Achilles the Wrestler

“You and your opponent want the same thing, the only difference is who is willing to work harder for it.” -Ben Askren  

It was down to the final moments, of the Milwaukee Area Dual Meet Championship. Achilles  was locked in a brutal match between him and last year’s state champion. The odds were against him. But Achilles had a secret talent. He was unbeatable unless he was pinned on his heel.

It was the beginning of the first of three periods Achilles was unable to pin Odysseus but was able to pick up a good 6-0 lead. By the time the last period had occurred Achilles was still holding up a good lead against Odysseus. Achilles had said, “I got this”.  This meaning that the match he was in now could easily be won and come out on top.  Odysseus had met with his coach and revealed Achilles weakness.

Achilles’s weakness is simply his tendon jointing together your gastrocnemius muscle with most of your heel bone.  Now just know as our Achilles tendon.  This is because in Achilles was dipped into the Pewaukee river when he was a baby and this made him invincible.  Where his mother had held him while he was submerged into the river was his ankle.  

When Odysseus and Achilles faced off for the last time, Achilles tried his signature “leg ride” move, to try to bring him to the ground. Odysseus was caught off-guard and fell to the ground. Achilles then put him into a half-nelson and prepared to pin him for the win. Odysseus quickly turned and grabbed Achilles’ ankle. Achilles could not fight against him anymore and was defenseless; he then fell to the ground. Odysseus easily pinned him down winning the match and beat the unbeatable.   

Odysseus Then and Now

Author's note:

This is a piece comparing Odysseus in the "Trojan Horse" story to more modern installments of the same type. I also tried to put in A-B transitions

In every battle since the dawn of humanity, there have been leaders. Some good, some not. Some fighting for what is right, some not.  But in the classic story "the Trojan Horse," the leader of the Greeks, Odysseus used his cunning abilities to outwit the enemies, and claim victory. After learning this story, countless movies/ media have centered around this idea of manipulation. 

King of Ithaca, Odysseus was the main Greek war commander in the Trojan War. After ten years of bloody fighting, he wanted to put a stop to it once and for all. He used his ingenuity to create a large wooden horse to be placed inside the walls of Troy containing a small amount of Greek soldiers. The Trojans were manipulated into thinking the Greeks had ran off and left them a peace offering. Once inside the walls Odysseus waited for the larger attack around the city had begun. While Troy's military was occupied by the attack they did not notice Odysseus and his soldiers wandering around the city killing certain leaders. Troy had been manipulated and cost them their lives and city.

As stated earlier, this concept has been replicated in media for years. One of the most recent and popular occurrences happened in the recent video game COD: Black Ops II. Where the main terrorist against the UN surrendered to the US planning to be brought aboard their command center. While he is being detained, his soldiers begin an all out assault on the center. While the entire force is occupied by the attack, he breaks free. While wandering around the ship he executes the head commander. He then makes his way to the database and uploads a virus to hack their entire military network. He then uses the technology to make his own army, cripple the US military, and use the weapons on countless innocent cities. The US had been manipulated, and it had cost them much more than just a city. 

United States Army

Author's note:
This is my last piece for the year, and I wanted to do it about something that I am really interested in. I did it about the US Army' s origins .

Since the birth of our country we have needed a force to protect us. The first armed force to be born was the Army. When it was started we were at war for freedom against England. It met the needs for a force that can protect us almost anywhere. Now they still remain to protect us.

When we were fighting against England in the Revolutionary war, we needed a force that could lead the fight on land. That was the army. They saw conflict on many different battlegrounds. They ultimately lead to the victory against England for freedom.

While the war was raging there was a "safety crisis" going on back in the homesteads. The population did not   feel safe with just the local militia forces protecting them. But when the Army started fighting they had a more trust in the fight. They were at piece knowing that they were going to be safe with the Army protecting them.

 One of their bloodiest battles happened in the Invasion of Canada in 1775. Here they fought along with the Canadian militia against the British Quebec and the British army. They were completely outmatched and was one of the worst losses for the Americans. But later in the war when the Army was back to fighting, they were able to rebound from this loss and make-up with huge victories.

Since the dawn of America the Army has been there to stand guard. They fought time and time again against our enemies to keep us safe. They were brought up with honor in one of America's darkest days. And they still remain to keep that.

Things Are Not Always as They Seem

Author's note:

this is a summary of the story The Trojan Horse, and a look at how this is used in modern times. 

For ten long years, the Trojans and Greeks have been locked in a vicious fight. For ten years they had lost countless good men in the battles, but soon it was all over. The Greeks had constructed a large horse and hid in it. They had presented it as a peace offering to the Trojans, but they were really going to kill them when they came out. Hey had used manipulation to fool them into thinking they got a trophy. 

These kinds of things can happen these days. On your computer, a Trojan Horse can go into your computer and insert viruses without you ever knowing. Or when you are applying for a job, the employer may display the workplace as better than it actually is. These kinds of things have been seen in countless media and TV. One example is in the video game COD: Black Ops II, the main terrorist surrenders to the US Army intending to be brought aboard their ship for interrogation. But soon he breaks out with the arrival of his army attacking the ship, then hacks the entire military network, hacking all their drones and using them on countless innocent major cities. 

The Man Standing Next to Them

Authors note:

This is a research report about the US Navy. It goes through the origins up to the modern day. I named this piece what it is, because whenever someone is fighting in a war, they do it for everyone there with them. I was trying to be able to implement transitions into this piece. 

Whenever our nation has been threatened, or in need of protection, our military forces have been there. When we are faced with a threat regarding our world's waters our Navy has been ready to answer the call. Since their origins in the Revolutionary war, to the lethal fighting force they are today, they have they have defended our nation with the up most regards. 

The origins of the US Navy date back to the Revolutionary war. When George Washington began the force, it was made up of only seven warships. It later grew in size drastically toward the end of the war. Due to the loss of ships, and men, the Congress started to question the reason for a Navy, until they heard of the success of the remaining ships.  The total number of lost ships was 24, to the British forces. 

After the Revolutionary War the Navy fought substantial battles in the various wars during the 19th century, but noting compared to the fights it would encounter in the 20th century. Although the Navy saw little action in World War I, they engaged in the most battles during World War 2 than any country. Since the war had started when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the Navy was the head of the fight in the Pacific. But they did not only see combat in the Pacific theater, but they also engaged in the European region against the Germans. The Navy had pulled off what was thought impossible after the attack. They had come back with full retaliation against their enemies. 

Although the art of naval warfare was set in World War 2, it changed drastically in 21st century and the years leading up to it. Around the time of the "Black Hawk Down" incident in Mogadishu, the Navy had changed its entire face. They had upgraded to the biggest and best ships that money could buy. They had state-of-the-art equipment that could do almost anything that they wanted it to. They could spot enemies thousands of miles away, or relay communications to the US from the middle of the ocean. Their elite ground force the Seals had made a new name for the Navy, making it the most elite maritime fighting force the world had ever seen. This was the new face of the Navy

Thought history of the free America the Navy had been ready to defend us. From the somewhat primitive fighting force in the Revolutionary war to the catastrophe at Pearl Harbor, and to the 21st century, they have been there. Ready to answer any call from our nation. They did not do it only for the country, but also for the man standing next to them.

SOURCES:
Director, Rear Adm. Richard Breckenridge, Undersea Warfare, OPNAV N97 There has been a good deal of conversation recently debating the size of the Navys ballistic missile submarine force, and .... "Navy.mil Home Page."Navy.mil Home Page. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2013. <http://www.navy.mil/>.

"America's Navy - A Global Force for Good: Navy.com." America's Navy - A Global Force for Good: Navy.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2013. <http://www.navy.com/>.

Dancing Shoes

Author's note:

In the story Ribbons, that the main character does not believe that her grandmother loves her. She will soon find out her intentions.

We see in the story Ribbons  that Stacy's grandmother still loves her... in her own way. Stacy believes that when she first arrives she does not even care about her, only her brother. But when she tries to bond with her by asking her to fix her dancing shoes she finds the reason for the way she acts. And how she loves her. 

When Stacy asks her grandmother to fix her dance shoes, she freaks out. When she was a child in China, the people would bind their feet with ribbons to keep them a certain way. She thought that Stacy was trying to do that to herself with those shoes. When Stacy learn of this from her mother, she talks to her grandmother and finds her true love for her. And that is all Stacy ever wanted. 

Reversed-Racism

Looking at how the woman acted toward her son's friend, shows that she is very stereotypical toward colored people. She displays that she believes that she knows everything about them. She seems to be over-nice to him, by offering food, clothing, and other things. In her mind, she thinks that all black people are poor, adults have terrible jobs, and have no clothing. And she displays little respect for them. 

She displays a stereotype when saying that her son's friend "will eat anything." She thinks he is poor, and does not have much food. But the kids do not pick up on this. She is just treating him this way because of his race, that is not right.

Through the story, the woman tries too help him in situations that are non-existent. He does not need a lot of food. He has enough cloths to keep him warm.The only thing that is out of place in this story, is the woman, and her act of reverse-racism.