Veterans Day

Dear US Service Member,

We don’t know each other and will probably never meet, but I want you to know that you and all of the troops are in our hearts and prayers each day. Please remember what you're doing will always be appreciated and never forgotten. I wish you all the best and pray for your safe and speedy return home to your family and friends. Thank you.

Talawanda HS Student

Oxford, OH

Some of our soldiers don't get much mail from home. They don't often hear how much we appreciate all they do for our country, even though there are many easy ways in which we can let them know. Write your letters of thanks in class and we will compile and send them to our soldiers currently serving overseas.

The Charge of the Light Brigade

 

Half a league, half a league,

Half a league onward,

All in the valley of Death

   Rode the six hundred.

“Forward, the Light Brigade!

Charge for the guns!” he said.

Into the valley of Death

   Rode the six hundred.

-BY ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON 

In 1854, London Times reporter William Howard Russel reports on the charge of the British Light Cavalry Brigade in Crimea. He writes of soldiers ill-fed, ill-led, and left on the field to die. Prince Albert is furious. Russell's reporting turns the public against the government, prompting history's first order of military censorship. Henceforth, any reporter who reports information that could be useful to the enemy will be expelled. Russell is hailed as the 'father of war reporting.'

Read both Tennyson's poem  and Russel's report for understanding and then answer these questions:

1) Compare and contrast the tone and emotion of Tennyson's poem to William Russel's war report.  How did each describe the soldiers?  What was their view of leadership/ command?  What was their message to the public?

2) What are some ways 19th-century readers might have reacted differently to a poem versus a newspaper report?

3) How does today’s media (TV, internet, social media) shape public opinion about wars?

4) Should war reporters try to stay neutral, or is it okay to take a moral stance? Explain your reasoning.

5) After studying both accounts, do you think the public should see the “heroic” side of war, the “tragic” side, or both? Why?

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The Great Refusal

Few reporters proclaim their convictions.  Fewer still act on them to serve what they believe to be the greater good.  In times of profound moral crisis, most reporters make the 'Great Refusal.'  The best lack all conviction while the worst are full of passionate intensity.

In his poem 'Inferno'  Dante tours the underworld and sees a swarm of anguished souls barred from heaven and hell doomed to limbo.  They are the neutrals, whose lives meant nothing because they refused to commit themselves.  They have all made what Dante calls the 'Great Refusal.'

Read the summary and then answer these Dantes's Inferno Questions.

Take the Inferno Test to see which level of Hell you would be banished to.  Do you agree?  Share your comments in our Google Class comments.

In October 2025, Donald Trump jokingly told reporters on Air Force One that he is "not maybe heaven-bound" when asked if his efforts on a Ukraine ceasefire would help him get into heaven, according to KBTX News 3 and this YouTube video. He noted he was "being a little cute" but was not sure he would make it, while later asserting he has done immense good for many people, say this YouTube video.

What would Dante say?

Ron Tammen: The Phantom of Oxford

On Sunday, April 19, 1953, at 8:30-ish in the evening, Ronald H. Tammen, Jr., disappeared from his second-floor room in Fisher Hall on Miami University’s campus in Oxford, Ohio. He left everything behind — his wallet, his string bass, his car, his clothing, even his toothbrush. No one could figure out what happened to Tammen. Miami University officials were mystified, the Oxford PD outwitted, the FBI flummoxed. Since the spring of 2010, I’ve been conducting my own search for Tammen and what his disappearance might tell us about this enigmatic 19-year-old who landed himself squarely in the middle of one of the most bedeviling mysteries ever to hit the state of Ohio.

The Phantom of Oxford pt 1

The Phantom of Oxford pt. 2

What do you think happened?  

Do your theories match these?

Crime vault: What happened to Ronald Tammen (Part 1)

Crime vault: What happened to Ronald Tammen (Part 2)

A Good Man Is Hard to Find — My Search for Ronald H. Tammen, Jr.

The Ron Tammen case is the most notorious but certainly not the only unsolved Miami mystery...

Phobophobia

What happens when your fear is greatly exaggerated or completely irrational compared to the actual risk?

Phobias are actually quite common, affecting more than 10% of the U.S. population. Phobias are the most common mental disorder in the United States, but far more women than men are affected by phobias. In many cases, people are able to recognize that their fear is irrational and therefore take steps to overcome their phobia. According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, only about 10 percent of reported cases become life-long phobias.

Use this list to solve the 'Phobia Puzzle' before your classmates.

How are Phobias named?  Check their greek and latin roots.

Create 3 new 'phobias' of your own and define them. For example...."Ebolaphobia:" the fear of contracting Ebola.

Or do you suffer from 'Verbophobia:' the fear of words?

The Odds of Dying

Take a look at this list of ways you could die and rank them from 'greatest risk' (#1) to 'least risk (#30).

Corona, Heart Attack, Suicide, Drowning, Bicycle Accident,  Lightning Strike, Vaping, Body Piercing, Stroke, Plane Crash, Terrorist Attack, Robot Car,  Nuclear Bomb, AIDS, Skin Cancer, Dog Bite, Car Accident, Tornado, Contact Sports (football, soccer), Shooting, Asthma, 4-Wheeler, Suffocation, Drug Overdose, Earthquake, Underage Drinking, Snake Bite, Asteroid, Falling Down, Mr. Kelly Attack

1) Fear of death is a natural human emotion; but are we misjudging our risks?

2) Why do our brains fear the wrong things?

3) According to recent reports what is the #1 cause of death in Butler County and what is being done to prevent it?


Listen to the song 'People Who Died.'   Should we fear the reaper?  Another One Bites the Dust.

Why Fear and Anger Are So Effective In Politics

They are hallmarks of modern American presidential races: a campaign rally claim about what life would look like should your opponent win, or a television ad that seems like a trailer for a horror film. For example, former President Donald Trump telling voters that an administration under Kamala Harris would, "destroy your country." Or, a Harris television ad stating that in office, Trump will seek "vengeance." This charged language is used for a reason: it's effective. But, why? And, why isn't hope a central theme for campaigns as weeks turn to days before the 2024 presidential election?

1. Why might fear be an effective way to persuade people to support a political leader or policy?
2. How does anger differ from fear as a political tool? What kinds of reactions might each emotion produce?
3. Why might people pay more attention to a frightening or upsetting story than to a calm, factual explanation?
4. How can politicians use a real problem to create a sense of urgency? When might that urgency be justified, and when might it be exaggerated?
5. What role do news organizations and social media play in spreading messages designed to make people afraid or angry?