Perhaps the battery can't take a charge (which will eventually happen with any cellphone battery). If it's a 2g, I would say good chance. If it's a 3g, not likely but always possible.
If when you plug it in, and it gets fairly warm after 5 minutes, I would say bad battery because that means the battery is acting like a giant resistor. It's also possible that the usb cable is bad since the strain reliefs on the cords aren't very good on apple products. I would maybe schedule an appointment at an apple store with the genius bar (so you don't have to wait), and have them do some tests.
If it does need the battery replaced, apple will charge you an arm and a leg. I would suggest using a 3rd party. Not only will it be cheaper, but they will replace the stock battery with one that get 50% better battery life (more milliamps).
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.