Was America truly the land of the free where everyone is treated with equality? After the emancipation of slavery during the Civil War, civil rights and suffrage was awarded to the former slaves. A decade would pass and the United States would turn her back against the men who she just freed. American journalists Charles Lane's The Day Freedom Died focuses on the discreet details regarding the events that transpired Easter Sunday, 1873 in rural Grants Parish, Louisiana. This historical novel revolves around the story of politics and betrayal when describing one of America's great blunders.
The style in which Charles Lane decided the depict the events and repercussions of the Colfax Massacre was by detailing each impact character and determining why each man did what they did. He would illustrate the backgrounds of the characters and how they were raised, military careers, higher educations etc. He would also tie together the literal causes and effects of the massacre along with its influence on politics in the upcoming century.
The characters within the novel range at a great degree. Since the novel has a historian base to it, the characters are not the focal point of the book, although he would go in depth about key people and their impacts in the aftermath of the massacre. J.R. Beckwith was one of the few character who spanned across a large portion of the book. Beckwith was a well educated lawyer who caught word of the injustices in Colfax and took upon himself to bring to justice the perpetrators.
The setting illustrates the rural nature of the town of Colfax and the area of Grants Parish in 1873. Due to the obscurity of Colfax's location, the town struggled to get immediate attention when attempting to ward of the escalating violence produced by local KKK factions along with the radical democrats who wished to dispatch the incumbent Republicans. The setting would broaden to a national level after the resulting mistrials in New Orleans.
I recommend this book to people who enjoy historical events that shaped the future of America. People who prefer fantasy novels, however, may not enjoy the 352 page history lesson. I'm sure people like Mr. Qualls would enjoy this however.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Monday, February 25, 2013
CC #4 (9): Women in Korea
Authors Foster Klug and Hyung-jin Kim describe the the repercussions of the election of South Korea's first female president and how that may complex the relations of the two Koreas in the article "First Female South Korean President Faces North Korea Crisis". North Korea
continues to push the envelope in their pursuance of developing their nuclear
programs. The United States, along with many other prominent world powers, have
insisted and warned North Korea of the consequences of acquiring greater
weapons of mass destruction.
The country north of the 48th parallel recently debuted a national propaganda commercial which illustrates an American city resembling New York City engulfed in flames. The country in the greatest state of urgency is South Korea, the north's blood enemy. The two Koreas represent the contrast of democracy and totalitarianism in which the south has flourished economically and the north is struggling to stay afloat. In attempt to conclude the north's nuclear pursuance, the newly inaugurated female South Korean president, Park Guen-Hye, has been placed in a potentially precarious, life threatening situation regarding the north.
President Park, South Korea's first woman president, was also the daughter of the later South Korean dictator, has stepped back into her childhood presidential mansion. Park has a hard history in politics. An assassination attempt on her father's life accidentally killed her mother instead. Park has also become a South Korean inspirational figure for women. South Korean women have the lowest income rate amongst developed democratic countries. Park will surely spark a women's equality revolution within the border(s) of South Korea, while on the other hand, North Korea has repressed both men and women in their society.
Women in North Korean society have a greater array of opportunities than that of most Arabic women, as long as they remain within the borders of their respective countries and regions. The found of North Korea, Kim ill-sung, attempted to eliminate their patriarchal social systems through reforms in their laws, such as the implementation of sex equality, the labor law, and the law of the nationalization of essential industry. North Korean women are allowed to work within the countries work force, most likely because the country wishes to fully utilize their able bodies.
Women of the north primarily dwell within the lower class work force, but a minority of women has broken into upper class jobs. Those jobs, however, were presented to those women through family ties, and the ratio of women to men in the upper echelon of jobs is far smaller than that of the lower class of jobs. Although women are in theory supposed to have greater freedom due to the disestablishing of the patriarchal system, North Korea still follows neo Confucian teachings, which states the women must answer to men unconditionally.
The tradition of neo-Confucianism (spell check) will most likely conflict with president park's attempts to quell the north's nuclear ambitions, if the north would be willing to comply in the first place. The north's disregard of women's equality can affect tensions between the two countries in first place, along with park's heritage as an enemy of the north. The north and the south have been notorious archenemies for as long as the baby boom generation can remember. Technically, the Korean War still commences until this day. An actual treaty has never been implemented but rather a cease fire or an armistice has.
The likely hood of North Korea responding positively to South Korea was slim to begin with, not to mention the south's new female president will draw little favor from a male dominated north society. The future of the Korean peninsula in general seems to be grim, but as for the south's womanhood, their future has just begun. Women in the south may begin to experience the recognition and equal respect that they so surely desire.
The country north of the 48th parallel recently debuted a national propaganda commercial which illustrates an American city resembling New York City engulfed in flames. The country in the greatest state of urgency is South Korea, the north's blood enemy. The two Koreas represent the contrast of democracy and totalitarianism in which the south has flourished economically and the north is struggling to stay afloat. In attempt to conclude the north's nuclear pursuance, the newly inaugurated female South Korean president, Park Guen-Hye, has been placed in a potentially precarious, life threatening situation regarding the north.
President Park, South Korea's first woman president, was also the daughter of the later South Korean dictator, has stepped back into her childhood presidential mansion. Park has a hard history in politics. An assassination attempt on her father's life accidentally killed her mother instead. Park has also become a South Korean inspirational figure for women. South Korean women have the lowest income rate amongst developed democratic countries. Park will surely spark a women's equality revolution within the border(s) of South Korea, while on the other hand, North Korea has repressed both men and women in their society.
Women in North Korean society have a greater array of opportunities than that of most Arabic women, as long as they remain within the borders of their respective countries and regions. The found of North Korea, Kim ill-sung, attempted to eliminate their patriarchal social systems through reforms in their laws, such as the implementation of sex equality, the labor law, and the law of the nationalization of essential industry. North Korean women are allowed to work within the countries work force, most likely because the country wishes to fully utilize their able bodies.
Women of the north primarily dwell within the lower class work force, but a minority of women has broken into upper class jobs. Those jobs, however, were presented to those women through family ties, and the ratio of women to men in the upper echelon of jobs is far smaller than that of the lower class of jobs. Although women are in theory supposed to have greater freedom due to the disestablishing of the patriarchal system, North Korea still follows neo Confucian teachings, which states the women must answer to men unconditionally.
The tradition of neo-Confucianism (spell check) will most likely conflict with president park's attempts to quell the north's nuclear ambitions, if the north would be willing to comply in the first place. The north's disregard of women's equality can affect tensions between the two countries in first place, along with park's heritage as an enemy of the north. The north and the south have been notorious archenemies for as long as the baby boom generation can remember. Technically, the Korean War still commences until this day. An actual treaty has never been implemented but rather a cease fire or an armistice has.
The likely hood of North Korea responding positively to South Korea was slim to begin with, not to mention the south's new female president will draw little favor from a male dominated north society. The future of the Korean peninsula in general seems to be grim, but as for the south's womanhood, their future has just begun. Women in the south may begin to experience the recognition and equal respect that they so surely desire.
Monday, February 11, 2013
CC 3 (8) Malala Yousafzai and Women in Islam
Robert Mackey reports the health condition of a young women's rights activist in his article "Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani Girl Shot by Taliban Militants , Speaks in News Videos". The article allows the reader to imply and invision the circumstances that women living in Islamic countries must experience on a daily basis. Women's role in our society has evolved from a level of social inferiority to an equal, socially and politically, to that of man. Events and revolutions in women hood spanning between the 1840s to the World War 2 era have brought women a vast array of rights and privileges that were not present in the first century since America's birth, including the right to vote and rightful place in the workforce. Unfortunately, much of the world off the shores of America still visualize women as a merely an expendable possession. Islamic countries have long since retained the tradition of repressing womankind with outrageous rules ranging from the illegality of exposing your face or any part of your body in public to the illegality of driving, rights taken for granite in our free society. Women who do speak out against their abominable living conditions are immediately punished for their "high" crimes, even to the extent of execution for adultery.
One young 15-year-old heroine, Malala Yousafzai, spoke out publicly against Taliban operations in Pakistan. She had been preaching women's rights and education activism since she was 11 (approximately) in the Swat Valley, where Taliban militants have repeatedly attempted to take control of. She began writing a blog to BBC detailing her life in Taliban repression under a pseudonym to protect her from the Taliban. However, recently, she was a target of a Taliban assassination attempt, where they shot here once in the neck and in the head after she revealed her identity in protection of her schoolmates. The Taliban publicly admitted their involvement and desire to kill the girl and her father who spoke blasphemy and heresy against the Book of Islam. She was left unconscious at the scene. Ehsanullah Ehsan claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that she is the "symbol of infidels and obscenity".
Malala was treated for intensive care in a military hospital in Peshawar. Doctors performed a decompressive craniectomy, where a portion of her skull is removed, allowing swelling within the brain. Her chances of survival were around 70%. A CT scan indicated that although there was swelling of the brain, her vital organs were functioning correctly. She was supposed to be shipped to Germany for better care as her condition improved. Offers to treat her spanned from many countries, including offers from US Representative Gabriel Giffords, who too was shot in the head by a deranged lunatic in 2011. Western civilizations acknowledged Ehsan's assassination attempt as an injustice. Their reactions to the assassination attempt shows the drastic contrast between the two cultures. Instead of punishing Malala, Western countries applaud her for her actions.
Malala is now recovering in England. On October 17, she had been reported to have come out of her coma and has a good chance of recovering without any brain damage. The young activist said this since she awoke from her coma,"Today you can see that I'm alive," Irony ensues since she claims that her recovery was God answering every one's prayers and the reason that she was attacked was because she spoke out against the supposed teaching of the Quran. Malala underwent a 5 hour surgery to reconstruct her skull and reestablish hearing in her left ear. The Western countries were able to provide Malala with the proper treatment that she would not obtain otherwise.
Malala's presence will impact on both the Swat Valley and other Islamic cultures across the Middle East and possibly Africa. Her voice will me a major inspirational motor for other women repressed in Islamic culture. She acts as the first step for women's rights in under developed countries who still abide by the sexist laws of the Islam. Women eventually won their long war for women's suffrage and rights in America since we were a free country, willing to listen to the voices of the needy, however, the war for women's rights in Middle Eastern countries will be far more improbable and gruesome.Those countries are not based on the values that make America great. The battle for women's rights in Islam will begin with Malala, launching an ushering of a new era for women in Islamic countries.
Women in the Middle East have not had the opportunity to experience the freedoms that Western cultures grant. Women of all cultures deserve the liberty and justice that so very few possess. If women wish to experience equality in the lesser developed portions of the world, democracy must flourish there. The process of democratization may or may not succeed in the Middle East, but it's experiement has begun in countries like Iraq.
One young 15-year-old heroine, Malala Yousafzai, spoke out publicly against Taliban operations in Pakistan. She had been preaching women's rights and education activism since she was 11 (approximately) in the Swat Valley, where Taliban militants have repeatedly attempted to take control of. She began writing a blog to BBC detailing her life in Taliban repression under a pseudonym to protect her from the Taliban. However, recently, she was a target of a Taliban assassination attempt, where they shot here once in the neck and in the head after she revealed her identity in protection of her schoolmates. The Taliban publicly admitted their involvement and desire to kill the girl and her father who spoke blasphemy and heresy against the Book of Islam. She was left unconscious at the scene. Ehsanullah Ehsan claimed responsibility for the attack, stating that she is the "symbol of infidels and obscenity".
Malala was treated for intensive care in a military hospital in Peshawar. Doctors performed a decompressive craniectomy, where a portion of her skull is removed, allowing swelling within the brain. Her chances of survival were around 70%. A CT scan indicated that although there was swelling of the brain, her vital organs were functioning correctly. She was supposed to be shipped to Germany for better care as her condition improved. Offers to treat her spanned from many countries, including offers from US Representative Gabriel Giffords, who too was shot in the head by a deranged lunatic in 2011. Western civilizations acknowledged Ehsan's assassination attempt as an injustice. Their reactions to the assassination attempt shows the drastic contrast between the two cultures. Instead of punishing Malala, Western countries applaud her for her actions.
Malala is now recovering in England. On October 17, she had been reported to have come out of her coma and has a good chance of recovering without any brain damage. The young activist said this since she awoke from her coma,"Today you can see that I'm alive," Irony ensues since she claims that her recovery was God answering every one's prayers and the reason that she was attacked was because she spoke out against the supposed teaching of the Quran. Malala underwent a 5 hour surgery to reconstruct her skull and reestablish hearing in her left ear. The Western countries were able to provide Malala with the proper treatment that she would not obtain otherwise.
Malala's presence will impact on both the Swat Valley and other Islamic cultures across the Middle East and possibly Africa. Her voice will me a major inspirational motor for other women repressed in Islamic culture. She acts as the first step for women's rights in under developed countries who still abide by the sexist laws of the Islam. Women eventually won their long war for women's suffrage and rights in America since we were a free country, willing to listen to the voices of the needy, however, the war for women's rights in Middle Eastern countries will be far more improbable and gruesome.Those countries are not based on the values that make America great. The battle for women's rights in Islam will begin with Malala, launching an ushering of a new era for women in Islamic countries.
Women in the Middle East have not had the opportunity to experience the freedoms that Western cultures grant. Women of all cultures deserve the liberty and justice that so very few possess. If women wish to experience equality in the lesser developed portions of the world, democracy must flourish there. The process of democratization may or may not succeed in the Middle East, but it's experiement has begun in countries like Iraq.
Wednesday, February 6, 2013
Booooooook Revieeeeeeew 3: Elie Wiesel's Night
Elie Wiesel's Night illustrates in discreet detail the horrors within the barb-wired confines of the Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz. The book reads fairly easily, although the sophistication of the language and writing style most likely faltered due to the novel's rough translation from Yiddish, a High German language of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, to English. Night allows the reader to effortlessly imagine the trials and tribulations of the average inmate in one of Nazi Germany's many slaughterhouses, although I personally found that the book's tone failed to truly epitomize and fairly demonize the atrocities performed by the Third Reich into a fashion that allows the reader to fully comprehend evil. Elie Wiesel's Night, however, succeeds in condensing what was one of man's most malicious acts of genocide in recent memory into a short narrative.
Night contains a multitude of various themes that can be inferred by a reader of any caliber. One theme being that of self-preservation and the power of will. Each and every piteous soul begins their journey without any idea of the rapidly approaching fate, whether their destiny glistens with glory or travails in torture. Those souls soon find that their fates have been placed in another man's hands, hands that show no empathy for the wretched who wonder into his grasp. Hope of retribution has been immediately crushed by the relentless wrath of the SS soldiers stationed at the death camps. The names of inmates are replaced with numbers, both to organize them and to demoralize them into a sub-human. Souls found unfit or unworthy of survival are quickly cast aside to the pits of hell, the furnaces of Auschwitz and Dachau. For those who have passed examination have either two options, continue their sufferings while maintaining a shred of hope or accepting their fate and succumbing to death. Those who lose hope and have lost the will to live are the first to perish. They become just another forgotten number engulfed in the smoke stacks ascending from hell into the heavens. The theme can comfort readers who envision Elie's struggles as a motivational tool to re-evaluate their own personal character.
Elie Wiesel writes his narrative from his own personal perspective of Auschwitz. Night practically embodies a biography of Elie's life within the clenches of death. Elie draws himself as a commoner living in a relatively peaceful town away from the German/Russian theatre. He possesses family consisting of three sisters, his mother, and his father, Shlomo. He seemingly wants the reader to be able to relate to his life prior to Auschwitz in order to hammer the horrors of his hell into the hearts of his readers. Elie's character possesses the purity of man as he continually wishes to do best for his fellow man. He attempts to encourage a fallen comrade to push onwards in order to survive, however, his efforts prove futile which immediately reflects another aspect of his character. After his friend refuses to continue his suffering, Elie seemingly forgets of his existence and continues his march of death as if he has became so well acquainted with Abaddon, the Hebrew Angel of Destruction,that the sight of the Reaper no longer phases him. This proves the ability of the SS to effectively beat what makes someone a human out of a human. Without humanity, man reverts to that of a beast, or in this case, cattle. Elie's experiences in Auschwitz also robs him of his faith in god and humanity. "Behind me, I heard the same man asking: 'Where is God now?' And I heard a voice within me answer him: 'Where is He? Here He is--He is hanging here on this gallows.'" Elie's resentment of God distinguishes the depth of hopelessness in his situation.
The setting of Elie's hell has haunted the hearts of all those who have suffered from within those fences. The walls of Auschwitz can be compared to that of a slaughterhouse, and her inmates are the cattle, but instead of the healthy being sent off to their demise, the weak are the ones hastened to their deaths. The halls were they rest possess nothing to provide warmth or comfort. Prisoners are given rags as a means to cover themselves. Disease and starvation ensues as the average prisoner is provided a small piece of bread and occasionally soup. Corpses litter the grounds until they are hauled away by their brothers and perhaps the most daunting addition to the suffering, the smoke stacks. Bellows of smoke rise into the heavens along with the ashes of their friends and family, leaving an eerie reminder to all of the prisoners that insolence and weakness will not be tolerated.
I recommend Night to anyone who wish to learn more about the trials and travails of a real story of survival rather than these silly teeny bopper books such as the Hunger Games. Anyone, who in fact enjoyed Night, should read Un di Velt Hot Geshvign in an English translation, of course. The latter book is an extended version of Night and more in depth as a result.
Night contains a multitude of various themes that can be inferred by a reader of any caliber. One theme being that of self-preservation and the power of will. Each and every piteous soul begins their journey without any idea of the rapidly approaching fate, whether their destiny glistens with glory or travails in torture. Those souls soon find that their fates have been placed in another man's hands, hands that show no empathy for the wretched who wonder into his grasp. Hope of retribution has been immediately crushed by the relentless wrath of the SS soldiers stationed at the death camps. The names of inmates are replaced with numbers, both to organize them and to demoralize them into a sub-human. Souls found unfit or unworthy of survival are quickly cast aside to the pits of hell, the furnaces of Auschwitz and Dachau. For those who have passed examination have either two options, continue their sufferings while maintaining a shred of hope or accepting their fate and succumbing to death. Those who lose hope and have lost the will to live are the first to perish. They become just another forgotten number engulfed in the smoke stacks ascending from hell into the heavens. The theme can comfort readers who envision Elie's struggles as a motivational tool to re-evaluate their own personal character.
Elie Wiesel writes his narrative from his own personal perspective of Auschwitz. Night practically embodies a biography of Elie's life within the clenches of death. Elie draws himself as a commoner living in a relatively peaceful town away from the German/Russian theatre. He possesses family consisting of three sisters, his mother, and his father, Shlomo. He seemingly wants the reader to be able to relate to his life prior to Auschwitz in order to hammer the horrors of his hell into the hearts of his readers. Elie's character possesses the purity of man as he continually wishes to do best for his fellow man. He attempts to encourage a fallen comrade to push onwards in order to survive, however, his efforts prove futile which immediately reflects another aspect of his character. After his friend refuses to continue his suffering, Elie seemingly forgets of his existence and continues his march of death as if he has became so well acquainted with Abaddon, the Hebrew Angel of Destruction,that the sight of the Reaper no longer phases him. This proves the ability of the SS to effectively beat what makes someone a human out of a human. Without humanity, man reverts to that of a beast, or in this case, cattle. Elie's experiences in Auschwitz also robs him of his faith in god and humanity. "Behind me, I heard the same man asking: 'Where is God now?' And I heard a voice within me answer him: 'Where is He? Here He is--He is hanging here on this gallows.'" Elie's resentment of God distinguishes the depth of hopelessness in his situation.
The setting of Elie's hell has haunted the hearts of all those who have suffered from within those fences. The walls of Auschwitz can be compared to that of a slaughterhouse, and her inmates are the cattle, but instead of the healthy being sent off to their demise, the weak are the ones hastened to their deaths. The halls were they rest possess nothing to provide warmth or comfort. Prisoners are given rags as a means to cover themselves. Disease and starvation ensues as the average prisoner is provided a small piece of bread and occasionally soup. Corpses litter the grounds until they are hauled away by their brothers and perhaps the most daunting addition to the suffering, the smoke stacks. Bellows of smoke rise into the heavens along with the ashes of their friends and family, leaving an eerie reminder to all of the prisoners that insolence and weakness will not be tolerated.
I recommend Night to anyone who wish to learn more about the trials and travails of a real story of survival rather than these silly teeny bopper books such as the Hunger Games. Anyone, who in fact enjoyed Night, should read Un di Velt Hot Geshvign in an English translation, of course. The latter book is an extended version of Night and more in depth as a result.
Friday, January 25, 2013
CC 2(7):The Emergence of Joe Flacco and the End of an Era in Baltimore.
I am killing two birds with one stone with the arrival of the NFL Conference Championships.
TITLE: The Emergence of Joe Flacco and the End of an Era in Baltimore.
The source that I am using in which I am writing this Current Connection about is http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/post/_/id/61372/ravens-flacco-super-through-postseason... close enough. The Ravens have followed in suit the paths laid before them by the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers of yesteryear. They have accomplished an inconceivably wondrous post season run and capped that off with a victory in Super Bowl 47. The article that I have addressed you to describes one of the, if not THE, main factor pushing the Ravens past such great challenges.
The Baltimore Ravens, whose head coach happens to be brother to the head coach of San Francisco (John Harbaugh), have also reached the doorstep of the Super Bowl, a game that they, like San Francisco, have reached the previous year and a game that they, like San Francisco, lost in heartbreaking fashion. But this year's Baltimore Raven's team has not played at the level of excellence, particularly their once vaunted defense, that they have been known for. Instead, they have stumbled into the NFL playoffs, losing 4 of their last 5 games prior to playoff time. The situation seemed hopeless for the Ravens with the poor ball distribution of offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, the inconsistency of their quarterback, Joe Flacco, and their heavily injured defense who has had maybe their worse defensive year since the team moved from Cleveland to Baltimore and changing their name from the Browns to the Ravens in '95.
The situation seemed hopeless, until the Raven's long time Inside Linebacker, Ray Lewis, famous for his incredibly high level of play and his outstanding leadership skills, announced that he will retire after the end of the Raven's season this year. Ray Lewis has been with the team since the Raven's first draft in their first year of existence. Ray was drafted 26th overall in the 1st round of the 1996 NFL draft and would go on to reach 13 pro bowls and a record 10 all pro selections. Ray would cement the Ravens as a contender and inspire thousands will his speeches on and off of the field. Ray's announcement of retirement had obviously sparked a fire within that locker room, a locker room that revolves around their undisputed leader in Ray. The team faced the Indianapolis Colts in the first round of the NFL playoffs. The Colts were hated inside the city limits of Baltimore and much or Maryland because the Indianapolis Colts were once the Baltimore Colts before they moved in 1983. Although the Colts were a 2-14 team the previous year, they have rebounded in impressive fashion under the outstanding play of first year quarterback Andrew Luck, earning 11 wins and only 5 loses, and were challenging their former city for the opportunity to continue walking the road to the Super Bowl. The Colts were actually favorites over the Ravens prior to Ray Lewis announcing his retirement, in which many analysts changed their picks to favor the Ravens in the midst of an inspired locker room. The Colts ran into a brick wall when they drove into Baltimore and were held to only 6 points in a blowout loss to the Ravens. Ray Lewis' last dance in Raven's Stadium came with a win and a chance to play the #1 seeded Denver Broncos in the Divisional Round.
Even though the Raven's have returned to winning form with the trampling of the Colts, they were a 10 point underdog against the overwhelmingly favored Broncos, a team that was seen to have the potential to win it all this year after the signing of former Colts superstar, Peyton Manning. Manning's presence had brought an immense shift in play calling. From the triple-option offense perfected by Tim Tebow, to the pass heavy Indianapolis offense. Peyton led his team to a 13-3 record and the first seed in the AFC title contention. The Manning led Broncos were prepared to host a limping Raven's team at Mile High Stadium. What they were not prepared for, however, was a team with fire burning in their hearts, a fire fueled by the impending retirement of Ray Lewis. The Broncos were extremely fortunate (and unfortunate at the same time) for just reaching overtime against the Ravens. Denver scored two easy touchdowns off of a kick and punt return to keep up with the rampaging Ravens. The Ravens would have lost if it were not for a long bomb from Joe Flacco to Jacoby Jones for a 70 yard score, leaving only half a minute in regulation. The Broncos played conservatively with Manning kneeling to force overtime. The Ravens and the Broncos would continue to duke it out and eventually force a second overtime. This time, however, Manning would once again succumb to the playoff pressures and throw a costly interception, deep in Bronco territory. This stupendous field positioning allowed Baltimore's rookie kicker, Justin Tucker, to boot a 49 yard game winning field goal to send the Ravens to Foxborough, MA and the AFC Championship game.
Baltimore had time and time again defy the odds and continue their playoff push. This time against an old foe, The New England Patriots, who knocked them out of the 2011 playoffs to reach the Super Bowl. Baltimore had defeated New England in week 3 of the 2012 season but were once again the underdogs. Led by Tom Brady, the Patriots seemed to be destined at another Super Bowl berth. Both teams started the game sluggishly, ending the first half with New England having a 6 point advantage. New England's high powered offense that placed 3rd in all time scoring, was shut down in the second half. Baltimore tightened up and it was all Ravens there on out. Joe Flacco would put up another phenomenal game to finally lead the Ravens to the long desired Super Bowl. This is were it gets interesting.
As you may already know from reading my previous posts, the NFC's Super Bowl representative, the San Francisco 49ers, has a head coach by the name of Jim Harbaugh. The Baltimore Ravens' head coach just so happens to be his brother. This sets up the first and maybe only time that two brothers will coach against one another in the game to end all games. The two teams are identical when it comes to defense. Star players inhabit nearly every position on each level of the two defenses. The Ravens, whose defense terrified opposing offenses for a decade since their legendary 2000 defensive giant, have become a more offensively orientated team, no longer relying on their defense. The 49ers, once one of the most efficient and offensive teams in the history of the National Football League, have now become one of the most stingiest defensive teams in the league. The two teams set the stage for a promising Super Bowl full of juicy story lines. And once again, the Baltimore Ravens are the underdogs.
I can connect to this event due to the fact that I am a strong fan of both franchises and a football fan in general. UPDATE: Super Bowl merchandise has been flooding the market both online and physical stores. The news has also been rocked by America's homegrown holiday, the Superbowl. Bye!
Source: NFL.com
TITLE: The Emergence of Joe Flacco and the End of an Era in Baltimore.
The source that I am using in which I am writing this Current Connection about is http://espn.go.com/blog/statsinfo/post/_/id/61372/ravens-flacco-super-through-postseason... close enough. The Ravens have followed in suit the paths laid before them by the New York Giants and the Green Bay Packers of yesteryear. They have accomplished an inconceivably wondrous post season run and capped that off with a victory in Super Bowl 47. The article that I have addressed you to describes one of the, if not THE, main factor pushing the Ravens past such great challenges.
The Baltimore Ravens, whose head coach happens to be brother to the head coach of San Francisco (John Harbaugh), have also reached the doorstep of the Super Bowl, a game that they, like San Francisco, have reached the previous year and a game that they, like San Francisco, lost in heartbreaking fashion. But this year's Baltimore Raven's team has not played at the level of excellence, particularly their once vaunted defense, that they have been known for. Instead, they have stumbled into the NFL playoffs, losing 4 of their last 5 games prior to playoff time. The situation seemed hopeless for the Ravens with the poor ball distribution of offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, the inconsistency of their quarterback, Joe Flacco, and their heavily injured defense who has had maybe their worse defensive year since the team moved from Cleveland to Baltimore and changing their name from the Browns to the Ravens in '95.
The situation seemed hopeless, until the Raven's long time Inside Linebacker, Ray Lewis, famous for his incredibly high level of play and his outstanding leadership skills, announced that he will retire after the end of the Raven's season this year. Ray Lewis has been with the team since the Raven's first draft in their first year of existence. Ray was drafted 26th overall in the 1st round of the 1996 NFL draft and would go on to reach 13 pro bowls and a record 10 all pro selections. Ray would cement the Ravens as a contender and inspire thousands will his speeches on and off of the field. Ray's announcement of retirement had obviously sparked a fire within that locker room, a locker room that revolves around their undisputed leader in Ray. The team faced the Indianapolis Colts in the first round of the NFL playoffs. The Colts were hated inside the city limits of Baltimore and much or Maryland because the Indianapolis Colts were once the Baltimore Colts before they moved in 1983. Although the Colts were a 2-14 team the previous year, they have rebounded in impressive fashion under the outstanding play of first year quarterback Andrew Luck, earning 11 wins and only 5 loses, and were challenging their former city for the opportunity to continue walking the road to the Super Bowl. The Colts were actually favorites over the Ravens prior to Ray Lewis announcing his retirement, in which many analysts changed their picks to favor the Ravens in the midst of an inspired locker room. The Colts ran into a brick wall when they drove into Baltimore and were held to only 6 points in a blowout loss to the Ravens. Ray Lewis' last dance in Raven's Stadium came with a win and a chance to play the #1 seeded Denver Broncos in the Divisional Round.
Even though the Raven's have returned to winning form with the trampling of the Colts, they were a 10 point underdog against the overwhelmingly favored Broncos, a team that was seen to have the potential to win it all this year after the signing of former Colts superstar, Peyton Manning. Manning's presence had brought an immense shift in play calling. From the triple-option offense perfected by Tim Tebow, to the pass heavy Indianapolis offense. Peyton led his team to a 13-3 record and the first seed in the AFC title contention. The Manning led Broncos were prepared to host a limping Raven's team at Mile High Stadium. What they were not prepared for, however, was a team with fire burning in their hearts, a fire fueled by the impending retirement of Ray Lewis. The Broncos were extremely fortunate (and unfortunate at the same time) for just reaching overtime against the Ravens. Denver scored two easy touchdowns off of a kick and punt return to keep up with the rampaging Ravens. The Ravens would have lost if it were not for a long bomb from Joe Flacco to Jacoby Jones for a 70 yard score, leaving only half a minute in regulation. The Broncos played conservatively with Manning kneeling to force overtime. The Ravens and the Broncos would continue to duke it out and eventually force a second overtime. This time, however, Manning would once again succumb to the playoff pressures and throw a costly interception, deep in Bronco territory. This stupendous field positioning allowed Baltimore's rookie kicker, Justin Tucker, to boot a 49 yard game winning field goal to send the Ravens to Foxborough, MA and the AFC Championship game.
Baltimore had time and time again defy the odds and continue their playoff push. This time against an old foe, The New England Patriots, who knocked them out of the 2011 playoffs to reach the Super Bowl. Baltimore had defeated New England in week 3 of the 2012 season but were once again the underdogs. Led by Tom Brady, the Patriots seemed to be destined at another Super Bowl berth. Both teams started the game sluggishly, ending the first half with New England having a 6 point advantage. New England's high powered offense that placed 3rd in all time scoring, was shut down in the second half. Baltimore tightened up and it was all Ravens there on out. Joe Flacco would put up another phenomenal game to finally lead the Ravens to the long desired Super Bowl. This is were it gets interesting.
As you may already know from reading my previous posts, the NFC's Super Bowl representative, the San Francisco 49ers, has a head coach by the name of Jim Harbaugh. The Baltimore Ravens' head coach just so happens to be his brother. This sets up the first and maybe only time that two brothers will coach against one another in the game to end all games. The two teams are identical when it comes to defense. Star players inhabit nearly every position on each level of the two defenses. The Ravens, whose defense terrified opposing offenses for a decade since their legendary 2000 defensive giant, have become a more offensively orientated team, no longer relying on their defense. The 49ers, once one of the most efficient and offensive teams in the history of the National Football League, have now become one of the most stingiest defensive teams in the league. The two teams set the stage for a promising Super Bowl full of juicy story lines. And once again, the Baltimore Ravens are the underdogs.
I can connect to this event due to the fact that I am a strong fan of both franchises and a football fan in general. UPDATE: Super Bowl merchandise has been flooding the market both online and physical stores. The news has also been rocked by America's homegrown holiday, the Superbowl. Bye!
Source: NFL.com
Friday, January 18, 2013
CC1(6): San Francisco's Utilization of the Pistol/Read Option Offense to Guide Them Back to Glory
Sorry, Mrs. G, but I am writing another current connection over a sporting event.
TITLE: San Francisco's Utilization of the Pistol/Read Option Offense to Guide Them Back to Glory.
The topic in which I wrote to you about a month ago can be found here on NFL.com. Once again, the great city of San Francisco has produced a championship caliber football team who has battled its way up to the door step of the Super Bowl, but have struggled to accomplish the daunting task of reaching the Super Bowl on the road. Not since the Montana years in '89 have the 49ers successfully won a road playoff game. This describes how the 49ers have utilized their new Pistol and read option offense that may allow San Francisco to break their 20 year draught of road playoff games.
This Current Connection relates to a previous post that I have written involving San Francisco's young mobile quarterback, Colin Kaepernick. (Source) Led by Kaepernick, the Niners throttled the offensive juggernaut and the #3 seed Green bay Packers. "The performance by Kaepernick in his first playoff game shredded the previous QB rushing record for any game, set by Michael Vick (173) in 2002. It was also the most rushing yards for the 49ers in their postseason".
Green Bay's secondary underestimated Colin's phenomenal speed as he consistently scorched the running angles of the Packer secondary on his way to setting an NFL single game quarterback rushing record with 181 yards on the ground. Head Coach Jim Harbaugh's risky decision to bench his starting quarterback, Alex Smith, after a concussion side lined him for only 1 week, who ,by the way, was playing at an exceptionally high level of quarterbacking. Alex had led the Niners to a 6-2 record prior to his concussion that sustained in week 10 against the St. Louis Rams, where, as fate would have it, allowed Colin Kaepernick to stick his foot in the door of being a starting professional quarterback for a team that he idolized as a young boy. Kaepernick has never looked back and has allowed the 49ers to implement a rare third dimension in a professional offense, the read-option.
The read option is basically a hand off to the half back that the quarterback can choose to keep possession of the ball and run himself. The read option forces NFL defenses to pay attention to the quarterback running the ball after the play-fake. Typically the quarterback will only bring the ball down for himself if the running lanes for the half back is congested or if the defense is focusing too strong on the running back. Although the read option has been effective against NFL defenses, the play is rarely utilized in a NFL offense, either because the offense does not possess the proper quarterback to run the read option or their prideful offensive coordinator firmly believes that the play is a "college" play and should not used in professional play. The read option became prevalent last year with the emergence of Carolina's quarterback, Cam Newton, and Denver's former quarterback, Tim Tebow, and has begun to spread across the league with Redskin's quarterback, Robert Griffin III, and San Francisco's own Colin Kaepernick.
Now the once criticized Jim Harbaugh and the degraded read option has San Francisco one game away from reaching the Super Bowl, something that he may not have been able to accomplish again with the play of Alex Smith although Alex Smith had already beat the Packers at Green Bay in week 1 of the regular season. The added dimension that is Colin Kaepernick's unquestionable talents to run and throw at a proficient level, has allowed San Francisco to steamroll other powerhouse passing attacks such as the New England Patriots and the New Orleans Saints along with defensive powerhouses such as "Lovie Smith’s defense [who] struggled vs. the option." Now, San Francisco will encounter another finesse offense in the #1 seeded Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons have been notoriously poor against read option quarterbacks such as Cam Newton this year and are now the underdogs even though they possess both a better regular season record and homefield advantage. Colin Kaepernick is in nearly the same position as Alex Smith was last year when Alex had led a clutch game winning drive against the New Orleans Saints in the divisional round to propel the Niners into the NFC Championship, only to lose to the future Super Bowl champion New York Giants. If Kaepernick can harness the momentum that he had garnered from last week's slaughtering of the finesse Green Bay Packers, Kaepernick can finally shut up any of the critics of his and pronounce Jim Harbaugh a genius (as if Kaepernick hasn't already shut up his objectors in last week's performance). Jim Harbaugh had already taken a 6-10 team with an ineffective component in the most important position in sports, the quarterback, to a 13-3 season in his first year and 11-4-1 season in his second, both reaching as far as the NFC Championship game.
I am able to connect to this current event because of my heritage in the Golden State and the proficient play of their sport clubs, bringing joy to all of their loyal fan bases. The Quest for Six has evolved into a phenomena in the city by the bay. What was once thought of as a college offense designed specifically for a single quarterback (Colin Kaepernick), the pistol has eased its way into the NFL through the immensly talented Kaepernick. The Pistol forces opposing defenses to reconfigure their entire play style and work in the favor of the 49ers. (Speaking of Golden State, the Warriors have also become a force in the Western Conference in the NBA.) Ta-da!
(Update as of 1/25/2013, Jim Harbaugh's ingenuity of his offense trumped the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship game. Knowing that the Falcons would pay an extraordinary amount of attention to Colin Kaepernick's read option game, Harbaugh utilized Atlanta's fear of the read option and redirected it in his favor. Captain Comeback (Jim Harbaugh's nickname given to him during his 1995 campaign as quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts when he led the Colts to an improbable post-season run that nearly gave the Colts a birth in the Superbowl. The Colt's run was stopped short in the AFC Championship game by the Pittsburgh Steelers) had his read-option quarterback to refrain from running the ball himself and to continue handing the ball off to Frank Gore. This method proved sensational against Atlanta's defense, who were making sure that Colin was under control in the running game. Atlanta played a lot of Defensive End contain and quarterback spy, which allowed for huge holes between the the guards and tackles for San Francisco and allowed Tight End Vernon Davis to run free in vanilla coverage. San Francisco dug itself out of a 17-0 hole to win the game 28-24. San Francisco advances to the grand finale, Super Bowl 47.)
Source: NFL.com
TITLE: San Francisco's Utilization of the Pistol/Read Option Offense to Guide Them Back to Glory.
The topic in which I wrote to you about a month ago can be found here on NFL.com. Once again, the great city of San Francisco has produced a championship caliber football team who has battled its way up to the door step of the Super Bowl, but have struggled to accomplish the daunting task of reaching the Super Bowl on the road. Not since the Montana years in '89 have the 49ers successfully won a road playoff game. This describes how the 49ers have utilized their new Pistol and read option offense that may allow San Francisco to break their 20 year draught of road playoff games.
This Current Connection relates to a previous post that I have written involving San Francisco's young mobile quarterback, Colin Kaepernick. (Source) Led by Kaepernick, the Niners throttled the offensive juggernaut and the #3 seed Green bay Packers. "The performance by Kaepernick in his first playoff game shredded the previous QB rushing record for any game, set by Michael Vick (173) in 2002. It was also the most rushing yards for the 49ers in their postseason".
Green Bay's secondary underestimated Colin's phenomenal speed as he consistently scorched the running angles of the Packer secondary on his way to setting an NFL single game quarterback rushing record with 181 yards on the ground. Head Coach Jim Harbaugh's risky decision to bench his starting quarterback, Alex Smith, after a concussion side lined him for only 1 week, who ,by the way, was playing at an exceptionally high level of quarterbacking. Alex had led the Niners to a 6-2 record prior to his concussion that sustained in week 10 against the St. Louis Rams, where, as fate would have it, allowed Colin Kaepernick to stick his foot in the door of being a starting professional quarterback for a team that he idolized as a young boy. Kaepernick has never looked back and has allowed the 49ers to implement a rare third dimension in a professional offense, the read-option.
The read option is basically a hand off to the half back that the quarterback can choose to keep possession of the ball and run himself. The read option forces NFL defenses to pay attention to the quarterback running the ball after the play-fake. Typically the quarterback will only bring the ball down for himself if the running lanes for the half back is congested or if the defense is focusing too strong on the running back. Although the read option has been effective against NFL defenses, the play is rarely utilized in a NFL offense, either because the offense does not possess the proper quarterback to run the read option or their prideful offensive coordinator firmly believes that the play is a "college" play and should not used in professional play. The read option became prevalent last year with the emergence of Carolina's quarterback, Cam Newton, and Denver's former quarterback, Tim Tebow, and has begun to spread across the league with Redskin's quarterback, Robert Griffin III, and San Francisco's own Colin Kaepernick.
Now the once criticized Jim Harbaugh and the degraded read option has San Francisco one game away from reaching the Super Bowl, something that he may not have been able to accomplish again with the play of Alex Smith although Alex Smith had already beat the Packers at Green Bay in week 1 of the regular season. The added dimension that is Colin Kaepernick's unquestionable talents to run and throw at a proficient level, has allowed San Francisco to steamroll other powerhouse passing attacks such as the New England Patriots and the New Orleans Saints along with defensive powerhouses such as "Lovie Smith’s defense [who] struggled vs. the option." Now, San Francisco will encounter another finesse offense in the #1 seeded Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons have been notoriously poor against read option quarterbacks such as Cam Newton this year and are now the underdogs even though they possess both a better regular season record and homefield advantage. Colin Kaepernick is in nearly the same position as Alex Smith was last year when Alex had led a clutch game winning drive against the New Orleans Saints in the divisional round to propel the Niners into the NFC Championship, only to lose to the future Super Bowl champion New York Giants. If Kaepernick can harness the momentum that he had garnered from last week's slaughtering of the finesse Green Bay Packers, Kaepernick can finally shut up any of the critics of his and pronounce Jim Harbaugh a genius (as if Kaepernick hasn't already shut up his objectors in last week's performance). Jim Harbaugh had already taken a 6-10 team with an ineffective component in the most important position in sports, the quarterback, to a 13-3 season in his first year and 11-4-1 season in his second, both reaching as far as the NFC Championship game.
I am able to connect to this current event because of my heritage in the Golden State and the proficient play of their sport clubs, bringing joy to all of their loyal fan bases. The Quest for Six has evolved into a phenomena in the city by the bay. What was once thought of as a college offense designed specifically for a single quarterback (Colin Kaepernick), the pistol has eased its way into the NFL through the immensly talented Kaepernick. The Pistol forces opposing defenses to reconfigure their entire play style and work in the favor of the 49ers. (Speaking of Golden State, the Warriors have also become a force in the Western Conference in the NBA.) Ta-da!
(Update as of 1/25/2013, Jim Harbaugh's ingenuity of his offense trumped the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship game. Knowing that the Falcons would pay an extraordinary amount of attention to Colin Kaepernick's read option game, Harbaugh utilized Atlanta's fear of the read option and redirected it in his favor. Captain Comeback (Jim Harbaugh's nickname given to him during his 1995 campaign as quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts when he led the Colts to an improbable post-season run that nearly gave the Colts a birth in the Superbowl. The Colt's run was stopped short in the AFC Championship game by the Pittsburgh Steelers) had his read-option quarterback to refrain from running the ball himself and to continue handing the ball off to Frank Gore. This method proved sensational against Atlanta's defense, who were making sure that Colin was under control in the running game. Atlanta played a lot of Defensive End contain and quarterback spy, which allowed for huge holes between the the guards and tackles for San Francisco and allowed Tight End Vernon Davis to run free in vanilla coverage. San Francisco dug itself out of a 17-0 hole to win the game 28-24. San Francisco advances to the grand finale, Super Bowl 47.)
Source: NFL.com
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
book review number 2: Man's Search For Meaning
mrs gilmore, the method in which i have been forced to utilize in writing this book review does not allow me to use the capitalize button on my keyboard. thus, you will not see a single capital letter on here. thank you. and it turns out that i am unable to use the 'enter' key as well.
the book that i have been reading is titled 'trotzdem ja zum leben sagen. ein psychologe er lebt das konzentrationslager' (Man's Search for Meaning) and written by viktor e. frankle, holocaust survivor. the book, as you may have concluded, details the experiences of the everyday man inside the barbed fences of auschwitz. frankle experienced these horrors first hand and the accounts within this book were written within approxmiately one year of his release from the death camps, 1946-1947. although the reader might expect the book to be more about the terrors of camp life but in actuality, viktor intended the book to be about the psychological aspect of the average prisoner. prior to the war and his entrapment, viktor was a prestigous psycholigist and therapudic doctor. he took advantage of his time of travail within the fences to study the mental approach taken by each camper he came across, along with himself. the primary message that viktor desired to send to the reader was how one could maintain the will for survival through such hopeless hours, which he hoped could be applied to those who suffer from depression or are experiencing a challenging point within their own lives and so forth. initially viktor intended to remain anonymous in writting and publishing the book for he did not want the reader to acquire the false assumption that his primary goal in writing this book was for wealth and noriety but rather for the reader to recieve a positive outlook on life. .
the book begins with viktor introducing himself and how his journey to the camp began, but he begins to elaborate the emotional truama that had overwhelmed the new inmates.he details the process in which the prisoners were seperated into two groups regarding their appearence of being sutible for manuel labor.those who were unsutible according to the capos were immediately sent to the 'showers' for cleaning and relaxation, although there was nothing relaxing about where they were eaded, the gas chambers. viktor escaped extermination by lieing about his age for he was too young for the guards to allow him to live. initially, the prisoner was terrified, afraid of death, but after a prolonged exposure to theatrocities of camp life and the ever so common sight of your friends and family dieing, a prisoner loses the desire to carry on. in actuality, many inmates desired death over enslavement. some did choose to commit suicide rather than suffer. the human desire to live has deteriorated and the prisoners reverted to mere animals. (Now I am able to use caps and the enter key)
Style: Viktor's style of writing is similar to what you would in scientific report detailing the behavior of animals, although his writing ability proves that he has written books before. He allows the reader to ask their own questions along with proposing quite a few himself. Since this work of literature was translated from its original text so I cannot give you an accurate analysis of his "style". Although some say that the translation tends to be 'dry', I find it suitable for my taste in work. A very serious, in depth analysis of the inner workings of what makes a human 'tick'. I find that the book was quite easy to read since I am not very interested in the fantasy land books of today's teenage youth. I prefer
I recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It is considered to be one of the most influential books in American literature. "Named one of the ten most influential books in America by a Library of Congress/Book-of-the-Month Club Survey of Lifetime Readers"
the book that i have been reading is titled 'trotzdem ja zum leben sagen. ein psychologe er lebt das konzentrationslager' (Man's Search for Meaning) and written by viktor e. frankle, holocaust survivor. the book, as you may have concluded, details the experiences of the everyday man inside the barbed fences of auschwitz. frankle experienced these horrors first hand and the accounts within this book were written within approxmiately one year of his release from the death camps, 1946-1947. although the reader might expect the book to be more about the terrors of camp life but in actuality, viktor intended the book to be about the psychological aspect of the average prisoner. prior to the war and his entrapment, viktor was a prestigous psycholigist and therapudic doctor. he took advantage of his time of travail within the fences to study the mental approach taken by each camper he came across, along with himself. the primary message that viktor desired to send to the reader was how one could maintain the will for survival through such hopeless hours, which he hoped could be applied to those who suffer from depression or are experiencing a challenging point within their own lives and so forth. initially viktor intended to remain anonymous in writting and publishing the book for he did not want the reader to acquire the false assumption that his primary goal in writing this book was for wealth and noriety but rather for the reader to recieve a positive outlook on life. .
the book begins with viktor introducing himself and how his journey to the camp began, but he begins to elaborate the emotional truama that had overwhelmed the new inmates.he details the process in which the prisoners were seperated into two groups regarding their appearence of being sutible for manuel labor.those who were unsutible according to the capos were immediately sent to the 'showers' for cleaning and relaxation, although there was nothing relaxing about where they were eaded, the gas chambers. viktor escaped extermination by lieing about his age for he was too young for the guards to allow him to live. initially, the prisoner was terrified, afraid of death, but after a prolonged exposure to theatrocities of camp life and the ever so common sight of your friends and family dieing, a prisoner loses the desire to carry on. in actuality, many inmates desired death over enslavement. some did choose to commit suicide rather than suffer. the human desire to live has deteriorated and the prisoners reverted to mere animals. (Now I am able to use caps and the enter key)
Style: Viktor's style of writing is similar to what you would in scientific report detailing the behavior of animals, although his writing ability proves that he has written books before. He allows the reader to ask their own questions along with proposing quite a few himself. Since this work of literature was translated from its original text so I cannot give you an accurate analysis of his "style". Although some say that the translation tends to be 'dry', I find it suitable for my taste in work. A very serious, in depth analysis of the inner workings of what makes a human 'tick'. I find that the book was quite easy to read since I am not very interested in the fantasy land books of today's teenage youth. I prefer
I recommend this book to anyone and everyone. It is considered to be one of the most influential books in American literature. "Named one of the ten most influential books in America by a Library of Congress/Book-of-the-Month Club Survey of Lifetime Readers"
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