The Modern Puritan

     When I asked myself who would be the modern puritan, the first thing that popped into my head was the Westboro Baptist Church. They exaggerate some parts of The Bible and are sometimes considered a hate group. Compared to puritans, they are also closed minded and are against difference and diversity. They are a group of people who are devoted to cause offence by saying hateful things based on a few things from The Bible. Puritans also follow things straight from The Bible and would probably be best friends with these guys if they were still around today. 

     The Westboro Baptist Church is run by a family of Christian lawyers that believe that God hates our society's sin and will bring punishment because of it. What this group of people does is considered a hate crime to some because they picket at the funerals of militants and protest against homosexuals. Most Christians agree that they are a group of very, very cruel people for virtually no reason. They negate some lines of The Bible while taking some lines and making them into extreme motives to do hateful things to others. All in all, The Westboro Baptist Church is a group of spiteful people that are now forbidden to protest within 300 feet of military funerals and are banned from entering Canada and the United Kingdom.

John Proctor: Hero or Stooge?

In Arthur Miller's The Crucible, there is a character named John Proctor. He is part of the community in Salem, Massachusetts, but lives outside the town. He isn't fond of the towns reverend, Parris, and because of this, he doesn't go to church often. He has an affair with Parris's niece, Abigail Williams. After Abigail sparks controversy in the town, John is the one that must expose the truth. I think John Proctor was a hero because although he committed adultery, he did the right thing in the end by exposing Abigail Williams about her lies. Before admitting his adultery and paying the consequence of being hung, John Proctor did things his own way. He was different and didn't agree with Parris's views of damnation and his way of other things. Because of this, he didn't become indulged in the conflict until necessary. This makes him a hero because in the end, he did what was right when he had the chance.

  

"Arrivals... There Goes the Neighborhood"

If there were a new neighbor or a new group of people who I've never met, I would most likely be welcoming to them. If they started to take over and maybe change the environment, I would very much intervene. When the explorers came to the New World, they were hostile and not friendly as the natives were to them. Columbus came and planned to conquer and "govern them as I please". In my honest opinion, that was not the right thing to do. I think the explorers should have been grateful that they were being welcomed to the foreign land. Instead, Columbus enslaved some and was only on the quest for gold. 

Anyways, if I were an explorer searching for new land, I would not be greedy. I don't see myself as a greedy person. I do, however, see Columbus as one. I would treat the natives how they treat me. If they gave us gifts of some sort, I would return the favor. I want them to trust me, as well as me trusting them. There was an enormous culture difference between the natives and explorers, and if I were leading them, I would respect such differences. They live their own lives the way they want to and we live ours. If an argument of some sort were to arise, i would make it as peaceful as possible. We can all be friendly neighbors if we put greed aside and listen to our differences to make a compromise. Since Columbus was sent to look for gold and spices, I would humbly ask the natives if they can trade or even give us what we search. If not, we can maybe find a substitution for these material things. He also went to convert them. I wouldn't have done that. They have their own cultural differences and I think people should respect that. To each their own.