This year in MWH

This year in MWH I increased my researching skills by a ton. When asked to research something now I can easily do it without a problem. I believe that the blogs helped a ton when it came to research, because they asked for us to do research. It was a fun way of researching. At the end of the semester when we were asked to write a research essay I felt a lot more comfortable than when I was asked to do this for the first semester. It is really obvious that my research skills have improved because I did better on the second essay. The research paper also didn't seem to take for ever to write, the way it does in most cases. This is a really good skill that will help me in the future for US history, and it also may help for other classes.

Blog comment to Kaitlin

Kaitlin: Also do most of the people planting Opium do it just for the money, or is it for other reasons as well
Answer : No, the farmers don't do it as much for the money as one might believe. The amount of money that these farmers get is very small. The middle men who sell the Opium in Europe and the US as heroin, are the ones that end up getting most of the money from the Opium. The Afghanistan Farmers only get enough money to feed their families. It is really sad that they have to plant such a harmful drug just to feed their families. Another reason for them planting this drug is that many of the farmers use the money to pay for the education of their children. Without the help of the Opium, the children will most likely end up in the cycle of Opium cultivation. So once again, the answer is no.

5 interesting facts

In the past 5  years Opium production has gone up 50% in many places of Afghanistan

In 2001 the opium production in Afghanistan was about 100 tons, and from that point it started to skyrocket.

Afghanistan produces more than 90% of the worlds Opium.

Now Opium addiction is estimated at an astonishing 1.4 million people.

A lot of the farmers that are producing the opium are not actually affiliated with the Taliban or other terrorist organizations. They are just ordinary people that have to plant this in order to survive.

Opium Bibliography

Bibliography 

2001, November, the collapse of the economy, and 300&. "Opium production in Afghanistan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opium_production_in_Afghanistan (accessed May 6, 2010).

 2008, as more areas in the north, centrally appointed officials allegedly reached power-sharing agreements over drug routes.Today, even as fewer provinces cultivate opium, licit GDP increases, much of the Afghan state remains politically, as earnings from drug cultivation, processing, smuggling inject cash into Afghanistan's agricultural, consumer, labor, construction markets. Despite measured international confidence in Afghanistan's current minister of interior, northeast went poppy-free, a growing number of international bodies active in Afghanistan confidentially indicate that provincial, profit, international officials, political officers in Afghanistan were reporting that the northeast border provinces of Kunduz, Baglan, Takhar were crisscrossed with drug-, weapon-smuggling routes, that in newly poppy-free Badakhshan, and local commanders. "The Good and Bad News about Afghan Opium - Council on Foreign Relations." Council on Foreign Relations. http://www.cfr.org/publication/21372/good_and_bad_news_about_afghan_opium.html (accessed May 6, 2010).

"Afghanistan's poppy politics." Gale Database. galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/HistRC/hits?docNum=A55852738&tab=2&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=true&hdb=ALL&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=&n=10&l=dJ&sgPhrase=false&c=5&tabMap=82&bucket=iac&SU=opium+in+afghanistan (accessed April 22, 2007).

"The Holy Men of Heroin: Afghanistan has been ruined by war. But it does one job better than anyplace else in the world: produce opium." Gale Database. galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/HistRC/hits?docNum=A57841082&tab=2&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=true&hdb=ALL&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=&n=10&l=dJ&sgPhrase=false&c=3&tabMap=82&bucket=iac&SU=opium+in+afghanistan (accessed December 6, 1999).

"The Opium Brides Of Afghanistan." Gale Database. galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/HistRC/hits?docNum=A177334437&tab=2&locID=menlo_schlib&origSearch=true&hdb=ALL&t=RK&s=1&r=d&items=0&secondary=true&o=&sortOrder=&n=10&l=dJ&sgPhrase=false&c=1&tabMap=82&bucket=iac&SU=opium+in+afghanistan (accessed May 7, 2008).

Iran's Nuclear Threat

This article talks about the problem that I believe we have all probably heard of, and its the problem of nuclear weapons and Iran. Iran claims to not having or making any nuclear weapons, and that the Uranium is just being used for medical purposes, but other people are 100% sure that the Uranium is actually being used to develop bombs. If Iran did develop nuclear weapons they could bomb Israel, and cause a massive nuclear war. This would happen because the US is allies with Israel, and they would have to protect the Israel people. One way that this article connects to some  of the stuff that we have been learning is that it could potentially be one big war crime for Iran to break the treaty that all countries currently have.

China's Internal Problems

I believe that most of what happened to China was as a result of their internal issues. The biggest issue that China had was the communist government that they had at the time. One of the first things that happened because of China's communist beliefs was that they were forced into the Korean war. The Korean war started because the Americans invaded Northern Korea which was communist. The Chinese felt the need to fight because they thought that maybe they would be the next ones to get invaded if they didn't try and fight off the annoying American Armies. 400,000 chinese citizens ended up dying as a result. Another big problem that China created for themselves was the Great Leap Forward. This was pretty much the idea that everyone in China should work together to one day surpass the Americans. The Chinese set up a good number of competitive communes to try and increase the harvest of China. While the idea of a group of people sharing a farm sounds alright it ended up being a terrible idea. Communes promised way much more harvest than they could produce to show power among surrounding communes. Since they didn't produce enough food, the government took all they had promised leaving them to starve. People died of starvation, and at the end the number of dead people rose to 20 million. 

War Crimes

The Holocausts, around 1933-1945, were one of the biggest war crimes ever committed throughout history. The killing of about 6 million innocent Jews just because of prejudice is not fair at all. The way many of these people died is also a big crime. Burning someone, or starving someone to death is really unethical and torturous. All of this was done to satisfy only one person which is the worst part of this all.

The Atomic Bomb was also a war crime because it murdered thousands of innocent civilians. It would have been better for the US to just fight them without the use of this bomb, because Innocent women and children would have most likely been safe. If the US would have just fought them without the bomb, they would have avoided the extensive Cold War that came as a result of them dropping the bomb.

Trimmed down passage/2 paragraphs

He said roughly the following: It was his duty to tell us that our military condition was terribly serious. Any day now, our Western Front could be breached. He had had to report this to His Majesty the Kaiser recently....It was thus foreseeable, he went on to say, that the enemy in the near future, with the help of American troops anxious to fight, would succeed in a great victory, a breakthrough in grand fashion. As a result, the West Army would lose its last hold and retreat in full disbandment across the Rhein and carry the revolution back to Germany....This catastrophe, he said, must be avoided by all means. For the cited reasons we could no longer allow ourselves to be beaten. Therefore, the Supreme Army Command demanded of His Majesty the Kaiser and of the Chancellor that a proposal for the bringing about of peace be made to President Wilson of America without delay, for bringing about an armistice on the basis of his 14 Points. He said he had never shied away from demanding the utmost from his troops. However, after clearly realizing that the continuation of the war was useless, he was of the opinion that an end needed to be found as quickly as possible in order not to unnecessarily sacrifice the most valiant people who were still loyal and able to fight....It had been a terrible moment for him and for the Field Marshall to have to report this to the His Majesty the Kaiser and the Chancellor. The latter, Count Hertling, then informed His Majesty the Kaiser in a noble manner that he would then have to resign his office. After so many honorable years, as an old man, he could not and would not close out his life by tendering a petition for ceasefire. The Kaiser had accepted his petition for resignation.

This passage which is out of a diary is about the Germans no longer being able to keep the enemy off of them. A German hero comes to give them a message explaining how the military conditions were terribly serious, and that they would have to ceasefire. The Americans according to this German hero are a real threat to them, and a devastating defeat awaits them. Of course they have to tell the Kaiser what is going on, and he unwillingly accepts to stop their attack.

This situation must have been very difficult for Germany in one big way, and that is that they didn't want to look bad. They were very nationalist, and refused for a while to give up so easily. “ he could not and would not close out his life by tendering a petition for ceasefire.” This shows how much the Kaiser cared about his image, he didn't want to seem like a weak person. If he was seen as weak by another nation, his whole country would also be seen as weak.

Oberst von Thaer

Terrible and appalling! It is so! Indeed! As we were gathered together, Ludendorff stood up in our presence, his face was pale and filled with deep worry, but his head was still held high. A truly handsome Germanic hero figure. I had to think of Siegfried with the mortal wound in his back from Hagen's spear.

He said roughly the following: It was his duty to tell us that our military condition was terribly serious. Any day now, our Western Front could be breached. He had had to report this to His Majesty the Kaiser recently. For the first time the question had been posed to the Supreme Army Command--by His Majesty the Kaiser and the Reichs Chancellor--what the officers and troops were still capable of accomplishing. Together with the General Field Marshal, he [Ludendorff] had answered that the Supreme Army Command and the German Army were at an end; the war could no longer be won, but rather an unavoidable and conclusive defeat awaited. Bulgaria had already been lost. Austria and Turkey, both at the end of their powers, would also soon fall. Our own Army had unfortunately also been heavily contaminated with the poison of Spartacus-socialist ideas, and the troops were, he said, no longer reliable. Since the 8th of August the situation had rapidly gotten worse. As a result, some troops had proven themselves so unreliable that they had had to be quickly pulled from the front. If they were replaced with other troops willing to fight, they would be received with the label "Strike breakers" and challenged not to fight anymore. He said he could not operate with divisions that were no longer reliable.

It was thus foreseeable, he went on to say, that the enemy in the near future, with the help of American troops anxious to fight, would succeed in a great victory, a breakthrough in grand fashion. As a result, the West Army would lose its last hold and retreat in full disbandment across the Rhein and carry the revolution back to Germany.

This catastrophe, he said, must be avoided by all means. For the cited reasons we could no longer allow ourselves to be beaten. Therefore, the Supreme Army Command demanded of His Majesty the Kaiser and of the Chancellor that a proposal for the bringing about of peace be made to President Wilson of America without delay, for bringing about an armistice on the basis of his 14 Points. He said he had never shied away from demanding the utmost from his troops. However, after clearly realizing that the continuation of the war was useless, he was of the opinion that an end needed to be found as quickly as possible in order not to unnecessarily sacrifice the most valiant people who were still loyal and able to fight.

It had been a terrible moment for him and for the Field Marshall to have to report this to the His Majesty the Kaiser and the Chancellor. The latter, Count Hertling, then informed His Majesty the Kaiser in a noble manner that he would then have to resign his office. After so many honorable years, as an old man, he could not and would not close out his life by tendering a petition for ceasefire. The Kaiser had accepted his petition for resignation.

Excellency Ludendorff added: "At present, then, we have no Chancellor. Who will fill this position is yet to be determined. I have, however, asked His Majesty the Kaiser to bring those circles into the government whom we can mainly thank that we have come to this. We will now see these gentlemen brought into the Ministries. They should make the peace that must now be made. They made their bed, now they must lie in it!"

The effect of these words on the listeners was undescribable! As L. spoke, quiet sobbing and moaning was audible. Many, probably most all, had involuntary tears run down their cheeks. I stood to the left of General Director Gen. von Eisenhart. We instinctively grasped one another by the hand. I almost pressed his flat.

After his last words, L. lowered his head slowly, turned and went to his adjoining room.

Since I had an appointment to report to him afterwards, I followed him and -- since I'd known him so long -- grabbed his right arm with both hands, something I never would have done under other circumstances, and said: "Your Excellency, is that the truth? Is that the last word? Am I awake or dreaming? That really is too terrible! What will happen now?"

I was completely beside myself. He remained calm and gentle and said to me with a deeply sorrowful smile: "Unfortunately, that is how it is, and I see no other way out."

This was written in a Diary by Colonel Von Thaer, in October 1, 1918.

Zalcra

Flag

National Anthem

From mountain to mountain
From snow to sand
Coco to coconut
Land to island

We wanted to talk
They wanted to fight
A tragic mistake
In the night

We won the battle
Us, proud and true
The beautiful land
For me and you

Now there is peace
Peace is our hope
We only want peace
Our only hope

National Identity

Lizzie, Agustin, and I created the nation of Zalcra where Zalcranians live. The original founders of this nation were from Switzerland, one of the only neutral countries that is involved in no wars. These people traveled to Hawaii, and planned to settle on an island off of the state. Since we are settled on an island, we have resources such as coal, iron from the volcanoes, water, sand to make glass, and forests for trees. Majority of our people are from Switzerland so they speak English, French, Dutch and German. Since we come from a neutral environment and then settling into a new are, our classes in society are all equal. I will be designing a national flag for Zalcra that is found as a logo on many of our products also.

National History

The history of Zorcra is a rich one indeed. Zorcra was founded in the early 1800s, after the great Battle of Hapunawaha. It is a small island near Hawaii, which was actually formed from a volcanic eruption as early as the 1600s. Originally, Zorcra was inhabited by Pacific Islanders who called themselves Palma’as.  They were fierce warriors and were also a very advanced society who had made many different types of weapons, as well as herbal medicines, vaccines, and sturdy building materials.  They were also very smart and most of the population was literate in the island language of Palms.  The Palma’as were indeed in tune with nature, as the name of their people suggest.  They had many natural resources that were worth celebrating, such as strong bamboo, all kinds of different fruits and crops, fresh water and mineral springs, coal and volcanic rock, rich farmland, and iron and other metals in the Ho’ana mountains.  In 1790, the Swiss government had heard about all of these incredible resources from some early explorers that had stumbled upon this island, and they began to grow extremely interested in the area.  They sent a fleet of ships to check out the area and meet some of the settlers.  The voyage was only intended to check the island out and see if the tales were true, but the islanders mistook the gesture as a threat.  Not only were the islanders threatened, but England was there as well, and they had settled part of the island in the hopes of conquering the Hawaiin Islands and taking them in the name of the queen.  The Swiss tried using their neutrality and their peacefulness in order to make a treaty with the islanders, but most of the islanders did not speak English, and the English weren’t willing to translate, so as a result the Battle of Hapunawaha began.  Hapunawaha was the Palma’a general in charge of the army.  The battle lasted 3 days, but in the end, the Swiss won out.  The battle wasn’t particularly bloody because the Swiss simply took out a few of the key leaders, putting the island into chaos and taking as few lives as possible.  The total death toll was around 200, 130 islanders and about 70 British people.  The total island population was around 2,000 at the time, comprising of about 1,800 islanders and 200 English settlers.  The Swiss fleet comprised of about 3,000 sailors.  After the battle, the Swiss cleaned up the island of any collateral damage, as well as treated the wounded and the sick of the island, as well as built a beautiful memorial to the fallen warriors.  This clearly pleased the islanders, who decided a treaty was indeed a great idea so that the Swiss and the Palma’as could live side by side peacefully.  This is how the country of Zorcra was founded. The people are called Zorcranians, as well as a few Palma’as.  The language is called Palmekens, which is a mix of Palms, German, Italian, and French.  These languages are also spoken separately in Zorcra, as well as Romanish, English, and Palms.  

Alliances and Connections
We Zalcranians look down on a lot of the nations around the world for being so violent. We don't like to acquaint ourselves to very violent nations, because we fear that they will bring all of their violent people to our island. We do accept people who are being prosecuted for reasons having to do with anything but crimes. We love to change these peoples lives and show them what a nation should be like. If we really had to be allied with three nations, even though we feel as if we are better off solo, we would be allied to Australia, New Zealand, and Iceland. We would be allied to them, because we never hear of any type of disputes in these places.

Responce to GG's Samurai post

Your blog included very interesting details about the Samurai's role in society. In particular, I liked your point that the samurai were not only strong warriors, but that they were connected to the government as well.

I would like to add on that the Samurai class was taken down because of that same point you stated about them being part of the government. Being part of government means that you have a great amount of power, and this was something that Japan at the time wanted to avoid. They were afraid of civil wars happening because of unhappy people from lower classes, and by taking away the samurai class it would have everyone be that much more equal. The samurai lost their ability to carry swords, and it was taken well by most of the samurai. This was they way that the samurai class was modernized.

Sepoy Rebellion: Ways of the World vs Handout

There is many things that Ways of the World didn't cover on the Sepoy Rebellion, that other sources did. This source that I used other than the book, was the handout that we were given in class, and I found that it varied greatly from the book reading.

When I read the pages from Ways of the World, I got the impression that the Indians were only mad at the British because of the animal fat smeared cartridges. I know that it was really offensive to the Indian's because of there religion, but it was hard to believe that just this triggered such a massive rebellion. It was only after I read the handout that I was fully able to understand the Indian's situation. It took many years of the British pushing the Indian's around for the Indian's to react.

It all started with the Evangelical Christians who had no respect and were ignorant about India's ancient faiths. One way in which the disrespect by the Christians is shown is the Act of XXI which would only let Christian's inherit lands. This was a way for the Christians to force the Indian's into doing something that they did not want to do and that was dropping their ancient faiths. The British were really rude and arrogant towards the Indian's, even though the British were the ones inside foreign lands. Unfair government systems set up by the British would let crimes committed by the British slip by, and Indians would be the only ones getting arrested. The last thing that the British did before the Cartridges incident occurred, was that they completely impoverished the Indian's by setting administrative laws that only they would benefit from.

It was all of this that got the Indians fired up, and not just the animal fat cartridges. The cartridges incident just helped the Indians come to their senses and realize that they would no longer take the unfairness of the British.

Boer War

While reading a Gale Database article on the Boer wars, I got the impression that the British were in conflict with the Dutch, because of a strong ambition to become rich. The British first took complete control over the Transvaal in the southern tip of Africa, and then went on to follow the Dutch to the Orange Free State. The British were very ambitious, and didn't care at all that the lands of the Orange Free State were already occupied by the Dutch. They just wanted the rich lands and had no consideration for the Native Africans nor the Dutch. The Dutch were just looking for farmlands, and unfortunately their farmlands also were these mineral and gold packed lands that the British wanted. The Lands obviously belonged to the Dutch because they were there first after the natives, but since the British had a very solid army, the Dutch couldn't do much about the British. If it is true that the Dutch couldn't do much about the British, then why were these Boer wars very bloody?

Ways of the World 560-563: Discovery of quinine

On page 562 of Ways of the World, there is a brief statement on things that helped expansion be more desirable, and doable. Among that list, there was the discovery of quinine, and I chose to do some extra research on the topic.

In the book, quinine is just described as something to prevent malaria. The book goes on to say that it greatly reduced deaths among Europeans that were in the tropics.

It was the Quechua of Peru and Bolivia who discovered this medicine in the chinchona tree and its relaxing effects to help to stop shivers from the really low temperatures, and the high altitudes. Then the Catholic missionaries brought the medicine over to Europe, where it was to become a vital element in there expeditions. The Jesuits (have to do with catholics) who were living in Lima, made a connection between the shivering caused by malaria, and the shivering of the Quechua. They noticed that the shivering was really similar, and so they brought some of the chinchona tree bark over to Rome where they ran tests on it to see if it treated malaria. It indeed helped prevent malaria, and so the bark became one of the most valuable commodities shipped at the time.

It may seem as if this wasn't that important, looking at the overall time period of expansion, but it was. This medicine made a lot more people want to go on voyages to expand, because they knew that they weren't going to die because of the Malaria, and so Europe grew. The discovery of the quinine medicine can easily be one of the major factors as to why Europe is so wealthy.

Darwin: Origin of Species ( primary source)

Of the Origin of Species by mean of Natural Selection, Is a book that was published by Charles Darwin in Nov/24/1859. This book is centered around the idea of Natural selection, which is the idea that there will be a struggle to survive based on your physical characteristics. In other words, survival of the fittest. Darwin backs up this idea with his findings of biology on his trip to the Galapagos Islands. These ideas were considered crazy at the time, but because they weren't threatening to the church, and weren't too radical, they were accepted over time.

Why take a test: Final Exam

I don't know why schools give students finals. It isn't fair that we have to take a test that covers everything from the beginning of the year through half way through the year. It is nearly impossible to remember every single topic, so students stress out and have to study a ton. It is pretty much like teaching a whole semester in just one week, and for most students this is really overwhelming.  Not only do we have to worry about one class, but we have to worry about every single one. On top of a week packed with finals, teachers always throw in that five page research paper, that chemistry test, and that “Quest”. We are only left with the extended class periods to study for the finals, and that is just not enough time! What is the point of doing this? What are we going to gain out of this? I say that we gain nothing, and that teachers should consider taking finals out of our lives.

Taking Finals out of our lives would benefit the student in many ways. First, we would actually look forward to school in the last couple of weeks of the semester. This means that we can just have a regular schedule and be stress free. We would also not risk that grade that we worked so hard for over the course of the year during just one test.

I'm sure that teachers can find a better way to end the year. Instead of a hectic week, why not make it a fun week. We can have projects like the end of the year. Students get a lot more exited about this type of stuff because it is hands on. Or we could have finals, but just be reasonable on the assignments the week before. We could also have them spread out in a better way. Instead of having two a day, why not have one per day, and just have the entire week before be dedicated to just studying.

Darwin

Darwin was the scientist who started the theory of evolution. He not only believed this, but he made it public. As he published books, more and more people started believing in this theory, and soon much of the population believed in evolution. This picture shows that some of Darwins beliefs were that man evolved from apes. Darwin had many other interesting beliefs on how everything worked, and that is why I want to learn more about him.

Women in Africa

In the reading that I did last night,(604-605), Women were treated differently in certain time periods, and in certain regions of the world. For example before colonization, women had few work hours, because the families only did enough work to provide for their own families, but after, it all changed. As colonization took place, men started to plant a bunch of the cash crops such as cotton so they could trade, and market them, so the women were left with a huge plantation to work on. Hours for women changed from being forty six hours per week to being more than seventy. Men then started to move to different cities that were sometimes extremely far away just to seek money, so women then had full responsibility of the households. Of course women didn't want this and so they just stopped seeking husbands, and just turned to their families of birth. Women didn't always have it too bad. An example of this was that women in northern Nigeria started to get involved in small-scale trade and marketing, and they gained enough wealth to support even their husbands. Instead of the women asking the men for money, the men were now asking the women. Ultimately, in most parts of Africa women were treated unfairly.

According to the nineteenth-century chart, found in page 564 of Ways of the World, which depicts the “Progressive Development of Man”, identity is based on race. This chart shows nothing concerning women, so I don't think that western ideas played a huge role in the way women were treated in Africa. I believe that the own people of Africa created the situation they were in themselves because of the urge to get wealthy.

Cooperation and Rebellion

This section in the book titled, “Cooperation and Rebellion,” has two main focuses, and those two are exactly as the title says, cooperation and rebellion. In these two focuses the two regions/countries that are involved are Europe, and India.

Cooperation

Even though the Colonial Rulers were thought as being above all other races, because they happened to be European, they were not able to do everything themselves. They needed the help of the locals, and the locals willingly helped them out. Locals had no other choice, because being allied to the Europeans was the only way out of their miserable lives. It provided them with the protection that they needed, and it gave them great wealth. As this started to increase, many Europeans saw the importance of education so private organizations, missionaries, ect., started to educate the people of their colonies. As a result, emerged a Western-educated class. People received better jobs, such as teachers, and clerks, and some even went on to being huge roles in society, such as lawyers, doctors and engineers.

Rebellion

While there was cooperation between people, there was also an opposition. The biggest opposition was the Indian Rebellion, which lasted for one year, 1857-1858. This rebellion started, because the military introduced a new type of cartridge that was smeared in cow, and pig fat. These two animals happened to be in some way religiously sacred to all of the people of India, so the Indians saw it as a way of the conquerors trying to make them Christian. Indian troops triggered this rebellion, and it quickly spread to much of India. This rebellion caused the Europeans to look down at the people with even more hate, and it completely ended the alliance that India had with Britan.

Oppressed People of Africa

Colonial Empires with a difference

The people in this section which are the people of Africa, were colonized because of the race differences between them and the Europeans. There was now a “High tide of scientific racism,” as it is said in the book. And the ruled were the Africans, and the rulers were the Europeans. Even the own people of Africa referred to the whites as “Bwana”(Swahili for master), while the Europeans referred to the Africans as “boy”, obviously establishing themselves as the higher class. If you were a colonial subject your education was also limited, and there was no way that you would obtain any kind of high rank. Africans were even starting to get everything separated from them in their own country, something known as apartheid. The Europeans made an industrial society based on the labor of only Africans, while limiting the social, and political integration of them. This broke the European policies of a democratic nation, because only a few people were allowed to be part of the government actions. This mad the colonies a sort of dictatorship that went unnoticed for a really long time. Unlike the people of India that had huge rebellions, the Africans didn't really have any sort of retaliation.