10.30.13

ESSAY 1

        The role of democracy as well as the role of majority rule have changed and will continue to change in american politics.  The House of Representative, which is part of the Legislative branch is the part of our national government that is most closely tied to our citizens.  This is because the people, who back in the day were land owning white males, could elect who they chose to the House of Representatives. This gave us as a people more freedom and choice.
        The U.S. constitution limited majority rule by creating separation of powers (Judicial, Legislative, and Executive) and through checks and balances.  These require that power is balanced among the three different government institutions to insure that no one group has too much power.
        Primary elections have helped the United States become a more democratic system because they place more choice over who would be president in the hands of the people.  A second development of the twentieth-century that has helped our country become more democratic is the Seventeenth Amendment.  It states that the senate of the U.S. will be composed of two senators per state, who are elected by the people.  This helped our country by giving the people more of a say as well as giving each state equal power when it comes to the number of senators.
     

ESSAY 2

  Citizens participate in the political process through many different forms besides voting.  Two common forms are civil disobedience and protesting. Many civilians will act on civil disobedience knowing that they are breaking the law, but in hopes that they are making a big enough statement that more people will get involved and keep the ball rolling.  The other form, protesting, is done to achieve a policy change through less detrimental acts than civil disobedience.  These types of demonstrations draw attention to the problem quickly and universally.  Many protests or civil disobedience acts will air on national television, in newspapers, and many other forms of media almost immediately after the incident.  This helps the demonstrators draw attention hoping to persuade other civilians into reform.