Thursday, April 30, 2009
Classwork for Thursday 4/30/2009
Today was the day of the Junior-Senior picnic, so I decided not to teach any new material. Instead, we went to the library, and people who came to class had the opportunity to earn extra credit completing a scavenger hunt. This was a one-time offer. There is no chance to make this up.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Classwork for Wednesday 4/29/2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Yesterday, we learned about civil rights leaders like SNCC and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
What kind of tactics did they use in their struggle for basic rights?
Are there any other tactics available that they aren’t using? Can you think of groups or people who might have used them?
Intro to New Material
Read pages 240-263 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X (Chapter 14: Black Muslims).
As you read, copy any sentences that particularly stand out to you.
Guided Practice
In the late 1960s, the Black Panther party advocated "black power." Read the following excerpts from their party platform and write a single sentence summary.
WHAT WE WANT
We want freedom. We want power to determine the destiny of our black community.
We want full employment for our people.
We want an end to the robbery by the white man of our black community.
We want decent housing, fit for shelter of human beings.
We want education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society....
We want all black men to be exempt from military service.
We want an immediate end to police brutality and murder of black people.
We want freedom for all black men held in federal, state, county and city prisons and jails.
We want all black people when brought to trial be tried in court by a jury of their peer group or people from their black communities, as defined by the Constitution of the United States.
We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice and peace. And as our major political objective, a United Nations-supervised [vote] to be held throughout the black colony in which only black colonial subjects will be allowed to participate, for the purpose of determining the will of black people as to their national destiny.
Independent Practice
Create a Venn diagram comparing the tactics and beliefs of Dr. King and SNCC with the Black Panthers and Black Muslims.
Learning Log
It’s 1963 and you’ve made up your mind to work for civil rights. Which group would you join? Give three reasons for your choice.
Yesterday, we learned about civil rights leaders like SNCC and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
What kind of tactics did they use in their struggle for basic rights?
Are there any other tactics available that they aren’t using? Can you think of groups or people who might have used them?
Intro to New Material
Read pages 240-263 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X (Chapter 14: Black Muslims).
As you read, copy any sentences that particularly stand out to you.
Guided Practice
In the late 1960s, the Black Panther party advocated "black power." Read the following excerpts from their party platform and write a single sentence summary.
WHAT WE WANT
We want freedom. We want power to determine the destiny of our black community.
We want full employment for our people.
We want an end to the robbery by the white man of our black community.
We want decent housing, fit for shelter of human beings.
We want education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society....
We want all black men to be exempt from military service.
We want an immediate end to police brutality and murder of black people.
We want freedom for all black men held in federal, state, county and city prisons and jails.
We want all black people when brought to trial be tried in court by a jury of their peer group or people from their black communities, as defined by the Constitution of the United States.
We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice and peace. And as our major political objective, a United Nations-supervised [vote] to be held throughout the black colony in which only black colonial subjects will be allowed to participate, for the purpose of determining the will of black people as to their national destiny.
Independent Practice
Create a Venn diagram comparing the tactics and beliefs of Dr. King and SNCC with the Black Panthers and Black Muslims.
Learning Log
It’s 1963 and you’ve made up your mind to work for civil rights. Which group would you join? Give three reasons for your choice.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Classwork for Tuesday 4/28/2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Yesterday, we learned about Emmett Till, whose death helped spur the modern civil rights movement.
If you were alive in 1955, what kind of actions would you take against Jim Crow laws, or to prevent other young men from being lynched? What do you think the consequences of your actions might be?
Intro to New Material
Read Dr. Martin Luther King's "Letter from a Birmingham Jail." (In class, we read only paragraphs 1, 3, 9, 10, 11 and 12, but feel free to read the whole letter; it's excellent).
Answer the following questions in complete sentences:
1. How did King respond to the charge that the protests in Birmingham were “unwise and untimely”? How would you respond? What rationale did King offer for his actions? Why did he think that the struggle against segregation could not be confined to courtrooms and polite negotiations?
2. King describes the challenges of explaining the brutality of segregation and violence to his six-year old daughter? How would you explain segregation and violence to a child? What would you want him or her to know?
3. Why did King think it was necessary to create “constructive nonviolent tension” in order to effect change? How can tension help to change people’s perspectives?
4. King wrote about the “degenerating sense of ‘nobodiness’” prevalent among blacks in America. What did he mean by the term ‘nobodiness’? How, according to the King’s letter, do indignities like name-calling rob blacks of their individuality and humanity? Can you think of other examples in which people are made to feel like “nobodies” because of the way they’re treated?
Guided and Independent Practice
Read any two of the sources found here, and answer the questions that follow.
Learning Log
1. Who were some of the main civil rights leaders, events and organizations that we learned about today? Describe at least three.
2. What goals did they have?
3. What tactics did they use to reach those goals?
Yesterday, we learned about Emmett Till, whose death helped spur the modern civil rights movement.
If you were alive in 1955, what kind of actions would you take against Jim Crow laws, or to prevent other young men from being lynched? What do you think the consequences of your actions might be?
Intro to New Material
Read Dr. Martin Luther King's "Letter from a Birmingham Jail." (In class, we read only paragraphs 1, 3, 9, 10, 11 and 12, but feel free to read the whole letter; it's excellent).
Answer the following questions in complete sentences:
1. How did King respond to the charge that the protests in Birmingham were “unwise and untimely”? How would you respond? What rationale did King offer for his actions? Why did he think that the struggle against segregation could not be confined to courtrooms and polite negotiations?
2. King describes the challenges of explaining the brutality of segregation and violence to his six-year old daughter? How would you explain segregation and violence to a child? What would you want him or her to know?
3. Why did King think it was necessary to create “constructive nonviolent tension” in order to effect change? How can tension help to change people’s perspectives?
4. King wrote about the “degenerating sense of ‘nobodiness’” prevalent among blacks in America. What did he mean by the term ‘nobodiness’? How, according to the King’s letter, do indignities like name-calling rob blacks of their individuality and humanity? Can you think of other examples in which people are made to feel like “nobodies” because of the way they’re treated?
Guided and Independent Practice
Read any two of the sources found here, and answer the questions that follow.
Learning Log
1. Who were some of the main civil rights leaders, events and organizations that we learned about today? Describe at least three.
2. What goals did they have?
3. What tactics did they use to reach those goals?
Friday, April 24, 2009
Homework - due Monday 4/27/2009
Interview your parents, your grandparents, or other adults who remember the Vietnam War to find out what they thought about the United States’ involvement in this conflict. The people you interview should have been old enough to be aware of the situation in Vietnam and develop opinions about it. Pose the following questions and add one or more of your own. Type your questions and answers – you must submit your interview by email, blog comment or on flash drive by Monday at 1pm.
If you cut and paste your interview and leave it as a comment on this blog, please use your first name and last initial and not your whole name(you don't want perverts hunting you down via Internet). Same with your interviewee.
-What is your name, what do you do, and how old are you?
-Where were you living in 1969?
-What did you think about the Vietnam War in 1969? Why did you have this opinion?
-What did you think of President Nixon in 1969? Why did you have this opinion?
-What is your opinion of the Vietnam War today? Have you changed your opinion since 1969? Why or why not?
If you cut and paste your interview and leave it as a comment on this blog, please use your first name and last initial and not your whole name(you don't want perverts hunting you down via Internet). Same with your interviewee.
-What is your name, what do you do, and how old are you?
-Where were you living in 1969?
-What did you think about the Vietnam War in 1969? Why did you have this opinion?
-What did you think of President Nixon in 1969? Why did you have this opinion?
-What is your opinion of the Vietnam War today? Have you changed your opinion since 1969? Why or why not?
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Classwork for Thursday, 4/23/2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Label this map of southeast Asia and complete both questions.
Intro to New Material
In class, we watched a video about the causes, U.S. involvement in, and eventual end of the Vietnam War. As we watched, we defined the following terms:
Viet Cong
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Lyndon B. Johnson
Tet Offensive
Vietnamization
Learn more about the Vietnam War here.
Guided Practice
Independent Practice
Learning Log
1. Who fought against whom in the Vietnam War?
2. Why did the U.S. get involved?
3. Was the war popular with Americans? Why or why not?
4. How did the Vietnam War end?
Label this map of southeast Asia and complete both questions.
Intro to New Material
In class, we watched a video about the causes, U.S. involvement in, and eventual end of the Vietnam War. As we watched, we defined the following terms:
Viet Cong
Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
Lyndon B. Johnson
Tet Offensive
Vietnamization
Learn more about the Vietnam War here.
Guided Practice
Independent Practice
Learning Log
1. Who fought against whom in the Vietnam War?
2. Why did the U.S. get involved?
3. Was the war popular with Americans? Why or why not?
4. How did the Vietnam War end?
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Classwork for Wednesday 4/22/2009
Do Whatcha Know!
In 1959, a young communist rebel named Fidel Castro led a revolution in Cuba, overthrowing the government and the dictator who ran the country. He immediately made the country communist, taking over U.S. businesses for the Cuban government and allying the country with the Soviet Union.
1. Why would this make Americans nervous? Explain your answer.
2. If you were the President, how would you deal this new issue?
Intro to New Material
we watched two short videos about the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Learn about each event by clicking on its name.
Guided Practice
Answer the following questions in complete sentences; avoid using the words "it," "they" and "he."
1. What was the Bay of Pigs invasion? Was it successful?
2. Explain the events of the Cuban missile crisis. How did it end?
3. What do these events have to do with the Cold War, if they’re in Cuba?
Independent Practice
President Kennedy had a huge decision to make about how to approach nuclear weapons in Cuba, and he didn't make the decision alone. Choose one of Kennedy's advisers at this wonderful Web site. Read his opinion carefully, then answer these two questions in one paragraph or more.
1. What options does this adviser suggest?
2. Which option does the adviser think is the best? Why?
Learning Log
1. List 3 different options for dealing with the Cuban Missile Crisis.
2. Explain the 2 most important facts that you learned about the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban missile crisis.
3. Explain the 1 policy option that you think was the best option during the Cuban missile crisis and why.
In 1959, a young communist rebel named Fidel Castro led a revolution in Cuba, overthrowing the government and the dictator who ran the country. He immediately made the country communist, taking over U.S. businesses for the Cuban government and allying the country with the Soviet Union.
1. Why would this make Americans nervous? Explain your answer.
2. If you were the President, how would you deal this new issue?
Intro to New Material
we watched two short videos about the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Learn about each event by clicking on its name.
Guided Practice
Answer the following questions in complete sentences; avoid using the words "it," "they" and "he."
1. What was the Bay of Pigs invasion? Was it successful?
2. Explain the events of the Cuban missile crisis. How did it end?
3. What do these events have to do with the Cold War, if they’re in Cuba?
Independent Practice
President Kennedy had a huge decision to make about how to approach nuclear weapons in Cuba, and he didn't make the decision alone. Choose one of Kennedy's advisers at this wonderful Web site. Read his opinion carefully, then answer these two questions in one paragraph or more.
1. What options does this adviser suggest?
2. Which option does the adviser think is the best? Why?
Learning Log
1. List 3 different options for dealing with the Cuban Missile Crisis.
2. Explain the 2 most important facts that you learned about the Bay of Pigs invasion and the Cuban missile crisis.
3. Explain the 1 policy option that you think was the best option during the Cuban missile crisis and why.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
What would you do, if you were JFK?
You decide what to do about the Cuban Missile Crisis. This is a neat interactive history game. Check it out!
Classwork for Tuesday, 4/21/2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Someone in this class stole my hard drive yesterday. Please write down any information you know about its whereabouts.
(This is a set-up for discussion. I accuse a student of taking it, and refuse to say who pointed the finger at them. I then accuse their closest classmate of being an accomplice.)
Discussion Questions: How did the accused person feel? How did the blind accusation make the rest of the class feel? Is this kind of justice OK? Why?
Review of Old Material
communism - a political/economic system in which the state controls the economy and a single party holds power, with the goal of creating a classless society
Red Scare - widespread fears of Communist influence on U.S. society and Communist infiltration of the U.S. government.
-This happens first during WWI, when communists and socialists are jailed for opposing the war
Intro to New Material
McCarthyism - a period of intense anti-Communism in the United States, primarily from 1948 to 1954
Joseph McCarthy, Senator from WI, 1947-57
-Claimed to have a list of Communist spies in federal gov’t
-"While I cannot take the time to name all the men in the State Department who have been named as members of the Communist Party and members of a spy ring, I have here in my hand a list of 205.“ -Wheeling Speech, 2/9/1950
House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)
-Used to uncover communist spies in gov’t
-“Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?" Did find some real spies
-Alger Hiss, Julius Rosenberg
Most charges were bogus
-Ethel Rosenberg
-“Hollywood Ten” are blacklisted
Guided Practice
Answer the following questions about Joseph McCarthy's telegram to President Truman and Truman's response.
1. Summarize McCarthy’s telegram.
2. How does he speak to the President?
3. Summarize Truman’s reply.
4. How does he speak to McCarthy?
5. What inferences can you make about their relationship, based on this exchange?
Independent Practice
In class, we watched some of the film Good Night, and Good Luck.
As we watched, we took notes on how
A) the CBS newsroom
B) the American military
C) Senator Joe McCarthy
reacted to and were affected by fears of communism.
Learning Log: Homework
1. How were Americans’ freedoms affected by McCarthy’s charges?
2. Do you think that Senator McCarthy’s actions were justified? Explain.
3. Why do you think George Clooney would decide to make this film in 2005, at the height of the war in Iraq?
Someone in this class stole my hard drive yesterday. Please write down any information you know about its whereabouts.
(This is a set-up for discussion. I accuse a student of taking it, and refuse to say who pointed the finger at them. I then accuse their closest classmate of being an accomplice.)
Discussion Questions: How did the accused person feel? How did the blind accusation make the rest of the class feel? Is this kind of justice OK? Why?
Review of Old Material
communism - a political/economic system in which the state controls the economy and a single party holds power, with the goal of creating a classless society
Red Scare - widespread fears of Communist influence on U.S. society and Communist infiltration of the U.S. government.
-This happens first during WWI, when communists and socialists are jailed for opposing the war
Intro to New Material
McCarthyism - a period of intense anti-Communism in the United States, primarily from 1948 to 1954
Joseph McCarthy, Senator from WI, 1947-57
-Claimed to have a list of Communist spies in federal gov’t
-"While I cannot take the time to name all the men in the State Department who have been named as members of the Communist Party and members of a spy ring, I have here in my hand a list of 205.“ -Wheeling Speech, 2/9/1950
House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC)
-Used to uncover communist spies in gov’t
-“Are you now or have you ever been a member of the Communist Party?" Did find some real spies
-Alger Hiss, Julius Rosenberg
Most charges were bogus
-Ethel Rosenberg
-“Hollywood Ten” are blacklisted
Guided Practice
Answer the following questions about Joseph McCarthy's telegram to President Truman and Truman's response.
1. Summarize McCarthy’s telegram.
2. How does he speak to the President?
3. Summarize Truman’s reply.
4. How does he speak to McCarthy?
5. What inferences can you make about their relationship, based on this exchange?
Independent Practice
In class, we watched some of the film Good Night, and Good Luck.
As we watched, we took notes on how
A) the CBS newsroom
B) the American military
C) Senator Joe McCarthy
reacted to and were affected by fears of communism.
Learning Log: Homework
1. How were Americans’ freedoms affected by McCarthy’s charges?
2. Do you think that Senator McCarthy’s actions were justified? Explain.
3. Why do you think George Clooney would decide to make this film in 2005, at the height of the war in Iraq?
Monday, April 20, 2009
Classwork for Monday 4/20/2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Who won World War II? Who lost? How? When? What do you think happened next?
Intro to New Material
Today, you’ll watch a short video on the Cold War and define the following terms.
Cold War
Iron Curtain
containment
domino effect
Truman Doctrine
Marshall Plan
Berlin Airlift
NATO
McCarthy hearings
Guided Practice
1. Name the two superpowers during the Cold War.
2. When did the Cold War begin?
3. What was the goal of the Marshall Plan?
4. Why did the U.S., France and Britain airlift supplies into Berlin?
5. Why was NATO formed?
6. What did nuclear weapons have to do with the Cold War?
Independent Practice
Open your textbook to page 608. Look at the chart labeled “U.S. Aims Versus Soviet Aims in Europe.” Use the chart, and what you learned in the video to answer this question in a paragraph or more:
Why did the Cold War begin?
Learning Log
How do you think the Cold War affected regular Americans? How do you think it affected countries other than the Soviet Union and the United States?
Who won World War II? Who lost? How? When? What do you think happened next?
Intro to New Material
Today, you’ll watch a short video on the Cold War and define the following terms.
Cold War
Iron Curtain
containment
domino effect
Truman Doctrine
Marshall Plan
Berlin Airlift
NATO
McCarthy hearings
Guided Practice
1. Name the two superpowers during the Cold War.
2. When did the Cold War begin?
3. What was the goal of the Marshall Plan?
4. Why did the U.S., France and Britain airlift supplies into Berlin?
5. Why was NATO formed?
6. What did nuclear weapons have to do with the Cold War?
Independent Practice
Open your textbook to page 608. Look at the chart labeled “U.S. Aims Versus Soviet Aims in Europe.” Use the chart, and what you learned in the video to answer this question in a paragraph or more:
Why did the Cold War begin?
Learning Log
How do you think the Cold War affected regular Americans? How do you think it affected countries other than the Soviet Union and the United States?
Monday, March 30, 2009
Drama Club: Themes & Questions to Think About
Here's a site with lots of info about the characters in Our Town.
Themes
.
Theme 1: People should appreciate life while they are living it. Even ordinary, uneventful activities are important. Indeed, they might be the most important activities of all–whether they involve smelling flowers, eating breakfast, chatting with the milkman or the paperboy, or looking out the window at the moon.
Theme 2: Carpe diem (seize the day). This Latin phrase, which has become part of the English language, urges people to live for the moment, seizing opportunities to enjoy or enrich their lives. Life is short, after all; such opportunities may present themselves only once. This is an old literary motif, written about many times over the centuries. The Roman poet Horace (65-8 B.C.) coined the phrase carpe diem in Book 1 of his famous odes, when he advised people to “seize the day, put no trust in tomorrow!” English poet Robert Herrick (1591-1674) repeated the sentiment in a memorable poem:
.......Gather ye rosebuds while ye may
.......Old time is still a-flying,
.......And this same flower that smiles today
.......Tomorrow will be dying.
In Our Town, Wilder reminds the audience again and again that time is “a-flying” with references to passing trains–which, like life, move swiftly forward–and with references to the generations of Grover’s Corners residents who have come and gone. The flowers in the gardens of Mrs. Gibbs and Mrs. Webb are still another reminder: Smell and appreciate them now, for they will not last long. So is Professor Willard’s boring speech about the geological and anthropological developments in the vicinity of Grover's Corners thousands of years ago. The wheel of history and its life cycles spins rapidly. However, "seizing the day" does not necessarily mean that people need to pursue lofty enterprises or careers or to run off to see the world. George Gibbs seizes the day by choosing to marry Emily rather than going to agricultural school. Mrs. Gibbs seizes the day by accepting the simple life of Grover's Corners rather than insisting that her husband go on vacation with her to the city of her dreams, Paris.
Theme 3: Little things in life are really big things. This theme points out that seemingly insignificant happenings in everyday life are actually among the most important ones. However, people experiencing them usually do not comprehend this truth at the time, as Emily observes in the cemetery when she says to Mrs. Gibbs, “They don’t understand, do they?
Theme 4: No town can isolate itself from the rest of the world. Grover's Corners is a pleasant, easygoing community that seems to be a separate world unto itself. But it is not. Rather, it spins on the same axis as the rest of the world and is subject to the same influences affecting outsiders. Its residents read Shakespeare and The New York Times. Trains going to Boston pass through regularly. And there comes a time when Ford cars replace horses and people begin to lock their doors, just like their big-city counterparts. Joe Crowell Jr., dies in World War I. English poet John Donne wrote in 1624:
.......No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main
........ . . any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never
.......send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Grover's Corners is not an island. And when the bell tolls for Emily at the end of the play, it tolls for everyone.
Theme 5: No community is perfect, not even idyllic Grover's Corners. Grover's Corners has its town drunk, Simon Stimson, whom Mrs. Soames says is a "scandal." Believing life is not worth living, he commits suicide. Grover's Corners also apparently has a form of segregation, for there is a "ghetto," Polish town, where Polish-American Catholics live.
Things to Think About
1. In what ways is your hometown like Grover's Corners? In what ways is your town different?
2. If you were to make a movie based on Our Town, would you include elaborate sets or retain the spare sets, with few props? Explain your answer.
3. The stage manager speaks directly to the audience. How effective is this approach?
4. At the end of the play, Emily says, “Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you. Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?” Which are among the "wonderful" things about earth and life that you fail to notice?
5. The stage manager says young Joe Crowell graduated at the top of his class at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Yet Crowell never got a chance to put his education to use, for he died in combat during World War I. In commenting on Crowell's death, the stage manager says, "All that education for nothin’." Was his education, in fact, for nothing? Is the stage manager's comment intended to be an antiwar statement? As best you can from details provided in the play, describe Joe Crowell.
6. The stage manager thinks it would be a good idea to place a time capsule in the new bank under construction. In the capsule, he would place a copy of The Sentinel, The New York Times, the U.S. Constitution, the Bible, Shakespeare’s works, and the text of the play he is participating in, Our Town. What is the significance of these items in terms of what they tell you about Grover's Corners?
7. What does Mrs. Soames mean when she says, "My, wasn’t life awful–and wonderful"?
Themes
.
Theme 1: People should appreciate life while they are living it. Even ordinary, uneventful activities are important. Indeed, they might be the most important activities of all–whether they involve smelling flowers, eating breakfast, chatting with the milkman or the paperboy, or looking out the window at the moon.
Theme 2: Carpe diem (seize the day). This Latin phrase, which has become part of the English language, urges people to live for the moment, seizing opportunities to enjoy or enrich their lives. Life is short, after all; such opportunities may present themselves only once. This is an old literary motif, written about many times over the centuries. The Roman poet Horace (65-8 B.C.) coined the phrase carpe diem in Book 1 of his famous odes, when he advised people to “seize the day, put no trust in tomorrow!” English poet Robert Herrick (1591-1674) repeated the sentiment in a memorable poem:
.......Gather ye rosebuds while ye may
.......Old time is still a-flying,
.......And this same flower that smiles today
.......Tomorrow will be dying.
In Our Town, Wilder reminds the audience again and again that time is “a-flying” with references to passing trains–which, like life, move swiftly forward–and with references to the generations of Grover’s Corners residents who have come and gone. The flowers in the gardens of Mrs. Gibbs and Mrs. Webb are still another reminder: Smell and appreciate them now, for they will not last long. So is Professor Willard’s boring speech about the geological and anthropological developments in the vicinity of Grover's Corners thousands of years ago. The wheel of history and its life cycles spins rapidly. However, "seizing the day" does not necessarily mean that people need to pursue lofty enterprises or careers or to run off to see the world. George Gibbs seizes the day by choosing to marry Emily rather than going to agricultural school. Mrs. Gibbs seizes the day by accepting the simple life of Grover's Corners rather than insisting that her husband go on vacation with her to the city of her dreams, Paris.
Theme 3: Little things in life are really big things. This theme points out that seemingly insignificant happenings in everyday life are actually among the most important ones. However, people experiencing them usually do not comprehend this truth at the time, as Emily observes in the cemetery when she says to Mrs. Gibbs, “They don’t understand, do they?
Theme 4: No town can isolate itself from the rest of the world. Grover's Corners is a pleasant, easygoing community that seems to be a separate world unto itself. But it is not. Rather, it spins on the same axis as the rest of the world and is subject to the same influences affecting outsiders. Its residents read Shakespeare and The New York Times. Trains going to Boston pass through regularly. And there comes a time when Ford cars replace horses and people begin to lock their doors, just like their big-city counterparts. Joe Crowell Jr., dies in World War I. English poet John Donne wrote in 1624:
.......No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main
........ . . any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind; and therefore never
.......send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.
Grover's Corners is not an island. And when the bell tolls for Emily at the end of the play, it tolls for everyone.
Theme 5: No community is perfect, not even idyllic Grover's Corners. Grover's Corners has its town drunk, Simon Stimson, whom Mrs. Soames says is a "scandal." Believing life is not worth living, he commits suicide. Grover's Corners also apparently has a form of segregation, for there is a "ghetto," Polish town, where Polish-American Catholics live.
Things to Think About
1. In what ways is your hometown like Grover's Corners? In what ways is your town different?
2. If you were to make a movie based on Our Town, would you include elaborate sets or retain the spare sets, with few props? Explain your answer.
3. The stage manager speaks directly to the audience. How effective is this approach?
4. At the end of the play, Emily says, “Oh, earth, you're too wonderful for anybody to realize you. Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?” Which are among the "wonderful" things about earth and life that you fail to notice?
5. The stage manager says young Joe Crowell graduated at the top of his class at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Yet Crowell never got a chance to put his education to use, for he died in combat during World War I. In commenting on Crowell's death, the stage manager says, "All that education for nothin’." Was his education, in fact, for nothing? Is the stage manager's comment intended to be an antiwar statement? As best you can from details provided in the play, describe Joe Crowell.
6. The stage manager thinks it would be a good idea to place a time capsule in the new bank under construction. In the capsule, he would place a copy of The Sentinel, The New York Times, the U.S. Constitution, the Bible, Shakespeare’s works, and the text of the play he is participating in, Our Town. What is the significance of these items in terms of what they tell you about Grover's Corners?
7. What does Mrs. Soames mean when she says, "My, wasn’t life awful–and wonderful"?
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Classwork for Thursday 3/26/2009 and Friday 3/27/2009
Second, fourth and fifth period completed this lesson plan on Thursday, March 26th; first period completed it on Friday, March 27th.
Do Whatcha Know!
Based on this video, how do you think World War II began? What do you think will happen next?
Why do you think this happened? What happened to Germany the last time we discussed them in class?
Intro to New Material
Take notes while you watch this film.
Guided Practice
Use your notes from the film to answer the following questions in complete sentences.
1. What did the Treaty of Versailles have to do with Hitler’s rise to power?
2. List two specific events that played a determining factor in the outbreak of World War II.
3. How did England and France respond to Germany’s invasion of Czechoslovakia?
4. Who are the Axis Powers? Who are the Allied Powers?
5. How did the United States help Great Britain before December 7,1941?
Independent Practice
Imagine you are President Roosevelt on December 8,1941. The U.S. has been in a state of isolation up until now, and now you must make a speech to the American citizens to rally support as you declare war on Japan.
Write this speech. What would you say to the American people? How would you convince them to support the war?
Learning Log
Describe the events leading up to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Do you believe that any of these events could have been avoided? Give at least two specific examples to justify your claim.
Do Whatcha Know!
Based on this video, how do you think World War II began? What do you think will happen next?
Why do you think this happened? What happened to Germany the last time we discussed them in class?
Intro to New Material
Take notes while you watch this film.
Guided Practice
Use your notes from the film to answer the following questions in complete sentences.
1. What did the Treaty of Versailles have to do with Hitler’s rise to power?
2. List two specific events that played a determining factor in the outbreak of World War II.
3. How did England and France respond to Germany’s invasion of Czechoslovakia?
4. Who are the Axis Powers? Who are the Allied Powers?
5. How did the United States help Great Britain before December 7,1941?
Independent Practice
Imagine you are President Roosevelt on December 8,1941. The U.S. has been in a state of isolation up until now, and now you must make a speech to the American citizens to rally support as you declare war on Japan.
Write this speech. What would you say to the American people? How would you convince them to support the war?
Learning Log
Describe the events leading up to the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Do you believe that any of these events could have been avoided? Give at least two specific examples to justify your claim.
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
An American hero died today
John Hope Franklin was an African American pioneer in the history of the American South. As a historian, he is one of my heroes, and someone who I hoped to study with in the near future. I'll never get that chance. He died this morning in Charlotte, North Carolina. He was 94 years old.
Read about some of his accomplishments here. We will definitely be reading an excerpt from his autobiography before the year is through.
Read about some of his accomplishments here. We will definitely be reading an excerpt from his autobiography before the year is through.
Monday, March 23, 2009
Classwork for Monday March 23, 2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Look again at the photographs on your desk.
What problems are these Americans facing?
What could realistically be done to solve these problems? Who should do it?
Intro to New Material
Skim through Chapter 15, Section 1 from page 504-508.
Use the following chart to organize your notes. Include FDR, CWA, FDIC, SEC, AAA, CCC, FERA, NIRA, NRA, TVA, HOLC, FHA
Abbreviation Full Name Impact
CWA Civil Works Administration Created 4 millions jobs building schools and roads
Guided Practice
Choose 5 of the “alphabet soup” New Deal programs created by FDR.
Draw an image of each in action, showing the purpose of each in your illustration.
Independent Practice
Think about our primary sources: The Autobiography of Malcolm X and the Depression era photos.
Which of these programs would have helped the Little family or your photo subjects? Be specific about their problems and how specific programs would have helped them.
Example: The homeless man looking for a job in the newspaper could have found work building dams for the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Learning Log
Do you think that FDR’s New Deal really helped Americans, did it go too far in spending government money, or did it not go far enough?
Explain your answer, taking care to mention who you think should have been responsible for solving the problems of individuals.
Look again at the photographs on your desk.
What problems are these Americans facing?
What could realistically be done to solve these problems? Who should do it?
Intro to New Material
Skim through Chapter 15, Section 1 from page 504-508.
Use the following chart to organize your notes. Include FDR, CWA, FDIC, SEC, AAA, CCC, FERA, NIRA, NRA, TVA, HOLC, FHA
Abbreviation Full Name Impact
CWA Civil Works Administration Created 4 millions jobs building schools and roads
Guided Practice
Choose 5 of the “alphabet soup” New Deal programs created by FDR.
Draw an image of each in action, showing the purpose of each in your illustration.
Independent Practice
Think about our primary sources: The Autobiography of Malcolm X and the Depression era photos.
Which of these programs would have helped the Little family or your photo subjects? Be specific about their problems and how specific programs would have helped them.
Example: The homeless man looking for a job in the newspaper could have found work building dams for the Tennessee Valley Authority.
Learning Log
Do you think that FDR’s New Deal really helped Americans, did it go too far in spending government money, or did it not go far enough?
Explain your answer, taking care to mention who you think should have been responsible for solving the problems of individuals.
Friday, March 20, 2009
The White House is going to plant a garden!
Shovel-Ready Project: A White House Garden
By Jane Black
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, March 20, 2009; Page C01
For more than a decade, food activists have rallied, cajoled, even pleaded for a vegetable garden on the White House lawn. Now they're finally going to get it.
Today, first lady Michelle Obama will host a groundbreaking for a White House kitchen garden on the South Lawn. She will be joined by students from Bancroft Elementary in Northwest Washington, , whose participation in the project will continue past today, as they help with planting in the coming weeks and harvesting later this year.
The 1,100-square-foot garden will include 55 kinds of vegetables, including peppers, spinach and, yes, arugula. (The selection is a wish list put together by White House chefs.) There will also be berries, herbs and two hives for honey that will be tended by a White House carpenter who is also a beekeeper. The chefs will use the produce to feed the first family, as well as for state dinners and other official events.
The White House will use organic seedlings, as well as organic fertilizers and organic insect repellents. The garden will be near the tennis courts and be visible to passersby on the street. The whole Obama family will be involved in tending the garden, White House spokeswoman Katie McCormick Lelyveld said.
Proponents of the garden see the move as a victory for fresh, wholesome food. With the Obamas as role models, it could also be a turning point in their battle to overturn the perception of organic food, farmers markets and gardens as the preserves of the elite.
"Nothing could be more exciting," said Alice Waters, chef of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., who has been lobbying for a garden on the White House lawn since the first Clinton administration. "The symbolism of putting a seed in the ground is a promise of a real nourishment and education for the population who visits, the people who plant the crops and the people who pick from it."
The White House appears to be casting the garden as just another strategy to encourage healthful eating. President Obama famously learned the political perils of being too familiar with "elite" vegetables such as arugula. In several interviews, Michelle Obama has talked about the importance of healthful eating and the challenges of persuading her children to eat fruits and vegetables. But she tends to use words such as fresh and nutritious rather than organic and sustainable. "We want to use it as a point of education," the first lady said in an interview in the April issue of O magazine. "We want to talk about health and how delicious it is to eat fresh food, and how you can take that food and make it part of a healthy diet."
The Obamas' garden will not be the first at the White House. John Adams, the first tenant, planted a garden shortly after taking up residence in 1800. Woodrow Wilson brought in sheep to mow and fertilize the White House lawn in 1918, an effort to conserve resources for the war effort. In 1943, over the objection of the Agriculture Department, Eleanor Roosevelt planted a victory garden, inspiring millions of Americans to grow their own food during World War II.
Recent efforts have been more modest. Jimmy Carter, a Georgia farmer who extolled the virtues of gardening during his campaign, declined calls in 1978 to plant a vegetable garden at the White House. During the Clinton years, a small garden was planted on the roof; the White House rejected the idea of a larger garden on the lawn, saying it was not in keeping with the formal nature of the White House grounds.
Campaigners for the White House garden were pleased but not surprised by the move. Daniel Bowman Simon, who last year drove a school bus with a sustainable garden on its roof across the country to raise awareness for the idea, said in December he had given a presentation to Rethinking Soup, a project that brought together farmers and activists to discuss food issues. Rethinking Soup was organized in part by Sam Kass, who had worked as a private chef for the Obamas and joined the White House kitchen in January. Chez Panisse's Waters said the first lady had been receptive to the idea when the two met last summer. "She said: 'I don't know why we couldn't have one,' " Waters reported. "It seemed like the most natural thing in the world."
Simon and his partner, Casey Gustawarow, called for schoolchildren and disabled Americans to work in the White House garden. They also requested that the gardeners plant heirloom seeds and use compost made from food waste from the kitchens that serve the White House, congressional buildings and Supreme Court.
"This garden is a tremendous idea, one that is both timely and in some ways overdue," said former White House executive chef Walter Scheib. "There has always been a small garden at the White House, but this commitment by Mrs. Obama to local and freshly grown product is a progressive move forward that will raise the profile and awareness of local and sustainable food both at the White House and nationally to an unprecedented level. Chef [Cristeta] Comerford and all of the chef's brigade must be thrilled to have this resource at their disposal. I know I would have been."
By Jane Black
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, March 20, 2009; Page C01
For more than a decade, food activists have rallied, cajoled, even pleaded for a vegetable garden on the White House lawn. Now they're finally going to get it.
Today, first lady Michelle Obama will host a groundbreaking for a White House kitchen garden on the South Lawn. She will be joined by students from Bancroft Elementary in Northwest Washington, , whose participation in the project will continue past today, as they help with planting in the coming weeks and harvesting later this year.
The 1,100-square-foot garden will include 55 kinds of vegetables, including peppers, spinach and, yes, arugula. (The selection is a wish list put together by White House chefs.) There will also be berries, herbs and two hives for honey that will be tended by a White House carpenter who is also a beekeeper. The chefs will use the produce to feed the first family, as well as for state dinners and other official events.
The White House will use organic seedlings, as well as organic fertilizers and organic insect repellents. The garden will be near the tennis courts and be visible to passersby on the street. The whole Obama family will be involved in tending the garden, White House spokeswoman Katie McCormick Lelyveld said.
Proponents of the garden see the move as a victory for fresh, wholesome food. With the Obamas as role models, it could also be a turning point in their battle to overturn the perception of organic food, farmers markets and gardens as the preserves of the elite.
"Nothing could be more exciting," said Alice Waters, chef of Chez Panisse in Berkeley, Calif., who has been lobbying for a garden on the White House lawn since the first Clinton administration. "The symbolism of putting a seed in the ground is a promise of a real nourishment and education for the population who visits, the people who plant the crops and the people who pick from it."
The White House appears to be casting the garden as just another strategy to encourage healthful eating. President Obama famously learned the political perils of being too familiar with "elite" vegetables such as arugula. In several interviews, Michelle Obama has talked about the importance of healthful eating and the challenges of persuading her children to eat fruits and vegetables. But she tends to use words such as fresh and nutritious rather than organic and sustainable. "We want to use it as a point of education," the first lady said in an interview in the April issue of O magazine. "We want to talk about health and how delicious it is to eat fresh food, and how you can take that food and make it part of a healthy diet."
The Obamas' garden will not be the first at the White House. John Adams, the first tenant, planted a garden shortly after taking up residence in 1800. Woodrow Wilson brought in sheep to mow and fertilize the White House lawn in 1918, an effort to conserve resources for the war effort. In 1943, over the objection of the Agriculture Department, Eleanor Roosevelt planted a victory garden, inspiring millions of Americans to grow their own food during World War II.
Recent efforts have been more modest. Jimmy Carter, a Georgia farmer who extolled the virtues of gardening during his campaign, declined calls in 1978 to plant a vegetable garden at the White House. During the Clinton years, a small garden was planted on the roof; the White House rejected the idea of a larger garden on the lawn, saying it was not in keeping with the formal nature of the White House grounds.
Campaigners for the White House garden were pleased but not surprised by the move. Daniel Bowman Simon, who last year drove a school bus with a sustainable garden on its roof across the country to raise awareness for the idea, said in December he had given a presentation to Rethinking Soup, a project that brought together farmers and activists to discuss food issues. Rethinking Soup was organized in part by Sam Kass, who had worked as a private chef for the Obamas and joined the White House kitchen in January. Chez Panisse's Waters said the first lady had been receptive to the idea when the two met last summer. "She said: 'I don't know why we couldn't have one,' " Waters reported. "It seemed like the most natural thing in the world."
Simon and his partner, Casey Gustawarow, called for schoolchildren and disabled Americans to work in the White House garden. They also requested that the gardeners plant heirloom seeds and use compost made from food waste from the kitchens that serve the White House, congressional buildings and Supreme Court.
"This garden is a tremendous idea, one that is both timely and in some ways overdue," said former White House executive chef Walter Scheib. "There has always been a small garden at the White House, but this commitment by Mrs. Obama to local and freshly grown product is a progressive move forward that will raise the profile and awareness of local and sustainable food both at the White House and nationally to an unprecedented level. Chef [Cristeta] Comerford and all of the chef's brigade must be thrilled to have this resource at their disposal. I know I would have been."
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Classwork for Thursday March 19 & Friday March 20, 2009
Do Whatcha Know!
What people and objects do you see in this photo? When and where do you think it was taken? What is happening here?
Intro to New Material
Today, your table will look at photographs taken during the Great Depression to learn about how tough life could be. As you look at the images at your desk, jot down answers to these questions in complete sentences.
1. Title of Photograph
2. Name of Photographer
3. What is happening in this picture?
4A. If there are people in your photo:
a. How are these people dressed?
b. What can you infer from the expression on their faces and their posture?
4B. If there are no people in your photo:
a. Describe the condition of any man-made objects in the photo.
b. What seems to have led to these circumstances?
5. What problems or frustrations are suggested by this image?
6. What adaptations can you assume or infer people are making to these conditions?
7. What help seems to be needed here?
Independent Practice
Choose one person from the photographs your group examined. Pretend to be that person, and write a letter to you now, describing your life, and how you got to the place where you were in the photo.
Learning Log
What could be done to help the people and situations in these photographs? Who should be responsible for helping them? Why?
What people and objects do you see in this photo? When and where do you think it was taken? What is happening here?
Intro to New Material
Today, your table will look at photographs taken during the Great Depression to learn about how tough life could be. As you look at the images at your desk, jot down answers to these questions in complete sentences.
1. Title of Photograph
2. Name of Photographer
3. What is happening in this picture?
4A. If there are people in your photo:
a. How are these people dressed?
b. What can you infer from the expression on their faces and their posture?
4B. If there are no people in your photo:
a. Describe the condition of any man-made objects in the photo.
b. What seems to have led to these circumstances?
5. What problems or frustrations are suggested by this image?
6. What adaptations can you assume or infer people are making to these conditions?
7. What help seems to be needed here?
Independent Practice
Choose one person from the photographs your group examined. Pretend to be that person, and write a letter to you now, describing your life, and how you got to the place where you were in the photo.
Learning Log
What could be done to help the people and situations in these photographs? Who should be responsible for helping them? Why?
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Classwork for Wednesday March 18, 2009
Do Whatcha Know!
Who is Malcolm X? What does he have to do with the Great Depression?
Intro to New Material
As a class, we’ll read the first 13 pages of Chapter 1 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X. As we read, jot down notes about his description of his Depression-era childhood.
Guided Practice
1. What historical ideas or figures in the reading do you recognize from previous classes?
2. How does Malcolm X talk about those ideas or figures?
3. Which of the four major causes of the Great Depression do you see present in the reading?
4. How does the Little family survive after Earl’s death?
Independent Practice
How accurate do you think Malcolm X’s depiction of his childhood is?
Do you think that the life of the Little family was a typical life during the Depression? Why?
Learning Log
What was life like during the Great Depression? What structures were in place to help people in financial trouble?
Who is Malcolm X? What does he have to do with the Great Depression?
Intro to New Material
As a class, we’ll read the first 13 pages of Chapter 1 of The Autobiography of Malcolm X. As we read, jot down notes about his description of his Depression-era childhood.
Guided Practice
1. What historical ideas or figures in the reading do you recognize from previous classes?
2. How does Malcolm X talk about those ideas or figures?
3. Which of the four major causes of the Great Depression do you see present in the reading?
4. How does the Little family survive after Earl’s death?
Independent Practice
How accurate do you think Malcolm X’s depiction of his childhood is?
Do you think that the life of the Little family was a typical life during the Depression? Why?
Learning Log
What was life like during the Great Depression? What structures were in place to help people in financial trouble?
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Classwork for Tuesday March 17, 2009
Causes of the Great Depression
Do Whatcha Know!
What kind of event do you think the top cartoon describes? What clues can you find to help you?
What do the two men in the bottom cartoon represent? What do you think happened to make them so different?
Intro to New Material
Read Chapter 14, Section 1: “The Nation’s Sick Economy” from page 482 to 489 to learn about how and why the nation’s economy hit rock bottom in 1929.
Use these questions to help you take notes:
•What were some economic problems that Americans faced before the stock market crash?
•Why was Herbert Hoover elected President in 1928?
•What was Black Tuesday?
•What were some causes of the Great Depression?
•How did the stock market crash affect the nation? The world?
1. Economic problems before Depression
a. Decrease in demand, prices drop
b. Crop surpluses
c. Railroads go out of business
d. CREDIT! People living beyond means
2. Hoover elected President in 1928
a. Americans happy with Republicans, and he is one
b. Ran against Al Smith, a Catholic
3. Black Tuesday
a. October 29, 1929: stock market crashes
4. Causes of Great Depression
a. Easy credit is too available
b. Crop surplus
c. Industries have old equipment, can’t compete
d. Uneven distribution of wealth
5. Impact of stock market crash
a. Banks go bankrupt
b. People lose jobs
c. Businesses close
d. Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act: taxes imports from other countries
i. The rest of the world enters a depression, too
Guided Practice
Use this graphic organizer to show the causes and effects of the stock market crash of 1929.
Independent Practice
Pretend that today is October 29, 1929. Write a journal entry for that day, pretending to be one of the following people:
-an investor who has lost his life savings in the stock market collapse
-a wealthy investor who has lost a substantial amount in the collapse
-a stock broker
-a banker
-a news reporter witnessing business at the New York Stock Exchange
Learning Log
Why did the Great Depression happen? How do you think it will effect everyday people like you and me?
Do Whatcha Know!
What kind of event do you think the top cartoon describes? What clues can you find to help you?
What do the two men in the bottom cartoon represent? What do you think happened to make them so different?
Intro to New Material
Read Chapter 14, Section 1: “The Nation’s Sick Economy” from page 482 to 489 to learn about how and why the nation’s economy hit rock bottom in 1929.
Use these questions to help you take notes:
•What were some economic problems that Americans faced before the stock market crash?
•Why was Herbert Hoover elected President in 1928?
•What was Black Tuesday?
•What were some causes of the Great Depression?
•How did the stock market crash affect the nation? The world?
1. Economic problems before Depression
a. Decrease in demand, prices drop
b. Crop surpluses
c. Railroads go out of business
d. CREDIT! People living beyond means
2. Hoover elected President in 1928
a. Americans happy with Republicans, and he is one
b. Ran against Al Smith, a Catholic
3. Black Tuesday
a. October 29, 1929: stock market crashes
4. Causes of Great Depression
a. Easy credit is too available
b. Crop surplus
c. Industries have old equipment, can’t compete
d. Uneven distribution of wealth
5. Impact of stock market crash
a. Banks go bankrupt
b. People lose jobs
c. Businesses close
d. Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act: taxes imports from other countries
i. The rest of the world enters a depression, too
Guided Practice
Use this graphic organizer to show the causes and effects of the stock market crash of 1929.
Independent Practice
Pretend that today is October 29, 1929. Write a journal entry for that day, pretending to be one of the following people:
-an investor who has lost his life savings in the stock market collapse
-a wealthy investor who has lost a substantial amount in the collapse
-a stock broker
-a banker
-a news reporter witnessing business at the New York Stock Exchange
Learning Log
Why did the Great Depression happen? How do you think it will effect everyday people like you and me?
Monday, March 16, 2009
Classwork for Monday 3/16/2009
Today in class, we'll finish up Thursday and Friday's lesson plan on VIPs from the 1920s, and take our second benchmark exam.
I will treat students who score "Basic" and above with free pizza the Friday after test results come back. Why? Because I know that you know the information on the test, and I have no shame: I will bribe you with pizza to make sure you carefully read the directions, questions, and answer choices (you lovable little teenaged slacker people).
I will treat students who score "Basic" and above with free pizza the Friday after test results come back. Why? Because I know that you know the information on the test, and I have no shame: I will bribe you with pizza to make sure you carefully read the directions, questions, and answer choices (you lovable little teenaged slacker people).
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Barack Obama a socialist? What's that even mean?
Once again, here's another article outlining some of the problems I have with Barack Obama. But remember the political spectrum. I'm to the left of Obama. I'll include a diagram to help explain it again, though (just in case you've forgotten your Civics).
Obama's somewhere between moderate and liberal (I'd say closer to moderate). I'm somewhere between liberal and radical. Do the short definitions beneath the drawing make sense? Let me know if I can explain it better. Here's the article below...
Obama's No Socialist. I Should Know.
By Billy Wharton
Sunday, March 15, 2009; Page B01
It took a massive global financial crisis, a failed military adventure and a popular repudiation of the Republican Party to make my national television debut possible. After 15 years of socialist political organizing -- everything from licking envelopes and handing out leaflets to the more romantic task of speaking at street demonstrations -- I found myself in the midtown Manhattan studio of the Fox Business Network on a cold February evening. Who ever thought that being the editor of the Socialist magazine, circulation 3,000, would launch me on a cable news career?
The media whirlwind began in October with a call from a New York Times writer. He wanted a tour of the Socialist Party USA's national office. Although he was more interested in how much paper we used in our "socialist cubby hole" than in our politics, our media profile exploded. Next up, a pleasant interview by Swedish National Radio. Then Brian Moore, our 2008 presidential candidate, sparred with Stephen Colbert. Even the Wall Street Journal wanted a socialist to quote after the first bailout bill failed last fall. Traffic to our Web site multiplied, e-mail inquiries increased and meetings with potential recruits to the Socialist Party yielded more new members than ever before. Socialism -- an idea with a long history -- suddenly seemed to have a bright future in 21st-century America.
Whom did we have to thank for this moment in the spotlight? Oddly enough, Republican politicians such as Mike Huckabee and John McCain had become our most effective promoters. During his campaign, the ever-desperate McCain, his hard-charging running mate Sarah Palin and even a plumber named Joe lined up to call Barack Obama a "socialist." Last month, Huckabee even exclaimed that, "The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics may be dead, but the Union of American Socialist Republics is being born."
We appreciated the newfound attention. But we also cringed as the debate took on the hysterical tone of a farcical McCarthyism. The question "Is Obama a socialist?" spread rapidly through a network of rightwing blogs, conservative television outlets and alarmist radio talk shows and quickly moved into the mainstream. "We Are All Socialists Now," declared a Newsweek cover last month. A New York Times reporter recently pinned Obama down with the question, "Are you a socialist, as some people have suggested?" The normally unflappable politician stumbled through a response so unconvincing that it required a follow-up call in which Obama claimed impeccable free market credentials.
All this speculation over whether our current president is a socialist led me into the sea of business suits, BlackBerrys and self-promoters in the studio at Fox Business News. I quickly realized that the antagonistic anchor David Asman had little interest in exploring socialist ideas on bank nationalization. For Asman, nationalization was merely a code word for socialism. Using logic borrowed from the 1964 thriller "The Manchurian Candidate," he portrayed Obama as a secret socialist, so far undercover that not even he understood that his policies were de facto socialist. I was merely a cudgel to be wielded against the president -- a physical embodiment of guilt by association.
The funny thing is, of course, that socialists know that Barack Obama is not one of us. Not only is he not a socialist, he may in fact not even be a liberal. Socialists understand him more as a hedge-fund Democrat -- one of a generation of neoliberal politicians firmly committed to free-market policies.
The first clear indication that Obama is not, in fact, a socialist, is the way his administration is avoiding structural changes to the financial system. Nationalization is simply not in the playbook of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and his team. They favor costly, temporary measures that can easily be dismantled should the economy stabilize. Socialists support nationalization and see it as a means of creating a banking system that acts like a highly regulated public utility. The banks would then cease to be sinkholes for public funds or financial versions of casinos and would become essential to reenergizing productive sectors of the economy.
The same holds true for health care. A national health insurance system as embodied in the single-payer health plan reintroduced in legislation this year by Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.), makes perfect sense to us. That bill would provide comprehensive coverage, offer a full range of choice of doctors and services and eliminate the primary cause of personal bankruptcy -- health-care bills. Obama's plan would do the opposite. By mandating that every person be insured, ObamaCare would give private health insurance companies license to systematically underinsure policyholders while cashing in on the moral currency of universal coverage. If Obama is a socialist, then on health care, he's doing a fairly good job of concealing it.
Issues of war and peace further weaken the commander in chief's socialist credentials. Obama announced that all U.S. combat brigades will be removed from Iraq by August 2010, but he still intends to leave as many as 50,000 troops in Iraq and wishes to expand the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan. A socialist foreign policy would call for the immediate removal of all troops. It would seek to follow the proposal made recently by an Afghan parliamentarian, which called for the United States to send 30,000 scholars or engineers instead of more fighting forces.
Yet the president remains "the world's best salesman of socialism," according to Republican Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina. DeMint encouraged supporters "to take to the streets to stop America's slide into socialism." Despite the fact that billions of dollars of public wealth are being transferred to private corporations, Huckabee still felt confident in proposing that "Lenin and Stalin would love" Obama's bank bailout plan.
Huckabee is clearly no socialist scholar, and I doubt that any of Obama's policies will someday appear in the annals of socialist history. The president has, however, been assigned the unenviable task of salvaging a capitalist system intent on devouring itself. The question is whether he can do so without addressing the deep inequalities that have become fundamental features of American society. So, President Obama, what I want to know is this: Can you lend legitimacy to a society in which 5 percent of the population controls 85 percent of the wealth? Can you sell a health-care reform package that will only end up enriching a private health insurance industry? Will you continue to favor military spending over infrastructure development and social services?
My guess is that the president will avoid these questions, further confirming that he is not a socialist except, perhaps, in the imaginations of an odd assortment of conservatives. Yet as the unemployment lines grow longer, the food pantries emptier and health care scarcer, socialism may be poised for a comeback in America. The doors of our "socialist cubby-hole" are open to anyone, including Obama. I encourage him to stop by for one of our monthly membership meetings. Be sure to arrive early to get a seat -- we're more popular than ever lately.
Obama's somewhere between moderate and liberal (I'd say closer to moderate). I'm somewhere between liberal and radical. Do the short definitions beneath the drawing make sense? Let me know if I can explain it better. Here's the article below...
Obama's No Socialist. I Should Know.
By Billy Wharton
Sunday, March 15, 2009; Page B01
It took a massive global financial crisis, a failed military adventure and a popular repudiation of the Republican Party to make my national television debut possible. After 15 years of socialist political organizing -- everything from licking envelopes and handing out leaflets to the more romantic task of speaking at street demonstrations -- I found myself in the midtown Manhattan studio of the Fox Business Network on a cold February evening. Who ever thought that being the editor of the Socialist magazine, circulation 3,000, would launch me on a cable news career?
The media whirlwind began in October with a call from a New York Times writer. He wanted a tour of the Socialist Party USA's national office. Although he was more interested in how much paper we used in our "socialist cubby hole" than in our politics, our media profile exploded. Next up, a pleasant interview by Swedish National Radio. Then Brian Moore, our 2008 presidential candidate, sparred with Stephen Colbert. Even the Wall Street Journal wanted a socialist to quote after the first bailout bill failed last fall. Traffic to our Web site multiplied, e-mail inquiries increased and meetings with potential recruits to the Socialist Party yielded more new members than ever before. Socialism -- an idea with a long history -- suddenly seemed to have a bright future in 21st-century America.
Whom did we have to thank for this moment in the spotlight? Oddly enough, Republican politicians such as Mike Huckabee and John McCain had become our most effective promoters. During his campaign, the ever-desperate McCain, his hard-charging running mate Sarah Palin and even a plumber named Joe lined up to call Barack Obama a "socialist." Last month, Huckabee even exclaimed that, "The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics may be dead, but the Union of American Socialist Republics is being born."
We appreciated the newfound attention. But we also cringed as the debate took on the hysterical tone of a farcical McCarthyism. The question "Is Obama a socialist?" spread rapidly through a network of rightwing blogs, conservative television outlets and alarmist radio talk shows and quickly moved into the mainstream. "We Are All Socialists Now," declared a Newsweek cover last month. A New York Times reporter recently pinned Obama down with the question, "Are you a socialist, as some people have suggested?" The normally unflappable politician stumbled through a response so unconvincing that it required a follow-up call in which Obama claimed impeccable free market credentials.
All this speculation over whether our current president is a socialist led me into the sea of business suits, BlackBerrys and self-promoters in the studio at Fox Business News. I quickly realized that the antagonistic anchor David Asman had little interest in exploring socialist ideas on bank nationalization. For Asman, nationalization was merely a code word for socialism. Using logic borrowed from the 1964 thriller "The Manchurian Candidate," he portrayed Obama as a secret socialist, so far undercover that not even he understood that his policies were de facto socialist. I was merely a cudgel to be wielded against the president -- a physical embodiment of guilt by association.
The funny thing is, of course, that socialists know that Barack Obama is not one of us. Not only is he not a socialist, he may in fact not even be a liberal. Socialists understand him more as a hedge-fund Democrat -- one of a generation of neoliberal politicians firmly committed to free-market policies.
The first clear indication that Obama is not, in fact, a socialist, is the way his administration is avoiding structural changes to the financial system. Nationalization is simply not in the playbook of Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and his team. They favor costly, temporary measures that can easily be dismantled should the economy stabilize. Socialists support nationalization and see it as a means of creating a banking system that acts like a highly regulated public utility. The banks would then cease to be sinkholes for public funds or financial versions of casinos and would become essential to reenergizing productive sectors of the economy.
The same holds true for health care. A national health insurance system as embodied in the single-payer health plan reintroduced in legislation this year by Rep. John Conyers Jr. (D-Mich.), makes perfect sense to us. That bill would provide comprehensive coverage, offer a full range of choice of doctors and services and eliminate the primary cause of personal bankruptcy -- health-care bills. Obama's plan would do the opposite. By mandating that every person be insured, ObamaCare would give private health insurance companies license to systematically underinsure policyholders while cashing in on the moral currency of universal coverage. If Obama is a socialist, then on health care, he's doing a fairly good job of concealing it.
Issues of war and peace further weaken the commander in chief's socialist credentials. Obama announced that all U.S. combat brigades will be removed from Iraq by August 2010, but he still intends to leave as many as 50,000 troops in Iraq and wishes to expand the war in Afghanistan and Pakistan. A socialist foreign policy would call for the immediate removal of all troops. It would seek to follow the proposal made recently by an Afghan parliamentarian, which called for the United States to send 30,000 scholars or engineers instead of more fighting forces.
Yet the president remains "the world's best salesman of socialism," according to Republican Sen. Jim DeMint of South Carolina. DeMint encouraged supporters "to take to the streets to stop America's slide into socialism." Despite the fact that billions of dollars of public wealth are being transferred to private corporations, Huckabee still felt confident in proposing that "Lenin and Stalin would love" Obama's bank bailout plan.
Huckabee is clearly no socialist scholar, and I doubt that any of Obama's policies will someday appear in the annals of socialist history. The president has, however, been assigned the unenviable task of salvaging a capitalist system intent on devouring itself. The question is whether he can do so without addressing the deep inequalities that have become fundamental features of American society. So, President Obama, what I want to know is this: Can you lend legitimacy to a society in which 5 percent of the population controls 85 percent of the wealth? Can you sell a health-care reform package that will only end up enriching a private health insurance industry? Will you continue to favor military spending over infrastructure development and social services?
My guess is that the president will avoid these questions, further confirming that he is not a socialist except, perhaps, in the imaginations of an odd assortment of conservatives. Yet as the unemployment lines grow longer, the food pantries emptier and health care scarcer, socialism may be poised for a comeback in America. The doors of our "socialist cubby-hole" are open to anyone, including Obama. I encourage him to stop by for one of our monthly membership meetings. Be sure to arrive early to get a seat -- we're more popular than ever lately.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Colleges for Students with LD
Although most colleges have programs to help students with learning disabilities, here are a number of colleges that go above and beyond in providing extra support for students who need it. You can find a list here.
Additionally, there are some colleges specifically for students with learning disabilities. Check out Landmark College, one of these colleges. Here, they also offer a summer program for high school students, to help build skills and teach students HOW to learn (it's $4500 for 3 weeks, but they have scholarships!).
Additionally, there are some colleges specifically for students with learning disabilities. Check out Landmark College, one of these colleges. Here, they also offer a summer program for high school students, to help build skills and teach students HOW to learn (it's $4500 for 3 weeks, but they have scholarships!).
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