It is now five years since Katrina wreaked havoc on New Orleans and while the city is in some senses still rebuilding, for tourists it is stronger than ever. What does post-Katrina New Orleans look like? What has changed and what remains the same? (8/28/10 ABC News, Scott Mayerowitz) … Read Article
1. What impact did Katrina have on the tourism industry in New Orleans?
2. How has Katrina affected the population of New Orleans?
Ken Mehlman who helped President George W. Bush win a second term in office recently announced that he is gay. Mehlman now join former Vice President Dick Cheney, First Lady Laura Bush, and Bush administration Solicitor General Ted Olson in supporting same-sex marriage. Does this revelation mark a shift in GOP attitude toward same-sex marriage? (8/26/10 ABC News, Jake Tapper, Steven Portnoy and Devin Dwyer) … Read Article
1. What does Mehlman’s outing mean for the Republican Party leadership? Is the party likely to openly support gays running for office?
2. The Republican Party’s official 2008 platform calls for a constitutional amendment to define marriage between a man and a woman. What will it take, politically, to achieve this objective?
The U.S. birth rate dropped for the second year in a row since the recession began in 2007. Births fell 2.6 percent last year even as the population grew, numbers released Friday by the National Center for Health Statistics show. Is it the recession or a choice that women made to not have children? (8/28/10 Associated Press, Marilynn Marchione) … Read Article
1. How does the U.S. birth rate compare with that of wealthy Germany, Britain and France?
2. Compare last year’s birth rate to the 1930s, 1980s, 1990s and 2001. Give specific figures.
Posted in Bureaucracy, Immigration Policy, The Economy, The Recession, Unemployment
Hot-button social issues like abortion, same-sex marriage, and embryonic stem cell research that fueled political debate in elections past now rank at the bottom of more than a dozen issues raised by voters as being “very important” in this election, according to the most recent Pew poll. Instead, voters now focus on questions related to the economy, jobs, and the deficit. (8/27/10 ABC News, Devin Dwyer) … Read Article
1. What is the implication, for American politics, of the current shift in voters’ focus from hot button social issues to issues related to the economy?
2. What does Steve McMahon mean when he said that “the culture wars are important to the base of both parties?”
Is the anti-incumbent sentiments fueled by the Tea Party movement gaining grounds in this year’s primaries? Watch this report for the answer. (8/25/10 CBSNewsOnline, Nancy Cordes)
1. According to the video, which candidate, from which state was placed on the ballot by signature write-in? What problem did the opposition candidate face?
2. What factors may have contributed to the “cliffhanger” in Alaska? Is it the Palin effect or the anti-incumbent effect? Explain your answer.
The recent financial fiasco with big banks leaves consumers now having a second thought about doing business with banks. The Early Show’s financial contributor Vera Gibbons compares banks and credit unions. Would a credit union be a better alternative for you? (12/17/2009 CBSNewsOnline)
1. How would you determine which credit union to join. What are some specific signs to look for?
2. Compare bank and credit union rates for car loans and home loans as reported in the video. How do credit unions compare with banks in overall satisfaction rate?
In one of our recent polls, we asked MPSL students if they will vote to elect a non-Christian candidate for president. The result: about 53% of the students responding said yes, they will vote to elect a non-Christian candidate for president; about 42% said no; while 6% said they are not sure. However, a 2007 Pew Survey shows quite a different result. According to the survey, 61% of Americans are less likely to vote for an atheist candidate; 45% are less likely to vote for a Muslim candidate; while 25% are less likely to vote for a Mormon candidate. Results were retrieved on 8/28/10, 8:00 PM PST.
A recent study found that a president’s faith matters to many Americans. What do you think?
The increasing flaps over the proposed Islamic center in New York and immigration raise the question of whether the Republican party is alienating two voter bases that the Bush administration went to great lengths to woo. (8/18/10 ABC News, Huma Khan) … Read Article
1. “One of the strengths in the United States has been separation of church and state,” said Saghir “Saggy” Tahir, a Pakistani-American Republican who has served in the New Hampshire House of Representatives for nearly a decade. What is the separation of church and state?
2. “The Constitution gives us freedom of religion,” Reid said Tuesday, but added, “I think that it’s very obvious that the mosque should be built someplace else.” What do you think about Senator Reid’s remark regarding the mosque? Why do you think he disapproves of building the mosque near Ground Zero?
Ken Hechler is a 95-year-old veteran Democratic politician whose career dates back to a job in the Truman administration. Hechler served in the House from 1959 to 1977 and as West Virginia’s secretary of state from 1985 to 2001. Now, he hopes to succeed Byrd in the Senate. (8/20/10 ABC News, Alexander Pepper) … Read Article
1. Who did Hechler claim to be his mentor? And what did Hechler claim to be his moral compass?
2. Why does Hechler advocate reducing the pay for members of Congress?
Posted in Civil Rights, Congress, Constitution, Public Opinion
The project, which is called Park51, has created a national debate over religious tolerance and sensitivity to the victims of the 9/11 attacks. (8/22/10 ABC News, Linsey Davis and Elicia Dover) … Read Article
1. What First Amendment rights are at stake in the ground zero mosque debate?
2. Opponents of the mosque compares it to “the Nazis putting up a site near the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. What do you think?
