Module 7: Generation's of Ideology

I think ideology changes with every generation. A word that somes up ideology to me is, common sense. But what is common sense? Frankly that is another question to be answered, but for the short of it, common sense is the average persons way of thinking. Ideology goes back to the French Revolution and the early days of the U.S. President Jefferson was a philosopher of political ideology. His philosophy was to set morals, princibles, ethics, and ideals to how he believed society should be governed. His thoughts were that people of American society should talk, walk, dress, act, look and behave all the same. Indians could have their hair cut, taught english and given decent clothes to wear. Morals of slavery was ideology, people were either for slavery or against slavery, no in betweens. But like I said at the beginning, I think ideology changes in every generations. Go back to the 1950's were women were "suppose" to be proper, wear a skirt, leg stalkings, and keep their hair in a bun. They worked in the house, cleaned and cooked. Up until the mid 1970's, that ideology was engrained in Americans head of how women should keep themselves. Now look at today. Society has changed so much that both men and women work full-time and usually until the age of 65-ish. We rely on some much goods just to get through one single day. Coffee shops are on every corner; dont forget you $3.00 cup of coffee. Yet we drive by the gas station and complain how expensive it is, after we just paid $3.00 for a cup of coffee while at the same time, we are forced to pay such and such amount for gas because thats how we get our coffee, get to work, go to the gym, stop by trader joes, and eventually land back at home just to go to bed and get up the next day to do it all over again. I've have never been to Europe, but a few of m friends have, and they say that European culture is way relaxed than our in the U.S. Marketing and manufacturing have us Americans by the arm...we consume and complain so much, but our society is always willing to follow the leader instead of standing up to it.

Module 6: Was there just one slavery in British North America and the United States?

Slavery is slavery. If a human being is bought, sold and considered owned, than that make the person a slave. The use of a slave is always different though. In the South, most slaves worked on plantations and in the fields picking and planting crops. However, as some people do not know, the North had it's numbers of slaves as well.

Generally, however, as the numbers of slaves were fewer in the North than in the South, the controls and tactics were less severe. African slavery is so much the outstanding feature of the South, in the unthinking view of it, that people often forget there had been slaves in all the old colonies. Slaves were auctioned openly in the Market House of Philadelphia; in the shadow of Congregational churches in Rhode Island; in Boston taverns and warehouses; and weekly, sometimes daily, in Merchant's Coffee House of New York. Such Northern heroes of the American Revolution as John Hancock and Benjamin Franklin bought, sold, and owned black people. William Henry Seward, Lincoln's anti-slavery Secretary of State during the Civil War, born in 1801, grew up in Orange County, New York, in a slave-owning family and amid neighbors who owned slaves if they could afford them. The family of Abraham Lincoln himself, when it lived in Pennsylvania in colonial times, owned slaves(1).

People of the colonial times didnt know any better. Society in that era approved the ownership of black slaves and frankly didn't see anything wrong with it. It's a reflief to know that not only the South owned slaves, but so did the great northern colonies as well as some famous historical characters.

-(1) Slavery in the North. Douglas Harper, 2003. www.slavenorth.com.

Module 5

Was the Revolution, "revolutionary?"

A revolution is defined as a fundamental change in politcal organization; especially the overthrow or renunciation of one government or ruler and the substitution of another by the governed. By the defination of a revolution and the outcome of the Revolutionary War, my answer would be yes, the war was revolutionary. America wanted seperation from the British Empire and to become an indepentant country of its own without the rule of the Parliment. America's view's were different of those established by Britian and American colonists lead and marched in many protests and boycotts. The cause was to create independence for America, govern themselves and to have a direct say in what they were governed. By this victory, the thirteen colonies distingusihed themselves and the United State of America. They also wrote a Declaration of Indenpendence which defined their rule over their mother country. With this defeat, I feel that the Revolutionary War was definatley a revolution for this country and it people then and now.

Module 4

Who benefits from a strong nation government? in what ways?

-In the early days of this countries upbringing, the only people that really benefited from a strong national government were the wealthy. They are the one's who could afford to pay taxes, who's voted was counted or even considered. The rich were looked at as powerful people in that time period and the society in which they were classified. For the poorer people of the colonial times, even having a strong government didnt matter or help them in any ways. The poor whites people to the captivated slaves were given no assistance and relief toward good direction in aid to get on track.

In todays soceity i believe everyone benefits from a strong national government. Programs to assists the homeless and poverty stricken people are available to lend helping hands. The rich still benefited as they did in the early colonial times.

Examine the conflicts in Greece and that there shows you what happens when your countries government structure is collapsing. However, the U.S. is always there to assist. I used to always wonder why the U.S was so involved with other countries problems while we have are own here. But without U.S. assistance, or country would suffer from other countries problems from trading to stock markets, a lot would suffer in which could cause us to collapse. Im proud to be from the United States and an American. We may be going through hard times at this current time, but we always manage to rebound, pick ourselves up and continue being the greatest country in the world.

Slave Codes established in Colonial North America

WHEREAS, the plantations and estates of this Province cannot be well and sufficiently managed and brought into use, without the labor and service of negroes and other slaves; and forasmuch as the said negroes and other slaves brought unto the people of this Province for that purpose, are of barbarous, wild, savage natures....it is absolutely necessary, that constitutions, laws and orders, should in this Province be made and enacted, for the good regulating and ordering of them....

Slaves codes were laws that reinforced the thought that blacks were nothing but working animals to the white plantation owners. They lived in small shacks on dirt floors with mostly no furniture or way to have comfort. Six days out of the week is how much labor they endured, most of the time from sun up to sun down, meaning the the hot days of summer were long. Often the plantation owner had a foreseer, a person that enforced the days work, and more so than not the overseer was harsh, unsimpathetic, and violent. However, the plantation owner wanted to make sure his property, the slaves, were worth his investment and would often do away with the foreseer due to his property being over worked to much and lack of accomplishment was getting done around the plantation.

There is nothing in todays society, of the United States, that even comes close to the centuries that allowed slavery. State and federal prisons of today seems like a vacation when you compare it the days of slavery. If i was given a choice, to either be sent to todays prison or sent back into the early colonial days as a slave and maybe have a chance at freedom by escape, I would choose a modern day prison sentence. Atleast if you try to escape prison, a few years just get tacked on more to you initial sentence as where if you were a slave that had been captured, you better start saying your prayers. Whipping was the punishment most black slaves were given for just about everything that violated the codes. Black slaves were truely treated like animals and to me, thats just plain discusment. I am thankful for the society that I live in today, even though curruption and wrong doing still exists, nothing as bad as slavery will ever be repeated.

sources:

South Carolina Code

Module 2

Every story has two sides. It all depends on who you hear it from. To me, Zinn's book tells the whole story, both sides. We all know how Christopher Columbus discovered American and lived happily ever after. In my high school history classes, I do not recall ever learning about the greed Columbus had for gold nor the cruelty he supressed onto the natives.

In todays society, it seems that cover up's of political mess ups and governmental wrong doings are only half way told. We hear the side of the story that gives us information that yes, something the government did or that politican messed up because, is only partially told to us Ameican's while what's really is going on behind that curtain is unknown of. There's been so many conspiracies noted as to why the stock market crashed a couple of years ago, but no actually reason has ever been put out into the public limelight. What a lot of people also dont know is that many of the CEO's that where running the corporation's that went bankrupt and asked for bailouts, are now working as our current Presidents financial advisors and other postions within his cabinet.

I am excited to know what else I may discover while reading Zinn's book. I respect his boldness and not beat around the bush type of writting. Like he says, "I don't want to invent victories for people's movements." I think what he means by that is, he's not writting this book to sugarcoat historical events and make the reader feel that he's picking sides, he's not. Zinn is provided us readers with discriptive events that occured during a time of what a lot of people believe where remarkable discoveries and positive historical highlights.

Intro

My name is Garrett Morgan. I am originally from Olympia, WA, about an hour south of Seattle for those of you who have ever visited. I am living in the Bay Area now due to work, I am active duty military, U.S. Coast Guard. I have been in the Coast Guard for almost twelve years now. It has taken me all over the U.S. and i've been able to visit many historical sites as we may learn about in the class. I have been stationed so far in Alaska, Washington state, Oregon, Tennessee, and of course here in California. Besides work, school, and time with my wife and dog, I am an avid mountain biker and surfer. I hope to leave this class with a better appreciation for those who walked before us and shaped this country into what it is today.