Optional Blog Post

It seems like these days there is a vaccine for everything. From chicken poxs to typhoid, if theres a vaccine your new born is sure to get it, in an attempt to keep them as healthy as possible. Although vaccines do prevent you from getting some very serious diseases as well as preventing common infections, new research has shown that an increase in birth diffracts, Down Syndrome in particular, may be linked to this rush of vaccines. As the number of child vaccinations goes up each year, so does the amount of children with Down Syndrome One Ashland mom argues there must be a correlation. She states that she would rather her child get sick and fight through it then possible contract a birth defect. People across the globe are standing right by this moms side. Famous actress Jenny Mcarthy, had a child that was born perfectly healthy. After receiving his douse of vaccinations, the baby came down with Autism. Jenny concludes that it must be the shots that turned her sweet young child into the troubled kid he is today. All this begs the question, could vaccines really be the reason so many young people are getting birth defects?

"The Vaccine War." Frontline: PBS. WGBH Educational Foundation, 27 Apr. 2010. Web. 01 June 2014. .

Just as the Vaccine causing birth defects myth got started, experts started to shut it down. Although it is agreed that certain added ingredients in the vaccines may cause birth defects, the actual vaccine itself is not to blame. Experts have been testing this myth from as early as 1999, and over 22 studies show no correlation among birth defects and autism. The fact that birth defects occur after vaccinations is purely coincidence. Removing these bad ingredients, researchers now say they are confident in their studies, and confident that newborns around the world that take vaccines, will not contract autism or another birth defect, unless its in their genetics that is. For Mcarthy, she will be harder to convince.

Brink, Susan. "One Thing We Know About Autism: Vaccines Aren't to Blame." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 16 July 2013. Web. 02 June 2014. .

Blog Post Next 2

One key characteristic of the merit system is that government employees are hired based on their skill and not because of their political connections. Prior to employment, workers must complete a test to see if their skills are adequate for the position.

The federal bureaucracy is very large and thus independent. Operating like a small city, there are specialized units within the bureaucracy. This allows the bureaucracy to be very independent because many people are specialists in their own respective areas.

Congress has its own unique way of dealing with agencies. Using appropriations, congress can either reward or punish an agency, thus controlling it. The courts can rule certain ways to control interest groups, but interest groups can fight back. Using their first amendment, interest groups try to do things that congress can't necessarily stop.

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap10_us_govt_politics_q1.pdf

Blog Post Next

Two provisions that protect individuals that try to influence politics are the first and tenth amendment. The first amendment gives people freedom of speech and freedom of press, two very important things when trying to impact politics. The tenth amendment states "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people." and also protect individuals.

Different interest groups use various methods for getting what they want. Through litigation; grassroots lobbying, and campaign contributions, interest groups will do whatever it take to pass a bill or get a certain official elected.

Litigation is an interest groups way of getting what they want. They use the law as there secret weapon. Sometimes, they use portions of various laws to further their cause, while other times they use it as a threat against their opponents. In the 1940s and 1950s, the NAACP sued several segregated school districts. This ended in the Brown v Board of Education decision in 1954. Apart from this particular example, many other special intrest groups used litigation to get what they wanted.

Yet another method is through campaign contributions. This method is faster than grassroots lobbying or litigation, but equally as effective. When a special interest group donates to a certain official, they are in a sense, buying there way into the campaign. When they want something passed or not, they can play the "I donated lots of money to your campaign" card. This forces the leader to make influenced decisions in fear of losing funding. This form of "bribery" is also illegal to some extent. As the federal government wants all of its elected officials to be there own person rather than puppets of major corporations.

Grassroots lobbying is the final way intrest groups. This technique only works on certain issues that the majority of people are concerned about. It does not work on issues that are too complicated for the majority to understand, or on issues that few people care about. Grassroots lobbying is a face to face form of lobbying. Special interest groups send out "foot soldiers" to spread the word and make more people vote. When it comes to the time where the decision is to be made, the pressure of the masses force a decision.

One specific governmental regulation of interest groups is through PACs, or political action committees. They place regulations on how much a pac can give to an interest group, controlling how much one person can donate.

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap10_us_govt_politics_q1.pdf

Health care by country

United Kingdom

Percent of GDP spent on health care: 8.3
Average family premium: 0
Co-pay: 0 for most services, very little for somethings like prescriptions, eyeglasses, and dental. Young people and old people pay nothing at all.

What is it?
-Government provides and pays for healthcare.

How does it work?
-People pay taxes for health care and everybody benefits from it whether you need it or not.
-GP must see patient first.
-focus on preventive care

Concerns?
-Long waits and limited choice
-must go where you are supposed to, although, they are working to allow the patients to choose their doctor.

Japan

Percent of GDP spent on health care: 8
Average family premium: $280 a month. Employers pay half.
Co-pay: 30% of the cost of the procedure, but its limited based on your income.

What is it?
-Everybody must have health insurance.
-workers get it through work
-everybody else must pay for it privately unless they can't afford it
-Hospitals and doctors are in the private sector.

How does it work?
- Citizens can go to any specialist they want for free
- Negotiate prices every two years to keep price down.

Concerns?
-Spend too little on health care

-hospitals are in debt because they don't have patients that visit them regularly

Germany 

Percent of GDP spent on health care: 10.7 

Average family premium: $750 per month. Pegged to patients income
Co-pay: $15 every three months

What is it?
-Buy their insurance from one of over 200 non profit "sickness funds"

-Poor receive public assistance

How does it work?
-Sickness funds bargain with doctors as a group.
-may go straight to specialist, but may have to pay higher co-pay.

Concerns?
-German doctors make less than U.S. doctors
- Richest 10% can pay for other insurance that costs more but allows quicker doctor visits.

Taiwan

Percent of GDP spent on health care: 6.3
Average family premium: $650 a year for a family of four.
Co-pay: 20 percent of the cost of drugs, up to $6.50; up to $7 for outpatient care; $1.80 for dental and traditional Chinese medicine. There are exemptions for major diseases, childbirth, preventive services, and for the poor, veterans, and children.

What is it? 

-all citizens must have health insurance

-comes from one government source.

-working people pay rates split with employers

-others pay flat rate

How does it work?

-every citizen has smart card that bills insurer.

-can see any doctor without prior recommendation

Concerns?

-not enough money to pay for all the expenses. 

-people pay less for medical care, so theres not enough money to keep the buildings running. 

Switzerland

Percentage of GDP spent on health care: 11.6

Average family premium: $750 paid entirely by consumers. Poor get a break

Co-pay: 10% of the cost of services, up to $420 a year

What is it?

-All citizens must have coverage

-low income receive breaks

How does it work? 

- Not allowed to make a profit on basic plan

- can't cherry pick young and healthy clients

-negotiations lead to set prices that can't be raised above agreed amount

Concerns?

-Swiss system is second most expensive in the world

-swiss don't have gate keepers, but require discounts to be given to people who use them. 

The system I like the best is a combination of several of the above systems. I do not feel like any one country deals with health insurance perfectly. If i had to choose one of the preexisting countries systems, I would probably choose Taiwan due to their excellent health care system. Citizens receive great health care at a low cost and don't have to pick and chose between health insurance providers. 

  

Amendment IV

Amendment IV

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Translation: People have the right to abstain from unlawful searches by police officers. This prevents officers from approaching someone at random and searching them against their will based on race, religion, or another distinguishable feature. Cars, houses, and persons are protected under this law unless a warrant is issued after probable cause has been established. 

This amendment is very important to people of all shapes and sizes. If you are an african american male, you have every right to walk down the street just as freely as a white female, without the worry of being unjustly searched by a racist police officer. This goes for people from all races and religions. Police officers should have every right to stop and search a person who the deem to be suspicious and up to no good, however, they should only be able to do this to prevent wrong doing, not for fun or to exert power over someone and the 4th amendment prevents such behavior. 

A Fierce Green Fire

American Masters, A fierce Green fire, is a motivating documentary about environmental preservationists and their stand against pollution. Through out the short, hour long video, we are given insight into the early formation of the Sierra Club. The Sierra Club is a organization started to save our planet. Through protesting, petitions, and public awareness, they have been partially successful but the job isn't over just yet. Also is this documentary, we learned about the Sea Shepard's and their stand against whale poaching. In addition, to the many view points expressed in this film, a lot of information is given out about what we are doing to our climate, and how we can stop its adverse affects.

A Fierce Green Fire. Dir. Mark Kitchell. 22 Apr. 2014. PBS. Web. 15 May 2014. .

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) better known as the "Sea Shepards" on their hit TV show, are a marine wildlife conservation group. Their goal is to prevent unlawfull poaching of marine animals and to preserve our ecosystem. Their main goal is to prevent the killing of whales by the japanese. Using their small fleet of boats, a group of volunteers does everything in their power to stop whaling. By documenting, and interrupting their harvest season, its become increasingly hard for whalers to meet their quota. This decrease in whaling is a win for team Sea Shepard and they hope to continue on, making an impact around the world.

"Sea Shepherd Conservation Society." Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 May 2014.

Solar energy is one of the cleanest types of energy there is. We as humans use a ridiculous amount of energy to power our lights, cellphones, air conditioning, and much more. To get all this raw energy
for us to be able to use everyday, we must harvest it. Our main source of energy has been coal, however, coal is very dirty. Although it may be cheap and in abundance, it is destroying our earth and it, along with other fossil fuels, is the cause of global warming. Solar, unlike any other energy source is clean and uses energy from the sun. Unfortunately, it is the least used energy source. This is because it is very expensive. In order for solar to become a viable option, we need to find a way to make it cheaper. Unless we do that, solar will never be a major energy provider.

"Solar Energy." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 25 May 2014. Web. 29 May 2014.
" Solar Energy." Solar Energy Industries Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 May 2014. .

Assignment:

Part 1:  Bibliographic annotation for.

American Masters, A fierce Green fire.  Use the internet, and cite the source.  Summarize. In a paragraph format.  MLA format, but you don't have to reverse indent if you don't like.

Direct link to the video.

Part 2:  2 more sources about some aspect of the Environmental movement that 'speaks to you.'  This could be managing fisheries for recreation, saving the whales, etc., clean air, clean water, solar power, nuclear power, clean coal.  I don't really care, but don't be contrarian for contrarians sake.  Look for something good about the Planet,  and dig in.

Cite the sources, summarize, in MLA format.

Write a statement of purpose about what you would like to see done about the issue you have researched, and WHY.

Essay 20

The American Medical Association uses campaign contributions as the primary way to get what they want. With a huge number of members and tons of access to money, this way just makes the most sense. Using Grassroots lobbying takes too much time and effort. For each item the AMA wants passed, they would have to get too many members in order for it to work. The American Medical Association doesn't prefer to use litigation, because they want to be on peoples good side, and suing is not the way to do that

(1999_2)National interest groups often target national-level policymaking institutions to achieve their policy objectives.

Select one of the following national interest groups.

- AARP

- AMA (Medical Association

- NAACP

- NAM (national assoc. of Manufacturers)

For the group you selected do each of the following.

- a identify one major national-level policymaking institution that this group targets.

- b describe one resource or characteristic of the group you have chosen and explain how it influences the choice of the target you have identified in (a)

- c describe another resource or characteristic of the group you have chosen and explain how it influences the choice of the target you have identified in (a).

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap10_us_govt_politics_scoring_guidelines.pdf

Essay 19

(1999_1)In the 1990’s presidential election campaigns have become more candidate centered and less focused on issues and party labels. The change has been attributed both to how the media cover presidential campaigns and to how candidates use the media. Identify and explain two ways in which the media have contributed to candidate-centered presidential campaigns. Identify and explain two ways in which presidential candidates’ use of the media has contributed to candidate-centered campaigns.

Since the era of mass broadcasted presidential campaigns, many things have changed. Whereas the focus used to be on current issues and events occurring involving our country, now the main focus is on the candidates themselves. With the development of the internet, citizens can research the candidates and find information on everything from their birthplace to what sports they played in high school. Another reason todays campaigns have become candidate centered is because each candidate is on display for the world to see. Many citizens are much more interested in what a candidate is doing wrong rather than what they plan on doing right. Any affair, mistake, or wrong doing is sure to be picked up on by the media and broadcasted to millions of viewers to watch on the nightly news.

Candidates have also used the media to their advantage, however. Every time before and election is to be held, millions of dollars are spent on ads aimed at taking down their opponent. By attacking and belittling their opponent through carefully manipulated T.V. and radio ads, candidates can get the people on their side by making the other candidate the "bad guy". Using the media to hinder their opponent is popular, but it can also be used to boost their popularity. By appearing on T.V. often and doing good things while on camera, the people build awareness as well as a relationship with the candidate. This can help candidates gain votes and show what they plan on doing once in office.

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/members/repository/sg_gov_pol_us_99.up_7047.pdf

Essay 18

One key characteristic of the merit system is that unlike set pay increases and promotions, the merit system runs off of your performance in the particular job. If you do well and exceed your peers, you get a raise that reflects that.


The structure of the federal bureaucracy is almost like a triangle. a few people on top and the majority on the bottom. Few leaders control everything and the power flows downward. Newer, less experienced employees are on the bottom, with the ability to rise up based on merit.


Everyone in some way can affect bureaucracy and make sure it stays in check. Congress can pass new legislation that affects the bureaucracy. Interest groups can also affect it in a non direct way. By holding media events, protesting, and lobbying. The courts can restrict the bureaucracy's freedom by implementing ruling that makes it hard to do whatever they want.


http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap10_us_govt_politics_q2.pdf

Essay 17

One specific trend evident in the chart above is that the amount of democratic seats is trending downward.

Between 1984 and 2000, many southern voters tended to vote for republican candidates for president, however, they continued to vote for democratic canidates for congress. This is because of incumbancy advantage. another reason for this odd voting behavior, is due in part to differences between state and national parties. Because national and state parties are largely independent of each other, to get votes Democratic congressional candidates responded to local interests. Democratic presidential candidates responded to a national constituency, thus, a difference occurs.


Over the past few decades, party composition has changed in groups. Women have become more reliable, Democratic voters. Labor union members have become less reliable Democratic voters; have decreased in number and thus there are fewer Democratic supporters.Catholics have become less reliable Democratic voters as well.

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap10_us_govt_politics_q3.pdf

Essay 16

There are several reasons why congress gives federal agencies policy making discretion in executing federal laws. The main reason is because certain federal agencies have the people, the resources, and the experience that the federal government just doesn't have. In addition, agencies can regulate laws and enforce things for longer periods of time whereas congress can change legislatures every two years, giving them little time to actually enforce the laws they create.

The Enviromental Protection Agency takes care of any and all matters that have to do with protecting our enviroment or preserving our land. As with any law, nothing works 100% of the time nor does any law have the ability to work under any situation. With that, there is a certain amount of flexibly written in laws as intended by the founders. For example, if the law states that a certain area is restricted to vehicles and any vehicle found on that land will be cited, the EPA has a certain level of flexibility when enforcing that law. If a driver is purposely on the land, they should be cited, however, If a vehicle is involved in an accident and flys off the road into that restricted land, the EPA can decide whether or not they want to cite the person in that circumstance.

Congress insures that their federal agencies are following legislative intent in two ways. They allocate a supervisor to each agency to investigate and insure that agency is doing what it's supposed to. If they are, the company keeps going on as usual without a glitch. If they are not doing what they are supposed to, the federal government steps in and either guilds them back in the right direction, or removes the agency although. They can also keep agencies in line by controlling how much money they receive. If they are doing a poor job due to a lack of funding, the federal government can allocate more funds to help get the agency to where it needs to be. They can also take away money if the agency isn't doing what it's supposed to.



http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/_ap06_gopo_us_sg.pdf

2006-3 The United States congress and the president together have the power to enact federal law. Federal bureaucratic agencies have the responsibility to execute federal law. However, in the carrying out of these laws, federal agencies have policy making discretion.
(1) Explain two reasons why Congress gives federal agencies policy making discretion in executing federal laws.
(2) Choose one of the bureaucratic agencies listed below. Identify the policy area over which it exercises policy-making discretion and give one specific example of how it exercises that discretion.
a. Environmental Protection Agency
b. Federal Communications Commission
c. Federal Reserve board
(3) Describe two ways in which Congress ensures that federal agencies follow legislative intent.

Essay 15

An Entitlement program is a program run through the government that guarantees certain benefits to a certain group of people or segment of the population. The primary source of revenue for the social security program comes from deductions in paychecks. Every time a person receives a paycheck, a portion of that money goes to paying for social security for the elderly. Unfortunately, the amount of people on social security is far higher than the amount of people working to add to social security as depicted in the above graph. If this trend continues, social security could be a thing of the past and elderly people may go without if they can no longer work. This becomes an even bigger problem as many people are living longer than they used to so the amount of people on social security is rapidly increasing. If you had to be older to start claiming social security, far fewer people would be on social security at one time and the funds wouldn't be depleted as quickly

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/_ap06_gopo_us_sg.pdf

2006-2 In recent decades, entitlement programs have constituted a substantial portion of the United States federal budget. Social Security is the largest entitlement program in the US. From the information in the chart above, and your knowledge of the US government and politics, perform the following tasks.

(a) define entitlement program
(b) What is the primary source of revenue for the Social Security program
(c) Identify one threat to the future of the Social security program should the trends depicted in the chart continue
(d) Describe on demographic trend that threatens the future of the Social Security program and explain how it is responsible for the threat that you identified in (c )
(e) Explain how any one of the trends in the chart above would change if the age of eligibility for social security were raised.

Essay 14

The Constitution grants the president certain enumerated powers. Some of these powers include the presidents ability to enforce and maintain laws already set in place. Any bills that are in the process of becoming laws that the president does not approve of, he has the unique ability of vetoing.

Spending that is not affected by budget cuts is called Mandatory spending. This means that when deciding what budgets to cut, certain programs are out of the question. The president must provide the necessary funding to such programs to keep them running.

Although one group may identify themselves a certain way, there may also be differences within the group that are not agreed on. When this happens, it is called Party Polarization. For example, although you may be a democrat, your view on how congress should be run or your view on the war may be different from another fellow democrat.

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap08_us_gopo_q2.pdf


2008-2)A number of factors enable presidents to exert influence over Congress in the area of domestic policy. However, presidents are also limited in their influence over domestic policymaking in Congress.
-The Constitution grants the president certain enumerated powers. Describe two of these formal powers that enable the president to exert influence over domestic policy.
-Choose two of the following. Define each term and explain how each limits the president’s ability to influence domestic policy making in Congress.
*Mandatory spending
*Party polarization
*Lame-duck period

Essay 13

Congressional reapportionment is conducted every ten years and is very important to ensure power is evenly distributed based on population and to make sure some states aren't over represented while others are underrepresented. When the Census is done, it is found that the population of each state changes. Some may gain people while others may lose people. Since the population changes, the amount of representatives must also change to better represent the people. Since congressmen aren't added or removed, they must be reappointed. This happens when the congress men or women from one district are moved to another with more people. This way the area with a higher population is better represented while a area with a lower population isn't over represented.

Congressional redistricting is the process of drawing new lines to create different districts where one party is the majority. This eliminates any one party becoming the minority and being unfairly represented. These lines can be cleverly drawn and are changed every ten years along with the census. If each district has a clear majority, and all the districts compete, an accurate representation of the states stand as a whole can be made.

The goal of politicians when they gerrymander is to re-do districts to give certain parties clear advantages. By drawing very unusual and complicated district lines, politicians can put all the under represented parties in one district, giving them a voice. Another way politicians use gerrymandering to their advantage is to hinder another political party or group. These groups can be based on religious or class groups, however cannot be because of race or wealth.

There are several limits to the districts when they are reappointed. To begin with, districts cannot be drawn solely based on race. This means districts can't be drawn so that one race is dominantly in control. Also the redistricting cannot dilute minority voting strength. Another limit to redistricting is that each district has to be of equal population. Even though the lines can be drawn however they want, if they are not continuous or if the population inside each district is different it does not work.

http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/public/repository/ap08_gopo_us_sgs.pdf

2008-1) Congressional reapportionment and redistricting are conducted every ten years. When redistricting is conducted, politicians often engage in gerrymandering.
(a) Define congressional reapportionment and explain one reason why it is important to states.
(b) Define congressional redistricting.
(c) Explain two goals of politicians when they gerrymander during redistricting.
(d) Describe two limits that the United State Supreme Court has placed on congressional redistricting.

Trouble in the Gulf

The Frontline we watched on "The Spill" gave a much needed insight as to what is happening in the oil industry today. There are many major oil companies in the United States and beyond, one of which is BP Oil. BP is the youngest of the oil companies and is facing many problems. One of the reasons for all these problems is BP want for profit over safety. To maximize profits and continue to run the oil refineries without breaks, BP decided it was fine to leave 20 year old plus machines to take on the incredible demand, even after being advised to replace the outdated and potentially dangerous machinery. BP put the importance of money over the importance of human life. One day, an important piece of the oil refinery failed, creating a massive explosion and killing several people. This marked the uprising in problems for BP. Even after this event, BP didn't claim responsibility, nor did they change. They claimed the problem was unrelated and said they didn't know about it. To cover themselves, BP paid people off, hired lawyers, among other things to avoid having to change. This type of mentality has lead to continued problems for BP. From the world famous Gulf Spill to oil leaks and explosions in Alaska, and more.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=pbs+frontline+oil+spill

BP has created an oil empire, unfortunately that has come at the cost of many lives. Rather than slow down and make sure its safe before preceding, this oil company cuts corners and places risky bets all for money. This occurred when "The Deep Water Horizon", BP's safest oil rigs suffered a severe malfunction and sunk, killing 11 workers. If the deep water horizon was the safest of BP's many oil rigs what does that say about the safety of BP oil operations. By cutting corners and making sacrifices, BP is costing people their lives. The worst part is, they don't seem to care, nor are they doing anything about it.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/blowout-the-deepwater-horizon-disaster-16-05-2010/

The main reason terrible events keep happening on BP's watch is because of their poor management. The individual workers are not the reason BP keeps experiencing problems. In an effort to save money, BP cuts corners. They stopped inspections of alaskan pipelines in an attempt to save money. This resulted in a failure that caused 200,000 barrels of crude oil to leak into the ground and ice near the alaskan pipeline. Things like this happen all the time with BP, so much in fact, that its starting to become a trend. If BP doesn't focus on their management and run the oil company like exxon or some of their other competitors, not only are there pockets going to suffer, but their company as well.

http://iveybusinessjournal.com/topics/leadership/bp-and-public-issues-mismanagement#.U1RFI14VTHg

Essay 12

A divide government is when different parties take primary control over the house and senate. For example, if the House of Representatives is ruled by Democrats and the Senate is ruled by Republicans, a divided government is created. A divided government is not beneficial to either party or the people. Checks and balances is a system that makes sure no one party can completely take over and pass any law they want. In order for a law to be passed, it has to be accepted by the other two branches of the system. When one party predominately controls the house and senate; laws get passed, promises fulfilled, and efficiency of the system is optimal. When a divided government occurs, policy grid lock ensues and trust in government is lost. This is all due to the fact that when neither the House nor the Senate agree on an issue, they have to hash it out and even if they do decide on a mutually beneficial agreement, the law still has to be approved by the executive branch. This makes congress extremely inefficient and nothing ends up getting done. Because of this, trust in the U.S. government is constantly declining. People want their congressmen and congresswomen to get bills passed that benefit them, thats the whole reason they voted for their representative after all. If none of the beneficial bills get passed or if no bills get passed in general, people see congress as a huge joke.

As the years progress, it takes more and more money to run a successful campaign. Although not always true, the person who spends the most normally walks away victorious. Politicians know this, and do what ever it takes to secure their position, primarily from campaign contributions. Most of these campaign contributions come from Political Action Committees or P.A.C.S. They donate to try and get their respective representative into office. Once they do, the politician feels a certain need to payback the P.A.C.S. He does this by listening to their problems and passing laws that benefit them. In essence, The P.A.C.S are buying the politician and this is no secret. In fact, much of the population of the U.S. knows about these sly and underhanded tactics. The American population feels a deep disconnect when they vote. They feel that no matter how they vote, or where their politician stands, laws will be passed that benefit the P.A.C.S rather then the people. This problem in the U.S. political system has led to a decline in trust and confidence in government. If the people don't trust their government, things are not in good shape. The political system needs peoples participation to stay legitimate. Without it, all the congress is, is a group of people who make changes to and add new laws. In addition, if people don't chose to vote due to the belief that policies are out of their hands, the government can spiral out of control and loose the democracy that we know and love today.

2004_4
3) Trust and confidence in government have declined in recent decades.
(a) Explain how divided government has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in government. Be sure to include a definition of divided government in your response
(b) Explain how the increased cost of election campaigns has contributed to the decline in trust and confidence in government.
(c) Explain two specific consequences of the decline in trust and confidence in government for individual political behavior.

Scoring Rubric:
http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/members/repository/ap04_sg_gopo_us_37090.pdf

Essay 11

AP Essay #11

(2001_2) the graph above shows reelection rates for incumbents in the House and Senate. From this information and your knowledge of of the US politics, perform the following 
tasks. (Fig 12.1)
a) identify two patterns displayed in the graph
b) identify 2 factors that contribute to incumbency advantage. Explain how each factor contributes to incumbency advantage.
c) Discuss one consequence of incumbency advantage for the US political process

The above graph shows reelection rates for incumbents in the House and Senate. The red represents Senator incumbents reelection rates and the blue represents House Representative incumbents reelection rates. This data is from the year 1946 to 2002. Normally the incumbent reelection rates follow a similar trend and when one goes up or down, the other goes up or down respectively. This trend seems to hold true for most years. In 1986, however, the trend was reversed. As House Representative reelection rates rose, Senate incumbent reelection rates dropped to an all time low.

Incumbents normally have a large advantage over their fellow competitor. This is because as  an experienced seat holder, they have certain advantages that first time contenders just dont have. One of these such advantages is credit claiming. In credit claiming, incumbents use what they have done as a weapon against their competitor, who has yet to do anything. This technique works as many voters reason the incumbent already did something favorable and is likely to repeat this action where as the new guy hasn't done anything yet and even after getting re-elected, there is no guarantee he ever will. Another benefit incumbents have over first timers is their popularity. They are already known by many Americans and many people are familiar with their name. They may have connections established from throughout the years and have more impact on decisions as they come up. The classic saying goes, the devil you know so better than the devil you don't.

One consequence of incumbency advantage is that because incumbents have money and feel they will always win, no matter how tough their competitor, few actually try hard to win and put forth the effort needed to be a congress person. Many feel as though they don't have to actually do anything, just sit back and look good while their name does all the work. This leads to a congress that gets little done and congressmen that don't follow through on many, if at all on their plans. 

Scoring Rubric: http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/members/repository/sg_govpol_us_01_7046.pdf

METH-A-DEMIC

Starting on the west coast as a drug used primarily by bikers; Meth has quickly spread across the United States, becoming one of the most addictive and dangerous drugs there is. Methamphetamine, better known as "Meth" or by its street name speed, is a chemically engineered drug that is sweeping the nation. Its made in a factory rather than grown, like most drugs. Pseudoephedrine or Sudafed, is one of the key ingredients in meth. Since only a few factories in the world produce it, shutting down the production of meth was easy, or so they thought. The big players in the meth industry were previously getting their sudaphed from these factories under the table. After the DEA restricted these factories, they thought their Meth problem was gone. They were wrong. Meth producers had found away around this road block. By hiring "Smurfs" they were able to get foot soldiers out to buy small amounts of Sudaped, then use it to make Meth. The drug was back on the streets and the problem was about to begin again.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/meth/

With Pseudoephedrine behind the counters of pharmacies across the U.S., the Meth problem appeared to be over. Unfortunately, with very loose laws in Mexico, meth cooks were buying large amounts of Sudaphed and smuggling it back into the United States. Along with the "Shake and Bake" method, meth users were now also meth cooks. By crushing up Sudaphed and a few other ingredients, mixing that with over the counter chemicals, and shaking everything up in a plastic container, home made meth was being made for personal use. This meth was easy to make but at the same time incredibly dangerous. If mixed incorrectly, the chemicals used could explode and create a real hazard. Meth labs were now popping up all across the nation, and the DEA didn't know what to do.

http://www.npr.org/2013/09/26/226476602/big-pharma-and-meth-cooks-agree-keep-cold-meds-over-the-counter

As the Meth train keeps moving, growing bigger and bigger, and as state officials are trying to stop it the question remains, will meth every be controlled or will it just keep growing until it negatively affects our nation? It seems all the attempted rules and regulations attempting to stop the flow of Sudaphed have failed. As pharmacies and drug manufactures attempt to get psudoephedrine out of the hands of meth heads, it seems the only people being inconvenienced are cold sufferers. In order for the meth epidemic to be stopped, the DEA and federal government has to stay one step ahead of the Meth cooks. As for now, they are one step behind and if it stays this way, Meth will not be stopped.

http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2012/02/oregons_cold_medicine_restrict.html 

NoKoBloPo

After World War 2, the Empire of Japans colonial rule over korea was ended. When this happened the United States and the Soviet Union agreed to share Korea in a trusteeship, in hopes of converting Korea into a free and independent nation. Elections where set to occur in two zones of Korea to create a system of government that was fair and organized. When it came election day, the Soviet Union desided not to go along with the United Nations plans, canceling the election. This created a communist state in the north and a pro-western state in the south. Korea was now divided in half near the 38th parallel thus, creating North and South Korea.


The current state that North Korea is in is not a good one. With Kim Jong-Un as dictator, the people are unhappy and sick. After the split of Korea into North and South Korea, the people have been deprived of basic necessities such as food and more importantly, information. Under the rule of Kim Jong-Un, there is no internet in North Korea, no tv, no radio, and no means of contact to the outside world. The people of north Korea are in the dark and Kim Jong-Un plans to keep it that way. In recent years, attempts from outsiders and defectors have been successful in smuggling in information secretly. Using bribery, balloons, and other means of transportation, Money and USB flash drives containing popular T.V. shows and movies, have been smuggled into North Korea. Although Kim Jong-un is trying to stop it, its not easy to stop such a constant flow of information.


There will be a regime change, time is the only factor. When it will happen is unknown but the peoples eyes are opened thanks to the help of outsiders. When they realize what a truly controlling place they live in, the government will be overturned. Kim Jong-Un may be powerful, but the power of many can easily rip him of his power.


http://video.pbs.org/video/2365141211/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Division_of_Korea

Essay 10

Essay 10




A: Interest groups fundamental goal in the political process is to influence the political decision making process in a way that helps their cause or benefits them in some way.


B: Major political parties main goal in the political process it to acquire or keep their power in their respective branch. An example of this is in the presidential election, political parties help to put their candidate through to become the president. If they succeed, they will have more power, collectively, as a group.




C: Political parties tend to match up with their like interest group. When this happens, candidates receive a lot of support from the supporters of the interest group. In addition, the political party also receives added funding.


D: When an interest group supports a political party with money, they are helping to put the party they are funding into positions of power. If everything goes the way they want, the interest group not only works to protect their interests, but they also put someone into power with similar interests of their own. This helps when future bills come into play that benefit or hurt the group.

Essay 9

Essay 9

Viewer’s Ages and Frequency of Viewing of Network Nightly News: 1974 and 2002 Combined

1974                  frequently (%)                    rarely (%)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

18-29                  45                                                  13

30-44                  50                                                 12

45-64                  68                                                  8

65+                      71                                                  5

2002                 frequently (%)                    rarely (%)

-----------------------------------------------------------------

18-29                  19                                                  22

30-44                  22                                                17

45-64                  40                                                  11

65+                      53                                                  8

A: Policy agenda is a group of issues that make up a presidential administrations stand. These issues are closely examined by the people, whether they are involved in the administration or not. The issues presented, play a major role in policy making.






B: The national news media engages its citizens by keeping them informed on current issues and happenings. They keep the people out of the dark, playing a key role in making the common American aware of what is going on, and the various standpoints of that issue.






C: The President is seen as our main leader, the most known person in our country. They are seen to have ultimate power and wisdom and thus, they attract way more media attention than congress does.






D: The table above shows that. in general, age and viewing frequency is directly proportional. It also shows that although the older you are the higher the frequency of your viewing is, that the general trend is a decline in viewing frequency among all age groups.






E: The one down side to using media as your main tool for your campaign is that if the viewing frequency is declining, you are not reaching as many of your citizens as you could of if you reached them through a different method.

Essay 8

Essay 8





A: The majority party in the United States House of Representatives has several advantages when it comes to getting a bill passed into a law. To begin with, the majority party also controls the rules committee. The rules committee in turn controls the floor procedures. This allows the majority to control when and how things go down. If they feel they don't have the proper amount of support to pass a bill, they have the ability to put off the decision process until further support is gained. This allows the majority to choose the time that's best for them to get a bill passed, and decreases their chance of the bill not being passed.





B: Although the House and the Senate are similar, they do have a few major differences that make their votes sometimes independent. The filibuster rule is one of these differences. In the Senate, a simple majority isn't enough. For a bill to become a law in the Senate, it has to get a majority vote unless a filibuster is enacted. A filibuster is a senator or group of senators ability to talk on any subject for any amount of time unless stopped by a two-thirds vote of the senate. What this does is take up floor time and discourage bills from being passed. For the past decade, almost every major proposed bill has needed to have at least 60% vote to be considered for floor vote. Even if a filibuster is unsuccessful it still takes up floor time.




C: After a bill gets passed in one house, it doesn't necessarily get passed in the next. After one house votes a bill through, the bill gets sent to the other house where it is then decided on. The other house can either vote it through, modify it, or reject it completely in which case it dies. If one house votes a bill through, there is only 1 of 3 ways in which the original bill gets passed by both sides. The other two account for why a bill can be passed in one house but not the other. Another reason a bill may not be passed by both houses is because of the filibuster rule. The House of Represenatives can pass a bill with a 51% majority and thats a pass. However, the Senate may get the 51% but not the 60% needed to end a filibuster, that is if one is enacted. Either way it is possible for a bill to be passed in one house but not the other. After being passed by both houses, there is still a chance the President will veto and it will die that way.

Essay 7

Essay 7




A: The proposal of raising limits on individual contributions would drastically change how politics in America works, if passed. The idea is that by raising the limit an individual can donate, the rich could give substantially more and the rest of the U.S. population wouldn't be as limited either. This creates an opportunity for politicians to gain more money quicker, allowing them to further their campaign with the help of motivated supporters.


Supporters of this raise in individual contributions argue that, by allowing higher donations, the candidates would be able to receive substantially more money and thus build a stronger and better run campaign.


However, some say by allowing more money into the campaign from individual contributors, an unfair advantage is given to some candidates over others. Candidates with rich backers have a much stronger campaign and so a higher chance of winning.









B: Soft money is money donated to a certain political party rather than the political candidate themselves. By eliminating soft money contributions, political election financing problems also get solved.


Those that argue for the elimination of soft money contributions say that although the money is donated to the party, the parties beliefs are so closely tied to that of the candidate, the special interest groups are pretty much giving a direct contribution.


Others argue that "Soft Money" contributions are a fundamental part of American politics and by banning it, given constitutional rights are being taken away.