BR- 4/14/14

• Psychologist, $69,280.

BR- 4/10/14

You have $500 to your name to last an entire month. List the thing you're going to spend your money on- in order of importance- and reason for each item why it is more important than other options.

1. Concert tickets because they make me happy. 

BR- 4/8/14

• It's a good thing that he's doing, trying to make the pay equal for men/women.

Naturalization Self Test

You got 20 of 25 possible points.

Your score: 80 %

Notes

• Heterogeneous- different people, cultures, etc.
• Immigrant- legal aliens that move to another country. 
• Reservations- public land given to Native Americans by the Government. 6 million in America, quarter still on reservations. 
• Refuge- move for protection purposes. 
• Assimilation- adapting to another culture. 

• The population of the US prominently white, today and has been historically as well. 
• Immigrants have arrived in near record numbers every year since the 1960's.
• Populations that have grown, African Americans, Hispanic American, Asian America. These groups have grown at rates several times higher than the white population. 
• Minority populations exceed white populations in the following states: California, Hawaii, New Mexico, and Texas. 
• More females than males. 
• African Americans: 1) African Americans have been the victims of consistent and deliberate unjust treatment for a longer time than any other minority group of Americans. 2) African Americans constitute a huge minority group in the US 14% of all American People. 3) Most of the gains the nation has made in translating the Constitutions guarantees of equality into a reality for all persons have come out of efforts made by and on behalf of African Americans. 
• Native Americans: 1) When American settlers arrived in mid 1600's, nearly a million Native Americans were living in territory that became the Us by 1900 that number was 250000. Has risen to be approximately 6 million today. 2) American settlers brought diseases that hurt the Indian population and brought Native Americans westward to live. 3) Poverty, joblessness, and alcoholism plague many reservations today. 4) The Indian Education Act of 1972 attempted to remedy the lives of Native Americans, but has not been successful- die younger and higher infant mortality rate.
• Hispanic American: 1) Have a Spanish speaking background. 2) Hispanics can be any race. 3) The largest minority group today, 50 million in the Us. 4) Four groups: Mexican Americans, Puerto Ricans, Cuban Americans,Central and South Americans.
• Asian Americans: 1) Chinese laborers were the first Asians to come to American in large numbers in the 1850's and 1860's- often faces violence because white workers were unhappy because they were taking their jobs. 2) Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882- 80 years. 3) WWII- All Japanese were evacuated to the Pacific Coast. Even native born. 4) Congress eventually admitted this was wrong/unjust, changed its ways. 5) Women have also been treated unfairly, education, property rights, and employment opportunities. 6) Although women have made major progress, still are not "equal" to men in numbers- fewer women in high status jobs than men. 7) It is illegal to pay women less than men.

• Those who oppose Civil Rights often believe you can't change mortality by passing a law. People won't think/treat others differently just because the federal government says they should.
• Dr. King "Judicial decrees... may not change the heart, but they can restrain the heartless."
• The Civil Rights Acts of 1964, the longest debate in Senate history. 1) Voting provisions. 2) Public services could no longer deny access based on race, religion, national origin, disabilities, etc. 3) Federal funding programs could not discriminate for race, religion, national origin, disabilities, etc. 4) Employers and labor unions also couldn't discriminate for race, religion, national origin, disabilities, etc. 
• Civil Rights Acts of 1968, "open housing act" cannot refuse selling/rent living space to a person due to race, religion, national origin, disabilities, etc. 
• Housing is still one of the most segregated areas in American life today.
• Title IX, forbids discrimination on the basis of gender in any educational program or program regarding financial assistance. 
• Equal funding and opportunities must be give to woman athletes. 
• Affirmative Action
•  Requires employers(groups, schools, etc) to taker positive steps to fix the affects of past discrimination. 
•  Employers must meet quotas for minority group/genders(hire so many of one race/gender).
•  Many argue that this results in reverse discrimination(discrimination against the majority group, they are denied opportunities so minority groups have more.)
• "Color blind" 
• California, Washington, Michigan, and Nebraska voters passed measure to eliminate all Affirmative Action plans. 
• The Bakke Case
•  Allan Bakke sued the university of California because he was denied access to their medical school due to Affirmative Action (16/100 seas were reserved for minority students). 
• Bakke won the case. 
• Since then, the Court has made decisions regarding similar cases, quotas can be used when needed. 
• Justice Sandra Day O'Connor predicts in 25 years, the use of racial preferences will no longer be necessary. 

BR- 4/7/14

Be able to speak/read English, even if it's just a little bit. 

Have a good reasoning behind it.

Pass a drug test before you come in and be tested again 6 months after.

BR- 4/2/14

• The most difficult part of the discrimination project would probably be resisting the urge to talk. 

BR- 4/1/14

• No, it should not be mandatory. 
• I'm sure they will definitely make a difference while driving.

BR- 3/31/14

• Do I think racism is still an issue in 2014? Yes, yes I do. It may not be as bad as it was back in the day, but there are still some cases of it happening. The cases in which it is still happening is typically between whites-blacks, whites-mexicans, or whites-asians, normally only those too. So yeah.

3/21/14

The Bible • Self Incrimination
"The Bible tells us Daniel was saved by a miracle, but when this court says its final word in this case today, we cannot expect a miracle to save petitioner Turner."

Poetry • Deportation

"Compound for sins they are inclin'd to, by damning those they have no mind to."

Greeks and Romans • Obscenity

"What is honored in a country will be cultivated there."

Literature • What is Golf?

"A good walk spoiled."

Philosophy • First Amendment

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it."

Shakespeare • Obscenity

"She hath not seen the change of fourteen years."

Scientists, Futurists, and Economists • Social Security Benefits

"In the long run we are all dead."

3/19

Ground Floor

• Filing room; Over 8,000 petitions are sent in hopes to be granted by the Supreme Court members. 
• Press room; Room where the Supreme Court expresses their opinions. 

First Floor

• Robing room; Justices put on their ceremonial robes, shake hands by tradition, then began the procession. 
• Court room; There's 4 symbolic friezes that ring the upper part of the Supreme Court. 
• East conference room;  Private room. Utilized for events. TV appearances by the justice. 
• West conference room; Another private room. Used for the same as the East one.

http://supremecourt.c-span.org/VirtualTour.aspx

notes 3/20

• Inferior courts were created to function beneath the Supreme Court.
• District courts; The federal trial courts. 677 judges. Handle more than 350000 cases per year. 12 judicial districts. 
• 2 little-known multi-judge panels. FISA(foreign intelligent surveillance court) 7 year terms. Meet in secret entitled to secret search. 
• Alien Terrorist Removal Court, 5 year terms.
• The district courts do not hear cases within original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court. 
• District courts hear both criminal and civil cases. 
• Criminal, always persecutor. Civil, defendant or plaintiff. 
• Most decisions in the federal district courts are final, they start and end there. 
• Few cases go to higher, only if losing parties appeal. 
• Courts of Appeal, has 6-28 judges. 1 Supreme Court Justice assigned to each. 3-judge panels. 
• A federal trial court only tried civil cases that arise out of the nation's customs and other trade related laws. 
• 9 judges, chief justice appointed by the President and Senate. 
• 
  

BR- 3/11/14

1. I think so, I mean in the long run, it may benefit them.
2. Yes, I believe so.

BR- 3/20/14

• Judicial Activism. 

notes

• National conventions are called every four years to officially nominate presidential candidates. 
• Each state sends delegates based on their electoral votes.
• Differences in choices of delegates between Republican and Democratic parties.

• The device used is the Party Primary
• Began in early 1900's as a reaction to party boss dominated politics. 
• Delegate selection primary and Candidate preference primary 
• Typically front loaded, New Hampshire is always the first primary 

• Delegate Selection Process began as winner take all 
• Now moved to proportional representation
• 15%+ receives delegates in proportion to their votes

• Caucuses is a closed meeting of a political party, which gather to select delegates to the national convention 

• Convention Schedule 
• Day 2; adopt platform. keynote address. 
• Day 3; select or affirm choice for vice presidential candidate 
• Day 4; select and affirm presidential candidate, by delegates voting. Candidate delivers acceptance speech.

• Characteristics (typically)
• Long run of political experience(governorship has been important, senate used to be a springboard), protestants from large states, good speakers who seem to have a stable family life, pleasant and healthy appearance. 

BR- 2/28/14

• Kind of. 
• No, making limits to how much skin and such is shown is fine but not what they wear on their shirts and such. 
• Kind of, I hate violence, so really anything to prevent it.

BR-2/27/14

1. No. They're just students that play sports. 
2. No they're doing what they love, they aren't forced to do sports. They do it because they enjoy it. So just no, they should not get paid. 

BR- 2/11/14

• I just got my assignment today, so I have nothing yet. I don't know.

BR- 2/10/14

• I'm representing Alaska. 
• I have no facts yet because I just got it assigned to me.

Br- 2/7/14

• Honestly I'd make a law that stated if you have some kind of psychological issue(s), which has been verified by a doctor and if you were having "one of those days" you could take a day off from school/work without it hurting you later on. 

BR- 2/5/14

• I think they should be able to because if they would limit what you could buy, then maybe America would be healthier all together and such. I don't know really.

1. Fund the war by asking the citizens to pay for it. Because why not. 
2. I would have people volunteer. The only requirements would be that you would have to be 18. 
3. Have some kind of animal be able to take them their mail. Or a helicopter. 
4. Bridgeport seems like a good treaty to go and support.

BR- 2/4/14

• Yeah, kind of. 
• 
  

BR- 1/31/14

• Probably not.

BR- 1/30/14

1. No, we're used to the snow and ice.
2. Yes I could, it would be nice.
3. I find it funny. 

• Male, gray hair, tall.

BR- 1/1714

• No, he shouldn't sue at all. It's ridiculous. It's a baseball field, there's gonna be injury's, he needs to just get over it.

Senate Outline

The Senate
The Upper House of Congress
Intended to not be bound totally by popular opinion
Represent entire state,
A continuous body: There is never a time in which all seats are up for election at once.
Term Length: 6 years.
Term Limit: There isn't one,

Originally elected by State legislature.

17 Amendment changed procedures to election by voters.

Before this amendment the Senate was nicknamed the Millionaires Club due too the purchasing of seats.

Only one senator for each state is elected at any given election

Exceptions Death and retirement.

Formal

1. 30 years old.
2. Lived in United States for 9 years.
3. Inhabitant of state.

Informal

1. Party, name familiarity, gender, race, political experience, fundraising ability.  

Other Senators can exclude a member with a majority vote

This has been done on 3 occasions

Senators  have the power to punish their colleagues for disorderly conduct

With a 2/3 vote the senate can expel one of its members

This has been done 15 times

14 of which were during the Civil War.

BR- 1/16/14

• No, not really. Watching that show would make anybody not want to have kids.
• I haven't really payed attention to the teen pregnancies in Barbour County, so I don't know.

BR- 1/15/14

• My favorite president was Lincoln. Because he just seemed like an all around good guy. He was intelligent and everything, and he didn't seem to let his ego get too big while being president. 

BR- 1/14/14

• Joe Manchin and Jay Rockefeller. 
• Mary Poling.

BR- 1/13/14

• I don't think it's representing West Virginia in a bad way, I mean they are trying to get it cleaned up as fast as possible and they told the residents what to do/not to do. So I don't mind West Virginia being represented by it.