“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all (Francis Bellamy)” [http://www.oldtimeislands.org/pledge/pledge.htm]. Above is “The Pledge of Allegiance” by Francis Bellamy. This pledge represents a promise of loyalty to the flag, the US, and the government. Although it is a pledge within the United States, it didn’t hinder the US from being involved in internal affairs with other countries. The meaning behind the pledge of allegiance in this blog indicates whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation. To expand on this topic, I will discuss specific pieces of historical data that refer to dates, places, people, and concepts to prove this topic.

            In the years 1861-1865 America was preoccupied with the Civil war. During this time, Spain refused to acknowledge the Monroe Doctrine and they attempted to retake the Dominican Republican. As Mexico was frequently fighting, the US did not get involved, but European powers were involved because debts were owed by Mexico. According to the document, “A Pen Warmed-Up in Hell”, in the history reader, as our soldiers fought in the war they summoned two hundred and fifty thousand men. Numerous battles were fought, but by the end of the big war, two hundred and sixty-eight of the two hundred and fifty thousand total men were killed and wounded in the field. Just imagine all of the killed and wounded people because of the competition for land, sovereignty, and wealth. The fact that the United States had almost everything it needed to survive financially as a country our soldiers were still sent over to Iran to fight in a country that creates bombs and other nuclear weapons that could harm our country. It doesn’t matter if they claimed that they would attack first, the United States should have minded the business of its own country.

Along with engaging in internal affairs of Iran and other countries, There are also financial affairs between the US and one of the poorest third world countries—Haiti. It is understood that Haiti owes the United States because it has been said that the US has lent a helping hand to other countries, but wouldn’t it be logical to look at this situation from Haiti’s prospective? Yes, it is fair to view this situation from a deeper aspect than the country has failed to do. According to class discussions we’ve had, we have discussed Haiti to be an independent country, although it is still a part of France. Haiti was forced to borrow money from the US and France to pay for reparations in France. The US occupied and ruled Haiti for 19 years, (1915-1934), because troops invaded their territory. Haiti was also contrived to live under dictatorship. With all of this, I have to say that the US is the cause of some of its own problems.

            Overall, no particular country is to blame, but the United States still has contributed to the problems of its own country by not being loyal to the people to its country, and the people in it, and invading the territory of other countries. The Monroe Doctrine was issued by the US shouldn’t to voice its opposition to European affairs and is a prime example of why it’s not fair for the US to engage internal affairs of other countries. To say whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation, yes it was, and still because the US wanted total control of other countries by dictating their territories and financial status. If anything, the United States owes a lot more than what it’s expecting to get from other countries.

            “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all (Francis Bellamy)” [http://www.oldtimeislands.org/pledge/pledge.htm]. Above is “The Pledge of Allegiance” by Francis Bellamy. This pledge represents a promise of loyalty to the flag, the US, and the government. Although it is a pledge within the United States, it didn’t hinder the US from being involved in internal affairs with other countries. The meaning behind the pledge of allegiance in this blog indicates whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation. To expand on this topic, I will discuss specific pieces of historical data that refer to dates, places, people, and concepts to prove this topic.

            In the years 1861-1865 America was preoccupied with the Civil war. During this time, Spain refused to acknowledge the Monroe Doctrine and they attempted to retake the Dominican Republican. As Mexico was frequently fighting, the US did not get involved, but European powers were involved because debts were owed by Mexico. According to the document, “A Pen Warmed-Up in Hell”, in the history reader, as our soldiers fought in the war they summoned two hundred and fifty thousand men. Numerous battles were fought, but by the end of the big war, two hundred and sixty-eight of the two hundred and fifty thousand total men were killed and wounded in the field. Just imagine all of the killed and wounded people because of the competition for land, sovereignty, and wealth. The fact that the United States had almost everything it needed to survive financially as a country our soldiers were still sent over to Iran to fight in a country that creates bombs and other nuclear weapons that could harm our country. It doesn’t matter if they claimed that they would attack first, the United States should have minded the business of its own country.

            Along with engaging in internal affairs of Iran and other countries, There are also financial affairs between the US and one of the poorest third world countries—Haiti. It is understood that Haiti owes the United States because it has been said that the US has lent a helping hand to other countries, but wouldn’t it be logical to look at this situation from Haiti’s prospective? Yes, it is fair to view this situation from a deeper aspect than the country has failed to do. According to class discussions we’ve had, we have discussed Haiti to be an independent country, although it is still a part of France. Haiti was forced to borrow money from the US and France to pay for reparations in France. The US occupied and ruled Haiti for 19 years, (1915-1934), because troops invaded their territory. Haiti was also contrived to live under dictatorship. With all of this, I have to say that the US is the cause of some of its own problems.

            Overall, no particular country is to blame, but the United States still has contributed to the problems of its own country by not being loyal to the people to its country, and the people in it, and invading the territory of other countries. The Monroe Doctrine was issued by the US shouldn’t to voice its opposition to European affairs and is a prime example of why it’s not fair for the US to engage internal affairs of other countries. To say whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation, yes it was, and still because the US wanted total control of other countries by dictating their territories and financial status. If anything, the United States owes a lot more than what it’s expecting to get from other countries.

            The biggest challenge I faced this semester would have to be the history research paper assignment. The first thought that came to mind when Professor Underwood informed our class that we had to write another research paper like last semester for this semester, was: “I don’t think I can write another research paper, it’s too hard.” Little did I know, Professor Underwood allowed us the opportunity to choose our own topic to write our research paper on. This allowed my creativity to be expanded on unimaginable levels. The problem I ran into with this challenge was thinking of a topic for my research paper. I chose one out of four possible topics, not knowing my intention on how I wanted to organize my paper. The first step before the research paper was to write a research proposal stating what our topic was about and the sources we would use to help us write our paper. My topic was, The Birth of a Nation. At first I didn’t know this was a film, so I had to do more work than I realized. It was hard trying to find other sources of information on this topic because of the fact that it’s a film. When I first discovered that The Birth of a Nation is a film, the process of me writing my research paper became more difficult to approach because I hadn’t seen the film yet, but it was my duty, as a writer and a scholar, to take upon this challenge and prove my potential of what I didn’t think I could do.

            Personally, my progress as a writer has truly enhanced since I have been a part of the WISE program. The more course assignments we’ve had, the more I see my strengths and weaknesses as a history scholar. The blog assignments were challenging course assignments I faced throughout the course of this semester that reflected my strengths and weaknesses. Even though we had fewer blogs to write this semester the subject of them were a little more challenging than normal to write on. I had to rely on more than just my basic knowledge to help me write them. One of the subjects of the first blogs we had to write was on colonization. In this blog we had to talk about colonization in terms of the past, present, and the future, referring to how capitalism created the Atlantic Slave trade and the significance between the growth of European capitalism and the escalation of the trans-Atlantic slave trade.  Our second blog was based on American Imperialism. In this blog we had to write on whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation. The last blog dealt with civil rights and apartheid. In this blog, we had to compare and contrast the post-civil rights movement in the United States and apartheid in South Africa. All of these assignments forced me to expand on my writing and help me in all areas of WISE.

            Along with course assignments and my writing, my intelligence has enhanced, as well, in terms of my scholarship. I have always been told that we live to learn. Every day is a learning experience for me when we take notes, and write papers and blogs. I face the challenge of taking what I learn every day to apply it to other classes and certain life situations. As I have matured as a history scholar, I have noticed myself to be more eager to learn about events happening around the world, and I have never enjoyed it as much as I do now. It’s so interesting to learn how the world was and how much it has progressed since then. Sometimes I wish I could go back in time and be in the place of prominent leaders so I can relate to what we learn in class about them. Through this scholarship experience, I have taken advantage of learning as much as possible in WISE History so I can instill the same information in future students when they ask me questions about the past. Everything I have learned up until this point has not been futile and it shall stick with me as I continue to grow.

            Overall, I feel I have been living up to the potential that my past instructors have always saw in me, and I will continue to strive to do my best in every area. My progress along this journey has been positive, thus far, and I can look back and say that my WISE experience was beneficial for future references. Through challenging course assignments, my writing, and daily scholarship, I realized my maturity level and creativity progress. No matter what happens in the future, I will always remember what I learned on my freshman journey through WISE.

            “I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all (Francis Bellamy)” [http://www.oldtimeislands.org/pledge/pledge.htm]. Above is “The Pledge of Allegiance” by Francis Bellamy. This pledge represents a promise of loyalty to the flag, the US, and the government. Although it is a pledge within the United States, it didn’t hinder the US from being involved in internal affairs with other countries. The meaning behind the pledge of allegiance in this blog indicates whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation. To expand on this topic, I will discuss specific pieces of historical data that refer to dates, places, people, and concepts to prove this topic.

            In the years 1861-1865 America was preoccupied with the Civil war. During this time, Spain refused to acknowledge the Monroe Doctrine and they attempted to retake the Dominican Republican. As Mexico was frequently fighting, the US did not get involved, but European powers were involved because debts were owed by Mexico. According to the document, “A Pen Warmed-Up in Hell”, in the history reader, as our soldiers fought in the war they summoned two hundred and fifty thousand men. Numerous battles were fought, but by the end of the big war, two hundred and sixty-eight of the two hundred and fifty thousand total men were killed and wounded in the field. Just imagine all of the killed and wounded people because of the competition for land, sovereignty, and wealth. The fact that the United States had almost everything it needed to survive financially as a country our soldiers were still sent over to Iran to fight in a country that creates bombs and other nuclear weapons that could harm our country. It doesn’t matter if they claimed that they would attack first, the United States should have minded the business of its own country.

Along with engaging in internal affairs of Iran and other countries, There are also financial affairs between the US and one of the poorest third world countries—Haiti. It is understood that Haiti owes the United States because it has been said that the US has lent a helping hand to other countries, but wouldn’t it be logical to look at this situation from Haiti’s prospective? Yes, it is fair to view this situation from a deeper aspect than the country has failed to do. According to class discussions we’ve had, we have discussed Haiti to be an independent country, although it is still a part of France. Haiti was forced to borrow money from the US and France to pay for reparations in France. The US occupied and ruled Haiti for 19 years, (1915-1934), because troops invaded their territory. Haiti was also contrived to live under dictatorship. With all of this, I have to say that the US is the cause of some of its own problems.

            Overall, no particular country is to blame, but the United States still has contributed to the problems of its own country by not being loyal to the people to its country, and the people in it, and invading the territory of other countries. The Monroe Doctrine was issued by the US shouldn’t to voice its opposition to European affairs and is a prime example of why it’s not fair for the US to engage internal affairs of other countries. To say whether or not America was and remains an imperialist nation, yes it was, and still because the US wanted total control of other countries by dictating their territories and financial status. If anything, the United States owes a lot more than what it’s expecting to get from other countries.

Since 1500, colonization has had an immense effect on our society from the past up until now. The concept of colonization is essential for comprehending history on so many levels. For example, how did capitalism create the Atlantic Slave Trade? Or what is the significance between the growth of European capitalism and the escalation of the trans-Atlantic slave trade? To answer these questions, one must understand the term “colonization” as it refers to the past, present, and the future. “Colonization” just simply means the process of establishing a colony; with that I can further discuss the overall concept of colonization with respect to the role of capitalism and what colonization means in terms of the contemporary culture.

Capitalism is an economic system which invests in ownership with respect to production, distribution, and exchange of wealth that’s made and maintained by private individuals or corporations. The capitalism process created the Atlantic Slave Trade by the transporting of animals, goods, and plants. As far as the food, plants, and natural resources that Europeans obtained from the Americas were tobacco, sugar, and cotton. The same process followed with the Europeans transporting goods to Africa. The only way for these products to have come about was the cruelty, abuse, and demeaning punishment the slaves were subjected to for colonization to be existent; but the process didn’t stop here and is, as a matter of fact, apparent of our contemporary culture in America today. A lot of the products that America receive are made in other countries and shipped here from more advanced countries, like China, Japan, Australia, etc. The government, in America, practices the act of capitalism every day by charging taxes on  products and individuals and private corporations continue to expand contributing their time, and money, to help build America up. Colonization is such a broad process that doesn’t stop in the present; it can further be discussed in terms of the future.

With the development of virtual technologies, such as Second Life, Civilization IV game, and the film, Avatar, the future of colonization is more advanced. These three virtual technologies exemplify what colonization was, is, and could be. Second Life is a fun, easy way to create a networking process with people from all over the world. It also has landmarks of famous places that exist today. Second Life is an overall beneficial way that gives people the opportunity to exploit advanced technology all while staying connected to others. Sid Meir’s Civilization IV is a game that the WISE English students engage in to learn the way of colonization by training warriors, archers, workers, etc to help build an empire. The experience of playing this game is a challenge, but helps players to grasp the concept of colonizing an empire or city. Avatar is a sci-fi film with a mixture of virtue reality and graphics. This movie is a perfect example of colonization as it relates to transforming and fighting for territory. A paraplegic war veteran, named Jake, was taking his brother’s place in a mission on another planet. Here, Jake learns the ways of life of a humanoid race with their own culture and language. 

The views of colonization from every aspect of the past, present, and future can be distinguished by the examples I have mentioned above. Although countries have different ways of colonizing, the concept of colonization is still the same, but we are subject to advanced opportunities than past colonization. As our society continues to become more advanced, colonization will continue to expand. If that’s the case then maybe we’ll be the ones to exchange products with other countries first.