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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they look at why we celebrate the July 4th Independence Day. How did it come about and why? What does the Declaration of Independence mean? They break down the different parts of the document and what led to its writing. It is both a break-up letter to the British and our countryâs birth certificate. What would have happened if the colonists had lost the Revolutionary War? Finally, what do we need to do to keep its meaning alive?
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they dig into the concept of ârule of law.â What does it mean and how did it develop? Why did the Framers choose to create a government and judicial system based on ârule of law?â Why is it so important to have and to maintain? Listen to this episode to gain a better understanding of this important element of our system of government.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue their discussion of federalism. In Part 1 they discussed the origins of the idea of federalism and defined it, and in Part 2 they looked at most of the first era, known as Dual Federalism (1787-1933), from 1789 to about 1870. In this final episode examining federalism they finish the era of Dual Federalism and continue with the eras of Cooperative Federalism (1933-1969) and New Federalism (1969-present), citing many of the acts of Congress, landmark Supreme Court cases, and historic precedents that have helped define federalism in the U.S.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue their discussion of federalism. In Part 1 they discussed the origins of the idea of federalism and defined it. In this episode they look at the three eras of federalism in the U.S. thus far. In this episode they venture through most of the first era, known as Dual Federalism, which ran from 1789 to about 1933, and is often referred to as âlayer cakeâ federalism. This episode stops just after the Civil War, but includes many of the early landmark Supreme Court cases and historic precedents that helped define federalism in the U.S.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they define federalism and discuss how it came about in the United States Constitution. The idea of a confederation and examples of confederations show how individual groups or states found the need to mutually agree on protection and other needs. This idea leads the Framers to create a government that divides power between the national (federal) government and the states. This was an experiment that has endured for almost 237 years.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they dig into the three branches of government and why the Framers established three branches. About half of Americans can name the three branches, but if you ask them to name the main duties of each branch of what is meant by separation of powers and checks and balances, they canât explain these. So listen to this episode to gain a better understanding of these basics of our government.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss civics education, or lack thereof, as well as voting percentages, detecting misinformation, improving civil discourse, and what happens to our nation if we fail to fix these things.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the steps citizens need to take to vote in the upcoming primary and general elections this year. They look at why exercising your right to vote is so important, when primary elections are held in each state, deadlines to register to vote, requirements for voting (Indiana specific, but info is given to find your own stateâs requirements), how to cast your vote, voter ID, the SAVE Act being debated by Congress right now, and researching the candidates and issues before voting.
Several significant state voting links have been added to the Plain Civics Facebook page to help you find your stateâs requirements.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue with the fourth of Ben Franklinâs civic virtues and then continue the discussion of 20 signs of tyranny, using Professor Timothy Snyderâs 2017 book, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century, as a guide. This episode covers lessons eight through twenty. These lessons from Professor Snyderâs book are even more relevant today than they were in 2017, when it was first published. We must work to prevent our democratic republic from becoming completely authoritarian.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they continue with the third of Ben Franklinâs civic virtues and then move into a discussion of liberal democracy v. authoritarianism. They will explain the difference between the two and prompt listeners to be on the lookout for signs of each. Once the differences of these two forms of government are laid out, they move into a discussion of 20 signs of tyranny, using Professor Timothy Snyderâs 2017 book, On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons From the Twentieth Century, as a guide. Lessons one through seven are covered in this episode and the remainder of the lessons in the next episode.
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Join hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they track the beginnings, development, an evolution of political parties in U.S. history. It hasnât always been the Democratic and Republican Parties. Political parties in the U.S. actually started back in the 1790âs with the Federalist Party and the Democratic-Republican Party and have changed numerous times since then. In fact, todayâs Democratic and Republican Parties are not the same as they were in the beginning. In this episode we also introduce two new short segments into our podcast, Ben Franklinâs Virtues and Donât Know Much About History.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they introduce a new opening feature called âBen Franklinâs Virtues,â where they cover the 13 civic virtues that one of our famous Founders thought to be most important. One virtue will open each of the next 13 episodes.
Following this, and in light of recent events, the hosts review some important ideas and actions that We the People need to remain mindful of in order to sustain our almost 250 year-old democratic republic, as its maintenance requires constant effort on the part of the citizens. In this episode we review the concepts of what is meant by being a democratic republic, as well as due process and habeas corpus, immigrant rights, First Amendment rights, political polarization and civil discourse, active citizenship, and civic education. This review is meant to stimulate continued maintenance of our republic by We the People.
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Join hosts Joe Ulery and Bobbi Fisher as they tackle 5 more common misconceptions about our government. These misconceptions include the impeachment process, whether the U.S. is a democracy, use of the Bible for swearing in officials, straight ticket voting, and removal of the President using the 25th Amendment. So join the hosts as they attempt to educate you about these misconceptions.
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In this second special holiday episode of Plain Civics, join host Bobbi Fisher as she tells the story of an ambitious battle plan devised by General George Washington to take place on Christmas night 1776. Up to this point in the Revolutionary War the Americans had achieved little success on the battlefield and troop morale was extremely low. Gen. Washington hoped that a surprise attack at Trenton, NJ, on unsuspecting Hessian soldiers might give the American soldiers the boost in morale that they needed to continue fighting for the cause. Listen and learn about Washingtonâs bold plan and how it turned out.
Joe Ulery has this episode off and both of us will return on January 15 with the first episode of Season 2 of Plain CivicsâŠanother âSay Whatâ episode where we clear up five more misconceptions about our government.
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The holiday season slows the country down â but civics doesnât stop.
In this special episode of Plain Civics, Joe Ulery looks at how holidays fit into American civic life. From early debates over Christmas in colonial America to Congress making it a federal holiday, from George Washingtonâs Christmas-night gamble to how government continues operating during the holidays today.
This episode focuses on history, constitutional context, and civic reality â not politics of the moment. Itâs a calm, fact-based look at how shared traditions, public service, and democratic institutions intersect during the holiday season.
Bobbi Fisher has the day off. Sheâll return next episode.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the âfreedom of religionâ portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which includes the Establishment Clause and the Free Exercise Clause; and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition which we covered in episodes 21 and 22. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.
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We will return in Episode 24 with the freedom of religion part of the First Amendment. In this episode, join the hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss times in our almost 250-year history when the situation in the U.S. looked as bleak, or even bleaker, than they do today, but Americans were able to fight and claw in their quest for equal rights and a more perfect union to survive and advance our nation.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the âfreedom of expressionâ portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which we will examine in an upcoming episode, and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition. We covered speech in the last episode and, in this one, we will examine press, assembly, and petition. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they discuss the âfreedom of expressionâ portion of the First Amendment. The First Amendment actually provides us with 5 freedoms, including freedom of religion, which we will examine in episode 24, and freedoms of speech, press, assembly, and petition. There is a reason the Framers included all of these in the very first amendment, so listen in and find out why these freedoms are so important to us as Americans.
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Join hosts Bobbi Fisher and Joe Ulery as they unwrap how polarization and civil discourse are related, tell about how we, as a nation, have been here before, and how we overcame those difficult episodes of civil discourse. What is different this time around and how we can still overcome the tough period of polarization and uncivil discourse.
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