Wednesday, December 2, 2009

In-Class work for 12/3

1) If you haven't yet, post your thesis paragraph.

2) Post the first paragraph of your essay - think about how to capture your reader's attention.

3) Look at some of your colleague's thesis and first paragraphs. Leave them a comment about what you notice and what's effective. Use what you discover to revise your own paragraphs.

4) Continue to work on your research essay draft. If you would like to turn in a version for comments, you may do so, or you can also post a section on the blog for comments.

5) For extra credit/to review for the exit exam: read at Obama's speech on Afghanistan: especially look at the last section that begins "Since the days of Franklin Roosevelt" (28:44 on in the transcript) What view of America in the world does Obama argue for? How does it compare to the view of the neoconservatives discussed in "Visions of Dominance"? To other views we've seen this semester.

Then look at this critique of Obama's speech by Vietnam veteran and Professor Andrew Bacevich. What is Bacevich's argument and how does it relate to critiques of U.S. power we've read this semester?

5 comments:

  1. Iraq! How the invasion of Iraq came about and who was responsible for it today? If we know about Iraq we should know historical background about it. According to the wekapidia, historically Iraq was eponym Mesopotamia. Also, it is officially known as the republic of Iraq. It is the 58th largest country in the world. Iraq is like the United State of California. Iraq bounded by the Jordan to the west, Syria to the north west, Turkey to the north, Iran to the east and Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to the south. The capital city Baghdad is in the center of the country. In the past it was the center of the Akkadian, Assyrian, and Babylonian, Hellenistic, Sassani and Abbasid Empire and part of the Achaemenid, Roman Rashid Umayyad, Mongol Ottoman and British Empire.
    Iraq has been home to continue successive civilizations since the 6th millennium BC. It was home to the earliest known civilization on earth. …………………

    …………….
    Over the years Iraq has developed in many different ways. Many places are adopted from others countries ideas. America has had one of the biggest impacts on Iraq and the Iraqi culture, resources, religions, economics and way of life. Some people believe that by showing and sending military to Iraq, America show their imperialism. On the other hand some people believe that is not showing dominance, it is helping the Iraq and speared development to the country. However, I believe that explore the relationship between the United State and Iraq America show their dominance different ways such as politically, military economicly.

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  2. Good job in the second paragraph in laying out your argument. For the first, you want to be sure to think about what part of the background is important so you're not just doing a laundry list of thousands of years of history.

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  3. This is my thesis paragraph =]

    The U.S and Saudi relationship is one of the Americas most important, enduring and bilateral connections in the Middle East. It has been tested by many issues, including oil policies. Although the U.S. and Saudi had close relations, it’s economic and security ways have often been affected by their strong believes on political, cultural and psychotically views. Over the past years, Saudi Arabia has developed a special relationship with the United States based on mutual respect and common interest. There’s a necessity for survival and in my opinion imperialism isn’t always the best tactic. Both Saudi Arabia and the U.S. are interdependent on each other for trading and resources.

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  4. Extra credit: obama speech :In this speech Obama argues that America is not any more empire. America is not trying to dominate other countries, rather help and getting democracy and human right. He is trying to clear the image of America in the minds of those people what ever they have before and telling them to look present.

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  5. In his spech on Afghanistan President Obama wants to clear that America is not an empire and dont want to be one.He further says they are not greedy for any other countries resources,they are not racist and they for sure dont belive in occupying any other nation.Their purpose is to make a world a safe place where everyone feels safe and secure to live.He believes that it is right of every American to feel safe and that will only possible when the countries like Afghanistan and Iraq have a democratic government and they are just helping them to build one strong and stable democratic govenment.For President Obama young generation is the future of the society and he wants them to live in hope and not in fear and that will only happen when these countries future generation "can live in freedom and access opportunity".He admits that this is indeed the time of crisis and he is hopeful that his policies will help the country to come out of crisis.
    I think here he is also defending his act of sending 30,000 troops in Afghanistan beacuse before when he was running for Presidentship he was making this claim that he will going to pull troops out of Afghanistan with in 16 months once he becomes the President of America.And thats why he is justifying his act now.

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