{"id":13860,"date":"2023-08-08T23:38:15","date_gmt":"2023-08-09T03:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=13860"},"modified":"2023-08-18T11:03:03","modified_gmt":"2023-08-18T15:03:03","slug":"100-questions-from-the-historian","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/?p=13860","title":{"rendered":"100 questions from the historian"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

[Note: this is part of our annual Guest Writer Series. Meet guest writer #7.]<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I have thought a great deal on what we are and are not teaching in US History. Since I spent a lifetime educating both college and high school students I thought that perhaps it was time to educate the masses. In my classes, there were always facts\/dates. I once asked when the War for Independence began and then made the case for 1622 when the Virginia House of Burgesses announced they were going to tax themselves and not<\/strong> the Parliament \u2014 made them think. My classes were filled with what students labeled \u201cinfomercials\u201d \u2014 things to know but not<\/strong> be tested on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So here are a \u2018few\u2019 questions I have asked including some \u201clandmark\u201d decisions which have had an impact on the lives of citizens almost from the beginning of what we know as the United States. I always include the Declaration of Independence; we read through the entire thing \u2014 analyzing\/discussing\/debating. Hoping the following spurs an interest in \u201cgoogling\u201d answers you may and may not know\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  1. Do you know the reasons behind America\u2019s intervention into Vietnam?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  2. Why does the Speaker invite the President to address the nation in a Joint Session of Congress?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  3. Why does the President \u201cknock\u201d on the closed House Chamber doors to be announced requesting permission to enter?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  4. What is the reason behind the Presidential Records Act? What does it say?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  5. What is the reason behind \u201cimpeachment\u201d? (Go back to Colonial New York and the Royal Governor during the reign of Queen Anne.)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  6. How are classified documents declassified?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  7. Can a sitting president repeal any amendment? (In 2016, it was claimed that Secretary Clinton could.)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  8. How does an amendment get added to the <\/strong>Constitution?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  9. What are the reasons for the Bill of Rights? (BOR)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  10. What are the Articles of Confederation? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  11. What is the National Archives?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  12. When the British burned down the Library of Congress, who replaced the books lost?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  13. When did John Adams and Thomas Jefferson die? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  14. When was the Secret Service created? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  15. What 2 West Point graduates, besties and roommates, rode from the west (i.e. California) to fight on opposite sides at Gettysburg?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  16. How was Lincoln\u2019s Gettysburg Address received?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  17. What was the Trail of Tears?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  18. What was the Nullification Act?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  19. What stopped the slave trade in DC, and what year was the trade stopped?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  20. Who was Medgar Evers?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  21. What was the March in Selma about?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  22. What is the National Institute of Health?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  23. What are the first 5 freedoms covered by the First Amendment? Why were they included?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  24. Why is one cabinet member not permitted to attend any State of the Union (SOTU) or a Joint Session of Congress?  <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  25. The Second Amendment has its roots in Colonial America; why was it added to the BOR?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  26. Why were the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and Civil Rights Act of 1964 passed?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  27. When did all male schools like Washington & Lee and The University of Virginia admit women? And our military academies?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  28. When did women get the right to vote, and what president reluctantly signed it into law?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  29. What was the Oregon Trail? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  30. The state laws in Louisiana are based on _______. Why?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  31. Most western states\u2019 laws are based on _______. Why?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  32. The original 13 states and most of the states east of the Mississippi laws are based on _______. Why?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  33. What is Juneteenth? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  34. What and when was the Tulsa Massacre?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  35. What were the reasons behind Wounded Knee?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  36. Why did the Southern States decide to leave the Union? (1860-1865)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  37. What is The Gilded Age?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  38. Why does industrialization come to the north over the south? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  39. What were the Lincoln-Douglass debates, and why was it a forgone conclusion that Douglass would win? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  40. What were the fireside chats? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  41. Why and when was NATO formed? What is the importance of Article 5?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  42. What events led to America\u2019s going to fight in The Great War?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  43. Why was America reluctant to get involved in the upheavals in Europe and Japan in the 1940\u2019s?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  44. What was the root cause of the Spanish-American War?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  45. What was the root cause(s) of the War with Mexico? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  46. What is the Monroe Doctrine? What is the Truman Doctrine?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  47. Who were  Thomas Paine, John Marshall, Sandra-Day O\u2019Connor and Thurgood Marshall, and why are they important?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  48. What was Iran-Contra about, and why does the Reagan Administration side with them?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  49. What was Desert Storm? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  50. What was the root cause of 9\/11, and who was president on that day in 2001?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  51. Who was John McCain?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  52. What illness did JFK have, and how did he injure his back? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  53. Can you name the 5 declared<\/strong> wars America has fought? Who actually declares war?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  54. What is a \u201cpolice action\u201d? (International)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  55. What is a \u2018banana republic\u201d and where are they located? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  56. What was the Six-Day War?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  57. What was the Suez Canal upheaval about? (1956)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  58. What is the debt ceiling, and when did it become partisan? Why has it become such a big deal since WW1?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  59. What was the Albany Congress? What were the Townshend Acts?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  60. What is the actual \u201cline of succession\u201d?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  61. What does the entire Declaration of Independence say? (DOI)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  62. Why do the 13 colonies declare independence from Great Britain?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  63. What does freedom of speech mean? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  64. What event turned George III from his earlier siding with the 13?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  65. Who were the men who died at the Alamo? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  66. Why are the mascots of the following named as such: UVA-Cavaliers, Tennessee-Volunteers, and Texas-Longhorns?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  67. Why does the UP (Upper Peninsula) belong to Michigan?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  68. Why is Toledo in Ohio and not<\/strong> Michigan?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  69. Who was Maya Angelou? Who is Toni Morrison? And what is each famous for writing?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  70. Who is Toni Morrison, and what is she famous for writing? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  71. Who was Alex Haley, and why was his book \u201cRoots\u201d such a turning point in American and TV history in 1977?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  72. How long did M*A*S*H last on TV, and why was it considered trailblazing? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  73. What was the impact when UTEP defeated the University of Kentucky for the NCAA 🏀 Championship in 1966?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  74. Why are the following films believed to be game changers: \u201cGlory,\u201d \u201cThe Color Purple,\u201d \u201cSchindler\u2019s List,\u201d \u201cPhiladelphia,\u201d\u2019 \u201cBrokeback Mountain,\u201d and \u201cThe Godfather\u201d (all 3 parts)?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  75. Who was Francis Marion? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  76. Who was Sitting Bull? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  77. Who was Chief Joseph, and what is his famous quote? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  78. What does it take for a bill to become a law?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  79. Why is the power of the purse in the hands of The House of Representatives? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  80. How many votes does it take to pass a bill in both Houses? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  81. What is \u201cgerrymandering,\u201d and what does it do? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  82. Should we continue to have the Electoral College or does it preserve the voting rights of small states?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  83. How many total years can a president serve? (Think LBJ more than a single answer.) <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  84. Who is the President Pro-Tempore of the Senate? (4th in line in succession) <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  85. What is the line of presidential succession? And do you know who they are?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  86. If you graduate from Harvard Law and want to move to Texas to practice law, can you and what hoops would you have to jump through?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  87. If wars are and have been fought over land\/power\/hate, how many wars have been fought for love? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  88. What were the Salem Witch Trials really about? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  89. What is Arthur Miller\u2019s classic \u201cThe Crucible\u2019 set in Salem of the 1600s really about? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  90. What is McCarthyism (not Kevin), and what was the HUAC (aka the House Un-American Activities Committee)?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  91. What was the New Deal? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  92. What are the qualifications for the SCOTUS and lesser courts? <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  93. Does the Preamble to the Constitution include the word \u201cGod\u201d?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  94. What was the 3\/5ths Compromise and the Great Compromise?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  95. When was \u201cunder God\u201d added to the Pledge of Allegiance and why?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  96. What groundbreaking Broadway musical focused on civil rights\/equal rights\/Vietnam War while letting in the \u201csunshine\u201d?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  97. Who was Cesar Chavez, Gloria Steinem and the Chicago 7?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  98. Who authorized the Clean Air and Water Act in the 1970\u2019s?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  99. Why do the Brits drive on the wrong side of the road? <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

    And\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Can you name the Commonwealth States? And why are they  Commonwealth States? <\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      Also, some landmark court cases to learn from (see www.Oyez.org<\/a> to learn more about each case):<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      1. Chisholm v. Georgia (1793)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      2. Marbury v. Madison (1803)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      3. Martin v. Hunter\u2019s Lessee (1816)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      4. McCulloch v. Maryland (1819)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      5. Gibbons v. Ogden (1824)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      6. Jones v. VanZandt (1847)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      7. Dred Scott v. Sanford (1857)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      8. Schenectady v. United States (1917)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      9. Korematsu v. US (1944)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      10. Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka (1954)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      11. Mapp v. Ohio (1961)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      12. Gideon v. Wainwright (1963)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      13. NYTimes v. Sullivan (1964) <\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      14. Miranda v. Arizona (1966)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      15. Loving v. Virginia (1967)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      16. Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (1969)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      17. Roe v. Wade (1973; overturned in Dobbs v Jackson\u2019s Women\u2019s Health Organization in 2022)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      18. US v. Nixon (1974)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      19. Bush v. Gore (2000)<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n
      20. Moore v. Harper (2023) <\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

        Always learning and asking questions\u2026 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Respectfully\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        JBR<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        [Note: this is part of our annual Guest Writer Series. Meet guest writer #7.] I have thought a great deal on what we are and are not teaching in US History. Since I spent a lifetime educating both college and high school students I thought that perhaps it was time to educate the masses. In … <\/p>\n

        Continue reading “100 questions from the historian”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13860","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-current-event"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13860","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13860"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13860\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13880,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13860\/revisions\/13880"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13860"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13860"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/intramuralist.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13860"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}