Audacity of Hope #3

In this chapter, it tells Obama's feelings on the US constitution.  Barack Obama knew the constitution well and believed there were only a few ways to interpret it.  He acquired this belief after his first couple of weeks in the Senate.  Because he was new, he was not familiar with many senators and soon became friends with the old-guard lawmakers.  After learning much from them about how the Senate worked around the Constitution, Barack came to the conclusion that, 
"What the framework of our Constitution can do is organize the way by which we argue about our future" (p 92).  Barack knew the constitution wasn't just a set of rules; it was created to be ever changing and to allow adaptation to modernization.  The old-guard were wise and had much respect for the constitution and the forefathers that created it, but the newer, inexperienced youth of the senate were quite different.

Barack was upset with the younger members of the Senate for disregarding the constitution and focusing on what they believed to be the solution to our nation's problems.  They always wanted action to be taken without thinking things through, but the experienced members knew better and shut them down.  Obama thought the Senate should fix the country's problems through healthy debate, not rash decisions.  In regards to the constitution, he believed, "The answer I settle on--which is by no means original to me--requires a shift in metaphors, one that see our democracy not as a house to be built, but as a conversation to be had" (p 92).  Barack tried all he could to learn from the older members, but he soon learned from experience.  He understood the frustration of the younger members for being restrained, but knew it was wiser to view all possible solutions.  Barack learned to be a very understanding person.

Obama's Ethics

Barack Obama is a man of great ethics.  He knows the difference between wrong and right and no matter the pressure, he always selects the good decision.  He was raised with strong, moral family values, which he applies to everyday life.  He also intends to apply them to the country as president.  If family members support each other, help each other, and are willing to do anything for one another, then his ethical beliefs are incredibly strong and good-natured.  Obama spent a long time in the rough city areas to help the impoverished, (202).  He believed that he had to help his "family" in the poor areas because, after all, they were his brothers and sisters, his sons and daughters.  Obama wouldn't do anything wrong to keep his family well though; he would do anything within reasonable measures to keep them safe and comfortable.  He is a man of strong morals.

On the Waterfront: Traitor or Crusader?

In the movie, On The Waterfront, the characters believed that by ratting out the mob on a crime they committed, you would be considered a "stool pigeon."  The mobsters believed that if you ratted them out, you were no good and they'd get rid of you.  They believed that rats had something to gain from tattling on them.  Terry believed that what he was doing was right; he knew that what the mob was doing was wrong and he wanted to stand up to them and help everyone out.  He thought he was a moral crusader, or a whistleblower, the mob thought he was a rat.

I think that if you rat someone out because you can gain something out of it for yourself, you're a tattle tale.  Selfish acts are for traitors.  If you stand up and point something out that someone's doing wrong because you know it will benefit society, then you are a moral crusader.  I think there should be more moral crusaders in the world.

All My Sons is pretty dramatic.

In the play All My Sons, Arthur Miller, the author, shows how a man places the needs of his family before those of society.  Joe Keller is the father of the Keller family, as well as the owner of a machine parts factory.  He sells broken machine parts to the military which end up taking the lives of twenty-one pilots.  After putting the blame on his partner, who goes to prison, his son finds out and he explains to him how he did what was best for his family.  Joe tells his son, "For you! The business was for you!"(70).  Joe's life's goal was to create something for his son, otherwise he felt like his life meant nothing.  He wanted to support his family and leave his son wealthy; he didn't care about leaving anything for others in society.  Joe was a family man, a man who'd do anything for his family.  So, he killed twenty-one pilots to keep his family off of the streets.

 I don't judge Joe on what he did.  I know that if I were in his shoes, I'd try to do what was best for my family too.  Except killing innocent pilots is crossing the line.  Joe should've made a better decision but given little time he did the best he could.  Anyone would put their family first.  Some would call that selfish but deep down they wouldn't give up their children.