Jaleel's Global Blog

Nelson Mandela and Apartheid

2009-05-06T06:17:00.000-07:00

Apartheid was a term given by the South African Bureau for Racial Affairs which forced separate development of the races. It was first legislated in 1948. It prohibited any sexual relations or any marriage between mixed races it also required all black people over the age of 16 to carry identity documents and ordered separate transportation and other public facilities for blacks. This brought up the Separate Amenities Act of 1953.

Nelson Mendela was president of South Africa from 1994-1999 but before all of this he was one of the anti-apartheid leaders. He got arrested in 1962 and spent 27 years in jail for fighting against the apartheid. Originally he was sentenced to 5 years funny thing is, on my birth day April 20th in 1964 Nelson's statement was reopened and further researched and they came up with life imprisionment. During this time he wrote books about his life and how he still was anti-apartheid when he was released he still fought for freedom and became the leader South Africa needed.

African Independence

2009-05-06T06:06:00.000-07:00

1955-1975 A 20 year time period, Africa had gained most of its independence from Europe. Ghana was the first nation to be governed by Africans. The nationalist Jomo Kenyatta was a strong leader of Kenya that helped many of the countries to gain independence.

A huge reason that African began to gain its independence is because the Europeans had to much to handle. Europe was trying to keep Africa and its own country as well as other in command and that was pretty hard to do. Especially after WWII. They were in the hole and they had to handle problems within the own nation. Another reason that they gained their Independence was because of modernization. They went to school to learn to be smarter than the European leaders. Most of them went to school in other countries but when they came back they fought for their rights just like many other great nations.

The Cuban Missle Crisis

2009-05-05T06:34:00.000-07:00

In 1962 the USSR wanted to attack the US. Soviet missiles weren’t strong. It could only be affective against Europe. US missiles were capable to destroy the whole USSR. So in 1962 soviet planned to attack the U.S from Cuba. They thought U.S would be easier from there. So then the USSR put their missiles in Cuba.

The US found out in October of 1962, this was found with photographs, which revealed the construction of missiles in cube. As soon as it was found out president John F. Kennedy was informed. He immediately put his best advisers to handle the crisis. Kennedy order to seise the whole area around Cuba. They also ordered to stop things being shipped to Cuba. In a conference president Kennedy stated that any missile attack from Cuba and the US will come after the USSR. Everyone knew about October 1962. Both sides were worried bout it. They negotiated and resolved that the US move missles from Turkey and the USSR will move theirs from Cuba.

The Cuban missile crisis was the closest the world ever came to nuclear war. Both side were ready to attack each other. It was ended all because of negotiation and the care of both leaders of each of the conflicting countries.

Film Lesson "The Right Stuff"

2009-05-05T06:25:00.000-07:00

The Right Stuff was based on the events of the Cold War and the Space Race. They completed each other to see who would develop the first rocket ship to make it to space.

The Right Stuff showed how test pilots who would be the astronauts would compete to go into space and be the first group of men into space

The USSR was winning but then US took over by having the first man land on the moon

This movie showed actual footage from the actual rockets going up, crashing and the creation of the rockets. They showed the test they gave the Pilots for them to become astronauts. It must have been a real tuff competion.

NATO and The Warsaw Pact

2009-05-05T06:17:00.000-07:00

NATO stands for National Atlantic Treaty Organization, and includes countries in Europe and North America. NATO was an organization of defense alliance, that if any problems, NATO would come to their aid.

Western leaders felt offended by the USSR and their installation of a Communist government in Eastern Europe and their increasing demands. In 1979, NATO made new programs. These new programs helped build up defense, and also helped stop the USSR from building up their nuclear and atomic weapons. The signing of the Intermediate Nuclear Treaty in 1987 began the Warsaw Pact.

The Warsaw Pact was a pact that consisted of mostly the USSR and other Eastern countries. The Warsaw Pact was like NATO, a defense alliance but the USSR dominated it and kept weapontry in other countries.

In 1985, they tried to renew the alliances for an additional 20 years, but by 1991 everyone in the pact dissolved out. It is said that the building of nuclear weapons is what stopped the war from actually happening between the USSR and the US.

Film Lessons "Schindlers List"

2009-05-05T06:10:00.000-07:00

Schindler's List is a black and white filmbased on the real life events of the Holocaust. Oskar Schindler was a business man at the time who saved Jews lives by employing them to work in his factories.

Schindler's List showed Holocaust and all the horror that came with it. Even though I wasn't there I still felt the pain some of the people faced and I imagined my self there and I don't think I would have survived.

The movie showed how it looked like it was snowing when it really was people ashes flying around. It showed people getting shot, people getting taking away from there family and homes. What touched me most was that they killed babies and small children just because they were small. Oskar Schindler saved thousands of lives.

Film Lesson: "Night and Fog"

2009-03-26T06:05:00.000-07:00

When I saw Night and Fog it was actually scary. I never seen so many dead body's ever. What makes it worst is that this actually happened and it wasn't just something in a movie. They showed people working to death if not damn near. In the documentary they showed the Nazi's trying their best in the completion genocide.

This was a very powerful film. Even thought it was i French I couldn't understand what it was saying but there wasn't any need for it the images explain its self. Some of the things shown was gruesome.

I think this wasn't as good as Schindler's list because Schindler's list showed every little detail. From the showing ashes of the burnt bodies flying around as it was snow. Even doe it wasn't better then Schindler's list this was still a great document.

WWI & The Treaty of Versailles

2009-02-24T06:05:00.000-08:00

After WWI, the France and other winning countries was happy because of victory but disapointed about the damages done. They wanted to still get Germany for their actions. They blamed Germany for everything and made them suffer by making them sign a document. All the countries that took place in war gathered at the Palace of Versailles and sign the treaty. This treaty is called The Treaty of Versailes.

In this treaty the German's had to pay reperations for the damages done to the other countries. Their miltary was disarmed. All the colonies the German's had were free and they lost alot of land. I don't think the treaty was fair but I think the German's were wrong in the first place.

Because of a man, Adolf Hitler stood up and tried to bring his countryback. He tried this before but he was jailed for his actions. When he was released he was back at it and was suceessful the next time. The German's were impressed in the way he walked, talked, looked and carried himself. Hitler said theat the other countries caused their nation's problems and it was the govrnment fault and he blamed it for having a non pure German's (Jew's) who he said caused some of the problem's.

Because of the weak govrnment, this gave Hitler a chance. Germany was anxious to get back power that they didn't care who brought it for them as long as they gained back power. His actions brought WWII.

Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) and the Modernization of Turkey

2009-02-13T06:14:00.000-08:00

"Ataturk" Kamal was known as the father of Turkey. He was a liborator and tried to bring his country out of the dark. He modernized Turkey and tried to advance them even further.

Kemal wanted he people to do different. He wanted them to dress like the American's and Europeans. He didn't want them to wear sandals or fezes. He brought secularation to school's which pervented the preaching of religion. He wanted independence for all of his people.

Film Lesson - "Gandhi"

2009-02-12T06:11:00.000-08:00

During Gandhi's lifetime he fought for everyone but mostly people who resided where ever he stepped. When He was first in South Africa, where he fought to help them to get freedom from the British. He lead a march to protest a iron works factory. He did whatever it took to help the people. He got arrested dozens of times just to show his people that he was there for them. He showede them he cared and wanted to help to get equality.

Then Gandhi came back to India after being released from jail. At this time he was a National hero. He didn't really think he was a hero, he just considered himself as a man doing what was right for his people. He lead marches for salt, clothes everything that the British tried to keep from the people. The British didn't just give up them beat them brutally even killed them. The Amritsar Massacre was one of the things they tried to do which didn't stop them. What was so amazing about Gandhi's protestes and mareches is that they all were non-violent. This later influnced the famous leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Gandhi lead his people to independence but he still didn't get exactly what he wanted he wanted Hindu's and muslum's to live together but instead the creation of pakistan taken place which changed that. He was assinated for trying to bring them both togther. He idea's still lived on.

I think without Gandhi India would have been still under Britsih rule a little longer but not for a very long time. At this time WWII was happening which also involved the British. The Britsih who had a neopolic complex tried to take over the world but because of revolutions this the British lost all power and Many gained their Independence.

The Russian Revolution

2009-01-09T10:15:00.000-08:00

The Russian Revolution was after the Russians backed away from WWI. Also the Russians were ftired of with their czar and decided to overthrow him, it was also the start of communism. During the Russian revolution there were series of other revolutions within it like the February revolution and the October revolution/Bolshevik revolution. The February revolution was when the Russian people removed their czar Nicholas II, their wasn't much uprising during this revolutions but them removing the czar and having a temporary government after.
The Bolshevik revolution was led by Vladamir Lenin who's ideas were similar to Karl Marx. Lenin spread the ideas of communism and the people supported his ideas because they knew it was time for change.

World War I

2009-01-07T09:55:00.000-08:00

World War I had many causes on why it began. Europe and the America periods of peace since their revolutions. There was alot of changes around that time. The west side, grew in trade and colonies, but rival counties gradually grew and alliance camps emerged. Economic competition and arms race also became intense. The Balkans became a hotspot of western society. Then war broke out in 1914, a war which was unexpectedly disastrous and destructive. The war was caused by a number of factors. Factors Such as militaryism, nationalism, colonizing. The economies that were rivals, competed to find the better country. Countries such as Great Britain, France, Italy, Japan, and Germany paid money for there military but Germany was on top of all. They had money and weapons and a get military to begin with. From the beginning this treathen the other countries and it was hard for them to keep all the weapons they bought and waste them.a

The Opium Wars

2008-12-10T10:10:00.001-08:00

China is a very old country with ideals that have lasted more than two thousand years. The Chinese people were satisfied with their way of life and had little interest in the nations of the Western Hemisphere. Tea which is grown in China, had become a big drink in Great Britain. China would have rather not traded with the British. They were going to trade with Britain only if they used there port in Canton. They did not want western ideas in their society.The British decided they needed to "balance their trade." That means that they must buy and sell to China, not just buy. So they decided to sell Opium. Western Civilization has grown and prospered in the past millennium because of trade. so they tried to keep that going.

Opium is a drug grown in India. Opium is used to make morphine and heroin. Opium is made from poppi seeds. The Chinese government outlawed the import of Opium because of the debilitating effects of the drug.In 1838, China ruled that anyone dealing in Opium would be put to death. Shortly after that, government official began to destroy any opium coming into their land. This brought war, henced the name "The Opium Wars".

The Opium War lasted from 1839 to 1842. The British firepower was way better than China. So China took a humiliating defeat. The governments signed a peace treaty that allowed the British to use five ports instead of one. The Chinese also lost control of the important island of Hong Kong. Eventually, China was also forced to legalize the selling of opium. The treaty that ended the Opium War was the first of many "unequal treaties" with the west. It began a century of invasion and humiliation for a very proud nation.

Film lesson: "Mountains of the Moon"

2008-12-10T10:05:00.000-08:00

The Europeans faced many hardships as they explored Africa. Some of them were: that they caught diseases like malaria and had to cures for them till later. They also had no maps, so Africa was an unknown land to them. Many African tribes were territorial and killed/tortured foreign people, therefore the Europeans always had to trade and give away things to content the others. The European explorers also had difficulty sleeping in the wilderness as they had to be protected from bugs and insects. Africa was completely unknown land to the Europeans, and that was a major factor into making exploration difficult. What makes thing even worst after the Europeans got into the country after the hardship, they began taking over, naming things without consent of the African's .

It is weird that Lake Victoria is named after a British Queen, since it is located deep inside Africa. It is strange since the British did not discover the lake as there were already people living there. Africa had no specific boundaries or border lines. Africa's countries were all mapped out by the British. It is also weird how the lake is still named Lake Victoria today.

The Europeans had a lot of technological advances compared to the Africans. The Europeans had huge ships, magnifying glasses, telescopes, guns, goods, etc. The latest weapons the Africans had at that time were spears. The Europeans were more advanced and developed technological.

The Europeans eventually conquered Africa easily because of their invention of the machine gun. The Africans were surprised from a basic handgun, and the machine was just devastating. This allowed the Europeans to easily overtake Africa and conquer it. The Africans had no defenses against the Europeans' guns. There was no chance of stopping the Europeans from invading and taking over their land.

The Meiji Restoration of Japan

2008-12-10T10:00:00.000-08:00

For a long period of time, the nation of Japan isolated itself from the rest of the world. This was known as the Tokugawa period. The Shogun and the samurai believed that outside contacts could potentially threaten their power. This period of isolation lasted for over 250 years. In 1853, four American warships appeared in Edo Bay. They were under the command of Commodore Matthew Perry. He came with a request from the United States government asking for Japan to open up its ports and to establish diplomatic relations between the two nations. Perry came with the sails of his ships down to show the Japanese the technological progress that the West has made. The Japanese also saw the guns on the ships and knew that no Japanese vessel can stand up against Western ships. The Japanese knew they could not reject any of the United States' requests because those requests were backed up with force. The Japanese decided to sign the Treaty of Kanagawa with the United States which opened up ports to United States ships. This allowed other Western nations to sign treaties with Japan.

There was much unrest afterward and the Shogun no longer ruled Japan. The Meiji Restoration was when power was "restored" to Emperor Meiji. During the Tokugawa period, the Emperor had no real power and only had ceremonial duties. Emperor Meiji wanted to modernize Japan and used Western nations as his model. He sent envoys to study the West's political system's. What was learned was used to shape Japan's government. Their old feudal system was done away with. A new system was set in place which allowed citizens to elect their legislators. They also imitated the education systems and the military of the West which made Japan a very powerful nation.

Karl Marx and The Industrial Revolution

2008-11-06T10:02:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx is German born in Germany in 1818. He was born into jewish family but his family converted to christianity so he could get a better job. He didnt believe in god, he thought religion was an idiotic thing for the people. He had a atheist way of sight to religion and god. When he worked he thought it was unfair, unsafe and very harsh how the land owners and bosses at jobs treated the workers. Soon after he was dismayed by the workers in Europe. From there on he tried to get workers to join and fight back the people of High Ranking and class. He felt workers rather than owners should control the land and farms, all of his ideas is know as Communism.

Communism is when people beleive everything should be equal when things isn't. He fought for the rights of the workers. The ideas of Marx were not used in the communist countries. Marx believed that workers would control government, but communist governments was very strict. Workers were often forced to work on huge farms and factory. In most Communist nations, the press was un-useful in the case of talking about the government. They were not allowed to print news stories that criticized the government. People who spoke out against the Soviet government were treated horribly. Karl Marx died in 1883, but his ideas lived on.

His ideas help start the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917 and 4 years later Mongolia became the second communist nation. At the end of WWII many govrnments were taken over by communist. Now in the world communism is still around in places such as Cuba or North Korea but all the communist have another thing in common. There flags mostly contain red.

Karl Marx and Communism

2008-11-06T09:53:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx is known as the father of communism. He believed that everyone should be equal. Equal like as in having equal power, chances and money. Instead of one person being in control like free-for-all , everyone is in control of them selves.

Marx wanted communism because he was tired of having an unfair society where some people work harder then others and get more money because of higher classes or ranking. Higher classes were the ones in control of there society when really he believed everyone should have equal power.

Robespierre and The Reign of Terror

2008-10-16T10:20:00.000-07:00

Max Robespierre was the dictator of France. He was going to stop the Jacobins from starting a war against Austria, and after the battle gain control of the Government. When he could've stop there, he didnt he decided to use his power to wipeout and kill any revolutionaries. The People behind his back began to fear and felt unsafe. Later on he was arrested and Executed for causing another fight and killing Revolutionaries (beheadings).

After the French Revolution all the third estate of France were happy that there was gonna be change in their government, but before they were able to let change come about, The Reign of Terror.

The Reign of Terror was a period of time that occured a little over a year after the French Revolution and it was conflict between two rivals. The Girondins and The Jacobins. The Jacobins were a very big political group that wanted to gain control in the monarch political party after the French Revolution. The Girondins were a group of people who had certain opinions and principles rather than an organized political party. The Jacobins wanted to place order back into France while the Girondins wanted to have there certain beliefs and principles. This happened because the leader of the Girondins wanted to start a war against Austria but the Jacobins didnt want to because they didnt want militaryism. The Jacobies and Girondins faught a battle leaving over 4,000 dead.

Simon Bolivar and Latin American Revolutions

2008-10-16T10:10:00.000-07:00

Simon Bolivar was a liberator and a leader which peple called him the George Washington of South America. He is famous for giving the Republic Colombia which consisted of Colombia and Venezuela their freedom and independence from Spain. Simon Boliar viewed the way America and France got there freedom from corrupt leaders and government. Spain owned several Countries in South America and Simon Bolivar thought it was time Colomnia and Venezuela had there freedom. He was joined by Francisco de Miranda in the revolt against the Spanish. During the battle while Bolivar was occuping Venezuela, Miranda was defeated by Spain. So Bolivar gatherd people from Jamaica, Ireland and England and defeated the Spanish. As years passed he gained more countries, mainly ion South America to help with the revolt.

Nationalism and the Creation of Italy

2008-10-16T09:53:00.000-07:00

Nationalism is an idea or belief that a persons loyalty goes out to his country. You are a nationalist if you are American, which whom celebrates the 4th of July. That is an the American Indepence day. Even if you join the Army, Navy, Marines and etc you are a nationalist. Some people don't know when they watch the olympics and root for their country they are nationalist. It's a everyday thing that some people don't know that they are.

Before our time, nationalism ruined countries but it also help build many. Italy was one of those countries that it help build while detroying other ones. Before italy was united it use to be broken up. Nationalism united it because the nationalist spreaded and people united to form one big nation.

The French Revolution

2008-09-23T09:57:00.000-07:00

1) They people were mad because the Nobels, the King and the Clergy had way too much power.

2) A Peasent might have grumbled over the prices of bread, the prices doubled.

3) It's showing the First and Second Estate on top of the Third Estate.

4) It was horrible. They barely had anything.

5) They resented them because the way they were treated.

6) Many people were influenced. Many people of all races. Most recently it was Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

7) It was banned because the First and Second Estate didn't want any power or rights to go to the Third Estate.

The Enlightment

2008-09-18T09:54:00.001-07:00

John Locke was a very influencial person because of his thoughts and how he thought. He had good views on life and thought that the people didn't need kings or queens theycould govern themselves. He thought that people of all races and classes should be born equal. He also influenced the U.S Consitution. He was encouraging revolution.

Trail of Galilieo

2008-09-18T09:54:00.000-07:00

In the trail of Galileo, he tried to explain to the town that the Earth revolve around the Sun and not vise versa. They didn't believe him so the tried to excummicate him. He also tried to explain that when heavy and light things fall at the same time they will fall at the same time. The town insist that he was wrong but he was actually right. In the end he was put on house arrest for the rest of his life.

The Scientific Method

2008-09-11T10:15:00.000-07:00

The scientific method was a new way of thinking. Scientist who try do prove or disprove this theory test this experiment over, and over again. This is most commonly used with the Creation vs. Evolution theory. This was also tested with Aristotle theory of different weight falling at different speeds. In the end he was proved wrong.

Evolution vs. Creation

2008-09-05T10:08:00.000-07:00

Evolution is a process which involves inheriting traits. It's also a process that involves offspring’s. This is believed that all organisms had to be descended from common ancestry. In this case it is believe that humans descended from monkeys and gorillas. Then they evolved into cavemen. This evolves to humans.

Creation is the religious belief that life, Earth and the whole universe was created in the original form by a deity or deities, whose whereabouts are supposable. This talks about how the earth was created by God in seven days.

I believe in Creation because if anything evolved it had to be created first. The dirt can’t just evolve into a bug and bugs evolved into a animal and etc. That is just impossible.

Test

2008-09-04T10:11:00.000-07:00

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