The End of the War to End All Wars

Today is Veterans Day, originally called Armistice Day. Ninety years ago today, at the 11th hour, of the 11th day, of the 11th month, World War I ended. At the time, it was referred to as "The Great War", or "The War to End All Wars". Little did people know that the terms of the treaty would build such resentment among the Germans that they would eventually allow Adolph Hitler to come to power.

Since we just finished reading "All Quiet on the Western Front", and have begun to watch the film of the same name, I thought you might enjoy some links to World War I information. Here's a story about two Bell County men who both claimed to be the first to carry an American flag into battle in WW I. http://www.tdtnews.com/story/2008/11/11/53599

Here's a story about how cigarettes became popular as a result of WW I: http://www.tdtnews.com/story/2008/11/10/53578

Remember kids, don't smoke.

One more story: the Bell County men who died for their country during WW I. http://www.tdtnews.com/story/2008/11/09/53563

Finally, let's hear it for Frank Buckles. He is the only known American WW I survivor. He was only 16 when he enlisted in 1917. During the war, Buckles drove ambulances and motorcyles for the 1st Fort Riley Casual Detachment section of the U.S Army. After the Armistice in 1918, Buckles escorted prisoners of war back to Germany. He went back into the Army during WW II. He was captured by the Japanese when they overran Manila, The Phillipines, and spent 3 years in a prisoner of war camp. Today, Mr. Buckles lives in Charles Town (not Charleston), West Virginia. He's 107 years old!

Here's a picture of Mr. Buckles from earlier this year, with Defense Secretary Bill Gates:

Time Flies!

Has it really been more than 2 weeks since I last posted to this blog?
Sorry about that, guys, but things have been hectic.
It's a good opportunity to note the passage of time.
We are wrapping up the second 6 weeks.
Folks, it's time to wake up and smell the coffee.
Many of you have a C or D average in my class, which is unacceptable in a Pre-AP/IB course.
It's not too late to decide to turn things around.
I do not exaggerate when I tell you that I have seniors every year who tell me that they miss the Top 10 percent because of a low grade they made when they were freshmen or sophomores.
This isn't middle school--it counts. Every day you decide not to read, or you decide not to study, is another nail in your coffin. You are narrowing your choices, and you will regret it later. Imagine if you can't get into a good school, or if you can't get scholarships, because of your low GPA! By doing poorly in school now, you are literally costing your future self money that you will have to repay in the form of student loans. This is money that you won't be able to spend on things you want to buy.
Choices will be narrowed later because of choices you're making now.
Is what you're doing instead of studying really worth that much?
Or...what if you're not able to get into college at all because of a lack of academic performance?
The College Board says the median high school graduate age 25 and older earns $26,300, while the median college graduate age 25 and older earns $42,200. That college graduate earns an extra $15,500, or 59 percent per year.
Which salary would you prefer?

Gouge, Rasp, Adze, Hammer

Here are the pictures of the tools from today's poems.

here is a gouge:

Now, here is a rasp:

Next, we have an adze:

It's not illegal if you get away with it!

After searching far and wide for the answer, I finally have learned why roughing the kicker was not called on the Cardinals on the last play of the game vs. the Cowboys Sunday. If the punt is actually blocked, it's OK for the person who blocks it to make contact with the kicker. Otherwise, it's a penalty.
Do I feel better?
No I do not.

Roughing the Kicker?

Normally, I don't blog about sports, but I have to vent this somewhere.

If you watched the Cowboys debacle Sunday, you may have been scratching your head at the last play. A Cardinals player very clearly ran into the Cowboys kicker as his leg was in the act of kicking. I have seen roughing calls for far less contact than that. That should have been a 15 yard penalty against the Cardinals and an automatic first down for the Cowboys.

Speaking of football, last week marked the 92nd anniversary of the most lopsided beating ever administered in college football. Georgia Tech beat Cumberland College 222-0 on October 7, 1916. You can read about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1916_Cumberland_vs._Georgia_Tech_football_game

Cumberland has apparently gotten over it. They have a web page devoted to what they call, "The Game of the Century". From that page, here is the only known picture taken during the game.

This gives us an excellent opportunity to discuss Wikipedia. Some educators absolutely hate it, but I take a more moderate approach. DO NOT USE WIKIPEDIA AS A PRIMARY SOURCE FOR ANY PAPER YOU ARE TURNING IN FOR CREDIT. Was that clear enough? I use Wikipedia as a starting place. I use it to get facts about something I already know but need to confirm, or as a source for RELIABLE sources through the references section at the bottom of each page. I know that you have grown up with the 'net, but not all web pages are created equally. The THS librarians have an excellent list of databases to which the school subscribes that are available to you at no cost. See your librarian for more details. They'll help you read more about it.

Happy Columbus Day!

I hope you're all enjoying your 3-day weekend.
Here's a look ahead to this week.
Tuesday - discussion over Chapters 20-21.
Wednesday - Reading diagnostic test in computer lab.
Thursday - EXAM over Bless Me Ultima
Friday - Short stories.
See you Tuesday!

2nd 6 Weeks Begins

I took a week off from blogging to see if you missed it. So far, no comments. If any of you are actually reading this, please let me know.
Here's a link to today's poem: http://www.loc.gov/poetry/180/029.html
Here's today's quote:
"The most successful people are those who are good at plan B." - James Yorke
READ!