Nutshell #3 “Old Hickory”

The first six presidents of our country had been old money men. Andrew Jackson was not like that. He did not get a college education, he was rather rough around the edges, and as a child he got in several duels. He got the name "Old Hickory" because of his toughness on the battlefield. His election in 1828 signaled the arrival of the so-called New Democracy.Up until about 1815, presidential nominees had been chosen by party caucuses and suffrage had been limited to the propertied few. But by the 1820s, property qualifications were falling away-especially in such newly admitted Western states as a rising middle class was being heard.  Wanting to appeal to this new electorate, Jackson's politicians denounced the caucus system and promoted that, in a democracy, everybody was fit to rule. In his first address to Congress (given late in 1829), Jackson said: “The duties of all public offices are, or at least admit of being made, so plain and simple that men of intelligence may readily qualify themselves for their performance.... In a country where offices are created solely for the benefit of the people no one man has any more intrinsic right to official station than another.” Today's Democrats trace their effectiveness back to Jackson's speech.

One thing I learned from this "nutshell" is that anyone has the power to be a leader. Jackson did not fit the normal type for running for president. He wasn't extremely well off like previous presidents had been. In fact, Jackson was a bit of a rough guy. He was the one who promoted the democracy, which is what we go by now. It will help me in the future because I know that I am capable of being a strong leader in whatever I do. It doesn't matter where I come from I am capable of doing whatever I put my mind to. I can introduce new ideas that I believe will better our world in some way. Jackson's speech led way to our country using a democracy system. Later in life, I too could come up with something powerful and world changing.


To view other nutshells click on the links below:
http://whitney-2011.blogspot.com/2011/02/nutshell-1-bill-of-rights.html for the Bill of Rights
http://christiantsblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/we-hold-these-truths-to-be-self-evident.html

Official: Obama to call for 5-year spending freeze

This week I read an article about Obama calling for a 5 year spending freeze during his State of the Union Address. The main points of the article are:

• A White House official says President Barack Obama will call for a five-year freeze in non-security, discretionary spending during his State of the Union address
• The official says the proposal will be part of the president's plans to reduce the deficit that he will outline in Tuesday's primetime address
• Obama wants lawmakers to back five-year plan put forth by Defense Secretary Robert Gates to save $78 billion in defense spending.
• putting forward a five-year plan put forward by Secretary Gates to achieve $100 billion in defense savings."

President Obama is under a lot of pressure by everyone to cut savings. In his State of the Union Address the President plans on proposing a five-year freeze of defense spending in non-discretionary spending He also wants lawmakers to back his plan to save 78 billion dollars in defense spending. I think that we need to cut spending to help lessen our enormous deficit. I just hope the cuts are what's best for our country.

Worsening conditions loom as rain pummels California

This week I read an article about California's worsening conditions as they continue to get tons of precipitation. The main points of the article are:

• San Joaquin Valley citizens have been cleared to return home after fears of major flooding prompted evacuations.
• estimated 400 to 500 homes were in danger,evacuation recommendation for about 3,000 people was lifted Monday afternoon
•  stormy weather has gripped California since late last week, triggering mostly minor flooding, mudslides, road closures and power outages.
• Virtually the entire state was affected by the bad weather, from coastal cities to the Central Valley, Sierra Nevada and southern deserts.
• Pacific Gas and Electric Co. crews were working to restore power to the last of about 282,000 customers that lost electricity since the storm arrived
• Repair crews braced for predicted winds of up to 45 mph, along with heavy rain and snow in elevated areas

Precipitation in the form of heavy rain and snow continues to fall, and threatens almost the entire state of california with various hardships such as flooding and mudslides. There have been a few casualties, and repair crews are working hard to make sure that people have power and that their homes are safe. They are being very cautious.

It really is awful that California is always dealing with disasters such as mudslides, and it seems like it is almost year round for them I hope that they deal with no further hardships resulting from their worsening weather conditions.

Tax Cuts Brighten still-dim economic outlook

This week I read an article on tax cuts in relation to the economic outlook. The main points of the article are:

• Retailers are reporting a better than expected shopping holiday season. Manufacturers are seeing a pickup in production. And private sector job growth — though still very sluggish — has picked up from the first half of the year
• the outlook also brightened on the news earlier this month that Congress and the White House agreed to keep federal income taxes constant and cut payroll taxes.
• it all adds up to another year of relatively modest growth, not nearly enough to make much of a dent in the painfully high 9.8 percent unemployment rate.
• "The consensus of msnbc.com's Economic Roundtable calls for the gross domestic product to grow just 2.6 percent next year, even a bit slower than the estimated 2.8 percent growth seen in 2010. The unemployment rate is expected to drop only slightly to 9.2 percent by the end of next year, with the most optimistic of our dozen panelists calling for a drop to 8.5 percent."
• "A huge hangover from the housing bust is one of the major factors holding back the economy, with millions of homes still facing likely foreclosure. And high unemployment is holding down consumer spending and creating a cascade of unpleasant consequences, including huge budget shortfalls at every level of government."
• Inflation is also expected to remain low; the consensus estimate sees consumer prices, excluding food and energy, rising just 1 percent next year, about the same as 2010.
• "Despite a pickup in growth next year and in 2012, our forecasters expect the unemployment rate to remain stubbornly high for years to come. The consensus pegs the jobless rate at 9.2 percent by the end of next year and not falling back to pre-recession levels of 5 percent for five to seven years — or longer."

The economy is coming back from the biggest recession since WWII.Our economy is growing modestly. It is not growing enough to notice a major change. Forecasters predict that it will take several years, possibly over seven, before the jobless rate to fall back to pre-recession levels.

We are still facing hardships with our economy continuing to be in rough shape. It is unfortunate that it is not growing at a rate where people can appreciate it, and it make take several years to improve a significant amount. The good news is, it is improving. We are slowly but surely taking steps in the right direction.

NASA halts monkey radiation experiment for now

This week I read an article on NASA's halt on radiation experimenting on squirrel monkeys.
The main points of the article are:

• irradiate squirrel monkeys to better understand the risks of long-duration spaceflight on humans
• called for exposing 27 squirrel monkeys to high-energy gamma-ray radiation so researchers could observe its effects on the monkeys health and task performance
• Animal-rights activists called the project cruel and poorly designed
• NASA has said that studies involving other primates are essential to predicting the neurobehavioral effects of space radiation on humans
• The radiation study would reportedly expose the monkeys to radiation similar to what astronauts would experience on a three-year voyage.

NASA has, for now, stopeed its experiment on squirrel monkeys. They wanted to do this experiment to see the effects that radiation would have on their behavior and health, because astronauts traveling on a three-year voyage would be exposed to similar radiation. Many people feel that this is cruel treatment of animals, and are not at all okay with NASA's research techniques.

China’s army of graduates is struggling

This week I read an article on how despite a booming economy the graduates of China are still struggling. The main points of the article are:

• Often the first from their families to finish even high school, ambitious graduates  are part of an unprecedented wave of young people all around China who were supposed to move the country’s labor-dependent economy toward a white-collar future.
•  "In 1998, when Jiang Zemin, then the president, announced plans to bolster higher education, Chinese universities and colleges produced 830,000 graduates a year. Last May, that number was more than six million and rising."
  It is a remarkable achievement, yet for a government fixated on stability such figures are also a cause for concern.
• "The economy, despite its robust growth, does not generate enough good professional jobs to absorb the influx of highly educated young adults. And many of them bear the inflated expectations of their parents, who emptied their bank accounts to buy them the good life that a higher education is presumed to guarantee."
• “For many young graduates, it’s all about survival. If there was ever an economic crisis, they could be a source of instability.”

China's economy is booming and continually growing. Many graduates of chinese families are the first in their family to do so. Just last May, chinese colleges and universities produced over 6 million graduates which is unbelievably impressive. These numbers also cause concern. Their country does not generate good professional jobs to absorb the influx of highly educated adults. For many young graduates its about survival, because even in their booming economy they could be a source of instability.

I am extremely impressed by the number of graduates China has in a given year. I can only imagine how scary and stressful it would be for the graduates. They empty their parents bank accounts with the hope that they are going to become very successful. Then they are in a very unstable situation where they might not find a job at all. That is so much pressure and stress to be put on a young person.

Authorities: Armed Student Holding Hostages

This week I chose to read an article about a student who was holding hostages in a highschool. The main points of the article are:

• An armed student burst into a high school classroom in eastern Wisconsin on Monday, taking more than 20 students and a teacher hostage
• A Marinette High School administrator called authorities after 3 p.m. to say a student had taken over a classroom
• authorities had been able to communicate with the teacher inside the classroom. No injuries had been reported as of Monday evening and Skorik said no shots had been fired.
• police know the identity of the suspect and have contacted that student's family.

This story is fresh, so these are the most updated details they have at this time. Basically, this student came armed into a classroom, and is continuing to hold the teacher and 20 students hostage.

The thing that frightens me the  most about this story is that the student, at this time, appears to have no motive. That can be the most dangerous kind of armed student. On the positive side, at least the authorities have communication with the teacher in the classroom, and they know who the student is. I can't imagine how scary it would be to be in a hostage situation. I feel for all the students and the teacher that are in that position right now, and I hope that everything turns out alright.