11/2 - Last step in our project

By Friday 11/2 please print off for me what you perceive to be your best post and best response in our blog activity this quarter. Use the rubric I gave you at the beginning of the quarter to help you choose which posts to pick. Please label your assignment with your name, period, and which post your writing is for (Post 1 or Response to Post 2 for example). Thanks.

Last response post - due 10/30

Please respond to a peer by 10/30. This will be your last post of the quarter. Thanks for doing such an amazing job. I am really enjoying reading your posts. - M. Aby

Post 4 - Due 10/23

Chapters 6 & 10 in Edwards address the views of different groups within the electorate. Both major political parties are examining who voted for their party in 2004, and who did not vote for their party in 2004. With that information they are strategizing how to convince groups who did not vote for them to switch sides and how they can they keep groups who did vote for them in 2004.

Both parties in this election are particularly looking at the role of Latino voters.
*Do you think that the majority of Latino voters will vote Democrat or Republican in the 2008 election? Why?
*What do you think the Democrat party should do to attract Latino voters?
*What do you think the Republican party should do to attract Latino voters?

There are a lot of quality news articles on this very debate. I will help you find them if you need my help. Otherwise, I’m going to set you loose on your own.

Reponse to Post 3 - Due 10/16

You can respond to post 3 on the post 3 strand or here. Either is fine. Your response post is due 10/16. Remember the goal is for everyone to get a response. Please do not respond to someone's post if they already have more than 1 response. Please attack the ideas/argument of the person & not the person her/himself. Also, please respond in a manner which fosters rather than shuts down dialogue. Thanks. Good luck. M. Aby

Great commentaries!

I really see our conversation about the election becoming more complicated & richer in post 3! I really enjoy how you are building on your previous posts. I also am enjoying how folks are incorporating quotes from other scholars as supporting evidence. If you want to see examples of how folks do this well look at John & Chelsey's posts this week. In addition, you are improving greatly in your ability to form arguments and to analyze the evidence you use in your posts. For an example of this type of writing you can look at Molly's post. (Note, I do not pick out some people's posts to highlight some and ignore others, but to try to convey where I believe yours should be headed.)

Last Thursday I had great conversations with your parents at conferences about your blog postings. Just to let you know y'all are developing quite a following! Parents in our community really enjoy reading what you have to say. And I can see why. You are a talented group of commentators. Keep it up! M. Aby

Post 3 - Due 10/9

This year’s presidential race is unusual. We have a white woman & an African American man in the lead for the Democratic nomination. We have a Mormon & several non-Evangelicals competing for the Republican nomination. This will be an election that is analyzed for years to come.

One issue several of you brought up in your last post is the question, “Is Senator Obama the most attractive candidate for the African American community?” The Democratic party & the African American community are very closely tied together. Many political analysts predict that the candidate that picks up the “black vote” will get the nomination for the Democratic party.

Below are some recent articles that summarize the role of previous African American candidates for the Democratic nomination (Jesse Jackson & Rev. Al Sharpton), the popularity of both Clinton & Obama with the African American community, & the potential barriers to winning over the “black vote”. You are not limited to these articles. I am merely referring you to them because I think they might be helpful for this week’s post.

* “Barack Obama caught between lines in race battle”, The Times, 9/23/07
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article2511582.ece
* “Out of Reach?”, 9/27/08, Time Magazine
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1666262,00.html
* “Obama Vies for Black Vote While Waging `Deracialized Campaign'”, 9/28/07. Bloomberg.com
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aZeD5OiaQqdU&refer=home
* “Clinton Edges Obama in Black Caucus”, 9/28/07, Associated Press
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hOj-hz5ahyzXOAIRsfaUOyr1Ns8gD8RUNE780
* “Obama: Jena case shows law's 'inequities'”, 9/29/07, Chicago Tribune
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-obamaweb29,1,5304044.story

Your question is:
To what degree does a candidate need to represent their community (as a woman, a member of their racial group, a member of their religion, etc.)? What are the strengths & weaknesses to being seen as a representative of a community? Is it better to be seen as an “individual”? Considering our country’s history, is it possible to be seen as merely an individual if someone is going to be the first woman, African-American, Mormon, etc. ever elected to the office of president of the United States? How do you think the campaign(s) should address this dynamic in the race to help their candidate? (Consider the current political realities addressed in the articles & facing our country today.)

(P.S. to the Republicans in the class, the next post will focus more on your party’s issues for the election. I promise.)

Who you support based on post 2

1st place: Barack Obama
2nd place: Hillary Clinton/ John Edwards
3rd place: Dennis Kucinich
4th place: Ron Paul
5th place: Rudy Giuliani
6th place: Mitt Romney
7th place: Mike Huckabee/John McCain/ Joe Biden

Most disliked: Mike Huckabee, then Sam Brownback

Thanks to Amy Anderson for totaling these for me. :)