Hey Ukraine: Give peace a chance!

There is a famous song by John Lennon - 'Give Peace a Chance'. Basically the title means that we should not just take violent action when we are upset, but we should look for opportunities to solve problems peacefully. There is no excuse for violence against each other. "Give peace a chance" means "Give peace an opportunity - please try peace before you try violence." John Lennon wrote some good songs.

I think this is good advice for Vitaly Klitschko and the opposition political parties which refuse to end their violent protests in Ukraine.  (An opposition political party is a political party that does not have power, but which wants power.) Too many people are dying at this point - someone needs to show great courage and take the path of peace.

Although the US government supports the opposition parties and the protesters, the American people do not seem to.  They seem to feel that Ukraine should take care of its own problems and, frankly, based on comments I have read on the internet, they would seem to agree with me that there is no reason why so many people should have died, just because the president of Ukraine signed a trade agreement with Russia.  

Basically, it looks as if Obama and Putin hate each other, personally, and I believe that Obama is encouraging the protesters to try to cause trouble for Putin and the Russian government. I also believe that Putin offered Ukraine an economic bailout to upset the western countries. The USA and Russia are using Ukraine the way countries were used during the Cold War (1945 to 1989). Barack Obama won a Nobel Peace Prize - over the years he has proved he did not deserve it.  

The fairly elected president of Ukraine signed a trade agreement with Russia - this is no reason for people to be violently protesting and dying.  Elections are 10 months away - if the president is unpopular, another president can be re-elected. There has to be a peaceful way to resolve this issue.

Sometimes, in a democracy, the president does unpopular things.  Not everyone is going to be happy with every decision.  Winston Churchill once said, "It has been said that democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others." Basically he was saying that democracy is not perfect, but it is better than anything else that has been developed so far. If one group or several groups does not respect democratic processes in a democratic country, there will never be peace in that country.  

Look at what South Korea did - they went from a dictatorship to a democracy in a relatively peaceful manner and even though half the country is not happy with the current president, South Koreans are not killing each other.  

Whatever happened to people who imitated Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.?  These leaders did amazing things non-violently.  Has everyone forgotten the great people who changed things peacefully?

Video of protesters throwing firebombs at Ukrainian police: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h22oHs3eiLg

Here is a short article from an English news source about the latest violence and who might be to blame for it:

The article:

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/20/us-ukraine-blame-idUSBREA1J0KB20140220

Vocabulary to help you understand the article:

presidency - the president is the leader of a country, 'presidency' usually refers to the office of president or the whole system under which the president operates.  i.e. Obama assumed the presidency of the USA in 2008. Obama became the president in 2008.

to blame - to accuse, to state that someone has caused something which is wrong

snipers - people with guns who hide and then shoot at others

clashes - violent confrontations, violent encounters or meetings

on the offensive - they attacked, they were the aggressors

The lyrics for Give Peace a Chance:

Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Bagism, Shagism, Dragism, Madism, Ragism, Tagism
This-ism, that-ism, ism ism ism
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

(Lennon is making fun of the excuses people use for violence.  Instead of saying "Everybody's talking about capitalism, communism etc..." he creates a bunch of stupid sounding 'ism's.)

(C'mon)
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Minister, Sinister, Banisters and Canisters,
Bishops, Fishops, Rabbis, and Pop Eyes, Bye bye, Bye byes
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

(Let me tell you now)
Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
Revolution, Evolution, Masturbation, Flagellation, Regulation,
Integrations, mediations, United Nations, congratulations
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

Ev'rybody's talkin' 'bout
John and Yoko, Timmy Leary, Rosemary,
Tommy Smothers, Bobby Dylan, Tommy Cooper,
Derek Taylor, Norman Mailer, Alan Ginsberg, Hare Krishna
Hare Hare Krishna
All we are saying is give peace a chance
All we are saying is give peace a chance

(In this last stanza he mentions a number of famous people from the late 1960s and early 1970s who were against the Vietnam War.)

Police attack protesters in Brasil

It seems as if little things always spark (start) large protests.  I guess the second lesson we can learn from Brasil (and Turkey) is that the police always make the situation worse by attacking and beating people.

In Brasil the government decided to raise bus fares and this lead to demonstrations.  The police then attacked protesters in the demonstrations and this has escalated (increased) the violence and resentment (anger).  In the photo below a woman has written: "We seek quality education, healthcare and transportation."

In this article The Economist seems puzzled (confused) about why the people of Brasil are protesting.  The Economist seems to think it is because the attention of the world is directed toward Brasil because of the upcoming Olympics and World Cup competitions. I disagree.  I think they are just fed up (to be fed up with something means you will not allow something wrong any more because you have suffered from it for too long) with a corrupt government and poor services for high taxes.

The article:

http://www.economist.com/news/americas/21579857-bubbling-anger-about-high-prices-corruption-and-poor-public-services-boils-over

Vocabulary to help you understand the article:

a demonstration/ a protest - when a group in a society becomes so dissatisfied with a government policy that they go into public spaces to express their anger.

a bus fare - the amount to be paid to ride a bus.  There are many poor people in Brasil and so bus fares are a central issue to people's lives there.

taking to the streets - this is an idiom: the people are taking to the streets!  This means they are protesting.

bubbling - if anger is bubbling it is rising or showing itself as bubbles show themselves when you are heating water.

corruption - this means the government is dishonest, does not help people and that politicians work to gain power and make money for themselves and do not help the people.

to boil over - like water boiling over a pot after it is heated too long.  The hot water begins to spill over the edge of the pot.

stunning - shocking

impeachment - when a corrupt president is forced out of office

dismissed - in this case: ignored

paulistanos - people born in Sao Paulo

universal free bus service - free bus service for everyone.

a mayor - the leader of a city.

commuters were unimpressed - regular bus riders were made angrier when the protests made their bus rides longer and more difficult.

vandalism by the hardcore - vandalism is when public property is destroyed or damaged.  A 'hardcore' group committed the vandalism - a group that was especially angry and violent.

a crackdown - when the government uses force to stop something it doesn't like

ill-trained, brutal police - badly trained and very severe

a rout - this is when one side easily defeats or beats the other side.

name tags removed - they didn't want the protesters to know who they were

stun grenades and rubber bullets - stun grenades explode and 'stun' people - make people feel disoriented, or unable to move quickly.  Rubber bullets are not metal bullets but can still kill people.

a bystander - someone just standing around.

to hunt stragglers - to go after people who are wandering around after participating in the protests.

mayhem - chaos, disorder

a markedly different tone - showed a different attitude

a splinter group - a smaller group that breaks away from a larger group and begins working on its own

looted - broken into so that stuff can be stolen.  Looting often occurs during protests.
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Vocabulary Review for "Update on Turkey"

The entry from which these words are taken is:

http://convostartersenglish.blogspot.com/2013/06/update-on-protests-in-turkey.html

Please review the vocabulary from this entry before doing the exercise.

Words to be used (answers come after the exercise):

to defy, dense, to show restraint,
fascism, rare, unrest,
secular, to mushroom, to impose,

1.  In 2003, when George Bush was putting together his military coalition (group of nations) to attack Iraq, countries like England and South Korea did not feel they could ____________ the wishes of the USA.  Tony Blair and Roh Moo-Hyun were both liberal politicians who felt they had to do what Bush wanted.

2.  The only thing that the international community can seem to do to stop Iran from pursuing nuclear weapons is to ______________ economic sanctions (penalties) for continued nuclear development.  This seems better, to many, than the Israeli proposal of attacking their nuclear facilities.

3.  The difficult economic times in Spain have led to a great deal of social ____________, as Los Indignados often protest the lack of jobs and opportunities.

4.  In the Iranian revolution, a _____________ dictator was replaced by an ultra-religious Ayatollah.  The country, then, became a 'theocracy,' a government ruled by religious leaders according to religious laws.

5.  The traffic in Manhattan is too ____________.  It takes forever to drive a car from one part of the city to another due to the traffic jams.

6.  When dealing with annoying or confrontational individuals it is often better to ____________________ than to stoop to their level and act the way they are acting.  (a confrontational individual is someone trying to cause trouble - to stoop to their level means to lower yourself to their level)

7.  _________________ was a nationalistic political philosophy developed in Italy in the 1920s, but the term is often applied to any type of authoritarian government control.

8.  The Obama administration tried to resolve the unemployment crisis by borrowing money to stimulate the economy.  However, unemployment has not changed for the better and US debt has ________________.

9.  Having a president who was as well-liked and effective as Dwight David Eisenhower has been __________ in US history.  "Ike" (as Eisenhower was called) led the US during eight years of peace in which the economy boomed (increased) and the Civil Rights Movement began.

Answers are below:





Answers:

1. defy
2. impose
3. unrest
4. secular 
5. dense
6. show restraint
7. Fascism
8. mushroomed
9. rare

Erdogan and the Turkish police attacked protesters again. The whole world is watching!

I want to be as objective as possible in presenting stories on this blog, but, at this point, I am disgusted by the Prime Minister of Turkey and the Turkish police.  Too many people are being harmed for no good reason.  I sincerely hope the protesters overthrow the Turkish government and arrest Erdogan for crimes against his own people.

As you can see from this article, the Turkish police have attacked protesters in Taksim Square again. 

The article:

http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2013-06/12/content_16609436.htm

Vocabulary to help you understand the article:

to be objective - not to form an opinion, not to show your own opinion but just to present the facts.  The opposite of 'objective' is 'subjective.'  My introduction was very subjective in that I expressed my emotions and opinion in regard to Erdogan.

to feel disgusted - this is when something makes you feel sick because it is so wrong.

to storm some place - to attack a place VIOLENTLY

a square - a public, outdoor space

a clash - a conflict, a fight

a riot - when a protest gets out of control, it is called a riot.  A protest is when people gather together to express their disapproval of some government action.

tear gas and rubber bullets - tear gas burns a person's eyes for awhile and rubber bullets are shot from guns and can kill people, even though they are not metal bullets.

to hurl - to throw. Apparently the protesters were throwing fireworks for some reason.  Fireworks are often used in celebrations to create beautiful patterns in the night's sky.

to pour into - to flood into, to enter in a large number, if a group pours into an area, there is a large number of people and they rush in quickly.

epicenter - center

demos - demonstrations; protests

bulldozers - vehicles that are used to move heavy objects away. Bulldozers are like giant trucks with pushing devices in front of them that push things away or crush things.

makeshift barriers - the protesters set up barriers quickly.  If something is makeshift, it is set up quickly.  A barrier is meant to stop something.  In this case the protesters wanted to stop the police and bulldozers.

to erect - to create or set up.

armored cars - cars protected by armor - strong steel.

to raise the stakes - a gambling term.  If a gambler raises the stakes, he adds more money to be won or lost.  Here, in this article, raising the stakes means Erdogan is taking a greater risk by attacking innocent people.

unrest - the opposite of peace.

to pose a challenge - to establish a challenge. A challenge is a type of problem that is difficult to solve.

a fierce challenge - a strong, aggressive challenge.

to douse protesters - to cover protesters.

a Molotov cocktail - this is a type of makeshift weapon.  It was created by General Molotov of Russia.  Basically you fill a wine bottle with alcohol, tie a rag around the bottle, light the rag on fire and throw the bottle at the enemy or an armored car.  When the bottle hits, it explodes and starts the thing on fire.

intervention - in this case it means 'attack.' Normally to intervene means to enter a situation and try to stop two parties from fighting or to stop something wrong from happening.

a concession - if you make a concession, you compromise or you do something the other side wants in order to make them happy.

to vow - to promise.

a clampdown - like a crackdown.  It is a use of extreme force to stop something.

to be sparked - to be started.

barracks - a place where soldiers live.  An Ottoman barracks - Erdogan wanted to destroy the park to create a type of Ottoman museum (The Ottoman Empire used to control the land where Turkey now is - it was very Islamic and often militarily aggressive).

authoritarian - when one person rules a country and does not care about democracy or what the people want.

to impose a conservative lifestyle on people - to force people to live a very religious and conservative (a conservative is usually not considered very open-minded) lifestyle.

secular - non-religious.

to escalate tensions - increase nervousness, increase a sense of unrest or fear.

to dismiss - in this case: to disregard or to consider something not important.

fringe extremists - the fringe is the very outside of something.  An extremist is someone who does not hold a 'normal' attitude - someone with very unusual beliefs or attitudes.

to topple his government - to destroy or overthrow his government.

scores - lots.

democratic credentials - to have democratic credentials is to have the basis or foundation of a democratic government.  Although Erdogan was elected democratically, he is acting like a dictator.

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Question for discussion/writing:

Do you think that the United States and other NATO countries are being too silent in regard to what is happening in Turkey?

Workers were harmed after protesting at a Nike factory in Cambodia

Many major US companies have built their factories in developing countries because they can pay lower wages than they would have to pay if they had their factories in the USA. 

They claim that they are helping other countries to develop economically, but the workers are paid outrageously (crazy) low salaries.

In Cambodia many workers held a protest due to the terribly low wages they were receiving.  The police were called in and attacked the (women) protesters with sticks that cause electric shocks to the victims.  (I don't think I'll ever buy anything from Nike again.)

The article:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2013/may/27/cambodian-workers-hurt-nike-factory-clash

Vocabulary to help you understand the article:

a clash - a conflict, when two different groups fight against each other.  This, however, did not seem to be a 'clash.'  This seemed to be an 'attack' by the police.  The women did not have weapons, but the police had weapons and were dressed in 'riot gear.'

a stun baton - a baton is a long, thick wooden stick.  To stun someone is to shock someone.  Apparently scientists have made such batons that have electrical charges and which can be used to give people electric shocks.

a protest - this is when a group of people do not believe they are being treated well or when a group of people disagree with something, and they gather together to publicly express that they are upset.

a coffin - this is the wooden box into which a dead body (a corpse) is placed

a trade union - this is an organization of workers that tries to defend the rights of the workers

riot gear - a riot is when a protest becomes violent.  "gear" is any type of equipment that can be worn over clothing.  Riot gear is protective stuff the police wear over their clothing (like helmets and bullet-proof vests).

to be deployed - to be sent to do a job

blocked a road - stopped anyone from being able to travel on that road

accounted for - made up.  Exports of clothing make up 75% of Cambodia's economy.

a strike - this is when workers refuse to work.

a warehouse - a place where goods or products are stored (kept) until they can be sent to retailers (stores where the goods can be sold).

it fell in on them - the roof fell on top of them

to collapse - to fall down

to stage a strike or protest - to have a strike or protest

at the plant - plant is also a term for factory

minimum wage - the lowest amount that a government allows an employer to pay an employee.  In the USA minimum wage is $7.25/hr. (which is very low).  The amount that workers are paid in developing countries, through minimum wage) is outrageously low.

to decline to comment - refused, wouldn't comment

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Conversation/writing topics: 

Do you think that companies like Nike are helping poorer countries to develop, or are they just using the workers to make money?

Before you buy any type of 'brand' item, do you think about where the item might have been made?  Would you refuse to buy an item if you knew the workers were being treated badly?