TV commercial

The script:
This is how wars are fought now: by children, traumatized, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s. Children have become the soldiers of choice. In the more than fifty conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated that there are some 300,000 child soldiers. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them.
What does war look like through the eyes of a child soldier? How does one become a killer? How does one stop? Journalists have profiled Child soldiers, and novelists have struggled to imagine their lives. But it is rare to find a first-person account from someone who endured this hell and survived.
In A LONG WAY GONE: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier, Beah, now twenty-six years old, tells a powerfully gripping story: At the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, the government army had picked him up, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts. At sixteen, he was removed from fighting by UNICEF, and through the help of the staff at his rehabilitation center, he learned how to forgive himself, to regain his humanity, and, finally, to heal.
This is an extraordinary and thrilling account, told with real literary force and heartbreaking honesty.

In the commercial, I would make it really simple with just one person explaining how great the book is. Also, I would put some pictures in of little kids fighting in Africa just to show the reality of the book. I think a lot of people would be attracted to this just to see what really happens out there. After the commercial I would hope a lot more people would want to read the book. Also I would have quotes from reviews too:


What Beah saw and did during [the war] has haunted him ever since, and if you read his stunning and unflinching memoir, you'll be haunted, too . . . It would have been enough if Ishmael Beah had merely survived the horrors described in A Long Way Gone. That he has written this unforgettable firsthand account of his odyssey is harder still to grasp. Those seeking to understand the human consequences of war, its brutal and brutalizing costs, would be wise to reflect on Ishmael Beah's story.
— Philadelphia Enquirer

In place of a text that has every right to be a diatribe against Sierra Leone, globalization or even himself, Beah has produced a book of such self-effacing humanity that refugees, political fronts and even death squads resolve themselves back into the faces of mothers, fathers and siblings. "A Long Way Gone" transports us into the lives of thousands of children whose lives have been altered by war, and it does so with a genuine and disarmingly emotional force.
— Minneapolis Star Tribune

What I learned during High school on PhotoPeach

why the author wrote the book

The author primarily wrote this story to explain the harm that is going on with these little kids.

There may be as many as 300,000 child soldiers, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s, in more than fifty conflicts around the world. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them. He is one of the first to tell his story in his own words.

In A LONG WAY GONE, Beah, now twenty-six years old, tells a riveting story. At the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he’d been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts. Eventually released by the army and sent to a UNICEF rehabilitation center, he struggled to regain his humanity and to reenter the world of civilians, who viewed him with fear and suspicion.

During a February 14, 2007 appearance on The Daily Show, Beah said that he believed that returning to civilized society was more difficult than the act of becoming a child soldier, saying that dehumanizing children is a relatively easy task. Rescued in 1996 by a coalition of UNICEF and NGOs, he found the transition difficult. He and his fellow child soldiers fought frequently. He credits one volunteer, Nurse Esther, with having the patience and compassion required to bring him through the difficult period. Another reason why he wrote this story is to release his anger through writing. Also I think the author had lot to tell about this conflict going on that many people did not even know about. People need to know about these kinds of things, and I think that is another reason why he wanted to write it.

This is also a very amazing story that can be very attractive when you hear about it.

Aspect of Society

The aspect of society this book represents is the poverty in our country. I think this because the poverty in our country has nothing, and is treated pretty bad. In the book, these little kids in Africa are treated like nothing, and get thrown out in warfare with having the feeling that they are going to die. In our country, nothing goes on like this but you can make a good comparison about the poor in this country. They are very malnourished and without food they will eventually die. The little boys in this book may know how to fight, but they are no match to strong grown men..

Taking a character to lunch

The character I would take out to lunch is Alhaji. I would take him to lunch because he is a little kid that needs to find his childhood. Every kid in this world needs to have some sort of childhood. We would go to some place original with American food, and somewhere to walk around or play on the swings. I would take him here during the day because all kids have done this sort of thing during their young years. I would just want Alhaji to experience something like this, to think he can be a regular normal kid. We would also just have hamburgers and soda just to keep it original. I always like to help out other people and I feel by doing this kind of thing, it would make this little boy really happy inside.

Main Character

My main characters name is Ishmael Beah. He is important to the story because he narrates it and the story is told through him. This character is very worth having the story told because he is a very interesting kid that you can learn a lot from. It is very rare to find a kid that has gone through as much as him. I am very interested to what happens to him at the end of the story.

If the book were a movie

If my book was a movie, It would probably look similar to the Slumdog Millionaire. It would look like this because my book is based off in Africa and in a run down area like in Slumdog Millionaire. I am not sure what all the characters would be because I have not read the whole book yet.

Book title

A Long Way Gone

By: Ishmael Beah.

I picked this book, mainly because my mom gave it to me and she said it would be good for me to read it. Looking into though, it really does seem pretty interesting with these little African Kids participating in war far beyond their knowledge. I am looking forward to seeing what this book has to offer, and seeing how this kid uses his bravery to fight the war amongst himself and country. This is a rare story because it is told from him himself. Which makes all the information very real and probably hard to take at some points. We will see how the story plays out!

SRP

The SRP was a good paper overall. The things that I did well were being able to write good lengthy sections. Some of my research was pretty well thought out. Some things I did bad was paraphrasing and quotes. I did not even that out enough. Also editing my paper at the end. What I would like to do over is to save my sites at the beginning and being able to relate to my thesis more.

I would recommend to the next senior class to just follow the deadlines. That is the main thing, but also to really research about your author and book.

Snipers

For most of us, the word "sniper" evokes some unsettling imagery -- a lone gunman, undetectable, on the hunt. And while military snipers are indeed elite shooters who hide, line up a target in their sights and pull the trigger, there is a lot more to it than that. When a sniper takes a shot, there are countless variables to consider before squeezing the trigger --- wind speed, wind direction, range, target movement, mirage, light source, temperature, barometric pressure, and that's just the beginning. The work that goes into getting a good position to take a shot is immense. That's why snipers always work in pairs. Surprised? Most people are. These highly skilled marksmen are often perceived as lone assassins racking up "confirmed kills." In reality, true snipers work for the military and law enforcement agencies and are far more concerned with the number of lives they save than with the ones they take. Because of the secretive and stealthy nature of the work, not too many people know what's really involved in being a sniper. A sniper is a highly trained soldier who specializes in shooting targets with modified rifles from incredibly long distances. They're also adept in stealth, camouflage, infiltration, and observation techniques. Military snipers are used in a variety of missions on the battlefield, and the sniper's primary mission has nothing to do with pulling a trigger. The main battlefield role of the sniper is reconnaissance. Because snipers are masters of stealth, they are perfectly suited to sneak behind enemy lines to provide command with information about the enemy's size, strength and location.

Coach P.

Bulldog lacrosse. That is where it all started for me.

During 3rd grade, I was introduced to a new sport that I have never played before. Something new and something that looked interesting. A mix of all different kind of sports, and since I was semi decent at sports, I figured I should try it out. It was a very tough sport to get used to and be good at. Sometimes it is frustrating because you want to be good, but you have to practice a lot in order to do so. Coach Peterson was definitely the right person to coach me. Even though he is tough minded, he always was good at teaching the sport. I remember he would use to always be yelling, but in positive ways, and made lacrosse fun. When I first started everybody gets nicknames created by Coach P. Mine was Uttski, and still today Coach Peterson calls me that with the rest of my friends too. Also to make practices more fun, he would make us all jump in the big rain puddles if it had rained that day. That was a good start to the practice. Sometimes I remember I was scared of Coach Peterson because of all his yelling, but in the end I think it made me tougher as a younger kid. Coach Peterson has definitely been a great mentor for my lacrosse career. He was the one that introduced me into the college lacrosse recruiting process. I remember that night when we sat down at the dinner table and laid at all my options and how to get best recruited. I am very thankful to have had him as my lacrosse coach, but am also thankful to have him as a good friend for the rest of my life.

Poetry Project

Song on PhotoPeach

Skiing

Every year my family goes out to either Colorado or Utah. This has been a tradition for a while and trips that have made me be the skier I am today. Colorado has very beautiful scenery and makes skiing out there even better. As a young kid I was not a great skier, but once I went out west to ski, my uncle and dad could teach me better and give me the technique I have today. I remember I used to be really scared to go down some of the steep hills in Colorado, but now I am so used to it that I can just fly down the hill. When you feel like you’re in a rhythm when you ski, you feel like you can go down anything. I especially love going in the back country where no one goes. The powder is so deep and smooth and you feel like it is just you and the mountain. Also, you can make your own trail when you are out there. Then you can experience new things each time.

This weekend my family will be going out to Colorado to ski Keystone, Breckinridge, and Vail. We will also meet up with my dad’s brother and his kids and grandkids. I am very excited to go out there. The towns are just very unique and nothing like any place in Cincinnati. I wish I could just stay out there the whole winter and ski every day. Maybe someday that will happen!

Super Bowl Sunday

The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League (NFL), the highest level of professional football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather than the year in which it is held. For example, Super Bowl I was played on January 15, 1967, following the regular season played in 1966, while Super Bowl XLV will be played on February 6, 2011, to determine the champion of the 2010 regular season. The game was created as part of a merger agreement between the NFL and its then-rival league, the American Football League (AFL). It was agreed that the two leagues' champion teams would play in an AFL–NFL World Championship Game until the merger was to officially begin in 1970. After the merger, each league was redesignated as a "conference", and the game was then played between the conference champions. The day on which the Super Bowl is played is now considered a de facto American national holiday, called "Super Bowl Sunday". It is the second-largest day for U.S. food consumption, after Thanksgiving Day. In most years, the Super Bowl is the most-watched American television broadcast; Super Bowl XLIV, played on February 7, 2010 between the New Orleans Saints and the Indianapolis Colts, became the most-watched American television program in history, drawing an average audience of 106.5 million viewers and taking over the spot held for twenty-seven years by the final episode of M*A*S*H. The Super Bowl is among the most watched sporting events in the world, primarily due to mostly North American audiences, and is second to soccer's UEFA Champions League final as the most watched annual sporting event worldwide.

heart

In times of need, people come together with open hearts to care for one another. Certain life events stir emotions which enable people to drop whatever they’re occupied with in order to bring time back to order. This is an act of kindness and courage in a human being. Recently in our neighborhood, a loved one was killed. As soon as the scene occurred, arms were reached out to help this family. They experience a kind of pain that many people across the world feel by losing someone so close. The Mariemont community came full on with an act of kindness by holding a loving memorial for this woman and her family. All took the time to stop whatever was going on in their lives to secure love back into this household. As time passes, it is hopeful that this family will be able to go back to their regular daily routines and be supported by everyone in the community.

                Kindness and courage are two attributes that go hand in hand with helping those in need. After helping with these retreats with the kids I could tell that they have learned a lot. They really gave their heart back to the people they forgave. It was great to see this in these little kids. You may not see love everyday which is kind of sad, but when you have days like these, seeing the love makes you fell so much happier. Hopefully in today’s society people will find their hearts in themselves and give people more love around them.

The Social Network

Every age has its visionaries who leave, in the wake of their genius, a changed world--but rarely without a battle over exactly what happened and who was there at the moment of creation. "The Social Network" explores the moment at which Facebook was invented--through the warring perspectives of the super-smart young men who each claimed to be there at its inception. The movie moves from the halls of Harvard to the cubicles of Palo Alto to capture the heady early days of a culture-changing phenomenon in the making--and the way it both pulled a group of young revolutionaries together and then split them apart. In the midst of the chaos are Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg), the brilliant Harvard student who conceived a Web site; Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield), once Zuckerberg's close friend, who provided the seed money for the fledgling company; Napster founder Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake), who brought Facebook to Silicon Valley's venture capitalists; and the Winklevoss twins (Armie Hammer and Josh Pence), the Harvard classmates who asserted that Zuckerberg stole their idea and then sued him for ownership of it. Each has his own narrative, his own version of the Facebook story in this multi-level portrait of 21st Century success--both the youthful fantasy of it and its finite realities as well.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-12145381

"Dont Ask, Dont Tell"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20101222/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_gays_in_military

Equality In the United States is what people have wanted for a very long time. There has been many flaws in having equality, like having the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. Gays have been discriminated in the military to a point where some have been kicked out and lost honors based on their choice of path in life. This is certainly not the kind of equality that a lot of common Americans and I are looking for in a day-to-day society and military which protects our country. How has this kind of enforcement been allowed all these years? This has been questioned over the last century and our new government is finally enforcing some action to change the prejudices of past societies.

President Barack Obama officially signed a law to allow gays into the American military line to encourage the face that “all men and women are created equal.” He felt this law would strengthen the national security and encourage men and women to continue to risk lives to defend our country in times of need without discrimination. Zoe Dunning, once a naval officer who is not associated with the advocacy group Service Members Legal Defense Fund, felt there is a need to a greater trust in the military especially in a time where troops are needed during the two wars our country is in at the present time. Obama made sure that all Americans knew that “your country needs you, your country wants you, and we will be honored to welcome you into the ranks of the finest military the world has ever known.” Gay activists are now highly supporting the president and look for an honorable future. Even the high standing president seemed to be overwhelmed by this new bill and change in our 2011 government. To all new members enlisting in the army and giving time to prepare in this New Year, everyone will continue to be honored for their courage and love for their country for the years to come.