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So maybe you got angry about the mess the government has gotten us into with the national debt. Wait a minute. Did the government get us into it? Or did U.S. citizens groove to the "Don't Worry - Be Happy" melody the politicians were singing? Remember we live in a democracy where every citizen over 18 years of age can cast his or her vote. Maybe all that happened is what the wit H. L. Mencken said would: |
"Democracy is the theory
that the common people know what they want
and deserve to get it good and hard."
| But you all did something most people don't: you became informed and actively involved in communicating your opinions to your elected officials. Do you feel as powerful as you are? You should.
You've seen that complex issues can be viewed from different perspectives. You've also see lots of Web pages, some from non-profit organizations, some from universities, plenty from citizens just like yourselves. What did you think about when you came upon certain pages? Did you question what agenda the writer may have had? Did you wonder about the person's expertise? What about this WebQuest? Did you notice the use of monopoly-type characters? What might this suggest? Why was the scribbly writing used instead of more formal depression-era fonts? And you thought you were finished asking questions for a while... |
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Created May, 1996. Last revised February, 2005 by Tom March, 
tom at ozline dot comApplications Design Team/Wired Learning http://www.kn.pacbell.com/wired/democracy/conc.html Copyright © 1996 - 2005 SBC Communications -- All Rights Reserved |