Blog Post: Current Event

The article "Under Siege, Syrians flee to Lebanon" is about the current conflict going on in Syria. I believe that the intended audience for this article is for Americans, as well as the international community as a whole. I believe that the purpose of this article was to get people to see what is going on in Syria and to get us to want to go help the Syrians. The claim of the article is that the Syrian government is committing cruel acts and are killing and injuring their citizens. Also it claims that the international community is not doing their job to help the citizens. The evidence that I have to support this claim is when the article interviews a man and he says that it was unsafe to go anywhere. One man went to take out the trash and was shot by a sniper. In addition, the article talks about how the international community is doing nothing about the situation in Syria. The article also asks the question why Libyans were given aid last year during their revolution. It later answers itself by saying that it is because there is oil in Libya and not in Syria.

After reading the article I found that the book I choose, Forgotten Fire, had some similarities. For example, In the article the conditions were so bad that Syrians could not even go out of their home. One man went to take out his trash because it smelled so bad in his house and was shot by a sniper. This reminded me of when Vahan and his family had been in their house when soldiers came and shot Diran and Tavel. The two boys were innocent and didn't do anything wrong and they were shot for no real reason other than being Armenian. Another example I found was how the people tried to escape to other countries. For instance, Syrians and escaping to countries like Lebanon and at the end of the book Vahan managed, like other Armenians, to escape to Constantinople where he was no longer prosecuted. The final connection that I found was that in both situations the international didn't respond as greatly as they should have. In Syria's case the international community still has time to prevent many more lives from being taken.

USA Today

http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2012-02-25/syria-refugees-escape-crackdown-lebanon/53260118/1

English Blog 2: Letter

Dear Selim Bay,

I am writing you because I feel that your choice to ignore the fact that a girl was being raped by soldiers under your order is preposterous. I think that it is absolutely wrong that you let it happen with no punishment, in fact you allowed her to be there for the soldiers enjoyment. Even though she is in fact Armenian she is still a human being. I believe that no one should be treated that way regardless of nationality, race, gender, etc. I also think that it is also incredible that you didn't even give her food to eat. I honestly don't understand how you could do such a thing. Not only did you do this to a child but you also had a another child witness it. So in the process not only did you have a child raped and killed but you also scared another potential forever. I think your carelessness and disregard for human life is astonishing and despicable. The thought that you could do that to anyone, a child even, and feel no remorse or guilt is horrible. Even though at the time Armenians were not looked highly upon at all during these times are they not humans? are they that much different than you and I? They're human beings and no matter how much we may dislike and even hate others we should treat them with respect. I believe that you knew about the idea and approved the girl to stay. You should have told the soldiers that it was inhuman and that humans are not animals and should not be used for personal gain and then dumped out like trash when you are done with them. When Vahan approached you and asked you about the matter you responded by saying that he shouldn't care and that he didn't even know the girl. I also think it is horrible that you would respond that way, even though Vahan didn't know her well he has compassion for others. I think that you should think about the concern that Vahan had and put yourself in his shoes, he witnessed her rape and he found her dead. If you where Vahan would you have simply not cared? Would the loss of a human life not even effect you in the least? I believe that if you where in his shoes you would think about the matter in a whole new light. I feel that your actions were very poor and careless on this matter. I think that it would help you a great deal if you went back and thought about it again, this time from an Armenians perspective, a fellow human. I urge you to look back and find your mistakes.though you can't go back and take back the loss of a human life, you can indeed learn from it and make sure that it no longer happens under your control again.

Sincerely,

Faith Ezell

English Blog Post #1

One of the stages of genocide that I found evident in Forgotten Fire so far is preparation. Preparation is when the leaders of the genocide start planning and separating the victims from others. The first example that I found was a scene where Vahan had awaken to the noise of voices on the street below his house. All the people that where walking were Armenians and were being guarded by soldiers. He also notes that the people were carrying their belongings and some of the women were crying out for help. This shows preparation because it shows the Turkish soldiers taking away innocent Armenians for no other reason other than that they are Armenian. It shows that they are planning to exterminate them but they have to have them all in one area to do so. Another example I found that showed preparation was a scene where Vahan was realizing what the Turkish planners of the genocide were planning to get rid of the men first. His mother is telling Vahan and his brother to run away from the place where the Turkish soldiers were keeping them he wants to protest but then rethinks it. He says, “…it was the males that the Turks had strategically sought to eliminate. First the Armenian leaders, then the young men, and now the boys” (Bagdasarian, 2000, p.50). This example shows that they wanted to get rid of the strong first and in order to do so they got rid of the men and boys first. This way it would be easier to kill the women with no one to protect them. Both of these examples show the steps that were taken to exterminate the Armenians.

War Child

I believe that War Child is the organization we should donate to. I believe this because they are a international organization and they have access to go into many countries. They are not limited to one area. In addition they have the resources to help many people they have helped over 250,000 people. I believe it is also good that one of their main focuses is on children and education because it is not the children's responsibility to fight. Also I think it is important that they focus on education because children should be able to get a good education so that they may one day get a good job. By helping this organization we would help continue saving and helping people around the world.

Syria

I don't believe that what is happening in Syria is genocide. I believe that it is just the government trying to stay in power. Genocide is not political they are not getting rid of people for their ethnicity, religion, sex, etc. I believe that the international community should still try and help the people who are being killed because I still feel that they should get aid even though it isn't genocide.

Who's to Blame?

I blame humanity for what happened in Rwanda and genocide in general. I believe this because human are too stupid to learn from their mistakes. Genocide has happened many times before because someone always wants more power than another or doesn't like another. Also the people who started the problem like the Belgians who favored the Tutsis. In addition, the people who stand by are also responsible because they should try and save the people who are being killed even if it isn't "their problem." Humanity should try and make an effort to help each other even if it isn't their country.

Responsibility Worksheet

I believe that the response of one o Hitler's direct subordinates should have been to refuse to do their job and explain why it was wrong to kill Jews. They were some of the main people giving the orders that Hitler wanted so if they didn't do them and said why Hitler may have looked at what he was doing. In addition I believe that the US should have excepted more Jews to come in because they knew what was happening. I also believe they should have speed up the visa process because they knew that people were being killed. I also believe that US troops should have been sent to some of the concentration camps to free the people that were held in them. In response to current genocides that are happening today I believe that the international community should not cover it up and act like nothing is happening. I also believe that they should do their best to figure it out and see if there is any possible way they can help the victims.