Swords to ploughshares

Thank you for your willingness to serve the United States of America. The amount of money poured into defense and the military has gone far beyond a reasonable amount. The U.S.’s annual budget for military defense spending was $598.5 billion, approximately 54% of the discretionary spending of the federal government (National Priorities). This staggering number is made even more astounding by the fact that the US accounts for approximately a third of the world’s defense spending (Taylor, Karklls). A hot topic in this year’s presidential election, that I am sure you are aware of, was whether or not to increase the budget for military spending. The answer? A definite no. I am not saying that we should decrease the budget, simply that it should not be increased. As a student residing on an army base located in Kwajalein Atoll, and therefore a benefactor of the military spending, my argument may seem counter intuitive but this is not the case. All the increases in military spending began in 2001, when the US ended the decline on military expenditure that had existed since 1992 (Global Issues). Since that time, the US has been the biggest player at the table when it comes to military size. The US alone covered 39% of the world distribution of military expenditure in 2012. This amount, 598.5 billion in US dollars, is staggering when compared to the combined spending of all the countries that, according to the debate, are the ones that we (the American people) should fear.…

In the discussion of buying the F-35, many controversial issues have presented themselves. This plane should not be purchased due to its crippling cost, potential risk to pilots who are flying this plane, and the availability to repurposing this money into needed programs such as infrastructure. On one hand, Lockheed Martin argues that as the expenditure increases, so does the performance in which in necessary for modern day combat. On the other hand, some experts believe that this plane should…

Historical accounts give swords the status of legendary, mystical, impervious, and empowering. Swords were seen as giving the wieldier power, and the wieldier seen as being of high social standing, according to the quality of the sword. Both the Viking sword and Katana were masterfully designed according to the environment and materials available in both demographics. The Vikings were not one specific organized group of people. They started out as multiple smaller unorganized tribes. The…

Mikatsuki Blade made by Sanjo Kokaji Munechika By the Heian period (794-1185), Japan had become well renowned among the neighboring nations for its swordsmiths. Though for most of history prior, China had been the main producer of swords (and pretty much everything else) Japan had managed to make a name for itself by innovating on Chinese designs. Several swordsmith guilds appeared throughout the Heian period and were very wealthy and influential. One of those guilds was started by a man named…

ds daggers, and other weapons of farming community. They would slay the knights who came here. That was a certainty. They smiled grimly to themselves as they prepared for battle. They would first use their arrows, spears and stones to stop the knights. Than it would become armed conflict, they knew how to use their weapons of choice. They learned this as they learned to breath. The people were worried – no terrified. Saw the shadows of them by the full moon. The leader rider seemed to be a head…

carried a longer sword suitable for mounted soldiers—the spatha. The spatha, a double edged straight sword from 30 to 39 inches long, became the ancestor of the basic medieval blade, the arming sword, carried by medieval knights. Many swords were based on the arming sword, 27 to 32 inches long; other medieval or later swords developed in counterpoise to advances in medieval armor. This article considers the deadly swords of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Arming Sword While many students of…

Battle Axes and Saws were were heavy bladed weapons that did the job, right. Axes would disable shields, body parts, and even splitting the skull with one fell swoop….literally. Axes are destructive and have the “ability to chop catapults and fully disable them with one chop.” Byam, Michele. Eyewitness : Arms and Armor. United States of America; Dorling Kindersley, 2000. Battle Axes were axes, but they were double sided making it even more dangerous….and heavy as well. It’s major weakness is…

I ran for close to an hour before something strange happened… I found Damien. Just sitting there in the middle of the forest looking at the flowers. I became flustered, he looked so gorgeous in the afternoon light with his auburn hair and sparkling blue eyes. I walked closer to him and said “Are you ready to go yet?” He simply smiled at me and all I could do was walk closer. “NOOOOO!!!” It was Freya, she had followed me here. What was she doing? Why did she have to ruin this moment? I looked…

purchaser of a sword have a claim for actual fraud, when (1) the sword that the seller displayed online turned out to be a replica; (2) the seller was gifted the sword from his brother, and only pulled the sword from the sheathing once prior to placing it in storage; (3) the seller afforded the buyer the opportunity to inspect the sword prior to the sale but the buyer declined due to time constraints; (4) the seller purported himself to be credible as to having knowledge of East Asian weaponry…

my family and had took that for granted and turned it into something “interesting”. Killing Jacque was only his first step, next thing you know, he will kill the whole race of humans. Destroying everything in his path. Sans had a small phrase that I thought was pretty chilling. “Do you want to have a bad time,” was what he said before you take a step forwards. I was thinking of using that quote, but found that I didn’t think it was right. That was his thing. I needed my own. Max spit on the…