Wednesday, March 18, 2020

social observations essays

social observations essays For my social observations paper I attended a high school football game and observed how students interacted with fellow classmates, namely students from other towns, teachers, parents and even the town "super-fan". I also observed how they interacted with classmates of different race and ethnicity and how they didn't interact with the elderly. I expected to find that the students would be mainly in groups of the same social and economic status. I also expected to find the students keeping their distance away from the parents in the stands or the parents keeping their distance away from them. When I first arrived it was apparent that the "popular" students still sat in the same section (top left corner) in the stands as they did when I was a student there. It was obvious that the students that were in this group felt comfortable around other "popular" students. The students in this group rarely strayed away unless it was to the snack bar and when they did it was with 4 or 5 others. On their way back from the snack bar the teachers would sometimes try to start a conversation with the students but the students kept it short and sweet, afraid of what fellow classmates thought. There was very little interaction outside the group for fear of embarrassment. Most of the conversation outside the group was to the town super-fan who is more often than not intoxicated. He attends all the football, hockey, and baseball games and is often on the rowdy side. The students found it amusing to ask him questions and give him hypothetical situations. This was one of the very few times they interacted with non-group goers. The students from other towns are automatically viewed as outcasts and aren't included in the conversation. When students from other towns are introduced to people in the group, the students are often nice but then criticized their personality or clothing behind their back. One of the more popular students had a ...

Sunday, March 1, 2020

The Battle of Hong Kong in World War II

The Battle of Hong Kong in World War II The Battle of Hong Kong was fought December 8 to 25, 1941, during World War II (1939-1945). One of the opening battles of the conflict in the Pacific, Japanese troops commenced their attack on the British colony the same morning as their attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor. Though badly outnumbered, the British garrison mounted a tenacious defense but were soon forced from the mainland. Pursued by the Japanese, the defenders were ultimately overwhelmed. Overall, the garrison succeeded in holding out for over two weeks before finally surrendering. Hong Kong remained under Japanese control until the end of the war. Background As the Second Sino-Japanese War raged between China and Japan during the late 1930s, Great Britain was forced to examine its plans for the defense of Hong Kong. In studying the situation, it was quickly found that the colony would be difficult to hold in the face of a determined Japanese attack. Despite this conclusion, work continued on a new defensive line extending from Gin Drinkers Bay to Port Shelter. Begun in 1936, this set of fortifications was modeled on the French Maginot Line and took two years to complete. Centered on the Shin Mun Redoubt, the line was a system of strong points connected by paths. In 1940, with World War II consuming Europe, the government in London began reducing the size of the Hong Kong garrison to free troops for use elsewhere. Following his appointment as Commander-in-Chief of the British Far East Command, Air Chief Marshal Sir Robert Brooke-Popham requested reinforcements for Hong Kong as he believed even a marginal increase in the garrison could significantly slow down the Japanese in the case of war. Though not believing that the colony could be held indefinitely, a protracted defense would buy time for the British elsewhere in the Pacific. Final Preparations In 1941, Prime Minister Winston Churchill agreed to dispatch reinforcements to the Far East. In doing so, he accepted an offer from Canada to send two battalions and a brigade headquarters to Hong Kong. Dubbed C-Force, the Canadians arrived in September 1941, though they lacked some of their heavy equipment. Joining Major General Christopher Maltbys garrison, the Canadians prepared for battle as relations with Japan began to falter. Having taken the area around Canton in 1938, Japanese forces were well positioned for an invasion. Preparations for the attack began that fall with troops moving into position. Battle of Hong Kong Conflict: World War IIDates: December 8-25, 1941Armies Commanders:BritishGovernor Sir Mark Aitchison YoungMajor General Christopher Maltby14,564 menJapaneseLieutenant General Takashi Sakai52,000 menCasualties:British: 2,113 killed or missing, 2,300 wounded, 10,000 capturedJapanese: 1,996 killed, around 6,000 wounded Fighting Begins Around 8:00 AM on December 8, Japanese forces under Lieutenant General Takashi Sakai began their attack on Hong Kong. Commencing less than eight hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese quickly gained air superiority over Hong Kong when they destroyed the garrisons few aircraft. Badly outnumbered, Maltby elected not to defend the Sham Chun River line at the colonys border and instead deployed three battalions to the Gin Drinkers Line. Lacking sufficient men to fully man the lines defenses, the defenders were driven back on December 10 when the Japanese overran the Shing Mun Redoubt. Retreat to Defeat The rapid breakthrough surprised Sakai as his planners anticipating needing a month to penetrate the British defenses. Falling back, Maltby began evacuating his troops from Kowloon to Hong Kong Island on December 11. Destroying harbor and military facilities as they departed, the final Commonwealth troops left the mainland on December 13. Japanese forces attack the Tsim Sha Tsui Station in Hong Kong. Public Domain For the defense of Hong Kong Island, Maltby re-organized his men into Eastern and Western Brigades. On December 13, Sakai demanded that the British surrender. This was promptly refused and two days later the Japanese began shelling the islands northern shore. Another surrender demand was rejected on December 17. The next day, Sakai began landing troops on the islands northeastern coast near Tai Koo. Pushing back the defenders, they were later guilty of killing prisoners of war at Sai Wan Battery and Salesian Mission. Driving west and south, the Japanese met heavy resistance over the next two days. On December 20 they succeeded in reaching the south coast of the island effectively splitting the defenders in two. While part of Maltbys command continued the fight on the western part of the island, the remainder was hemmed in on the Stanley Peninsula. On Christmas morning, Japanese forces captured the British field hospital at St. Stephens College where they tortured and killed several prisoners. Later that day with his lines collapsing and lacking critical resources, Maltby advised Governor Sir Mark Aitchison Young that the colony should be surrendered. Having held out for seventeen days, Aitchison approached the Japanese and formally surrendered at the Peninsula Hotel Hong Kong. Major General Christopher Maltby meets with the Japanese to surrender Hong Kong, December 25, 1941. Public Domain Aftermath Subsequently known as Black Christmas, the surrender of Hong Kong cost the British around 10,000 captured as well as 2,113 killed/missing and 2,300 wounded during the battle. Japanese casualties in the fighting numbered 1,996 killed and around 6,000 wounded. Taking possession of the colony, the Japanese would occupy Hong Kong for the remainder of the war. During this time, the Japanese occupiers terrorized the local population. In the wake of the victory at Hong Kong, Japanese forces embarked on a string of victories in Southeast Asia which culminated with the capture of Singapore on February 15, 1942.​