Ideas for Position Paper

Hmmmm... I find it much easier when I have some preselected topics to choose from.  Too many choices paralyze me!  Anyway, there are a few directions I could see myself going for this assignment.  

I'm thinking about the debate over the words "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance, and what should subsequently happen to the tradition of saying the pledge at the beginning of the day in public elementary schools.  I would research general articles about the issue, specific cases that have been made in court so far, as well as the context and intent for adding those 2 words to the Pledge in the '50s.  Having already given the topic some thought as a mother of school-age children, my position would be that the Pledge as is is unconstitutional, but should be maintained as a school tradition as long as the theocratic statement is removed.

Another topic I am interested in is "the McDonaldization of Society", a concept developed by George Ritzer in the eponymous 1993 book.  The thesis question would be along the lines of "are we better off in a McDonaldized society?"  I am sure numerous sociological articles were published on the topic from which I could get ample information.  My general position on the topic is that no, we are not better off, and the principles underlying the advent of efficiency-focused values are dehumanizing society.  But this is such a huge discussion, it is probably too much to take on.  Still, I recommend the book, more relevant than ever.

I also like the old debate between vegetarians and meat-eaters.  An interesting topic would be: Is a vegetarian diet more ethical when it comes to animal welfare?  This is only one small aspect of the general debate (which usually includes health, environment, and ethics), but having lived in Eugene, Oregon, hippie capital of the Pacific coast, I was harrassed a lot by "ethical" vegetarians who shamed me for eating meat, claiming my diet was murder.  I thus researched the issue at the time and found interesting information on the subject, allowing me to take the position that no, vegetarians can't claim that their diet doesn't come at the cost of animal life, so let me enjoy my steak.

Now that I think about it, this third topic and its three major sub-topics would probably be very good for my final paper.  There would definitely be enough to talk about for a 6-page essay, and because it invloves nutrition, the environment, and ethics I am sure there are plenty of academic/scholarly sources from which I can gather material.

I think I'll go with the Pledge of Allegiance controversy for my position paper, and the vegetarian/omnivore debate for my research paper.