Essays

White House Construction

The White House is a very monumental house, you might have visited it before. The white house has gone through a lot of construction with some difficulties on the way. The white house you see today has been through a lengthy process of Competition, construction, destruction, being fixed from destruction, and changing the official name to how it is today.

It started with a design competition for the design of the house, receiving nine proposals, one which was anonymously submitted by Thomas Jefferson. Washington while on a “southern tour” met with James Hoban after seeing the Charleston Court house in construction that he designed. Washington decided quickly to pick his submission.

The construction of the house began on October 13, 1792. Most of the construction was done by Enslaved and free African American Laborers, employed Europeans, as well as Immigrants and some didn’t have citizenship yet. The initial construction lasted for about eight years and even though it was not yet finished it cost around $232,371.83 ($3,350,711 today) in U.S dollars.

On August 24, 1814 during the War of 1812 the British troops burnt down the white house in return for the U.S burning down Canadian government buildings in York, Ontario during the Battle of York. Only the exterior walls were left from the fire, but needed to be torn down because they had been weakened. James Madison (the president at the time) stayed at The Octagon house and The Seven Buildings to the end of his term.

After the fire architects Benjamin Henry Latrobe and James Hoban tot the reconstruction design and oversight. An addition of a second-floor balcony over the south portico made a serious impression on the on the structure and by 1948 the house was declared unsafe because of the possibility of it collapsing. The Trumans were able to move back into the White House on March 27, 1952.The total costs of renovation at the time to the house was $5.7 million ($54 million today) in U.S dollars.

The White House was originally referred as the “The President’s Palace”, “President’s Mansion”, as well as “President’s House”. There was a myth circling that after the burning of the house that white paint had been applied to cover the damage it has suffered during the fire. The House’s official name was still the “Executive Mansion” until Theodore Roosevelt had the name” White House-Washington” engraved in the stationary in 1901 which established this as the official name.

The White House has been through a lot to bee where it is today, design competition, construction, destruction, repair from destruction, and changing the official name. The White House has been the same for a while now and I think it will continue to stay that way, it’s had a lot of work done to it and I don’t think it needs anymore because it is has become an amazing structural monument.

Information found at following resource:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House

Gun Violence

When used by the wrong person guns can be VERY harmful and can cause devastation. People claim that they are needed for self-defense but guns overall do more bad than good, and there should be more gun laws to control the harm these weapons can cause. There should be more restrictions on people being able to have guns in their homes, children could get ahold of them and cause severe damage to themselves of another person, I don’t think that people should able to obtain somewhat automatic weapons, except for officers and the military, and there has been talk about letting teachers carry guns, but if a trained officer couldn’t even do much in a situation where there is a shooter with a powerful weapon, how do you expect a teacher to.

Guns cause lots of devastation per year. In 2013 there were 73,505 nonfatal injuries that were caused by firearms and 33,636 deaths, and people ask why there needs to be more laws. So many shootings happen per year and have caused so much trouble every year. Already in 2018 there has been 18 school shootings, and that’s only the number in schools alone, Something needs to be done about controlling the amount of shootings because it is absolutely ridiculous.

People say that guns are needed in homes for self-defense, but guns have caused more harm to children than they have protected. When parents keep guns in houses many times kids will find them and accidentally fire them. Parents hide them thinking their children won’t find them, but kids often have a way of finding them. If they are small children, they often won’t know any better and will examine the weapon, when they do this, kids can accidentally fire them, causing damage. In 2017 43 people were shot by children under the age of four, yet people keep them in their houses still.

Most of Mass shooting are with automatic weapons or semi-automatic, which are the main weapons used in mass shootings. Officers and Military have exceptions, they need them for war and to keep this country safe. But why would the average person need a somewhat automatic weapon, they are not used for hunting and most of the effects caused by them have been harmful. Some think that you need one of these guns to defend yourself against a mob of people, but that is the job of the police. So, I don’t think that that any average civilian should need a gun that powerful and easily accessible.

In conclusion there needs to be more laws put in place that restricts the use of guns so easily and widespread. I understand that they are used for self-defense and hunting, but people shouldn’t be able to get ahold of them as easily. And I think that the cause of so many shootings involving guns, the harm that children can unintentionally cause when they find them, and the fact that the use of automatic weapons is often for violence are good examples of why the laws and restrictions that are in place currently aren’t being as effective as they need to be, and that needs to change

Resources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mass_shootings_in_the_United_States

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/09/29/american-toddlers-are-still-shooting-people-on-a-weekly-basis-this-year/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.7ec220f2a418

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_violence_in_the_United_States

https://armedcitizensnetwork.org/why-american-citizens-need-assault-rifles

https://www.quora.com/What-do-civilians-typically-use-assault-weapons-for

https://www.snopes.com/news/2018/02/16/how-many-school-shootings-in-2018/