What's going to happen in Washington, D.C?

Will the Government Shutdown tomorrow?

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/09/27/us/who-goes-to-work-during-government-shutdown.html?smid=pl-share

What are Political Cartoons all about...your turn!!

There are 2 websites that I'm going to encourage you to explore.

Collection of Political Cartoons, compiled by Daryl Cagle.
http://www.cagle.com

Collection of Political Cartoons, compiled by the Association of American Editorial Cartoonists.
http://editorialcartoonists.com/cartoon/

We're going to use the Library of Congress Cartoon Analysis Guide to help us with this activity.

Showdown in Washington DC!

Yesterday, Senator Ted Cruz from Texas began a pseudo-filibuster on the Senate floor to show his opposition to the Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) that is set to go into effect next week, Oct 1.  Here is just a snapshot of what he had to say...


He began speaking on the  Senate floor at 2:41 p.m. 

Official definition of a filibuster:

filibuster - Informal term for any attempt to block or delay Senate action on a bill or other matter by debating it at length, by offering numerous procedural motions, or by any other delaying or obstructive actions. When there is a true filibuster occuring, no other Senate action can take place. (http://www.senate.gov/reference/glossary_term/filibuster.htm)

What Senator Cruz is doing and why it is not a true filibuster: The vote is already scheduled and will take place at 10am on Wed, regardless of whether Senator Cruz is still talking. Yes, that's right. It is possible (although highly unlikely) that the Senate would vote even as Senator Cruz is speaking. It will not delay the vote.

Longest Filibusters in Senate History:
5. 16 hours -- 1981, Senator Proxmire
4. 18 hours -- 1908, Senator LaFolette
3. 22 hours, 26 minutes -- 1953, Senator Morse
2. 23 hours, 30 minutes -- 1986, Senator D'Amato

and drumroll please, the longest filibuster in history took place in 1957 by Senator Strom Thurmond. He argued against the Civil Rights Act of 1957. He spoke for 24 hours, 18 minutes. (He was unsuccessful)

Another graphic that shows basically what is going to happen next...

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/09/24/us/politics/what-congress-must-do-to-avoid-a-shutdown.html?smid=pl-share

Will the Government Shut down Next week?

ISSUE: If the Congress does not vote successfully on a federal budget, parts of the government will begin to shut down.  This delay in passing a budget rests largely because many Republicans are very upset that the new Healthcare Law will go into effect beginning next month. Some Republicans are attempting to delay a vote on the Federal Budget unless the Obama Healthcare Law is defunded, or basically dropped. Most Democrats have refused even to consider this since the law was passed successfully by Congress last year, upheld by the Supreme Court as Constitutional, and they believe should be funded and rolled out.  This is the setup to the political war that is unfolding as we speak in Washington, D.C.

Goal for today's class:  Get a basic sense of what is happening, and why. See what different people have to say, and perhaps hear what you think:

Let's start with the Political Cartoonists! First, some visuals to set the stage: (WARNING: SOME OF THESE ARE INCREDIBLY BIASED AND DEFINITELY HAVE A PARTICULAR POINT OF VIEW!!! That's not necessarily a bad thing, but you need to be aware that these artists have a particular opinion that they are sharing with you!)

When is HW too much? One Parent's experience at trying to keep up with his daughter's HW for a week!

So, I'm super uber curious what people think about this article. It came out on Thurs of last week and it's all about one father's experience trying to complete his daughter's homework for one week.

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/10/my-daughters-homework-is-killing-me/309514/?single_page=true 

As we all read this article, we're going to respond to one another's thoughts. However, it's going to be silent!!! Yes, silent.  We are going to do ALL our commenting, reacting, in writing.  My only ground rules. Stay thoughtful, stay respectful. Write what you would be comfortable saying out loud. Please don't abuse this freedom.

http://todaysmeet.com/toomuchhomework

4 Topics, 1 Period -- You choose what to read and react...

4 topics, 1 period

Pick a topic to read more about, then start having a discussion on Titanpad about what you are reading.  Consider the following prompts:

I was confused by...

I wonder...

I am concerned by...

When the writer said.....                  , it made me think....

Some questions this article bring up are...

I agree with...

I disagree with...

The Atlantic

My Daughter’s Homework Is Killing Me

KARL TARO GREENFELD

SEP 18 2013, 8:24 PM ET

What happens when a father, alarmed by his 13-year-old daughter's nightly workload, tries to do her homework for a week

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2013/10/my-daughters-homework-is-killing-me/309514/?single_page=true

http://titanpad.com/0NJZnB2mql

Noting 'crucial details' implicating Syria, Kerry pushes for urgent U.N. action

By Jill Dougherty and Greg Botelho, CNN

updated 7:17 PM EDT, Thu September 19, 2013

http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/19/world/meast/syria-civil-war/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

http://titanpad.com/0GgFsDNW0k

The next gun control debate — in 6 charts

By Aaron Blake, Published: September 17 at 10:04 am

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-fix/wp/2013/09/17/the-next-gun-control-debate-in-6-charts/

http://titanpad.com/ki6qE6dgJd

Government shutdown gears in motion

By Jeanne Sahadi  @CNNMoney September 19, 2013: 11:48 AM ET

http://money.cnn.com/2013/09/19/news/economy/government-shutdown-what-happens/

http://titanpad.com/XXl9WozO46

Supreme Court Lifetime Appointments...a good idea or outdated?

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, we're going to sign up to Edmodo so we have a common space to share ideas, opinions, resources.  

I'll walk you through how to sign up, but here is code you'll need:  xt5sfn

Supreme Court Life Tenure...Once you've made, you're here for life!!

Some people think it's a GREAT idea!!

Alexander Hamilton once declared, "nothing can contribute so much to its firmness and independence as permanency in office".

Others, thinks it's gone terribly wrong.

Critic David Fagan suggests that the idea of life time appointments to the Supreme Court are outdated. "This decision, made over 225 years ago when monarchies were the main form of government, was, for the most part, due to the fear that politics would play too much of a role if the judges had to worry about losing their jobs under the king. I wonder what they'd say today. Perhaps a slight revamp, Your Majesty?"

Recently journalist Timothy Noah went so far as to say, "Life terms might make sense if Supreme Court justices had life spans comparable to those of rock stars. But they don’t. Possibly because they don’t typically abuse drugs, or possibly because they don’t fly as often on private planes, Supreme Court justices live much, much longer than rock stars."

What do YOU think? Let's read a little and find out!

Part 2:

Who is on the Supreme COurt?

http://www.supremecourt.gov/about/biographies.aspx

http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/justices/fullcourt.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supreme_Court_of_the_United_States#Current_justices

Let's start with Syria, and the Political Cartoons that tell quite a story...

What is happening in Syria, and the discussions/debates it is inspiring around the country and world also have inspired Political Cartoonists to take a stab at making some comments on the situation.

Some have used their talents to make comparisons and perhaps prompt people to take action...

...while others have highlighted some of the hesitation that many Americans are feeling about supporting another conflict involving the U.S. govt/military....

...still others have chosen to highlight that the action proposed by President Obama is potentially very risky, politically and militarily...

 ...and some focus on the credibility of believing the word of someone who maybe shouldn't be trusted...

What do YOU think?

Notetakers here's your link