May Madness - Montezuma I

Here's the link to my visual:

Montezuma I

MOTECUHZOMA ILHUICAMINA He was a wise warrior, statesman, anda noble leader.He was the ruler of the aztec triple Alliance!!BUt nevertheless, you should vote him! | Create Infographics

4/28 Homework

To what extent was WWI a global war?  Why did most Asians fight for the allies if they were pro-German?

World War I was a global war to the extent that Europeans had requested their colonies to join and assist them. Asian thought that the Great War was a European civil war yet they were involved and drawn in to fight. Many Asians had fought for the Allies due to personal reason for example, China hopes to checkmate Japan’s plans of aggression, and also that they were controlled by Allied Nations. At that moment, they were, before the ideas of democracy and independence, were under the mercy of their owners or "mother countries". Also, by aiding in success, it could lead to the colonies’ independence.

Map & Question

Map

When I was creating the map, certain questions popped in my head. For one thing, I did not know that Netherlands and the Dutch were the same. I also wondered how the land was split up. They were random plots of land which would go with one nation when the land in the territory was administered by a completely different nation. What made the leaders distribute their lands the way that it is? What happened to natives of those particular lands? How did the larger powers deal with the widespread population?

White Man's Burden Reading

Compare and contrast the sorts of adjectives Kipling uses to describe native peoples as opposed to Europeans; how does his very language usage convey his sense of white superiority?

Kipling describes native people very negatively versus his description of white men to establish that they(the Europeans) are superior to the natives. Kipling refers to the natives as "half-devil", and therefore not civilized. He even tries to say that the natives should let go of their tradition and adopt European tradition. Kipling believe that, if there was imperial rule in the Philippines the natives would not suffer anymore as the white men would "save them"(sounds great!; he also believed that imperialism was superior than the govt. of the natives). Kipling also notes that the way Europeans do things is the "right way" and that they are very ahead of the game; they are superior to the natives. Overall Kipling makes a not so valid point about how the Europeans are superior and the natives are not(and so on..and so forth...).

Political Cartoon - Japan

Historical Significance:

In the 19^th century, the Japanese society was in turmoil. The agricultural productivity was declining, crop failures, famine, harsh taxation, starvation; many sold their lands, left their homes, increasing debts which all lead to the oppositions against the Tokugawa bakufu. They, in turn, responded with conservative reform which provoked strong opposition. That was not the only issue the Tokugawa bakufu had to deal with, they also had foreign pressures. The Tokugawa bakufu faced the insistence on the establishment of diplomatic and commercial relations by foreign lands such as Great Britain, France and the United States. The United States sought ports for Pacific merchants and whaling fleets which could stop for fuel and provisions. The Tokugawa official had refused such request and stuck to their policy of excluding all Europeans (except the Dutch that controlled trade in Nagasaki) and American visitors to Japan. Although in 1853, that situation has been changed when Commodore Matthew C. Perry, with his trained guns, came to the bakufu capital Edo and demanded the shogun to open Japan to diplomatic and commercial relations and sign a treaty of friendship. Other followed soon after winning similar rights and Japan agreed to series of unequal treaties that opened Japanese ports to foreign commerce.

The Political Cartoon:

            This political depicts a scene where the Tokugawa have created this wall, keeping everyone away. They are a few foreigners that are trying to climb this wall and the man with American flags climbs the wall and is standing on it with a paper that says Treaty. The wall is a metaphor for the Japanese’s refusal to establish diplomatic and commercial relations. They are many who try to create these relations but the Tokugawa stick to their policy of excluding foreigners such as Europeans and Americans. The man who is holding the American flag is Commodore Matthew C. Perry who trained his guns and demanded for diplomatic and commercial relations and sign the treaty. The other men that are also climbing men are Europeans. As the illustration depicts, the other men are about to reach the top and are behind the American. Due to their treaty of friendship with the Japanese, the Americans help the Europeans to sign treaties with Tokugawa who had opened their ports for foreign commerce. 

Page 886 - Young Turks

How do the plans of the Young Turks privilege their own age cohort within the Ottoman Empire?

As statement 3 states, any Ottoman that is of age twenty can vote without having any property. This ensures that the young Turk, who does not have property at the age twenty, can vote. Statements such as 16 and 17 state that education is free to every citizen. Also, secondary and higher education will be public. This helps the young Turks to obtain a good education.

Briton's Anatomy of a Revolution

The steps of the revolution are:
The first stage:
       The first action were taken were distinct opposing groups were created and a small and slightly unorganized groups that represent the majority against the grievances. The government is forced to use force but it's late to do so and the power is incapable of ruling.
The second stage:
       There's a conflict between the moderate and extreme revolutionaries, and the radicals win as a result of their better organization. The following revolutionary government creates an era called the Terror, with harsh rules and violence.
The third stage:
       There's an ebb in zealousness and a Thermidorian Reaction occurs. With this reaction, life comes back to back to normal, and another ruler comes to power, bringing a revised version of the former governance.

Neil Ferguson: 6 Killer Apps of Prosperity

Ferguson poses the question as to how the westerners became dominant in the 'global scene', and answers it effectively. He brings up examples of historical figures, who also questioned this and attempted to answer this question such as Muteferrika, who said that is "because they have laws and rules invented by reason". This statement has a great weight to it, as it notes how European institutions (governments etc.) "embraced" the ideas of the people(which were common sense) and laws were made as such. Ferguson also makes it very clear, it was not geography or national character it was ideas and institutions that led to the west's dominance. A great modern example that Ferguson mentioned was the division of a country that has very similar culture but given different governments and that is why became totally different. He refers to the separation of North Korea(which had communism) and South Korea(which was a democratic/republic). North Korea, stagnated technologically and South Korea as a contrast is a much more advanced country, or more "dominant". Ferguson then says how the west diverged from the East, through his "6 killer apps". The first was competition. In Europe there was competition, between all corporations and various institutions versus China which was very monolithic. Then he mentions the scientific revolution; in Europe there was a grand revolution which was not seen anywhere else in the world. Then he mentions property rights; in North America where people actually owned land versus a country like Latin America where a select few owned land. Then he mentions modern medicine(the obvious one!); in Europe(west) because of this life expectancy nearly doubles versus the sorcery( & mercury 'dranks') in China.Then he mentions the consumer society, where people must buy stuff(West produced and sold a bunch of goods). Finally, he mentions the importance of work ethic; where people will work if there are institutions that provide incentive for work(such as the land grants) in the West. To end his talk, he mentions this idea of re-convergence where the East and West will be on the same level in terms of "world dominance". To answer one of his questions, is the west deleting their apps? Yes, as American are simply losing their work ethic(deleted app 6). Whereas, China for example is ahead in terms of math scores and patents(more innovation/technological inventions). To answer another one of his questions, can Africa get the sequence right? Before I answer this, I must say that my answer is based of a Fareed Zakaria segment. Africa is a unique country as they necessarily do not adhere to the usual sequence of events (they do not necessarily need to gain security then gain democracy). Africa has taken use of some of the apps, as it is one of the most promising places (some parts of the country) economically. Africa is developing a thriving, consumer society and they have a great work ethic which may led to Africa being the next superpower(in terms of wealth). Overall, this was a very interesting Ted talk, and points out the obvious which is that the west is not as dominant as it once was. It is intriguing to see how many other countries are catching up to the west, and it will be very interesting to see the affects of this on the "global scene" in the coming years.