Practice Essay #4: Laws in Free Society

Question: In a free society, laws must be subject to change. Explain what you think the above statement means. Describe a specific situation in which a law should not be subject to change in a free society. Discuss what you think determines whether or not a law in a free society should be subject to change.

Answer: 
People’s values and beliefs are ever changing. The world as we know it today is completely different from what it was in the past. Laws, like people, must be flexible and be subject to change to fit the time and the will of the people. The above statement uses the words “free society”, which implies that the citizens of the society have rights to voice their needs and contribute to the law making process.

Laws should not be subject to change in a free society when doing so would compromise what it means to be a free society. Take for example the Bill of Rights in the US Constitution which serves to protect basic human rights granted to US citizens. In a free society such as the US, extensive personal freedoms are given to its citizens to ensure the prosperous coexistence of a diverse population. The Bill of Rights cover an array of laws such freedom of speech, religion, to bear arms, and etc. These laws serve as the basic notion for what it means to be a free society. Seeking to change the Bill of Rights would, thus, be compromising what it means to be a free society.

In determining whether or not a law should be subject to change in a free society, the grounds upon which the law stands must be looked at. If the laws serve as the foundation for what it means to be a free society and gives the people their basic human rights then it is best for these to be stable and left untouched. The laws, however, must be made to ensure that it is fitting of the time and to the values and beliefs of the majority of the citizens as to not warrant it unjust.

Practice Essay #3: Understanding the Past

Question: An understanding of the past is necessary for solving the problems of the present.  Explain what you think the above statement means.  Describe a specific situation in which solving a current problem might not require an understanding of the past.  Discuss what you think determines whether or not the past should be considered in solving the problems of the present.

Answer:
As the saying goes history is bound to repeat itself. With this in mind, the statement suggests that it is important to learn from the past and use it as a learning experience to ensure that the same mistake is not repeated. Taking this a step further, it can be said that further improvements can be made as well upon the approach taken in the past when seeking to solve the problems of the present. A simple example of this would be trying to solve a complicated puzzle given that there is no prior knowledge of it. During the early stages, a fair amount of errors and trials will need to be undertaken. It is through these errors and trials that learning takes place and is to be avoided in the present or future for it does not give the desired results.

Some current problems, however, might not require an understanding of the past in order to be solved. An instance in which this is true is when the situation is unique from those experienced in the past due to difference in circumstances or various other reasons. Take for example the possible energy crisis which the world might soon have to face. As we continue to use up the supply of energy resources such as coal, oil, and etc, new resources will need to be sought after to replace that which we are using up. While there are various lessons that we can learn from the past concerning the use of the supply of energy resources, an understanding of the past is not quite necessary for solving the problems of the present. 

There are certain situations where an understanding of the past is necessary for solving problems of the present. For when we don’t learn from our mistakes, they are often times repeated. However, there are also certain situations in which the current problems can be solved without an understanding of the past. So, the thing that seems to determine whether the past should or should not be considered in solving the problems of the present come down to applicability of the past to the current problems and the lessons that can be learned from those experiences.

Practice Essay #2: Student Learning

Question: Students should be more interested in the process of learning than in the facts learned.  Describe a specific situation in which students might be more interested in the facts learned than in the process of learning.  Discuss what you think determines when students should be interested in the process of learning and when they should be interested in the facts learned.

Answer:

The amount of information presented to students can often times be quite overwhelming for them.  And when this information are tested over, students become more interested and focused on memorizing the facts learned than in the process of learning.  This, however, is not a good way of learning for the facts/information learned will eventually be forgotten or becomes irrelevant.  It is better for students to be more interested in the process of learning and the acquisition of new knowledge for there are numerous resources available that are updated regularly so that students can remain current and up-to-date.

Students might be more interested in the facts learned not only for testing purposes but when the information presented seem to be just random facts or stand alone facts that are not applicable to anything else.  As such, the students might view this information as additional trivial things to be memorized.  Take for example a student who is not a history major but is taking a history course and is given a list of names of people from the past to learn about.  To this student, the information that he/she learned might or might not be interesting but is probably not useful to the student outside of the course.

Applicability of the facts/information would, thus, be a good determinant for whether the student should be more interested in the facts learned as opposed to the process of learning.  When students are able to see the applicability and usefulness of the information presented, they are more likely to take the learning process more seriously and not be so focused on just merely memorizing.

Practice Essay #1: Political Freedom

Question: Political freedoms are best appreciated in those countries where they do not exist.  Describe a specific situation in which political freedoms might be appreciated in a country where such freedoms do exist.  Discuss what you think determines whether political freedoms are best appreciated in countries where such freedoms are denied or where they exist.

Answer:
As human, we tend to take for granted what we are accustomed to may it be our family, technology, or political freedom. When it is a part of our daily life, it is often overlooked and becomes unappreciated. In other words, we do not give much thought to those things for it is so readily available.

Political freedoms, just like anything else, are often unappreciated in those countries where they do exist. It is when those political freedoms are challenged and people are faced with the possibilities of losing those rights and privileges with which they have lived with most of or all of their lives will they become truly aware of those political freedoms and appreciate those more. A political freedom which often times get challenged and is often prevalent in the news is the freedom of speech. This is best exemplify by wikileaks release of government and other confidential documents. Due to the sensitive nature of these documents, censorship of these documents have been sought after by numerous organizations and countries including the US. The vast amount of news articles and people’s discussions regarding wikileaks in a way demonstrate their awareness if not appreciation for the freedom of speech.

Political freedoms are best appreciated in those countries where, whether those freedoms do exist or are denied, the people of those countries have a sense of global awareness. That the people know that such political freedoms do not exist in other countries as opposed to their country or that such political freedoms do exist elsewhere as opposed to their country. It is also vital for the people to know that such political freedoms are not always guaranteed and can be taken away.

The Road Thus Far

It has been quite awhile since my last entry in this blog.  A lot of things have happened in that time.  I'm not exactly sure where to pick up.  I won't go into any details though.  With this entry, I want to reflect on my progress so far.  About three months ago, I started on a "quest" for self-improvement due to various reasons.  My life wasn't perfect but it wasn't horrible.  It was sort of an ordinary life.  I guess some people would be content with it but to me it didn't feel right.  I felt like I was living for the sake of living and just going through the daily routines of life.  It just didn't feel like I had much control over what happened and where I was going.  I was taking a backseat position in this Game of Life.

What has changed?

The biggest change I have noticed is my shift in attitude and perspectives on things.  This is quite broad in a sense but I can't seem to find a better way of expressing it.  I find that I have more of a positive outlook on life somewhere along the lines of the glass is half full as opposed to half empty.  In fact, to me, that doesn't really matter anymore.  It's more about making the most of what is given to you.  You can choose to spend your time complaining and whining about something, but that would be time wasted.  It is better to invest that time elsewhere.  I, also, find that I'm not the approval-seeking person that I once was.  I do things simply for the satisfaction that I get from doing it without feeling like I have to prove anything to anybody.  The only person I really need to prove anything to is myself.

I have come a long way to get to where I am today.  All the events of the past either good or bad have contributed to who I am.  It does not, however, define me.  Who I truly am and what I choose to do with my life is up to me.

Word of the Day
Totemic (adjective) - Relating to a representation of such an object serving as the distinctive mark of the clan or group
The amber necklace that she often wears has totemic values for it has been passed down her family for centuries.