RE: Sister Death

After reading this chapter my respect level for Francis increased dramatically when I learned about how incredibly sick he really was. I cannot imagine the light of a candle being able to sear someones eyes. However I do not think that it was due to a random disease. When you have very little nourishment and lack any real physical activities your body cannot defend itself from simple sicknesses such as catarax.
In countries such as North Korea, the people have extremely limited food and what they do have is rice which contains little nutritional value. Therefor approximately 60% of the population will suffer from catarax at some point during their lives. Also like Francis, the North Koreans do not have access to sufficient medical treatments and many go untreated until they become completely blind and have no cure.
It was also interesting how Francis wanted to be stripped naked and left to die in nature but his supporters would not allow it.

Re: A beautiful Place that you have been to

The most beautiful place that I have ever been to was the Smokey Mountaints in Eastern Tennesse. The forrests were so lush and green that it was truely breathtaking. The air was so clean and fresh becuause of all ot the trees and grass, and every day there would be a beautiful sunrise and sunset.
There was always something new to do everyday. I could go shooting in the forrest, hiking, hjunting fishing, and even white-water rafting. The people were all extremely pleasnt and the mountains seemsed like they were not from this planet.

Re: Clare

I think it is interesting how both Saint Francis grew up with rather privileged families and had many financial assets. And through their lives, they eventually gave up all material things in order to be closer to God. I find Clare in a sense more admirable than Saint Francis because during the time, it was mush harder for a woman to gain respect and followers that it was for a male such as Francis.
I find it very likely that Francis and Clare had some sort of romantic relationships. Even though it can never be proven, I think that because Francis liked Clare romantically, he gave her extra support in his community to make her stature more superior to other religious figures. The fact that Clare aided Saint Francis throughout the last month of his life during his extreme sickness may also indicate that Clare had a romantic attraction to Francis and his well being.

RE: Week Three Wealth and Poverty in the 21st Century

Wealth and poverty inn the 21st century can be viewed as very similar or completly different. During Sait Francis's time, a wealth person would be someone who possibly owned book, had servents and was possibly a lord over a village of people and served more as a town mayor than a single wealthy individual. In the 21st century, anyone can be wealthy, and it does not require a blood line to inherit land and power. A wealthy person today canoften be found with materialistic things rather than inherited traits. A weathy person now will probably be able to afford plane tickets to any place that he or she wants to travel. Drive a luxory car like a Mercedes Benz, or spend money on entertainment like font row seats at sporting events. A similarity between wealthy people could be that they both ate well and wore nice clothing.
Poor people on the other hand are very similar today, they both struggle with maitaining their health, finding ways to pay for food and often are immigrants or victems of opression from a more powerful person or people.

RE: The United States Declining Position in the World

The decline of the United States is in my opinion because of only two reasons, poor leadership and a poor economy. I am not blaming President Obama nor President Bush, but the combination of them both in the order that they did has resulted in a natiional debt in the trillions. We are spending moneyon a war that has gone on for almost 10 years, longer than even World War Two. It would be safe to say that a progress in the middle east has come to a hault because of the politicians in Washington that are staling the military from doing what they are meant to do because they have to much to personally gain. Our Governement has become more focused on what they can do for themselves rather than what they can do for the American people.
Our economy also is poor because of the outsourcing our comapanies are doing with countries like China, Vietnam and Bangladesh. We are helping the economies of these forign companies, however, in the process we have boosted China into a more powerful position then the U.S.
Its time that we have someone step up and get the people in the U.S. on the same team in order to pull oursevelves out of our economic and power crisis.