Current Event- January 7

President Obama (source: huffingtonpost.com)

          The U.S. Bill of Rights states that a person cannot be held responsible for a crime without proof, that everyone has the right to a court trial, and that you are innocent until proven guilty. America, being the free country that it is, holds these laws among others as its most basic, or at least it used to. Just on New Years Eve, President Obama signed the 2012 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) into law, which, among other things, allows the military to imprison any American citizen without  trial or attorney upon suspecting them to be involved in terrorist acts. For much of the American public, this was quite frightening.
           Since 9/11, Americans have lived in fear of terrorism. Airport security is nearly impossible to get through, people are always on the lookout for suspicious activity, and racism against people of middle eastern backgrounds has elevated to an entirely new level. American Law enforcement have an awful reputation for racism, so it is easy to see how many could live in fear of being imprisoned for something they never took part in.
           The NDAA was created to help fight the war against terror, but it is actually causing terror itself. The Law stated that someone could be imprisoned for simply looking suspicious, which would strike a bit of fear in everyone. This doesn't just affect middle eastern people; it affects everyone. Anyone could be held in a cell for the rest of their lives, and we would never know. How is that fair to anyone?

Current Event- January 1

         The Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) act was first introduced to the Senate on August 1, 2001 and most recently reintroduced on May 11, 2001 to help minors who were brought to America at a young age. If these minors graduate from an American High-School, they would be offered residency until they graduate college or serve in the military, and then would be eligible to obtain permanent residency. For illegal aliens, the prospect of gaining citizenship was lifesaving to them, and since adequate numbers of people in American communities are illegal immigrants, the DREAM act would help thousands create futures.

Protesters hold signs as presidential candidate Mitt Romney
leaves campaign stop in New Hampshire.
(source: Yahoo News.)

         Just this Saturday, Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney stated that he would veto the dream act, the pledge that claimed the hearts of Americans that he is trying to win over. As he told a young woman who asked him if he would deny the proposal whom he met at a restaurant: "For those that come here illegally, the idea of giving them in-state tuition credits or other special benefits, I find to be contrary to the idea of a nation of laws." He also states that he wants to crack down on illegal immigration to protect legal immigration. 
          As a country that says it supports peoples ambitions, and that is made from people from all walks of life, how would we respond as a whole to Romney securing the border with a fence and placing enough border patrol around it to form an army? As Romney tries to win the hearts and minds of the American people, how will this major detail affect his ability to run for president?
           
  

                                                                                                                                  Sabrina T.

                                                                                                                                  December 28, 2010

                                                                                                                                  AP English 11

                                                                                                                                  Keeble

Mysterious and Romantic: Edgar Allan Poe

        Born on January 19, 1809 and living through October 7, 1849, Edgar Allan Poe lived in the era of the 

American Romantic Movement and was considered a Transcendentalist. Poe's work was different than most 

literary artists of his time, though, as his poetry and short stories were part of the "Dark Romanticism" sub 

genre. Common Transcendentalist ideals stated that a man should follow his conscience and if he wanted to 

find truth and become wise, and only through self-reliance was this possible. Poe's work was based loosely 

off of these Transcendentalist ideas, with a darker theme. Dark Romantics believed that by following your 

conscience, you will continually find that life is a dark and mysterious place, and that its truths are hellish.

Dark romanticism often showed individuals failing at their attempts of improving life as opposed to mainstream 

transcendentalists who advocated social reform. Poe's dark short stories and poetry were direct reflections of 

his life, as he did not live a conventional one.         

           Poe was born Edgar Poe to a pair of traveling actors in Boston, who died within three years after his 

birth. Poe was split from his two siblings and taken in by John Allen, a wealthy tobacco merchant, and his 

wife, who raised him a businessman. Poe had little interest in the tobacco business, though, which was made 

obvious by the many poetic verses found written on the backs of his Step Father's ledger sheets. By age 

thirteen, he had compiled enough poetry to publish a book, although he was not allowed. 

    

          In 1826, Poe left his Step Parents to attend the University of Virginia, where he excelled in his classes 

while gathering a considerable amount of debt. Allen had sent him away with too little money, and Poe was 

forced to take up gambling to try to raise the money to pay his tuition, but he failed. Desperate, he burned his 

furniture to keep warm. Miserable and humiliated, Poe returned to the home of his Step Parents for a short 

period, before storming out in a depressed rage to begin his quest to become a great poet. He published his 

first book Tamerlane, and then enlisted in the United States Army before his Step mother contracted 

tuberculosis and died. She had already been buried when he returned home to see her for the final time. 

  

           Poe enlisted into military school, got thrown out, and published a few short stories before he settled 

down and began writing for a magazine, The Messenger, and making it wildly popular. He soon moved to 

New York with his new wife, his cousin Virginia, where he wrote for a couple of different magazines and 

wrote a few more short stories, barely making enough money to survive. In 1842, the same disease that took 

his mother, brother, and foster mother, claimed his wife as well. Poe published a final book, The Raven, 

making him vastly popular, before he died a mere two years after the death of his wife. Days after his death, 

Rufus Griswold wrote a beastly obituary of Poe that he hoped would cause the public to dismiss him, but the 

distorted images of him actually drove the sales of his books higher than they had ever been.

          It is easy to see that Poe's writing was directly influenced by his life. Although he was not a great fan of 

transcendentalist ideas- he thought that they were much to bright to portray the real world- he did incorporate 

John Locke's idea of Empiricism- the idea that knowledge was gained through the senses and through 

experiences- and Transcendentalist ideas into his stories and poetry. Romantics had fascinations with death, 

love and incest, and Poe took these attractions to an entirely new level with his style of writing. In fact, Poe 

was considered a transcendentalist because his style was so unique at the time. Nobody had ever seen such a 

dark and mysterious type of literature, and many found his tales of despair mystifying. 

           Poe's short stories and poems have left a dark reminder in our minds, one that tells us that even though 

the sun is shining, cold truths still lay underneath the ground. His tales of hopelessness have made him a 

name we will not forget, simply because his style is so unique. "In visions of the dark night I have dreamed of 

joy departed- But a waking dream of life and light hath left me broken-hearted." (from A Dream) His poetry 

causes us to think deeper about life and ask, What kind of world do I live in?

      

      

                                                                    Works Cited:

"Who Is Edgar Allan Poe?" poemeuseum.org. Poe Museum. n.d. Web. December 28, 2011.

"Dark Romanticism." en.wikipedia.org. Wikipedia. n.d. Web. December 28, 2011.

"Edgar Allan Poe." en.wikipedia.org. Wikipedia. n.d. Web. December 28, 2011.

"Edgar Allan Poe -poems-" poemhunter.com. PoemHunter.Com- The World's Poetry Archive. 2004. Web.

December 28, 2011.

"Transcendentalism." en.wikipedia.org. Wikipedia. n.d. Web. December 28, 2011.

Scharf, Douglas. "Edgar Allan Poe: Biographical Contexts For 'The Fall of the House of Usher.'" American Literature Research and Analysis Web Site. Edgar Allan Poe "The Fall of the House of Usher. Dr. Jim Wohlpart. April 2000. Web. December 29, 2011. itech.fgcu.edu. 

Vermillion, Kerry and McCumber, Quinn. "Beyond Empiricism and Transcendentalism: Historical Contexts for "The Fall of the House of Usher."American Literature Research and Analysis Web Site. Edgar Allan Poe "The Fall of the House of Usher. Dr. Jim Wohlpart. April 2000. Web. December 29, 2011. itech.fgcu.edu. 

Current Event- December 24

Demonstrators in Moscow. Source: Yahoo News

   Russia's current Prime Minister of twelve years, Vladimir Putin, was reelected on December fourth, causing an uproar in Moscow's streets all month long. Protesters continue to call for the election to be rerun on major suspicions that the elections were rigged. It makes sense; most of Russia's citizens want his domination to be over, so why would they reelect him? This Saturday, A demonstration of about 120,000 protesters rallied against Putin's rule, yelling things like, "New elections, new elections!" and, "Russia without Putin!". The protesters believe that the huge turnout will urge the people to continue attending the demonstrations and eventually edge Putin from his seat, or force the Government to hold new elections. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister seems intent on riding out the protests.
    The protesters got their hopes up when the Kremlin's human rights council stated that new elections should be held. Nobody is sure if they will be listened to.
    The protesters say that they are going to keep trying to push Putin out of his seat of power, and keep him from returning to presidency in March. They will not give up, because they know their rights, and they are not afraid anymore.
    These demonstrations will likely continue until the protesters succeed with their purpose, just as protests will continue around the world for all reasons.