Monday, November 24, 2008

Team of rivals?

For those of you looking for an extra credit opportunity, please read on...

With Barack Obama ready to take office on January 20, 2009 and much at stake, he is studying up on American History (just like you guys) to find a creative approach to the enormous challenges he will inherit quite soon. He is looking to one of his political role models another tall, skinny guy from Illinois - - Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln's Presidential Cabinet included many of his political rivals, whom Lincoln purposely chose to help balance his viewpoints.

Your task is to read through each of these articles and answer the following questions:
1. Is this approach what the country needs right now to get us back on the right track?
2. Are the challenges that we are currently facing larger than the ones Lincoln had to fix?
3. How do you think this strategy will fare?

The articles: http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/11/21/will_lincolns_team_of_rivals_play_today/
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97327744&ft=1&f=1001
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-team-of-rivalsnov15,0,5009913.story
http://www.time.com/time/politics/article/0,8599,1815849,00.html

Make sure to cite specific examples from: the articles, what we have covered in class, and the news.

Worthy postings (that thoroughly answer the questions, cite specific information, and present critical thought) can earn up to 15 points toward their total points earned (the numerator) of their second quarter grade!

Posting must be completed by Tuesday December 2nd, 2008 and no later.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Comparing Reconstruction

Picture it...The United States Army has come through destroyed your town, your home, and your entire way of life. Now the process of putting things back together and making the country work is in the hands of the President and Congress. Sound familiar? Well this description could very aptly be used to describe both the US Civil War or the Iraqi War.

Your job is to read through the included articles and POST: comparisons/contrasts between the situation of reconstructing Iraq and Reconstruction after the Civil War. Try and come up with as many similarities and differences of the two situations as you can. Think critically!

http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/meast/03/21/iraq.reconstruction/index.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2008-11-01-iraq-reconstruction_N.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/3021632.stm