This is a graded discussion: 20 points possible
WEEK 1: POLITICS IN OUR DAILY LIVES
As you discuss this with one another, let’s not forget to comment on other people’s experiences. Have you experienced similar situations? Can you think of creative ways in which politics plays itself out in your daily life?
Two renowned political scientists, Harold Laswell and David Easton, have some pretty succinct ideas as to just what politics is. Laswell said it is the process of determining “who gets what, when, and how,” while Easton defined it as “the authoritative allocation of values.”
Regardless of how it’s defined, politics by itself is useless without the mechanisms to execute its objectives. That’s where government comes into play. Government provides the structure, laws, and rules by which politics can then operate. Politics then provides the conversation of how these frameworks are used and interpreted within society.
Given this, let’s discuss how politics played a role in your life by providing an example (whether positive or negative). Please remember to review your classmates’ posts and comment on them so we can have a robust and on-going discussion.
Recently my sister visited me from Australia, so in order to have her stay in contact with me while i was at work, we decided to go buy her a phone. We got to the store and she offered to pay for the phone. She was hilariously shocked when she was finally asked to pay more than the phone initially cost. She told the cashier “but you did not tell me about tax”. It is funny to me now, but she wasn’t laughing then. Apparently, she wasn’t used to the hidden tax fees where she came from. But with that not withstanding, i enjoy the fact that there is the policy of getting our taxes back at the end of the year.
Taxes are an evil necessity! Politics plays a big part on who pays what amount of taxes. Our president won’t release his tax statements. I know that owning business and land will help decrease your tax bracket. But when you don’t have the money to have a business or land/home why should you pay more taxes than someone with significantly higher income? There seems to be a lot of tax loops that benefit the rich. Who makes those laws? The rich? Those in power? This is true politics at its best!
Angelica
Hello Michelle, Great Post! I agree with you when you speak about taxes and politics! Taxes are added to everything we purchase. I use to think the “Tax free weekend” was truly tax free until i worked in a clothing store a couple of years back. When we did the tax free weekend, the prices were raised in order to cover what the tax would be. It was ridiculous! I think it’s awful how some people have to pay higher taxes than others, even when they make less money. On the other hand we live in a world where if you bring in a large amount of money, there is a tax cut for you. That makes no sense to me. People are barely making it as it is and the government isn’t making life for some any better. This was a great post!
Hi Michelle,
I agree! Hidden taxes are absurd. I have traveled to different countries myself and you just do not see that in other places. Taxes are a very confusing thing to understand. I recently started to file my own taxes. We do not realize that not only do we pay taxes but must pay to file them as well. We are essentially paying to receive our own money.
Funny you mentioned this Michelle. Last night I was looking over my pay stub and since I live in a different state and work in another state, I am being taxed for both. Iv already paid close to $3000 dollars in taxes. I may as well find a job where I live and have an extra $3000 or atlas half in my pocket throughout the year. It’s disturbing how politics play a role in our daily lives.
Yes taxes can be a huge shock to someone that’s not accustom to paying them. I live in an area with a fairly high tax rate and even being used to them they can be pretty disturbing when purchasing a high priced item. I feel like some taxes are needed and as long as the money is truly used as it is supposed to then it is OK. Some taxes really bother me though such as school district taxes that I have no option but to pay even though we send our kids to a private school which we pay a significant amount each month for.
~Kyle
Taxes, unfortunately, are something that must be paid. I too have made several recent online purchases, and when I went to purchase my items, the price seemed to go up drastically, all in part to taxes. It’s interesting to me, that not everyone has hidden tax fees as we do here in the states – that must be nice!
On another note, I noticed that you mentioned that with not having to withstand taxes, that they do not get a tax refund check. Getting our taxes back at the end of the year is always a plus, and I feel like it keeps many of us are looking forward to getting that little bit of money back and it makes it seem, maybe just a little easier paying so much in taxes throughout the year.
This was a very interesting post and I’m glad that you brought up topics about taxes that I know I haven’t thought of!
References:
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2017). Political Science: An Introduction (14th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
It is absolutely true that there is power struggle between the professor’s and the staff. this can be based on a variety of factors but it is completely unacceptable. I mean if anything should affect the student’s morale then it should be abandoned. therefore, campus politics needs to go away to enable student’s learn with ease.
Your example is a sad but real one. I can’t help but relate and say I see the same thing happen in healthcare. The political power struggle among “Leadership,” “Executive Leadership” and those moving up the latter is a real issue. These struggles often spill over to the grassroots level and affect productivity, efficiency and morale. I myself in a leadership role often find myself in the midst of these political battles and I at time feel like I am in a dictatorship rather than democracy just to prove “power.”
Definitely one of the things in my current role I struggle with and also affects my morale at times.
Michelle
Professor Terwilliger & Classmates
How politics play a role in my life: Lets go back again and talk about sports, specifically the NFL and players kneeling. It is presumed that kneeling is against the law, however, “The first amendment protects people from being forced to participate in patriotic ceremonies that offend their conscience or beliefs”. It is my opinion that as a Fan attending a planned family event, what I do not want to see is my day turning into a political arena. I find it disrespectful that not standing for the national anthem has turned to this political outcry. Its unjustifiable. I am so glad that the fans are now voicing their outrage and that Sponsors for these players are being boycott. For example Colin Kaepernick, the first NFL player to kneel and giving the world the silent treatment is now blackballed and is now being held accountable for his actions, is unable to find employment in the NFL!
I respect what my dad did for our country, He proudly served in two major wars to protect us and I will never be satisfied with someone kneeling for our anthem.
Kneeling should be done for prayer. There are other ways to display beliefs and the NFL players kneeling in such a manner is not one of them. In our book they describe “Culture as human behavior that is learned as opposed to inherited. Rational is based on the ability to reason. Irrational is based on the power to use fear and myth to cloud reason”. Roskin (2014 pg.9) This is what politics is all about. So therefore,this is what irritates me at the moment, especially when we have so many stressors in our life. When on our day off we want a day of relaxation and quality time with our family, it is just that we seek.
Reference
Political Science: An Introduction 13th edition 2014
Michael G. Roskin, Robert L. Cord, James A. Medeiros and Walter S. Jones
Damaris, you bring up an excellent example about politics in the NFL. Professional athletes have taken their social status or even their political power to make a statement. “Political power is the ability of one person to get another to do something (Rotskin, Cord, Mederios, & Jones, 2017, p.7).” Indirectly, NFL players do not realize that they are influencing a generation. I agree with you that there is a time and a place.
Reference:
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2017). Political Science: An Introduction (14th Ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
I agree that kneeling for the national anthem is a poor choice for NFL players to voice an opinion. When did it become acceptable in our society to do these things. It’s always been please rise, gentlemen remove your caps for the playing (singing, etc..) of our national anthem. My dad also served in Vietnam War and held positions in the national guard for many years after his tour. He like myself is very disgusted about people kneeling during the national anthem. In our text, it expands irrational power by saying that “leaders who use irrationalist techniques start believing their own propaganda and lead their nations to war, economic ruin, or tyranny” (Roskin, 2017, p. 9). Is this were our country is headed? The NFL has so many other outlets to voice or protest that using something sacred like the national anthem is not only disrespectful but a disgrace to our nation.
Thanks, A’lon
Source:
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2017). Political Science: An Introduction (14th Ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.
I also agree with your stance on the NFL kneeling. These players are in the entertainment business and nothing more. For so long celebrities have tried to push their own political views on the masses that tune into their movies and shows. This influence is difficult to escape with television and social media becoming more and more what people relate too, and less about family and real world talk. To go back to my initial point of players being in the entertainment business. I feel that when we all clock into our jobs whether is be as a nurse, teacher, or plumber we are there to do a specific job. When I clock into my work my political views regarding my religious beliefs, political beliefs, and any other beliefs are left at the door. I am their to do a specific job that is governed by it’s own policies and I agreed to them when I accepted employment. My employer does not worry about hurting my feelings when I do not agree with a certain policy. It is time for the NFL to stand up and do the same thing. The players are being paid healthy sums, on the backs many Americans that contribute to their paychecks. Their job is not to change our minds on certain issues when they are being paid to entertain and play football
Michelle,
I enjoyed reading your take on this subject and the comparison of the NFL players treating their “jobs” like the rest of us. I agree most of us are not “allowed” to discuss our political or religious views at work to policy, ethical reason or conflict of interest to name a few. However, where I disagree with you is that NFL players only job is to entertain and play football. One of the many jobs of an NFL player, like many other professional athletes , are being role models in the country. I believe that one of the great things about our country is being able to have an opinion and being allowed to stand up for what we believe in. The NFL players just like everyone else living in this country have the right to freedom of speech. I think it is important for these role models to speak up and be a voice if they feel necessary.
Very good and very hot topic at the moment. While i agree that there is an issue which these NFL players have the right to stand up for, i disagree with the way that it has been addressed. Kneeling for the national anthem is a complete disrespect to all of the men and women who were either drafted or have chosen to fight for their country’s freedom. I feel that this is one of many examples of the imbalance of power when it comes to celebrities. Celebrities have a platform, but often lack the knowledge of the issues that the speak about. This can lead to controversy and confusion, especially among the younger generation who are so easily swayed one way or the other without every reading or verifying facts about the topic.Damaris,
Thank you for your post and thank you to your father for his service. I completely understand your point of view along with the other classmates that agree with you, however, I would like to play “devil’s advocate” for a second. I would like to talk about the reason all of this began. The NFL players are not kneeling against the flag, they are kneeling against the national anthem. In your opinion, kneeling for the National anthem is disrespectful to our country and all those who have fought/fight for our country. What about the opinion that the National anthem is racist and disrespects many Americans in this country? “Most citizens don’t know that the national anthem has hidden racist verses that are pro-slavery and anti-black. What Key implied was that the blood of slaves and hirelings, who fought on battlefield for their freedom, will wash away the pollution of the British invaders. In as much as the anthem is a patriotic song, it is also intended to disrespect black people who fought for their freedom.” (www.blackmattersus.com (Links to an external site.))
This is a very aggravating subject to me. I agree completely that for these players to kneel during the national anthem is nothing but disrespectful. I never served in the military personally as I chose to be a civilian flight nurse and help our local people, however, both of my grandfathers were veterans and gave most of their life to keep the rest of this country safe. I understand that they are trying to “prove a point” per say, however this is not the place or way to do that. And if nothing else these players are getting paid more than this entire classes salary every year to play a game, the least they could do is show a little respect for their country. If I was the coach of these teams I would be benching every one of them.
~Kyle
Watching sports has always been a way to relax and a way for everyone to put aside their differences (other than what team you’re rooting for) and enjoy a Friday night, Saturday, or Sunday afternoon with family, friends, and even strangers if you are present at a game. This whole, players deciding to kneel does take the enjoyment out of watching the game for many people – as many (that I know at least) do not support this agenda the players are pursuing and ends up infuriating them, instead. Again, great post!
References
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2017). Political Science: An Introduction (14th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Hello Aesha,
I definitely see politics in play in the department where I work. I see how the directors and supervisors tell surgeons and physicians one thing and tell the staff something completely different. All of these committees and policies are created and only the nurses are held accountable. When I was in a management role, I clearly recall my director telling me that I had to learn how to play the political game. I realize that I was not good at playing the game, so needless to say, I’m no longer in management.
HI Aesha,
I also work on a fast paced cardiac telemetry floor. It is extremely busy with fast patient turn over with constant admissions and discharges. In these situations it is vital that charge nurses, admission teams and supervisors are communicating. When there is a break in communication it leads to mistakes, errors, and patients feeling unsafe when it is evident there is a lack in communication and patients are arriving to dirty rooms and unprepared staff.
I am extremely grateful to have a manager on our floor who is an RN and works tirelessly to make sure we are heard as a unit and listens to floor nurses when we voice our concerns. They always get addressed and taken to the proper overhead.
Politics in the work environment can make or break a unit being successful and providing great patient care.
Christina
I agree that politics play a major role in our daily life and I feel that it is at the heart of our struggle of how and why power is dispersed. Politics is a ongoing conversation that is day to day to shift power and authority to favorable groups (Roskin et. al., 2017). Politics is apart of everything we from the food we eat or restaurants available to local taxes. A lot of what politics of decisions in politics operate from government official down or management down perspective where a lot of the decisions do not effect them directly such as a president assessment on healthcare where he has immunity because they will be cared for due to their political stature.
Reference
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2017). Political Science: An Introduction (14th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Hello professor and class!
I work in a very busy and high acuity ER where I am almost always charge. Politics plays a roll in almost every aspect of our day. One example I can think of is, I often get calls from administrators or “the big wigs” asking (which is basically telling) us to get someone back to a room quickly because they are a “VIP”. I personally hate this as I feel like we should treat every patient as a VIP and give them the best care possible. I believe that you should follow the system in an ER and work off of acuity. If your sicker than the person next then you come back first. To know because so in so donated a lot of money to the hospital they get to skip ahead of someone else more critical than they are is irritating. There are lots of examples of how politics play a part in healthcare. Another example is how certain doctors get away with everything and get special treatment because “they bring in lots of money to the hospital”. Its very irritating knowing that the hospital allows this to happen. As Roskin states, these are examples of the definition of politics which is how a group of people (administration in this example) decide that certain people get special treatment over other patients because of special gifts that are given by them.
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2017). Political Science: An Introduction (14th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Great post. I also work in a hospital and see politics at play every day. I agree that acuity should judge the order of care provided because I believe like you that every individual deserves the best. It’s unfortunate that this doesn’t happen. My hospital is a non-profit, so they will treat all people seeking care regardless of insurance etc. Often times those unable to pay for their care are rushed through thus showing another example of politics at play. Politics are part of our structure seen in any business. This goes back to what we read about Aristotle calling politics the “master science” meaning everything is a political arena (Roskin, 2014, p. 4). We have shown this to be true by reflecting on office (work)politics.
Thanks, A’lon
Source:
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2014). Political Science: An Introduction (14th ed.). Boston: Pearson.
Hi William,
I hate when my supervisors and directors use the term VIP, especially when is applies to patients. I when we have VIP patients, everyone seems to go out of their way to ensure that this person gets great care. I work in operating room. I had a manager to call me at home regarding a case that I was going to assigned to the next morning. She call herself briefing on the patient and the case. I told her she has never had to call me before about doing my job, and asked why now. She told me that my patient was VIP, a husband of some director, whom I never heard of. I explained to her that I treat all my patients as if they were VIP, and provided all of them with the best possible care that I can. Then I asked if this was my mother or anyone else would I be receiving the call, to which she replied no. I kindly told her to have a good night and hung up. She couldn’t make eye contact with me the next morning.
William,
With the positions I have held in the hospital setting I have seen this many times. Fortunately our administration is truly one of a kind. While we do have VIP patients, we are never to neglect the care of any patient to focus on a VIP. I have had patients to complain and tell me of the personal relationship they have with our hospital CEO. I am always confident and say, yes, he is a very nice and fair man. This usually stops them in their tracks. Unfortunately this is not always the case in a hospital setting. Those that are large donors, or have some type of power in the area, often get treated before others that are more critical, This is one of those negative sides of politics. “Misuse of power, influence peddling, and outright corruption are prominent features of politics (Roskin, 2014)”. This is true in many forms of politics in our everyday lives. What is so sad is that when it comes to the hospital setting, it truly is putting ones life in danger.
Scott
Roskin, M., Cord, R. L., Medeiros, J. A., & Jones, W. S. (2014). Political Science: An Introduction (14th ed.). Boston: Pearson
You struck a note with me as one of your examples is a real current issue we are trying to address in my facility. The lack of accountability or more so the lack of professional standards the doctors vs nurses are required to be held too is at a vast disconnect. Roskin noted, “Misuse of power, influence peddling, and outright corruption are prominent features of politics”. This statement resignates with the current “power” physicians hold over leadership at times escalating political power struggles and battles within. As a licensed professional nurse, if I were to chose not to do my job, follow standards for patient care or just did not show up to required meeting, I would be: Immediately counseled, potentially fired and also have legal implications towards my license depending on the scale of the breech. However, as you mentioned, physicians drive revenue which for some reason holds them to a complete different level of standards and delivery of care.
This is a current real issue between nursing, medical staff and executive leadership. I feel until this breech of care is addressed and providers held accountable, the cycle will continue.
Michelle
Reference:
Roskin, M. G., Cord, R. L., James A. Medeiros, Jones, W. S. (10/2013). Political Science: An Introduction, 13th Edition. [Bookshelf Online]. Retrieved from https://online.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781269724821/
Professor and class,
Politics are everywhere. From my kid’s classroom to my job, I see it in all places. The time politics played a role in my life was about a year ago. I should say the time that I will never forget that it played a role in my life. I had applied for a position at work. There were two other nurses who had also applied. One was a nurse who was very experienced, who had precepted me when I was a new nurse. The other nurse was very new, had not been a nurse for a year yet. We had all applied for the Charge Nurse position that had opened up on my floor. You would think that the most experienced nurse would have been offered the position right? Wrong. The newer nurse had been offered and accepted the position. As I think back about why that had happened, I realized that even though the experienced nurse had been there for many years and contributed a lot to the floor, and I who had also been there for years and had contributed a lot to the floor, did not get offered the position because neither one of us attended any of the social functions for the floor. I had also realized that the newer nurse was close friends with the other Charge Nurse and that her “in”. So it basically came down to her “political game”, and that was what got her the position. I m no longer working in that department, but now I know how to play “the game”!
Good morning Professor and Class,
Social media, specifically Facebook, is a big part of my downtime. I spend a lot of time falling asleep at night reading my newsfeed that is typically comprised of friend’s pictures and status updates complete with frequent venting sessions about friend’s jobs, kids, husbands, wives, neighbors, current events, etc. Most recently, I have noticed a lot of people taking issue each week with NFL players conforming to the common recognition practices during the national anthem. Most people stand and place their right hand over their heart; NFL players (not all, but many) are now kneeling during the anthem to protest deaths of African Americans by police action or while in police custody. My issue is not with the practice of the players versus other Americans; my issue is with the Libertarian ways people oppress their opinions regarding the situation onto me, or my newsfeed, or as comments. I realize a part of social media is sharing opinions but there is rarely a calm discussion anymore about such current events that doesn’t lead to heated arguments. I, rarely, if at all, post opinions about current events to avoid any disputes and stick to posting pictures of my family on Facebook.
2 of the user Terms posted on Facebook’s site include:
Protecting Other People’s Rights
We respect other people’s rights, and expect you to do the same.
- You will not post content or take any action on Facebook that infringes or violates someone else’s rights or otherwise violates the law.
- We can remove any content or information you post on Facebook if we believe that it violates this Statement or our policies.
Rights are not being violated by posting a belief. Rights are not being violated when reading the belief of another. But where does harassment fall into question when someone decides to state their opinion and continuous judgmental comments are being posted in response to someone for simply stating they agree or disagree with the NFL’s current recognition practices? You’re damned if you say something and damned if you don’t and that is the frustration you endure with social media posts sometimes. And if the harassment stretches further than just arguments on the internet, as it did in the link posted below (unrelated to the national anthem debate), only then does the Government get involved.
https://www.facebook.com/legal/term
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Dana:
You are just talking about Facebook. What about all the other social media outlets that are becoming more every day. Twitter, Instagram, Snap Chat, just to name a few. These outlets started to be a way for us to keep connected with friends and family to share our joys or disappointments. We choose to use them, we can choose to stop using them.
We all have our own thoughts on issues. These thoughts or beliefs come on how we grew up, how were we taught, what was our discipline, culture, ethnic background, our family history. There are so many different aspects in our life that affect how we act or what we say. We do not know the complete up bring of each of the NFL players to understand their stance in this. I agree we need to calm it down a bit, so it does not get so heated. I usually just read them and bypass them or go talk to the person, face-to-face and I understand their stance better.
The terms of Facebook you posted. Who determines if it infringes or violates someone’s rights or violates a law? Is it the lawyers that are watching this and determining the laws it violates or is it their feelings? When I was born and in school, we did not have all this technology to use, our computer screen was a big TV, we could not carry it in our hands. Our information was not instant. I had to read about an accident in the paper, not look at it as it is happening.
How is it going to change and how will the government get involved? It is hard to determine because of how each and every lawmaker was brought up.
Rory,Great response. I mentioned Facebook only because it is the social media site I use most and personally see the most arguments regarding the aforementioned topic and I am well aware each of the options you spoke of carry the same issues. It can be so frustrating.
As for who determines when rights are violated, I have the same unanswered questions. Is someone patrolling the site to monitor behavior? Or is action only taken when users file complaints? To list such seemingly general rules without specifics, each “violation” is could be subjective and either overreacted upon depending on opinion or too easily overlooked depending on another opinion.
While I do not know the upbringing of each player, I do expect that there is respect for your team, your fellow players, your city, your coaches and managers and ultimately yourself. Their behavior is self respecting but the opinionated social media posts of those who are not involved and non participating are so overblown and obnoxious at times. It takes the casualness away from social media, the reason I am a member of Facebook.
Dana and Rory, I agree with both of you on several aspects. I do feel social media is a great way to keep up with family and friends who may not live nearby, but I also feel that it is overly used for political complaining and arguing. I too believe that no one has a simple discussion anymore about opinions, everything goes directly to arguing their own point instead of listening to someone else’s opinion and simply moving on if you don’t agree. I honestly feel that the more that social media in any form is utilized, then the more the country seems to divide due to differing opinions and not being able to have an honest discussion about them. Even outside of politics I think there are so many ways that Facebook users are just plain immoral. You see so many cases these days of online bullying where children are committing suicide because of the things that were posted and can be seen on Facebook or whichever network they are using and you also see an increase in infidelity because of the ability to hide what is being said or viewed. I have, on several occasions, had very negative views of Facebook due to personal experiences. I feel Facebook should have an age limit as it did when it was first introduced and you were required to have a college email address to be accepted onto the network. As large as Facebook has become, I know there would be no one to regulate that policy, but I do feel that children do not know what is appropriate to be discussed on social media and often discuss personal or family related matters that are inappropriate. My husband was killed in a motorcycle wreck nearly 3 years ago now. Due to the instant gratification that people feel it gives them to pray or give condolences on social media many family members found out the news on Facebook within thirty minutes of the accident. We had not had time for the news to even sink in let alone to start calling family and yet it was being posted and shared and discussed on Facebook for everyone’s personal use.Brandy:I am sorry for your loss. It is difficult anyway we hear about it, but on Facebook, it must have been the worse way. I know in our facility we have a policy that states we cannot have our Smart Phone in use when in a patient room, or at the nursing station. I know some of us use it for our Nursing Drug books or calculations, but working in the Emergency Department it could be a help. There are times we know about major accidents on Facebook before we hear it from the EMS crews and it can be helpful to get patients admitted or discharge. There are times it can be useful.
Thank you, and I do not disagree, I believe that social media can be a great tool when used appropriately. I feel that it has become far to entwined in our culture in the US, but still a useful tool. In a society that is so easy to believe whatever is told to them, whether the information has any scholarship or not, I feel that it sometimes gives a platform to those who know very little about what they are speaking, and this sometimes leads to votes and opinions that are built out of false information
