Khmer Rouge Multimedia Ppt.

Research Question

Question:
What was the reasoning behind the intentional air raids and subsequent decimation of the cities of Dresden and London in World War II?


What I will have to learn: 
To answer my question without relying on speculation will require a fair deal of research. I will have to look at military logs, historian perspectives and really look at this situation from both sides. The trouble I foresee is not finding information on the bombings, but legitimate reasons for their occurrence. I do not believe I will get the same reason twice, so I will probably have to take their common themes and work from there. If I can find them, personal reactions and motivations concerning these events would shed light on any personal or societal vendettas, which could shed light on possible ulterior motives. I hate time consuming work Mrs. Knechel.

1. I know my fair share about WWII, and I know about the fire bombings of Berlin and London, but I have never explored them or their motives. These attacks, as well as the nuclear bombings of Japan, signify the transitions from Military to Civilian targets. The unwarranted killing of innocents IS illegal and considered a war crime, yet no one was ever prosecuted.

2.
http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/blitz.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombing_of_Dresden_in_World_War_II

3. What happened at Dresden? Would the early phases of the Battle of Stalingrad fit my parameters for militaristic foul play? How can I link war crimes to human rights violations?

Post Seminar Maus Question

Our seminar was pitifully short. This book was pretty straight forward to me, so I didn't have all too many questions at the exceptions for the masks. I feel that we heard opinions to justify the uses of masks, some better than others, but I definitely saw that we didn't reach a conclusion with those opinions and that we really left it there. I personally have no real clue what the masks mean, though I am sure they are significant. I have a few ideas, but nothing concrete. This issue definitely could have been addressed better and more effectively.

Modern Day issues in the Congo.

Link 1 Reuters

Link 2 CNN

Recurring issues in the Congo seem to revolve around violence and rape, with an emphasis on the latter. The Congolese government seems to either be unaware or unable to act on these issues. The UN has been acting with minimal severity among the Congo. The UN has taken up what appears to be a police role, catching a few of those responsible for various rapes and murders. Obviously, with the crime rate being so high, there is only so much the UN can legally do. Looking back, the way of life in the Congo has changed very little, even with the absence of a definite colonial power. People are still raped and murdered without repercussion, only this time there is no foreigner to blame.

Lingering Discussion Thoughts

A point that I found interesting in the discussion was the fact that Leopold disregarded his homeland to the point that at one point, in the 1890's, he was spending over 50% of the national GDP on his mercenary army: le Force Publique. How did the parliament let him get away with this? Were their powers that minimal that they had no control over Leopold's expenditures.

King Leopold's Ghost Pgs 1-32

Open ended discussion questions:

1) What do forgotten genocides such as the one described here say about the historians which recorded it as well as modern society for forgetting such an atrocity?

2) Could King Leopold II's lack of direct involvement be one of the first intentional uses of plausible deniability?

Reaction:

This book, honestly, isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. The topic is interesting, primarily because it is something significant in history which is an either forgotten or unfamiliar topic among most people. What I find to be intriguing in this chapter is in the Introduction. At the time of its occurrence, it largely went unrecognized on the mainstream media until a prominent, white man brought it to light. What I find so interesting is that nearly a half-a-dozen people prior to him had either hinted at the topic or come out with it outright, only to be forgotten both by history. The difference? The ones who were never recognized were black. Now I am perfectly aware the racism was still alive and well in the 1900's, but could people really not set aside their differences when 4-8 million Congolese are being systematically enslaved, mutilated and executed? Those are holocaust-type numbers.

Imperialism: End of class thoughts.

In today's class about imperialism, I noticed some disturbing similarities concerning the production, sales and allocation of goods. Looking back into the rise of America, our exportation versus importation ratio was very similar to modern China. Our current importation and inability to produce for ourselves resembles that of Europe at the end of their glory years.

Current Events Practice

1)   1) The murder of 72 people in a Mexican Border town and the reasons for such a large killing is being investigated in this article.

2)   2) The news is fairly recent, within the last two weeks. The police have a suspect and will no doubt investigate the possible causes in time.

3)   3) This article is pretty straightforward. If you would like a more direct report on this article, you should visit mexicodaily.com. Alternate, reliable news sources include BBC News, (news.bbc.co.uk) and NBC News (nbcnews.com).

3 Most Important Things in Recent History and Why.

The assignment: Which three events that you have witnessed in history are most important to you and why? Interviewee: Robert Barrack (Dad)

His Answers:

1) The Cold War.

            My Dad considers the Cold War to be among the most important events he has witnessed specifically because of nuclear proliferation and lingering threat of nuclear war. Being from Oak Ridge, (home to the Manhattan Project), he and the rest of his community considered themselves to be living in one of the more likely targets for a nuclear strike. As a result, nuclear detonation drills were mandatory everyday at 5:00PM in which each family retreated to their backyard bomb-shelters. Drills at school were not uncommon where an air raid siren sounded and students got under their desks. A time of much higher tension, especially within his family came during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

2) Assassinations of Robert F. Kennedy, John F. Kennedy, and Martin Luther King Jr.

            Being the men that they were, my dad considers these three men to represent all the good in the world at that time. They were heroes and role models to him and his family. Their assassinations occurred within five years of one another, (my Dad’s 7^th grade, 8^th grade and freshmen years; 1963, 1968, and 1968 respectively). The suddenness and close proximity of their deaths was very symbolic of the country’s reluctance to change in his eyes.

3) The Six-Day War

            Having been raised a practicing Jew and Pro-Israeli activist, my Dad experienced one of the strongest senses of pride during the Six-Day War in Junior High. He puts special emphasis on two facts which he considers to be his points of pride: 1) Israel, a country of no more than 10 million at the time, repelled an entire Inter-Arab coalition in just six days. They captured not just their land, but actually pushed into the invading countries. They captured so much land that they could not effectively hold it all with their forces so dispersed. Eventually they gave back the land at the exception of the Golan Heights and Gaza Strip. 2) When Israel fights in wars like this, it is not like the wars the United States fights. When Israel fights, they fight for the survival of their nation.

My Answers:

1) 9/11

            I am positive this will become a cliché answer, but I feel that leaving this out would be wrong. As we all know, 9/11 was the most effective and worst attack America has dealt with thus far on her own soil. Despite the tragedy in the event itself, I believe that the most significant aspect of this event was the repercussions that followed, specifically the incursion into the Middle East and the quasi-Vietnam War response we have seen from the American public.

2) Obama Cancels Domestic Manned Space Flight

            Houston, we have a problem. Obama canceled all domestic and near-future manned spaceflight missions and then followed up by telling the chief of NASA that his primary mission was to improve the United States’ global image in places such as the Middle East! What an idiot. As you might be able to tell, I don’t like Obama… or his space plan. His space plan is not bad, per-se, but it could definitely be better. Like most things Obama, it seems that this was rushed through the proper channels without biding time editing and perfecting it before its initiation. Obama has suspended all planned domestic manned space flights for the next two decades in the interest of developing robotic spacecraft and preparing for a mission to mars. One would think that this would be a bragging point in his plan, but these are merely sub-points. I assume that after reading through this rambling paragraph, you may be wondering why this is so important to me. This space plan and its effects on the aerospace industry directly affect my career path of choice- aerospace engineer. Though no engineering jobs will be cut with this plan, my long-term goal of joining the Astronaut Corps is very much in jeopardy.

3) Hurricane Katrina

            Being from New Orleans I am obligated to put this up here. Though I was not in the city itself at the time of the storm, watching your hometown be swept away is something very few people get to experience. I have not been back to New Orleans since the storm, but it is very high on my “To-Do” list.