Lindsey's Protocol 2/17

Protocol 2/17/11

· We begin class today with Ben writing the Program on the whiteboard it read as follows:

Program:

1. Housekeeping

2. Tea Party Propaganda!

3. Reacting to Rand

4. What can we learn from Rand (about the t.p. for instance?)?

· Ben asks us to note a sign that is around campus, for a group CFACT, also noted that there is an Ann Rand group on campus that uses our campus dollars to do their various activities.

· We are then notified that we will be talking about economics in the weeks to come.

· Housekeeping- notebook left, no one claims, possible Alyssa’s also a course packet left here in class. Could be Alyssa’s but she is ill and not here to claim

· Attendance is taken and not everyone is present, some people are ill and others just are not in attendance.

· Seats in the circle will not be condensed to make up for these absences because tea party groups will meet shortly

· Ben reminds us that our External Writings #1 are due tonight at 11:59 p.m.

· Blog Post this weekend, put up today or tomorrow expect e-mail, text analysis blog post, funny text, not something so many people want to read, not easy to get into but on Amazon.com best sellers, credit to Glenn Beck shows on Hyack, possible blog post topic

· Shukri notes that it is hot in the room, Ben tells her that nothing can be done about this issue

· Initially Ben tells us that he was going to have us read all of Hyack’s book for class next week but now specific moments to read are on the syllabus, few chapters for each day, more than welcome to read more if so choose

· Also will send neat YouTube videos in e-mail made by educational company to try to teach about economics, fear the boom and bust, gone viral

· Ben suggests that we take time to find out about Hyack and Kaynes background

· Tea Party groups meet and will take until 11:30 to remind selves of what are doing and presenting and then we will present

· Hallie volunteers her group to go first, their poster states: keep America for Americans. Read from course packet Tea Partiers tend to believe they have done all the right things in life, pay taxes, distrust Obama administration; don’t like policies that embrace the poor. They are upset against Pell grants, shouldn’t even be going to school, where they get paid for, people don’t work as hard as they used to, claim can’t have gays in the military arousal will compromise our liberty, Obamacare and healthcare, don’t want to pay for others

· Marika has a question about how society needs poor people to function Hallie and her argue back and forth, afterward Hallie makes it known that she is simply participating in the exercise and in no way does this reflect her personal views

· Discussion about abortion supporters of Tea Party who is responsible for whom? There are also questions asked about how in Rand, it’s a flawed system, lower income able to afford care, who is going to pay for it, nothing is free.

· Ben notes that studying the history of words is really interesting, origin of the word slacker is people who refused to fight in WWI

· Ben’s group then performs their propaganda and it is a chant that supports the Tea Party

· From the course packet it Is quoted that the unemployed are depicted as lazy, no one should be allowed to eat without working

· Marika asks if this is related to survival of the fittest. Mandy and Heidi tell her that people who are able to get jobs and don’t are irresponsible and that there are more of these people, Marika disagrees.

· Ben talks about the years of the housing bubble, banks created mortgages with low intra rates and then way down in the contract, where not clearly visable, these rates only go for a few months or years and then rates go way up

· Lots of people hit that point where it goes way up and causing recession and foreclosures.

· Now the first anti tea party group goes, “selling a car to buy gas” is what their poster reads, they further explain this by saying that people are not thinking things through, have many contradictions, want smaller government but are for social security and health care. Tea Partiers always talk about government waste but don’t admit what they see for their own advantage

· Argument from Tea Partiers, the bailout and how it is unnecessary and Marika says that some people on either side do not agree with, that’s where spending could have been cut Hallie suggests, Ben notes that some people who are anti tea party are not pro bailout, just anti tea party

· Mandi suggests that with the tea party could be possible that the people that yell the loudest and make the most fuss are the ones who get TV time, and we do not see the full picture of people behind them who could be calm and have more concise views on the matters and the people who are viewed on TV give the wrong image for the group and that they are publicized so that stations can gain higher ratings.

· Ben and I talk about how Michelle Bachman talking to her audience, and there are some people that are conscious of their media image especially around election time but otherwise will rant and rave with other Tea Parties

· My group goes and our sign says The Lions leading the Lamb to slaughter, which just means that the old people are blindly following the young people but aren’t as educated on the politics today and the government and what affects them. The young people

· Counter argument, old people are being deceived from the young people, don’t really get the argument. There are some people that are firm in their beliefs no matter what their age is.

· Rachel says that the young people are not trying to deceive the old they are just following blindly, speaking in a conservative way that they are used to

· The Tea Party and the opposition to the new administration were a matter or ideology.

· Get the Government out of my Medicare but I also want social security is what too many older Tea Partiers claim and they do not see this clear contradiction.

· There are some people that are just out to make money and they do not care about anything else bottom line, their whole identities, also seen in Network

· Generation gap played out in Network as well as Tea Party, Ben notes, and this can be a problem, in the Tea Party the issue is with the difference in education.

· Now that it is the last 7 minutes of class Ben instructs us to take out a piece of paper and draw a line down the middle of it, the purpose of this, because we did not get to talk about Rand explicitly is to preserve our first thoughts about Rand for next week.

· On left side, take 3 minutes to write down your initial reactions to Rand and on the right come up with questions that you would like to discuss about the Rand piece.

· We then all get into a circle and go around saying one of our reactions and then again with one of our questions.

· Ben tells us to think about this for next time and can add to our discussions, as the group disperses, class is dismissed.