Changing Political Life, By Ronald Inglehart

David M. Potter theme of Impending Crisis is the study of sectional conflict dealing primarily with political events that led up to or caused southern states to secede from the Union resulting in the Civil War. Potter contends that during the expansionist period of the 1840s the country was experiencing a growth of American nationalism, but “the emergence of the sectionalism which almost destroyed the nation was symbolized by an amendment to an appropriation bill which was never enacted.” For the next fifteen years the Wilmot Proviso (1846) and the issue of slavery would become “a catalyst of all sectional antagonisms, political, economic, and cultural…opened the floodgates of sectionalism, for now all the pent-up moral indignation which had been walled in by the constitutional inhibition could be vented into the territorial question.”

Terry H. Anderson The Sixties takes us back to that controversial decade where citizens not only believed change was important but demanded it to occur. The author beings his discussion on the Cold War era and how it seeded the growth of the sixties. The conventional and orthodox of the fifties was a vast improvement for many of the old-generation who lived through the great depression. The decade was referred to as “Happy Days,” however, it was only truly happy for white American males. The rest of the population was tired of the unfair treatment and the lack of national problems being addressed by the government. This anger was beginning to manifestation and would eventually take center stage in the era of the sixties.

American Reformers, 1815-1860 goes into the social and political issues surrounding the Jackson Presidency. Ronald G. Walters effectively chronicalizes the reformation and radicalization of the main issues prevalent in early 19th century. These issues included slavery, alcoholism, women’s rights, religion and science. He explains how these issues led to the transformation of our country into what it is today and explains the reformers responsible for such radical change. He emphasizes the idea that every individual during this time period had some sense of radical reform ideology. These antebellum reformers worked to resolve the social and political issues plaguing the nation through reform and Ronald G. Walters eloquently depicts the reform movements of the early-mid 19th century. His work is very accurate and progressive in every sense.

The issues I focused on in my analysis of Cal students are marriage and parenthood. Specifically, I chose to compare how opinions on these issues differed by gender. Kathleen Gerson discusses the new generation’s expectations from marriage and families to a great degree in her book The Unfinished Revolution. As Gerson states, “Most of my interviewees hope to create lasting, egalitarian partnerships, but they are also doubtful about their chances of reaching this goal.” (10) This is a characteristic that also stood out in my analysis: the majority of the students interviewed hope to create an egalitarian relationship in which there is no strict enforcement of traditional gender roles. Or as Gerson says, “…the vast majority want a permanent bond, but they do not wish for that bond to be defined by rigid gender distinctions.” (104) I only encountered one exception to this trend: a female student who expressed the desire to become a full time stay-at-home mom after having children, thereby putting all financial responsibility on her spouse. One thing that was different in my findings was that with the exception of one or two, these Cal students do not think it will be difficult to find a suitable partner. This is likely because most students

Donald Kettl presents many controversial ideas in his book The Next Government of the United States. While some of the ideas Kettl provides many be disagreed upon by some he gives excellent validation for reasoning. Two ideas that I believe are well worth discussing are the Mildred Paradox that correlates with the Mildred Corollary and the irresponsible governance provided by the federal government. Each of these ideas brings about aspects that should be considered by citizens when thinking of the U.S. government. Kettl’s ideas are important in considering what the government does and does not do for citizens: consequently, some may or may not trust the United States government, and Kettl is providing reasoning behind the distrust. Kettl uses the negligence and disconnection of the government to the citizens to provide reasoning for why our government is failing us.

In Ronald Regan’s speech, “A Time for Choosing” he starts by saying that for most of his life he was a Democrat and that “I have recently seen fit to follow another course. He then goes on to talk about the economy saying that the tax burden is one that no nation in history has ever survived. He then goes on to illustrate with facts saying that “Every 37 cents out of every dollar earned in this country is the tax collectors share, and yet our government continues to spend 17 million dollars a day more that the government takes in.” He also says that that out of the last 34 plus year 28 of those have not seen a balanced budget. Additionally the treasury only has 15 million dollars in gold and that 27.3 billion dollars of that is claimed by foreign governments. He then switches gears talking now about preserving peace and asking how can we preserve peace when the country is engaged in war in South Vietnam. He asks the if they (The Democrats) “ Mean peace, or do they mean we just want to be left in peace.” Saying that anywhere there are Americans fighting and dying there can be no real peace. He makes this point to say that peace is not just given it has to be earned and that there are always people out there that desire nothing more than to see our country and the rest of the free world in flames or under their heel. Regan then changes gears again and talk about how the American system of government is the most original plan in the history of the world. He

"Battleground America," written by Jill Lepore, provides a strong history of guns and the way they have changed in the eyes of the American through the years. She proves her point with strong evidence throughout her article, sprinkling it with opinion and argument that is strongly supported. She presents her argument to convince her audience that the open availability of guns allows citizens to undeservingly purchase them by displaying the credibility in her sources, using negative connotations in her speech, and the strength and objectivity only a strong logos appeal can provide.

The phrase, “We the people”, holds a lot of meaning to American citizens. As the first three words of the United States Constitution, it signifies a core value intended to act as a unifying factor in America’s democratic society: popular sovereignty. This is the idea of a majority rules, or to put more simply, the one with the most votes wins. The U.S. system of government relies upon the fact that the American people are capable of coming together to make informed decisions about matters that will ultimately better the lives of everyone. Despite this, however, there are certain instances in which a minority group will impose on or have more influence than the majority group. This phenomenon occurs all the time in politics, as politicians tend to regard the predilections of small groups of citizens as opposed to the general populace.

The 1970s was an eventful time in United States history. During the decade citizens saw positive actions committed by government officials such as ending the Vietnam War and negative actions such as the Watergate scandal. Notable, the United States documented an “unreported resistance” among its citizens. The “unreported resistance” was made of the numerous American men and women who did not support the government actions at the time. They protested nuclear plants, government munitions deals with Nicaragua, and they were not accurately represented in voting.

When one looks back on the frenetic 1960s, conservative sentiments aren’t usually the first thing to come to mind. Yet, while the New Left and the radical counterculture were reshaping cultural ideals, it was the New Right who emerged from the 1960s as a viable political force. The New Left can be categorized as a broad, largely youthful, movement with the goal to challenge various social norms and to institute a “participatory democracy”. Moreover, the New Left was “New” in a sense that they differed from the labor-centered liberal elites at the time; insisting on creating larger, more radical changes to society. On the other hand, the New Right was a largely grassroots movement aimed to restore traditionalist values from the “Eastern Establishment.” The New Right was “New” in a sense that it revitalized conservative hope at a time when those hopes looked mighty bleak. When analyzing the wildly different outcomes of the two movements, it becomes apparent that the New Right’s political-oriented manner to achieve their goals proved to be the decisive factor in maintaining long-term stability; something the confrontational New Left did not have the resources to achieve from the outset.

In 1872, John Gast created a masterpiece that not only exemplified what American society was like, but global advancement as well. This artwork, rightfully titled “American Progress” is a clear display of the journey Americans were taking in attempt to civilize the world to their standards, what would become known as the White Man’s burden. While we continue to call it a burden, it seemed anything but to those on the “civilized” side of it. “American Progress” shows the joy of bringing enlightenment to those believed to be in need of help. Despite being labeled as a strenuous responsibility, fulfilling the White Man’s burden was something powerful countries enjoyed and by accomplishing this onus they themselves created, they are seen as the more powerful and therefor developed members of society.

Sonia Sotomayor is a women full of many talents and accomplishments. In her book, My Beloved World, Sonia reveals many people, circumstances, hardships, and successfulness. Sonia has embraces many characteristics in which I can relate. Successfulness, determination, and the importance of learning are all crucial elements that make Sonia into the inspiring woman she is today. Relating to Sonia Sotomayor throughout her book allowed me to remain intrigued in the book and helped apply concepts to my everyday life.

President James Garfield’s tragic death is brought to new life in the book The Destiny of the Republic. Author Candice Millard shows readers just how that very incident brought one nation together. This being in the middle of the Gilded Age, at times it looked like the nation had everything under its belt but in reality, people didn’t see the corrupt happenings at that time. Through poverty, war, a surprising turn in events, to downright failure in medicine, President Garfield’s life was a downward spiral and he wasn’t even aware. As much as Garfield was unaware of that, Americans at the time were unaware that they were slowly beginning to unite over the ignorance of both Doctor Bliss and Charles Guiteau. Millard didn’t just write a book of a detailed and historic biography, she wrote somewhat effortlessly of the personal yet challenging circumstances Garfield and his family were in and simply told a story.

With the overwhelming amount of Levittown houses, the obsession to obtain the perfect American “ideal family” as seen on TV and the unspoken agreement to fear any and all foreign ideas and values, the 1950s were revealed to be a decade of prosperity, conformity and consensus. Just ten years later the atmosphere in America was shockingly different; the 1960s were a decade of turbulence, protest and disillusionment due to the ongoing struggle for civil rights, arising feminism, and the Vietnam War.

In, Eric Li's Ted Talk "A Tale of Two Political Systems”, he discussed the two stories he was told, which I feel exemplifies the differences in the two political systems. The first , believed by the Chinese, was that all societies develop in a linear process and will be engaged by the struggle of good vs bad or as Li stated socialism vs. capitalism and socialism will triumph. However, while in U.S. he was taught that all human societies progress in a linear process and end in a singular end. All societies must progress from singular groups that are reduced to singular individuals who are all rational. Therefore, electoral democracy will be for all and all other govern concepts are bad.