Hung Jury Trial

I think that roger is guilty of aggravated manslaughter. Sam Smit said that when Roger threw the boulder at Melvin (Piggy) no signal was given from the alleged tribe leader Jack. This murder was also a very brutal one, launching a boulder at the body of Melvin throwing him off to a 40 feet free fall which resulted in a crack skull and ultimately death.
You might think that since Roger is a 12 year old he couldn’t be capable of killing a human being, but we can tell this kid isn’t a saint. Henry Rogers admitted to being thrown rocks at by Roger, which shows that darkness dwells within him. He is a bully, and is capable of killing. In the time of the murder, Piggy was said to be without glasses thus making him temporarily blind. Roger preys on the weak.
Melvin only went up to the other kid’s fort to make his point and try to get his glasses which were stolen before hand. He never threatened them. They did bring spears though, in self defense, in case they got attacked, which they did. So Roger did not kill in self defense, rendering that excuse useless.
Roger has no disease preventing him from differentiating what’s right from wrong as shown in his medical report. So when he threw the boulder he was fully aware of the consequences that would be brought after the killing. Maurice said that Jack had been acting perfectly normal before he went to kill Piggy, so insanity is also not something which can excerpt him from his sentence.
One of the kids in the island admitted to being tortured by Jack, so it shows that these kids are capable of anything, even to lowering themselves to torture.
Maurice claims that before Melvin, Ralph, Sam, and Eric came to Jack’s tribe no order was given beforehand to kill Piggy. Only to kill an alleged beast, and Melvin seems as far away from a beast as possible, an overweight kid with asthma who can’t see.
The rock which was thrown at Melvin wasn’t thrown with an intent of breaking a few bones or injuring him, it was thrown with the full intent to kill. Roger saw that Melvin was standing at the edge of a cliff, and knew that if he threw that rock he would fall to his death.
Roger seems to have killed Melvin for bloodlust. There seems to be no good reason to explain the killing of Melvin. He was a vulnerable target that could not see and had asthma, so Roger was just preying on the weak for his bloodlust.
I think that Roger is guilty of aggravated manslaughter for killing Melvin recklessly by his own will while being concious of the consequences that followed his actions. He was completely sane while he was killing melvin, he didn’t intend to break bones but to kill, and Roger didn’t do it in self defense.

Tanka

A perfect island

for survival and rescue

a conch for meetings,

food at reach and fire at will

all to waste by a tyrant

You Can't Have it All

But you can have the breeze gently strike your face, refreshing you after an intense practice. You can have the sweet sound of a flawless shot entering the hoop, touching nothing but net. You can have the sound of basketball shoes squeaking against the wooden floor. You can have an unconditional friend who understands you no matter how much you change; music. You can have your dog jumping on your lap, with its tongue out, begging to play with her. You can have the birds singing their sweet melody at 5:30 Am as you’re eating breakfast. You can have all your family squished into a three person couch frantically screaming at the TV screen as a boxer gets knocked out. You can chat with friends for hours which seem like minutes. You can have fresh lemons in your garden to make the most refreshing, thirst quenching lemonade. You can head bang to a guitar riff and air drum to a drum solo. You can have a long bus ride providing you with just enough time to finish homework you forgot to do. You can see people’s perplexed faces as you say you have 8 siblings. You can answer “work” when people ask what you did in class, and get a kick out of it every time. You can get mistaken for a classmate all the time. You can lie in a hammock and drift off into sleep, leaving behind all your worries. You can chase the paletero all the way to the other neighborhood just for an Eskimo pie. You can scream “Not in my house!” as you block the shot of an opponent. You can dream of being a cowboy astronaut football player. You can have a personal handshake with every friend. You can watch the underdog, surface with renewed hope to beat the best team. You can watch your 78 year old grandpa going up to the 20 year old cashier ladies and flirting with them, reciting them poems, and singing songs to them. You can have a grandpa that prefers walking a mile to the store than being taken by car. You can see Kobe Bryant making a buzzer beater leading Lakers to a win. You can get an A on a dreaded test, without the need of studying. You can’t be the best from the start, but you can strive for it, practice every day leaving sweat and hope in the field, so one day, just maybe you can be the star.

Poetry Notebook

War may be thought of as an uncivilized way of solving issues. But when there are no options left, it has to be done. There is always a positive side about everything though, war evokes feelings, and those feelings are made into poems, some of the best poems.


Memorial Day for the War Dead by Yehuda Amichai

The War Works Hard by Dunya Mikhail


Waiting for the Barbarians by C.P


The Fall of Rome by W.H. Auden


For the Union Dead by Robert Lowell

The Diameter of the Bomb by Yehuda Amichai

Fugue of Death by Paul Celan

Eighth Air Force by Randall Jarrell

Colonial Cream-Benjamin Moore OC-77

Rich, old men and
Their wives living
The final stage of life
Nothing to live for anymore.

Like English Royalty,
In their castle.
Not being able to let loose,
Drinking tea, talking
About current events.

The neighborhood desolate,
Aside from the men with
Bald or grey hair,
Their skin saggy,
Like bread dipped in milk.

The clinking of the walkers
Is the only sound, no bikes,
No children screaming,
Only the sound of death.
Near.

All the houses the same
Monotonous color.
A cream which portrays
Dullness and sorrow.

The youth gone,
Nothing else remains.
Only wrinkles, and no control
Over their bladder.

It is now filled with
Youth and happiness,
But I’m not there,
To claim my prize.

The Diary of a Young Girl

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank


Publisher: Pocket Books/Washington Square Press

Genre: Non fiction
Where I got it: From the middle school library, had heard a lot about this book before.

One sentence summary: This book shows the attempt of Jewish families to hide from the atrocities of the Nazi, unfortunately they are found and send to a concentration camp, Anne dies, and so does all the Frank family except the father who published the book.

First sentence of the book: On Friday, June 12th, I woke up at six o’clock and no wonder; it was my birthday.

First Chapter Review: Anne is telling how her life is, this is before the holocaust. She doesn’t really trust in anyone much, so she hopes that this diary she got for her 13th birthday will listen to her, this chapter only talks about her as a normal girl, not anything about Nazi’s.

Verdict: This was an interesting book, got boring at times since it wasn’t action packed, but enjoyable. Would I recommend it? Yes, but if you are a person who likes action don’t go for this book, you will abandon it halfway through.


Cover Comments: The cover only shows the face of Anne Frank, she seems to be sad, but the context of the picture’s setting or time is not clear.

Where I'm From

I’m from sport balls,
Spalding and Nike

I am from a house with wooden floor,
From the cocker spaniel jumping on the
Visitors legs. With the garden in the backyard,
That host birds who sing while we eat.

I’m from the colorful garden with
Veraneras, sunflowers, and lillies.

I’m from cramping in the couch, to watch and cheer
For the boxers fighting for their money and ultimately their live.
From a family of giants in a city of dwarves.
From Uncle Omar and Pocho lighting the family
Reunions with their humor.
From the Campos but living with the Espinosa.

I’m from watching la cascara and
Taking a walk at night, with my family trailing behind me.

From “that’s my son” when I excel to
“you can do better” when I’m average.

I am from the first communion, which
All members have completed.
But none go to church.

I’m from Panama, and only Panama
A place known for its canal and dictator.
A place where you eat arroz con pollo and carimanolas

From when my dad tells me about his childhood. How
He would go into the forrest with only a knive, and hunt
Animals for experiments, instead of being lost in a virtual world
Like us.

I am from a thick picture book which
Frames memories that will never be forgotten.
But filled with dust, from the accumulation of days
It was deserted.

This tree is one with strong roots in this
Fertile land. A tree that once was a sappling
But grew to be an oak. I am a small branch
Of this tree, but one day I will make
This tree grown and be stronger.