include the links in your post and your analysis of the two ads. Be sure to include what was successful, and why,and what recommendations you would make for future ads. You should write as though you are the campaign manager advising that candidate.

Week 8 - American Government

Check out this series of letters from this Sunday's New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/07/22/opinion/sunday/sunday-dialogue-improving-our-schools.html?pagewanted=1&ref=opinion 

In your post, please consider the following questions:

1. What should the role of the government be in setting educational standards? Should it be done at the local, state, or national level? Should standards be the same in every state or vary based on the needs of individual communities?

2. What role, if any, should standardized tests such as AP, AIMS, SAT, or ACT play in the educational system?

Please be thoughtful and creative in your response! Be sure to fully explain your position.

Week 7 Blog Topic:  Economics

This will be the last Economics topic for the summer.  School starts in four weeks!  I am sure you are just as surprised as me that the summer has gone so fast.

The weeks topic is more general than previous weeks so there may be many answers.  As voters get ready to consider their choice for President of the United States of America (POTUS) it is natural to think about what the most important issue of this campaign is.  For many voters it is the state of the economy.   There is NO single indicator of what makes a healthy economy but several KEY indicators include the unemployment rate, change in GDP, new housing starts, and price index.  There are multiple other factors that can be examined as well.  

The mystery is how to improved these indicators and initiate economic growth.  Throughout the 20th Century there have been two basic economic approaches as far as the government is concerned:  Deficit spending or Free market economics (which can include some help on the supply side).  These two approaches have been explored and promoted by two prominent Economist, Fredrick Hayek and John Maynard Keynes.

What do you think is the right approach in today's world.  Democrats tend to favor job creation, high taxes on the wealthy, and protectionism for American manufacturers, while Republicans are more likely to approve tax breaks to corporations with the hope that new profits will lead to job creations, increased trade, and incentives for private business and individuals to expand their business.  Both approaches, when implemented correctly can lead to economic growth.  

Use the links to below to familiarize yourself with each approach, IT MAY BE HELPFUL TO FIND A FEW OTHERS, and give a description of how your might approach improving the US Economy.  Make sure to explain what impact you hope your plan would have in the SHORT and LONG run.

For fun check out this youtube video highlighting the differences between two very important 20th Century economist.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0nERTFo-Sk

HELPFUL LINKS:

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-keynesian-economics.htm

http://everything.explained.at/Friedrich_Hayek/

http://www.rollingstone.com/politics/blogs/national-affairs/paul-krugman-on-how-to-fix-the-economy-and-why-its-easier-than-you-think-20120502

http://www.npr.org/2012/01/09/144885506/how-do-gop-candidates-plan-to-fix-the-economy

Week 6

Week 6 post is the 2nd of 5 Government post.  Please remember in order for your post to count the first post of the week must be by Wednesday with at least two responses by Friday afternoon.  Please take time to check you work from previous weeks to make sure that you have met the requirements.  By the end of the summer students must respond to 5 posts, 2 Economics, 2 Government and 1 free choice.

 

Power Sharing in American Government

As you begin to read Plain, Honest Men (school begins in 5 weeks! ), you’ll notice that most of the arguments surrounding the Constitution involved the distribution of power. The question of power sharing remains central to American governance today. 

This week, please consider this question: 

Does the United States government appropriately divide power between local, state, and national levels? In your response, please provide examples and detailed explanations. If you believe one level should have more power than it currently does, be sure to defend that stance.

In your response, I also want you to consider the Supreme Court’s decision for the following cases: National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebelius and Arizona v. United States. (The links will send you to the official Supreme Court decision, but feel free to use accredited news sources to help you understand the opinions.) When considering these cases in your response, discuss whether the opinion(s) was appropriate in terms of power distribution only.

In other words, I’m not looking for responses that support or discredit the acts that were considered in these cases. I simply want to know if the Supreme Court made a good decision in terms of whether state or national government acted appropriately.

Economics of Holidays!!!

You may be expecting a blog about the recent landmark Supreme Court decisions, or perhaps President Obama's bold executive order... But those are great topics left of a government week.  Expect them to come soon so make sure you are keeping up with the news!

The topic for this week is a fun one: Supply, Demand, and Holidays. 

This week is, as you know, the annual celebration of our Declaration of Independence from England: The Fourth of July!  We all have our traditions which may include; fireworks, bar-b-ques, picnics, and a plethora of our favorite foods.  From the west coast to the east coast the taste in food varies but there is always FOOD!!!!!  

In addition to food holidays also often include celebrations that may center around gifts, decorations, music, travel and much more.  Have you ever consider what happens if what we expect to be a given around the holiday were to suddenly become less available?  Perhaps even in shortage?  What are we to do in this case?  Pay a higher price, substitute another good, forgo a tradition???

This week I want you to have a little fun and do a little research.  Tell us about a tradition your family has around this holiday, The Fourth of July, or any other holiday that was perhaps altered because of an economics situation.  Maybe there was a shortage of a treasured item (see the articles below) or perhaps there was a shortage of resources (ie, family income) that altered a long standing tradition.  What did you or your family do to make up for the change in the expected?  Included in your description please find supporting evidence to show that the situation was not an isolated event but a situation faced by others across the country.

If you can not recall a personal situation perhaps you can research a time when a holiday was affected by a shortage or a good, economics crisis, or other conditions that impacted traditional holiday celebrations.  

Examples of holiday shortages:
http://www.freep.com/usatoday/article/55946890?odyssey=mod%7Cnewswell%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE%7Cp

http://www.mercurynews.com/top-stories/ci_20976840/global-helium-shortage-threatens-deflate-holiday-parades-parties

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT POST NEED TO BE DATED BY WEDNESDAY OF THE WEEK YOU ARE PARTICIPATING.  RESPONSES NEED TO BE DATED BY THE FRIDAY OF THE WEEK.