Creating a Strong and Unified America
Motoring down the roadway, I take in blurs of red, white, and blue, whizzing past my scope of vision. I am referring to, of course, the vast number of American flags attached to the cars of local residents and residents throughout the nation. This sudden splurge of patriotism can be attributed to the war, but that is not to say that patriotism has not existed before this war—it has also existed during the course of every American war, along with the cries of anti-war protestors. But does patriotism stand as strong during times of peace? One of the many duties of citizens is to love the nation they are born into because a nation depends on individuals who understand what it means to be a citizen.
To begin understanding citizenship, we must first have an idea of America’s past. In David McCullough’s essay “Why History?” he writes, “The Department of Education reported that more than half of all high school seniors hadn’t even the slightest basic understanding of American History”(88). We must know our history to know where we came from, and according to a speech by Alan Kors, professor of history at the University of Pennsylvania, it is important for us to understand mistakes made by our nation in the past so as to not “…lose sight of human moral weakness…”(9). The moral weaknesses Kors references are anti-Semitism, racial discrimination, corruption of power, and, of course, slavery. Kors explains that we should not look down at our nation for the existence of these flaws, but rather look at how they have been for the most part abolished. America welcomes Jews; racial injustices were addressed in the 14th and 15th Amendments. Slavery, which is “the most universal of all human institutions,”(Kors 9) was dubbed as an immoral practice by American “…values and agency…”(Kors 9) and was abolished.
A nation cannot exist without citizens who understand the morals and values by which it was established and also what responsibilities they must live up to. In an essay by Peter Gomes, he quotes the American judge at the Nuremberg Trials as saying, “…it is the function of the citizen to keep the government from falling into error”(Jackson qtd.
Shaw, Susan M., and Janet Lee. Women's Voices, Feminist Visions: Classic and Contemporary Readings. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2012. Print.
...rained for specialty practices. Two-thirds of today’s PAs work in specialty care. This, therefore, leaves NPs to work in general practice (p. 828). Woolsey and Cutter (n.d) seem to have a different opinion by stating “PAs are generalists while NPs can be either [specialist or generalist] depending on the area of medicine they practice” (para. 5). They go on to explain that PAs are trained to generalize, so that they can hop from one area to another (Woolsey & Cutter, n.d., para.5). PAs have the ability to specialize if they complete a residency program, but one important thing to note is that a PA is still documented as a generalist whether or not they have specialized (Woolsey & Cutter, n.d., para.5). Woolsey and Cutter (n.d.) then note that NPs often have to have a national certification in a nursing specialty before they can practice within a specialty (para.5).
Nurse practitioners (NPs), one type of advanced practice nurses, are licensed by the states where they practice and certified by private boards. Nurse practitioners hold advanced degrees in clinical practice and function in a wide variety of settings and across the life span. They provide a broad array of healthcare services ranging from managing treatment plans, to prescribing medications, to implementing health promotion services. As of 2014, 205,000 NPs were licensed in the United States with 86% of those prepared to deliver care to patients in primary care settings (NP Facts, 2015). The progression of the Nurse Practitioner movement that occurred in the 1960 and 1970s emerged as a creative and
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Inside Literature. Ed. R. S. Gwynn and Steven J. Zani. New York, New York: Longman Publishers, 2007. 144-158.
The United States is presently at war in Iraq and Afghanistan where American troops are fighting and dying. At home, cars and homes display solid yellow or red, white, and blue ribbons that call for Americans to “Support Our Troops.” It is patriotic for Americans to support their daughters and sons fighting in a war, but this patriotism does not mean that Americans must blindly support the decision to go to war. Being patriotic means that Americans must do the opposite: they must question their government. Questioning the government, voting, and respecting the rights of others are what makes true patriots in a democratic society; blind following of one’s government creates dictatorships.
In times of war, such as these, the importance for everyone to know where they stand on the idea of patriotism so they can voice or enact their opinion to the government and the people around them in a more clear and fair fashion is multiplied. The idea of patriotism can often be an obscure one, and during times of heightened security patriotism is a more spoken upon subject. Discussing the many different views of what patriotism means is a key step in better defining patriotism for all people. Barbara Kingsolver says in her article, “My patriotic duty is to recapture my flag from the men now waving it in the name of jingoism and censorship” (Pg. 2). What she means by this is that the idea of patriotism is being morphed into something it is not. She believes patriotism should encourage free speech and criticism of our leaders in times of difficult decisions. Instead, what is happening is patriotism is suggesting more fascist ideals than democratic ideals. Barbara believes her duty is to recapture the true meaning of patriotism and let everyone know what that meaning is. She wants everyone to feel open towards voicing t...
In 1990 a group of educators, called the National Task Force for Family Nurse Practitioner Curriculum and Evaluation, created the initial curriculum guidelines for nurse practitioners (Graduate nurse practitioners education competencies, n.d.).Today, the NONPF represents most NP educational institutions worldwide and they continue to develop/improve the NP competencies and guidelines in order to prepare healthcare professionals across the world (Graduate nurse practitioners education competencies,
Gilman, Charlotte Perkins. “The Yellow Wallpaper.” Booth, Alison and Kelly J. Mays, eds. The Norton Introduction to Literature. 10th ed. New York: Norton, 2010. 354-65. Print.
But again, the creation of our government was only the application of ink to paper, it can only succeed if the conditions of democracy, our social contract, are observed and “we the people” play an active role in its workings. Aristotle, one of the first democratic thinkers in history said, “If liberty and equality, as is thought by some are chiefly to be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in the government to the utmost.” As citizens we must be participants in order to preserve liberty and equality. We hold to our end of the social contract by obeying the law, and respecting the rights and liberties of others “For to be free” said Nelson Mandela “is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.” Furthermore as citizens we must be informed and participate in the political process in a meaningful manner, if we don’t understand the issues at hand there is no way that we can defend our personal liberties and interests. We don’t have to all be professionals in the field of politics, this is one way that our representative form of government protects us, but we do have to understand the basic issues and be able to voice our opinions about those. By all these means, we as citizens have the solemn duty to defend the principles that made and keep our country
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning is a novel following the rebellious life of twenty-two year old Arthur Seaton. Arthur spends his weekdays working at a bicycle factory and relaxes on weekends with plenty of drinks while in the company of various lady friends. The novel was written by Alan Sillitoe who came to be known as one of the “angry young men.” This group of writers was a dominant literary force during the 1950s and was immensely popular due to their accurate portrayal of postwar Britain and the working class. The angry young men produced a number of books (amongst other things) expressing their contempt with the class system, postwar welfare state and the lack of class change post war, the disdain of these issues are very prominent throughout Sillitoe’s novel.
Popham, W. James. “Standardized Achievement Tests: Misnamed and Misleading.” Education Week. September 2001. Web. 28 June 2015.
Peterson, Linda H. "What Is Feminist Criticism?" Wuthering Heights. Ed. Linda H. Peterson. Boston: Bedford Books, 1992. 330-337.
Greenblatt, Stephen. The Norton Anthology Of English Literature. 8th. A. W W Norton & Co Inc, 2006.
Abrams, M. & Greenblatt, S. 2000. The Norton Anthology of English Literature 7th ed. Vol. 2. London: Norton.
Genetic engineering is a way in which specific genes for an animal or plant can be extracted, and reproduced to form a new animal or plant. These new organisms will express the required trait for that gene. This practice is a very controversial topic within the scientific world. It is being implemented in various areas such as agriculture even though there are many alternatives that can be found for genetic engineered crops, such as organic materials and reducing leeching of the soil. The controversy regarding this practice occurs as it is believed to contribute both negative and positive implications and dangers, not only to oneself but the environment as a whole. Genetic engineering increases the agricultural economy, the yields of agricultural produce, and also causes negative effects on the ecosystem.