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.

The Tiger Series

For some background info, I am a major book fan. I could spend all day long reading books and I would be completely content. I love the feeling of becoming part of the story and feeling what the characters feel. Right now I am completely in love with The Tiger series. The series is by an author named Colleen Houck from Salem, Oregon.




The first book in the series is called Tiger's Curse. It's about this girl named Kelsey Hayes who lost her parents in a car crash when she was young. She became a foster child for a family that was complete health freaks. She liked them though.

When she graduates from High School she looks for a summer job so she can pay to go to a community college. She finds one at a circus that is in town for the summer. She is offered a place to stay while she works there, and they also provide food. Her job is to sell the tickets and clean up after the shows.
One of the circus's acts involves a white tiger, Dhiren. Kelsey meets him and immidietly becomes attached. She reads poems to him, draws pictures of him, and sits next to his cage while talking to him in her free time.

One day a strange man shows up, a man named Mr. Kadam. He buys Dhiren and offers Kelsey to assist him in the journey to India, where Dhiren is going to be placed on an animal reserve. She considers it for a day or two. Then she agrees. They leave Oregon on a private jet, with Dhiren in tow.

Upon arrival to India, Mr. Kadam says that Kelsey and Dhiren must travel on their own the rest of the way. They travel by truck to a tiny town in the middle of the forest. They stop at a small resturant and when Kelsey come out of the resturant, the truck is gone and Dhiren is loose, sitting accross the road from her. He turns and walks away and Kelsey chases after him. She catches him once they're deep in the forest. They spend the night there, and the next morning Dhiren leads her to a small hut.
Dhiren then turns into a gorgeous man. He explains to Kelsey that he is Ren an Indian Prince, immortal due to a curse that had been put on him and his brother by this evil Lokesh, a nearby kingdoms ruler. He needs her help to break the curse and she can't help but agree to help him.

The first book is about their journey to break the curse, and fall in love. It is one of the best books I've ever read and I deeply suggest it to anyone who likes to read.

Hope you enjoyed :)                                                             ~jaynedoe

"Is Blogging Journalism?" The Review

After reading "Is Blogging Journalism" by Gina Masullo Chen, I've concluded that I completely agree with her. Blogging is NOT Journalism. Blogging is a way of making yourself heard and discussing what you want to discuss. It gives you a voice.
Journalism has changed in many ways. Nowadays when people want information they get on the internet or look it up on any device that has the internet, instead of getting the newspaper or getting a magazine. The Newspaper and most magazine companys are suffering due to changes in the way we live. We depend so much on the internet. You can get online and pay bills, order things online (including pizza), check grades, do research, and many more. Not to mention all the social networks like Myspace, Facebook, Twitter, etc. I think that we just need to accept the fact that the further we go on into the future, everything is going to change. Our grandparents didn't live the way our parents did, and our parents didn't grow up the way we're growing up.

Princesses? Happy and innocent? Ha! Try Creepy, Dark, and Sinister.

     To kick things off I thought I would talk about one of my favoite artists, Jeffrey Thomas. Jeffrey is a Character designer/Concept Artist/Story Artist from Burbank, California. He gives a creepy, dark, and sinister feeling to things, where they're usually thought to be happy, light, and innocent. He has many pieces of work. This is one of his collections of work called Twisted Princesses, where he takes Disney movies and turns them upside down.


This is one of his newer pieces of work. It depicts Princess Repunzel, although in this version, she looks completely deranged. There are Wanted fliers of a man scattered on the floor. There are giant hands clinging to her hair. She's also carrying a frying pan, quite threateningly (no idea why). Even though I havnt seen the new Repunzel, i do know the basic story of it. I don't really get the scattered fliers on the ground or the hands in the hair. Maybe you might understand that part.


Also a new one, this one shows Princess Tianna from the new Disney movie The Princess and the Frog. It shows her as a frog/human thing dressed in The Shadow Man's clothing. A white aligator surrounds her, acting as a pet. She is shown throwing cards saying Love, Conflict, and Death. I personally like this one. It combines the whole movie into one picture, which looks awsome.


Kidagakash is from the movie Atlantis. In Jeffery Thomas's version she is shown with blood dripping from her mouth. She seems as if she is possesed by the white power seeping up from the ground. I havn't seen this movie since I was a little kid so on this one i don't quite understand it. All misunderstanding aside, this one looks really cool. Watching the movie might help... Possibly. :)


This is Meg from Hercules. I really like this one because it is so accurate. In Greek mythology, sometimes a persons life would be represented by a string. (taking the literal meaning of a "Life Line") There are three old women who care after all the strings- peoples life strings. They also cut the string when the time comes, ending that person's life. I think that it is quite appropriate then that in this picture it shows Hercules cutting Meg's Life String.


      As you can tell, this one depicts Alice from the Disney famous Alice in Wonderland.
      I am a major fan of anything to do with Alice in Wonderland. This one also incorperates a lot of the stuff from the movie. The Cheshire Cat, which is my favorite wonderland character, is shown as a smoke. I'm guessing because of how the caterpillar is always smoking. There's a white rose half painted in red. ( I'm guessing that it's blood) Alice is shown all torn and dirty, and her eyes are swirling purple. Her eyes look crazyyy. She looks like at any minute she'd jump up and tear your throat out.
     Something that is very interesting and cool to me is that there is a stack of books, all having to do with Alice in Wonderland, that are holding up the chair that she is sitting on.


     As we all know, Mulan is a Chinese girl who goes to war in place of her father. She takes with her a tiny "dragon" named Mushu. In Jeffrey's version of Mulan, Mushu is shown as a tattoo that comes to life right off of her body. Mulan looks undead and in battle. There are many arrows sticking out of her body. The sword of Shanu is held in her hand stained with blood. Definitely one of the more bloody pieces of his.

        The Lion King is probably one of my favorite Disney movies as a kid. I like this one because it shows the beast-ness of the animals where in the movie they are peaceful and like singing songs. This shows Timon, Pumba, and Nala. Nala has what appears to be a strip of meat from Simba hanging from her mouth. That's the main thing that gives it that creepy feel. One of the other things is they are standing on an Elephant skull with flames in the back.
 
     I like this one because the Disney version made her out as sweet, innocent, and vulnerable. However in Jeffery's version, she is pictured as a hunter, beast like, and slightly deranged. She's wearing the skin of a cheetah ( It might be leopard... no idea).

 
     This one is one of my favorites. I am a fan of both the movie and of Indians themselfs. It shows Pocahantas with blood pretty much everywhere, along with some skulls attached to her hip. Her left arm bears the armor of that of a soldier. In the movie she falls in love with one of the english men who arrive on her island searching for gold. I'm guessing it ties to him. She also has the racoon on her shoulders, though this one is "mad". (as in crazy).

This one to me is kind of sad. Even the disney version is slightly depressing. Jeffrey's version of her totally brings out that sadness, at least to me. Sleeping Beauty, aka Princess Aurora, is shown with her eyes sewn shut, representing the sleeping curse. The owl is standing in as the "Prince" just like in the movie, but he is clawing her hand, whether she's okay with that or not I honestly have no idea. I think it's possible that he's either a pet or that he's controling her hand. Either way she is all torn up, with a lantern clipped to her dress containing the fairies.
      His version of Cinderella is probably the one that is most unlike the movie. It shows her as a scarecrow, with hay sticking out in random spots. She's sitting in a pumpkin of course, and instead of a blue bird and mouse as her friends, there is a crow and a rat. I think this one is okay, but just not enough... something... to make it one of the best.

     This is also one of my favorites because I love tigers and the culture of India. Jasmine and her tiger Rasha are standing by eachother. Jasmine looks like she's made of sand, which in the end of the disney movie she nearly drowns by sand. And as for Rasha, the sweet tiger, looks terrifiying, which for Jeffrey is a good thing. Quite nice. :)

      Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is one of the oldest Disney movies. This one is really cool because it really gives the sweet and innocent girl that dark side. ( which I love). She has the dwarfs roped and tied up her arm, and think they act as her slave and/or minions. Snow White herself looks dead, and the apple she's holding in her hand has a bite out of it.... However there are worm crawling out of the apple and it is soooo not appetizing. Gross! But at the same time it is of course... Awsome!

     Also one of my favorites. Ariel, also known as the little mermaid, is quite different in Jeffery's version. She has a fork as an arm (inside joke from the Disney movie). She looks evil and... She has a fish hook piercing in her eyebrow! So cool. However, my favorite part of this piece of work is.... Drum  roll.... Flounder The Piranha! Yes folks a piranha!

     As for the last one, Beauty and The Beast. This one isn't as exciting, however it is still pretty cool. The beast has a torn rope around his neck, smybolizing "the untamed beast" or "the beast that cannot be tamed" blah, blah, blah. Something kind of funny though, Bell looks like the girl from the Orphan. :)
     So, whether you like disney movies or not, you have to admit these pictures are sick! Jeffery Thomas is an amzing artist and I deeply hope that we will be able to see more of his completely awsome work. He gives a different look to these stories, which makes it fun for those of us who are grown and no longer watch the Disney movies anymore.
      I also would like to point out a good idea for the next one.... Toy Story! Think about it. It would look so cool.
     Thanks guys. I hope you enjoyed.   :)                               ~jaynedoe