Forrest Gump

1. Below you will find a list of eighteen historical events from the movie Forrest Gump.  Choose one of the topics and write a brief summary of that event on your blog.

The Black Panthers  was a black powers group who used violence to display its theology.  The organization was originally formed in Oakland, California by founding members Heuy Newton and Bobby Seale in 1996. The Black Panthers denied white people membership on the basis that the whites did not know what it was truly like to be black and to be oppressed.  The Black Panthers were responsible for the killing of an Oakland police officer and  the hosting of the first free breakfast for the Church of St. Augustine.  These actions were just a few of the many actions that the Black Panthers took to represent black power.

2. Interpret what you think Forrest's mom meant when she told him, "Life is like a box of chocolates; You never know what you're gonna get." on your blog.

When Forrest's mom said that "Life is like a box of chocolates; You never know what you're gonna get," she meant that the events that occur in one's life can be random at the least.  Anything can happen at anytime and anywhere, regardless of the person's opinion in the matter.  For instance, when Mrs. Gump's time came, she did not have a say in whether it was truly her time or not.  Initially, Forrest did not see this event coming; hence, the quote bears merit.

1920's Spring Break Blog

The 1929 Stock Market Crash was a result of various economic imbalances and structural failings.  These are some of the most significant economic factors behind the stock market crash of 1929.

• Credit Boom
• During the 1920s, many people used credit and loans to buy shares from the stock market.  However, when 1929 came around, people were in debt and hastily sold their stocks to try and pay off their debts.  The stock market had crashed as a result of all the debt.
•    Buying on the Margin
• Buying on the Margin is the process of buying little and borrowing a lot from the share which made many people millionaires.  This process is similar to buying on credit since the stock purchase was based off of borrowed money from the bank.  Just like the Credit Boom, buying on the margin lead to the stock market crash.
• Irrational Exuberance



• One of the main reasons why the stock market crashed was because of false expectations. Many consumers saw the stock market's prosperity and seized their opportunity.  When consumers felt confident in their stocks and profits, they began to buy more stocks with the expectation of more profit.  Tejvan Pettinger argues that the force fueling the economy was not of economic processes, but of the consumer's confidence in the stock market.
• Mismatch between Product and Consumption
• Companies and industries developed new techniques to make production more efficient.  Ironically, this lead to stock market crash itself.  Since companies were now faster and more productive, they had to sell their products to make a profit.  But people were not buying their new products which hurt the economy.  
• Agricultural Recessions
• Farmers faced a real problem during the 1920s.  Similar to the large companies who could not sell their products, farmers could not sell their food.  Food was not in high demand, and the economy suffered.  Thus, the stock market was negatively affected.
• Weaknesses in the Banking System
• Banks and firms were numerous during the 1920s.  According to Tejvan Pettinger, "America had over 30,000 banks."  However, since the banks were so numerous, they were more vulnerable to bankruptcy; particularly those in rural areas which suffered from the agricultural recessions.  

Racism in the 1920's

1) Interpret the quote in your blog.
Quote:
"Though men and women drop from the ranks they remain with us in purpose, and can be depended on fully in any crisis. Also, there are millions who have never joined, but who think and feel and -- when called on -- fight with us. This is our real strength, and no one who ignores it can hope to understand America today." Hiram Wesley Evans, The Klan's Fight for Americanism, The North American Review (March-April-May 1926)
Interpretation: The first/second sentences talk about how the KKK has declined and lost many of its members, but those who are no longer a member (or are not a member) of the KKK, will "fight with us."  The third sentence discusses how the Klan's true strength is it's strength in numbers.  These numbers are by the millions and are of members and non-members of the KKK, as stated by the first two sentences.  Basically, this quote argues that the KKK is still strong despite it's decline in membership.

2) Explain how this film would have increased the population of the KKK.
     This film would have increased KKK membership for a two man reasons: (1) It portrayed African-Americans as "vicious" and the KKK as heroes  (2) It promoted slavery. 

    Firstly, since the African-Americans were portrayed as animals in this film, and the KKK was seen as the opposite, then people would respect the KKK.  Portions of the film had African-Americans as the villain, and the KKK as the heroes who rescued the damsel in distress.  Toward the end of this portion, the large group of Klansmen captured the African-American and saved the woman.  The KKK were considered heroes thereafter which definitely increased membership

     Secondly, this film promoted slavery, and many men in the South wanted slavery to come back. After WWI, slavery had ended, and the African-American man was "free."  This left many southerners angry, or at the very least, unsatisfied.  Thus, many southerners turned to the KKK in an attempt to bring slavery back.  The Birth of a Nation likely contributed to this motif.  As a result, many southerners made an attempt to join the KKK, and serve their motifs.

     In conclusion, The Birth of a Nation played a pivotal role in the revival of the KKK.  Men and women alike made becoming a member an objective and goal.  All of the members and soon-to-be members believed in slavery, and the immortality of the black man.   These mentalities served as the underlying basis for the KKK's return, and the film brought about these thoughts.   

1920's in class assignment

1. Harden is saying that immorality has spread.  If a leader defies the law, then his insuboordinates will surely follow.  He wants all of us to respect the law.

This cartoon depicts the consequences of  distributing alcohol during the Prohibition laws

This cartoon depicts the original gangster, the first real "thug.". Al Capone is depicted as a powerful but calm mob leader

WWI Part 2

In your blog  
1) List the reasons why the US entered the WWII
They entered because:
The German U-Boats entered the war,the  Transatlantic Cable was cut, the Vigilancia  sunk, the Lusitania sunk, the Illinois sunk, the Sussex sunk, and the Zimmerman Telegram was intercepted.

Various Ships Sinking
(Except Lusitania)

Sussex Pledge

Russian Revolution

2) Choose which cartoon best describes each reason

New Weapons: German U-Boats

Zimmerman Telegram Interception

Transatlantic Cable Cut

3) One cartoon is missing, please explain why that event lead to the US war.

The cartoon of the Lusitania is missing, this event lead to the US breaking their neutrality because there were innocent US citizens on that ship who lost their lives.  The fact that a German U-boat was responsible may have also played a part in the US's anger since the US saw the U-Boats as cowardly.

WWI Part 1

Explain how the following led to war:
1) Imperialism - Imperialism is when a nation conquers a weaker nation for the sole purpose of building an empire.  Ultimately, this lead to competition among the powerful nations around the globe.  This competition led to conflict and war.

2) Militarism - Militarism is when a nation uses most, if not all, of it's resources to expand it's military.  With a stronger military comes war.

3) Nationalism - Nationalism is when a citizen or person has a strong devotion to his or her nation.  Nationalism bears similarities to patriotism; however, nationalism is more aggressive and prejudiced.  When a country is nationalistic, it will act in it's own national interest with no regard to the other nations that they may be irritating.  Unaware of the anger a nationalistic nation may cause  another nation to have, war will surely ensue.

4) Alliances: An alliance is when two or more separate parties (in this case, nations) join forces or align with one another.  This led to war in the end.  For instance, if the U.S. were to align with Great Britain, then the U.S. would be held responsible to come to great Britain's aid if attacked, and vice versa.  This caused nations to indirectly become enemies with other nations, causing war.

American Imperialism

1) Place a political cartoon about Imperialism, either American or European, on your blog and interpret it.

Interpretation: This image depicts the American flag raveling around Earth, it represents the fact that America has it's hands in everything and is trying to conquer or "imperialize"  other areas to it's own benefit.  These areas are usually weaker in terms of government, military, and economy.

2) List the reasons why the United States decided to become an Imperialistic country in the last part of the 1800s.

The U.S. decided to become an Imperialistic country for a number of reasons

• Natural Resources
• Resources such as petroleum or sugar were what the U.S. wanted
• New Markets
• With new resources came the desire to sell them, the U.S. needed more markets to sell their goods
• Competition/Nationalism
• The U.S. was an extremely competitive country, they wanted to prove that they have what it takes to conquer new areas and take pride in their accomplishments.  If Great Britain had an impressive navy, then so so did the U.S.
• Humanitarian/Religion
• The U.S. wanted to spread Christianity to those who were "non-believers" and those who were considered "savages"
• The U.S. also wanted to spread it's law to other countries as well as it's medicine
• Military
• The U.S. wanted new technology for their military
• The U.S. also wanted to expand their bases to other countries to increase their military presence