Some of these are better ”positive effect on the community” movies than others (Cit/Community #5), so they are marked with a (C).

1. Patton – ask your parents for permission before starting.  Though historically accurate, the toil of war and strong language don’t make for fun family entertainment.
2. Far and Away – Irish immigrants try to start a new life in America.  The film’s reenactment of the Oklahoma Land Run of 1893 is worth watching.
3. (C) Pride of the Yankees – a bigraphy of Lou Gerhig, the famous Yankees baseball player.  The final scene leads up to this famous speech, which you can learn more about for Citizenship in the Nation.
4. Eight Men Out – the famous “Chicago Black Sox” scandal of the 1919 World Series.
5. (C) *61 – the battle for the home run title between Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in 1961.
6. (C) Miracle – the 1980 United States Men’s Hockey Team, made up of college players brought together for the Olympics, takes on the Russian powerhouse.  Yes, I am old enough to remember the actual event and it was as spectacular, memorable, and amazing as the film makes it.  Jim Craig was my childhood hero.
7. (C) Invicible - Vince Papale, unemployed teacher, tries out for the Philadelphia Eagles and earns a spot on the team.  The American Dream.
8. (C) The Rookie - kinda like Invicible, but this guy is an employed teacher with a family, and it’s baseball, not football.
9. Amistad - slaves mutiny onboard a slave ship in 1839.  Subject of a famous case in the Supreme Court in 1841.
10. Glory
11. Midway
12. Tora! Tora! Tora!
13. (C) Glory Road
14. Fat Man and Little Boy
15. Dances With Wolves
16. Forrest Gump
17. Apollo 13
18. (C) October Sky
19. The Right Stuff
20. Seabiscuit
21. Cinderella Man
22. The Aviator
23. The Hurricane
24. (C) Remember the Titans
25. (C) The Greatest Game Ever Played
26. 1776
27. Twelve O’Clock High
28. Memphis Belle
29. The Russians are Coming, The Russians are Coming!
30. Gone With the Wind
31. In the Heat of the Night
32. On the Waterfront
33. (C) Lean on Me – tough schoolteacher in L.A. challenges kids to rise up to the best they can be, escape the barrios and go to college.  Good inspiration here!
34. (C) Mr. Holland’s Opus – tough music teacher challenges kids to be the best musicians they can be.
35. (C) A League of Their Own – girls can play baseball, too.  During World War II, an all-girls baseball league was started to fill the void when professional baseball was suspended for the war effort.
36. (C) Coach Carter – tough basketball coach and teacher in L.A. challenges kids to rise up to the best they can be, escape the ghetto and be the best they can be.  Good inspiration here!
37. (C) Secretariat - Commitment against the odds and the pursuit of greatness.  Secretariat was one of the greatest racehorses of all time, and and inspiration to millions (including me! I remember his triple crown win when I was a boy).

The commission concluded that the terrorists are more likely to use biological weapons than nuclear weapons and that the United States is not prepared for such an attack.

In one scenario envisioned by the president’s Homeland Security Council, the commission reports, terrorists driving a truck with a concealed sprayer would infect five different U.S. metropolitan areas with anthrax in two waves of attacks conducted two weeks apart.

“The Commission believes that unless the world community acts decisively and with great urgency, it is more likely than not that a weapon of mass destruction will be used in a terrorist attack somewhere in the world by the end of 2013,” says the report.

“The Commission further believes that terrorists are more likely to be able to obtain and use a biological weapon than a nuclear weapon,” says the report, which is entitled, “World at Risk.”

….

The commission released a scenario put together by the president’s Homeland Security Council that described how a terrorist group—such as al Qaeda—could launch a devastating biological attack on the U.S. Homeland.
 
The Homeland Security Council’s scenario, printed on pages 5 and 6 of the report, unfolds as follows:
 
“This scenario describes a single aerosol [anthrax] attack in one city delivered by a truck using a concealed improvised spraying device in a densely populated urban city with a significant commuter workforce.  It does not, however, exclude the possibility of multiple attacks in disparate cities or time-phased attacks (i.e. ‘reload’).

I think the most difficult challenge for us to understand is that defending against terrorism is different than economic or security threats posed against us by other countries.  Terrorism knows no boundaries; Al Qaeda operates throughout dozens of countries.  Its identity is hidden in anonymity; though it has a command and leadership structure, it has no visible government, boundaries, or offices.  No capital, no buildings by which it can be identified.  Think about that, and ask yourself how any government should defend their citizens against terrorism.

Governments can’t just print money, or else it becomes worthless like this.  When you and I need extra money, we get a loan from someone.  Governments don’t take out loans, they issue bonds to individuals.  I guess Zimbabwe thought they didn’t need to bother; it’s easier to just keep printing the stuff, right?

Zimbabwe is grappling with hyperinflation now officially estimated at 231 million percent, and its currency is fast losing its value. As of Friday, one U.S. dollar was trading at around ZW$25 billion.

When the government issued a $10 billion note just three weeks ago, it bought 20 loaves of bread. That note now can purchase less than half of one loaf.

Now that everyone understands that their currency is worthless, no one wants to use it and the government is making it legal to open certain shops that sell items in foreign currency.

In order to attract foreign currency, Zimbabwe’s central bank has, since September, licensed at least 1,000 shops to sell goods in foreign currency. All mobile phone service providers are now licensed to accept foreign exchange for airtime and other services.

John Robertson, an economist in Zimbabwe, said he’s puzzled by the introduction of the $50 billion and $20 billion notes.

“I am not really sure what these notes would be for,” he said. “No one now accepts the local currency. It is a waste of resources to print Zimbabwe dollar notes now. Who accepts a currency that loses value by almost 100 percent daily?”

If you owned a shop, would you accept money that was worthless?  Of course not.

I remember the first time I read a story about hyperinflation in Zimbabwe.  January 17, 2008 – just about one year ago.  I’m copying from the article (my pre-blog days):

“…a hamburger in an ordinary cafe in Zimbabwe costs 15 million Zimbabwe dollars.

“Reserve Bank Governor Gideon Gono said in a statement 10 million Zimbabwe dollars notes will be issued tomorrow along with 1 million and 5 million Zimbabwe dollars bills.

“The highest existiong note, introduced last month, is for 750,000 Zimbabwe dollars.

15 million for a hamburger to 50 billion for a loaf of bread in one year.  Do the math and see how far they’ve fallen.

Being  INFORMED about issues and current events is an important part of being a good citizen.  I see a lot of letters from scouts who are concerned with the dire effects of global warming.  What concerns me is that the viewpoint is almost always the same, and it’s always extreme. 

I think it’s important for you to understand that there are different points of view on global warming, and the issue has many different factors that need to be considered before taking a stand.  So, here are a couple of links to sites that provide opposing viewpoints on the topic.  Please browse through them before writing your letter.

The World Climate Report offers thoughtful opinion, plus well organized categories down the right side of the page.  It should be easy for you to find entries focusing on the topic of your choice: rising ocean levels, polar bears, hurricanes, etc.

The U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works is a little more political (what else would you expect from the Senate?).  Nonetheless, its minority members have this blog where they post news articles sympathetic to their opposition of many global warming claims and political maneuvers.  The statements on the blog tend to the political, but the links are factual.  Click on the red “(more…)” to see the details.

Believe it or not, by that year you’ll probably have gotten married and started a family.  You’ll worry about what’s going on in the world and what your children will inherit.  The problems, the promises, the realities of a world that has been formed by decisions we adults make today.

The National Intelligence Council has issued its newest report, “Global Trends 2025: A Transformed World.”  It’s detailed, so you might not get through the whole report, but take the time to a least read the summary on pages iv and v.  Check out the table of contents, find a topic that interests you, and read that section of the report.  Some interesting predictions on issues like:

What country would benefit from global warming?

Will the U.S. remain the world’s economic superpower?

What will the influence of the U.N. be around the globe?

What’s the possibility of nuclear conflict?  Where might it occur?

…and many other factors for consideration.

The report says, “The international system – as constructed following the Second World War – will be almost unrecognizable by 2025 owing to the rise of emerging powers, a globalizing economy, an historic transfer of relative wealth and economic power from West to East, and the growing influence of non-state actors.”

Somalia has no functioning government, and the warlords in the various regions do not have the capacity to deal with stopping piracy. Somalia needs more help from the United Nations and the African Union “to try to deal with some of the economic and governance problems that lead to the pirates,” Morrell said.

When your country has no functioning government, security becomes a really difficult issue.

I really like this Google map he linked to that is updated to track all piracy incidents around the globe.

Anyway, since piracy on the high seas is probably the best example of where international law applies to something real in our modern world, I’m making the effort to highlight the issue through interesting articles and posts that I find.  This post about pirates and the law is a good summary of how international law is applied in the real world, and lays out what works and what doesn’t work.  Clicking on the headline links to the Wall Street Journal editorial further discussing international law.

Read EagleSpeak’s post and I’ll give you credit for World 4a.  Read the WSJ editorial and I’ll probably give you credit for another requirement.  Read EagleSpeak’s blog for an hour and I may sign you off on the whole badge.  If I’m in a good mood.  The information you’ll gain is worth it.

Bob Crow, [the Rail Maritime and Transport union] general secretary, said: “There are clearly deep economic and social problems in poverty-stricken countries like Somalia that are feeding the piracy problem, and they, too, require international co-operation because they are also a result of the global economy.”

Clearly, as long as there are riches afloat on the high seas, there will be pirates out there to plunder them.

Robbing thugs or Robin Hoods?

THE pirates of Puntland, the northern breakaway area of Somalia, are unapologetic about their trade.

Their spokesman, Januna Ali Jama, based in the port of Eyl, where scores of hijacked vessels are anchored, argues vehemently that the increasingly professional pirates are the Robin Hoods of the sea, righting numerous wrongs against Somalia.

“Our country is destroyed by foreigners who dump toxic waste at our shores,” Ali Jama argued in an interview with the BBC Somali Service.

Huge waves that battered Puntland after the Asian tsunami at Christmas 2004 killed 300 people, destroying thousands of homes and stirring up tonnes of nuclear and toxic waste illegally dumped offshore in the 1990s. The United Nations Environment Programme reported many unusual illnesses in the region following the tsunami. It said European companies were involved in the dumping, but there was never any accurate assessment of the extent of the problem.

Abdullah Elmi Mohamed, a Somali academic studying in Sweden, said that the European companies charged “approximately $8 per tonne (for dumping off Somalia], while in Europe the cost for the disposal and treatment of toxic waste material could go up to $1,000 per tonne.”

With Puntland unrecognised internationally, little diplomatic pressure can be put on the region’s authorities, which say piracy also grew after international “sea robber” fishing fleets plundered and wrecked its fishing grounds. The UN estimates fish worth at least £50 million a year has been taken illegally from Somali waters by Spanish, South Korean and other foreign boats, which also raided Somali fishermen’s nets and used destructive techniques that have wiped out tuna shoals, destroyed fish eggs and caused havoc with the marine environment.

Most of Puntland’s pirates are former poor fishermen with no particular political ideology who have turned to more lucrative work, plying the seas in search of ransom targets, travelling in light speedboats from at least two mother ships far out at sea.

The pirates are heroes in a shattered land. Millions of dollars in ransoms are being paid by desperate ship-owners – more than $30 million so far this year, one and a half times the annual budget of the Puntland authorities – and once-impoverished ports like Eyl have become boomtowns.

And questions of interational law come into play.  Who prosecutes? How?  What should the penalties be?  Does the international community have to do more than just law enforcement to put an end to piracy?

Common obligations of citizens include a requirement to participate as a juror if called upon and to pay taxes, which is seen as being in return for the right to participate in the electoral process and receive financial and physical protection from the state. Another example, though not a common law obligation, is the US Constitutional requirement to participate in a census every ten years, which, like many legal obligations, often incurs a fine if not fulfilled when the time is right.

Thanks to Wikipedia for that.