American greats and great Americana To say that the United States have received a lot of criticism in the past few years, is putting it mildly. America's reputation has crashed in the public opinion. American politicians have turned from liberators into warmongers, American society from a shining example into a cradle of violence, and American culture from cool to commercial. Still the “greatest country on earth” has a lot to offer: wonderful national parks, great music, entertaining movies, cutting-edge science and technology, etc. Here's a selection by the students and teacher of the 6th year of English at the CVO Waregem Anzegem Tielt of Waregem, Belgium. The texts have been written or compiled by the students between April and June 2008.
30-06-2008
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter, author, musician and poet who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. Much of Dylan's most celebrated work dates from the 1960s, when he became an informal chronicler and a reluctant figurehead of American unrest. A number of his songs, such as Blowin' in the Wind and The Times They Are a-Changin', became anthems of the anti-war and civil rights movements. His most recent studio album, Modern Times (2006) was named Album of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine.
Dylan's early lyrics incorporated politics, social commentary, philosophy and literary influences, defying existing pop music conventions and appealing widely to the counterculture. While expanding and personalizing musical styles, he has shown steadfast devotion to many traditions of American song, from folk and country/blues to gospel, rock and roll and rockabilly, to English, Scottish and Irish folk music, even jazz and swing.
Bob Dylan was handed a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation (the Pulitzer prize is normally awarded to US print journalism) in 2008, for his "profound impact on popular music and American culture, marked by lyrical compositions of extraordinary poetic power".
The Times, they are a-changin'
Released in 1964 on the album of the same name, The Times is often viewed as a reflection of the generation gap and of the political divide marking American culture in the 1960s. Dylan, however, disputed this interpretation, saying "Those were the only words I could find to separate aliveness from deadness. It had no-thing to do with age."
Come gather 'round people wherever you roam And admit that the waters around you have grown And accept it that soon you'll be drenched to the bone. If your time to you is worth savin' Then you better start swimmin or youll sink like a stone For the times they are a-changin'.
Come writers and critics who prophesize with your pen And keep your eyes wide. The chance wont come again And don't speak too soon for the wheel's still in spin And there's no tellin' who that it's namin'. For the loser now will be later to win For the times they are a-changin'.
Come senators, congressmen, please heed the call Don't stand in the doorway. Dont block up the hall For he that gets hurt will be he who has stalled. There's a battle outside and it is ragin'. It'll soon shake your windows and rattle your walls For the times they are a-changin'.
Come mothers and fathers throughout the land And don't criticize what you cant understand. Your sons and your daughters are beyond your command. Your old road is rapidly agin'. Please get out of the new one if you can't lend your hand For the times they are a-changin'.
The line it is drawn. The curse it is cast The slow one now will later be fast As the present now will later be past. The order is rapidly fadin. And the first one now will later be last For the times they are a-changin'.
There are approximately 350.000 Belgians living in the United States of America. Thats about 0,1% of the current population. The Belgians have settled mainly in the states Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, Louisiana and Texas. Most Flemish emigrants are living in Detroit. Immigration from Flanders happened over several centuries, but mainly in the 19th century and during and after the First World War (1914-1918).
One of them, Camille Cools from Moorslede, in 1914 founded the Gazette van Detroit to offer Belgians news from home. The first Gazette was published on August, 13, 1914. It still exists and its the only Belgian newspaper in America.
Its a link between the emigrated Flemish in America and Canada and their native country. First it was a weekly newspaper but now it's fortnightly with an edition of 1,500 copies. One hundred are distributed in Belgium.
Until recently, the Gazette van Detroit had preserved its original lay-out with black and white photographs, which gave it a somewhat outdated look. The Dutch too was sometimes out-of-date. The language of the Belgian emigrants hadn't evolved much. They talked and wrote the same way as before. In 2006 however, the newspaper was updated and given a new life. It now has 20 pages, 4 of which are in colour, and articles in (correct contemporary) Dutch and English (as most of the third generation Flemish emigrants no longer understand Dutch).
The Gazette van Detroit has the normal variety of newspaper subjects: for example: on page 4 you can read about births and obituaries. On page 5 there are sports articles such as bicycle races, football, pigeon races, tennis, etc. The gazette is independent and neutral, not affiliated with any political or religious organization. Until recently, the articles were mostly written by blue collar workers and farmers with a low education.
Today Belgians dont immigrate to the region of Detroit anymore and the Gazette van Detroit has fewer subscribers. The old generation has died and the younger are less motivated to learn the language of their (great)grandparents.
At the end of 2005, the newspaper made a loss, even though it was run by volunteers and one part time employee.
In 2006, Leen de Doncker and her husband who had lived in Detroit for many years gave the newspaper a fresh start. Today Leen is back in Europe but with the help of a number of volunteers she managed to contribute to the success of the Gazette. And since 2006 there is new life, new hope, and even a subsidy of 12.500 euro from the Flemish government.
The Gazette van Detroit is looking forward to celebrating its centenary in 2014.
Countless tragedies have haunted America's First Family.
It all began in 1914, when the patriarch Joe Kennedy, son of an Irish immigrant, married Rose Fitzgerald, daughter of a Boston Irish aristocracy. Joe was ambitious and unscrupulous and made a fortune selling strong spirits in the saloons of Boston. His dream was to become president of the U.S. but he only made it to ambassador in London.
Rose gave birth to nine children and from the beginning the clan alternated between success and tragedy. The eldest son, Joseph P. Kennedy, was killed in a plane crash in 1944 during World War II, at the age of 29.
In the fifties, the family fortunes rose as John F. Kennedy became president of the U.S.A., thanks to the shadow connections of the pater familias. Military officers and the American right wing didn't take kindly to Kennedy's attempts to retrain the military-industrial conglomerate. His brother Bobby understood this and warned John of going into negotiations with Kruchev. Despite these warnings, JFK was shot during a parade in Dallas, at the age of 42.
Five years later, his brother Bobby, who aspired to the same office of President, was killed in a hail of bullets on the campaign trail. Too much to be a coincidence: the right wing vendetta had knocked out America's First Family.
In 1999, John F. Kennedy, JFK's only son was killed in a plane crash.
Many other family relatives died in obscure circumstances or suffered from serious misfortunes. It's an incredible string of tragedies that have stalked the Kennedy Clan.
Neil Leslie Diamond (born January 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actor. As a successful pop music performer, Diamond scored a number of hits worldwide in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. Diamond had sold 120 million records worldwide, including 48 million records in the U.S. His songs have been recorded by a vast array of performers from many different musical genres. Diamond was included into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1984. Diamond's new album Home Before Dark was released on May 6th 2008. One week later, the US Billboard Hot 200 listed the album at number one, the first chart-topping album of Diamond's storied career.
Pretty amazing grace is what You showed me. Pretty amazing grace is who You are. I was an empty vessel. You filled me up inside and with amazing grace restored my pride.
Pretty amazing grace is how You saved me and with amazing grace reclaimed my heart. Love in the midst of chaos, calm in the heat of war, showed with amazing grace what love was for.
You forgave my insensitivity and my attempt to then mislead You. You stood beside a wretch like me. Your pretty amazing grace was all I needed.
Stumbled inside the doorway of Your chapel, humbled in God by everything I found. beauty and love surround me, freed me from what I fear. Ask for amazing grace and You appear.
[You overcame my loss of hope and faith, gave me a truth I could believe in. You led me to a higher place, showed Your amazing grace when grace was what I needed.
Look in a mirror I see Your reflection, open a book You live on every page. I fall and You're there to lift me, share every road I climb and with amazing grace You ease my mind.
Came to You with empty pockets first when I returned I was rich man, didn't believe love could quench my thirst but with amazing grace You showed me that it can.
In Your amazing grace I had a vision. From that amazing place I came to be. into the night I wandered, wandering aimlessly, found Your amazing grace to comfort me.]
pretty amazing, pretty amazing, pretty amazing,
You overcame my loss of hope and faith, gave me a truth I could believe in. You led me to that higher place showed me that love and truth and hope and grace were all I needed.
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (Spanish for 'the meadows') is the entertainment capital of the world. There's magic, music, dancing, comedy and gaming for everyone. It's the brightest city in the world and it features fourteen of the world's largest hotels. No wonder that Las Vegas is the fastest growing city in the world, attracting 30 million tourists annually. Five thousand people move into Las Vegas permanently every month, even though it's situated in the middle of the Nevada desert.
The Strip is a wide boulevard of 6.4 km long where most of the large casinos and hotels are located. It's the major destinations for tourists. Most of the attractions and shows are located on the casino hotel premises. Some of the most popular free attractions include the water fountains and the convervatory at the Bellagio, the Sirens of T.I. show at Treasure Island Hotel and the white tiger habitat at the Mirage Hotel. In 2006, the Las Vegas Strip lost its long-time status as the world's highest-grossing gambling centre, falling to second place behind Macau.
The Stratosphere Tower opened on April 1996 at the North End of the Strip. With 35 storeys, it's the tallest tower west of the Mississippi and the tallest observation tower of the USA. The complex offers a large casino and shopping mall, along with the best view of Las Vegas. At the top of the tower are a revolving restaurant, a cocktail bar, three wedding chapels, a roller coaster (the world's highest) and a thrill ride to the very top of the antenna.
For me, the trip I made to Las Vegas has confirmed the stereotype I had formed about ordinary American people with respect to how they manage to realise most of their projects, regardless of money or the environment. As they say themselves: "Vegas is fabulous". And people need dreams, don't they?
The US, the New World, is receptive to advanced techniques to improve food by genetic engineering.
Twelve years after the first generation, the GM-varieties have become commercially available. The adoption of these varieties by U.S. farmers is widespread for major crops. Driven by farmers' expectations of higher yields, time saving maintenance and lower pesticide costs, the adoption of GE-varieties with corn, soybean, maize, oilseed rape and cotton has increased rapidly. Today, 60% of the U.S. grocery food contains GM-ingredients, even after the Philip Morris tobacco scandal has heightened awareness of GM-risks in the US.
Despite the benefits, environmental and consumer concerns have limited acceptance of GM-crops in Europe. The Old World has declared a moratorium on GMOs, principally to protect its own farmers. These GM-crops would help feed the hungry millions of people, but the European lobby will not hear of it. Europe defends its point of view under the pretext of protecting the environment and consumers' health. Still, everybody should realise that this technology is already widely used. For instance, some products such as chocolate, mayonnaise, tomato sauce and bread may contain GM-vegetable oils, soy and maize derivates.
According to the WHO, GM-foods currently available on the international market have passed risk assessments and are not likely to present risks for human health. And who would counter the World Health Organisation?
New Hampshire (NH) New Jersey (NJ) New Mexico (NM) New York (NY) Ohio (OH) Oklahoma (OK) Oregon (OR) Pennsylvania (PA) Rhode Island (RI) South Carolina (SC)
South Dakota (SD) Tennessee (TN) Texas (TX) Utah (UT) Vermont (VT) Virginia (VA) Washington (WA) West Virginia (WV) Wisconsin (WI) Wyoming (WY)
The US, the New World, is receptive to advanced techniques to improve food by genetic engineering.
