Travis Global Blog

Mikhail Gorbachev and the Collapse of Communism

2010-05-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

Mikhail Gorbachev is the president of Russia. He was the youngest president at age 54. Mikhail decided that since the russia was a totalitarian state, and nothing was getting done, he thought that he should open up russia more so that free fresh new ideas will come and make Russia more economic and new with social reforms. This was called the "Glasnost". This was to promote Openess in Russia.
In 1985, Gorbachev decided to make something new called "Peristrokia". This was to make economic reforms. Local managers gained full rights to their farms and property and people were allowed to own privately owned small buisnesses.

The Collapse of Communism

2010-05-07T09:30:00.000-07:00

The reason for the collapse of the berlin wall was people can leave countrys without exit visas and caused a migration to east germany. Countrys formed a union against communism called the warsaw pact. Which denied communism into countrys. Communist partys still stayed political. traditional communist partys with dictators china cuba north korea etc. Also chinese partys crushed their schools. The United States was able to profit from its imperialist exploitation of other countries while socialism could only lose economically in that competition.

Nelson Mandela and Apartheid

2010-04-29T09:29:00.000-07:00

The Apartheid was a system of government where you might have the same same job as someone else because of the color of your skin, the other person would get paid more in a week than what you would get paid in a year. Also, they would underestimate your ancestors and their way of life. Nelson Mandela is such a hero because he sacrificed himself in order to achieve South Africa's freedom. Mandela at first was the leader of a political movement called the African National Congress (ANC). As the leader of this political movement, he fought for the rights of colored skin people in Africa which he knew were been unfairly taken away from them. He was sentenced to life in prison, unfairly, since the government didn't want him around to influence people to realize what the government was doing. After 27 years in prison, he was freed and was elected president of Africa. Mandela is so admired by the authors of these articles and sites because he freed so many people, including himself, from the injustice the Apartheid government was offering them. He saved a lot of people from continuing with that lifestyle, which they didn't deserve, by being in prison for so long, sacrificing himself in such a brave way.

African Independence

2010-04-28T09:44:00.000-07:00

Africa is a continent in the world. Africa is filled with over 20 countries. Africa didn't have its independence. The Europeans basically imperialized the continent and took it for themselves. Until recently 1955-1970, Afrida had been gaining their independence. The French, Spanish, English etc. took over them for a long time. They used them for their natural resources and cheap labor.Ghana was the first country to gain their independence. Kwame Nkrumah was the leader of this. He was a teacher who spent time studying in the united states and came back to get more rights for his country, but ended up becoming the president of Ghana and the English left.Another nation was Kenya. This country was special because their leader/president was in prison then he was elected as the leader. This is one of the two countries that did this. The leaders name was Jomo Kenyatta. He led the Mau Mau's so he can scare the white men away without any war.So during this time of fighting for independence, Africa changed alot, they gained all of their independence from the European countries except for a select few and most of them got to eliminate their country's names and change them to something more african and create a flag. For example Zimbabwe was Rhodesia, then they changed it and created their own national flag to show their independence.

Film Lesson: The Right Stuff

2010-04-14T09:30:00.000-07:00

Competitions where with first man of moon and first person to have a satellite in space. They wanted to see who can get into the moon. The russians in this competition where winning just because they started to get everything first. they were able to get someone to the moon then the u.s. The Russians only won for the first man in space because america held back for two weeks cause they weren't sure if they wanted to send the monkey or a Man to space. In this film the most that hit me and made me rember was the scene when they titled to russia and the russian pod went up to space with the guy. Also when America find's out that russia had a man on space they were devistated. That's one of the thing's i wouldn't forget. Also russians set up the first satellite in space. Something else they competed was they wanted to see who can brake the sound barrier first. American's had the first guys on the moon.

NATO and The Warsaw Pact

2010-04-12T09:12:00.000-07:00

NATO was the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. It was for the United States and countries of east and some western European countries. If a country would attack a nation that was a member of NATO, all of those other countries would retaliate. In response to this, the Warsaw pact was created. This pact would not be powerful unless the Soviet Union was part of it. Back then, the only two superpowers in the world was the United States and the Soviet Union. Unlike NATO, the Warsaw Pact was weakening because of the political scene of Russia towards the 80s and it fully dissolved in the 90s.

Film Lesson: "Night and Fog"

2010-04-06T16:11:00.000-07:00

I thought the film lesson Night And Fog was really interesting. it showed the destructions of the holocaust and showed what it looked liked 10 years later. I felt this was powerful because it showed clips of things really happenining,such as the hiding and burning of the bodies, all the skulls and corpses everywhere. Things that have been seen cannot be unseen. If you think about it, its also powerful because you realise that the bodies in the movie does not compare to the years of murder that went on in Poland And Germany and the rest of Europe.It Kind of was the same as the other film lesson, Schindlers list because at the end it showed the bodies and stuff being buried and burned at the end of the war. Also it showed people dying and the camps and the barracks and all those buildings, also the bathrooms which were about the same. For me, the HollyWood version of the holocaust was more interesting and it showed alot more of the things that happened. Such as the Hair being cut off to prepare the women for the gas chambers and the selection was more in detail, It was a bad event.

Film Lesson: "Schindler's List"

2010-04-06T16:08:00.000-07:00

Schindlers list was a great way to express and illustrate the holocaust. it showed alot from liquidating the ghettos and the ending of the war. It showed many things such as the selection, what they did to the sick (poison their medicine, shoot them.) It also showed the hidden places where jews hid like secret compartments in the ghettos and the sewers. Also in the camp rooms where they would hide in floor spaces or tied under mattresses.The liquidation of the Ghettos was more powerful to me because the way they went and took them out by brute force. they killed many people because of their age or if they tried to run away. Also The Germans knew all the hiding spots and went and killed people in sewers or hidden places in buildings. Also the sick things they did was killing people no matter how skilled they were just because they were jewish and didnt follow orders.Schindlers List was more powerful because it showed the sick and twisted side through acting and visuals. Such as people getting shot or tortured or gased.

The Treaty of Versailles (ended WW I)

2010-02-25T09:30:00.000-08:00

After Germany's humiliating loss of WWI, they took most of the blame. This was because even though they didn't start the war, they did the most damage to other nations. Mostly the english and the french were outraged. They wanted revenge but Woodrow Wilson felt that they needed to be more direct so he presented the other nations his fourteen points at the meeting in Versailles.

Germany had suffered many losses in the war but nothing compared to what the Treaty of Versaiiled took from them. The Treaty cost them 13.5% of the territory which also made them lose some seven million people. Alsace-Lorraine was returned to France, Germany lost all its overseas colonites, their army had to be no more than one-hundred thousand men. It also lost many shipping privelages of many heavy-machinery. Also, they were forced to pay reperations but had no money so they took loans from the US. However, when the US entered the great depression in 1929, they couldnt loan Germany any more money. They started an inflation.

I believe the treaty was fair. Germany did do the most damage and even though they were helping an ally of theirs, this did not mean they had to put all their military resources in it. They purposely caused the most damage so they shouldnt have thought it was unfair and as a nation accept the responsibility.

Looking back on history, it is no surprise they believe that this treaty was being unfair to them. Adolph Hitler felt he had to unite this nation that was falling apart and he gave his nation a sense of pride and spoke to them promising them what they wanted to hear. This is how Adolph Hitler rose to power.

Mustafa Kemal (Ataturk) and the Modernization of Turkey

2010-02-24T09:46:00.000-08:00

Mustafa Kemal believed that the Ottoman Empire weakened throughout the sixteenth and twentieth centuries because of the religious restrictions. Mustafa Kemal became the leader of a new republic because of his surprising victories in several outstanding wars. When he started the nation, he believed it had to be a nation without special privileges or classes. He also believed it was a state of the people and by the people. Therefore, from that belief also came the belief that peasants are the real producers of the state.

The meaning of secular is to not be restricted by religious views. Mustafa Kemal had a very secular point of view. To look more traditional and modern, he made European hats replace the fez, women could stop wearing the veil, all citizens took surnames, and a western calendar replaced the islamic calendar. He also allowed freedom of religion in his country. Obviously he was effective because he recieved many praised from world leaders. Mustafa Kemal is a legend

Film Lesson: "Gandhi"

2010-02-11T10:08:00.000-08:00

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi also known as Gandhi was born on October 2, 1869. He helped his nation India to get independence. He helped by boycotting and using non-violence, he boycotted buying British clothing because it wasn't fair that the Indian made clothing and then the British sold it to them again, so Gandhi told the Indian to make their own clothing and if the British had a problem they shouldn't use violence to get what they want. Gandhi also boycotted buying British salt. Gandhi made a march called the "Salt March" in which he walked 240 miles to the ocean to make his own salt and sell it. The Indians followed Ganhdi and respected him, he was a civil rights activist. In the film it showed how serious he was about using non violence like for example when the Indians were using violence by setting fire where the police were Gandhi was upset and stopped eating to demonstrate that he was serious about non violence.
Gandhi was respected and he didn't even have much power he was poor, it just goes to show that anyone can make a difference. Gandhi had to go to London and meet with the high people so he could make India independent and not be ruled by the British anymore and live under the threat of being beaten or told what to do. He was murdered in the year of 1948, but he is now a legend.

The Russian Revolution

2010-01-13T06:15:00.000-08:00

It all started on 1917, The Bolsheviks conned a couple of hundreds of sailors to dismantle the first ever russian democratic parliament. These people sent out to go destroy what ever russia have own and any kind of civilization. Some causes were of these two revolutions encompass Russia?s political, social, and economic situation. The Revolution was about that the russians wanted land to farm, they wanted bread because they were hungry and they also wanted peace. During The Russian Revolution had over 10 leaders.

Cause Of WWI

2010-01-11T06:45:00.000-08:00

It all started the moment when that assassination was delivered, A man known as Franz Ferdinand was killed june 28, 1914. Ferdinand's death at the hands of the Black Hand, a Serbian nationalist secret society, set in train a mindlessly mechanical series of events that culminated in the world's first global war. World War 1 took place between 1914-1918

Film Lesson: "Mountains of The Moon"

2009-12-10T06:02:00.000-08:00

We watched a Film called "Mountains Of The Moon" And its about two explorers traveld to Africa to look for the source of Nile River.They were sent by the Royal Geographic society of London. While they were thier They Learnd plenty Of information About Afirca.These Explorers had many problems,they facd depts not only from afican tribs but from malaria,yellow fever,bad eatting habbits,Dirty water,They also suffured From mosquito and bumble bee's and Other insects,The African's Have never met white people so they decided to give the two explorors a hard time. The African's spit in the european face's because that was a gratitude in showing respect.

Karl Marx and Communism

2009-11-19T06:05:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx theory was to lead to a peaceful society controlled by the working class. Communism means a system of government in which the state planes and controls the economy and a single, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to make progress towards a higher social order in which all goods are equally shared by the people. Karl Marx belived that social change is what needed for a better society and in order to get social change their must be a class conflict. Marx's major concern of social change was economic change . He was well known for to deal with class conflict between the capitalist and the working class.

Karl Marx and The Industrial Revolution

2009-11-17T06:30:00.000-08:00

Karl Marx was a man best known as a 19th Century Revolutionary. Karl Marx felt because of the Industrial Revolution Rich people got richer and poor people got poorer. This Revolution inspired Karl to invent communism because he thought the working class was bad even to work forlow wages. He belived since thiers more workers than owners that thier is achance that the workers might get fed up thats why Karl Marx was trying to convince the workers into Revolution. Marx wanted everyone to make the same amount of $, also everyone should be treated the same with no social classes,also no private ownershipeverything would be ownd by state or government.

Nationalism & The Creation Of Italy

2009-10-27T06:04:00.000-07:00

Nationalism means devotion to the intrest or culture's in one nation, The belief that nations will benefit from acting indenpendtly rather than collectively, emphasing national goals.
Im a nationalistic because im inspired by my country and I feel safe.

Simon Bolivar & Latin America Revolutions

2009-10-22T06:10:00.000-07:00

Simon Bolivar was known as the greatest South America's best Generals. His biggest Achivement was that he won independence over the spaniards of 6 nations (Boliva,Peru,Ecuador,Panama,Colombia & Venezuela). Simon Bolivar was their liberator from rule of Spain, people called him as the George Washington Of South America. He inspired lots of men to follow him to the wilderness and fight and die for liberty. Simon Bolivar Was Born in Venezuela on July 24,1783 of a noble spanish family. Venezuela was the first to declare its independence in,1811, The revolt failed in 1812 also the colony was again in spanish rule. Simon Bolivar led to fight for Northern South Smerica. Bolivar was a patriot and at that time he, was felling loyalty of the cause of liberty & equality.

Copernicus and the trial of Galileo

2009-09-18T06:29:00.000-07:00

Galileo had always stikd to science, he had a dream, a mission that he wanted to increase awarness of scientific thought and, in the process,to save the catholic church. During this period Galileo also came

Scientific Revolution

2009-09-17T15:00:00.000-07:00

Scientific Revolution was a time period in the history of science and ideas in physics,astronomy,chemisrty and more stuff on science. As a result, the scientific Revolution is comonly viewed as a foundation as modern science today.

Evolutiuion Vs Creation

2009-09-17T06:13:00.000-07:00

Evolution is slow change and Evols changes throughout a long period of time. Charles Darwin wrote over 150 years ago that all animals adapt to their surroundings very slowly. For an Example: he wrote that man evoled from monkeys. Charles Darwin shiped to islands from the galapagoes and he notice that in the differnt islands he saw differnt finches and he relized the reptiles were differnt.

Creation is refering to religouse belifes that the humanity,life,the earth and the universe were created in some form by a supernatural begins. In Christan sects such as creationism is usually based on a literal reading of genesis but other religouse have creation myths which are quite different.