Rationale

====History is complex and highly detailed. The job of a textbook author is to decide which of these details are the most important to understanding a certain time period. Clearly, authors cannot include every significant event that occurred within a certain span of time. However, the choice they do make help readers decide what was important at the time. In the years proceeding the major terroristic attacks, our nation experienced a roller coaster of events. From technology advancements and highs, to new lows surrounding foreigners, the major shifts that occurred in the American people reflected these nationwide phenomenons.==== ====Putting the focus on the change in the American people allowed textbook readers to see just how consequential each event truly was. Starting from Hurricane Katrina, our nations people increased our awareness of the poverty occurring coast to coast. These people were struggling, and it took a natural disaster for leading authorities to finally come around to supplying them with the necessities to live. On the other hand, the technology world exploded in early 2006 with Apple introducing its new personal technologies that changed the way we bought, listened to, and share multimedia forever. The kids of the United States were becoming absorbed in the digital world, with computers improving in quality, and social networking sites overflowing the monitors of every homes computer. Moving along the roller coaster path of events, however, more complicated issues were presented when our borders began to crumble in terms of security. Although this issue was controversial, it sent our nation into uproar; many people worried about their home and families safety. To hopefully settle all of these issues, the elections in 2008 brought our nation hope and many firsts. Barack Obama, our nations first colored president, promised change for the country in terms of health care and education. Yet again, however, our nations roller coaster ride went zooming downwards when the stock market crashed in the fall of 2008. This bailout ruined peoples careers and sent the unemployment rate skyrocketing, leaving our nation with greater debt and less people working than ever before.==== ====All of these issues show just how much each event changed the everyday lives of American people, but our history in the past five years has affected our nation on a much greater scale as well. The war with Iraq raged on as all of these improvements and drawbacks, adding to our nations debt and endangering many of the family members who chose to serve our country. Much of the political elections focused on ways to get us out of that region, not only to save our soldiers, but to make peace and soon benefit from enemy countries resources. The choice to not included the international Olympics in 2008 and the many pop culture affairs comes from looking at history as understanding how the people of that time were living. Over the past decade, the people of our country have suffered through natural disasters and economic blowouts, as well as technological advances that changed our everyday lives eternally. It is these events that truly mean something to textbook readers. Understanding the people and way of life of each and every social class is key; to simply focus on the great leaders would falsely portray what the times were like. Therefore, the roller coaster of life in America is full of surprises and keeps us guessing, even today. The only question we all have is what is next for the people in this vast land of freedom and opportunity.====