The thing that I was most surprised by during this project was the amount of laws the United States government passed in attempts to slow immigration, especially to Asian immigrants. Multiple laws were passed that prohibited asian immigration, and other laws were passed to restrict immigrants to certain amounts by race.

What seemed quite obvious about explaining this data set?

The thing that was most obvious was the severe drop in immigration in 1931-1940, which was during the Great Depression and World War 2.

Looking at the overall trend and incorporating what you know about the US presently, predict and defend the immigration trend for the next two decades.

I think that over the next two decades, the amount of immigrants will increase, but not by nearly as much as it did in the most recent decade.

Describe how you made a decision on how to visually represent the information.

We decided to make an interactive graph to represent our information. For our project, you can look at the graph, and if you want to know what happened in a certain decade, you can click on it and it will bring you to a slide that explains what happened in that decade.

What parts of group work were challenging? 

The most difficult part of group work was trying to communicate with another group member while they were absent for the day. We were not able to talk to them directly, but we were able to tell them what we did the day we were absent, and what we needed them to do for our project.

What would you do differently if you had this project to do over?

If I were to do this project differently, I would try to come up with a plan for our final project in the beginning, instead of at the end. That way we would know what we would need to look for when researching our information, and communication issues would be as big of a deal.

A normal class for us began with us writing a journal entry. Mr. Block would write a prompt or question on the board, and we would answer that question, or use that prompt to write something in our journal. Almost always, these journals would relate to what we were learning in class that day. After that, we would discuss what we wrote. The discussions we had in this class were some of my favorite parts of the class. We would read our journal entry to the class, then people would respond to what we said. Often, people would disagree with one another, and we would have a small debate. Our teacher would rarely talk during these discussions, except to call on another classmate, and we would only ever have to cut the discussion short because we were running out of time, never because we ran out of something to say. After our discussion we would either read something new about the topic we are studying, or work on a project. The projects we did throughout the year were very rarely a simple paper about what we were studying. Every one of us wrote a complete play, and submitted it to Philadelphia Young Playwrights. We made podcasts, and then made a radio show with similar to This American Life. We even created a site-specific dance piece and performed it to an audience during Art in the Open. Even the papers we wrote were more complex than simply analyzing a character in a book, or responding to a question about the book. We would take a larger theme or idea, and use the book to support our opinions about that theme or idea. For example, in my Lord of the Flies thesis, I talked about how power can affect people.

During my year, I learned many things. Along with learning about the history of the French revolution, and the Industrial revolution, and other events; I also learned some things about the world in general. One of the things I learned about the world from studying history and literature is that inequality is the main cause for conflict in this world. The majority of the world’s problems can be linked to inequality. If you look at the many wars and conflicts in our history, you can see why this is true. In the French Revolution, the royalty and clergymen and had almost all the power the in country, and two thirds of the voting power, so they rest of people, about 98% of the population, could not have any control over their country. They were poor and hungry, while the King bought very expensive jewelry for his wife. Because of this, they revolted, in one of the bloodiest revolutions of all time. Another example of this is the Arab spring. The people in Egypt, Tunisia, and Libya, were unhappy with how their dictators could just torture and kill their people for very little reason, and how the government abused their people. They were unhappy with the way that the government and the dictators had all the power, and the people had none. They revolted, and kicked out their dictators, and while there are still problems in some of these countries; they are on their way to the democracy they fought for. It is interesting how the revolutions in the Arab spring took much less time than the French revolution. This leads to the second thing I learned about the world, which is that social change can be made more powerful through peaceful protest. The French revolution lasted about 10 years, and the revolutionaries used weapons and simply fought the King to take control of the country. In the Egyptian revolution, for the most part they simply protested and demonstrated, and there was very little fighting, except for military or government people attacking protestors. The revolution in Egypt lasted 18 days until the Mubarak stepped down. What this shows is that peaceful protest is much more effective than violent conflict. There are multiple reasons why peaceful protests are more effective. One reason is that when the government kills and attacks protestors who do not fight back, it turns the protestors into martyrs and victims. It makes their cause look better in the eyes of the world, and it makes the government of that country look evil. It also will make it so that if the protestors eventually win out, the country they inherit is not a warzone, but is more or less in the same condition as when they started. In the revolution guidebook that I made in History, I talked about what makes a revolution successful. While you can’t see exactly what I said, because the majority of this project was a presentation, you can see my bullet points about the subject. I learned many other things about the world in English and History class, but there would be too many to list here. Overall, my year in English and History was a very unique learning experience for me. The emphasis was not on grammar and spelling, or memorizing historical dates; but on our world and how we can make it better place.

Progress is when something happens to move something forward. This something could be an idea, or the creation of something, or a popular movement.

  I think that the Industrial Revolution was a time of progress in the economic and technological sense. We made great machines using steam and coal that improved and sped up almost every process of people’s lives. It was also a time of recession in the human rights sense, as people were seen as tools, and there were no longer “master craftsmen”, but simply laborers.

Social change can be fast sometimes, like in the case of Egypt, Libya, and the rest of the Arab Spring; when they overthrew their dictators. This was fast because they know what they wanted to change into, because they could see examples of it outside their own country. They were also oppressed and unhappy, so they made the change, which was fast. Slow change of society, like the renaissance, was slow because there was nothing they could see that they saw was more advanced that they wanted to become. Because of this the change was not pushed in any direction in particular, it simply happened on its own, which is much slower.

Parte 1:

Había una familia en la subterráneo del océano Pacífico. Había un papá, una mamá, un hijo, y una hija. La familia vivía en una cueva de oro. La familia tenía una lagarto. Era una lagarto especial. El lagarto era bastante importante. El lagarto tenía un secreto. E lagarto estaba preocupadísima. El lagarto voló. El lagarto le sollozó al papá, "El sol, Mamacocha, está furioso, Mamacocha va a beber el oceano." Había un problema. Era un problema grave. 

El lagarto le mandó al papá, "venenar la montaña más alta con tu familia." La familia cavó hacia la montaña más alta con el lagarto. El montaña más alta se llamaba Huillcacoto.

Parte 2:

Había un gnu. El lagarto le dijo al gnu, "Hay un problema. ¡El sol, Mamacocha, está furioso! El sol va a beber el oceano. Venena la montaña más alta con nosotros." El gnu comprendió perfectamente. El gnu se escapó con el grupo.

Había un alce. El lagarto le dijo al alce, "Hay un problema. ¡El sol, Mamacocha, está furioso! El sol va a beber el oceano. Venena la montaña más alta con nosotros." El alce comprendió perfectamente. El alce no caminaba con el grupo, el alce nadó.

Había un tortuga. El lagarto le dijo al tortuga, "Hay un problema. ¡El sol, Mamacocha, está furioso! El sol va a beber el oceano. Venena la montaña más alta con nosotros." El tortuga comprendió perfectamente. El tortuga se escapó con el grupo.

Había un elefante. El lagarto le dijo al elefante, "Hay un problema. ¡El sol, Mamacocha, está furioso! El sol va a beber el oceano. Venena la montaña más alta con nosotros." El elefante comprendió perfectamente. El elefante no caminaba con el grupo, el elefante voló.

Había un tiburón. El lagarto le dijo al tiburón, "Hay un problema. ¡El sol, Mamacocha, está furioso! El sol va a beber el oceano. Venena la montaña más alta con nosotros." El tiburón no les hizo caso. El tiburón no se fue con el grupo. El tiburón era demasiado perezoso.

Parte 3:

El grupo subió la montaña más alta. La familia, el lagarto, el gnu, y el tortuga venenaron Huillcacoto, la montaña más alta. El alce y el elefante volaron y nadaran a Huillcacoto.

El sol bebo el mar. El sol bebo el mar con furia. Habia un problema. Era un problema grave, El tiburón no estaba con el grupo. El tiburón teleportó. El tiburón no caminó. El tiburón no voló. El tiburón no nadó. El tiburón teleportó rápido. El tiburón venenó la montaña más alta. El tiburón estaba feliz.

Por fin el sol, Mamacocha, estaba contento y no bebo más. El sol vomitó el mar. La familia bajó. La llama bajó. Los otros animales bajaron. Y todos estaban felices. Y ya no había problemas.

A los Servicios de los Niños,
Creo que un chaval llamado Pablo esta abusado regularmente por su padre. Tení suposiciones porque Pablo tení cicatrices, y moratones en su espalda. También tení otras heridas en el resto de su cuerpo. Quería averiguar que era abusado regularmente por su padre, antes de denunciar el abuso. Creo que el padre también trata de ocultar el abuso. Miraba a los signos de abuso, y los que aplican a Pablo y su padre, y 9 de los 16 son verdad. El problema es que el papa se comporta completamente normal con los otros personas, y Pablo nunca he dicho nada sobre su abuso, y dice que sus heridas son de un caída, pero no creo. También, el no estaba en la escuela por una semana entera, y cuando preguntaba a su padre, el dijo que el era enfermo y era en la casa de su abuela, pero cuando salí afuera yo encontró a Pablo atrás de la tienda de su papa. Muchos de los otros niños, incluyendo el mio, dicen que el papa de Pablo se pega con frecuencia, pero todos hacen la vista gorda, y nada pasa a la padre. Me frustra mucho, porque yo estoy muy seguro que el papa se abusa a Pablo, pero siento que yo no puedo hacer nada, y el niño sufra mas y mas. Desde mi punto de vista, lo que hace el padre de Pablo es muy cruel, y no hay mas remedio otro de encarcelar el padre, aunque será muy extrema separar un niño de su papa, creo que es necesario.
         Creo que Pablo esta abusado regularmente. Hablo con unos de mis amigos, y el dice que yo debe preguntar a ustedes para ayuda para Pablo. Por favor, ayúdame a prevenir el abuso que paso a Pablo. Lo mas importante es que ustedes ayuden a Pablo lo mas rápido que posible, entonces yo necesito que ustedes responden muy pronto.

José

         José,
Gracias por denunciar el abuso de Pablo. Obviamente, es contra el ley a abusar a un niño. El primer denuncio de abuso es muy importante porque, como usted lo dije, muchos hacen la vista gorda, y el padre (o madre) puede continuar a abusar el niño. Varias estudias han demostrado que casi 9 de 10 casos de maltrato infantil se van sin denuncio. Es muy difícil demostrar que un niño esta abusado, porque si es necesitamos tomar el niño de sus padres y su casa. Por eso, necesitamos que usted nos da prueba suficiente para acusar alguien de maltrato infantil, porque un acuso falso será muy mal para todos en la situación. Es muy importante que el hijo Pablo se habla con nosotros sobre su abuso, porque lo que el dice será la prueba mas importante para encarcelar el padre y proteger el niño. Necesitamos que hagas varias cosas para Pablo. Primer, si vez a la padre de Pablo pegando a Pablo, contacte a la policía inmediatamente. Si Pablo va a usted por ayuda, ayude a el, y eso incluye dejar a Pablo a quedar en su casa. Vigile a Pablo y su padre, para asegurar que nada mal pasa. No hables con su papa sobre el abuso, porque el papa puede creer Pablo hablo con alguien, y el papa va a pegar a Pablo. Cuide a Pablo, para que el piense que tiene al menos un lugar seguro, y finalmente, póngase en contacto con nosotros si algo mas ocurre con Pablo. Tenemos algunos preguntas para ti, por favor, responde a todos lo mejor que posible:

¿Has visto el padre de Pablo pegar a Pablo?
¿Sabes si el niño gasta la mayoría de su tiempo afuera del casa y sin su familia?
¿Sabes si Pablo muy introvertido, o extrovertido?
¿Sabes si el Pablo dice que se gusta su padre?
¿Sabes si el padre dice que se gusta a Pablo?

Otra vez, gracias por denunciar el abuso de Pablo, esto es muy importante para el niño.

Los Servicios de Niños

         A los Servicios de los Niños,
Gracias por responder tan rápidamente, estoy muy preocupado por la salud de Pablo. A sus preguntas, yo no he visto al Padre de Pablo pegando a Pablo, creo que solamente lo hace en un lugar privado. Pablo gasta mucho de su tiempo afuera del casa, con sus amigos. Pablo es muy extrovertido, y el tiene muchos amigos, incluyendo a mi hijo. No creo que Pablo gusta su padre mucho, y su padre no parece que están en buenas condiciones con Pablo. Espero que ustedes ayuden a Pablo lo mas rápidamente que posible.
        
         José

1.     Antes de esta unidad, yo no sabía mucho sobre Hugo Chávez. Yo sabía que el era el líder de Venezuela, pero la mayoría de las cosas que su nombre se pone en mi mente era negativo. Yo creí que era dictador, que era el enemigo de los Estados Unidos, y que el era muy malo para las personas de Venezuela.

2.     Esta unidad, yo aprendí muchos cosas sobre Hugo Chávez. El primer cosa que aprendí, y que me sorprendí mucho era que el era elegido democráticamente muchos veces. Yo creí que el tomo el poder por fuerza, y que el era dictador, y no sabía que era un presidente elegido democráticamente. También aprendí mucho sobre su historia personal, como que fue a un escuela militar, y aprendí sobre su personalidad, como que habla mucho y que es muy orgulloso.

3.     Yo soy de la oposición contra Chávez. Yo no soy contra Chávez porque yo cree que es dictador, o un líder muy malo, pero soy contra Chávez porque el era presidente por 13 años, y creo que 13 años es demasiado tiempo para ser el líder de un país. Yo cree que es tiempo para alguien nueve a ser líder de Venezuela.

4.     Mi parte favorito de esta unidad era cuando vimos los videos de Chávez, especialmente cuando el dije que Fox News era “veneno”, porque era muy chistoso.

Yo vivo en el barrio de Roxborough. Roxborough es un lugar muy seguro para mi, y yo no tengo miedo de ir afuera en la noche. No hay muchos delitos en Roxborough, y la graffiti y vandalismo  son poco común. Yo no he escuchado de un asesinato en Roxborough ni un vez en el tiempo que he vivido aqui. Además, el único peligro en Roxborough son jóvenes polémicos que enojan a otros. Mi mural esta ubicado en 203 Sumac St., en la pared de un casa. Yo creo que Roxborough es un lugar que no tiene suficiente arte. No era un movimiento de arte en Roxborough como El Movimiento Muralista, y por eso no hay nadie como los grandes muralistas de México, como Diego Rivera, David Siquieros, o Jose Clemente Orozco.

En mi mural yo incluyo tres de los cosas que yo creo son muy importante para las personas de Roxborough. El primer cosa que yo incluí en mi mural era un niño y su abuelo. Estas dos figuras representan la familia, y los seres queridos. Roxborough es un lugar muy residencial, con muchos casas, y pocos tiendas y edificios. Casi todos las personas de Roxborough tiene un familia en su casa, y todos apoyan a los otros.

El segundo cosa que yo incluí en mi mural eran varias cosas de comida. Yo creo que la comida es un gran parte de las vidas de los personas de Roxborough. En un lugar llamada “Main Street Manayunk”, hay muchos restaurantes donde los personas de Roxborough comen mucho. Todos las personas de Roxborough tienen al menos un poquito de apreciación para la comida buena, aunque las opiniones de que es “comida buena” diferencian mucho.

El tercer cosa que yo incluí en mi mural era dos jugadores de béisbol. Béisbol es un gran parte de la vida de la mayoría de las personas de Roxborough, casi todos han jugado en un equipo de béisbol en un parte de sus vidas, y muchos jueguen en uno de los campos de béisbol en Roxborough sin ser parte de un equipo. Sin embargo, béisbol no es el único deporte que esta jugado en Roxborough, también hay un gran numero de personas que jueguen Fútbol Americano. Las deportes en general son muy importante para Roxborough, pero béisbol el lo mas importante de todos.

Ahora, Roxborough es un lugar muy tranquilo, con un bosque, y un río; sin embargo, si vas cien o dos cien años en el pasado, Roxborough era un lugar con mucho industria. Eran muchos factorías aquí, y todos los casas estaban ocupada por las trabajadores de las factorías. Si caminas a diferentes lugares, puedes encontrar diferentes edificios destruidos que eran factorías antes.

La película Mar Adentro se trata de Ramón Sampedro, un tetrapléjico que quiere quitarse la vida. El no pienso que su vida es digno, y para el, los cosas mas simples del mundo son imposible para el. Cuando Ramón tuviera 20 anos, el tuvo un accidente en el océano, que se ponio tetrapléjico. El he vivido como esto por 26 anos, el todo el tiempo quiere quitarse la vida, porque no esta feliz. Nunca ha cambiado de opinión, y también esta completamente lúcido. Durante la película, el esta viajando, y trabajando para hacer que la eutanasia esta legal en España, pero varias personas tienen diferentes opiniones de que si debe ser legal la eutanasia, y de la decisión de Ramón. Su hermano mayor esta completamente contra su decisión de morir, pero algunos de sus amigos están de acuerdo con el, y quieren ayudar. Durante la película muestra sus problemas con el gobierno, personas como el cura, y sus seres queridos que no quiere que el muera. 

El película Mar Adentro hablan de muchos tópicos controversial y polémico. Por ejemplo, hablan de la eutanasia, y si debe ser legal o no. también hablan de que si la muerte es un derecho o no, si las vidas de los tetrapléjicos digno, y que harías si no pudiera mover. Elevan estas preguntas y tópicas en un manera muy triste, y aunque que es un película, eso no toma de la mensaje muy seria. 

Yo creo que la eutanasia debe ser legal, pero solamente en condiciones muy especificas. Yo creo que si es posible curar la persona en el futuro, la eutanasia no debe ser un opción, o la “manera fácil”. Si la persona esta lucido y quiere morir, y el esta tan miserable que nunca cambiara su opinión, como en la situación de Ramón, debe ser legal. Yo creo que la muerto es un derecho. Yo no quiere que personas cometan suicido cuando quiere, pero cree que nadie debe tener control de la vida de los otros. Yo creo que los vidas de los tetrapléjicos son digno si el tetrapléjico creo que su vida es digno. Si el cura creo que su vida es digna, es digna; pero si Ramón creo que su vida no es dignó, no es dignó. Si yo no pudiera mover, yo creo que yo tendrá la mismo decisión que Ramón. Yo no puediera vivir como esto, y yo será miserable, como Ramón. 

La película Mar Adentro era muy bueno. Los actores eran muy bueno, y aparte de unos momentos, todos los escenas estaban muy real, triste cuando necesitaba ser triste, feliz cuando necesitaba ser feliz, cosas como esto. La premisa de la película era muy bueno. Era muy original, y triste. También era un película muy controversial, porque hablo de muchos cosas polémicos. La cinematografía era muy bueno también, la película estaba un real pedazo de arte, con escenas muy poderosos.

Lo obvio:

Una de mis cosas favoritos para hacer es jugar fútbol. Yo empese a jugar fútbol cuando tenia 5 años. Yo he jugado en varios equipos de fútbol, un equipo de Fairmount, Palumbo, y el equipo de SLA. Fútbol es algo que yo puede hacer para reéducar tensión en mi vida. Cuando yo soy frustrado o triste, yo puedo jugar fútbol y me siento mejor. Cuando yo conozco a gente por primera vez, yo estoy muy huraño. Fútbol me presentó a un grupo de gente que gusta algo similar que mi. Los miembros de mi equipo de fútbol eran mis primeros amigos en SLA cuando yo vení aquí por primera vez. Ellos ya están algunos de mis mejores amigos. A mi me importa mucho mi familia, y mis amigos. Mi familia están las personas que yo amo, y nos apoyamos a cada uno de nosotros. Tengo un hermano, llamado Colin. A veces, el me molesta, pero la mayoría del tiempo nos callemos bien. Mi mama me entiendo mucho, y yo puedo ir a ella para ayuda. Mi padre y yo somos muy similares. Por eso, nosotros nos entendemos a el otro, pero también nosotros nos molestan a la otro. Pero la mayoría del tiempo nos callemos bien. Mis amigos son las personas que me mantiene feliz. Sin mis amigos, yo sera mas deprimido en el vida. Yo soy pasivo. No estoy muy pasivo, pero estoy mas pasivo que afirmativo. Eso es a veces útil, pero otros tiempos es malo. Es bueno porque yo raramente tiene argumentos con personas, y ese esta bueno por mis relaciones con gente. Al mismo tiempo, yo no soy proactiva, y yo no haga atemptos para hacer cosas.

Lo menos obvio:

Yo no estoy un persona religiosa, y yo no creo en dios. Yo creo que eso esta bueno en mi vida, por varias razones. En mi opinión la religión esta un barrera para la creatividad y la imaginacíon. Si crees en un explicación por vida y el universo y solo esto, no quieres aprender sobre la ciencia de el universo, y vida. Yo creo que es mucho mas interesante aprender como vida evolvo desde un célula pequeño, hasta animales complexos como humanos, en vez de solamente pensar que dios pono todo en el mundo. Yo creo que la ciencia que explica como funciona el universo, como estrellas, planetas, luz, son muy interesante, pero la religion a veces condena esas estudios. En mi opinión, no creer en dios en un cosa libertador. Yo no haga cosas buenas para apaciguar un dios, haga cosas buenas para hacer cosas buenas. Mis opiniones sobre religión no afecta la mayoría de mis relaciones, excepto por pocos personas con quien me tiene argumentos. Mis padres tiene expectaciones muy altas de mi. Esta no esta solamente de cosas como escuela, y mis grados, pero también cosas no académicas. Esto es bueno, porque me da un empuja para hacer bueno en vida. También, yo estoy empezando de tener los mismos expectaciones de mi mismo. Los únicas cosas malas de esto es que a veces me estrés, y causa argumentos con padres. Unos de los cosas que yo quiere hacer cuando tiene un trabajo, esta ingeniero, o programador de computadora. Estos son mis intereses favoritos, porque para mi trabajo, yo necesita resolver problemas. Yo me gusta resolver problemas porque me da un sensacíon de gratificacíon. No me importa si el problema es sobre un problema en una programa de computador, o si un ciudad no tiene agua limpia. También es bueno que esos trabajos tienen un bien paga, pero la parte mas importante para mi es la trabajo que esta haciendo.

I don’t make much money as it is, I never really have (sigh and glance down). The farming business isn’t something I’m good at, but it’s my only option, it's all I know. When TransCanada came to offer me money for the land they needed for the big pipe they were building, I wasn’t doing very well back then either. I was in between plantings after a failed harvest and I needed money pretty bad. These men offered me a deal; they would pay me lots of money if I let them cut through my land with big machines. And lay down this big pipe that would pump thousands of barrels of dark, crop killing oil from Canada to Texas.

            I’M A FARMER! (Shouts) What was I thinking? One mistake along any inch of that huge thing could completely destroy my work, my house, and I wouldn’t be able to plant for years afterwards. Not even the huge amount of money they paid me would be able to help me then. I’d have to leave everything I know behind. That poisonous fuel would forever taint all of my work, my father’s work, and his father’s work.

        I can’t turn back now. I’ve already signed a contract. I just wanted to be able to support myself, but I might end up destroying myself. I can only hope that our president stops the company from building the pipe. It might be selfish, because I know it will give a lot of people jobs. But if I ever have kids, I guess I want them to carry on my legacy here on the farm.

I’ve worked on these oil sands for most of my adult life, long before these protesters started objecting to what we did over in America. I’ve taken part in setting up a lot of the more recent extraction plants too. (Shakes head) I grew up here in Alberta and witnessed the start of the dirty oil era. (Stretch arms and yawn) My life hasn’t really taken off yet though. At least, I hope it hasn’t. I spend all day operating the steam extraction machinery, and the pay isn’t great. (Cough) I’ve been wondering lately if working like this is worth the years taken off my life from inhaling the fumes.

Maybe those people down in Washington have the right idea; they’re working for a good cause fighting against the new Keystone pipeline. They’re passionate about what they believe in.

For a long time I saw the oil as a good thing. It was a miracle of modern science that we could extract fuel directly from the earth, without expensive drilling equipment. I was proud to work for the sake of helping people drive and provide oil to the world. I felt like a pioneer, leading my country forward.

(Nods) These Americans have opened my eyes though. If I help with the Keystone project, I could take a huge part in the pollution and destruction of North America. Sure, I might help a man get to work, but I might also kill someone by polluting his or her water supply. I don’t want that blood, or oil, on my hands.

Russ Girling (CEO of TransCanada) (Seamus Kirby): 

            Walks into room and sits on couch. Today was a tough day at work. It’s hard to hear myself think with so many protestors yelling outside your window. I know a lot of these people just see me as some greedy CEO that will do anything to get more money. Is that really me? I know I wouldn’t see myself as that, but if I look from their perspective, put myself in their shoes and look at myself? What am I? This pipeline would bring so much money to this company, and would benefit Canada and the USA in many ways. Jobs, money, oil. Does all that outweigh any potential environmental impacts? Right now we need oil, and we need a lot of it. In the future we may not need oil so much, but right now we do. This would at least postpone the energy problem for a while, until we have the means to postpone it further, or maybe even finally solve it. But is that what we really need? Would that make the problem worse? I doubt there will be any problems caused by this while I’m alive, but what about my children? No, I don’t think this pipeline will make or break the environment. It’s just one pipeline, and what people really need to do is stop wasting so much. Besides, if you ignore the environmental impacts this may or may not have, this is only beneficial to everyone.

Bill Mckibben (Seamus Kirby):

            We have lived and taken from our planet for tens of thousands of years. We started off just taking what we needed, but then we kept taking more and more and more, and now look at what that’s gotten us. We are polluting the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat. At the same time unemployment is rising, along with gas prices and debt. It seems as if every single unsustainable thing we’ve been doing in the history of this country has finally collapsed on us at once. We need money, and oil, and jobs. We also need to conserve the environment. If we aren’t mindful of how much we waste, and render the planet uninhabitable with our pollution, the planet will be fine. After a few thousand years, the planet will repair itself, and be back to the way it was before humans. The only thing we’d be killing is ourselves, and everything we share the planet with. The XL pipeline would do two things. It would bring money, oil, and jobs to America. And it would be another nail in the coffin of environmentalism. Will this completely destroy the environment in one fell swoop? No, but will it solve our debt, and job problems? No to that too. What we have to do is weigh what options would be best overall. Should we build it and generate a few thousand jobs, and billions of dollars in revenue, or should we not build and save countless plants and animals, and reduce our oil dependency. Transcanada says their pipes will not leak, but can we really believe them when their own pipes leaked 12 times? We can’t risk it leaking, because the pipeline goes over a major aquifer that people drink from. And it would pollute the drinking supply of millions with crude oil. I don’t think we should build the pipeline, because I believe that there is other ways of improving the economy, but there is only one way to protect the environment right now, and that is to stop the XL pipeline from being built.

Kenneth Hewitt (Seamus Kirby):

    I’ve been unemployed for almost a year now, and my unemployment benefits are starting to run out. I’ve been living out of this crummy apartment in this terrible neighborhood for about as long. I was laid off from my first job as a construction manager, and for the first few months nobody would hire me. After that nobody was hiring me because of how long I’d been unemployed. I heard about this new pipeline TransCanada is planning to build between Canada and Texas. I could maybe get a job helping building this, it shouldn’t be too difficult since it’s such a big project, and they’d need to hire a lot of people. Sure, it wouldn’t be permanent, but it would be something to put on my resume so employers wouldn’t immediately ignore my application due to not having been employed for a long time. But at the same time, do I want to help this project? So many people are protesting this because huge negative environmental implications. Maybe I could get a different job somewhere else, but where? This is the surest bet. But what do I care about more, my own wellbeing, or the wellbeing of my children and their children. Then again, the world’s already messed up for my kids; surely this one pipeline wouldn’t be that big of a deal. But if it’s not such a big deal, why are so many people protesting it? I can’t turn down work, but is this the work I want to do? I guess if this is going to be built I have no choice but to work on it, my only other option being unemployment. But I hope Obama blocks this from being built, so I don’t feel obligated to work on it.

In the beginning of the play, Macbeth is a brave and loyal thane; but as the play progresses he becomes an evil tyrant.

            In act 1, scene 2, page 4, a captain enters the room to tell the king the latest news about the war. He said that they had just one a great battle, and that Macbeth killed a rebel leader. He also said that the thane of Cawdor was a traitor, so the king ordered his execution. The captain said, “For brave Macbeth – well he deserves that name…” (Act 1, scene 2, page 4, line 16). What he means is that Macbeth deserves to be called brave. He’s saying that Macbeth is very courageous, and is a hero. At this early part of the play he is described as very valiant. Others in the play also admire him for his bravery and courageousness.

            In act 1, scene 5, page 15, the king is talking to Banquo about Macbeth, during a gathering of all the thanes. The king says to Banquo “… he is full so valiant…” (Act 1, scene 5, page 15, line 54). He is saying that Macbeth is extremely valiant, and when he says full he means he is full of only good, nothing bad. He is talking about how much he values Macbeth, and how fine a thane he is. At this point King Duncan trusts Macbeth with because of how well he has proved himself to the King. He is being called loyal at an early stage in the play. Macbeth knows that he is valued which makes the decision to kill the king much more difficult.

            In act 1, scene 7, page 21, Macbeth is in his first soliloquy, talking about whether or not he should kill King Duncan, and he is very conflicted. He says “First, as I am his kinsman and his subject, strong both against the deed…” (Act 1, scene 7, page 21, lines 13-14). What he means is that he shouldn’t kill the king because he is his kinsman and his subject, which means he shouldn’t kill him. He is trying to come up with reasons for and against killing Duncan. At this early point of the play he is already deciding whether or not to kill King Duncan, which shows how quickly the thought of having power is already corrupting him. He is extremely conflicted with himself, and is having lots of problems.

            In act 3, scene 2, page 47, Macbeth is talking to Lady Macbeth about how they are not going to get caught. He says “…full of scorpions is my mind…” (Act 3, scene 2, page 47, line 37). What he is saying is that his mind is full of conflict. This means his mind is changing. This change signifies his change to an evil tyrant. As the play goes on, his change becomes more apparent.

            In act 4, scene 1, page 63, the witches are making a potion when Macbeth appears and they give him 3 prophecies. The second witch says “…something wicked this way comes.” (Act 4, scene 1, page 63, line 66). The witch is saying that something wicked is coming. This means that the witch sees Macbeth as something wicked. The first time Macbeth came they just said Macbeth was coming, but the second time they said he was wicked, which shows how he has changed in the eyes of the witches. Eventually this change becomes more apparent, when he shows that Killing Duncan was hard for him, but the rest was easier.

            In act 4, scene 1, page 68, he witches finished telling Macbeth the prophecies, and Macbeth finds out Macduff fled to England. He says “The castle of Macduff I will surprise…” (Act 4, scene 1, page 68, line 173). He is saying that he will attack Macduff’s castle. This means that Macbeth is going to kill Macduff’s family, and servants. This shows how he is less loyal and brave and more evil. Others also see he has changed, and see how evil he is.

            In act 4, scene 3, pages 76 – 77, Macduff is talking with Malcolm about how Macbeth took over. Macduff says to Malcolm “Fit to govern? No, not to live!” (Act 4, scene 3, pages 76 – 77, lines 104-105). He is saying that Macbeth isn’t fit govern or live. This means that Macduff sees Macbeth for what he actually is. This shows how Macbeth has become an evil tyrant. Others start to see him in the same way also.

            In act 5, scene 2, page 86, the Thanes and some soldiers are leaving Macbeth because they are joining Malcolm and Macduff. Angus says “…like a giant’s robe upon a dwarfish thief.” (Act 5, scene 2, page 86, lines 21-22). He is saying that Macbeth is a thief, who stole something from someone greater than him. This means that people have found Macbeth out. What he says also shows that Macbeth is an evil tyrant. Macbeth also shows this in the way he acts.

            In act 5, scene 3, page 87, Macbeth is frustrated with all his responsibilities, when a servant walks in. Macbeth says to the servant “The devil damn thee black thou cream-faced loon! Where got’st thou that goose look?” (Act 5, scene 3, page 87, lines 11-12). He is calling the servant a cream-faced loon, and asking why he looks like a goose. This means that a servant walks in ad Macbeth immediately insults him. This shows how Macbeth has become an evil tyrant. Macbeth is also extremely harsh.

            In act 5, scene 5, page 92, Macbeth has just learned that lady Macbeth has died, and a messenger walks saying that the trees are moving, fulfilling one of Macbeth’s prophecies. He says “If thou speak’st false, upon the next tree shalt thou hang alive till famine cling thee.” (Act 5, scene 5, page 92, lines 38-40). He is saying that if the messenger is wrong we will tie him to tree until he dies of hunger. This means that Macbeth will punish someone extraordinarily harshly for something incredibly small. This demonstrates that Macbeth has completed his transformation into an evil tyrant.

            All these quotes show how Macbeth changed throughout the play. He changed from a brave, loyal thane who honored the king and did great deeds in battle, to an evil tyrant, who threatened and abused people. The message Shakespeare could be trying to give us is that all of us have something inside us that will go to any length to get what it wants, no matter how respectable or wicked we truly are. Macbeth shows us this because Macbeth is an honest and loyal thane, who is shown that he could be king. This temptation made him kill many people, just because he wanted to be king.

I have always been amazed by my travels, seeing things like the Eiffel Tower and the Pantheon. I however, had no idea that something natural could be more spectacular than anything man made. For the past 4 years I went to the Schuychill environmental center to go to summer camp. Every week we would go on a camping trip somewhere in the US. We went to places like the Pine Barrens, Assateague, and Allaire state park[SA1] . These trips were fun, but the places that really stood out to me were the White Mountains and North Carolina.

In North Carolina our camp learned how people got food before they domesticated animals and made farms. I learned how to whittle knives out of wood, I went fishing and I learned about edible plants that you could find in the wild[SA2] . What really stood out to me on this trip was a night hike we went on. We were in a national park so there was hardly any light pollution, and the stars were bright and numerous. A little bit into the hike we saw a spider web[SA3] . When most people think of spider webs, they think of it as creepy and want to destroy it. What they don’t think about are the countless hours the spider put into making this web. First, it makes several lines of web between two objects and then slowly spirals its way in. This spider web I saw was spanned across the entire trail and was perfect in every detail. If you looked closely (which isn’t an easy thing to do considering it was pitch black out) you could see that every little section of the web was tiny, the perfect trap for insects. No one beside the spider could have made anything so perfectly. Compared to something as simple as a spider web, all of man’s achievements are nothing. The Pantheon? Nothing; The Louvre? Nothing;. The Arc de Triomphe? Nothing.[SA4]  I find natural things to be more incredible than something artificial. Nothing made by a person could ever be as intricate as a living creature. We couldn’t make anything as big as a mountain, or as powerful as star. [SA5] Anything we can do is nothing compared to the scale to which nature can do it. Seeing the spider web also made me sad, because sometime in the next few days, someone will come along and destroy it. It wouldn’t really matter whether it was on purpose or by accident. That seemed to me as a perfect metaphor as to what mankind is doing to Earth. We take some natural and unspoiled area and ruin it by either polluting it or building something on it. After marveling at the web for a few minutes we decided to head back to camp. Along the way I looked up, and the stars, coupled with the darkness and the trees gave me a sense of how incredible our world is.[SA6]  We’re the perfect distance from the sun, and an incredibly unlikely series of events occurred to make life possible on the planet. What I felt at that moment is impossible to describe. It made me think and I realized that the world cannot be changed by an individual. We still obliviously cut down forests and build ugly suburbs; we still burn millions of tons of coal a year, and we still don’t change.[SA7] 

            The other trip that stood out to me was when I went up to the White Mountains in New Hampshire. The highlight of that trip was going to be summiting Mt. Washington. The first few days of the trip the other campers and I went rock climbing near Mt. Washington. After a short hike, we got to the rock wall. Rock climbing was a lot of fun, and in my opinion, a lot more fun than watching TV, or playing video games. The next day we started the hike. We had packed the day before with clothes, sheets, and other things we might need on the two day hike[SA8] , and set out early in the morning. At first the hike was steep and rocky, and I thought, “There’s no way I can do this.” But as I got going I got used to it. About three hours into the hike we were about to leave the forest and start actually going up the mountain. When we got above the tree line we turned around and I saw the most incredible view of my life, an extensive forest beneath us and the rest of the White Mountains in the distance. As I kept going up the steep and rocky trail, I kept turning around and each time the view was better than before. After a few more hours of this, we got to the ridge between two mountains, Mt. Washington, and Mt. Monroe. Even though we all wanted to summit that day, we knew it would be late soon, so we followed the original plan and went to the “Lake of the Clouds” hut to spend the night. After an hour’s hike we got to the hut and it was late in the afternoon. We got there tired and happy and found ourselves to be the only kids there. All the people there were experienced hikers and were amazed to see us. That night there was a meteor shower and there wasn’t any light pollution, or even clouds for that matter. Fifteen other people and I just lay down on top of the rocks and watched, not caring for how freezing cold it was, even though it was summer. The next day when we were hiking up the final trail, we were really excited to be almost there. Finally reaching the top, however, was different from what I had expected. First, there was the huge sense of achievement that comes with summiting a mountain, which to me was more gratifying than any thing else that had ever happened to me. But the summit itself was disappointing. It was basically a big parking lot with some buildings. It doesn’t matter where the space is, because human nature makes us build there. Whether it’s the top of a mountain or in a canyon. Nature is most influential when it comes to advancing in technology. The robotic eye is being made to recognize things the same way as the human brain does. Batteries are being revolutionized by a design that nature created. Almost all of our research is devoted to understanding nature. If we keep destroying the areas untouched by humans, we won’t have anything to learn from. Rare plants would be lost that could have been the cure for cancer, or a new way to get fuel. I wasn’t sure what I was hoping for at the summit, but a parking lot wasn’t it. I felt that views like we could see from the summit should be earned, and you shouldn’t be allowed to just drive up. But it didn’t matter, because I was still happy to be there. The way down was as incredible as the way up, but not quite as difficult. When we finally reached the bottom I looked at what I had just done and thought, “There’s no way I just did that.” All in all, it was one of the best experiences of my life.

Everett Odysseus compare contrast

            In the Odyssey, Odysseus, the Greek hero, has a 10 year journey home where he undergoes many trials and challenges. In the movie O brother where art thou, Everett, the main character, has to go through similar challenges to Odysseus. Despite Odysseus being a hero, Everett had characteristics that in some ways made him more heroic than Odysseus.

            Both Odysseus and Everett had very similar stories in their journey home. This is because the movie O brother where art thou was based off of the Odyssey. Both Everett and Odysseus faced many of the same problems, such as the Sirens, and the Cyclops Polyphemus. For example, Odysseus had over 100 suitors courting his wife because they thought he was dead. Everett also had a suitor, but there was only one. Another example of this was changing the Sirens, who were women who would lure sailors to them by singing. The movie changed them to women who sang and seduced Everett and his men and took in Pete, one of the crew, for the bail. A third example was the Cyclops Polyphemus. He was changed into a large bible salesman with an eye patch, who robbed Everett and his men. While Everett and Odysseus had similar things happen to them, they didn’t always act the same way, or get the same end result because, even though they were similar in many ways, they were different people. Odysseus would sometimes look for only the fighting way through, whereas Everett might seek to trick someone, or escape the problem altogether.

Odysseus was mainly known for being two things, clever, and a hero, but he was also very prideful and vain. During the Trojan War, he fought with the Greeks for 10 years. At the end of the 10^th year, he had the idea for the Trojan horse. The idea was to build a massive wooden horse, and have the best Greek warriors go inside it. They would act like it was a gift saying that they surrendered. Then the Trojans would take it inside the castle, and when it was night, the Greeks would leave the horse and attack Troy from the inside. It worked and that was how the Greeks defeated Troy. Another example of Odysseus being clever was when he was captured by the Cyclops. He got him drunk, and when the Cyclops fell asleep, he stabbed him in the eye. The next day, because the Cyclops was blind, Odysseus and his men were able to escape underneath sheep as the sheep left to go out into the field. But Odysseus can also be vain and prideful. For example, when he escaped from the Cyclops, he yelled out “Cyclops, if any man on the face of the earth should ask you who blinded you, shamed you so – say Odysseus, raider of cities, he gouged out your eye, Laertes’ son who makes his home in Ithaca!” (Book 9, lines 558 – 562), so the Cyclops would know who blinded him, and he would get credit for it. But the Cyclops throws a boulder at the ship, because he heard where it was from Odysseus’s voice, and then knowing his name, was able to curse Odysseus, and ask Poseidon to make Odysseus’s journey home as difficult as possible.

            Everett, like Odysseus was also vain. When they were escaping from a burning barn, he wanted to make a detour so he could get his hair gel. This would have gotten him killed, but his crew convinced him not to. This shows that even though he could be stubborn, he could also be convinced to do something. He also liked to show that he was smart by using big words in every sentence. He was also somewhat humble, because he could admit a mistake, and at one point in the film, asked his crew for forgiveness, whereas Odysseus never did.

            Everett and Odysseus had many similarities. For example, they both were “smart” and were known for it. They were also both vain, and always tried to make themselves look better whenever possible, whatever the cost. They also had many differences. Odysseus was much more of a “fighting” person, and always wanted to solve problems with a sword. An example of this was when he tried to fight Scylla, who was immortal. “But now I cleared my mind of Circe’s orders – cramping my style, urging me not to arm at all.” (Book 12, lines 45 – 46), he went up on deck with his some of his crew, and lost his 6 best men. Other than that, he almost always “won” his fights, like when he went past the sirens he chose to listen to them while his crew tied him to the mast, and put wax in their ears. “They bound me hand and foot in the tight ship – erect at the mast block” (Book 12, lines 194-195). Everett, on the other hand, would usually be on the losing side of fights. When he met the Sirens, Pete was captured. When he met the Cyclops, he was robbed. Everett was also much more humble than Odysseus. Odysseus may have shown some remorse occasionally, but he never actually apologized for anything he did wrong. When Everett told Pete and Delmar that he had lied about the treasure, he apologized, showing that he could be humble.

            While Odysseus may have been a hero, Everett, the protagonist in the film O brother where art thou, was in some ways more heroic than Odysseus. Though Odysseus and Everett were proud people, Everett could be humble, and admit his mistakes. Though Odysseus and Everett were both vain, Everett could be convinced that there were things more important than himself. Though Odysseus and Everett were both the leaders in their respective groups, Everett cared more about his men, whereas Odysseus would recklessly answer to any challenge, no matter the harm to his men. In all, any humility and being humble could make someone greater than any hero who was proud and self-centered.

Why do we write?                                                                                                       11/24/10

Is it important to you to fit in? Have you ever done anything as part of a group that you’re ashamed of?                                                                                                                       12/2/10

What makes someone an adult? Do you ever finish growing up?                                  1/25/11

What are some expectations set on you by others? How do these compare to expectations you put on yourself?                                                                                    4/5/11

            Expectations put upon me by others are that I do well in school. I expect myself to do this also, but I also expect my self to do well in things other than academics. These expectations are somewhat different, because I expect more from myself than others expect from me.

    In my last blog post I talked about the Tunisian revolution, and how that set off similar a revolutions in Egypt, and an ongoing rebellion in Libya. In this blog post I will be talking about the revolution in Egypt, and what caused the protests to be successful and cause Hosni Mubarak to step down from office after 30 years.

    Asmaa Mahfouz created video blog posts that she wanted to motivate the Egyptians to protest against Hosni Mubarak. She posted them on Facebook and YouTube, which was the reasons the internet was taken down by the government the day after the protests began. The protests began in January 25th, when tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Cairo, and more in other cities in Egypt. January 25th was the day chosen because it was a national holiday, that celebrated the police officers who died in a confrontation with British soldiers. This most likely led to these protests to be successful because it was symbolic of the Egyptian people overcoming a oppressing force. On January 28th there began a series of protests called the "Fridays of Anger", where protesters would gather to protest with many other people in cities around Egypt. The Egyptian government then began to use the military to counter to protesters, but the military refused to do certain things such as shoot at the protesters. Finally, on February 11th, after 16 days of protesting and violence, Hosni Mubarak stepped down, and the Egyptian parliament was dissolved 2 days later, to be replaced by a temporary council that would hold power for 6 months to give time for elections to be had. 

    There were many causes for the revolution, but some of the main ones were police brutality, corruption,  and "The Emergency Law". Before the protests, police brutality had become common in Egypt. Mubarak and his regime frequently denied the use of brutality and torture by the police, despite videos and first hand accounts of the existence of police brutality. For the 30 years of Mubarak's presidency, there had been suspicion of manipulation of election results. For the 5 elections Mubarak was in, he won each time with a huge majority. In 2005 Ayman Nour was imprisoned before the elections that he was running against Mubarak of that year. An emergency law had been made after the six day war in Egypt in 1967, but despite it being suspended for 18 months in the 1980s, it is still in effect. It suspended certain constitutional rights, legalized censorship, and allowed the government to imprison individuals indefinitely without cause. This law has not been removed yet, but it has been announced that it will.

    In my next blog post I will be talking about the ongoing rebellion in Libya, what led up to it, the political state in Libya, and about Muammar Gaddafi.

    This is the first of five blog posts in a project called "You and the World." In this project we will be choosing a current topic or issue that we care about. Along with writing blogs, we will be debating over other people's issues, and writing a speech.

    I have chosen the revolts in the Middle East as my topic, because I think that it is one of the more important events of our time. It seems similar to the countries of Europe overthrowing their monarchies.

    The revolutions are called the Sidi Bouzid Revolt, or the Jasmine Revolution. It started in Tunisia when a street vender named Mohammed Buazizi set himself on fire, in a demonstration against the treatment he received from the government after they confiscated his scale, which he needed to support his family. this led to a series of protests that resulted in the Tunisian Prime Minister Zine El Abidine Ben Ali stepping down from a post he held for 34 years. This eventually led to a similar series of protests in Egypt that led to their leader Hosni Mubarak stepping down, and an ongoing rebellion in Libya. I believe this is incredibly important, because for the first time, the people in the middle east are refusing to put up with the oppression they have lived with for so long. In interesting thing about these protests is that most of the protesters are very young, and it makes me wonder if our generation will continue to rebel against the things they see as wrong, like what has happened in the middle east.

    What I wonder about is whether or not this will lead to protests in other countries, and whether these protests (if they do happen) will be more or less peaceful, or a rebellion like in Libya.

    What I will explore in my next blog post is the protests in Egypt, and what factors caused the protests to be successful in Egypt and Tunisia.

Bibliography:

 - http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/01/14/AR2011011405084.html

 - http://www.iar-gwu.org/node/257