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Most recently published stories in The Swamp.
The 16th Amendment
The 16th Amendment was ratified in 1913, due to the American federal government wanting a source of revenue while in fact reversing the 1896 Supreme Court decision that did not allow for a nationwide income tax build-up. The income tax is a modern invention because the United States had its eye on making more money to fund itself with.
Iria Vasquez-PaezPublished 5 years ago in The SwampA United Ireland
Ireland has been torn between two ideological religions; The Protestants in the North, and the Catholics in the South. This divide has led to bloodshed, and political turmoil for the Irish. As a proud Irish-American descendant, I would argue that what’s best for the island is a united Ireland. Economic status would be revamped drastically for the better. The benefit towards enterprise and business will generate employment and a better condition under infrastructure. The costs generated towards the upkeep of the hard border should be dispersed towards other factions of infrastructure that support the quality of living standards, especially in and around the border towns. Political identity will become political individuality in a united Ireland. Conflict will see a drastic decline, if not an end; but there are always factors that come into play when the game of diplomatic chess is being played.
Benjamin ReesePublished 5 years ago in The SwampThe Reparations Debate Is More Than a Dollar Figure
The topic of reparations for African Americans isn’t a new concept. America as a country has touched on this issue, albeit briefly, quite a few times during the course of its history. Recent political jockeying for the 2020 election season has brought the topic back to the forefront for both African Americans, and the greater public. What are reparations? Why is the debate taking place now? Wasn’t slavery a long time ago? Those questions and others are typical of how the dialogue on this topic has gone during my experience exploring it. Those questions will continue to be asked until arguably the simplest question regarding this issue is answered:
Herbert L. Seward IIIPublished 5 years ago in The SwampThe False Paradox: Cultural Heritage vs Human Life
As I sat on the train on my commute home on Monday April 16, I, like millions of others, read the news in horror. Notre Dame was burning.
Kaylee Spivey GoodPublished 5 years ago in The SwampThe 15th Amendment
The 15th Amendment was about giving black men the right to vote, seeing as it stated that the United States cannot deny the vote based on race, color, or whether one had been a slave or not. The 15th Amendment was the beginning of a step out of class struggle, and into radical social equality when it granted black men the right to vote. The government could not be allowed to vote based on race, color, or “previous condition of servitude.” The Southern states, however, used intimidation tactics such as a poll tax, literacy tests and more to scare black voters out of casting their vote. Black men, many of whom had been slaves, were ruled to have the right to vote, because, by 1869, amendments were passed to abolish slavery as Republicans of the time felt that it was crucial to the survival of their party to be against slavery.
Iria Vasquez-PaezPublished 5 years ago in The SwampThe Ongoing Battle for Gay Rights
Growing up in the 70s and 80s was not always easy, but it was particularly hard if someone was anything out of the “ordinary.” This era was crucial when it came to things like human rights and tolerance. It was a turning point in how America viewed homosexuality and in how LBGTQ+ community members were treated both by the law and by the people.
Tessa GiassonPublished 5 years ago in The SwampPolitics: Two Sides of the Same Coin
In today's world of political scandal and smear campaigns, it's hard to know the truth. It seems that each politician instead of building a better platform and a clearer vision for their country instead reverts to their basest of impulses and tries to tear down the others. They attack the other candidates to weaken their position or character instead of strengthening their own position.
John Ames BirchPublished 5 years ago in The SwampWhy Republicans Should Love Mayor Pete
Pete Buttigieg is surging in the polls, recently beating such heavyweight names as Senator Elizabeth Warren and Senator Cory Booker, he also came within spitting distance of Senator Bernie Sanders. In fact, the only other candidate that Mayor Pete, as he is commonly called among his supporters, is former Vice President Joe Biden, but that might not be an issue should Biden bow out of the race before entering it. Such is Buttigieg's popularity that Republicans have already started the war machine against him in the hopes of giving Trump a boost before potentially facing him in the general election. And how are they attacking the potential 2020 candidate by using the very things they would support, and even rally around, one of their own candidates for.
Edward AndersonPublished 5 years ago in The SwampKnowledge Is Power: Why Julian Assange Is a Champion of Democracy
Love him or hate him, the arrest of Julian Assange is most certainly a travesty of not only justice, but also of the core democratic values that the Western world prides itself on. Of course, politicians in Washington are rather delighted to see the downfall of a modern-day muckraker who has exposed the US government on numerous occasions throughout the years. Yet, it has been quite stunning to see that many common American citizens on both sides of the political spectrum seem to be celebrating Assange’s arrest and advocating for his potential extradition to the US, where he could be subject to government sanctioned-torture (“enhanced interrogation,” if you prefer euphemisms) and serve a lifelong sentence at a maximum security prison. Unfortunately, the reason why so many American citizens are cheering on the prosecution of Assange is because those who are born into the free world oftentimes take democracy for granted - so much to the extent that they forget to acknowledge what such a term really means, and are therefore rendered incapable of understanding precisely why his arrest would represent a threat to the fundamental pillars of democracy itself.
The Birds and the Bees
It's a summers day, the grass is lush and green and soft beneath my feet. The air is full of butterflies and other insects, and the bees go about their daily task of pollinating the flowers and making honey, something they have done for thousands of years. To my right is a line of ancient oak trees. The soft breeze gently blows through the leaves, creating dappled patterns of light on the forest floor. In the distance, the light dances on the surface of the lake, sparkling like millions of silverfish and I feel peaceful. The year is 1983, and in my naivety, I think this is how it will always be.
Jean Luc LafittePublished 5 years ago in The SwampThe Problem of Race
Racism and prejudice have been present in almost every civilization and society throughout history. Even though the world has progressed greatly in the last couple of decades, both socially and technologically, racism, hatred, and prejudice still exist today. It lives deeply embedded in old-fashioned, narrow-minded traditions and values. People like being right. When confronted by a different person's views, they get angered. That is what the United States is—a country is built on people having their own views and points. Although this is good, it can become fatal. America as a nation has a deep central problem with the way it views people that are not ‘white,’ it stereotypes and places people in boxes that make it difficult for them to get out of, unless we go out of our way to neglect stereotypical views we see or hear from people and the media, the racial issues and problems deeply embedded in American history will never be fixed. The only way to teach about the issues of racism in America is through education, one way being Ta Nehisi Coates “Letter to My Son” because it helps the reader understand the fear of being a black American and relate to the issues that will not only affect them but the people around them.
Bryan Watch: April Week 2
The second week of April was pretty slow for Congress. Only 11 votes cast, and six were non-party line votes. Of the five party line votes, three were procedural.
John HeckenlivelyPublished 5 years ago in The Swamp