1. Harold Dwight Lasswell, leading American political scientist or communication theorist, defined politics as “Politics is who gets what, when, and how.” Although Lasswell definition is broad, I completely agree with him on his thoughts about politics based on the lessons I’ve learned throughout, my major, Political Science. Politics is defined as the “activities associated with governance of a country or other area, especially the debate or conflict among individuals or parties trying to achieve power. The task of political science is composed of four parts: a concern for what is right or wrong in politics, research that leads to the task of empirical understanding, the combination of empirical studies, and prudential concerns.
2. The racial ethnic makeup of the American people is constantly changing. According to the Changing Racial and Ethnic Composition of the U.S. Population: Emerging American identities by Anthony Daniel Perez
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Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico are two areas that are lobbying for statehood. Washington D.C are upset because residents are upset that they are obliged to pay federal and local taxes. Those in favor want full rights of being an American citizen. The argument opposing the statehood of Washington D.C. State hood is that Washington is a wholly-urban, one-industry town dependent on the federal government. New Columbia will try to exert influence on the federal government for in excess in any other state. Most senators are saying the bill is unwise and unconstitutional. Puerto Rico on the other hand is in major debt. Although, the United States owns the territory the government is barley helping them out when it comes welfare. Majority of the people currently living in Puerto Rico are living a life of destitute. They have expressed statehood for this sole reason, and it seems like that can be the only option in order for Puerto Rico to prosper and be treated equally. The United States government is debating on honoring
Politics is not as the common person may define it. It is not dependent of any other doctrine or ideology; it is its
There was a time when America was segregated; Caucasians and African Americans were forced to attend different restrooms, restaurants, and water fountains. However, the era of segregation has been terminated; now America embraces and appreciates the various cultures and ethnicities that create this melting pot several people call home. Likewise, it is this melting pot, or mosaic, of races that multitudes of individuals have identified themselves with. Thus, race and ethnicity does matter for it portrays vital and crucial roles in the contemporary American society. Furthermore, ethnicity and race brings communities together in unity, determines which traditions and ideals individuals may choose to value, and imposes an impediment for it categorizes humans unjustly.
There is a lot of considerations to make when coming with an opinion on making Puerto Rico a state for the United State, but only one key element that people should keep in mind is that the majority of Puerto Ricans support statehood at all. Some people think that it is a bad idea for PR to become a state for the US because it might increase poverty and crime state in the US, culture loss, and it might cause some kind of resentment. Puerto has already been under the United State for so long, so why not just make it an official
Puerto Rico should become the 51st state because nearly 54 percent, or 922,374 people, wanted statehood. Even three American Presidents Gerald Ford, George Bush I, and even Reagan supported statehood. Also “For me, being a U.S. citizen is a lot more than carrying a passport,” says Caraballo-Sandoz. “I’m very hopeful that one day we are going to be a state of the Union.” The people of Puerto Rico deserve better than the way they are being treated. Puerto Ricans
Personally, I don't believe Puerto Rico will ever attain Statehood. With that said, I cannot rationalize anyone in their right mind wanting a bankrupt, corrupt, crime ridden Third World hell hole as a State. Not only is Puerto Rico a dangerous place to visit, it's an enormous drain on U.S. taxpayers, and Statehood would only make it worse. :/ Nevertheless, has anyone ever wondered why they never vote for independence? That is one of their options and always has been, yet it not considered ever! Why? They would have to deal with their own debt rather than sucking the teat of the United States to keep them
The Oxford Dictionary defines politics as the activities associated with the governance of a country or area, especially the debate between parties having power. Comparative politics is the interdisciplinary study of how power is organized across time and space. It connects the operation of power across multiple time and spatial scales and identifies the similarities and differences of how power operates across space and time.
Politically, there are several advantages to becoming a state. The first is that Puerto Rico will have a voice in the Congress with at least seven represenatives and two senators. Currently, Puerto Rico only has a resident commissioner in Congress. He has a voice, but no vote. Puerto Rico has no electoral votes in the Presidential elections. Becoming a State would remove Puerto Rico form under the Territorial "claws" of the U.S. Constitution, and would put Puerto Rico on the same political footing as the other 50 states. This is the single most compelling argument for Puerto Rican statehood that Puerto Ricans have.
As of April of 2010, a bill passed in congress that would allow Puerto Ricans go for a referendum to decide if it wants statehood, or to maintain its current status. Maybe this issue will go unanswered for many years or Puerto Ricans will realize that they have to make a decision, whatever that could be.
Defining what really is to be an American does not sound as easy as it seem. It will always be complex process. As immigration continues to fuel the growth of the population of our nation, racial and ethnic gap increase and evolve along with it. Racial and ethnic identities become more and more convoluted and difficult to understand. Race and ethnicity continue to intermingle and push a cultural shift in the US– a shift that plays a significant role in redefining America in a day-to-day basis.
The United States has Changed from a Melting Pot to a Vast Culture with Varying Racial Backgrounds
Not many may know that Puerto Rico is considered to be American territory. Soon people all over America will know because Puerto Rico could possibly become the fifty first state or could be separated from America completely. Most of Puerto Ricans would like statehood 61% to be exact, this citizens would like to be united with America once and for all. There are some Puerto Ricans would like to be free association and the amount is 33% citizens who want a relationship without political territory with a degree of statehood with America. The last percentage are the citizens who want to be independent which is 5%. As the percentage shows most Puerto Ricans would like to become the fifty first state of America and add one more star onto America.
In addition to the difference of purpose between arts and sciences, which we have discussed above, a further distinction is offered by Lasswell (1958) that may be considered by some as somewhat biased: “The science of politics states conditions; the philosophy of politics justifies preferences.” He distinguishes between “the science of politics” and “the philosophy of politics” on the same grounds as the fact-value dichotomy of logical positivism. He appears to be implying that political philosophy (which, for the purpose of this essay, would fall under the jurisdiction of art) “justifies preferences” in the sense that it provides rationalizations for the personal preferences of the theorist of political philosophy (Horwitz, 1962). Science, on the other hand, uses only facts and empirical data as its tools of analysis. This overt process of analysis minimizes the scope for bias by the researcher (Pierce, 2008). Moreover it promises an impartial and reliable means of distinguishing ‘truth’ from ‘falsehood’ and gives us access to objective knowledge about the political world (Heywood, 2002). However the fact/value dichotomy is not as clearly defined as is assumed here. Values are deeply involved in the identification of facts as well as their description and examination since all political scientists enter research with at least some presumptions about their
American society is becoming increasingly culturally diverse. The 2010 Census indicates that the racial and ethnic makeup
Political science is the study of people’s behavior as it relates to control the public organizations. The concept is normally divided into six subcategories: Political philosophy- which deals with
The study of politics had its roots in philosophy and while there has been a drive to steer the study of politics towards a more scientific approach, many scholars like Max Weber believe that social sciences cannot simply imitate the natural sciences. This essay will examine the various approaches to applying scientific methodology to the study of politics and it will specifically explore Behaviorism, Positivism and Interpretivism and by looking at each methodology briefly explore the advantages and disadvantages of each method.