Civics_Ch11_web-current

=**Current Issues with Foreign Policy**= Examine present day issues that deal with foreign policy. Label this section current issues and answer the questions.


 * __War on Terror__: Terrorism is the use of violence in order to achieve a political goal. The war on terror itself began after September 11, 2001 when the terror group al Qaeda led by Osama bin Laden orchestrated an attack on the U.S. by hijackers taking over American airplanes and crashing them into landmarks. Two planes hit the World Trade Center in New York City and another hit the Pentagon, which is the headquarters for the Defense Department. A fourth plane was brought down in Shanksville, PA when passengers fought back. Our government learned that al Qaeda and bin Laden was allowed to train terrorists in Afghanistan, which was controlled by another terror group known as the Taliban. The U.S. led by President George W. Bush and approved by the U.S. Congress went after the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan in 2001 when the Taliban refused to turn over bin Laden to us. The U.S. military drove the Taliban and al Qaeda out of Afghanistan. Over ten years later, the U.S. is still fighting against in Afghanistan. The choice is whether or not to continue fighting. On the one hand, we've been fighting there for years and is costing a lot of tax dollars so perhaps the U.S. should pull out of Afghanistan. However, we have put the terrorists on the run and they aren't able to organize the way they did when the Taliban has control and if the U.S. military pulls out of Afghanistan, then the Taliban will come right back in and allow al Qaeda to train for more terrorist attacks. So, what should our policy be?


 * __Enhanced interrogations__: The CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) is a government agency involved in foreign policy. The CIA gathers and analyzes information on foreign countries and foreign groups to keep us safe. One of the jobs during the war on terror has been to interrogate, or question, captured terrorists. The CIA tries to get information out of the terrorists to stop future attacks. Some of the highest officials within the terror group al Qaeda (the group responsible for attacked us on Sept. 11, 2001) refused to give information to the CIA. There have been hundreds of captured terrorists interrogated but only three were put through enhanced interrogations. The method used was called waterboarding. When a person is waterboarded, the terrorist is blindfolded and water is poured on the terrorist's face giving the sensation of drowning. When the terrorist agrees to give information, CIA officials stop the enhanced interrogation. Several high ranking officials credit waterboarding with the method used to gain information that eventually led the U.S. into finding Osama bin Laden and killing him in May of 2011. **(1)** Do you see enhanced interrogations as a good thing only to be used in extreme circumstances in order to prevent future attacks on the U.S. and keep us safe or do you see it as a method of torture that should not be allowed under any circumstance? Why?


 * __Israel__: All nations in the Middle East are Islamic nations except for one, which is Israel. The nation of Israel allows human rights, liberties, and equality like the U.S., which means their values are the same as our values. Israel is made mostly of Jews, but also has a large number of Christians. There are several nations in the Middle East who have openly said they want to eliminate Israel. Such nations include Iran, Syria, Egypt (under the Muslim Brotherhood), Lebanon, and terror groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah. The Islamic terror groups in the Middle East refer to Israel as the "Little Satan" (they call the U.S. the "Great Satan," which shows that they would also want to eliminate us as well). Should the U.S. maintain Israel as a key ally or let Israel on their own? Explain. Also, Palestinians are Muslims inside Israel who want to split up Israel and have a separate nation of Palestine...also the Palestinians want to control Jerusalem (holy city of Jews and Christians). In reality, the Palestinians have the long term goal of control the whole area and making Israel non-existent. Should the U.S. support Israel or the Palestinians? Why?


 * __Arab Spring__: In the spring of 2011 there were uprisings in almost all of the Middle East nations with protesters demanding dictators to step down. That sounds good because the U.S. promotes democracy over dictatorships. However, extreme Muslim terror groups aim to take control in various nations. One of the biggest examples was in Eqypt. The dictator in Egypt Hosni Mubarak was forced to leave as protesters demaned that he step down. Mubarak was an oppressive ruler who didn't allow freedoms in his nation, so it seems good that he's gone. However, the Muslim Brotherhood is won elections and took control of Egypt. The Muslim Brotherhood holds beliefes like al Qaeda, the Taliban, Hamas, Hezbollah, and other terror groups in the Middle East. The Muslim Brotherhood has also said it wants to eliminate Israel. Should the U.S. work in Middle East nations to prevent extreme Muslim terror groups from gaining control or should the U.S. stay out and let the people in these nations vote and if they elect terror groups into power then we'll have to deal with it? Explain.


 * __Economic aid__: The United States is the most charitable nation in the world. Our nation gives most humanitarian aid than any other nation. Around the world, when there's a natural disaster (earthquakes in Haiti and Japan recently). Our nation also gives a large amount of humanitarian aid to third world nations (such as nations in Africa) to help fight hunger and disease. Last year, $33.9 billion was spent on economic aid to other nations. Do you support the U.S. giving so much aid to other nations? Why?

__Thinking Critically__:


 * 1) How have the attacks on September 11, 2001 dominated U.S. foreign policy?
 * 2) Do you think the U.S. will ever achieve its goal of world peace with terrorists in the world who want to eliminate Israel and the U.S.?
 * 3) In his Farewell Address, George Washington warned against getting involved in foreign affairs. Do you agree with this advice? Why or why not?
 * 4) What is foreign aid?
 * 5) How is the CIA involved in foreign policy?
 * 6) What took place on September 11, 2001?
 * 7) How has the Israel-Palestine issue impacted the Middle East?
 * 8) How do terrorists aim to achieve goals?

Go to the following site on Current Events from 2013-14. Look at some of the foreign policy stories that deal with Israel, Palestinians, Syria, Iran, or other stories dealing with issues outside our borders. Write what you learned from looking at the story. Go to http://ryanhill1.wikispaces.com/Current-Events-2013-14

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