Chapter 25: Lesson 3 - The United States and World Affairs

Human Rights


    A human right is a basic freedom that all people should have simply because they are human. These rights include the right to adequate food, safety, and shelter. The right to be protected under the law and to exercise freedom of thought are also other human rights.
    The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was created to list the people's basic rights. 

• Article 1 - All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights.
• Article 2 - All people should have human rights without distinction of any kind, such as race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
• The rest of the articles detail other rights and protections.

    Some countries use repression. This means that people are prevented from expressing themselves or from freely engaging in normal life. With this said, tension between ethnic groups can become violent, resulting in genocide. Genocide is the attempt to kill all members of an ethnic group.

Democracy, Liberty, and Conflict

    Democratic nations do a better job of respecting human rights. As more nations become democratic, more people become free.

    Some nations practice communism. Communism is a one-party system of government based on the idea of state ownership and government direction of property and industry. People in countries that practice communism have few freedoms.
     Countries, like America, have been trying to fight communism. An example of this fight is the Cold War, which ended the Soviet Union in 1991. But, the struggle for human rights continues. There are terrorist group who threaten peace and abuse human rights.

Recent Conflicts

    Recently, in 2001, America faced the worst terror attack its ever seen, with about 3,000 dead. The Department of Homeland Security is the result of the government trying to stop terror attacks like the former. The Patriot Act of 2001 also helped, by giving the government more powers to fight terrorism. The United States responded to the 9/11 attack by sending troops to Afghanistan, whose rulers supported terrorist groups. Their leader, Osama bin Laden, escaped these attacks, but was killed in a raid in May 2011. Even though Bin Laden was killed, we still are not close to ending terror attacks.

   U.S. troops have also stormed Iraq, because President George W. Bush feared that terror groups would be able to access weapons of mass destruction (WMD's). They defeated Iraq's army in 2003, but they were unsuccessful when it came to setting up democracy. When 2010 arrived, President Obama took back American combat troops.

    The United States still struggles to stop terrorism. Pakistan and Iran are suspected of holding terror groups, while conflict around the globe torn up nations into little itty bitty pieces.

Review Questions and Answers

Why do nations and people continue to fight for human rights? 

Because it is important that everyone gets an equal chance for freedom.

List 2 ways that differing political views led to conflict between nations during the Cold War.


The U.S. didn't believe in spreading communism like the Soviet Union did; because Chile, Cuba, and Iran opposed communism, the U.S. supported them.

Chapter 25: Lesson 1- Global Independence and Issues

Global Interdependence:
   
     Global interdependence means that people and nations depend on each other for goods and services. Developed countries usually export technology and medicines for developing countries and developing countries export raw materials and local products to developing countries.

Global Trade

      The global trade between countries occur because nations have different needs, comparative advantages, and resources. The U.S. is a very important factor in global trade.Some exports are: wheat, corn, computer software, aircraft, medical equipment, and machinery that is sent to nations who cannot produce these goods on their own. The U.S. still needs some imports, such as oil, which usually comes from Canada, Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, and Mexico and is used in the daily lives of most Americans. Some times the U.S. needs certain goods, such as diamonds, which are imported from South Africa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Botswana.

Global Economic Cooperation

       The North American Trade Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) was made to end trade barriers between Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. Although it does not solve all disagreements between nations, they do support global interdependence.

Global Issues

       Since global interdependence has made people aware of issues that have affected the world as a whole, nations cooperate and work together to find solutions to the problems of the world. However, varieties of political and cultural forces are also at work around the globe. These forces can encourage nations not to work together.

Costs of Competition and Trade

The global interdependence has increased trade and has led to the wealth in many parts of the world. Although, trade may cause problems. Companies may move their factories to other countries with lower labor costs and greater populations. People may lose their jobs in the process. Some countries may put up barriers to protect their industries from imports produced in countries with cheaper labor, but they cost money. Although trade barriers can lead to more barriers and may end up in a trade war. Which results in higher prices for everyone and fewer choices for consumers.

Rich and Poor Nations

Unequal levels of economic growth have led to a large gap between rich and poor nations. The developing nations are making progress but not enough to catch up to developed countries. Developed nations usually have a higher per capita GDP and stable political systems. Some examples are: United States, Germany, and Australia. On the other hand, developing countries have a lower per capita GPDs and low rates of growth. They may lack natural resources, have unskilled workers, political unrest, poor schools, or health problems.

Global Politics

The different governments and views of every nation can lead to disagreements. For example, Venezuela criticizes the U.S. market and the U.S. condemns the economic policies of Venezuela. Yet Venezuela, a developing country, needs the United States, a developed country, for money. The U.S. also needs the oil from Venezuela.

Environmental Issues

Even with the modern comforts of today, there is usually a price. Not with money, but our environment. The chemicals released by factories cars pollute everything around us all. Especially burning coal and oil, the chemicals released by it harm trees and animals. Deforestation is becoming more common but it causes flooding, mudslides, and lessens the amount of carbon dioxide trees absorb. Poor nations fear that taking steps in preventing pollution will slow their economic growth, which they need to better the lives of the citizens.

Other Global Challenges

One of the problems in today's world is immigration. Sometimes the citizens of that country are unhappy with the immigrants. The differences in ethnic groups, race, or racial background may bring up some disagreements between people. Terrorism also may occur between countries, the violence is geared towards the government and/or people to behave a certain way with force. With terrorism,

comes refugees, who are people that flee from famine, conflicts, terrorism, or natural disasters. They live in temporary camps. They also require the cooperation between countries to help them into a safer environment with food, clean water, and basic health care.






Review Questions:

1) Why does the U.S. trade with Venezuela, even though they have disagreements?

2) Why do developing countries depend on the developed countries?





Answers:

1) The 2 nations have something that the other doesn't and therefore are in need for it, so that trade keeps a steady balance in a relationship between a developed and a developing country.

2) Developing countries don't have a very stable per capita GDP, they may lack natural resources, have unskilled workers, political unrest, poor schools, or health problems.

Chapter 25: Lesson 2 - The United States and International Organizations

The Purpose of International Organizations

One major reason that countries come together is destruction.

     Nations face many difficulties, such as concerns about climate change, trade, and overall destruction. Because of this, they often join together and form organizations filled with diplomats who try to address common concerns.

     Governmental organizations are formed to address international, rather than nation-wide, issues. For a nation to be eligible to join a governmental organization, they must agree to follow the organization's laws, support its decisions, and supply part of the money needed to run the group. There are many different types of governmental organizations. For example, groups like the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) are formed for a single purpose. Others are formed based on broader objectives, like the largest governmental organization, or, the United Nations (UN). They can also create major world changes, much like the European Union (EU) set up a common currency for most of its members and made the euro.

     Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are formed by private citizens in order to work for a certain cause. These are not linked to the government, and usually depend on volunteers and private donations for financial aid. However, they have the ability to do some things that governmental organizations cannot. For example, some nations may accept the help of certain NGOs that they would not accept from a governmental organization because it is linked to that nations government. One example of an NGO that has these circumstances is the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

International Organizations

International organizations are organizations that involve various countries from around the world joining together for various causes, as seen in the last subheading. There are many different international organizations. Some of these include (some as previously mentioned) the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organizations (NATO), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Peace Corps, and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

   The UN is one of the most important international organizations, formed at the end of WWII with 192 member nations. Its main goal is to keep the peace amongst nations worldwide, protect human rights, and to fight poverty. There are many important parts of the UN. Below some parts are listed.

• General Assembly: All 192 UN member nations are part of it/main meeting of the UN
• Security Council: Has 5 permanent members (Britain, China, France, U.S., Russia) and 10 temporary members that rotate every 2 years/focuses on world peace and security
• International Court of Justice (World Court): Has 15 judges elected by the General Assembly and Security Council/focuses on settling disputes between nations





The United Nations is the largest, one of the most important organizations in the world. Now enjoy a picture of what it would be like if anime characters were to replace humans.

• Other UN councils: Formed by various nations/focuses on economic issues, social justice, and public health

      The NATO is another important international organization that is composed of 28 member nations in Europe and North America. This organization works to promote peace and to defend each other in times of crisis. It also can send soldiers to other countries around the world, like the situations in Afghanistan and Iraq.
     The WTO is an international organization made up of over 150 member nations who aims to arrange trade agreements, get rid of trade barriers, and settle trade disputes. Its decisions are made using consensus, or general agreement. 
     The WHO is a part of the UN that fights diseases worldwideby improving health guidelines and studying public health issues. The result this organization has brought upon society is a more informed public and the decline of many diseases.
     The Peace Corps is a government-run volunteer organization whose original goal was to help people from all over the world live in, as the name suggests, peace. Nearly 8,000 American volunteers work on health projects and teach or help with local buisness development in order to achieve this organization's goal.
     The ICRC is an NGO that provides aid to war victims, protects those who are not fighting, and tries to make sure that prisoners of war are well treated. It remains neutral during a war, and thus has earned the respect of most nations whom have allowed the ICRC to do its work.


Review Questions:

1) Name one reason why countries come together. (answers may vary)

2)What is the name of the world's largest and probably the most important organization in the world?





Answers:

1) Destruction, terrorism, disasters, poverty, epidemics, and the olympics. ;)

2) The United Nations ( The U.N.)