"The Sniper" Summary and Theme

     A conflict between the Republicans and Free Staters results in death. The Sniper, on the side of the Republicans, lay behind a parapet one night in Dublin. Being fired at for lighting a cigarette gives the Sniper his enemy's location; on the roof of the opposite building. Then, he shoots and kills two people in the street, who are aware of his hideout. However, a wound on his arm from a bullet disables him from using his rifle to kill his enemy, so he can escape. The Sniper uses his cap and rifle to feign his death, in order to lure his enemy out of cover. Once unprotected, the Sniper shoots and kills the enemy with a revolver, immediately feeling remorse and spitefulness towards the war and himself, losing all want to battle. This feeling quickly passes as he almost shoots himself accidentally and decides to leave the roof. Curious as to who the enemy was, the Sniper goes over to the lifeless body, only to discover the enemy was his brother.


     I think the message that the author is trying to send is that there are no restrains in war. There isn't an age requirement to participate, as the Sniper was a student, a young man: "His face was the face of a student" (O'Flaherty 86). Also, there are no limitations to who is killed. Gender and family ties disappear once in battle: "The woman darted toward the side street. The Sniper fired again" (87). Although women are generally left out of battle, the author shows that its not true entirely. "Then the Sniper turned over the dead boy and looked into his brother's face" (89). Although unaware that the enemy was his brother, there was never any thought given toward the possibility that the person he was trying to kill could be family. Throughout the story, there is a message of "kill or be killed" and is expressed very well by the Sniper, as he doesn't hesitate to do so. Being able to kill another person without any thought of family and gender, as well as, being young yourself, shows that there really are no boundaries in war.

Ishmael Beah: A Former Child Soldier

Connections:
One similarity I found in particular would be that the story and the article both discuss the easy influence of violence on children.
In the video, Ishmael talks about how seeing the violence right in front of you desensitizes you and makes you believe that it is okay. You begin to lose yourself and accept the commanders of the army as your family.
The same goes with violence in media that is shown to kids at a young age. Their minds are easily influenced, so, they begin accepting this violence as normal if they are exposed to it when young.

One difference I found was that the article states that media should not show anything related to violence and children. It is said that by seeing or hearing about teenagers in particular who are associated with any sort of violence can lead to the copycat behaviour in other children. However, Ishmael Beah uses media to tell his story of being a child soldier, in order to promote awareness. He wants to educate people about this issue and describes his story, which includes talk about gun violence and murder. The two ideas contradict each other.

Challenges:
One of the ideas presented here is that using child soldiers is bad, but I want to challenge that. Perhaps the use of child soldiers in war can have a positive outcome overall.
Another idea I want to challenge is that once you're pulled into the war and become a soldier, you lose yourself amidst the violence and start believing it is home. I think that you don't necessarily lose yourself, but rather you learn how to suppress the emotions telling you that what you're doing is wrong because your main goal is to survive.

Concepts:
A concept worth holding onto would be the affect of violence on young children and how it can change the way they think for the rest of their life. Another concept would be the use of child soldiers in war. And finally, the ideas and thoughts that run through a child soldier once they are rescued and put into rehabilitation centres because they have been conditioned to think the opposite of what rehab is trying to achieve.

Changes:
Ishmael talked about how he was isolated when he went back to school because he was seen as a killer, despite spending 8 months in rehab to recover. This suggests that we should change the way we react to people, especially the young, because certain situations condition them to become someone else, but we don't give them the chance to show that they are not that person anymore. In Ishmael's situation, it seems that he wasn't given the opportunity to redeem himself.

Another thing that got me to change my thinking is in regards to hostility towards child soldiers. I realize that people are put in certain situations without any choice, but that doesn't give me the right to label them and treat them a certain way because of it. In Ishmael's case, he was forced to become a child soldier, yet, in rehab, all the workers treated him like he was a child instead of a killer. They didn't let that label of "murderer" influence the way they treated him, which I think is something everyone should do and also be given. 

Chapel Hill Shooting

Chapel Hill Shooting Article

     Recently, there was a shooting. Craig Stephen Hicks, 46, was arrested for shooting 3 Muslim students on Tuesday evening. The shooting occurred at Chapel Hill, a condominium complex near the University of North Carolina campus. Police state that the shooting occurred over a parking dispute, but family members of the victims say it was a hate-crime. Through social media, news quickly spread worldwide to the Muslim community and a Facebook page was created in honour of the three victims, sparking lots of outrage, as well as, grief. Chapel Hill police are still investigating this crime.
     This really stands out to me in the fact that it can be considered a hate-crime. I've been bullied based on my ethnicity, so I connect with the racial discrimination aspect of the article. This connection extends my understanding of the concept of war and conflict because it is something I've read about and experienced, as well. I understand that conflicts don't necessarily have to occur at large scales, such as, the conflict between Syria and Jordan and that there are many different reasons why conflicts can occur, some of which may be unclear.