Final post

What was your favorite section of the class and why?
I think my favorite had to be the section on media. I guess it's because I'm interested in philosophy and it was interesting to examine how and why people get the information that they do. I thought it was fascinating seeing how the "free information" people value so much isn't quite as free as they think.

Which one was the least interesting, and why?
I think looking at the intricacies of the three branches of government in detail was pretty dry. All the other portions of class had either a history or current-events feel to it, but this just wasn't my thing. It's important, and I did learn when we covered it, but it just didn't have the urgency of mass media tainted by corporations or a disastrously mismanaged Social Security system.

How did you feel about your knowledge of government prior to this class, has it changed?
I suppose I thought of myself as someone who was at least knowledgeable about government and politics. Something that I found valuable about this class was that it revealed what I didn't know, which is quite a bit, and encouraged me to stay connected and informed.

Give me an honest assessment of your generation , politically speaking, if you had to judge it based on your friends.
The majority of my friends are moderates at best, and most harbor an unhealthy amount of apathy towards politics. Getting a little more fire in their bellies would be great. I think my generation has a small amount of people who are very active and concerned, but it really is a small amount. Even if large amounts of Millennials vote, I don't see many involved beyond that.

What can you do to make your commitment to your country stronger than it is today?
I think one small step would be to vote more. I have voted in all major elections since I became eligible to vote, but I have missed smaller, local elections. I think I have learned that even the small elections are important.

Any other feelings about the class?
I liked this class a lot. I was expecting a very dry exposition on the nature of government and that is certainly not what I got. I think it's important for everyone, not just people my age, to shed the idea that political involvement is unimportant. This class has helped me to understand why that is.

McLean County Museum

I think one thing that really stuck out to me after going through the museum was how connected McLean County was to the history of the country at large. I entered the museum with no knowledge whatsoever of the history of the county, so everything I saw there tended to be a revelation, but I walked away surprised at how integrated the county really was into the nation at large. I suppose my own impression was that a podunk part of the state, and country, like this would have only displays on the history of corn to show off. Instead, there was plenty on display that was of some significance and interest. I think my favorite had to be the the display on Lincoln, I had no idea the Republican party was launched from McLean County. I was particularly interested to see how there really wouldn't be any history of note without politics. The political process seemed to drive the major events in McLean County's past, such as Lincoln's encounters with the county and the precedent-setting court cases. I think I've been convinced that it is important to be at least a little knowledgeable about where they live. I refuse to say it's essential, because it isn't. I survived without any knowledge of McLean County beyond corn, but in the interest of not being a complete ignoramus some history is important.

Party/Ideology

I was a little surprised by the test's assessment of my political leanings. I didn't think I was an extreme conservative or liberal, but I wasn't expecting to be assessed as an almost completely centrist moderate. I seem to be awfully similar to Jose Zapatero, the current Prime Minister of Spain, who is so boringly moderate that I had never heard of him before taking this test. I think I line up more as a moderate with Republicans than Democrats due to my leanings on certain social and economic issues, but evidently I miss the hard line.
Personally, I believe I prefer the Republicans over the Democrats because of my views on national security and the economy, but this test is making me think I need to investigate everything a tad bit more. I thought the Republican's website could have used some modern anecdotes to use in their "About Us" section. There's an impressive record of Republican action on social issues back a hundred years or more, but there was a noticeable lack of anything modern to present. As far as issues go, I found that I agreed with them in many areas, mainly health care and the economy. I think my views tend to swing toward toward the Republicans, but I am not that similar to many of the loudest Republican voices.
The Democrats definitely seem to put forth a very positive face on their website. Every page on the site gives off a positive vibe, and they do a good job of cataloging current party actions. I just don't think I line up issues-wise with the Democrats.

Sonia Sotomayor

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124343590838058789.html

Nominating Sonia Sotomayor as a candidate for the Supreme Court has ignited more than a little controversy. My own impression of the Wall Street Journal is that it leans to the conservative side on political issues, and this article has a hint of pessimism about Sotomayor, airing a lot of the grievances against her. Overall it seemed to hug the center pretty tight, however.
The authors definitely do not seem to have jumped on board the Sotomayor bandwagon. It is interesting and somewhat refreshing to hear opposition arguments toward Sotomayor, but their long list of caveats gives the article a somewhat pessimistic tone while refraining from ringing alarm bells. They point out Sotomayor's comment: "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life," and examine the reaction to it. Also mentioned are conservative special-interest groups' complaints, such as questioning Sotomayor's commitment to equal justice and painting her as an opponent to gun rights. Interestingly enough, little to nothing is mentioned of Sotomayor's background that would merit her a position on the Court, while plenty of controversies are dug up and broadcast. This combination casts her as a racist radical, which is most likely far from true. I would have appreciated more insight into her qualifications and judicial background to make the article more informative.

Congress

I have become convinced that members of congress do not want the office because of the potential for raw excitement. Looking at a day in congress written out has proved my impressions of the way congress operates to be false. Not that I ever pictured sessions of congress to be an adrenaline rush, but it actually turned out to look more dry than I imagined. All that effort and money to get elected to a position of authority over very mundane matters. The fact that there are extremely serious matters of national importance occasionally tossed into the jumble of boredom doesn't seem to help; if anything, it makes things worse. Switching gears between designating Postal Service facilities and deciding on the fate of terrorists isn't exciting, it's stressful.
Not to mention points of personal occupational importance are mixed in to seemingly minute details. The writer comments on the "guns in the parks" rider on a bill to which some democrats granted approval, in the author's opinion, to appear pro-gun without consequences. The joke is on them, however. The bill, with strange rider attached, is making progress. I think I would quickly grow tired of keeping track of all the little career-killing/career-making details such as these.

Tazewell County

My home county is Tazewell County, just a short jaunt down the road from ISU. Tazewell was formed in 1827 by being carved out of Peoria county and named after an elected official: Littleton Tazewell, a senator.
The elected Representative from my district is Aaron Schock, a Republican. Mr. Schock is the youngest member of congress at 27 and entered office with experience as an elected official already under his belt, both as a school board president and state representative. He currently serves on the Highway and Transit Subcommittee and Small Business Committee.
One of two Senators is Dick Durbin, a Democrat, who holds the position of Majority Whip. Mr. Durbin was first elected to the House in 1983, and won election as a senator in 1996 and 2002. Some issues Durbin has been involved with have been health care and gun safety. As a member of the House, Durbin authored a bill to ban smoking on airline flights, and he also spearheaded an effort to penalize adults for failing to properly secure their firearms when used by a child for a crime.

"Why Governments Can't Run a Business"

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124277530070436823.html

Government has been expanding recently, and I personally have not been able to find many voices talking about why it could possibly be a bad thing. What caught my eye in this particular piece was how John Gordon was able to elquently discourse on so many subtle points. I found that I was actually familiar with a small number of the arguments he had to make, such as "Governments are run by politicians," but mostly Gordon managed to think the issue through at a deeper level than I have.
I really liked Gordon's comments on how the government has to use taxpayer money. What defines success and the source of resources are completely different when the government and a profit-driven company are compared. A government concerned about courting votes and driven along by set political ideology will run a corporation reflecting those concerns in the way it operates. It's not a recipe for success.
My favorite point is undoubtedly the last. A government is in charge of supervising itself. The US government does not have a great fiscal track record, so it's unclear why government replacing knowledgeable businesspersons is a good idea.

Intro

Hi, my name's Blake and I'm a psych major. My only experiences with government have been voting and being taxed, so I'm expecting to learn quite a bit from taking this course.