paper

Dixon        MERCHANT MARINE

MERCHANT MARINE – Celtae

CHORUS: We're the Merchant Marine and we sail across the sea

As the U-Boats' torpedoes hunt for hulls that they can breach.

We will brave the rugged ocean. Blistering winds test our devotion,

But we'll keep steaming 'til our cargo's on the beach.

1. We arrived in Halifax with all we owned upon our backs,

For we knew a brave man's duty was to labour for the fight,

But it takes more than bravery to survive killers you can't see.

Those bastard wolf-packs hunt by day and strike by night.

2. We have barely any weapons; every day our lives are threatened,

And if we die, the Navy sends no pension to our wives.

Winter on the North Atlantic is hellish, cold, and frantic,

For the sea alone's a challenge to survive.

CHORUS

3. In the war of Hitler's visions, the Allies would get no provisions,

'Cause the war was his decision, sinking ships not built to fight.

The finest liners of our day are now painted battle-grey,

4. Now it's true we had protection, two destroyers in our section,

Three frigates, two corvettes to ship our fifty through the waves.

One destroyer's now debris, both corvettes lost under the sea,

And her sister ship's an underwater grave.

CHORUS

5. Now we mourn our fallen brothers, pray to God there'll be no others

Blown to bits by diving demons deep below,

For the carnage and the thunder that sucked those good boys under

Happens daily, and we've three more days to go.

MERCHANT MARINE – Celtae

I became a United States Merchant Marine in April of 2005 so I could go work on the Pride Of America, the first U.S. flagship built in 50 years for the cruise industry. To be on a U.S. flagged ship you had to be a United States Merchant Marine. For me to become United States Merchant Marine I had to go to a school in Piney Point, Maryland called The Seafarers Harry Lundeberg School of Seamanship (“SHLSS” or “School”) to get my preparation for the United States Merchant Marine. While I was learning the skills to survive on the unsympathetic and beautiful oceans of the world I also learned there is a lot more to the Merchant marines then just transport of merchandise from place to place or cruise ships. There was more to them then just a career at sea. I found out they have along and honorably and courageous history that most people do not know about. The more I looked in to the merchant marines the more I was surprise, with what they do and have done for the populace of the world. I am also astonished of how long they have been around in the world. That is when I comprehended that I actually knew very miniature about the merchant marines. Then I started looking for more information on merchant marines. I wanted to know how long they have been around and how important they were to the world.

I discover that without merchant marines what we know today would not be they help map the world. They have been around scents the first days of traded across the waters of this world. They were the people who traded merchandise and shipped others peoples merchandise to all parts of the world. In their movements across the waters they met knew community and got to know new cultures. Also, they help make these country’s greater The Greeks, Roman, and they did it by trade, which brought wealth and knowledge to the people. They transfer goods during peacetime and wartime to all parts of the world and in all parts of time in history.

Merchant marines are in every country today and move all the supplies that across any body of water and also people to one place or another. They work the rivers and our oceans. In ways merchant marines are the truckers of the water, but the water is more treacherous then the roadways. The ocean is a dangerous place and she can bring down any ship anytime she wants to. Sailor refer to ocean as women, because the exquisiteness of her and she is as dangerous as a women. She can be tranquil and sweat and glide you through the sea, or she can bring any man down on their knees and in gulf them so they never make it home. Just like women a sailor would say.  Women can bring the strongest man down or boost them up. That why they call the ocean a women and sailor love the ocean like women. She is the mistress to all married men who sail the seven seas. So even during peacetime they have to deal with extreme risk to make sure peoples merchandise gets where it needs to go. Beside the hazarders of the ocean they also have pirates to deal with and yes there are still pirates out there. People would think there are no pirates on the sea, but there are and seems like they’re always will be.  They still do it even with these risks in shipping during peacetime, but it is important for us with out them there would be no traded with other countries. If we did not have any trade, our economy would fail. That not even the most important thing the merchant marines do. The most critical time for the merchant marines is wartime and how they assistance us.

Wartimes are the hardest of all times for the community of the merchant marines. Beside the pirates, and the demanding living conditions on the ships, and how merciless the ocean can be. They have to deal with enemies out to sink them every minute of the day. Country during wartime tries to demolish the supply line of the nation they’re combating. Well the country supply lines are the merchant marines. They’re the ones that deliver the supplies to the troops and also are the troop carriers. That means they were the number one targets in every war. If you can take all the merchant marines ship down from the other side, then the other side could not get their supplies or troops to combat zone and you will be triumphant. People can look at world war one and two and see how the enemies of the United States targeted the merchant marines.

Throughout War World One America alone lost 197 ships and 629 United States Merchant Marine. (American Merchant Marine at War)  That not even are allies merchant marines that just ours. That is a lot of ships. “The Germanys had Unrestricted Submarine Warfare was biting - in February 1917, 470,000 tons of ships had been Ed Geer and Geer's Country sunk. By April it had risen to 837,000 tons.”(HistoryLearningSite.co.uk). Now during this time United States Merchant Marine were not a fraction of the U.S. military which meant they did not get any benefits from the military like the other braches of the arm forces did. Their widows did not receive benefits of any kind from the military. These men risk their lives against all probability to make sure our troops got where they needed to be, and received the supplies they required to keep us free. These men and their wife’s I believe deserve a gigantic thank you. Now you would think after loosing all those men and not getting recognize by United States and letting the entire widow struggle to survive with out assist.  You think they would not help out in the next war.

Well the next war came like it always does, and the merchant marines did assistance like they always have, and still at this point in time they still did not get recognize by United States. That means if they died or got wounded they were on their own. Just like the first world war, but the men of the United States Merchant Marine still came out and did their part in World War Two. To my amazement while they were doing their part in War World Two to keep us free, they lost a lot of United States Merchant Marine fact they lost more then any other group “Merchant Marine death rate was 1 in 26, the highest rate among the services in World War II” (Mike Francis). That is just ours not even are allies. To me that it dumbfounded they would not be giving the benefit. Just shocking! Why would they not give to them? No one really gave them a reason. They just kept saying no.

I find it shocking because they were under military law (Ed Geer and Geer's Country). That means anything they did wrong they could face a corp. marshal, but they still were not giving military benefits. The heartbreaking part is the men who were taken as P.O.W or even if their ships were sunk at sea their salaries stop at that point. Until they could get back to work on another United States Merchant Marine ship they were with out pay. Where other braches got paid as P.O.W and even if there ships were sunk they still got paid. Even with all that danger and with knowing all the facts that they had to face.  The fact that if they died there wife’s would not get anything and or if they became a P.O.W. the wife’s would not get any money. Then you have to wonder why these men kept going out to sea over and over to make sure the other branches of the arm forces got what they needed. It was because they were patriots. I think about going out to sea to help my country at time war and my country not helping my family or me after everything I would have done. To me that just not right. I would still do it but, I would still think it is wrong.

These men and women of World War Two braved the open oceans knowing the odds were against them. They knew they had very little protection and also some of the ships were not made for crossing the ocean. They knew there were wolf packs (German submarine groups) hunting them the minute they left port. They knew they might not return, but they wanted to-do there part in the war. Just like in song I put up top. Those are the dangers they had to deal with. They had face death every second of the day and have the courage to keep going, and they did throughout the war. I am thinking that they should have been giving the benefits like the other branches of the Arm force. I think there is no question on how importation they were to the war effort.

President Roosevelt agrees and wanted more to be done for the Merchant Maries. One of his address to Congress he said this. “Third, in the event of a war in which the United States itself might be engaged. American flagships are obviously needed not only for naval auxiliaries, but also for the maintenance of reasonable and necessary commercial intercourse with other Nations. We should remember lessons learned in the last war.” (John woolly) The sad part he died before he could change anything for the men and women of the Merchant Maries. With the death of President Roosevelt seem like the chances of the merchants maries getting recognized by the United States would never happen. But President Reagan did get the merchants maries part veterans’ benefits. They got health benefits only. At least it was something. I think they needed more and should have benefits the hole time. I mean why would we let any of are veterans go without? It amazes me that we would not give the United States Merchant Marine the benefit that they needed. I am even shock that more people do not know about them and what they did for us in World war 1 and 2.

I would have to say after everything I read about the United States Merchant Marine that they are one of the most valuable assets the United States have, and they have not been treated that way at all. I think we should really look at them and see what we can do, to tell their story and get them the benefits they rightfully earn in world war two and in every war.  United States Merchant Marine are not asking for any military benefit in peace time. They are only asking during wartime. I think we should give them that. I think if they are taking as P.O.W. or their ships sick they should still get pay and the windows should get paid to. I think after learning everything I have about the United States Merchant Marine I have come with a deeper respect for them.  

Greece

Greece the Dark Ages

After the movie Perfect Storm, the phrase became a metaphor for situations that join together to make the perfect storm. I think that is what happened in Greece. I feel the perfect storm hit the Greek society. They did not see it coming and when it happened there was nothing they could do but change. I think it took them a long time to realize that change had to happened. I think when you look at all theories it was not just one situation was all of them that created the perfect storm for the fall into the Dark Ages.

          Greece fell into the Dark Ages after the Mycenaen palace state collapse. There are many theories as to why the collapse happened and why it sent the Greeks into the Dark Ages. Was it one problem or was there more than one? Various people as have theorized that war or civil unrest or famine caused the down fall. With these theories as to what brought the Dark Age people have to wonder what was the major cause of it. Also, the result of the Dark Age brought us democracy. Did democracy help pull Greece out from the Dark Age? We have to look at all these theories to see if it was one or all of them that brought the Greeks to the Dark Ages. I think that not just one but it all lead to the Dark Ages.

The facts are there was war, civil unrest, and famine. The rich were doing ok but the poor were getting worse. The government and growth of the city became stagnant. Immigrants stopped coming to be part of the Greek cities.

The palace system was set up for the elite class and the warriors of that time. It was not for the people. In this system the poor worked the fields and brought food to the palaces. This system also had the poor beable to take out loans to support their selves. These loans were not good ones, because if they could not pay them back they became slaves to the people who loaned them money. This system had a lot people becoming slaves that were once free men. By making men slaves they became malcontent with their lives. That leads people to change where they’re in their lives.  This system was set up fail and it did. My theory all of the situations brought on the perfect storm.

The storm that ended the Bronze Age started with slavery of the Greek people. The second factor was drought. The drought came to the land and without rain there was a lack of food. The people of Greece were going hungry, but they still had to feed the elite group of people. With hunger growing more with every passing mouth people got tried of feeding the palace people. The people in mass numbers chose to move to the mountains for better lives. The ones that stayed in the cities found hardship. They had to work harder to supply the elite and the soldiers with food. With hunger growing in Greece, so did the discontentment of the people. That discontentment brought civil unrest to Greece.

With civil unrest of its populace, Greece was starting down the path of the Dark Ages. The people started stealing and rebelling against the structure that was in place.  With people rebelling and food becoming more scarce people had to leave to find other resources of food. People working against the system left the cities open for invaders to come in and steal provisions. The Sea People were one of those groups who used the civil unrest to their advantage. They joined in with the people of Greece to plunder the cities of Greece. With the ransacking of the cities and people stealing food for their selves, and the Sea People stealing food as well and anything they could get their hands on this harmed Greece. This lead to the soldiers running short on provisions so they had to go out and obtain work to feed their selves so they left Greece.  Then with Territorial Army leaving Greece it left it vulnerable to assault by other groups.

With less people to protect Greece from rebels and intruders and also, with no real security and lack of resources, emigrants discontinued coming to the cities of Greece. The trade market also slowed down. Then the people of Greece started having fewer offspring. With the population slowing down and the financial system slowing down too, Greece was pushed into stagnation and fell into the Dark Ages. One thing could make a nation plummet, but I assume they had the perfect storm. Everything from oppression, greed, environment, and outside powers lead to the fall of Greece.

With the fall into the Dark Ages the leader of Greece had to find a way to pull out of those tough times. With the people in the cities turn on the cities they lived in and the wealthy losing their prosperity they had to find a way to get back control. With this they figured the way to get control was to let the people have a say. The people having a say and making them a part of government-helped Greece get back in control of its citizens. Greece used the iron to help them gain money. This helped the poor gain money and build for themselves. With the people having a say and the Iron Age coming about Greece developed a middle class.

The middle class growing in Greece and also the citizens become part of the armed forces helped Greece recover from the Dark Age. I do believe if they did not modify the way palace people believe and make the people a part of the administration they would have been in the Dark Age till another nation came in and took control. I believe democracy came as a need for the citizens of Greece and think people in power realized that.

Analyzing what I have read and looking at the theories I have come to the conclusion why Greece fell into Dark Ages. I think it was because of drought, slavery, greed, and war. I think their situation created the perfect storm. I also think that’s what forced them into having a democracy and other places did not follow because they did not experience what the Greeks did. Otherwise I think democracy would spread everywhere at that time.

Apple macbook pro worst product to have buy a pc.

I got a mac book pro . It less then a year old. I had to have hard drive replaced and then the apple mail app does not work after that. I take in and they say that how it goes. I said it been less then year and the laptop keeps breaking. They said all they can do is fix it. I like why not replace. Well they said they only can do that after 14 days so i am stuck with the lap top in the shop all the time. Now i know how apple works it all about you getting and being stuck with it. If your going help be ready for it to crash on you. I will never by apple again that 15 up grades on my phone that will not go to them. Also at least 4 more laptops that will go to pc. and instead of i pads it will be pc products. now if i can talk other in to it . It will show them that they have todo a better job. I can not deal with someone in sales telling me that how it is!!!i hope u buy pc.

love

Professor, McDonald

Writing 121

David Dixon

Love in not enough

I love you! I want to marry you! You’re my life and soul! Those words and feeling are the most amazing words and feelings that a person will have in their life. Some of you already know that feeling, and some of you will find out how it feels. Love is one of the most powerful feelings that a person can have. It can bring the strongest person in the world to their knees and make them a little crying baby or happy as child getting their first candy. Love will make a person act in ways that people would call crazy.

Shakespeare tried to define love in this poem: “Let me not to the marriage of true minds Admit impediments. Love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with the remover to remove: O no! it is an ever-fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken; It is the star to every wandering bark, Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks Within his bending sickle’s compass come: Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved (Shakespeare, William). Even this great writer could only come close to the definition of love. I want you to think about love if you would as you read this paper. I would like your heart to read this paper not your head. I want you to imagine what I am going to tell as if you in these story. I want you to think what would you feel and what would you do. Also would you ever want anyone to feel that way in his or her life: your kids, mother, father, friend, or anyone in world.

     Now with that all being said, I am going to give you a scenario. You’re in Florida with person you love with all your heart and soul. They are the sun, the ocean, everything beautiful in your life. You are looking and thinking how you could not live without them. Then at that moment they collapse and you catch them in your arms. You have no clue why they collapsed. You are scared! You are holding them and you don’t know how to help them. Someone calls 911 for you because the only thing you can do is focus on holding them and looking into their eyes as they are going in and out of consciousness. You are feeling helpless inside. You’re lost! Then the ambulance shows up. You feel that it could be OK. You are thinking that they will take care of the person you love.

     You get into the ambulance and head to hospital. You are holding their hand and telling them everything will be OK. You will be next to them and when they awake you promise them you’d be there. Your heart is throbbing in excruciating pain. Now you arrive at the hospital. They take your love in and you go to front desk to give them all the information they need. Then you ask if they can tell you what is going on and if you can go in and see your love one. You know you want to hold them. The person at the front desk tells you “no, you cannot get any information and you cannot go into see them”. They tell you that you are not recognized as their immediate family. At this point you are lost because you cannot find out any information and cannot go into see your love. Your heart drops so far down that you do not know if you can live. Then when you think there can be no pain worse then this, you find out your love and soul has died and was calling for you right before they passed away. Close your eyes and take a second to think about how you feel. Then think about if you were watching your child having to deal with this right in front of your eyes and you can do nothing to help, but watch them be torn in pieces and get their heart ripped out of their chest. Do you think this has happened, and after reading this would you want anyone to go through this in life?

     The sad part is that it has happened, but worse their children could not see their dying mother: “Woman sues Miami hospital after being denied visitation of partner”

(Sun-Sentinel). I do not think that anyone would want people to suffer like that. It is hard for me to believe somebody would be that cruel to let that happen. Would you have the heart to deny them to their face and see their pain? How about if was your child? Then would you have heart to tell them no? Well when you vote no on marriage equality that is what you are doing. You are telling them that their pain does not matter. Oh by the way the Miami couple was lesbian.

People will give the Bible as the reason for saying no. Ask yourself what part of the Bible says it is wrong. Some people will come up with Leviticus, which is Old Testament law, and says nothing of women with women only with men. If you want to go by Old Testament law then why do you not follow all the laws from the Old Testament? Is it because it does not fit your life? Or you think the laws are wrong? Do you think they are out dated?  If you do not follow all the old laws but just one, is that right? I would call that cherry picking only what you want to follow. Is that right? Well I will not be able to answer that for you, but you should for yourself.

Also ask yourself what was marriage before today? Again people will say the Bible or history defines marriage as a man and women. If you read the history of marriage it has changed many times over the years. It depends what year you go back to as to what marriage is.  Women were bought and sold like livestock.  You could not marry outside your race. The Bible supports those laws too. Bible also supported slavery. Wikipedia says this “Marriage can be recognized by a state, an organization, a religious authority, a tribal group, a local community or peers. It is often viewed as a contract”(Wikipedia). So as you can see marriage is viewed differently by everyone. There is one thing out of the Bible that everyone should look at the same.

Jesus did not once say being gay was wrong. He did say in John 8:7 “and as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her”.” (Bible Hub). What do you think he meant by that? I think he meant not to judge anyone unless they are without sin. I do not know anyone without sin. That means we should not judge anyone whatsoever. That is what Jesus would want. He wants everyone to watch after one another and love one another. He was against hate of any kind. So if you really love Jesus be more like him.

unions

Professor, McDonald

Writing 121

David Dixon

Union

One of the great leaders of our time said it best about unions: “The American Labor Movement has consistently demonstrated its devotion to the public interest. It is, and has been, good for all America.”(John F. Kennedy). President Kennedy was right Unions are devoted to the public interest. They wanted working people to have a say in their working conditions. Unions want the working people to get fair pay and a safe place to work.

  Modern unions started out small in America in the 19^th Century. Between 1955 and 1960 membership peaked (Wikipedia). The unions only worked inside their own cities at one time. Then they learned that if they joined all the unions as one big union they would have more power to fight for labors’ rights. Unions transformed the workers to the middleclass of today. I saw the difference working non-union and union houses. After working non-union house and to a union house I saw how the workers were treated better in a union house. In the union houses they paid almost double my non-union wages. Plus they gave health benefits. Unions protect the union people from termination with out just cause. On the other corporations want none these just profit.

 Corporations want to make profit at all cost. “Generally speaking, major corporations prefer minimal pay and benefits for workers, a largely uncritical and powerless workforce and minimal taxes, as well as unlimited power for themselves, which they can then employ to influence elections and maximize profits”. (William Astore) Corporations want to make profit at all cost. That is their main goal. They do not like unions and do not want them. They say unions hurt job creation. They say unions are only out for themselves. Unions will take your dues and do nothing for you. This is the propaganda, corporations put out there to get you to think unions are bad.

The propaganda has worked for the most part, unions are weaker now then they have been scent the 60s. The weakening of the unions also weakens the middle class (see graph below). They are tied in to one. To destroy unions is to destroy the middle class. If you look at the start when unions slowly started to lose power in 1980s the wages started to slow down and not match inflation. The charts below show how weaken the union has affect Americans. The heights of union powered wages were much higher then inflation. In 1980 when the unions started to weaken, inflation started catch up to the middle class wages.

This chart compares the growth of inflation (red line) and real wages (blue line).Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis

October 18, 2012)

Now inflation has passed the middle class wages because of the weaken of the unions. If you compare the two charts they match wages to inflation and the decline of the union membership. In 1980s Reagan push the war on Unions.

     If Reagan did not push the war on the unions in the 1980s our wages would still be higher than inflation. Reagan really pushed the war on the unions. He was on the side of corporations. He pushed for laws that hurt labor and unions. He also crushed the air traffic controls union. “Reagan's anti-labor policy: He attempted to lower the minimum wage for younger workers, ease the child labor and anti-sweatshop laws, tax fringe benefits, and cut back job-training programs for the unemployed. He tried to replace thousands of federal employees with temporary workers who would not have civil service or union protections.”(Dick Meister) Reagan was the key to weakening the unions. Today corporations are trying to finish the job, Reagan was key player in, by using propaganda.

Corporations will say they outsource jobs because of unions and that’s why they’re moving out of America. Well there is some truth to that, but not the whole truth. Corporations move out of the US because they get tax breaks to leave the US.

Corporations also went to countries without unions. People are thinking well if we did not have unions, corporations would have stayed. Well, there is little truth to that too. If we did not have unions and they could pay 24 cents an hour, work people in unsafe working conditions, and work 10 to 15 hours a day; yes they would stay. You are thinking I am wrong. Well, let just look at Bangladesh. “Bangladesh offers the global garment industry something unique: Millions of workers who quickly churn out huge amounts of well-made underwear, jeans and T-shirts for the lowest wages in the world.” (ANNE D'INNOCENZIO). They only make 24 cents an hour. They work in unsafe conditions. That is the wages and the conditions we would have to work in to get those jobs back here in the US. I do not think we, as people would work like that today. Also if you even look at states that have laws to weaken unions like right to work you will see they have less pay.

If you look at the poorest states, 7 of them are right-to-work states. “The data on wages tell a fairly clear story. Of the top 10 states in per capita income in 2011, seven were not right-to work states. Of the bottom 10 states with the lowest per capital income, seven were right to work states.”(John Gallagher). The unions have very little power or none at all in those 7 poorest right-to-work states. That’s what happens when you weaken the unions. The wages do not keep up with inflation and corporations can pay you less.

When you look at unions look at them as good for the people. “They were made by the people for the people”(bill of rights). There here to make sure people get what people deserve. If we do not support them we will lose more of what we have. We have to stand with them as they stand with us. If you look back history you can find all the great leaders supporting unions. I will leave you with a Quote. Pope Paul VI:

The important role of union organizations must be admitted: their object is the representation of the various categories of workers, their lawful collaboration in the economic advance of society, and the development of the sense of their responsibility for the realization of the common good.

life

It is funny glad to have time off from school. But I still not sure how to work my mooring with out doing home work. I already read paper seen all the bs out there. Did Facebook now have half a pot coffee left and nothing todo. Being single i have alot free time when not in school.

   Well what I have todo to day is work at 4 pm at the elks. Other then that I have nothing to do

What a year school year.

I started school a year ago at the age of 35. I still have 5 years togo. I am getting my MA in labor relations. This is going to be a fun time. I need to find time for work and school. I also got to find the money to pay for school. I know I will. But at this I am working at keep my grades, and I am getting good grades.

   At 35 I look at school as something I want to do. I think that is the key. You have to want to go school. Other wise your wasting your time. I see alot kids who do not want be there. They never show up to class. Also, they always turn in there homework let. Do not get it wrong there good people, but there not ready to be school. Their going only because their  made to my their mom and dad. I coming to conclusion that it is not right to force them togo. I will tell you why. Because if they do not want go. They slack at school and really do not learn anything. I think they should have join group and go see the world first then chose if they really want to.

 well I will write more when I get time