1. The dual court system is uniquely crafted to protect individual rights more effectively than other branches with election systems like Congress, the President, and local governments. The dual court system comprises both state and federal courts, both working independently but at times overlapping. This specific structure allows for individuals to have multiple paths on the journey of seeking justice, if an individual feels as though their rights were violated by state law, they have the opportunity of appealing their case higher in the state court system–and potentially to federal courts if a federal constitutional issue arises. Ultimately, this layered system allows for the highest chance of individual rights protection.
2. Before reading the articles, the Supreme Court can easily be seen as anti-democratic due to it being the only system within our government’s structure where citizens aren’t involved in the selection. However, it was clarified that this selection method is intentional as it allows for the federal court to be removed from political pressures, thus making it easier for judges to make decisions solely on the constitution and law, not on what people believe is just/politically convenient.This reasoning helps me believe that the Supreme court isn’t solely anti-democratic, however, practices like court packing and other political influences can still sway justices decisions, undermining the intended impartiality of the court and reinforcing the perception that theres a possible undemocratic manner.

1. According to P Williams, the war on terror was viewed as a new kind of war due to the lack of clear enemy and ending.Traditional wars are typically fought between nations/states with armies and defined geographic borders, however, the war on terror is fought against terroristic actions/groups that take place throughout multiple locations–and usually kept in secrecy.
2. Roving wiretaps allows for the government to monitor a suspect without establishing a specific device that will be tapped, meaning that if the individual being monitored switched devices they’d be able to continue the surveilance without a new warrant being issued.This practice violates the fourth Amendment as it can be classified as an unreasonable search/seizure due to the lack of specification regarding which device is being surveilled.
3. Similarly to ‘Roving Wiretaps”, Sneak and Peak warrants violate the fourth amendment.These warrants allow for the law enforcement to enter an individuals house/property without their knowledge, and intentionally delay when the person is notified. This is classified as a breach of privacy/abuse of power.

1. When addressing the bill of rights, the first amendment is one of the most well known and frequently implemented amendments in the United States.This amendment guarantees both religious freedom and the right to express your views in public, ultimately creating a distinction between the government power and personal freedoms.In gain a better perspective of it’s impact, it’s easiest to understand it from two key freedoms: 1 – prevention of government imposing a set of religious beliefs, 2- the protection of individuals from having their religious beliefs restricted by the government.The first of these protections is the Establishment clause, which prevents Congress from creating or promoting a state sponsored religion. This originally stemmed from the historical context of the United States foundation, during its development, other countries in the world had established religious beliefs and values resulting in a lot of world wars and conflicts.The United States intentionally chose to separate religion from government in order to avoid these conflicts.The Lemon test works in tandem with the Establishment clause, assessing whether a law or government action might possibly promote a particular religious practice.
2. The topic of legal flag desecration has been extremely controversial.The issue first arose as a result of the decision of Texas v Johnson, Johnson was convicted of desecrating a venerated object–he specifically burnt an American flag. However, the supreme court later ruled that flag burning is a form of symbolic speech protected by the first amendment causing the previous conviction to be deemed unconstitutional.The court case remained contested, causing congress to pass the federal flag protection act, which was then subsequently overturned.Since then, the topic of flag desecration has remained a large controversial topic in the United States.
3. When someone pleads the fifth they are ultimately evoking their fifth amendment–the amendment that prevents self incrimination.Typically used in a legal setting, preventing one from responding to self incriminating questions.

1. While analyzing the different forms of government it became evident that the main distinguishing feature is the distribution of power. In a federal system, power is divided between national and state governments, allowing for citizens to be involved at both levels.Example being, citizens are able to elect officials to serve in Congress (national level) as well as state legislatures (state level).The division allowing for larger representation and involvement in both local and national government.In a confederation, power is mainly concentrated at the state level, causing citizens to primarily be engaged with state governments.The central government within a confederation typically only handles collective action among states, so citizens mostly interact with their state government for daily situations.And lastly when it comes to a unitary system the power is concentrated at the national level, meaning citizens role is mainly through the central government being that it holds he majority of authority.Though local governments exist, they gain their power from the central government.Citizen’s engage with the national government through ways like engaging in national level politics.When compared, citizens in a unitary system tend to have less direct influence at the local government level.
2. Within politics, division of power refers to the distribution of power/authority across different levels of government, such as national and state and local.This structure ultimately is what determines how responsibilities and decision making is divided up within a political system.Different countries adopt various systems that implement different forms of division of power.In a federal, power is divided between the national and state governments, each having their own set of responsibilities and authority.The United States is a country that adopts this system, the federal government often handles federal judges and justices approval, national defense etc, whereas the state governments manage law enforcement, local infrastructures etc.This division allowing for both levels to govern effectively while preventing the concentration of power.
3. The federal government’s influence on New York during the Covid 19 pandemic demonstrates how it can shape the actions of state and local governments, specifically through funding and public health directives.Using health guidelines from the CDC the federal government required state and local governments to adjust their policies accordingly.Mask mandates were implemented, vaccinations required to enter public buildings and business restrictions.Temporary halts to evictions were also implemented to prevent mass homelessness as a result of the increase of layoffs.This specific example of the pandemic highlighted how the federal government can both directly and indirectly shape state and local actions by setting national priorities.

1. After analyzing both readings 6.1 and 6.2 it becomes evident that the wealthy elite social class wrote the constitution.Specifically, Reading 6.1 establishes that the men who drafted the Constitution were mainly from the upper class, as the large majority present at the convention were wealthy landowners or businessmen who held significant economic and political control.Their main concern was protecting their financial interests and preventing revolts of the working class that could threaten their wealth. A large example of this fear turning to reality would be Shay’s Rebellion which was an armed uprising as a result of high taxes and economic hardship for the working class/farmers.With the Constitution being written by the upper class this excluded the rest of social classes from being represented.Reading 6.2 supports this by highlighting that Native Americans, individuals of African descent, women, indentured servants and white men that lacked property were all denied from the right to vote, this being a small glimpse into their complete lack of political representation.
2. While the United State’s legal framework has changed to become inclusive, allowing for representation across various social classes and minority groups due to the removal of explicit legal restrictions like the suffrage restrictions.However, there are still societal and economic inequalities that play a role in the unequal distribution of political power.The wealthy maintain their wealth and influence through tactics like campaign contributions ultimately granting them political leverage.
3. The upperclass individuals who wrote the Constitution were afraid of democracy because they feared that the lower class individuals of farmers and laborers would use their newly found majority power to challenge and dismantle their economic interests

1. Faction reminds me of the concept of social class, specifically the working class within social classes.Factions are described as groups of individuals whether the minority or majority that are united due to common interests/grievances that conflict with the rights of others or hinders the well-being of society.This reminds me of how social classes function, they are often groups of individuals with shared economic interests (either the working class or wealthy elite)who often advocate for policies that benefit their specific group.
2. The main source of wealth is identified as the diversity in the faculties of mean, this meaning that individuals’ natural talents and abilities allow them to gather wealth.These natural differences among people ultimately lead to unequal wealth distribution, as varying skills and talents have a large influence on career choices and economic strategies.These faculties causing different results amongst individuals in gaining wealth and property.
3. I honestly don’t agree with this explanation of wealth/poverty.While yes it’s true that talents and strengths vary among individuals across the United States, most people with similar abilities end up in extremely different social classes.Many times, those in lower social classes face societal barriers that limit their opportunities and chances of using their strengths the same way as others in higher social classes do.
4. According to Madison the first object of the government is protecting the right of property, this not being surprising as it reflects the found fathers main priority of securing individual economic interests.Meanwhile, the current governments main focus at the time is public safety and social welfare, so instead of solely protecting what is already had by citizens, the government is now working on providing citizens with the opportunities and resources they should already have.
5. It isn’t at all surprising that Madison favored a Republican government opposed to a pure democracy.Based off of Madison’s beliefs, a republic would better suit handling factional conflicts and protect property of private owners from potential threats proposed by the majority.Whereas, in a pure democracy the majority would be made up of the working class citizens and would be able to unite and redistribute wealth (fairly) and undermine property rights, all of these things not sitting right with Madison at all.

1. To my understanding, in order to make any product two things are necessary, means of production and labor.Means of production are all the items that aid in producing a product, it can be used in two ways: for capitalist production and standard production.Standard production is the regular process, where means of production are just the tools used to create a product regardless of who owns them.Whereas, capitalist production is when the means of production are privately owned and the resulting product is then sold to in a market for profit.An example of it would be if my product is a house my means of labor would be cement, bricks, lightbulbs etc.Labor is defined as the amount of work it takes to complete a task/product, this is the only thing that is able to increase the value of what you have, being that if a higher rate of labor is required then the value goes up as well. An example would being, the usual amount of labor for a regular carpenter to make a regular door is 3 hours, whereas if it’s a door with more intricate designs this will then increase the value of the product as the labor has increased.
2. Value is ultimately the amount of effort it takes to make a product, as a products value is dependent on the labor required under normal circumstance to make that specific product.An item that is valuable is a product that has a large amount of labor required, making that product “unique” when compared to a product that was completed in a short amount of time.
3. Labor and Value are directly related to one another, i’d say they have a cause and effect relationship, as when one increases (labor) then the other variable increases(value).Specifically, if a wedding cake was being made and it required higher labor than usual then this would then increase the amount of value(cost) it has.
4. Labor power is what is sold to employers within the capitalist system, it is an individuals ability/capacity to do work.Whereas, labor is the actual work that gets completed.
5. Surplus value is the extra work completed that isn’t covered in wages to the worker,its important as this is a key example that supports marx’s theory of capitalism being formed to exploit the worker and benefit the rich.An example would be if my task at my job is completed within the first 2 hours of my 8 hour shift, the rest of those 6 hours would be considered surplus value as my task is already completed but i’m still completing other work that benefits my employer.

1. I found it quite interesting that most remain in the social class that they were born in. In my optimistic mind, I always believed that there was a large chance for people to change their families history and elevate their social class for their future generations.But it’s statistically proven, that it’s most likely for one to inherit their parents social class and carry on with it.
2. There are several implications that can arise, and have arisen as a result of living in a society with large wealth inequalities, an example being human rights and basically necessities being inaccessible for the lower class individuals.Education is a fundamental human right, with it being harder for parents to pay for high education for their children they are then missing out on the opportunity of securing college and future jobs for that child.It could also lead to all important political and social decisions being largely influenced by the wealthy, as they hold the true value in society.I definitely do see the scenarios being played out already, a lot of tax laws currently are being shifted to benefit the wealthy and is ultimately harming the lower classes.And education wise, all of the wealthy private schools that provide top notch education that guarantee a bright future for students are inaccessible for the lower class, harming their future.

When operating within society, capitalists always consider actions that will maximize their financial gains, the MCM diagram gives outsiders a view of the tactics most capitalists may use.The MCM diagram stands for M (Money) -> C (Commodity) -> M'(Surplus Value) (M+m), this meaning that capitalists maximize their financial gains by using their already established wealth to buy a commodity, then selling commodity that commodity for a higher price to ensure that that they receive a financial return larger than their original investment, ultimately becoming capital.While capitalist have the intent of maximizing their wealth, commoners/workers have the goal of living day to day/surviving, their diagram being C (Commodity) -> M (Money) -> C (Commodity).They start off with an item they made, then selling that for a specific price, and using those funds in order to buy necessities for themselves or family.

1. In reading 4.2 the distinction between owners and employees is clearly established. Owners are defined as individuals whose income is substantial and mainly comes from the labor of others. This means their earnings either come directly from a business they own or from investments in other companies that generate significant returns. An example is Jeff Bezos, the owner of Amazon. Employees, on the other hand, are defined as the individuals who generate income for the owners. This includes the factory and service workers as well as managers and executives who hold the task of “extracting more value-producing performance from other employees”. For employee, an example is, a random McDonald’s employee
2. In Adam Smith’s quote, he argues that labor basically is and should become the universal measurement for commodities, he views money as just a nominal value that fluctuates with time due to the fluctuation of the economy, whereas labor is a steady measurement that represents the true time and effort needed to create commodities.
3. When viewing class from a socialist perspective rather than the everyday liberal view it can no longer be seen as an identity as the definition has shifted and class is now “less about common status and more about interest and actions.”.The U.S population is divided into two groups, capitalists and Workers, capitalists benefit from the means they already have whereas workers are the unfortunate who have to work due to not having the means. The groups come with rules, Capitalists must compete with other capitalists to sell their products, whereas workers must compete with other workers in order to secure a job from the capitalists and remain at that job.
4. The close form of dependency between the sociological definitions of capitalists and workers lies in their skewed dependency. The economy relies heavily on capitalists, as their large financial transactions have a significant influence and a large boost in the economy. Workers depend on capitalists to provide jobs and for the retainment of jobs, while other capitalists rely on their peers for competition, ultimately keeping the economic cycle in motion. An example is an Amazon worker depending on Jeff Bezo’s company Amazon for a job, the economy depending on Jeff for his economic aid, and Jeff Bezo’s depending on Doug Mcmillon for competition.