LAD # 10: The Monroe Doctrine

The Monroe Doctrine is a United States Policy which was signed into effect on December 2, 1823.  It states that if the European powers try and colonize any part of the New World, then it will be seen as an aggressive action.  Americans as well as the Russians and British believed that now was the time to end imperialism in the New World.  This doctrine explained that if a country tried to colonize the New World any more than it would be met with intervening action.  This doctrine was signed at a time when many Latin American countries were close to becoming independent from Spain, and it made sure that if they became independent they would remain that way.  New countries in the New World were also officially recognized as independent countries such as Chile and Mexico.

LAD #9: Jefferson's First Inaugural Address

In his first inaugural address, Thomas Jefferson laid the foundation for his views on how the government should be run.  These ideas eventually became known as Jeffersonian democracy, which stressed a strict following of the Constitution.  Before going into these ideas however, Jefferson starts of his speech explaining how greatly honored he is to be elected to this position, and even modestly states how he believes "the task is above my talents".  He continues by saying how grateful he is to head this "rising nation".  Even in the opening he mentions the Constitution and how he will look to it for wisdom.

Next Jefferson describes how the Constitution has set government up to assure that the will of the majority will prevail.  He makes sure to mention that the minority will still be granted equal rights in all cases.  Jefferson then explains how political intolerance can be detrimental to the nation, and that it cannot be allowed.  He talks about how at the core everyone is a Federalist and a Republican because everyone wants to keep a strong united nation.  He exclaims that the U.S.'s government is truly "the strongest government on earth".

Jefferson then describes how a great government like the one of the United States restrains men from hurting each other, yet still allows enough freedom for men to regulate their own  pursuits in business, and enjoy the rewards for hard work.

Jefferson begins to wrap up his speech by listing the many rights that the Constitution gives the people, calling them "vital principles of republics".  This list includes having a "well-disciplined militia,...honest payment of our debts,...encouragement of agriculture...freedom of religion, freedom of press, freedom of person under the protection of the habeas corpus, and trial by juries impartially selected."  All these follow the ideas of Jeffersonian democracy.

Jefferson concludes his address by warning the American people that he is no perfect man, and will surely make some mistakes along the way "through defect of judgment".  He also realizes that even when he believes he has made a right decision, there will be people with differing opinions who believe he is wrong.  He asks that the American people to be kind to others even when they have opposed views or are in the wrong.  Lastly, Jefferson says that he will now get to work and will be ready to retire when the people feel the time has come.

Christopher Columbus: Hero or Villain?

As the second Monday in October arrives every year, Americans across the country celebrate Columbus Day.  Schools, banks, post offices and government agencies are all closed as many people get the day off.  Students and adults alike are not quick to question this national holiday as it is a nice break from work.  Yet, the question of why we celebrate this day still occasionally arises.  Most people would give the same answer that their second grade teacher first told them: Columbus Day celebrates the great Spanish explorer, Christopher Columbus, and his discovery of America on October 12th, 1492.  This answer is good enough for most people, as they continue their day picking pumpkins, drinking apple cider and running through corn mazes.  But is this polished tale of Christopher Columbus the whole story?  One would be surprised after flipping over the pancake and seeing the uncensored version of Columbus' affairs.

There are many points that tarnish Columbus' patriotic image.  First off, his intentions were never to discover America.  He simply was trying to find a quicker route to the Indies.  Knowing that the world was round, Columbus assumed that if he went west then it might be shorter than going around the tip of Africa.  Yet a little continent called America just happened to get in his way.  And when Columbus did make his arrival he falsely thought that he had reached the Indies. This mistake is the origin for why Native Americans have been referred to as "Indians", even though they are thousands of miles from India. Therefore Columbus' "discovery" was far from a discovery in that he didn't even know he had discovered anything new.  And while talking about this "discovery", it should be noted that Columbus was not even the first European to run into America.  This discovery should be credited to Leif Erikson, a Norse explorer, who was truly the first European to set foot in America.


So Columbus made a few miscalculations, what's the big deal?  He was still an admirable leader, right?  Even more surprising than his misconceptions about his location is his corrupt personality.  Once aboard the ships headed to the Indies a reward was set for the first person to see land.  A crew member named Rodrigo was the first to see land, yet Columbus cheated him out of his reward by stating that he himself was the first to see land the day before.  Yet, the treatment of his crew is not what should give him a notorious view.  How he handled the natives however, truly shows what type of person Columbus was.


In his personal log of the journey, Columbus himself noted how generous the native Arawak people were after his arrival.  They offered many gifts and showed no signs of being any sort of threat to Columbus and his crew.  Yet Columbus did not care for their hospitality, and instead was in search of two things only; slaves and gold.  He quickly enslaved some Arawak people in hopes that they could show him where the "fields of gold" that filled his dreams were located.  And after realizing that these fields did not exist, Columbus turned to enslaving the remaining 250,000 Arawak people to mine for what little gold there was.  Even though gold was not nearly as plentiful as Spain had imagined, Columbus still sent reports of how amazing Hispaniola was, so that more Spanish ships were sent over. If quotas were not met, the hands of the Arawaks were cut off leaving them to bleed to death.  Also after a native resistance was defeated, many were hanged or burned to death.  This terrible treatment of the Arawaks soon led to mass suicides as the only way to escape Columbus and his wicked ways.


The problem with this story is that it is simply not what Americans want to hear about our country's supposed discoverer.  A mass genocide of a peaceful people is not what people want to celebrate and have a day off for, so these truths are often buried.  Along with this, it would most likely not fly if second grade teachers told their students how Columbus and his friends would cut off slices of the Natives to test the sharpness of their blades.  So to answer the question of whether Columbus was a hero or a villain, it hopefully should be clear that he was no hero.  Columbus should be regarded as a villain, and ideally Columbus Day should be a remembrance of the cruel things that have been done to create our country.

LAD #7: Washington's Farewell Address

In Washington's Farewell Address he announced his retirement as his second term as president was coming to an end.  Although there would be another election to decide who the next president would be, Washington told the American people to get ready for a new president, as he would not be running for another re-election.  He went on the say that he missed retirement and the low stress that came with it and had wished to retire after the first term, but felt the country was not stable or ready for his departure.  He said that he was grateful that the U.S. and the Constitution were created and that the Constitution will remain a vital part of the country for many years to come.  Washington then goes on to say how excellent the newly created government is in that it was created by the people.  Next he talks about how the country is flourishing due to the diversity of the areas.  The northern and southern states compliment each other with their distinct ways of life.  Also the eastern states are helping the settlers in the western frontier as the country continues to grow.  Washington states his firm belief that it is this union that will keep America strong.  No matter what happens, the states must not let it damage their unity.  He also asks that people abide by the laws of the Constitution because it is another important part of the inexperienced government. Another topic Washington covers is political parties.  Washington urges Americans to not form political parties as it will only divide the nation and create extremists who may rebel.  Washington also asks the American people to remain neutral in foreign affairs and only interact with other countries for trade.  Lastly, he tells Americans to preserve their honor and integrity to create a peaceful society.

LAD #6: Washington's Proclamation of Neutrality

In the Proclamation of Neutrality 1793, George Washington explained his decision on how The United States should respond to the war between Austria, Prussia, Sardinia, Great Britain, and the United Netherlands, on one side, and France on the other.  He decided that what was best for the new country was to remain neutral and impartial in the war.  He then instructs the American people to do the same, not helping out any side.  He goes on to say that if any Americans are caught aiding any side of the war, then they would not receive any protection or backing from the United States.  Lastly he says that anyone who is caught will also be punished by the United States.

LAD # 5: Federalist #10

1) Why are factions so difficult to eliminate?

The difficulty in eliminating factions can be found in the means by which it was created in the first place.  For factions to arise, there needs to be a certain degree of liberty and freedom.  Therefore one way to eliminate factions are to get rid of this liberty and freedom.  Yet, this is not a reasonable option because it was the same liberty and freedom that America was built upon.  The second requirement for factions to emerge is differing opinions.  People need to have opposing views on things in order for there to be different factions.  So, one could try to get everyone to believe the same things and have the same views so that factions wouldn't exist.  Still this is also a bad option because not everyone is the same, and everyone grows up in different settings which yields differing opinions.  During these times the main cause of factions was unequal distribution of land, which caused people to have differing views.

2) If factions cannot be removed then how can they be controlled?
Like in the ways to eliminate factions, there is more than one way to control factions.  If a faction is part of a minority then it can be controlled through democratically voting with the majority overruling the minority faction.  If the faction makes up the majority of the population, then it has to be controlled differently.  In this case, one must try to get the minority people to speak up and express any differing opinions so that there is it least a discussion as to what actions should be taken.  Factions can also be controlled through picking representatives for different areas, along with uniting the states.  This unification can help control factions because even if a faction may be strong in a specific area, other areas have differing opinions and ideas, along with their own representation.

Blog #4: Revolution Article

5 Things I learned after reading "Rethinking the Revolution" by John Ferling.

1) After the end of the Revolutionary War, the Founding Fathers realized that to some extent they would be able to create how the revolution was viewed generations into the future. An example of this can be found in George Washington's attempt to improve his legacy by correcting grammar in his early correspondence.  Also, Washington recalled the French and Indian War for his biography, yet he made sure to leave out an unflattering details.  These actions show the other side of the pancake to what most people learned; the Founding Fathers, Washington in particular, were men of "unblemished virtue".

2) Unlike many beliefs today, the Civil War may not have been the most deadly war, as far as percentages go.  In the Civil War, 1 in 5 soldiers died.  Yet, during the Revolutionary War 1 in 4 soldiers of the Continental Army died.

3) During the American Revolution, artists did not accurately illustrate the reality of war. This caused many people, even to this day, to have distorted views of what really went on.  All of the most popular paintings of the war during this time were without anyone firing a gun or any dead bodies on the battle field.  This has left people to believe that the Revolutionary War was not as bloody and violent as it actually was.

4) Life as a soldier was often composed of just trying to survive when fighting had temporarily ceased.  When invading Canada, hungry soldiers were forced to eating pet dogs, and making soup from boiled shoes to stay alive.  Along with this, harsh winters brought problems in that most soldiers did not have proper clothing, and some were even left "entirely naked".

5) Lastly I learned that the civilians during the Revolutionary War suffered much more than I previously thought.  Many towns were completely wiped out by disease, especially in the first autumn of the war, spread by traveling soldiers.  Also, Indian attacks on the frontier led to many civilian deaths.  Even within the colonies American Tories fought against the Whigs, which led to many more deaths.