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Showing posts from September, 2022

The Contemporary Nature of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution

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 For the longest time, I have been under the notion that the Declaration of Independence, a document declaring that an imperfect government should be done away with, was in stark to contrast to the Constitution, which declared that it would build a more perfect nation. However, when reading Henry David Thoreau's  Civil Disobedience,   I was able to come to a better understanding of the relationship between the 2 documents. Don't let the old age English confuse you; the 2 documents are contemporary in their ideals. Thoreau's  Civil Disobedience  has the line: " I ask for, not at once no government, but  at once  a better government." This line seemed to have Jeffersonian tilt to it. Thoreau spends the previous line berating the government for it's faults, and all but calling it a bozo. It's quite similar to Jefferson, who make his arguments and then lists every possible thing wrong with the British's governing of the colonies. Jefferson says:    "

Opinion: Martha's Vineyard-A glimpse of what post-midterms America could look like

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Now, I'm sure we've all see the news about the migrants being shipped to Martha's Vineyard from Florida. Naturally, this event has sparked backlash. It is a frightening thought: migrants being tricked into boarding a plane that deposits them in a completely different location, than where they were promised. But past all the legal, and political rhetoric, I see a deeper issue. This past summer has been the trailer for what a post-midterm America could look like. First, with the crazy, right-wing judicial activism. Clarence Thomas must be really pissed at Progressives for pointing out his wife's involvement in the Jan. 6th insurrection. Speaking of which, let's talk about Liz Cheney. The MAGA groups have so much power, that they didn't even let Liz Cheney make it past the primary in Wyoming. Then, we saw the entire Republican base rise up in self-righteous fury, against the FBI raid on Donald Trump's house. Doesn't matter that Trump stole top-secret docume

Opinion: America must strive to honor those that they have wronged.

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  The Crazy Horse Memorial, in South Dakota      The history of the United States is tainted with the blood of those that we have wronged. From this country's infancy, we have committed atrocities against groups of people, whether those be slaves, indigenous peoples, and even women. In the 21st century, we have taken steps to honor those that we have wronged, whether that be through the removal of statues or in the form of commemorative statues, and memorials, or even in the form of commemorative periods of time. However, we could do a lot better. In the case of Native Americans, "there were probably better ways to help Indians than a big statue", a sentiment voiced by Kelly Looking Horse, a Sioux artist, in a 2010 New York Times article. This sentiment is very valid. We must strive to level the playing field, by ensuring equal pay for all genders. We must strive to end systemic racism in our school, by appropriately allocating funds to all forms of public service. We mus