Why Religion Should Be Kept Out of Sublic Schools

Jeff Perman English 093 – 10B Sept. 20, 2011 Argumentive Essay Introduction Why Religion Should Not Be Allowed In Public Schools The question of religion in public schools goes all the back to 1948, where a case in Champlain, Illinois was heard regarding a sectarian group that would go into schools 30 mins. a day to preach to students about religion. The court found it was unconstitutional due to the first Amendment (Mead, Green, and Oluwule). These practices still continue today with various religious groups taking stronger and more creative ways to infiltrate the public school systems of America. Another, more recent example of these tactics is that of a group of creationism advocates in Louisiana who took school science books†¦show more content†¦The third and toughest case, due to its historical and patriotic nature and the reference to god in its orientation are cases involving the Pledge of Allegiance. One such case took place in California where a teacher attempted to the use of the Pledge of Allegiance to push his view of religion to his students. He asked his students what significance Gods r ole was in the pledge and what his importance was. When parents complained to the school board that he should be teaching not preaching, he decided to take it to court. Backed by the A.D.F. (Alliance Defense Fund), their goal wasn’t to win but to give public schools a bad rap concerning religion and the schools non-tolerated view. They were hoping people would only hear half the story, â€Å"did you hear about that school somewhere that banned the Pledge of Allegiance?† This attempt failed and their case denied due to the Pledge of Allegiance’s standing on patriotcal and historical significances. (Declaration on Deceit: The Truth about the ADF’s attack on Public Schools) Some other facts that give credence to the difficult decision the courts must make on this issue is one case involving Elisha R. Potter of Rhode Island who was the Commissioner of public schools from 1850 thru 1854, stated that â€Å"The public school system is supported,

Pre-American Revolution Free Essays

Do you know why the American Revolution occurred? Do you think Americans just wanted to be the United States of America just because they desired. King George lll tried to control the lives of the colonists in many ways. There was several causes to why americans seeked for independence. We will write a custom essay sample on Pre-American Revolution or any similar topic only for you Order Now These causes ultimately lead to the start of a revolution. Little by little Colonists found ways to protest against the british army and the king of England. King George III applied unlawful taxes, to control colonists lives. There was many ways king George III tried to control the lives of the colonists. For Example there is this famous slogan which was â€Å"No Taxation Without Representation†, this was because Parliament had control of colonial trade, taxed imports, and exports. By the 1760s, the Americans were getting a right taken away from them. The English Bill of Rights of 1689 had forbidden the imposition of taxes without the consent of Parliament. Since the colonists had nobody representing in Parliament, the taxes violated the guaranteed Rights of Englishmen. He thought it was necessary for most of the taxes he pasted in order for the Country of Britain not to go bankrupt after the win of the â€Å"seven years† war which doubled Britains dept . One of the laws passed was the stamp act. The stamp act was a direct tax by Parliament specifically targeting the colonies of British America, and it required that many printed materials in the colonies be produced on stamped paper produced in London. There was many acts that angered the colonists and eventually made them revoke against Parliament. hese were some of the causes of the American Revolution . The Intolerable acts were a response to the famous boston tea party. there was four acts that got the 13 colonies heated. The Boston Port Act, was the first of the acts passed, which consisted of closing the port of Boston until the East India Company had been repaid for the tea dumped in the water and until the king was satisfied that order had been restored. Colonists argued that the Port Act punished all of Boston rather than just the individuals who had destroyed the tea. The Massachusetts Government Act altered the government of Massachusetts to bring it under control of the British government. Almost all positions in the colonial government were to be given orders by the governor or the king. This act also limited the activities of town meetings in Massachusetts to one meeting a year, unless the Governor arranged one. Colonists outside Massachusetts feared that their governments could now also be changed by Parliament. The Administration of Justice Act allowed the governor to move trials of accused royal officials to another colony or even to Great Britain if he believed the official could not get a fair trial in Massachusetts. George Washington called this the â€Å"Murder Act† because he believed that it allowed British officials to harass Americans and escape justice. The Quartering Act applied to all of the colonies, it was method of housing British troops in America. King George did indeed applied several laws that got the colonists angry. So there were several ways of how the colonist protested. Everyone has heard of â€Å"No taxation without representation. † It was a famous slogan shouted by colonist because they were taxed by almost everything they purchased without their consent. There was no one in Parliament to represent them, so that meant they did not have a word or an opinion. Throughout the years the colonists got tired of the British customs because they were opposing many things that Parliament was doing. So they started doing their own tea and clothes, this was also because almost everything was taxed and colonists thought it was a better way to save money. Another famous event was the â€Å"Boston Tea Party†, in that event officials in Boston refused to return three ships loaded with taxed tea to Britain, a group of colonists dressed as indians boarded the ships and destroyed the tea by throwing it into Boston Harbor, the incident remains an iconic event of American history. In response to the taxes many people let out their anger on the tax collectors. Sometimes it was just a scare but in some cases they were murdered. The continental congressed passed an association act which allowed colonists to boycott British goods, it was effective while it lasted. King George III applied unlawful taxes, to control colonists lives. There are just too many reasons of why the american revolution happened. If Britain did not tax or governed the colonies how they did, we would be living in a much different world. Maybe we wouldn’t have even been the United States of America. The Americans had every right to protest against Parliament since they were advocated from some of their rights. You feel me? How to cite Pre-American Revolution, Papers

Lifestyles and Lifetime Goals free essay sample

â€Å"’Tis immortality to die aspiring†, said George Chapman, effectively explaining my lifetime goals. I have innumerable lifetime goals, so to speak of my academic ambitions and extracurricular activities as a manifestation of them, one must understand my youth. Thanks in large part to my parents, the broad, almost nebulously so world of science has captivated my thoughts from a young age. I was taught as virtue the qualities of vigilant skepticism and unapologetic curiosity, the cardinal virtues of science. Nurtured as an open mind in an open environment; my parents kept me out of my first year of public school to learn what I pleased at home, most often my home being understood as the outdoors. The memory of my youth is of warm summer days, pools of mud, and curious wandering in the midst of soft zephyrs. The scope of my intellectual capacity at the time limited by obvious constraints, most of my curiosity was focused on that quintessentially boyish interest in insects and the like. We will write a custom essay sample on Lifestyles and Lifetime Goals or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page I was incredibly blessed to have also been exposed to the wonder of the stars. These seemingly innocent and shallow areas of interest are in terms of science, of course, the fields of biology and astronomy. I adopted early the love of knowledge. Over time, of course, culture distorts and society bends children’s dreams. I have found that much of my purpose lies in the military service to my Nation. But I keep deep in my heart the desire to be a service to all of mankind, to live also a Prometheus after a life spent as Ares. Indeed, my lifetime goal is multiple lifetimes- so many worthy pursuits demand the full commitment of a full mortal’s time. So with these ambitions in my mind, I’ve appreciated my time in high school as an opportunity to get ahead in the game. I’ve taken as many AP courses as possible throughout my high school career, the pragmatic motivation being the expedition of time spent in college (read: still not in the real world), and the intrinsic value being the challenge of all-nighters and a laughably simple social life. To my honor, the receipt of an AP Scholar award after a diligent junior year has proven my efforts worthwhile, just as I expect them to be this year. Without a doubt, the single most influential extracurricular endeavor of my high school years has been Marine Corps JROTC. Throughout my years, I’ve learned what real leadership is, claiming this year the billet of Commanding Officer of the battalion. Responsibility for an entire high school JROTC requires a level of leadership many students- or even people in general for that matter- never learn. Besides shaping me into a better person over the years, MCJROTC has presented me numerous opportunities. I’m the captain of the precision air rifle team, which competed at the national level for the first time last year. I’m a US Naval Academy candidate, having gone to the Summer Seminar thanks to the sponsorship of the American Legion. My connections afforded me attendance to Boys State 2014. Indeed, JROTC has been my greatest blessing thus far in guiding me towards my lifetime goals. Conclusively, my lifetime goals since childhood remain, but have been shaped also by the means of achieving them. College classes, MCJROTC, Rifle Marksmanship, Granbury Junior Leadership, Boys State, and NHS have all been both a means of realizing my goals and an influence upon them.

Understanding The Holocaust Essays - Holocaust Studies,

Understanding The Holocaust When trying to understand an event such as the Holocaust there is no substitute for first hand experience. However, because we cannot relive the Holocaust, we must attempt to gain an understanding of this tragic event through other means. In JS 211, sources such as books, movies, and even Holocaust survivors themselves, can help us learn what happened in the to those targeted by the Nazis in World War Two. Each of the many resources available to us can provide information on what the Holocaust was in terms of facts and statistics, and probably as effectively as being there could. Nevertheless, the average USC student will still be missing the human factor, what would you feel like being a Jew living under the Nazi regime. When trying to understand what was experienced by a person in a particular situation, you must be able to draw on knowledge gained though similar experiences. Even the most skillfully written account of an event, such as the Holocaust, cannot convey the feelings of the participants if the reader has nothing against which to compare. Without having lived through an event as tragic as the Holocaust, you are left only to imagine the feelings of those who did. You would be hard pressed to find many people, anywhere in the world, who have ever experienced something with the tragic enormity of the Holocaust. Finding people who may be able to truly relate to, and understand, the tragedy experienced by Holocaust victims is hard anywhere. However, the task is even more daunting in a community such as USC. While the situation may be somewhat exaggerated by our rivals, who refer to us as The University of Spoiled Children and taunt us at games by waving car keys or credit cards, the majority of USC students have led a fairly comfortable life. Most probably grew up in a fairly affluent family, lived in a nice neighborhood, attended good schools, etc, not exactly the kind of upbringing where one might encounter mass persecution and genocide. You could possibly say something along the lines of It's like when your dog dies, only a thousand times worse, but that does not really capture the enormity of the situation. Probably everyone has at one time or another felt the basic emotions, such as grief or despair that were such a part of the Holocaust experience. It is the immense magnitude of the feelings that will be hard to envision for people who have never lived through an event as horrible as the Holocaust. Certainly in JS 211, we will learn much about the Holocaust: Who were the bad guys? What motivated them? How was it allowed to happen? What may be a harder, and maybe impossible task however will to put ourselves in the shoes of the Jews or any other group targeted by Nazi Germany in World War Two. It is through no fault of the authors, directors, or lecturers that this failing exist, rather it is the audience. For most of us, being far removed from the Holocaust both socially and historically, is simply too hard to imagine what it would be like to endure such extreme suffering. Surely everyone can sympathize with the plight of Holocaust victims, however to really understand the immense magnitude of the experience without having been there personally requires a knowledge that most just do not have. History