FOURTH LEARNING SESSION
REFLECTION PAPER ASSIGNMENT
CHAPTER TEN
SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS
POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT
Requirement One
Politics, the Social Contract, and Social Disorder
During the past thirty years, our political arenas have become very messy and confusing. Over time, some politicians have refused to deal with those who hold opposing views. When folks look at our political leaders they are often left unimpressed and disillusioned. This has resulted in unrest, tribalism, anger, violence, and, sadly, even deaths. While some still see America as a great democracy, other Americans find themselves in states of uncertainty and doubt about our systems of social order, i.e., doubts about our beliefs in the rule of laws, and, by extension, our current social contract.
Now days, some feel that democracy may need to be replaced by something else, but that “something else” is not always easy to explain or describe. However, there is a group of citizens and political leaders who believe that it is time for a single party, perhaps for a single person, to govern the entire nation and its population. No doubt, such a radical attempt at changing our political system will be met with strong resistance by those who believe in more democratic notions, and who wish to continue with elections and the peaceful transfer of power. On the other hand, some people do wish to see an end to the belief that each citizen’s vote should count and is meaningful – they may wish to see the end to the core of our democratic republic.
So, for this requirement, I want you to consider the craziness that has been going on within the political arena and to where these radical views may lead us. Specifically, what do you think of the idea of replacing our American democracy with an autocratic form of governance – which means that an all-powerful dictator would rule over America and all of its citizens?
Why do so many people (especially from what is called the MAGA Republican side of things), seem to support the idea of changing America’s political system into some form of autocratic rule in which a single ruler (or a small group of leaders) hold all the power and make decisions without the input of the general population? It truly baffles me.
While I do believe that America’s democracy is far from perfect, and certainly can be messy at times, I find myself wondering if most of those citizens fully appreciate and realize how their lives, and America itself, would be impacted and changed – perhaps forever. Are they truthfully wanting a political system that mirrors the ones found in Russia, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and Syria to list just a few?
EDUCATION
Requirement Two
Two Issues Related to Your Education:
The Importance of Community Colleges and the Importance of College Degrees
From the very early days when community colleges just started becoming part of the post-secondary education system, they were regarded as the “Rodney Dangerfield” of higher education. That is to say, “they don’t get any respect” – as the famous comedian would often state about himself. Even today with record number of students enrolled, community colleges are often the brunt of jokes and off-colored comments.
There was a rather infamous video made entitled, “13th Grade” which promotes the idea that only “losers” end up at community college since they simply could not, for whatever reason/s, get accepted at a four-year (a real) college. You might wish to check the YouTube video link, but, be warned, it has a few “choice words” used in the dialogue. If you do wish to check out the video, here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwgM4fwLxc8Links to an external site.
For this requirement, I would like you to offer your opinions, supported with facts, about two issues. First, how you feel about community colleges, i.e., please justify your opinions with supporting. For the second issue, I would like you to indicate and explain if you feel that a college degree has lost “some of its luster”. That is, young people may no longer see college studies and receiving a degree as a necessary credential in order to be successful. Do you tend to agree with this notion, or do you find that a college degree prepares young persons for life in ways that are less obvious? Offer your thoughts on this important topic that is certainly relevant to your life!
HINT: One way you might wish to begin thinking about this is to toss yourself into the subject matter. For example, think about this: Let’s say that you owned a business and you had an important opening for which you needed to hire a person with a wide swath of knowledge and skills. Additionally, let us assume that through the hiring process that it has come down to two people. One of the finalist has a college degree in a related field, the other applicant does not. Which one do you feel would most likely be the best hire…and why? I think that the “why” part of that question may shed some light on the importance of a college degree.
Another way to look at the issue is to think about the importance our society places on credentials. What does it say about a doctor who displays her credentials on the wall of her examination room? What are those pieces of parchment suppose to impart to patients who see them? What are the differences in assumptions that we are to make about a person with a high school degree versus people who have a bachelors, masters, or a doctorate attached to their names? Does it matter what you think about college degrees, or is it more important to consider and realize the priority that our society gives them?
RELIGION
Requirement Three
Importance of Religion in Everyday Life
For this requirement, I would like you to offer a thoughtful response to the following question:
Do you feel that religions constrain and control people, or do you feel that they act to liberate and free people?
You are given a wide berth when it comes to the direction/s in which you can take your response. Be sure to provide support for the position you end up taking. From a structural-functionalist perspective, persons like Emile Durkheim saw religion as a very important part of society which acted to offer solidarity to people. From religion was born a morality with its rules and expectations. The result was that people experienced harmony in their lives since religion presented them with what might be called a “collective consciousness”.
On the other hand, from conflict theory comes the historical thoughts of Karl Marx who ended up calling religion an “opiate of the masses” which acted to control the masses so that they would not be a threat to the status quo or to the group or groups who controlled things. To Marx, the political and economic leaders of his day used the leadership of key religions to ensure that they had a tight grip over their flocks. Religion often taught that God determined who was to be successful in life and that common folks were to just accept their plights (e.g., accept being poor, impoverished, along with the suffering) since it was God had determined their life-chances.
Have you ever wondered why religion seems to be less important in the lives of many people. In a May 2023 broadcast of NPR’s “The Morning Edition”, it was discussed how “participation in houses of worship continues to decline with 28% of respondents saying they “seldom” attended religious services, while 29% of respondents said they “never” attended services. A decade ago, those figures were 22% and 21%, respectively.”
That accounts for such small numbers attending church? It should be pointed out that, on the brighter side of things, around 83% said that they held an optimistic outlook on the future of their church. Sadly, the article did not go into detail about what they means. When I read this, I assumed that it meant that they did not feel that their Houses of Worship would continue to lose significant numbers of church members.
Why do you think religion, specifically Christianity but others, as well, has lost its appeal. Could it be that people are just as spiritual, but less desirous of participating in traditional religious groups? Explain how you see the situation.
