Wit And Wisdom: Will Rogers And Benjamin Franklin
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Benjamin Franklin was a man known for his satire, as was Will Rogers. Both men found that they were appreciated for putting the political arena into a common man's perspective and, often, with their tongue in their cheek. This 5 page paper explores, briefly, the lives of these two great men, comparing and contrasting their special contributions to satirical humor. It also includes a one page outline. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: KTrogben.rtf

Filibuster of Civil Rights Act of 1964
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This nine page paper discusses the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and in particular, the historic filibuster that opponents of passage used to try and block it. Bibliography lists 5 sources.
Filename: HVFilibu.rtf

“Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War”: A Review of the Book by Mark Bowden
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A 5 page review of the book detailing the 1993 downing of two MH-60 Black Hawk helicopters in Mogadishu and the fighting which extended through the night. This event now holds the record for the longest sustained American firefight since Vietnam. The author of this paper contends that if Bowden’s book can be criticized, that criticism would revolve around the fact that it devotes practically all of its attention to a bullet-by-bullet account of the fighting surrounding the downing of the American helicopters and their crews’ survival through the night and devotes relatively little effort to explaining the circumstances behind that downing. This paper fills in the gaps on those circumstances. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPblkHwk.rtf

“Chimpanzee Politics”
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An 8 page overview of the many similarities that exist between humans and chimps when it comes to group dynamics. Using the book by Frans De Waal as a reference, this paper highlights how chimp group dynamics share more similarities than they do differences with politics in American government. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPpolChimps.rtf

“History on Trial: Culture Wars and the Teaching of the Past” by G.B. Nash, C. Crabtree and R.E. Dunn
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This is a 6 page paper discussing the book “History on Trial: Culture Wars and the Teaching of the Past” (1997). The publication of “History on Trial: Culture Wars and the Teaching of the Past” which describes the heated controversy surrounding the formation of the National History Standards in the mid-1990s, has in itself several controversial issues which makes it a useful tool in discussion forums in the social sciences. The authors of the text, Gary B. Nash, Charlotte Crabtree and Ross E. Dunn were involved in the selection of the committee working on the standards and have provided a background look at the events which took place during the development of the standards. Different issues discussed were the fact that while several historians approved of the constant updating and reinterpretation of historical events in the past and the inclusion of addition of multicultural issues while others believe that history as it has traditionally been taught should not be altered to any extent. The authors provide criticism of their own critics but their close proximity to the situation also provides additional limitations to the work which is provided to the reader as highly subjective in its context. Overall however, it is in a sense a historical document in its own right which like any other event from history is open for discussion or controversy and widely resembles many of the points outlined by the authors. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: TJGNash1.rtf

“Lyndon Johnson and the gold standard”
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A twelve page paper which looks at the domestic and foreign policy issues surrounding the change in the monetary exchange standard in the 1960s, the part played by the IMF and the G-10 countries, and the possible rationale behind some of the policy decisions made by Lyndon Johnson at the time. Bibliography lists 7 sources
Filename: JLJohnson.rtf

“Reinventing Government” and “You Won Now What?”
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A 10 page paper which compares “Reinventing Government” by David Osborne and Ted Gaebler with “You Won Now What?” by Taegan Goddard and Christopher Riback. Bibliography lists 3 additional sources.
Filename: RAreinvt.rtf

"Justices Restrict Right to Sue HMO: Parties Can't Allege Malpractice if Insurance Refuses to Pay for Care"
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A 3 page review of this June 2004 article by Lisa Rapaport published in "The Bee". The author highlights the main points presented in the article and emphasizes that is useful not only in detailing the Supreme Court ruling but also in outlining the set of circumstances under which it occurred. It is just as useful, however, in the fact that it assesses what the ruling could mean to Americans.
Filename: PPhmoArt.rtf

"The Institutionalization of the U.S. House of Representatives"
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A 3 page review of the 1968 article by author Nelson W. Polsby. This article traces the history of the U.S. House of Representatives from its initial formation in the mid 1700s to the mid 1900s and supports the authors contention that within these two centuries the House of Representatives has become progressively more institutionalized. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPhouseR.rtf