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It was late afternoon when we arrived at a peek over looking the city. From what I assumed, this was the capital of the Inca empire. They were seemingly very primitive and savage. That impression changed immediately when I looked out in front of our group. An enormous valley lay before us. In the middle of a large gather of stone buildings, with people mulling about. Surrounding the gorgeous city, was an army like none I had ever scene. There stretched on as far as my eye could see. Our group of one hundred and sixty-seven men, were dwarfed in comparison to them. We followed our guide down into the valley and to the cities capital. Francisco Pizarro, accompanied by three of his most trusted officers including me continued inside. We were met by a very official looking man, wearing must wealthier attire and a lot of jewelry than what we had scene so far. From the way the others treated him, we assumed he was their leader. He said a couple things we could not understand, the whole time inspecting us like we were a plump pig ready for the slaughter. After he was finished, we were lead away. We set up camp just outside of the city. Pizarro called a meeting in his encampment to discuss our strategy. He thought that we were in danger, and needed to take action before they did. Our strategy was simple, capture there leader Atahualpa and then the Incas would not risk the death of their leader. The night seemed to last forever. Above us on the hills surrounding the valley, lay the encampments of uncountable numbers of Inca warriors. There were fires in each of these encampments that made it extremely beautiful, but also extremely intimidating. We kept up a watch, waiting for the right time to strike. This time came in the early hours of the morning. We silently prepared for battle, and snuck into the city. We grabbed the ruler, and the battle began. Looking back on it now, I would not refer to it as a battle, but more a slaughter. The Incas fought with confusion at the loss of there leader, and also at the surprise of the attack. After it was all over, their bodies were strewn about aimlessly. We had managed to annihilate their entire army without loosing a single life.
 * Spanish conquistador point of view: **

[] [|http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_conquest_of_the_Inca_Empire#Beginning_of_the_conflict] []
 * References **

__**Stumbling across a source:**__ If I ever came across a source as important and controversial as the Incas City of Machu Pichu, I would define it as my life goal to figure out the secrets that it holds. The amount of history that can be obtained from a source such as this one is astronomical. I would take my time in surveying the cite and not rush anything. The most important information can be found in the little things. I would also higher experts on the matter to help me discover the secrets. My interpretation of what I would have done if I had come across such a cite, is skewed as I now know what was actually done. If I was an explorer, and had stubbled on a cite such as the one at Machu Pichu, where no human life had set foot in hundreds of years, I would take many picture if I had that capability, and explore the cite thoroughly. I would feel a responsibility to my generation, and any future generations to get the best first impression of the area that I can, so that I may write a book or article about it. I would leave the research of the cite to experts in the matter so that I do not contaminate the evidence of the clearly ancient culture. People would be able to tell the knowledge and intelligence of one of our past cultures that lived and conquered much of the land in South America.

__//** The boy In the Striped Pajamas Essay **//__

Intro: Some people say, //The Boy In the Striped Pajamas// should not be read with high school kids. This is completely wrong. This book offers key points that make a wonderful plot. This book also breaks down the Holocaust to a nine-year-old’s view of it. It is a great book to entertain people and show ways of writing. Because of it wonderful ending, plot and broken down story line, It should be read in high school.

Conclusion: This thrilling novel should be read in high school. It should be dissected and analyzed to get the full meaning out of it. This book should be read in all high schools around the untitled states. Its simplified view of the holocaust and the great use of language, make this a “must read.”

Body: The holocaust can be a very complicated subject. People ideas and views can be hard to comprehend. //The Boy In the Striped Pajamas// breaks down the holocaust into the eyes of a nine year old child. Bruno first looks at Auchwitz as a farm where everyone wears striped pajamas. This gives you an idea of how kept in like animals all the Jews were. It also shows that everyone wore the same attire. This made the Nazis able to keep track of the Jews.

__** Draft **__ //The Boy In the Striped Pajamas// is a story about the friendship between two nine year old boys, a Jewish boy named Shmuel, and Bruno, the son of a Nazi commandant. Some people say that this could never have happened, and that this book should not be read with high school kids because of possible inaccuracies. This is completely wrong. This book offers key insights into how a nine-year-old witnessed absolute evil, yet had no idea that anything bad was going on. This makes a wonderful plot. It is an engrossing, yet disturbing story. Its writing process is a great window into the eyes and thoughts of the great novelist, John Boyne. Ending //The Boy In the Striped Pajamas// with the brutal killing of the two boys was a direct display of what the holocaust was really like.

**"Some people... completely wrong -- comes off a bit arrogant/confrontational. Try not to make the reader believe that you are forcing them to see your opinion. "Show ways of writing" still a bit weak. Break up your sentences better (some commas can be replaced by periods).**

The holocaust is very complicated subject. //The Boy In the Striped Pajamas// shows an outsider's view of Auschwitz, a German concentration camp, **from the eyes of a nine year old child** (choose one - outsider's view or nine-year old child). Bruno first looks at Auschwitz as a farm where everyone wears striped pajamas. This gives you an idea of how the Jews and other prisoners were kept locked up like animals **Do not use "you" -- you can simplify these two sentences in to one**. An even earlier display of his innocence is when they are boarding the train. Bruno looks out the window at the tracks next to them, and sees people being piled into cattle cars. He is temped to tell the people that there is plenty of room on his train. This made a great comparison to what Jews were going through by showing how bad their conditions were before they even got to the camps. Bruno broke down the holocaust to its simplest form. He only viewed the actions that were taking place around him, and not there implications. This is a great way to understand parts of the holocaust that people may find confusing.

A good story plot has a thrilling story line and exciting characters. It makes exciting twists to enthrall its readers. The book starts off with Bruno’s family packing to move to Auschwitz, where his father was given a promotion to run the death camp. The story wastes no time in getting to the action. The author uses Bruno’s mean sister, cheating mother, strict father, and the evil Nazi Lieutenant to make a bouncing and twisting plot that keeps the reader enthralled in the story line. The most exhilarating flip in the story was the ending. Bruno snuck into the camp to help Shmuel look for his father, when they are rounded up by the soldiers. They are taken into a building. Bruno thinks that this is just to keep them out of the rain. That is the last time that you hear from Bruno. **This paragraph is a bit weak... moving to Auschwitz -- action?? Need more examples of action in the bigger sense of the word. How does this make people want to choose your side or not?**

Making the ending of the story so horrific and depressing served a good purpose. It showed the horrors of the holocaust, and how their **there** was no happiness, only death. Shmuel’s friendship with Bruno was his only light in his dark world at Auschwitz. This devastating death camp couldn’t destroy their friendship, so it instead destroyed them. **Excellent** This book put the holocaust in perspective, showing but one instance of the 1.5 million lives that this camp took **This begins to sound as if the story is real -- NOT what you want to discuss**. This ending also had a much less depressing purpose, and that was to show that the gas chambers could not tell the difference between a Nazi and a Jew. The whole idea of the holocaust was that Jews and Germans were completely different. However, when it came down to it, they were equals in death. They died hand in hand, best friends from two opposite worlds.

= These compelling reasons are but a few of the examples that stand out of why this thrilling novel should be read in High School. It offers the ideas of the holocaust broken down, a brilliant plot to keep the children interested, and an ending that sums the entire holocaust up in the death of two boys. Any arguments against reading this story are outweighed by the benefits obtained from reading it. This book should be read and analyzed in high school throughout our world. =

**Conclusion paragraph -- needs more -- feels a bit rushed. Arguments against -- you never stated any in your essay. The reader may become confused and think "If there are arguments against, what are they?** = = =__//** EUROPE **//__=

The only experience I have had with Europe is when I studied it in 4th grade. This was when I was so young that what I learned then has mostly drained away. All we ever learned about were the castle and the middle ages. I found that interesting but I would like to go more modern. I would like to learn about there political conflicts and governments, and how Europe is run differently than the United States. Things even as early as 1900’s would be lovely to learn. My biggest goal for the year is too learn how to not cite more than 10% of my essay as I think I have been doing about 20. I like to have more than 1 opinion on the matter in question. Another equally big goal for me is to incorporate better vocabulary into my writing. I hope to have a fun year and that it isn't overwhelmingly hard to cope with the presser of homework.

=**__//RACISM//__**= This video is a great example of the ignorance that is often seen in the world we live in. In the video we watched in class, about the man not selling a gun to a man because he considered him a like to Osama. In this video the person trying to bring Herald and Kumar back to Guantanamo bay, needs to get info out of a African American, pours a grape soda on the ground slowly to get the truth out of him. This is an extremely racist act, and shows just how ignorant he is. The second video shows one of the most powerful speeches in the world. This was in the goal of stopping the kind of racial discrimination that the first video shows.

=__**//NATIONALISM//**__= Martin Luther King speech was one of the most powerful speeches in the world. It showed the white population that the black population wanted to be part the the USA even thought they are discriminated against and considered different. He showed that they are culturally assimilated with america, so they should have the same rights. The amount of people that showed up for this event showed how much nationalism they had, and how much ethnocentrism the whites had.

= = =__//**VIDEO REACTION**//__= I found Brett's video clip to be the most effective. It was not only a superb event of national pride, but also important in his own life. He didn't just do it to get the homework done, he did it because it is something he is passionate about He is a hockey player, so he can relate to the US's fantastic win against USSR. It was such an un expected event, that it made many people proud to be Americans. The most powerful moment in this clip, was seeing USA's players after the game. They had mixed expressions of awe and glee. They had just done what was thought to be impossible in the name of their country. This was a perfect example of what nationalism means to me.

=__// **The Treaty of Versailles** //__= Germany got land confiscated from them, lost most of it military, was forced into needing financial help and was forced to admit full responsibility for the war. These were the term of the treaty. If I was in the place of the Germans, getting my land and resources taken away from me, I would fined this an unfair punishment. I would be furious with all the other countries. What the Nazis did was a horrific thing, but that doesn't mean all of Germany should be punished. It was a specific person, Hitler, convincing people that they were better than everyone else. The Treaty of Versailles took away the freedom that being your own country gives. It was as if everyone was running German for them. It took the most casualties in the war, and that should be punishment enough. Many people in Germany did not agree with what was going on, and them being punished for another man/woman's sin, is extremely unfair. I think that making this treaty would anger Germany more than take away it power. Just because they don’t have power at the moment, doesn't mean that they wont gain power in the future and strike back at all the country that wronged them. I think that kindness is always the answer, and we should friend Germany instead of pushing them to the ground and taking away all their toys.

= = =__//**Discussion Question #1**//__= Last year when playing Marianapolis, Matt Galman laid a kid out by running into him. I found it to be extremely funny. It hurt the kid a lot and i think that if i was in a non competitive mood, i would have found it to not be as funny, and feel bad for him. I think that i could better empathize with people if i just take a minute and put my self in his position. If i was to get body checked by Galman, my view on this situation would be completely different. I hope that taking this topic into consideration will help me in the future so that i am able to empathize with someone, no matter how different our ideas are.

= = =__//2nd Discussion Question #1//__= I would be willing to accept a leadership position as the one Adam Czerniakow had. I would only do this if no one else was able or willing to do so, as these choices would change who i was as a person and i would not be able to return to the life i had previously. I would have to make many awful decisions to keep my cover under the power of the Nazi forces. The only way i would be able to make these decisions is knowing that i would be able to save people in the future by making these choices. As is said in the article, Adam was charged with distributing medicine and other suplies to the Jewish people in the Ghetto, but he also collected cash and valuables from them to pay for the randsom of others. This would be a hard job but i think i would be able to do it, at least for a shot period of time. What Adam Czerniakow did took a lot of courage and selflessness.

=__//** EMPATHY: **//__= Empathy is feeling another’s pain. It’s seeing someone hurt or crying and putting yourself in their position and helping them through it. It’s a quality that everyone possesses in lesser or greater degrees. When I was in the 3rd grade, 8 years old, I was taken on a trip to Sri Lanka. This trip took place after a massive tsunami destroyed the coast line of Sri Lanka. We went to a small town called Galle. This was my first experience with poverty. Many houses had been completely demolished by the terrible disaster. People were forced to live in tents or in the ruins of their houses. Seeing this made me think of what it would be like to be in their position, what it would be like if my house had been destroyed and not theirs. It was a terrifying thought for a 8 year old boy. I made two friends who were able to show me around the town. They brought me to their small house up on the hill where they, and their sister lived. One of them had been working on the Peace Pagoda the day of the tsunami. He watched as the tide went out, leaving the beach empty, fish wriggling on the sand. People ran out to grab them, and then came the wave. He described it as a wall of water, surging towards the helpless people. Watching this entire event unfold, able to do nothing about the helpless people, the only thing he was able to do is picture how terrified it must have been for the victims. This is what empathy means to me. = =

= = =__//** Bruno Compared to a Boy From the Ghetto: **//__=

In the book “The Boy With the Striped Pajams” Bruno is a 9 year old boy from a high class family. He describes his old house has being large, and when they moved, it was to an equally large home. When he travels, he takes a fancy train with plenty of comfortable space to stretch out. Children from the Warsaw Ghetto did not have these luxuries. They lived in small, crowded homes with sometimes 4 or 5 other families living with them. The trains they take, are just as awful. They are brought to the Ghetto in cattle cars crowded with people. “He made his way down the stairs slowly, holding onto the banister with one hand, and wondering if the new house in the new place where the new job was would have as fine a banister to slide down.” All Bruno’s worries are about things that don’t effect his health. Living in the Warsaw Ghetto, children had to fight for their food and their lives. They did not have time to fight about such petty things as if a house would have a good banister to slide down. They had to think about weather they would even have a home that night. = = =__//** The Boy In the Striped Pajamas REMIX **//__= Bruno and Shmuel scurried toward the camp. Bruno was excited to finally be able to do something with his new friend. They went into every building searching for Shmuel’s papa. When they were finished looking in the town and had come up with nothing, they started searching the outskirts. Bruno heard a loud noise like a small explosion. The ground near his feet exploded. They bolted for the fence that they had come threw. Behind them they could here shouting. The only thing that Bruno could make out was, “...dead or alive!” Shmuel dived under the fence first, covering himself in mud. ‘This was the least of his concerns’ Bruno thought. Clearly the people on the other side of the fence didn’t want his people to be on their side. When they got across Bruno stopped. “What are you doing?” screamed Shmuel hurriedly. He knew that this was not going to stop yet. “We need to continue!” “But we are off their side now?” They started away at a fast pace. “Its not the Jews that were shooting at us, it was the soldiers! They are from your side.” This made sense in Bruno’s mind. He had seen the soldiers go between the two sides every day. “Then why are they shooting us!” They were both terrified but neither wanted to show his weakness to the other. “I don’t know! But... I //think// it has to do with us snooping around the camp!” Suddenly, two hooded figures jumped out from what seemed like empty air. They put bags over both the children's heads, and disappeared back into the forest. Bruno woke up before Shmuel. They were lying on cots in a damp cavern. There were several lamps around, hanging on walls and sitting on ledges. A man walked in. He was tall and was wearing the striped pajama bottoms. Something about him gave Bruno the impression that he had seen him before. “Hello Bruno, I am Shmuel’s father. Welcome to the resistance.”

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