Welcome back everyone! I hope you've had a good Thanksgiving break. It's a short run from here to Christmas, but we've got a great deal of material to cover and the semester exam to prepare for, so now's not the time to get distracted. As you know, we'll have a test on Tuesday covering the administrations of Presidents Teddy Roosevelt through Woodrow Wilson. Following the test we are going to look in more depth at the election of 1912, which, as you've already seen, was one of the most pivotal in our nation's history.
I mention that because the issues addressed in 1912 are still important to us today. One issue was suffrage, or the right to vote. Although women in the United States would not receive the franchise until the passage of the nineteenth amendment in 1920 (American Indians, you'll remember, didn't vote until 1924), the movement to include women in the making of public policy was well under way. Interestingly, even though women didn't vote in 1912, each candidate felt that it was necessary to include the topic in his campaign, though to varying degrees. So I ask you to respond to the following questions:
1) How did the US justify withholding the right to vote from women so far into the twentieth century? (Remember, many of them were educated, and although few opportunities existed in business, some were financially independent).
2) Just who should have the right to vote? Should education level matter? (Is it possible to be too uneducated to deserve to vote? Who should decide, and what would be on a voting test?) Should we return to the standard of land ownership? (Or some other method to ensure that the people who pay the bulk of the taxes are the ones being heard in elections). What about age? Explain why you take your stand.
3) There is a powerful movement today to restore the franchise to non-violent felons who have paid the price of their crimes (see the story in the Sunday, Nov 29, 2009 Lexington Herald-Leader). Currently convicted felons lose their vote for the rest of their lives, even after they are released from jail. Fundamentally, is this right or wrong?
Minimum 200 words, respond to at least two others with a total of 150 words of response. Responses due Sunday evening, December 6. Cite any sources you reference! God bless!
1. Well, I don’t know exactly how, as I didn’t live back then, but I can guess. Well, men are often viewed as the ones in charge or the head of the household, and often closer belong in leadership positions than women generally do. During the times that women were educated and often financially independent, I think that them not voting was just kind of customary, and people were starting to bring up the idea, and it just had to pushed more until it later was accepted.
ReplyDelete2. In my opinion I think that almost all American citizens should have the right to vote. I don’t think education should matter too much, but I think people should understand what and who they are voting for. I don’t that people that are mentally handicapped should vote, unless they are able to understand what and who they are voting for. But I don’t think that someone should be considered too uneducated to vote. I don’t think we should use land ownership or taxes to decide who can or cannot vote. Well, about age requirements, I do not think that there would be much of a difference between an eighteen-year-old voting and a seventeen-year-old voting. I think that I am fit to vote, but I do not really think that children should vote. I think that the requirements that we have now are decent and working well, but honestly, does anyone think that a 20-year-old high school dropout has more of a right to vote, than an intelligent sixteen-year-old who studies politics? But how are we really going to work around that really? There may be some kids of a certain age that would be fine making the decision of voting, while other kids that age probably should not vote. I think that the system and requirements that we have now are very good and work well.
3. I’m not sure about this question. I guess, once they have served their sentence, if they don’t really pose a threat, then they should be allowed to vote. I also think that there are some people who really shouldn’t vote even after they are released. But I would have to say that I do support that movement, loosely.
By the way, this assignment, in my opinion, was a lot more interesting than the previouse several ones have been (some of them were quite tiresomme at times). Well, some of the past few assignments were kind of interesting, but it was outweighed by thier difficulty and I didn't enjoy most of them (actually I don't really "enjoy" any homework, but some are worse then others).
ReplyDelete1.) Women’s rights is a topic that we all like to discuss. What should or should not a woman be able to do? This could all be a matter of opinion, but through this assignment we are looking at the national viewpoint. Although whether or not women should do many things, the issue of voting is one that I can firmly stand by. I think women were not allowed to vote because of man’s own opinion. They viewed women as individuals who were different. We look at the word minority and automatically associate that with race and ethnicity, but what about these women? I feel that the men of this era were indirectly placing women inside the minority groups. They felt they had more power and responsibility, leading to the downgrading of women’s rights.
ReplyDelete2.) Now, as of who should vote, I believe that every citizen has that right. In America, voting is a right to all who are citizens. We pride ourselves in giving every person their rights so what are we saying by cutting out a large portion of our population in the voting process? Our government will not be the result of the majority of the people, but by the chosen few. Education is important yes, but just because someone has not had the privilege of education or they have chosen not to accept it does not affect their reasoning ability. If one is completely capable of making their own decisions, they should be able to vote. This brings up the point of mentally incapable individuals and for that we see an exception. If someone is not capable of making their own choices and applying reasonable opinions then we must question their ability to vote. The age set now, I think, is perfect. It allows people to vote at a point where the general majority has the maturity/capability to handle such a responsibility. Overall, despite education or income, American citizens should vote. It is our voice in the great government of America.
3.) For those who cannot vote for life, I personally deem this as wrong. I can understand during the time they are sentenced, but even after they are released and have served full term is not right. If these people are American citizens, they have that right. They should have the right to vote.
1) In the late nineteenth century, and even into the twentieth, women were not allowed to vote. Women were believed to be inferior to men not just physically, but also mentally. Men believed any debate or intelligent conversation would harm a woman’s delicate body and, most importantly, her reproductive system. Men thought women should only keep house and more importantly have kids. Later women were forced to work because of economic problems.
ReplyDelete2) I think that almost any American citizen should have the right to vote. I wish that education could be more important but I just don’t think that it’s a feasible idea. I think it would be nice if you had to have at least high school education so you could have a basic knowledge of how our government works. I think land ownership is a bad way to determine if someone could vote. From what I understand a standard of land ownership involves needing a certain amount of land to get voting rights. The problem is not all people own land; many just rent land or a building. I think that the current age we have set is best. It would be too difficult to decide on another age because everyone develops differently. I think going any younger would be risky, and going older would be difficult, especially in the past, because of the draft.
3) In Kentucky the right to vote can be restored to felons who committed a non-violent felony. Though, they do have to get a pardon from our governor. To be honest, I like that system a lot. The idea that you need to explain to the governor why you believe you deserve the right to vote again is almost perfect. I think the way we have it is just right. Now, if they could never get the right to vote back I’m not sure if I agree with that. I believe we have it right, right now.
Jon, for one thing, I agree with you about this assignment being more enjoyable than the previous ones. There's really one thing that you brought up that I hadn't, and that's that you talked about mentally handicapped eople. I agree that they shouldn't be able to vote if they do not understand "what and who they are voting for." My only question is how can you tell when the person has complete understanding?
ReplyDelete1)Men had plenty of reasons they used to back up why they thought women shouldn’t vote. One of the more obvious ones were that women are emotional creatures, therefore they couldn’t always make rational decisions in politics. Also, girls, we’ve heard at least once in our lives that women are not physically fit to be exposed to what men are(eye rolls). The nature of women is less fit for how cruel and nasty politics can be. This was another reason they came up with. Also, one I’d never heard before what that women already are represented through their husbands. And I’d like to wrap it up with one I found a bit humorous: “If women were involved in politics, they would stop marrying, having children, and the human race would die out.”
ReplyDelete2)This is entirely based on my opinion. I had always thought that every American citizen should have the right to vote. For the most part I still think that, however, I have to agree with what Akers said in class one day, which was that it really bugs the living daylights out of him when people vote and they have NO idea what they are voting for. If I’m not mistaken, the legal voting age is 18. So by the time you are 18 you should have atleast a pretty good level of understanding through the education you’ve received up to that point. Also, when you go to vote, I don’t think you should make your political choices based on what your parents are. It just so happens that I agree with what my parents are, but it’s because I know things about both sides and I have formed similar opinions on my own. There are going to be ignorant people who don’t really know what they are voting for and don’t really care, and I hate that. Maybe there should be some sort of test you have to pass before you can vote in order for there to be proof that you are well aware of what’s really going on. I believe this because it’s not fair for those who do know what they believe and what they vote for. Until this can be achieved, I suppose everyone should be allowed to vote, like the way it is now.
3)3) To answer this question, I think it all solely depends on the convicted felon individually.Some states give their voting rights back and others do not. Part of me thinks that maybe after a certain amount of years after being released from behind bars he/she should gain their voting rights back. Or maybe they couuld appeal to the government somehow in order to get their voting rights back, instead of not being able to vote again for the rest of their lives.
1) I don't know much on this topic, so much of what I have to say is speculation. I imagine the same is the case for several other students, I just am willing to admit it. With that said, the reason that women weren't giving the right to vote right off the bat was based on an old mind set from colonial times. Women were seen as a mans asset, supporter, number-one-gun, or however you wish to slice it. A man and his household were considered one person, or unit, with the man being the head. I guess they took that and said that he should be able to cast a vote for his household. Single women were basically out of luck, but back then marriage happened much earlier so it really wasn't an issue. As time went on it became necessary to recognize women as individuals, and not just part of a group (after all, groups are made up of individuals).
ReplyDelete2)This is a lot of questions to group together. I'll try to be as simple as I can. First off as for age, I think currently it is about right. Maybe bump it up a few years if anything, as many 18 year-olds are still children at heart and don't understand issues, but I definitely wouldn't move it down. Secondly, who should be able to vote. I do think that people who understand the issues should be able to vote, which leads to my third point. Thirdly, if there was a competence test issued, it should be done at the place to vote. I think there should be list of all the candidates, and the voter should have to list in detail how the candidate felt about those issues. The tests would then be scored and everyone who made over a predetermined score would then be given a ballet. There would be no retakes. The test wouldn't evaluate ones intelligence, but rather ones understanding of politics in the modern era. People on welfare would not even be eligible to take the test, no exceptions. But in a real world I'd say the test would not be practical and would never work.
3)I have mixed feelings on felons. First time offenders, I suppose, should be restored their rights after their debt has been paid. After all, people really do make mistakes, and some of them are truly sorry and never mess up again. But I think that after a second offense (ie car jacking, robbery, assault. Nothing like a speeding ticket or something minor.) they should be stripped of all rights.
"And that's 'bout all I have to say 'bout that..."
We can see all throughout history where women have been considered inferior to men, and in the specific category of early American politics we find ideas somewhat like this. Women were thought to be homemakers and mothers, not necessarily government officials. This was the prominent idea in the early 20th century as well. Now, personally, I cannot find a way to justify not allowing women the privilege to vote. Even in this period, there were many women who were well educated, who watched American politics closely, and who knew what they were doing. That should mean more than gender.
ReplyDeleteToo many people in America view voting as their right not their privilege. Most citizens in other countries have no opportunity to vote, or if they do, they are threatened to vote for one candidate or the other. We have that privilege here, yet it is abused countless times by citizens who do not even know who they are voting for and why. I think someone can be too uneducated to vote in the sense that they have not even bothered to research what their candidate stands for. Age should not be the deciding factor, but instead the understanding and sincerity a voter has.
Should convicted felons lose their voting privileges for life? Yes! This underlying theme of not wanting to punish guilty people is wrong; at least, I believe it is. In our country, if the government does not create and enforce penalties on those who have broke the law, it will not only increase the level of crime but imply this idea that you can get away with doing wrong. If a convicted felon serves his time and is released, he should still have consequences. Losing the ability to vote, is a consequence-one that is rightly deserved.
Culture in the United States changed the atmosphere for women voting. Women stayed home and took care of the house, family and extended family. Industrialization caused a migration to the city which had women and children working in factories and out of the house. It had women bringing home pay and not being a weak individual that did not have a mind or opinion.
ReplyDeleteEducation should not determine the right to vote. Neither should land ownership. If voting rights were based on how much land you owned no one would be able to vote if they were living in New York City.
A voting test is a bod idea since there are so many ways of learning and communicating. Reading is just one of them. Mentally handicapped and emotionally handicapped people could possibly have a challenge in actually voting. I fell they could possibly be manipulated to vote for someone of questionable qualifications. At age 18, you qualify to be in the military and I think you should be able to vote.
There is a price to be paid for breaking the law. If the penalty is not strong enough then there will be a weaker community.
Should women vote? that was the question in the early 20th century. the reason women had not been allowed to vote was a combination of culture and other elements that was a result of personal opinions and tradition. it is possible that someone could even read the Bible and see the roles of women in the church and home and one could infer that possibly a womans place is in the home. my personal opinion is yes women should vote, they are just as much Americans as i am, what makes me better than them in that sense? any answer must be a result of pride or some other ditortion of truth, and i a by no means a feminest.
ReplyDeletei think the idea of regulating the right to vote bassed on education or a test is good in theory, but i have many questions: who will make the test? who will set the rules? and whos will keep things honest? in our country when it already comes to voting there is large scale corruption (hmmm acorn) and this corruption is supposed to be regulated by whom? the governemnt? well if the government happens to be benifited by this corruption will they stop the corruption? i think it is a noble thought and asperation but is unfeasable. i agree that uneducated voting is a serious problem and is really an issue but this form of regulation may not be the most effective way to encourage education as far as politics. as far as age goes i honestly think the older really the better within reason, the older and more mature someone is usually they will make more wise and supported descicions. when you rase the age to a understandable rate it will reduce the number of uneducated voters.
i think felons have commited a crime and for that they were punished. however, removing their voting rights is in my opinion appropriate. there must be consequences, the higher the consequences the less likely someone is inticed to commit a felony.
madyson
ReplyDeletei really like your essay. you are spot on in my opinion and adressed the topics. i agree with you about felons and about people completely taking their voting rights for granted. today we live in a free country but our freedoms are slowly slipping away. voting is one freedom we cannot afford to lose or take advantage of. we must value every vote even on the smallest stage. As americans we enjoy that right and our troops die everyday defending our rights, to take them for granted we are sending men and women to fight for something we do not really value, that is how freedoms are lost.
awesome essay.
biggin
ReplyDeleteyou bring out a point i really had not thought about, the industial revolution and the factory movement would have played a massive role in the development of the modern woman and her role in society. i agree with you about education and how it can very, i mean all the different majors and many people learn differently than others and may struggle with a test or some other form of qualification due to just the format there of. your point about handicapped individuals was valid and i think would be one issue, the major issues i think you also briefly pointed out. you hit the nail on the head with the short but consice statement about felons.
great essay
1) From the beginning of our country to the early 20th century, women weren’t allowed to be involved in much politics or public decisions. Even the founding fathers were the same way. I’ve never really understood that. Back then, I would say not many women probably went out in public and protested not being able to vote. If the women just went along with it and accepted being inferior in politics, that might have been part of the US thinking it was justified. In those times, I guess it was just more of a tradition for men to be the head of everything.
ReplyDelete2) I think just about everybody above 18 should be able to vote. The mentally challenged shouldn’t be granted a vote unless they understand who they’re supporting. I wish all people that aren’t handicapped would know about the policies of the person they’re voting for, but that is usually not the case. I don’t think education level, land ownership, or taxes should determine whether a person can or can’t vote. I think the age limit that is set works very well and shouldn’t be changed, even though I think I could make an educated vote now. The system works for everybody.
3) I personally think that criminals, if citizens, should be able to cast a vote after they’ve served their time.
Mady, I agree with your thoughts that in America we have gotten used to the idea of it being our right and not our privilege to vote. I think uneducated does not necessarily mean IQ, but can mean uninformed and that has nothing to do with age, race or gender, but responsibility. I agree with you 100% concerning convicted felons losing their voting privileges for life. There are consequences for breaking the law. Taking responsibility for a crime committed and learning to vote responsibly comes down to an individual resonding to do what is right.
ReplyDeleteAnna Katherine,
ReplyDeleteI don't know where you got your resources on women and voting but I enjoyed reading the excuses given for why women shouldn't vote. I realize that men can protect women and family thinking they are doing what's best, but in reality causing problems and making matters worse. I thought it was so like human nature to come up with the clever idea of not involving women in politics so that the human race would not die out.
1) I think women have every right to vote, lead, own businesses, etc as men do. I do kind of see why it took so long though. Ever since the beginning of time, men have been the “head honcho”, the leader, the whatever else they are called. Men have been seen as leaders and since the beginning of time been leading and no one has ever known any difference. Women are usually physically weaker and men seem to correlate that with intelligence and emotions to think that they are weaker in those areas which isn't always true either. I don't believe that women were not allowed to vote because men saw them as stupid or weaker than them, but because that is all they had know and the way it had been for hundreds, even thousands of years.
ReplyDelete2) I personally do not think that education level matters one bit. There have been and still are many intelligent, wealthy and successful people who never graduated high school. Walt Disney, the Wright Brothers, Johnny Depp and Quentin Tarantino are a few. I do believe there should be an age limit and I believe that the age set now, 18, is perfect. Wealth should have no difference what so ever whether you are heard more in elections than the less fortunate. That is pretty obvious and anyone who thinks otherwise really needs to explain why good.
3) I don't think it is wrong or right, I do have a different opinion, however. We have all heard that everyone deserves a second chance, and well I think that applies to this situation as well. Many people change in jail and learn from their mistakes, many don't though, I know. I think if they are a first time felon and are released they should be allowed. However, if they go to jail the second time for a felony
I think they should lose their ability to vote for life.
1) How did the US justify withholding the right to vote from women so far into the twentieth century?
ReplyDelete-- One reason I think that women couldn’t vote in the 20th century is that the people in Washington D.C. didn’t see the point in allowing women to vote because most women were married in their early twenties or even younger. Also the men in the society often discredited women’s opinions because even though they were educated they looked down on them because they couldn’t go out in the world and see what was going onto the degree that men could.
2) Just who should have the right to vote? Should education level matter? (Is it possible to be too uneducated to deserve to vote? Who should decide, and what would be on a voting test?) Should we return to the standard of land ownership? (Or some other method to ensure that the people who pay the bulk of the taxes are the ones being heard in elections). What about age? Explain.
--First I’ll address who I think should have the right to vote. Personally I think that only legal American citizens should be able to vote. I know this is already a law but I agree with it…
Second, I’ll address the education level of the voters. I think that they should have a basic understanding of American History and they should also know somewhat how the three branches of government work. Without these fundamental facts you are simply voting for a name on a piece of paper. One more thing that is imperative to know is the origin and standards of the party that you are voting for. If you know this you are more likely to vote for the candidate that is more likely to be the better President.
To address the topic of if there should be a test to see who should be able to vote I will have to yes I think we should. Without knowing the history of your country, some basic knowledge of how the government works and the platform of you’re political party you are not able to represent yourself in a way that would be best. So a simple test would suffice to see whether or not you are able to have a significant voice because our government is “Of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
Thirdly, NO I do not think we should turn to the old landownership way of voting. Because there are more people that live in cities now then when that was in place. I also do not think this would be passed because such a dense percentage of the population would be against this because of the old saying “No taxation without representation” and I don’t think the government would take away taxes in those areas. Also those that pay the bulk of the taxes should have rather large voice but if this was ever enacted there would be a lot of turmoil on this subject because people would say that it was encroaching on the other tax payers’ voice.
ReplyDeleteLastly, I will talk about the age limit. I think that the l age of 18 is perfectly adequate. You are then in college (hopefully) and know a little more about what goes on in Washington than what you did in the past. But you are still ignorant to much that goes on, but I think that you would be able to vote if you had been educated about the process and the candidates.
3) There is a powerful movement today to restore the franchise to non-violent felons who have paid the price of their crimes. Currently convicted felons lose their vote for the rest of their lives, even after they are released from jail. Fundamentally, is this right or wrong?
-- You have to look at the situation. If they are extreme felons ( fill in the blank) than I say no, they should never have the right to vote. On the other hand, if that person had made a mistake when they were young and made a complete change than I would say yes they deserve to have that right to vote back, but the government should be able to revoke that right if they ever commit another crime than they should never get that right back.
1) Women were given the right to vote in 1912, but why did it take so long for our government to make this decision? In my opinion, and with a little research, I think one of the arguments people had against it is a certain Bible verse that states women should be silent and in subjection. Now, I’m sure that’s not the only reason, but it was one.
ReplyDelete2) I think EVERYONE should have the right to vote. They may not be as educated or wealthy as the rest of the nation but they should have the right to decided what goes on in their own government. But I agree that there should be an age requirement to vote, and in my opinion I think the requirement now –eighteen- is too young. If you’re not considered mature enough to make your own decisions about drinking, gambling (in some states) or owning a firearm at eighteen (which you ARE too young) why should you be mature enough to make such an important decision? I think twenty-one is a more suitable age for voting.
3) I’m not quite sure where I stand on this issue. Felons apparently don’t make the best choices BUT they are still citizens and should have a say about important issues… I guess ultimately I don’t think they should have that right taken away for the rest of their lives, but I believe a “suspension” of that right would be acceptable.
The issue of women voting is one that is very touchy. So I am sorry if I offend anyone with something I type.
ReplyDeleteThe first issue is how the people of the day justified women not voting. This could have been easily done with the argument that the man is the head of the household so his opinion is that of the household. This argument totally eliminates the issue of women who were educated. This does however leave the issue of women who are independent. To be truthful I can not think of a reason that women who are independent should not vote.
Now a little easier question. Who should be aloud to vote. In my opinion it is peoples right to vote. The only question that can rise from this is at what age does the right start. Now obviously we can not have toddlers voting that would be absurd. So on this issue I think that the government handled the issue very well. they chose an age when most people are already mature enough to make their own decisions and not depend on other peoples influence. Now the issue of education. In my own opinion there should not be an educational requirement. This comes from personal experience. My grandfather only had an eight grade education but he was one of the smartest men that I have ever known. Now there is no way that you can justify saying that the education of a person hinders their ability to make a decision.
The third question is should criminals be aloud to vote. The answer is simple no. When they committed the crime they infringed on other peoples rights. In doing this they in turn should lose their own rights.
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ReplyDelete1.)Women's rights is a touchy issue because everyone is subject to their own opinion, but personally I think that all women deserve their rights just like men. In my opinion I think that society back then thought that it was customary that the man be the head of the household and therefore that idea led to only men deciding the votes even though women were beginning to get the same educations as men.
ReplyDelete2.)I think that everyone should have the right to vote even if they are uneducated. I do believe that if they are uneducated they should atleast understand the candidate's platform and the whole reason for voting. The only thing that should keep a person from the right to vote is if they have a mental illness that doesn't let them understand the reason for voting. I don't think that property ownership should matter on deciding who gets to vote because there are many Americans that don't own land. Age is a hard subject to think about because some kids don't understand the whole reason for voting and even some adults don't, but I think that the age that is set right now is fine because it allows teenagers to mature by realizing what the real world is like through college and jobs. Otherwise I think everyone should be able to vote.
3.)On the subject of felon's voting rights, I think that it is wrong that they are taking their voting right away because if they are American citizens then they have the right to vote even if they are convicted felons.
1) well I think it was because they respect women enough and didn't think they were capable enough to vote. Men were viewed as the head of everything like businesses and such.
ReplyDelete2) I think all U.S. citizens should be able to vote unless they have taken someone life, like a felon. Education does matter but if you base you vote on the Bible then i don't think the level of education matters that much. For example, if you ddin't know much about politics and government and were trying to figure out who to vote for. I would look for things like abortion and if their a good christian or not. But obviously if that person is a good christian and goes by what the Bible says then that person probably isn't going to be for abortion. But if I found out that one of the cadidates was for abortion, that would immediatly turn me away for voting for them. Then I'd pray about the other candidates and see which one God would want me to vote for.
Land ownership seems wrong to me. It shouldn't matter how much land a person has.
3) Well in my opinion I think felons shouldn't be able to vote. I mean just think about it, someone that murdered another human being or committed some other serious crime voting for our President. That just seems kind of scary to me. But thats just my opinion.
1) During this time period women were considered to be beneith men. The Bible says that the man should be the head of his household, so I thiink that the people took this as saying the man was above the woman. Even though many women were educated, the men still looked down on them, as if the works of politics would be to complicated for a woman to understand.
ReplyDelete2) I thik that everyone should have the right to vote. My grandfather had a low education level and he was still a VERY smart man. I do think that it is possible for some people to be too uneducated to vote (such as a person with a mental defect), but there shouldn't be a test that says that this person can or can not vote. When it comes to age I think that 18 is too young. I mean when your 18 you can't legally dirnk, so why should you be able to make a decision as important as the leader of your country at that age. 21 is a perfectly resonable age to be eligable to vote.
3) Im not sure where I stand on this issue. I think that a convicted felon should be able to get their voting rights back, but they should have to wait so many years to get it. Even though they commited a felon they are still citizens and do have rights that should be protected like everyone else.
1.) When women were given the right to vote their status changed dramatically. Men never thought women were as good as they were until the 20th century, and really some men still don’t today. I believe that the government finally realized that to be the “equal” country they said they were that everyone deserves the right to vote. And I agree that everyone deserves a choice in who they want to run their country.
ReplyDelete2.) Whoever owns the most land or pays the most taxes should not get to choose who is going to be president or make all the major decisions. They get enough as it is. To a certain extent a think educational level should be taken into consideration. If you’re not able to make rational decisions you should not be allowed to vote. Just because you didn’t finish high school does not mean that you cannot vote either. I believe that a test on educational level would be good. Even though the amount of voters would decrease because no one would want to take a test.
3.) I do not agree with this because they have made mistakes just like us maybe we have not made big enough mistakes to get up put in jail, but as a Christian nation we should understand that everyone deserves a second chance. And I believe they do deserve the right to vote after they serve their punishment. Maybe each state could pick amount of year the felon have to wait until they are able to vote again to make sure they are being a law abiding citizen.
Maxwell, I agree fully with you and we shared many of the same points. I agree with the fact that you stated that to be able to vote you should be able to understand the platform of the candidate and what they stand for. And men in the 20th century did not believe it was customary for women to make decisions like voting for the president. Because they were ahead of the house so they thought they should make all the major decision.
ReplyDeleteJosh, I also agree with your opinions. Voting should not be taken away from criminals if they are American citizens. And most women would have never have thought of going out and protesting for their right to vote. Because they were raised to believe that it was not their place to do things like that or make big decisions like voting for the president.
Guffey, I thought it was interesting how you put the date that women received their voting rights. If you look through all of the essays not very many people included that fact. Another interesting fact about women's voting rights is that Wyoming is actually the first state to allow women to vote. Otherwise you had the same good points that everyone else had and you included a lot of good information. Overall you had a really good essay.
ReplyDelete1) The main reason that women were thought to be “inferior” as some have already pointed out, is that their place/role was viewed, by men, and some women, as keeping house and having kids. Some even thought that women were not capable of doing a man’s job of any kind, so naturally they couldn’t have the same privileges as a man.
ReplyDelete2) No, I don’t think that education level should matter. The grade level that someone completes doesn’t have an effect on what they believe is right or wrong. You don’t have to have a highschool diploma to know that abortion is wrong. I’m not sure if there is a point at which one could be too uneducated to vote, but I do agree with the age requirement. The age requirement is to ensure that you, as an individual, can make your own, this meaning wise, decisions, unfortunately in today’s world we have more and more people that reach that age and still can’t do that. The land ownership standard would put a lot of people out of voting. There a lots of people that live in apartments or with their parents that don’t own their own property, so I don’t think that returning would be such a good idea.
3) We have laws for a reason and when you break them there are and should always be consequences. There is a reason that felons are put in prison and I don’t think that, after they have committed a crime, they should have their rights returned. It’s kind of like when a kid does something that mom and dad told them not to and they get sent to their room. When the come out they say “I’m sorry” and mom and dad watch them like a hawk to make sure they don’t do it agin. So no, I don’t think that this is wrong, because once you give back part of their rights you will have to give them all back.
1) Back in the earlier years of our country, women were often viewed as uneducated, unimportant, inferior to men, and were even lowered to the level of animals. Since man was superior over woman at this time, man saw it fit that women didn’t vote since they were stupid, unimportant and a waste of space. ( which is totally not true)*** Some men supported womens rights and others opposed. In the presidential election of 1912, suffrage was a huge topic on the candidates agendas. two of the candidates supported womens rights, and the third of them opposed. I guess cause men were superior and said they weren’t good enough to vote is the best way to “justify” it
ReplyDelete2) who should have the right to vote? I think anyone should have the right to vote no matter what education level theyr at. the reason I say that is because the level of education doesn’t matter primarily in an election. however I do believe they need to be educated on the issues and what the candidate stands for before they can vote. I say no to the land ownership as well. If you cant afford to buy land then you cant vote, and that would eliminate a large margin of votes. as for age, I belive 18 is a good age because at age 18 most ppl start paying more attention to politics than when they were younger.
3) I don’t think their voting rights should be given back to them. they did a wrong deed to society so they ought to reap what they sowed. they may be non-violent but they are still felons.
Josh, I like how you mentioned that women never really protested their rights hundreds of years ago. That is probably the reason why the U.S. justified women not voting. I do think that in years leading to women receiving their voting rights is when women started to realize that if they spoke up about their rights they would soon receive them and now you look women have their rights. Otherwise you included everything you need and in the end you had a really good essay, Josh.
ReplyDeletecolby, i agree with u completely. womens rights had been that way for a long long time and noone knew any different. today, it may not seem right one bit, but back then, though women wanted to vote, it was understood and they didnt really rebel against it or try to change it at all.
ReplyDeleteanna, i agree with u about how you shouldnt just say your a republican or democrat based on your parents. i believe you need to do some research on the candidate, find out about his platforms and choose the one you agree with most that also has some moral standards to go with his politics. i think that if you just go on election day and randomly close your eyes and pick one you are completely abusing the right and priveledge to vote for such an important situation.
ReplyDelete1) How did the US justify withholding the right to vote from women so far into the twentieth century? (Remember, many of them were educated, and although few opportunities existed in business, some were financially independent).
ReplyDeleteA link to something related to this question would be quite helpful in answering this question, so I used google and found a few, which are the following: http://www.law.georgetown.edu/faculty/documents/RightsRevolution.doc
https://www.law.ucla.edu/docs/rights_revolution_law_review.pdf
the us govt. justified this with legal jargen
Just who should have the right to vote? Personally I believe anyone who has the ability to understand the issues and to comprehend what each candidate plans to do about it, while also having a sense of right and wrong. Should education level matter? To an extent, yes. I think someone should atleast have completed high school, or be enrolled in an accredited high school, to be able to vote.should we return to the standard of land ownership? Pardon my bluntness here,but no, that is stupid, why does land ownership even matter to making a decision on something ENTIRELY unrelated to ownership of land. Everyone is under the law, and those who are not land owners are included in everyone.what about age? I think this is about education over age. I takie these stands because they are my personal opinion.
3) There is a powerful movement today to restore the franchise to non-violent felons who have paid the price of their crimes (see the story in the Sunday, Nov 29, 2009 Lexington Herald-Leader). Currently convicted felons lose their vote for the rest of their lives, even after they are released from jail. Fundamentally, is this right or wrong?
wrong
1) I would assume that they would give reasons like they don't own land or they aren't always thought to be as important as men in an almost all man society at the time.
ReplyDelete2) Everyone that is mature enough to vote should hav the right and no i don't think that you can be too uneducated to have a right to vote. There is no reason to say that. I definately don't think that we should return t the standard of land ownership because we have no reason to what we have now is perfectly fine. I think that age is really dependent on the level of maturity of the person to decide on if they should vote or not like if you want to have a person vote when they are immature and just going in there to do what they want making a decision out of thin air not caring who they pick they will just be picking someone who they don't know anything about just going in there cause they can so i think the age that they have it at right now is perfectly fine.
3) I really think that that is perfectly fin as long as it wasn't something terrible i think that they should still have the right to vote.
www.johndclare.net/women!_arguementsagainst-htm
ReplyDeletethis is a source i forgot to cite.
1) How did the US justify withholding the right to vote from women so far into the twentieth
ReplyDeletecentury?
Well, to answer this question, I will refer to our lectures in class. Mr. Akers himself made a very valid and not well known point in History today. He stated that strangely enough, women themselves were actually the ones most opposed to the idea of women voting. They felt it was a woman’s sole job or duty to tend to the household chores and take care of and rear their children. The wanted to leave the politics to the men.
At this point, I would like to insert my ownt views on this. I believe that in every generation, there is a certain percentage of women who tend to not like the way things are and they go out and try to change it. So even though the majority of women might’ve been perfectly fine with not voting, I strongly believe there was a faction of women who strongly desired their voices to be heard. As for myself, I would’ve definitely fallen into the faction. I believe a woman should obey her husband within reason and yes, should even take care of the house. However, that in no way, shape, or form means that we cannot have careers and most certainly doesn’t mean that our voices don’t matter in politics. Obviously, society tends to lean more towards women’s rights today than it did in 1912. I mean, look at our past two holders of Secretary of State.
2) Just who should have the right to vote? Should education level matter?
Oh my goodness. That is a really difficult question to answer. Really, I can see both sides of an argument on this topic. On one side, yes, everyone should have the right to vote. Regardless of whether or not one has a high school education or even their GED, they are still human beings and as such should have the right for their voices to be heard. On the other hand, no, not everyone should have the right to vote. Think about it, someone who doesn’t watch the news, doesn’t concern themselves with current events, doesn’t even know what a certain political party stands for, or hasn’t even had a high school history class would not have all the information that one should really have before they make their decision in the voting booth. However, I don’t think there is anyway to actually regulate that type of thing and here’s why. There’s no way to be unbiased about it. I really don’t think that someone could create a standardized test with all the right answers because everybody’s interpretation of a “right answer” is going to be very, very different. I personally believe that every U.S. citizen should have the right to vote based on their own personal beliefs and convictions.
3) Is it fundamentally right or wrong for convicted felons to permanently lose their right to vote?
Wow. This is also a pretty hard question for me to answer. Once again, I can understand both sides of this story. I’m actually not very sure how I stand on that. I think that, perhaps, it should depend on what said felon was convicted of. I don’t think it’s fair to give a standard punishment for all crimes. However, no matter the crime, it puts the criminal’s judgment in a very poor and questionable light. So, in that sense, perhaps that person truly doesn’t not have the right to vote. I think that if a felon has done their time, and after say 5-10 years they have proven to be citizens in good standing, then and only then, they should have their suffrage reinstated.
1) Voting was withheld from women for many reasons. Women were viewed as lesser than men. They were to stay home and support their husband and his views on politics. It was not because women were not educated because in this time period many were well educated and if needed could be financially stable and independent. However in that time the thought was that men are the best and women are below them. Women were believed to have not been as capable as men.
ReplyDelete2) I believe every American citizen should have a right to vote. Male and female and no matter what race as long as you were of age. Which I think 18 is a good age, according to the government you are said to be an adult at that age and most have a good idea of what they are doing. I do not think that you need to be very well educataed in order to vote because many things just depend on what you believe. Although some poeple just vote but have no clue what they are voting for and I wish people would be more informed on these things so they really vote for what they believe and think is best for the country. Some people just do not realize how important their votes are.
3) As for this question I am very unsure about how to answer this. If you are a convicted felon I do think it is right for your voting priviledges to be taken away. The thing that gets me is how long should they be taken away. Some people change after they are released from jail and some dont. I would like to be able to say that people change so we can say that after so many years and they can have their rights back but this is not always the case. People do not always change and some never will so you can not say that they can have their rights back when they will more than likely abuse them. So I am going to say what I think but this is only my idea/opinion. I think that depending on your crime should depend on how long your rights are taken away and then they get to a point where if their crime was so bad that they get their rights taken away forever. However like I said earlier I really am unsure about this situation. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt but you can not always do that. They are convicted felons so I can say for sure their rights should be greatly restricted but as to how harsh/long I am not quite sure.
1. Since the founding of our nation, we had been a male-dominated society. Men were the ones involved in politics and were the ones running the country. Women not being allowed to vote was due to our culture. Voting is a political action, and women were not involved in politics. Another reason is that it was seen as one vote per household, and the man was the one to represent the family with his vote.
ReplyDelete2 I think to be able to vote, one should know who the candidates are, what the candidates stand for, and know why they agree or disagree with one of them. They should also be of a certain age; I think the current eighteen is fine because most kids don’t thoroughly understand politics. They should also be fairly educated and more importantly, pay taxes. I don’t believe someone who barely knows who the candidates are or exactly what they stand for or doesn’t pay taxes and is completely uneducated should be allowed to vote. However, I do not see a feasible way to filter these people out that people would support or agree with. I do not think a voting test or an education requirement to vote would be accepted. I think the voting system we have now is alright and should be stuck with.
3 I don’t see why a non-violent felon who has served his time should not be allowed to vote. I really don’t see why because they have served their debt to society already and do not need to be punished by being withheld the right to vote, and just because they messed up once in their life doesn’t mean they don’t have the capacity to hold an opinion on who should be running their country. They are still American citizens and should have a say in who is ruling them.
The way the culture was in the United States during this time period would come to change peoples minds about women having the right to vote. At this time it was the girls job to stay at home cook, clean, and take care of the family. But soon when the factories were built they had women and children working in them. this had the girls bringing a pay check but and not being able to put their input in.
ReplyDeleteeveryone has a right to vote. How much you have learned in school should not determine if you can vote or not. Nor is how much land you own or how you’re your house is. There are thousands of Americans living without hardly any land. But they deserve to have a say in who leads them.
a voting test is just one of the many ways we as Americans can learn and communicate. However there are those with mental and physical handicaps that I think could be dangerous by voting. It is these people who don’t really have a good idea who they are voting for. They can be tricked into voting for the wrong person.
There are consequences for not obeying the law however if we are not harsh enough then our community will be broken.
anna, i thank your absolutely right that we shouldn’t pick our political party based on what our parents say. We should form our own opinion. We need to know who it is we are voting for and what they stand for.i believe that if we are influenced by what other people think and vote the way they tell us to then we are abusing our right as Americans to vote. Which is sad cause there are countries that don’t let people vote and we just take advantage of our rights
ReplyDelete1)in my opinion women werent allowed to vote,or lead buisness,ect, in the 20th centurey simpley beacouse men thought that the were far more supireor to the women beacouse in most cases they thought that they were the ones who did most of the work and"brought home the backon".Of course in my opinion i do not think that this is at all right and that women have an equal right to vote and lead buisnesses just as the men do.
ReplyDelete2)in my opinion the educational level of an indavidual does not matter when it comes to voteing,each person has a right to have a say in who leads our country.Plus the educational level of someone doesent mean that there lower in value than the ones who are highley educated.both for the most part have an equal value in oure society.
3)in my opinion conicted fellons should be able to vote.Beacouse they are still citezens of the united states and that they deserve to have just as much say as the next guy,and i base this on the fact that i think that everyone deserves a second chance.
1) Women. can't live without them. So, why cant they vote (assuming this is the year 1885)? Some might say, including women themselves, that they are only good for sitting home and drinking tea, gloves on, and gossiping. Well, as we all see now, that is not true. Not only have we had many influential woman leaders but many to vote and make a difference. Like I said, you can't live without them.
ReplyDelete2) As far as the entirety of the voting system itself, I think we should stick to the current system. Vote if you are eighteen. Makes sense to me because that is when you are legally tried as an adult. Why would you let someone vote who wont be tried under the full wrath of the government? You just wouldn't. Land owners? Big deal. I own a couch. It's no different. Too much value is placed on money (or should I say debt.. no one really owns anything they live in these days. The bank does.)
3) Convicted felons should NOT be allowed to vote. When you are an American citizen you have the assumed responsibility to "give to Caesar what is Caesar's". To not do so revokes rights. They had their chance, it's called life. While it may seem harsh for me to say that, is it really that hard to NOT rob a bank? A felony is a big deal. Prison time = zero poll time.
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ReplyDeleteVanessa,
ReplyDeleteI too found it interesting that women themselves wanted nothing to do with voting. People today try to tell us that men were basically enslaving women under their thumb, which is not true. If that were true wouldn't the abolition of women slavery have been a hot topic?
Roberto,
ReplyDeletethat is a great way of pointing out why women didn't vote. There was only one vote per household and the male was the head so it made sense for him to vote. Good point.
I don’t know exactly why they didn’t let women vote, but I can give it a guess. Though at this point in history women were well educated and supported themselves financially, I think it was just routine or customary for a woman to not have the right to vote. To this point the men were in main control and I think that just carried over into voting.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, the voting system is close to as good as things can get. We allow both men and women to vote, which is only fair. We let all nationalities vote as long as they are a U.S. citizen. In my opinion I think education shouldn’t play any factor. Though most may not know all of the facts, whoever they vote for will be serving them too, so they should be able to help decide. And the age limit I think is just fine. People who are eighteen are now old enough to take care of them selves so they should be able to vote to help their rights.
I think, in my opinion, this is wrong. If they have paid their dues so to speak, I think they should be allowed to vote for the President because it’s their president too. I think if they are nonviolent and have done their time they should be allowed to vote.
Suffrage came to the forefront of political conversation during World War I, while Woodrow Wilson was compaigning for Presidency. Many women asked him the question, "Mr. Wilson, if you sincerely desire to forward the interests of all the people, why do you oppose the national enfranchisement of women?"
ReplyDeleteWomen weren't granted the right to vote because they were considered property of their husbands. It's my oppinion that the election's premise is to represent the people and only those who know the candidates whould be allowed to vote. Like people who don't know anything about the candidates, but just vote their ticket are really abusing their priviledge. Criminals shouldn't be allowed to vote in my oppinion. They don't have care for our state's laws, why would they vote accurately in an election.
This was written by Caleb Dobbs, I used Michal’s laptop.
ReplyDelete1) The government was able to keep the right to vote from woman by saying that a woman’s place is in the home. Also they said that the man is the head of the household so he should be the one with the responsibility for voting with the family.
2) Everyone should have the right to vote, except detained felons who should have the right to vote when they are released from prison. I believe that the voter should at least have a high school diploma, but no test. I believe everyone’s vote should be counted equal regardless of wealth. I believe that the age limit for voters should be the same as the age that is declared legally an adult.
3) Fundamentally, I believe that a felon losing his right to vote for life is wrong. Many criminals are able to turn their life around and become good citizens. I don’t think ex-criminals should be penalized for something they did a long time ago and they served their time for it. If a criminal has been rehabilitated they should be given back their right to vote so they can continue their lives as good moral citizens. It makes more sense this way.
1) Women were believed to ne inferior to men bot physically but also mentally in the late nintenth into the early twentith century. It was belived by men that any political converstion would be harmful to a womans delicate body but more importantly her reproductive system. Men believed as Akers says a woman should be "barefott, pregnant, a,d inthe kitchen", basically they were sayin all women were good for was keepin house and havin kids, but later women were foced to work due to econmic hardships.
ReplyDelete2) I believe that everyone should have a voting right untill you choose to do something stupid and have it revoked. Such as a convicted fellon should not be allowed t vote untill being out of prison for atleast three years. I also dont believe there should be a certain education level or a voting test. I like how all citizens of the U.S.A should have the right to choose who leads there country regardless.
3) As i stated above i dont believe that a convicted fellon should lose his voting rights forever. All people should b givin a secon chance in society as Christ gave us a second chance. And many people after being released from prison turn there lives around to live a better life to make sure they dont end up back in jail. So fundamentally i dont believe that convicted felons should lose there voting rights.
1) On the issue of women's right to voting, I feel that the society of men during the early 20th century was definitely a society that undervalued women. The men saw the women as just a cook in the home, someone who served no purpose but to cook/clean. Completely stupid of men!
ReplyDelete2) On the issue of who should have the right to vote, I feel that all citizens EXCEPT criminals should be allowed to vote. Education should'nt be a deciding factor in whether you should be allowed to vote persay, but you should educate yourself so you can know and be aware of the issues. And age, over 18. No reason why, just would be better accepted by aduly society.
3) OF COURSE FELONS SHOULDNT HAVE THEIR RIGHT TO VOTING RESTORED! These criminals have had their chance at living a normal life, of just being a law-abiding citizen, and they FAILED epically. Doesn't matter if your crime was violent or non-violent.
THE END. Oh and by the way, I'm at KYA on Davids computer. We owned everyone.
Vanessa, I think you did a great job on your essay, especially your answer to the first question. It surprised me, when I heard in class that most women actually wanted to leave politics to men. I agree with what you said about how even though a lot of the women were fine with submitting to their husbands completely and just taking care of the house and bearing children, that definitely does not mean that women were incapable of some great ideas and opinions, and that some probably did want their voices to be heard. I have to say, though, that the ones that wanted to leave politics to men stick out to me more than the others. Even though it wasn’t right to discriminate against women, I am a firm believer that being a wife and mother is a job in itself. That is what God created women to be, in a sense, and I know for a fact that none of us would be here today if not for mothers. So I guess what I’m saying is, there’s nothing wrong with being “barefoot, pregnant and in the kitchen” if that’s what you want to be.
ReplyDeleteJessica, your answer to the third question regarding convicted felons’ rights was pretty good. You were very honest about how you felt, which was that you really were not sure, since some people change and some do not and never will. It would be nice if we could always give people the benefit of the doubt and hope they will change, but some just don’t. I lean towards the idea that everyone deserves a second chance, though. I ended up answering this question similarly to how you did, which was that it depends on how bad the crime was in reference to how long their voting rights should be taken away. Pretty much everyone else has said that they believe a convicted felon’s right to vote shouldn’t be taken away forever. But reading your essay made me think. I don’t know, but maybe after a certain number of times they have broken the law, it should be?
ReplyDelete1. There were a couple reasons women werent alllowed to vote. One reason was that politics were evil. They didnt want there sweet little wives getiing involved in that. Others ma say that women couldnt vote because they werent as inteligent or evolved enough to comprehend the compley infostructure of the united states government.
ReplyDelete2. Well i agree with the voting rules of today. Some may agrue that age may matter but if you think about it most kids/ teens just believe what they have grown up around while if you are over a certain age you are more independant and put more thought towards political subjects (and hopefully you dont just go with your party you should do research.) And i dont think there should be any kind of test or education level to vote because that would take away our rights and would cause to much of an uproar.
3. I do not believe felons should be able to vote in or out of prison. Like many others have said before me they had their chance and they screwed up. I believe that they way our political voting sysystem works now is just about perfect. I mean there may be a few flaws in there somewhere but nothing major.
Tyler, the questions here are for YOU to answer, not just give a website with information that someone else wrote and say "here it is." There is nothing wrong with using it as research and forming an answer with some of their ideas and then citing it, but you can't just give a website and say that is your answer because it is indeed not YOUR answer. That would be like copying someone else's report and saying it's yours. Forgetting about that for a second, you did a fairly good job expressing your opinion about who should be allowed to vote. However, I do not believe the standard of ownership of land is really "stupid" because if you owned land, that would mean you have money, which would mean you are educated and had a job, and the smarter and more hard-working individuals would probably be better informed and have an opinion on politics. And on the third question, you used a one word answer. Do you not understand these are essay questions? they require some thought and an explanation as to why you hold that opinion, not a one word answer.
ReplyDeleteJessica, we talked about this the other day and I agree with you to a point. I ,like you, like to give people the benefit of the doubt, innocent until proven guilty kind of thing. And I know that you said that you are unsure about it, but don’t you think it would be better, in this case, to not take that chance? I mean, no telling what someone might do. They could wait out that allotted time just to get their rights back and turn right around and abuse them. On top of that, how would you determine whether or not to give one person their rights back apposed to someone else? In the long run I think that this could cause major issues. Not only that but I also say that once you are guilty you are always guilty, unless you ask forgives from God, then your sin is as far as the East is from the West. But even then it would still be hard to trust them agin.
ReplyDeleteRyan, you were completely correct in stating that criminals SHOULD NOT be allowed to vote. These men/women have had their chance to live a normal life, to be a normal law-abiding citizen, but they made their choice to break the law. Thereby forfeiting their right to vote.
ReplyDeleteNice work ryan.
Hannah, as I stated in my comment supporting Ryan's statement, you were completely correct in saying that your rights that criminals forfeit should not be reinstated. Your analogy about a young child being watched by their parents is a perfect match for this. Criminals, no matter the severity of their offense, OR how long they have been out of incarciration, SHOULD NOT have their right to vote restored. Period.
ReplyDeleteNice job Hannah.
As all of you have said women were considered below men in every way, they were in the way, should support their husbands views(not their own), were only good for having babies and keeping house, and weren’t as smart as men. You have also said that this is VERY wrong and not true(stotts)***. I agree in every way. But I also think that women are still, in some cases, considered not as good as men. By this I mean that some jobs today are thought to be exclusively for men when a woman could do just as good a job as any man, granted there are a few jobs out there that women shouldn’t try to do because of the physical labor that is involved. I will say this to make the guys feel better about there selves though. God made the bodies men and women different for a reason. Yes, He did make women to have children, He made men, on the other hand, to be able to stand up under the physical demands of having a job and caring for his family.
ReplyDeleteDavid, I like what you said about the voting rights for felons. The system we have now is great. I'm not to supporting of the movement to remove the right to vote from felons for their whole lives even after serving full term. I am so supportive of removing that right during their sentence and while on parole, but after that they have served their time. Some may say that the choice to give them their voting right is too lenient, but you have to look at it in perspective. If someone committed a crime while a teenager, should they still not have that right when they are 65? In my opinion, this is too harsh and almost unreasonable. If they do not committ anymore crimes they deserve that right back, but if they go back to jail that right is again revoked. I think we could set up a plan where their voting rights are taken for a certain period of time after their release, but not for their entire life.
ReplyDeleteJosh, you brought up a good point. If women hadn't of fought for their right to vote, would women still be limited the way they were then? If that was the thinking then, would somebady have thought about it or would everyone just go along with it throughout the rest of time? This kind of made me think, if we see something as wrong we have to fight for it. If these women had not have fought, the idea of women working, voting, and just being part of the public society might have never come about.
ReplyDeleteEmily, your essay was decent. I agree with you pretty much completely on your answers to the second and third questions. My thoughts on those issues are similar. I do, however partially disagree with you on part of your answer to the first question. You said that women were not allowed to vote because men viewed women as individuals who were different. Women are different from men, we aren't all the same. I mean, I believe that women should be able to vote, because they are citizens and they should also be allowed to choose who governs over them if they know what they are voting for. You also said that men were placing women inside minority groups. Women are not a minority. I don't know the statistics, and there might be slightly more men in the US then women, but not enough to call them a minority. I think that women just had a different role in society then; they weren't the ones working for money, or paying taxes, they were more concerned with domestic aspects, and weren't really the ones concerned with politics. Also, a lot of them probably shared the same views as their husbands, and many women, in those days were married very young, so it was often more like, one vote per household. You also said that men "felt they had more power and responsibility, leading to the downgrading of women’s rights." I think that men did have more power in most aspects back then. They were in a leadership role often. But, women did have a lot of responsibilities back then, too. The men and the women had different responsibilities and would take care of different things. I also disagree when you said that this led to the downgrading of women's rights. Women did not have more rights in earlier times, they most often had less, and they are gaining rights as time passes, not losing them. I really think that the reason that women didn't vote wasn't because men looked down on them or thought they were inferior, but because they simply had a different role in society, and politics wasn't part of that. I do agree with the rest of your essay, though. Wow, that was a long comment.
ReplyDeleteWell, my first comment was longer than my essay, so i don't really have to type much on this one... Janderson, I liked your post, and i agree with your views on this issue.
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ReplyDeleteCody...
ReplyDeleteI like what you said about felons not being allowed to vote, and if you don't care I would like to elaborate more on the fact that they "had their chance." In my mind, when an American citizen, who has full capability of understanding the laws of our nation (meaning they are not mentally handicapped), breaks one of these laws which have been set in place by our government, courts, and Constution, they give up their rights as American citizens and deserve punishment. I believe, like you, that beyond jail time there should be consequences. I know in the Bible it says Christ gives second chances, now I might take a lot of crap for this, I might not, but in order for a country to function and survive you must have a solid punishment that deters others from wanting to break the law. Everybody sins and messes up, but does that mean everybody has to break a law of the country, well no. Refrain from committing a felon, and you don't have to worry about losing your right to vote. I enjoyed your essay Cody. Good job bud.
Mady, I totally agree with what you said about we as Americans have gotton used to the idea that its own right to vote not our privilege. I believe that uneducated don’t mean how much we have learned through our school. But people can be blind to the information not givin to them. I completely agree that convitcted criminals should not ba aloud to vote. They abused our laws so they should lose all there rights about voting.
ReplyDelete1) Until the late nineteenth century women were not allowed to vote. Presidential elections and even smaller, not so important ones. Men looked down on women, viewing them as they could only do good in their homes. The men believed the women had no right to put there selves into politics and worry with those kinds of situations. They sat them aside like they weren’t important.
ReplyDelete2) I believe any American citizen has the right to vote. Who else would hold this? Only the people of this nation hold the right to elect THEIR OWN leader. I don’t think that there should be any changes in who would choose who to vote. I like the rule where you have to be eighteen to vote. Children when they have reached that age, they have learned how to not let people influence what they think of other people. At eighteen the child is out of the house and their parents aren’t influencing what their claims upon a candidate are. I do not think that we have to return to land ownership, the Government is doing a good job at keeping the land and public grounds clean.
3) Forgiveness. That word.
While I was thinking up some things to respond to the question, I came to this word. And its meaning. Christ calls us to forgive, then why do we hold that freedom back from those people who have paid for the things they have done? I Believe we should let them vote.
gshoneycutt, I'm a little confused about what you said about the voting age. Comparing drinking age with voting age, I don't see your point there. So your saying the age you can drink should be the age you can vote? It seems to me, and please correct me if i'm wrong, but it seems that your saying that when a person is 18 that they aren't responsible or mature enough. Therefore they can't drink and shouldn't be aloud to vote. But when a person is 21 and aloud to drink that they will have more responsibility and be more mature. But to me, if a person at the age of 21 decides to go out and drink, they aren't mature or responsible at all. So what does it matter the age, 18 or 21. Sorry if I offened you, this is just a important subject for me.
ReplyDeletehannah, I completely agree with you on voting rights for felons. I mean they have done something wrong, why should they get their rights back. Good job Hannah.
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ReplyDeleteMady...
ReplyDeleteI really liked you essay, I totally agree with the part on how women were totally treated unfairly and were "inferior" to men...but like you said gender shouldn’t be a part of political issues it should be about who believes what and not how they look, age gender or even sex...great essay well thought out and very well worded
Gshoneycutt...
ReplyDeleteI agree with Ashley on your voting age situation at 18 you are considered an "adult" and you are also given the right to vote...but your saying that 21 is a more reasonable age but as Ashley said if your saying a person is to immature at 18 to vote because they can party or drink illegally that at 21 what makes you more responsible if you can go do both those things legally...so I have to say I disagree with you but Ashley you made a super point and I agree
Michael, good essay… I loved how you tied the Bible into the first paragraph. I think the verse you were going back to is 1Corinthians 14: 34-35. Where it says, “Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak; but they are to be submissive, as the law also says. And if they want to learn something, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is shameful for women to speak in church.” I too agree that women should have the right to vote.
ReplyDeleteIn the second paragraph when you asked who would regulate the tests (etc.) and stated that the government was corrupt. I thought that was a very good point and I agree on the fact that the government would try to keep the polls as corrupt as possible.
In my essay I also stated that I thought felons should loose the right vote { only I said it should be based on the crime that the person(s) had committed}.
Madyson, good essay… I agree with you that in the past women have been subjected to an unfair society. We weren’t allowed to vote and in most societies our opinions where demeaned and exchanged for a man’s opinion.
ReplyDeleteI also agreed with you that age should not be a deciding factor. But I believe that it’s your job to make sure you under stand the candidate you’re voting for.
Loved the exclamation of YES! when you answered the question of whether or not felons should have the write to vote. And I agree that they should loose that their right to vote but only if the felony was major.
I liked your essay, Ben. I pretty much agree with you on everything you said. Even though it's not what I said about felons, I kind of agree with you. I actually changed my mind about felons being allowed to vote. I don't know what I was thinking, but I take what I said back. Felons shouldn't be able to vote. They had their chance, and they shouldn't affect the voting system.
ReplyDeleteRoberto, your essay was pretty good. I agree with how you said the lack of women's suffrage back then was due to the culture as it had been. I also like the point you made about the idea of there being one vote per household.
ReplyDeleteRyan, the way you opened your post really caught my eye, and the body of your essay was really good. I agree with what you said. Your essay was really very well written and educational.
ReplyDeletemichael, i really liked your post and how you talked about the bible. i also liked how you talked about how the government would be corrupt if the oversaw a test like that and i agree with you in that aspect
ReplyDeleteCamden,
ReplyDeleteI really liked your post. (Nice disclaimer by the way. Feminism is a slippery slope and seems almost to be a fad...) But I think you did an excellent job when you stated that independent women should be able to vote. By saying this you implied that "all men (people?) are created equal...", sound familiar?
Also, I like your view on voter education. Political knowledge isn't taught in school (very much, at least) and has to be acquired by ones free will. Lots of intelligent people have no idea about the big political issues we often face in this modern era. Likewise, many people who can follow elections, and know where both politicians stand do not possess a PhD.
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This one isn't for Camden's post, but in general:
On the issue if felons should be given a second chance to vote or not, I noticed that the vast majority of people wrote that felons should not be able to vote again, period.
I was thinking about this as I read one person's post. They used the illustration of one person killing another (Murder, aka a felony) and then being released into the circulation and influencing elections utilizing their twisted minds. Others agreed with this person, one going on to use the phrase "FAILED epically..."
Now I agree with this point, but I think it brings an entirely different subject up. Murders shouldn't be released into the population anyway! Let alone be allowed to vote. After considering these posts and points, I'm not sure if I'm willing to venture to answer the question anymore. It's not clear-cut in my opinion. But then again, is it right to go from one felon to the next and say, "You can vote, but you can't"?
Vanessa, I think others talked about this but I liked the fact that you said women were often the most against woman's rights to vote. This is often so overlooked. I thought your idea of just a small faction, as you put it, were probably the only ones wanting to vote and that they made the difference. I also think that almost every woman today would say that they would be in that, to borrow it once again, faction; but I think that people maybe wouldn't realize what they don't have. Sorta like trying a new food, you want to keep eating the food you really like; it would be bad if change was something you didn't want. I think that's how many of these women would've felt.
ReplyDeleteCamden, I like that you asked is it right to go from felon to felon deciding if each individual could get the right to vote. The thing is you could draw a line, like Kentucky does, at violent and non-violent felonies. Like I said in my essay(?) the non-violent felons have to REQUEST(I wanted to use italics) to get the right to vote back from the governor.
ReplyDeleteHannah Garland, I liked your essay quite a lot much. The first thing about women being stereotyped and confined to a role as housekeeper and childraiser is very true. Women were viewed as that, but with the rise of feminism, it's luckily no longer so. Also, you made a good point with the land ownership thing. I'm not real sure if that was just random or why you talked about it, but that idea is quite absurd because so many upstanding and very smart citizens do not own their own private land. And lastly, the part about the criminals, that's exactly how I feel. I agree that if they can;t abey the laws set forth by our state in the first place then they shouldn't be able to vote in our state lawmakers. As you said, they come crawling back saying "I'm sorry. I've changed," which is probably not true. (not in all cases; only some...but still) Good job.
ReplyDeleteI like what Zack said, a hundred years ago almost all men thought they were better than woman. After the feminist movement only a few men think that. I think that feminism has been carried too far, So much so that woman think their better than men. That is not equal, that is self-pride. In reality the only thing that determines gender is genetics. The whole reason for anyone thinking their gender any better is for their own self-desire.
ReplyDeleteI liked what guffy said. In order to accurately define that Bible verse we have to read the entire chapter. Also we have to look at different translation. It could have been talking about a marital issue. A felon should not have the right to vote taken away forever. Just doing something wrong doesn’t mean there any less human, and humans can change. There should be an age limit so we don’t have three year olds voting.
ReplyDeleteJake Anderson..
ReplyDeleteAlthough I don't totally agree with you on your opinion of felons being allowed to vote, I love the point you brought up in a comment you made. You said, "but I think it brings an entirely different subject up. Murders shouldn't be released into the population anyway!". I know this is somewhat irrelevant to our actual homework assignment, but you are so right. People such as murderers, or rapists, or child molesters, should not be allowed back onto the streets. That notion is crazy. It might be hard for a person to refrain from stealing, but murder? That's crazy. Why do we let these wackos out of jail? I'm sorry, I can be wordy. This is just an issure that bothers me. Anyways, good job Jake; I do like that point you brought out=)
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ReplyDeleteJ Byrd,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your essay. We had many of the same views on the questions asked of us this week. We both agreed that it wasn’t neccessarily “a knock on the women” so to speak, more of just a customary thing. We also agree on the fact that almost all U.S. citizens should be givent the privilage to vote. Lastly, we also agree that once someone has served their time they should be allowed to vote as long as they don’t pose a threat.
Colby,
ReplyDeleteYour essay was also very interesting to me. You had some of the same views as J Byrd and me. You agree that men didn’t look at the situation as us being surperior but more so us going with the status quo. I also like how you compared voting to land owning and business in the beginning of your essay. Your last paragraph showed a great view on the subject, I think everyone deserving a second chance also applies nicely here.
(1) I personally think that women have the right to vote and have leadership positions and have equal opportunities as men do. One thing that I think that staled women voting is that it has always been only men voting they were not used to anything other. It has always been the men leading making the decisions. Some say because because women are emotional and physically not up to the task, which neither is true. I think it is only that this was the only thing they were ever use to.
ReplyDelete(2) I personally think that there should be some standard that people should have to reach before they gain the right to vote. I mean it is basically useless if someone doesn't know what they vote is going to. I know some might say that some people who have not even graduated high school have made the lives very successful. But look at the majority do most people that don't graduate become great, some can and have but as well some can't even read. But I think that the land ownership thing is gone. For the people who live in large cities could have trouble owning land as a example. But I think that the age limit set is about perfect.
(3) Well on the topic of felons, you also have to view it from both ends. Some people that commit a crime and go to jail, after the sentence is done will just go back and do it again. Maybe have a courts decision on the matter for the first offense but after after two just remove the privilege. Or maybe after the first offense they lose voting rights for like 10 years or a set time after the sentence is complete.
Dsams
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your essay as always. You always manage to bring out things that I hadn’t realized or didn’t know before. I liked your educational input about women’s rights. I knew that the men didn’t want the women to do physical labor but, I didn’t realize exactly how they felt about a woman’s mental capacity. It absolutely appalls me to imagine that a man would feel that a woman could not engage in intellectual conversation or debate. I’m not a feminist. I’m not a doormat either. I like to think that I’m a happy medium. I am perfectly capable of opening the door for myself, but I still appreciate it when my boyfriend opens it for me. I respect him and submit when I know he’s right and has my best interest in mind. However, if I thought he didn’t respect my opinions and intellectual capacities as well, our relationship would be strained to say the least.
Madyson
You made an awesome point about voting. It isn’t just a right, by far, it’s a privilege. So much blood was shed so that we could have that privilege and we fail to really stop and think about. We take it entirely too for granted. Myself included. Even though I can’t vote yet, I know that when I turn 18, that right belongs to me, but I should really stop looking at it as just my right and start think about it more as my privilege.
All of the states with no voting right for women generally viewed women as petite little creatures that should nave been chained to the stove. Since the back bone of political power rested in the east and the belittling opinion of women rested in the east, they went hand in hand in to the sunset and decided to not comeback for sometime.
ReplyDeleteBeing and American citizen should give one the right to vote. It should honestly not matter if a person has been educated or not when it comes to voting rights. If your old enough to fight your old to vote!
Criminals should have the right to vote suspended until their debt to society is repaid. While truly reformed criminals will commit no more crimes some inevitably will return to their old ways. I think criminals who have made petty offenses should be given their rights back while others should still have their rights suspended if they commit a major felony.
Poehner you were right on with your point about women's rights. Nice job.
ReplyDeleteJon your comment on Emily's comment was epic. Saying women were a minority group is nearly crazy. People sometime underestimate women but honestly with women doing men's job in the west and voting in Oregon by 1869 means women did a lot to justify their claim to voting rights. So high five on that Jon.
Anna, I like what you said about how it really bugs you when people vote and have no idea what they are voting for. I just don’t see why people take their privilege to vote and just randomly vote for someone and may not even really agree with what their candidates believe and are going to try to do in office. If people are going to vote for someone they should understand what the candidates are planning on doing. And I also agree that you shouldn’t vote for someone just because of your parents however you should also not vote for someone just because that’s who your parents are voting for. I do think though that you should listen to your parents and why they are voting for who they are and ask them about their views on the other candidates. Then you can form your own opinions on who you believe you should vote for.
ReplyDeleteVanessa I like your comment on David's essay. Its like what we were saying the other day at school that we are capable of doing things just like guys. It bothers me when guys act like if you do anything that you might get hurt or something. Dont get me wrong I like knowing that guys care about me and wants to make sure Im okay but when they act as if you are going to break or that they have to do everything for you Im just like Im a person just like you and its not going to kill me. I dont like feeling as if they think Im helpless because Im not. Although guys we do appreciate when you are kind and caring and do things such as open the doors for us.
ReplyDeleteMichael I really like how you connected the shift from urban seting to the city to the womens suferage movement. you did a really good job. I have been really impressed with your comments this year keep up the good work.
ReplyDeletePoehner once again you brought up some good points in the essay. You are right it is a womens right to vote. You need to keep up the good work with the assignments.
ReplyDelete1.) How did the U.S. justify withholding the right to vote so far into the 20th century? Well im not sure, personally i dont really see how it could be justified. Sure you could argue that women are to emotional, or silly, or something to that degree. But it still isn't a valid justifiable reason. True many women back then didn't do much as far as supporting the family. ( Sure they cooked, sewed an so on but didn't go out an make a living, they socialized a lot. ) If you look at a map for womens suffrage you can see the in the east an more established states that have been around for awhile dont support womens suffrage. The next region of states you look at are like the mid western states that haven't been around as long ans the eastern ones but they are pretty well established. They have partial support of suffrage. And finally the states western states that havent been around as lond and are less established support womens suffrage. This could be because the Eastern states were more established and the women didn't do a whole lot. The mid western states were less well established though not as well and the women maybe had to do a little more being that it was less settled but the states. The western states were unsettled and rough the women had to do more and help support their families. These may be all bid factors as to why it was justified for so long.
ReplyDelete2.) Who should have the right to vote?
First question should education level matter? Well yes and no. I dont think that we have a right to withhold voting priveleges from someone who may not have completed highschool or college or didn't have the best grades. I don't think it's fair. Now i do understand withholding the voting priveleges from someone who is mentally handicapped or something id the don't understand who they are voting for or what they are supporting. i don't think it is possible to be to uneducated to vote. Because you can still understand who your voting for and the extent of the outcome. Should we return to the standard of land ownership? No everone should have the right to vote whether they on land or not. They live in this country and they should have a right to participate in decisions that may affect them as well. And age... I thing the you should be not be able to vote til you 18. You need to have a certain amount of maturity to be able to look at all the aspects of it and determines whats best. At a young age many have not acquired that a may just vote for the first person to say that they will giv them something they want.
3.) Should convicted felons be allowed to vote? Well i could go two ways on this. Sure they may have served their sentence and changed but many don't. Do we really want a murderer voting and deciding on our president? I certainly don't. But then again everone should have a chance. But i think there is a certain line that shouod be drawn and this is one of them. They messed up not us and we shouldn't have to pay for it. So i don't think convicted felons should vote.
Pope i agree with you. If we don't give higher consequences then more people will be enticed to commit a crime. Even if it wasn't a huge deal they knew the law a broke it. it's their fault and they need to pay the penelty.
ReplyDeleteCody i agree with you on felons not having the right to vote in or out of prison. Sure they served their punishment but they also had their chance and they blew it. End of story. Good job on your essay.
ReplyDeleteMadyson good job on your esaay and great point! Voting is a privilege! And we need to treat it as so. We need to go out there and vote and do our part. And that goes back to the convicted felons voting is a privelege. They messed up they get their priveleges taken away. Simple as that. But yes really do agree voting is a privlege.
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