58 thoughts on “Blog #4 – Lots of Debt = Public discontent?”

1. Lukas Nicola October 27, 2010 at 3:20 pm

   1. I do not believe that the equivalent to shay’s rebellion could happen today because we have many policies and actions established to prevent it. If people were to take up arms today, they would be put down with an incredibly powerful federal force. Look at the Detroit race riots. Even if people could organize in a capacity to be effective, what could they do? People would have handguns and hunting rifles, maybe a few automatics. The federal army could easily sweep in and break everything up. The army has armored tanks, automatic weapons, and body armor. We have hummers, glocks, and colored shirts. People today would stand absolutely no chance against the crushing might of today’s security forces. And besides, what could the people do? Seize the banks? Unlike shay’s rebellion, the people today couldn’t destroy the existing system. It’s had time to bunker down and become nearly indestructible.

   3. I believe that the only outcome will regrettably be a severe increase in crime and homelessness. If at most half the people who live in foreclosed homes went to live with a family member, that would still leave a huge number of people on the street. And hey, crime pays these days. If a person robs a CVS, they get the money, if they get caught; they go to prison and have a place to stay. The people will simply have nothing to lose. It’s what I would do. If we don’t stop taking peoples’ homes or more specifically if the banks don’t stop taking peoples’ homes, then we are eventually going to be waste deep in some nasty stuff.
2. Lucy Mailing October 27, 2010 at 3:30 pm

   1) I do not think that an uprising such as Shay’s Rebellion could happen again. First of all, I do not believe that the Tea Party has a large enough support group. In Shays’ Rebellion, the uprising could not easily be quelled because under the Articles of Confederation, the federal government could not create a standing army. Daniel Shays therefore had a large number of rebels following him in comparison to the numbers that the federal government could mobilize in a short period of time.

   4) Though the tea party may stick around through the next election or two, I do not think that it will ever be a real contender in the elections. The Tea Party has broken away from the Republican party and is now its own political entity. Candidates using the Tea Party’s name are not officially backed by the party, and have a very small support group compared to that of the Democrats and Republicans. In addition, Tea Party groups have little funds for campaigning or supporting its candidates.
   The fact that the Tea Party is so far right also means it loses supporters. According to the median voter theory proposed by Anthony Downs in his book, An Economic Theory of Democracy, general election candidates in the United States who take strongly liberal or conservative positions tend to alienate the more moderate voters and lose to candidates who are more moderate and stay closer to the center of the political ideological spectrum.
   According to David Weigel of the Washington Post, “grassroots movements aren’t supposed to last forever.” In order to survive, the Tea Party will have to be absorbed by the Republican Party within the next few years, where it can receive adequate funding and support. Even then, however, Tea Party movement candidates will not be nominated for the Republican Party, and eventually, I think it will lose will and slowly die out, although there will always be extremists in the Republican Party.
3. Danny Cohen October 27, 2010 at 3:39 pm

   1.) I don’t think that an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon home foreclosures or another source of discontent because the national government is strong enough now to prevent something like that from happening. Although some may riots may very possibly break out, there is no way that a full fledged rebellion could take place without the local and national la enforcement from putting it down. Shays’ Rebellion was the cause for a new Constitution and stronger national government and that new government was designed to prevent anything like Shays’ Rebellion from happening ever again.

   2.) I think that the government isn’t willing to cut expenses even slightly to either cut taxes or to reduce our federal budget deficit because they are following the theory of Keynesian economics. The theory of Keynesian economics says that the government should spend more during times of recession and save more during times of surplus. Franklin Roosevelt used this theory and applied it to The Great Depression during his presidency and it turned out to work rather well. Obama is trying to model his policies after FDR by also using the theory of Keynesian economics. If his plan works out, we should start to see the economy become better in the near future and, despite what some people think, the economy has actually already been getting better for a while now. Although we may be building up a larger national debt right now, if the economy keeps improving, we will eventually stop spending and start saving, and have a surplus to pay off the current debt.
4. Beth Mansueti October 27, 2010 at 3:54 pm

   1.I think an armed rebellion could happen today but I think it probably won’t because unlike in the time of Shay’s Rebellion, we don’t have people being thrown into debtors’ prisons. We don’t see protesting in the form of armed angry mobs as often these days. I think that the threat of the prisons and overall confusion in the new nation caused much discontent among citizens at that time as well as feelings that the government was not doing anything to help the people. Today, although home foreclosures are also provoking discontent, the people are less likely to rebel in such a drastic way. The central government is stronger these days, and though some people think that it is out to get us, the government also has many programs to help people in need, and are working to pull our nation out of the recession as a whole.
   2.I think the federal government is hesitant to cut expenses because of a fear that with reduced government spending and programs to stimulate the economy, we might fall back deeper into a recession. With the United States finally starting to get back on our feet, government is more afraid than ever. I think the federal budget deficit is not a very large concern to our government right now because of the fact that it rolls over from year to year and does not have to be balanced annually. The reason the government is hesitant to cut taxes is because it is our only way of raising money to be used towards government programs.
5. nathan krasnick October 27, 2010 at 4:19 pm

   1) I believe that an armed rebellion like Shays would not probably happen in modern America. This is because, unlike the times during Shay’s Rebellion, there are many different interest groups that represent many different people with many different beliefs. The numerous amounts of interest groups that exist today allow for a group of people like the ones in Shay’s rebellion to have many different accesses to the government and get what they want. The people in Shay’s rebellion believed that they had no other way of getting their point across other than a rebellion. I also believe that a rebellion in today’s times would be put down much faster and in a much different way than Shay’s rebellion was.

   4) I believe that the Tea Party will fade away quite quickly. I think that the Republican Party will eventually figure out a way to get rid of the Tea party movement so that people wont connect the two as related. The Tea Party at the moment makes the Republican Party look far right. In the upcoming elections the Democratic Party may be able to win over the moderates. The Tea Party does, at the moment, portray a large number of American’s discontent of the Federal government. Once the economy begins to make forward process I think many extreme conservatives will abandon the Tea Party. Unfortunately for the Republican Party, the Democrats will win many more Congressional seats then they would have if it were not for the extreme Tea Party candidates who beat their Republican counterpart in the Republican primaries.
6. Will T. October 27, 2010 at 5:12 pm

   #1. I think one would not happen because it would be so easily put down and there would be much more consequences. America’s military is quite stronger now than it was, and an insurrection would be extremely unsuccessful. Also, with all of the paranoia of terrorists (even though it has died down), any rebellion, especially an armed one, would be very risky, because the punishment would be harsh. Also it would be much harder to actually organize one, because the government has so many ways of finding out. Most people would be too scared to do anything. Also there isn’t even a big enough amount of people. 1 million homes is not enough to make a rebellion.

   #3 It all depends on how long these excessive foreclosure last. If the harshest years are now ever, then the effects of them probably will not last long at all. Once the economy gets better, everyone will be happy and forget about the olden days, until they get sucked back into it later. The feeling of empathy we feel for the people who lost their homes ill die down very quickly once times get better. Also the feelings of the people who lost their home will probably get better, unless the homeless stay homeless. It really all depends on how long it lasts. Once times get good people will forget. Also, not to say that 1 million isn’t bad, but still in comparison to the amount of homes in America this isn’t much of a dent.
7. Katie Burke October 27, 2010 at 6:24 pm

   3. The long term effects of people getting their homes foreclosed upon will be very bad. Obviously, no one wants to loose their homes but with the economic climate we are in right now people are loosing their jobs and then not having the money to pay their bills. When people start to stop paying their bills then the natural result is that they get some of their possessions taken away to pay for their debts. If more and more people start to not pay their bills because they can not afford it, then we will have more people without a home living on the streets. The banks will hurt to because they loaned all this money out and now they don’t have any way of getting it back. So the banks will loose business, we will have a surplus of homes on the market and that will make all of the prices for the homes go down.

   4. I think that the Tea Party movement is going to stay around for awhile. With the problems that we are experiencing right now, I think that people are going to be looking for a change. They won’t want to settle for the typical candidates that got them into this mess into the first place, or are not doing nearly enough to get things turned around. They are doing fairly well in the primaries so I think that people will continue to show their support for them. If they get more demographics to support them then I think that that will help them out to become more of a force. They represent change and I think that that is what people want right now.
8. Kiara Moore October 27, 2010 at 6:37 pm

   1. I believe another armed rebellion could happen today because of the lost of jobs which cause people not to have the ability to pay for their homes and more. The next rebellion could be from the lost of jobs. This could happen because it is a major problem today and people are struggling everyday by this. I also believe that all the problems go hand and hand with each other, like other sources of discontent and foreclosures; if one problem didn’t happen then it would not lead to another. People are going to soon rebel because they will not be able to handle the struggle that they are in. People are already protesting today about different issues that they do not think is fair or should happen. Protests could slowly become a rebellion.

   2. I don’t think the federal government will cut taxes or reduce the federal budget because all the money that is being collected is needed. The government is trying to get all the money they can to pay the war bill because we are in debt from it and many other bills. The United States needs to get out of debt in order to make more moves, such as being involved in other activities, and the only way that can happen is if we pay the government through taxes. These are the reasons why taxes went up in some states in the U.S., it is another way to gain money and pay off our debt. The government might feel that they are being nice by giving us a low percentage of taxes to pay, so that is why they do not want to cut expenses even slightly.
9. Jasmine Acharya October 27, 2010 at 6:50 pm

   1. Do you think an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon home foreclosures or another source of discontent? Why or why not?

   I do believe that an armed rebellion is possible. In these strange political times, discontent has mounted to the point where people may turn toward the “last resort.” Whether the dissent is caused by the home foreclosures, gun control policy, or even gay rights issues, it is certainly plausible that some unhappy group of protesters will take some violent action. People are very unhappy with the government and the current political climate is extremely tense. There has already been talk among tea partiers about an armed revolution in support of second amendment rights. With these radical proposals already out in the open, the possibility of someone actually taking action is high. It seems as if the times are much more stable today than they were at the time of Shays’ Rebellion, but the present political atmosphere is certainly becoming increasingly tense and unstable and it is difficult to predict what may happen next.

   3. What do you think the long-term consequences will be with so many homes being foreclosed, especially this year?

   With so many homes being foreclosed on, the recession may start up again. More and more people will end up on the streets with nowhere to live and without any financial resources available for them to contribute to the economy. This could cause the country to spiral into a hole much like that of the Great Depression in the 1930’s, with more and more people living in conditions of severe poverty. Furthermore, the houses being repossessed by the banks will become worthless as the real estate market continues to struggle. This could cause even higher bank debt, which would make it ever more difficult for the United States to pull out of the recession.
10. Sarah Blume October 27, 2010 at 7:00 pm

    Question 1:

    I do not think an armed rebellion, like Shays Rebellion, could form today. When the veterans of the Revolutionary War did not receive a bonus and were heavily taxed, Daniel Shays helped lead a small militia against the taxpayers. This incident eventually blew up around the country, and reminded the people of the weaknesses of the central government. Such an event like this, also helped the people realize how weak the Articles of Confederation were, which led to the writing of the Constitution. Since the people were already thinking about taxes, because of the country’s earlier war against the British for independence, an uprising like this was bound to occur–especially because of it’s very new and very unstable government. The Tea Party today, regardless of it’s attention from the media, is still a minority acting against a stable and very strong national government. I think if a rebellion occurred, it would be very small and wouldn’t have as big of an impact in our country the way Shay’s Rebellion did.

    Question 3:

    The long term consequences of our nation’s foreclosures are vast. The more homes that foreclose and then are owned by the bank, contribute to the depletion of our economy. Since the unemployment rate increased, many people cannot afford to keep up with the daily maintenance of their home, sending it into foreclosure, while the poverty rate goes up. I think our government needs to work on handling the unemployment crisis because as it increases, it heavily contributes to foreclosures and underwater foreclosures.
11. Adam Green October 27, 2010 at 7:11 pm

    1. In my opinion, something like Shay’s Rebellion could not happen in the present day, even with all the problems that are going on in the country. This is because back when Shay’s Rebellion occurred, there was virtually no central government, so the farmers did not feel very protected. However, now there is much more government intervention in the lives of the people, so if a large mass of people were to become distressed with something, they would probably be pretty calm and expect the government to take control and handle it. This is especially true with Barack Obama, who is definitely a more liberal president and would therefore support more government intervention.

    4. I believe that the Tea Party protests will continue on in future elections because since Congress is currently made up of a Democratic majority, and our president is a Democrat, it will be hard for the Tea Party protests to actually become realities, which will cause the Tea Party to keep trying to achieve their goals in future elections. Also, many of the more loyal Tea Party members will not be willing to stop campaigning for their beliefs of small government and fiscal responsibility, and there are many political elites who have very conservative attitudes toward government as well. I believe that through all of these different factors, the Tea Party could be a major political force for years to come, even though they will probably never put a candidate in the White House.
12. Leah Duncan October 27, 2010 at 7:15 pm

    1. I don’t think an armed rebellion like Shays rebellion could happen today. Even with the amount of discontent in this country now with all the home foreclosures, armed rebellion doesn’t seem like a likely choice of the people. Americans are fully aware of the consequences of an armed rebellion so they wouldn’t want deal with those consequences. When Shays rebellion occurred it was during a time when this country was just beginning and very unstable. Now that America has developed and become a place where everyone has the freedom to speech and press, armed rebellion isn’t really necessary. Also now that this country is more stable, people can use peaceful means to get their message across to the public and the government.

    3. I think there will be many long term consequences with so many homes being foreclosed. The foreclosure of homes will have a lasting affect on many people and the country as a whole. One of the long-term consequences will be the restructuring of communities. When people lose their homes, they will have to move therefore leading some communities to shrink and grow. This will also lead to school closings and public offices closing. Another long term consequence is that people will be more distrustful of banks and opt out of buying homes. What this entails is that people will want to rent more instead of buying. Most Americans want buy a home when they get older, but now that the reality is that buying a home isn’t even a good investment anymore, people will lose the desire to buy homes.
    restructuring of communities
13. Morris Fabbri October 27, 2010 at 7:23 pm

    1. I do not believe that an armed rebellion like Shays’ rebellion could ever take place today. First, and foremost, we have one of the most powerful armies in the world; if an armed rebellion were to take place, we would have the military and political strength to crush the rebels. Second, people have learned from past insurrections; history does not favor rebellion. Every internal rebellion since 1787 has ended badly for the rebels. Our government today is too strong to allow any armed insurrection; not even the loss of home and livelihood would drive people to take on the entire U.S. government. People today have peaceful outlets for their rage and distress; they seem to be more level-headed, and would be too intimidated by the U.S. army to ever attempt armed rebellion.

    4. I believe that, although the Tea Party movement will still influence the 2012 election, it is not here to stay. The movement itself is composed of people who believe that Barack Obama is a Socialist/Hitler hybrid who will take away their rights, their money, and their guns; eventually, clearer heads will prevail. Much like the Bull Moose Party and the States’ Rights Party, the Tea Party was formed as a reaction based on inflated speculations about the horrors to come if the presidential election didn’t go the party’s way. These parties faded away as common sense took over, and people realized that things hadn’t changed all that much. Eventually, the sane people of this country will come to look down on the radical, overzealous, insane movement that was the Tea Party. Even now, in the 2010 congressional elections, many Tea Party candidates are losing the backing of even some far-right Republicans; sanity is returning, and the Tea Party will fade away.
14. Alexis Barkin October 27, 2010 at 7:23 pm

    1)I do believe that an armed rebellion could be attempted today based on all the foreclosures. Unlike Shay’s rebellion, a rebellion attempted in today’s economy would definitely be shut down. If millions of people attempted a revolt against the government the national army could potentially stop them. For example in 1932, when the “BEF” set up Hoovervilles on empty lots in the capital Hoover attempted to get them to leave through paying the fare of six thousands marchers to return home. When the rest wouldn’t leave General Douglas MacArtuhur took control and ordered soldiers to attack with bayonets and tear gas. The riot successfully got all veterans to leave. This episode caused Hoover’s impeccable image to fail and caused an outrage in the public about how these protesters were treated. If another rebellion was to occur in similar ways such as Shays the government could take control and make them leave. A major reason why Shay’s rebellion was successful was due to the fact that the Articles of Confederation had no powers and no national militia to stop the up rise. If there was a national militia that could have come to the rescue I believe that the society wouldn’t have realized that their central government was too weak until later on.

    3)I think that long term consequences of so many houses being foreclosed will mostly be on our economy. With so many people become homeless there won’t be many consumers in the market anymore. Ultimately, neighborhoods will die down and due to no one living near businesses, such as grocery stores or restaurants; they will close down as well. With homes being taken away and businesses closing down there won’t be much of an economy left. People will be living in overcrowded shelters or homes and as more people lose jobs in the work place, more people will be trying to find them. The closing down of businesses leads to shortages of jobs and without any revenue coming in many families will go broke and our economy will weaken.
15. Sam Mondshine October 27, 2010 at 7:24 pm

    1. Today it would be nearly impossible for an armed rebellion like Shay’s to take place in the United States. Today the foreclosures are nation-wide and the mobilization of people would be nearly impossible. Also, today rebellion is an extremely radical idea especially after the Civil war. In the early post-revolution era, rebellion was still a part of the American mentality as it was how the country was formed. But today, not enough people in the same place would share the idea that an armed rebellion was necessary.

    4. I don’t believe that the Tea party will be a lasting faction of the Republican Party, but I do think that it will be around long enough to contend in 2012. They will be able to stick around at least until the 2012 election because their base is so angry about the country’s economic state and is excited to get out to vote in a presidential election. However, I don’t think that they will last much longer than 2012 because of their serious lack of competent leaders. The nation cannot take this party seriously for much longer if Sarah Palin continues to lead it. Also if there ever is a competent Tea Party candidate, they will have a hard time getting voted into any office when their peers consist of people like Christine O’Donnell, Sharron Angle, and Meg Whitman who have all proven their incompetency and ignorance on a national stage on several occasions. The only way the Tea Party can last and influence elections to come is if they can attract leaders that can better present their ideas to the rest of the country.
16. Leah Sherman October 27, 2010 at 7:25 pm

    1. No, I don’t think an armed rebellion like Shays’ could happen today. One of the biggest arguments of Shays was that his farm could not be taken by the courts if there was no court to take it; obviously, this serves as a moot point nowadays as we have already established our legal system and its entities. If, however, people were to rise up, it would be quickly resolved through government intervention—as it has already been said, we already have an established legal system, and that includes a full military system. Another reason for the unlikeliness of another Shays is apathy on the parts of the citizens. People are becoming less attached to current events, and with that they’re becoming less attached to politics. It would take a large force of people who cared very strongly to even make a dent, and it seems as though that force just doesn’t exist anymore.

    2. The sum of foreclosures and bank-owned property these days is absolutely astounding, and it is causing our nation’s debt to grow larger and larger every day. This debt is probably the most significant long term consequence, as it’s going to be especially difficult for the government to make up the cost of the properties, even after they’ve been sold off to private investors. The foreclosure issue is also taking a toll on our housing economy, most noticeably in Michigan; as housing prices plunge, bustling cities turn into bunt out slums. Once an area goes downhill like that, it is incredibly hard to salvage once more.
17. Mia Orlow October 27, 2010 at 7:41 pm

    2. There is too much political pressure to keep the level of services and entitlements where they currently are. As a result, cutting taxes would be politically unacceptable because reducing taxes without cutting spending would balloon the budget deficit too high. Conversely, to reduce the federal deficit without cutting spending would require hug tax increases which are politically unacceptable to most people most of the time. Republicans champion less government and fewer taxes. Democrats favor big government and higher taxes on the wealthy. Both parties are unrealistic in their expectations of the other and as a result, very little meaningful change comes out of today’s government.
    3. Contrary to widely held beliefs, long-term, the foreclosure crisis may actually have a stabilizing effect upon the housing market in particular and overall economy in general, while the short term consequences of the foreclosure crisis have been devastating to “Wall St. and Main St. alike”, once the dust settles and housing prices stabilize, the economy will be able to resume a slow and steady recovery unhampered by uncertainty in the housing sector.
18. Aaron Yost October 27, 2010 at 8:01 pm

    1.) I think that an armed rebellion happening now is not just possible, but dangerously close. There are privately funded militias throughout the US, and some with radical agendas (such as Hutaree in our own backyard). Due to court rulings and public outrage, it has also become very difficult for the government at the state or federal level to levy any gun control laws. Shays’s Rebelloin was the result of a long series of events that began as a small discontented movement before becoming a full on rebellion. The only reason Shay’s rebellion was put down was because one of the messages was intercepted. With the internet today, millions of people can receive information in an instant, regardless of its accuracy. Due to instant media coverage, a localized event could quickly incite others to join in. That is the main reason that John Brown’s rebellion ended- the grand revolt he had hoped for never happened. People are already convinced that government is out of control, and if their fears are confirmed whether justifiably or not, a revolution could be the result.

    2.) The Tea Party is probably a one time thing. I do not claim that it will leave politics unchanged, but, historically, grassroots movements don’t last long in America before exhausting their supply of oxygen. Though weary at first, the GOP has embraced this movement because they see it as a chance to gain political momentum. The closest parallel is the Populist movement at the turn of the 20th century. They had a dangerous message, and the Democrats decided to absorb the Populists to both add to their base and kill what the Democrats saw as a potentially dangerous movement. As a result of this, the Democrats began to move to the left, with this infusion of liberals, and the opposite has happened to the Republican Party now. They are resisting causes once seen as moderate and will probably continue until they become the party in power. By then, the Tea Party will be no more.
19. Tanguy Crosnier October 27, 2010 at 8:15 pm

    1) During the time period of shay’s rebellion the people where in a society a lot different from ours today. Back then most citizens had a rifle to hunt game and had a military background with the revolutionary war happening recently. These citizens had just fought a war when they fought their rights and property was being taken away so logically in their minds it was ok to do it again. I believe that this would never happen in our times because people know nothing of rebelling and are too afraid for their lives. They know they have no chance in putting down the government because of the professional army they have and the armament they own.
    2) I believe that the long term consequences of all these home foreclosure will, when the economy gets better make an increasing demand for homes. Which will result in one of the 2 scenarios: either the value of existing houses will dramatically increase because the banks will simply destroy these houses or the federal government will have to intervene because they cannot allow all the helpless families on the streets.
20. Maxime Lawton October 27, 2010 at 8:18 pm

    1. I don’t think that an armed rebellion against the government like Shays Rebellion could ever happen again, and I certainly don’t think that it could or would happen today over home foreclosures or another form of discontent. Primarily, I am fairly confident that any group of Americans trying to incite others to rise up and rebel violently would be picked up by the CIA and FBI, and if necessary, the National Guard or even the army could be called in to stop the rebels. Just recently, the FBI caught the Hutaree militia before they carried out planned attacks on police officers, and the Hutaree operated in secrecy so any group trying to organize a large rebellion would be easily identified. Furthermore, I don’t think that the American people as a whole, not just looking at the radical minority that vocalize more than the majority, are not crazy enough to want to even do such a thing as rebel violently against the government for any reason. If anything, the people would attack Wall Street and the big banks that foreclosed them, not the government that is trying to help them, even if they are so blinded by ignorance to see it.
    4. I think that the Tea Party movement is just another one-time thing because the extent to which they lean to the right is so utterly radical that there is no way it could become a major part of either political party’s ideology for the long term. Its extreme conservatism is understandable for the current election because conservatives are still bitter over Obama’s election and they want to do as much as they can to regain their power in the government, but this type of short-term movement has never lasted long beyond the elections it sprang up around. Political history has also told us that for a movement to do well in national politics, it must be relatively moderate to get enough people to support it, and just how far right the Tea Party movement leans ensures that even if it does stick around, it will be in the background.
21. Mark Melendy October 27, 2010 at 8:20 pm

    1. In my opinion, I do think that an uprising along the lines of Shays’ could happen in modern times. There have been to many foreclosures already and people are getting fed up that our supposedly amazing government can not fix the crisis. The high ranking officials that we the people have elected to the esteemed positions of Congressmen and executive positions are not helping at all fix the government. There were about 7000 farmers that took up there guns in rebellion when the population was about 4 million, so why could 1.2 million people take up guns in a population of 300 million and march over to the capital to get some policies that actually work to fix the economy.
    4. In my humble opinion, the Tea party is going to be this one time thing to razz up the people of our nation then crumble away when there candidates do not get elected to office. This group of ultra conservatives has who in it, Sarah Palin, Christine O’Donell? The group is a complete joke. If for some reason that one or two candidates do get elected, then working with the other more moderate conservatives will eventually pull them away from the far right and closer to reality. When this happens, the whole movement will fall apart and once again another third party will be dissolved into one of the major parties. This time it is the Republicans turn. There will always be those ultra conservatives in our world, but they won’t get to the national level because people like moderates of either party over extremists.
22. Justice Echols October 27, 2010 at 8:23 pm

    3. What do you think the long-term consequences will be with so many homes being foreclosed, especially this year?

    With the large amount of foreclosures in the pass 3 years and the estimated 1.2 million more houses to be foreclosed, America may be headed toward the worst recession yet. Some long-term consequences that may result are an increase in the poverty percentage, a weaker more vulnerable country, and will most likely cause America to lose its international high-standings. It’s bad enough that half the people couldn’t afford to survive before the recession and now people are emotionally drained and have given up on trying to survive. We will eventually fall so deep in to dept and depression that it will probably take a decade to revive our nation.

    1. Do you think an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon home foreclosures or another source of discontent? Why or why not?

    Yes, an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today because of the many people that are fed up with the government and the many radical groups. In the past, with the existence of radicals groups that disagreed with the national government, riots and violent acts toward government officials has been an option to get the peoples’ point across. This is a crisis that is affecting the whole population, from the islanders to the mainlanders, from the big cities to the vast plains, and from the rich to the poor. With the radical TEA party present in America, a rebellion is not far away. People are going to get their point across that something must be done to stop America from falling apart. Rather it be a nation wide riot or a radical group plot to attack the government with arsenal, the people are not just going to watch its country burn right in front of their eyes.
23. Laurel Cerier October 27, 2010 at 8:27 pm

    1. No, I don’t think an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today. Shays Rebellion took place during a period of violence and a sort of chaos. Although there is chaos in America today, it’s much different. Not long before Shays, our country was just becoming an actual country for the first time ever. Policies of government had yet to be decided, let alone the type of government. When Shays did happen, our government was just getting on its feet and the LACK of central government control was what caused it. There were many men who had experienced war, yet there was no standing army. There was virtually no currency because it nearly worthless. Although today we do struggle economically as we had back then, we have a solid form of government with many solid policies and laws that specifically forbid violent outbreaks. Besides that, we have a strong standing army with far more military training that any majority of the Tea Party. We are struggling, but at the same time we are moving upwards, surviving. Today, there is probably less motive for such an uprising because in most cases, the government doesn’t abandon its people, and this modern society is far less acceptably or commonly violent in terms of the everyday man.

    4. Yes, I think the Tea Party is just a one-time thing like the Bull Moose Party, for it’s purpose is essentially to attack government taxation. The parties that last for more than a single election address more issues than the economy, especially compared to one that is completely focused on taxes. The Tea Party is focused on the bad. It’s blaming the amount of government control more than the type of government control. And its members’ solution is simply less government control. It doesn’t have much of a plan. Instead it just has complaints. These are things that don’t stimulate the economy, because to stimulate the economy, you have to stimulate the minds of the people.
24. meghan furton October 27, 2010 at 8:32 pm

    Blog Number 4
    Meghan Furton
    1. I don’t think that an armed rebellion will happen again in the United States because unlike sixteenth century America, today’s society is not as violent, the government is an established part of people’s lives, and, most importantly, there is an extensive system for bringing complaints into the realm of politics.
    At the time of Shay’s rebellion, the country had just finished fighting a war and violence was just more socially acceptable. If you had a problem with someone, you could threaten to break out your shotgun. If you made such a threat today, people would think you were insane, not angry.
    Shay’s rebellion occurred in 1786, just after the first constitution was put in place and at a time when if you didn’t like who was in charge, rebelling was the popular option. The new system was just starting out and hadn’t been tested, so dissenters felt that they could check its limits. Today, ‘the government’ is some big powerful entity that no small group can really compete against. People are used to its presence even if they don’t like some of its policies.
    Finally, the new government in 1786 was just starting out and hadn’t really connected with the people yet. Media wasn’t yet established to connect the two together, and statesmen at the time were in the process of figuring out the best way to do that. The debtors couldn’t call up their governor with a petition and ask for help. Today, federalism offers many points of access to the government where interests can be heard and discussed.
    2. Yes, I think the tea party is just another minor party that will disappear in a few years like every other minor party has in history—the Republican party being the only exception.
    Many economy motivated parties have sprung up over the years, from greenbackers to populists, and have disappeared when their issue was resolved or eclipsed by something else. This movement isn’t new, and nothing suggests it will be different from other movements before it. This isn’t a faction trying to break up the Republican party, it is only an interest group within the Republican party supporting Republican candidates. While it may influence some Republican policies and move the party further right, once those needs are met, it will fade away.
25. Angelique Harrison October 27, 2010 at 8:33 pm

    3. What do you think the long-term consequences will be with so many homes being foreclosed, especially this year?

    I think that with so many homes being foreclosed the economy will get even worse. People pay their mortgages and other things and that puts more money into government pockets but with less people owning homes that amount that the government had before is gone. Eventually our counrty will be in so much debt that we can’t get out of it for year and year. I think that the government should stop foreclosing homes and give people a chance to get their mortgages paid. With more people buying and staying in homes maybe this will help get our economy back up to where it should be.

    4. Do you think the Tea Party protest is just a one-time thing like the Bull Moose Party (1912) or the States’ Rights Party (1948)? Or will it be around to be a real contender in 2012? Why or why not?

    I don’t think that the Tea Party is just a one-time thing. I think that there will always be a Tea Party whether it’s called that or not.I think there will always be people with an opinion that needs a way to get out and this is how they will get their thoughts out.I feel that even though they are a party i don’t think that enough people support this party it won’t be a big contender in 2012. I feel that it’s there to make the other parties more competitive and to make it seem like the other two parties aren’t in charge of the entire government but i think most people are too afraid to join the Tea Party. I think that they think the Tea Party is too unknown for them and so they won’t join it. Maybe in way in the future the tea Party will have a chance but i don’t think many people are going to join them any time soon.
26. William Hudson October 27, 2010 at 8:41 pm

    William Hudson, 3rd hour

    2. The reason our federal government refuses to cut expenses even slightly to reduce our deficit is due to both the acceptance of Keynesian economics, which states in a recession it’s better to spend more, so you may get out of the depression, then to spend less and stay in the depression; as well as the general issue of what needs to be cut? With the political system the way it is today, arguments would be abundant, action would be miraculously vacant, and multiple slanderous articles would arise, with such a grim concept hanging over our heads who would take action to begin with, if the government is paying it, someone ‘needed’ it, and who would give up ‘needed’ money. So due to Keynesian economics, it doesn’t seem smart to cut spending, in addition to cut spending would cause an uproar by someone (between the media, the public, the democrats, the republicans, and the tea party there are a lot of angry misinformed people)and finally where would the cuts come from, who decides what’s cut-worthy and what’s needed.
    4. I think it will be a ‘one-time thing’ just considering the way it is today; currently its decentralized, it has multiple factions, most of the views are so far right it’s absurd to the normal person, mixed with the negative connotation the term tea party already holds, is a deadly mix for this party. But this isn’t to say they won’t have an effect, I believe they will most definitely redefine the upcoming election. Due to the tea parties main goal being less taxes, chances are now that this party has risen, even were it to fall, the idea would linger, realistically even without the tea party, the “tea” acronym will live on as will its message, wrong or right as it may or may not be.
27. Timothy DeWitt October 27, 2010 at 8:48 pm

    1. I do not believe another rebellion like Shays’ could occur under modern circumstances. Although many people are struggling financially and suffering from foreclosure and other debt-related issues, the government and societal structures have been in place long enough to establish a mostly complacent population that is not likely to revolt. The times surrounding Shays’ rebellion were filled with ideals of rugged individualism and the spirit of revolution, largely due to the revolution that occurred less than a decade earlier. The national government was almost powerless, and the state possessed few suppressive resources. The colonists knew this, and consequently had less to fear. Today, the well-armed and heavily funded federal and state police institutions possess the power and resources to violently put down any armed insurrection of the people. Too many people today have a disaffected view of politics and do not possess the drive to rise up against such a powerful institution as the US government.
    4. The Tea Party is currently not an actual organized political party, but more of a sentiment that is growing among many conservatives in the country. I believe that the policies and values that it promotes will certainly stick around for many years, but the moniker that unites the followers of the movement will likely fade into the political backdrop as the years progress and times change. This is apparent in the fact that all Tea party supported candidates are simply conservative republicans who follow the tea party agenda. The Tea party is just trying to move the republican party to the right rather than create a new base of voters.
28. Emma Salter October 27, 2010 at 8:49 pm

    1) I think that an armed rebellion like Shays’ Rebellion is unlikely to happen again. In the late 1780’s, war was fought very different than it is fought now; for example, the average American would not have a gun readily available to physically fight something they disagree with. Also, wars are not just fought on a field, with the opponents opposite each other, shooting with muskets and bayonets. The more likely routes for rebellions in present day 2010 would be: signed petitions, speaking out against the issue, and publicizing relentlessly. If someone wanted to “fight” against foreclosures, for example, they might attempt to take the steps to getting a bill passed to stop foreclosures.

    3) There will be many unfortunate consequences if the foreclosure rates keep climbing. There is nothing positive about a poor family, trying to get by in this wretched economy, having their home torn away from them. They will have to face a whole lot of problems- where to go, how to survive. Not only will the family be placed in a bad situation, the house, too, will suffer. A foreclosed house does not usually receive as much attention and care as a home, lived in by people who provide for it. So, now there is a family on the street, or perhaps with a family member, where, chances are, they are crowded; there is also the problem of houses disintegrating, or having to be taken care of, spending more money. As a result of foreclosures, we will have an even higher percentage of poor people in this country. We are in a bad time in the United States. It is understandable why the government would foreclose, but perhaps it should be more concerned with the well being of the American people.
29. Michael Schwartz October 27, 2010 at 8:56 pm

    1. I do not believe that an armed rebellion, like Shays, could occur again in the United States. First and foremost, today, the United States’ military is gargantuan and would be able to crush any type of armed rebellion without the slightest bit of difficulty. In the days of Shays rebellion, the articles of confederation had put in place a very week central government that was unable to organize large numbers of troops. This probably made Shays soldiers seem like they had a legitimate shot at wining a violent rebellion for their cause. I think that distressed Citizens today in the U.S. will find different, more peaceful, ways to express their anger and discontent because they realize that an armed rebellion has minuscule, or even no chance of success.
    2. I believe that the Tea Party, much like the Bull Moose Party and States Rights party, will eventually diminish. There are members of the movement that claim that Obama is a Muslim extremist or even relate him to Hitler, saying he will take away their rights, their money, and their guns. I don’t believe that the American people will through their support behind a cause backed with such misconceived notions and blatantly wrong facts (Not to mention one of their primary leaders admitted to practicing witchcraft). On another note, the Tea party fomented from discontent with the federal government, hopefully when the economy turns around these extreme conservatives will have nothing left to complain about and the party will die.
30. Cameron Blum October 27, 2010 at 9:21 pm

    1) I don’t think that anything like Shays’s Rebellion will ever occur in this day and age. The main reason is that the Constitution gave enough power to the gov’t so that the citizens can lobby and actually have their ideas considered, maybe even utilized in the creation of a new bill. There wasn’t proper communication between the poor farmers and the rich aristocrats; therefore, the gov’t didn’t know that the poor farmers were having much trouble. Under the Constitution and Madison’s ideas about Federalism, factions could combine and form coalitions to pass certain favorable laws, including a law to curb the foreclosure rate. The gov’t has the power to issue another moratorium on home foreclosures; all the people have to do is lobby for it.
    4) I believe that the Tea Party is a brief hiccup in American history. It isn’t dominating a party; it’s just trying to control that party from within. This movement is ignoring the fact that the way to get the gov’t out of debt is to create programs and raise taxes, not create programs and lower taxes. In fact, Ronald Reagan (the picture of a model conservative) raised taxes while he was in office. This movement is a one-issue movement, and those parties never last. Sarah Palin is slightly like Rev. Jesse Jackson, a large figurehead trying to move a party to an extreme on the political spectrum. Once a more moderate Republican appears, the Tea Party Movement will just be, in the words of Roger Waters, another brick in the wall.
31. Jasmine Berger October 27, 2010 at 9:25 pm

    Jasmine’s response

    Question 1: No I don’t think there could/would be another armed rebellion like Shay’s rebellion today. Even though there is a lot o discontent and many home foreclosures I don’t think an armed rebellion would take place today. Back in Shay’s times there weren’t labor unions to help stand up for people who aren’t financially happy. The labor unions also help to minimize the amount of uprisings because people feel that they are being supported when they are in a union. Without labor unions people felt that they had no other way to make a point and let their voices be herd. Also the Federal Government in Daniel Shay’s time was much weaker and citizens knew that they could easily have an uprising and rebel without being stopped. Now the Federal government is much stronger and can easily suppress an uprising of unhappy citizens.

    Question 2: Many homes have been foreclosed this year, which causes many Families to be without a home or to move to somewhere more affordable. More and more people will have nowhere to live which will effect the whole economy because these people will have very little money to put back into the economy. Because so many houses are being foreclosed I think this will put the country into a further recession. If the bank owns so many houses and has spend money to maintain houses and to foreclose them in the first place they will have less money to loan out to people. Also if to many houses are foreclosed property value will continue to go down which will also hurt the economy and potentially put it in a worse state than it already is in.
32. Shawn costello October 27, 2010 at 9:30 pm

    1. I don’t believe that an equivalent of shay’s rebellion could happen due to the fact that the federal government is to powerful at thwarting attacks against the country. With hype from 9/11 federal officials are constantly trying to get a big bust on any illegal activities, from the “Russian spies” to the attempt to kill police officers. The government will always come down hard on them. The federal government also has a much advance technology on their side. If rebels with hunting rifles and shotguns they would be wiped out by tanks and M-16. The articles of confederations were what really held back shays rebellion because the federal government was granted very little power. The constitution is able to grant the federal government power to fight against rebels and this would allow them to raise arms against rebels. Another issue is that the rebellion would have little to do if they managed to overpower the government their next step would be difficult. Attacking banks and courts would be hard to accomplish considering many people own guns and can rise against rebels themselves.
    3. I feel the long term effects of the foreclosure issue might cause the economy to drop even deeper from recession into depression. Due to the decreases of families in houses it could cause families to become desperate and they could resort to crime to try to gain money. This is defiantly a negative; chances are that it could lead to increase in prison population which could actually cause the government to pay more for those people.
33. Hannah Katz October 27, 2010 at 9:40 pm

    2. The federal government is a complex machine. America has a system of pluralism, with competing factions lobbying for tax dollars and support from the central government. Pluralism can help support democracy, because no one group can have too much power, but it can also be detrimental to it. When there are so many powerful interest groups, it becomes difficult to cut money given to these programs, because there are so many representatives with different interests. Any program cut would have immense backlash. People are also worried that the wrong programs, the programs that are helping will be cut, and the government will do even less for the people. Also, it’s a sad fact that there are corrupt people in our government, working toward their own self interests. Therefore, even if a program is ineffective, there will probably be many people opposing its eradication.

    3. I think the long term consequences of mortgages are first and foremost, people becoming poorer. Poor people create a larger necessity for welfare and a weaker country. When someone loses their home, they are limited to few options: live with someone else, take government money to live somewhere else, or be homeless if they don’t have access to the first two options. All 3 of these options take a toll on our economy. It’s harder to get a job and have good credit without your own home–and an increase of mortgages just leads to a cycle of debt and despair. Homeless people and welfare for the homeless just leads to a bigger deficit and a higher strain on the people–and not everyone can support an extra person in their home.
34. Sam Cusimano October 27, 2010 at 10:00 pm

    1. I don’t think that an armed rebellion like Shays’s could happen today. Part of the reason why Shays’s Rebellion was allowed to happen in the first place was the weakness of the central government under the Articles of Confederation. As this feeble body couldn’t create a standing army, it was unable to help desperate Massachusetts fight off Shays and his men. The uprising lasted for months, and was only crushed after rich Bostonian merchants hired a private militia. Today, the federal government has much greater authority – when large groups of people get militant, it can send in riot police or the National Guard within a matter of hours. As a result, no riot in the past decade has lasted longer than a few days. Additionally, since the passage of the Patriot Act in 2001, law enforcement agencies have had a greater ability than ever to gather information and stop armed uprisings before they even begin.

    4. I think that if the Tea Party movement were to organize and rally behind a certain political leader – Sarah Palin, for instance – it would be a force to be reckoned with in the 2012 presidential election. The support is already there, as eighteen percent of Americans identify themselves as Tea Party supporters. There are even early signs of organization within the Tea Party movement, with informal conventions such as the Tea Party Express expressing support for specific House and Senate candidates in this fall’s midterm elections. Some of these candidates, such as Sharon Angle, threaten to knock off influential, well-established members of Congress despite the lack of a coordinated Tea Party effort. If the “Tea Partiers” can pull themselves together, I think that they will be a powerful force in politics for some time to come – or at least until the economy rebounds.
35. Angela Mercier October 27, 2010 at 10:09 pm

    3.) With all of the homes being foreclosed, families will suffer, houses will become abandoned and ruined, and the United States will have even more poverty. Families right now are already in a recession, especially in Michigan, and can hardly get enough money to support and educate their families. With less education and more drop-outs, the streets will be filled with even more impoverished kids and people with bleak futures. These people won’t be able to contribute to the future economy if they have no place to live or any substantial funds to dig themselves out of debt. Also, the homes that are foreclosed become good places for squatters to live because it gives them shelter from the environment. These houses can be easily broken into and are largely unmonitored by the banks and government, so they are often dirty and run down. Our nation is falling apart and I think the government needs to help the situation instead of trying to solve it with foreclosures.

    4.) I think the Tea Party is just a one-time thing. It does split the Republican Party, which could hurt some of the Republican votes, but I believe it is too radical to earn a significant spot in politics. It does not have a specific leader that it rallies around and many people are thrown off by some of their far right ideas and ultra conservative outlooks on politics. In 2012, the Tea Party won’t be a true contender, and even if it was, there would have to be a huge surge of voters for it to become powerful because a third party has never beaten out its “parent party” that it split from.
36. Austin Kue October 27, 2010 at 10:11 pm

    1. I believe that an armed rebellion like Shays could not happen today based upon home foreclosures or other sources of discontent. This is because, in Shays’ day, the national government was still fairly weak and powerless, thus the rebels knew they had some semblance of a chance for success. Today, however, there exists almost no chance for a rebel group such as Shays’ to achieve its goals, for the federal government is infinitely more powerful today than it was back then. A major aspect of this increase in power is that of the military. It is a widely accepted fact that America currently possesses the greatest military in the world. It is highly doubtful that enough veterans of our wars could get together in such numbers to actually pose a threat to the safety of the nation as a whole. It simply wouldn’t happen, for this simple reason, Its not feasible. The veterans of these wars aren’t stupid, they know what our military might can do.. They know that launching any sort of attack on the government will lead to their swift and immediate annihilation.
    2. Because Obama is a Commie. JK. Im not doing this one.
    4. I believe that the Tea Party protest is just a one-time thing and will (thankfully) not be around in 2012. This is because the main reason that the tea party members are mad is the poor economy. And that the Republicans lost the election. No, but in all seriousness, I believe that the Tea Party will soon burn itself out. Actually, I am quite surprised that it hasn’t already. Hopefully midterm elections will kill them off. Also, when the economy improves, I believe that people will get more rational and less, for lack of a better term, stupid. These people are just angry because the economy crumbled, and are trying to push all the blame on Obama. Now, I’m not defending the President’s ill-conceived anti-recession policies, but just trying to point out that Bush Junior contributed most of the mess. Therefore, this shows that, when the economy improves, which it shall, these people will get less angry and return to normalcy. I don’t know what’ll happen to Sarah Palin though. Maybe she’ll convince Alaska to declare war on the rest of the US.
37. Jessica Turner October 27, 2010 at 10:11 pm

    1.Do you think an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon home foreclosures or another source of discontent? Why or why not?

    I do not believe an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon home foreclosures or another source of discontent. In contrast to the new and inexperienced government of colonial times, the present government has developed to include different (legal) facets through which civilians can voice their grievances (ex. State legislatures, activist groups, picket lines, strikes). Although these methods can seem a bit drastic and violent in our age, they are nothing compared to an armed rebellion resulting in deaths. It is also true that the current punishments for violent offenders are more strictly enforced than those in colonial times- The government in colonial times pardoned many law violators and incendiary characters because they did not want to seem intrusive upon personal liberties (too strong of a central government) and also had many more pressing problems to address.

    2.Why don’t you think the federal government is willing to cut expenses even slightly to either cut taxes or to reduce our federal budget deficit?

    I believe the government is faced with impossible choices in their attempts to decrease the federal budget deficit. It is difficult to choose between raising taxes and cutting federally-sponsored programs, because either method would arouse anger and mistrust from the general population. This population would be outraged by the prospect of raising taxes (although consumer spending is necessary to spark the flow of money and increase prosperity), but would also be angered if any of their existing commodities or privileges were removed. I believe the best option would be to utilize a mixture of tax increases and budget cuts so as to make the issues seem less severe to the public and increase their cooperation and approval.
38. Zack Kozlow October 27, 2010 at 10:12 pm

    2. To reduce our federal budget deficit during the Great Depression, the government spent money on relief, recovery, and reform programs that successfully helped put the country back up on its feet. If federal spending has been proven to get the country out of recessions in the past, why shouldn’t the government try it again? The theory of Keynesian economics says that the solution to economic depression is to stimulate the economy through government expenditures, by ‘priming the pump’. Our government is following the Theory of Keynesian economics to ‘prime the pump’ of our economy. Cutting spending or lowering taxes would just make it harder to get the money to create economic programs. Once the economy is ‘repaired’, the government can reduced spending and cut taxes. But history proves that right now, in a time of recession, the best way to heal the economy is through economic programs.
    4. The Tea Party protest is very likely a one-time thing. They represent a very radical, right winged section of the Republican Party. The Republican Party as a whole doesn’t want to associate themselves with the Tea Party movement. Without the support of their own party, it will be very difficult for the Tea Party to gain enough support to be strong contenders in the 2012 presidential election. Another reason that they will probably not be strong contenders in future elections is because the party is built mainly on their anger towards the countries economic state. It doesn’t have a strong enough foundation to keep it going through the years.
39. Gretchen Weed October 27, 2010 at 10:26 pm

    1. I do not believe that an armed Rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon sources of discontentment because although political unrest is great, during the time of Shays the United States was an unstable, new country. They did not have the ground work (constitution), to effectively deal with political difference with words, like today. Therefore, they choose violent means to make their point known, whereas today, a well given plea/speech can united people and help settle unrest and discontentment. Any attack would seem counterproductive and unnecessary when changes and grievances can be address as men not as barbarians.

    3. I think the long-term consequences of so many home foreclosures are further economic demise and a higher dependence on an already over-used Federal Government. As more citizens lose their homes and are unable to pay their mortgages, they turn to the government for help, through campaign propaganda, they have been told they will be taken care of and change is coming their way. This is a grave understatement and creates a sense of disillusionment in the people when the promises they were tricked into believing turn out to be false. So not only do the foreclosures put higher stress on the homeowners involved but the national economy, as these circumstances require extra attention from banks which in turn, creates more Home foreclosures because banks are not looking at ways to solve the problems of homes about to go into foreclosure but just try and contain the current cases, escalating the problem and destroying the housing market while they are at it.
40. Conor F October 27, 2010 at 10:27 pm

    Conor Flynn- Blog #4

    1. I don’t believe that another rebellion like shays rebellion will accure due to the foreclosure problems. Also the time period of shays rebellion was critical. In the case of shays rebellion it occurred in a period of political instability. The men involved with shays rebellion were mostly revolutionary war veterans giving them the military experience to orchestrate such a rebellion. In the period it was necessary for most if not all farmers to own guns for hunting or personal defense. In the case of the modern foreclosure problems the people effected do not have over whelming military experience and not enough of them own firearms to arm their rebellion.
    2. In the case of the Tea Party I believe that It will only survive one presidential election. In the case of most political splinter groups like the bull moose party before it. The weak splinter party (Ex. the tea part) fail to separate there political images from those of the larger party. Many of the splinter factions end up being to radical to succeed after tensions and political interest dies down. The tea party has these two things going against it, it has not separated its self sufficiently from the republican party. The Tea party is running on the republican ticket and there platform is so on the right that many mainstream Americans are appalled with there platform. I think that when the anti Obama politcal intrest dies off so will the Tea part and the Republican party’s policies will return to a more moderate tone.
41. Colette Gaenssle October 27, 2010 at 11:05 pm

    1. I do not think that an armed rebellion like Shays’ Rebellion could happen today based upon home foreclosures or another source of discontent. That is to say, a group of dissatisfied citizens could attempt an uprising, but our government is capable of preventing that from getting out of hand. Shays’ Rebellion demonstrated the need for a stronger national government. Our national government today is significantly stronger than it was then and is perfectly capable of smothering an uprising. One difficulty encountered with Shays’ rebellion was the lack of a national standing army to send in to restore order. Today, we have the military strength and authority to effectively end an armed rebellion similar to Shays’.

    4. I think it is too soon to tell whether the Tea Party protest is just a one-time thing like the Bull Moose Party or the States’ Rights Party, or whether it will be a real contender in 2012. If the party does not do well in the up-coming midterm elections, it could fade and fizzle out of existence, much like the previously mentioned parties. If it does well, there’s still no guarantee Tea Party candidates would be able to compete in 2012. Much of their ability to compete depends on the events that occur in the future, and whether or not they create a climate favorable to reform. I personally believe that the Tea Party only has as much support as it does because Americans are dissatisfied with the current situation and believe that change is the answer. What sort of change does not seem to be as relevant. If there happens to be an upward trend in the way the country’s going from now until 2012, the Tea Party may lose support.
42. Michael Aughton October 27, 2010 at 11:07 pm

    1. A rebellion on a similar scale to that of Daniel Shay’s would be largely impossible to accomplish in today’s world. There are just too many preventive measures and weapons that have been introduced since those times that would make such a rebellion impractical. Back then, the army was much less organized, if organized at all, and people in such a rebellion could gain close or equal power to that of the army. Today, our nation has a well-organized army, unbelievable strength in terms of weapons and defense, and relations with other nations in the unlikely case that such a rebellion would be too powerful. A rebellion like Shay’s could be attempted nonetheless, but it would have no where near as large of an impact on society.

    4. I believe that the Tea Party will have a small impact in the 2012 election, but it will never grow to a size where it could have major influence on such an election, and I certainly do not believe that it will ever present a large amount of seriously potential candidates. The Tea Party is dwarfed in size in comparison to the Democratic and Republican parties, and while it does have some support, its ideals are way too far to the right to show any sort of appeal towards most Liberals, Moderates, and even many Conservatives. I predict that after a few years, the Tea Party will either lose much of its drive and support and eventually be absorbed as a faction of the Republican Party, or it will have no choice but to make some of its ideals more moderate, defeating much of the purpose of the party itself.
43. Anisha Glanton October 27, 2010 at 11:07 pm

    1. I do not believe that a Shays rebellion would happen in today’s society because we do not address discontents such as foreclosures in such a rebellious matter. We would lobby to get a law passed or write a petition against it. We wouldn’t bombard city courthouses or start riots of that sort in these times. We rarely riot now; we mostly just complain about it and blame the government for causing the problems. An armed rebellion against the government would be very harmful to people’s reputations, and things like that aren’t as easily forgiven as they were back then. One wouldn’t want to start a rebellion like Shay even if the government was in the wrong for foreclosing so many houses. Other people probably wouldn’t be as likely to participate as well. Settlers back then were easily more riled up and weren’t afraid to stand up against the government and its laws; now, people wouldn’t want to become an enemy of the government because that would potentially endanger their lives and reputations.

    3. More foreclosed homes means a lot of things in regards to the economy and society as a whole. Those homes will just be another burden for the banks and the government; the people that lost their homes won’t be able to contribute to the economy as they did before. They will raise the need for lower income aid and less funding will go to other people in need. The economy and real estate market will be affected for years to come and a rebound from this recession will take many years.
44. Andrew Gordner October 27, 2010 at 11:16 pm

    1) I don’t believe an armed rebellion such as the one launched by Shays is a real possibility in this day and age. At the time when Shays rebellion took place, the country was in deep turmoil. America had just emancipated itself from Britain and was very weak under the new Articles of Confederation. With the federal Government being so weak and many Americans finding themselves in a deep financial hole, the stage was set for a Violent rebellion that would show all that was wrong with the government established under the Articles of Confederation. On the other hand today there is a very organized and much stronger central government that is able to keep better tabs on rebel factions, preventing the kind of uprising like had happened with Shays. Also I don’t feel as if many Americans today find such despair with the Government as to see revolt as their only option. However, back in the beginnings of the country many people still feared the idea of a strong central government because it too closely resembled the monarchy they had been living unhappily under for so many years.

    4) I think that despite the large effect the Tea party is having on these mid-term elections, the Tea party will end up going the way of the Bull Moose Party and the States’ Rights Party and die out by the next presidential election in 2012. The reason for this is that with leaders like Sarah Palin, who have charisma but no real political intellect and candidates such as Christine O’Donnell, who are severely under qualified for their jobs, the party will start to lose support and by the 2012 presidential election they will no longer be a significant factor. Also I believe that many people will grow weary of their far right agenda and begin supporting more moderate candidates which will spell the end for the short lived Tea party.
45. Keely Nowland October 28, 2010 at 7:45 am

    1. I think it’s highly likely that an armed rebellion could happen today but probably won’t because no one is being thrown in debtors jails. It’s also not as common to see protesting in the form of raging mobs these days. The threat of losing your home and being thrown into prison during this time caused a lot of tensions for the new nation which created an overall confusion. Now we see homes being foreclosed which is creating discontent but, the people are less likely to cause a mass uprising. Our central government is stronger these days and has programs to further help us. The government is really working hard to help our nation make it out of this recession.
    2. I don’t think the federal government will cut taxes or reduce the fed. Budget because all of that money that is being collected is needed. The war bill is creating a high debt and the government is trying to obtain as much money as it can to pay it as well as many other debts. The only way the government can help us get out of debt is for us to pay high taxes. This is the main reason why taxes reached a record high in some states this past year. Taxes are another way to gain money and pay off our debt. I think our government is cautious when cutting taxes is being discussed because at this point right now, taxes are the strongest way to raising money to be used for government expenses.
46. Cody Fayolle October 28, 2010 at 7:50 am

    1. I do not think an armed rebellion like Shays could happen today based upon any form of discontent because, most modern day anger is shown by the public through non-violent protests. It is very possible that a group of discontent people could unite to express their feeling, but they would turn to picketing or write to their senate member in lieu of starting an armed rebellion. Another reason why an armed rebellion is implausible is that there are a vast plethora of banks across the country, so the rebels wouldn’t be able to attack one source and have it be effective. Also, if an armed rebellion were to happen, there are several federal and state militias across the country that would easily squash any uprising.
    2. I think that the federal government is unwilling to cut expenses even slightly to either cut taxes or to reduce the federal budget deficit because they think that by creating more and more government programs more jobs open up as well. These new jobs will eventually help diminish the excruciatingly high unemployment rate, which is currently at about 9.2%. However, increased federal government activity has pushed the United States even further into debt and taxes are probably going to rise. I also believe that the federal government is unwilling to cut expenses because it doesn’t want to lose some of the power it holds in these federal programs. I think that the best way to reduce the federal budget deficit and eventually lower taxes is to stop expanding government programs and to cut back on federal expenses.
47. Meredith Starkman October 28, 2010 at 8:17 am

    1. I do not believe that a revolt such as Shays’ rebellion would be able to occur today because we have so many policies in our country that have been created to stop such events from taking place. In the time of Shays’ Rebellion our country was being run under the Articles of Confederation; thus, when the uprising broke out, the central government was weak and therefore unable to get a standing army together. In addition, our military today, especially in comparison to back then, is much stronger and well organized. It also has many ways of finding out about such an upheaval being planned. The mixture of strength between today’s military and federal government would, in my opinion, scare most potential protesters.

    3. I think that with so many homes being foreclosed today, it will take that much longer for our economy to bounce back. Despite us supposedly making our way out of the recession, it’s very likely that we’ll dip back in if this increased foreclosure level continues to rise. It’s likely that the number of homeless people in our country will also raise – an effect that could take quite some time to fix. With people lacking the money to pull themselves out of the financial ditches they may find themselves in, jobs could also be affected. Finally, the real estate market will have trouble recuperating. The houses that are possessed are likely to be worth a substantial amount less if they were to be resold – another unlikely occurrence.

    Meredith Starkman
    4th hour
48. Silence Do-Good October 28, 2010 at 8:47 am

    Well Mr. W,
    I know i haven’t been around for a while, but I think Christine O’donnel is a Witch.
    -Silence Do-Good
49. Olivia R. October 28, 2010 at 9:11 am

    2. The government is refusing to cut federal spending based on the principles of Keynesian economics introduced by a 20th century British economist, John Maynard Keynes. His ideas suggest that there should be more government spending during difficult times, and less spending during prosperous times. When the economy is suffering, it is the instinct of Americans- and rightfully so- to spend less money. People are scared for their jobs and their future, so they try to hold on to as much money as they can to save themselves. They government is refusing to cut back spending because they need to somehow jumpstart the economy by investing in the market.

    3. With an all time high of home foreclosures this past year, there are several changes that need to be made at a local and national level. I think some consequences of these foreclosures will be 1) the federal government giving banks the necessary resources to reconstruct home mort-gage loans and 2) the federal government lowering interest rates. If banks are able to reconstruct the home mort-gage loan systems so that it is more affordable for owners to keep their homes, foreclosures will be far fewer. If mort-gages are not restructured, more homes will be foreclosed; this will cause more neighborhoods to develop blighted structures thus lowering the value of all the homes in that area and surviving home owners will lose equity. The federal government could also lower interest rates so much that it’s extremely inexpensive for people to borrow money, causing more homes to be sold and the general market to expand.

    Thanks!

    Olivia
50. Cheyenne Stone October 28, 2010 at 9:30 am

    1. I do not think that the equivalent of Shay’s rebellion could happen today because there is a much stronger central government today than there was during the revolution. There are not a ton of people being thrown in jail for debt, even though there are stillf orclosures. It would be much harder for a group of people to assemble without other people having knowledge of it, and when someone else found out, the governemnt has the technology and the power to shut that army down.
    4. I think that the tea party will be around for a while becasue of the array of problems that are not getting any better throught Obama’s presidnecy. There is still so much debt, and they want to make problems better. I think that their candidates are serious about campaigning for the 2012 elections, and they are becoming more well-known to potention voters of 2012.