Analysis Of Camelot Simulation

For those only weakly committed to city living, particularly middle-class people who have serious difficulty with social diversity and who have clear housing alternatives, the "problem-free" suburbs become tempting. After an incident such as a car break-in or a bicycle theft, a "last straw" can make them leave. (249)

I have not had much interest in politics until recently. Before last year, I did not care for anything related to politics; I thought that it was all boring and had little to no affect on me on a personal level. I am more interested in politics nowadays. I know better now that it does affect me and I should care about it. I had learned about the concepts of political socialization, party identification, political tolerance, political trust, political efficacy in government class and how they affect my political beliefs. My personal political belief has been shaped into what it is today and is still being shaped because of those six concepts.

In the constantly changing economy of cities, the growth of city housing is oftentimes neglected. In “Cities Mobilize to Help Those Threatened by Gentrification” Timothy Williams recounts how gentrification has evolved over the years. Mentioning how cities have changed in order to appease the younger professionals, Williams shows how the city itself is in jeopardy due to the tax increases. Slowly loosing their faithful residents as well as historic culture cities face a big deal. Williams gives quotes from faithful residents, “…long time homeowners are victims of the success story”, (Williams 346). In “Cities Mobilize to Help Those Threatened by Gentrification”, Williams uses his credible quotes and modern statistics to generate the reader’s emotions, with desire to change how city officials go about gentrification in culturally infused cities.

In a sprawling neighbourhood filled with building dedicated to consumption and the perpetuation of the capitalist system, there are very few spatial scenarios that can serve as places of protest or productive discussion and debate for the citizenry. The increasing cynicism the citizenry holds toward political realities has led to a culture of apathy and disengagement. Recent events have also demonstrated that fear, whether it be of change or of ‘the other’ have altered the political landscape. In a reality where citizens are spread out and distant from one another and are not confronted with people of different backgrounds, as frequently as one may be in a dense urban centre, prejudice opinions and views can remain unchallenged and continue to grow. The spontaneous and immediate galvanization of people in late January of 2017 suggests a higher level of political engagement and participation is imminent. Previous movements such as Occupy Wall Street have demonstrated how small scale, temporary architecture can derive from political action and protest. I am interested in how a similar form of political assertion and representation can take place in a suburban setting. In such a potent political climate the ability for citizens to assert their views and debate, discuss and challenge their fellow citizens in a

voter turnout and machine politics. The author goes into depth on how the gentrification that is going on in the city is only fueling the great racial divisions between neighborhoods and that this is having a very negative effect on the city. This connects to my research question as I am looking into how the racial divisions that make up many of these urban areas in some of the United States’ biggest cities are only made worse and worse by the process of gentrification and that this will only lead to an increasingly negative impact on the

New York City’s population is a little over 8.3 million people. 8.3 million people are spread out among five boroughs and each have their own set routine. Each one of those 8.3 million see New York in a different way becuase “You start building your private New York the first time you lay eyes on it” (“City Limits” 4). Some people are like Colson Whitehead who “was born here and thus ruined for anywhere else” (“City Limits” 3). Others may have “moved here a couple years ago for a job. Maybe [they] came here for school” (“City Limits” 3). Different reasons have brought these people together. They are grouped as New Yorkers, but many times, living in New York is their only bond. With on going changes and never ending commotion, it is hard to

Urbanization is inevitable, whether we want it or not. Opposers are constantly bickering about the political and moral consequences of gentrification. This topic is indeed mind boggling and complex. However, there is a need to observe this multi-faceted phenomenon in a different angle. Change is the force of diversity, safety and

Discussion of local government is a subject where eyes glaze over and information floats in one ear and right out the other. Most citizens know in greater depth about national politics rather than local, even if the city government has a greater influence and impact on daily life. With the permission of Professor Duckworth, I watched Frisco Independent School District’s board meeting online (link provided, pg. 4). The school board meeting explained a lot about the process, organization, and the structure of local politics.

Although I was not old enough to vote in this past election, I still have found ways to be active in ways other than voting. Over the summer, I represented the Tri-County Rural Electric Cooperation, my electricity provider, in Washington D.C. In order to qualify for the trip I wrote a letter regarding a current issue in electricity, the federal regulation of our electricity. On this tour I met other students from within the cooperation district and from other districts from across the United States. More importantly, I met the officials, who we elected to represent us in the House of Representatives. In this meeting with our representative, Glenn Thompson, we covered issues such as creating jobs, the upcoming election, the Supreme Court justice vacancy and other controversial topics that dominate every news channel. While we toured other major points within the District of Columbia, the national mall, the capital building, the House of Representative and the Senate House, and many others, our district’s representatives showed true citizenship for our area. We learned of many political policies and stories of our great nation, a necessity for an exemplary citizen.

The Playspent simulation was more than just a game. It was a reminder of reality I faced last summer during my SSLP. Over the summer I worked with young adults transitioning out of foster care into independent living. I worked with them on budgeting, finding affordable low-income housing (or in their particular case, extremely low-income housing), and paying off debts.

Unfortunately, I lost the running for Mayor by two or so votes. This aggravated me for a while because I knew that I was just as qualified if not better than my opponent. I did not let this get to me though, since I instead received a position on the city council. Also, it did not bother me that the person who won Mayor was my friend. In the turn around, I preferred being on the city council because it was more of a consultative position and less of a pressure position. One of my favorite parts of being on the city council was being involved with the future laws created within our town. I also enjoyed working closely with the Mayor on creative projects. One aspect which made Boys State such a fun program is the camaraderie between each other. Everything we did was a group effort rather than a commitment primarily of my own

Thus, my actions in the simulation were affected by my ideological beliefs. All of the bills I wrote were bipartisan in nature and received bipartisan cosponsorship. I chose to focus on issues I believed most people would have a similar stance on: small business growth and student well-being (during and after the completion of their education). Because I believe so strongly in a significant budget for educational initiatives, I voted against an amendment to limit funding for the Educating Working Adults Act/Assist Career Technical Education Act. Although the amendment passed anyway, as I thought it would, I decided to vote “nay” regardless because I wanted to take a strong position on education and stick to it. During several other motions, I chose not to follow the instructions of the majority whip ended up being one of the only Republicans to vote certain ways because of my moderate ideology. In reality, however, even moderates would likely be bound by party ties. As interparty polarization has increased, the intraparty polarization has decreased, meaning the number of true moderates is next to none. I managed to be more extreme in some of my actions by, for example, voting against all rights for felons (not only voting rights). If a Congress member actually diverted from the wishes of the whip, the whip could inform the leader, who could “punish” that Congress member by

Be that as it may, political representation is important and it should represent the demographics of its town, but we often see the opposite. The exception to this case is the city of Berkeley. While

The documentary titled Street Fight, produced by Marshall Curry, follows a candidate for the 2002 election for mayor of Newark, New Jersey, Cory Booker and his opponent, Sharpe James. Street Fight mainly unveils the power of politics and what holds power over politics itself. However, the video also reveals several factors which influence and impact politics from the choices of real people on the streets of Newark. Of these factors, the video focuses on the tactics in which each candidate promotes themselves, their social background, and the authority they each hold.

The intensification of rapidly changing stimulations in the city requires the individual to “create a protective organ” manifesting itself in a “matter-of-fact attitude”. This attitude rather than concerning itself with emotions takes on a rational mentality and gives rise to intellectualism. In other words, instead of letting constant encounters with unexpected smells, objects, actions, noises, events, people agitate the nerves and react emotionally, the individual approaches everything in a logical manner. This rational mentality of a purely intellectual individual inevitably leads to a blasé mind set, an apathetic outlook to that which is happening around them. This blasé attitude is a necessary response against the threat of individuality.