The State Of The United States

In this TEDTalk, Steven Pinker introduced an interesting trend in societal violence. The talk began by presenting fax that showed a dramatic decrease in the amount of violent crime beginning as far back as the earliest human hunter-gatherers. In many places during that time period, the chances of dying at the hands of another human were as high is sixty percent. Although the media and people tend to believe we are living in a time of extreme violence, we are actually living during one of the most peaceful times in human history. Even though the 20th Century witnessed tragedies such as the Holocaust, Rwanda, Stalin’s mass executions, and two World Wars, the chances of a human by violent means was less than three percent.

In the pursuit of safety, acceptance, and the public good, many atrocities have been committed in places such as Abu Ghraib and My Lai, where simple, generally harmless people became the wiling torturers and murderers of innocent people. Many claim to have just been following orders, which illustrates a disturbing trend in both the modern military and modern societies as a whole; when forced into an obedient mindset, many normal and everyday people can become tools of destruction and sorrow, uncaringly inflicting pain and death upon the innocent.

An elite is considered as the few in any organization or society who have power. (pg. 1)

As American essayist and social critic H.L. Mencken wrote, “The average man does not want to be free. He simply wants to be safe.” To be free is to have the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without restraint. This type of freedom can be offered in many places whether it be home, school, or work. Safety is the condition of being protected from or unlikely to because risk, danger, or injury. Safety should be seen as an advantage to have because it’s never truly guaranteed. Most people claim they are proud of the freedoms their nations offer, though many people manifest the willingness to give up these freedoms to secure personal safety.

Security can be a tool to rationalize, legitimize, marginalize violence (keeping minority groups in their place) which could in turn reinforce systemic inequalities present in society by turning a blind eye to context. This dichotomy serves as a platform for other invalidation ideologies that works on the continuum of fear that can divide into categories of “us” and “them”, which are then used to send us messages about who is a threat, and leads to constructions of what individuals who are not able to stand up for themselves. The death of Ashley Smith illustrates how the range of oppressive structures were responsible for the persistent and severe denials of her fundamental rights. In this context, we can see that the state has both the means to violate and protect human rights.

In today’s world, the rich are dominant just like in “Brave New World,” the Alphas/Betas are dominant.

The elite theory believes that a small group consisting of powerful people holds the most power, and that this power is independent of a state's democratic elections process. Elite theory argues either that democracy is in all unrealistic, or that democracy is not able to be achieved within capitalism. Within the elite theory not everyone is going to have the power when making decisions only the most powerful group. Overall meaning the elite theory can determine the trajectory of the society, and therefore the conditions which the members of that society must exist and function. When considering who’s interest does the elite theory compromise it would be hard to find an answer considering that all these groups work together to protect each other’s

In the assigned chapter reading it is described how powerful kings unified small kingdoms, which lead to state-building activities. Through the process of the unification, which involved various kinds of warfare and leadership tactics and disloyalty, lots of killing and destruction occurred.

Everyone’s fears are different and may change over time. Life evolves everyday with new technology, new systems and new ways for crime to occur; it seems the fears in our society take one step toward freedom and then 10 steps backwards. Yet, the idea of freedom from fear never changes. President F.D. Roosevelt gave a speech in 1941, now referred to as “The Four Freedoms” speech. Although the speech isn’t just about freedom from fear; the concept is contained within the context.

1. For the new United States to be so treacherous for some, and so grand for others is a great example that reflects the propaganda that was being portrayed to bring early Europeans and others to the colonies for the sole purpose to take over land from indigenous people. While there is no specific answer to their claims one way or another, we can see that there must have been some ulterior motives to putting on such a showcase to those far away. In the following passages we get some insight from John Smith about exactly how the new colonies were expanding and just how growth was to be achieved, “Who can desire more content, that hath small means; or but only his merit to advance his fortune, than to tread, and plant that ground he hath purchased by the hazard of his life?” (93) From Smith’s account we can see exactly what needs to be done to grow the colonies. Now we can use two other passages from Farmer James that are in stark contrast to one another, and can lead the readers to believe that the new land was some type of utopian escape from old England. Farmer James describes it as “Men are like plants; the goodness and flavor of the fruit proceeds from the peculiar soil and exposition in which they grow. We are nothing but what we derive from the air we breathe, the climate we inhabit, the government we obey, the system of religion we profess, and the nature of our employment. Here you will find but few crimes; these have acquired as yet no root among us” (608). Farmer

The US national government and California state governments each have their fair similarities and differences. For instance, they are very similar involving the president and governor. As the United States of America has a president, California has their own governor as well. Even though they are not entitled to the same exact responsibilities, they each have a huge importance to their people. The citizens of the United States look up to the president, as the residents of California look up to their governor. The governor is essentially seen as the “state’s symbolic leader” whereas the president is seen as the “nation’s symbolic leader” (Spitzer, 2015, p. 93). A huge advantage that California carries is that the state constitution is typically known for creating a stronger governor than in other states. In some cases, even, the governor can be just a strong as the president. As they are both important members in congress, they each have the ability of making executive and judicial branch appointments. In addition to this similarity between the national and state government, they are also alike in having to do with women’s level of involvement in the legislature. The amount of females working in the legislature is not as common than it is for males. Unfortunately, men have a huge advantage over women in this aspect of the government. On the other hand, there has actually been a significant amount growth of women working in the state legislature since 1975. Even though it has

In 2014, the state of Oregon was the first state to pass a law that allows children at the age of 15 to undergo surgery for transgender, and they do not need the consent of their parents. Why, you may? Well, let’s take a look. As stated before Oregon was the first state to offer gender reassignment to minors. However, ironically it is illegal in that same state for a 15 year old to drive, smoke, donate blood, get a tattoo, or even go to a tanning booth.

The elite do respond to the people, when it chooses to do so, or when its position is threatened. The chief executives, i.e. the big corporations play a significant role in decision making as they make the power elite and have a vast influence in the economy. Corporations can affect the taxes by raising the prices for the products, hence affecting the quality of life by production of products and wages of workers; change the environment by chemical wastes and other environmentally unfriendly chemicals. And the third group – the warlords or the high military leaders gained their power during the times of the Cold War. The danger of potential enemies, the demands of foreign affairs and the development of the means of mass destruction have given the military the power to be in the dominant power elite. Even though the power elite make a small circle of few ruling the rest, they do not manipulate events in their own self interest. The elite, for the most part, respects liberties and follows the constitutional principles, it is not a dictatorship and usually acts in peaceful ways and openly to the public.[7]

The New Monarchs replaced the power of nobles who would tax peasants and start war as desired. The New Monarchs were able to ends these wars and secure nation states. For instance, the Tudors of England ended the War of Roses. In addition, they were also able to set up national taxes and form armies. The centralization of power was a push factor because it allowed Europe to produce the financial resources and military power needed to explore. European rulers also relied on trade to finance their spending and maintain their

The elite is the selected few but does not reflex the needs of the masses