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1stinkinpercent.livejournal.comIt was safe to say that Riley was still feeling like he could run a few hundred laps and then write the rest of his book this morning. The feeling from yesterday hadn't abated and he'd written several thousand words only to trash them and rewrite them again. He was pretty grateful to have a class to teach to give him something to do.
"Hey guys," he said, rubbing a hand through his hair. "Anyone else been feeling weird? I forgot to get my flu shot this year and I think I'm paying for it."
Of course, he didn't feel sick but what else could it be?
"Anyway, today we're going to talk about the state of Franklin. Anyone know what that is?" He glanced around and didn't expect to see any hands in the air. "Yeah, didn't think so. After the Revolutionary War ended, we had thirteen colonies. Or did we? The state of Franklin, named in honor of Benjamin Franklin, was a part of North Carolina that decided they'd have better luck living on their own than being part of the federal government. So, they seceded but they ran into a buzzsaw. Congress refused to let Franklin join the Union so they became an independent republic. For four years, they chugged along by writing their own constitution, making deals with local Native American tribes and even attempting to negotiate a treaty with Spain."
He paused there to catch his breath and fan himself. "Not bad for a new state, huh? Of course, the last one was the straw that broke the camel's back and Franklin's governor was subsequently arrested. Franklin eventually ran out of steam and became part of the newly formed state of Tennessee in 1796."
Still, Franklin had done pretty damn good for their short time on their own. "Today, we're gonna see how you do with creating an independent nation. We're in the Danger Shop again and each of you is going to end up in a simulation where you're the president, the leader, the head honcho. What I want you guys to do is figure out the path your independent republic will take. What will be your first order of business? Will you write a constitution? What kind of laws would you have? Would you be a dictatorship? A democracy? A monarchy? Will you lead with an iron fist or will you be gentle and benevolent? Go as wild as you'd like and we'll see how your constituents react!"
And with that, he sent the students on their way to their leadership roles.
"Hey guys," he said, rubbing a hand through his hair. "Anyone else been feeling weird? I forgot to get my flu shot this year and I think I'm paying for it."
Of course, he didn't feel sick but what else could it be?
"Anyway, today we're going to talk about the state of Franklin. Anyone know what that is?" He glanced around and didn't expect to see any hands in the air. "Yeah, didn't think so. After the Revolutionary War ended, we had thirteen colonies. Or did we? The state of Franklin, named in honor of Benjamin Franklin, was a part of North Carolina that decided they'd have better luck living on their own than being part of the federal government. So, they seceded but they ran into a buzzsaw. Congress refused to let Franklin join the Union so they became an independent republic. For four years, they chugged along by writing their own constitution, making deals with local Native American tribes and even attempting to negotiate a treaty with Spain."
He paused there to catch his breath and fan himself. "Not bad for a new state, huh? Of course, the last one was the straw that broke the camel's back and Franklin's governor was subsequently arrested. Franklin eventually ran out of steam and became part of the newly formed state of Tennessee in 1796."
Still, Franklin had done pretty damn good for their short time on their own. "Today, we're gonna see how you do with creating an independent nation. We're in the Danger Shop again and each of you is going to end up in a simulation where you're the president, the leader, the head honcho. What I want you guys to do is figure out the path your independent republic will take. What will be your first order of business? Will you write a constitution? What kind of laws would you have? Would you be a dictatorship? A democracy? A monarchy? Will you lead with an iron fist or will you be gentle and benevolent? Go as wild as you'd like and we'll see how your constituents react!"
And with that, he sent the students on their way to their leadership roles.
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