Holocaust Article

This article was interesting because I've personally never heard of Chambon before reading this. It talks about how a French teacher wants to bring back the "rescuers" since studying a holocaust child victim was to harsh.  The Chambon went against what the Nazis strived to do.  They fed, sheltered, clothed, made false passports and created an underground railroad to Switzerland to help them escape their own harsh reality.  The Chambon had nearly been forgotten because nobody talked about the good people who came out of the Holocaust.  It also makes a reference to Schindler's List because he too tried to save Jews but in real life Holocaust, the Nazis wouldn't help save Jews. They are really striving to get this story back into the curriculum because it is one that will soon be forgotten because it is already not talked about much.  Overall, it was an interesting article to read and it tied in with the movie Schindler's List because he too tried to help save Jews like the Chambon did. 

Did communism threaten America's internal security after World War II?

After World War II, the question if Communism was threatening America was tossed in the air. I don't think that it was harming our internal security but it was definitely an issue. Outside of the US, places like China were dealing with Communism taking over their country and we tried to stop it so it wouldn't affect us internally. As Fried called it, we were having a "nightmare in red." We had our first and fifth amendments suspended while we were investigated for Communists everywhere. Including places like Hollywood, labor unions, school and public libraries. To help look for this we had HUAC and Taft-Harley Act to help keep Communist out of the US. So it wasn't that it Communism didn't play a threat at all to America, just not to it's internal security, we had that under control. So we had to help other countries to keep us safe by using the Truman Doctrine and Marshall plan. Haynes and Kiehr argued that codes were used to send messages to the Soviet Union but that still didn't really in my opinion affect our internal security. Overall, I don't think that our internal security was threatened, we just needed to check things out to make sure we were safe from a Communist takeover and then continue to do things to keep us safe, but we were never really "threatened."

I would define threatened as at a risk or being in a situation where it is more likely for something to go bad then good so we weren't in a threatened position.

The Atomic Bombs: Were They Justified?

I agree with the one opinion that the bomb we dropped on Nagasaki was unjust because we already made out statement that the war was done.  The first bomb dropped in Hiroshima, that was just because it was are way saying we are done and you are defenseless; we needed to end this war on top and not at the bottom.  Some say that it wasn't fair that we dropped the bombs in an area that wasn't Anglo-American but I believe that it was fair.  They were the reason we entered the war after they attacked Pearl Harbor, so that's why its fair.  The only thing that makes me feel like both the bombs were unjustified was the fact that it killed so many more people on top of the people already lost during the war.  But I guess we just had to go out with a boom.

March 23,1917
French soldier
Berlin, 14:03

Dear Journal,

It’s getting pretty bad out here, we’re freezing and I’m stuck out here diggin’ trenches. We switched to sandbags because we saw that that’s what the British and German have been a using and it seems more helpful from keeping the trenches from cavin’ right on in and buildin’ over then those darn hurdles we French have been a using.

The darn rain and mud ain’t helpin’ much with my job either. I keep getting’ stuck and I’ve had to been pulled out a few times…speaking of being pulled out, one of my buddies I got sent o’er here with cuz we got the same birthday, he was found stuck in the mud with only his helmet and his eyebrows a showing. The darn ground sucked him right on under the worst thing I ever have saw.

I’m thinking things are going to settle down soon, the rains been a lightening up a little but the good Lord is still spittin’ at us every now and then.

Guess I best get back to trench diggin’ before it gets dark and we switch up the shifts, nice talking to you journal.

Pierre

Letter Home #2

July 17, 1916
Ypres, 16:32

Dearest Mother Mae,

Things are going alright over here, things just keeping wetter and muddier and I ain’t sure what to think of it anymore. We drag through mud all day which tires me out even more mamma I thought I was in good shape but haulin’ ‘round all this extra weight ain’t no fun. My feet are always hurtin’ and blisterin’ right on up. You’re just lucky you ain’t gotta wash all my muddy clothes…
I really miss bein’ home and havin’ those giant suppers every Sunday and family ain’t sounded all that bad. The mud is just awful mamma I just wanna come right on home and help you out again, a young boy don’t belong in this kind of mess. And mamma I lost my right foot. I was standing in those darn trenches way too long and well they are just went completely numb and turned all blue and stuff nothin’ real pretty. And then some disease sunk in gangrene or something like that I don’t remember what they darn old doctor guy said, I was too darn drunk.
I hope they just send me right on home soon, I’m not much help and I’m sorta afraid to just lay around all day. I’m a weak target anything could get me even those darn rats around here. I just don’t want to die mamma missing a foot is bad enough.
Don’t worry though momma I’m alright this happens all the time around here. It’s the rainiest time ever and everybody’s got this darn trench foot, I have to go sock picking off of dead bodies so others don’t have to get what I got.
Can’t wait to see your smiling face mamma and eat a good roast.
All my love,
Ernie, your sweet boy

Letter Home #1

January 20, 1917
17:37, Bulls Trench

My Dearest Mary,

I’m turning in for the night, it’s just getting colder and colder out here, I could go for a nice warm cup of your homemade apple cider right ‘bout now. I’ve never been stuck in anything quite this cold. So far I’m alright, no injuries or nothin’ but a few of my buddies aren’t doin’ so well. Ron he had to have his leg cut off from that darn frost bite, the worst sound I’ve ever heard a drunken man yellin’. I’m so thirsty, water is scarce cuz of the cold and all. One minute you got water and the next you got yourself a giant chunk of ice. You could never imagine anything quite this cold, even when that darn heater of ours went out this is way colder, but don’t worry I’m taken good care of myself.
Tomorrow we’re moving on to a new trench, Sergeant says its got heating but it’s gonna cost us. We might get sick cuz you can’t have no chimney and such so smoke will stay in but we’d all rather cough a little then freeze to death you know? Probably not but trust me it will be better. Extra clothes would be nice but we ain’t got enough fund to get everybody clothes so only the top guys get them, I guess I’ll have to work harder for them.
I don’t want you to worry ‘bout me I’m doin’ just fine. I’ll be home soon I hope once things warm up and settle on down. This is kinda pointless letter but I had to let you know I’m doing alright but I’ll right again real soon to you don’t you worry darlin’.

With best of love to my sweet darling wife,
Lloyd

Reaction Essay

Being a soldier during WWI would have been absolutely brutal. They had to put up with diseases, wounds and Mother Nature. Plus, they weren’t ever properly taken care of and supplied with enough things to help them prevent all of those things. I could never imagine anything like what they had to go through it is so appalling to me.

Having to deal with living in trenches that are dug below the ground and standing in muddy water anywhere from ankle to thigh high would be horrible. Some soldiers got trench feet and had to have there feet amputated and others got pneumonia. Plus, the mud and rain added an extra 34lbs to a person. That is lot for someone who is slaving away all day fighting and already carrying enough luggage. It’s amazing how they trucked through the mud during one of the rainiest time periods ever where only 18 days there weren’t rain and 11 of them below zero. That’s when frostbite starting kicking in leading to even more amputations. I couldn’t imagine just drinking some rum and chop there goes my leg; that would be the worst thing EVER!

I was disgusted at the fact that rats would sneak up on wounded soldiers and attack and eat their faces off because the soldiers couldn’t defend themselves because they couldn’t move. That was absolutely horrible. And then lice on top of that and having no way to cure it would not be ideal to me, it makes my head itch and my stomach turn just thinking about it.

Then when I read about how some countries came up with little gas bullets that made my head hurt. Suffocating from horrid air or not being able to catch my breath would be the worst way to die I think. But even worse then that would be shell-shock, completely going insane and being terrified of walking on the street and remembering ever little detail of war. I couldn’t deal with that and I have no idea how soldiers deal with it even today.

I can’t believe what it was like to be a soldier and makes me sick to even read about it. I’m not sure what I would do if I ever had to be put in any of those situations. They really had to battle there way through things to survive. I also couldn’t believe that 30% of people who were wounded and died and only less than 1% of people died of sickness. That is amazing that we had no medical attention for wounds and that people die after suffering so much pain. Honestly, I could never handle being a soldier.