Remembering Nelson Mandela

Nelson Mandela died on December 5, 2013.  Nelson Mandela was a great man and the world is still mourning his death.  He died from a recurring infection.  Even though we are still mourning his death it is a time to remember all the great things he has done not only for South Africa but for the world.  He fought against a system called Apartheid.  Apartheid was a system of segregation in South Africa.   The government had divided the country along racial lines.  One part was White Africa and the other half was Black Africa.  He was sentenced to life in prison for fighting against the system in 1962.  He was kept in prison for 27 years, but was finally released in 1989.  While he was in prison along with other leaders of the ANC (African National Congress) other civil rights fighters still tried to rebel against the government. The apartheid government finally came to an end in 1990.  Mandela became South Africa’s first chosen black president in 1994.

I find his Nelson Mandela very interesting because his story is very inspirational and he has done wonderful things.  Upon his death, I became more interested in learning how his life has had such an impact on the world.  I am also impressed by how he acted when he was finally released from prison.  He didn’t hate his captors, but instead treated them with respect and forgave them.  There aren’t many people who have had such a large impact on not only their country but on the world.  Some people have even compared him to Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, and Abraham Lincoln.  I’m very impressed with how determined he was to help South Africa end Apartheid.  In his early days he tried to end Apartheid with some forms of violence against the government and military.  He stated that he wanted to overthrow the government and reconstruct South Africa with freedom, democracy, and most importantly, equality.  He wanted all people to be equal so badly that he said “It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve.  But if needs to be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”  The most impressive part of his life was that his long imprisonment made him more in favor of a peaceful solution.

~Luke

Watch me cry from the inside

Bullies

Hitting, teasing, threats, rumors, gossip, punching, stealing, and calling names are all examples of bullying. Bullying happens everyday, whether you know it or not, someone somewhere is being hurt. Whether it’s verbal, physical, or cyber bullying, it still hurts. If you call people names it has a huge impact on their mental, physical, and emotional health. Bullying can take place in crowds, or somewhere not in public. For example it can happen in school (around nobody) or even in an alley. Also, a target of a bully could be bullied by one or more kids at a time. In fact, schools worldwide are trying to prevent bullying from happening by taking action. I bet someone came to your school to talk to you about bullying, and to tell you about the bad effects from it. Now I’ll tell you honestly, about the way I feel about bullying.

Being a target of bullying stinks! So, when and if you see someone being picked on, and you do nothing about it, you are a bystander. You have just let the person down, even if you tell yourself you have done nothing to harm them. However you have walked away on the situation at hand. But really think about it, why would anyone stand there and watch someone be hurt? Is it popularity or the thought of it happening to yourself?

~Samantha

Are the Patriots Chances of Making the Super Bowl Ruined?

Last Sunday, Rob Gronkowski, the New England Patriots star tight end was hit hard after a passing play. When the medical golf cart came to pick him up and drive him off the field, it was reported that he was swearing from the pain. The Browns defenders went over to Gronkowski before he was driven off to say sorry that he had to get hurt. This act is rarely done and for opposing team members to do that, you know the injury is bad. After the game, Gronkowski’s results were released. They said that he had torn an anterior cruciate ligament and would miss the rest of the season.

I am a big Patriots fan. I’ve went to a game before and I watch every game on TV. When Rob Gronkowski first joined the team, it was clear that he wasn’t like the other players. He was strong, fast and had a mentality that when he caught the ball, not even a tank could knock him over. So when I saw him get hammered by the Browns safety and not get up, it was obvious something was wrong. On all the other plays, he’ll have 2 or 3 guys on his back and he finally goes down but pops right back up but on this play he stayed on the ground. I thought,” There goes our Super Bowl chances. Then the golf cart came out to pick him up and when that cart comes out to pick up a player, it’s usually their last time coming off of the field in the season.

~Ben