Occupy Movement

 

 

1. Who organized the Occupy Wall Street movement?

A Small Group of young people organized this movement. on September 17th, There was a test run for the movement after responding to a call to action by Adbusters.

2. Describe their motives. 5+ sentences

 The stated goal was to gather 20,000 people to Wall Street on September 17th, beginning a popular occupation of that space for 2 months or more. They wanted better incomes. Inequality was a big issue. Another motive behind this was the people being against Corporate influence over the government. A Greater number of protesters meant more exposure to shed light on how important it was.

3. What were their methods and what was unique about them? 10+ sentences

Their method were non-violent protest against the government. Bloggers and internet organizations brought attention to the situation. The support of unions dramatically increased the number of people protesting,

4. Give three impacts the movement has had on the American politics and how might one or more of them impacted your life? 15+ sentences.

To Serve or Not to serve in the Military?

The pros for joining the Army are the education benefits. The US Army developed various programs to assist soldiers and their families who want to begin or complete their educations or to finish paying off their school loans. Secondly You get Army pay which consist of allowances, drill pay and basic pay. Third, The Army offers mortgage and moving assistance for soldiers.

Cons: caveats that are not explicit in the contract when you sign up is that 1. You cant quit , they can send you to war if need be and they can change your contract at anytime without your consent. 

1. If my friend considered joining the army  i would advise that he read the contract carefully and see if that's what he really wants to do because it isn't as easy as he thinks. 

2.The reasoning behind my thinking would be because i searched it up and has to understand all the aspects of being in the army. i would explain that you cant just quit and there's a chance you can go to war. i Would point out that his pay an change and benefits. i WOULD THEN TELL HIM the good parts about being in the army such as the housing assistance, insurance, and education help.

3. Military Debate : Should military service be mandatory ?
Some people said that It should be mandatory military service. Their arguments behind that is
"There's no reason as to why men shouldn't be obliged to serve their country in times of warfare crisis and/or be prepared for hypothetical wartime" This person feels as though if you are living in America as a man, You should fight for our country when there is a time of need. Another argument behind this is " It can also teach us a set of skills that WILL come in handy. I think everyone should go through it once. Service in the U.S should be 1-2 years. We get a lot of freedom from this country we should repay it by fulfilling a military service" This person believes that Serving in the military will teach us skills and if we are living in a free country , unlike others, we should pay our respect by serving . (www.debate.org/opinions/should-military-service-be-mandatory)
I Personally do not think it should be mandatory for people to serve in the military because You can't put some random person that doesn't want to be in war out to war. Their lives are at risk when they go to war. why should have to be forced to serve? Not everyone is built for that type of setting. Also, there are plenty of volunteers that willingly want to serve so why should others be forced? Due to the benefits that come with serving, There are more than enough people who want to be involved in the wars, training, and whatever else comes with it. Those who want to serve just has to understand the rules and regulations that come with being in the military such as You cant quit, They can send you to war, They can change your job contract at any time without notice such as your pay, duties and benefits.

Refugees

The words about America's commitment to refugees means that America will help them and take them in. The text quoted "
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
 That means that America will accept refugees with open arms and help give them better life opportunities. The commitment is that they will be accepted.

Activity 1:
What does Minster Farrakahn think about Donald Trump's immigration policy? List at least 3 reasons why he likes Trump? Explain in 8+ sentences. 

Minister Farrakahn approves of Donald Trump's immigration policy. He feels as though since America created a lot of issues, there's a lot of hatred for America and if we allow refugees into our country it might set us up for our own destruction. '
He likes Trump because (1) Trump told the rich that he doesn't want their money. Farrakahn quoted "When a politician does'nt want money from the rich, it makes him freer than the others to really do good for the masses of people" Farrakhan Feels : Anytime a man can say to those who control the politics of America, 'I don't want your money,' that means you can't control me. And they cannot afford to give up control of the presidents of the United States

IN PROGRESS

How Has Wealth Inequality Destroyed Democracy In America?

Who is Noam Chomsky ?
Noam Chomsky was an American linguist, Philosopher, cognitive scientist, historian, logician, social critic, and political activist, There are many quotes created by him that people acknowledge 

What is the American dream? 
The American Dream was the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative.

10 principles The Wealthy use to Consolidate their Power 
1: Reduce Democracy - Chomsky finds this acted on by the very "founding fathers" of the United States, in the creation of the U.S. Senate, and in James Madison's statement during debate over the U.S. Constitution that the new government would need to protect the wealthy from too much democracy. 

2. Shape Ideology -The Powell Memo from the corporate right, and the Trilateral Commission's first ever report, called "The Crisis of Democracy," are cited by Chomsky as roadmaps for the backlash. That report referred to an "excess of democracy," the over engagement of young people with civic life, and the view that young people were just not receiving proper "indoctrination." 

3,Redesign the Economy. Since the 1970s the United States has been moved toward an ever larger role for financial institutions. By 2007 they "earned" 40% of corporate profits. Deregulation has produced wealth concentration and economic crashes, followed by anti-capitalist bailouts making for more wealth concentration

4. Shift the Burden. The American Dream in the 1950s and 60s was partly real. Both the rich and the poor got richer. Since then, we've seen the steady advance of what Chomsky calls the plutonomy and the precariat, that is the wealthy few who run the show and get all the new wealth, and the precarious proletariat. Back then, taxes were quite high on corporations, dividends, and wealth but Not anymore.

5. Attack Solidarity. To go after Social Security and public education, Chomsky says, you have to drive the normal emotion of caring about others out of people's heads. The U.S. of the 1950s was able to make college essentially free with the G.I. Bill and other public funding.

6. Run the Regulators. The 1970s saw enormous growth in lobbying. It is now routine for the interests being regulated to control the regulators, which makes things much easier on the regulated.

7. Engineer Elections. Thus we've seen the creation of corporate personhood, the equation of money with speech, and the lifting of all limits under Citizen 

8. Keep the Rabble in Line. Here Chomsky focuses on attacks on organized labor, including the Taft Hartley Act, but one could imagine further expansions on the theme.

9. The goal of directing people to superficial consumption as a means of keeping people in their place was explicit and has been reached. In a market economy, Chomsky says, informative advertisements would result in rational decisions.

10 Marginalize the Population. This seems as much a result as a tactic, but it certainly has been achieved. What the public wants does not typically impact what the U.S. government does.

Has The Gun rate Improved?

The rate have not improved , it in fact got worst . There has been 9,471 Injuries due to guns this year for 2016 and 4,669 incidents resulting in deaths. Its starting to look like nothing is changing for the better . People are killing each other with petty reasons behind it. Majority of incidents are involving young people between 16-21Years of age.

A November ProPublica article noted that half of American gun death victims are men of color in “poor, segregated neighborhoods that have little political clout.” Timothy Heaphy, a former U.S. attorney in Virginia, says this is precisely why they don’t capture the public’s attention. “I don’t think we care about African-American lives as much as we care about white lives,” he said.

That right there shows that gun violence need to come to a end. its not only about African Americans but they are mostly involved and have a huge role in the statistics. 

https://www.thetrace.org/2016/05/atf-gun-stores-electronic-record-keeping/

Views On Edward Snowden

HILLARY & BERNIE'S VIEW ON EDWARD SNOWDEN.

Hillary and Bernie's position On Snowden was a very different impressions. Hillary said "“He broke the laws of the United State ,He could have been a whistleblower, he could have gotten all the protections of a whistleblower. He chose not to do that. He stole very important information that has fallen into the wrong hands so I think he should not be brought home without facing the music" She was basically saying that he went overboard and told information that wasn't suppose to be announced and that he should face consequences. Bernie sanders had a different response. He thought that Snowden educated the public. Sanders did also add that he did break law but the info must be considered before the sentencing. 

Source :http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/oct/13/clinton-sanders-snowden-nsa-democratic-debate

Question 1:

What did Snowden reveal more specifically according to the guardian? The NSA'S Policies were revealed. The Guardian newspaper revealed the source of its explosive series on the NSA to be a 29-year-old former CIA technical assistant named Edward Snowden

Question 2

Why did he blow the whistle on the NSA Spying on us? He blew the whistle because he found it wrong for us to be spied on even if we didn't do anything, we get spied on just by suspicion. he quoted " Even by wrong call, then they can use this system to go back in time to scrutinize every decision you ever made, every friend that you discussed something with and attack you on that basis, to sort of derive suspicion from an innocent life and paint anyone in the context of a wrongdoer. ... The public needs to decide whether these programs and policies are right or wrong."

Question 3

Were his actions Justified?yes his actions were justified. He was questioned about what he might think they may say about him and he had with a nonchalant response mentioning that he found it wrong, he explained why people should be aware of surveillance and what their information can be used for, wether or not they did anything wrong. 

Extension Activity.
Whistle blower:

1. a person who informs on a person or organization engaged in an illicit activity.

   Linda Tripp : She was a white house staff member and a key figure in the Monica Lewinsky scandal that led to the removal of Bill Clinton as president during his second term. She exposed Bill Clinton for having physical contact with his staff members.She was framed as a liar but during trail, all charges were dropped against her.  Justice was served because Bill Clinton was removed from the presidential Office. Linda Tripp Then moved to Northern Virginia, married German architect Dieter Rausch in 2004 and later relocated to Middleburg, Virginia.

   Source:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_Tripp

Will This Issue Ever Come To An End?

With the right authorities , i believe there wont be as much incidents but it will never fully come to an end. You would have to dilute the problem first which is teenagers, officers, gangs , and all the other things that trigger gun violence to take place.


Source:Gunviolencearchive.org

By How much Has The Gun Rate Gone Up?

67% of deaths in the US was caused by guns according to the FBI in 2012. In 2016 , There has been 13,445 incidents involving guns, 3,405 concluding in deaths, 6,868 resulting in injuries, 1,261 due to an officer shooting somebody. By far , most incidents went on in the Eastern part of the country. The gun rate has gone up ridiculously. Teenagers are the ones that are most behind the gun, or a victim of the bullet. The estimated total number of guns held by civilians in the united states are about 270,000,000 to 310,000,000.

Why is This A Big issue?

This Is a Big issue because on a daily basis you can go to the news and read about a death that took place. All of the victims of gun violence has been teenagers or young adults, or sometimes, they're the ones behind the gun. Things have gotten so bad over time. Loved ones were taken away and if not by shootings, then stabbings. So far in 2016. there has been 9,945 gun incidents in the United States. 2,521 resulting in deaths. It sees as though the violence will never end , it's just getting worst.

All shootings: Some 13,286 people were killed in the US by firearms in 2015, according to the Gun Violence Archive, and 26,819 people were injured [those figures exclude suicide,Those figures are likely to rise by several hundred, once incidents in the final week of the year are counted. (2)

In the United States, annual deaths resulting from firearms total (3)

2015: 43,876

2014: 33,599

2013: 33,636
2012: 33,563
2011: 32,351
2010: 31,672

2009: 31,347

2008: 31,593
2007: 31,224
2006: 30,896
2005: 30,694
2004: 29,569
2003: 30,136
2002: 30,242
2001: 29,573
2000: 28,663
1999: 28,874
In America, there are approximately 270 million firearms possessed by civilians, and only 897,000 carried by police. (4)

1. Approximately 20% of gun owners own 65% of the guns.
2. The Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms reports that about 5.5 million new firearms were manufactured in America in 2010. 95% of these were for the U.S. market.
3. Close to 33,000 Americans were victims of gun-related deaths in 2011 and an average of 268 citizens are shot every day.
4. In 2011, 10.3 in every 100,000 people in the U.S. were victims of gun-related deaths.

Source: (1)http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34996604

(2)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_violence_in_the_United_States

(3)http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/united-states

(4)https://www.dosomething.org/us/facts/11-facts-about-guns

Why do young people feel like guns are their only way to handle things?

Some people feel more secure carrying a firearm. It gives them a "Invincible" feeling knowing that they have the power to take someone's life in the blink of an eye. The laws need to be enforced much more and there needs to be more security in our cities. there should be no reason why guns are  being distributed illegally without being confiscated or a prosecution being sought.

Where do people get their illegal guns from?

Usually people purchase illegal guns from various areas such as from out of state, from unofficial gun stores etc. Mot crimes with the involvement of guns in 2011 are listed below, It is also mentioned that it was traced in NYC!The data below shows the crime guns recovered in 2011.


Also, Most people get their guns from the south because they have different gun laws than they do in the Northern part of the United states. The southern states are more lenient with their firearms. for example, In Georgia, A Georgia weapons license holder may carry a weapon or long gun

   




     With this blog, i hope people make a change in their actions or try to put an end to the shenanigans that take place due to the possesion of guns and using then in illegal ways. i hope people will see me eye to eye on this topic. Too many young people are dying due to gun violence, its getting out of hand. According to the second amendment, "A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arm shall not be infringed"
That does not mean that young, mislead kids and young people should have access to guns to kill each other for much rather unnecessary incidents that can be dealt with in a different way.

Why I Chose This Topic.

Personal Reflection

Are there too many or too little guns in the U.S?, I personally believe there are too many ILLEGAL guns in the this country. Too many young people get in contact with guns and it ends up with bad results....most of the time being death. I Think the gun rates need to go down due to all of the4se critical situations caused by them. Most young men aren't even making it to see 20 because they die by the gun or is the one behind the gun. Its starting to get ridiculous.