On ‘Nuremberg’ the Movie

‘Nuremberg’ examines and presents the importance and role of the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials in terms of Superior Might versus Superior Reality. In the Allied perception of ‘Superior Reality’ Allied officials portray the trial as creating a change in the perception of ‘criminal acts’ committed during war, forcing Nazi leaders to face trial and be held responsible.
In the German or Nazi perception of the trials the Nuremberg War Crimes Trials is simply a ‘trial by victors’ and a mockery. The judges are by no means impartial and are viewed by former Nazi leaders as vengeful victors seeking retribution.
The prosecution emphasizes the human cost of acts committed by Nazi leaders by exhibiting the horrors of war and the atrocities committed in Jewish concentration camps whereas Goering and other Nazi leaders in their defense emphasize their roles as part of the machinery of Nazi Government during war. In the prosecution of Goering, in the movie Goering is portrayed as essentially pleading negligence and defending the laws of the Nazi government. The prosecution’s emphasis on the atrocities committed shows the actions of the Nazi government as the sole cause of guilt ,however, the actions and the principles of the Nazi government were inherently flawed. The removal of ‘democratic systems’ of government and the beliefs espoused by Hitler in Mein Kempf were important and in many ways at the root of the action of Nazi government.
Ultimately on the basis of the trial and espoused ‘democratic principles’ the Nazi leaders could be found ‘guilty’ of war crimes ,however this declaration would not only create an immediate contradiction and friction in Allied treatment of and relationships with Russia ,but would also create inherent problems in the U.S.’s role in war in that U.S. or Allied forces war atrocities might go unprosecuted.
The legacy of the Nuremberg Trials is complex because of the contradictions and hypocrisies it immediately created, the bias of the court, the inherent problem of defining war crimes and the difficulty of fairly administering justice in crimes committed during war. However, the trials as presented in ‘Nuremberg’ the movie nevertheless show the importance of principle and action in government, placing the actions of government as inherently greater and more significant in the judgment of that government and its leaders. As a viewer and student, one is called to recognize the principles of government as at the root of the functioning of government and as centrally important in the actions of government.

Self Reflection: AP European History

As a student, this AP level European History has helped me identify my own strengths and weaknesses and gain a better general understanding of European History. I have worked hard to keep up with notes and extracurricular assignments. I personally made a concerted effort to complete class projects to the best of my ability and focused on honing my writing skills.
Things I could do that would help me to be more successful in class include consistently using the History of Western Society companion study guide to prepare for tests, focusing more closely on timelines and dates, utilizing the Barron AP Prep book to review material throughout the entire school year, keeping a consistent study schedule, and practicing speaking prior to presentations in class.
Some things that helped me to succeed in my American U.S.History class were the general schedule of covering roughly between 1 and 2 chapters per week, schedules showing test dates, in-class tests including DBQs and FRQs as part of the test material for each student, smaller class size, and in class review of chapter materials.
Things that helped me to succeed in AP European History include typing notes, covering chapter information in class in a lecture format, and the use of maps and other visual aids to illustrate changing European borders or the movement of trade. I enjoyed the online blog feature of the course and the emphasis on debate and discussion. I would be interested to try using an online wiki to compile information similar to the way the class used PowerPoint’s to cover different topics within a chapter and also to have more opportunities for formal debate in class. At times the blog component of the chapter could be overwhelming, however, overall I enjoyed this feature of the class and would have liked to be able to view other people’s work and blogs to post comments. Obstacles to succeeding in this course include, larger class size, class interruptions (PSSAs), sometimes an unclear schedule of test dates, and a lack of clarity in the pace and amount of work to be covered week by week. Something I struggle with is synthesizing dates with covering historical material. Oftentimes I can readily understand the general ideas and significance of a time period ,but have trouble recalling dates and general time periods something that using timelines and reviewing chapter material using practice tests from the A History of Western Society Study Guide seems to help me with.
In conclusion, I enjoyed AP European History and found the course topics interesting and at times compelling. This course has helped lay the foundation for me to feel confident going into a college level European History Course and with a more dedicated study schedule, personal goal and focus this course would allow me to test out of European History. However, it has really provided me with general information on European History that will help me to succeed at the college level and also has helped prepare for the sheer amount of reading and writing required in upper level Humanities. At times the extracurricular work seemed overwhelming and the textbook not nearly as comprehensive as the AP U.S. History book ,but overall I enjoyed the course and find the information presented valuable to me in my studies and my understanding of the world from a historical context and perspective. Thank you for your time and effort to make this course comprehensive and interesting. I appreciate your effort to incorporate blogs and online components into class curriculum and to provide me with resources like the AP Barrons Review Book. All these things and many more elements of the class helped me succeed as a student and kept me interested in the class. Thank you again for all your efforts.

A Reaction: The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

President Truman, 1945,
“I have hundreds of thousands who are anxious for the success of Zionism: I do not have hundreds of thousands of Arabs among my constituents”(US History,1)

U.S. involvement in the Arab-Israeli conflict seems to be primarily motivated by U.S. trade and oil interests in the Middle East rather than for humanitarian reasons. The U.S. appears to be primarily motivated to resolve conflict in Israel and Palestine simply as a means to control the perception and feeling towards the U.S. in the Middle East. The U.S.’s involvement in Israel-Palestine is a function of foreign policy rather than a sincere humanitarian effort to end violence. The U.S. wields considerable control over the UN and sway in the world. U.S. foreign policy in regards to other ‘humanitarian crisis’ like Rwanda and Darfur suggest that the U.S.’s foreign policy is motivated first and foremost by U.S. trade interests rather than by a desire to provide humanitarian aid. The creation of Israel as a state for the Jews in 1948 was a post WWII decision made by Britain and the U.S. This makes the U.S. and Britain directly responsible for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and leaves the U.S. not as an impartial third party in U.S. backed peace negotiations ,but rather as one that is bias and has vested interests in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. If the U.S. found new sources of energy perhaps a discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would be less prevalent in U.S. politics

Art of the 20th Century: Andy Warhol (1960s)

Andy Warhol’s Pop Art is exactly that and is an important offshoot of popular culture ,in his own way, Warhol is a cult legend for his work and his zany character. His screen prints use color to create high contrast. Using high contrast Warhol created images that literally pop and his artwork was and is ‘hot’ in more ways than one. Warhol was an icon of the 20th century whether he was designing a soup can label or depicting of Mao Tse Tung. Warhol’s work is iconographic. Today, in the 21st century, his art is still a ‘hot’ item and a focal point of pop culture. (Chap.31-Art)

Images & Thought- Surrealism and the Modern Thinker

Salvador Dali’s surrealist works mark significant changes in thought as well as in visual concepts and perception. In many ways changes in visual perception can either lead to or indicate changes in thought. Dali’s use of optical illusions and purposefully abstract principles create paintings with an intellectual interest in their ability to suggest concepts or ideas.
Galatea of Spheres, painted by Dali in 1952 and was surprisingly ahead of its time in its use of repeated overlapping shapes to create form and shape to display one image. Although this could be said of a mosaic, Dali’s work stands out because in many ways it appears and draws on modern ideas of computer graphics and a more advanced understanding of shape and form in sketching and painting as a visual technique. In this way Dali captivates his viewer visually while at the same time playing with new, innovative ideas that overcome the pure photographic depictions of realism, or the complete spontaneity of free form art work that can often leave something to be desired in terms of realistic depiction of human form or the natural environment. In conclusion, thought + realistic depiction = Dali and Surrealism.(Chap. 31 Art)

From Reflections: Photographs from the Moscow Times (1992-2002): Storming of the White House

This photograph depicts Russian soldiers attacking the Russian ‘White House’ on the orders of then President Boris Yeltsin. The Russian parliament meeting there in 1993 was strongly opposed to President Yeltsin’s government and policies. Just a year earlier Yeltsin had began his ‘Shock Therapy’ program to rapidly privatize Russia and in the year this photograph was taken a new Russian constitution would be passed giving along with a referendum calling for early elections both measures that would give Yeltsin unprecedented control over the Russian government. The use of force against the Russian Parliament symbolizes Yeltsin’s ‘blowing away of opposition.’ The storming of parliament shows Yeltsin’s victory in the struggle between parliament and the presidency over who would take precedence and greater control in the new Russian constitution and government.
President Putin, Yeltsin’s hand-picked successor, led a government perceived by Western Powers as anti-democratic and bordering on authoritarianism. Putin, under the Constitution supported by Yeltsin, had significant control over parliament and opposition parties in government and was a former member of the KGB. Today, President Dimitry Medvedev retains that power under the Russian Constitution and is allied with Putin, the current prime minister of Russia. In 2008, an amendment to the Russian Constitution lengthened the presidential term from four to six years and lengthened the congressional term from four to five years. Opposition parties in Russia were unable to prevent the signing of the amendment or to gain the year long discussion of the amendment that they felt was required by law. Russian Opposition Parties significantly sighted the lack of a constitutional court like the U.S. Supreme Court as one obstacle to fairly abiding by the laws of government and further allowing the Russian President power over the Russian parliament and government. (Chap. 31 Art)

Sources:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/country_profiles/1113655.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6584481.stm
http://www.answers.com/topic/constitution-of-1993
http://www.answers.com/topic/referendum-of-april-1993
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/30/AR2008123000839.html
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/reflections/reflect-exhibit.html

On Patrick Buchanan’s ‘America Held Captive to Utopian Ideology’

A stronger environmental focus and limitations on oil well drilling and nuclear power are not an impediment to economic progress ,but rather a sign of progress. The U.S. desperately needs to transitions to alternative energy sources to wean the country off of fossil fuels and provide sources of power that neither place the U.S. at the mercy of Middle Eastern foreign policy or pollute the environment in which people live. It is important to note that China’s Three Gorges Dam “the largest power source on earth” produces energy using hydroelectric power, a renewable resource that creates minimal amounts of waste and Carbon Dioxide Gas emissions.
Buchannan’s claims that the U.S. “cannot defend her borders are simply unfounded. Antiterrorism measures have made U.S. borders even more tightly controlled and have caused tension between the U.S. and people from other nations because of that strict, overbearing control. If Mr. Buchanan is alluding to ‘illegal’ Mexican immigration, then perhaps he should touch on poor immigration laws and an unwillingness of many American to accept the Mexican immigrants working and living inside the U.S. as contributing members of society who deserve to be recognized as such under the rule of law. While it is founded that the U.S.’ s ‘War on Terror’ has put the U.S. in a situation where it cannot decisively ‘win’ the war and has caused the U.S. to take on large debt, the invasion of Afghanistan was an act of retaliation in the aftermath of September 11 and the U.S. invasion of Iraq was motivated by U.S. oil interests. If Mr. Buchanan would like to criticize anything it should be the U.S.’s dependence on oil and Americans reluctance to quickly and progressively adopt alternative, renewable energy sources rather than to allow further oil and natural gas drilling.(Chap. 31- In-Class Response)