10/25 Civil Disobedience

     "But such is not the state of the case. I say it with a sad sense of the disparity between us. I am not included within the pale of glorious anniversary! Your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. The blessings in which you, this day, rejoice, are not enjoyed in common.ÑThe rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. The sunlight that brought light and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. This Fourth July is yours, not mine. You may rejoice, I must mourn. To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty, and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony. Do you mean, citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak to-day? If so, there is a parallel to your conduct. And let me warn you that it is dangerous to copy the example of a nation whose crimes, towering up to heaven, were thrown down by the breath of the Almighty, burying that nation in irrevocable ruin! I can to-day take up the plaintive lament of a peeled and woe-smitten people! "

     What this passage is stating from Frederick Douglass' speech, is that during his time and even leading up to this day independence is still celebrated, but at what cost? During Douglass' lifespan, there were many civil rights issues and he is questioning the structure of the government itself. The foundation of our society rests on the shoulder of the Founding Fathers themselves. As many celebrate their own independence and individuality, they still forget the concept of equality, the basis of a stable government. Frederick even stated in his speech; "Do you mean, citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak to-day? If so there is a parallel to your conduct." What this quote means is the fact that Douglass has been through separation and unjust laws, only to be given a small opportunity of speech in society? Not only was it agitating that such a mockery existed, but it seemed very fallacious as well to Douglass. 

      The reason as to why I chose this article, is because I believe that inequality still exists and that unfair, or unjust laws make it possible. This also relates to Thoreau's summary of civil morality. During the time of Frederick Douglass, many strayed from the authority that the laws have established upon themselves. I also believe that it is very important to trust your own morality, and disobey unfair rules sometimes, only to show that they are insufficient and degrading. Douglass makes plenty of claims in this passage about the truth of society, and the restrictions it places upon its citizens only to cause "Woe," and "Misery."

The Diffusion of Innovations among the American States

"Other studies, especially in the areas of agriculture and medicine, have also shown organizational size to be a strong correlate of innovation.'6 Given these results from prior studies in other fields we might expect to find that the larger, wealthier states, those with the most developed industrial economies and the largest cities, would have the highest innovation

scores. "

        What this section of the article is trying to explain is how the more wealthy, and largely populated states are able to accept innovations, or "New Ideas," quickly than those of smaller states, or less industrialized areas. This is most likely due to the fact that if an area is extremely wealthy, and has a dense population, then there are many disparate ideas and controversies which allow the state/city itself to go through new innovations, whether it is for education, economics, or society itself. 

        The reason as to why I chose this excerpt from the article, is because I'm interested in the fact that change can differ between states. What I mean by that is how some wealthy states can accept new ideas, methods, etc. while other states can only go through innovations to a certain degree. Regardless of the fact that not all states go through large innovations, I like the idea of wealthy areas, or areas targeted towards medicine and agriculture undergoing innovations because it really benefits the population and I believe that someday many of the states that are currently not going through the process will change themselves.  

Revisiting the Constitution: Allow Naturalized Citizens to Be President

"This must, and someday will, change. Opening the door of presidential eligibility to naturalized Americans will redeem the Constitution's grand trajectory, adding a new chapter true to the spirit of the story thus far. The founders promised more equality than had existed in 1775; later amendments brought blacks and women into the fold; and full equality for naturalized Americans is the logical next step." 

 
   Akhil Reed Amar  created the article; "Revisiting the Constitution: Allow Naturalized Citizens to Be President," and the message he's trying to send from this excerpt, is how the role of Presidency should be given to anyone who earns their citizenship in America. Everyone is supposed to be seen as equal, and it has been seen that way ever since 1775. Although, if they are restricted from ever becoming a president of the country, then this promise turned out to be fruitless. Akhil created this article, to promote the idea of allowing many other individuals who devoted their own time to become a citizen of the United States of America, to possibly emerge as a President. As he stated, "Opening the door of presidential eligibility to naturalized Americans will redeem the Constitution's grand trajectory, adding a new chapter true to the spirit of the story thus far," this just shows how ideas can expand, and so can equality. 

   The reason as to why I chose this article, is because it spoke out to me in a way in which I can relate. While living in Albania many years ago, I won a lottery and traveled to America because of it. After becoming a citizen in 5 years, I was finally able to live as an official citizen of the United States of America, I always supported this country, and it pains me to still see that many others who work hard to earn their citizenship still cannot have the responsibility of becoming a President, regardless of the fact that they have devoted 5 years of their life to become a citizen. Adding naturalized citizens is the logical next step and it can benefit the nation. 

The Federalist #10

      "By a faction, I understand a number of citizens, whether amounting to a majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion, or of interest, adversed to the rights of other citizens, or to the permanent and aggregate interests of the community.
There are two methods of curing the mischiefs of faction: the one, by removing its causes; the other, by controlling its effects.
There are again two methods of removing the causes of faction: the one, by destroying the liberty which is essential to its existence; the other, by giving to every citizen the same opinions, the same passions, and the same interests."

       James Madison is stating that the Faction is a major concern as it can be used to dissent and overpower the control of the government. Factions can be a major threat due to the fact that they are mentioned to be; "A majority or a minority of the whole, who are united and actuated by some common impulse of passion," and what the quote means is that there is more power in the quantity of people because of their common interests, basically a very large unification. Madison even mentions two methods that could be effective against the current situation; one being to eradicate the source of liberty which is important to them. The other is getting all the citizens who are part of the faction to agree and support a common cause that is beneficial to both the government and the people themselves.

      The reason as to why I chose this excerpt from the "Federalist No. 10" article, is because it depicts the power of many citizens working together to create a possible threat to the government. James Madison even stated that they could be a threat to the government due to the fact that they are unified together under certain causes. This makes me curious, because that can somewhat relate to what is happening in our current society, once citizens find a similar liking they will work together to try and spread it around. One of the methods in controlling the factions is to get everyone to agree on a common cause or interests, this can be related to the government trying to get everyone to agree on a certain issue through news on the T.V, radio, and even websites, allowing them to control. It is an interesting paragraph because it can be related to society today.

Trans-National America

    "We are all of foreign-born or the descendants of foreign-born, and if distinctions are to be made between us, they should rightly be on some other ground than indigenous. The early colonists came over with motives no less colonial than the later. They did not come to be assimilated in an American melting-pot. They did not come to adopt the culture of the American Indian. They had not the smallest intention of "giving themselves without reservation" to the new country. They came to get freedom to live as they wanted."

    This excerpt from the article by Randolph is supposed to indicate the fact that the previous American melting-pot" idea failed, and that immigrants never really wanted to immerse themselves in American culture, but more likely follow their own culture, and because America gave the opportunity to do so.
It does seem incogitable that many would go far to promise to blend in with American culture, and promise to always support the country, when in reality it is only because they would want to have the freedom to follow and do as they please. It's true that you should look after yourself, and worry about your own future, but you shouldn't forget the country that allowed you to have this freedom. When Randolph compares the situation to that of the colonists he makes a point that everyone came for freedom, but sometimes freedom comes with a cost.

    This passage relates to the truth about what has happened since 1916, and commonly today in society. Freedom, is one of the great aspects of being an American citizen, but not something to take for granted. They have made an oath by becoming a citizen and it is very upsetting to know that they "accept" the promise, when a lot of the time all they really want is access to a better life for themselves, and not for what is surrounding them. A true citizen must support their own country.

Two Faces of Power

"The concept of power remains elusive despite the recent and prolific outpourings of case studies on community power. Its elusiveness is dramatically demonstrated by the regularity of disagreements as to the locus of community power between the sociologists and the political scientists. Sociologically oriented researchers have consistently found the power is highly centralized, while scholars trained in political science have just as regularly concluded that in "their" communities power is widely diffused. Presumably, this explains why the latter group styles itself "pluralist," its counterpart "elitists."

     What this paragraph is trying to encapsulate is the idea that the concept of power is a well-known controversy, yet it is hard to define. The are two groups at hand, one being the "Elitists"who believes that power is centralized, being drawn at one point under the government. While the other group the "Pluralists" believe that power is spread out and controlled by different groups of individuals. Scholars have concluded that the communities that they live in, power is not centralized, but more diffused to the people allowing some sense of "equality."

        The reason as to why I chose this passage, is because the idea that the concept of power can be seen by two different points of views interests me. The fact that two groups see power as either something controlled under one government, or another saying the power is controlled by the people is astounding. This introductory passage just really stands out to me as it introduces a very interesting topic about power and its two faces.