Thursday, July 26, 2007 5:18 AM
by
jtspencer
if you give a man a fish
Being a social studies teacher, I assume automatically, that people know the difference between political parties. Yet, most of my students have no idea. I grew up in a family where we debated issues at the dinner table. So, for me, it was almost intuitive. When I teach the differences in parties, I use these analogies I created for the approach to poverty. I realize that they are oversimplified, but they worked well for me.
Democrats
If you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. If you give him food stamps, he can choose from a broader range of food options that meet all of his larger dietary needs.
Republicans
If you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. If you sell the lake to a large multinational coporation, they can boost the overall ecomomy and eventually employ the man for a wage that will steadily grow as the wealth trickles down.
Libertarian
If you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. If you leave him alone, he'll learn to fish on his own and someday might end up owning the lake if he works hard enough.
Green Party
If you give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day. If you leave the fish alone, the environment will be healthy, greenhouse gasses might decrease and the delicate ecosystem will remain intact.