Interesting Alaska, Speech Example

Alaska is a far away place to most Americans. We know little about it. During the Presidential Campaign of 2008 it made big news as its Governor and Republican Vice-Presidential nominee, Sarah Palin, had this to say, when speaking of Russia, to Charlie Gibson, of ABC News: “They’re our next-door neighbors, and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska”  (Rastogi, 2008, ¶ 1). This interchange, lampooned to great success by comedian, Tina Fey on Saturday Night Live, gave millions of Americans a little lesson in geography.

Palin’s assertion true. Russia and our 49^th state divide narrowly, at one point, by the Bering Strait. Two tiny islands, known as Big Diomede (Russia) and Little Diomede (USA) come within two miles of each other at that place, so, on a clear day, people from both of these islands can see the one another. At the height of the Cold War, the two mightiest world super powers, countries separated on so many important issues, came together, territorially, at Alaska.

First, let us clear up a few misconceptions about this mysterious place. It is not always cold there. A few places in Alaska will reach temperatures into the 90s during the summer months. The Alaskan highway runs about 1400 miles is almost completely paved (State of Alaska, 2010). The tendency is to think that things cost a good bit more in Alaska, given the fact that it is rather isolated from the lower 48 states. The fact is, Alaska lures many vacationers, and most of these vacationers find that prices on most goods and services are quite reasonable.

A few quick land facts do not tell the whole story about Alaska, but they do well in reminding us how vast an area it really is. For example, of the United States’ 20 highest mountains, 17 of them reside in Alaska. There is a lake there named Iliamna that encompasses over 1000 square miles. The Yukon River is the third longest in the country. Five percent of the state is covered by its 100,000 glaciers. The most massive, called Malaspina, takes up 850 square miles.

Have you ever looked at a compass? It points us in all directions. So does Alaska, as it boasts the northernmost (Point Barrow), easternmost (Pochmoi Point), and westernmost (Amatignak) spots in the United States. Do you like coastal regions? Alaska has more than 6000 miles of that, not to mention almost 34,000 miles of shoreline. There are 70 volcanoes that are potentially active. The last eruption came in 1912 in the area now known as Katmai National Park. Did you feel a tremor? Three of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded in North America have occurred in Alaska (Multimakers, 2010).

The history of Alaska, as a state, is a young one. When it entered the union in 1959, Americans were more unenlightened about it than they are now. Its road to statehood was a rocky one. One historian had this to say about its auspicious beginning as the first state to be admitted since 1912 when New Mexico and Arizona were admitted:

So, Alaska entered the union as the largest state, with an area of 378.3 million   acres. Yet, in 1958, the federal government owned 99.8% of Alaska’s land mass,     while only slightly more than 500,000 acres had passed into private ownership (Naske, 1987, p. 158).

Alaska has made wonderful contributions to our country and stands with the Louisiana Purchase as one of the best bargains in the history of the United States. Alaska was purchased for a mere two cents an acre from the Russian in 1967. I hope this speech has helped you to understand a little more about our largest state.

References

State of Alaska (2010). The State of Alaska. Retrieved 21 Mar 2010 from http://www.alaska.gov/

Naske, C. (1987). Alaska: A History of the 49^th State. Norman: OK. University of Oklahoma Press.

Rastogi, N. (2008). Can you really see Russia from Alaska? Slate, 15 Sep 2008. Retrieved 21 Mar 2010 from http://www.slate.com/id/2200155

Multimakers (2010). Alaska fun facts. Alaska’ Best Homepage. Retrieved 21 Mar 2010 from http://www.alaskasbest.com/facts.htm