Assessing Ronald Reagan

Discussion #12: Assessing Ronald Reagan

Ronald Reagan, the 40th president of the United States, has been described as having had a very engaging personality. Even people who disagreed with his policies, found themselves drawn to his attractive and carefully honed public image. Surrounded by tough, energetic administrators who insulated him from many of the pressures of the office, he seemed to offer general guidance but not make specific decisions. His presidency was also mired in a series of scandals, but the most damaging was the Iran-contra scandal. After a series of investigations and congressional hearings, the White House conceded that it had sold weapons to the revolutionary government in Iran, and used some of the money to illegally aid the Contras in Nicaragua. This was in direct violation of the Boland Amendment.

In order to prepare for this discussion forum:

• Review and identify the relevant sections of Chapter 31 that support your discussion.
• Review material on this site on the Reagan administration.

After you have completed your readings post your response to only one of the following questions

1. In 1983, Democratic Congresswoman Pat Schroeder described Reagan’s presidency as “Teflon-coated,” because scandals surrounding his presidency seem to have no effect on his individual popularity. Is this a valid assessment of Reagan and his presidency?
2. Should Reagan (or the policies of any past presidents) be credited with the collapse of world communism, or was the end of the Cold War more a result of internal developments within the Soviet Union and the nations it dominated?

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

 

WRITING ASSIGNMENT 4A: Completing the Revolution

In some ways, the Civil War completed the American Revolution. The ideals boldly proclaimed in the Declaration of Independence, that “all men are created equal”, were now being somewhat realized. The reality was that at the end of Reconstruction the United States was still, in fact, an “unfinished nation,” and that it will be the Civil Rights era and its accomplishments that completed the revolution.

INSTRUCTIONS

In order to prepare you must complete the following readings:

• Review and identify relevant sections of Chapters 29.
• Review and identify relevant sections of chapters that have been covered throughout the semester.
• Utilize at least one of the linked sources provided in this assignment to support your discussion.
• Identify and incorporate at least one additional outside source to support your discussion. In addition to the textbook, you may use any material outside of the textbook that is recommended in the Additional Reading section at the end of each chapter. You are also encouraged to do your own research and identify relevant sources. Please keep in mind that WIKIPEDIA is not an acceptable reference.

Additional Sources:

• Review the PBS Program: The Civil Rights Era link.
• Review the PBS Program: Eyes On The Prize (Part 1): Awakenings 1954-1956 America’s Civil Rights Movement.
• Review the PBS Program: The History of the Women’s Rights Movement.
• Review the Digital History Site: Native American Voices-Relevant Parts 5 and 6 links.
• Latino in America-CNN: CNN’s Soledad O’Brien explores how Latinos are reshaping our communities and culture
• Latino Americans: PBS Documentary
• CNN special on Historic court rulings on Gay Rights Ruling

PREPARE AND SUBMIT:

Write a well-organized essay, a minimum of 700 words (but not limited to), including supporting details from the documents/textbook/other sources in which you analyze and discuss the material that has been assigned by addressing the following question:

Discuss in what ways the United States was an “unfinished nation,” and how the accomplishments of the Civil Rights era completed the process. In your opinion, is the United States currently a “finished nation” or is there still “unfinished business” that needs to be addressed?

Reminders

• Use Microsoft WORD to write the essays. The acceptable submission file types are .doc, .docx, and .rtf.
• Prepare the assignment as a Word Document, double-spaced, and using a standard font of 12 points.
• Paragraphs in an essay are not numbered. Any questions that are associated with an assigned reading are there to serve as a guide for your discussion.
• Your discussion should incorporate all of the information from the documents and or textbook, and outside sources as one essay.
• Students are required to research and incorporate into their discussions additional sources that relate to the content. Recommendations can be found in at the end of the textbook chapter in Additional Reading.
• All statements must be supported and all sources must be identified and cited, and included in your reference list. This also applies to the textbook. Failure to do so constitutes Plagiarism, and the college has strict policies and penalties for failure to comply. Under the Resources, you will find links to sites that review how to format a paper or essay. I recommend that students use APA or Chicago Style to format their essay. Students should ask their instructor which format style they prefer you to use.
• Proofread your work. Make sure that you have looked for all of the spelling and grammatical errors and corrected them, and that you have organized your work into coherent paragraphs.
• Submit via the Dropbox as an ATTACHMENT. Any work that is submitted directly into the box will be graded as a 0.

Point Value: 100

Grading Criteria:

• Analysis and discussion (60%)
• Support for discussion (30%)
• Organization (10%)

Reminder: All written work must comply with standard English rules, such as proper capitalization, grammar, and spelling. The assignment must be submitted by the deadline listed in the calendar.

Note: Even though you will see a statement giving you the option of copy/paste or file attachment, please disregard this statement. You are required to attach the assignment in MS Word format.

OR

 

WRITING ASSIGNMENT 4B: Mission “Not” Accomplished

On August 2, 1990, Saddam Hussain invaded Kuwait. The US response was swift and effective. On January 16, 1991, the U.S. and other U.N. members began daily bombing raids, and on February 23, 1991, the ground assault began. Within one hundred hours Kuwait was liberated and the first President Bush declared a cease-fire.

In his State of the Union address in January 2002, the second President Bush stated that we must “prevent regimes that sponsor terror from threatening America or our friends and allies with weapons of mass destruction.” On the night of March 19, 2003, Operation Iraqi Freedom began, and by mid- April Saddam’s statues were toppling. Swift and short, on May 1, 2003, standing before a huge banner declaring “Mission Accomplished” aboard an aircraft carrier, President Bush declared victory in the Iraq War. Was this declaration premature?

INSTRUCTIONS

• Review and identify relevant sections of Chapters 27, 30, 31, and 32.
• Read the following linked article www.English.Illinois.edu/maps/Vietnam/interpretations.htm
• PBS Frontline-The Gulf War link.
• The Whirlwind War link- The Gulf War.
• Utilize at least one of the linked sources provided in this assignment to support your discussion.
• Identify and incorporate at least one additional outside source to support your discussion. In addition to the textbook, you may use any material outside of the textbook that is recommended in the Additional Reading section at the end of each chapter. You are also encouraged to do your own research and identify relevant sources. Please keep in mind that WIKIPEDIA is not an acceptable reference.

PREPARE AND SUBMIT:

Write a well-organized essay, a minimum of 700 words (but not limited to), including supporting details from the documents/textbook/other sources in which you analyze and discuss the material that has been assigned by addressing the following question:

Compare the Gulf War with one of the following wars: the Korean War, Vietnam, or the Iraq War, identifying and discussing similarities and differences that may explain why the US “won” the Gulf War, but did not “win” the other. In your opinion, are these valid comparisons?

Reminders

• Use Microsoft WORD to write the essays. The acceptable submission file types are .doc, .docx, and .rtf.
• Prepare the assignment as a Word Document, double-spaced, and using a standard font of 12 points.
• Paragraphs in an essay are not numbered. Any questions that are associated with an assigned reading are there to serve as a guide for your discussion.
• Your discussion should incorporate all of the information from the documents and or textbook, and outside sources as one essay.
• Students are required to research and incorporate into their discussions additional sources that relate to the content. Recommendations can be found in at the end of the textbook chapter in Additional Reading.
• All statements must be supported and all sources must be identified and cited, and included in your reference list. This also applies to the textbook. Failure to do so constitutes Plagiarism, and the college has strict policies and penalties for failure to comply. Under the Resources, you will find links to sites that review how to format a paper or essay. I recommend that students use APA or Chicago Style to format their essay. Students should ask their instructor which format style they prefer you to use.
• Proofread your work. Make sure that you have looked for all of the spelling and grammatical errors and corrected them, and that you have organized your work into coherent paragraphs.
• Submit via the Dropbox as an ATTACHMENT. Any work that is submitted directly into the box will be graded as a 0.

Point Value: 100

Grading Criteria:

• Analysis and discussion (60%)
• Support for discussion (30%)
• Organization (10%)

Reminder: All written work must comply with standard English rules, such as proper capitalization, grammar, and spelling. The assignment must be submitted by the deadline listed in the calendar.

Note: Even though you will see a statement giving you the option of copy/paste or file attachment, please disregard this statement. You are required to attach the assignment in MS Word format.

OR 

 

WRITING ASSIGNMENT 3A: The New Deal and Minorities

Roosevelt called his program to reform the nation’s economy during the Great Depression the New Deal. Not only did it bring about major reforms, and introduce tougher regulation of big business, it also set a precedent for greatly expanded federal government involvement in the economy and society. Some of the programs that were initiated had a lasting impact while others were struck down by the Supreme Court. Just as the depression impacted people differently, so did the reforms that were passed during the New Deal.

INSTRUCTIONS:

In order to prepare you must complete the following readings:

• Review and identify relevant sections of Chapters 23, 24, and 25.
• Transcript of Roosevelt’s 1936 radio address discussing the New Deal
• Utilize at least one of the linked sources provided in this assignment to support your discussion.
• Identify and incorporate at least one additional outside source to support your discussion. In addition to the textbook, you may use any material outside of the textbook that is recommended in the Additional Reading section at the end of each chapter. You are also encouraged to do your own research and identify relevant sources. Please keep in mind that WIKIPEDIA is not an acceptable reference.

Additional Sources

• Debating the Past-  Where Historians Disagree: Causes of the Great Depression 
• WPA: The African-American Mosaic www.loc.gov/exhibits/african/afam012.html
• The New Deal for African Americans http://www2.vcdh.virginia.edu/afam/reflector/historicald.html
• The New Deal and the Negro: A look at Facts
• Will the New Deal be a Square Deal for the Negro?
• New Deal Network
• Great Myths of the Great Depression
• Women and the Great Depression
• Eyewitness to History: The Great Depression
• Library of Congress: Race Relations in the 1930s and 1940s
• Utah’s Paiute Indians during the Great Depression
• John Collier-Native Americans and the Great Depression
• Onda Latina: Mexican Americans During the Great Depression-audio program
• Digital History: Mexican Repatriation during the Great Depression

PREPARE AND SUBMIT:

Write a well-organized essay, a minimum of 700 words (but not limited to), including supporting details from the documents/textbook/other sources, in which you analyze and discuss the material that has been assigned by addressing the following question:

Analyze and discuss how women, blacks, Hispanics, and Native Americans, were impacted by the Depression and New Deal. As part of your analysis and discussion, you must address the long-term legacies of the New Deal and major historical assessments that have been made of it, and if you agree or disagree with these assessments.

Reminders

• Use Microsoft WORD to write the essays. The acceptable submission file types are .doc, .docx, and .rtf.
• Prepare the assignment as a Word Document, double-spaced, and using a standard font of 12 points.
• Paragraphs in an essay are not numbered. Any questions that are associated with an assigned reading are there to serve as a guide for your discussion.
• Your discussion should incorporate all of the information from the documents and or textbook, and outside sources as one essay.
• Students are required to research and incorporate into their discussions additional sources that relate to the content. Recommendations can be found at the end of the textbook chapter in Additional Reading.
• All statements must be supported and all sources must be identified and cited, and included in your reference list. This also applies to the textbook. Failure to do so constitutes Plagiarism, and the college has strict policies and penalties for failure to comply. Under the Resources, you will find links to sites that review how to format a paper or essay. I recommend that students use APA or Chicago Style to format their essay. Students should ask their instructor which format style they prefer you to use.
• Proofread your work. Make sure that you have looked for all of the spelling and grammatical errors and corrected them, and that you have organized your work into coherent paragraphs.
• Submit via the Dropbox as an ATTACHMENT. Any work that is submitted directly into the box will be graded as a 0.

Point Value: 100

Grading Criteria:

• Analysis and discussion (60%)
• Support for discussion (30%)
• Organization (10%)

Reminder: All written work must comply with standard English rules, such as proper capitalization, grammar, and spelling. The assignment must be submitted by the deadline listed on the calendar.

Note: Even though you will see a statement giving you the option of copy/paste or file attachment, please disregard this statement. You are required to attach the assignment in MS Word format.