Self Reliance - Ralph Waldo Emerson

A person should define his/her place in society based on their own beliefs.  This means that if people have beliefs that differ from anyone else, they will stand out, and if people have beliefs that are similar to everyone, they will fit in.  In society, there are people who tend to be leaders, and others who tend to be followers. Either way, it's okay, because both kinds of people have a role.  Without followers, leaders wouldn't have anyone to lead, and without leaders, followers wouldn't have anyone to follow.  "We but half express ourselves, and are ashamed of that divine idea which each of us represents...Accept the place the divine providence has found for you, the society of your contemporaries, the connection of events" (20).  Here, Emerson is saying that everyone represents an idea, and those people and those ideas each have their own place in society.  Sometimes, people are hesitent to share their ideas, but Emerson contends that people should accept who they are, and use their individuality to make society a better place.

Qu'ran Burning On Again, Off Again

This conflict between Reverend Terry Jones and Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf raises two constitutional issues, both involving the first amendment. In the first amendment of the US Constitution, we, as citizens, are guaranteed freedom of religion and freedom of speech. "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech..."  Therefore, Imam Rauf can technically build a mosque near Ground Zero, and Reverend Jones may technically burn Qu'rans in protest.  A quote by Iraq's top Shiite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani describes my viewpoint of this situation perfectly. "This disgraceful act contradicts the very duties of religious and spiritual leadership to enhance the value of peaceful coexistence and safeguard the rights and mutual respect among citizens." When I first heard about Reverend Jones' plan on the news this morning, my initial thought was that Christianity and Islam have similar roots. According to Imam Rauf, the anniversary of 9/11 should be a time of prayer and reflection for people of all religions. Even this article acknowledges that the Qu'ran is still the word of God, just in a different form. My second thought after hearing about this incident on the news was that burning the Qu'ran isn't a very Christian thing to do, and I wondered how Reverend Jones' parishoners felt. In the article, it said Reverend Jones' parishoners were happy with his decision to cancel the burning of the Qu'ran and that religious centers in the surrounding area were planning on reading passages from it to counteract his protest.

Bold Men In Ruffled Shirst and A Kind of Revolution

Bold Men In Ruffled Shirst and A Kind of Revolution present two different sides of the American Revolution. Bold Men In Ruffled Shirts focuses more on the leaders of the revolution, while A Kind of Revolution focuses more in its participants. Everyone knows George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock, and Benjamin Franklin. These men are considered the heroes of the Revolutionary war - "the longest war in our history and the most important". Why, then, did Zinn make them seem like the enemy in A Kind of Revolution? Washington, Adams, Jefferson, Hancock, and Franklin were all wealthy and educated men. If they were able to criticize the way they were treated by the British, why couldn't they have second thoughts about their relationship with their fellow countrymen? Thomas Jefferson specifically compared his experience under British rule to slavery, yet he owned slaves, and couldn't seem to find a problem with that. One fact I was surprised to learn in A Kind of Revolution was that it wasn't just minority groups that weren't allowed to participate in the war. White men were excluded as well! When men of this kind were finally recruited for purposes of desperation, not all of them were comfortable fighting. Our so called heroes were "offering the adventure and rewards of military service to get poor people to fight for a cause they may not see clearly as their own". A Kind of Revolution was very similar to Zinn's American Ideology in that rich people seemed to be in control of society.

The American Crisis - Thomas Paine

In The American Crisis, Thomas Paine gave the colonists a good reason to join forces with him and fight. "Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph".  People are easily bribed by reward, and according to Thomas Paine, because freedom is such a difficult task to fight for, the outcome will be greater. "Heaven knows how to put a proper price upons its goods; and it would be strange indeed, if so celestial an article as FREEDOM should not be highly rated."  Here, Paine is arguing that God regards freedom as highly important, and therefore will reward his people for having the courage to fight for it. Later, Paine adds, "I thank God that I fear not".  Thomas Paine is counting on God to keep him safe in war.  "I have as little superstition in me as any man living, but my secret opinion has ever been, and still is, that God Almighty will not give up a people to military destruction, or to leave them unsupportedly to perish, who have so earnestly and so repeatedly sought to avoid the calamities of war, by every decent method which wisdom could invent".  Paine has faith that God will reward the colonists with victory, considering their devotion and the sacrifices they have made for this cause.  I believe the main point of Thomas Paine's "The American Crisis" can be summed up in one central quote.  "Say not that thousands are gone, turn out your tens of thousands; throw not the burden of the day upon Providence, but 'show your faith by your works,' that God may bless you."  This implies that God wants Paine and his fellow colonists to prove their faith in him by engaging in a fight for freedom.  If Paine and his fellow colonists show their faith in God, he will reward them.