~Speak Your Mind~

Society disguises the fact that our generation believes strongly to speak with determination,

I challenge you to say what you believe,

but not with tragic uncertainty,

I declare that we should question authority to oppose the ‘so-called’ wisdom of others.

You are not invisible.

The Barrier That Stood.

Hundreds of thousands of eager eyes awaited the very moment that could change their lives together. Some not even realizing how different life would be without the barrier, as they have been born into the imprisonment that is East Germany. The districts East and West Berlin will be united once more. Communists will not dictate the people's freedom anymore.

        

The borders were built over night, on October 15, 1961. The Berlin wall separated many families and friends. Its purpose was to divide the city permanently into East and West Germany. The point of this was to isolate the communist section, East Germany, from ever entering West Germany, the Capitalist side. This decision affected families and friends throughout the country, trapping them like hamsters in a cage, unable to escape without being killed. I believe that it is the people’s right to have the freedom to leave, and that obtaining freedom, and going against the opinion of their superiors is worth fighting for. “ I was reminded of an old military saying that was instilled and repeated so many times that it is etched on my mind. It states "Freedom is worth fighting and dying for." (Rick B.) This quote is taken from a soldier that witnessed the horrors of the slaughter of any man trying to escape East Germany. Though he himself was not German, he observed so many struggle to climb over the wall in an attempt at freedom. Even with over 30 armed guards, ready at the posts, ready to shoot, the man tried to escape because he wanted to have a chance for his freedom.

        Another man that lived hopeless and discouraged in East Berlin was Victor Broman. ‘Germany stands divided into two sides, neither is good but in the interest of my personal freedom I must side with the West.’ His desperation for freedom was apparent in this quote. Victor must betray, and leave his homeland in hope for a better life. One without barriers in the way of loved ones. One without all hope lost. One without the rationing of food. This kind of choice is brutal, but necessary. However, with the destruction of the wall, Victor, and many others, rushed in a flurry to reunite with lost ones, and escape the poverty surrounding them. The only thing keeping them from trying to escape, which always ended up as a suicide mission, was the little hope they had of the barrier being torn down for once and for all.

        Freedom is what so many died for, and what so many struggled for. The Berlin wall operated as a border that no one could pass. Forever trapped were the people of East Berlin. That is, until 1961. The freedom gained is unimaginable, and it brought East and West Germany, to unite as a country once more. No longer setting neighbors against each other, and just spreading peace across the land.

A New World, free from pollution.

“The world must learn to work together, or finally it will not work at all.” 

This quote was said by General Eisenhower whom believed that we must conserve and start sustainable practices or else our world will become as described in the book 'The Knife of Never Letting Go', “Old World was polluted and crowded and dying from its own poisons”.  Sustainable living means to live a life that balances an individual’s, or community’s  use of natural resources, such that these resources are still available in the future for an infinite amount of generations to come. Although the idealism of having a utopia is impossible, I believe a key characteristic that would lead to being one step closer in the hope of eventually having a 'perfect world' would be having a sustainable way of living and to value the natural resources around us. This is key to our survival as our current world is filled with pollution and the constant abuse of our habitat. Because of this many problems have risen that we need to fix.

If I were given the opportunity to start a ‘New World’ one characteristic that I would most value is sustainable practices. Sustainable practices are crucial for a lasting way of life. At the moment, our planet earth is dying. Our human race is constantly destroying the natural habitat around us to create new and modern developments that will probably be replaced again in another few decades. Because of this new trend of construction, many animals have faced extinction due to the fact that their niche environment has been destroyed. Over one and one-half acres of rainforest are lost every second with tragic consequences for both developing and industrial countries. Because of this, the land is more likely to flood as the trees that were once there can no longer absorb the heavy falls of water, the rain water has to go somewhere.  Many problems like this can be resolved just due to sustainable living.

Furthermore, sustainable practices are key to healthy people. In Australia, due to the thick waves of pollution from Asia, the ozone layer has become so thin from the high CO₂ count that a hole has opened up. This exposes people to a higher concentration to UV rays, which in turns gives a higher risk of skin cancer.  Scientists have been seeking for a cure and the closest they have come to a cure is home remedies from the jungle. But because of commercial logging, these sources are becoming rarer, and have now become unavailable as a source to treat patients. This is all due to the lack of respect to our natural resources.

Without sustainable practices, and valuing our natural resources, the New world will be similar to ours in the sense that in a few hundred years wild animals and frozen glaciers will only be seen in books, impossible to ever see in real life. When I said before: “The world must learn to work together, or finally it will not work at all.” It means, we must all come together to make a difference, and to stop the harm that we are doing to our Earth. Finally I have one more solution, we can add one more law to the constitution; that law should be, that we will stay free, from the dirty, dusty, air pollution.