Blog #15 - Chapter 20 Collapse at the Center

This was one of my favorite chapters I read so far. I like how Strayer had included the World Wars in one section instead of separating them in to their own sections. I always like reading about the World Wars especially how they got started, as well as the movies that evolved from them. The World Wars had influence a creation of many great movies that are romantic or have a great message behind time. From the top of my head I could think of Pearl Harbor, The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas, Swing Boys, and Saving Private Ryan. When reading this section of the Wars I thought of it as a domino effect, that lead up to each war. Even the domino effect I think of it as, World War I cause World War II. This domino effect started off with the assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand, thus creating a cascade of events, and mass murders. It made me wonder what if the Archduke was not assassinated, would there still be a World War, would America still have endured a Great Depression, or would there be such a thing as genocide. It just amazing to think how one little thing can create all this chaos in the World, it was like a ripple in the pond, how the ripple continues to get bigger. I was really surprised to read how the Second World War began in Asia before it started in Europe, I always thought it originated in Europe and then Japan got involved, but Japan initiated the War. Reading about that really caught me by surprised, I was not expecting it, and it totally changed my ideas or views of World War II. It was also sad to read about the Jews how the Nazis created genocide with them and put them in concentration camp. When Strayer was talking about the concentration camps I was surprised there was no mention about how the United States practiced the use of concentration camp toward the Japanese. It is really ironic how America stressed a lot on the concentration camps and helped fight to end it and save the Jews, but America had the Japanese in concentration camps. I feel like that part of history is never mention, and the concentration camps are only referred to the Jews, when it should be referred to the Jew and Japanese. Although America did not go to the extreme with the concentration camps like the German and Nazi, but they still enforced this practice and the Japanese was not treat fairly. I believe in every war every Nation has to blame someone for their downfall or reason to disaster. In most wars the nation would blame the whole race, when it was out of the action from particular people. Nation should not blame nor torture a whole race for an action of particular individuals. For example Germany blamed ALL Jews for the downfall of their economy, the world blamed ALL Germans for the genocide of Jew, American blamed ALL Japanese people for the attack on Pearl Harbor, finally America blame ALL middle eastern race for the attack of 9/11. Nations need to learn that not every one of that particular race had an affect or contribution of disasters happening in the world.

Blog #14 Chapter 19

I was really surprised reading about the Opium War, especially reading how the Chinese were involved with it. I also thought it was also funny to read how they looked back at that part of history and reflected it as a time of humiliation. Knowing about the stereotypes linked to the Chinese people today learning about history probably could never really imagine them getting into drugs, it was even shocking for me to read. Unlike any other drug, the involvement of drugs always has consequences, which was prostitution. I feel that drugs and prostitution goes hand and hand with each other, such as where there is a big problem of drugs, that area would have a problem with prostitution. Just like how opium was big during that century, opium is becoming a famous drug again mainly among young adults. Which is also call “brown bagging” where they put various types of opium in pill form and they just pick one and take it. It was interesting to me to read about this section about opium and the trade and how it affected China, because I am also reading about opium and other drugs in another class. It was good reading the background and history behind opium. Opium is commonly like by early adults, and adults tend to take opium for several reasons, the main reason adult take opium is their way to handle stress, anxiety, and depression, which is not the proper way of handling these issues. It was also interesting to read how the Opium War helped China evolved and it lead them into following industrial practice. I still feel like China still follows industrial idea based off what I heard. I think this because China is known to have various strict work factories and the workers are paid not enough. It reminded me a lot of the European Industrial practice between the middle and lower class. How terribly the lower class was treated when working in the factories, as well as the conditions they worked in. China was once known as having children working in sweat shops in these harsh conditions, just like the orphans in Europe. I watched a video about China social classes how children were in school for a certain period of time, and then after school they went to work in the factories located in their towns. This industrial revolution had such a big impact on China especially in today’s century. China is the main country that is involved with trading in addition multiple of big companies send their factories overseas for the people in China to work them. It is like the industrial revolution is the reason why China is doing so good economically. I found reading the document Memorial to Emperor Guangxu very powerful especially the statement “you will see that if we can change, we can preserve ourselves, but if we cannot change we will perish” (Strayer, 959). It is important for the community or a society to change, to evolve among other countries in order to be civil and understand the time the world is living in.

Call to Action: Experiments with Notre Dame elementry

I had a really great experience with the Notre Dame eighth graders from the elementary school. The science in action class was nice enough to include me with their activities for Call to Action. The eighth grader from the elementary school, came to the science labs to participate with us in conducting four different experiments. The experiment I conduct with them was the flame test. The kids stuck a cooper rod into six different compounds and then stuck the rod into a flame. When they stuck the rod into the flame it would cause the flame to change a different color. Before they conducted the experiment they made a prediction what color each of the compounds would produce based off of their observation. After they did the flame test we had them compare their predictions to the actual results. The purpose of doing this was to have them get familiar with the scientific method. It was really great seeing how excited these students were to do the experiments, as well as their eagerness to ask more questions. One of the questions that got the professor excite to do was “if we mix these two solutions will they make another color” due to this question it got everyone wondering so we took time to see if it was true. It was not true the flame had two different colors. From the experience I feel like we showed the eighth grader that learning can be exciting and it does not always pertain to learning straight out of the book. That learning can be really fun. The frustrating part about the whole experience was the students were asking us questions before revealing the correct results so it was hard explaining to them in a way that would not give up the correct answer. Then again we encourage them that it’s okay to get another answer because in science there is no correct answer everything is based off of your experience and your methods. It was fun talking to the students and seeing their excitement because they never get to do these types of experiments in elementary school. I also think today we also encourage them to continue their education and go to college to experience new things and have the opportunity to do things in their interest that can be exciting to them. Overall it is a good feeling to give back to the community, especially seeing how excited the students were made me excited and make the experience that much better. It good to give these types of opportunity to kids that don’t get the chance to do these experiences. I believe that they will remember this experience for a long time. If I was given an opportunity to do experiments when I was younger I would remember it to and encourage me more into what field of education to follow. Today I took a lot out of today not only did the students learn from us we learn from them too.

Extra Credit: A Doctor without Boarders

Paul Brockman is a trainer in treating Ebola as well as a project manager, for Medecins Sans Frontier, also known as MSF. He spend one year in Papua New Guinea treating people with Ebola as well as malaria. Paul Brockman likes to give aide mainly to Haitians and is hoping to go service there alongside his mother. He states that MSF purpose is to “restore people ability to make own choices. He also believe that the Ebola epidemic would not have been so serve if the country and the world was more flexible, acknowledgeable to the disease, and know the right procedures in caring for it. That countries should support and donate money to MSF to help take care of these epidemic and keep them from getting severe, and helping educate these third world countries to take care of these sickness with the appropriate procedures. He had made a harsh but true statement that if the United States can spend so much money toward dog food then they can donate as much money to MSF to help this people in third world countries. Ebola is not as severe as it mention in media, it is not as infectious and dangerous as scabies. As well as does not have the leading cause of death, more women die from child birth than people do from Ebola.  Then he addressed the question of colonialism the best he could, but sort of got off topic with is passion for people. He describe his understanding about it, that people who stay longer lose the attitude to save the world because they become so dependent on other people. When people learn about humanity then they will be able to give back. Also there is a lot of complication in history that caused human anger, greed, thus affecting that area where the people lived. When people travel to this area or different areas, getting that exposure gives ones more compassion toward humans. He did agree that colonialism has made a mess of things, but we have to see the results of it in order to understand the community, how they organize themselves, to come to a common purpose. He began to explain how New Guinea people continue to live in the same area for many years and due to this they know their ancestor from many decades ago, unlike us American at the top of our head. His idea of why Ebola became a big epidemic because we were not looking at it when it was happening in various part of Africa, but we decided to focus on it when it occurred in America. This can also be reflected to CST how we need to think globally. If everyone was able to think globally about Ebola the epidemic probably would not have lasted as long as it did or been such an outrage of event the media proposed it to be. Thinking globally about this would have prepared everyone better in handling Ebola, and taking the appropriate procedures.

Blog #13 CST handout

Reading about the Catholic’s social teaching was interesting and eye opening. When I read the beginning of section seven I did not agree how the Catholics tried to get their social teaching across to people. When reading that little passage it remind me of one of the topics we read in the previous chapters, how the Catholic were burning down town in order to show their control and it force people into converting. It was also ironic to read how it said the evil in the world is people trying to have power, when back in history Catholic were burning down towns and forcing people into their social teaching in order to have power. It was really interesting for me because I am Catholic, and just to learn more about the religion. I do agree with Pope Paul how we need to start thinking globally. It’s like when learn about how treat people, we need to look at the big picture in order to treat them correctly. It’s the same with the world in order to treat problems happening across the world we need to look at it globally the big picture in order to asset all areas of the problem and then take the appropriate route to solve the problems. When people just think locally or at the small picture they are missing other factor that are attributing to the problem, but when you look at the big picture it allowing you to take into consideration of all the factors, and as getting to the root of the problem. Pope Paul was really interesting to read about, he really showed his interested in the world. Especially when he was traveling around the world in order to see the problems the world is faced with that nobody see or hears about, or it is masked by other things. Pope Paul was really inspiring about how his interest in the world, and is theory of thinking globally, just reading about him I got the sense he was truly a man of the world. In my sociology class my professor has always been concerned with poverty because she experienced it firsthand. She had this theory to end poverty. She explained to us that people stay in poverty because they are forced to pay taxes despite them being already low on money, so they are always playing catch up. They are never really given a chance to get on their feet or to grow from there; it is like they are constantly stuck in that position. Then she proposed that the people in the lower class don’t have to pay taxes than they are able to make a better living for themselves and be able to work up the class system and live the American Dream. The upper class should pay taxes because they have enough money too, without their income being hurt by it. So instead of the lower class paying the upper class, the upper class should being paying the lower class, in order to avoid poverty. 

Blog #12 The European Moment

I found it really interesting reading about women and the colonial economy. It was really funny to ready the statement “What is man? I have my own money”. When reading that statement it made me laugh because all I could imagine was a women saying “awe I want that” and then her husband denying her the item, and she giving him the response I have my own money. These women became so independent that they gained the mind set and attitude of an independent woman. These women were so used to the men being away being shipped off as slave and they took control of the work and household in Africa, they had control. I bet the men came back really surprised to see how the women had control and showed their control by being mouthy to the men. The men were so used to the women being inferior to them obeying them and then all of a sudden the women are standing up to them and basically treating them as they are inferior now. That must have been a major shocker for the men and a hard adjustment for them. That statement can be compared to the women in today society. In today century it is more common to find independent women compared to back then. It is usually said that guys have a hard time dating an independent woman because they both fight for control in who wears the pants in the relationship. Now it is more common to see the woman in the household to be the bread winner, bring in most of the income, while the male figure is at home taking care of the kids. It is even more common for the women to bring in the household income in addition take care of the children, women are executing both roles in the household. In today century women are less likely to depend on men and now work enough hours in order to provide for themselves, so there is no need to for them to ask the man for money. It is now an ideal role for young girls to look up to becoming an independent woman. Reading this section finally answered all my wondering questions. In the previous chapter about slaves how slaves were shipped from Africa to various locations in order to work. I wonder what happen back in Africa how the land, and house hold controlled was. When the men were shipped away the women took control and they became so used to this lifestyle it became natural to them, and when the men came back they did not want to give their control back. This reminded me a lot of World War II when the men left for war and the women took control over the men’s jobs and they ended up liking the opportunities they had they did not want to give it up. So they ended up fighting for the same right as men in order to have the control they once had when the men were gone.