Political Cartoon 7

1. Are people seeing school as unimportant?

2. Are drop out rates increasing?

3. Do you think this will change within the next few years?

Constituent Letter

Dear Senator Casey,


    My name is Stephanie May. I am a Junior at Haverford High School and am currently taking an AP Government course. The reason I am writing to you is because of the bill S. 1500: Ensure Children Have Health Care Act. The bill is to give Americans access to affordable child-only health insurance coverage. I have been looking into this bill and I know that it is only in the first step of the legislative process. I also know that the majority of bills do not make it out of committee. I feel very strongly about this bill, however, and felt the need to voice my opinion about it. 
    Health Care is a major issue in our country right now that is very controversial. There has been a lot of debate about how to approach this issue and it is time something is done. Children are the future of America. Their health ensures their ability to learn, thrive, and eventually become great leaders who really help our country. If they happened to, unfortunately, become very sick, and their parents could not afford treatment for them, it could be terrible. They may never grow to be strong, influential leaders of our country or may be handicapped, giving them many disadvantages as they go through life. In addition, if they had affordable health care it could help their families save money for the health expenses of others in the family. 
    In my opinion, this bill would not create any problems and would be very beneficial to many families. With your help, I am hoping this bill can voted on and maybe eventually be passed to become a law. Thank you for reading this and considering my opinion. 


Sincerely,
Stephanie May

Podcast: "Left, Right, Center- Third Parties"

1. 58% of Americans believe that we need another major political party.

2. Democrats are worried that a 3rd party could pose a problem to Obama's re-election.

3. Would the Founding Fathers be happy with how our government is today?

4. There are over 25 million U.S. citizens who can't find a full-time job

5. Healthcare is twice as expensive in the United States as in any other country

6. Are people's expectations of our government too high?

7. Our goal is to get our economy back to how it was in the late 60's.

8.  58% of Americans oppose the war in Afghanistan

9. Obama's major funding contribution came from Wall Street

10. What are some negative aspects of having a third party?

20 truths about the American political system

1. We only have two political parties (-)

2. Money is a major part of campaigning (-)

3. There are three branches that have checks and balances (+)

4. Citizens are given many freedoms (+)

5. Many voters are unaware on the candidate's positions on certain topics (-)

6. Candidates have access to the media to share their views with the country (+)

7. Candidates bash each other during campaigning (-)
8. We are given freedom of religion (+)
9. We are given freedom of speech (+)
10. There are state and local governments. (+)
11. Voters do not directly choose Presidents, electoral college is used (-)
12. Some people are only informed about candidates from television ads they see (-)
13. It takes many steps for a bill to become a law (0)
14. Congress decides on their own pay (0)
15. We have a bicameral legislation (+)
16. The candidate with more campaigning money has an advantage (-)
17. Not everyone votes (-)
18. Most media shows bias toward one particular party (-)
19. Candidates focus on some states more than others (-)
20. Politicians make promises during campaigning that can easily be broken when they are elected (-)

Political Cartoon 6

1. Are people getting the idea that school isn't important anymore?

2. Are there more students dropping out of school than there used to be?

3. What can be done to make people think school is important again?

Issue of the Week: Abortion

1. How many abortions are there per year in the United States?
- There are about 1.2 million abortions per year in he United States, 749, 232 of which are done within 9 weeks of the pregnancy.

2. Can abortions be dangerous to the mother?
- Abortions performed in the first 9 weeks of pregnancy are very low in risk. Less than 1 in every 100,000 women who get abortions end up dying from the abortion.

3. How many pregnancies lead to abortion?
- There are about 205 million pregnancies each year world wide. Over 1/3 are unintended and about 1/5 end in abortion.

 http://prolifeaction.org/faq/abortion.php#yearly
http://www.womenonweb.org/article-237-en.html

Political Party Research

Reform Party 

Facts:

1. Focuses mainly on issues including fiscal responsibility, taxes, personal healthcare and education

2. However, it also focuses on issues such as job creating, foreign policy, and national security

3. Believe Congress should get benefits that are equal to those of the average American

4. Believes that Congress shouldn't get free meals

5. They think it's better to pass laws with penalties instead of just rules

6. This party takes no stance on issues regarding pro life and pro choice

7. Also takes no stance on the issue of gay marriage

8. Congress shouldn't get tips

9. Supports equal access to education

10. They want to stop government from raiding public trust funds