Civics Potpourri

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss big money in politics, or campaign finance reform. They discuss what it is, how we got here, and the pros and cons of various ways to fix, or reform, it.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss various topics related to civics, such as voting, checking the validity of shared information, civil debate, and voter fraud. In the second half some new non-partisan resources are presented and explained. These are meant to add to our listeners’ arsenal of civics and history knowledge.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss moments in America’s 250-year history when the country didn’t live up to the ideals it was built on—like equality and segregation, limited government v expansive government, freedom of speech v restrictions on speech, and the American Dream v economic inequality. This is not saying America is good or bad, but that it is complicated. It’s about understanding these contradictions and managing, or fixing, them to fit the ideals that we have celebrated for over 250 years.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss moments in America’s 250-year history when the country didn’t live up to the ideals it was built on—like equality, democracy, justice, freedom of religion and expression, etc. they explain that this is not saying America is good or bad, but that it is complicated. It’s about understanding these contradictions and managing, or fixing, them to fit the ideals that we have celebrated for over 250 years.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they talk about the events of 9/11/2001 and patriotism. After recapping the events of the morning of September 11th, when four airplanes were hijacked and crashed into the World Trade Center twin towers, the Pentagon, and a field in Pennsylvania, the hosts discuss how this horrific day inspired patriotism in most of us. It was like a revival. They also discuss why terrible events like this inspire a rise in patriotic feelings and why those feelings fade again, typing this phenomena into civics. Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they look at the pros and cons of both term limits and age limits for members of Congress and the President. We hear more and more citizens calling for one or both of these limits for our federal elected officials, in fact there is over 80% bipartisan support for both. Listen and find out what the arguments for an against these limits are.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they look at why “real” history is so important. This lesson in what type of historical narrative we are presented with in our museums, monuments, and history books goes hand-in-hand with civics because much of civics involves making decisions based on the experience of the past and the lessons that have been learned. The hosts also discuss who should decide what the content of these historical narratives includes and why.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they tackle 5 more common misconceptions about our government. These misconceptions include Presidential power, whether every vote makes a difference, who government officials work for, isn’t my elected representative weak or “selling out” if they change their mind or vote against an issue, and isn’t all news media today “fake news” and can it be trusted. So join the hosts as they attempt to educate you about these misconceptions.Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the important of civic virtue. At the beginning of the last several episodes we have been telling you about thirteen civic virtues that Benjamin Franklin felt were the most important qualities that help individuals to be better people and contribute to a stronger society. In this episode we will dig deeper and discuss the civic virtues that people need to demonstrate to maintain our democratic republic. These are civic virtues of action as opposed to personality traits. Things such as being informed, voting, serving on a jury, volunteering in the community, and several others. We, again, stress the importance of civics education in teaching young citizens about these civic virtues. Support the show

Send us a messageJoin hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they look at why we celebrate the July 4th Independence Day. How did it come about and why? What does the Declaration of Independence mean? They break down the different parts of the document and what led to its writing. It is both a break-up letter to the British and our country’s birth certificate. What would have happened if the colonists had lost the Revolutionary War? Finally, what do we need to do to keep its meaning alive?Support the show