Webquest

Remembering: Weapons of War

Understanding: Join The Military

Dear Mother
I will be far gone when you read this. I don’t know where I am going, but I know that it’s not safe for me, or any other “men” here. They paint their posters, they yell their slogans, they shoute from the highest mountain and scream at the top of their lungs that it is my duty to join the war and help, that it is my responsibility as a citizen to do so. I can’t and I won’t, this war was nothing more than hate and anger between a few men fighting over things that aren't theirs. Now they’ve blown it up, and try to talk like it’s about more than that. Well it i more than that now, but not in the way they think. Every country was on edge, everybody had their armies ready, everybody has someone’s back, everybody’s fighting over land they claim to own, and most importantly, everybody’s proud, proud that their country’s better than yours and so ready to show you how that's fact. When you think about it, it was only a matter of time before someone went over the edge, then everyone else, every country, every nation, every ally goes over as well. This happened because they are human, the people running the government are human, and like humans they will get angry, and fight and make wrong choices, and I refuse to go and fight, refuse to go and die for another human’s choice. There are so many deaths, so many bloody deaths, neighbors, friends, family, your husband, my father. The list goes on and on, and I refuse to be added to the list of pointless deaths that will never be remembered, which is why I leave you. I hope one day, when the war is over, I get to see you again.

Applying: S.S. Lusitania

Lusitania: What really happened?
Given the fact presented it’s pretty obvious that what happened to Lusitania was no ordinary occurrence. The official story is that one torpedo was shot at Lusitania from a German U-boat, but the most notable and irrefutable fact that, at the very least, leaves this open to opinion, is that there were two explosions. One torpedo, two explosions, it doesn’t take a mathematician to figure that one out.
So the first question we must ask ourselves is WHAT? What caused the second explosion? We know from history books that Britain was shipping military artillery overseas, so it would make sense that the British were carrying military supplies on the Lusitania, which they were. Although, for something to create such a devastating hole on the Lusitania, it would have to have been gun-cotton, or something radically explosive like gun-cotton which was not one of the things Britain admitted to carrying. If they were carrying it, why hide it, why not just say they were carrying gun cotton, unless it wasn’t gun-cotton, it could’ve been a bomb purposely placed there.
So if a gun was a bomb or something equally as explosive placed on the Lusitania, then the next question we must ask ourselves is WHY? Why would there be a bomb placed on the Lusitania. We just discussed that the British were carrying military supplies, we also know that Germany tried to shoot down these supply ships with their U-boats. One tactic used by Winston Churchill was to disguise supply boats to be plain and mundane, then have them be attack boats to fight back the Germans. Once this strategy was put in place, Germany warned that there would be no mercy to any British ships, regardless of the possible civilian casualties. Britain knew this, but obviously people don’t stop traveling simply because threats are made, especially is the threat isn’t viced to the passengers by the captain. So to recap, Britain knows that Germany is now targeting passenger ships, and they don’t warn the passengers, but why.
Well to answer this why, we must ask WHEN? When is this taking place? Well this whole Lusitania thing is taking place during WW1 and what is currently happening is that the British, and Germany are at a stalemate. So if one side were to suddenly get more support, they would most-likely win. Well the only truly strong nation that could possibly tip the balance is America. So is something were to happen to Americans, that would make America pretty anger, maybe angry enough to join the war. Well as “luck” would have it, there were plenty of Americans that died on Lusitania when it went down.
Now that I have presented all the facts, I conclude with my opinion of what really happened on May seventh, 1915. I believe that the British planted an explosive on the Lusitania, because they knew that Germany was targeting that ship, a ship that had hundreds of Americans. They knew that is Americans were killed by Germans, America would most likely join with Britain. So they planted the bomb to make sure that Americans died in order to get more support to win the war, the lesser of two evils is most likely how they saw it.

Analyzing: Opinions On Profiting

Evaluating: Interview a Soldier

Q) What was the training like?
A) It was weeks of intensity, they train you as though their are the enemy, so you get used to being attacked. If you can’t handle what they do at training then you are certainly not cut out for war.
Q) Where and when did you sleep?
A) Well when we were on our way to the trenches and had to stop we would sleep in civilian homes. They were unpredictable, sometimes they would be a very nice person or group of people who would be happy to have us and support us for what we’re doing. Sometimes they would be people who didn’t like us or what we standed for, which was war. But regardless of whether they liked us or not we still slept in their homes. When we got to the trenches it was terrible. We had to essentially sleep on top of each other, and stay in the trenches which were flooded with water, feces and rats, but we couldn’t go anywhere else cuz then we’d risk lowering our defenses, and becoming weak.
Q) What were you equipped with?
A) Well we all had a rifle regardless of what you were doing you had your old-reliable rifle. Most of us were given coats and sheets to keep warm at night as well. Another crucial thing that we had, that were in the trenches were gas mask to protect us in case of an attack from the other side. There were also a variety of different things you could have depending on which group you were in. For example if you were part of an granadeing group, during raids you would obviously have grenades, or if you were part of a group that manned a machinegun then you would have a machinegun.
Q) Did you ever get sick?
A) Once I got sick with eczema which is when your skin gets inflamed. I got it on my arms most likely from being in the tranches, which honestly were so disgusting, I'm surprised I didn’t get it in more places on my body. In addition to that, I got what is now called “trench foot” which is when your skin becomes really weak and easy to tear and starts to die, from being in cold water or mud for such a long time.
Q) How often did you deal with the idea of your own mortality?
A) Well when you're surrounded by dead bodies constantly it certainly is something you think about hard. The constant deaths remind me that I had to be extremely careful no matter what I was doing. Every day I would wake and think “Is this the day I die”. Because of such constant possibility for death, I wrote a last will and testament, in case I die to leave everything to my mother. Considering the shocking amount of people that died on boths sides, i suppose i should consider myself lucky.
Q) What did you eat?
A) It was really all kinds of stuff. Because we moved around quite a bit we had to take what we could get, and rationing was a pain because you didn’t know how much food you would get the next time we get any food. At the end of the day anything was ok, we just needed something to keep us moving so we wouldn’t starve
Q) What were the trenches like?
A) Well as I briefly mentioned they were disgusting. The complete lack of infrastructure didn’t help either, the most we had was a small hole in the ground which would do little to nothing. When it rained it got cold, and we just had to stand there and be in freezing cold water in addition to everything else that’s going on around you. Although despite all that, the worst part in my opinion was the rats. The never ending squeaking, they would always get into our food, it was truly awful. Their stubbornness to die alludes me, they survived the heavy fire the grenades, even poisonous gas.
Q) How did it feel, being in a situation where you lost so many people on a regular basis?
A) It was hard seeing so many people just fall. Some people tried to argue it was the new normal, our “normal” life, but there was absolutely nothing normal about it. After being in a battle you quickly caught on that it was pointless to try and make true friendships because it was all but a guarantee that that new friend would die soon. Eventually you form some immunity to it, it stops bothering you as much, but it still bothers me sometimes. So many people died and I lived, I’m supposed to be one of the lucky ones right?
Q) There was talk about a Christmas truce, what was that?
A) It was something alright. It was Christmas, like the name implies, and both sides have stopped or i guess haven’t really started, then people start coming out of the trenches and we just start talking and singing christmas songs and having a good old time like we’ve known each other for years. It still amazes me every time I think about it, here we are, people from two different sides who, just a couple hours ago, were trying to kill each other. It showed that there was still some humanity left in all of us, enough to let us have just one day off from all the killing. And to think I’m standing here next to someone who tried to kill me, someone who succeeded in killing my allies, and I’m standing next to this person saying “Merry Christmas”
Q) Was it worth it, if you had the opportunity to choose again, this time you know what’s coming would you change your answer?
A) No, I would keep my answer the same. It wasn’t a choice for me or many people, it was our duty as men, as strong men of Britain to defend our country, to stand up against Germany, Not a right or Privilege but a responsibility, to not go is to give up, and how can one give up when their constantly bombarded with their “responsibility”. You make the mistake of thinking it was a choice, as if it was that simple. There was no choice, there was only responsibility.

World History