Lectures on American Government

The purpose of this essay is to outline a hypothetical series of eight lectures on American government to be given to a group of senior citizens in a Florida retirement center. It will list proposed topics for the lectures, the interpretive themes that would be stressed, and a suggested reading list to supplement the series.

It would be reasonable to assume that senior citizens in a retirement home in 1997 would have been born largely in the decades between 1910 and 1930. Therefore some of them might recall the First World War, some will recall the 1920s, and almost all will have suffered through the Depression with their families. Some will recall Coolidge and Hoover; all will vividly remember Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Most of the men born before 1927 will probably have served in the military during World War Two; some of the slightly younger men will have served in Korea. It is not likely that many will have served in Vietnam unless they were career military. In addressing such a group, one must remember they will be able to check what one says about modern America against their own memories.

What could one say to such a group of men and women that would interest. Comfortable old platitudes would not entertain them, and recent radical analyses of American institutions would probably seem ridiculous and insulting to them. Where would the middle ground be?

They are not likely to think that America is flawless and perfect, and they are likely to consider it obvious

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nd significantly changed the results away from what the pundits had predicted. Might America consider a weighted vote, as was discussed, e.g., by the novelist Nevil Shute, in which citizens would earn extra votes for such achievements as completing high school, completing military service, successfully remaining married and raising a child for 14 years, or performing other public services recognized and rewarded by state legislatures. Could such a system improve the quality of public servant and thus of government in the United States? 7. On church-state relations, one could consider whether Federal law, in attempting to protect religious freedom, has actually begun restricting religious freedom. The first amendment only expressly forbids the government to establish an official church; beyond that the government should simply be neutral about religion. Is it neutral to forbid all students to organize a club for members of their religion at their high school? Should students of Hindu background be forbidden to organize a club on the grounds that they all come from presumably the same religious background? Could it no be argues that so long as the students are not meeting for an illegal purpose, and so long as all students cou

Category: Government - L