LAD#10 Monroe Doctrine

December 2, 1823:
In his introduction of the Monroe Doctrine, James Monroe states that the United States will not be subject to be colonized by any European powers from then on. He refers back to an effort that was being made to improve the condition of the people of Spain and Portugal which was not working as well as it had been anticipated. The United States has decided that for any country that has been officially acknowledged of their independence, they will not try to oppress them. Specifically, in the Government of Spain, the United States decided to remain neutral and they will stick to their neutrality unless rights are being violated. The events that have occurred in Spain and Portugal lately show that Europe is still unsettled. The United States will never take part in the wars that go on in Europe because it goes against our policies.  The United States has decided to "not interfere in the internal concerns of any of its powers," to keep friendly relationships with those countries and to maintain their relationships with those countries. The new governments in Spain and Portugal may try to expand their political ideologies to other nations, but this would only bring harm. The United States will just leave the governments to themselves to deal out the struggles and hope that other nations decide against getting involved as well.
James Monroe probably choses to hold this view to show that he does not want the United States to be interfered with. During this "Era of Good Feelings" that took place, the United States had a new sense of strong nationalism. Monroe did not want his country to be victimized or interfered with by other countries, which is why he chose to not get involved with the conflicts occurring in Europe.

Columbus Blog #8

Was Christopher Columbus a hero or a villain?
Christopher Columbus was a hero of his time. He sailed all the way from Spain to the West in search for a quicker route to Asia. Although he did not find this route, he discovered new lands. Christopher Columbus was the key to the discovery of the New World. Without him having found the land in the Caribbean, other explorers would not have been inspired as quickly to go West. Columbus plays an important impact on history due to the fact that he was the first of many explorers. He gave a head start to the foundation of new societies.

LAD #9 Jefferson's First Inaugural Address

In Thomas Jefferson's first inaugural address he acknowledges important key take aways. He first talks about how great the Constitution is and how he will honor it and use it as a guideline for his presidency. I found this surprising due to his Anti-Federalist beliefs. He then goes on to talk about how America will flourish now that they have a system to follow with guidelines to help it turn into one of the strongest nations. Jefferson continues by talking about the freedoms that will be granted in relations with other countries, religious justice and peace, and "equal and exact justice to all men." He tries to let the people know that he is here for them and to perform a job where he has their full support. He creates an honest, sincere image of a true leader and founding father to get the people of the United States to support him during his presidency.