Jacalyn's Global Blog

Mikhail Gorbachev and the Collapse of Communism

2009-05-13T18:26:00.000-07:00

Mikhail Gorbachev was a very different leader from the rest of the leaders who controlled USSR before him. His ideas and beliefs were very different from the ideas of Stalin, and other former leaders. Mikhail Gorbachev was tired of communism, and followed his own ideas and demonstrated what a real government should be. Russia was ran by totalitarian rulers. The people of Russia were also tired of the corrupted government, and its leaders.They needed someone to start reforms to make the USSR capitalist. Mikhail Gorbachev along with partners, started these huge reforms called the "Glasnost" and "Perestrokia". In 1985 he announced a glasnost, where churches were opened, books were published and freedom of the press rised. Perestokia was a policy that allowed people to own their own small businesses which weren't owned buy the government. This in a way marked the end of Communism and showed that Communism wasn't affective and small businesses were needed for the success of the economy. Mikhail Gorbachev was one of the first leader who slowly removed communism from USSR. He opened up the economy and allowed for positive changes in Russia. He is one of the most important leaders for the USSR because he brought capitalism, and removed communism from USSR.

The Collapse of Communism

2009-05-12T07:19:00.000-07:00

After the War, America and the Soviet Union were in a cold war. The Soviet Union was communist, and wasn't willing to change to a democracy. But as the 21st century came closer, the economy of communist countries such as Cuba and USSR began to collapse. The waste of money on military and oppressive government could not hold up the economy. By the 1990s Russia collapsed. The Berlin Wall, which separated communist East Germany and West Germany was brought down, making the sides no longer seperated. The fall of communism ended the Cold War between the American and Communist countries. The Soviet Union became separated into different countries. After that very few countries remained communist including China and Cuba. The fear of nuclear war also decreased, and Democratic policies were accepted in other countries.

Nelson Mandela and Apartheid

2009-05-06T12:29:00.000-07:00

Apartheid was used in South Africa for many years and was a social policy or racial segregation involving political, economic and legal discrimination against people who are not white. The same thing was going on in America where all the colored people were separated from the white people. This went on in South Africa from 1948 to 1990. Nelson Mandela was a hero because Mandela along with 150 others were arrested on December 5 1956 and charged with treason for speaking out against Apartheid. He also fought many violent acts to gain freedom in South Africa. He spent many years in prison for committing treason. He is respected by many people because he stood up for what he believed in and did a lot to free his people. He took the pain mentally and physically by being in prison and by getting beat up by higher authorities of South Africa. He was a brave and courageous man.

African Independence

2009-05-05T06:55:00.001-07:00

Africa went through dramatic changes over 20 years from 1955-1975. Many African countries gained their independence. They gained their independence because some of the African countries fought against colonists to become independent. Africans wanted to show others that they can industrialize and and run their own country. Leopold Senghor was the leader and first president of Senegal. Jomo Kenyatta was another famous African leader, who was a nationalist leader of Kenya. There also was Mobuto who ruled the country of Zaire. Nkrumah organized strikes and boycotts.The Gold Coast adopted the name Ghana. Eventually the OAU (Organization of AfricanUnity) and Pan-African Congress was formed.

Cuban Missile Crisis (EXTRA CREDIT)

2009-04-20T14:45:00.000-07:00

The Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest that the United States ever came to a nuclear war. The US armed forces were very prepared and Soviet commanders in Cuba were ready to use battlefield nuclear weapons as the island's defense to any invasions. In 1962 the Soviets were behind the US in the arms race and had missiles that were only powerful enough to be launched against Europe. The United States' missiles were capable of striking the entire Soviet Union. Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev came up with the idea of placing intermediate-range missiles in Cuba. At this time, Cuban leader Fidel Castro was looking for a way to defend his island from any US attack. He approved Khrushchev's plan and in the summer of 1962 the Soviet Union worked quickly to secretly build its missile installations in Cuba. When word got out to the United States and photographs revealed the Soviet missiles under construction in Cuba, President John Kennedy organized a group of his twelve most important advisors, which was known as the EX-COMM, to handle the crisis. Many debates were taken place, causing Kennedy to impose a naval quarantine around Cuba. He also wanted to prevent the arrival of anymore Soviet weapons. Tensions began to build on both sides. In a letter, Khrushchev proposed removing Soviet missiles if the U.S. would promise not to invade Cuba. The worst day of the crisis was October 27th when a U-2 was shot down over Cuba and EX-COMM received a second letter from Khrushchev demanding the removal of U.S. missiles in Turkey in exchange for Soviet missiles in Cuba. Some tension was eased on October 28th, when Khrushchev announced that he would remove the installations and return the missiles to the Soviet Union, showing that he trusted tge United States would not invade Cuba. Both countries came to an agreement that Soviet light bombers should be removed from Cuba and the United States will not attack and invade Cuba.

Film Lesson: "The Right Stuff"

2009-04-10T09:29:00.000-07:00

In the film, the United States and the USSR were competing on who would set the world record of breaking the sound barrier by making an airplane that was called MACH I. Both countries also wanted to be the first who brought man to space. By building spaceships, the Russians were ahead of the Americans . The US decided to gather a team of top notch astronauts were smart pilots and capable of taking the job. When testing the spacecraft, the US sent a monkey to space. Competing back was Russia who were the first ones to send the first man ever into space. The Russians were also first to put satelites in space. The Russians outsmarted the US and won the competition. The scenes that will help me remember the Cold War was when Russia and the U.S were competing against each other of whose the best country to break records like when the U.S broke the record of the sound barrier. I'll also remember how the US didn't want the press to write a report on their sound barrier breaking so the Russians won't get ahead of them. America wasn't very friendly with the Russians because they were a communist country.

NATO and the Warsaw Pact

2009-04-06T07:18:00.000-07:00

NATO was also known as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in which was a military alliance. It was an organization of countries that were involved in a mutual defense alliance, which meant that if one of the countries were attacked the allied countries would help defend them. The Warsaw Pact was another defensive alliance, but was an organization Communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Western Europe and North America made up the NATO alliance. NATO was created to stop the spread od communism and help defend fellow countries from attacks. The Warsaw Pact was created because the communist military wanted to maintain power over Eastern Europe. The Soviet Union wound up gaining control over its neighboring European nations.

Schindler's List

2009-03-27T07:37:00.000-07:00

"Schindler's List" was another historical film about the Holocaust. It was released in 1993 and was directed by Steven Spielberg. The only difference between this film and "Night and Fog" was that it was the Hollywood version and wasn't a documentary. Oskar Schindler was a business man who employed more then a thousand Jews that worked in his factory. He saved all of his employees lives that worked for him.The movie showed the horrific reality of the Holocaust. Even though everything was acted out, it still had great affect on me because I knew everything that they showed did once actually happen. Some scenes forced me to turn my face. The scenes that included children really touched me, like when they were separated from their parents and put on the trucks to go get killed in other camps. Also when the Jews were forced to move to the ghettos and even the rich Jews had to share houses with many other Jews.

Night and Fog

2009-03-27T07:16:00.000-07:00

"Night and Fog" was a historical documentary film that showed us how the prisoners of World War 2 were treated during the Holocaust. It showed how the concentration camp system started from fascism. People would arrive on over crowded trains to the concentration camps, like Auschwitz. Many people died on the travel due to sicknesses and starvation. If you didn't die on the over crowded trains, then there was a great chance that you would end up dying in the concetration camps. The film was very mind boggling and powerful eventhough it was black and white. The movie showed many appauling scenes and images of dead boney skeleton bodies, piles of clothes and shoes, piles of women's hair and crematory ovens. "Night and Fog" was a documentary that showed what actually really happened while "Schindlers List" was the Hollywood version of what happened during the Holocaust. They both may have been different versions but they both showed me how much suffering the prisoners had to go through.

The Treaty of Versailles (ended WWI)

2009-02-24T17:30:00.000-08:00

After WWI, most of Europe was left in bad conditions. Many cities and towns were destroyed and many people were killed. On May 7, 1919 the Treaty of Versailles was proposed by the Allied Forces of Germany, in order to keep things in order and at peace. The treaty consisted of 440 articles and blamed all the causes and results of the war on Germany. At first Germany complained about the treaty. Most of Germany's territory was taken from them and all of their overseas land was gone. It's army and navy was limited and bans were put on weapons and tanks.

On June 28, 1919, exactly 5 years after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, the treaty was signed. This made Germany suffer a lot. Gernamy had to pay the allies money, causing a fall to their economy. Being treated poorly turned the Germans desperate and angry at the allied forces. This then became a factor that led to WWII.

Mustafu Kemal and the Modernization of Turkey

2009-02-11T15:49:00.000-08:00

As president of Turkey, Mustafu Kemal has made a lot of changes. Mustafu Kemal was once a military leader and hero, who helped with the Turkish national liberation struggle. He also led his country to freedom. In 1923, Mustafu established the Republic of Turkey. As president for 15 years, he created a new government that consisted of many new rules. He wanted to modernize Turkey and give his country happiness and dignity. Under Mustafu's government, education and freedom was very important.

Film Lesson- "Gandhi"

2009-02-11T07:14:00.000-08:00

Gandhi was a well educated, Indian lawyer who at first was not very successful. Little success was becuase of his race. India wasn't an independent country and at the time was controlled by the British. Gandhi had moved to South Africa, where he was a victim of discrimination and unfair laws towards him and his people. Over many years, Gandhi was jailed many times when he finally decided to use passive resistance and civil disobedience to fight causes. He then began to protest for India's independance.

Gandhi moved back to India to peacefully free it from British ruling. His actions soon became very effective, making Gandhi gain more followers. He began to boycott British goods by encouraging Indians to make their own stuff. The British government grew angry with Gandhi and arrested him and many of his followers. The British was very violent, especially during the Amritsar Masssacre, but Gandhi was always a supporter of peace. He protested against British rule during the Salt March, in which he protested the British's salt rules. As Gandhi grew older, his group of followers enlargened.

In 1947, India won its independence from Britain. This was only if the Muslims and Hindus were seperated. This was against Gandhi's plan. Later on, Gandhi was assassinated in which caused many saddened and shocked people. He was a major influence on India and it's people and really helped India gain its independance.

The Russian Revolution

2009-01-09T07:16:00.001-08:00

WWI had a negative impact on Russia's economy. There were many food shortags, population decreases, inflation and many people became peasants. The government and Czar Nicholas II were unable to help the people. Russia's people wanted a revolution and a new form of government. Lenin, a revolution leader, tried to help the country. The people were very inspired by Lenin and his quote of Peace, land and bread. Russians decided to embrace his idea of communism.

This started the Russian revolution. Czar Nicholas II was removed from power. This caused many riots and violent brawls. Many new people took government positions, which is known as the February revolition. During the time known as the October revolution, the Soviet Union was established. The Democratic system was abandoned and a dictatorship was set up. This resulted in the Russian Civil War.

Causes of WWI

2009-01-08T17:06:00.000-08:00

During the late 1800's, many complications grew between European countries. Many countries began to store weapons and strenghten their military forces. Much anger and rivalry grew between the countries due to Nationalism and Imperialism. Alliances like the Three Emperors Lead and Triple alliance were formed in case of war. Armies and navies were expanded because of militarism. Because of disagreements, Serbia threatened Austria which caused Russia to threaten about their support of Austria.

Europe was divided into two sides that were angry competitors because of all the alliances made. Each country believed they were the best. All the tension was released when a Serbian assassinated Arch Duke Franz Ferdinand. War broke out between the two contries but other counrties got involoved in the war due to prevoiusly made alliances. Later on, American ships were destroyed by the so they also entered the war and helped the Triple Alliance win.

The Opium Wars

2008-12-10T06:51:00.000-08:00

During the 19th century, the Opium War broke out between Britain and China. China had traded many goods with Britain including tea, which is now very popular and important to Europe. Britain began to trade opium with China to prevent any problems in the future with the one sided trade. Opium is a highly addictive drug in which is made from poppy plants. The use of opium made much of China's population addicted, damaging China's economy when they tried to pay for all the opium using tea, gold and silver. In 1838, Chinese government started to regulate opium trade with Britain and would not allow opium into the country. China wouldn't back down to the pressuring British, leading to British attackings on China. This was known as the Opium Wars. Britain ended up victorious and China was forced to sign a treaty that allowed opium to be traded in its ports. The treaty made the sale of opium legal and caused the Chinese economy to weaken.

Film Lesson: "Mountains of the Moon"

2008-12-03T06:49:00.000-08:00

Mountains of the Moon is a historical film about explorers John Speke and Richard Burton. It talks about their journey through Africa's territory and their search for the Nile River. They dealt with many problems while on their mission because they were unfamiliar with the area. They also had to deal with scorching hot weather and short supply of food and water. The African tribes that lived in Africa weren't very friendly to John and Richard because they never seen white people before and they felt that their territory was being invaded. The tribes attacked them but these fights resulted in retreats. Later on in the movie they dealt had problems with other tribes and animals like lions and insects.

Although the Europeans were new to Africa, they had many advantages. Their strongest advantage was their technology. They had more up-to-date and better weapons such as guns, which are more handy than spears or bows and arrows. The Europeans' technology was so superior that it helped them conquer Africa. This also helped them discover the Nile River, and a lake which they named Lake Victoria after their queen.

The Meiji Restoration of Japan

2008-11-26T06:43:00.000-08:00

Japan had always been a country dedicated to isolation. They didn't want to trade with any other countries and only looked out and worried for themselves. In 1853, European explorers such as Mathew Perry voyaged to Japan and wanted trade of water and coal. The Japanese were stunned by the European's technology. Since Japan was an archipelago, a small group of islands, it would be easy to trade. The Japanese disliked the idea of opening trade with the Europeans and many fought the Europeans because of this idea. But with the helpof superior and such advanced technology, Mathew Perry was able to force trade with Japan. This led to the fall of Japanese shogunates and the restoration of power for the Emperor Meiji.

Trade helped Japan move towards modernization. Japans government was expanded and the country became more open to trade. Japan was introduced to many other outside cultures and goods. The population and industrialization increased. The Emperor had limited control and less power than the shogun and he soon became meaningless. All of these changes led to such a strong and advanced country as Japan is today.

Karl Marx and Communism

2008-11-06T06:54:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx didn't like life situations during the Industrial Revolution and he wanted a new form a government, so he created the idea of Communism. He helped make the Communist Manifesto which were the rules and principals of Communism. Marx's idea of Communism was created to end Capitalism and Socialism, make all people share the same rights and end the bourgeoisie class system.

Karl Marx believed that a Communist country was supposed to be ruled by its people. All people should have the same rights and pay no matter what profession. He didn't like how some had power and others didn't . Workers shared common wealth their bosses and class system would no longer be used. Although Karl Marx's ideas were very fair, they weren't used in Communist countries. Instead, the people were controlled by a strict dictator and had limited rights. The people couldn't speak against the government and the media was censored.

Karl Marx and the Industrial Revolution

2008-11-05T06:47:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx didn't agree with the industrial revolution. He didn't like the fact that factory owners controlled the workers because they were the ones doing all the work. Working conditions in the factory were harsh and dangerous. Karl Marx invented the idea of communism, an imrpoved and classless society, and wanted the government to be used by all of the "common" people. The industrial revolution inspired Karl Marx's idea of communism because he disliked how the people, especially the workers, were being treated. He also didnt like how the workers had no power. Karl Marx came up with common people ruling all of the other people and treaing them equally. This new idea would have everyone working for the same amount of money and society and government would produce only what was needed.

Nationalism and the Creation of Italy

2008-10-16T07:10:00.000-07:00

After many revolutions took place in many parts of the world, a new type of government was needed. Some wanted monarchys to rule the people again, but an idea of nationalism came upon the people. Nationalism is the belief that ones loyalty and belief should bein people who share common cultures. Countries should also become nation states, making borders to seperate these states. All the people followed the same common rules.

The United States is a nationalist country. We have a common flag, national anthem, follow the same laws and almost everbody in the US share a common culture, whether its religion or political views. Although some people aren't born in the US, they still mantain nationalist qualities. For example, everyone supports their countries in sports or wars.

Nationalism helped create many nation states. Empires were being broken apart by nationalist movements, such as the Russian and Austrian-Hungarian empires. Italy was once ruled by Austria, but the people wanted change so during 1848, many violent revolts broke out. People wanted to make Italy a nation state, but their attemts failed. A prime minister named
Camillo di Cavour helped unite Italy and gain its freedom as a nation state.

Simon Bolivar and Latin American Revolutions

2008-10-10T07:05:00.000-07:00

Simon Bolivar was a famous military leader. He was also a famous liberator, whose accomplishments help free many South American countries from the rule of Spain. He was a well educated man who was born in Venezuela. He was schooled in Spain and traveled through Italy and France. In Europe and America, Bolivar was inspired by enlightenment thinkers such as Locke. When traveling through the US, he finally realized that it was time for his country to have a revolution. Bolivar started a revolution that led to Venezuela's independence on July 5th, 1811. After freeing Venezuela from Spain's rule, he continued leading his army and started freeing more countries. He then established the republic of Colombia, in which he granted himself president. He continued to free more countries and eventually freed Colombia, Peru, Ecuador and Bolivia. After this, Simon Bolivar was considered the greatest revolutionary hero for South America.

Robespierre and The Reign of Terror

2008-09-23T07:02:00.000-07:00

France's government became more democratic after the French Revolution. This caused the middle class and poor people to gain more power. But the new leaders did not meet all the people's expectations and standards. King Lous XVI lost alot of his power while radical clubs in France tried to take control of the government. These clubs also tried to get rid of anyone in the old government by using the guillotine to publicly execute people. After trying to escape France, King Lous XVI was captured, charged with treason and killed.

Because of these executions, there was much fear of France's government and people. Afer this, Maximilien Robespierre took control of the government and killed any trace of old monarchys. He also closesd churches and killed a lot of people. He was basically a dictator whose rule was known as "The Reign of Terror" due to so many executed and killed people. Later on he was killed and a new government was formed.

The French Revolution

2008-09-22T06:42:00.000-07:00

1) Many people in France would be critical of the nobles, the King and the clergy because first off they were treated as underclassman and didn't get as much idependance, fairness and equality as the nobles, the King ad the clergy. Second, the people were forced to pay taxes during economic problems to support the King, nobles and church. The French people were not satisfied with the way their government and country was ruled because they felt as if they had no power at all.

2) The French peasants in 1789 might have grumbled about paying taxes and being forced to do military service. Also they were being treated unfairly by the government.

3) Source A shows a peasant carrying someone from the clergy and a noble on his back. This picture has many meanings but one interpretation I had of it was that the peasant had to support all the other "higher" classes and hoped for a revolution that would make him stop supporting them.

4) The author if source B describes the peasants' lives as being harsh and unfair. The peasants didn't have that much but still had to pay taxes in which were difficult for them to pay.

5) Yes. It shows that the poor had a hard lifestyle and what made it worse was that they had to pay to support the rich people. It shows that they want to go against the rich people anhd have a revolution to eliminate their harsh, unfair lives.

6) The peasants would be influenced by John Locke because they would like some of the ideas he came up with like equality, fairness and control over picking their rulers. The peasants didn't like their form of government and would rather have a democracy in France. With a democracy, the peasants would live easier lives.

7) It was banned by the government and higher authority because they didn't want the peasants to revolt against them. Since a majority of France's population at the time were peasants, the high authorities would be outnumbered if the peasants were ever to revolt. It was also banned because the government wanted their rules to be followed and they didn't want the peasants to form a new type of government.

John Locke and "The Enlightment"

2008-09-18T06:39:00.001-07:00

The U.S. Constitution was heavily influenced by John Locke when it was written by Thomas Jefferson in 1776. The Constitution states that all men are equal and have the same rights. Since they are equal, they should have equal opportunities and should be treated equal. Also stated in the Constitution was that the people of the United States of America should control and make decisions for the government. The government should do what is best for the people, ensuring saftey and hapiness. If the government fails to follow the peoples' rules, the government can be abolished and a new ruler will be chosen to follow their demands.

Copernicus and the trial of Galileo

2008-09-12T06:43:00.000-07:00

Geocentrism and Heliocentrism are both theories of the Solar System. Heliocentrism is Copernicus' belief that the Sun is in the center of the Solar System. Geocentrism is the belief that the Earth is in the center of the Solar System, making every other planet, moons and sun revolve around it. The geocentric theory came first but was proven wrong during the scientific revolution, making the heliocentric theory more accurate.

In 1633, Galileo was put on trial because he believed in Copernicus' theory of heliocentrism, which stated that the Sun was the center of the universe. Because of the bible, the Catholic church supported geocentrism and decided to put him on trial when they became angered over Galileo's book on heliocentrism. Galileo was charged with going against the Catholic church who planned on arresting or even killing him. This trial was the end of Galileo's freedom and the end of the Italian Renaissance.

Scientific Revolution: The Scientific Method

2008-09-11T06:50:00.000-07:00

Back in the 1500s, scholars used ancient Greek and Romans or the bible to get ideas about science. When the scientific revolution came about, scientists learned that much of the information and beliefs that was taught for thousands of years was wrong. The scientific method was used to prove or disapprove an idea or belief during an experiment. The scientific method consists of five steps; the problem, hypothesis, experiment, observation and results and conclusion. The problem is the idea or theory in which would like to learn about or experiment on. The hypothesis is a prediction of the outcome of your experiment. After these two steps, you then perform your experiment and take notes on what you observed happening. You put all the new information that was learn during the experiment together, and establish whether your hypothesis or beliefs was correct or incorrect.

EVOLUTION VS. CREATION

2008-09-05T06:47:00.000-07:00

Darwin's Theory of Evolution believes that all life and organisms are related and has descended from the same ancestors. It believes that life has evolved from non-living things and that complex creatures naturally evolve from simple organisms over time. When organisms are created mutations occur. These mutations are beneficial and are passed down from generation to generation. over time this creates new organisms. So basically this theory is that mankind is related to all animals such as apes and we share the same ancestors.

Creationism is a religious belief that humanity, life, Earth and the universe were created by one great power known as a god or deities. Creationisn deals with many religions such as Catholic and Judaism. It does not support the theory of evolution and can be very controversial.

I personally believe in creationism all because I am true to my religion. I do believe that God created everything. I also belive in Creationism because its kind of hard to believe that every single living thing is created. I definately do not want to be known as a gorillas cousin!