Study Tool Chapters 1-4

Study Tool

American Urban Society

Chapters 1-4

Fall 2014

 

After reviewing the Chapter Review for chapters 104, use this as a focussed tool to prepare for the test. Use this with your book next to you, and respond to all the 25 inquiries. 

1/ Many of you, born in the 1980s and 1990s, are considered the “Millennial Generation”.  There are some wonderful characteristics that distinguish your age group from previous generations, especially as pertains to our democracy and general social backgrounds. What are some of these characteristics?

 

2/ The beginning of this millennium initially saw an new interest of persons of your generation in our political system in the United States. But participation has cooled. Your text says your generation has fallen “silent” on several major issues.. Can you name some reasons? How about you?

 

3/ As we are seeing in Egypt, Syria, and Libya not all countries have a governmental system like we do. In these three Middle Eastern nations, popular uprisings have toppled, (or nearly toppled) their authoritarian systems. Our basic system is different though. For example, how do we, as citizens make sure our elected representatives are held accountable to us (popular sovereignty). What mechanisms are available to make sure we remain “in charge”? What type of governing system is this called?

 

4/ We all do good works. We hold doors open for seniors, we help a stranded motorist out of a snow bank. We write our brothers and sisters who are in Iraq to wish them Happy New Year, etc. These are all acts of generosity for specific individuals, without expecting to be compensated (aka altruism).

There’s another type of good work that many of us do for the community (local and global) as a whole: We attend a community meeting to support a new crime watch program. We send our hard-earned dollars to Haiti to help those who are devastated by earthquakes and disease. We also buy our produce from local farms to help our local organic farmers, and to avoid buying food that comes from far away that requires shipping, and therefore, a heavy, environmentally costly, carbon “footprint”. What is this type of community effort called? Can you think of any you’ve participated in recently?

 

5/ Some acts of civic engagement are political in nature. Some are not political. These non-political opportunities may be available at the University of Akron, at your church, synagogue, temple or mosque. The may be available at the many non-profit organizations that proliferate in most communities, including Akron (Haven of Rest, Goodwill Enterprises, Habitat for Humanity for example). Are these non-political engagement opportunities different than political engagement opportunities? How?

 

6/ Our founding fathers (with the support of their families) thought long and hard about what kind of government was best for the future of the nation. They had a chance to start fresh, with a blank slate, so to speak. Several aspects of the system they initially devised, and which has since evolved, are discussed in Chapter 2. What are some of these characteristics? What governing aspects were intentionally avoided by our early leaders?

 

7/ Many legal documents include general clauses that are meant to convey an important principal that applies to the entire provision or law. There are such general clauses written into the Constitution to deal with the exercise of national power, including specifying who has power in the case of a difference of opinion between the national and state/local government. You may want to refresh your memory of these important clauses discussed in Chapter 2.

 

8/ Representative government is part of our way of “political” life. We exercise power through elected representatives who act as our “proxies” since all of us (300 million +) can’t be deciding everything that goes on in Ohio and the nation. Where did this representative form of government get its start in this country? Nebraska, Ohio, Georgia? Where?

 

9/ The Articles of Confederation were the beginning of a national form of government. Did the Articles do some good? Sure. It bound us together (loosely) as a nation as we rapidly explored our expanding geographic horizons. But, the system failed to take root. You’ll need to look at the specific reasons it “imploded”. What was the principal flaw (fly-in-the-ointment, so to speak) in the Articles of Confederation? How was it corrected in the proposed and ultimately ratified Constitution?

 

10/ Federalism is the form of government embodied in the Constitution. It was proposed, in part, in response to the problems perceived with the previous Articles of Confederation. Ultimately, it comes down to where power resides. Is it based with the states? Is it wholly with the national government. Or is it spread around, or allocated, as appropriate.

 

11/ So, what are the elemental principles embodied in the original Constitution? Do you know? Hint: Don’t confuse Constitutional principles (law of the land) with sweeping, grand statements in the Declaration of Independence.

 

12/ In addition to separation of powers, our system provides overlapping roles for the three (3) branches of government. You might think this is a recipe for gridlock, bickering and frustration. Partially true (look at the health care mess). But this system’s complex formula for allocating power allows for maintaining a power balance, and does prevent hasty decision-making. Things take time to get passed, and this is felt to be good in the long run. What is this basic principal called?

 

13/ Imagery is helpful, even with Federalism-the “cake” analogy in your book, for example. Prior to the Civil War, national and the state governments, to some extent, went their own separate, parallel ways. This was referred to as “layer cake” federalism (layer of white cake on top of chocolate cake, and never shall the two mix….get it?). Later, cooperation between governments ensued, as this was referred to as _____. Fill in the blank.

 

14/ Federalism is all about sharing of power. Ok, maybe it’s not 50/50, but it’s “shared” nonetheless. Neither level of government (Federal or State) is all powerful, although the federal power has an edge since states can’t just blow off national laws, as was tried in the 1950s and 1960s when the armed forces were brought in to enforce civil rights legislation. At the same time, states are not simple “enforcers” of national laws. That approach has been tried and was struck down in the courts (gun control, for example).

 

15/ “States rule” in some people’s minds. This expression underlines the difference between a confederation and a federalist government.  Yes, the Confederacy had a President (Jefferson Davis), a Congress, and a Confederate Supreme Court. but it’s preamble says it all: "We, the people of the Confederate States, each State acting in its sovereign and independent character...”.

 

16/ The Constitution, in a matrix format, lays out the power structure, establishing enumerated, reserved, concurrent, implied and prohibited powers relative to national and state control. Take a look at these examples laid out in the beginning of Chapter 3.

 

17/ Your text makes a brief note in a graphic about ex post facto laws and bills of attainder. How are these handled relative to the types of powers detailed in #16 above?  Can national and state government use these “devices”? Do a search and look them up to refresh your memory of our class discussion since your text says nothing.

 

18/ So, who wields the most power? If you and your parents have a conflict over a house rule, who’s the boss? Similarly, if the national and state governments argue over a law, who ultimately wins out? This is another clause in the constitution, referred to as the ____________ clause.

 

19/ The Constitution bans Congress from finding you guilty of a crime and sentence you to hard labor or some other punishment. This is a carry over from our separation from England and the monarchy, which sometimes punished persons without a trial. Again, what is this banned procedure called?

 

20/ We discussed the “freedom of expression” of religion clause in the First Amendment. How free is “free”? The “peace, order and comfort” of a community must be upheld.  Can we worship however we want? Can we use prohibited narcotics in the service? Can we be married to fifteen women at once if our religion says ok? How about having a church service where deadly snakes are passed around? Think about it.

 

21/ The “Lemon Test” is not a test undertaken to test the acidity of lemons and limes. So what is it? What is the “Miller Test”? These are important “tests” dealing with parts of the First Amendment. Check thme out again.

 

22/ Religious displays have received a lot of legal investigation as pertains to our freedoms. Crosses on National Park lands, Ten Commandments on school lawns, etc. So what is ok and what is not so ok? Is “In God We Trust” on money ok? How about an Easter display of the Easter Bunny near a representation of Jesus rising from the grave on a city hall display area? Remember, context is everything!

 

23/ I often get slander (speech) and libel (writings) mixed up. Both elements of false statements are unprotected by the First amendment. Which is which? Examples?

 

24/ So really, what is obscene for the purposes of the First Amendment on freedom of speech? What does the Miller test say?

 

25/ Two examples of symbolic speech:

 

a.       Burning in effigy (a stuffed dummy made to look like the target person) of an elected official in downtown Canton

b.       Burning a military draft card (selective service) downtown, in protest of the war in Afghanistan

 

Which is of these would be prohibited based on current free speech understandings (ignoring the legal problems with lighting a fire downtown)? Why? Caution: It’s tricky!

 

Note: Articles posted on class website and class discussion notes should be reviewed for Extra Credit questions which are “mined” by from this material. This targeted material should be used in conjunction with your primary Study Guide which covers a broader array of important material.