From the Paper "The decision about whether to tighten or loosen restrictions on immigration should be based on economics. The key issue is the extent of immigrant contribution to the economy. In the past, U.S. policy on immigration has often been inconsistent and contradictory. Whereas, many Americans recognize the benefits of immigration, an increasing number do not. Consequently, immigration has been blamed for many of this country's ills ranging from the increased burden on social services to decreased employment opportunities for native-born Americans. As one social scientist puts it, "The conflicting views and attitudes about immigration explain America's inability to devise and execute a coherent immigration policy" (Reimers, 1985, p. 252). It is time for the United States to set forth clear policies regarding this hotly debated issue."
From the Paper "The so-called XYZ Affair occured at the end of the eighteenth century when the new American nation came into conflict with the French over a diplomatic scandal. The problem derived from the ascension to power of Talleyrand, whose methods of dealing with foreign nations included seeking bribes as a cost of doing business. This was a major ethical issue for the new nation, which was only developing its political culture and the structures within which its government would operate. The XYZ affair would nearly involve America in a war with France, so in no way was this a minor matter. President John Adams was much affected in his administration by this situation.
The basic details of the issue were not in dispute. President Adams sent three ministers to France in 1797 to negotiate a commercial agreement to protect U.S. shipping. The ..."
Abstract This paper is a biography which discusses the issue of whether politician Huey Long should be considered a genius or a monster. The paper gives examples of Long's praise and criticisms as well as describes Long's ability to connect with the common man and to manipulate the political system to get elected, to govern, and to hide his unsavory activities from the public eye.
From the Paper "Huey Long was a populist who rose rapidly in politics in Louisiana. He was the eighth of nine children born to Huey and Caledonia Tyson Long in 1893 on a farm near Winnfield, Louisiana. His childhood was notable, for he did not distinguish himself either academically or athletically. As he grew to adulthood, he emerged as an accomplished salesman, an ability which would hold him in good stead when the product he began selling was himself. He spent some time peddling cooking oil door"to"door through the backwoods of Louisiana. He married Rose McConnell at age nineteen and entered Tulane University's law school in New Orleans, and he passed the bar exam only seven?months after enrolling. He practiced law for three years in Winnfield, Long before he began his political career by running for a seat on the Louisiana Railroad Commission, which he won by tirelessly campaigning among the country people he had first visited as a salesman. By 1924, Huey was set to become governor. He was considered a "brilliant if somewhat rambling orator" and "again focused his campaign efforts on the country folk whose language and ways he understood so well."
Abstract The paper shows how the American women's right movements has developed into official gender equality since its beginnings in the eighteenth century. It traces the movement from the Seneca Falls Convention of 1848 and discusses how women's struggle for suffrage finally resulted in the 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution in 1920 which gave women the right to vote. The paper follows an improvement in women's rights through the Great Depression and the Second World War and the emergence of the feminist movement in the 1960's. Finally, the paper looks at recent years, with the most notable achievement of the movement being the financial liberation of women.
From the Paper "In the 150 years since that first, landmark Women's Rights Convention, women have made clear progress in the areas addressed by Elizabeth Cady Stanton in her revolutionary Declaration of Sentiments. Not only have women won the right to vote; we are being elected to public office at all levels of government. In the world of work, large numbers of women have entered the professions, the trades, and businesses of every kind. We have opened the ranks of the clergy, the military, and the newsroom. More than three million women now work in occupations considered "nontraditional" until very recently (Hess 201). We have a lot to be proud of in this heroic legacy, and a great deal to celebrate on the 150th Anniversary of the founding of the Women's Rights Movement."
Abstract The paper shows that Machiavelli's famous treatise "The Prince" is essentially a how-to manual for those seeking to gain and maintain power. The paper discusses that while he is not without an appreciation of justice and virtue, Machiavelli doesn't give much consideration to the morality of taking power, but to the nuts and bolts that a leader must pay mind to if he is going to be an effective leader. The paper shows that while Machiavelli considers leaders, including tyrants, from the point of view of the leader, both Plato in his "Republic" and Aristotle in "Politics" looked at them more from a sociological point of view. For them, the question was not about the individual but about the society in which leaders would come and go.
From the Paper "For Plato, the Timarchy is produced by children who value themselves just for their honor along with their ability to apply force as necessary. On the other hand, an oligarchy is produced by greedy children who figure to use their force to become wealthy. A democracy, the most heinous of institutions to Plato, is created by those children who think being citizens gives them a right to wealth and power. Tyranny is produced by those controlled by their impulse and the resulting chaos is over only when power is consolidated in the hands of one. For Plato, a tyrant is one who by the use of forces takes whatever he wants and usually what he wants is more power."
Abstract The paper explores how cutting taxes may ultimately be an important strategy in reducing the federal debt of the United States. The federal debt has been a long standing concern of American citizens, politicians and economists. Today, the federal government faces a projected gross federal debt of $6,118,364 million in 2005. The paper shows how governments have traditionally taken the stance of increasing taxes or cutting spending in order to reduce the deficit. These attempts have largely failed due to unanticipated budget concerns. It explores how, in traditional attempts to reduce the debt, cutting taxes was thought to be a way to decrease national revenues, thus potentially increasing the debt. However, many economists are now considering that cutting taxes may help to stimulate the economy, paradoxically resulting in increased taxation revenue through higher employment and better wages. The paper examines how tax cuts may prove to be a way to increase revenues, thus potentially providing a means to reduce the federal debt. It also examines President Bush's Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA, designed to cut taxes, reduce the debt, and stimulate the national economy.
From the Paper "Critics however, argue that EGTRRA will ultimately fail. They note that misrepresentations in federal budgeting overestimate budget surpluses, including mistakes in long term costs of retirement programs from a budgeted $5.6 trillion to a mere 1.6 trillion. Further, they note that EGTRRA will reduce revenues through tax cuts. Ultimately, the critics argue that the combination of a decreased budget surplus and tax cuts will sink the EGTRRA (Gale and Potter).
If the critics are correct, and the EGTRRA fails, the government will be forced to increase taxes, reduce spending, or increase the public debt. As such, plans to reduce taxes may once again result in increased federal debt."
Abstract In this paper the writer examines the work of Kant and Mill. Kant is presented as one the great philosophers of the enlightenment period and the focus is on his two works, "The Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals" and "The Critique of Practical Reason". The paper also explores Mill's "On Liberty and Utilitarianism". Mill was a British philosopher associated with the Utilitarian school of thought. The paper discusses the position of each philosopher in regards to ethics and morality. It highlights their similarities and differences.
From the Paper "Immanuel Kant was perhaps the most influential philosopher after Aristotle. Like Aristotle he made a significant impact on different areas of philosophy. Considering the fact that it is rare for a philosopher in any period to make great impact in any one subject, Kant was perhaps the greatest philosopher of the Enlightenment period. The influence of Kant's ethical theory is perhaps more than his work in epistemology and metaphysics and it is still debated in the academics and scholarly circles around the world".
Abstract This paper examines the use of negative campaigning mentioning how Abraham Lincoln, one of the most respected politicians in history, resorted to mudslinging, the most popular form of negative campaigning. The author defines negative campaigning, gives examples, gives various views of negative campaigning, looks at its different aspects, illustrates how it works, and looks at its negative effects.
From the Paper "The United States has a history of negative campaigning that is hard to shake. Abraham Lincoln, who is considered one of the most respected politicians in history, resorted to mudslinging, the most popular from of negative campaigning, during his career (Swint, 1998). Lincoln often mocked and mimicked his opponent's appearance, speech and mannerisms during campaigns.
But the politicians are simply giving their audience what consultants and some researchers say is most effective.
To date, there is inconclusive evidence that negative campaigning will lead to backlash from voters. In fact, many researchers say that negative campaigning makes voters feel more secure in their decisions about candidates. Additional research shows that the use of negative campaigning provides candidates with a larger audience and creates more of an impact on voters."
Abstract This paper explores the history of the American political system. The paper outlines the major shift made by American politics in the era after the war of 1812 and before the onset of the Civil War. The change from a political system of deference to one with two political parties fighting hard for the spoils of every election, is illustrated. The paper discusses the constitutional constraints and institutional reforms that have produced a weak party system in the United States.
From the Paper "It was not inevitable that America develop a two-party political system, though political parties today do serve a number of important roles in the political and social structure of the nation. The Republicans and the Democrats have been the two parties for more than a century, though these were not the first political parties in the nation. In truth, the Founding Fathers did not want political parties and so excluded them from the Constitution. They did believe that factions would develop, and avoiding the damage factions could do was one reason political parties were not included in the Constitution. Madison wrote about the near-inevitability of factions in The Federalist Papers, and he said that the causes of faction are part of the nature of the human being. Political parties did indeed develop in the new country, and it appears that this was easily predicted given the tendency of the individual to seek others of like mind and to attempt concerted action where possible. The nature of parties changed over time--in the beginning they were loose alliances among compatible members of congress in support of or in opposition to the president (Reiter 52-53). Later, they would become stronger and more institutionalized."
Abstract This paper discusses the government management of the economy in the Soviet Union, through a State planning system. The defining features of the system are outlined, and the strengths and weaknesses of the Soviet planning system are presented. A comparison is provided of the Soviet market to other markets. The privatization of the banks is also explained. The paper examines the fall of the State central system in the USSR and describes the transition to the market system.
From the Paper "Economic planning was, in the Soviet Union, a pioneering form of economic management by the state, which became indispensable both during the transition from capitalism to socialism and in a socialist society. The Soviet government held that planning was based on a profound knowledge and application of objective socialist economic laws and that it was independent of all desires of individuals. The basic laws of this system defined the aim of economic production as the "fullest satisfaction of the constantly rising material and cultural requirements of the population, using advanced technology to achieve continued growth and improvement of production" (Lavigne, p. 114). State central planning was viewed by the Soviet Union as the conscious application of economic laws designed to benefit the people through effective use of all natural resources and productive forces."
Abstract Fascism is arguably the most influential and controversial political ideology in modern history and continues to be a fascinating topic for political study and discussion. The paper shows that ,despite fascism's worldwide existence and its responsibility for the development of numerous groups and political movements, Germany remains only one of two countries (the other being Italy) in which the ideology of fascism has enjoyed the success of political power. The paper shows that although there is very little consensus amongst political scientists and academics on many issues of fascism, there is a general agreement that the success of fascism in Germany was not due to any singular, or isolated, factor. Rather, it prospered as a result of Germany possessing the ideal combination of a strong national identity, a well-developed system of public persuasion and propaganda, and an existing government that was too weak and unstable to provide effective resistance against social and economic crisis. Therefore, although the accepted opinion is that German fascism was an evil and isolated abhorrence that was ended forever by the Allied victory in World War II, this paper proposes that its success was achieved through a set of political, social and economic conditions that could occur in any country, at any time.
From the Paper "Yet, despite achieving power on the basis of overwhelming popularity among the German public, it became immediately apparent that German fascism intended to control all aspects of national life, ensuring that their patriotic propaganda was able to permeate every area of German society with little resistance (Brady, 1969). Hitler's powerful personal charisma, aided by his meticulously organized public appearances and the saturation of everyday life with Nazi symbols, posters and indoctrination, established him as the infallible, heroworshiped savior of the German people (Payne, 1995). Despite the fact that his repressive totalitarian regime had abolished many of their basic liberties, and that every area of their lives was pervaded and controlled by state police organizations (Berwick, 23), many of the German people responded with uncritical loyalty to their leader and a frightening willingness to obey all state issued directives. The Nazification of German society was greatly assisted by the efforts of the Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda under the control of Joseph Goebbels, which was highly effective at promoting the fascism regime as a welloiled Nazi machine (Eatwell, 111), by means of mass rallies, military parades, and sophisticated manipulation and censorship of the media. Such was the appeal of the fascist philosophy and propaganda that, in Germany in particular, the majority of people were willing to sacrifice their individual freedoms and ambitions for the greater good of their nation."
Abstract This paper attempts to introduce Karl Marx's view of capitalist exploitation, which states that the bourgeoisie is the ruling class in capitalist society, which owns the means of production, while the proletariat is the working class, whose sole commodity is his labor power. It examines the issue of how division of labor further increases the exploitation of the worker and how the exploitation of the worker is not confined simply to the bourgeois capitalist who employs him, but also to all the other capitalists who form the society around the proletarian worker.
From the Paper "In order to keep the worker subjugated, the bourgeois capitalist only provides the laborer with the basic requirements for continued existence. In evidence of this, Marx claims, ?The costs occasioned by the worker are limited almost entirely to the subsistence which he requires for his maintenance and reproduction of his race. The price of a commodity, and therefore of labor, is equal to its costs of production.? By giving the worker the minimum one can possible allow him, only barely allowing enough for the necessities, the proletarian can never acquire any property of his own, and thus never has any hopes of gaining the means of production for himself."
Abstract This paper examines how the powers between the President and Congress are defined in the U.S. Constitution. The paper begins with an overview of the powers of the Executive Branch as outlined in Article II of the Constitution. This is followed by a detailed discussion of the Legislative Branch's exact powers and discusses why the process is divided into three forms of legislation. The paper also discusses that the reason so much power was given to Congress was to guarantee that the needs of the people were adequately addressed and respected. This basic philosophy is one of checks and balances, where the Congress can make the laws, but it is only the President, or Executive Branch that can enforce these laws in order to insure that the country remains a democracy.
From the Paper "Where Congress can fund and form a military, the President is the Commander in Chief of all the armed forces. As such, he has the power to decide when and were military forces are sent and how they are employed. The significance of this power has been demonstrated in conflicts from Vietnam until now where the President has routinely utilized military powers to assert American will around the world without first getting the approval of congress. The President also has the power to grant reprieves and pardons, to make treaties, to create and manage agencies that form the various functional enforcement system (enforcement of legislation). The President is granted the power to appoint, under congressional review, individuals to the cabinet (Federalist Papers 67-77)."
This paper examines transportation policies in Washington, D.C. and London, then suggests possible improvements based on principles of urban development.
Abstract This paper discusses current policies and challenges that two major cities -- Washington D.C. and London -- face in developing improved transportation systems. After comparing and contrasting each city, principles of urban development are applied to suggest new and better policies for dealing with the creation of larger and more effective systems.
From the Paper Urban development is a vast topic that affects all individuals in an industrialized area. One of the most important topics of urban development is transportation. Some cities have successful policies to help aid public transportation while other lack resources and cultural beliefs about making certain policies for these systems. Two cities that have very unique ways of handling transportation issues Washington, D.C. in the United States, and London in the United Kingdom.
Tags: government, industry, policy, political, science, resources, city, infastructure
Abstract This paper examines W.E. B. Du Bois and his novel "The Souls of Black Folks." The writer begins with a short biography DuBois, his motivation behind the writing of this book and how in his later life he embraced Communism. The author discusses some of the major topics that are covered in DuBois' book including black history in the post-Civil War period, the contributions of some of the most blacks in American history, racism and poverty. According to this author, this book is one of the most significant pieces of non-fiction written about the black community in America prior to the Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s.
From the Paper "Throughout the book Du Bois mentions racism almost casually, such as the white school superintendent who hires him to teach, invites him to dinner, and then makes him eat alone, after the whites have eaten their dinner. These slights are just some of the injustices blacks faced during Du Bois' time, and they appear continually in the book, illustrating the depth of racism and ignorance in white society. "Again, we may decry the color-prejudice of the South, yet it remains a heavy fact. Such curious kinks of the human mind exist and must be reckoned with soberly. They cannot be laughed away, nor always successfully stormed at, nor easily abolished by act of legislature" ("Souls," 2002)."
Tags: dubois, americans, civil, rights, racism, movement, slavery, white
