http://walmartstores.com/AboutUs/8123.aspx

Wal-Mart as a company has dominated America as the model for retailing for the past few decades.  Sam Walton, the founder of Wal-Mart, built the company on a foundation of high volume, low prices and fast turnover.  The portion of the corporate website that deals with the philosophy of Wal-Mart speaks of how they save their customers money by offering the best deals. This way, they reason, their customers have extra money to invest elsewhere.  What Wal-Mart fails to explain on this page of their site is that to offer these remarkable prices, they have to purchase their manufactured goods from foreign countries, primarily China.  According to a program aired by PBS, Wal-Mart relies heavily on imports instead of domestically produced goods.  Many companies within the United States cannot afford to sell their products to Wal-Mart for the prices they ask and still pay their workers reasonable salaries.  Wal-Mart simply drops the manufacturer if they can’t adjust to their standards, which sends the message that the company needs to have a factory abroad for Wal-Mart to purchase from them.  It is also sadly ironic that while Americans can afford Chinese products through Wal-Mart, there are very few industrial workers in China who can afford American made merchandise.

http://www.applejuice.org/johnnyappleseed.html

This website tells the “official story” of Johnny Appleseed (John Chapman).  It tells the very story we hear when we are in elementary school, that Johnny Appleseed planted apple trees wherever he went, hoping that no one would be hungry.  This website also describes Johnny Appleseed to be a kind and gentle, yet poor (even resorting to wearing pots and pans as a hat), wanderer.  At the bottom of the page it states that when Johnny Appleseed died, that it was his first time being sick in over 70 years.

What this website does not tell you is that Johnny Appleseed actually planted nurseries, and left these nurseries to the care of neighbors who sold the trees on credit.  Every two years or so Johnny Appleseed would return and collect payment, in any form (money, goods, etc.).  Johnny Appleseed also spent as much of his time as a missionary spreading faith and religion as planting apple trees.  In fact, because Johnny Appleseed was against grafting, his apples were mostly of a non edible variety and used mostly for making cider.  Also when Johnny Appleseed died he left an estate of 1,200 acres, and 4 plots of land in Indiana to his sister.  Johnny Appleseed died in his sleep from winter plague (pneumonia), but he is believed to have been plagued his whole life with a very rare genetic disorder called Marfan Syndrome.

information obtained at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnny_Appleseed

http://gardenofpraise.com/ibdcolum.htm

The above website has a short biography of Columbus clearly written for children. The story which ends with the line “Columbus not only discovered a New World, but he led the way for other explorers,” even makes some attempt at correcting the “official” Columbus story by pointing out that he was not, in fact, trying to prove that the world was flat. Unfortunately, however, the rest of the site’s story omits several key points regarding Columbus’ life and character. The most obvious part of Columbus’ story which is left out of the “official” version, is that on his first voyage he kidnapped 25 men to bring back to Spain with him, and later kidnapped many more to use as slaves long-term. Though the official story we learn as children hails Columbus as a hero (we still celebrate Columbus Day) in reality, he was a criminal who perpetrated crimes against humanity.

http://www.virtualvender.coca-cola.com/ft/index.jsp

The Coca-Cola website tells us that Coca-Cola “is the most popular and biggest–selling soft drink in history.” Coca-Cola tells us that Mr. John Pemberton first created “Coke” as mixable fountain beverage syrup. Coke began selling in 1886; was sold in every state in the US by 1895; and Coca-Cola products are sold today in more than 200 countries. Coca-Cola shares this history with us but they fail to share some other important about the history of their product with us.

Coca-Cola is so named because the original formula contained coca leaves (a source of cocaine) and kola nuts (a source of caffeine). Mr. Pemberton was an herbalist and had experimented for years with coca and kola. It was originally produced it as a patent medicine (a name often referring to a drug that is not registered in order not to expose the various ingredients). What Coke doesn’t tell us on their website is that it contained approximately 9 milligrams of cocaine per glass, until 1903, when cocaine was removed because of the Pure Food and Drugs Act. Still today, Coca-Cola aggressively denies that cocaine was ever found in Coke.

References:

http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-1854

http://www.snopes.com/cokelore/cocaine.asp

http://inventors.about.com/od/cstartinventions/a/coca_cola.htm

Gatorade: http://www.gatorade.com/default.aspx#product?s=prime

Counter Story: http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/news/20060309/gatorade-tough-on-teeth

According to the Gatorade website, Gatorade Prime contains carbs and B vitamins to “sustain your body’s ability to burn additional carbohydrates when taken 15 minutes before competition.” The Gatorade Perform is said to make athletes performing at their highest. The Gatorade Recover is said to reduce thirst and replenish the body. All these things sound like they help your body to perform at the maximum and keep the body going.

What does the website descriptions not tell you? They don’t tell you that Gatorade causes erosion of teeth. From a research done in University of Iowa, it is found that Gatorade is more corrosive than Red Bull and Coke. This research shows that Gatorade is not better than soft drinks.

http://www.fritolay.com/our-snacks/doritos.html

Doritos. Delicious, cheesy nachos in a bag. What could be better? According to Dorito’s website, “Doritos® brand tortilla chips deliver a powerful crunch that unlocks the bold and unique flavors you crave.” Yet they fail to fully mention the sickening ingredients that are mixed into them. There are between 36 and 39 ingredients put into each individual Dorito. Only two of them are actually necessary in making nachos. The site claims that there is “good stuff” like “vitamin B6 and Phosphorus” put into Doritos. However, there are other, more disgusting, ingredients put into these orange chips that include dextrin, maltodextrin, dextrose, and corn syrup solids. In addition, artificial flavoring and Monosodium glutamate (MSG) are also a part of these so called “natural” chips. MSG gives Doritos their addicting quality, and interferes with the appetite-regulating hormone known as leptin. Though appealing, Doritos are a snack that should be avoided.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/300_%28film%29

In this movie “300”, a heroic squad of 300 Spartan soldiers takes on the Persian Army at Thermoplyae. It says that the Spartans alone were able to hold their ground against the Persians and take down numerous lines of Persian soldiers for three days before falling. The Spartans are able to stop the Persian army long enough for the rest of the Spartan army to prepare and that in the end the Spartans won against the Persians.

What this doesn’t show/tell is that although there were 300 Spartan soldiers at Thermoplyae, there was also 4000 other Greek soldiers there supporting them the first two days. Another fact it doesn’t show is that the “Immortals” of the Persian army were not slaughtered, but actually sacrificed so that the Persian army could go around the Spartans and head straight to Sparta, while the Spartans were distracted with the “Immortals”. In the actual Battle of Thermoplyae, in the aftermath of the battle, Xerxes actually desecrates Leonidas’ dead body after he has achieved victory, which they have no mention of in this movie.

Although this may seem like a heroic story, filled with extraordinary men. It was actually just regular men but many more of them then mentioned.

Soy Health Benefits

For those who are vegetarian and vegan, soy has been a god-send. In the health food industry, soy has been found in almost everything: soy milk, tofu, and fake-meat products. There are great qualities of the bean. They help in matters of the cardiac system, menopausal symptoms, and osteoporosis. There is also other evidence in it helping with pancreatic and breast cancers. After the hippie age, companies and big-business has found the product was an interest for their consumers that they began exporting the product heavily.

However, there is research to counter these claims of health. There are an array of “anti-nutrients” in soy that actually cause distress within the body. Also, there is a property in soy that causes red-blood cells to clump together (haemagglutinin). Animals have been observed to avoid soy entirely when encountered with it. The critters that were exposed to soy had cases of calcium and other minerals being sucked out of the body, as well as different kinds of cancers. So be careful in choosing your “health-foods.”

Many of the points for and against soy are based on only speculation and assumptions of future consequences. I do think that there are positive results of intaking soy, but to replace your entire diet with soy products is a dangerous thing to attempt. After all, a balanced diet is key to true health.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FieBKhHhDwQ

http://lyrics.wikia.com/Rush:Countdown

In the song “Countdown” by the progressive rock band Rush, the launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia on April 12, 1981 is reported both musically and poetically. The song relates the awesome and incredible experience of observing the first manned space shuttle, since the Apollo missions, begin its launch in a blaze of fire and sound. As the shuttle musically ascends towards space, one is left with the feeling of enormity and grandiosity that might have been felt by all observers.

Though the first launch of the Space Shuttle Columbia truly must have been an amazing and memorable event, the band neglects to mention the catastrophic end to the program. On January 16, 2003 (the shuttle’s 28^th flight) Columbia was destroyed upon re-entry into the atmosphere due to a dislodged piece of foam that damaged the shuttle’s wing; all of the astronauts died in the crash. It is important to note this later unfortunate event when discussing the original launch, because of its impact on the entire NASA program itself.

http://poetry.eserver.org/paul-revere.html

Many children learn about the heroic ride of Paul Revere in elementary school.  They are usually expected to learn this poem, or even memorize it.  However, there are many flaws that arise in this poem about how the midnight ride actually occurred. The phrase, “the British are coming!” is one that none of the riders yelled.  There was still a large percentage of the population that was loyal to the crown, so this operation had to be in secret.  Not only that, but Revere was only one out of nearly forty people who sent out the alert.  The main leaders were Revere, Prescott, and Dawes; in the middle of the operation Revere was arrested so the others had to complete the task without him.  Many people see Henry Wadsworth Longfellow as the person to blame for this misunderstanding in his poem.  But, the poem was never intended for historic purposes, rather, it was used for nationalistic purposes during the time of the Civil War.

http://memory.loc.gov/mss/mfd/47/47006/0001d.jpg

I think this poem shows an appreciation of farming despite the fact that he was a former slave. I think that this shows that he struggled with his freedom rather than the tasks given to him by his masters. I can only imagine the way I would view a farming scene after having been enslaved for my whole life and knowing that my brothers and sisters were still captive. We can really see how he exhibits a passionate hatred for slavery, but then maintains the ability to see the beauty of a farm scene. I think this is a characteristic that made him a prime example for other freed slaves, as well as a capable tool in disproving many common ideas about slaves.

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=mfd&fileName=16/16013/16013page.db&recNum=2&itemLink=/ammem/doughtml/dougFolder4.html&linkText=7

When browsing through the artifact titled scrapbook I noticed that it wasn’t exactly what one would expect when browsing through a scrap book. Most of the articles actually in the scrap book are news paper clippings announcing the death of Frederick Douglass as opposed to reflecting upon his life accomplishments. In fact almost everything in the scrapbook reflect information regarding his death in dozens of different newspapers, with the occasional photo of Douglass. The obituaries that are written next to his death announcement inform the reader about the family he had up to that point in time and the kind of life that he had lived. At the time of his death it is safe to say that he was a well respected man for there to be this much media over his passing. The obituaries also reference him with high regards, at the time of his passing he had accomplished a lot that many may never get to in their life time. It is safe to say that this was written in 1895, because this was the year he had passed away.

It tells us that Frederick Douglass had made a name for himself by the time that he had passed and was now known across the nation for his accomplishments in being an abolitionist. This artifact however does not inform us about what kind of news papers were announcing his death. There could be a difference in how people viewed his death based upon how biased the newspaper was especially in terms of race.

web address:

memory.loc.gov

From looking at the artifact itself, I can see that it is written entirely in French. It is a very official looking document sent to Douglass by the President of Haiti, General Hyppolite in the year 1890 (45 years afterNarrative of the Life was published). The artifact is an invitation, from as much as I can tell, welcoming Douglass to visit the President in the National Palace.

This artifact reveals the extent of Douglass’ fame and influence. Haiti was the first black republic to declare independence, so it is understandable why they would want to invite him, being the foremost black figure in that period of time. What is incredible is that 45 years after his book was published, he was still sought after. This is very telling about Douglass’ character. He never stopped working for his cause and was still seen as an icon 45 years after he first broke through. Many figures in history just pop in and out, but Douglass lit up the world stage for decades, so much so that he was still touring foreign governments nearly half a century later.

After reading over this artifact, I wonder how many foreign governments Douglass toured in his lifetime. Did he travel the world championing the abolitionists’ cause? Did he do work in other countries to improve the lives of their people, or did he mainly focus on the United States?

Attachment link: http://memory.loc.gov/mss/mfd/47/47001/0001d.jpg

From looking at the map, one can infer the intentions of Frederick Douglass. Because he owned a map of Talbot County, a location he has spent much of his life as a slave, a place where he experienced many of the events in his story, shows his interest in escaping. The map is in near perfect condition, which indicates how Douglass cherished it for his goals.  It shows that he needs it and that it is a valuable resource to his plans. From this, one can see the dedication and resilience Douglass possessed to achieve his objective: to free himself and others from the entrapment of slavery.

The item that I noted was an undated document, which I found in General Correspondence, Undated: A. I can’t make out what the document says in its entirety, but I think the purpose of the letter was to send a poem for the Lincoln Monument inauguration. The letter is undated, but because Douglass wrote it as an “offering for the Lincoln Monument inauguration,” I’m guessing that it could have been written around that time.

I think the document shows the ‘poetic’ side of Frederick Douglass. Of course, we already know that he’s an eloquent man. His Narrative—in fact his whole career as an orator and writer—is testament to that, but I think it’s interesting to see another facet of his writing; in some places, it’s straightforward like his prose (“In vain blood was made to flow”), and in some places, it’s a bit more lofty (“Adorn thy golden hair“). The poem shows he thought of Lincoln positively.

One of the first questions I had after reading this was: Did he deliver the poem at the inauguration, or was it a silent offering that was meant to be read by others? Also, I’d like to know more about his relationship with Abraham Lincoln, but I’m mostly curious about if he wrote any other poems. If so, did they deal with slavery and freedom, or did he ever write about more ‘fanciful’ matters such as nature or romance? Whenever I think of Douglass’s writing, I think of very sharp, crisp language; he’s poetic, but I don’t necessarily see him as a poet, so I’d be interested in seeing how his writing style differed, if at all, between prose and poetry.

Artifact web addres:

http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/doughtml/dougFolder8.html

By examining the invitation to the unveiling of the Thomas Statue, a lot can be said about the time period and Frederick Douglas himself. Looking at this artifact, it is obvious that it is antiquated from the usage of the style of text as well as the content within the invitation. However, more can be said about Frederick Douglas and the prestigious, well respected man he was. During the late 1800’s it was very uncommon for a black man to be invited to such events, therefore this artifact reiterates how influential Douglas was. Examining this artifact also poses some questions. It causes one to wonder what sort of relationship the Society of the Army of the Cumberland and Douglas had so that he and his family were personally invited to this event. Also, one could question what sort of affect the possible attendance of Frederick Douglas to this event had on the members of the nearby community and the supporters of the Army of the Cumberland. Did the outright support of a black man lessen or increase the following of the Army of the Cumberland? All these questions and many more can be posed by looking at this simple artifact, which can be researched and further examined, then can help to better explain Douglas and his impact.

This particular appointment book of Frederick Douglass reveals much about his daily schedule for the year of 1867 (marked in the upper left corner of the first entry), and also suggests several considerations about his character and behavior in general.

By simply looking at the photograph images of the book’s pages, a lot can be observed about how Douglass scheduled himself and how he managed his time. The planner seems to be organized into two-page increments- the first in series containing dates, places, and sometimes short jottings, and the second containing additional space for lengthier notes.

Perhaps most revealing of his personality is that while the pages containing dates are consistently filled almost entirely with places and events, the supplementary notes pages are completely lacking in information. In fact, many of these pages are left blank.

What this implies about Douglass is that he was able to keep track of the details of his daily schedule and arrangements in his head- which would have been no simple task, given that he travelled for weeks on end with no break.

New questions that could arise from further study of this planner might investigate the nature of this frequent traveling of Douglass and what specifically was accomplished on each trip, as the planner does not specify.

artifact web address:

#mce_temp_url#http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=mfd&fileName=49/49001/49001page.db&recNum=0&itemLink=/ammem/doughtml/dougFolder9.html&linkText=7

The artifact is a speech Douglass gave in Broadway Tabernacle, New York on May 11^th, 1853. His main purpose was there to discuss the current condition of the colored people of the United States as well as their future. In the speech he was able to show the audience the oppression the colored people had faced due to slavery and to evangelize for the abolition of it.

From the speech, I was able to see that Douglass was a black man in a white man’s world, meaning that, to Southern American principles, he was worth less than a white man, even an immigrant white man like an Irish. I also noticed that the words he used and the way he put them together was highly sophisticated and just astonishing to think that he taught himself to write in such an elegant manner. The way he used his words captivated me as I read his speech. It made me believe him whole-heartedly and want to support him in his fight for freedom. His words really depicted the image of suffering and inequality towards blacks and how though some men are free from slavery the fight is not over until all men are free.

This artifact brought up the questions of how did this speech affect the audience? What type of reaction did they have to it? Did they feel as captivated as I did? Did something, some movement, come from this speech? Did he give this same speech everywhere or was it a different speech every time?

http://memory.loc.gov/mss/mfd/47/47003/0015.jpg

Frederick Douglass kept a large number of newspaper articles that help us gain a better understanding of the times he lived in.  One clipping that was particularly interesting wasn’t an article at all, but rather a page full of advertisements.  One of the most prominent stated in bold letters, “THE BLACK PHALANX.”  Below, in slightly smaller print, it said, “A book for the Race.”  Surrounding this were other advertisements.  One asked, “ARE YOU A SUBSCRIBER OF THE CLEVELAND GAZETTE?” promising it was “Devoted to the Interests of the Race.”  A third read, “A NEW RACE IN A NEW ERA.  MAKING NEW LITERATURE AND HAVING A UNIQUE HISTORY.”  Others on the page were advertising a “good education” with teaching on “Grammar, Normal and College Courses.”

The newspaper was published in September of 1892, a time in our country when many black men and women couldn’t read.  It is clear that more and more literature was being written “for the Race” and The Cleveland Gazette was encouraging them to pursue an education in reading.

That Douglass saved these advertisements shows the way he too valued education.  As one who taught himself to read, it was important to him to see others learn as well.  The fact that he had this newspaper and could read it was a great feat in itself.  It leaves us wondering what emotions must have filled his heart as he read those words, knowing others were also discovering the freedom he found in the written word.