Group items tagged

In this article, ethnic groups, such as the Maori, which are found in New Zealand, are getting paid lower wages and they are not considered equal to the other non-ethnic groups. Even though this has not escalated to a full out war (yet), what would happen if the Maori stopped putting up with being "inferior" to the other groups? Would a territorial conflict arise? I think the answers to these questions are obvious because land equals money, which equals power. So, for these Maori people to get the equality they deserve, maybe all they need is a territorial war to gain back power?

I don't think war is a good idea, it seems that if the people want equal pay, they have to do something about it. As seen in the Arab-Israeli conflict, it may not be the best idea to go to war, but perhaps the people need to do something else.

I agree with Brooke. Despite the fact that land equals money and money equals power, does a war guarantee that the minority group will gain land and thereby power to be paid the same amount? In addition, a war requires political power and money in order to gain access to resources. If the minority group has little power to begin with, how are they to obtain the resources necessary to win a war? There must be a better solution to this issue than to go to war.

The film industry is trying to bring the dangers of advancing terror groups into light. Groups like ISIS are spreading fear and influence across regions like the Middle East, but they are also spreading their influence to places all around the world. Social media outlets have made this spread of ideas possible and able to thrive. Globalization or the interconnection between all of us in this day and age has given us the ability to spread and receive ideas like these with ease. Anyway, important people that run the film industry may realize the importance of this danger and decide that they should spread it to get the audience to realize it as well. It's a case of hierarchical diffusion and I believe that their goal is eventually expansion diffusion. It's all about spreading ideas to where they're not necessarily regarded as widely. I know for a fact that the war on terror isn't as prevalent in our minds as it is in the people that are collateral damage from it. Filmmakers are trying to change that with themes that act like metaphors to the situations going on right now in war-torn areas. These producers and creators of films take advantage of the popularity of the medium to display their ideas and spread them. However, will these messages make their way through to the public? Will they see that the war on terror is sometimes as bad as the films' problems? Will the medium have any effect on the progress we make with ridding the world of these groups of terror?

You got it. The film industry has certainly been a vehicle for globalization. We tend to trust ideas from those we admire and respect or from mediums such as Youtube that are easily accessible. Invisible Children came out with a Youtube video a few years ago about the African war lord, Joseph Kony. https://youtu.be/Y4MnpzG5Sqc How might something similar be created about ISIS?

Yes, I remember this video. I had watched it when it had caught so much traction. I think a huge difference between Kony and ISIS is that I feel like not many people really knew about Kony while the news has basically insured that everybody knows about ISIS. When it's a new topic, people may be more interested in finding out more about it, like with Kony. But I feel like if a Youtube video like that was created for ISIS, it might not gain the same traction because it has been covered heavily for the past year. That's why I'm so intrigued with the hidden themes in movies because I feel that subtlety is the best way to bring forth new ideas without being overbearing.

This article is about the Palestinian conflict we have been discussing in class, and how it seems to be turning from a racial to a religious war, changing from bad to worse. How much longer can this region go before full-out war begins? What other countries may be dragged into a possible war?

I think because of the histories of the two places and the fact that what is happening now is because of years of increasing tensions and dangerous conditions, this conflict will not be solved soon, and because of that, it will only get worse. Both groups want the territory, but one group was placed there (the Jewish people by the British) so they spread and began to dominate, claiming it as theirs.

I agree with Alex, the tension in this region is historic and recently rekindled with the insertion of Israel back into this area. The conflict there is essentially a time bomb on its final countdown and is not likely to be dismantled before it goes off. From my perspective there is no way to stop it unless one religion is removed which is even more impossible.

This article discusses the Israeli-Palestine conflict and how that has turned into many cruel acts of violence. What would possess someone to kill these men, especially on the stairs of a holy place?

Four rabbis and a policeman were killed by 2 palestinians inside of a jewish synagogue, and many people fear that the conflict between Israelis and Palestinians is becoming a religious war, since they have different beliefs. Why would the Palestinians decide to attack the Israelis?

This article is an example of territorial conflicts and religion, because the Russians believe the reason they are fighting is for religious purposes, and that their war in Ukraine is a holy war. How do the Ukrainians view the conflict and it's involvement in religion?

Ukraine has been part of Russia several times and has fought for their freedom from Russia in several wars. Currently, they have only been independent since 1991.

Adam brings up a good point, the history of the Ukraine and Russian conflict must be deeply rooted in historical conflict over the centuries. It would be neat to dig into the history, particularly how the ethnicity differs between the two countries.

Does anyone have an answer to this? What would war look like in space (think Star Wars movies)?

The existing war in Syria is expected to become more violent due to the major religious grudges that have increased over time. What other reasoning do you think supports the fact that religious wars are twice as likely to recur and twice as deadly to combatants?

This article describes the struggles of migrants as they try to cross Macedonia's border to escape conflicts such as war in Syria. Recently, thousands of the refugees and migrants have forced their way across the border and are closer to the safety which Europe can offer them, away from their war-ravaged homes. The migrants had faced challenges with police as many poured into Greece and tried to move further into Europe, spending, "...days in the open with little or no food or water after Macedonia on Thursday declared a state of emergency and sealed its borders to migrants..." (Reuters). The geographical theme of mobility is shown here because of the diffusion of the migrants from their homes, in areas such as Syria, Afghanistan, or Iraq, to Greece and other areas of Europe. With the rising issues and struggles of the migrants, questions arise. Why are the migrants receiving no help or care from other countries to remove them from the war zones they had escaped from. What will Macedonian police do in response to the continually rising amount of migrants coming through their protected borders?

The civil war occurring in the Central African Republic recently affected even a neutral peacekeeping organization in a negative way. This threat have left many homeless searching for a way out. These emigrants trying to escape the war will likely cause traits of their culture to expand beyond the Central African Republic's boarders. Such an event would relate to the theme of mobility as the ideas of those people move through relocation diffusion. These events have also grabbed attention on a global stage as the rest of the world works to solve the conflict that is hurting so many people. A theme of region also starts to appear, when the area where most of the violence is occurring produces this carnage. Where the war rages heaviest people will develop a vernacular region, labeling the area dangerous, and try to stay away. One event in a defined part of the world can have a large impact all over. How will the United Nations respond to the violence? What will happen to the supply deprived people in Central African Republic is the main supply route is impassable?

Thank you for making accurate connections, Christian. Great questions, too. One way to predict the UN's response to violence would be to see their previous responses to conflicts. The organization has made many mistakes (Rwandan Genocide) in the past so I believe they attempt to be as proactive as possible. On another note, as human geographers, it's interesting to observe who is emigrating and where they choose to go. I believe it suggests a deeper story as to what the political, environmental, and economic conditions of the places are. Stay tuned for our second unit on people and migration.

In this current event, territory conflicts among Jews and Palestinians arise due to their different beliefs dealing with the city of Jerusalem and the boundary between the two religious groups. What will the Jews and Palestinians do to resolve their disputes over this issue?

Maybe the Jews and Palestinians will create a peace treaty of sorts and divide the use of the territory equally. More likely though, they will probably go to war about it. Why do all disputes end in a war these days?

I agree, it seems that when attempts at a peace between groups fail, they immediately resolve to violence. In the end, do they believe that the death toll is worth the fight? In many cases it seems that there could have been multiple solutions to solving conflict when people went to war.

These territorial conflicts are coming to be due to the fact that Islamic and Jewish Holy Lands are build right on top of each other and these two groups have to fight for control. Why can't Jerusalem just become a non governed state? Why do any of the conflicting religions need control?

I think its cool that your article, Lexi, connected to willows! This whole issue is fascinating and scary! Great article!

Eena - Why is this issue fascinating and scary to you?

This map really confused me! I understand that Mexico has a climate that is attractive to elderly migrants...however, with the ongoing drug wars, why would migrants choose Mexico? Regions in the north and center display a higher percent of elderly migrants. I compared this map to one depicting homicides related to the drug wars. It appears that there a more homicides per 1,000 persons in the mid-North, which perhaps serves as a hub, with homicides decreasing from this central point.

The U.K. hasn't been willing to let in a lot of immigrants since world war 2. They made a policy that increased the strictness of how many people were allowed into the country.

Many people are fleeing Africa and the Middle East to European territories such as Italy, Greece, France, and Spain. This map shows the routes taken from Africa and the Middle East into Europe.

This graph portrays the fluctuations in immigration to the United States, starting with 1850 until 2011. There is a dramatic decrease in immigration through the years 1930-1960, for these were the periods of the Great Depression, World War II, and the Cold War with Russia. In addition, there is a decreasing in immigration between the decades of 1990-2000 and 2000-2010 due to the U.S. recession.

I question why immigration had not picked up in the 50's and 60's, when the wealth had picked up in the States. Had the depression hit other nations by then?

I wonder why immigration was so low during WWII because you would think that Europeans would've wanted to get out of there as soon as possible to get away from the violence, and America would've been the perfect place to escape.

In Poland a train was discovered that had gone missing in 1945 at the end of World War II. The people who found the train will not reveal its location until they are promised 10% of the value of what's inside the train. Some believe there is Nazi treasure well over one million dollars hidden within the train. The train was a military train, so there could also potentially be weapons such as nuclear bombs in it. This is an example of the geographical theme of globalization because it describes the technological advancements that the Nazis has during World War II. Will the people who discovered the train reveal its location? Are there weapons, treasure, or something else inside the train?

This article talks about the issue of the build-up of people waiting at the Greece-Macedonia border to gain access into Macedonia. Most of these people are fleeing from Syria, trying to avoid being caught in the middle of the civil-war in their country. The migrants are stuck at this border because the Macedonian police are denying passage into the country. They are having trouble processing all of the people attempting to come in and keeping everything organized. Macedonia simply does not have a place for all of the refugees trying to gain their access into the country. Coming with these migrants is also their problems, which brings me to my theme which is mobility. Macedonia does not want the problems of the war or problems of the people to overwhelm their country, and that being said, they are not allowing everyone to come in. These migrants are very poor as well, having little to no food or money with them. Where are the migrants going, or what will they do if they do not receive access to Macedonia? How will they obtain basic materials to meet their needs of survival?

Territorial conflicts arose between the Burmese and the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) because the Burmese want the KIA's land which is abundant in resources such as timber and hydropower. Is it possible for there to be peace between the two groups after all the violence and fighting that took place?

After reading your article, it doesn't seem like there will be peace between the two groups anytime soon. The Burmese are determined to steal the KIA's land, and it doesn't sound like the KIA is going to give up very easily in protecting their territory. As long as the Burmese continue to want the KIA's land and resources, then violence and wars are going to keep breaking out until one of them succeeds in stealing or protecting their territory.

I agree, I do not see peace between the two groups happening soon. The Burmese won't give up until they get the KIA's land, but the KIA will most definitely put up a fight. In my opinion, the Burmese don't have any right to the land. The KIA own it and therefore they should not have to share their resources.

This article talks about the ongoing religious conflict in Israel and Palestine. For decades they have been fighting over the land that holds there holy spaces. I wonder if this conflict will ever end.

Sadhana- I agree that peace will be very difficult to achieve. They both want different things for themselves and the conflict will take time to resolve.

Bailey- I agree that the conflicts end is to be questioned. The idea shown in the article that neither side is willing to compromise is one of the largest issues in my opinion. The holy sites are so close together which makes both sides want the land enough that they will go to extreme lengths to defend it.