LA - Connection to current event.

http://sundial.csun.edu/2012/02/israeli-occupation-of-palestine-is-a-crime-against-humanity/

                This article on the Arab-Israeli Conflict is most probably intended for average high-school or college students. This is because the writing includes information that someone in elementary or lower might not fully understand, but it does not go into complete detail. The purpose, as stated several times, is to convince the reader that Israel is in violation of Human Rights. For evidence to support their claim that Israel is in fact violating these laws, they stated that the Israeli government has taken the land away from the Palestinians/Arabs illegally by building the settlements. Israel is also guilty of displacing people, destroying homes, and restricting travel.

                This event connects to the conflict in the book All but My Life. One why in which it connects is that like in Palestine, the Nazi controlled Germany displaced many Jews, including Gerda and her family and friends. Although they weren’t taken to work and death camps, such as Marzdorf where Gerda was nearly killed by the hard work, the Palestinians being displaced have to leave their homes and often times cannot return because their home is being occupied. Another way in which this conflict connects to my book, is that Israel, like the Germans, took the land they were occupying by force. The Germans did not just persecute Jews in their own country, moved on to nearby land and took that as well, such as Poland where Gerda had lived, and they often forced them to live in ghettos, such as the one Gerda's family was sent to. The article claims that Israel is doing the same thing by establishing settlements, pushing away the people who lived there so that Israeli settlers can move in. That is how the Arab-Israeli conflict connects to the conflict in All but My Life.

LA - Letter to Gerda

Dear Gerda,

            I am almost proud of you for choosing to not go to live with Abek’s family. I think that it would have been difficult to live with them anyway, given the fact that Abek will want to marry you. He is a good person, but if you don’t love him in return, you both would never truly be happy together. Also, I am proud that you did it for Ilse’s sake. With you there, it no doubt makes her more comfortable, since everyone else in her life is inaccessible.

            I think that, given the choices, choosing to live with Abek’s family would have been a much easier and less painful rout, but the end result would not have been happy, because even after the war, you would still be bound to Abek. In this way, you have to suffer more now, but when you are free, you will have less holding you back. Also, there is no telling if Abek and his family are even safe from the Germans. At the very least you can be certain that in the camp you will live as long as you can work.

            Therefore, I believe that you made the right choice. You are, in a sense, safer in the camp than you would be otherwise. As far as concentration camps go, the one you are in is not very bad, and you still have friends you can relate to much better. In the end, I think that the choice to stay in the camp, despite its hardships, was the best choice.

            Your friend,

            Stephen

LA - Stage of genocide example in All but My Life

One stage of genocide that is present so far in All but My Life is dehumanization. Dehumanization is when the oppressors do not recognize their victims as human, and therefore they feel they don’t need to treat them like humans. An example of this in the book is how the Jews where not permitted to buy some items, such as sugar, jam, and eggs. Some of these things could be acquired through other means, but Jews were not able to get them by themselves. Another example of this stage of genocide is how “[The Jews’] rations were less than half the rations of non-Jews” (Klein, 1995,p. 36). Since the Germans didn’t recognize Jews as human, they did not give them as much food because they weren’t as important to the Germans.

Aid Agency

War Child is the best recipient for our donation. They are an international organization that focuses on rebuilding countries that have recently gone through conflict. One of the ways they do this is by providing educational programs for youth and children to learn in a safe environment. This is an integral part in recovering from conflict because a better educated community can make the right choices to help come out of conflict, and hopefully prevent it in the future through those decisions. Another way War Child assists in rebuilding societies is through securing access to justice. During a conflict, one of the first things to go is justice and the legal system. War Child provides direct legal representation to those who otherwise would have none, and they give comprehensive community sensitization and training of legal and justice officials. This is an important step to securing order, and therefor peaceful transition out of conflict. That is why War child is the best recipient for our donations.

Genocide or Not in Syria

According to the current definition of genocide, the conflict in Syria is not a genocide. This is because the intention is not to eliminate a certain ethnical or religious group, but rather the government's attempt to remain in power. If Political reasons where included in the definition of genocide, then the conflict would be genocide. Despite not being genocide, I believe the international community should get involved. I believe so because the government is killing many often unarmed civilians. Even if it isn't genocide, it is still mass murder, and is morally unacceptable.

Who's to blame for Rwanda?

The Rwandan genocide, like other genocides, is the responsibility of everyone who knew about it. The people directly committing the genocide are probably the guiltiest, because it was their idea. They were the ones who decided to eliminate countless innocents based on their prejudice, and actually went about killing them. However, the people who knew about it and did nothing are also partially to blame. This is because many countries who knew about it had the ability to stop the genocide or at least save more people, but chose not to in the interest of cost and the lives of their soldiers. Also, through inaction, they are almost encouraging more genocide because they prove the international community is unwilling to act and won't stop others from doing the same.

Assessing Responsibility WS

I think that the proper response of the individuals who simply complied with the Nazi rule should have been to instead of doing nothing, standing up for what they really think. The direct subordinates for example, could have refused orders to round up and execute the Jews. The proper response for the US should have been to not just fight the Nazis, but also take better care of the Jews who where in need of help. For any future genocides, I believe the international community should be more willing to help the victims, and give far more opposition towards countries committing it, such as through trade embargoes and other treaties to deprive them of the resources they need to commit the genocide. If that doesn't work, then countries should force the committing country to stop through force.