The Most Important Part Of The 20Th Century!

The Most Important Part Of The 20Th Century was that.......

I WAS BORN!!

Seriously, If I weren't born, you wouldn't be reading my blog.... :)) Think about it .

B-25 Mitchell

The B-25 Mitchell is an American bomber plane. It was used against Germany and Japan with devastating results throughout World War II. This plane was named after General Billy Mitchell who was an early air pioneer, making this plane the only one in the United States Air Force named after a specific person. The B-25 was an improved version of the XB-21 created in the 1930's. This plane was originally created to be exported to the United Kingdom and France since both places has a requirement for this kind of an Aircraft ever since the early stages of Word War II. Both countries however decided that they didn't want the B-25 and instead went with the A-20 Havoc.

The B-25 first gained its fame in April of 1942 in the Doolittle Raid. 16 B-25's successfully bombed Tokyo and four other Japanese cities without any loss the themselves. 15 of the planes however did crash land in China on the way home because of fuel exhaustion and stormy conditions. The one plane that did not crash land, landed in the Soviet Union where the lane was confiscated and the 5-man crew was interned. 71 out of the 80 crewman survived and made it back to American lines.

Another famous incident involving a B-25 Mitchell was on the date of July 28, 1945. At 9:45 in the morning a B-25 was flying through thick fog, and crashed in the North side of the Empire State Building. 14 people were killed in the crash including 11 people in the building and the pilot and two other occupants in the plane.

Armenian Genocide

The Armenian Genocide occurred from 1915 - 1917 and has been acknowledged to be the first true Genocide. This Genocide happened when over a million Armenians were deported and massacred by the government of young Turks. Over twenty one countries have accepted this as a genocide but the Turkish government refuses to accept that the characterization of the events as genocide. Western sources sometimes point that the sheer scale of the death toll is evidence enough that the Armenian Genocide was a systematic, organized plan to eliminate the Armenians. This genocide is the second most studied.

In May of 1915 it was requested that the Government's cabinet pass a law which would legalize the deportation of Armenians living both near the Russian front or interior. The committee passed a temporary law of deportation giving the Ottoman government and military permission to deport anyone it sensed was a threat to national security. Several months later it became the law that all property including land, livestock and homes belonging to any Armenian was to be confiscated.

It is very hard to understand how some people can feel such hatred against other people that they feel that murder is the only answer. Hopefully I will never fully understand these feelings.

Yasser Arafat ياسر عرفات

Yasser Arafat (Real name Mohammed Abdel-Raouf Arafat al-Qudwa al-Husseini ) recieved the Nobel Peace Prize for the negotiation of the Oslo Peace Treaty in 1993. The peace treaty pulled Israeli forces out of the Gaza Strip and West Bank and gave Palestine the right of self-government in certain areas. Yasser Arafat is seen as a freedom fighter by his followers, but his opponents describe him as corrupt and weak. Arafat is also widely recognized for his leading in the Fatah movement which had to do with terrorism in Israel.

I'm sorry but I don't really understand the peace negotiations that he helped make. They are kind of confusing and it is a lot of information with big fancy words. I'm sure that there were great things done by this man, I'm just not entirely sure what those things are at the moment...

Susan B. Anthony

Susan Brownell Anthony was an American civil rights leader who played a huge role in the Women's rights movement. Susan Anthony and Elizabeth Stanton founded the National Women's Suffrage Associating, and organizing with the goal of gaining women's equal right.

In Earlier years Susan had tried to unite women in the Labor Movement but she did not have great success. After that Susan Anthony payed no more attention to the Labour movement because suffrage was not seen as a concern for middle-class instead of working class, as well as because she was encouraging women to achieve economic Independence by learning printing trades while the male workers were on strike. Her strategy was to untie all suffrage groups whenever possible to try and concentrate on gaining the vote.

On November 5, 1872 Susan Anthony was arrested for casting a vote in the presidential election. Anthony pleaded not guilty saying that the 14th amendment entitled her to vote because she was a "person" born in the united states and citizens shall not be denied the "privileges" to people born in the United states, which includes voting. Susan was sentenced to pay a $100 fine to which Mrs. Anthony replied "May it please your honor, I will never pay a dollar of your unjust penalty." To this day she never has paid a dollar of that fine and the government never made her.

It is great that Susan Anthony was able to persuade many people to change their minds on women's rights. I think that Susan is a hero in a way for trying to set a good example for fairness of all people.

Roald Amundsen

Roald Amundsen was a Norwegian explorer. He helped to lead the very first successful Antarctic expedition to the South Pole between 1910 and 1912. Amundsen was a key leader during the age of Arctic exploration.

Amundsen's initial plan was to head north and claim the north pole, explore the North Polar Basin. Roald heard that Frederick Cook and Robert Peary had already claimed the North Pole, so Amundsen changed his plans. Head for Antarctica. He needed to found something to guarantee funding for his North Polar journey, so he headed south. The only people informed of the change of plans was Amunsen's brother Leon and the commander of the ship. Roald waited until the ship had been on waters for a while before informing the crew of the change of direction. Luckily for Amundsen no one in the crew objected.

Amundsen arrived at the South Pole on the 14, December, 1911. A team of 5 people and 16 dogs and explored. Upon leaving the South Pole Amundsen left a small tent with a letter inside stating the accomplishment in case of the ship not returning home safely, but the voyage home was a smooth one. The ship made it to the South Pole and back in 99 days, originally planned to take 100.

In June of 1928, While Amundsen was on a rescue mission his plane crashed. Rescue parties were sent out but Roald was never found. It was presumed that he was killed upon impact or soon after. Roald Amundsen's body was never found.

Roald Amundsen seems very sneaky to me. What would he have done if the crew did not want to go the South Pole, he is incredibly lucky that they did not try and throw him off the ship. If I was told I was going one place and then half way there told that I was lied to I would be pretty angry.

Idi Amin

Idi Amin Dada was a former president of Uganda. He took power in a military coup in January of 1971. His reign was defined by human rights abuses. He soon gained groups of people who apposed him, mainly Acholi and Lango ethnic groups. In July of 1972 over 5,000 Acholi and Lango soldiers were killed, and 10,000 civilians had gone missing. Soon the same fate came to other ethnic groups, religious leaders, judges, lawyers, students, criminal suspects and foreign nationals. Soon people were being killed for criminal motives or simply at will. Bodies were dumped in the Nile River, and on one occasion the Owen Falls Hydro-Electric Dam was clogged.

Idi Amin then declared that Asians and Europeans who owned businesses be handed over. 60,000 Asians were kicked out of the country and Emigrated to Britain, Canada, Australia, India, U.S., and Sweden. Many of the former Asian companies which were the foundation of the country were mismanaged and lead the the decline of Uganda's economy.

On April 11, 1970 Amin was forced to flee the country. He escaped the Libya. On July 20th, 2003, Idi Amin was on his death bed. Idi's wife pleaded that he be allowed to return to Uganda to die, but the President told her that Idi would pay for his sins if he returned. Idi died in Saudi Arabia on August 16, 2003.

Again, I really don't understand these leaders who feel the need to go and kick everybody out of their country or try and kill all these people.

Neil Armstrong

Neil Armstrong is a former American Astronaut, Test Pilot, University Professor, and Naval Aviator. He is most well known for being the first man to step on the moon, and in turn become the first person to ever step foot on an extraterrestrial world.

Neil Armstrong took his first spaceflight in 1966 on the spaceship Gemini 8. The only goal of this mission was to perform the first docking of two spacecrafts together, this goal was achieved. His second and last space mission was on July 20, 1969. This is his most famous mission as it is the one where Neil lands on the moon. In this famous mission came the famous words "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Armstrong spent 2.5 hours with Buzz Aldrin while Michael Collins orbited above. Neil Armstrong received the Congressional Space Medal of Honor. This medal is awarded to an astronaut who performs extraordinary accomplishments while in space flight and makes scientific discoveries that benefit mankind.

Neil Armstrong is an amazing person. Not just because of the fact that he was the first person on the moon, but because he kept using his fame after his return to earth. I think that it is great that every time someone used his name or his famous quote and he got payed, that money mostly went to foundations. Even when Neil took legal action for things such as his barber selling his hair for $3000, the money was donated.

Anastasia

Anastasia was the youngest daughter of Nicholas II of Russia and his wife Alexandra Fyodorovna. Anastasia was believed to have been murdered with her family by the Bolshevik's. However, Anastasia's escape has been rumored since 1918. Many women have claimed to be the missing Anastasia, however no DNA evidence has ever been related to the Grand Duchess.

In 1917, Anastasia and her family were awoken in the night and told to dress. They were told that they were "Being moved to a safer place because of the anticipation of the violence that might occur when the white army arrived". Once dressed the family was herded into a small room in a basement of a house. After a few minutes executioners came in and said that the entire family would be killed. Supposedly the only word that Tsar Nicholas II got out of his mouth was "What?". The executioners shot bullets and killed everyone. The women however were able to survive a little longer because of their corsets. These corsets had diamonds sewn into them so that they would not be found. These diamonds in turn became almost like an armour. It was also said that Anastasia and her sister Maria were crouched up against a wall trying to hide but were soon taken down with bullets. There is also another story that says that Anastasia survived the bullets and was either finished with a bayonet or that as the bodies were being dragged, Anastasia screamed, and was clubbed in the head.

There are many stories about the survival of Anastasia. The most famous of the stories was that "Anastasia" had pretended to be dead among the pile of bodies, and when a guard found her still alive he felt sorry for her and let her escape. This woman who told this story would later call herself Anna Anderson. She made headlines for decades. She made some family members believe she was actually Anastasia, and other not. The battle of Anna Anderson to prove that she was Anastasia was the longest running case running from 1938 until 1970. The court finally decided that Anna had not provided enough proof that she was indeed Anastasia and would not claim the title of Grand Duchess. When Anna died in 1984, DNA tests were conducted and it was concluded that it was very unlikely that she was Anastasia. It was said she was most likely the missing Polish factory worker Franziska Schanzkowska. It was Anna Anderson that truly made Anastasia and her tale famous.

I find it highly unlikely that Anastasia was able to escape. If she was locked in the basement with her family, I'm sure they would have noticed someone alive. Although the remains of Anastasia and her sister Maria were never found, I think that their bodies may lie in another place instead of with the rest of the family. It is said that a possible explanation for the missing Anastasia and Maria is that the two girls were cremated somewhere out in the forest.

Muhammad Ali - Cassius Clay

"Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee, Your hands can't hit what your eyes can't see."

Muhammad Ali is a retired American boxer, as well as a three-time world heavy weight champion and a winner of an Olympic gold medal. Muhammad Ali was born on January 17, 1942 in Louisville, Kentucky, with the name of Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr., named after his father. Muhammad Ali changed his name after he joined the Nation of Islam. The Nation of Islam is a social/political organization in the United States. The goal of The Nation of Islam is to resurrect the spiritual, mental, social, and economic condition of Black men and women all over the world.

Muhammad Ali was 'discovered' when he was only 12. The 12 year old Cassius was angry because his bike had been stolen. The Louisville police officer Joe E. Martin directed Cassius toward a gym to let some of his anger out.

Muhammad Ali had a very different style of fighting for a heavyweight boxer. When most boxers would cover hold their hands high to defend themselves, Ali would rely on his speed to avoid being punched. This style of fighting won Muhammad Ali 6 Kentucky Golden Gloves, 2 National Golden Gloves, and Amateur Athletic Union National Title, and the Light Heavyweight gold medal in the 1960 Olympics in Rome.

I think that it was Muhammad Ali's unique fighting style that was able to help him become the greatest heavyweight boxer of all time. It is amazing to think that if the 12-year old Cassius Clay's bike hadn't been stolen, Muhammad Ali may never have even been a boxer.