The popular view that Americans do not vote because of apathy is not quite right. It would be much closer to the truth to state that Americans don’t register to vote—but once registered, Americans vote at about the same rate as citizens in other nations. Many other factors—having nothing to do with apathy—also shape participation rates. These include age, race, party organization, barriers to registration, and popular views about the significance of elections.…
“Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore, send the homeless tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door.” Reference? America has long been the land of freedom and hope to the world, and the American military is what has kept her that way. People have forgotten how important and valuable the military is to the world that we live in. As part of the Budget Control Act of 2011, automatic sequestration calls for $1.2 trillion in lowered federal spending, with 50% coming from defense and 50% coming from non-defense budgets. If Congress cannot reach an agreement, these cuts will reduce the Department of Defense spending by about $55 billion dollars. On September 11, 2001, the United States faced a difficult time in which 3,000 lives were lost due to an attack upon the U.S. by terrorists who hijacked airplanes and crashed them into the Twin Towers in New York City, the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, and the United States Pennsylvania! That day, 9/11, has become a day in which we remember the lives that were lost and the families who were affected by such a tragedy. We called on our military once again, and they were there to protect our country. I am against automatic sequestration towards the military and military programs for many reasons.…
Persuasive Essay : Many people would be happy and satisfied if they were in a relationship with money and fame. Doesn't that seem like the perfect life? Everyone begins to think that in life that's all that matters, and that's all they need, nothing could be better. Society dictates our morals, feelings, the way we do things and try's to tell us certain things we do are wrong and we need to do them the way they feel necessary. Our generations to come will have no clue what the meaning of a true, harmonious, happy life. They begin to think that not telling the truth is ok , and eventually get so use to it that even if they could hear the truth they wouldn't want to. It becomes part of their daily life. Clearly our society, or government has their own sneaky, conniving ways to try and brain wash everyone. Due to the problem that most people would rather have love, money, and fame, it's very rare to find some one who doesn't have any of that but is satisfied with only knowing the truth. People look up to celebrities, but they do not set good examples or try to be role models. In proposing a solution to the problem of adhering to the actions of celebrities, the analysis relates to Henry David Thoreau's belief in individuality as he talked about in his book Walden. Who is your hero? Usually the answer to this question, at least for many of us, involves a famous actor or singer, a celebrity. The celebrities of the world are the wealthiest, most beautiful and most stylish individuals to walk upon the planet. These icons, however, seem to have no moral dilemma whatsoever with corrupting the public. They are role models to the public, just as parents are role models to their children. Children mirror the actions of their parents, as does society the actions of celebrities. Suddenly, few people in the world are content because they do not live the same lifestyle as Madonna or Michael Jordan. Henry David Thoreau offers solutions in his work, Walden, to the constant societal…
Being in high-school should definitely be the best four years of your life. Most people forget that these years is what usually makes up for the rest of your life. For example some people choose to study hard, pass their classes, and then have fun with the time they got left over. Others choose to use up all their time for fun and never pass classes or dedicate any type of time towards their education and usually get held back a couple of years like I did. If you really want to make high-school the best years of your life then I would suggest choosing option A so that you enjoy all the festivities and parties with friends without having to make-up for lost time.…
Brandon lies there on the hallway floor, gasping for breath as he gets another kick to the rib. He puts one hand up to block a strike to the face but he is too slow. He attempts to push the other student away but that just makes everything worse. Brandon receives one more punch to the face before he is laying there, half dead. He lies on the hospital bed, all hooked up to breathing machines, reading a letter from the school stating he is getting suspended for 3 days because he went against the zero tolerance policy and fought back against the other student.…
While writing the persuasive essay, I enjoyed the process as it was great to focus on a topic that I preferred. The topic I chose to write made it easier for me to write because child beauty pageants interest me and I felt that there should be more awareness towards this topic. As I was writing the essay, I liked how the persuasive essay allowed me to persuade the reader into my chosen view of point and to act upon child beauty pageants. Overall, it was easy to write the essay due to the chosen topic not giving any challenges in finding points and evidences.…
In recent years, the world has watched rapidly growing concerns develop over the manner in which we consume our planets natural resources. A sudden state of urgency has been placed on our need to make drastic revisions to the ways in which we exhaust natural resources. While the corrective measure taken thus far have certainly helped shift American society in the right direction in terms of natural resource conservation, it has done so at the expense of another highly sought resource; the Nation’s financial resources.…
“I do not want to wear that hideous, scratchy, and uncomfortable uniform another day,” these are the words that emanated from the Yudkowsky home every morning at seven o’clock. Mrs. Kelly Yudkowsky recalls the daily conversation she had with her children regarding the importance and benefits of having school uniforms. However, Mrs. Yudkowsky does not stand alone in her opinion, over the past decade the adoption of school dress codes and uniforms in American public schools has expanded tremendously. According to the U.S. Department of Education statistics, in 2010 nearly 1 in 5 public schools required a school uniform, up from just 1 in 8 a decade earlier. That is a huge growth in uniform requirements in American state schools (qtd. in Bennett). A school uniform is an outfit that is picked out by the school’s administration that every student who chooses to go to that school must wear. Although there are some critics who argue that a school uniform violates a students’ right to freedom of expression and can cause a financial burden on poor families, school uniforms should be mandatory for everyone in primary and secondary school, because it increases students’ self-esteem and school unity, it helps promote school safety, and it helps students resist the peer pressure to buy trendy clothing.…
Throughout history, little by little our great country has progressed, from a nation that was barely getting on its own feat in the early 1800’s to legalizing the rights of every American citizen within the United States during the1960’s. But what about the African Americans? Anyone who is familiar with our American culture and History can tell you that African Americans have played a major role in our histories movements for a better tomorrow. For example As African Americans ' place in American society has changed over the centuries, so, has the focus of African-American literature. Before the American Civil War, the literature primarily consisted of memoirs by people who had escaped from slavery; the genre of slave narratives included accounts of life under slavery and the path of justice and redemption to freedom. At the turn of the 20th century, non-fiction works by authors debated whether to confront or appease racist attitudes in the United States. During the American Civil Rights movement, authors wrote about issues of racial segregation and Black Nationalism. Today, African-American literature has become accepted as an essential part of America however like a double edge sword African American literature brought in good aspects as well as of the much bad.…
Introduction: Try to hook your reader’s attention and provide background information on your topic or controversy. Give your thesis statement which has a clear statement of your main idea or point of view.…
To begin, age is one factor that is related to voter turnout. “Young adults are substantially less likely than middle-aged and older citizens to vote” (Patterson 2011, p. 187). Especially with local elections, which only has a small percentage of young adult voter turnout. Fortunately, during the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections, voter turnout substantially increased from previous presidential elections. According to the United States Census Bureau, in the 2008 presidential election, 55 percent of eligible African American citizens between the ages of eighteen and twenty-four voted (African Americans, n.d.). The Iraq war was another major factor that increased voter turnout among college-educated youth. Even though numbers increased for young adults, they were still lower than the voting rates of older adults. One reason is because older voters do not have to reregister to vote since they normally live in the same household from one election to the next, compared to younger people who are more likely to move around. Another reason older people vote more is because they have…
One thing is, since they lowered the voting age, we must take this for granted. What I mean is that if you have the privilege to vote, then do so. It is your responsibility as an American citizen to choose who you want, and trust to control our country. Voting isn't something you just say, “Oh, whoops, forgot to vote today… Eh, I’ll just do it next time.”…
For much of American history, voting qualifications were such that very few people actually had the power to vote. These qualifications have changed greatly since then to grant nearly all Americans this important democratic privilege. In the eighteenth century, the right to vote was reserved for wealthy white males over the age of 21 and in many cases, those that belonged to the accepted religion of their community. The reasoning was that these people were the only ones educated enough to make a wise decision although women, slaves, and those without property certainly had a lot to say on the matters of the day. Today, through Constitutional Amendments, voting restrictions concerning gender, race, religious affiliation, and wealth have all been eliminated. The minimum age to vote is now 18. All voters must be citizens of the United…
There are a variety of reasons that people don't vote: Some don't because they can't get the time off to get to the polls. Others because they are disabled or ill, some are out of town, some are barred from voting if they are convicted of a crime and others don't like the candidates, the issues or too busy.…
There is no argument that young voters (ages 18-34) have increasingly shown a lack of voter turnout in general elections. According to an article by The New Republic, 53 percent of 18-29 year-olds visited the polls in 1972. By the year 2000, that figure had dropped to 35 percent, which became a new historical low. So why is this a problem for me and my fellow Generation Y brothers and sisters? The answer is clear and simple. By choosing not to vote, we are also choosing not to have anyone represent our ideals and political agendas in government. At a time with increasing student-loan debt, a shocking unemployment rate and overall declination of the quality of life, Generation Y has more reason now than ever to start affecting political change. “People who try to have influence on government are going to…