The relation between domestic terrorism and armed forces in the U.S Essay

The relation between domestic terrorism and armed forces in the U.S. in mid-90s - Essay Example Domestic terrorism has existed and influenced the political and social structure of the United States, to varying degrees, since this country's inception. The United States Department of Justice defines domestic terrorism as: "The unlawful use of force or violence, committed by a group(s) of two or more individuals, against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives."1 Historically there have been limited cases or incidents of domestic terrorism in which active duty military personnel have been involved or implicated, most probably due to the rigid structure and character of the military environment. Although terrorism has plagued governments, and public and private institutions for centuries in one form or another, its application and the strategies associated with it have evolved as surely as the societies upon which it is imposed. Technological advances particularly in the transportation, communication and weapons field, have facilitated the abilities of modern-day domestic terrorist groups to get their message out and has improved their capacity to take violent action to achieve their goals. Recent incidents, particularly the Weaver family incident at Ruby Ridge, Idaho, and the incident at the Branch Davidian compound near Waco, Texas, have brought into question the extent to which government interdiction of armed citizen groups is actually le gitimate before it violates their Constitutional civil rights. Additionally, to what extent is the use of force against these groups acceptable In February of 1995, President Clinton introduced a counterterrorism bill into the Senate and House of Representatives. Among other extremely controversial proposals in the bill, the Department of Defense would be assigned an increased role in assisting in the investigation of domestic terrorism incidents in which chemical and biological agents were used (currently the military can be utilized in cases of terrorism in which nuclear weapons or devices are suspected or confirmed).2 Although the increased role for the military would be very limited, requiring further amendment to the Posse Comitatus Act of 1878, civil liberties experts warn that it would violate the tenants of "civil supremacy over the military" and would further kindle the animosities and anti-government sentiment of the citizen-militias and conspiracy theorists.3 Additionally, many Congressmen, law-enforcement officials and some military advisers agree that such uses of the military would be an extremely dangerous avenue of approach to combating domestic terrorism. Apparent Motivation There are basically four categories into which groups that are regarded as domestic terrorists can be distinguished currently existing in the United States. These groups can be generically delineated as being either motivated by: (1) religious

Instructional Approaches Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Instructional Approaches - Essay Example The articles selected for analysis reflect different instructional approaches and illustrate different methods and techniques used in social sciences. The article "Literary Studies and Cognitive Science: Toward a New Interdisciplinary" by M. Th. Crane and A. Richardson discuss a new interdisciplinary approach applied to literary studies and social sciences. In this article, a special attention is given to cognitive learning approach and its application. the authors underline that building on earlier theories of learning, researchers working toward interactive technologies perceived limitations in earlier methods. By developing theories that emphasize synthesis and integration of sets of knowledge and skills, researchers hope to address such limitations as an emphasis on components instead of integrated wholes, a closed system that made incorporation of new knowledge difficult, which resulted in essentially passive instruction and labor intensive practice in design and development of instruction. The authors state that the teacher provides modeling of the metacognitive strategies necessary for beginning the task, and, when problems are encountered, assistance is provided by the teacher or group. One learning procedure reflecting this stance, complex dynamic simulations, structures collaborative group work in sharing a complex problem-solving task. This approach is based on theories about the social genesis of learning in which the learner is characterized as being motivated to seek explanations through exploration. The article "Using Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development to Understand the Construction of Healing Narratives" by C. P. Cook-Cottone analyses instructional approaches and learning theories in terms of the Narrative Process. The Healing Narrative Model is based on the structured approach. It means that one is that learning should be contextual and a process of active application of knowledge toward specific problem-solving goals. Also, the article pays a special attention to experiential (or sensorimotor) level and early relationships (or Preoperational) level. An initial authoring activity in instructional design is a clarification of the learning goal for the instruction and/or curriculum. The specification of the goal(s) will help prescribe the format of the instruction. For example, if the goal is the learning of new information, there are basically possibilities. Second is the general agreement regarding the importance of modeling problem-solving strategies as well as the role of conflict or failure in providing an impetus toward new learning. The research by Harris and Pressley, M. (1991) describes bad illustrates the cognitive strategy instruction:. The authors underline that in contrast to the behaviorist view of the learner as shaped by the environment, cognitivebased researchers are investigating the ways that the learner actively shapes the environment to facilitate learning. His research indicates that the knowledge of novices is organized around the literal aspects of a problem statement, whereas the experts' knowledge is organized around principles and abstractions not apparent in the problem