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sorry for not having blogs im on vacation.

my totally not copy and pasted retake study guide!

Afghanistan is an Islamic republic headed by President Hamid Karzai

He emerged as a resistance leader under Taliban rule and worked to undermine the regime.

He is well versed in several languages, including his native Peshto, Persian, Hindi, French and English.

Several times in 2001, Karzai warned the United States that the Taliban were connected with al Qaeda and that there was a plot for an imminent attack on the United States, but his warnings went unheeded.

Brazil is a federal republic headed by President Dilma Rousseff

She opposed Brazil’s military dictatorship of the 1960s and ‘70s, and served three years in prison, where
she was repeatedly tortured.

She has been divorced twice.

She has a degree in economics, and now rules the country with the eighth-biggest economy in the world.

She underwent chemotherapy for lymphoma in 2009, and is now in remission.

China is a communist state, ruled by President Xi Jinping

Xi Jinping is the son of revolutionary veteran Xi Zhongxun, one of the Communist Party's founding fathers.

He married folk singer Peng Liyuan, who also holds the rank of army general, in 1987. To many in China, 

Ms. Peng was the better-known half of the couple before Xi Jinping became leader of the Communist Party.

The couple have a daughter named Xi Mingze, who is studying at Harvard University in the US.

France is a republic headed by Francois Hollande

Hollande has no previous experience in a national government position.The mother of his four children is 

Ségolène Royal, with whom he shared a 30-year relationship.

was born in 1954 in the city of Rouen to an extreme-right physician father and progressive social worker mother. 

Germany is a federal republic headed by President Joachim Gauck and Chancellor Angela Merkel

Graduated from University of Leipzig in 1978 with a degree in physics and physical chemistry; earned a PhD in quantum chemistry from the German Academy of Sciences in Berlin in 1986

Has been Chancellor since November 2005

Merkel has earned the top spot on the FORBES list of Most Powerful Women in the World for eight of the past 10 years.

India is a federal republic headed by President Pranab Mukherjee

He taught Political Science at the Vidiyanagar College, and worked as a journalist before entering politics.

Mukherjee was rated as one of the best finance ministers of the world in 1984 and was adjudged the best parliamentarian in 1997.

He had a conflict with Rajiv Gandhi (who took over as Prime Minister from his mother Indira after she was assassinated in 1984) and started his own party – Rashtriya Samajwadi Congress.

Iran is a theocratic republic, ruled by Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-Khamenei, and President Hasan Fereidun Ruhani

In 1963, took part in street protests against the U.S.-backed Shah of Iran. After the uprising was quashed, Khamenei was exiled. Khamenei was imprisoned multiple times and, in 1975, was internally exiled to a remote region in southeastern Iran.

Was elected President of Iran in 1981 and re-elected in 1985.  Became Iran’s Supreme Leader in 1989.

Mr. Rouhani has held several parliamentary posts, including deputy speaker and has also served on the Supreme National Security Council.

Was just elected President of Iran - June 2013

He has been openly critical of the outgoing president, saying Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's "careless, uncalculated and unstudied remarks" have cost the country dearly.

Israel is a parliamentary democracy, headed by President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu

Shimon Peres was born in Belarus. To escape the persecution of Jews there, the family fled to Palestine in 1934.

When Arab forces launched their attack on the new state of Israel in 1948, Peres was given the chief responsibility for securing military equipment for Israel from abroad.

Later he organized Israel's nuclear program and is regarded as the father of Israel's atomic bomb.

As Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs Shimon Peres was in charge of the Israeli negotiations during peace talks with the Palestinians.  In the autumn of 1994 he shared the Nobel Peace Prize with his own Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

As a child and youth he lived with his family in the US in the years 1956-58 and again in 1963-67

After his brother Jonathan (Yonni) was killed, in July 1976, in the course of the Entebbe Operation, of which he was one of the commanders, Netanyahu returned to Israel and started to advocate international cooperation in fighting terrorism.

Quote: "There are those who say that if the Holocaust had not occurred, the State of Israel would never have been established. But I say that if the State of Israel would have been established earlier, the Holocaust would not have occurred."

Mexico is a federal republic headed by President Enrique Pena Nieto.

He was the eldest of four siblings in a middle-class family; his father, Gilberto Enrique Peña Del Mazo, was an engineer for the electric company and his mother, María Del Socorro Nieto, a schoolteacher.

Reports that he fathered two children in extramarital affairs while his wife Monica raised the couple’s 3 children, plus the investigation into the sudden death of his wife at home in 2007, have prompted many to call him the Teflon candidate because trouble seems to slide off him.

Two years later he announced his engagement to soap opera actress Angelica Rivera.  Rivera became his wife in a star-studded wedding ceremony two years ago and is now the first lady of Mexico.

Saudi Arabia is a kingdom ruled by Abdallah bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, who is both King and Prime Minister

He has fathered 22 children, the youngest when he was 79.

He is worth approximately 21 billion dollars.

He was appointed commander of the Saudi Arabian National Guard, a post he was still holding when he became king.

In November 2007, King Abdullah visited Pope Benedict in the Apostolic Palace. He is the first Saudi monarch to visit the Pope.  In March 2008, he called for a “brotherly and sincere dialogue between believers from all religions.”

In 2011 he granted women the right to vote and run in future municipal elections, the biggest change in a decade for women in a puritanical kingdom that practices strict separation of the sexes, including banning women from driving (the only country in the world with such a ban).

The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and Commonwealth realm, ruled by Prime Minister David Cameron and Queen Elizabeth II

At the age of seven, the young Cameron was packed off to Heatherdown, a highly exclusive preparatory school, which counted Princes Edward and Andrew among its pupils. Then, following in the family tradition, came Eton, Britain’s top private school.

His first child, Ivan, who was born profoundly disabled and needed round the clock care, died in February 2009.

The experience of caring for Ivan and witnessing at first hand the dedication of NHS hospital staff, is said by friends to have broadened Mr Cameron's horizons. He had, friends say, led an almost charmed life to that point.

Cameron is the youngest Prime Minister (43 when he took office) in over 200 years.

Elizabeth became queen on February 6, 1952, and was crowned on June 2, 1953.  Her reign has lasted 60 years - and counting.

Venezuela is a federal republic headed by President Nicolas Maduro Moros

Nicolás Maduro Moros worked as a bus driver before becoming politically active in the early 1990s.

Maduro was introduced to Hugo Chávez in 1992, after Chávez and other disenchanted members of the military were imprisoned for an attempted coup and Maduro began campaigning for  Chávez's release. (Chávez was released in 1994 and won election to the presidency four years later.)

After President Chávez won a third term in October 2012, he selected Maduro to serve as vice president. Maduro worked alongside the outspoken president, serving as one of his closest advisers as well as a loyal spokesman, until Chávez's death at 58 on March 5, 2013, from cancer.

new unit

microfinance - Microfinance is a form of financial services for entrepreneurs and small businesses lacking access to banking and related services. In some regions, for example southern africa, microfinance is used to describe the supply of financial service.s to low-income employees, which is closer to the retail finance model prevalent in mainstream banking.
to learn more about microfinance click the following link and watch the video-  http://www.kiva.org/about/microfinance

peace corps -The Peace Corps is a volunteer program run by the united states government. The stated mission of the Peace Corps includes three goals: providing technical assistance; helping people outside the United States to understand American culture; and helping Americans to understand the cultures of other countries. 
more information on peace corps on the following website-  http://questgarden.com/127/06/6/110922072712/index.htm

today in class we talked about the two definitions above and we had time to explore the websites in depth. the first website we went over was the website that talked all about microfinance and how it is affecting places like Africa, etc.. also on that site there were many links in the process page that took you to other websites about peace corps and how people in eastern africa use there cell phones as a mobile bank, they pay bills, give and recieve loans, all on there phone. in our society we would say that is very common to have that oppurtunity, but when you think and hear eastern Africa, you don't necessarily think technology and cell phones so it is very interesting. anyone who does not know of microfinance they should look at these websites and explore and do the activities as i did

world leaders

mexico-president Enrique Pena Nieto, 2nd most powerful man in mexico, he had a law degree in hand when he took his place as president, eldest of four siblings, came from a middle class family

china- Xi jinping, only received ONE vote against him in the election, described as hardworking and down to earth, son of a revolutionary veteran, married folk singer peng liyuan, has a daughter studying at Harvard university in the U.S.

India- president Pranab Mukherjee, became a Gandhi loyalist and is described as her "man for all seasons", takes part in the four-day rituals mirati village, professor and journalist, rated one of the best finance ministers in the world in 1984, had conflicts with rajiv Gandhi and started his on political party

Afghanistan- president Hamid Zarzai, many people plotted to attempt to assassinate Zarzai, recieved many honors and awards in his career from famous government institutions, emerged as a resitance leader under taliban rule and worked to undermine the regimen, versed in several languages, warned the united states about the talibans several times in 2001

Germany- president Joachim Gauck, born of a family of sailors in eastern Germany, wrote on soviet concentration camps, also chancellor Angela merkel, graduated from the university of leiping with a degree in physics and physical chemistry, has been chancellor since 2005, top spot on FORBES for the most powerful women in the world for 8 of the past 10 years

united kingdom- queen Elizabeth the second and David Cameron, first child of the duke of York, she was the third in line for the thrown, Cameron attend a highly exclusive prep school, and the youngest prime minister at the age of 42

France- president Francois Hollande, after his inauguration he was elected prime minister, earned several national and foreign honors, no previous experience in a national government, mother was a social worker and father was a physician

Brazil- president Dilma Rousseff, she overcame cancer during her reign as president (lymphoma) , was married twice in her lifetime (divorced) , tortured in prison for about 21 days, opposed the military dictatorship, degree in economics

Venezuela- president Nicolas Maduro Moros, former bus driver, son of a union leader, after he won a third term, Maduro was selected as vice president
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Saudi Arabia- king and prime minister Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, born of a family with 9 other brothers and sisters, commander of the Saudi national guard, 22 children, worth about 21 billion dollars, country made laws for women not having the right to drive

Iran- supreme leader Ali Hoseini- Kahmeni, took part in street protest against the shah of Iran, elected president then re-elected president then became supreme leader

Israel- president Shiman Peres, held several diplomatic and military positions, grew up in his grandfather's home and was educated by him, ordered a nuclear program, considered father of Israel's atomic bomb

assignment!!

1. 

• mexico
• federal republic
• president Enrique Pena Nieto

2.

• china
• communist state 
• president XI Jinping 

3.

• India
• federal republic 
• president Pranab Mukherjee 

4. 

• Afghanistan
• Islamic republic
• president Hamid Zarzai 

5. 

• Germany
• federal republic 
• president Joachim Gauck 

6.

• united kingdom
• constitutional monarchy and commonwealth realm
• queen Elizabeth the second 

7.

• France
• republic
• president Francois Hollande 

8.

• Brazil
• federal republic
• president Dilma Rousseff 

9.

• Venezuela
• federal republic
• president Nicolas Maduro Moros 

10.

• Saudi Arabia 
• monarchy 
• king and prime minister Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud

11.

• Iran
• theocratic republic
• supreme leader Ali Hoseini- Kahmeni 

12.

• Israel
• parliamentary democracy 
• president Shiman Peres 

new unit

today we took our retake test and i did WAY better than i did last time i got a 73, before i got a 53... but anyways today we started out new unit, political geography. we first watched a video called "three little words: country, nation, state". here are the notes we took and what we began to talk about:

Political geography

How is the world politically divided

Country

• An identifiable land area

Nation

• A population with a common culture

State

• A pop. Under a single government

Nation-state

• A single culture under a single government
• A nation which has the same borders as a state

A nation

a group of people with a shared identity

think of it as a culture group

Nations are culturally homogeneous groups of people, larger than a single tribe or community, which share a common language, institutions, religion, and historical experience

An independent state

• Has space or territory which has internationally recognized boundaries (boundary disputes are OK).
• Has people who live there on an ongoing basis.
• Has economic activity and an organized economy.  A country regulates foreign and domestic trade and issues money.
• Has the power of social engineering, such as education.
• Has a transportation system for moving goods and people.
• Has a government which provides public services and police power.
• Has sovereignty. No other State should have power over the country's territory.
• Has external recognition. A country has been "voted into the club" by other countries. 

not a test !

well, today in class we took a test on the different religions. i think and know that i did TERRIBLE. the test/quiz had lots of information from the last unit/test like the languages of countries and the countries that share different languages and conflicts between countries etc.. i pretty much understand the christian religion and i think i got those questions right on the test but all the others... yeah didn't do so hot... i came late to class when the rest of the class was reviewing for the test, i am not blaming my bad grade on being late because its my own fault, but a review could have helped. i hope i am able to re-take the test another time for a better grade, but i don't know what Schick will say to that. i hope he will say yes though. some things that i know off the top of my head are that; Christianity is the most populated religion, Buddhism is the smallest, Christianity is based off the teachings and beliefs of Jesus, etc.. the people that practice Judaism are called Jews. well that's it but i really hope Mr. Schick will let me re-take!