Thoughts and reflections on: When the freedom of speech was first condemned.

Ben Howson, World History per.6

Ms. Mitchell

Thoughts and reflections on: When the Freedom of speech was first Condemned.

By I. F. Stone

I believe that the title of this writing is named this because it literally was when the freedom of speech was first condemned. Socrates was the first man who was condemned for using freedom of speech to teach the young his beliefs. Socrates did this in Athens where everyone is supposed to have the right of free speech. He was prosecuted for using this right. The jury said that he was destroying the young with his beliefs and ideas. However, Socrates should have been free to express his ideas to the young because he had this right of freedom of speech. "When Freedom of Speech was First Condemned" is the titile of this article because it is about when Socrates was condemned to death for using freedom of speech.

During this reading my opinion changed about Socrates. Before the reading I believed that Socrates was a great philosopher, and a smart, wise, old man who wanted to help others. But now after reading this paper, I kind of think that Socrates was not the smartest or greatest philosopher. I say this because Socrates could have won his trial but instead of trying his hardest to get out of his prosecution, he gave up and wanted to die. I also say that he was not the smartest man because he was not afraid of death and he did not care about dying. He was a bit crazy because to me it felt like he wanted to die. Another thing that changed my opinion about Socrates was that he was against freedom of speech. I think that this is silly because all philosophers are all about free speech, and even Socrates used freedom of speech. It was silly for him to be against it. Socrates was also against democracy which also changed my opinion about him. He believed that people were not able to govern themselves, and he did not have the trust in them to do so. All in all, from this reading, it made me believe that Socrates was not a wise and great philosopher instead he was a very superior and arrogant man.

If I was the head attorny for the procecuting team, I would pick a young child who Socrates told his believes to as a witness. I would do this, so that the young boy or girl could tell the audience what Socrates has told him or her, and become furious for what Socrates has taught them. That is who I would pick as a witness if I was the attorny for the procecuting team.

If I was the head attorny for the defending team I would pick political person as my witness. I would pick this type of person, so that they could tell me the rights as an Athenian, and of course one of the huge rights as an Athenian is the right to freedom of speech, and that was exactaly what Socrates was doing. He was saying what he belived in. That is who I would pick as a witness if I was the attorny for the defending team.

This it was Socrtes could have said to win the trial.

person who is like a Gadfly

Ben Howson, World History per. 6

Ms. Mitchell

02/25/14

CEO of ExxionMobil Rex Tillerson, and many of his neighbors came together, and filled out a law suit against his company that was wanting to build and creat a fracking sight next to their neighborhood water tower, and us the water tower as the fracking water. Rex Tillerson is like a modern day Socrates, because he is able to get everyone on his side, and convince them to believe in his idea, or that something is bad or good. Like Socrates wasn't afrade of dieing, Rex Tillerson wasn't scared of loosing his buisness, he just wanted what he wanted, that that was to have no fracking next to his property. Rex Tillerson is addressing that he likes fracking but not when it is in yard, and he doesn't. Rex's method, is to get people to agree with what he wants, and then to get his fellow neighbors mad and come together and get what they want. His method works, because he is good at convincing people, and making them believe in what he does. His method also work because he listens to people, and he acts as a leader to get what he wants, and also what the other people want. Fracking is a serious issue, because even though it is a way to get a lot of oil and gasses, we don't really know what it does and what effects it has on Earth, and the environment. As of now we don't really know what effects fracking has on the environment, but many believe that nothing good could come out of fracking. Rex Tillerson is talking to us Americans, and other people who live in the USA. He is wanting for us to listen, and come together to take out fracking. So what is Fracking? Fracking is a method of drilling into the eath to gather oils and gasses far below the Earth's surface. These fracking tubes that colect the gasses and oils are miles long, and crack the eath to open up caves that hold the gasses and oils. That is what fracking is.

http://youtu.be/P8ki8zW-_fg 

 This is Rex Tillerson, the CEO of Exxion Mobil.

The Apology of Socrates part 2

Ben Howson, World history per. 6

Thoughts and reflections on: The Apology of Socrates

By By Plato

Socrates refuses to tell lies in his defense. He always tells the truth, and thinks that it is bad to tell lies. He also doesn't bring his kids to the court, like many of the people who trialed against him, to make the court feel guilty. He thinks that it is wrong to bring kids to the court, because it is unfair, and just no right. Socrates just really doesn't think that it is right to tell lies.

Socrates refuses to tell lies, and bring kids into the court, because it is just not right. Socrates really doesn't like people who tell lies, because he thinks that it is unfair and disrespectful, and he also thinks the same thing for people who bring their kids in to the court room. Socrates said that he will never do that because it is not fair, and not the right thing to do. 

Socrates believe that he doesn't deserve death. Instead, he thinks that he should give some money to Athens is a peace offering, and that they would just forget the whole thing. He was pretty much saying, don't kill me, here take this money, and lets forget about this whole thing, the money is your, do what you want with it. That is what Socrates believes that his penalty should be.

Socrates, during the end of the trial said that, no matter what he wouldn't lie, because it is the wrong thing to do. He went in to more detail that he would never tell a lie, and always the truth. That is what Socrates final proof, that he will not do what he feels is wrong.

Socrates other suggestion, other than death, is to again give Athens money, and then for Athens just to let him and his family to walk out of Athens peacfuly, and let them go live some where else. He suggests this, because he really doesn't want to die, but he isn't scared of death, he just doesn't want to die. He said that if he died, that they might as well kill all his family, such as his kids. That is the other suggestion that Socrates suggested other than death.

 Socrates thinks that death is a good thing, and he is not scared of it. He isn't scared of death, because he believes that there is a better place like heaven that you go to after you die. He thinks that there is a peaceful world after death, that is far better than the world in which they lived. That is why Socrates thinks that death is a good thing.

     

This is Socrates trial.

Panel Discussion Question

Ben Howson, World History Per. 6

 If there weren't so many fires in that last two years or so, and if the ground wasn't so hard and dry do to the heat of the sun, would the flod of Colorado in 2013 be as bad and lasted as long as it was? Why didn't Colorado have a beter dranige system in case of a flod. Did the flod come out of no where, and just hit us, or did we kind of know that there was going to be a big flod.

The Apology of Socrates, questions and answers

Ben Howson, World History Per.6

Thoughts and reflections on: The Apology of Socrates

By Plato 

I believe that Socrates does possess wisdom. I say this because Socrates knows a lot of things. But when he is unsure or does not know something, instead of lying he admits that he doesn't know, and allows other people to teach him. This makes him wise, because he is learning and becoming even wiser. Being wise is not just possesing information, it is also the ability to be open to learning more things, and becoming wiser than before.        

To me, Socrates was a valuable philosopher. I think this because he taught others by giving them a question to think about. He gave people ideas, started conversations, and gave them the choice to think and ponder about the idea. This was valuable to society because instead of having just followers, he made a society with difference and creativity.  

I think that Socrates does believe in God. On many occasions in "The Apology"  Socrates makes references to God. In his speaking he says things like, "...Real wisdome is the property of God" and "I try to help the cause of God." To me this tells me that he does believe in God, because he does not seem to be a liar.

Plain speaking is just saying the truth and nothing but the truth. Socrates says that he is not using fancy language, instead more of a straightforward speech. Socrates believe that in is not nesasary to hide your lies in fancy words and what not, but just to say the truth.   

Socrates believes that he can't intentionally have a bad influence on the young. He says this, because he says that he is not the one who teaches the children, that is not his job. He is a philosopher, not a school teacher, and he does not come into contact with children very often, because he is a pholosopher, and he has a lot more important things to be doing. That is why Socrates belives that he can't intentionaly have a bad influence on the young.

Socrates was a very smart man. He was able to use a technique that turned attention away from him, and towards his accusers away from him. Socrates technique was that he would ask the audience a question. He would do this to make them think, and that questioning would make them start to question Socrates' accusers. That was the technique that Socrates used to turn the attention away from him, and on to his accusers.

 

   

This is a picture of Socrates

The Two Thousand Years' War. Questions and answers

Ben Howson, World History per. 6                                                                         02/12/14

Thoughts and Reflections on: The Two Thousand Years' War.

By Walter Karp

The Cold War was a war against America, and the Soviet Union. The Cold War was a war that didn't have a lot of face to face fighting. Acording to Walter Karp, "...The Cold War, is fought indirectly, peripherally, and spasmodically." The Cold War lasted four decades, and "...America and Russia did not cease for a single day", said Walter Karp. Not a lot of stuff happened in The Cold War in those four decades. That is a breaf over view of what the Cold War was.

The Peloponnesian War and The Cold War are quite simular to one another in two ways. One way being in combatants, and the other way being in conflicts. They were simular in combatants, Athens and America were alike. "Athens, like America, was commercial, fast-moving, and far-ranging." says Walter Karp. They also both have a democracy, and also Yankee ingenuity. Russa and Sparta were also alike. "Sparta, as Thucydides tells us, was insulated, agricultural, and sluggish state, rather like Russa." says Walter Karp. The Cold War and the Peloponnesian War alike in conflicts, because there were all great leaders of confederations. Also both of the wars were about hostil political principles. That is a couple of the ways that both The Cold War and The Peloponnesian War were simular to one another.

Both the Americans and the Russans could have learned a thing or two if they would have gone back and read the history of The Peloponnesian War. They could have learned that War takes an impact on every one, and they could of been a little bit more thought full. They could of seen the inevitable chain of events that were acuring around them, and they could of compared their situation to the situations in the Peloponnesian War. When there is domination resistance follows, and then does the conflict, and there is always a conflict.

Studying history can help us not make the same mistakes that other have made, by comparing situation from the past, and comparing and contrasting now from then, and seeing the decisions that they made, and how they turned out. Thcydides says that "Human nature being what it is, events now past will recur in simular or analogous forms." What he is saying is that in one way or another, that humans make the same stupid mistake more than one. To me, this is like your parents telling you about a decision that they regret, and they tell you it, so that you wont make that same stupid mistake. But of course, you forget about it, and think that you will never make that mistake. But a couple years go by, and you are in the position that they were in, and warned you about, but it is to late. If you would have remembered, and realized the situation earlier, then maybe you might of been able to avoid it. So pretty much the Peloponnesian War told and showed the Americans and the Russians what would happen if they made the same mistake that the Athenians and the Spartans made a long, long time ago. But the Americans and the Russians didn't listen, and look back in history, so they pretty much made the same mistake twice. In a way the past is the future, and if we can realize that, we can use it to our advantage, to not make the same mistakes that others have made, by comparing historical events to todays events.  

Ben Howson                                                                                                                     

Ms. Mitchell

World History per.6

02/07/14

The Dark Side

            According to the Athenian general Pericles, Athens was a great place. However, the writings of Thucydides' greatly juxtaposed this sentiment, as he illuminates the real nature of humanity in his texts "The Civil War at Corcyra" and "The Plague", in his book "The Peloponnesian War." Thucydides was a Greek historian, who was alive around the time of the downfall of Athens, and the fall of Corcyra. As these two down falls were going on, Thucydides was writing about them, and in his writing he reflected upon human nature. In these two chapters, he continuously ponders the meaning of the dark side of human nature, how it shows up in times of fear, and how human nature in these times is who we really are. Out of all Thucydides' ponderings, probably the underlying and most essential idea is the simple meaning of human nature at its darkest. Although Athens experienced a tremendous Golden Age, that all changed in times of struggle and fear as proven in Thucydides' texts "The Plague", and "The Civil War at Corcyra", and the dark side of human nature was revealed.

            Thucydides says that " ...Human nature is what it is, though there may be different degrees of savagery, and as different circumstances arise, the general rules will admit of some variety."(Thucydides, 242, section 82, lines 13-15) Thucydides is somewhat saying that human nature is human nature, and there is nothing alike it. Human nature can come out at many different times, and depending on when it comes out changes the type of savagery that happens in those times. With the savagery many circumstances arise, and rules are broken, and pretty much every thing is changed and destroyed. Thucydides is saying that in his opinion, in times that are bad, humans seam to deteriorate, and become bad. We know this, because in the quote above, he says things about human nature like, human nature comes with savagery, and that when this happens, more bad things happen, such as rules being broken. All of this happens because we don't fix the problems, we leave it and make it even, more worse than when it started. Thucydides also says that in times that are bad, that human nature is full with things like, " ...Thoughtless acts of aggression...”(Thucydides, 242, section 82, line 28) and " ... Methods of seizing power and by unheard-of atrocities in revenge."(Thucydides, 242, section 82 lines 25-26) Thucydides thought that human nature in times that were bad, was when humans were at their worst. But when does this dark human nature come out in us?

            The dark side of human nature comes out in us in times of fear, and in times of suffering. For Athens, this time of fear and suffering was during the plague, and for Corcyra, their time of fear and suffering was during the Civil War. Even though the dark side of human nature was being revealed in both "The Plague", and "The Civil War at Corcyra", there were two different types of human nature that were happening. During the Plague that was going on in Athens, there were a lot of things that were going on. Thucydides said that during the plague, "...The catastrophe was so overwhelming that men, not knowing what would happen next to them, became indifferent to every rule of religion or of law." (Thucydides, 155, section 52, line 10-14) Thucydides was saying that the people no longer followed traditions, and there was also a lot of lawlessness that was going on. For the "Civil War at Corcyra" Thucydides said "Love of power, operating through greed and through personal ambition was the cause of these evils." (Thucydides, 243, section 82, line 66-67) What he is saying here is that during this time, people went crazy with power and they wanted revenge on people who had killed their family or friends during the war. The Civil War of Corcyra was filled with atrocities, greed, and self-indulgence. So who are we really, are we good, are we bad, or are half and half?

            According to Thucydides, Human nature is our true selves; it is who we really are. This dark side of human personalities is kept secret, its not unleashed until a fearful moment or catastrophe takes place. Once this happens, what is normal behavior ceases to exist.  Instead humans begin to react and behave in a totally unnaturally human way Thucydides stated that the plague was such an event and “…That it was the beginnings of a state of unprecedented lawlessness.”(Thucydides, 155, section 53, lines 1 and 2) “People now began openly to venture on acts of self-indulgence, which before then they used to keep in the dark.”(Thucydides, 155, section 53, lines 5-6) Thucydides is saying that our normal human restraints were failing to keep society operating within its usual boundaries.  “No fear of god or law of man had a restraining influence.“ (Thucydides, 155, section 53, line 15) Although darkness can appear unannounced in many of us, some humans are capable of suppressing this evil behavior and continue to act selflessly in times of desperation. In the case of the plague it was those doctors and nurses and family and friends who helped the sick and put themselves in the direct path of the raging plague. Thucydides states that " …Such people felt ashamed to think of their own safety and went into their friends houses at times when even the members of the household were so overwhelmed by the weight of their calamities that they had actually given up the usual practice of making laments for the dead.”(Thucydides, 154, section 51, lines 24-30)

                        Although Athens experienced a tremendous Golden Age, that all changed in times of struggle and fear, as proven in Thucydides texts "The Plague", and "The Civil War at Corcyra", and the dark side of human nature was revealed. In summary, whether the ways in which humans act and behave is something that we are all individually born with or whether we learn it from our peers, family, friends and people we admire, human nature is our true self. Human nature is our characteristics, its how we behave and it’s how we live together. However humans have a dark side to our natural nature, a side of our true self that normally remains under lock and key until pandemonium occurs. When that happens, the rules, norms and ways that humans interact cohesively together ends, instead ugly behavior evolves, rules are broken, chaos irrupts and humans spiral in to deviant behavior.  We have been discussing human nature in Greek times, specifically around the fall of Athens, such as during the plague, and also the Civil War at Corcyra. However this ugly dark side of our human nature is not alone in ancient times.  Today in our advanced society they are many examples of where human interactions break down as a result of catastrophic event, whether it’s a natural disaster, war, or religion based.  A few years a go in London, England a similar showing of our dark characteristics occurred in the form of the London Riots.  What started as a police shooting of a African American youth by a white police man, developed in to major rioting by the African American population in London, cars were burned, houses set on fire and people were shot and injured. However as this chaos was developing, people who had nothing to do with the initial incident got caught up in the action, and they’re dark sides were unleashed.  For no reason other than being caught in the moment, mothers, businessmen, children and students started looting the burned shops, stealing, pilfering, and involving themselves in the action.  So many of these people were normal upstanding citizens with no criminal records and had no reason to fall into this lawlessness state.

As humans we really do not know when our dark side will appear. I guess we are all just existing with our dark side human time bomb ticking inside us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MP-td3C55Yc

Work Cited Page.

Thucydides, History of The Peloponnesian War, Rex Warner-Translator, Penguin Books, 1972, New York.

Ala Falco: Thucydides 460 BC-c.395 BC. N.d. Photograph. Ala Falco: Thucydides 460 BC-c.395 BC. Ala Falco. Web.

The Athenian Plague. N.d. Photograph. Threshold of Time. Web.


A Lesson at The Governmental Gardening. N.d. Photograph. Project Equator. Web.

N.d. Photograph. Archives Christma Ministries. Web.

Fresh Video of London Riots: Crowd Street Rampage. August 8, 2011. Video.