Blog #45 - Drop the atomic bomb? Yes or no?

Time: August 1, 1945

Your job: An advisor to President Truman.

The issues:
1. What is the best way to get Japan to surrender without invading?
2. Should we use the atomic bomb to force Japan to surrender?  If so, how should it be used?
3. Do we go ahead with the invasion of Japan (overall known as Operation Downfall)? see link for info on Downfall.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Downfall

Scenario: 
America has fought defeated Germany already, getting them to surrender earlier this year in May and Japan is the lone target for all of the Allies. 

The Soviet Union has planned to attack Japanese troops in northern China soon, and you are worried about the Soviets' influence in both Asia and Europe after World War 2.  They have already begun installing Communist governments in Eastern Europe, in defiance of the Yalta Peace Conference agreement. 

Secretary of State James Byrnes feels that using the atomic bomb will send a signal to the Soviets to stop expanding, yet America needs their help to defeat the Japanese in China.  America has been given the sole task of invading the mainland islands of Japan. 

Another thing to consider is that Japan currently holds tens of thousands of Allied prisoners of war around Asia.  What would happen to them if an invasion of Japan occurred?  Would they all be massacred by the soldiers watching them? 

One more thing to consider is Admiral Leahy's recommendation: Don't use the bomb but stop all shipping to the island, essentially quarantine Japan, and wait them out until they surrender.  The Japanese may not surrender until they know that their emperor is safe because they see him as a god on Earth. 

Intelligence sources are picking up information that some Japanese officials have contacted the Soviet Union about possible surrender, but nothing official has been announced.  The Soviets may or may not cooperate with us in reaching a surrender agreement. 

As of now, Operation Olympic (phase 1 of Downfall) is planned for the invasion to take place on November 1 later this year.  Because of the heavy defenses on the mainland of Kyushu, the Army Chief of Staff is predicting 450,000 casualties, including 100,000 dead just within 90 days.  That total is significantly greater than any single battle we have ever seen in American history. 



In order for Operation Downfall to work, Olympic must be successful, so that we can launch Operation Coronet (phase 2 of Downfall) in March 1946 which would invade the main island of Honshu close to Tokyo. 

We have to consider the possibility that the Japanese may not surrender after dropping the two atomic bombs and that we will have to go through with Operation Downfall.  The big question is, the Japanese are weary of war as we are, especially since they've been fighting it since 1937, so would they surrender after being hit with the most destructive bomb in the history of mankind? 

In your response (answer #1 and #2 or #3), 
1. Consider the options listed above - which options seem most likely to get the Japanese to surrender? Why?
2. If you recommend that President Truman use the bomb(s), how do we use it?  What is your rationale? 
3. If you recommend that President Truman go ahead with the invasion, what would be the impact on America from such horrific casualties? 

300 words minimum.  Due Monday, December 17th by class.  

Blog #44 - Flat tax or Progressive Tax

During this week, we discussed the 16th Amendment and the income tax - its fairness and unfairness. Its opponents have proposed a flat tax that everyone pays the same rate across the board: 20%. That way, if you earn more, you technically pay more. So, in some ways it sounds progressive. If you see the chart below, this is where almost all of our tax income comes from: 
  The biggest portion comes (47%) comes from income taxes.  Another portion comes from payroll taxes (32%) and then corporate taxes are the third biggest chunk (13%) as of fiscal year 2016.  

The argument for the flat tax focuses on several arguments:
1. It eliminates special- interests by treating all taxpayers equally. Taxpayers will no longer be able to "scam the system by hiring enough lawyers, accountants and lobbyists."
2. It will boost economic growth by allowing businesses and investors to invest more money (saved by not giving as much money in taxes) into other businesses and ventures.
3. It eliminates the capital gains tax, the estate tax (other people call it the "death tax"), and double taxes on savings (taxed once when you earn it and it's deposited into the bank and then twice at the end of the year as part of your income though it already is in your bank account).
4. It's amazingly simple. Household income tax forms are now done on a postcard. It also treats all businesses the same: "Microsoft to a hot dog stand would play by the same rules."

Arguments for the progressive tax include:
1. All Americans benefit from two of our government's responsibilities, protection (police, firefighters, public health, military) and empowerment (roads, public education, banking system for loans and economic stability, SEC for the stock market, courts, national parks, public buildings, etc.), and they should be available to everyone. We are financially responsible to maintain these so that they may be used for the common good. These protections are maintained through taxes.
2. The wealthy (corporations, investors and other wealthy individuals) pay more into the system because "our taxes create and sustain, [and] empower the wealthy in myriad ways to create (and sustain) their wealth." In other words, they have benefited from the system in place, they should pay to maintain it.

"Consider Bill Gates...Though he has undoubtedly benefited from his unusual
intelligence and business acumen, he could not have created or sustained his
personal wealth without the common wealth [of the United States]. The legal
system protected Microsoft's intellectual property and contracts. The
tax-supported financial infrastructure (phones, electricity, Internet) enabled
him to access capital markets and trade his stock in a market in which investors
have confidence. He built his company with many employees educated in public
schools and universities. Tax-funded research helped develop computer science
and the internet..." and so on.

3. The wealthy are morally obligated to sustain the American system b/c they benefit more from it than the average American. "Ordinary people rarely use the courts; most of the courts are used for corporate law and contract disputes." Therefore, the rich pay more than the poor or middle class b/c the rich utilize the system more often to create and sustain their wealth.  Their wealth is protected from useless lawsuits in courts and by laws.  

So, I think we have two very persuasive arguments here, but I think we're missing the real questions that we should be asking. The questions we should be asking are: 
1. What are we spending our money on? 
2. Why are we spending so much of our money instead of letting the American people spend it? 
3. Why do we have such a huge national debt? 
4. What can we do about it? 

If you see the chart below, the U.S. federal government spend almost 4 trillion dollars a year:
 1/3 of the budget goes to programs like Social Security and unemployment (not sure what labor means in this graph).  27% goes to pay for Medicare and other federal health programs.  16% of our total budget goes towards military spending, and 6% of the budget just goes to pay for the interest on the national debt (which is currently $21 trillion and growing - see National Debt link below).  That's like paying the minimum amount due on a credit card without paying the balance off. 

We can pressure our Congressmen and women about spending too much by writing letters / emails. You are the future voters. Get educated now about the National Debt.   Check here for an up-to-date look at the National Debt - http://www.usdebtclock.org/

Your job: 
1. Which do you think is a fairer tax - the flat tax or progressive tax?   Why? 
2. If you were rich, which tax would you prefer and why? 
3. Since our federal government is spending more than it is bringing in, how do you think the federal government should stop this deficit?  Decrease spending or raise taxes?  Both?  Why?  If we're cutting spending, where do we cut and why?  If we raise taxes, who pays and why?  

300 words minimum for all three questions.  Due Monday, October 22 by class.  

Blog #43 - Your favorite top 3 inventions of the past 200 years

In the next few days, we will talk about the most influential inventions and concepts that have changed human life for the better or worse, initially in our short lives, and then we expanded it to the past 200 years (of course, the Snuggie is right up there in the Top 1 Million Inventions of the Decade).

There are many inventions from the past few hundred years that would qualify as being the best.  They include, but are not limited, to:

 - antibiotics, painkillers, refrigerators, televisions, telephones, harnessing the use of electricity, light bulb, airplanes, computers, calculators, air conditioning (I think that's in my selfish top 3), duct tape (someone insisted on putting it on the board), the car, steam engine, gasoline engine, light saber, and many others.

Your job in this blog is to think of how your life and your parents' and grandparents' lives would have been amazingly different w/o the top three inventions that you have chosen.  Ask your parents and / or grandparents, aunts, uncles or other family members for perspective on technology, b/c we have a hard time looking past the few years we've lived in.  Right now, I don't know how I've lived w/o cell phones, but I obviously had for over 20+ years.  Now, try finding a pay phone.  But my personal favorite invention in the past 200 yrs (mainly b/c I'm not a huge fan of going outside in the middle of the night when ya gotta go) is the flushing toilet, right along w/ toilet paper.  It has made life so much more comfortable.  You can laugh, but think of having a pit toilet / outhouse in your back yard, and having to go there in the middle of the night.  In the winter. I know, the girls, you would hold it, but the boys.... you're gross.  

Here's an article that can get you thinking about what are your top 3 inventions of all time: http://www.londonip.co.uk/20-groundbreaking-inventions-from-the-last-100-years/ 

Your job: List your favorite or most significant top 3 inventions of the past 200 years and explain why.  Provide a good solid paragraph explanation for each invention and why you think it's significant or your favorite.  

Due Monday, Sept. 24 by class.  300 words minimum.  

Blog #42 - "Prisoner of War camps" = Indian Reservations?

For most American history books, we see that they talk about the Indians almost always when they are being pushed off of their land by Europeans (King Philip’s War, Powhatan War, Seminole War, Indian Removal Act) or when they fight back (Battle of Little Bighorn, Red Cloud’s War) or after being indiscriminately massacred (Sand Creek and Wounded Knee Massacres).  Few cover the decimation of disaeases that faced the Native Americans when the Europeans first arrived.  Even fewer touch on 20th Century issues and laws regarding education, reservation (and sale of Indian land), tribal recognition, citizenship, Termination policy in the 1950s or other Indian policies like the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.  Our textbooks might talk about AIM or the standoff at Wounded Knee in 1973, but just as an inclusion of many minority groups in the chapter on the late 1960s / early 1970s. There might even be something about the seizure of Alcatraz Island by Native Americans. But rarely anything is heard after that.

In the following disturbing and moving video, photographer Aaron Huey lists the many things done (in the name of America) to the Lakota Sioux tribe.  He juxtaposes the lists of broken treaties and promises and horrific things with his own photos of the Lakota tribe at Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.

Aaron Huey’s wish is that the American government honor the treaties and give back the Black Hills.  To atone for America’s sins, to use such a phrase, can anything truly be done?  Where, if anywhere, should Americans start to make up for what has been done to the Native Americans?   Is it right that we should speak in such manner as atoning for sins or asking for forgiveness?  Or do you feel that you have nothing to ask forgiveness for since these things had been done before you were born?  

What responsibility do we have to Native Americans?

One major thing to consider is that though we may not have been personally responsible for oppressing the Native Americans, we benefit from the results of past policies of our government towards Native Americans (and even from past colonial practices).

 - Should we replace Columbus Day with Indigineous Peoples’ Day?

 - Should we push Congress to rescind the Medals of Honor distributed to the 7th Cavalry handed out after the Wounded Knee Massacre in 1890?

 - Should reservations be abolished? Or should those that exist still remain yet receive generous help?

 - Should the Washington football team, the Cleveland Indians, or Atlanta Braves be forced to take new mascot names?

 - What can we learn from Canada and the way they have treated and honored their Native Americans?

 - Should we continue to oppose the Dakota Access Pipeline (since President Trump has rescinded President Obama’s cancellation of it) or other industrial things that impact the environment of Native American reservations?

 - Should Native Americans be given back their religious ceremonial artifacts, tens of thousands of which sit in museums, some on display, others locked in vaults? 

In finishing up the research for this blog (including reading chapters of the book, “All the Real Indians Died Off”: And 20 Other Myths About Native Americans by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz) I found that Congress passed, as part of an appropriations bill, a resolution called the Native American Apology Resolution in 2009.  Introduced by Republican senator from Kansas, Sam Brownback, he said the reason he did this was “to officially apologize for the past ill-conceived policies by the US Government toward the Native Peoples of this land and re-affirm our commitment toward healing our nation’s wounds and working toward establishing better relationships rooted in reconciliation.”

Furthermore:

The Apology Resolution states that the United States, “apologizes on behalf of the people of the United States to all Native Peoples for the many instances of violence, maltreatment, and neglect inflicted on Native Peoples by citizens of the United States.”

The Apology Resolution also “urges the President to acknowledge the wrongs of the United States against Indian tribes in the history of the United States in order to bring healing to this land.”

The Apology Resolution comes with a disclaimer that nothing in the Resolution authorizes or supports any legal claims against the United States and that the Resolution does not settle any claims against the United States.

The Apology Resolution does not include the lengthy Preamble that was part of S.J Res. 14 introduced earlier this year by Senator Brownback.  The Preamble recites the history of U.S. – tribal relations including the assistance provided to the settlers by Native Americans, the killing of Indian women and children, the Trail of Tears, the Long Walk, the Sand Creek Massacre, and Wounded Knee, the theft of tribal lands and resources, the breaking of treaties, and the removal of Indian children to boarding schools.

Please watch the Ted Talk by Aaron Huey, consider the above questions, and then:

1. Tell us your reactions to the Ted Talk;
2. Discuss your thoughts / concerns about how to acknowledge the debt America owes Native Americans and why.

400 words minimum for both answers total. Due Wednesday, Sept. 12 by class.