“But the one thing that I’m very confident about is that the values that we share with the French people, a belief — a universal belief in the freedom of expression, is something that can’t be silenced because of the senseless violence of the few,” Obama said in the statement. President Obama made these remarks as a reaction to the Islamic terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo in January 2015. However, while most Americans believe that freedom of speech should be a universal right, it is not. According to a recent article in the OC Register, 35% of the world is not free and 25% is partly free. Individuals in the world who enjoy freedom of speech are in the minority.
Freedom of the press is the right to print what you think is true and is enjoyed by only 15% of the world’s population. This right is guaranteed to all U.S. citizens by the First Amendment. However, the right to a free press is one that many world leaders do not allow their citizens to have. The right to a free press means that a journalist can report news that makes the leader look bad. In Russia, it is against the law to publish news that is not approved by the government, and journalists who oppose the government have been murdered. In China and Cuba, all news media is owned by the government. One aspect of freedom of expression is the right to organize politically. In much of the world, citizens are not allowed to start political parties or support political parties that do not get governmental approval. In the year preceding the 2012 Presidential election, the Internal Revenue Service (I.R.S.) did not approve nearly 400 non-profit organizations that wanted to promote conservative ideas. Most think this helped President Obama win the election. In over 60 countries of the world, citizens are not allowed to start a political party and must vote for government-approved political organizations. There are countries in which citizens find it dangerous, but not illegal, to practice freedom of expression. In France during the beginning of January, Muslim terrorists attacked journalists at a satirical magazine, killing 12. The journalists had offended Muslims by breaking an Islamic law against depicting images of Muhammad. Even though there is no law in France against this, the journalists were murdered. The American news corporation CNN and the New York Times, as well as other American news organizations, have censored themselves, as well, by not showing images that are offensive to Muslims. They claim they are doing this out of respect for religion. However, these organizations continue to show images that are offensive to Christians and Jews. Most of the countries that are not free are located in Asia and Africa and are either predominantly Muslim or atheist. The world’s most heavily populated country, China, and the world’s largest country by territory, Russia, are not free. All of the countries on the Arabian peninsula, except one, are both Muslim and not free. The only free country in Arabia is the Jewish country of Israel. All of the world’s communist countries are not free, and only one, Cuba, is located in North America. While it is easy for Americans to imagine that people all over the world live and think the same as we do, the facts are very different. Americans are part of a minority of people in the world who believe in and practice freedom of expression. The majority of the world’s leaders do not want their people to have freedom of expression, and, a great many citizens in countries also do not want to have this freedom. For example, after the Charlie Hebdo attacks in France, there have been widespread rallies throughout Asia supporting the Muslim terrorists. Opposite what President Obama declared recently, freedom of expression is not a universal belief and its practice is the exception to the rule. Questions 1. What does President Obama believe is a universal belief, that is, a belief shared around the world? 2. About what percentage of the world enjoys freedom of the press? 3. What does it mean to organize politically? 4. What do most countries that are not free have in common? 5. Task: Find out what the first amendment states. Why do you think the American Founding Fathers included this in the Constitution?
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In early December, Sony Pictures Entertainment’s computer system was hacked by a group that calls itself the “Guardians of Peace.” Hacking means when someone breaks into a computer’s files, steals private information, and in cases like this, releases the information to the public. The Sony hackers stole movies and large amounts of private emails and information. The Obama administration and the FBI strongly believe North Korea hacked Sony to punish it for planning to distribute the movie “The Interview.” The Interview is a fictional movie about two American journalists hired by the CIA to kill the North Korean leader. North Korea denies any involvement in the hacking.
North Korea and South Korea The history of North Korea begins in the first half of the twentieth century. Since the early 1900s, Japan had occupied Korea. Once Japan surrendered to the Americans in 1945, the Soviet Union and the United States of America decided to initially divide Korea at the 38th parallel, with the Soviets controlling the north and the Americans controlling the south. Both sides promised free elections, however, just as in Europe, the Soviets handpicked their leader and declared a communist country, while the Americans allowed free elections in the South. Both Koreas were proclaimed as independent countries in 1948. North Korea’s official name is the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), and South Korea is called the Republic of Korea. The Soviets placed Kim Il-Sung in charge of North Korea, and the citizens of South Korea voted their leader into office. The northern government moved quickly to control all industries, control all aspects of society, and to push for conquering the south. North Korea has a “totalitarian state.” This means that all elements of society are controlled by the government. South Korea is a republic, where citizens have political liberties and freedom. The Korean War (1950-1953) With the approval and support of the Communist leaders Josef Stalin of the Soviet Union and Mao Zedong of China, Kim Il-Sung of North Korea invaded South Korea in 1950, hoping to reunify all of Korea under Communist rule. The Soviet Union aided the north with weapons and military advisors, while China sent soldiers. South Korea was aided by the United States and the United Nations. In 1953, both sides agreed to stop fighting and split the country in two at the 38th parallel. The United States still has soldiers in South Korea. The Totalitarian State Kim Il-Sung led North Korea until his death in 1994, establishing a society where the government completely controls everything. He created a Communist society where the state is everything for the people. No one in North Korea is allowed to speak against their leader, have an opinion against the government, or have a religion or believe in God. Punishment for holding an opinion not approved by the state can be torture, forced labor, imprisonment, and execution, not only for the accused but for the entire family and generations to come. North Koreans have no freedoms, including no right to travel within their own country, no right to say what they think, and no right to watch what they want on T.V. Watching a Western T.V. show could mean torture and death for your entire family. The Communist North Korean government has murdered millions of its own people. North Korea is the largest forced labor camp in the entire world. After his death, Kim Il-Sung’s son and grandson continued the brutal regime. Son Kim Jong-il in 1994 took over, and then his son Kim Jong-Un took over in 2011 when his dad died. The three leaders continued to cultivate the cult of the personality. At every moment in a North Korean’s life, he has to obey the state, or suffer. North Korea has become an international outcast, friends only to groups and countries that sponsor terror. Sony and The Interview In 2014, Sony distributed “The Interview,” a comedy about the CIA hiring two dumb American journalists to kill the North Korean leader, Kim Jong-Un. A few weeks before the movie’s release, Sony’s computer systems were hacked by a group that calls itself the “Guardians of Peace.” The hackers released movies and emails it stole from Sony, and they threatened that if Sony released “The Interview” great harm would come to American movie goers and to Sony. Initially, Sony declared they would not release the movie, but then it eventually did. The Obama administration believes the government of North Korea is responsible for hacking Sony’s files and is using economic and travel sanctions to punish North Korea. Questions 1. What does the Obama administration believe North Korea did to Sony Picture’s Entertainment? 2. Who controlled Korea during World War II? 3. What happened in North Korea and South Korea from 1945-1949? 4. Who won the Korean War (1950-1953)? 5. What is a totalitarian country? In the past year, Ukraine has been in a war for its survival as an independent country. Russia has invaded and occupied southern Ukraine, has taken the Crimean Peninsula (a region of Ukraine), and has armed ethnic Russians who are fighting Ukrainians. Ukraine would like to remain free and cooperate with western countries but has received little help from the west. Under great strain and violent attack from a neighbor that is over twice its size in population, the future of Ukraine is in doubt. Ukraine’s recent problems are some of many in centuries of hardship and loss.
Located in Eastern Europe with Russia as its neighbor to the east, Ukraine has struggled to keep its existence over the last seven hundred years. From the 1600s to the end of World War I (1918) Poland, Russia, and Austria-Hungary controlled all of Ukraine. After World War I, Ukraine emerged as an independent country. However, from 1918-1922 Ukrainians fought a civil war that killed over 1.5 million people. In 1922, Ukraine became one of the founding countries of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R., also called, The Soviet Union). The Soviet Union was ruled by Communists and its power was centered in Moscow, Russia. Under the policies of the Soviet Communist Party, Ukrainians had no freedom of speech, no real right to vote, no freedom of religion, and, millions of Ukrainians were murdered. In the early 1930s, The Soviet Union took away all privately owned farms from Ukrainians. People who resisted were either killed or starved to death. Over 10,000,000 Ukrainians were killed. Nearly all Ukrainian army officers, writers, and religious leaders and intellectuals were killed by the Soviets. Later, Soviet leader Joseph Stalin led what has been called the “Great Terror,” killing hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians so they would be terrorized in following the Communist state. During World War II (1939-1945), much of the fight against the Germans took place in Ukraine. Because of this, Ukraine suffered incredible losses. Between 5 million and 8 million Ukrainian civilians died in the war, and 1.4 million Ukrainian soldiers perished. Over 500,000 Ukrainian Jews were killed, both by the Nazis and by the Ukrainians. Ukraine’s life as a modern, free country began in 1991, when the Soviet Union ceased to exist. Its 15 republics immediately declared independence, and Ukraine became a free country. In the 1990s, Ukraine suffered hard economic times. Ukrainians were free from the Soviet Communists but did not enjoy political freedom. In 2004, Ukrainians protested a rigged Presidential election, and in the “Orange Revolution” overthrew Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych, who stole the election. However, Yanukovych was reelected in 2006, and in 2010 he became President. The current problems in Ukraine began in 2013. Ukraine, led by President Yanukovych, had been working closely with the European Union, and most Ukrainians wanted to join this economic group. The European Union is a common market where countries work closely with each other. Citizens have political liberties, like the right to free speech and free press, whereas in Russia the government represses individuals. The leader of Ukraine, Yanukovych, started to work with the Russians and stated that Ukraine will have closer ties with its neighbor to the east, and not with the west. Most Ukrainians were furious at Yanukovych’s actions and words and began to protest. During the protests, soldiers fired on the crowd, and nearly 100 Ukrainians died. Ukraine’s Parliament removed President Yanukovych from power, called for new elections, and Petro Poroshenko was elected President. Yanukovych was wanted for ordering the military to fire on the protesters. He escaped to the arms of Vladimir Putin. Russia, under President Vladimir Putin, is a country where there is no freedom of speech, there are not free elections, and the Russian police violently control journalists. Ukrainians did not want to come under Russian control. During this unrest, ethnic Russians in southern and eastern Russia claimed they wanted to join Russia, and Russian President Putin ordered Russian soldiers into these areas. Initially, unmarked and unarmed Russian soldiers took over the Crimean Peninsula, an important Ukrainian naval base. After a few days, the Russian men were armed. A quick vote was held in the Crimea, and the Crimean Parliament claims that a majority of the people voted to be part of Russia. Within a week or so, in eastern Ukraine, ethnic Russians began fighting a civil war with the Ukrainian army and people. During this war, the Russian military has supplied the Russian-Ukrainians and has also sent in the Russian military in an invasion. In one instance, the ethnic Russians shot down a civilian Malaysian airplane, killing over 200 passengers. The western countries which comprise NATO has met the Russian aggression with mild resistance. Russia’s invasion of the Crimean Peninsula, and its open support of ethnic Russians, is the first time since World War II that a country has invaded and taken land in Europe. Ukraine has asked the United States of America and NATO for weapons, but they have refused to offer military aid. Some fear that the West’s passive response sends Russian Vladimir Putin the message that he can invade any country he feels he wants to. NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) is comprised of the United States of America, Great Britain, France, Germany, and nearly all other Western European countries. If one country of NATO is attacked, all are supposed to come to its aid. Ukraine is not a part of NATO, but the western countries favor a free and independent Ukraine. In 2008, Ukraine signed a document agreeing to work toward NATO integration. In 2010, however, President Yanukovych dropped this plan. President Poroshenko and Ukrainian Parliament are now petitioning NATO for membership. Questions 1. Who controlled Ukraine from 1922 to 1991? 2. Why did Ukrainians protest President Yanukovych in 2013? 3. How is Russia different from the United States today? Question for Discussion 1. What do you think the United States and NATO should do, if anything? 2. Should the U.S. help Ukraine fight against Russia and its ethnic Russians? 3. Should the U.S. stay out of Ukraine’s problems? 4. Does Russian aggression in Ukraine signal danger for the rest of Europe? On November 9th, 2014, 300,000 Germans and others gathered at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin to celebrate the 25th anniversary of fall of the Berlin Wall, one of the most important historical events of the last century. The fall of the Berlin Wall signaled the beginning of the end of the Soviet Communist dominance of European and Asian nations and the victory of the free, democratic, and capitalistic countries that were led by the United States. In the U.S.A., however, we have no major celebrations. Why is this?
Germany after World War II After World War II, the winners of the war divided Europe into two spheres. The United States, Great Britain, and France were in charge of establishing order and helping the western nations rebuild. The Communist Soviet Union was in charge of the East. The victors promised that all Europeans would enjoy free elections and determine their future on their own. However, the Soviet Union, led by Stalin, lied and militarily forced the people of Central and Eastern Europe to become communist and follow the will of the Soviet Union. Western Germany was free and Eastern Germany was under the Communists. Berlin, the capital city of Germany, was located in Eastern Germany. Berlin was also divided into a Soviet sphere and a free sphere. What is Communism? Communism is a political philosophy developed by 19th century German Karl Marx, but the ideas have existed for thousands of years. In a communist country, everyone is supposed to share everything. Nobody is allowed to own private property, and all people are supposed to have an equal amount of material things. In practice, communist countries are led by totalitarian regimes. Communist leaders treat their citizens like slaves, and make life miserable or kill those under their control. Communists control their citizens, don’t allow basic liberties, such as free speech, freedom of religion, and freedom to vote. In the 1900s, communist countries also tortured and murdered over 100,000,000 people. Communism in Eastern Europe under the Soviet Union A few years after the end of World War II, it was clear that the communist Soviet Union was not going to allow the Central and Eastern Europeans their freedom. Through propaganda, murder, and brutal oppression, the Soviets kept the Europeans under control. At varying times, individual countries tried to overthrow their rulers, but to no avail. In 1956 the Soviet militarily crushed the Hungarians, and in 1968, the communist countries crushed the Czechoslovakia push for freedom. Berlin during Communist Control of Europe While Western Europe modernized and became a beautiful place to live after World War II, Eastern Europe suffered greatly under the Communists. In the east, there was a lack of food and lack of clothing. Everything looked gray and even the buildings fell in disrepair. In Berlin, where there was a free Berlin and a communist Berlin, it was easy to see where the better life was. Even though the Communists didn’t allow anyone to leave, tens of thousands of East Germans escaped to West Germany through Berlin. The Communists decided to put a stop to this, and had a wall built around West Berlin. This was was not only concrete, but included guard dogs, guards in watch towers with machine guns, and a large no man’s land where people could be shot. The Communists of Europe Lose Many attempts were made by the Communists to control West Berlin and to defeat the free countries of the west, but they were never successful. The main reason for defeat of Communism in Europe was the United States of America. The U.S.A. helped rebuild the west through generous gifts of money, people, and leadership. It occupied West Germany with 300,000 soldiers to show the Soviets they could not invade. Americans undermined the Communists by broadcasting American music, news, and events by radio to the Communist countries. The more the Communists taught their people that America was the enemy, the more the people loved America. In the 1980s, American President Ronald Reagan drastically changed the American approach to ending Communism in Europe. Before him, the American policy was containment. The idea was that if the Communists were left alone, they would eventually fall. Reagan, however, followed a more aggressive policy. He challenged the Communists through words by calling the Soviet Union the Evil Empire. He built up American forces which made the Soviet Union to try and outspend the U.S. in building weapons. Reagan also place intermediate range missiles in Europe to counter the Soviet threat. The Soviet Union could not keep up with this challenge and started to loosen its grip on Central and Eastern Europe. Eventually, the Berlin Wall was broken by East and West Berliners scaling the walls and tearing it down, piece by piece. The Communists of Europe lost, the Soviet Union disintegrated, and the free countries of the west, led by the United States, won. Where is the Celebration of the Fall of the Berlin Wall in the U.S.A? Unfortunately, there were no great celebrations in the U.S. of the fall of the Berlin Wall. How could this be? How could a complete American victory for freedom over a philosophy and regime not be celebrated by the very people who led it? In 2009, President Obama was invited but turned down the offer to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Berlin Wall. Why didn’t he go? One writer, Jennifer Dyer, notes in her blog, “Obama doesn’t go celebrate a victory for people’s freedom from government because he doesn’t believe in freedom from government.” Read more at http://libertyunyielding.com/2014/11/09/one-guitar-25-years-fall-berlin-wall/#Tg1FAsB0Guj4efbh.99 She further explains that because President Obama has unfailing respect for governmental power, he does not like the idea that the west, led by the United States, defeated a regime whose aim was to control every segment of society. Questions 1. What happened after World War II in Europe? 2. Who are the Communists? 3. How many people did Communists murder in the last 100 years? 4. What happened in Berlin, from 1961 to 1989? 5. According to one author, why has there not been huge celebrations for the fall of the Berlin Wall and the fall of Communism? 1850-1899
Immigration to America surged in the second half of the 1800s. This “immigration wave” led the U.S. to organize a system to process all the people in a systematic way that was viewed as most beneficial way for America, and, to limit the influx of people. In 1882, the U.S. government passed two pieces of major legislation regarding immigration. One was the Chinese Exclusion Act. The other was the Immigration Act of 1882. The Chinese Exclusion Act forbade Chinese to move to the U.S. The U.S. did this because it believed Chinese would not assimilate into American culture and because Americans feared Chinese were taking jobs. There was no such restriction for Europeans. The Immigration Act of 1882 set up a federal bureaucracy to handle the mass immigration from Europe of the 1880s. Immigrants entering the country by ship had to pay a tax. Any person unable to care for himself, with a criminal record, or with a mental of physical issue could be denied entry. From 1892-1954, many immigrants arrived through Ellis Island in New York, where U.S. officials accepted or rejected the applicants. 1900-1950 Mass immigration to America continued in the first decade of the 1900s but dropped dramatically after. This was due to three causes: World War I, American desire to allow entry only to those who support a free republic, and racial prejudices. 1. World War I, 1914-1917, made it difficult for people to immigrate to America because of all the personal hardships and duties of citizens at war. In addition, World War I was started by a Serbian anarchist and Americans didn’t want to admit any dangerous individuals. 2. In 1901, anarchist Leon Czolgosz assassinated President McKinley. Czolgosz was a Polish-American and Catholic whose parents had emigrated from Eastern Europe. McKinley’s murder made it obvious that some immigrants had the potential to harm the country. Because Czolgosz was of Polish and Catholic background and the majority of Americans were Protestant English, French, or German, Americans wanted to limit people from eastern and southern Europe. Also, America’s immigration policies were meant to keep out communists, who had pledged to destroy the United States. 3. The eugenics movement of the early 1900s promoted the idea that Americans of English, French, and northern German origin were genetically and socially superior than the rest of the world. Leaders in academia supported this idea. The Immigration Restriction League, comprised of presidents of Harvard, Wharton, and Stanford, believed in the idea of eugenics. The Immigration Act of 1924, the National Origins Act, and the Asian Exclusion Act placed restrictions on the number of immigrants allowed to enter the U.S.A. based on their country of origin. Americans believed their country would be stronger if its population was from similar cultures and that people from certain ethnic and religious groups were genetically or socially inferior to others. The number of immigrants allowed to enter into the country was limited to 2% of foreign-born residents from a particular country in the 1890 census. In 1929, this was changed so that the total immigration from any one country could be 150,000, based on a percentage of a country’s representation of the U.S. population in 1920. During this time, illegal immigration to America increased. 1951-2000 In the second half of the 1900s, two changes regarding immigration to America greatly influenced immigration. Under the Bracero Program, Mexican citizens were allowed to come and work temporarily. When this program ended in 1964, Mexicans began coming illegally to the United States in every-increasing numbers. The number of Mexicans and Latin Americans living illegally in the United States is estimated at somewhere over 11 million. In 1965, the United States abolished the nation of origin restrictions in the Hart-Celler Act, opening up immigration to America base on kinship ties, refugee status, and needed skills. This law dramatically changed the number and origion of people immigrating to the U.S. And, as the Vietnamese War ended, many war refugees fled the communists and moved to America, where the immigrants were received as refugees. 2001-2011 On September 11, 2001, terrorists from Asia (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Lebanon) hijacked American planes and crash-landed them into the World Trade Center towers in New York city, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and in a field in Pennsylvania. The terrorists had entered the United States legally. The United States began a war on terror that we are currently in. Because of the threat of terrorism, many Americans are worried that there is a grave threat to the United States from legal and illegal immigration to the country. Illegal immigration has continued from America’s southern borders in great numbers. Because the United States government has not done enough to secure the southern border, various states have tried to implement federal law. To fight a state attempting to follow the law, the Obama administration has sued Arizona for trying to implement federal law regarding immigration. Questions to Discuss: 1. Is it correct for the United States to limit immigration? Why do you think this? 2. Does the fight with terrorists affect how the U.S.A. should legislate immigration control? 3. What should the U.S. do with its illegal immigrants? War, 1948-1979
In 1947, two years after the end of World War II, the United Nations voted to establish two countries west of the Jordan River; a Jewish and a Palestinian Arab country. The Jews accepted this plan, but the Palestinians and surrounding Arab countries did not. In 1948, Jews in Palestine declared the birth of the modern country of Israel, consisting of the lands the United Nations had set aside. The surrounding Arab nations (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon) militarily occupied the land that had been set aside for the Palestinian Arabs and attacked Israel. Over the next 29 years, Israelis fought the Arab nations in all-out war, in smaller, disconnected battles, or against Arab terrorist attacks. Major wars during this time were the initial Israeli-Arab War in 1948, the Suez War in 1956, the 1967 Six-Day War, the War of Attrition in 1969-1970, and the 1973 Yom Kippur War. During these wars, Israel defeated the Arabs and conquered land that the United Nations had set aside for an Arab Palestinian country. The Arab countries and people refused to recognize Israel’s right to exist, and a constant state of war existed. Palestinians organized themselves into various terrorist organizations, aiming to destroy Israel. A terrorist organization attempts to harm its enemy by using horrific acts of barbarity, such as purposefully killing innocent civilians on a bus or in a pizza restaurant, or by assassinating athletes and journalists and women and children. Yasser Arafat founded the terrorist group Fatah in 1959, and in 1970, the PLO (Palestinian Liberation Organization) was established in Jordan and later moved to Lebanon. Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Al Qaeda are more modern terrorist organizations aimed against Israel. 1979-1986, Egypt and Lebanon Recognize Israel Major peace developments occurred in 1979 and the 1980s. In 1979, with U.S. President Carter acting as the chief negotiator, Egypt and Israel signed a peace agreement, and Egypt became the first Arab country to recognize Israel’s right to exist. In 1982, Israel invaded Lebanon and destroyed much of the PLO. In 1983, Lebanon recognized Israel’s right to exist, the PLO was forced to leave Lebanon, and Israel agreed to not invade Lebanon. 1987-1993 The First Intifada In 1987, the First Palestinian Intifada began. Intifada means “shaking off” or “shaking up.” Arab Palestinians violently protested Israel’s occupation of lands that the United Nations originally had chosen for the Palestinian country. Israel had taken these lands in the wars against the Arab countries. Israel argued that occupation of these lands was necessary so it wouldn’t be attacked from those areas. Much changed from 1987 to 1993. In the Intifada, Palestinians threw rocks at Israelis, attacked civilians, and Israel used its military supremacy to defeat the protesters. Palestinians targeted both military targets and Israeli citizens. One technique used during the Intifada was the suicide bomber. A Palestinian would strap bombs to himself, go on a crowded bus or in a restaurant, and blow himself up, killing innocent Israelis. About 2,000 Palestinians and 300 Israelis were killed during this time. Palestinians claimed Israel was an occupying force that abused its power. Israel claimed the right to exist and protect itself. At the end of the Intifada, Israel withdrew from much of the two areas it had occupied, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The PLO, led by Arafat, renounced violence, accepted the United Nations plan for two states in Palestine, and recognized Israel’s right to exist. Israel recognized the PLO as the representatives of the Palestinian people. It was to be known as the Palestinian Authority (PA) from now on. 1993-2000 The Oslo Accords The Oslo Accords were various agreements between Israel and the PA that was to eventually establish two countries, Israel and Palestine, and resolve the problems that had existed between the Israelis and the Palestinians since World War I. It began with much enthusiasm on both sides, but ended in armed conflict. Disagreements involved the capital city of Jerusalem, Palestinian refugees, and Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. 2000-2005 The Second Intifada Open conflict between Palestinians and Israelis continued. As in the First Intifada, Palestinians targeted both soldiers and civilians and used suicide bombers. In contrast with the First Intifada, Israel aggressively asserted control over civilian areas of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, killing terrorist leaders in their homes, destroying PA infrastructure, and maintained occupying forces. PA leader Yasser Arafat died in 2004. The new PA leader, Abbas, agreed with Israeli Prime Minister Sharon to stop all fighting. The cease fire began in 2005. 2005 to Present Hamas, Fatah, Hezbollah, and Israel In the last 9 or 10 years, Israel has fought against radical Islamic groups in the West Bank and Gaza, in Lebanon, and has militarily occupied parts of Palestine. Israel has also continued to expand Jewish settlements into areas that Palestinians claim as their own. Hamas, Fatah, and Hezbollah are three terrorist organizations who would like to see the destruction of Israel. Hamas won elections in the Gaza Strip in 2007 and took over administration. Along with running the government, Hamas built tunnels between Egypt and the Gaza Strip to smuggle in weapons used to attack the Israelis. Over the years, Hamas launched missiles at Israel. Fatah controls the West Bank. It began as a terrorist organization aimed at destroying Israel and establishing a Palestinian country. On November 2012, Israel launched a military offensive aimed at destroying the military power of Hamas. Hamas has launched more than 1100 missiles into Israel, and Israel successfully degraded Hamas’ ability to fight. Hezbollah is in southern Lebanon, and periodically launches missiles into Israel or conducts military raids. Recently, two Islamic radicals attacked Jewish worshippers at prayer in an Israeli synagogue, killing and maiming with guns and axes. In Israel, people mourned the act of barbarism, but in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians celebrated by handing out candy to children. Shimon Peres, President of Israel from 2007 to 2014, said, “If a problem has no solution, it may not be a problem, but a fact – not to be solved, but to coped with over time.” It appears that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may be such a fact. Islamic organizations such as Hamas and Fatah have political control over the Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and, these groups espouse the destruction of Israel. To these groups, attacking Jews at prayer is equivalent to fighting the most evil conquerors of mankind. Israelis are compelled to live as a country constantly at war, defending itself against neighbors who want its destruction. Questions 1. Write one or two sentences that describe each of the periods listed below: a. War, 1948-1979 b. 1979-1986, Egypt and Lebanon Recognize Israel c. 1987-1993 The First Intifada d. 1993-2000 The Oslo Accords e. 2000-2005 The Second Intifada f. 2005 to Present Hamas, Fatah, Hezbollah, and Israel 2. Has Israel acted justly when militarily occupying Palestinian lands of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank? Explain your answer. On Monday, November 11th, 2014, the Veteran's Day National Ceremony took place at Arlington National Cemetery, located in Arlington, Virginia. The ceremony began exactly at 11:00 a.m. with a wreath laying at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It continued with a parade of colors by veteran's organizations and speeches by dignitaries. Veteran's Day is a day set aside to honor all members who have fought in America's wars, including our current war, the War of Terror. In the War on Terror, there has been difficulties within the U.S. government determining who is a veteran and who is not.
November 11th, 11:00 a.m., is the moment that fighting in World War I stopped. World War I - known at the time as "The Great War" or "The War to End All Wars" - officially ended when the Treaty of Versailles was signed on June 28, 1919, in the Palace of Versailles in France. However, fighting ceased seven months earlier when an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of World War I. Each year on this day, Americans remember and give thanks to all veterans. A veteran is a person who served in the United States Armed Forces. This year, American leaders give honor to those Americans who fought in wars that are over and to the veterans of The War on Terror, the war that we are currently fighting. The war the U.S.A. is currently in may be our most complicated war, beginning with what it is called. In 1984, President Reagan used the words "war against terrorism" as he attempted to persuade Congress to pass legislation aimed at freezing bank assets of terrorist organizations. Five days after 9/11/2001 attacks against America, the U.S. Congress passed the "Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Terrorism," which allowed the President to use force against the terrorists and the regimes that sponsored them to carry out the 9/11 attacks. On September 20th, 2011, President George W. Bush used the words "War on Terror" to describe the global war America is in. President Obama did not like the title, however, and described the war as "Overseas Contingency Operation." Veterans of the War on Terror number in the millions and include personnel who have fought abroad, but not at home. Since 9/11, over 2,333,627 military personnel have served in Afghanistan or Iraq (according to ABC News http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/us-veterans-numbers/story?id=14928136#1 ) in the War on Terror, and some argue, military personnel have also fought terrorists in the United States. On October 5, 2009, U.S. Major Nidal Hasan, fatally shot 13 American servicemen at Ft. Hood, Texas. Hasan was injured and is being held for murder. He has declared his attack was part of jihad, an act of Islamic holy war. Hasan has applied for citizenship in the Islamic State, the terrorist state in the Middle East. The Obama administration refuses to call Hasan's attack an act of terror, and instead calls it, "workplace violence." Survivors of Hasan's attack and family members of the deceased do not enjoy benefits of soldiers injured during war. Questions: 1. Why is November 11th Veteran's Day? Why was this date chosen? 2. What words did President Bush use to describe our current war and what words do President Obama use? 3.Do you think that the soldiers killed and injured by Major Hasan should be considered as war veterans? Why or why not? Who Were the Ottomans?
The Ottomans were a ruling dynasty (family) of Turks who had a large empire in both Europe and Asia from the 1400s to 1922. The Turks are an Asian people who migrated to Arabia and Europe, became Muslim, conquered the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium), and ruled Palestine and the rest of Arabia for five hundred years. The leader of the Ottomans was a sultan, what we would call a king. The Rise of Nationalism and World War I Before the 1700s, people were content to live in empires or kingdoms and did not consider it important if their leader spoke the same language as they did, or if they had the right to vote. In the late 1700s and throughout the 1800s, however, people throughout the world began to see themselves as part of nations, with the right to have their own countries. Historians call this idea nationalism. Both Arabs and Jews began to dream of their own, independent country in Palestine. During World War I, the people of Palestine wanted to separate from the Ottoman Empire and form their own countries. The Ottoman Empire fought alongside Germany and Austria-Hungary against the Allied Powers (Great Britain, France, and the U.S.A.). Wanting to weaken the enemy, Great Britain made a secret promise to the Arabs (known as the Husayn-McMahon understandings) that if they attacked the Ottomans, the Arabs in Palestine would have their own state. At about the same time, British foreign minister issued the Balfour Declaration announcing British support for a Jewish national home in Palestine. And, secretly, Great Britain and France agreed to carve up the Arab provinces once the Ottomans were defeated. The British Mandate, 1920 – 1948 The Allied Powers defeated the Ottoman Empire and established the League of Nations. Allied political leaders wanted The League of Nations to be an organization that resolved world conflicts peacefully. The League of Nations split up the Ottoman Empire into separate areas controlled by Britain and France. Palestine was defined as the area west and east of the Jordan River, and given to the British to control. In 1921, the British split this area in two. The area east of the Jordan River became the country of Jordan. West of the Jordan River became an area of great conflict between the Arabs and the Jews. Both wanted to realize the British promise of having their own country. The 1930s and World War II were catastrophic for Jews. In 1933, the N.A.Z.I. Party in Germany won a plurality of the vote, and Hitler quickly took dictatorial power. Hitler blamed nearly all of Germany’s problems on Jews and over the next 12 years the Germans and various Europeans murdered over 6,000,000 Jews in Europe. Throughout these years, Jews tried to escape to various countries, however, they were rejected in many instances. For their survival, many fled to Palestine with the hope of building their own country. In 1947, two years after the end of World War II, the United Nations voted to establish two countries west of the Jordan River; a Jewish and a Palestinian Arab country. The Jews accepted this plan, but the Palestinians and surrounding Arab countries did not. Questions 1. Who were the Ottomans? 2. What is nationalism? 3. How did nationalism affect the Jews and Palestinians? 4. What happened to the Arab provinces after the Ottomans were defeated? 5. What did the United Nations vote to establish in 1947? Recently, two armed Palestinians armed with axes, knives and pistols stormed a synagogue in Jerusalem and attacked Jews at prayer. The Palestinians killed four unarmed rabbis (three Americans and one British) and injured others before being killed by policemen. In Israel, Jews mourned the four who were murdered, but in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Palestinians celebrated by handing out candy to children. This act of barbarism is one of many in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.
The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict is a modern one, beginning in the 1900s and continuing today. At least since the end of World War I, Israelis and Palestinians have both claimed their right to exist as separate countries, with Jerusalem, or a section of Jerusalem, as their capital city. Although this conflict is a modern one, the history of the people involved dates back thousands of years. As with many conflicts in history, to correctly understand the modern conflict, it is important to understand the thousands of years that predate it. The Ancient Hebrews The Hebrews were ancient people who lived in roughly the same area that is Israel. Sometime between 2000 B.C. and 1600 B.C., Hebrews believe God told Abraham to move with his wife Sarah to Canaan, what is today approximately Israel. Abraham and Sarah are the founders of the Hebrew people. The Hebrews established a kingdom in this area c. 1050 B.C. The religion of the Hebrews was Judaism and the believers called Jews. In A.D. 135, the Romans forced all Hebrews to scatter throughout the world. The Hebrews moved to Asia, Africa, and Europe, where for centuries they kept their religion and customs intact. Who Were the Ottomans? The Ottomans were a ruling dynasty (family) of Turks who had a large empire in both Europe and Asia from the 1400s to 1922. The Turks were an Asian people who migrated to Arabia and Europe, became Muslim, conquered the Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium), and ruled Palestine and the rest of Arabia for five hundred years. Palestine Palestine was part of the Ottoman Empire from the 1500s to its fall after the end of the World War I in 1922. In 1878, there were about 462,465 inhabitants of the area of Palestine. There were 403,000 Muslims, 43,000 Christians, and 25,000 Jews. Palestinians did not consider themselves part of a single political unit, and for the most part, under the Ottoman Empire, there was no conflict between the three religious groups that existed. The Rise of Nationalism and World War I Before the 1700s, people were content to live in empires or kingdoms and did not consider it important if their leader spoke the same language as they did, or if they had the right to vote. In the late 1700s and throughout the 1800s, however, people throughout the world began to see themselves as part of nations, with the right to have their own countries. Both Arabs and Jews began to dream of their own, independent country in Palestine. During World War I, the people of Palestine wanted to separate from the Ottoman Empire and form their own countries. Great Britain made a secret promise to the Arabs (known as the Husayn-McMahon understandings) that if they attacked the Ottomans, the Arabs in Palestine would have their own state. At about the same time, British foreign minister issued the Balfour Declaration announcing British support for a Jewish national home in Palestine. And, secretly, Great Britain and France agreed to carve up the Arab provinces once the Ottomans were defeated. Questions 1. What did two men do in a synagogue in Jerusalem? 2. How old is the Israeli-Palestinian conflict? 3. Who were the Hebrews? 4. Who were the Ottomans and how was Palestine related to the Ottoman Empire? 5. How did the rise of nationalism change the relationship between the Arabs, the Jews, and Ottomans in Palestine? Over the past months, gas prices have dropped dramatically in the United States of America. According to GasBuddy.com, average gas prices in America have come down from $3.70 in April of 2014 to $3.37 in September. One of the least expensive places for gas, in Little Rock, Arkansas, is seeing gas at $3.05, and even the most expensive gas in the United States, in California, is below the $3.40 a gallon mark. There appears to be at least two reasons for the dramatic drop in gasoline prices: supply, and the change from a summer blend to a winter blend in gasoline.
Supply is a major reason why gasoline prices are dropping. Supply refers to the amount of a good or product that exists. The biggest change in supply in oil and gas production is coming from America. The United States is currently producing oil and natural gas at a 28-year high. In 2000, the United States produced about 16 million barrels of oil a day. Today, it is producing 23 million barrels a day. Most if not all of this production is coming from privately owned land in America. The Bakken oil field in North Dakota and the Eagle Ford shale formation in South Texas are both producing large amounts of barrels a day. New technology and ingenuity has allowed for greater oil production in America. A second reason for the drop in gas prices is the shift from the summer blend of gasoline to the winter blend. The winter blend of gasoline is cheaper to produce and it also costs less to buy. Over the last three years, gasoline prices have dropped an average of more than 30 cents a gallon. However, with the combination of the huge glut of American oil, it is almost expected the national gas price will be below $3/ gallon. The drop in prices is not seen as good by all. Of course, the American public love the lower gas prices. It is easier paying $60 to fill up instead of $85. However, many countries rely primarily on high gas prices to meet their budget needs. However, OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Countries) and Russia rely heavily on their selling oil and gas at higher prices. Because of this, the OPEC members and Russia will struggle this year, and perhaps in the near future, to keep up their activities as they have been used to. OPEC countries: Algeria, Angola, Ecuador, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Venezuela Questions: 1. How does your family view the lower gas prices? 2. Do you think it is in the United States of America’s best interests to pursue more production of oil and gas? Explain. 3. How would a weaker Russia affect international politics? (See the current event on Ukraine) |
John De GreeJohn De Gree writes the current events with a look at the history of each topic. Articles are written for the young person, aged 10-18, and Mr. De Gree carefully writes so that all readers can understand the event. The perspective the current events are written in is Judeo-Christian. Receive Articles and Coupons in Your EmailSign Up Now
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