The right to bear arms

In our last English lesson we talked about the American Gun Culture.
Every American has the right to bear arms - this means they are allowed to carry weapons. This right is fixed in the 2nd Amendment.
But why they are allowed to carry weapons?
The reason of this is the American history. When the Americans became independent, they had to struggle against the British government. So they need the weapons to fight against the British army, the redcoats.
Nowadays the Americans are still afraid that the bad government may come back, so they keep on carryng weapons.
The first settlers arrived on the East side of America and moved to the West. The people living at the frontiers needed the weapons to fight against animals and Native Americans. The Americans in the cities still have a stereotype of the so called "rednecks". They are uneducated, poor, fat, ... , and have guns.

Some weeks ago there was a congresswoman shoot in Arizona. The possible reason for this shooting is the health care bill.
I think it's better when not everyone is allowed to carry weapons, like in Austria. There would be less crime and less death people.

Thanksgiving - Black Friday

Thanksgiving was first celebrated in 1621 when the pilgrims invited the Native Americans to celebrate the harvest.
It is celebrated every year on the 4th Thursday of November. The familys stay together, give thanks for everything and have a typical thanksgiving meal. They eat for example turkeys, match potatoes, green beans, corn pudding.

The day after Thanksgiving is called Black Friday. It's the start of the Christmas shopping season. The shops open at 5 o'clock in the morning and grant discounts up to 50 %. People queue up the whole night to be the first to go into the shop.
I don't understand why they are doing this. I'm glad Black Friday isn't common in Austria.

Halloween

Halloween October 31st

Halloween is a shortened form of All Hallows' Eve.
Halloween means holy.
Eve is the day before a holy day.
Halloween was an ancient British Celtic festival.
At Halloween the souls of the dead returned.
People lit bonfires to frighten evil spirits.
Now bonfires are only burnt on November the 5th. Bonfire night.
Masks costumes ghosts
Witches on broomsticks with black cats...
skeletons, bats an spiders...
and Halloween lanterns
have all become part of Halloween.
Children play trick-or-treat.
They ask for a treat
hoping to get sweets.

Of course I searched my own halloween video. I chose this because I think the teacher had a funny idea to make an interesing halloween lesson.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKviYiZhtZY

Farrah

Last lesson a student from the USA was with us. Her name is Farrah, she is 22 years old and comes from Maryland, near Washington DC. She studied German at university for about 3 years and now she wanted to see something new, that's why she came to Austria. She will stay until the end of May.
We asked Farrah which are the biggest differences between the USA and Austria. Her answer was that everything in the USA is much bigger! For example our 3rd biggest city Linz would be only the 122nd in the USA. But she says she really loves Austria. She loves the cities with the old buildings, the mountains, the snow and much more.
She also told us something about other places she had visited, for example the big and busy city New York or the smaller Washington DC. She also likes Germany and Greece, where she had been when she was young.
Of course we mentioned many other things, like the age of driving or drinking alcohol, and that the Americans love football and not soccer or skiing.
I think this was a very interesting lesson and I'm looking forward to have the chance to see Farrah again.

The development of advertising

At school we read an article which deals with the development of advertising. Advertising began in the 19th century, the early stages of Industrial Revolution, and was manly used to promote new and exotic products. But after some time there were more and more producer for the same products so brand-naming became necessary.
As a cause of the economic depression from 1873 to 1894 there were more products at the market than could be sold. So many of the small industrial firms realised that it would be better to combine with others and widen the range of products. This was when the phase of the monopoly capitalism and mass advertising started.
At the turn of the century, there was a big change in the soap trade. Instead of the anonymous bars of soap, distributed by wholesalers and door-to-door seller, the companies started more aggressive selling methods, for example Lord Leverhulme who "branded" his soap.
Lord Leverhulme realised that advertising should contain logical arguments as well as eye-catching slogans. Advertising had now reached the stage of persuasion and, as the writer E. S. Turner points out, many smaller firms were displaced by the bigger ones, because they couldn't afford the money for advertising.

My favorite spot is the Milchschnitte-spot, because I really like Milchschnitten. :)
In the spot to girls just arrive at home and want to have a snack. So one of them goes into the kitchen and puts a bottle of milk, some wheat and honey into the fridge. After some minutes time it makes a "pling" and the Milchschnitten are ready.

Trip To ITALY

Last week our class went on Sport- and Culture-Week to Italy, Bibione. It was a nice week with a lot of sunshine. I really enjoyed it and I wish I would be there now.

We started on Monday 8:00 p.m. and visited the town Udine in the afternoon. At 6 o'clock we arrived at our homes disposed by Villaggio Tourisico Internazionale. Of course we visited the beach and jumped into the sea.



On Tuesday we spent the whole day in Venice. I really love Venice, with all the bridges and small streets. To keep us busy our teachers gave us a "little" quiz about Venice. Those who found out the most things got a little price. So we were walking through the city for more than 3 hours and tried to answer the questions. In the end we asked some gondoliers and policemen. :)
After this torture we spent a comfortable evening on our veranda.



Wednesday morning we went to nearby forest to try to kill birds - just joking...we tried to hit a target with bow and arrow. This wasn't easy, I just hit it one time. In the afternoon we had some free time, which we spent on the beach. At 2 o'clock we all got a bike and rode to a beautiful old lighthouse in a bay. Wednesday was our sports day so we went to the disco in the evening. Unfortunately we were a little bit to loud (said the security) so they took away our Camping Cards.



On Tuesday we visited Marano Lagunare. There was nothing to do, so we took a lot of photos. In the afternoon we could decide if we wanted to play beach soccer, boccia or beach volleyball. I played beach volleyball and it was great fun. In the evening we were allowed to stay in Bibione until 1 o'clock. So we did.




Unfortunately we left on Friday 10 o'clock. But before Yvonne, Angelika, Werner and I watched the sunset. We arrived at Perg at 5 o'clock and I was happy when I met my bed.

This week was a great experience and I would regret if I hadn't been there.

Save the Planet

Last English lesson we had the subject "Let's go green". We talked about why there is the climate change and what we can do to save life on earth. Some of us made a presentation about these subjects. I really liked the presentation. It made clear that we have to do something for our planet, if we want to live on it for a longer time. They also mentioned two organizations which protect the planet: WWF and Greenpeace.

WWF stands for World Wildlife Fund and its mission is to save the environment and make a future where humans live in harmony with nature. I have already had a look at the website of WWF. It has a very clear structure and I think it explains very well what WWF is doing. So people, who want to join this organization, are able to find out what they are going to support.

Greenpeace, the other organization, stands for peace and protecting the environment as well. On the website they say, that they exist because our earth deserves a voice. The Greenpeace people often demonstrate and so show the public what is going wrong. If you join this organization, you really have to be satisfied on what you are doing, because the demonstrators often get arrested.

I think it's good that there are organizations which want to protect the world. But I don't think that they can change people. The can just show us what is going wrong and what we can do.
After this lesson I'm thinking about using my bicycle more often. This would be good for the environment and good for me too.

Presentation Tourism

I really liked KMME's presentation about tourism. They had plenty of information and explained it very well. They spoke understandable and because of the power point it was easy for me to follow. I think it was a good idea to make a podcast about London.

I have already visited the website "lonleyplanet.com" which was a part of their presentation. You can find there any information you need for your trip. But there is not only the basic information, there are also postings of people, who wanted to share their experiences. As a help to imagine what are you going to see on your trip, there are many photographs as well. I really like this website because it's easy to handle and with its help you may arrange the journey of your dreams.

Austrian production output

I read an article the other day in the online version of "austriantimes.at" and it talks about the consequences of the financial crisis for the Austrian production output.
I thought you might be interested because we will have to pay the debts which are made now.
Basically what it talks about is that Austria's production output had decreased by more than 10 per cent last year, compared to 2008. The industrial sector suffered the most and the construction branch the less.
The institute of Economic Research (Wifo) said that Austria would recover from the crisis more slowly than other European countries, because it has a strong economic presence in Eastern Europe. There are a lot of Austrian banks for example.
Wifo also mentioned that Austria's growth between 2010 and 2014 would be 1.8 per cent annually on the average. This is about 0.75 per cent less than in the years before the crisis.
I think it will take a long time for the whole world to recover from the financial crisis.



Vocabulary:

• output (Leistung, Produktion): The production output of the company decreased.
  
  
• growth (Wirtschaftswachstum): The growth will be 1.8 per cent annually on the average.
  
  
• average (Durchschnitt): The average of 2 + 4 is 3.
  
  
• debt (Schuld): He has to pay for the debts he made years ago.
  

original Link:
http://austriantimes.at/news/Business/2010-02-24/21000/Austrian_production_output_down_in_2009

Austrian Pellet Production

Some weeks ago, I read an article at the online version of "austriantimes.at" and it talks about the pellet production in Austria.
I thought you might be interested because pellet is the heating material of the future.
Basically what it talks about is that Austria is the second largest wood pellet producer per capita in the world. Only Sweden produced more pellets per capita.
It is also said, that the Austrian producer 'proPellets' produced 700 000 tons of pellets this year. The head of proPellets Austria said that the pellets production will rise in 2010 because they are going to run two new facilities.
The world largest producer of pellets is the USA with 4,7 million tons per year.
I think that pellets are going to replace oil used as heating material soon.

Vocabulary:

• per capita (pro Person): The journey cost 10 euros per capita.
  

Original text:

http://www.austriantimes.at/news/Business/2010-01-20/19848/Austria_is_pellet_production_giant

That's what I'll take home with me

P10/1

Flora says that she learned a lot about her own culture. She says that the more she learned about Austrian culture, the more she thought about her own.
She told that she started to correct her clichés about Austria and she also corrected some clichés that the Austrians have about Ireland.
She said that the biggest different between Austria and Ireland is that the Austrians are allowed to smoke in public places. She mentioned that this is forbidden in Ireland and it would take her a long time to get used to it again.

Austrian Mobile Power in electric car project

I have just read an article in today's online version of "austriantimes.at" and it talks about a new project of Austrian Mobile Power.
I thought you might be interested because this project may help to reduce car emissions.

Basically what it talks about is that there will be a project to put 100,000 electric cars on the road by 2020. These cars will cost between 25,000 and 30,000 Euros.
It is also said that e-cars would be able to travel a maximum distance of 120 kilometers.
What surprised me the most is the fact that the battery charge for 50 kilometers trips only lasts 20 minutes.

In my opinion this project is a good investment for our future.



Vocabulary:

• car emissions (Abgase) --> These are forms of gases which destroy our air.

• battery charge (Batterie aufladen) --> If you "put" electricity in a battery you charge it.

• investment (Investition) --> When you pay money for something you make an investment.

Original text:
http://www.austriantimes.at/news/Business/2009-09-18/16516/Austrian_Mobile_Power_in_electric_car_project

Press Review EP

I have just read an artikle in the today's online version of "austriantimes.at" and it talkes about the European Parlament election.

I thought you might be interested because most of you are already allowed to elect yourself.
Basically what it talks about are the numbers of the mandates which the different Parties got in the EU-Parlament.

The Parties which you could choose between were the Social Democrats (SPÖ), the People's Party (ÖVP), Hans-Peter Martin, the Right-Wing Freedom Party (FPÖ), the Greens (G), the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZÖ), the Austrian Communist Party (KPÖ) and the Young Liberals (JuLi)

It says that the ÖVP will get six mandates, the same as they had won in 2004. SPÖ made a loss of two mandates, so they will only get five. The list of Hans-Peter Martin wins three, which is one more than he had before. The FPÖ will have two mandates, one more than in 2004 and the Greens made a loss too. They will only have one mandate. BZÖ didn't get enough votes to be in the Parlament any more.
It is also mentioned that there are about 42,4 per cent who didn't vote anybody.

What surprised me the most was the fact that the BZÖ failed the Parlament.

In my opinion it isn't very important who won the election because it won't change anything for Austria if the one Party has more mandates than the other. If there is only Austria who says no to a new rule it won't help anything.

Here you can see the result of the election as a diagram:

Press Review British Airways

I have just read an article in the today's online version of "austriantimes.at" and it talks about a new route of British Airways.

I thought you might be interested because nearly everybody goes to holiday by plane.
Basically what it says it that British Airways are going to run a new route to Austria.The route will serve London (Gatwick) and Innsbruck.
What surprised me the most is the fact that the BA sees the Austrian market positive.
It is also mentioned that BA want to open the route despite running an expected loss of 255 Million Euros last year.

In my opinion the new route is a big risk because, as we see at the example of AUA the number ofAustrian passengers is falling.

PRESS VIEW FRAMEWORK

Saint Patrick's Day
I have just read Katharina Astleithner's blog at "myblogastleithner.blogspot.com" and it talks about Saint Patick's Day.

I thought you might be interested because we have just learned about it in our English lessons.
Basically what it says it that the people in Ireland, Great Britain, Australia, the United States and New Zealand celebrate this day on 17th of March. It also says that Saint Patrick's Day is originally an Irish feast day. People celebrate this day with making parades and wearing the colour green.
What shocked me the most was the fact that people even eat green food.

As far as I am concerned I think that I'm not a Saint Patrick's day fan. This is an Irish feast day, so only the Irish should celebrate it.

Saint Patrick's Day

Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated on March the 17th It is one of the biggest celebrations in the world.

History

Saint Patrick is the patron Saint of Ireland and this is the day he died. Patrick is originally British. He came to Ireland as a slave when he was 16. After six years he escaped to Gaul and later he came back to Britain again. At his home he had the vision that he will preach to the Irish people. So he started to study the holy bible and became a priest.

It is said that he had moved away all the snakes in Ireland just with preaching. He also used a shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the whole Trinity to the Irish people.

Celebrations
Saint Patrick's Day is now celebrated all over the world. People make parades, wear shamrocks and the colour green and they drink alcohol, especially Irish Whiskey and Guinness. This year the fountain in front of the White House was dyed green for celebrations.
These celebrations are just outside of Ireland. The Irish celebrate Saint Patrick's Day in calmness and with praying.

School Uniforms

On the one hand I think school uniforms are not as bad as they seem to be, first and foremost for those students, whose families don't have so much money. With school uniforms they won't become an outsider because of their second hand clothes. The richer students have to wear the same clothes as the poorer students.

On the other hand school uniforms are boring! Everybody looks the same.

I'm glad that we don't have school uniforms at our school because I like having my own style and wearing the clothes I like. I don't want to look like everyone else. I think when somebody wears the clothes he likes, he will have a feeling of being-well and do better at school.

Of course there are some "unwritten dresscodes" at our school. Everybody knows that we shouldn't wear clothes which show too much of our "skin". Although it isn't a written rule, nobody does this because everyone will laugh at you.

Until it's over - Nicci French

I'm preparing a book report about the book "Until it's over" by Nicci French. I chose this book because I think it's a very exciting book. The first chapter wasn't so easy to understand but the rest was fine.


The main actor in the book is Astrid Bell. She is a young and athletic cycling courier in London and she shares a big house with six housemates. But Astrid is bad luck for other people. Her neighbour Peggy Farrell, who knocked her off her bike, was found between the dustbins a few days later. Dead.
Some days later Astrid is asked to pick up a package from a woman Ingrid de Soto - and found her dead in the hall.
Of course the police is suspecting Astrid, especially when the girlfriend of her ex-lover and housemate is found dead.
In the end Astrid's ex-lover Miles is arrested.
You may think the story is over now and the book has finished ... oh you are the way off!!! :]

The author "Nicci French" isn't one person. It is a composition of the two famous jounalists Nicci Gerrard und Sean French. They both live in London.

Nicci Gerrard was born in 1958 in Worcestershire/Shropshire, she studied English literature in Oxford and worked as a teacher in Los Angeles.
Her Partner Sean French was born in 1956 in Bistrol. He studied English literature as well and won the price of the "vogue Magazine" for the best young author.
Some other books from "Nicci French" are:

• Killing me softly
• The red room
• Losing you
• ...

I really liked the book. It's written in an interesting style and I like stories where you have to use your brain to follow.

My community

My community is Ried in der Riedmark.
It's on the northern side of the Danube and a part of perg. Ried covers about 32 km³ and on 306m altitude. There are about 4000 inhabitants in Ried. The local government and the mayor Ernst Rabl are Social Democrats.

We have 11 inns in Ried and the bar Vicino. There are 4 schools. One of them is for musical education, and there are two Public schools and a Secundary school.

For the sportif people we have three sportsgrounds, a beachvolleyball field and a tennis court. There are also two different sport clubs, ASKÖ and UNION.

What I like about Ried is that everybody knows everybody and that there are not so many houses. If I where a local politician in Ried I would take away the ugly spring from the market square.

Famous people in my community are of course the mayor Ernst Rabl and the millionaire...
I don't know his name. =)