The Holocaust

        When some refers to the holocaust, they are talking about the mass genocide of Jewish people in Europe by the Nazi regime.  The holocaust started in the sense of genocide began in 1941.  But before that, they put Jews in these Ghettos, which wear basically these small “towns” that in most cases would be surrounded by barbed wire and constantly under super vision of the Nazi’s. The Jewish people in these ghettos, were treated like dirt.  They would instantly kill any Jewish person that tried to oppose them.  But eventually Reinhard Heyrich  (Man appointed by Hitler to eliminate all the Jews in Europe.) realized that it was taking too long, so instead they sent all the Jewish people to these death camps that were located in Poland.  These death camps were horrible; they would kill all of the weak (such as pregnant woman, the elderly, and kids.) then they would put all of the men to work. They would work them to death.  Two out of every three Jewish people living in Europe were killed.  But the Jewish people weren’t the only people targeted there were also other political opponents, members of resistance groups, homosexuals, dissenting Christians, Gypsies, the physically handicapped and mentally retarded, Soviet prisoners of war, Jehovah's Witnesses, anti-Nazi clergy, trade unionists, and psychiatric patients.            
               How did all of this start? There are a lot of beliefs to why Hitler decided to target the Jewish people, the most popular one is that Hitler was rejected twice to Vienna's Academy of Fine Arts as well as many other problems in his life. But the excuse he used was that he was getting back at the Jewish people because of the assassination of a German official.  Before the Holocaust began all Jewish people were forced out of Germany, and had no were to go.  One Jewish kid, who was still a teenager, was fed up with the Nazi regime so he decided to killed a Nazi official.  Which started the “Night of Broken Glass” In two days, over 250 synagogues were burned, over 7,000 Jewish businesses were trashed and looted, dozens of Jewish people were killed, and Jewish cemeteries, hospitals, schools, and homes were looted while police and fire brigades stood by.  After that he used the teenager as an excuse to kill 6 million Jewish people.

Untitled

It was a beautiful summer day, the wind was blowing and the sun was shining.  The day was almost perfect; I was waiting outside my friend’s house leaning on his black metal fence that was rusting and in obvious need of repairing.  I was staring at the road ahead of me, it was cracked and the paint that separated the two lanes where barely visible.  There was an empty lot directly across the street from where I stood.  It was nothing but a big patch of land that was filled with dirt and a few weeds. I remember thinking to myself how awesome the day was going to be, I was planning to play baseball all day and couldn’t wait to go to the park. As my friend came out of his house, there were shouts coming from down the street.  Before my friends mom pulled me inside I saw one man running, while five men were in close pursuit, their clothing was very baggy and it looked as though they were having trouble running because of their baggy pants.  We heard three very loud pops and even more shouts.  I peaked outside to see a man lying on the cracked street, blood covered his clothes.  Everything happened so fast the sound of sirens filled the air and suddenly the street that I was once standing right next to had become a crime scene.  Then suddenly the day that was supposed to be perfect had turned into a nightmare.  From that day on I could never look at the world the same, my childhood innocence had faded and now the world was suddenly a scary place. 

Propaganda 2011????

  

                 These two pictures are prime examples of propaganda that governments would use to get there citizens to join their military.  They would basically put these posters everywhere just like advertisements that we all see today.  Such as Soft Drink advertisements and posters for cars.  Common media for transmitting propaganda messages include news reports, government reports, historical revision, junk science, books, leaflets, movies, radio, television, and posters. Less common nowadays are letterpost envelopes examples of which of survive from the time of the American Civil War. 

                Now the big question that I thought would be important is “Is there propaganda that is aimed toward getting people to join the military?”  And the answer is very obvious and it is yes.  At first I thought that there want really any propaganda but then I watched T.V and there were tons of things that we all see that is an advertisement to join the military.  Such as all of the Navy and air force commercials that we all see, the phrase they use is “The few, the proud, the marines.”  Not only that, but there is also video games that influence kids to join the military.  The biggest one is “Call of Duty”, they are one of the best selling games out there.  All these games are basically about being in the military and being a war hero.  I know that all Call of Duty games are for 17 or older, but a lot of children play this game by the time they’re 8.  I personally think that these games are great, but I think that children, who are easily influenced, should not play this game.  So as you could see there is still plenty of propaganda around us today and the best thing you could do is be aware and be smart.

Beat Street!

So this week’s blog is on a movie called Beat Street.  I have watched this movie three times now, twice when I was younger and once in my American Literature class.  This movie is alright but I personally think that “Breakin” is a way better movie. It is kind of like beat street except that there is a lot more dance battles with better characters.  Either way both movies inspire you to get up and start doing flips and become a break dancer.  I know that when I was young I wanted to be a break dancer and I used to practice doing windmills, which by the way I never learned to do.  Even today I still try to practice break dancing, even though every time I attempt to do a windmill I fall straight on my back.  It is fun and it also looks cool when you’re able to do flips and tricks.  I think that Beat Street is a great movie and should be watched more often, because everyone that I know has never even heard of the movie. People are weird, and you know what is even crazier?  People said that they don’t like the movie.  They were obviously hit on the head with a rock and must hate everything about Hip-Hop.  Beat Street has so much music, dancing, and art that it is hard not to like it.  The characters are also very cool, such as Ramo who lived for art, even though it was on the side of a train he still loved it and died defending it. RIP Ramo

Hungry????

Richard is a very complex person, you never know what he is going to do next.  He sets the house on fire and even kills a kitten.  And why does he do these things?  Maybe it is because he is lonely or because he doesn’t feel close to his family.  But what we know for sure is that he is hungry for attention.  His family doesn’t give him the attention that he needs, so he does these bad things in order for people to pay attention to him.  This behavior can be very destructive in the future because what if he starts to do drugs or commit crimes just to get attention.  Richard likes to get all of this attention but once he gets it he doesn’t know what to do with it.  Like when he sets the house on fire he thought that this would give him some attention from his parents but instead he almost gets beaten to death by his mom.  He also kills a kitten out of anger to his dad. His dad told Richard to kill the cat, but not to literally kill it, but to shut it up.  And since Richard wants all of this attention he killed the cat.  He didn’t get in trouble but his punishment was to bury the cat and pray for it with his mother.  Even though Richard is strange in many ways, he is still a kid like every other kid in the world who is just curious about life. 

Bruno Mars — Doo-Wops & Hooligans

Bruno Mars — Doo-Wops & Hooligans

1.“Grenade”
2. “Just the Way You Are”
3. “Our First Time”
4. “Runaway Baby”
5. “The Lazy Song”
6. “Marry You”
7. “Talking to the Moon”
8. “Liquor Store Blues” feat. Damian Marley
9. “Count on Me”
10. “The Other Side” feat. Cee Lo & B.o.B

            When my teacher assigned this blog I automatically thought of Bruno Mars.  So the Album that I’m going to be reviewing is Doo-Wops and Hooligans.  Now all of these songs are very good but my personal favorite are “Grenade” and “Just the Way You Are.”  Bruno Mars is a very good singer who has very good songs with strong lyrics.  He is also very famous already, I’m sure that everyone has heard of him.  He also has a song that features Damian Marley who is Bob Marley’s youngest son. The reason behind the name of this album he said was “I have records that women are going to relate to and men are going to relate to. So doo-wops are for the girls, and hooligans are for the guys.”  So if you’re a boy or a girl you will love this album, it has awesome songs and is recommended by me.  If you would like to listen to some of these songs you could go to “youtube.com”.  The only song that a wish was on this Album is “Billionaire” with Travie McCoy featuring Bruno Mars.  But other than that, I give this album five stars and two thumbs up.             

Winter Poem

The snow is so soft

The city is run by snow

Can't wait till christmas

Jay and Nick

This week’s blog is what I think about the relationship between Jay Gatsby and Nick.  I really think that their relationship is based off the fact that Nick is Daisy’s cousin.  I think that’s why Gatsby even started to notice Nick.  But I also think that the two developed a stronger relationship over time.  Gatsby was only talking to Nick in the beginning because of Daisy but after a while he realized that they really were getting along and now they both are friends.  I say this because if Nick didn’t know Daisy, Gatsby wouldn’t have even looked at Nick.  There are many situations in which they are friends, such as when Nick went to check up on Gatsby when he seen all of his house lights on.  Also in chapter 6 or 7, Tom calls Gatsby a bootlegger and Nick stands up for Gatsby.  They also have a lot in common.  Gatsby even offers to give him a better job and to have his lawn cut.  But we also can’t hide the fact that Jay Gatsby might just be using Nick in order to get closer to his cousin Daisy.  Because even though they hang out and talk Gatsby’s main focus is Daisy.  I really can’t wait to find out how this friendship ends up. 

I am thankful for...

I’m thankful for many people in the class but the person I’m most thankful for is Josue Salgado.  Not only does he help me with the class by telling me what the homework is but he also makes me feel ten times taller.  He is also very funny and is a very good friend.  I’m also thankful for Carl Isada who sits directly to the left of me.  He is always helping me not only in American Lit. but he also helps me in Geometry.  He also helps me stay awake during class because I am always tired when I walk into the class and sometimes I almost fall asleep during class but Carl is always there to wake me up and tell me to pay attention.  Without him I am 100 percent sure that I would be totally loss in the class.  I am also very thankful for all of the freshmen that talk a lot during the discussions because it gives me a little bit of time to relax.  And I think that all I’m thankful for.  Oh no wait I can’t forget about all the people who do their blogs early because I read them so that I can get ideas for my blog.  So people who do their blogs early and don’t wait until the last second like I do, keep up the good work.

American Lit Class

I really don’t have a lot of complaints about this class.  But the ones that I do have are the ones that I want to change (even though they’re probably not.)  First of all I would like the books that we read together to be more interesting.  No offense but the Crucible and the house of the seven gables bored me to death.  Why can’t we read books about action like ninja’s or secret agents?  But instead we read books about crazy people that accuse other people of being witches.  BORING!!!  Another thing I hate doing is taking notes.  I never even look at my notes again after I take them.  Plus it ruins reading because I’m always looking for something to write down instead of focusing on the book.  I don’t see the point in notes.  Those are the only two complaints I have but overall I really enjoy this class.  It is probably one of my favorite classes that I have. 

Slavery

When people think of slavery they think of African Americans being brought to America to work on plantations against their will.  That was a long time ago, and since then slavery has been abolished.  Or has it?  Today there are companies that use sweatshops to get their products made.  Now sweatshops are places where people work for big companies such as Nike and get paid very little and work in very poor conditions.  Nike even uses children in Pakistan to make their soccer balls.  The children get paid very little and have no other choice because they’re poor and needs to help his family.  This is why many people are forced to work in sweatshops.  But Nike isn’t the only company who uses cheap labor, I researched the companies who use sweatshops and to my surprise there were more than 30 companies!  So this isn’t just one company, this is an epidemic that needs to be stopped.  The companies aren’t going to change because they’re making millions of dollars, so I think that the only way to stop the use of cheap labor is to boycott these companies.  This will create less demand for the products.   By creating less demand for products, it forces workers out of jobs. A well organized boycott will cause a company to change the working conditions in a factory, instead of simply closing it down.

The House of the Seven Gables

The House of the Seven Gables is located at 54 Turner Street in Salem, Massachusetts. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  The House of the Seven Gables has the reputation of being haunted. Many people claim to see Susan Ingersoll's ghost roaming the hallways and peering out of the windows. There have also been reports of a ghostly boy haunting the attic area. He can be heard running around the attic, and playing with his toys. In addition to the apparitions seen, many visitors and employees also hear strange sounds - the toilets sometimes flush on their own, and the faucets turn on and off by themselves at times. Just to clarify the employees that work there are tour guides.  I think that these spirits stay in the house and haunt it is because of the curse that Mathew Maule put on the family.  I also think that if one of the Pycheon descendents were to apologize to one of the Maule’s descendents then all of the spirits will be in peace.

John Proctor good or evil????

 

John Proctor is a character in the book "The Crucible."  That I am reading for my American Literature class.  John Proctor lives in this town where everyone believes that there is witch craft going on, and John Proctor doesn't believe any of it.  In this town everyone is accusing everyone of being a witch.  Most people are just accusing their enemies so that they will be burned at the stake.  Which is why I believe that John Proctor is a hero, he doesn't go along with everyone else.  He also believes that the town could solve their own problems, which is why he doesn't want Reverend Hale to come in the town.  This also shows that John Proctor is a leader.  He also tried hard to clear his wife of being wrongly accused of being a witch but the police back then were completely messed up. He did betray his wife by sleeping with Abigail but you can tell that he is deeply sorry and knows that he messed up. But in the end John Proctor managed to save his wife and baby, sure he did some bad things in the book but overall I think that he was a true hero.

In the hands of an angry God

This week’s topic is a preacher who preached about god and how if you don't be good and go to church god will send you to hell at any minute.  He stated that god had an arrow pointed at you ready for you to mess up.  I believe in god, but I believe that god is loving and willing to forgive, but this preacher is crazy.  The preacher is just trying to strike fear into his believers in order to get more money for the church and himself.  This guy is should be put in a mental institution, because if he actually believes this, something is wrong with him.  He depicts god as someone you should fear rather than love.  I'm pretty sure that everyone who listened to this preacher was probably wetting their pants in fear.  I actually feel bad for the people who believe this guy, because they probably were too scared to even walk outside in fear of committing a sin.  If I was one of the villagers there I would move to another country were they let you believe whatever you want,  I wouldn't want to go back to the village because everyone will hate me for rejecting their faith. 

There goes the neighborhood.

I live on 26^th street, which means that the neighborhood is very Mexican, even the stores are Mexican.  But one day a Japanese family moved in down the street.  Everyone in the neighborhood thought that they were strange, because for one they had a rooster for a pet.  They also dressed kind of strange, which I learned later was because of their heritage.  So one day a man who lived next door got really upset because the rooster was making a lot of noise.  The Japanese man and the guy next door got into a fight and the cops showed up and put them both in jail.  They were released the next day, but after that day everyone in the neighborhood didn’t like the Japanese family.  It was kind of crazy because people would egg their house and call them names.  My family and I stood out of the situation.  Until one day my parents saw a group of thugs spray painting their garage so my mom called the cops, but by the time the cops came the thugs were long gone.  My mom told the police about what she saw and shortly after that the police left.  The Japanese family thanked us and a week after that the family left our neighborhood, and after that everything went back to normal.

About me

Well my name is Jose S. and im a very laid back guy. I live on the north side of Chicago.  I live with my mom, dad,and my younger brother.  I'm 15 years old and go to Whitney Young high school.  I also really love sports.  But my personal favorite sport is baseball,  thats because its the sport I play the most.  I made my freshman baseball team for whitney young.  My favorite professional baseball team is the Chicago White Sox.  My favorite baseball player is Alexei Ramirez.  I also like watching T.V, my favorite show's are Family Guy, The Simpsons, and South Park.  I love to listen to music,  the only way I can go to sleep is if I listen to music.

Some of the things that I dont like are when people talk during a movie.  It drives me crazy when people think that Lane Tech is better then Whitney Young.  I also don't like the Chicago Cubs, they're not going to win the world series, just accept it.  I hate when people are so negetive all the time.  I also hate when teachers write on the blackboard.  The sound of the chalk hitting the blackboard is so annoying!