Theodore Roosevelt: What a life!

Following is a News in Education page I recently had published in the Deseret News. I found the research of this man interesting to say the least. Looking through the lens of the 21st century it is easy to judge his positions and actions as being contradictory to modern Liberal and conservative thinking. But he lived and grew up in a far different time than any of us. He lived when the the wild west was truly wild, and DC politics were dirty in a different sort of way than they are now. He could be as mild and tender as a Teddy bear towards children, then be utterly masculine and sharp towards contemporaries. One of his
biggest contradictions to modern liberal thinking is the fact that he was a huge advocate of preserving nature and animal life. Then he would go on a safari and bring down a bull elephant. He saw no contradiction in justifying the death of an animal under the right circumstances, and preserving natural habitats for others to enjoy. Whatever your take on this man, there is no doubt that he lived life to the fullest and did what he thought was best by him and the nation.

The focus

When I began this page I thought maybe a focus on the Panama canal would be good for a Roosevelt NIE page. I soon realized this was not the direction to go. Roosevelt indeed pushed for the creation of the Panama canal. He instituted some key things to make this happen. But his was only one slice of history having to do with the construction of the canal. So instead of making the whole page about him I chose to make the canal a side thing, and focus on Roosevelt's life. Below is breakouts of some of the elements of the page.