Rainbow Death

Rainbow Death

America did not foresee
Green, pink, purple and other colors death potpourri!
Expecting others to pay a high price.
Now thinking twice?
Toll on the innocent and unborn.

Omnipotent and disregarding who will mourn.
Reflective about all the illness, birth defects and prematurely dead.
All the deceit continues to spread.
Nefariously America led astray -
Generations untold WILL pay -
Execrable effects of agent orange spray!

Hubert Wilson

Background

This poem speaks of the modern implications of the ingredients of warfare that has caused appalling death and suffering not only to its intended victims, but also to the personnel who handled the "Agent Orange"

“Agent Orange is the code name for a herbicide and defoliant—contaminated with TCDD—used by the U.S. military in its Herbicidal Warfare program during the Vietnam War.

According to Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 4.8 million Vietnamese people were exposed to Agent Orange, resulting in 400,000 deaths and disabilities, and 500,000 children born with birth defects.

From 1962 to 1971, Agent Orange was by far the most widely used of the so-called "Rainbow Herbicides" employed in the herbicidal warfare program. During the production of Agent Orange (as well as Agents Purple, Pink, and Green) dioxins were produced as a contaminant, which have caused numerous health problems for the millions of people who have been exposed. Agents Blue and White were part of the same program but did not contain dioxins.”

Through this poem, Hubert Wilson tries to tell us that wars have dire consequences and it does not end when it ends, its effects affecting people many generations later.

The point of view of this poem is from that of the poet. He himself was a Vietnam war Veteran and was affected by the contaminants. However, this could also be written from the point of view of a villager. As a villager, the person would have personally encountered everything and seen the toll on the innocent and unborn and the defects that they suffered.

America probably intended to make these contaminants a weapon of war by poisoning the enemy's drinking water and thus killing the opposition without casualties of their own.They probably did not expect to accidentally contaminate the rivers and the main water source. Either that or the need for winning was too great and they were willing to sacrifice their own people to achieve it.

In a nutshell, this poem depicts the sadness and destruction of war that extends even after the war has ended. The readers can feel the pain of the families who had disfigured children and many even die from this as the poison slowly tortures them to death. This also shows the inhumane side of humans, how they are willing to do anything and everything to win. This shows how America sacrificed others and even its own soldiers to win the war which is ironic as a war is fought by a country to protect its people.

Their Stings

All jellyfish sting their prey using nematocysts, also called cnidocysts, stinging structures located in specialized cells called cnidocytes, which are characteristic of all Cnidaria. Contact with a jellyfish tentacle can trigger millions of nematocysts to pierce the skin and inject venom, yet the sting of only some jellyfish species causes an adverse reaction in humans. When a nematocyst is triggered by contact by predator or prey, pressure builds up rapidly inside it up to 2,000 lbs/sq. inch until it bursts open.

A lance inside the nematocyst pierces the victim's skin and poison flows through into the victim. Touching, or being touched by a jellyfish can be very uncomfortable, sometimes requiring medical assistance; sting effects range from no effect to extreme pain to death. Because of the wide variation in response to jellyfish stings, it is wisest not to contact jellyfish with bare skin. Even beached and dying jellyfish can still sting, when touched.

Jellyfish are usually found near the surface of the water during times of diminished light, floating in the water column, or after washing up on the beach. Jellyfish stings are generally accidental - from swimming or wading into a jellyfish or carelessly handling them.

The symptons include:

• An intense, stinging pain, itching, rash, and raised welts.
• The progressive effects of a jellyfish sting may include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, lymph node swelling, abdominal pain, numbness/tingling, and muscle spasms.
• Severe reactions can cause difficulty breathing, coma, and death.
• A sting from a box jellyfish or other venomous types of jellyfish can cause death in minutes.

The body of the jellyfish

Skeletal system and brain is absent in jellyfish. Instead, it has a network of nerves called nerve net, which is capable of sensing odor, light and other similar stimulations. This simple yet effective nervous system helps the jellyfish to respond with lightning speed.

Jellyfish has two layers of skin - epidermis or the outer layer and gastrodermis or the gut lining. A layer of thick gelatinous substance called mesoglea fills the portion between these two skin layers. This gives jellyfish its name and the translucent appearance.

The main body of a jellyfish is bell-shaped with tentacles extending from underneath the body. Different species vary vastly in size, color and shape. The smallest measures barely an inch in diameter, while the largest can measure up to seven feet across the bell. The tentacles also are proportional with some extending more than 100 feet.

The body of the jellyfish consists of more than 95% of water and less than 5% of organic matter. Due to this, jellyfish are extremely delicate and fragile and when removed from water, they will collapse completely.

The mouth of the jellyfish is located at its underside. A gastro vascular cavity adjoining the oral opening serves as the stomach. The food entering the mouth is immediately digested in this chamber and the nutrients absorbed into the body. The nutrients reach all parts of the body through radial canals. The waste matter generated during digestion is expelled through the same opening.

As jellyfish doesn't have teeth or any other mechanism for chewing the prey, the food is swallowed and digested without breaking it down. The gastrodermis helps in digesting the food.

Personally, the most remarkable thing i feel about a jellyfish is that it can survive without possessing a heart, brain, respiratory system, skeletal system, central nervous system or blood. This is because all multi cellular organisms need these to survive but the jellyfish does not. Due to its thin skin, i think the jellyfish is also the only multi cellular organism that takes in oxygen through diffusion.

Jellyfish

JELLYFISH

Jellyfish belong to the family of phylum Cnidaria, which includes Hydras, polyps, jellyfishes, sea anemones and corals. While some like corals, are fixed and grow attached to rocks, jellyfish is mobile. Since jellyfish is not actually a fish, many people consider the name to be misleading and thus use jellies or sea jellies instead.

A group of jellyfish is sometimes called a bloom or a swarm. "Bloom" is usually used for a large group of jellyfish that gather in a small area, but may also have a time component, referring to seasonal increases, or numbers beyond what was expected. Jellyfish are "bloomy" by nature of their life cycles, being produced by their benthic polyps usually in the spring when sunshine and plankton increase, so they appear rather suddenly and often in large numbers, even when an ecosystem is in balance. Using "swarm" implies some kind of active ability to stay together, which a few species like Aurelia, the moon jelly, demonstrate.

Jellyfish invokes mixed reaction from beach goers. Its unusual appearance is amusing and fascinating to look at. However, the trouble it causes to those who encounter it is immense. It varies from mild to fatal stings.

Leopon

A Leopon is a hybrid between a male leopard and a lioness. The head of the animal is similar to a lion while the body is more similar to that of a leopard. These hybrids are produced in captivity and are very unlikely to happen in the wild.

The first documented leopon was bred at kolhapur, India in 1910. Its skin was sent to R.I. Pocock by W.S. Millard, the secretary of the Bombay Natural History Society. It was a cross between a large leopard and a lioness. Two cubs were born, one of which died aged 2.5 months and the other was still living when Pocock described it in 1912.

Pocock wrote that it was spotted like a leopard, but that the spots were smaller and closer set than those of an indian leopard and were brown and indistinct like the fading spots of a juvenile lion. The spots on the head, spin, belly and leg were black and distinct. The tail was spotted on the topside and striped underneath and had a blackish tip with longer hairs. The underside was dirty white, the ears were fawn and had a broad black bar but did not have the white spot found in leopards. Pocock wrote that the closest he had previously seen to this type of hybrid was the congolese spotted lion bred in chicago.

Personally, i feel that this creature is a marvel of nature as two complete different species came together to breed even though they could be counted as cousins. However, even though this kind of hybrids are popular with the public, it is criticsed in zoological and animal welfare circles. This is probably because the animal itself can be confused and female leopons may be torn between the solitary nature of female leopards and the social nature of a lioness. However, there is one thing i cant understand, and that is why and how can a leopard and lion be attracted to each other and if these cases can happen, why does this species not flourish.