Discussions

Posted: September 9th, 2013

Discussions

Name:

Course:

Date:

Discussions

Discussion 1

The passage that I enjoyed the most from U.S.A. was that which talked about the legendary musician, Big Bill. This passage appealed to me greatly because it talked of a celebrated musician who was celebrated not only by American citizens but also by other people all over the world. Big Bill was a singer, a guitarist and a songwriter whose career begun in the 1920’s. The passage ahs explained his rise to fame through the messages in his songs. He produced music with heartfelt messages and this was the main reason he became so famous. In the passage, Big Bill is portrayed by the author as one of the notable individuals in the country who represented “America at its best.” This is to mean that his music had a great effect on the world and since he came from the United States, it earned the country a good reputation. However, the passage goes on to state that even though he was an outstanding individual, he was not the “savior of the U.S.A.” This is because his messages were not heeded and the country fell into the very vices that which he was trying to warn them. For this reason, Big Bill is a victim because even id they were righteous, the rest of the people were not. This led to the presence of corruption in the country as well as other vices that have led to moral decay. This passage applies in the present situation because the vices that Big Bill talked about in his music are deeply entrenched in our societies. This passage makes one wonder, if his advice was taken into consideration, would we be facing the situations that we do now and would the world not be a much better place to live in.

Discussion 2

A correctional officer in most jurisdictions requires a high school diploma or a GED. College credits or degrees should also be a necessity for the officers. The basic requirements for this position is the high school diploma but some institutions like the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons also requires all the applicants to have a bachelors degree in a field related to the post. Degrees required include one in criminal justice or in social science. These degrees are important because they enable the correctional officers to do their job more effectively. For instance in the case of an individual who has a degree in criminal justice, they will be able to understand the justice system as well as the psychology of the prisoners in the institution. This will make it easier for him or her to monitor the inmates while compared to the individual who just has a high school diploma. This is because the officer with the GED or diploma does not have the necessary knowledge to handle the inmates in the institution in question effectively. Therefore, in order to ensure that the correctional system in the United States has capable correctional officers, it is imperative that they all acquire degrees in fields related to their job descriptions (Simmons, n.d).

Discussion 3

The just concluded elections were one of the most competitive ones recorded in the history of the United States. In order to analyze the election efficiently the demographic breakdown of the election is fundamental. In the demographic breakdown, different groups of people will be considered based on factors like age, gender, locality, income and educational background. A majority of the people aged between 18 and 49 supported Obama in the election while those aged above 50 supported Romney. The ages of the two candidates is assumed the reason behind this breakdown. In terms of gender, the females greatly supported Obama while the majority of the males supported Romney. The alleged reason for this is that the policies that Obama had brought forth favored women. Based on the areas of residence, the people living in the suburbs and the rural areas supported Romney more while the rest who lived in medium populated areas supported Obama. People with incomes over $100,000 supported Romney while all the ones who earned below that supported Obama. In the case of educational achievements, no disparity was there in terms of support but it was noted that people with postgraduate education supported Obama. For all the rest of the groups, the difference noted was limited to only 3% or below. Demographic breakdowns are very important in the analysis of elections as noted in this case.

References

Simmons, Constance. (n.d) “What Education Should a Corrections Officer Have?” Retrieved from:  http://www.ehow.com/about_6320723_education-should-corrections-officer-have_.html