Archaeologists learn about prehistoric cultures of sub-saharan africa by studying all of the following, except
a. fossils
b. artifacts
c. written records
d. cave paintings

on this day in 1939, in response to hitler’s invasion of poland, britain and france, both allies of the overrun nation declare war on germany.

the first casualty of that declaration was not german—but the british ocean liner athenia, which was sunk by a german u-30 submarine that had assumed the liner was armed and belligerent. there were more than 1,100 passengers on board, 112 of whom lost their lives. of those, 28 were americans, but president roosevelt was unfazed by the tragedy, declaring that no one was to “thoughtlessly or falsely talk of america sending its armies to european fields.” the united states would remain neutral.

as for britain’s response, it was initially no more than the dropping of anti-nazi propaganda leaflets—13 tons of them—over germany. they would begin bombing german ships on september 4, suffering significant losses. they were also working under orders not to harm german civilians. the german military, of course, had no such restrictions. france would begin an offensive against germany’s western border two weeks later. their effort was weakened by a narrow 90-mile window leading to the german front, enclosed by the borders of luxembourg and belgium—both neutral countries. the germans mined the passage, stalling the french offensive.

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one of the strengths of the united nations is their worldwide peacekeeping. they prevent conflict from escalating into war, try to reach agreements between the opposing sides, and bring war to an end as soon as possible. they also have a world food programme which is among the most effective food aid programmes worldwide. the united nations provides food and clean water to people in need, they also send money to strengthen the country's economy. the united nations also provides unaids, which is healthcare to hiv patients. they also raise funds to prevents aids/hivs and the spreads of others diseases. they also have campaigns that show how to protect from certain diseases. the united nations also has the unhcr, the united nations high commissioner for refugees, which is an aid to refugees. it them by raising funds to build up refugee camps or to improve housing and sanitary facilities. it also has many programmes to raise awareness about the refugee crisis and the needs of the refugees. the united nations high commissioner for refugees also builds schools in crisi regions and refugee camps. a major strength of the united nations is its efforts in elucidating the crisis from which it emerged. as such many of the issues which the world was confronted with in 1945 have been addressed. this can be seen with the organization’s mediatory efforts in resolving conflict in territories. intrinsically, particular reference can be observed in the cold war era 1947-1953 where the world was in a state of political and military tension between the powers of the western world led by the united states and the communist world led by the soviet union. as the world was divided east and west, capitalist and communist, us and ussr, the united nations had its first opportunities to establish its role as a mediator in the international system. moreover, the united nations was involved in the establishment of an israeli state on the eastern mediterranean coast. violence erupted between israeli forces and palestinians and their arab allies in response to the foundation of the state of israel. there has also been the promotion of democracy where the united nations has enabled people in many countries to participate in free and fair elections including those held in cambodia, namibia, el salvador and south africa. additionally, there has been the promotion of women’s rights, particularly in middle eastern countries, to have greater control over their lives. the united nations fund for women (unifem) have supported projects in improving the quality of life for women in over 100 countries including marketing opportunities, access to food production and so on.

however, despite these strengths there exist deep seated shortcomings of the organization in the contemporary world. notable of these is the fact that the world today is a different world than the epoch in which the united nations was born. at that time the issues facing the organization was the achievement of peace and security in a world of great powers, the insistence of the united states that the european powers should grant independence and self-government to their colonies and so on. nonetheless, some of these remain but many have changed. the world and its political atmosphere have undergone a massive transformation however the structures of the united nations have remain unchanged. these structures have failed to keep pace with the new demands which must be presently addressed. consequently, given these circumstances the united nations now faces increasing demand for change both in its institutions and in the subject matters of its concern. lastly, another weakness involves that of corruption and mismanagement. there have been reports of a cascade of scandals at the hands of the united nations. most notable of these is the wholesale corruption of the oil-for-food relief program in iraq, disappearance of united nations funds and the exposure of a transnational network of sexual misconduct by united nations peacekeepers in africa. to add, there have been political pressure, favoritism and cronyism plaguing appointments to united nations peace operations. as such it can be examined there exist a culture of impunity where the united nations operates with secrecy and is shielded by diplomatic immunity. consequently, it is no doubt that this result in institutional weakness and a staff that is less than ideally equipped to complete the required tasks. in essence, the united nations as an organization contains both pros and cons in its performance and functions. its strengths emphasizes its utmost importance in the international arena in terms of it neutral stance and mediator efforts however this is questionable when and examination of its weaknesses is undertaken.

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