Wednesday, October 30th, 2017
Checkpoint 2: Study a Politician
Welcome to deconstructing politics in America!
For this next step, I chose to educate myself on the Green Party. The Green Party seemed very interesting to me because I feel that this party is never discussed, and I want to learn more about a smaller political party. On their website, they talk about this parties priorities within change for the government. Their priorities are along the lines of social justice, environmental change, and non-violent responses.
The artifact I chose to discuss in relation to this party was part of there website discussing the issue of the legalization of marijuana. This page starts with an immediate opinion about being in favor of legalizing marijuana. Once there opinion is stated, bullet points are shown beneath addressing more specific details as to why and how the legalization of marijuana will occur. These bullet points talk of using counseling and education to stop "the war on drugs" and when legalized felons convicted of marijuana use will be released. However, this website does not give any opinionated explanation as to why marijuana should be legalized. It is clear that the Green Party is very much in favor of decriminalizing the use and sales of marijuana.
http://www.gp.org/legalize_marijuana
The Politician I chose to educate myself on was Donald Trump. I chose Trump because he is the president and I believe it would be beneficial to hear his opinions from himself, rather than a bias new site. Donald Trump got elected in November 2016. His political party is the Republican party with the basic values of lower taxes, less government involvement in social issues and in favor of tradition.
The artifact I chose was a video on the Donald Trump website about repeal and replace Obamacare. There is a 40-second video with facts as to how Obama care has "failed the American people." The arguments are that it has raised costs, fewer choices for healthcare, fewer covered by Obama care and less freedom. Each second where it focuses on each specific issue talks of what this means more specifically with facts to back up the claim. It is clear that Trump and his administration is not in favor of Obamacare, but does not give any possible ways he plans to fix this in the video.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/repeal-and-replace-obamacare
The artifact from the Green Party and the artifact from the Donald Trump website had opposite strengths and weakness. While the Green Party focuses on HOW they will make a specific change towards the legalization of marijuana, they do not state why marijuana should become legalized. Without any context about why many believe marijuana should be legalized, it is hard for the reader to agree or disagree. Trump's website shows the complete opposite. They give opinions, with facts to back it up, but do not talk about how the government will now address the issue. Including a claim with evidence and explanation of how this issue will be addressed, is the key to persuading an audience. Without all these key components met, readers will have unanswered questions and cannot make a personal choice.
Political parties and politics both affect the readers and how they choose to vote. Voters feel that they have to either fit in the box of Democrat or Republican, therefore voters feel a pressure to align their individual views with these parties. Pointing out the negatives of the opposite party is a way that makes political parties or political gain votes. This is because usually, voters are more concerned with possible negative outcomes of electing representatives of the United States that could possibly cause harm to the country.
I look forward to expressing my ideas on this platform!
I agree with you Rachel, the green party rarely discussed and advertised during election season. But I think this happens because America is essentially being represented by two parties, the Democrats and the Republicans. These two political parties have all of the power and a consistent income of funds that allows them to project their ideas and plans more frequently than smaller parties. Not everyone agrees with the ideology of the Democratic and Republican Party, some people don't feel like either of those parties represent their personal ideals. If we could bring more attention to these smaller parties, Americans would be able to chose from a wider range of politicians. If people don't think that their opinions are being represented properly by either candidate, they will most likely be discouraged to vote. In order to make sure that people are voting and make sure that the people's ideology is being well represented, people need to invest time in learning about these parties' ideals and find one that best fits their ideals.
ReplyDeleteIts interesting.
ReplyDelete