Bachelor Degree - Political Science

We've all heard the jokes about the worthless bachelor degrees that people get. Those that major in these areas go through a lot of abuse. Give them credit because they're good sports for taking all the garbage we hand them. And probably there is no person more worthy of an applause than the kid who gets a bachelor degree in political science. Good heavens, what can you POSSIBLY do with one of those? Well, it may surprise you to find out that a bachelor degree in political science is one of the most popular degrees to get for one of the most popular and oldest professions. We're talking about those good old ambulance chasing lawyers.

Say what you want about lawyers too, but these people make an awful lot of money. And guess what? They earn every penny of it. Anyone who has passed the bar will tell you that. It's not easy. But for now we're just talking about getting a bachelor degree in political science. Just what is involved? What courses do you have to take? What supporting courses?

Political science is one of those areas where you can go to five different colleges and end up getting five different curriculums. There really isn't much of a standard when it comes to political science majors. Usually, your first year, you'll take an introduction to political science. For those of you who are wondering just what that covers, just go to any college web site and look it up. The description you'll get is something along the lines of "a broad range of topics". Doesn't tell you much, does it. The truth is, political science really does cover a very broad range of topics from local government to federal government to history. Most of the history part covers items that are most directly related to government policy. For example, a political science history course may cover race riots in the 60s and how they led to equal rights laws. What you won't find is history such as, Columbus discovering America, though you could probably make an argument for how that relates to politics as well.

Obama, Patriot Or Political Grandstander?

After Presidential candidate Barack Obama's "National Anthem snub" the question that many are asking is "Is Obama a patriot or a political grandstander?"

By now most people have heard about Obama's "Sometimes He Does, Sometimes He Doesn't" as explained by an Obama spokesperson.

They further explained on Inside Edition, "In no way was he making any sort of statement, and any suggestion to the contrary is ridiculous." That's his campaign's reasoning for him not holding his hand over his heart at Senator Tom Harkin's Steak Fry event on September 16 in Indianola, Iowa.

A minor debate has ensued that his failure perform the traditional etiquette constitutes evidence that Barack Obama is unpatriotic and therefore unfit to hold the office of president. This is based on the idea that the gesture of dissent was intentional.

In all fairness since the definition of patriotism is in question here let's allow for clarification. According to the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006

PATRIOTISM - devoted love, support, and defense of one's country; national loyalty. [Origin: 1720-30; PATRIOT + -ISM ]

So the question remains does Obama's position support that definition? Is he a Patriot?

This isn't Obama's first protest though! In an interview with KCRG-TV in Cedar Rapids, Iowa Barack Obama states that he doesn't wear an American flag lapel pin because it has become a substitute for "true patriotism" since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Student Participation in Politics

Nowadays it is very common to find students actively involving themselves in politics. Many students have even pledged allegiance to different political parties. What are the short-term implications and long-term effects of this participation in politics by students?

A primary distinction must be made here between politics as active participation in political movements and the study of political science. The latter is an academic subject and involves the study of the administrative systems of different countries, the formation of political parties, different judiciary systems, etc. Political science, therefore, is a theoretical study of political systems. Politics means the formation of political parties and their active participation in the administration of a country. This involves organizing political meetings, canvassing for elections and the manipulation of people for political gains.

The participation of students in politics has certain drawbacks. The main occupation of students should be the pursuit of their respective courses of study. All their time and energy should be used in this activity. It is only in this way that they can secure their own individual futures and thereby safeguard the future of the nation. Participation in politics means a huge waste of this precious time and energy.

Internal Politics at Work Place

Many times we see lot of people leaving their jobs because they found the work place politics affecting their life. Internal politics involving the people at work place are some times bad and avoidable. These politics not only affect the normal working of job, but also may some time cause people to quite their jobs. This results in lose of human resource of a company. To get the good people for working in the organization is a difficult task. However by ignoring the internal politics at work place can cost the companies dearly.

People usually want to be remaining in group; they do not like others to enter their group. This tendency sometimes made lot of subgroups in the office. For every group the agenda of their group is more important than what is required. They try to promote the people in their group more over the others. They sometimes also try to let down the people of other group. This creates inter group rivalries. One group try to hinder the work of other group, in this they even forget the goals of organization. Group rivalries are most common and can be seen in big offices where lot of people work. These group politics are one of reason for collapse of work due to the non corporation and are of great cause of low performance.

The American Political Extreme

When speaking in terms of the political extreme we must first define what is meant by "extreme." Most scholars will agree that political extremism can be defined as a political philosophy or ideology of a character and kind that is farthest removed from the ordinary or average. It is the farthest from the center, outermost or endmost. It is going or doing the utmost to very great lengths to the political left or right in action, habit, or opinion.

With this in mind it is fair to say that the body politic of the Untied States has largely shifted to two extremes - liberal and conservative, as defined by the plat forms of both the democratic and republican parties. The dilemma is that neither party views themselves as being "extreme." Yet, both parties categorically define each other by these extreme terms. They are fully capable of seeing the awful nature of the extremist positions of their opposition but not in themselves. That is more then troubling, it is dangerous. Let's take a good look at both extremes.