Democracy Inaction:October

OCTOBER		EMAIL THE CLASS
DATE	TOPIC	READINGS
3	Attend the workshop on charter reform, 7pm, SS Public Library	This session will help you prepare for the second half of the semester: what questions do we want to ask, or what do we need to know?
4	Rhetoric and Leadership: The Power of the Word in Athens and Saratoga Springs	Ancient Greek Democracy 185-211 *Essay 2 assigned (you might want to read ahead in AGD* pp. 156-158, an excerpt from The Funeral Oration in Thuc.) Citation guidelines**
6	Saratoga Springs charter revision workshop	Read the Saratoga Springs Charter Revision (handout) Workshop discussion Get the Facts (from the Charter Revision Commission)
9	Critiquing rhetorical styles Pericles: biography, policies and sources	Ancient Greek Democracy 211-247
11	The Athenian courtroom and farce	*Aristophanes' Wasps:* "How does the comic stage represent or subvert social customs and norms? Guest speaker: Prof. Dan Curley, Classics Dept.
12	*Lecture by Tim Wise, author of White Like Me, 7pm*	This lecture connects to our discussion on "The Politics of Exclusion" on October 18.
13	Democratic ideal: Pericles' policies; democracy unravelled See these notes on leadership from our classroom discussion on October 11	Read in descending order of priority (if you don't have time to read all, make sure you read the first four bulleted items and review the table on Pericles linked from Oct. 9 above): Thuc. 2.34-47: the full text of Pericles' Funeral Oration Athenian Constitution 72-77 Thuc. 3.82-83: a description of civil war on the island of Corcyra Thuc. 2.47-55: the full text of Thucydides' description of the plague Ancient Greek Democracy 152-184 Charter reform class discussion from 10-06-06
Regarding Thuc. 3.82-83: "Thucydides has just described a violent civil war on the island of Corcyra fought in the year 427 between two opposite political factions, one favoring an extreme form of democracy and supported by the Athenians, the other advocating a more conservative, oligarchic form of government and supported by Sparta. Having set out in gory detail the various atrocities that occurred, Thucydides proceeds to speak in more general terms of the significance of this revolt and the demoralizing effects of war on politics and public mores in general. For Thucydides the events of Corcyra are an indication of what was to occur throughout the Greek world in the latter years of the war."
16	The Politics of Exclusion: Greece The Politics of Exclusion: U.S. Images of women	Ancient Greek Democracy 248-281 Life on the Color Line Essay 2 final draft due
18	Democracy becomes tyranny Collapse & rebirth of democracy Prepping for the midterm (Susie)	Melian Dialogue Athenian Constitution 78-85
20	Study Break
23		Midterm exam
25	Local politics and ancient Athens Generate questions for 10/30 community debate on charter reform (see 10/6, 10/13 links)	Real Democracy, "Preface," "Introduction: The Methodology of Starting from Scratch" What does it mean to be Greek? Overview of final project; discuss paper #2 and midterm
"Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed, it has been said that democracy is the worst form of government except all those other forms that have been tried from time to time." Sir Winston Churchill (b. 1874, d. 1965; Prime Minister of England, 1940-45, 1951-55), Speech in the House of Commons (11 November 1947).
27	Local politics, American-style	Guest: Prof. Bob Turner, Government Dept., on local politics Handouts: *J. Svara, "Institutional Powers and Mayoral Leadership," State and Local Government Review* 27 (1995) 71-83. R. Gurwitt, "Nobody in Charge," Governing Magazine (Sept. 1997)**
29	Tour of downtown Saratoga Springs with former Mayor Ken Klotz, now the acting director of Skidmore's adult education program, University Without Walls. Meet at Case Center parking lot at 1.40pm; we'll walk or take the Skidmore bus if the weather is inclement.
30	City Councils and Gerrymandering Class in TLC 202	Guest speaker: Prof. Bob Turner, Government Dept. *Jeffrey Toobin, "Will Tom DeLay's redistricting in Texas cost him his seat?" The New Yorker, March 3, 2006*
30	7pm: class-hosted community discussion & debate on charter reform