Questions for Harrison Bergeron

1) What's your initial response to the story?  Do you believe that everyone should be made equal? 
It turned out much differently than I expected. I initially thought that it would be one of happily-ever-after ones, but he ended up getting killed. It was an interesting concept for a story, but it's not really my cup of tea.
No, I believe that in a world without different people living would be useless. People are all born with different opinions and they should be able to express them. By being made equal, these opinions are forgotten.

Look up the definition of Satire.  Post it on your blogs.  How does Harrison Bergeron fit the description of Satire. 
Satire - the use of irony, sarcasm, ridicule, or the like, in exposing,denouncing, or deriding vice, folly (N)
The story pokes fun at the government and the equality acts going on at the time the story was made.

2) Television plays a key role in the story.  What kind of comment do you think Vonnegut is making about mass media? 
I believe that Vonnegut thinks mass media is just mindless entertainment that doesn't improve knowledge or any other benefit.

3) Harrison was originally jailed "on suspicion of plotting to overthrow the government" (lines 105-106).  Was the government correct in its assumption? 
Yes, the government was extremely correct. Unless his jailing made him want to overthrow the government and he was just innocent in the first place.

4) Why did the Handicapper General shoot both Harrison and the ballerina, instead of just shooting Harrison? 
The ballerina had joined Harrison's cause, therefor disobeying the government. She must be shot to set an example so other people don't rebel.

5) What if everyone were THE SAME?  How would this look or feel?
If everyone were the same, I would think life would be extremely boring. Like above stated, people were born with different opinions and should express them. But the problem with everyone being the same is no one would know better. Eventually the people living in the generations who lived differently (as in times like now) would die off and the boring lifestyle would become the new normal.