Blog Post #2: Supreme Court Reflections

 

The most powerful Court in the World

Before watching this documentary, I knew the Supreme Court was important, but I did not fully understand just how much power and responsibility it has. The video showed that the Court is responsible for interpreting the Constitution and can determine what the President, Congress, and the states may or may not do. 

One thing I learned that I did not already know was how many cases reach the Court each year. The documentary explained that the Supreme Court receives about 100 cases each week, totaling roughly 7,000 petitions annually. The justices must carefully review those petitions and decide which cases deserve their attention.

I was also interested in learning more about how decisions are made. After hearing oral arguments from both sides, the justices meet privately to discuss the case and work toward a decision. They can even revise and redraft opinions in an effort to persuade other justices to agree with their reasoning.

The most surprising thing I learned was how rare it is to become a Supreme Court justice. The documentary compared receiving an appointment to being struck by lightning because so few people ever reach that position. 

Another surprising point was that Supreme Court justices are often discussed only through their decisions rather than as individuals with their own thoughts and reasoning. The documentary helped me see them as people who must make difficult decisions on issues that affect the entire country.

The video also changed the way I think about the Supreme Court's history. I learned that the Court was not always widely respected and that it gained much of its authority during the Marshall years. I also learned that the Court has made serious mistakes, including the Dred Scott decision. 

My most important takeaway is that the Supreme Court's power depends on the trust of the American people. The justices have an enormous responsibility to uphold the Constitution, and their decisions can have a lasting impact on the nation for generations. 

Blog Post #1: My Top Five Sources of News and Information

1. CNN 10: For the most part I get most of my actual official news from CNN 10 since it is packed with important information without taking more than 10 minutes to convey it. It is a very good source of news for people who have a busy schedule. This is because even the most busiest people have at least 30 minutes to spare especially for something as important as being informed of world affairs. It also has really good production even though it's just 10 minutes of content it doesn't feel like it's rushed. So not only does it not take long to watch but it also is enjoyable to watch.

2. IGN: I am a Game Design major so for me this news source is very important. It helps me stay update it on the state of the Game Industry constantly. I also have a deep love for games so I love to see the latest releases and all the new, cool, and innovative things game developers make. Even if your not a game developer I still recommend you try this news source out. You probably play games too so why not stay updated on what's going on with them.

3. Instagram: Instagram has a lot of flaws within it so most would think that using it as a news source probably isn't the greatest idea. Even if that is true that social media is unreliable at most times it is also true that it is the most available to most people. Which is why I would recommend it for people because most people get their news from social media. Not because they can't go else where to get their news, but it's because that is simply what's the most available to them. So instead of doom scrolling while on Instagram it might be better to find out what's going on in the world. 

4. NPR: When it comes to informing people how culture and music is advancing I believe this news source is the best. For example when another product of popular culture comes out you can count of NPR to have an articulate article about it. Also when it comes to finding information on certain artist you can find most of that in NPR with lots of content on it. I would suggest this mainly for it's vast culture articles including vast arrays of culture you can research and learn about. So if your interested in learning about a variety of cultures give it a try.

5. Association Press: Association Press is not a household name in the slightest and covers most of the same stuff other news sources do. So why use this one in particular? Well the biggest reason and the reason why I would recommend this news source is that it is completely bias free. They make the most steps out of any other news source to make it's self as unbiased as possible. What makes that great is the fact that this news source isn't trying to make you think a certain way and is just giving you pure information.