Pl ease grab a textbook before you take your seat.

Take out a pi ece of paper.

Thi nk about the ri ghts we have as American ci ti zens.

Whi ch of these ri ghts i s most i mportant to you? Why?
Wri te a one paragraph response. Be sure to j usti fy your
answer.

Be prepared for some note taki ng fol l owed by a group acti vity.
GOOD MORNING
Pl ease read p. 4- 10 i n your text (Chapter 1 Secti on 1)
BRIEF READING
What i s government?
The institution through which society makes and enforces its public
policies
What does this mean to you? Write your own definition of
government.


Publ ic Pol i cies
All of the things a government decides to do
What are some of the public policies in the United States?

GOVERNMENT
Every government exercises 3 basi c ki nds of power:
1. Legislative Power
2. Executive Power
3. Judicial Power
Define each type of power


POWER
What servi ces does the government provi de for i ts ci ti zens?
Taxation, defense, education, crime, health care, transportation,
environmental protection, civil rights, working conditions
This list is potentially endless.
Who hol ds the power i n di f ferent forms of government?
Democracy people (the populous)
Dictatorship
Autocracy single person, unlimited power
Oligarchy small, self-appointed elite group
Modern examples: Nazi Germany, North Korea, Cuba, China, Libya
GOVERNMENT
How woul d you pri ori tize the functi ons of government i n order
of i mportance?

Are there any functi ons/responsibilities of government that
we di d not cover i n cl ass? Expl ain.

Expl ain how the l anguage of the Preamble refl ects the i dea of
the soci al contract.
What are the pri nci ples of Ameri can democracy?
A recognition of fundamental worth and dignity of every person
A respect for the equality of all persons
A faith in majority rule and in an insistence upon minority rights
An acceptance of the necessity of compromise
An insistence upon the widest possible degree of individual freedom

What i s the government s rol e i n bal ancing the i nterest of the
i ndi vidual versus what i s good for the public?
To find a balance and compromise in alignment with the 5 principles
of American Democracy.
Provide for the greater good.

Magna Carta the fi rst document establ i shi ng a modern
representati ve government i n Engl and.
The king was forced to give up his right to absolute power by nobles
threatening to revolt.

The Peti ti on of Ri ght
Signed by Charles I after Parliament refused to raise taxes.

Engl i sh Bi l l of Ri ghts
Further limited the kings power
How?

Bri ti sh Col oni al settl ers became di sgruntl ed wi th the ki ng s l aws
and how they were enforced i n the col oni es.
While unhappy, most did not want to separate from England. They simply
wanted representation in Parliament like normal English subjects.

HOW DID WE GET HERE?
Decl aration of Independence
Treasonous document sent to the king after Colonists had finally had
enough and decided to break away from England

Arti cles of Confederation
Following the revolution, the Founding Fathers had to form a new
government. This was a long, arduous process. The original law of
the land was the Articles of Confederation

See p. 44-45

In groups of 4:
Number your page 1-17

For each of the 17 proposed articles, as a group vote for or against
ratification.

Include the reason for your vote

Elect someone to share your results
In your opi ni on, what i s the most i mportant pri nci ple of
democracy and why?

In what ways do the government bal ance i nterests of the
i ndi vidual versus the public good?

Di d the foundi ng fathers si mply recycle enl i ghtenment i deas
or were they trul y "starti ng from scratch"?

What i deals are the American Consti tuti on based on?

How di d the weaknesses i n the Arti cles of Confederation l ead
to i ts demi se?

How di d compromise pl ay a maj or rol e i n the rati fi cation of
the Consti tution?

What are the mai n reasons the col oni sts decl ared thei r
i ndependence from Engl and?

Why was the Consti tution such a controversial document for
the Anti - Federalists?

Pl ease take your seat and get out a penci l
Yes, it has to be a pencil
CGA Pre- test

Vi deo cl i ps to cl ose

GOOD MORNING 8/22/14
Let s Si mplify Legal Jargon
Do you think legal jargon should be simplified? Why?
Lessons from Death Row Inmates
Can some murders be prevented? What should legislators be doing to
cut down on the number of death row cases and lower the murder
rate?
Four Ways to Fi x a Broken Legal System
Do you agree with Philip K. Howards ideas for how to fix the legal
system? Why?

Does Democracy reall y matter? Do you agree or di sagree wi th
what Rory Stewart had to say about Democracy? Why?



How can we reclaim the Republic? Is there anything that can
be done to fi x Ameri can pol i tics?