Antiwar

War has always been a part of human existence, since the beginning of history. War existed in Biblical times, during the rule of the Romans, and all throughout Europe for centuries. America has long been involved in war, in fact its very founding was the result of the Revolutionary War. Now, war is a major part of what America is today. Our military has fought in dozens of countries for dozens of years. We often hear of the promotion of war- of how noble it is to fight overseas for your country. However, we rarely hear of the other side- the antiwar side. 

Antiwar, by definition, in the opposition to war in general or to the conduct of a specific war. The website antiwar.com is a website made to promote the antiwar movement. Although many people would probably consider themselves antiwar, you don't hear much about it now a days. The last protest happened in February 2003, when the U.S. went to war with Baghdad. Millions of people around the country protested this in several major cities. However, this was the last big protest since then. Why?

Many people believe that the antiwar movement changed after 2001 due to the attack on the twin towers. After 9/11, patriotism grew, and many wanted to see retribution for all the American lives lost that day. The war on terror prompted a halt to the antiwar movement's momentum. However, since then, the movement has failed to fully pick back up again. 

Despite the many negative aspects of war, people are letting it slide. In order to pick back up again, people need to be more informed about the negative aspects of war. These include thousands of lives being lost, poverty, hunger, and mass destruction on other countries that may not be as strong as America. In order to restart the antiwar movement, education and awareness must occur. 

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is the theory and development of computer systems able to perform tasks that normally require human intelligence, such as visual perception, speech recognition, decision-making, and translation between languages. Essentially, artificial intelligence is a way for computers to act like humans without a human brain. The computer can adapt to new data automatically, without any help from humans. At first, the concept of AI sounds interesting, innovative, and even cool. While that may be true, this new technology may be scarier than you first think.

While this technology is convenient, there are many downsides to it. For one, it promotes less human contact, which is almost never a good thing for society. This can take strip people of feelings and human empathy, leaving them feeling emotionless. Also, the computer would be emotionless, which means that it would not be able to connect with human beings, just perform tasks. On top of this, this new technology could result in lots of job loss. With technology already taking jobs away, the only edge humans have is their own human intelligence. Now, a computer may be able to replicate that. Not to mention the enormous costs that would occur to create and install these machines. It would costs companies millions and millions of dollars. In addition to all of these cons, for me personally, I find it rather frightening that a computer would be able to have access to so much information. It could easily infringe on online security. Who knows what they could do?

Despite all of these things, there are some upsides. This technology would get rid of human error. It also doesn't have human emotion, so it can do things that humans would rather not do, such as deal with trash, or clean, or even go so far as to help the military. It also doesn't have human needs, so it wouldn't need to sleep or eat. AI could be accessible constantly, something humans cant do. AI could also help with National Security by doing things like scanning IDs at ports, going into foreign military bases, and even going into combat and dropping bombs. 

After going through all of the pros and cons, I've decided I'm not a fan of artificial intelligence. Despite its benefits, the fact that a computer could have that much access to information doesn't sit right with me. We need to let computers be just what they are- simple computers. And we need to let humans be humans.

EOTO: Propaganda

For decades, propaganda has been used to trick people into having a certain opinion. By definition, propaganda is information, especially of a biased or misleading nature, used to promote or publicize a particular political cause or point of view. Propaganda can be films, music, books, social media posts, and other things that are generally consumed by the public.

Above are three famous and historic examples of propaganda. The first, the iconic "I Want You" poster, appeared on the cover of a popular magazine. The poster was created to compel viewers to join the US military. The second poster, "We Can Do It!", was created by an electric company to boost morale of the women who already worked at the company. However, it was rediscovered years later, and became a symbol of feminism and female strength. The third poster, labeled "Liberators", was actually Nazi propaganda. This poster was designed to paint America in a poor light, and make Germans think less of them. 

Propaganda is used in different positive and negative ways. The pros of propaganda is it is very persuasive and effective. The cons are it is manipulative, it can contain misinformation, and the effectiveness lessens over time. In an article from Radio Free Europe, Lev Gudkov is quoted saying "Basically, propaganda destroys alternative understanding. It may not quite convince people, but it imposes on them the cynical view that everyone is a bastard, politics is a squabble between interest groups, and nobody should be believed." Of course, over the course of history, propaganda has been involved in almost all social changes and movements, having a big effect on society. Specific pieces of propaganda may affect some groups more than others, but generally almost every group has both benefited and suffered from the use of propaganda. Sometimes propaganda does harm, other time it does good, but make sure to keep an eye out for it so you don't get too sucked in.

EOTO: False Flag

False flag is a type of misinformation used in war. By definition, false flag is a political or military action that is made to appear to have been carried out by a group that is not actually responsible. The phrase was derived from the pirates, who would fly the flags of other countries to trick merchant ships into thinking they were safe and dealing with their own country. Now, false flag defines any action by one group thats pretending to be another. Usually, it is used to justify foreign military aggression. This means giving not only their own citizens, but the world an excuse to attack a country that most of the time doesn't actually deserve it.

A big example of this happened during World War II. The Nazis are widely believed to have been behind many false flag operations, such as storming the Gleiwitz tower in 1939 wearing Polish uniforms and leaving anti-German messages in Polish. The Nazis used this as part of the reason to justify their attack on Poland. Another famous false flag happened in 1933 called the Reichstag fire. This occurred when a communist named Marinus van de Lubbe was arrested for setting a German parliament building on fire. This gave Hitler an excuse to purge Germany of communists. However, many people think the Reichstag was burned not by communist, but by the Nazis, since it was the perfect excuse Hitler needed. 

However, Germany wasn't the only culprit when it comes to false flag. In the 60's, America committed an act of false flag. According to an article from History UK, "the destroyer USS Maddox was torpedoed and fired upon by three Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin in the South China Sea". The US lead a second false flag attack two days later, which got the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution through Congress. This lead to the deployment of troops in what would later become the infamous Vietnam War. 

There are pros and cons to false flags. On one hand, it is an efficient way to get a war started. However, its dishonest, misleading, and leads to lots of confusion. False flag can affect society in negative ways because it could prompt unnecessary war. This can result in death, damage to the economy, hunger, and lots of damage to a county. War is almost never a positive thing for citizens of a county. Also, it fuels many conspiracy theorists as well. Now, conspiracy theorists can point to anything and claim it to be false flag. For example, many conspiracy theorists claim that the Sandy Hook shooting was false flag. They believe that 26 children and 6 staff members were murdered by the government for the sake of gun laws, even though there is no proof of this being true. In instances like this, false flag claims can be very dangerous and spread misinformation.

Now a days, people can find a way to twist anything into a conspiracy. Though there have been several documented cases of false flag throughout history, its important to use discernment and good judgement before chalking up every move to false flag. However, one thing is for certain- whether it be pirate ships, Nazis, or even the American government, false flags are dishonest and misleading, but efficient.

EOTO: Drones

 Drones are a device that have become very popular in the 21st century. When a person thinks of drones, they usually think of the small device that can float in the air, often controlled by a remote. These devices have become a technology used for new camera shots, racing, or just pure fun. They can even connect to smartphones. However, drones are more than we think. 

By definition, a drone is an unmanned aerial vehicle, or an aircraft without a human pilot on board. The name "drone" was created because its sound doesn't increase or decrease, it just drones on. The very first drones were just balloons that didn't get too much off the ground. According to dronesbuy.net, these drones were invented in 1792 by the Montgolfier brothers. This was the original drone. In 1862, the first flying machine was patented to hold bombs. The military started using drones in wars. Drones were used not only just to drop bombs, but to perform surveillance and combat missions as well. In the 1960s, jet propelled drones such as the lightning bug and Ryan Firebee were used as remote combat aircraft. These drones were used in the Vietnam war in more than 3500 combat incidents. 

It wasn't until 2014 that the drone started being used as general toys and for camera shots. In two short years, consumer drone popularity was at an all time high. Drones went from a simple balloon to something that could be used in wars, surveillance, cameras, and toys. 

Drones have gathered some controversy, however. They can fly too close to aircraft, and theres also come concern about privacy. There's a lot of legal debate about wh controls air traffic, and what laws can be put in place to protect citizens. 

Despite its controversy, drones have become very popular. They've done a lot of good- drones can help monitor climate & environmental changes. They're used for less expensive aerial footage, and can even deliver online orders. They also help track poachers in Africa who are hunting animals illegally.They're very interesting creations, and everyone should be excited to see what's done with these devices next.

EOTO: The History of Television

 In almost every American home, you can find the same things- refrigerators, beds, and in most homes, a television. Television has become a part of every day 21st century life in the US. Almost every family has one in their living room or bedroom. But how did this invention become so popular? And where did it come from? In order to dive into TV history, we have to start at the beginning, at its creation. 

The very first electronic television was created in 1927 by Philo Taylor Farnsworth, who was just 21. He took the mechanical television, which was just short image clips on a screen, and turned it into something entirely new. After tweaking and fixing for a few years American electronic television sets were produced and released commercially in 1938. Different than mechanical televisions, electronic televisions are what we use today. In an article by Be Businessed, they explain the inner workings of the TV. "To control the firing of electrons, CRTs use two 'steering coils'. Both steering coils use the power of magnets to push the electron beam to the desired location on the screen. One steering coil pushes the electrons up or down, while the other pushes them left or right." This is what differentiates the electronic television from the mechanical. 

After its release, electronic televisions started to take off. They became very popular. By 1955, the first wireless remote was released to turn the TV on and off or change the channel. Soon, colored television was introduced. Though CBS’s first colored TV program ran in 1951, it wasn’t until 1966 that CBS had taken the lead to bring colored films and programming to all television. By 1993, 98% of American households owned a TV. In 2005, flat screens were introduced, which leads us to 2021. In the current age, most Americans own a colored, flat screen electronic television with a functioning remote.

But what makes the TV so special? Why does everyone have one? For starters, People can now get information quicker. Through broadcast journalism, any current event you should know about is accessible on television. Also, entertainment is a lot more accessible. Any time someone's bored, all they have to do is switch on the TV and flip through channels. Its never been easier to waste time. This is why the television became so popular so fast.

America has been able to witness historical moments through the comfort of their own home due to television. For example, the moon landing was broadcasted in 1969. In 1981, the royal wedding was played, and in 2012, the London Olympics were broadcasted. People have been able to watch the most influential events from their couch all because of this invention. This is why a century after its creation, the television is still relevant and popular.

Censorship and the First Amendment

 In January of 2021, Twitter shocked the world by banning the current US President, Donald Trump, from its platform. This move was made shortly after the January Capitol riots, when hoards of people stormed the US Capitol in protest of Bidens election win. Many people believed this to be incited by Trump, which is why Twitter banned him. In an official statement, Twitter said they banned Trump “due to the risk of further incitement of violence” after going through his tweets. This incident has sparked even more controversy this year on a long debated topic- should there be more or less censorship in the media? As US citizens, do we have a right to voice our opinions on social media sites, no matter how controversial they may be?

In this debate on censorship, many bring up a specific clause listed in the First Amendment- freedom of speech. In an interview with Forbes, author Lon Safto states "Any form of censorship, any form, is unacceptable. Social platform such as Facebook, whose primary business is open communication between its over 2.7 billion members, have a moral and legal responsibility to allow those conversations to transpire, organically." However, do these social platforms have a legal duty to allow any type of speech on their platform? Or are they able to pick and choose what type of content users produce on their sites?

It is true that in the Constitution, your free speech is protected. However, free speech is protected from the government, not from privately owned companies. Twitter is a private company, which means the First Amendment rule does not apply here. This means that Twitter and other privately owned companies have no legal obligation to keep Trump on their platforms. In an article from the Washington Post, journalist Amber Phillips states "The First Amendment was designed to prevent Congress or the states from blocking people’s freedom to express themselves. In fact, you could argue that it protects the right of a company such as Twitter to decide for itself what content to allow." Phillips brings up the point that the First Amendment not only cannot be used against Twitter, it may actually be an aide to those trying to get Twitter shut down.

The First Amendment does not condone government intervention in free speech. However, no where in the Constitution does it state that a privately owned company is prohibited from determining what type of content is produced via their platform. Because of this, Twitter, and any other social media site, is in the clear when it comes to barring users from their platforms, regardless of who they are. 

Supreme Court History

The Supreme Court has long been a crucial part of the US government. Formed in 1789, its been around just about as long as the country has. After reading the Supreme Court article from the History Channel, I discovered that although the Supreme Court was founded in 1789, its first case wasn't decided until two years later in 1791. Something new I learned was that the first Chief Justice was John Jay, who was also a contributor to the Federalist Papers along with founding fathers James Madison and Alexander Hamilton. Something surprising I learned was that the Chief Justice presides over the impeachment trials. I didn't know they play such a major part in our country history.

The importance of the Supreme Court in our country was my biggest takeaway from this article. These handfuls of people throughout the years have made some of the biggest decisions in law making. They've decided very important cases, from Plessy v Ferguson, to US v Nixon, to Roe v Wade. They've decided on all issues such as race, abortion, gender, and sexuality. After learning more about the Supreme Court, I now look at them a little bit differently. I don't think I ever truly appreciated the weight of what they do. I won't take there work lightly from now on.