Brianna's US History Blog

The Great Railroad Strike territory in NY, PA, WV and OH During class, we were asked to browse through the Library of Congress's newspaper archive to read primary sources from 1870-1890. First I searched, "The Great Railroad Strike." In The New York herald , I read about how intense the strike was by just reading the short blurbs down the right hand side of the paper. I was shocked by the severity of the situation compared to the readings in class, "A day and night of blood and horror at Pittsburg." and "The Great Railroad Strike becomes a savage war." They even included the casualties as if the headlines did not convey the strike clearly enough, "ninety-one lives lost and 149 persons wounded in various struggles." As I continue to read through the newspaper, moving away from the headlines into the content, I see immediately the editors comparing The Great Railroad Strike to the Civil War, "Not since the dark and threatening hours of...

Opportunity Luck Hard Work Skill Success Iceberg I think that opportunity is the most important factor in terms of economic success. Opportunity is defined as "a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something." Without opportunities, becoming or creating anything is extremely difficult. One was be rewarded with opportunities in order to be successful. The next important factor is luck. Luck is success brought by chance rather than one's own actions. Once one has the opportunity to be successful they must also have the luck to turn opportunities into something real. Hard work is important. I believe that hard work can get you halfway to success, but it is not the most important for economic success. Lastly is skill. I strongly believe that skill is important. Without opportunities, luck, or hard work, no amount of skill will make you economically successful.

In  Smoke Signals , Chris Eyre illustrates how Thomas and Victor are simultaneously burdened and empowered by their Native American roots. They are burdened by Christopher Columbus and his discovery of the New World which brought diseases to the Native Americans wiping out 90% of their population causing them to continuously defend themselves. In addition, Victor struggles with the stereotype of people thinking that all Native Americans are alcoholics. Although they are burdened tremendously by their Native American heritage, Thomas and Victor are able to feel empowered. Victor finds power and meaning through the history of Native American warriors while Thomas finds it through the Native American tradition of storytelling. He shares his stories and experience with others to show what it means to be a Native American to him. Through storytelling, Thomas is able to empower others to be true to themselves. The movie  Smoke Signals  illustrates how Native Americans are bur...

In Smoke Signals , Chris Eyre illustrates how Thomas and Victor are simultaneously burdened and empowered by their Native American roots. They are burdened by Christopher Columbus and his discovery of the New World which brought diseases to the Native Americans wiping out 90% of their population causing them to continuously defend themselves. In addition, Victor struggles with the stereotype of people thinking that all Native Americans are alcoholics. Although they are burdened tremendously by their Native American heritage, Thomas and Victor are able to feel empowered. Victor finds power and meaning through the history of Native American warriors while Thomas finds it through the Native American tradition of storytelling. He shares his stories and experience with others to show what it means to be a Native American to him. Through storytelling, Thomas is able to empower others to be true to themselves.