Thursday, March 23, 2017
Monday, March 20, 2017
In class: Guantanamo Bay
Date assigned
Friday, March 17
Assignment
Read three articles about prisoners at Guantanamo Bay:
My Guantanamo Nightmare and Notes From A Guantanamo Survivor: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FYATAvHeQJYIsYUxAGkTIbbk_8BREDZQCRFZ1rd7T1Q/pub
Gitmo Is Killing Me: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pXBogApIJ1lIe1ugvzPIbBirbVOmhevx2isOTa9Y1Uc/pub
Due date
Friday, March 17, end of class
Friday, March 17
Assignment
Read three articles about prisoners at Guantanamo Bay:
My Guantanamo Nightmare and Notes From A Guantanamo Survivor: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FYATAvHeQJYIsYUxAGkTIbbk_8BREDZQCRFZ1rd7T1Q/pub
Gitmo Is Killing Me: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pXBogApIJ1lIe1ugvzPIbBirbVOmhevx2isOTa9Y1Uc/pub
Due date
Friday, March 17, end of class
Monday, March 13, 2017
In class: Bush's War
Date assigned
Monday, March 13 and Wednesday, March 15
Assignment
Start watching the PBS Frontline episode "Bush's War" in class on Monday, finish on Wednesday: http://www.pbs.org/video/1278730554/
Period 6 - We got to 30:10 on Monday, March 13, and then continued to 1:03:40 on Wednesday, March 15
Period 7 - start at 35:30 on Monday, March 13, and then continued to 1:03:30 on Wednesday, March 15
Period 8 - start at 34:45 on Monday, March 13, and then continued to 1:03:30 on Wednesday, March 15
Due date
Wednesday, March 15
Monday, March 13 and Wednesday, March 15
Assignment
Start watching the PBS Frontline episode "Bush's War" in class on Monday, finish on Wednesday: http://www.pbs.org/video/1278730554/
Period 6 - We got to 30:10 on Monday, March 13, and then continued to 1:03:40 on Wednesday, March 15
Period 7 - start at 35:30 on Monday, March 13, and then continued to 1:03:30 on Wednesday, March 15
Period 8 - start at 34:45 on Monday, March 13, and then continued to 1:03:30 on Wednesday, March 15
Due date
Wednesday, March 15
Thursday, March 9, 2017
In class: Osama bin Laden's letter to America
Date assigned
Thursday, March 9
Assignment
Read an exceprt of Osama bin Laden's "Letter to America" found here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1esu-SoNEey3ItlraTDA5wbBvfqdZ0GkSCMRAsb-WJkE/pub
In no less than 300 words, answer the following:
1) Summarize bin Laden's stated reasons for attacking the United States. Why did he do it?
2) What was bin Laden demanding from Americans?
3) Based on bin Laden's stated reasons for attacking the US, do you think the 9/11 attack could have been prevented? If so, how? If not, why not?
4) Can you reason with religious fanatics? If so, how? If not, then how else can they be dealt with?
Due date
Thursday, March 9, end of class
Thursday, March 9
Assignment
Read an exceprt of Osama bin Laden's "Letter to America" found here - https://docs.google.com/document/d/1esu-SoNEey3ItlraTDA5wbBvfqdZ0GkSCMRAsb-WJkE/pub
In no less than 300 words, answer the following:
1) Summarize bin Laden's stated reasons for attacking the United States. Why did he do it?
2) What was bin Laden demanding from Americans?
3) Based on bin Laden's stated reasons for attacking the US, do you think the 9/11 attack could have been prevented? If so, how? If not, why not?
4) Can you reason with religious fanatics? If so, how? If not, then how else can they be dealt with?
Due date
Thursday, March 9, end of class
Thursday, March 2, 2017
In class: Soviet-Afghan War group questions
Date assigned
Wednesday, March 1
Assignment
Read the excerpt from the Soviet-Afghan War chapter of Stephen Kinzer's Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq as homework. When class starts, show the sub your notes so they can be checked off. Then get into groups of 3 and discuss the reading. Answer the following questions on a group piece of paper with as much detail as you can with a rotating recorder:
1) Why did the Soviet Union invade Afghanistan in 1979?
2) Why did the United States decide to get involved?
3) What did the United States do to support Afghanistan against Soviet invasion?
4) How and why was Pakistan involved in America's support of Afghanistan? What was the deal America made with Pakistan?
5) How did Saudi Arabia get involved in this conflict? What was the deal the Saudis made with America? What did the Saudis build in Pakistan?
6) The Taliban took over Afghanistan after the end of the war. How was that group created? What were their beliefs? What did they do after they took over Afghanistan? Why did the United States tolerate them?
7) What were the unintended consequences of American action in the Soviet-Afghan War? How have those actions affected America since the end of the Soviet-Afghan War? How do they affect America today?
8) Who won the Soviet-Afghan War? Who lost?
9) We've now looked at a number of American decisions that have resulted in unintended consequences. In your opinion, should the United States intervene in international conflicts that do not directly relate to America? Why or why not?
10) What surprised you most about this reading?
Due date
End of class on Friday, March 3
Wednesday, March 1
Assignment
Read the excerpt from the Soviet-Afghan War chapter of Stephen Kinzer's Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq as homework. When class starts, show the sub your notes so they can be checked off. Then get into groups of 3 and discuss the reading. Answer the following questions on a group piece of paper with as much detail as you can with a rotating recorder:
1) Why did the Soviet Union invade Afghanistan in 1979?
2) Why did the United States decide to get involved?
3) What did the United States do to support Afghanistan against Soviet invasion?
4) How and why was Pakistan involved in America's support of Afghanistan? What was the deal America made with Pakistan?
5) How did Saudi Arabia get involved in this conflict? What was the deal the Saudis made with America? What did the Saudis build in Pakistan?
6) The Taliban took over Afghanistan after the end of the war. How was that group created? What were their beliefs? What did they do after they took over Afghanistan? Why did the United States tolerate them?
7) What were the unintended consequences of American action in the Soviet-Afghan War? How have those actions affected America since the end of the Soviet-Afghan War? How do they affect America today?
8) Who won the Soviet-Afghan War? Who lost?
9) We've now looked at a number of American decisions that have resulted in unintended consequences. In your opinion, should the United States intervene in international conflicts that do not directly relate to America? Why or why not?
10) What surprised you most about this reading?
Due date
End of class on Friday, March 3
Monday, February 27, 2017
In class: Current events
Date assigned
Monday, February 27
Assignment
In small groups, use your phones to research 5 current events (something that has happened in 2017, related to politics/international relations/conflict/protest - sports and entertainment don't count as current events).
- 3 should be about the United States.
- 1 should be about Israel/Palestine.
- 1 should be about another country in the Middle East besides Israel/Palestine.
For each current event, answer the following questions on a piece of paper:
1) What is happening?
2) Why is it important? Why are you interested in this?
3) What do you think might happen next? What do you hope happens next?
Due date
Wednesday, March 1, beginning of class
Monday, February 27
Assignment
In small groups, use your phones to research 5 current events (something that has happened in 2017, related to politics/international relations/conflict/protest - sports and entertainment don't count as current events).
- 3 should be about the United States.
- 1 should be about Israel/Palestine.
- 1 should be about another country in the Middle East besides Israel/Palestine.
For each current event, answer the following questions on a piece of paper:
1) What is happening?
2) Why is it important? Why are you interested in this?
3) What do you think might happen next? What do you hope happens next?
Due date
Wednesday, March 1, beginning of class
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
In class: "5 Broken Cameras"
Date assigned
Your reactions - What surprised you about this film? What disturbed you about this film? What was the most tragic thing about this film? What is going to stick with you from this film?
Tuesday, February 21
Assignment
If you missed class, first sign up for an account at dropbox.com - it's free. Then finish watching "5 Broken Cameras" - https://www.dropbox.com/s/vu0lrqzm685laz6/geckos-5bc2011-xvid.avi?dl=0
When you finish the film, write a response for 7-8 minutes (if you miss class, your response should be at least 250 words typed and emailed to me). Your response can be about anything, but if you get stuck, here are some possible topics:
Your reactions - What surprised you about this film? What disturbed you about this film? What was the most tragic thing about this film? What is going to stick with you from this film?
Emad - Should Emad have quit filming and protesting when his wife Soraya asked him to? What reasons did he have to quit at that point? What reasons did he have to continue protesting and filming? What would you have done if you had been in his situation?
Gibreel - Why does the film focus so much on Gibreel (Emad's youngest son)? What purpose does it serve when telling the story of the town of Bil'in? What does Gibreel represent? What is the rest of his life going to be like? How has his view of the world been shaped? What are his attitudes about the world going to be like when he gets older?
America - What is America's role in this movie? Is America responsible for anything that happens in this film? Could America stop what is happening in this film? Can you think of similar situations to what is happening in the West Bank that have happened in American history? What about in America today?
Due date
Thursday, February 23, end of class
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