Blog #2

In the modern age, the supreme court is very powerful as it is responsible for judicial review and interpreting the constitution. Watching  professor Smith's videos on this subject showed me that his wasn't always the case though. I learned that In the early days of our nation, the supreme court had little to no power if any at all. This wouldn't last very long however. In the year 1801, John Marshall was appointed Chief Justice. It was through Marshall that the court's prestige was created and the supreme court we know today was born. Furthermore, the videos about the supreme court discussed the process of new justices joining the court. It was a bit shocking to learn that the American people basically have no say in this decision. The justices are nominated by presidents and in many cases, serve much longer than that president is in office. 

So how did he do that? Marshall set the precedent that is known today as Judicial review. This was done in the 1803 case Marbury v. Madison. Judicial review is the most important function of the supreme court in modern America. It's defined as the power of the court to review all actions of all branches of government and deem them constitutional or not. Another key takeaway for the supreme court is that they are the highest court in the land. This means that this is the final destination for cases that get appealed to higher courts. 

This video completely changed my perspective on the supreme court. Firstly, it humanized those who served in the supreme court. These people are individuals and citizens just like everyone else. That adds a level of difficulty to what they do and brings me a newfound sense of respect for them. Additionally, the videos talked about the complexity of decision making. These aren't easy or simple decisions that can be made on a whim. They require critical thinking, knowledge, and a strong moral compass. Ultimately, the supreme court's massive impact on our society (which has been made much more apparent to me now) has shaped the nation we live in. This court is extremely influential and the decisions that it makes can have massive ramifications for our personal lives.

Blog Post #3

     I believe the eight values of free expression are very valuable virtues for the American people to possess. This is a set of rules that, if adhered to, are sure to produce a better America with a more prosperous people. The reason for this is that our constitution is built on the ideals of freedom and justice. Of all of the values listed, I consider Promoting Innovation and Protecting dissent to be the most relevant to modern events. In an increasingly technologically advanced world, censorship has been present in different forms of media. These attempts at controlling narratives are more detrimental to the American people than they are beneficial. Today, we'll examine the dissent this has caused in the modern world and how some people are turning things around by incorporating free speech into innovation.

    Innovation is in our DNA. From the discovery of fire to the invention of the flat screen TV, humans trend toward progress in the field of technology. According to the article 'Eight Values of Free Expression,' this ideal is important because "A community in which free speech is valued and protected is likely to be a more energized, creative, interesting society as its citizens actively fulfill themselves in many diverse and interesting ways." While there is certainly division in modern day America, the voices of the people have never been more widespread than they are now. This has lead to the transformation of speech in the public sphere as we know it. We can see this in effect today. The change in ownership of the popular social media platform twitter had massive ramifications for free speech in the modern world. The modern version of the platform, X, has very little to no censorship. Although people have varying opinions about the platforms' current state, one thing that you cannot deny is that X has had a profound impact on the exchange of information and ideas online. It has allowed unprecedented access to the thoughts and ideas of people you would have never known otherwise. 

    Have you ever held a strongly rooted opinion that you felt you couldn't express? That's a frustrating feeling. Unfortunately, bitter feelings toward government and prominent institutions have caused tragedies to occur in the past. That's why it's so important as Americans to believe in and support protecting dissent. As our previously mentioned article so elegantly stated, "Our system is not supposed to be one of mob rule. The First Amendment protects minority views, no matter how unpopular. You have a strongly protected right to disagree with the government — and everyone else. In fact, it is your patriotic duty to criticize the government." As American citizens, we shouldn't have a negative attitude towards peaceful protests or criticism against the government. These are important aspects of our right to freedom of speech. Dissent and protest have played a prominent role in recent American discussion. The most recent case of this that I can think of is the new incumbent president of the USA. Many people disagree with the decision America has made to elect Donald Trump her president. Despite these feelings, their voices and opinions are protected under the first amendment. This is ultimately a good thing as, if that contingent of people had their voices silenced, it would ultimately lead to more division within our nation. 

Blog Post #1

 My Top 5 Sources of News:

#1 Instagram

As I'm sure you're already well aware, Instagram is a very popular social media platform owned by Meta. There are many pages on this platform that post news related pictures and videos. For younger generations, this is one of the first places that news is viewed. It's very convenient as news articles can pop up on your screen right after any number of entertaining videos. In short, we would've been scrolling anyway. In addition to simply hearing the news, Instagram allows us to hear prominent influencer's opinions on the topic. I believe this is an overall net positive, as it makes contemporary events more engaging to younger audiences.

#2 Youtube

Whatever Instagram offers in the form of influencer opinion, Youtube doubles or even triples that. Many creators post long-form content discussing events that otherwise would only be discussed on news channels. This allows viewers to hear a variety of nuanced takes from people from all parts of the political spectrum. This causes me to believe that Youtube is also a great source of news and an a very viable way to understand modern issues. Like all other forms of technology however, Youtube is a tool. You have the option to hear exactly what you would like. It's up to the individual user to make sure they hear arguments from both sides instead of turning their algorithm into an echo chamber.

#3 Google News

In my experience, Google News is the closest that people my age will get to willingly watching or reading the news. Of all news sources, it's the easiest to access. When you search recent events, articles from google news will be the first thing that you see. This search engine compiles both conservative and liberal sources in order to give you the most bi-partisan information possible. This is very useful as it allows you to learn about recent world events with just the click of a few buttons. Whether or not I get far past the headlines or not... well that's a different story. 

#4 Twitter/X

Yes, this app is useful for something other than funny quotes from your favorite artist. Similarly to Instagram, Twitter is home to a multitude of different news channels that update their followers on breaking news. In addition to these news channels, we have the unprecedented ability to see the thoughts of political figures in real time as they tweet out to mass audiences. This has had some never before seen consequences, both good and bad. Like other platforms, you can find the opinions of both sides of the political spectrum. At the same time however, this sometimes leads to hateful discourse between those with differing political views. 

#5 Snapchat

While I wouldn't say I get my news from this platform in the more traditional sense, it is still useful in a variety of ways. The biggest component of this app that I would like to highlight is its 'stories' feature. Stories are posts made by users in which they update their friends on what's going on in their lives and the things that are important to them. It was the first social media platform to include this feature. I think it is very important because, while it may not be the first place you get your news, it allows you to see people you know discussing topics in a way you may not have thought of before. This has its pros and cons but ultimately, it allows the people you know to see where you stand and your thoughts about current events.