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Our vision of an ideal American society is an individualistic meritocracy. hard work= INDIVIDUAL success Created by: Alex, Matt, Arat, Michael M, Michael W

Our vision of an ideal American society is an individualistic meritocracy for current citizens of the United States. For immigrants, they are allowed to be a part of the country, but they must be working towards the same American goals. In order to gain status in this society, one must work hard for themselves. The importance of this type of society is that it will overall strengthen our abilities to improve work ethic and equality among the people.
 * VISION **


 * ARGUMENTS **

__ Argument #1: With a small government and no taxation, people of this country will be able to achieve their goals. __

Michael Mitiska

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An American society is a society that has people who are all working towards a common goal. All citizens’ work for themselves without taxes and the government also has to support itself without the people’s money. According to a table from WorldWideTax.com in China the person who makes between $40,001 and $60,000 has a tax deduction of 30% not including dividend, interest, royalties, and capital gains. The Chinese Government is a communistic government that view people as individuals that work for themselves and therefore they have taxes. Mitch Nini did his timeline topic on 1942 Japanese Internment and stated, “The United States government did not attempt to distinguish between those who were loyal and disloyal to our country” (Nini). People are seen as individuals, which is a better view to even people who grew up in a poor country town. “In The Bean Trees Another major victory Taylor has is learning how to take care of her adopted daughter named Turtle, and how to hold down a job long enough to support herself, and her new child”. This shows how she has to learn to work on her own and be successful. In our society we believe in an individualistic society so there would be no taxes and a small government. =====

“China Income Taxes and Tax Laws 2011.” //Worldwide-tax//. N.p., Apr. 2011. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. .
__Argument #2: Without affirmative action, everyone is on the same level that is based off of hard work and equal opportuni__ty.

Alex Kern

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In an ideal American society, people that are different should not be granted special treatment due to the fact that they are not like everybody else. In other words, there is no affirmative action. Whether the minority be illegal immigrants, poor people, or outcasts of society, everyone in this country should have to work hard in order to achieve success. For example, in the 1973 San Antonio Independent School District v Rodriguez court case, many poor Mexican-American children were not receiving the same education as white students, due to the fact that they were poor. The courts declared that “ Being poor in the United States is a matter of individual responsibility...as it maintains the legal fiction that we are all abstract individuals with equal, undifferentiated rights" (Swidorski 13). Which shows that, as pointed out on the wiki, families have to fend for themselves when it comes to education because it is not the school’s fault that the families are not wealthy, and they should not be treated any differently (Furey-wiki page). Also, in this society, affirmative action is not present in higher education or jobs. In order to get into college or to have a job, people, illegal immigrants in particular, should have to work hard and prove that they are worthy of the responsibilities that come with college or a job. Using affirmative action to get minorities into colleges “insinuates that they need special treatment to succeed”, which is not always the case. There are a lot of illegal immigrants and other minorities that work hard and are able to get jobs and college educations without the help of affirmative action. As Mitchell Nini stated in his argument on the wiki, 3-4% of our population is illegal immigrants and many of them have worked hard to get jobs and become a part of the American society. This goes to show that affirmative action isn’t necessarily needed. In the book // Warriors Don’t Cry // , the author, Melba, was not accepted by the people in her school. Despite her struggles, she held her head high and worked hard in order to get people to accept her. She achieved her goals by herself and did not need the help of things like affirmative action. Therefore, in an ideal American society, minorities should not receive special treatment for things that can be accomplished with hard work and perseverance. =====

Works Cited: Swidorski, Carl. "The Supreme Court's Legal (Mis) Construction of Race, Gender and Class, 1856-200." eLibrary Curriculum Edition. N.p., 13 Jan. 2003. Web. 29 Sept. 2011.

Nini, Mitchell; Wilmer, Abby; Limotta, Lizzy, G, Givi. "Warriors Don't Cry" Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (book group posts) Nini, Mitchell. "6. Undocumented Workers: Pro/Con" Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (current issue table) Furey, Blaine. “Antiono v Rodriguez”. Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (timeline topic)

__Argument #3: In order to be able to pursue goals, people need to be working individually.__

Arat Infante

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In this ideal society, people/citizens need to have the freedom to succeed and pursue their goals. If we work hard for ourselves, and naturally we all have dreams, there is no point of it if there are limitations on how we achieve them. Rosa Parks wanted to be treated as an equal, and she showed it on the montgomery bus in 1955. She had been arrested for not giving space for the whites but really she defending her rights as a human being and it wasn't like she was the only black girl, there were actually more blacks than whites but she had to move for the whites to sit down (1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott). Woman have the right to decide when to reproduce or not and if abortion is legal wherever she is, she has more opportunities for the future. Imagine if a woman has the stress of a teenage pregnancy, how will she have an actual future, regardless of it being her fault or not, at least she can decide (Woman have the right to decide... Pro-B) In warriors don't cry by Melba Patillo (also about Melba Patillo), Melba tries to pursue her dreams without the pressures of the school getting in the way. Melba is being bullied for being black at school, but she still goes because she cannot let the white people win in getting them blacks out (as usual) and in the end she achieves a lot in her life without anything getting in her way. In conclusion, no matter what one wants to achieve, if they let thing s get in their way, they won't get any where, and it makes it a lot easier if nothing is the way in the first place. =====

R, Max. “ 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott.” Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (Time Line Topics).  <span style="font-family: Verdana,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;">Nini, Mitch. “ Warriors 1.” Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (Literature Circles). <http://buchholtzsidoramericanstudies.wikispaces.com/Book+Groups> Infante, Arat. "Women--Decision to Reproduce (Pro- B)." Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (One Minute Topics) <http://buchholtzsidoramericanstudies.wikispaces.com/Women--Decision+to+Reproduce>

Michael Watkins

In this ideal society citizens need to be able to pursue their goals without any restrictions. Everyone naturally has some sort of goal that they wish to achieve and who are we to set limitations. If their are limitations the hope of pursuing these goals quickly fades. Allan Bakke was well-qualified to be accepted into the University of California but because he was white his application was denied (1978 University of California v Bakke). Bakke should have been able to go to the University of California but their were restrictions. He even got good grades and MCAT scores. In our ideal society Bakke would have been able to go to Cal because he should be able to succeed his goals without his race restricting him. Gay marriage should be legal. The government has no right to get in the way of personal matters such as this. Two people of the same sex who love each other should be allowed to publically celebrate their commitment and receive the same benefits of marriage as opposite sex couples (Marriage Pro-A). If it is someone's dream to be married no one should get in the way. In conclusion, no one should be denied of their goals, it is their own hopes and dreams and no one should get in the way.

Trexler, Annie. "Marriage (Pro-A)." Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (One Minute Topics) http://buchholtzsidoramericanstudies.wikispaces.com/Marriage--Same+Sex

Brunner, Bobby. "California vs Bakke." Buchholtz/Sidor Wiki. (Timeline Topics) http://buchholtzsidoramericanstudies.wikispaces.com/1978+University+of+California+v+Bakke

Our vision of an individualistic meritocracy includes a small government with no taxation, no affirmative action, and freedom of the people to succeed. “We live in a system that espouses merit, equality, and a level playing field, but exalts those with wealth, power, and celebrity, however gained.” These words, expressed by Derrick Bell, are the essence of our ideal American society. If you work hard, you can achieve greatness.
 * CALL TO ACTION **

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 * Significant Exclusions-X---Society TodaySignificant Inclusions **

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