When I first began bidding on e-bay I expected a barrage of competing bidders. I sat there waiting for about two hours anticipating other bids, but none came. I ended up winning a new pair of Emerica skate shoes for only $25.00, and soon after I won a cool retro videogame from the good old Playstation 1 days called, Wild 9, for only $3.00 with tax. The entire process was so easy, using a credit card in general makes it seem as if you aren’t spending money, and by using e-bay, it makes it easier to spend large amounts of money. Everything is less expensive than it is in stores so buyers feel more comfortable spending money and can easily end up buying more than they had planned. After buying the shoes I browsed around a bit more and found many things that I had not wanted before-hand, and had to restrain myself from buying any more.
I felt limitless, the site had everything that I could ever want at lower prices. It perfectly represents the system of capitalism and demonstrates the microcosmic variables that make up our capitalist society. Individuals auction off their stuff to others through the website like small businesses, but the whole thing is owned by somebody with the money and the power. People operate within the system to make money because anything outside of that system is unreliable. Who do the people trust more, some guy selling his old shoes or good old reliable Nike, a company that assures convenience and perfection. E-bay is even more convenient than shopping at actual stores, for one, you don’t even need to leave your home to buy stuff, you can just open up your laptop and listen to music while you fritter your hard earned money away on more stuff that seems cool at the time.
When I used e-bay I didn’t go in wanting anything, but once I looked at the site and saw all of the crap that I could buy more and more things captured my interest. Like in any market certain items are more scarce than others, so the sellers try to sell non-commodities. This scarcity can also increase the amount of time people spend on E-bay so they feel the need to be hardwired to their computers in search of more stuff.
The ability to buy and sell also gives people a feeling of control, a feeling that they aren’t entirely helpless against the almighty power of the rich business owners. Like the power granted us by the constitution, we have a collective potential only attainable through mass cooperation. E-bay and Pay-pal are both owned by the same group of individuals who just sit back and reap the riches while buyers and sellers work within the system. E-bay perpetuates our lack of power, the individual has no control over the system, but the rich owners of e-bay get progressively wealthier while the general population simultaneously becomes poorer. By operating within the parameters of capitalism we spin further out of control.
Friday, December 19, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Part 6: The res of the constitution
Part C: Part 5:
The 11th Amendment says that state is separate from the federal government so individual states cannot be sued by another state or foreign countries. The federal government only has the constitution to regulate each states general rights. Many of our unwritten rights can be turned into state law because they lie outside the constitution. So state government is far more powerful when it comes down to the individual, whereas the federal government has more overall control of the country’s direction.
The passing of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments are referred to as major turning points in US history. Both slavery and involuntary servitude were outlawed by the 13th Amendment, and the 14th Amendment granted citizens the rights of citizenship, the right to be counted equally in the census, and validated public debt. The 15th Amendment granted people of any race or color the right to vote. The 19th Amendment finalized all peoples right to vote by allowing women the right to vote. Although the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, it pretty much left them to work more menial jobs with very little pay, and continued the reign of the white man. While this was a big step it hardly corrected the wrongdoing and blacks were still in a tremendous deficit having no capitol to start anew. Other than that however, these three Amendments helped to change America into the more equal and fair country that it supposedly is today.
During a time when white, male supremacy was still openly celebrated, why did these obviously opposing pieces of legislation pass? When the Union defeated the Confederate states slavery came crashing down and with it much of the confederacy’s old way of life. While mentalities cannot be changed by force, legislation can, so the Union army followed through with their cause and outlawed slavery. The 15th Amendment, which was passed in 1870, provided blacks the right to vote. This occurred five years after African Americans were granted freedom, so it must have taken a little while for people to warm up to the idea of blacks voting. Legislation such as the 13th and 15th Amendments were passes when they were because of the outcome of the civil war an the majorities belief that blacks should not be enslaved and deprived of the right to vote even though they were technically US citizens.
The government does similar things to make it seem as if they are trying to create equality. For example, the fourteenth Amendment states that all persons born or naturalized in the US are citizens of the state in which they reside. No state may pass legislation limiting the privileges or immunities of citizens. This puts us all on the same level with the same rights. The fact that there is no religious test required to get into any political office also makes it seem as if we have tried to create equality. But these two things do not “guarantee a vision of a diverse and equitable society with no government discrimination.” Sure we all have the same rights but not the same liberties and opportunities. The government often discriminates against people of certain racial backgrounds and social standings so they are not given an equal chance to exercise these rights. The elections of 2000 and 2004 are perfect examples of this. The poor and poorly educated are less likely to be as well informed about elections. We end up with far more class discrimination because of rich politicians who have never suffered from economic difficulties. This is ultimately race discrimination because the sad fact of the matter is that African Americans and Hispanics tend to have less money and worse educations than whites. So even while discrimination is outlawed in government it sneaks through the cracks and is let out into America.
Part 6: The Rest of the Constitution
Paraphrase:
11th Amendment: State is separate from the federal government so individual states cannot be sued by another state or foreign countries.
12th Amendment: Election of the President/ Vice President: Electors meet in respective states and vote for a president and vice president, one of whom shall not be an inhabitant of their state. That is then sent to the House of Reps. Where it is then voted upon, and whichever candidate receives the most votes shall become president.
13th Amendment: Slavery and Involuntary Servitude: Slavery is illegal, Americans may not be held against their will unless convicted of a crime.
14th Amendment: Rights of Citizenship: All persons born or naturalized in the US are citizens of the state in which they reside. No state may pass legislation limiting the privileges or immunities of citizens.
Reps shall be apportioned throughout several states.
Public debt is valid and will be paid.
Congress may do whatever necessary to ensure that Americans follow through with this Amendment.
15th and 19th Amendments: Right to Vote-Race, Color, sex, Servitude: The right to vote shall not be denied any US citizen. Congress may enforce this article by appropriate legislation. (This Amendment protects the right to vote for all US citizens regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion, sex, or previous condition of servitude.)
16th Amendment: Income Tax: Congress has the right to collect income tax. (This Amendment helps to fund the country and any actions it takes)
17th Amendment: Popular Election of Senators: Senate is composed of two senators from each state elected by the people, each of whom will serve for six years. If the a member of senate dies the governor shall elect another person to senate until an election can be held.
20th Amendment: Commencement of Terms; Sessions of Congress; Death or Disqualification of President-Elect: The terms of the President and Vice president end on the January 20th, and the term any member of senate shall end on January 3rd. The terms of their successors shall begin upon their dismissal.
21st Amendment: Repeal of Prohibition: Repealed the 18th Amendment. States may control the regulation of alcohol.
22nd Amendment: No person may be elected president more than twice.
23rd Amendment: Presidential Electors for the District of Columbia:
24th Amendments: Right to Vote in Federal Elections- Tax Payment: Any citizen can vote in any primary or other election.
25th Amendment: Presidential Succession, Vice Presidential Vacancy, Presidential Inability:
26th Amendments: Right to Vote-Age: You must be 18 years old to vote.
27th Amendment: Congressional Pay: Congress can vote to increase their pay.
D: Part 7: Thinking Further:
1.) Given the distinction between a constitutional Amendment and a law- if you had the influence how would you amend the constitution?
I would amend the constitution in circumstance under which it is ok to bear arms. The constitution provides us the right to have guns so that we may be prepared to form a well organized militia, not just to have and use guns whenever we see fit. We should still be able to have guns, because we still need to be able to maintain a degree of power, but not have the liberty to go to shooting ranges or hunt. We don’t need to hunt anymore, we have supermarkets to supply us with meat, and the likelihood of some grand scale rebellion is, from what I can tell, quite slim.
2.) , 3.) And 4.)
I do believe that the initial intent of the constitution was far different than the ways that it has been used. I believe that it is supposed to create a system where everyone has control and can incorporate their own opinion into the politics. I believe that now people and ideals have become very split, and individuals work less towards the greater good and more for selfish individual causes that at many times make a mockery out of the constitution. The government tends to betray their own democratic ideals which nullifies much credibility in their actions
The first Amendment provides us with the right to freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. It provides us with a system of checks and balances, we have the right to exercise our own opinion in a non-violent manner so that if the government does overstep their boundaries at any point we have the right to respond. This is one of the beauties of our government.
Another part of what makes this system so great is the twelfth Amendment which only lets a president serve for only two, four year terms. It makes it so that once person does not maintain power over the country like a dictatorship. Without this Amendment we would most likely be forced to live under a power not our own, and the people would have no power to change the person in power. Also, thanks to the tenth Amendment the states can pass whatever legislation they want as long as doesn’t contradict the constitution.
The fourteenth Amendment also gives anyone born or naturalized in the US the rights of a US citizen. This does not place anyone above another and creates uniformity. This also means that no one of any different race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual identification can be deprived of the rights granted any US citizen.
However there are many contradictions in the US constitution that deal with semantics and cut legislative corners to give the government greater control than our founding fathers may have intended. As I stated earlier the first Amendment gives any US citizen the right to freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. Our government however has, on multiple occasions stripped US citizens of this right. Rage Against the Machine, a popular American band, held a show in front of the democratic national convention in 2000. The state allowed them to hold a protest concert across the street from the DNC. Their show was not violent, just enraged as the band’s name states. Although no actual violence had occurred, the police, clad in riot gear with tear gas, guns with rubber bullets, and horses retaliated. People were shot with rubber bullets, trampled by horses, and beaten by police officers. Later on the policeman in charge of the attack said that they were “gravely concerned because of security reasons.” This infringed upon our rights as US citizens to speak and be peacefully enraged with something that angered them.
In the 2000 and 2004 elections George W. Bush won. In the first election, Bush’s brother changed the voter requirements saying that voters needed special ID’s and pass codes to validate them as US citizens so that they could quell the large majority of blacks and Hispanics in more impoverished areas were either uninformed or unable to meet the ridiculous deadlines. The same happened in 2004. Both times American people were deprived of their right to peacefully express their opinions. If the government can so easily get away with atrocities such as these then what liberties do we really have.
Ultimately the government usually ends up displaying a by the book image while simultaneously they find any loophole they can to try and get their political rhetoric passed. We however have little power as a result and the constitution is not obeyed.
The 11th Amendment says that state is separate from the federal government so individual states cannot be sued by another state or foreign countries. The federal government only has the constitution to regulate each states general rights. Many of our unwritten rights can be turned into state law because they lie outside the constitution. So state government is far more powerful when it comes down to the individual, whereas the federal government has more overall control of the country’s direction.
The passing of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments are referred to as major turning points in US history. Both slavery and involuntary servitude were outlawed by the 13th Amendment, and the 14th Amendment granted citizens the rights of citizenship, the right to be counted equally in the census, and validated public debt. The 15th Amendment granted people of any race or color the right to vote. The 19th Amendment finalized all peoples right to vote by allowing women the right to vote. Although the 13th Amendment abolished slavery, it pretty much left them to work more menial jobs with very little pay, and continued the reign of the white man. While this was a big step it hardly corrected the wrongdoing and blacks were still in a tremendous deficit having no capitol to start anew. Other than that however, these three Amendments helped to change America into the more equal and fair country that it supposedly is today.
During a time when white, male supremacy was still openly celebrated, why did these obviously opposing pieces of legislation pass? When the Union defeated the Confederate states slavery came crashing down and with it much of the confederacy’s old way of life. While mentalities cannot be changed by force, legislation can, so the Union army followed through with their cause and outlawed slavery. The 15th Amendment, which was passed in 1870, provided blacks the right to vote. This occurred five years after African Americans were granted freedom, so it must have taken a little while for people to warm up to the idea of blacks voting. Legislation such as the 13th and 15th Amendments were passes when they were because of the outcome of the civil war an the majorities belief that blacks should not be enslaved and deprived of the right to vote even though they were technically US citizens.
The government does similar things to make it seem as if they are trying to create equality. For example, the fourteenth Amendment states that all persons born or naturalized in the US are citizens of the state in which they reside. No state may pass legislation limiting the privileges or immunities of citizens. This puts us all on the same level with the same rights. The fact that there is no religious test required to get into any political office also makes it seem as if we have tried to create equality. But these two things do not “guarantee a vision of a diverse and equitable society with no government discrimination.” Sure we all have the same rights but not the same liberties and opportunities. The government often discriminates against people of certain racial backgrounds and social standings so they are not given an equal chance to exercise these rights. The elections of 2000 and 2004 are perfect examples of this. The poor and poorly educated are less likely to be as well informed about elections. We end up with far more class discrimination because of rich politicians who have never suffered from economic difficulties. This is ultimately race discrimination because the sad fact of the matter is that African Americans and Hispanics tend to have less money and worse educations than whites. So even while discrimination is outlawed in government it sneaks through the cracks and is let out into America.
Part 6: The Rest of the Constitution
Paraphrase:
11th Amendment: State is separate from the federal government so individual states cannot be sued by another state or foreign countries.
12th Amendment: Election of the President/ Vice President: Electors meet in respective states and vote for a president and vice president, one of whom shall not be an inhabitant of their state. That is then sent to the House of Reps. Where it is then voted upon, and whichever candidate receives the most votes shall become president.
13th Amendment: Slavery and Involuntary Servitude: Slavery is illegal, Americans may not be held against their will unless convicted of a crime.
14th Amendment: Rights of Citizenship: All persons born or naturalized in the US are citizens of the state in which they reside. No state may pass legislation limiting the privileges or immunities of citizens.
Reps shall be apportioned throughout several states.
Public debt is valid and will be paid.
Congress may do whatever necessary to ensure that Americans follow through with this Amendment.
15th and 19th Amendments: Right to Vote-Race, Color, sex, Servitude: The right to vote shall not be denied any US citizen. Congress may enforce this article by appropriate legislation. (This Amendment protects the right to vote for all US citizens regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion, sex, or previous condition of servitude.)
16th Amendment: Income Tax: Congress has the right to collect income tax. (This Amendment helps to fund the country and any actions it takes)
17th Amendment: Popular Election of Senators: Senate is composed of two senators from each state elected by the people, each of whom will serve for six years. If the a member of senate dies the governor shall elect another person to senate until an election can be held.
20th Amendment: Commencement of Terms; Sessions of Congress; Death or Disqualification of President-Elect: The terms of the President and Vice president end on the January 20th, and the term any member of senate shall end on January 3rd. The terms of their successors shall begin upon their dismissal.
21st Amendment: Repeal of Prohibition: Repealed the 18th Amendment. States may control the regulation of alcohol.
22nd Amendment: No person may be elected president more than twice.
23rd Amendment: Presidential Electors for the District of Columbia:
24th Amendments: Right to Vote in Federal Elections- Tax Payment: Any citizen can vote in any primary or other election.
25th Amendment: Presidential Succession, Vice Presidential Vacancy, Presidential Inability:
26th Amendments: Right to Vote-Age: You must be 18 years old to vote.
27th Amendment: Congressional Pay: Congress can vote to increase their pay.
D: Part 7: Thinking Further:
1.) Given the distinction between a constitutional Amendment and a law- if you had the influence how would you amend the constitution?
I would amend the constitution in circumstance under which it is ok to bear arms. The constitution provides us the right to have guns so that we may be prepared to form a well organized militia, not just to have and use guns whenever we see fit. We should still be able to have guns, because we still need to be able to maintain a degree of power, but not have the liberty to go to shooting ranges or hunt. We don’t need to hunt anymore, we have supermarkets to supply us with meat, and the likelihood of some grand scale rebellion is, from what I can tell, quite slim.
2.) , 3.) And 4.)
I do believe that the initial intent of the constitution was far different than the ways that it has been used. I believe that it is supposed to create a system where everyone has control and can incorporate their own opinion into the politics. I believe that now people and ideals have become very split, and individuals work less towards the greater good and more for selfish individual causes that at many times make a mockery out of the constitution. The government tends to betray their own democratic ideals which nullifies much credibility in their actions
The first Amendment provides us with the right to freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. It provides us with a system of checks and balances, we have the right to exercise our own opinion in a non-violent manner so that if the government does overstep their boundaries at any point we have the right to respond. This is one of the beauties of our government.
Another part of what makes this system so great is the twelfth Amendment which only lets a president serve for only two, four year terms. It makes it so that once person does not maintain power over the country like a dictatorship. Without this Amendment we would most likely be forced to live under a power not our own, and the people would have no power to change the person in power. Also, thanks to the tenth Amendment the states can pass whatever legislation they want as long as doesn’t contradict the constitution.
The fourteenth Amendment also gives anyone born or naturalized in the US the rights of a US citizen. This does not place anyone above another and creates uniformity. This also means that no one of any different race, ethnicity, religion, or sexual identification can be deprived of the rights granted any US citizen.
However there are many contradictions in the US constitution that deal with semantics and cut legislative corners to give the government greater control than our founding fathers may have intended. As I stated earlier the first Amendment gives any US citizen the right to freedom of speech, religion, press, assembly, and petition. Our government however has, on multiple occasions stripped US citizens of this right. Rage Against the Machine, a popular American band, held a show in front of the democratic national convention in 2000. The state allowed them to hold a protest concert across the street from the DNC. Their show was not violent, just enraged as the band’s name states. Although no actual violence had occurred, the police, clad in riot gear with tear gas, guns with rubber bullets, and horses retaliated. People were shot with rubber bullets, trampled by horses, and beaten by police officers. Later on the policeman in charge of the attack said that they were “gravely concerned because of security reasons.” This infringed upon our rights as US citizens to speak and be peacefully enraged with something that angered them.
In the 2000 and 2004 elections George W. Bush won. In the first election, Bush’s brother changed the voter requirements saying that voters needed special ID’s and pass codes to validate them as US citizens so that they could quell the large majority of blacks and Hispanics in more impoverished areas were either uninformed or unable to meet the ridiculous deadlines. The same happened in 2004. Both times American people were deprived of their right to peacefully express their opinions. If the government can so easily get away with atrocities such as these then what liberties do we really have.
Ultimately the government usually ends up displaying a by the book image while simultaneously they find any loophole they can to try and get their political rhetoric passed. We however have little power as a result and the constitution is not obeyed.
Part 4: The Bill of Rights
Part 4: The Bill of Rights
Paraphrase:
First Amendment: Freedom of religion, press, assembly, and petition: congress may not interfere with any of these rights.
Second Amendment: Each state can maintain a militia, and has the right to bear arms.
Third Amendment: Soldiers may not take refuge in any house without the consent of the owner.
Fourth Amendment: A person’s house or property may not be subject to unreasonable searches without a warrant.
Fifth Amendment: People cannot be tried unless they have been formally indicted or accused by a grand jury. They cannot be tried twice for the same crime. They cannot be required to give evidence against themselves. Everyone is entitled to the due process of the law.
Sixth Amendment: The accused has a right to a speedy and public trial by an unbiased jury in the state in which the crime was committed. Witnesses must be obtained through a compulsory process.
Seventh Amendment: Only in Civil cases that do not involve criminal behavior, a jury is allowed only in cases involving more than 20 dollars, unless both parties agree to waive that right.
Eighth Amendment: Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.
Ninth Amendment: If a right is not listed in the constitution it does not mean we do not have that right.
Tenth Amendment: The states can do anything outside of the parameters of the constitution.
There are a few things that I would like to clarify about the constitution:
The Second Amendment states that “ A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The Constitution provides people the right to bear arms with only under the premise that they be used, if need be, in a militia with the intention of maintaining the security of the state. We do have the right to have guns so that we could potentially fight for the security a state, but nowhere does it say that we have the right to use them for sport, target practice or hunting. During the time when the constitution was written people did not have the liberty of calling a police officer, someone who helps to protect the laws and rights provided by each state. We no longer need to defend ourselves in such a manner, technically we have people do that for us. If anything this amendment provides us to have guns and use them in an organized militia under no other circumstance.
A person’s right to privacy, provided by the Fourth Amendment is often infringed upon. Ever since the terrorist attack on the world trade center the police have began searched bags in the subway, airports, and in libraries. One could say that those individual places have the right to search because their property is at risk of damage or one person’s bad decision could harm others. However they infringe on our right to privacy by checking peoples bags and just like the people that check the bags we have as much of a right to keep our property safe as they do to check our bags.
The Sixth and Seventh Amendments provide insight into the American peoples fear of a government that can wrongfully arrest innocent people. They show our fear of becoming a dictatorship similar to the previous power that had once controlled the people of the US. A person could, legally, rot in a prison cell or be tortured, but our founding fathers wanted to disallow such atrocities.
The US has, in multiple ways, infringed upon the rights granted us by the Eighth Amendment. The US government, throughout history, has allowed cruel punishment such as the electric chair, lethal injection, and hanging. Seeing as there is no one definition of cruel, for what is cruel to one person could easily vary with what may be considered cruel to another. So any of those supposedly more humane executions are equally cruel as torture.
The Ninth Amendment is interesting in comparison to the rest of the Amendments because it reminds us where our rights ultimately come from. Aside from the rights granted us by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, we have unwritten rights that need not be written. These rights are not written the government, they are written by the people. Breathing and eating are perfect examples of these undocumented rights. Even abortion should technically be allowed because the only possible argument against allowing it is a religious one. Since legally religion cannot play a part in the government we should be allowed the right to abortion in every state. The fact is legislation originates in the minds of the people and rights are more important than tradition.
Paraphrase:
First Amendment: Freedom of religion, press, assembly, and petition: congress may not interfere with any of these rights.
Second Amendment: Each state can maintain a militia, and has the right to bear arms.
Third Amendment: Soldiers may not take refuge in any house without the consent of the owner.
Fourth Amendment: A person’s house or property may not be subject to unreasonable searches without a warrant.
Fifth Amendment: People cannot be tried unless they have been formally indicted or accused by a grand jury. They cannot be tried twice for the same crime. They cannot be required to give evidence against themselves. Everyone is entitled to the due process of the law.
Sixth Amendment: The accused has a right to a speedy and public trial by an unbiased jury in the state in which the crime was committed. Witnesses must be obtained through a compulsory process.
Seventh Amendment: Only in Civil cases that do not involve criminal behavior, a jury is allowed only in cases involving more than 20 dollars, unless both parties agree to waive that right.
Eighth Amendment: Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted.
Ninth Amendment: If a right is not listed in the constitution it does not mean we do not have that right.
Tenth Amendment: The states can do anything outside of the parameters of the constitution.
There are a few things that I would like to clarify about the constitution:
The Second Amendment states that “ A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.” The Constitution provides people the right to bear arms with only under the premise that they be used, if need be, in a militia with the intention of maintaining the security of the state. We do have the right to have guns so that we could potentially fight for the security a state, but nowhere does it say that we have the right to use them for sport, target practice or hunting. During the time when the constitution was written people did not have the liberty of calling a police officer, someone who helps to protect the laws and rights provided by each state. We no longer need to defend ourselves in such a manner, technically we have people do that for us. If anything this amendment provides us to have guns and use them in an organized militia under no other circumstance.
A person’s right to privacy, provided by the Fourth Amendment is often infringed upon. Ever since the terrorist attack on the world trade center the police have began searched bags in the subway, airports, and in libraries. One could say that those individual places have the right to search because their property is at risk of damage or one person’s bad decision could harm others. However they infringe on our right to privacy by checking peoples bags and just like the people that check the bags we have as much of a right to keep our property safe as they do to check our bags.
The Sixth and Seventh Amendments provide insight into the American peoples fear of a government that can wrongfully arrest innocent people. They show our fear of becoming a dictatorship similar to the previous power that had once controlled the people of the US. A person could, legally, rot in a prison cell or be tortured, but our founding fathers wanted to disallow such atrocities.
The US has, in multiple ways, infringed upon the rights granted us by the Eighth Amendment. The US government, throughout history, has allowed cruel punishment such as the electric chair, lethal injection, and hanging. Seeing as there is no one definition of cruel, for what is cruel to one person could easily vary with what may be considered cruel to another. So any of those supposedly more humane executions are equally cruel as torture.
The Ninth Amendment is interesting in comparison to the rest of the Amendments because it reminds us where our rights ultimately come from. Aside from the rights granted us by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, we have unwritten rights that need not be written. These rights are not written the government, they are written by the people. Breathing and eating are perfect examples of these undocumented rights. Even abortion should technically be allowed because the only possible argument against allowing it is a religious one. Since legally religion cannot play a part in the government we should be allowed the right to abortion in every state. The fact is legislation originates in the minds of the people and rights are more important than tradition.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Thanksgiving: Anecdote &Analysis, and Wal-mart Stampede
Dylan LaPointe 12/2/2008
Thanksgiving: Anecdote & Analysis and Wal-mart Stampede
I ate Thanksgiving dinner with my friends family, and surprisingly enough (sarcasm) little thanks or conversation were exchanged. The second my friends dad, a husky white man with a bad smokers cough, finished saying grace, everyone started eating. Everywhere around me were traditional holiday dishes; various kinds of squash, brussel sprouts and onions sautéed in oil and garlic, mashed potatoes, and right smack in the middle of the table, a big fat and thanksgiving turkey. My friend later commented on the meal saying that all he saw was “ a lot of left overs.”
For the duration of the meal, there was little exchange of conversation, except for the occasional “foods great syd,” a comment that came from exclusively my parents and I. At one point however, my friend’s dad stopped the meal to show everybody a song dedicated to my friend… on his expensive sound system that, five minutes before, he had been blaring “Master and Commander” on. The moment was touching I admit. For a man who hasn’t, on any occasion, uttered one positive word to his son, it was a big step.
After everybody stuffed themselves with stuffing, my friends mom packed the remainder of the food into Tupperware, and desert cam out. My friend and I left the room, too full to eat anything. My friend decided to play grand theft Auto Vice City on his new laptop while I sat on the other side of the room strumming on his unused acoustic guitar… and once again, no talking occurred.
Thanksgiving is that one special time of year where you can sit around with your family and get fat off of large amounts of flavorless, genetically enhanced turkey. In fact it’s such a valuable holiday, so choc full of thanks that stores skipped it and went straight to the biggest consumer holiday of the year, SPOILYOURKIDSWITHTHINGSTHEYDON’TNEED Day… I mean Christmas. We have become such a consumer society that we practically skip holidays that don’t involve getting stuff. Stores actually skipped the Thanksgiving decorations and put up the Santa decorations, only further promoting obesity to children. (If Santa can weigh a half a ton and still give kids gifts around the world, I want to be obese too.) Thanksgivings purpose has depreciated, any reminiscence of thanks and giving has long since withered away with the turkeys flavor. In school people spoke of what they would pile on their plates, not who they were thankful for. My friend wanted nothing more than to just smoke pot with his friends.
As a child I recall hearing that thanksgiving was the day that the pilgrims sat down with the Indians and settled all differences. Even if the pilgrims sat down and ate with the natives, they ended up raping and pillaging them soon after. One of two questions should be asked: Why do we celebrate genocide in a country where people supposedly are more humane? And, Who is teaching our children this PG version? If the goal of this holiday is to give thanks for the ones one loves, then people should get their mind of their already bloated stomachs and give thanks.
In school I was questioned as to why holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas? Recently a man was killed in a greed stampede to get to the TV’s at Wal-mart. Even when the paramedics came to try and save the man, people kept on shoving past just trying to get to one of Wal-marts many sales. It is this sort of rampant consumerism that truly disgusts me. The Christmas season has been inextricably linked (thanks to the media) to shopping, spending, and buying. “Make sure you get your shopping done before it’s too late,” say the advertisements. Christmas shopping has been made into an obligation, something one “must” get done. People are bent on buying for others, not out of the kindness in their heart but because they need to, and because if they don’t get people stuff, others will be less inclined to give them stuff.
People also tend to do a lot of their Christmas shopping at places such as Wal-mart. They buy there simply because it is cheap. Never mind the commonly known and widely accredited fact that they exploit cheap foreign labor from China. People are willing to support others pain as long as it gives them five minutes of happiness because they got a videogame that they wanted. “Well at least they give us low prices so we can buy more stuff for less."
Thanksgiving: Anecdote & Analysis and Wal-mart Stampede
I ate Thanksgiving dinner with my friends family, and surprisingly enough (sarcasm) little thanks or conversation were exchanged. The second my friends dad, a husky white man with a bad smokers cough, finished saying grace, everyone started eating. Everywhere around me were traditional holiday dishes; various kinds of squash, brussel sprouts and onions sautéed in oil and garlic, mashed potatoes, and right smack in the middle of the table, a big fat and thanksgiving turkey. My friend later commented on the meal saying that all he saw was “ a lot of left overs.”
For the duration of the meal, there was little exchange of conversation, except for the occasional “foods great syd,” a comment that came from exclusively my parents and I. At one point however, my friend’s dad stopped the meal to show everybody a song dedicated to my friend… on his expensive sound system that, five minutes before, he had been blaring “Master and Commander” on. The moment was touching I admit. For a man who hasn’t, on any occasion, uttered one positive word to his son, it was a big step.
After everybody stuffed themselves with stuffing, my friends mom packed the remainder of the food into Tupperware, and desert cam out. My friend and I left the room, too full to eat anything. My friend decided to play grand theft Auto Vice City on his new laptop while I sat on the other side of the room strumming on his unused acoustic guitar… and once again, no talking occurred.
Thanksgiving is that one special time of year where you can sit around with your family and get fat off of large amounts of flavorless, genetically enhanced turkey. In fact it’s such a valuable holiday, so choc full of thanks that stores skipped it and went straight to the biggest consumer holiday of the year, SPOILYOURKIDSWITHTHINGSTHEYDON’TNEED Day… I mean Christmas. We have become such a consumer society that we practically skip holidays that don’t involve getting stuff. Stores actually skipped the Thanksgiving decorations and put up the Santa decorations, only further promoting obesity to children. (If Santa can weigh a half a ton and still give kids gifts around the world, I want to be obese too.) Thanksgivings purpose has depreciated, any reminiscence of thanks and giving has long since withered away with the turkeys flavor. In school people spoke of what they would pile on their plates, not who they were thankful for. My friend wanted nothing more than to just smoke pot with his friends.
As a child I recall hearing that thanksgiving was the day that the pilgrims sat down with the Indians and settled all differences. Even if the pilgrims sat down and ate with the natives, they ended up raping and pillaging them soon after. One of two questions should be asked: Why do we celebrate genocide in a country where people supposedly are more humane? And, Who is teaching our children this PG version? If the goal of this holiday is to give thanks for the ones one loves, then people should get their mind of their already bloated stomachs and give thanks.
In school I was questioned as to why holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas? Recently a man was killed in a greed stampede to get to the TV’s at Wal-mart. Even when the paramedics came to try and save the man, people kept on shoving past just trying to get to one of Wal-marts many sales. It is this sort of rampant consumerism that truly disgusts me. The Christmas season has been inextricably linked (thanks to the media) to shopping, spending, and buying. “Make sure you get your shopping done before it’s too late,” say the advertisements. Christmas shopping has been made into an obligation, something one “must” get done. People are bent on buying for others, not out of the kindness in their heart but because they need to, and because if they don’t get people stuff, others will be less inclined to give them stuff.
People also tend to do a lot of their Christmas shopping at places such as Wal-mart. They buy there simply because it is cheap. Never mind the commonly known and widely accredited fact that they exploit cheap foreign labor from China. People are willing to support others pain as long as it gives them five minutes of happiness because they got a videogame that they wanted. “Well at least they give us low prices so we can buy more stuff for less."
Parts A and B
Dylan LaPointe 12/2/2008
A: Part 1: Preamble:
Paraphrase: We Americans, have created this constitution in order to uphold each individuals promise to uphold the law, maintain social peace, join the armed forces if need be, and keep liberty to ourselves.
Ideas and Skepticism: The government claims that it derives it’s power from the people, and to a degree that is true, but we are only given the right to elect a government official. The government has the rest of the power, so they can direct our country more or less without the consent of the citizens.
Reading further into the constitution, our founding fathers go into great detail to talk of each officials rights and restrictions. There is a great imbalance here, the section that talks about us is disproportionate to that of the government. Pretty much the American people are expected to be little sycophants, maintaining the word of the government despite whether or not they agree with them. It forgets to mention the premise upon which this government was founded.
Part 2: Articles 1-3 of the Constitution:
Why does the age of qualification vary for each official?
B: Part 3: Articles 4-7 of the Constitution:
Article IV: Section 1: Full Faith and Credit:
Paraphrase: Congress makes sure that each state respects the actions of others.
What does that mean for gay marriage?
If each state is to respect the legal actions of others, then unless there is an overall majority shift in favor of abortion, then no new legislation can be passed so gay marriage would remain unlawful. Also with this law states technically cannot change the first laws unless congress gives consent.
Why is: “ No person held to… may be due,” significant?
Paraphrase: If a slave escapes, they will not go back to work, but their owners may decide to put them back to work.
Slaves had absolutely no chance at achieving freedom during this time. Even if they managed to escape, they would most likely to be forced to work for their owners once again.
Article V: No amendment may be passed that affects the first and fourth amendments in the ninth section of the first article. The first amendment of section nine states that slavery could not be prohibited by Congress until 1808. This law pretty much permitted slavery in the U.S. until 1808. The 4th Amendment of the 9th section of Article 1 outlawed all direct taxes on individuals. Both of these Amendments were pretty much cut out of the constitution?
The process by which something is amended:
Two thirds of congress propose an amendment ‡ Congress calls a convention ‡ Must be ratified by three fourths of the states
Article VI:
The constitution is the supreme law of the land. Officials are bound by oath to support the constitution. No religious test is required. The religious test clause serves to supposedly not promote religious homogeneity. Mostly it is just there to appease people other religious faiths so it at least makes it look like our government is trying.
Article VII:
Nine states need to support the constitution for it to be ratified. At the time only thirteen states existed, but one could see how this could grow to be a problem. As the number of states increased support for the constitution may have changed, and if only nine states out of 50 support the constitution then that’s 41 dissatisfied states. Many now say that several of our rights are time bound and may have been suitable in the past but currently do not apply to our way of life. This is one of those things that does not work with modern society.
A: Part 1: Preamble:
Paraphrase: We Americans, have created this constitution in order to uphold each individuals promise to uphold the law, maintain social peace, join the armed forces if need be, and keep liberty to ourselves.
Ideas and Skepticism: The government claims that it derives it’s power from the people, and to a degree that is true, but we are only given the right to elect a government official. The government has the rest of the power, so they can direct our country more or less without the consent of the citizens.
Reading further into the constitution, our founding fathers go into great detail to talk of each officials rights and restrictions. There is a great imbalance here, the section that talks about us is disproportionate to that of the government. Pretty much the American people are expected to be little sycophants, maintaining the word of the government despite whether or not they agree with them. It forgets to mention the premise upon which this government was founded.
Part 2: Articles 1-3 of the Constitution:
Why does the age of qualification vary for each official?
B: Part 3: Articles 4-7 of the Constitution:
Article IV: Section 1: Full Faith and Credit:
Paraphrase: Congress makes sure that each state respects the actions of others.
What does that mean for gay marriage?
If each state is to respect the legal actions of others, then unless there is an overall majority shift in favor of abortion, then no new legislation can be passed so gay marriage would remain unlawful. Also with this law states technically cannot change the first laws unless congress gives consent.
Why is: “ No person held to… may be due,” significant?
Paraphrase: If a slave escapes, they will not go back to work, but their owners may decide to put them back to work.
Slaves had absolutely no chance at achieving freedom during this time. Even if they managed to escape, they would most likely to be forced to work for their owners once again.
Article V: No amendment may be passed that affects the first and fourth amendments in the ninth section of the first article. The first amendment of section nine states that slavery could not be prohibited by Congress until 1808. This law pretty much permitted slavery in the U.S. until 1808. The 4th Amendment of the 9th section of Article 1 outlawed all direct taxes on individuals. Both of these Amendments were pretty much cut out of the constitution?
The process by which something is amended:
Two thirds of congress propose an amendment ‡ Congress calls a convention ‡ Must be ratified by three fourths of the states
Article VI:
The constitution is the supreme law of the land. Officials are bound by oath to support the constitution. No religious test is required. The religious test clause serves to supposedly not promote religious homogeneity. Mostly it is just there to appease people other religious faiths so it at least makes it look like our government is trying.
Article VII:
Nine states need to support the constitution for it to be ratified. At the time only thirteen states existed, but one could see how this could grow to be a problem. As the number of states increased support for the constitution may have changed, and if only nine states out of 50 support the constitution then that’s 41 dissatisfied states. Many now say that several of our rights are time bound and may have been suitable in the past but currently do not apply to our way of life. This is one of those things that does not work with modern society.
Election Reflection
Election Reflection
As one would expect, I am quite pleased with the outcome of this years election. It is truly a historic moment in American history, and I believe that the election of an African American into the presidential office has definitely affected the morale of African Americans and individuals who voted for him alike. However, seeing that people are creatures of habit, I think it will do little to change peoples ways. Obama says that it is up to the American people to create their own change. He cannot simply even the economic playing field and raise the lower class up from the depths of poverty while restricting the incomes of wealthier Americans. People will actually have to work and that’s what I think people don’t get. Just because we have finally elected a liberal African American as president doesn’t automatically grant immense societal change.
I am also a somewhat bothered by peoples myopic fixation on his being black. I hear far more about his race than his actual political rhetoric. This is not to say that I don’t think he will be a fine president, I am just mildly dissatisfied with how so much of America perceives him.
I agree with Andy that Obama was not up against much of a candidate this election. Sure Obama won… with 52% of the popular vote, the other 48% of which went to those who do not support Obama. Obviously he cannot change America in a matter of days, but with 48% of Americans who are not supportive of his leadership how will his plan work. Seeing that we are in the largest economic depression since the great depression, he is bound to make choices that not everyone will agree with. I am certain that people will change their opinion towards him throughout his term, be it against or in favor of him.
As one would expect, I am quite pleased with the outcome of this years election. It is truly a historic moment in American history, and I believe that the election of an African American into the presidential office has definitely affected the morale of African Americans and individuals who voted for him alike. However, seeing that people are creatures of habit, I think it will do little to change peoples ways. Obama says that it is up to the American people to create their own change. He cannot simply even the economic playing field and raise the lower class up from the depths of poverty while restricting the incomes of wealthier Americans. People will actually have to work and that’s what I think people don’t get. Just because we have finally elected a liberal African American as president doesn’t automatically grant immense societal change.
I am also a somewhat bothered by peoples myopic fixation on his being black. I hear far more about his race than his actual political rhetoric. This is not to say that I don’t think he will be a fine president, I am just mildly dissatisfied with how so much of America perceives him.
I agree with Andy that Obama was not up against much of a candidate this election. Sure Obama won… with 52% of the popular vote, the other 48% of which went to those who do not support Obama. Obviously he cannot change America in a matter of days, but with 48% of Americans who are not supportive of his leadership how will his plan work. Seeing that we are in the largest economic depression since the great depression, he is bound to make choices that not everyone will agree with. I am certain that people will change their opinion towards him throughout his term, be it against or in favor of him.
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