Article 5: Does Power Corrupt?

Power does not corrupt. Power is corrupt from the beginning. Corrupt leaders use their power to get what they want and this was their plan the whole time. These people are usually leaders of a gang or cult, and have connections to leaders before them.

There are people in the world that will use their power to do evil, and not good. An example of this is Adolph Hitler. He became the dictator of Germany. He wanted to make an Arian race consisting only of Christians. He tried to exterminate all of the minorities, especially people of the Jewish religion. After his reign, over six million Jews were killed. This was his plan the whole time that he was trying to come into power. He wanted to use his power to get what he wanted. Hitler was the leader of an extremist group called the Nazis. There are many people who still follow the Nazi’s belief in an Arian race. Although this group diminished severely after World War II, there is still a portion of the population that is a part of this cult.

Another example of this is Saddam Hussein. He was part of a group called Al’ Qaeda. When he was elected, he caused the deaths of many people that were against Al’ Qaeda. It was not until recently that he was captured by American soldiers and killed. He had so many people working under him in the government that, without the help of another country, it would have been impossible for his reign to end until his death. Now, Iraqis live under a president that they elected. Before, there were still elections but the outcomes were altered by the people of Al’ Qaeda.

There are many situations similar to this one in many countries around the world including, Iran, Cuba, and South Korea. Almost any country living under a dictator will suffer from corrupt power and unfairness served to the people. This needs to be stopped so that people can live freely and not be forced to do the work of someone else, especially if they are against it.

There have been many dictators that have come into power throughout history, and nothing good for the country has come out of it. Time and time again people have been unfairly killed and destruction has been caused through the country. Some people may believe that the things done by these corrupt leaders are good things, but the majority of the people in the world are against them. Because of this, dictatorship is not popular and does not lead to a successful country.

The United States of America has a democratic system of government and has prospered since its beginning. Other countries that do not have a democracy in place can still be successful, but it is much more difficult. With a democracy the people of the country are indirectly making the decisions. In a dictatorship, the tyrant is making the decision and most of the time this choice will be beneficial to him or her and not the people of his or her country.

With the examples above, it is clear that power does not become corrupt over a period of time, but that it is corrupt from its start. A corrupt government can be stopped by eliminating the cults and groups that believe in things that are unethical and that are detrimental to a country.

Prezi Presentation on Demeter

Demeter on Prezi

Notes 2/25/10

• Alexander the Great
• Goes to Persepolis which was the ancient capital of Persia
• Once the greatest capital in the world, and is now in ruins
• Alexander fights Darius at Issus
• Darius's leave and betray him
• Gave Alexander Persia in his dying words
• Alexander needs to get Persian population behind him. He does this by going after the people that left Darius behind
• Goes as far as Afghanistan to find them
• Many leaders have the ability to make their armies do what is needed
• Get to their destination before the betrayers and kill them
• Alexander goes to Tajikistan and is defeated their. This is his first defeat.
• Their is only Europe and a small portion of Asia and the Middle East. Because of this, Alexander thought that he had conquered the world
• His campaign then goes south into India
• Meets fierce resistance their, being attacked daily. He suffered what appeared to be a mortal wound. An arrow pierces his lung. Many of his men think that he is going to die.
• He hears stories of more people in India and wants to go. His men do not want to. Alexander sees an omen and decides to go home.
• His and his mens' culture was changed by Persia.
• He doesn't know where home is and travels to Iraq. This is his last great march
• Loses a friend in Babylon and becomes extremely depressed. Coupled with his wounds and his binge drinking, he comes ill with a fever and dies. Not in glory, because of sickness. He died at the age of 32
• What happens to his empire after death? It was split up between his generals
• Two large areas that were split up were the Seleucid Empire and Egypt
• Egypt was taken over by Ptolemy. His descendants would rule Egypt until Cleopatra
• Hellenistic refers to Greek. This was established by Alexander and his soldiers

Notes 2/24/10

• Athens beat Persians in 480 BC
• Athens flourished during the Pericles Age
• Athens and Sparta begin fighting again
• Battle in the plains of Attica for several years
• Athenians built the Long Walls from the harbor to Athens
• Athenians get stuck in between the walls
• Plague breaks out and most of them die
• Athenians plan attack Sicily because of their alliance with Sparta
• Someone committed mass vandalism through Athens
• Alcibiades political enemies convinced everyone that is was him
• Many people think Alcibiades told Spartans about the Athenians plan
• Greatest defeat in Athens history
• Alexander the Great was Aristotle's apprentice
• Becomes king after his father is assassinated
• Decides to invade Persia and conquer it
• Ruled most of the known world by the time he was 24
• Goes to Troy to start conquest
• Legend saying that the person who could undo the Gordian Knot could conquer the world
• Alexander decides to try to untie it
• He slices the knot in half
• Hailed as a King in Egypt because he defeated Persia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bosphorus

Acropolis:

Persians burned everything on it

Came back and rebuilt it

Wall surrounding is a memorial

Trees are grove of dianices

theater of dionecis

The Acropolis explains the Greek history

Parthenon is most important piece of Doric Archtitecture

A temple for Athena

Notes 2/22/10

• Athens in Province of Attica
• Enormous City, a quarter of Greece lives there
• City based around the Acropolis
• Religion and Theater are very closely linked
• Parthenon most important temple on the Acropolis, also the oldest
• Age of Classical Greece often called the Age of Pericles
• Pericles gives the idea to build a navy
• He also opens the arts
• Frieze going around the Parthenon
• The temple was for the virgin Athena

Helped Olivia Difonso

In exchange for two dailies, I decided to help Olivia Difonso on her article about the ancient and modern Olympics. I gave her information on the modern Olympics pertaining to the start of the modern summer and winter Olympics, the differences between the summer and winter Olympics, and the opening and closing ceremonies.

Article 4: Is History Created by "The People" or Individuals?

History is a creation of “the people” and not by individual persons. Each major figure in history had a group of people behind him or her, supporting and helping him or her. Many times, the people would be the driving force in a cause, as opposed to a specific person.
An example of this is the recent Tea Party movement. This movement is against the recent taxes that have been proposed by government official in order to help pay off some of the debt that the United States is currently in. The Republic Party wants to back up this movement, but many of the people that make up the group do not want their help. They have said that the Republic Party needs them, more than they need the Republic Party. This shows that the people of the Tea Party movement feel as if they have enough power to overcome a bill without a major group. While the Republic Party is not an individual person; it represents a more powerful force then “the people.” Without a figurehead, it is lacking a face to the movement. One of the things that these people are trying to show is that this is what the people of the country want, not necessarily a more powerful, government official.
Another example of this is the Revolutionary War. The people of the new colonies in North America were being ruled over by a king in England. They did not think it was fair that a foreign ruler could control what they did across an ocean. The people of the new colonies chose to rebel against the British. One of the things that sparked the revolution was the Boston Massacre. This was when a few British soldiers were provoked by American colonists. A fight ensued in which the British fired shots at colonists armed with only rocks. The fact that the British soldiers attack colonists enraged the people to revolt. Although there were colonist leaders, the people were still the ones revolting against Great Britain.
A similar event to the Revolutionary War that was lead by the people was the Civil War. The people in the northern United States wanted to free the slaves, while the people in the south wanted to keep slavery. While there were leaders for each of the groups, they were helped and fought alongside the people. At the end of the war, the North won and slavery was abolished due to the people fighting for what they believed in and for what was fair.
During the Civil Rights movement, the African-American popular in the United States rebelled against common ideas and beliefs set forth by the American government. These ideas were race based and favored the white population. A very well known event that many people think of when talking about the Civil Rights movement is Rosa Parks not moving to the back of the bus when the bus driver told her to. This gave the idea to boycott the bus system. The boycott hurt the bus companies because they lost half of their pay. The bus boycott was one of many boycotts that took place. Another event that was common was a sit in. A sit in was when a group of African-Americans would sit at place in a restaurant where they were not allowed to be and would not move until they forced to move by the police or another force. These were often violent and always resulted in the participants being thrown in jail.
A major theme in the Civil Rights movement was being peaceful in their protests. All of the violence during this time period was caused by the government. Being peaceful meant that they could not get in trouble with the law for violence against other people. This idea was started by Martin Luther King Junior. While he was a major figure in the movement along with Malcolm X, they both were supported by the people of the African-American community. Without the people behind him, half of the things he accomplished would not have been possible. This shows the power that the people have when it comes to making major changes.
The Summer of Love was the summer of 1967 when teenagers migrated to San Francisco, California. San Francisco was considered the center of the hippie community, but most of the major cities in the United States housed hippies. During this summer, approximately 100,000 people traveled to San Francisco. Many of the people that went there had to live on the streets and find food without any money. This further exemplifies the idea that the people create history.
Without the people of civilizations, there would be no history. Major figures in history either emerged from “the people” or were supported and could not have succeeded with their followers. The people can either make or break history. Either way, they affect the way history was created and shaped it.

Daily Was Athens Really a Democracy?

I do not think that Athens was really a democracy. While it had all of the elements of a democratic government, the normal people made most of the decisions and not the government officials. This is a problem because the majority of the Athenians were not educated at all, which could lead to poor decisions.

Daily 2/17/10

While the Ancient Greek Olympics are similar to today's Olympics, there are many differences as well. In ancient times, the Olympics were a way to try and honor Zeus and the other gods and goddesses by competing in events. Some of the events from the ancient Greek Olympics that athletes still compete in are most of the track and field events and wrestling. Most of the competitions today were not in the ancient Olympics. Also, they competed in the games naked, something that is not done today. Women were not allowed to participate in the events of the Olympics.

Notes 2/17/10

Greece
Athens in Attica
Pellapines was location of Sparta
Oldest poem was the Iliad by Homer
No clear definitive answer as to whether or not it was true

Comic Daily

Article 3: What is important?

What is important?

According to dictionary.com, important is something “of much or great significance or consequence.” There are many important things that have happened in ancient history that have shaped the way we live today. These include the idea of war, knowledge, worship, and expansion. All of these have had a significant influence on the things we do.

War has been around since prehistoric times. Whether its animals fighting over food, or people fighting for their freedom, war has made an impact on modern society. People have always desired dominance. They want to be on top. Some humans are born with passion and will to be the best, and rule over everyone else. Because of this, mankind has suffered but improved. Without the American colonists’ desire to be their own country, there would be no America. We would still be ruled by England. Spain wanted to conquer England. They built the Spanish Armada, which put the country into debt. When their plan failed, the country was at the bottom. Spain has still not recovered from this tragic defeat, while America has flourished since gaining its independence. Two contrasting results have come from two similar events.

England ruled over Europe for an extremely long time. They did this by building a large and powerful army. After achieving this, they waged war upon surrounding countries. War is the reason for its reign. War has made and broken countries. Without the constant fighting between countries, mankind would not have everything that it has now.

Worshipping objects, gods and goddesses, and a single God has been a common factor in many civilizations throughout history. The ancient Greeks and Romans worshipped many gods and goddesses. The belief in more than one god is called polytheism. Greeks and Romans revolved their day around the gods and goddesses that control the weather, war, the sea, and music. They would pray to a god or goddess before competing in an event, or playing a musical piece before a large crowd. They even named planets after gods and goddesses. If something went wrong, the Greeks and Romans believed that they angered the god or goddess in control of that element. To prevent tragedies from happening that would offer sacrifices and pray often to that specific god or goddess.

There are only three religions in which the belief of one God is accepted. These religions are Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. Although these are the only three religions that have one God, they all have conflicting ideas. Christianity and Judaism share the Old Testament, but Christianity then goes into the New Testament, something that Jewish people do not believe in. Islam is the religion that differentiates the most between Christianity and Judaism. Islam follows the teachings of Mohammed. Neither Christianity nor Judaism follows his teachings. These differences have caused many disputes between religious groups. Muslims are notorious for civil differences between the Shi’ites and Sunni. They have been fighting for hundreds of years and still are today. That is one of the reasons as to why there are so many problems within the Middle East, the Mecca of Islam.

Knowledge has always been an important factor in human life. More intelligent people will usually create the structure of the government of a nation. If the government is not led by an intellectual person, the whole country will suffer. The leader also needs to surround him or herself around intelligent people. Humans have always wanted to gain more knowledge, whether it is for personal gain or for the benefit of mankind. Knowledge leads to scientific breakthroughs which lead to a longer lifespan which leads to a better country.

In prehistoric times, knowledge helped individuals to survive. If they were smart enough to find food, then they would live. If they did not know how to find food, then they would die. Knowledge is a valuable tool in modern times, and it was just as important in ancient times. Wisdom gives you a power that not everyone has. Intelligence has given us some of the greatest, and dangerous discoveries, such as the atomic bomb. An atomic bomb has immense power, but causes places to be uninhabitable. Because of this, atomic bombs are not to be trusted with everyone.

As well as all of the other things mentioned, people have always had the will to grow and expand their civilizations. The bigger the civilization, the more dominance it holds. There are two ways that a civilization can grow and become larger, peacefully and forcefully. Forcefully is the path usually chosen because no country will be willing to give its land up to another country. Force usually means war, which has already been pointed out is of major importance in human history. Expansion can give a country more power and more knowledge. With these two things, almost anything is possible. Having the ability to create new weapons will give the country more power. Having the power to teach people makes those people more knowledgeable.

There is a flaw to expansion though. The bigger a country gets, the harder is gets to control what goes on within it. A perfect example of this is the Roman Empire. The empire eventually got so large that there was no way for the leader of it to know what has happening on the outskirts of it. A group could have been planning a conspiracy to overthrow the emperor, and he would never know. But, money is a solution to this large problem. Money can be put towards police forces and government intelligence. Overall, expansion is good for a country or civilization.

All of the things discussed are desires. Man desires power, someone to believe in, knowledge, and growth. Will and desire ultimately are the things that shape human civilizations. It is the driving force of life. If not for will, there would be no improvement or growth. It is important to always strive for greater things then the things we already have. If we do not do this we will eventually crumble.

Daily

What is the oldest human-created artifact that has mattered to you? Why/how does it matter? (from @butwait on Twitter)

The oldest human-created artifact that has mattered to me is the Bible. It has taught me everything I know about God and my religion. It states everything that I morally believe. It also gives me a model for how to live my life.

Notes 2/03/10

Egypt split into two parts, Upper and Lower

Narmer Pallete united them

Pyramid of Giza topped with Limestone

Pharaohs always shown with an ornament, a skirt, and topless
Made of hard stone such as granite

Egyptian sculptures never had a space between the legs

Pictures on hieroglyphics were more similar to our alphabet

Pyramids only made for burial of pharaoh

Pyramids not made by slaves, but by professional workers hired specifically to build the pyramids

Mortuary cities, cities built for the burial of the pharaoh

Slaves created the upkeep of these cities

Egyptian cities could not have survived without slaves

Ka was the soul in the Egyptian world. It would stay in the pyramid. That is why pyramids were so elaborately decorated.

Heart weighed against a feather, called the feather of maat

Ankh was symbol of eternal life

If heart is lighter than feather, then they will be able to pass into the afterlife