Essay 6

Essay 6:

In the U.S. political system there are several linkage institutions that can connect citizens to government. Elections constitute one such institution. Because of low voter turnout other linkage institutions can connect citizens to government.  Age and education are the two main factors that relate to ones likelihood of voting.  As voters become older they are more likely to take their own position and vote.  Along with age the more educated a person becomes the more likely they are to vote.

One current government electoral requirement that decreases voter turnout is preregistration to vote.  Many people don't want to take the time beforehand to register themselves to vote, states which allow registration on the same day have a much higher turnout.

Media is one of the linkage institutions that connects people to the government and helps them become more involved in politics.  The internet gives people more access to politics than the have ever had, and gives anyone the opportunity to be educated and involved in politics.  The newspaper, news on TV, and magazines are all also forms of media that are constantly updating citizens about our government and elections.

Essay 8

Essay 8:

In the United States Congress, the majority party exerts a substantial influence over lawmaking. However, even when one party has a numerical majority in each chamber of the United States Congress, there is no guarantee that legislation supported by that majority party will be passed by both chambers. Rules of each chamber independently influence the likelihood that legislation will pass in that chamber; legislation passed by one chamber is not always passed by the other.  The majority party  has an advantage by assigning members to committees and appointing the heads of the committees.  Through this their committee controls most of the rules and sets the agenda.  The speaker of the house is also from the majority party.  They control debate, and assign bills to the committee.

The House and Senate have many differences which makes it likely that legislation may be passed in one chamber but not the other.  The Senate is less formal with its rules and procedures than the House, making it difficult for the two to agree on legislation.  Another difference is that in the senate, a senator can filibuster to stop a particular bill, but the House rules committees, so they can kill bills that are passed by the Senate.

Even though the House may pass a bill, the Senate can kill the bill with  a filibuster, even if the majority may want to pass the bill.  If the Senate passes a bill, the House Rules Committee can kill it before sending it through to other representatives. 

NoKoBloPo

     North Korea is by far the worlds most secretive society, and their isolation from the rest of the world has cause not only people from other countries to become curious, but even their own people.  Towards the end of World War II Korea divided into two zones, the northern zone being controlled by the Soviet Union, and the southern by the U.S.  Communist leader, Kim II Sung came to power in 1946, backed by his soviet leadership. In 1950, North Korea invaded the South, which ended in an armistice three years later.
     The U.S. intelligence team continuously tried to keep an eye on North Korea and we have always been one of their top enemies.  North Korea had huge industrial development, and their "guiding light" became Kim II-sungs's personal philosophy of Juche.  When he died in 1994 he became the "eternal president" of North Korea.  Since then Kim Jung-il was president, and now his successor, who is his third son and was trained since he was a young boy, Kim Jong-un is in power.  He has announced and planned nuclear tests, and missile launches and has put his country under speculation by the rest of the world.
     Recently North Korea has issued near daily threats to the United States and South Korea.  They have conducted three nuclear tests since 2006, and have been threatening the use of a ballistic missile.  China is their closest ally and many people in their country seek ways to sneak out.  The Obama Administration adopted a policy of "strategic patience" in 2009 [NY Times].  The United Nations Security Council has passed four resolutions since 2006 aimed at penalizing North Korea for its nuclear weapons program [NY Times].  North Koreans are enduring huge human rights violations right now, and most people are suffering of starvation, malnutrition or are being beaten or severely punished if they are even assumed to be criticizing their government.
   
With the conditions their country is facing I believe that we will see a regime change within our lifetime. As for now Kim Jung-un seems to be high in power, and does not seem worried about his nations condition.  But the society wants to reform, as many of them seem to secretly disagree, and I believe that slowly they will find a way to overthrow or remove their leader.

Citation
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/northkorea/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-15256929

Essay 10

While interest groups and political parties each play a significant role in the U.S. political system, they differ in their fundamental goals.  The fundamental goal of interest groups in the political process is to gain access to politicians, so that they can influence them to protect their particular interests and ultimately increase the likelihood of favorable legislation being passed.
The fundamental goal of major political parties in the political process is to gain control of government positions, and to implement legislation that holds to their beliefs on how the government should be running.  By doing this they will get their party elected into office and gain control.
One way interest groups will support political parties is if a leading candidate supports the same interests as them, then they are supporting each other to gain more power.  Another way interest groups support  is by giving money to politicians f a particular party to help them get elected to government positions, and interest groups can rally public support for certain issues of a party (grassroots).
When interest groups give money to politicians to help them get elected they are essentially giving themselves access to that politician.  Through doing this they will influence the politician to vote certain ways on legislation, or try and persuade the politician to support legislation that will benefit their policies.  By backing a party powerful interest groups can have likeminded people elected to office and throw their weight around in the party, influencing major decisions.

Essays: 7

Essay 7: 

The U.S. Congress has debated a variety of campaign finance reforms over the last decade.  The proposals debated have included raising limits on individual contributions.  Lawmakers would want to pass legislation like this so that people can donate how ever much they please to a particular campaign.    They believe it would allow candidates to raise more money, quicker and more effectively.  These lawmakers believe that it is within their rights because of the first amendment.  Proponents believe that this legislation should be passed to make it easier for candidates to raise money.
Opponents would not like this legislation to be passed because they think without a limit on contributions it could become unfair.  Without the limit it would no longer be a democratic process that is equal for all running.  They believe that having limits would create a more level playing field for competition from various groups or individuals so that their are fair levels of donation.
Another proposal that congress has debated is limiting independent expenditures.  An independent expenditure is any form of campaign contribution that is not given to a specific candidate.  An example would be a TV commercial giving aid to any particular campaign, but it was paid for and put on by a wealthy individual who is not directly connected to the campaign or candidate.  Lawmakers who are in favor of this legislation believe that the process would be more fair and democratic for all candidates if wealthy individuals couldn't donate too much money making it unfair to the rest of the contestants.
Those who aren't in favor believe that it can give a candidate a head start and possibly let them spend less on their own advertising.  Their main argument is that it would violate the first amendment and they should be able to spend their own money independently.

Essay Prompt 5

Different interest groups choose different techniques to achieve their objectives based no their resources, characteristics and goals.  Litigation is the process of taking legal action, it is when a person begins a civil lawsuit to enforce a particular right.  So in the United states interest groups often use litigation to sue the group they oppose.  This strategy was used by the NAACP which resulted in the decision made in the Brown vs. Board of Education case in 1954.
Interest groups use campaign contributions to try to make candidates sympathetic to their cause elected to office.  If they contribute money to a campaign (with a limit of $5,000) it is a bribery of sorts because it makes the politicians feel that they should return the favor to that interest group.
Lastly one of the most effective ways to gain votes is mass mobilization or grassroots lobbying.  This means you gain publicity for your cause through a large audience or promotion.  It has been proven to be a fast spreading technique.

The NAACP used the first technique because they sued numerous segregated school systems.  They did this throughout the 1940's and 1950's which led to the landmark case of Brown vs. Board of Education in 1954, where the supreme court ruled that segregation in schools is unconstitutional.

Senator Wyden Biography

Biography:
Senator Ron Wyden was born on May 3rd 1949, in Kansas.  His family moved to Palo Alto, California where he was raised.  He first attended University of California, Santa Barbara with a basketball scholarship.  He transferred to Stanford and received his Bachelor of Arts in 1971.  Later in 1974 he received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Oregon School of Law.  Wyden founded the grey panthers at Oregon and led it until 1980.  He ran for the House of Representatives that year, and served from 1980-1996.  He is now married and has five children.  Wyden has been a senator for the United States since 1996.

Committees:

Joint Committee on Taxation Select Committee on Intelligence Special Committee on Aging Committee on the Budget Committee on Energy and Natural Resources Committee on Finance

Issues:

• Education: Wyden has authored many acts to help students who are in debt and to help students choose career paths with valuable insight.  Some of these acts include the Student Right To Know Before You Go act, and the College Tuition Savings act which was part of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation act which eliminated taxes on College Tuition Savings Funds.
• Environment:  Considering that he is the chairmen of the Energy and Natural Resource Committee, Wyden has taken a lead on many issues concerning our environment. He has taken the lead in protecting olod-growth forests, led the opposition to the savage rider, advocated reform of federal government land management practices and more.  He won passage of the Combat Illegal Logging law.  His efforts have resulted in impressive results in saving endangered species and expanding wilderness protection within Oregon.

Questions:

What issues are concerning you most at the moment?
Which of the colleges that you went to was your favorite?
Do you think it is important to go to college to have a successful future?