To Spray or Not to Spray

Late last week, university police at UC Davis tore down the tents of campus protesters, arresting 8 students in the process. Students were upset about increased tuition rates. At one point, to clear a path, the police pepper-sprayed a line of seated, quiet protesters.

What is your reaction to the video? How would you describe this scene?

What amendment to the Constitution protects our right to 'peacefully assemble?'

Was this protest peaceful? How was this protest different from the students at Penn State?

What laws were the UC Davis students breaking? Was the force used by the officers suitable given the situation?

Watch this clip of the Lt. Pike warning the students right before the incident. Does this change your opinion of what happened?

In the interests of fairness, put yourself in their shoes, and think about how you would have handled the situation. What action would have been more appropriate? How would you have handled the situation differently?

The video of the pepper-spraying has outraged the world and Lieutenant John Pike, the pepper-sprayer, is being vilified on the Internet, as are the rest of the police involved here.

Whats the big deal? Pepper spray is just a 'food product' right?

Is pepper spray 'America's new car horn?'

Perhaps we should be relieved that the weapon used in this case was pepper spray, not bullets, as in the Kent State massacre of 1970, in which the Ohio National Guard killed four unarmed students.


Read more: http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-11-21/news/30424391_1_pepper-spray-protesters-university-police#ixzz1f7hEnPrh

Gun Control and the 2nd Amendment

“Gabby: A Story of Courage and Hope,” describes Congress Woman Gabrielle Giffords’ efforts over the past 10 months to relearn how to walk and talk, and her painful discovery that six people were killed in the Jan. 8 attack outside a Tucson grocery store. The book is written from the perspective of her husband, former astronaut Mark Kelly. But Giffords herself delivers the last chapter – a single page of short sentences and phrases called “Gabby’s Voice” in which she says her goal is to get back to Congress.

“I will get stronger. I will return,” she wrote.

Some argue that her story should be a lesson supporting stricter gun control in America.

Others argue the importance of keeping guns in preserving our freedom.

Are militia groups still relevant today?

What do you think?

Election 2011

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Mix It Up

The Mixed Economy Unit 3 Notes



What type of economy was described in ''i Pencil?'

I Pencil

Here is your high-resolution teachable moment of the week: anti-capitalist, anti-corporate extremists of "Occupy Wall Street" mourning Apple Inc. founder Steve Jobs without a trace of irony.

Inherent in the American success story of the iMac/iPhone/iPad is a powerful lesson about the fundamentals of capitalism. The “occupiers” chant “people over profit.” They call for “caring” over “corporations.”

But the pursuit of profits empowers people beyond the bounds of imagination.

Read more....

Watch I Pencil.

The Write Stuff: A day in the life of a pencil.

Inside Job

Inside Job 2011 Best Part from Wall St. InsideJob on Vimeo.

Inside Job, the critically acclaimed movie by Academy Award nominated filmmaker, Charles Ferguson, is the definitive film about the economic crisis of 2008 and the role of Wall Street in modern society. It is a substantive and entertaining film that is ideal for educational purposes. I have shown it to my class, and I encourage you to watch it at home. The film is sweeping and non-partisan in its critique, and covers both the historical roots of the crisis and the central flaws of global financial regulation.

Study Guide

Zombie Jamboree!

NEW YORK (AP) — Protesters speaking out against corporate greed and other issues showed no signs of giving up their campaign Monday, with organizers urging participants to dress as "corporate zombies" and rally against police brutality.

The arrests of 700 people on Brooklyn Bridge over the weekend fueled the anger of the protesters camping in a Manhattan park and sparked support elsewhere in the country as the campaign entered its third week.

Occupy Wall Street started with fewer than a dozen college students spending days and nights in Zuccotti Park, a plaza near the city's financial center. But a day after Saturday's mass arrests, hundreds of protesters were resolute and like-minded groups in other cities had joined in.

Group spokesman Patrick Bruner urged protesters to dress up as zombies and eat Monopoly money to let financial workers "see us reflecting the metaphor of their actions."

The protests are not isolated to New York and have spread to cities nationwide including LA, Chicago, and even Cincinnati!


The nation hasn't seen a Zombie Jamboree like this since Harry Belafonte in 1969.

Read more.