my government class

I'm sorry - i'm in a some what hurry to complete some blogs and get to my homework and studies, so it might be a bit sloppy, rushed or mispelled. But here goes: In my government class I've learned to become a more advanced thinker, ready with an open mind to take on society's tough problems. I entered class, nervous, because I didn't know what to expect. Sure it was government, we all knew the executive, judiical, and legislative branches had their responsibilites and duties; we learned that kind of thing in fourth grade, but this was different.

My nerves only spiked up even more after the syllabus was handed out. We had a lot of citeria and curriculum to go over. NOt only was this class covering governmental affairs, but also economics. ANd to top the cake, I was taking my first government class ever, first semester, in a presidential election year. Now that the election has wound down and tied up, I look back and consider that having government could have come at no better time than when it did. I learned in my government class to make comparisons, connections, and analyses.

One particular connection that I made independently was that I noticed how much peopel were badgering President-Elect Barack Obama for having a Muslim background. I asked my professor what the truth behind this was, and he informed the class that Obama had in fact, attended a Muslim school as a child, but that didn't necessarily make him a Muslim, despite whether or not he still help some of the Muslim beliefs and practices. My professor said that he himself had attended a Catholic school, but that didn't make him Catholic, even though he still has those Catholic beliefs instilled in him today. Also noted was that many citizens suffer from close-mindedness, and belief that all Middle-Easterners who practice Islam are terrorists and radical extremists.

After thinking about these circumstances for a day, I came to class the next day and ask everyone if they thought that Malcom X was a good citizen, working side-by-side with Martin Luther King Jr. Of course everyone agrees, then I told them that he was a Muslim as well. ~Even though I had already knew that one cannot judge another based on their religion, my government class had made me aware that not everyone understands this.

Several quotes stand out in my mind when I think about what I've learned in governement:

"If men were angels, we'd all be communists"

and from Martin luther King's Summit speech, just days before his assassination:

 "The view from the summit is worth the climb"

My favorite by far though is Charles H. Houston: "I would rather die on my feet than live on my knees."

How powerful is that?

values that I've already have instilled in me were reinforced through my government class. I still have another quarter to go, but the government aspect is soon to go, as our government exam is next thursday. Next we cover economics. That's sure to be my weak area, so I thnk it's best to do well now while I still can! haha