The Philippines

Disaster Relief Planning: Typhoon Haiyan

Your assignment is to research how we as a community (class, school, bend) could best provide some help for the Philippines. With thousands dead, no power, and no shelter, my suggestion would to be to find the most effective, cheapest way to get clean potable water to them -- but any of the basic needs that you can identify, and creatively solve are good.   

There is no best answer.  But I'd love it if you could come up with a plan upon which could be useful down the road. I'm crowd sourcing this to you; hopefully one of you will find a good cheap way to minimize the effect of disease and death from poor water moving forward. To give you evidence of the need for this; following the Haiti earthquake, Cholera has been rampant. 8,000 have died from the cholera infection following the 2010 earthquake. Tropical disease is a real concern, and I welcome your thoughts and efforts.

This may end up being just a thought experiment, but we may come up with a best plan. Be diligent, thorough, and don't settle for finding one answer. Remember, whatever your thoughts are, make sure you are finding a solution for people with no shelter, no potable water, and in a tropical environment. 

Part 1) How should the money be spent?  Identify critical areas for relief

The money should be spent providing the Philippine typhoon victims with clean water. My father has a friend who has invented portable bags, called HTI bags, that, when placed in water or a wet environment such as mud, will suck up the surrounding water into the bag while filtering out contaminants  If we could get a charity to sponsor our idea, we could prepare these bags and send them to the Philippines. This would provide the victims with instant clean water. 

Part 2) Support the idea that Charities are the most effective way to provide for relief. 

Charities are the most effective way to provide relief for the Philippines because there are fewer restrictions and administrative barriers. Charities also tend to have a more focus purpose. They also have a main focus or emphasis. If we could find a charity to help, they would get the job done quickly. They are not required to seek approval from government officials or constituents. Charities, such as the American Red Cross or the Red Crescent, would serve as good examples of charities that are designed to provide disaster relief. They have experience and the training required to carry out reliefs plans. 

Part 3) Research several Charities based on their expertise in the region, and cost efficiency (How much of each dollar goes to relief).

Samaritan's Purse is another charity that has been active in the Philippine relief support. The total annual contributions of 2012 was $425,758,580. Out of this total, $381,790,682 goes to benefitting people. This charity has been active internationally. They currently have water, sanitation and hygiene programs that they have been implementing for disaster relief. I feel that they could also find a way to use our idea of the HTI bags to administer to the Philippines to help disaster relief.  

Part 4) Come up with a cool invention for something that could be used in the future for disaster relief.

One fault with the HTI bags are that they would not provide a large amount of water for a concentrated population. These bags are designed for small quantities of water for individual use. If we could create a larger filter that could be placed on a more centralized reservoir, this would provide the community with clean water, free of bacteria and contaminants. If we could also have these filters in disaster relief kits/pods, scattered around the world at strategic locations (airports), this would help prepare for future disasters and could quickly be distributed throughout the world when disaster hits. 

Essay 10

Essay 10:

2006-1 While interest groups and political parties each play a significant role in the United States political system, they differ in their fundamental goals.

(a) Identify the fundamental goal of interest groups in the political process:

The fundamental goals of interest groups are to affect public policy by utilizing the press and government officials. Also, by get people elected into office, interest groups can have a direct influence. 

(b) Identify the fundamental goal of major political parties in the political process: 

The fundamental goal of a political party is to have electoral power. They support a candidate with similar beliefs to theres and then campaign for this specific candidate in order to get them elected. They want to get the most votes and the most seats in congress. 

(c) Describe two different ways by which interest groups support the fundamental goal of political parties in the political process:

1. Interest groups support political parties by raising awareness of a specific politician.
2. They also help the fundamental goal of political parties by pressuring elected officials to support the agenda of a specific interest group. 

(d) For one of the forms of support you described in (c), explain two different ways in which that form of support helps interest groups to achieve their fundamental goal in the political process:

1. Political parties support interest groups by passing certain laws or measures that benefit that interest group.  
2. When a politician is noticed by the public they can help the interest group get there issues political attention. 

Essay 5 & 6

Essay 5:

Different interest groups will choose different techniques to achieve their objectives based on their resources, characteristics, and goals.

a) describe each of the following techniques and explain why an interest group would choose each technique.

Litigation: Litigation is an action brought in court to enforce a particular right; the act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. An interest group would use litigation in order to put pressure on officials. 

Campaign contributions: Campaign Contributions are all the funds raised in order to promote candidates, political parties, or policies in elections, referendums, initiatives, party activities, and party organizations. Interest groups would use campaign contributions if they had an issue that they wanted to draw attention to. By contributing to a candidates campaign, their issue might be brought up by this certain candidate. 

Grassroots Lobbying / mass mobilization: Grassroots Lobbying is lobbying with the intention of reaching the legislature and making a difference in the decision-making process. An interest group would use this because it is an effective way of spreading awareness of their goals and the changes they are planning on making. Mass mobilization is usually part of a revolutionary movement and practiced to overthrow an incumbent politician.  

b) Select one of the following groups and identify the primary technique it uses from the list in part (a). Explain why the group you selected would employ that technique over the other two techniques.

National Rifle Association (NRA): The NRA's main technique of lobbying is grassroots lobbying. They use this technique because they are trying to make an impact on the decision making process. They are spreading the awareness through media such as ads, magazines and websites. They are really trying to get noticed. This interest group wouldn't use litigation because they wouldn't get very far with this technique. They also wouldn't use campaign contributions as much because they are a non-profit organization and do not have money to contribute to candidates.  


Essay 6:

2009-2

In the United States political system, there are several linkage institutions that can connect citizens to government Elections constitute one such institution. Because of low voter turnout, however, other linkage institutions can connect citizens to government.

a. Describe how each of the following is related to the likelihood of voting.

-Age: The older an individual, the more likely they are to vote. 

-Education: The more/better educated an individual, the more likely they are to vote. 

b. Identify one current government electoral requirement that decreases voter turnout. Explain how it decreases voter turnout.

Convenience: People don't have time to register and vote. They also don't feel that their time is worth it because they think their vote doesn't matter. 

c. Identify one linkage institution other than elections and explain two ways it connects citizens to government.

Special Interest Groups:
1. Allows people to have a say without voting
2. Supports a cause

Protesting:
1. Another way to give your opinion on an issue without voting on it
2. Fighting for what you believe is right. 

Essay 3 & 4

Essay 3:

The US Constitution has endured for more than 2 centuries as the framework of government. However, the meaning of the Constitution has been changed both by formal and informal methods.

a) identify 2 formal methods for adding amendments to the constitution
1. Congress (2/3's)
2. National convention (2/3's) 

b) describe 2 informal methods that have been used to change the meaning of the Constitution. Provide one specific example for each informal method you described.

1. Judicial Review: is the doctrine under which legislative and executive actions are subject to review (and possible invalidation) by the judiciary. Marbury vs. Madison was a United States Supreme Court Case where the Court formed the basis for the exercise of Judicial review in the United States under Article III the constitution. This case was important because the landmark decision helped define the boundary between the constitutionally separate executive and judicial branches of the American form of Government.

2. Elastic Clause (Article I, Section 8) Clause 18 of the Constitution: This clause gives congress the ability to pass any law deemed "necessary and proper" for carrying out its expressed powers. For example, the McCulloch v. Maryland case of 1819 gave the federal government access to establishing a national bank. The supreme court had to determine if this action was legal under the constitution. The government argued that they had the right to tax, borrow, coin money and spend so, therefore, they have the power to create a national bank.

c) Explain why informal methods are used more often than the formal amendment process.

Informal methods are used more often than the formal amendment process because it is easier and quicker. For example, the 3/5 compromise, which allowed slaves to be free men, had automatic reaction when it became null and void. 

Essay 4:

The framers of the United States Constitution created a federal system.

 a) Define federalism

Federalism is a political concept in which a group of members are bound together by covenant with a governing representative head. Federalism is the type of government the United States currently has. There are three beaches under federalism, legislative, executive and judicial. Checks and balances and Balance of power. 

 b) Explain how the following has been used to increase the power of the federal

 government relative to the states.

• Categorical Grants: Categorical grants are issued by congress for narrowly-defined purposes. They are also the main source of federal aid to state and local governments. These grants can only be used for specific purposes such as education and state/local spending. These grants can be given on a formula basis or a project basis. This increases the power of the federal government relative to the states because the federal government decides where the money is going and what the money will be used for. 
• Federal mandates: A federal mandate is a requirement in federal legislation that forces states and municipalities to comply with certain rules. For example, drinking age is originally defined by state laws. However, federal government said that they would cut highway funds for any state that did not change their legal drinking age to 21 years of age. This gives power to the federal government because they can persuade states to change their laws by threatening them with cutting funding. 

 c) Explain how the following have been used to increase the power of the states relative to

 the federal government.

• Block grants: A block grant is when the federal government gives more to communities. Some examples of these communities organizations funded by the federal government are Planned Parenthood and  Social Service.  This gives power to the states because they are receiving money directly from the federal government. 
• Tenth amendment: The 10th amendment gives states power and authority. It states that the Constitution's principle of federalism by providing that powers not granted to the federal government by the Constitution, nor prohibited to the States, are reserved to the States or the people. This directly increases the power of the states relative to the federal government because they are not required to follow certain laws put in place by the federal government. 

Essay 7, 8 & 9

Essay 7:

2005_4The U.S. Congress has debated a variety of campaign finance reforms over the last decade.  The proposals debated have included the following:

Eliminating soft money

Limiting independent expenditures

Raising limits on individual contributions

a.    Select one of the listed proposals and do all of the following: Eliminating Soft Money

-Define the proposal: To eliminate "soft money" in order to improve problems with political election financing. Soft money is donations made by organizations other than a candidates campaign and political parties, such as groups of individuals pursuing a common interest (Example: NRA and Greenpeace) and groups of individuals joined to effect an ad-hoc (Example: Swift Boat Veterans and Open Society Institute), also known as "special interest groups."

-Describe an argument that proponents make in favor of the proposal: Corruption of representatives by these special interest groups. Takes a lot of money to run for the senate or house of representatives. Although the politicians are getting the soft money directly, the campaigning efforts of aligned groups are like direct contributions.

-Describe an argument that opponents make against the proposal: Free speech and liberty. Citizens have the right to form groups and make political statements as a group. Fundamental liberty. 

b.    Select a different listed proposal and do all of the following: Raising limits on individual contributions

-Define the proposal: Raising limits on individual contributions would mean that individual donors would have the opportunity to donate to candidates of their choice and would allow more candidates the option of raising more money in a quicker and more effective way.

-Describe an argument that proponents make in favor of the proposal: Raising limits on individual contributions would make it easier for candidates to raise funds for their campaigns.

-Describe an argument that opponents make against the proposal: Their should be limits on funds in order to have a fair level of donation competition from various groups and individuals. Without limits, certain groups and individuals could donate large amounts of money to one specific candidate.

c. (you will have to research this separately).  Explain how citizens united affects the proposals you listed.

Essay 8:

2009_3In the United States Congress, the majority party exerts a substantial influence over lawmaking. However, even when one party has a numerical majority in each chamber of the United States Congress, there is no guarantee that legislation supported by that majority party will be passed by both chambers. Rules of each chamber independently influence the likelihood that legislation will pass in that chamber; legislation passed by one chamber is not always passed by the other.

(a)  Describe two advantages the majority party in the United States House of Representatives has in lawmaking, above and beyond the numerical advantage that that majority party enjoys in floor voting.

1. Each committee and subcommittee has a chairperson from the majority party. They would decide what bills are put before their committee and when and if a vote takes place.
2. They control the Rules Committee which sets floor procedures for the House of Representatives. The majority party can delay the voting on a bill until a solid majority is behind it so it does not get defeated.
3. The majority party decides in what order the members of the House of Representatives speak in any debate.
4. Filibusters are not allowed.
5. They have a strong electoral college because the Senate gets two votes from each state.
6. Running for the House of representatives is cheaper than running for Senate because less territory and voters have to be covered.

(b)  Describe two differences between House and Senate rules that may make it likely that legislation may pass in one chamber but not in the other.

1. Procedures and rules are more formal for the House of Representatives and less formal for the Senate.
2. Senate doesn't have to hear any bill that comes from the House of Representatives.
3. Senate has limited debate.

                                                    House      Senate
Filibuster                                       No            Yes
Holds                                             No            Yes
Unanimous consent agreements       No            Yes
Germaneness requirement              Yes            No
Rules Committee                           Yes            No

(c)  Explain how the differences identified in (b) can lead to the passage of a bill in one chamber but not in the other.

For example, if an opposing party is in the majority of the Senate and they don't wish to consider a bill passed to them by the House, they can simply stop the bill from going any further by not considering it for vote.  

Essay 9:

DATA for 2009_4 (below)

Viewer’s Ages and Frequency of Viewing of Network Nightly News: 1974 and 2002 Combined

1974                  frequently (%)                    rarely (%)

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18-29                  45                                                  13

30-44                  50                                                 12

45-64                  68                                                  8

65+                      71                                                  5

2002                 frequently (%)                    rarely (%)

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18-29                  19                                                  22

30-44                  22                                                17

45-64                  40                                                  11

65+                      53                                                  8

2009_4. One of the most important ways the news media influence politics is through agenda setting.

(a)  Define policy agenda: a set of issues and policies laid out by ideological or political groups; as well as topics under discussion by an governmental executive, or a cabinet in government that tries to influence current and near-future political news and debate.

(b)  Explain how the national news media engage in agenda setting.

The national news gets citizens to watch and try to understand the subject or problem on a specific topic. This raises awareness, provides information, draws attention and demonstrates possible consequences. The most important part of the national news media engaging in agenda setting is by trying to get a policymakers attention. Newspapers are a great way of doing this. 

(c)  Explain the primary reason the president tends to have an advantage over Congress in gaining media attention.

The President of the United States tends to have an advantage over Congress in gaining media attention because of his image. The president is known as the primary "leader" of the country. People look up to him and also criticize his every move. Because he is one person and not 535 people, it is easier to focus on him. He acts as an individual instead of a group of both the Senate and House of Representatives. 

(d)  Consider the table above.

-Describe the difference in the viewing patterns of older and younger age-groups.
The older an individual is, the more likely they are to pay attention and watch or read political media. 

-Describe the change from 1974 to 2002 in viewing habits that exists for all age categories.

Less people have been paying attention to media from 1974 to 2002.

(e)  Given the information in the table, describe one implication for presidents in their use of the media to promote their political and policy objectives to the American public.
 Media is a good way to draw attention from elder voters.

Essay 1 & 2

Essay 1:

In The Federalist paper number 10, James Madison expressed concern over the possibility that both majority and minority factions would have too much power over government, and he presented ways of minimizing that danger. The United States Constitution established a democratic government but also contained several provisions that limited majority rule. Throughout the next two centuries, the role of majority rule in the United States government and politics continued to change.

a. Identify the part of the national government that was originally most closely tied to citizens and explain how it was tied to citizens.

House of Representative was the part of the national government that was originally most closely tied to the citizens. This used to be the only federal government position that could be voted on by the people. The elected house would then directly represent the needs of the people. 

b. Explain two ways the United States constitution limited majority rule.

The Electoral College and Justice appointment are two ways the United States limited majority rule. The electoral college is the institution that elects the President and Vice President. The president is not elected by popular vote but instead, the people elect representatives that then become the electoral college. Justices are appointed by the President of the United States but must also be confirmed by the United States Senate. This process is done in a series of hearing in which the nominee and other witnesses make statements and answer questions in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee. 

c. Choose two of the following twentieth-century developments and explain how each moved the United States from a less democratic system to a more democratic system. (you will have to research either 17th amendment or expansion of suffrage)

•       Primary elections: Primary elections have moved the United States from a less democratic system to a more democratic system because of participation from a wider electorate. The public is now allowed to choose which candidates run in the main election through primaries and caucuses. 

•       The Seventeenth Amendment: The 17th amendment put more power in the hands of the people by giving them the right to directly elect senators. Therefore, this moved the United States from a less democratic system to a more democratic system. 

Essay 2:

Citizens often choose to participate in the political process in ways other than voting.

(a)  Identify two forms of participation in the political process other than voting.

Two forms of participation in the political process, other than voting, are protest and running for office. 

(b)  Explain two advantages of each form of participation you identified in (a). 

Protesting: Gets immediate attention and gets the issue on the policy agenda

Running for office: Candidate is able to voice their own opinions and can gain support from citizens. By running for office, one can insure that their ideal issue are being covered and resolved. 

North Korea

History of North Korea since WWII:

At the end of World War II, Korea was divided at the 38th parallel by the Soviet Union. In 1948, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) was established. This marked the point when soviet troops withdrew their forces. A few years later in 1950, the North Korean invasion is began after South Korea claims independence. Between 1950 and 1960 both North Korea and South Korea had a large increase in industrialization.

Later, in 1980, Kim II Sung's son Kim Jong-II moves up as party and political leader of North Korea. Both North Korea and South Korea decide to join the United Nations in 1991. Three years later in 1994, the death of Kim II Sung causes Kim Jong-II to be promoted as leader but does not take his father's title. As Kim Jong-II gains more experience in his fathers position, a large flood causes severe famine to spread. In 1998, Kim II Sung is declared the "Eternal President" and Kim Jong-II continues to gain more power. Years ahead, in 2003, North Korea announces its withdrawal from the 1968 Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty which banned them from creating nuclear weapons. Tension between the US and North Korea really began to build when North Korea announced that they had created a nuclear weapon and then, in 2006, declared that they had successfully detonated a nuclear device. Three years later in 2009, a second nuclear weapon is detonated. Finally, in 2010, Kim Jong II announces that Kim Jong Un will take his position as ruler.


Summary of current state of affairs in Korea: 

When Japan surrendered at the end of World War II, in 1945, the Korean Peninsula was divided by the 38th Parallel. The US remained in the South and the Soviet Union in the North. This then led to the creation of the Republic of Korea (ROK) in the South and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in the North. Until 1971, the two governments had not communicated and, therefore, remained separate. The United States has communicated that they feel the two governments must have a "constructive and serious" discussion before anything can be resolved. Both North Korea and the US are part of the United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum. As attempts to influence North Korea, the US formed and agreement with North Korea to denuclearize the Korea Peninsula. The US then requested that North Korea improve relations with South Korea and comply with international law including the United Nations Security Council Resolutions 1718 and 1874.

On the other hand, The US and South Korea have a more cooperative relationship than do North Korea and the US. South Korea currently allows the US to have Army and Air Force personnel there in order to support its commitment of the US-ROK Mutual Defense Treaty. South Korea also aids the US in its attempts to denuclearize North Korea. South Korea also send the highest number of students to the US for study abroad. The organizations belonged to by both the US and South Korea include the United Nations, G-20, Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and the World Trade Organization.



Do you think there will be regime change/ state change/ neither/ both? Why?

I think that there will be regime change in North Korea. With the United States and South Korea in alliance, the pressure to denuclearize is even stronger. The Rebulic of Korea (ROK) has already begun with attempts to influence North Korea and persuade for less creation of nuclear weapons. The US and South Korea have similar interests for the future of Korea and hope that both the north and south will become more unified. Because the US and South Korea are also both members of many of the same groups they can team up to influence change in the North. South Korea, in the past, has already made certain agreements with the North, however, these agreements have not been throughouly followed. Because of the broken agreements between both the US and North Korea, and South Korea and North Korea, regime change is the only option to ensure that the Korean Peninsula become unified and nuclear weapon free. 

Sources:

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/secret-state-of-north-korea/

http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/fighting_words/2010/02/a_nation_of_racist_dwarfs.html

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-15278612

http://www.state.gov/r/pa//ie/bgn/2800.htm

http://www.state.gov/r/pa//ie/bgn/2792.htm