Among the things that I learned was that the government is using drones not just for military purposes, but also to spy on its own citizens.  I have a much clearer idea how George Zimmerman used the law to get away with killing Trayvon Martin. In the unit that cover the Wikileaks story I became aware of just how much information the government  and other powerful entities try to keep from the public.  The section on the  Super Pac’s gave me a much clearer picture of just how much money is being spent trying to influence our elections.

 

The most important thing that I learned was that when I am watching the news, they are trying to get me to buy into their point of view.  I learned how to filter information so that I can better tell the difference between what is fact and what is the broadcaster’s opinion. I learned that there are many different ways for an individual to voice their opinion. Through the use of blogs, discussion boards, and the press, no one ever needs to feel that they don’t have a way of getting there point out there.  I learned how to listen to the voice of people with whom I do not agree.

 

 
 

 Before I took this class I thought I was a liberal. Now, after getting information from both sides I find myself being more in the middle. With the information that I learned I now see that there are liberal positions that I disagree with as well as some conservative positions that I support.  When I first started the class, I really did not pay a tremendous amount of attention to world events, because I did not think it affected me.  Thought the class I now see that things that are happening on the other side of the world can have an impact on what happens in my life.  Since this class, I started watching 60 Minutes and I find myself wanting to be aware of what is going on.

Most of the material seemed to come from the liberal side. Even though that is the side that I tend to agree with, it might be helpful for the class to examine a little bit more from the conservative viewpoint.  I find it difficult to engage in an electronic discussion. It just reminds me of social media which I do not engage in, so to be forced to is uncomfortable.  Maybe there can be a way to interact with the class thought Skype or a similar technology.  

 Having to read all these different articles from this class made me more able to read about something that is unfamiliar to me and be able to recognize pertinent facts. Also I probably would be less fearful of having to deal with subject matters that challenge me.

My favorite topic to write about was the Trayvon Martin story, because it was personal. As an African American mother of two sons its spoke about a reality that I live every day. This story, among all the other ones, I’m too familiar with. While it is hard to really imagine a drone dropping in my house, the image of a young black man lying dead in the street because he was racially profiled  is not very difficult to imagine. It shows that while we have to be concerned about other parts of the world, we still have to take care about what is happening in our own backyard.