How to understand the American Civil War in 2011

Read the following articles: 150 year war; Gone with the Myths; 5 Myths; New Look & Secession w/out Slaves
and post a reflection on an issue/quote of your choosing from one of the articles. Be sure to contextualize the information so that we understand your perspective by addressing information that we've covered in addition to that which is in the articles.

Reconstruction - March 2011

What issues (both short and long term) needed to be addressed? What other issues do you assume existed?Who was capable of and responsible for addressing them? What were the priorities of reconstruction? What should they have been? Who decides on priorities? Who or what is expendable or can be sacrificed in this process? How can you measure the efficacy or success of the recovery plan?

On Madison, Wisconsin, state budgets, and partisan politics

OK folks. There is A LOT going on here. So I'm going to post a few different articles (news stories and opinion pieces) and expect you to react and ask questions. Words & phrases you need to understand (read: ask your parents, teachers, look-up, etc.): collective bargaining, state debt, furlough day, quorum, "Tea Party", cut spending, raise taxes, pension, feel free to add others and define them in your posts....

gen news:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/02/20/us-wisconsin-protests-idUSTRE71H3UZ20110220?pageNumber=1

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/17/us/17wisconsin.html

http://www.thenation.com/blog/158661/wisconsin-crowds-swell-30000-key-gop-legislators-waver

opinion:
http://biggovernment.com/oftheeising/2011/03/01/madison-wisconsin-just-what-are-the-demonstrators-demonstrating/

http://www.slate.com/id/2286169/

the bigger picture:
http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/2011/0218/Wisconsin-protests-why-week-of-rage-matters-to-rest-of-America

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/27/magazine/27christie-t.html?emc=eta1