In order to ease everyone into writing on the blog this year, I thought I would use a couple rather creative questions to see what some of your political preferences might be. Please answer 1 of the following questions:
A) If you could have dinner with 3 famous Americans from the world of politics, who would you choose and why? Please be detailed in your response!
B) If you could serve in any elected or appointed position in the National government, which position would you choose and why? Please be detailed in your response!
Just as a reminder, here are some of the aspects of your responses I will be looking at at the end of each quarter when I assess your blog grade:
Excellent
-use of higher order thinking in response to the problems, statements, and/or questions listed in the assignment
-introduces a new perspective to the topic at hand
-concludes with application to the outside situation
-generates further analytical responses from class members
Basic
-articulates comprehension in response to the problem, statements and/or questions listed in the assignment
-compares posting to other posted messages, text material, or class content
Approaching Basic
-minimal response to problems, statements, and/or questions listed in the assignment
-restates central issues in context of content
-plainly states the authors beliefs and practices respect among classmates
Unacceptable
-discussion shows no understanding of problems, statements, and/or questions listed in the assignment
15 comments:
I agree with Maggie. I would also like to be a Supreme Court Justice. Personally, I would not be able to handle all of the publicity that, for example, the president receives when he or she runs. I would be concerned not only for myself but for my family as well and how all the attention, whether negative or positive would effect them in the workplace or school. I would not be ok with the media making up rumors about me and my family as well. As a Supreme Court Justice there is little publicity compared to the
President and that is where I could see myself best, especially if I had a family. It would also be beneficial like Maggie said because it would be a life long job I would hold, and never having to worry about being fired or anything else that could potentially lose my job.
If I could have any appointed or elected position in the National Government I would choose the Surgeon General. This isn't one of the positions that most people would probably think of and that is one of the reasons why it would fit me. I would not want to be in a major 'political' part of it all where I had to suppoert one side or the other and be in the public eye too often. It is an appointed position so therefore I would not have to risk the safety of my family by running in an election which would be a major plus. Since I am very interested in going into medical I think this position would best fit my interests. The Surgeon General has to provide scientific information on the best answers to health issues and decide how to improve the health of the typical citizen and figure out ways to limit health risk and injuries. This position is what I would be find the most interesting and what I would probably be the best at. Although I agree with Maggie and Victoria that they would not have to worry about losing there job for the position they chose is a good thing, the Surgeon General is in office for a four year term which I would also find fitting to me. I would not want to be in office for my whole life because there are many things I want to do in my life and work as so although I may not be 'garunteed' a job in office, I am sure with the experience of such a position I would not have many troubles finding work.
If I could choose three famous leaders to have dinner with from the world of politics I would choose Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Federick Douglass, and George Washington. Though these three figures seem very opposite of eachother, they still possess common ideas such as making the country better and taking on leadership roles. I chose Elizabeth Cady Stanton because I did a research report on her in the seventh grade and found her to be an extremely interesting person. She fought for women's rights which i believe was a very important issue during her time period. If I had the pleasure of meeting her, I would thank her for the work she did and I would discuss with her all the privileges i have now that was partially her doing. I would like to meet Frederick Douglass too, because he was very influential in the political world because of his autobiography he wrote on being a slave. His book inspired many people and helped win African Americans their freedom. If i was seated at the same table with him, I would ask him how he had the courage to publish the book which included the actual names of the people he dealt with in real life. Finally, I would love to have the pleasure to meet George Washington because he is indeed extremely famous. He set the bar high for the rest of the presidents. He contributed to getting rid of the Articles of Confederation. If I met him today I would thank him for what he did for our country and discuss with him the difficulties he faced as a leader of the nation. I believe Washington, Douglass, and Stanton are all extraordinary people who improved our country and majorly impacted it.
If I could serve in any position in the United States government, I would want to be the Speaker of the House. I would be able to have a say in what bills would be passed on from the House because I am the most influential person in the House as well as the one who has "seniority. " Therefore, if I just so happened to form a strong opinion about a controversial issue, my opinion would be heard. Moreover, I would also be the leader of the House and be able to tell people what were going to be focusing on. The power to decide whether to get rid of a bill or push it into Congress is a huge deal, which is something I would definitely want because if I have a strong opinion about something, I wouldn't want it to be pushed aside and I would have to power to potentially have the bill passed.
If I could have dinner with three famous Americans in the world of Politics, I would choose Sarah Palin, Teddy Roosevelt, and Ronald Reagan. I would choose Sarah Palin because I feel that she has gotten very bad press since the 2008 election. I would want to meet her in order to see whether or not how the media portrays her is true, or if they just exaggerate her flaws as the media so commonly does. Sarah Palin cannot possibly be as foolish as the media portrays her to be. I don't believe that she could have been elected the governor of Alaska without having some sort of affinity for politics. I would want to learn more about the struggles and triumph she has gone through the past couple of years. I think she would a be a very entertaining and pleasing dinner companion. Secondly, I would want to have dinner with Teddy Roosevelt. He was, in my opinion, the perfect president for the time that he was in office. He exactly the right opinion in foreign policy and was a good fit for America at that time. I absolutely love his expression "speak softly, but carry a big stick." I find it to be a very true statement and I agree with him. I think that he would be a fabulous dinner partner. I can just picture his personality, the rough rider cowboy who was actually from New York. I like the city boy gone country image that I associate with him. It reminds me of myself slightly so I think we would get along quite well. Basically, I find that I would like to hear his opinions on politics straight from him. Lastly, I would like to have dinner with Ronald Reagan. I honestly don't know too much about him and that is one of the reasons that I would like to dine with him. My Dad always says that Reagan was one of the greatest Presidents that America has ever seen. I would like to know what makes my father speak so highly of him. Apparently Reagan was the perfect president for America during the times he was in office. Reagan tried to make the country safer by starting a "war on drugs," and he saw our country to the end of the Cold War. I would like to learn more about him and his presidency from the source himself. I would obviously prefer to dine with each of them alone so I would have more time to talk to them, but if we needed to all dine together, I feel like they would all get along just fine.
If I could have dinner with any three political figures, they would be Thomas Jefferson, Susan B. Anthony, and Martin Luther King Jr. Although these are three very different people from different time periods, they all spent their lives working towards freedom and independence. Thomas Jefferson, the third president of the U.S., was born in the British colony Virginia. He was a very promonent spokesperson and active in many debates across the colonies for their independence from Great Britian. He was also the primary author of the Declaration of Independence. Susan B. Anthony spent her life fighting for women's rights and equalities. She worked mainly for voting rights for women. She was able to see able to see froue states introduce equal voting rights for women before she died in 1906. Martin Luther King Jr. was an American Civil rights leader. He was a strong advocate for equal rights for African Americans and led many peceful marches and boycotts in support of equal rights. In 1964, the Civil Rights Bill was passed and MArtin Luther King Jr. was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. He was assinated two years later in Memphis, Tennesse. All three of these people fought for equailty and they were all able to see what they were working towards become real during their lifetimes. I would like the chance to speak to them because I think that I could learn much from them about standing u for what we believe in. They could also teach me a lot about never giving up, because they can base it off of persoanl experience. I'm sure it was never easy spending their time fihting for freedom, but they were able to experience the benefits of what they worked towards for America in their lifetimes.
The 3 famous leaders I would want to have dinner with would for sure be Benjamin Franklin, John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. Benjamin Franklin made such incredible contributions to our world today that much of the simple ideas of technology such as electricity may not yet exist without him. He was my hero growing up. I visited his burial site, had a t-shirt with him on it, and did every single report I could on him. He had some of the most moral ideas and teachings to contribute to the world and is the idea man behind one of my favorite quotes, "A small leak can sink a great ship". Benjamin Franklin would be interesting and inspiring to join at the dinner table and I would love to have him along.
John F. Kennedy would also be a great addition to my historical dinner. He created the Peace Corps, an organization that I think is very inspiring and successful, and that my aunt was a part of. He was very much interested in getting places in the world, wether it was landing a man on the moon or keeping peace by making more men excited to serve their country. He was truly inspirational and an incredible President until the sad day he was assassinated.
Finally I would like to invite Martin Luther King Jr. to the table. He is truly inspirational in every way and is a major contributor to the equality of all races. He got so many people to follow him in the 60's when the civil rights movement was occurring. He was an inspiration to all black and white people out there who favored equality and not segregation; and he inspires me.
If I could serve in any elected or appointed position in the National government, the position I would chose would be a Senator. I would not want to be president or even run for presidency because everything is so negative. I wish that politics was not so negative all the time. Whenever you turn on the news, all you see is candidates bashing their competition and it is just flat out annoying and disrespectful. I wish that there would be someone that could run for government, and not talk at all about their competition. It would be so refreshing to see and that person would truly do a good job being president. They would show you that they care about the issues in our world, show you how they can fix them, and have a positive vibe going into the election. If I ran to be a Senator I would do just this. I would want to represent my state to the best of my ability, and be able to help make important decisions in our governnment without all the presure of being president. I like listening to people and trying to help, so this would be a fun job for me. I would try to hear as many opinions as I could, and make wise decisions for our nation. So if I could hold any position, I would want to be a Senator.
If I could serve any position in the United States Government I would choose the Vice President. In my opinion the Vice President has the ideal balance between power and privacy. As others have said before me, I would not want the media to be directly on me but I would like enough power to have effects on people and make a change. In the position of the Vice President you would get an opportunity to work extremely close with the president on a regular basis and help him or her on decisions while also coming up with your own ideas and decisions. I also like the role that the Vice President holds as the head of the Senate. In rare occurrences he has the right to cast a tie-breaking vote whenever there is a tie. Also the Vice President has the ability to influence others. For example, Joe Biden, today’s Vice President, works on implementing many acts and issues, like the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which is trying to build our economy back up. Also the Vice President gets the opportunity to travel many places, in Joe Biden’s case he travels to Iraq many times in order to deal with foreign affairs. If I had this power I feel like I could impact many people and make many necessary changes that are important to our country. Another fact that I like is that while you have the ability to cause change you don’t have as much pressure on you like the president has. You have the chance to relate with many people while not constantly being under the media spotlight. I feel like Maggie, Victoria, and Andi would think that the role of Vice President would be too far up on the political scale in the case of privacy from the media, however I believe that sometimes to really have an impact on somebody’s life and opinion you need to be publicized in the media. This would be a very significant role for me to take in government because like Joe Biden has already done you can effect many people and possibly one day even take over the responsibility as president.
If I could have dinner with any three famous political figures, I would choose Sandra Day O'Connor, Ulysses Grant, and Cordell Hull. I've always admired Sandra O'Connor for being the first female Supreme Court justice. She served on the Supreme Court for 25 years. Her decisions were very important and she often had the swing opinion. I agree with many of O'Connor's beliefs and opinions and I feel that she would be a very interesting women to talk to. I would like to also have dinner with the eighteenth president of the United States, Ulysses S. Grant. I found his presidency very interesting between what his actions were with the Civil War and the numerous scandals that occurred during his presidency. He played a great role in one of the most important wars for our country, essentially winning the Civil War for the Union. It would be very interesting to hear a firsthand account of the Civil War and the corruption and scandals that occurred during his presidency. The final person I would like to have dinner with is Cordell Hull. Even though I don't agree with him on most political issues, I find the concept of the United Nations to be very intriguing. Hull was the longest-serving Secretary of State and won the Nobel Peace Prize. I would be interested to know how he came up with the idea of the United Nations and his reasoning behind it. Between these three American politicians, I am sure that dinner would be extremely interesting.
If I could eat dinner with 3 political figures, I would choice George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson. These 3 men were major contributors to forming the United States government. They were all responcible in breaking away from Britian and creating the Declaration of Independance. They were also in a position of determining how the United States would function as a nation. The future of the colonist and future of the colonist rest in their hands. They put their ideas together to come up with a form a government that would benefit all current and future citizens. Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson were both interested in political philososphy and had many ideas about what kind of government would work best in the United States. George Washington used his abilities as a leader to organize a government and become the first President. I would be able to discover their reasoning behind the ideas in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Also I would learn what they would think about the United States government today and how they might want to chande it.
If I could have dinner with 3 famous American political figures, I would choose MLK,,Abe Lincoln, and Robert Kennedy. I would like to have dinner with these people because each one of them has changed the way Americans live today. Abraham Lincoln freed all of the slaves in the south, taking one step closer to making all men equal. MLK took another step forward in the gaining of equal rights by fighting for the African Americans that were being segregated. No longer has there been a slave in America and Civil Rights have improved; there is less and less bias toward other races in this country in every generation. Last but not least, I pick Robert Kennedy, who was famous for his speeches of trying to get people to forget their differences. That, to me, is the first step to becoming a better nation. Bobby Kennedy was a noted civil rights activist that fought corrupt southern electoral officials. He also fought for the addmittance of the first African American student to the University of Mississippi. These three men differences, by being brave and striving for change, which meant equality. I don't think I would ever run out of questions, or become bored, if I had a meal with them.
If i could have dinner with any three famous Americans from the world of politics it would probably have to be John F. Kennedy, Woodrow Wilson, and Lyndon B. Johnson. These three men, also three presidents of the United States, were put through many trials and hard times during the term as president, and even though some of them were not favored by many, each one had his own way of getting the country through it's difficult time.
President John F. Kennedy, as the first catholic president of the United States, had to manage the tribulations of the Civil Rights, Vietnam War, and his 'New Frontier' philosophy. Although he did well in supporting the civil rights movement, having more troops go over to Vietnam to help fight the war, and created and proved funds for the education system, health care, and more, I would really like to talk about his religious practice while he was president and how he incorperation or didn't incorperate his religious views in politics. I am aware that there is the seperation from Church and State but most Americans think that their president should have strong religious affiliations. To ask if he ever asked God to guide him to make a military move or pass a law would be very interesting to me.
Woodrow Wilson is among my favorite presidents of all time. Although Congess and parts of America did not agree with his Fourteen Points I think that to create such a document that would help the world internationally get along better and to find a way to follow through is impeccable. I probably would be going through question after question on how he came up with his points and how he was able to go withstand having someone disagree, ask him to change it, and still disagree with his creation.
The last person, Lyndon B. Johnson, in my view is a controversial man when it comes to scandals but also did the most he could have for our country in a time of need. Through much devastation with the loss of President J.F.Kenney, LBJ was able to pull through with many civil rights acts (such as the 1965 Civil Rights Act). He also is today related to the controversial Gulf of Tonkin and tet offense after he sent in more troops to Vietnam and bombed North Vietnam. It would be really interesting to hear what he thought of all the talk that was going around about him while he was president and if was in any way hurt but it.
If I could serve in any elected or appointed position in the National government, I would choose to be the United States Deputy Attorney General. I agree with others that if I was serving in an elected position with a large amount of publicity then I would be pressured to please the American people in order to keep my job rather than making the choice that I believe would politically benefit our country. I would prefer the position of Deputy Attorney General in comparison to other government positions because this position is appointed by the President which saves me from the risk of financial instability due to campaigning for election, and in most cases, the Deputy Attorney General serves less than four years because the President has the ability to fire him or her whenever he sees fit. This short term time would be convenient because I would not want to be stuck in a government position if the President did not feel that I was doing a good job. The main roles of the Deputy Attorney General are to assist the Attorney General with the leadership of the Department of Justice and to make multiple decisions daily on a wide range of issues. As a leader in the Department of Justice, the Deputy Attorney General basically makes decisions about what actions the federal government should take in order to fight different types of crime in the United States. The responsibilities of this position are extremely varied and some of them include authorizing searches, giving input to the Attorney General on who should receive the death penalty, advising the President on who should receive pardons, reacting to terrorism within the United States, managing finances for the Department of Justice, and setting priorities for organizations that combat different types of crime. I believe the most important of these roles is setting priorities for fighting different types of crime because there is so much crime that the government needs to keep the system organized in order to effectively fight things from corporate fraud to organized crime. The Deputy Attorney General is always in a position to improve American society through effectively fighting crime in the United States, and I would like to serve in this position because I think that this is a really important aspect of improving life in America.
I would want to be the secretary of state because then I would be able to talk with the leader of other nations and try to solve problems. I would enjoy this because then I would be able to help my own country and others at the same time.
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