---Jeff Spoden
American Threads
    Welcome to American Threads. This combination of United States history and American literature was started at Northgate back
in 1992, and has become one of our school's most successful programs. Literature brings life and voice to American history, while
studying real people, events, trends, and ideas from the past adds depth and richness to the reading of fictional works.
I've been teaching Threads since its inception, and have taught U.S. history for 24 years. I love the study of our nation in all its
complexity - high ideals and brutal realities; great generosity and violent tendency; shining hope for the world and hypocritical bully.   
We have housed some of the best and the worst that humankind has offered to the planet.
    In our class this year, we will study as much as nine short months allows. You will read, write, discuss, debate, role-play, make
speeches, negotiate, research, build things, listen, take notes, perform, think, analyze, and have fun (not necessarily in this order!).
We will focus on “WHY?” as much as “WHAT?” and will attempt to get down below what is easy and evident to the casual observer
of history.
Announcements
Nuts and Bolts
My e-mail address: spodenj@mdusd.k12.ca.us  

I can  access this address from school or home, but you can't
really count on reaching me during evening hours; any mail sent
after 3:30pm will probably be read the following day.

You can also try getting ahold of me on Facebook, though I can't
guarantee that I'll be on the computer. I ask you to respect my
evening privacy and only try to reach me if it's REALLY important.

My phone number: (925) 938-0900 x2132
Parents - Please know that I check my phone messages about
once per week, but check e-mail at least three times each day.
E-mail is by far the better way to reach me, even if it's to tell me
that you'd like to speak on the phone.

My prep period: 5th (usually between 1:15-2:10pm)

Assignment website:
www.spodawg32.net/AmericanThreads


"Doing Your Own Work" Website: turnitin.com
When asked, you will submit papers to this site, using this
ID number - 3644483

Parents: Your daughters and sons are now posting their
homework on Google websites that they've created. Ask them to
send you an invite onto the site so that you can see what
assignments have been turned in, and also check the quality of  
work on each assignment.


Blogging Website: Our class blog is found at
www.SEEdebate.org
The class code is B6029A-1776
.

Gradebook website: HomeLink, operated by the Mt. Diablo
Unified School District. If you don't know how to access
HomeLink, contact the Northgate attendance office.
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Quote of
the Week
Thought for
the Week
Think, Question, Challenge

       America Is….                            Americans Are....
“Naturally the common people
don't want war; neither in Russia,
nor in England, nor in America,
nor in Germany. That is
understood. But after all, it is the
leaders of the country who
determine policy, and it is always
a simple matter to drag the
people along, whether it is a
democracy, or a fascist
dictatorship, or a parliament,

or a communist dictatorship.
Voice or no voice, the people can
always be brought to the bidding
of the leaders. That is easy. All
you have to do is to tell them
they are being attacked, and
denounce the pacifists for lack of
patriotism and exposing the
country to danger. It works the
same in any country.”

-----Hermann Goering, Commander
of the German Luftwaffe (Air Force)
One thing kids like is to
be tricked. For instance, I
drove him to an old
burned-out warehouse.
"Oh, no," I said,
"Disneyland burned down."
He cried and cried, but
I think that deep down,
he thought it was a
pretty good joke. I
started to drive
over to the real Disneyland,
but it was getting pretty late.
Assignments
1950s Day! Please click on the links below for articles that you need to read for the gameshow. Our show
will be on Wednesday, April 13, 2011. Remember to dress in fifties attire for bonus points!

                                            Little Boxes     
                                       The Fabulous 50s     
                                      Suburban Lifestyle
                                        1950s Rock 'n Roll



HGass18 - U.S. Interventions: Click here and read the article on U.S. interventions over the past 100 years. Then
answer the following questions:
1. What is your reaction to this list of interventions?
2. Be honest. If this list described the violent meddling of a country other than the U.S., would you be angry that a
country could be that brutally domineering? Explain.
3. Do you have an impulse to defend the U.S. and to justify its actions? Explain.
4. Does there seem to be any pattern to the interventions described? Explain.
5. What do you think of the fact that the U.S. justified these actions as part of the "cold war" against the Soviet Union
(fighting communism around the world), though the same behavior existed both before and after the cold war?
6. Why do you think much of the world is fully aware of American interventionism, but American citizens know
virtually nothing about it?
7. My theory is that if the American people knew the extent of the violence and domination carried out by their
government, they would not stand for it. Others argue that American citizens would tolerate imperialist aggression
because their consumerist lifestyle depends on it. What do you think?

Assigned Sat., March 5, 2011; Due Weds, 3/9/11. Please attach to website and submit to turnitin.com.




HHGass 19 - Friendly Dictators: Click here and read the list of dictators and despots that the U.S. has supported in
the past. After reading, please answer these questions:
1. This list is obviously biased against the U.S., but even if only half of the examples are true, what do you think?
2. How does this list relate to the imperialism lecture I've given you the last few days?
3. How do you think the U.S. justifies supporting people like this, but maintains a 40 year-old embargo against Cuba
because Fidel Castro is an oppressive dictator?
4. Do you think that support for fascists around the world is primarily a function of desire for political power,
economic power, both, or neither? Explain.
5. Why don't the American people know about this?
6. After the attacks of 9/11, Americans wondered how anyone could hate the U.S. enough to kill innocent civilians.
Do the last two readings offer a partial explanation? Explain.

Assigned Sat., March 5, 2011; Due Friday, 3/11. Please attach to website and submit to turnitin.com.

HGass 20 - Confessions of an Economic Hitman: Click here to go to the website for Democracy Now. You will
see an interview with John Perkins, author of the bestselling book, Confessions of an Economic Hitman. Mr. Perkins
is being interviewed by Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now and probably thre best investigative journalist in the
country. Where it says LISTEN WATCH, click on Real Video Stream and watch the interview. If for some reason,
your computer won't play the video stream, you can read  the interview on that page.

After watching the interview (or reading it, or both), answer these prompts:
1. What was John Perkins' job?
2. Summarize his explanation of the process by which corporations and world lending institutions could dominate
developing countries?
3. Write about a specific example (case study) that Perkins uses to illustrate the process.
4. How does Perkins' work tie into the lecture I've been giving you?
5. What do you think of what he presents?

Assigned Sat., March 5, 2011; Due Tues,  3/13. Please attach to website and submit to turnitin.com.

HHGass 21 - Another Opinion: Please click here and read the articles. These are two pieces on the goodness of
American foreign policy (That's only fair, right?). After your reading, please answer these questions:
1. What are the main ideas expressed in each piece?
2. Do the pieces do a good job of supporting American foreign policy? Explain.
3. Having read several different viewpoints now, what do you think?

Assigned Sat, March 5, 2011; Due Friday, 3/16, 2011.

Class Reading: In preparation for our debates on Monday, please read these two articles. (As of
Sunday morning at 10:30am, I only have have one of them posted. I'll post the other one a little
later).

Those of you who are receiving extra credit for beginning the debate, simply bring some notes to
class will help you with your arguments. Have some stats and evidence that support your case.
Also, think about what your opponents best arguments will be and think up counters to those
arguments. A good debater always knows his/her opposition is going to say, and is prepared for it.

Dropping the Atomic Bomb

Japanese Internment During WWII

Assigned 2/27/11; Due 2/28/11.

HGass 17 - WWII research and report: Use your text and/or the internet to research one of the
subjects below. Type up a one page mini-report on your subject. Be prepared to give a one-minute
oral presentation in class on Wednesday. Though two of you have the same topic, this is not a
group presentation.

American Neutrality (Abumuoilish - Aziz)
America’s entrance into the war (Barley - Brown)
Strategies in the European theater (Busby - Chafetz))
Major battles in the European theater (Darsow - DeLeon)
Turning points in the European theater (Fuller - Han)
D-Day (Henderson - Herman)
Reasons Japan wanted war (Jones - Lei)
Pearl Harbor (Lobastov - Lopez)
Did Roosevelt know about Pearl Harbor in advance? (Martinez - McFarland)
Strategies in the Pacific theater (Molad - Moore)
Turning point(s) in the Pacific theater (Nichols - Pike)
Iwo Jima and Okinawa (Ryan - Santos)
Roosevelt’s Death and Truman’s assumption of power (---)
Manhattan Project (Sears - Watson)
Dropping the bombs (---)
Life in America during the war (Weinberger - Woo)
Rosie the Riveter (Sarvi - Saupe)
Japanese Internment (---)

Assigned 2/23/11; Due 2/25/11. Bring typed paper to class.


HGass 16 - Historical Speech (Public Speaking Tuesday).
Assigned 9/01/11; Due Tuesdays throughout the school year.

HGass 15 - Family History Project.
Assigned 9/02/10; Due February 16th, 2011.


Final Exam Prompts:

1. Why was reconstruction of the U.S. after the Civil War so difficult, and did it end up being more of a success or
more of a failure? Explain.

2. What was the Progressive Era, what problems from that time period are still with us today, and why are they still
with us?

3. What were some of the benefits and problems associated with early industrialization?

4. Explain some of the significant changes that took place in American society during the 1920s. What led to these
changes and how did they impact life for the average American?

All the usuals apply: do your own work; you can draw material from many sources, but you must synthesize it in
your mind and type it out in your own words; have 3-4 main arguments to prove your thesis, and devote a paragraph
to each main argument.  Don't try to cover more than one argument in a paragraph - it just gets jumbled and unclear.
So, one main idea in a paragraph, backed up by evidence - examples, stories, quotes, or statistics; finish each body
paragraph with an explanation of how this evidence helps prove the thesis.

Please write on all four prompts. As for length - I don't see how any of them can be thoroughly covered in less than
two pages.

HGass 14 - Progressive Era Conclusion: Please answer these questions:

1. In one paragraph, explain what the progressive era was all about.
2. Though the progressives didn’t completely solve any of the social
problems they fought against, many gains were made during this time.  List 10 changes that were brought about by the
progressive movement, with a brief explanation of the change.  You will find answers to this question in your
textbook and on websites dealing with the time period.
3. Which Progressive Era problems still exist in our society today? Explain.
4. Why do you think that these problems are still with us 100 years later? What are some of the roadblocks to solving
them?

Assigned 12/10/2010; Due Tuesday, 12/10/10. Please bring typed hardcopy to class, attach to your website, and
submit to turnitin.com. Do a good job on this. It's worth 40 points and we're getting close to the end of the semester!

HGass 12 and 13 - Progressive Era: Click on this link and then print out the article. Read the Problem section of
each issue. Bring it to class tomorrow. Then write a Muckraker Article - a short article on your team’s special
problem. This article should be written in such a way that a person reading it would get “excited” over the problem
and want to see it solved. Use forceful, dramatic language that really conveys the significance of your subject. The
Muckraker explanation is on the same page as the article describing the 9 problems (the link above).

Assigned Friday, December 3, 2010; Due Monday, 12/6. Attach your Muckraker article to your website and bring a
copy to class. (You're bringing two things to class - the 9 Problems article and the muckraker article.) Remember that
there will be a quiz on the 9 problems.

HGass 11 - Robber Barons and Social Darwinism:
A. Click here to access the article Who Were the Robber Barons. Read it.
B. Click on the site library.thinkquest.org/C004367/eh4.shtml and read the page about Social Darwinism. You might
want to follow a few of the links at the bottom of page for more ideas on social darwinism.
C. If your last name starts with A - L, you will argue these positions in a class debate on Tuesday:
1. The Robber Barons were good for America.
2. Social Darwinism is a valid theory with which to analyze  human societies.
If your last name starts with M - Z, you will argue these positions:
1. The Robber Barons were not good for America.
2. Social Darwinism is not a valid theory with which to analyze human societies.
Prepare some notes to use in the debate. I will collect the notes.

Assigned Monday, November 29, 2010; Due Tuesday, November 30th.


HGass 10 - Native Americans: Please take some aspect of the film and try to find some evidence about its accuracy
or inaccuracy. There are many websites that deal with Native American and "Wild West" history. Use them to see if
Little Big Man was in any way realistic. Then type a one page explanation of what you found.

Possible Questions:
>>Did the cavalry really murder women and children that frequently?
>>Was the treatment of Native Americans a form of genocide?
>>Was Custer really a egomaniac? Was he a ruthless killer?
>>Was everyday tribal life similar to that presented in the film?
>>Was Wild Bill Hickok a friendly but paranoid gunslinger?
>>Were some tribes used by our government to fight other tribes?
>>What kind of promises were made to Native American tribes, and were
any of them kept?

Assigned Tuesday, October 26, 2010; Due Thursday, October 28, 2010. Attach to your website and bring a copy to
class.


HGass 9 - 500 Years of Hate Crimes: Click here to access the article. Please read the article and then summarize it
in your own words. You should write a paragraph on five of the main ideas of the article, stating what the idea is,
what the author uses for evidence, and whether you think that the evidence is strong enough to really make the point.
Conclude with a sixth paragraph in which you tell me what you thought of the article overall, and why.

Assigned Sunday, October 24, 2010; Due Weds, 10/26. Please attach your paper to your website.


HGass 8 - Events leading to the Civil War: Using your books and/or  other sources, find out
how each of these things contributed to the conflict which ultimately took us into the horrible Civil
War.
Write a short paragraph on each one.
A. Missouri Compromise
B. Kansas/Nebraska Act
C. Uncle Tom's Cabin
D. Compromise of 1850
E. The Dred Scott Decision
F. The election of Abraham Lincoln

Assigned Weds, 09-29-10; Due Thursday, 09-30-10. Bring typed hardcopy to class.

HGass 7 - Glory Research: Find a website that has a lot of information about the 54th
Massachusetts. Write out a one-paragraph summary of the 54th's history. In another paragraph or
two, based upon your research, tell me how accurate the film Glory was.

Assigned Friday, 09/24/10; Due 09/27/10. Bring a typed hardcopy of your paper to class.

HGass 6 - October Letter: Click here to go to the Citizenship Series page. You will find the
assignments I described in class a few weeks ago.

Assigned Sunday, 09/26/10; Due Monday, 10/03/10. Remember to bring two copies of the letter to
class: one in a stamped, addressed envelope and another for me to grade.

HGass 5 - Representative Search: Click here to go to the Citizenship Series page. You will find
the assignments I described in class a few weeks ago.

Assigned Sunday, 09/26/10; Due Friday, 10/01/10

HGass 4 - Personal Object Essay: I'd like you to write an essay on an object that's important to you. Click
here for the entire assignment. Be sure to practice the writing tips that I give you.

Assigned Sunday, 8/30/10; Due Wednesday, 9/01/10. The essay must be typed.

HGass 3 - Student Questionnaire: Please answer the questions below. You don't have to write a book for
each question, but I'd like more than one-sentence superficial answers. The more you tell me, the better I'll know you,
which can only improve our year together.

1.   Name.
2.   Birth date and place.
3.   Address and phone number.
4.   Parent or guardian names and work phone numbers.
5.   What country(s) were your parents born in?
6.   What countries have you lived other than the U.S.?
7.   What countries have you traveled in?
8.   What states have you lived in other than California?
9.   What are your hobbies?
10.  Besides these hobbies, how do you like to spend your time?
11.  What are you good at, or would like to be good at?
12.  What extra-curricular activities at NHS will you be involved in?
13.  What is your very favorite book?  Why?
14.  What is your very favorite movie?  Why?
15.  Who are your favorite musicians, what radio station do you listen to,  
and if you could only listen to one album for the next year, what
would it be?
16.   Are you interested in any social or political issues?  Explain.
17.  What are the qualities that make a good friend? Do you have many?
18.  Are there any things going on in your life that will make it difficult for
you to be successful in this class?
19.  What in life gives you the most joy?
20.  If you could change one thing about your life, what would it be?
21.  In no more (or less) than four sentences, tell me your philosophy
of life.
22.  Tell me something about yourself that I didn’t ask for.  

Assigned Friday, 8/27/10; Due Monday, 8/30/10; 10 pts.

HGass 1 - Name Placard: Please get a piece of construction paper, cardboard, or some other type
of stiff paper and make a name placard that you can place on your table until I learn your name.
You can spice it up with art, but I want to be able to read the name. A regular piece of paper is
easily crumpled, and may not stand up adequately, so you must use thicker paper; regular paper = 0
points.

Assigned Friday, 8/27/10; Due Monday, 8/30/10; 5 pts.

HGass 2 - Class Policies:  Please do the following:

A. Go to the Class Policies page of this website and read the page. It's long, but read the entire entry.
B.. Have at least one of your parents read it.
C. Sign a piece of paper stating that you and a parent have read the policies. Have your parent sign it as well.
D. Bring the signed paper to class.

Assigned Friday, 8/27/10; Due Monday, 8/30/10; 5 pts.
Click here for your
Happy Happy Fun Time
Research Packet
Reading about Vietnam. Click here to access the article I had you start in class the other
day. Have the entire article read by Friday. There will be a quiz that day.

Click here to watch a Powerpoint about Vietnam. The quiz on Friday will have questions
from this PPT as well.
Congrats to the World Affairs Challenge
teams. Both teams did very well, and next
year we'll do even better.
Click here to see some photos of the event.
HGass 19 - Calley Trial Questions: For all questions, please explain
your answers. For example, don't just answer "yes" or "no" for #1 -
explain why you think he was or was not a scapegoat.

1. Was Calley a scapegoat (sacrifical lamb - someone who takes he blame)?
2. Was Medina more responsible the Calley, and if so, why wasn't he on
  trial instead of Calley??
3. Did others engage in the same activities as Calley?
4. Didn’t Calley do to My Lai what the U.S. did to Vietnam?
5  Was the declaration of “free fire zones” just as brutal as the actual
  killing?
6. Can a soldier legitimately disobey an order?     
7. Does a soldier have any personal responsibility for his/her actions
  during war time?  
8. Should there be "rules" governing behavior during warfare, or is it
  acceptable to do whatever is necessary to win (rape, torture, etc.)?
9. What does this trial point out about the Vietnam war?

Assigned Sunday, May 15; Due Tuesday, May 17. Please submit to
turnitin.com. If you think you can remember your answers enough to
engage in meaningful discussion, you don't have to bring a hardcopy to
class. If you won't be able to, then bring a copy of your answers to class
on Tuesday.