The United States Should Fight A War

What is history? We look at these past civilizations, making assumptions and criticisms about their ways of life as if we know exactly what they were thinking. In reality, we have no idea how they justified the actions that we judge. Soon we will be the past and we will be looked upon from future civilizations that attempt to understand our cultures. This thought can be quite overwhelming when one thinks how we will be viewed. In Chuck Klosterman’s novel “But what if we’re Wrong,” he delves into the idea of what past cultures would think of our views towards them as well as future generations analyses of us. We tend to make vague assumptions of their actions rarely considering their thoughts during the time. Many of their actions were based on the time they lived in and the resources available to them, not always having a choice towards joining different culture norms. Before we judge these past civilizations we must first consider what people in the future will think of our current society.

Culture is one of the most relevant elements that can define not only a society but also a country’s cumulative beliefs and system. Often noted as the origins of a country, culture is definitive in the sense that it harbors all the elements that can provide justification on the traditions and norms set by the society for its members. More often than not, the society members follow norms in order to create a harmonious community, and the beliefs and the traditions serve as the poles or grounding rules for each member to follow. Culture is very dynamic in the way that it can change over a variety of foreign influences but what is permanent about it is that original elements about it often lingers with the influences, therefore making it multi-faceted and broad. More importantly, culture serves as an individual and unique trait each society has, and therefore sets it apart from other countries and other societies.

No matter how far we try to remove ourselves from our biases, it is impossible, because history forces us to develop bias. We are always attempting to compare an event with another, or a person with another, and these comparisons often result in the most interesting and thoughtful discussions. I don’t think the field of history would exist without comparisons. We need to look at ideas, people, and events in context in order to truly understand their meaning, and that requires us to compare.

Since the inception of human civilization there have been countless cultures and societies which have helped shape the current world today as we know it. The modern human race dates back more than 200,000 years and in that time frame many cultures have risen to great virtue and success only to deteriorate or cease to exist altogether. First before examining one of these cultures we must know what culture truly means. The Army’s Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC) Culture Center defines culture as a “dynamic social system,” containing the beliefs, behaviors, values and norms of a “specific organization, group, society or other collectivity” learned, shared, internalized, and changeable by all members of the society (Watson, 2010). In

In chapter 1, Morris Fiorina begins the book by describing the fiery dispute between Pat Buchanan and George H. W. Bush. He segues these two politicians battling it out in strong disagreement into the cultural war in America. Fiorina refers to culture war as a displacement of the traditional economic conflictions that brought to life the twentieth century politics in the advanced democracies by newly emergent moral and religious ones (Fiorina, 2). Fiorina goes on to express how the journalistic community fell in love with the idea of cultural war. Having disagreement, division, polarization and rivalries at the tip of their fingers are perfect for news coverage. Heated discussions are much more appealing to the public than watching two politicians boringly come to a consensus. A journalist wrote about the disputes as, “The real emotional splits in the

Article I, Section 8, Clause 11 of the U.S. Constitution assigns Congress the power to declare war. The President, meanwhile, derives the power to direct the military after a Congressional declaration of war from Article II, Section 2, which names the President Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces. These provisions require cooperation between the President and Congress regarding military affairs, with Congress funding or declaring the operation and the President directing it. Nevertheless, throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, Presidents have often engaged in military operations without express Congressional consent. These operations include the Korean War,

Recorded history is nothing but the belief or bias of the man who wrote it. Often when discussing history, people us the popular phrase, “the winner writes the history books” or something along the lines. But nevertheless, the phrase does hold true. All history that is written is biased, but it is up to the reader to find the truth in within history. No matter what history is written, there will always be a different perspective, a different society, and a different perception of what is truly going on. History does not tell us the absolute truth, but it gives us a morphed version of the truth that we, as readers, must interpret to find the truth.

A major case of this trend is the views of Crazy Horse the Man of the Oglala Sioux and George Armstrong Custer. The perspective of Custer and Crazy Horse is being viewed from different angles. Is Crazy Horse validated for killing soldiers, or was Custer doing what was best for The United States. Many controversies are raised from the two arguing opinions, and Historians argue over both. What do historians feel now as opposed to the 19th Century view of historians and the public? The bias from the time of the attacks to the bias that we face today can be said to have changed, and how have historians documented this, and prepared to defend the ideas they raise?

It is essential to remember though that sentiments should rarely come at the expense of knowledge. James Oliver Horton notes that in regards to slavery, “Americans react strongly to the topic, but few know much about it.” Historians have the potential to spark a significant conversation with the public and employing knowledge can restructure people’s notions of the past. Information is critical when it comes to history because without it, opinions mean very little and passions are built upon misconceptions. Because historians actively deal in the past, they have the ability to be the reservoir of knowledge that the public so desperately needs. By tackling the fallacies head on, historians and historical interpreters can inform individuals on a variety of topics. Furthermore, once this knowledge is shared, the trickle effect could be

Studying the histories of cultures that are different from ours gives us a frame of reference that can lead to better intercultural communication. It is not only important to study the histories of other countries’ cultures but our own American subcultures as well. We need to understand

It was a common saying of the past that the history of a conflict was told by the victors. That was true then, the losers of the conflict had to rebuild after their defeat and the winners could share their side of the story, twisting it so it would seem that they did no harm and the losers deserved defeat because they were the villains. This is not true today. With the wealth of information at one’s finger tips and the available research opportunities the stories can be untangled and both sides of the story can be told. However, some have held strong to the truths that their side proclaimed and refuse to admit that their victory was tarnished by lies, deceits, and omissions. This very idea is what shaped how

When comparing cultures, one must form a definition of what culture is. Culture can be easily defined as the social behavior and normality’s found in human societies. It can also be easily made up of a composed arrangement of educated conduct and thought designs. Culture is a sorted out framework since it includes many parts. Throughout the world, there are many cultures that are both very different and also very similar. "Culture encompasses religion, food, what we wear, how we wear it, our language, marriage, music, what we believe is right or wrong, how we sit at table, how we greet visitors, how we behave and one million other things." (Cristina De Rossi.)

Over the past two days, our class has been in a debate over whether or not we should go to war with ISIS. Originally, I was neutral on this conflict. I know we have to do something about this problem and I don't see a way we could do that peacefully, but I also don't think that an all out war, one that is potentially World War III, is an acceptable solution either. Each side had valid points when it came to why they thought we should or should not go to war with ISIS.

The concept of culture is something that defines many aspects of one’s life. From physical objects to different ways of thinking, culture adds significance to human life and makes groups of people distinct from one another. Culture is essentially a group of people who come together with similar interests and points of view. According to the Center for Advanced Language Acquisition of the University of Minnesota, “culture is defined as the shared patterns of behaviors and interactions, cognitive constructs, and affective understanding that are learned through a process of socialization.” From a more sociological perspective, culture is a way in which people come together in order to fulfill their needs. These shared patterns and ideas identify the members of a culture group while also distinguishing those of another group.” Culture is one of the things that sets the United States apart from the rest of the world. Not that the rest of the world is not cultural, but the circumstance here is different. Many people of different cultural backroads come to this country in search of a better life. As a consequence, the United States has become a place where many cultures merge together like a colossal pot soup.

Culture is not only a reflection of current social phenomena, but also is a long period of accumulation and the formation of the creation and development of the historical heritage, such as religions, beliefs, lifestyles, values, and so on. Therefore, different cultural backgrounds will