Brendan Walsh
HWL3
Ms. Parham
3/5/14

Ukraine Blog

           In every major revolution or regime change there is a catalyst. The catalyst is the people. However people use tools to gain the freedoms they desire. It could be violence, literature, social media or a whole host of other things. I believe that the tools the Ukrainians are using are technologys having to do with the internet and social media.

           At the beginning the protests were peaceful but when the government intervened things took a turn for the worse. Violence and chaos erupted throughout Kiev a major Ukrainian city. Protestors captured police brutality on film and have been releasing it to the world through news organizations and social media. The police and military forces suppressing the protestors began doing something very peculiar. In addition to arresting and beating protestors they began smashing people’s phones so the information could not be spread. Information is key. The Egyptian revolution and Arab Spring would not have been possible if not for cell phones and social media. The Ukrainians are taking the same approach.

          News media within the Ukraine have been capturing the situation unfold. News reporters from all over the world have traveled to capture history unfold. The media plays a pivotal point in helping out the Ukrainians seeking independence. Their coverage allows the whole world to see what Russia is doing and creates support for the Ukrainians. Seeing soldiers on the borders of Ukrainian towns inspires everyone to support the Ukrainians.

          In addition to news organizations Russia has been counteracting Ukrainian forces suing social media. Ukraine protestors have been trying to spread the word to others through social media. Russian military and government officials have been taking down theses sites.

Brendan Walsh

Ms. Parham
Honors World Literature III

12/15/13

Social Expectations and Responsibilities

            Everyday most humans go through their lives in a robot like routine. Humans generally trend to do what other around them do and rarely differ from the path. For each role in society comes a social responsibility. For example the social responsibility you have to your siblings is to love them and help them always. This is unrealistic because not everyone has the same past and lives the same present.  It is unrealistic to expect people to conform to social expectations and social responsibilities due to everyone living in a different situation.

The Bluest Eye contains many good example of how social expectations are unrealistic. Pecola really proves that social expectations and responsibilities are farfetched. Social responsibility to your community means helping out your neighbors. Social responsibility to your school means taking care of your education and helping student’s around you. How could Pecola be expected to conform to these standards? She lives in a community that pities her and attends a school that ridicules her. Social expectations to your race could include defending it or speaking good words about it. Pecola and her neighbors did the opposite. They tried to embrace a whole new culture. Pecola wanted to be white and her community unknowingly despised being black. Responsibilities and expectations to society are absurd because of the wide range of people in the world.

In the Nazi propaganda speech he told the German people that they were united. He spoke for everyone and said they want full-fledged war and that they won’t stop till they reach victory. This put many Germans in bad situations. By making this speech it laid a heavy expectation on the German people by their government. The expectation that was created was that everyone must support the war effort. If a citizen were to deny funds towards the war or to refuse government proposals they would likely be charged with treason or another crime. The responsibility set on German citizens is unrealistic because not everyone supports the war effort to the same degree as the Nazi Brass running the war.

Everybody makes different decisions based on the situation they are in. When one thing is expected from everybody it is impossible. How could somebody be expected to be a good citizen when they have been mistreated and had their money used by a corrupt government. Somebody who has not faced corruption would likely question the person but they would never understand because they are in a very different situation. This example only represents responsibility to government but this same lesson can be applied to any social expectation. If we know that expectations like these are impossible to follow why do we continue to enforce the ideas of them?

Social Expectations in The Bluest Eye

                 Do certain professions have an obligation to be more socially responsible than others? Do some professions require people to be more selfish and focused on their individual desires? Every job has a different obligation to society. In the novel “The Bluest Eye” we saw people play different roles in society. For example Pecola tried to live up to the social standards of models and famous role models. Cholly embodied family and parenthood. Soap head embodied church and religion. Typically these embodiments would mean something else but in this novel they don’t love up to the standards they are supposed to make. Some jobs require people to be responsible while others promote selfishness and individuality. People in the military, FBI, CIA and other agencies/departments like these are held to a higher responsibility level. For example if a member of one of these agencies were to do drugs, underage drink, commit a crime or any other felony, they are likely to be fired. If they committed a felony they are also unlikely to get the job in the first place. Organizations like these also carry a high level of pride so they try to appear and act as socially responsibly as possible. An example of this is how military members wear their uniforms with precision and pride. A worker at McDonalds is less likely to be fired for being caught under age drinking. Also McDonald’s employees generally tend not to care about their uniforms especially in comparison to those in the armed services.

               Some occupations allow people to be very selfish and often irresponsible. An example of this type of job would be an NFL or NBA player. Major league athletes can choose to be selfish and even irresponsible without facing repercussions. Other people that would fall into this category would be musicians, actors, actresses and jobs similar to these. A recent example of this would be Miley Cyrus’s dance routines and comments to the media. It’s safe to say that her actions are provocative and questionably socially irresponsible.

Social Expectations

Brendan Walsh

Ms. Parham

Honors World Literature III

12/4/13

                                                Social Expectations and Responsibilities

Do certain professions have an obligation to be more socially responsible than others? Do some professions require people to be more selfish and focused on their individual desires? Every job has a different obligation to society. Some jobs require people to be responsible while others promote selfishness and individuality. People in the military, FBI, CIA and other agencies/departments like these are held to a higher responsibility level. For example if a member of one of these agencies were to do drugs, underage drink, commit a crime or any other felony, they are likely to be fired. If they committed a felony they are also unlikely to get the job in the first place. Organizations like these also carry a high level of pride so they try to appear and act as socially responsibly as possible. An example of this is how military members wear their uniforms with precision and pride. A worker at McDonalds is less likely to be fired for being caught under age drinking. Also McDonald’s employees generally tend not to care about their uniforms especially in comparison to those in the armed services.

Some occupations allow people to be very selfish and often irresponsible. An example of this type of job would be an NFL or NBA player. Major league athletes can choose to be selfish and even irresponsible without facing repercussions. Other people that would fall into this category would be musicians, actors, actresses and jobs similar to these. A recent example of this would be Miley Cyrus’s dance routines and comments to the media. It’s safe to say that her actions are provocative and questionably socially irresponsible.

                                                                                                                                                Walsh 1

Brendan Walsh

11/7/13

WL3 Blog

Protecting yourself and family is the most important thing you could do. I believe that a government’s job is to take care of its citizens at all cost.  So does the US have the right to invade other countries if those countries have not attacked us directly? This question can be applied to many nations and not explicitly the US

There are different reasons to attack countries that have not directly attacked you. The US entered WWII following a devastating attack on Pearl Harbor by the Japanese. The US was never at war with Japan however Japan attacked the US. Japan realized eventually the US would enter into war on the ally’s side so they decided to make the first attack. This made a huge dent on the US Navy.

Following the modern Pearl Harbor, 9/11, the US invaded Iraq and later on Afghanistan. The US’s actions were justified because they were actions aimed at protecting the American people. If the Iraqi and Afghani governments cannot control terrorist cells and Islamic extremists in their own country the US must intervene. If the US had sat idly and allowed the terrorist cells to grow in these countries the US would be at great risk.

The US has recently carried out CIBER attacks on Iran’s nuclear program. We have set them back in the nuclear weapons process greatly. While the US did not attack Iran directly, Iran has the right to invade the US. The US is causing harm to Iran and preventing them from furthering their military technology so if Iran were to attempt to raid the US it would be justified.

North Korea has increased rhetoric towards the US and South Korea. North Korea has threatened to use nuclear weapons against the US and North Korea. If the US were to launch a pre-emptive strike on North Korea it would be justified considering they are threatening the US with nuclear war. If North Korea were to invade the South Korea we would also be justified to intervene considering South Korea is our ally.

Dear Ryan, or should I say orange,

I come to you with a proposal. Ever since I was a little child I have loved action heroes. I went through many stages. First I loved Captain America, then Spiderman and finally batman. Batman is still my favorite hero to this day. I love his movies, games and books. I remember one day in class when you were doing batman impressions and they were amazing! Since then I have asked you to do your impersonations but the answer is always a big NO. I’m asking you to say it just one more time out of the kindness of your heart. After all I have devoted a whole blog to this cause so it’s safe to say it means a lot to me.

Enough of my nice side. Let me say this Mr. Schneider if I don’t hear your impression sometime soon there will be consequences. I haven’t yet figured out what those are yet, but I am not faltering, there will be consequences. I may make you lose your sanity by making you expect a prank that will never happen.

If I haven’t convinced you yet I have another proposal. I’m willing to make a deal. For every time you do the impression I am willing to pay you one million pretzels. That’s right, one million. It can be sourdough, honey, utz, roldgold, you name it! Or would you rather receive payment in the form of oranges. After all you were named Orange man. Would this be a more suitable payment!

Doing your impression would be doing the world a favor. Many of my trusted colleagues share the same feelings as me. We are willing to pay you generously for your impression. However Mr. Orange, if you are not willing let’s just say we will squeeze the citrus out of you. At the bottom you will notice that I have inserted a picture of your reward if you choose to except. I have also inserted a picture of what you will become if you refuse my request. (See next page)

Sincerely,

Brendan Walsh

 

Choice 1- (You could bathe in pretzels! Or sell them for a profit)

Choice 2- (Don’t worry your juicing will be humane.)

Brendan Walsh
10/18/13

         Should full body scanners be implemented in airports? This is a very controversial subject and there are many different views. Some people feel that they are a must while others feel it is unconstitutional. In the constitution there is an amendment that states there will be no unnecessary searches or seizures of the American people. But is this unnecessary?

          I believe full body scanners should be implemented to keep the American people safe. I am willing to sacrifice some of my privacy if it means potentially saving my life. Imagine if a terrorist was able to somehow conceal a weapon and board a plane and cause harm to innocent people. If only people had been willing to sacrifice a little privacy others may have lived.  The machines will not show peoples bodies naked only an outline and an x-ray.

         People against full body scanners would argue that this is unconstitutional. They believe that the constitutions states the government cannot search them without reason. I also believe that the government should have a reason to search you but isn't our safety the greatest reason of all?