MUN project
The model UN project was a current issues and politics project based on the Israel and Palestine conflict, and the North Korean nuclear project. On each issue we wrote a policy paper from our own perspective and one from our assigned country's perspective. The next step was to wright a resolution from our country's perspective. Then four resolutions were chosen to be the four resolutions that we voted on, as an isentive to wright a good resolution, the four debated resolutions got automatic A's.
Israel Resolution
United Kingdoms (Quinn Deffenbaugh)
The General Assembly
Israel-Palestine Resolution
The General Assembly,
Emphasizing the need for a resolution to the problem caused by Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank,
Alarmed by the failure to abide by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights article 13 and 15 which state,
13 “(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.
15 (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.”(Universal Declaration of Human Rights),
Deeply disturbed by the ineffectiveness of Security Council resolutions 641, 681, and 162 which called for “An Israeli retreat from the West Bank” and Israel’s lack of regard for said resolutions and others similar to them,
Having considered the repeated acts of persecution performed against Palestinians by the IDF and found them in violation article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees, ”No one shall be subject to arbitrary arrest and or detainment”,
Taking into consideration the acts of violence performed by the Palestinian people against Israelis and Israeli settlements in the West Bank,
Noting with deep concern the state of affairs in Palestinian refugee camps is subpar with article 25 of the declaration of human rights which states,
(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection. (Universal Declaration of Human Rights),
Keeping in mind the over population and general lack of necessities provided to the Palestinian people living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip because of Israeli settlements conserving resources to keep an unnecessary quality of life,
1. Urges Israel to withdraw 60% of settlements from the West Bank by March 17, 2015 and 100% of settlements by March 17, 2016;
2. Calls upon France and the US, among others, to cease to provide weapons and military power to the state of Israel;
3. Reminds the General Assembly of the bombings in Israeli settlements by Palestinian nationalists acting in aggression towards their intrusive neighbors have killed hundreds of Israelis;
4. Designates NATO forces to to oversee the operation of moving Israeli settlers back into Israel and help Palestinians expand towns and cities and develop new areas of land:
(a) NATO is not to use violence or any other show of force unless absolutely necessary,
(b) The need of force will be determined by leaders of countries that are contributing members of NATO;
5. The new borders of Isreal and Palestine shall be as are now save the matter of Jewish settlements, which from now on will be treated as an act of intrusion;
6. Urges all representatives to fully understand the possible consequences if failure to find a resolution may occur:
(a) Further bombings in Israeli settlements, increased rocket attacks on settlements and Israel itself, and increasingly worsening conditions for Palestinians living in the West Bank.
Works Cited
Black, Ian. "Dubai Killing Deals Another Blow to Faltering UK-Israel Relations." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 19 Feb. 2010. Web. 03 Mar. 2014.
"The Israel-Palestine Problem Has a Simple Solution." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 24 Dec. 0040. Web. 03 Mar. 2014.
"Middle East Conflict." BBC News. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2014.
"The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UDHR, Declaration of Human Rights, Human Rights Declaration, Human Rights Charter, The UN and Human Rights." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2014.
The General Assembly
Israel-Palestine Resolution
The General Assembly,
Emphasizing the need for a resolution to the problem caused by Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territory of the West Bank,
Alarmed by the failure to abide by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights article 13 and 15 which state,
13 “(1) Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
(2) Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.
15 (1) Everyone has the right to a nationality.
(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.”(Universal Declaration of Human Rights),
Deeply disturbed by the ineffectiveness of Security Council resolutions 641, 681, and 162 which called for “An Israeli retreat from the West Bank” and Israel’s lack of regard for said resolutions and others similar to them,
Having considered the repeated acts of persecution performed against Palestinians by the IDF and found them in violation article 9 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which guarantees, ”No one shall be subject to arbitrary arrest and or detainment”,
Taking into consideration the acts of violence performed by the Palestinian people against Israelis and Israeli settlements in the West Bank,
Noting with deep concern the state of affairs in Palestinian refugee camps is subpar with article 25 of the declaration of human rights which states,
(1) Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
(2) Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection. (Universal Declaration of Human Rights),
Keeping in mind the over population and general lack of necessities provided to the Palestinian people living in the West Bank and Gaza Strip because of Israeli settlements conserving resources to keep an unnecessary quality of life,
1. Urges Israel to withdraw 60% of settlements from the West Bank by March 17, 2015 and 100% of settlements by March 17, 2016;
2. Calls upon France and the US, among others, to cease to provide weapons and military power to the state of Israel;
3. Reminds the General Assembly of the bombings in Israeli settlements by Palestinian nationalists acting in aggression towards their intrusive neighbors have killed hundreds of Israelis;
4. Designates NATO forces to to oversee the operation of moving Israeli settlers back into Israel and help Palestinians expand towns and cities and develop new areas of land:
(a) NATO is not to use violence or any other show of force unless absolutely necessary,
(b) The need of force will be determined by leaders of countries that are contributing members of NATO;
5. The new borders of Isreal and Palestine shall be as are now save the matter of Jewish settlements, which from now on will be treated as an act of intrusion;
6. Urges all representatives to fully understand the possible consequences if failure to find a resolution may occur:
(a) Further bombings in Israeli settlements, increased rocket attacks on settlements and Israel itself, and increasingly worsening conditions for Palestinians living in the West Bank.
Works Cited
Black, Ian. "Dubai Killing Deals Another Blow to Faltering UK-Israel Relations." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 19 Feb. 2010. Web. 03 Mar. 2014.
"The Israel-Palestine Problem Has a Simple Solution." The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group, 24 Dec. 0040. Web. 03 Mar. 2014.
"Middle East Conflict." BBC News. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Mar. 2014.
"The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UDHR, Declaration of Human Rights, Human Rights Declaration, Human Rights Charter, The UN and Human Rights." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 05 Mar. 2014.
Israel Policy Paper
Quinn Deffenbaugh
2-27-14
Humanities 9
Matt Dooley
Israel Palestine policy paper
While some may say that Israel’s settlements in the United Kingdoms
west bank are illegal and unjust to the Palestinian people the UK would like to stay out of the conflict as much as possible, however if the situation worsens enough and the UK must get involved, the UK proposes a two state solution.
The dispute began in 1948 when thousands of Jews arrived from Europe in search of their promised land and a place to find sanctuary. Soon more and more Jews came to the land that was a refuge for them. In 1948 Great Britain predicted war and withdrew from the land that is now Israel (Black 1) therefor we withdrew our leadership of the territory. The UK cannot take responsibility for the wars that followed as we had relinquished all authority at that point and had no ties to the land or people any more. Furthermore, we would like to remain neutral on the current issue. However, the recent mass amount of bloodshed as caused us to arrive at a two state solution as the best solution to the problem at hand.
The problem is not complicated. “The Isreal-Palestine problem has a simple solution, it is only political stubbornness that keeps it from working.” (“The Israel-Palestine problem has a simple solution”). It's true, the best answer to the problem is a two state resolution. The two state solution is beneficial for everyone. the Palestinians get a separate state and the isrealies don’t get attacked, and we all get to trade with both countries. To enforce the two state solution we urge France, Australia and the US to cease to supply isreal with weapons and supplies as well as vehicles and luxury goods. We DO NOT propose any military actions against Israel or Palestine. The UK does however not support the right of return of the Palestinian people, we believe that the two state solution is the best that we can do for the Palestine. The line will ideally be drawn from Jerusalem to the bottom of the Gaza strip. This break up will give each palistine most of the West Bank and the Gaza strip, and leave both with access to Jerusalem
2-27-14
Humanities 9
Matt Dooley
Israel Palestine policy paper
While some may say that Israel’s settlements in the United Kingdoms
west bank are illegal and unjust to the Palestinian people the UK would like to stay out of the conflict as much as possible, however if the situation worsens enough and the UK must get involved, the UK proposes a two state solution.
The dispute began in 1948 when thousands of Jews arrived from Europe in search of their promised land and a place to find sanctuary. Soon more and more Jews came to the land that was a refuge for them. In 1948 Great Britain predicted war and withdrew from the land that is now Israel (Black 1) therefor we withdrew our leadership of the territory. The UK cannot take responsibility for the wars that followed as we had relinquished all authority at that point and had no ties to the land or people any more. Furthermore, we would like to remain neutral on the current issue. However, the recent mass amount of bloodshed as caused us to arrive at a two state solution as the best solution to the problem at hand.
The problem is not complicated. “The Isreal-Palestine problem has a simple solution, it is only political stubbornness that keeps it from working.” (“The Israel-Palestine problem has a simple solution”). It's true, the best answer to the problem is a two state resolution. The two state solution is beneficial for everyone. the Palestinians get a separate state and the isrealies don’t get attacked, and we all get to trade with both countries. To enforce the two state solution we urge France, Australia and the US to cease to supply isreal with weapons and supplies as well as vehicles and luxury goods. We DO NOT propose any military actions against Israel or Palestine. The UK does however not support the right of return of the Palestinian people, we believe that the two state solution is the best that we can do for the Palestine. The line will ideally be drawn from Jerusalem to the bottom of the Gaza strip. This break up will give each palistine most of the West Bank and the Gaza strip, and leave both with access to Jerusalem
North Korea resolution
Aware of the large threat that North Korea presents with nuclear weapons and the mass amounts of destruction that these weapons could inflict if they were to be detonated in Seoul or Tokyo,
Desiring to get humanitarian aid North Korea we hope that our resolution will peacefully solve the problem at hand,
Keeping in mind the national sovereignty of North Korea we would not propose a military action unless completely justified,
Observing that North Korea's threats are more and more realistic with each passing day they cannot be allowed to keep their nuclear program for matters of international security,
Viewing with appreciation the efforts of the UN to defuse this situation and all the aid given to North Korea in the meantime,
Seeking an easy and affordable way to open trade with North Korea in order to improve the life's of the North Korean people,
Welcoming the improvement in many countries GDP that would result from increased trade with North Korea,
Affirming that increased trade with North Korea is the best resolution to the problem,
1. Recognizes the little effect that the sanctions instituted by resolutions (1718, 1874, 1247) and proposes the following actions to keep world peace,
2. Calls upon the General Assembly and the Security Council to request China and Russia to negotiate with North Korea for their nuclear weapons
3. Endorses the use of military action only after negotiations have failed to remove nuclear weapons and open North Korea to aid and trade with other countries,
4. Encourages the General Assembly and the Security Council to consider the risks involved with letting North Korea keep their nuclear weapons and remain secluded to the world,
5. Expresses its hope that by June 7, 2015, the negotiations will have concluded and we will decide what to do next in the North Korea crisis:
A: Give aid to North Korea
B: Organize a joint military effort composed of one strike to take place on July 15, 2015.
Desiring to get humanitarian aid North Korea we hope that our resolution will peacefully solve the problem at hand,
Keeping in mind the national sovereignty of North Korea we would not propose a military action unless completely justified,
Observing that North Korea's threats are more and more realistic with each passing day they cannot be allowed to keep their nuclear program for matters of international security,
Viewing with appreciation the efforts of the UN to defuse this situation and all the aid given to North Korea in the meantime,
Seeking an easy and affordable way to open trade with North Korea in order to improve the life's of the North Korean people,
Welcoming the improvement in many countries GDP that would result from increased trade with North Korea,
Affirming that increased trade with North Korea is the best resolution to the problem,
1. Recognizes the little effect that the sanctions instituted by resolutions (1718, 1874, 1247) and proposes the following actions to keep world peace,
2. Calls upon the General Assembly and the Security Council to request China and Russia to negotiate with North Korea for their nuclear weapons
3. Endorses the use of military action only after negotiations have failed to remove nuclear weapons and open North Korea to aid and trade with other countries,
4. Encourages the General Assembly and the Security Council to consider the risks involved with letting North Korea keep their nuclear weapons and remain secluded to the world,
5. Expresses its hope that by June 7, 2015, the negotiations will have concluded and we will decide what to do next in the North Korea crisis:
A: Give aid to North Korea
B: Organize a joint military effort composed of one strike to take place on July 15, 2015.
North Korea Policy Paper
The UK recognizes the sovereignty of DPRK but, as a major world super power with
humane interests invested in North Korea we cannot allow
the nuclear program to continue, as it has caused the North Korean people to
much suffering to continue, therefor the UK proposes a intervention by North
Korea's close alie,China, we realize this will cause more human suffering, but
in the long run it will open the gates wide for humanitarian aid.
When Kim Jong-Un came to power he tried to launch a satellite to
honor his grandfather, this launch failed and was seen by many as long range
missile launch, raising awareness towards North Korea. To avoid the close
eye of world superpowers North Korea signed the NNP treaty in 1969, but in
2001 North Korea backed out of the NNP which was later discover to be a
cover for their nuclear program. In 2002 George Bush called North Korea the
"axis of evil" in his state of the union address. In 2004 North Korea lunched a
nuclear weapon test, shortly afterword the Prime Minister gave North Korea
the fitting name of "hole of darkness". Because of this test the UK lessened
their food aid to North Korea, but fallowing a second test the UK took all of
their aid to North Korea away. Fallowing a third nuclear test the secretary of
defense in the US named North Korea a clear and present danger, and the
UK held classified negotiations on the North Korean crisis.
Negotiations have thus far failed to alter North Korea's nuclear
weapons program, therefor the UK along with the US would ask china to
confront North Korean leader, Kim Jong-Un, about his nuclear weapons
program and trie to reach a peaceful denuclearizing solution to this situation.
Moreover China could, after helping to solve the situation, open trade with
North Korea, improving many countries (South Korea, India,South Africa, US, and many
developing countries) GDP considerably. If China fails to solve the problem
diplomatically, the combined might of the UN organized as one military could
solve the situation, but the risks involved with a joint military effort include
Tokyo or Seaol being bombed, or a North Korean invasion of the south.
If we allow North Korea to continue this path of self reliance, or juche, we cannot help
the citizens of North Korea, or defuse the nuclear situation, which could lead to enormous loss
of life.
humane interests invested in North Korea we cannot allow
the nuclear program to continue, as it has caused the North Korean people to
much suffering to continue, therefor the UK proposes a intervention by North
Korea's close alie,China, we realize this will cause more human suffering, but
in the long run it will open the gates wide for humanitarian aid.
When Kim Jong-Un came to power he tried to launch a satellite to
honor his grandfather, this launch failed and was seen by many as long range
missile launch, raising awareness towards North Korea. To avoid the close
eye of world superpowers North Korea signed the NNP treaty in 1969, but in
2001 North Korea backed out of the NNP which was later discover to be a
cover for their nuclear program. In 2002 George Bush called North Korea the
"axis of evil" in his state of the union address. In 2004 North Korea lunched a
nuclear weapon test, shortly afterword the Prime Minister gave North Korea
the fitting name of "hole of darkness". Because of this test the UK lessened
their food aid to North Korea, but fallowing a second test the UK took all of
their aid to North Korea away. Fallowing a third nuclear test the secretary of
defense in the US named North Korea a clear and present danger, and the
UK held classified negotiations on the North Korean crisis.
Negotiations have thus far failed to alter North Korea's nuclear
weapons program, therefor the UK along with the US would ask china to
confront North Korean leader, Kim Jong-Un, about his nuclear weapons
program and trie to reach a peaceful denuclearizing solution to this situation.
Moreover China could, after helping to solve the situation, open trade with
North Korea, improving many countries (South Korea, India,South Africa, US, and many
developing countries) GDP considerably. If China fails to solve the problem
diplomatically, the combined might of the UN organized as one military could
solve the situation, but the risks involved with a joint military effort include
Tokyo or Seaol being bombed, or a North Korean invasion of the south.
If we allow North Korea to continue this path of self reliance, or juche, we cannot help
the citizens of North Korea, or defuse the nuclear situation, which could lead to enormous loss
of life.
If I were to tell a new student about the MUN project I would start with all the writing and busywork we have to do to so that the teachers can stretch out the project out as long as possible. The trick to the project is to not get mad at the teachers for giving you all the pointless work. You just need to do the work, and don’t question the teacher on anything, they won't give you an explanation. On the other hand, in my opinion, the project was the best humanities project yet and I would say have fun with it.
The habit of heart and mind that was most useful to me was perseverance, because I needed to preserver through all of the useless work we did. I don’t mean to say that all the work we did was useless, we did lots of meaningful work, but we repeated the exact same work over and over and over.
The greatest challenge I faced in this project was the lack of explanation from the teacher, whether it was a question about why we had to the work we were doing or how the UN proses works. This was very difficult because it felt as if the teacher was withholding important information that was needed to complete the project fully. Another problem was the fact that the teacher put the project before academics.
There was a problem at the exhibition in the fact that all but 6 people made a speech on resolution 2a, that said, the most interesting speech was Syria’s speech on resolution 3a because it was the only speaches on 3a that made sense. Resolutions 1,2, and 3a all were well written, unfortunately 4a, was not well written when it made it on the docket, it was severely revised before the exhibition.
The habit of heart and mind that was most useful to me was perseverance, because I needed to preserver through all of the useless work we did. I don’t mean to say that all the work we did was useless, we did lots of meaningful work, but we repeated the exact same work over and over and over.
The greatest challenge I faced in this project was the lack of explanation from the teacher, whether it was a question about why we had to the work we were doing or how the UN proses works. This was very difficult because it felt as if the teacher was withholding important information that was needed to complete the project fully. Another problem was the fact that the teacher put the project before academics.
There was a problem at the exhibition in the fact that all but 6 people made a speech on resolution 2a, that said, the most interesting speech was Syria’s speech on resolution 3a because it was the only speaches on 3a that made sense. Resolutions 1,2, and 3a all were well written, unfortunately 4a, was not well written when it made it on the docket, it was severely revised before the exhibition.
Graphic novel
Quinn Deffenbaugh
12-11-13
Project Reflection
This project was about building teamwork and different skills based on if you were the artist of author. During this project I improved greatly on my team work skills, which is good because in physics we have a project that requires three people. This will also be useful in humanities where we do many projects and most of them have a partner. One skill that I improved on was analyzing a theme because I had to analyze the scene to make it easy to understand this was easily done through the text explaining how the factory works. I also improved in writing skill such as writing in speech bubbles and duplicating text. This helped in this project because it was different than most of the things that I have done. If I could redo the project I would spend more time making the words more personal instead of sounding like an army of drones. It is easy to forget that the people in this book are real people so I wanted to make it so that they became more personable.
12-11-13
Project Reflection
This project was about building teamwork and different skills based on if you were the artist of author. During this project I improved greatly on my team work skills, which is good because in physics we have a project that requires three people. This will also be useful in humanities where we do many projects and most of them have a partner. One skill that I improved on was analyzing a theme because I had to analyze the scene to make it easy to understand this was easily done through the text explaining how the factory works. I also improved in writing skill such as writing in speech bubbles and duplicating text. This helped in this project because it was different than most of the things that I have done. If I could redo the project I would spend more time making the words more personal instead of sounding like an army of drones. It is easy to forget that the people in this book are real people so I wanted to make it so that they became more personable.