Dictatorships. Keeping the Country Efficient by Ignoring You

This week, we will be analyzing how dictatorships worked, particularly in Nazi Germany in the 1930s to 1945 and in the USSR from 1924 to 1991. We will briefly touch upon the economic ideas of communism in the USSR, but in the context that shows how the Soviet Union used it as a means to control citizens. After we look at both rejections of liberalism and compare them, we will look at how these rejections led to a World War (namely World War II) and the Cold War, which lasted from approximately 1945-1990 with the fall of communism and eventual disintegration of the Soviet Union. Liberalism did not, and still does not, stand idly by as other systems reject its beliefs; in the case of fascism, World War II was fought and in the case of communism, it was the Cold War.

So what will we be doing this week?

Monday:

• Test re-take
• Work on projects or good copy of essay. Good copy of essay is due on THURSDAY - this includes people who haven't written a rough copy. I need a printed off copy by Thursday at 3:00 pm.  And when I say printed, I mean I don't want it emailed.

Tuesday:

• Start with looking at "communist" dictatorships as a rejection of liberalism

• Background to communism
• Russian Revolution

• Notes on what life was like under Stalin - his techniques of dictatorships used

Wednesday: 

• What is fascism

• Jigsaw - Life under Hitler
• How he gained power
• Techniques of dictatorships used
• Go through jigsaw
• If you are really interested in World War II and actions the Nazis took, here is a link that will get you to all of the episodes of Love, Hate and Propaganda documentaries

Thursday:

• Rants by  Russel, Sarah and Julie 
• Compare Fascism and Communism
• Interpreting Sources

Friday: 

• Start of the Cold War - Starts with the end of WWII
• Love, Hate and Propaganda - not only are there episodes about the Cold War at this site, but there's lots of explanations about people, places and propaganda used. If you are interested in the Vietnam War, Kent State shootings, Tiannemen Square incident, the Berlin War....There's a lot of information about it here, not just the documentaries
• How the Cold War started - Notes

Last Part of Democracies and then On to the Cold War!

This week, we will be finishing up the basics of democracies and then we will have about a 2 week stretch of looking at dictatorships and the Cold War. Meaning that we will start on economics before Christmas for about 2 weeks and finish up when we return from Christmas Break. Remember, there is a test THIS FRIDAY. What will be on that test?

• Basic features of democracies (characteristics)
• Know the philosophers and their views that impacting the creation of democracy
• Impact of the Enlightenment and Iroquois Confederacy on North American democracies
• How democracy works to balance will of majority with minority rights
• Individual and Collective Rights
• The ways in which democracy doesn't function well (disadvantages of democracy)
• Illiberalism 
• Balancing safety and security with rights and freedoms
• Dissent
• Imposition of liberalism

You should be familiar with the case studies, but  don't memorize those facts. You will never have straight recall questions on these facts, but you need to know the background knowledge of the case studies because they, or something similar, could show up as a source for questions.

What Will the Week Look Like?

Monday: 

• Finish Up with the Imposition of Liberalism
• White Paper and Red Paper

• What does imposition look like know?
• Source Interpretation
• Video Questions
• Go through what will be on your test (30-40 questions)

Tuesday: 

• Start with Dictatorships

• Different Types and the Techniques they use
• Similarities and Differences between dictatorships and democracies
• What liberal values do they reject and why?

Wednesday: 

• Communist Soviet Union vs. Fascist Germany
• Compare and contrast the two most prominent dictatorships of the 20th Century
• First two videos are on Stalin; second two are on Hitler

Thursday: 

• Rants by Traeton, Allison and Krista
• Review for test
• Continue working on comparing dictatorships

Friday:

• Test
• If you normally write your exam in the library, please just go straight there.

The Difference Between Rights and Wrong

"The USA was founded in the name of democracy, equality and individual freedom, but is failing to deliver the fundamental promise of protecting rights for all."

Last week, we finished class by looking at illiberal practices. As we discussed in class, sometimes a government justifies the means of limiting rights and freedoms to protect the maintenance of that democracy. Like we discussed in class, if you don't have a democracy, then your rights and freedoms are never EVER going to be guaranteed. But do you have a democracy if the government can pick and choose when it "needs" to limit rights and freedoms. This week, we are going to look at how citizens can battle those illiberal actions, and the right ways of doing that and the wrong ways.

Monday: 

• Illiberal practices in democracies
• Legislation for safety - War Measures Act, Patriot Act, Emergencies Act, Bill C-51
• Legislation for morality - Prohibition, Universal Suffrage
• Legislation for responsibility - Cell phone, Smoking Ban    
• Legislation for liberalism - Residential Schools, Indian Act 
• Vocabulary: Illiberalism
• Justification charts are due on TUESDAY
• Practice interpreting sources
• Video Questions on Illiberalism

Tuesday:

• Vocabulary: Dissent, Civil Disobedience
• Notes on Dissent and its role in a democracy

dis·sent

dəˈsent/

verb

1. 1.

   hold or express opinions that are at variance with those previously, commonly, or officially expressed.

   "two members dissented from the majority"

noun

1. 1.

   the expression or holding of opinions at variance with those previously, commonly, or officially held.

   "there was no dissent from this view"

   synonyms:

   disagreement, difference of opinion, argument, dispute; More

• Acceptable vs unacceptable

• The use of dissent in democracy and it's importance

Thursday:

• Rants by Keaton and Krista
• The use of dissent in democracy and it's importance
• We will be in the computer lab doing research
• Categorizing the events: Acceptable or Unacceptable dissent

Friday: 

• Remembrance Day Ceremony