The Death of Osama: a Blow to al Qaeda?

The Death of Osama: a Blow to al Qaeda?

600 words, no less

Background:After almost ten years of searching for revenge, the United States finally got it. On Sunday night, President Obama announced to the nation that Osama bin Laden, the man who planned the horrid slaughter on September 11, 2001, had been shot by the U.S special forces. His body now lies at the bottom of the ocean.
The team that brought Osama down, containing a total of six CIA officers and Navy SEALS, arrived at Osama’s mansion hideout in Pakistani late on Friday night. There was a violent firefight where three other men with Osama were killed along with one of Osama’s sons. A woman who was used as a shield was also killed. Two other women were injured. After shooting Osama in the head, they claimed his body and were out in less then forty minutes of arriving.
The death of Osama bin Laden is a major milestone for America and for the constant struggle to bring down al Qaeda. Now that their leader is dead, there is no knowing if it will bring al Qaeda down or just create an uprising against the U.S. Paul Cruickshank, an analyst on terrorism, has declared that “Osama bin Laden played a crucial unifying role in al Qaeda” and that
‘Without him, al Qaeda could very likely unravel.”
In President Obama’s stunning speech he reminded the nation that although the death of Osama bin Laden marks the most significant achievement in the nation’s effort to bring down Al Qaeda, we are still not out of the woods. Mr. Obama says that we must remain vigilant. There’s no doubt that al Qaeda will try to strike again.
After the President’s speech, military bases around the world stood on high alert due to possible retaliation. A worldwide travel warning was placed by the State Department. They urged people to limit travel and avoid mass gatherings. Officials fear that the killing of Osama will deepen tensions with Pakistan.
My Opinion:After everything that people of the United States have gone through because of Osama bin Laden, I’m grateful that he is now out of the picture for good. On that dreadful day in September he killed about 3,000 innocent people. He was the face of terrorism, there’s no doubt about that.
However, I don’t know if how far people are going due to his death are appropriate. There seems to be a fine line between celebrating the victory of defeating an enemy, one who took our family members away, compared to celebrating the death of a person’s life. No matter how bad he spent his life, it’s inhumane.
There is a lot of speculation that there will be retaliation from remaining members of Al Qaeda. The news has said it, teachers have said it, even the president admits that the possibility of attacks is likely. These are very scary facts. We’ve seen what al Qaeda is capable of. Whether or not the fact that Osama bin Laden will not be there to lead al Qaeda in attacks is irrelevant.
On the up side, there seems to be no one worthy to take Osama’s place. Osama was the disgusting glue that held the whole ridiculous group together. They need a leader who was just as sick and “charismatic” as Osama was. Hopefully, that will be very hard to find.
As for the time being I think we should be very careful. We don’t know if Osama left a plan for if this kind of thing ever happened. For all we know a plan could be in motion at this very minute.
But as I said, lets celebrate the fact that the murderer of our family members and fellow Americans has been dealt justice. Ding, Dong, the wicked witch is dead!

A Nursery Rhyme Story

Nursery Rhyme Story

By: Shelby Ball

Three Blind Mice,

See how they run?

They all ran after the Farmer’s wife

Who cut off their tale with a carving knife,

Did you ever see such a sight in your life,

As Three Blind Mice?

            There were once three mice that lived in a farmer’s house on the countryside. When the Farmer built the house they quickly took up a hole in the wall and called it home.  During the years they lived there they never once stole any of the farmer’s food. The mice always stayed out of the way of the farmer and his wife, never giving them any trouble.
             Years later came a cold and vicious winter. The mice didn’t dare to venture out into the freezing, bitter cold. Eventually their food supply started to dwindle until there was nothing left at all. Days passed and the mice grew desperate with hunger. Finally they decided that they had to steal the farmer’s food or face death.
              So the next night when the farmer and his wife were fast asleep, the mice crept out of their home and snuck into the pantry. There the farmer’s wife stashed their delicious homemade bread. Mad with hunger, the three mice devoured all of the bread down to the very last crumb.
              The next morning when the farmer’s wife went to fetch the bread for breakfast she found nothing but the plastic wrapping that had contained the bread. Thinking her husband had finished the bread the day before she made a new loaf and placed it in the pantry.
             As like the night before, when the farmer and his wife were fast asleep, the mice crept into the pantry and ate all the bread. However, this time they made the mistake of leaving crumbs that led to their hole in the wall.
             When the farmer’s wife awoke in the morning, she again found no bread in the pantry. She did however find breadcrumbs and tiny mice footprints leading to a mouse hole. Disgusted, she made another loaf and replaced it in the pantry. She was determined to keep this loaf untouched.
             Later that night when the farmer went to bed the farmer’s wife descended down the stairs with a can of pepper spray. She stood by the mouse hole and waited. When the three mice emerged from their home, the farmer’s wife sprayed them in the face with the pepper spray. The mice squealed with pain. The pepper spray burned their tiny little eyes until finally they could no longer see. The three blind mice ran in circles frantic with the loss of sight.
            It was then that the mice smelled the strong and potent perfume of the farmer's wife. They then realized what had happened. After years of staying out of their way and never giving the farmer any trouble, his wife had caused them too be blind. Enraged, they all ran after the farmer's wife.
           The farmer's wife shrieked with fright. She stumbled back and reached for something, anything, to protect herself with. She swung the object down hard at the mice. With a nauseating crunch, she cut off their tails with a carving knife. The tailess and blind mice ran dumbly all the way out the door with ear splitting squels. 
          The next morning at breakfast, the farmer asked his wife what she had been doing the night before. She just looked at him and said "Did you ever see such a sight in your life, such as three blind mice?"

        

THE END

Tale of Atom Bomb Doubts

Doubts Raised on Book’s Tale of Atom Bomb

By: William J. Broad

Published: February 20, 2010

          Charles Pellegrino is the author of a book about the devastating atomic destruction of Hiroshima. Although it has won critical acclaim, there is a problem.  Part of the book and details of the mission are said to be false.  There are recollections of Mr. Joseph Fuoco as a last minute stand in on one of the two planes to deliver the bomb. However, Mr. Corliss’s family denies that what the book says is true. Mr. Corliss died in 1999. His family kept all the documents of his historic flight and offered them as evidence that Mr. Fuoco never flew on the bombing run, nor did he stand in for Mr. Corliss when he was said to become ill.

                Mr. Corliss’s family was distraught about the fraud. They claimed that Mr. Corliss was very proud about being the flight engineer for that historic flight. The two surviving members of the flight crew agreed with the family. The flight’s navigator declared that he was close enough to shake Mr. Corliss’s hand.  He also insisted that there was no way Corliss was going to miss the mission.

                There seems to be a contradiction between the two families. One insists that Mr. Corliss was the one and the wife of the other family demands that her husband wouldn’t have lied about something as critical as that, even though she has no proof that he stood in for Mr. Corliss.   

         

Slander or Censorship?

Officials See Slander in Uzbek Photos, but Artists See Censorship

Author: Ellen Barry

Published: February 10, 2010

                A photographer and filmmaker by the name of Umida Akhmedova, was convicted of slandering and insulting the Uzbek people. The government complaints declared that the photos were unflattering to the country and depicted it as poor, grim, and sour. She was set up to get three years in prison, but the judge gave her an amnesty instead, in honor of the Uzbek independence.

 With the charges came many protests from fellow photographers and artists. They started petitions in Ms. Akhmedova’s defense and sent her work to Belarus and Russia, to be put in exhibits. Daniil Kislov is the editor in chief to the website that has been following the case. He declared that the case was a warning to photographers and artists that they need to show Uzbekistan the way the government wants it to be seen.  He also said that the people really care about opinions.

This article influences you to think about your own government. For instance, what do you think would happen if a photographer took pictures that depicted poor education, illness due to bad health care, or homeless families due to small amounts of jobs?  It would cause controversy.

If you want to learn about this topic, check out CNN or other reliable news sources.

God said multiply, and did she ever!

 

God said multiply, and Did She Ever

Author: Joseph Berger

Published: February 19, 2010

            Yitta Schwartz was a 93 year old woman who gave birth to 15 children, 200 grandchildren, and who could claim 2,000 living decedents. Before passing away last month, she told her children that she didn’t want them to keep any pictures of her. Instead, she told them to keep her in their hearts. 

Mrs. Schwartz was very devoted to her family and religion. She believed that bearing children was a tribute to God. It’s said that she never forgot any of her family’s names or their faces. Although she gave birth 18 times, she lost one in a summer camp accident and two in the Holocaust. During World War II, her and her family was sent to the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp.

Some things I find interesting are after so many children and grandchildren, she didn’t forget their names. She went to every wedding, engagement, and other any religious get together. She even had her son arrange a calendar for the family so that she could spend equal amount of time with each of her children’s families. She was a genuine caretaker for her children and believed that family always comes first. As a stay at home mom, she didn’t leave the house very often. This made her very committed to the well being of her family. For these reasons, I admire her.

While reading this article, it made me wonder how it was like raising a family of that size. They obviously had a strain on income and food because of it. However, what I’m more curious about is how the children felt about it. Did they like having such a large family? Did they feel like they never got enough attention?

If you want to find more information on Yitta Schwartz and her family, you can research them using any news websites or even Google.

The Creatures in my House

What do you do when you're all alone and scared and don't know what to do? What do you do when you feel like you can't get up from your bed? And what do you do when you feel like there isn't a soul in the world who you can talk to?
Easy. You pick up your cat, dog, or even bird and just hold them close and pet them.
Yeahh, I know it sounds kind of dumb and corny. But hey it works. Animals will trust you and love you no matter what. They are the most loyal beings in the world.
In my crazy house I have a total of five creatures in it; two birds, two cats, and a very small dog. So, I thought I would introduce them to you. Here goes.

These are my babies. The blue one is a girl named Godzilla and the green one is a boy named King Kong. Mixed up I know.
I got them during the summer. I got the girl first (they told me she was a boy). So I wanted to get another so he (she) wasn't lonely. I got a boy because it's harder to train them when its a boy and girl. But then Zilla's nose turned brown which means she's a girl. But it all worked out. They are little pigs and eat allll the time. Listening to them is very comforting. And in the morning when I'm getting ready for school, they sing. It's beautiful.

This is my kitty Domino. I got him when I was eight, kinda as a birthday present. He is one of the smallest cats I've ever had. Hes full grown and i can still hold him in one hand. He likes to follow me around and watch CSI with me when nobody else will because it's "gross" (so says my mother). He's extremely playful and loveable. He also likes attacking your feet.

This is our crazy puppy Sophie who just turned one years old. She is babied and very much loved by everyone in the family. We got her before christmas a year ago. She was soooo tiny. She is a purebred Teacup Yorkie. She's supposed to be super tiny too, but in order to keep her that small you basically have to starve her which we think is morally wrong. So we feed her as much as she needs and she's plump now. But all is well.

And last but not least....

Old, fat, and grumpy Mister. He's like the real version of Garfield and is the funniest cat ever. If you talk to him he will actually meow back to you. He eats constantly and if you try to refuse him, he won't shut up till you feed him. He is about 15 years old. He gets his excersize by chasing sophie around and driving us all nuts.
By the way, he is the laziest animal I've ever come in contact with. See?

So that concludes my rambling. I hope you enjoyed. :)
                                                                                                       ~jayne doe

My Famous Dead Person Biography

So... For my famous dead person biography I chose the talented and sexy Heath Ledger. Heath was born on April 4th, 1979 in Perth, Western Australia. When he was in Junior High, he had to choose an elective: either cooking or drama. He chose drama and was very talented at it, although he wasn't acknowledged for it.





At age 17 with 69 cents to his name, he and a friend dropped out of school and moved to Sydney, where they thought they could make it big. His first acting job was in a very low budget film called Blackrock (1997). He had a crappy part. The only time you saw him was when he was getting his lights punched out.
After that he appeared in a T.V series called Sweat as a gay cyclist going for the olympics. He got small notice.





When his brief role in Paws only gave him a small paycheck, he decided to move to America, where he had a role in Roar. That went sour too. Finally an Australian director by the name of Gregor Jordan auditioned him for a lead role in Two Hands. He got it. The movie was a hit and allowed him to secure a part in 10 Thing I Hate About You. He was then typecasted as a teen hunk. He didn't like nor want this so he decided to take a part in a war drama The Patriot.





After that he was inconsistanly casted, avoiding roles that would typecast him. He only did charater roles, which sometimes went good and other times just failed. Monster's Ball was one they were hesitant to release outside of Australia. However, his lead role in Brokeback Mountain was a success and he was nominated for an Oscar and a BAFTA.




His life was tradically ended when he accidently overdosed on prescription drugs on January 22, 2008. The pills were painkillers, sleeping pills, and anti-anxiety medication.
After his death he was nominated for 30 posthumous awards for his portrayal of the pyshopathic clown prince The Joker in the movie The Dark Night. He was nominated for the Oscar, SAG, BAFTA, and Golden Globe award.



Heath was best known for his deep husky voice, completely immersing himself in his roles, and best of all, his warm smile.
RIP Heath. <3                                                        ~Jayne Doe


Interesting Facts:
~He and his older sister, Kate Ledger, are named after the two main romantic characters of the Emily Brontë novel, "Wuthering Heights".

~Named one of People Magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 2001

~Former fiancée Michelle Williams gave birth to daughter Matilda Rose Ledger on 28 October 2005, who weighed in at 6 lb, 5 oz.

~Mother was Sally Ramshaw (daughter of John and Jackie Ramshaw) and father was Kim Ledger (son of Colin and Es Ledger).

~Directed three music videos for Australian artist N'fa and Ben Harper.

~Owned a pet kangaroo that was found by his mother as a child.