Religion and Politics Essay

In the world today, there are several pillars of trivial issues that hold it together in spite of the several challenges. Issues like humanitarianism, peacekeeping, politics, religion, international negotiations or even conflict resolution have been on the frontline of such important tenets. However, the ever growing influence of politics and religion since time immemorial has made it one of the most outspoken subjects of all time with much spotlight being continuously placed on these two â€Å"twin† issues. Epley (40-48) articulates that the advancements in both religion and politics have astoundingly shot sky high over the recent times. This has led to an increased interest of scholars and researchers in issues to deal with religion and politics. As of today, a wide range of researches have been conducted to this effect and several volumes of academic material written so as to clearly define the relationship between the two aforementioned precepts. In a different study, Lerman supports Epley’s sentiments by saying that most of these researches tend to focus on the relationship between religion and politics with much emphasis being made on how the two can concurrently run together. He however goes ahead and opines that in as much as such studies have been quite informative, very little has been done by these researchers to fundamentally outline the elementary issue of whether the two should be interrelated and viewed together in the first place—as most scholars have done in the previous studies. It is therefore from this concern by Lerman that this study is going to not only focus on vigilantly highlighting whether both religion and politics should interchangeably influence each other-as they have been doing- but also on projecting on how such a study could be conducted if funds are made available. Theme for the study As partly glimpsed by the above writings, the theme for this proposed study is going to be Religio n and Politics. From the several research materials used in this study, most scholars amass that religion has had a great influence on politics just in the same way that politics also affects religion. To begin with, Cox (2) says that â€Å"Religion has influenced politics in America from the very beginning, religion continues to influence politics, and religion will continue in one way or another to influence politics for as long as we can anticipate.† Delcore adds that both religion and politics have greatly impacted one another. This has however come with the main challenge of pluralism since America is a pluralist state that allows freedom of worship, freedom of association and freedom to choose what to believe in (Murrin). In addition, there has been constant struggle between forceful religions like Christianity and Islam on who is the most domineering. As per the United States’ constitution, democracy fundamentally functions to protect both the minority and majority. However, it is common knowledge that the majority normally gets more decisions going their way based on numbers. And based on the alleged 55% Christian population in America, other religions have been silently complaining that most decisions seemingly favor them (Lormel). This problem is however not just faced in America; many other countries attest to challenges regarding religion and politics. The constant struggles between the Sunni and Shiite in Iraq or the religion versus politics conflict in Sudan are just but a few examples of such. Several other examples exist in many other areas around the world. It is therefore with great urgency that this subject is addressed; and that is the main purpose of our theme. In spite of the many achievements by law (whether religious or civil), a balance needs to be established so as to ensure that this dual partnership gives ultimate output (Murrin). Similarly, there have been numerous concerns raised on the use of religion to exert control over others. This is exhibited by the allegation of the wide involvement of the church in various campaigns both in the U.S and other countries (Simon). Based on the many positive issues associated with the religion-political relationship, Zeleny documents that Senator Barrack Obama, in his bid to woe voters, expanded George Bush’s program of investing federal money in religious institutions. This money was targeted at the low income earners and to help in alleviating the high levels of poverty by performing community aid work. This move greatly paid off as later indicated by the huge support Barrack O bama received from the religious background thus propelling him into power as President. On the other hand, it is important to note that it has not been a smooth ride for the relationship between politics and religion. According to Mella, most of the religious people who claim to be ardent followers of particular religions do not even have confidence in their religions. From the most elementary level of perception, this lack of confidence in one’s religion primarily discredits the church’s role in politics as being false. Again, there has been an escalating accusation of governmental institutions using their collaboration with various religions as a cover-up for their hidden agendas. For example, Zeleny documents that Obama’s involvement with the Christian community was considered as a fraudulent way of obtaining votes since his background clearly state that he is a Muslim. 2. Analytical question: Should religion influence politics or should the two facets be viewed independently Several questions can be raised from the theme. However, our focus is going to be on answering the question â€Å"Should religion influence politics or should these two facets be viewed independently?† in answering this, it is important to get a background knowledge on the relationship between religion and politics; then from there on we can focus on getting the appropriate answers. Preliminarily, Religion is an abstract concept and thus cannot be viewed as an entity on its own (Lerman). In order to ardently define religion, it is vital that we circumspectly view the context of definition, which people we are making reference to, among many other considerations. According to Connelly, the most representative definition of religion is: A mysterious manifestation of power and presence that is experienced as both primordial and transformative, inspiring awe and rapt attenti on. This is usually an event that represents a break or discontinuity from the ordinary, forcing a re-establishment or recalibration of perspective on the part of the experience. Connelly further adds that religion can be something done in an ordinary way but astoundingly leads to a large following of believers. In most cases, some mystique kind of perception is felt by the members who are then propelled into belief. On the other hand, Politics according to BrainyQuote.com is: The science of government; that part of ethics which has to do with the regulation and government of a nation or state, the preservation of its safety, peace, and prosperity, the defense of its existence and rights against foreign control or conquest, the augmentation its strength and resources, and the protection of its citizens in their rights, with the preservation and improvement of their morals. In relations to the question, different views are advanced by different scholars in trying to give a way forward. First, there are those of the opinion that religion and politics should both relate and help one another like they have been doing in the other past. Second, there are those who totally oppose this relationship and advocate for separation of the state politics and religion. Third and lastly, there is a group of scholars who are somehow in the middle and advocate for a balance between the two facets. We are therefore going to view all these arguments one by one. Starting with the group that propionate influence of religion to politics and vice versa; Lerman says that religious people have the right to offer their genuine opinion on politics. In U.S for example, freedom of speech and religion is protected and legalized under the constitution. This, however, should be done in a cautious way to avoid conflicting with other groups. With respect to this, a religious group like Buddhism, should behave in a way tantamount to their group, but still not be in conflict with either the constitution or openly condemn other religions. In addition, neither of the religious groups should use the authority and freedom bestowed to them to impose their rule on others. The scenario of imposing one’s authority is allegedly common with Islam states as well as Christian states. An example is the domineering influence of Catholic influence in the Roman Empire which has been alleged to overstep its boundaries just in the same way Islam is said to impose-through jihad- its religious fundamentals to people in the Middle East (Cox 6-8). Cox (3) further advances that there should be an increased influence of religion on politics since politics-by itself- cannot adequately stamp moral authority which is very essential for a country’s g rowth. This, he exhibits with the various cases like that of Martin Luther junior who-in spite of not directly routing for a particular political figure- greatly cultivated morality in politics through his numerous inspirational speeches (4-5). In making his contribution to this debate, Lormel asserts that the democracy in United States stipulates freedom of religion and this should not be deterred by any political authority-or individual for that matter- since it is a constitutional right. However, it is not clearly stipulated on whether religion should or should not affect politics; and in his interpretation, Lormel sees this as a go-ahead for the influence of religion on politics (3). Additionally, religion’s influence on politics is a moral obligation of keeping the politicians in check. It also serves a voice for the voiceless in the society who-more often than not- are always at the mercy of superior political classes and thus get frequently downtrodden on. Cox (7) strongly supports this idea by saying that: There is a larger moral purpose to public policy which goes far beyond brokerage and has to do with seeking a justice which is measured by how this society deals with those who are most vulnerable, its weakest members, and how they are dealt with. This is why it is not only the right but the responsibility of religious leaders, and of lay people in religious communities for whom this tradition is the basis of their lives, to remind those in power of this vision and to do so in such a way that the pretentiousness which is often present in kings and emperors and in public policy makers is punctured. The important role played by religion in various elections-like in the aforementioned case of President Barrack Obama’s catapult to office- is seen as very fundamental by many scholars and thus greatly encouraged by them Montanaro. To such political scientist, religion plays a fundamental role in vesting of power and should therefor e this role should not be stemmed out by alienating politics from religion. Lormel (4) says that religion provides platform for building a morally upright political environment just in the same way politics present a forum for instituting laws governing a country. This dual partnership is very healthy and essential for a country and therefore, doing away with this bond through separation of powers can be very detrimental not just to a country as an entity but even to the globe as a whole. In highlighting the views of those opposed to the relationship between politics and religion, Lormel (1-3) articulates that in spite of being religious, the founding fathers of America-who were responsible for creation of constitution- saw the need for separation of religion and politics no wander they ensured that the constitution allowed for pluralism. This, they did, despite the fact that most of them were religious. Again, to the proponents of separation of politics from religion, this independence ensures that both of these key aspects of the state run autonomously and thus ensuring maximum output from them (Shattuck 16-30). Epley (44-55) explicates that the separation also creates an ample environment for growth by the separate units since they themselves know how to handle their problems. In other words, religious organizations best know how to solve their problems just in the same way that political organizations know how to ardently solve their challenges or problems. Moreover, Simon reiterates that â€Å"There are many countries whose governments see religious resurgence posing a serious challenge to the future shape of their societies.† As a point of caution therefore, separation of religion and politics would consequently inhibit the threat for this alleged challenge. Shattuck says that the issue of separation of the church from politics is not a new thing. Based on his circumspective studies that involved various subjects, Shattuck documents that issues like the state funding religious organizations has been greatly objected as it is viewed as inhibiting liberty and encouraging favoritism. Simon goes ahead and exemplifies this alleged favoritism by saying that in spite of George Bush’s funding of religious groups was said to be fair, most of it was-indeed- fraudulent since there is surmountable evidences that the policy greatly favored some particular people who were allied to the president—George bush. Lastly, there is the group of scholars who tend to believe that striking a professional balance between religion and politics is the ultimate solution. Proponents of this idea propose two ways of making this happen. First, they opine that there should be a balance in the intrinsic relationship between the various religious movements. For example, there should be a balance in the way Hindus treat Christians and similarly, M uslims should also treat atheists with the same kind of respect they would treat their Muslim brothers. By ensuring a balance between the various religious affiliations, the perilous competition between them will be toned down and thus making them able to speak in one voice when addressing the political arena. History abounds with several examples where people of different religious backgrounds have come together and thus resulting in a unified resounding voice from them which has many times led to positive change in politics. Generally speaking, the church (whether Pentecostal or catholic) have always come out strongly in United States to oppose the implementation of laws like gay marriages which is an abomination in most religions. Lauritzen exemplifies this mutual relationship between different religions by citing the Evangelicals and Catholics merger-commonly abbreviated as ECT-in the fight against the institution of the volatile law on abortion. In spite of the political class shortchanging the religious organizations in the fight against legalization of abortion, it can be duly noted that-for once-, a clear and unified stand was taken by the pious world. Secondly, the balance between religion and politics is proposed to take shape inform of a mutual relationship between the two facets. So while religion will be charged with the responsibility of offering moral guidance in the political word, politics will on the other hand function to ensure freedom of religious organizations while encouraging unity between them. This should be done in a fair way rather than discriminating against a particular religious group or imposing a religion just because of the relative dominance it enjoys in a region. This type of imposition-as cited earlier-is very characteristic of Christian and Islamic states. In effect, the very essence of democracy and freedom of worship or choice gets corroded away by such actions. If the abovementioned guidelines are observed, there will be positive output from both ends without necessarily getting into each others’ way but rather complimenting the growth of one another (Shattuck 12-14). In summary, most scholars and researchers that I studied tend to support the continuity in the relationship between politics and religion. A good percentage of this proponents advocate for balance, while the rest believe that there has been a relatively good relationship between the two facets in the past and this should just continue in the same way. Of course there is the group that opposes the mutual relationship between politics and religion through the separation of roles between the two. In as much as this proposition has not landed on deaf years or has not been greatly opposed by their counterparts; the alleged positive results associated with continuity of the mutual effect of religion and politics tends to outweigh the positives associated with separation of po wers thus making the latter option less popular. 3. Importance of the research This research not only offers immense insights into politics and religion, it pans further into highlighting several other essential issues which-in effect makes it very important. A number of the significances of this research have been in-part mentioned or addressed above. Some other significance includes: Fundamentally, this study mentions and offers insights key issues like abortion, gay (same sex) marriages, terrorism, religiously branded killings e.g. Jihad among other essential subjects which are in great contention in the current world and have been threatening to tear the victims-like America-apart (Shattuck17-18). This is far much better than just burying our heads in the sand-like the proverbial Ostrich-hoping that the problems will fade away instead of wisely dealing with them head-on! In fact, it is by highlighting such challenges that it becomes easy to find a way of getting forward. According to the Manila Bulletin, issues to do with religion and politics were swept below the carpet by most people and thus making it difficult for a way forward to be found. But based on the ever increasing urgency and prolificacy of these two facets with regards to other current fundamental issues; it is the duty of everybody to contribute towards fostering a better world—be it by separation of the two or their continuity. With that in mind, this study addresses this issue of politics and religion in an in-depth way thus laying a platform for others to follow suit. In addition, Simon documents that â€Å"The end of the cold war left the world without an overarching narrative of good and evil and created a free market in ideas in which any group that is sufficiently assertive and has access to media can communicate its prescriptions for the common good.† As a result, some religious and political organizations have been enjoying unchecked freedom. This research therefore highlights methods in which this regulation can be done—with a balance between the two facets being the most proposed solution. This study therefore does not stop at showing where the problem is but goes further into proposing a solution thus making the research inherently vital. Finally, this research is richly endowed with authoritative facts, examples and even opinions which lay a foundation for future studies to be conducted by other people.   Education is a continuous process and based on this proposed study, someone else might just decide to pick up on a par ticular area and continue with researching thus fostering an academic empowerment. 4. How does the research connect to the literature? A wide variety of literature was used in this research. Different styles are employed in each piece of literature that is used. Some tend to take a laid-back position by talking on a general way about the concerned theme. Others however go ahead and opine of what should or should be done based on evidences which they present. Yet still, some literatures are purely factual and the writers base their arguments on attested concepts. In order to exemplify the ultimate connection between the study and the literature, it is inherent to note that most of the materials used here either emanated from political scientists or religious circles. As a result, most of the writers tend to support what they subjectively view as ideal to them and only a handful of them circumspectly address the theme of politics and religion. Additionally, it is worth mentioning that modernism has paved way for paradigm shifts; with more complex paradigms replacing the simple ones that were previously held. This shift has also had an effect on the literature with most of the current writings being more informative, incorporative and taking a certain pattern. Gabler tries to aptly represent this alleged change by noting that: Perhaps the single most profound change in our political culture over the last 30 years has been the transformation of conservatism from a political movement, with all the limitations, hedges and forbearances of politics, into a kind of fundamentalist religious movement, with the absolute certainty of religious belief. In exemplifying those who take a laid-back position, Shattuck (9) says that people should not worry about the mutual relationship between religion and politics since everything done by both of the facets have to be passed through the constitutional sieve which rarely goes wrong. Mella (2008) also softly contributes to the issue of religious influence in politics and social issues by saying that â€Å"There is a wide range of views on this, but our take is that the application of precepts such as sacred Scripture or the Catechism of the Catholic Church to our politics and society is healthy to the degree it isn’t manipulated or distorted in service to a political end.† To the second category of those offering their opinion, Senator Danforth is quoted by Shattuck (8) saying â€Å"I don’t think people who have deep religious faith are expected to check their faith at the door when they leave their church or mosque or synagogue. Religion is something that infuses all of our lives, hopefully our personal lives, our family lives, our business lives, and our political lives.† The third group that represents the factual scholars is the most the trusted source of information. This is because facts are normally from authoritative sources thus giving more credibility and accuracy to the information. An example of factual material analyzed and used in this research is the verity that a good balance between religion and politics leads to an overall goodwill in the society (Orens 20-23). Shattuck (56) also taps into the use of facts by authoritatively stating that Martin Luther King greatly changed America in spite of never endorsing any politician from the various pulpits he was in. 5. How I would conduct the research Coffey denotes that religion and politics is a fundamental pair not just in America but also in other parts of the world. It is therefore not just enough to highlight the problems associated with politics and religion but also look at the prospects of making the dream of making both percepts fully actualized. If I had funds, time and opportunity to meet the sources relevant to my study, this is how I would conduct the research: My studies would mainly be focused on circumspectly highlighting the theme in question from a worldwide perspective. I would therefore select at least 5 countries from each continent and do an in-depth analysis of the various religious and political systems in place. In addition, I would ensure that amongst the five countries, there is a good representation of developed and developing countries. This is very important in knowing what roles religion and politics have played in such countries. Yet still, I would make sure that the countries selected are polytheists or have several religious groups so as to ardently get accurate, informative and representative results. In Africa for example, I would select South Africa, Kenya, Egypt, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. With the exception of Zimbabwe, all these countries are still developing with South Africa being the most developed. The choice of a country like Nigeria is based on the many religious factions that are present in the country and the constant debates that have been allegedly going there in the recent past so as to either join or separate religion and politics. The political system of governance in such countries is also very important for the studies i.e. whether dictatorial, authoritarian or autocratic. In Zimbabwe for instance, the political leadership of Mugabe has been greatly criticized for negatively impacting social and religious aspects of the country; the choice of such a country for this study would therefore provide a very interesting analytical angle for the research. There are various data collection methods that are normally used in various studies. However, since this research is highly prolific and requires substantial answers, it is very important that the methods used for data collection are highly inclusive. Primarily, I would conduct a survey on the countries in question so as to get adequate knowledge and information that will help me in the study. These interviews would be focused on religious and political leaders as well as historians who are viable and credible sources of information. The reason for the preference of interviews and questionnaires during the survey is because they allow for easy referencing and sufficient future analysis (Cano). Of course the nature of questions used in data collection will be simple so as to elicit lucid answers from the interviewees. Secondarily, I would use library materials-books, articles, journals-, online resources, governmental and non-governmental archives among many others. In order to ensure that the research gives as much information as possible to readers, I would make certain that neutrality and objectivity is ardently observed throughout the study duration. This is because any minor lapse in concentration can interfere with whole process thus jeopardizing the success of the study. Conclusion In my opinion, both politics and religion play important roles to each other and thus delinking them would rather destroy rather than build countries. Of course the collaboration between the two also has some relative negative effects (Simon). This should however not stand in the way of the immense benefits that the mutual relationship between the two precepts. In addition, despite the norm in life that the majority always gets things done their way, a balance should exist between the various religious factions just in the same way a balance should exist between the dealings of politics and religion. If this is done, there will be ultimate respect between all he involved parties thus fostering an environment for growth in each country.

Having Children While Young

HAVING CHILDREN WHILE YOUNG (pros and cons) One of the largest problems nowadays is having children while young. That problem includes teenage parents from fifteen to eighteen years old, who aren't ready to bring up their children yet. However, having a children while young has both, advantages and disadvantages. Being a young parent does not have many advantages, but some of them are really good. For example, young parents are more mature than their peers because they've seen how hard life really is. After few years, they will have more understanding for their teenage kid, and kid will have more understanding for his young parents. Beside that it might be better to have kids when you're young and you have the energy, health, time and flexibility for children, than when you are older. However, having a kid is not an easy thing. Young parents have many responsibilities, so they have to learn how to be responsible. They must have support and understanding of the society and their parents, both financial and emotional, otherwise they will not make it. Young parents have to abort their further education for their child good, what is definitely not good because it will be harder for them to get a job in the future. To conclude, having a child is a beautiful thing that helps you build up your character, but it is also very hard and complicated. Especially for young people. So you should be very careful with your life and always think twice before you do something stupid.

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In the age of the technological development nobody who moves with the times can imagine existing without the Internet. However, its popularity makes us bear in mind all its side effects. Many argue that the Internet is a treasury of information while the others find it as a source of misleading information and danger. So, is the Internet a force for good or a force for evil? Firstly, the Internet is an invaluable tool which helps students learn. Without any effort we can gain an access to the study aids.Furthermore, we can save time avoiding queues thanks to a large selection of online stores, which is particularly important for the disabled. Moreover, the Internet gives an opportunity to get in touch with new people from all over the world and keep in touch with the loved ones. However the Internet cannot be always shown in favourable light. First and foremost, the Internet is incredibly addictive – surfers are often not able to bear without checking their mail hundreds of ti mes per day.Moreover, unlimited possibilities of communication with surfers cause losing an active social life in the real world. Lastly, inappropriate information as even pornography await under-age users at every turn. To sum up, there are many advantages and disadvantages of the Internet. Some people say the Internet has ruined our lives but in my opinion it transformed the world for the better. Although the Internet may be dangerous, it is a great invention and a window to the world.

How did World War 1 help Canadian women get the vote Essay

How did World War 1 help Canadian women get the vote - Essay Example It won the audience with its wit and humor. In 1916, a women’s suffrage bill was passed. McClung moved to Edmonton and was elected to the Alberta legislature in 1921. She worked on the famous â€Å"Persons case†. ‘Until 1929, Senate seats were open only to â€Å"eligible persons† according to the constitution and the Supreme Court ruled that women were not â€Å"persons† and therefore not eligible for appointment to the Senate. McClung and several other women led the fight against this archaic notion. During World War I, some women in Canada were finally allowed to vote. And in 1919, all women over 21 had the right to vote in a federal election. ‘Women got the federal vote in 3 stages: the Military Voters Act of 1917 where nurses and women in the armed services were allowed to vote; the Wartime Election Act which extended the vote to women who had husbands, son or fathers serving overseas; and all women over 21 on January 1, 1919. _________ _____________________________________________________________________ 1. â€Å"A Country by Consent†, World War 1, 1914 – 1918. 2. Ibid. 3. Ibid. ‘On June 19th 1917, the House of Commons voted by 385 to 55 to accept the Representation of the People Bill’s women’s suffrage clause. Suffragists were encouraged to contact their MP’s to support the bill. ... Historians such as Martin Pugh believe that the vote in favor of female suffrage was simply a continuation of the way the issue had been moving before the war had started in 1914. ‘In 1911, there had been a similar vote to the one in 1917. Of the 194 MP’s who voted for the bills in both 1911 and 1917, only 22 had changed their stance. Fourteen had changed to being in favor of female suffrage and 4 changed from being for female suffrage in 1911 to being against it in 1917. This leaves a difference of only 14 – a long way of the 330 majority of 1917. This only proves that the direction the Parliament was moving in before August 1914 was a significant factor in the 1918 Representation of the People Act. The activities of the Suffragists and Suffragettes (the female members of the Women’s Social & Political Union who wanted to take part in the electoral process) pre-1914 have been more important at a political level than the work done by women in the war. Als o, the Parliament was very conscious on how the public would react if they would arrest women who had done important work for the nation during the war just because they wanted political rights after it. A continuation of the way things were going pre-1914 was an important factor as was the fear of social and political unrest in the aftermath of what had happened in Russia. ______________________________________________________________________________ 4. â€Å"The Role of Women 1900 -1945†, 2010. 5. Ibid. 6. Ibid. ‘From 1910 to 1913, two issues dominated British politics: the clash between the Lords and the House of Commons and the continuing rise of militancy by the Suffragettes. The death of Emily Wilding Davison at the Derby in 1913 seemed to many to show that the very fabric of

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Implications and advancements of dna (as a medical milestone) in the future - Essay Example Some of the disorders include hemophilia, and sickle cell anemia among others. The detection enables the parents and medical staff to prepare for the upcoming treatments. Genetic counsellors also use the knowledge of DNA to advise couples on their risks of having disabled children (â€Å"nih.gov†). Medical experts are also developing new technologies that can rapidly sequence large quantities of DNA. The initial sequencing method was called Sanger, but has now undergone automation for it to work faster than before. Other DNA technologies such as STR and RFLP have erupted and will continue to erupt as long studies in DNA do not stop. The next generation sequencing technologies can sequence human DNA in a short time and at low costs (â€Å"nih.gov†). Over the last few years, the world has witnessed rapid progress in biotechnology and, in particular, the human genome project. The advancement has seen the emergence of complex datasets such as Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms, microarray expression of cells, and genome sequencing of various species. All this has given rise to bioinformatics, a field with vast applications in the medical field (â€Å"nih.gov†). What the future holds on DNA remains a mystery, and it is only time and science that can

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Culture influences on leadership processes - Essay Example In this paper, the proponent tries to specifically emphasise the specific influence of culture on the leadership process. In line with this, guidelines for how leaders can adapt their communication to diverse cultures are included. What is culture? Man from the start struggled to survive with nature. Everything was not learned in an instant event but humans have to undergo trial and error process. This paved way to their important experiences with nature. It is therefore implied that culture is a result of experiences from humans’ struggle for survival with nature that eventually resulted to belief, art, law, moral, customs, capabilities and habits (Ayisi, 1992). Today, these are widely observed as integral parts of everyone’s daily survival in every part of the world. Due to different and constant experiences encountered by people everyday, culture has become a system consisting of interrelated and interdependent habit pattern of response (Kroeber and Kluckhohn, 1978). Every individual has different way to respond to a certain experience. The form of response is also dependent on the available ideas and patterns of activities generated from different experiences. Culture therefore has become easy to be identified through knowing how people live, what clothes they wear, what foods they eat, what language they speak, stories they tell and celebrations they celebrate as far as knowing how they survive is concerned (Kalman, 2009). This makes culture as a way of life because it tries to define the entire being of a person. From the day an individual arrived in this planet, the entire event did not start with picking up the right thing in order. Everything had to undergo a series of events of experiences from top to bottom. This means that an individual had to struggle to come up with the right process in order to discover the right and appropriate response to every situation. Culture therefore is such a broad concept because of its connection with the human lives. It is an integral part of daily survival and without it there is no enough basis of measuring how far an individual has gone through in life. From the standpoint of cultural anthropology, culture encompasses the idea about shared concepts, values, beliefs and adaptive system (Lyman, 2008). Every nation has an idea about shared concepts, beliefs, values and adaptive system. Japanese are known for their loyalty, courtesy and other good values that are considered to be important parts of where their country right now. Their cultural values are considered integral parts of how they achieve things in life and how they face situations and circumstances. Cultural values for them are very important because this is how they should consider themselves in relation to dealing with other people not only with their own race but other people in the world. Values are very important for Japanese that even on how they achieve things with economic considerations, they considered price an d quality as the most important considerations why people should go for their products. As a result, Japanese are among of the leading innovators in the world with considerable emphasis on their cutting-edge technology. The United States has certain beliefs and shared concepts about the American way of life. Part of their culture is the belief that when a certain thing is priced expensive, then it must have substantial positive impact on quality. On the other

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The Future of Greece - Essay Example Interestingly, news articles and public opinion tended to believe that Greece would default and the European Union would be faced with the question of whether to integrate further whether to dissolve entirely. Although this is still very much a reasonable expectation with respect to the outcome of the PIIGS in Europe (Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain), a more likely scenario that is been exhibited over the past several years is the fact that the European Union will continue to bankroll the debt of Greece, and country similar to it, as long as the central bank of Europe has the wherewithal to continue bankrolling the liabilities of this small southern European nation. Ultimately, there are only two outcomes can exist for Greece in light of the information that is thus far been presented. Sadly, neither of these outcomes are particularly optimistic. The first outcome is necessarily contingent upon the belief that Greece will ultimately default upon the debt that the European Union has provided it and will be censured by dismissal from the European Union and forced to be something of a satellite state to the European Union; something that is never before happened. Within this particular interpretation of overall likelihood and future potential, Greece would be able to regain control of its currency and either renege upon the debt that it has thus far accrued by printing a massive amount of money, or seeks to honor these engagements through a slow and arduous process of repayment. Within such a framework, the only tangential benefit set out to that would be the sovereignty over its own monetary instruments and the mechanisms through which a Greek central bank could seek to change the fiscal policy and dismal economic Outlook that the nation faces in the immediate and near future. A secondary and equally dismal outcome is that Greece would maintain itself within the European Union and continue to borrow an unsustainable level of cash as a means of funding its operations domestically. Unless the European Union type is debt mechanism and does not allow for Greece to continue to exercise the bailouts that is received over the past several years, this outcome is not only likely but expected. However, the repercussions of such a decision matrix would mean that Greece would not be able to exercise any degree of sovereignty with respect to the way in which it continues to operate its economy. Due to the ever increasing level of regulations that European funding, through the European Central Bank, has impacted upon Greece, nearly each and every economic decision that is made at the national level is not contingent upon the actual decision-makers within the country; rather, it is contingent upon how Brussels views the best interests of Greece through a strategy of debt repatriation Sadly, both of these alternatives necessarily create a situation through which the nation of Greece is at the mercy of an unbelievably high level of national that for a very long period of time. A handful of instances can be recalled that help the reader to understand how such constricting levels of debt can impact upon the overall quality of life, GDP, and expectation for future profitability that the nation might at some point in the future hope to assume. As it stands within the current model, the debt of Greece is something of the sword of Damocles through which the Greek economy can neither escape nor hope to grow. This is not only a dire situation but one that begs the relevant powers

W6 Asig HMO Information Delivery Framework and Data Warehousing Essay

W6 Asig HMO Information Delivery Framework and Data Warehousing - Essay Example herefore, the information delivery framework on an organization depends on the needs and demands for information of the organization, the users of information, as well as the tools which could be tapped to generate the needed data. As an end-user information delivery specialist, one would establish a framework for a health maintenance organization (HMO) through a comprehensive assessment of the information needs. The assessment necessitates identification of various users in the HMO. The HMO is defined as â€Å"an organization of hospitals, physicians, and health care providers who have joined to provide comprehensive health care services to its members† (Gitman, Joehnk, & Billingsley, 2013). As noted, HMO members include: doctors, diagnostic and laboratory technicians, nurses, administrative staff, executive management team, suppliers, clients (patients), and other health care providers. Therefore, the kind of information that would be gathered would be sourced through the various tools noted. As emphasized, â€Å"the principal class of tools comprises query and data access tools† (Ponniah, 2010, p. 360). Using the tool selection criteria and checklist, one could design the appropriate information delivery tools based on the most prominent and pressing concerns of the HMO: delivery of high quality health care and adherence to standards of safety required by health organizations. A bulk of the information to be solicited and gathered for the HMO would include current updates on health care, advances in medical technology and applications, health care regulations, standards for safety and high quality in the delivery of patient care, financial and human resources m anagement required to support and sustain operations of the HMO. Thus, using the above framework, a similar model for the HMO could be designed according to the stakeholders

The Commodity Exchange Act Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 5000 words

The Commodity Exchange Act - Essay Example Any commodity contract offered or sold shall, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, be presumed to be offered or sold for speculation or investment purposes. A commodity contract shall not include any contract or agreement which requires, and under which the purchaser receives, within 28 calendar days from the payment in good funds of any portion of the purchase price, physical delivery of the total amount of each commodity to be purchased under the contract or agreement.[1985,c.643(new).]" (Title 32: Professions and Occupations, Ch.111-A: Maine Commodity Code (Heading: PL 1987, c.402, Pt.A.@174 (rpr)) http://janus.state.me.us)2 The 106th Congress, 2nd Session H.R.5660 was held to reauthorize and amend the CEA to promote legal certainty, enhance competition, and to reduce the systemic risks prevailing in the markets for futures and the so-called over-the-counter derivatives, and others. This bill was called "The Commodity Futures Modernization Act of 2000" The Act was to: 1. Reauthorize the appropriation for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission 2. Streamline and eliminate unnecessary regulation for the commodity futures exchanges and other entities regulated under the Commodity Exchange Act 3. Transform the role of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to oversight of the futures markets 4. Provide a statutory and regulatory frame-work for allowing the trading of futures on securities 5. Clarify the jurisdiction of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission over certain retail foreign exchange transactions and bucket shops that may not be otherwise regulated 6. Promote innovation for futures and derivatives and to reduce systemic risk by enhancing legal certainty in the markets for certain futures and derivatives transactions 7. Reduce systemic risk and provide greater stability to markets during times of market disorder by allowing the clearing of transactions in over-the-counter derivatives through appropriately regulated clearing organizations, and 8. Enhance the competitive position of United States financial institutions and financial markets. (106th Session of Congress, H.R. 5660, Dec.14th 2000, www.cftc.gov)3 3.0 Who's who Commodity trading advisor Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, the term "commodity trading advisor" means any person who: 1. for compensation or profit, engages in the business of advising others, either directly or through publications, writings, or electronic media, as to the value of or the advisability of trading in: (i) Any contract of sale of a commodity for future delivery made or to be made on or

Statement of Purpose Personal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 4

Of Purpose - Personal Statement Example I am an international student from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is a large country and areas of science in the country are in the phase of rapid development. It is for this reason that the government has sponsored thousands of students like me to come to the United States and complete their studies in specific fields of science. I would like to utilize this opportunity to its fullest and complete my PhD for bringing about development in the field of Information Systems in Saudi Arabia. I am currently enrolled in the program of Master of Science in Computer and Information Science at the Gannon University, Erie, PA, USA and the expected date of my graduation is December 2014. This master’s program has motivated me to further continue my studies in the same field and gain expertise through the completion of my PhD. The PhD Program would grant me with an opportunity to polish my skills and gain an advanced understanding of my desired field. I have always had an interest in the field of Information Systems. In the year 2010, I completed my graduation in the field of Information Science from my home country at the Al-Baha University and achieved a GPA of 2.8-4. My graduation motivated me to further achieve higher studies in the field and to gain greater exposure and a better learning environment, I moved to the United States. I enrolled at the ELS Language Center at Cincinnati, OH, USA for one year to get a good grip over English Language so that that I would not face any difficulties during my years of education in the United States. Following this, I started my Master’s Degree in Information Systems at the Gannon University in January 2013. Currently, I have successfully completed 24 credits out of 33 and my GPA is 3.75-4 which is reflective of my hard work and focus for outshining in my field. With time, my interest in the field of Information

How does addiction affect high school students (15-18 years old) Essay

How does addiction affect high school students (15-18 years old) grades or school performance - Essay Example tained by them are also influenced by the factors like setting proper priorities, maintaining pleasing attitudes and demonstrating acceptable behavioral practices. And., it is reported that the proportion of students that falls in the above category is only 40 % of the school population (Nelson et al, 2001). It is equally surprising that atleast a quarter of the high school leaving children felt unhappy and supportless and another 15 percent have the history of either attempting or committing suicide (Nelson et al, 2001). A closer introspection clearly reveals that the contributory factors for such disturbing situations are tobacco addiction, alcohol abuse, wide variation in the mental state like depression and bipolar disorder, unbearable loss of loved one, humiliation and easy access to very lethal systems (Nelson et al, 2001). Among these, addiction to tobacco is found to be the easiest trap to which students easily fell due to the easiness in availability of the products and rela tively lower social stigma attached to this habit when compared to others in the list. Thus this research study is undertaken with the objective to investigate how the academic performance in schools are affected as a result of addiction, more specifically to tobacco smoking. A research study carried out among a set of school children have given wide ranging reasons for getting addicted to the tobacco products, mostly for smoking (Dongre et al, 2008). It says that nearly 50 percent of the students succumb to smoking in school due to the peer pressure. The next contributing factor is for curiosity to explore the â€Å"pleasures† in the process. A small fraction of students, about 8 percent, resort to tobacco claiming it to have a curative value (Dongre et al, 2008). Another research conducted to understand the psychosocial predictors in the onset of the tobacco smoking shows a strong relationship with four different factors. These are categorized as social and interpersonal

The Forest - Creative Writing Essay For English Essay Example for Free

The Forest Creative Writing Essay For English Essay There’s a forest bordering the town that I live in. The adults refuse to go near it or talk of what lies within. From the time we consciously understand our parents teach us not to step foot in there because the â€Å"Unmentionable Monsters† will get you. Of course as kids with wild imaginations we made our own predictions about what it could be. The Boogie Man, Dracula, werewolves, ghosts, and all sorts of other ghouls came to mind. These are just rumors made in a child’s mind. The fact in the situation is all those who enter The Forest, never return. They disappear without a trace. No trail, no clues, no nothing. This is where I had issues with The Forest. How can somebody just disappear? From the time of my first memory up until now I have been filled with curiosity. As I grew my instinct to investigate pulled me towards the mystery of The Forest like gravity pulls an object to earth. Then at 16, I found myself with the greatest opportunity hanging over my head. â€Å"So Chris, are you up for it?†Micah Questioned.I’m Chris and Micah was my best friend. To the outside world I was a completely average quiet teenage girl with a polar opposite best friend. Everybody who knew me personally knew I was crazy. â€Å"Are you kidding me? Did you even have to ask!?!† I practically screamed at him.This would be the trip of a lifetime for me. Micah asked me to go camping in the â€Å"forest† with him and some friends. There was no way I would turn him down. That Friday night, loaded up with food, clothes, tents, matches, safety gear, climbing ropes, and more, we set off into The Forest. Trekking farther and farther into the foliage and scanning with our flashlights for danger we finally came across a clearing big enough to set up camp for the night. As we set our tents in a circle Julian, Micah’s brother, finished first and was then sent out on firewood duty. â€Å"Hey Chris, have you seen my brother?† Micah asked and I poked the fire. â€Å"No, not sense you sent him out to get fire wood† â€Å"Then where did that fire wood come from?† he pointed towards the fire I was tending to. â€Å"It was here when I finished my tent. I suspected Julian left it then went to bed. There is a lot here and I figured he was tired after the haul.† I explained. â€Å"Julian is not in his tent.† It took me until after midnight to convince Micah that his brother would be ok and probably just went exploring. With him finally asleep I was able to get some shut eye. It didn’t last very long though. I could tell it was near dawn when the noise woke me due to the pink color that lit up my tent, but the time itself was the least of my worries. Something outside of my tent was splattering liquid on my tent and making a gurgling noise. Thinking it was one of the guys playing a prank I quietly unzipped my tent and crawled around to sneak up behind them. What I saw would be imprinted on my soul forever. Julian was hunched over Katherine tearing at her stomach with his teeth. The dark spots I saw on my tent were blood stains. Lukas body was lying in an unnatural position off to the side. His chest was torn open and his internal organs gone. Julian’s clothes were shredded and it was obvious some of the blood that encased most of his body was his. My mind started to race with questions. â€Å"What happened to Julian in the forest? How did I not hear the commotion until now? Where are Micah and Dustin? Is Julian infected with something? What if whatever got to Julian comes back? Where did the firewood really come from? Is somebody playing games with us?† As I was lost in my own thoughts I didn’t hear as somebody quietly snuck up behind me. It was too late when I did notice because they had their hand wrapped around my mouth dragging me back. I screamed but it was heard only by deaf ears due to the restraint. My capture dragged me all the way back into the forest before releasing me. As I turned around to fight I realized it was only Micah and Dustin. Thankfully, all their organs were intact and there was no blood. At their feet sat a pile of supplies they must have grabbed before getting me, it wasn’t much though. â€Å"We have to get out of here. What happened to my brother while he was out is a mystery, but it is evident he is no longer human.† Micah whispered â€Å"Yeah, but where do we go? Home? I have a feeling we won’t make it there!† Dustin argued â€Å"Will you quit being a pessimist?† I whisper yelled. â€Å"We have to start somewhere and home is the closest town so we head that way. Once to safety we can figure out what the hell is going on.† As I talked my voice became louder and I didn’t hear the audible crack coming from behind me. I did however see the look on Dustin’s face. Dustin was a big guy. There wasn’t much that could scare him. The look of pure terror on his face prompted me to turn around. There standing about five feet away from me was Luka. Lukas body that had been completely demolished now did not have a single blemish. Well, he was fine other than the red eyes. â€Å"Chris why do you look so scared?†Lukas voice was deeper. It was like it was his body but not him. Micah confirmed my suspicion with a single word. â€Å"Demon.†I can still remember the times when Micah and Julian’s grandma would tell stories of how if you died in The Forest a demon could stake its claim over your body. I suspected that was what is happening in this situation. â€Å"Why don’t you come over here Chris?†Whatever was in Lukas body was trying to get into my head. I could feel it poking around in my mind as if trying to take control. I didn’t trust this thing and I didn’t trust Dustin to be strong willed enough to fight it off in his mind. It was time to run. As me and Micah took off into the forest I noticed Dustin stayed behind. I was right he had fallen into the trap. Not long after taking off footsteps could be heard in pursuit. I did the stupid thing and turned my head towards Luka and Dustin. Running into a tree hurts. Then being pulled up buy your hair doesn’t help the cause. I was caught and Dustin was able to make quick work of catching Micah. Hours later I was tied up with MY climbing ropes, in MY tent. Luka had re-killed Julian; something about an unintelligent lower level scum. I had no idea what happened to Dustin and Micah, but I had a feeling their luck ran dry and they were now in the same situation as Luka. Katherine’s body was still on the ground when we were walked back into camp. Because we are pure, girl’s bodies are unable to be possessed. Unluckily for me that doesn’t mean were not entertaining while still alive. Those things outside laughed and enjoyed normal conversation as if they were human, but I knew better. I want this to be a warning to all those who live around The Forest. It is filled with an evil unlike any other. Luka, Micah, Dustin, and I are the only survivors of The Forest, but not all of us survived.

The Southern Pride Of The Civil War English Literature Essay

The Southern Pride Of The Civil War English Literature Essay The Civil War was from 1861-1865. The outcome of the war and the war itself impacted not only the people of that era, but also American literature. Authors infused the ways of the northern and southern people into their works like a baker folding food coloring into batter to make a delicious confetti cake. For example, in A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner, Faulkner writes and now miss Emily had gone to join the represtatives of those august names where they lay in the cedar-bunds cemetery among the ranked and anonymous graves of the union and confederate soldiers who fell at the battle of Jefferson.(89). In Faulkners short story the aftermath of the historical event, the civil war, is seen in the symbolism he uses throughout the short story, his character Emily, and his view of the south. In A Rose for Emily symbolism is used to show the effects of the civil war on the south and to lay a deeper meaning in the short story. At the beginning of this story the house is old, worn down, and out of style. It is described to have once been white, decorated with cupolas and spires and scrolled balconies in the lightsome style of  the seventies.(Faulkner 89). The house can symbolize the fall of the old south and the fallout of southern traditions since the civil war. The house also symbolizes the break down of miss Emily emotionally and physically over the years. Back when Emilys father died the house was still in good condition and kept up with, Emily also kept up with herself. She was young and considered a proper southern belle. When miss Emily dies she is old and her hair has turned gray. Just as Emily is stubborn so is the house. She refused to accept the modern ideas, when the town got free postal delivery miss Emily alone refused to let them fasten the metal numbers ab ove her door and attach a mailbox to it.(Faulkner 93), as it seems the house rejected updating with the new advances. A couple symbols to tell that time was passing are Miss Emilys pocket watch and her hair. The pocket watch is only mentioned once in the story. It was when the Board of Aldermen went to her house to collect taxes. They were in the living room and after the board was done talking, then thru could hear the invisible watch ticking at the end of the gold chain.(Faulkner 90). The ticking is a sign that time never stops and that southern ideals are changing. Emilys hair turned gray over the years, when we next saw muss Emily, she had grown hatband her hair was turning gray. During the next few years it grew grayer and grayer until it creased turning.(Faulkner 93). This showed time passing by. Homer Barron in this short story symbolizes a rat and the north. Homer symbolizes a rat to Emily when she found out he was not a marrying man(Faulkner 92). He most likely wouldnt hav e kept a promise to marry her so to Emily arsenic was a good choice of poison to kill him with. The druggist wrote a note of the box of arsenic For rats!'(Faulkner 92). Homer also symbolizes the north because he is from the north and has northern ideals. He portrays the northern ideals moving into the south. A rose from the title a rose for Emily symbolizes preservation. Homer is the rose when Emily kills him and keeps him in her room. The room has valance curtains of faded rose color, upon the rose-shaded lights(Faulkner 94), which is the perfect place to preserve a body. Emily preserved him like a rose to make him last. The rose is preservation of southern ideals as well. Also the rose is a remembrance of death. A lot of death occurred throughout this short story. The rose could also symbolize silence. With homer representing the north and a rose as silence, homers death is a way that Emily silenced the north or change in her life. Miss Emily symbolizes the old south. Emilys fathe r raised her on the southern ways, alive, miss Emily had been a tradition, a duty, and a card; a sort of heredity obligation upon the town, dating from that day in 1894(Faulkner 90). She was traditional, as in not paying taxes, like most southern people are. Death symbolizes Emilys life. She was alive but not really living the life she had. In a way she is death as in the grim reaper. Her father dies in her presence and she kills homer Barron. Emily herself dies in this short story, thus symbolizing the death of the old south. Faulkner uses symbolism in a rose fir Emily to help portray what kind of character Emily is. Faulkners character Emily is affected by the civil wars outcome. Emilys father settled in Jefferson, Mississippi after the war. Her father instilled strong southern beliefs into Emily. An effect of this is that Emily is stubborn and unwilling to change. Her refusal to pay taxes makes her more than just a stubborn town eccentric.(Smith 3). Miss Emily refused to conform to the ideals of the town when she wouldnt let the people put numbers on her house. Proof of Emily having southern beliefs is that her servant is black, a few of the ladies had the temerity to call, but were not received, and the only sign of life about the place was the Negro man -a young man then- going in and out with a market basket.(Faulkner 91). The black servant refers back to when slaves where allowed in the south. Miss Emilys father had repressed Emily from suitors,Mr. Grierson was a strict man who demanded high standards from hid daughter.(Black 4). The lacks of interaction with people lead her to have, the in ability to feel or demonstrate appropriate affect, or emotion, that is congruent to a particular situation.(Smith 2). Always being under her fathers control leads her to deny her fathers death. With her newly found freedom she cut off her hair as a sign of breaking away from her fathers control.(Fatima 3). Homer Barron started off as a fling; then became an obsession for Emily. The male presence was needed for her to function properly; homer was merely filling a vacancy(Bernardo 1). Emilys obsession over him made her never want to let him go. The fact that homer wasnt the marrying type pushed Emily over the edge to kill him, so she wouldnt ever have to let him go and keep him forever in her presence. Miss Emilys father presses southern ideals into Emily, which had a bad effect on her. Faulkner expresses the civil war affects through Emily. Emily is also a good expression on his views of the south. Faulkners vision of the south is seen through symbolism, the character of Emily and the events that take place in the short story. Homer represents the north. The north is inviting itself into the south and pushing away traditions that have been carried on for decades with the power the civil war has given it. When homer was supposively courting with miss Emily the town was appalled, at first we were glad that miss Emily would have an interest, because the ladies all said, of course a Grierson would not think seriously of a Northerner, a day laborer. (Faulkner 92). As the story goes on the south, represented by Emily, wins the battle. This is when she poisoned homer in fear of him leaving her. The town thinks that Emily has ran homer off, but instead she has killed him so she can keep him for herself. Emily silenced homer, thus preserving the integrity of the old southern ways. Faulkner has given the south a win in his short story since in the civil war the south lost to the north. A s the story unravels, in time so does Emily and the house. They both grow old and weathered. The southern ideals are dwindling away also as time goes on. Even though most of the south has forgotten Emily hasnt. She is the rose of preservation for southern ideals, traditions, and way of living. When Emily dies it means that all recollection of the old south is gone along with her. In William Faulkners A Rose for Emily, Faulkner wrote, à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦-some in their brushed Confederate uniforms-à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦(Faulkner 94). This was describing some veterans at Emilys funeral. IN this short story symbolism, the character Emily, and the view of the south show the consequences of the north winning in the Civil War. In American literature the Civil War shaped the works of many authors around that time era. Bernardo, Karen. William Faulkners A Rose for Emily'. 5/5/2010. Blank, Amanda. Short Story Reviews: A Rose for Emily, by William Faulkner. 5/5/2010. . Fatima. A Rose for Emily. 5/5/2010. Faulkner, William. A Rose for Emily. Trans. Thomas Gould. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. Ed. Edgar Roberts. New York: Longman, 2009. Print. Smith, Nicole. Psychological Character Analysis of Emily in A Rose for Emily by William Faulkner. 5/52010.

DRacula Chpt. In Depth Summary and Commentary Essay -- essays research

Summary The novel begins with the diary kept by Jonathan Harker, an English solicitor, or lawyer, as he travels through Central Europe on the business of his firm. He is on his way to the castle of Count Dracula, a Transylvanian nobleman, to conclude a deal in which the Count will purchase an English estate. We learn that he has just qualified to be a solicitor, this is his first assignment as a professional, and he is engaged to a young woman named Mina Murray. Harker describes in detail the picturesque country and the exotic food at the inns, noting recipes that he plans to obtain for Mina. In the evening of the first day of his diary (May 3), he arrives in the town of Bistritz, and checks into a hotel recommended to him by Dracula. There, he finds a letter from the Count awaiting him, welcoming him to the Carpathian Mountain region, and informing him that he should take a coach to the Borgo Pass, where Dracula's carriage will meet him and bring him the rest of the way to the castle. The next day, as Harker prepares to leave, the innkeeper's wife presses a crucifix on him and gives him incoherent warnings, saying that it is the eve of St. George's Day, when "all the evil things in the world will have full sway," and that he is going to a terrible place. He is discomfited by this, and his uneasiness increases when, as he gets aboard the coach, a crowd of peasants gathers around him, muttering various forms of the word "vampire" in their native langu...

Star Trek :: essays research papers

"Star Trek": A Chronicle Space... the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship "Enterprise." Its continuing mission: to explore strange new worlds... to seek out new life and new civilizations... to boldly go where no one has gone before... The above blurb has been used to introduce the television show Star Trek: The Next Generation. The show's run has elapsed that of it's predecessor, the original Star Trek. The original spawned six movies and endless conventions, and both have given way to action figures for children, national clubs, and other various paraphernalia. This is the chronicle to end all chronicles: the full analysis and timeline of one of the most popular television programs in contemporary American history. Americans are fascinated with the possibility of intelligent life somewhere else in the universe; this has been displayed in books and plays and movies too numerous to mention, not to mention the accounts of "everyday people" who say that they have encountered aliens and unidentified flying objects (UFOs). This fascination became so great that in the late 1970s, President Carter decided to launch an investigation within NASA (the National Aeronautics and Space Administration) to uncover the mystery of UFOs and intelligent life in the universe. Science fiction plays upon this obsession. The great science fiction writers have sent our imaginations into overload with scores of stories to tell. The two most popular futuristic science fiction stories, Star Trek and Star Wars, both have similar characteristics. Both involve many different species of life (our nearest equivalent would be "races"). The Ferengi, Vulcans, humans, Betazoids, Klingons, Romulans, Cardassians, androids, and Bjorans are in the Star Trek series (which includes the original television series, the six movies, the NextGeneration television series, and the television series Deep Space Nine), while the Star Wars movie trilogy includes humans, Wookies, Jawas, Ewoks, droids, Tusken Raiders, and a host of various other strange and exotic looking lifeforms. Each species has its own heritage, customs, beliefs, and socioeconomic status. I am sure that each science fiction storyline has it's own unusual breed of lifeform, but this paper will examine only a particular science fiction storyline which has mushroomed into a cultural obsession. I choose not to focus on the works of Ray Bradbury and the like; I'm sure that they are superb writers. (A fantastic example is Bradbury's "A Sound of Thunder," which is the probable predecessor to all of today's hype surrounding the film Jurassic Park and the children's character Barney the dinosaur.) However, I've never heard of a Ray Bradbury convention, or action figures based on characters he's created. Star Trek appeared in the right place at the right time.

J.B.Priestley’s play, An Inspector Calls :: English Literature

AN INSPECTOR CALLS COMPARE THE LIVES OF EVA SIMTH AND SHEILA BIRLING â€Å"Property is that old fashioned way of thinking of a country as a thing and a collection of things on that thing.† This quote is taken directly from J.B.Priestleys late night post scripts on BBC radio in 1940, which were banned for being to critical of the governments actions, and can be used to sum up the capitalist view perfectly. I think this quote is made from the point of view of a capitalist who believes that the old-fashioned belief is to think of property as belonging the country and its people however the new belief, his belief, is that property can belong to individual people and not to the state or its people at all, and when a person owns his own property he can run it any way he sees fit. This is a belief which Priestly continually criticizes throughout his play. An Inspector Calls was written in 1945, the year the Second World War ended, but was set in 1911. The social climate of both years was of great unrest as was many areas of industry in Britain and many strikes took place all over the country much like the strike which took place in Mr. Birling’s factory. Priestley set the play in 1911 because of the onset of the First World War and he would be able to write the play with the advantage of hindsight, he could also make Mr. Birling look bad with his portentous beliefs and his promises of no war. He may have also set the play in 1911 because at this time he was 18 years old, working as a junior clerk in a wool firm and was about to gain his first insight into the differences between the social classes. The people he met at this age encouraged him to take part in their political arguments and discussions which were soon to influence his opinions and frame the values he was to later write about. These also led to him eventually attending university already politically aware at the age of 25. By writing the play 35 years after it was set, Priestley gave his audiences the advantage of hindsight. He wanted to do something about the injustices of society, and because only the middle and upper classes could afford to go to the theatre, his audiences were exactly the kind of people he was attacking. They were witnessing their own lives on stage and for them it may not have been a very pleasant thing to see. I believe that at the time only the middle and upper classes

Analyze the Ways in “Jeffersonian Democracy”

During Jefferson’s Presidency two things changed â€Å"Jeffersonian Democracy†, the War of 1812 contributed because until the war hawks and a growing desire to obtain Florida and Canada Jefferson did not want to get involved in war with Europe, and the Louisiana Purchase also changed his views because he was very Constitutional and when the treaty for the Louisiana Purchase was presented it was argued to be Constitutional. Americans in the South wanted to gain Florida and the people in the North wanted Canada. Jefferson didn’t want to just invade and capture these territories.With the attacks from Natives across the Florida border in the South and the issue of impressment it was hard not to go to war. Jefferson did not want to go to war with Great Britain. A group called the war hawks was born, men who were eager to go to war and get territory. After persuading Jefferson agreed to go to war with Great Britain, and because Spain and Britain were allies they could claim Florida as well. The reason this changed his democracy is he did not want to go to war with European nations, or at all I believe, but he gave in and went to war anyway because of pressure from the war hawks.Another factor in the changing of Jeffersonian Democracy was the Louisiana Purchase. Robert Livingston and James Monroe were sent to France to discuss a treaty with Napoleon. When they returned they had purchased the Louisiana Territory form Napoleon. Jefferson was both pleased and embarrassed. He was glad to have the territory, but being constitutional as he was, he was not sure it was Constitutional, until his advisors assured him that it fell under his ability to make treaties.This changed his view because it had changed him to be less strict constitutionally and he was already exploring the territory (and beyond) before the treaty was already made. Jefferson went through a lot of events that changed his view of Democracy and how he ran the nation, but two big ones were the War of 1812, because he went to war even though he personally didn’t want to, and the Louisiana Purchase, because of his belief that the Federal government only had powers expressed in the Constitution.

Amir character in the novel “The Kite Runner” Essay

The character of Amir goes through drastic changes as he moves from adolescence to adulthood. As a child Amir begins his life in Kabul, where his character is shaped through conflicts with his father and Hassan. Later, when he moves to America he leaves these conflicts behind and is able to create a stronger relationship with his father. However, when Amir is an adult he is called back to Afghanistan by an old friend to confront these earlier conflicts. In The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, observable changes can be seen in Amir’s character as he moves from Kabul, Fremont, and later back to Kabul. In the beginning of the novel one encounters a self-centered young boy, who lives a notably privileged life. He has a great friend, his father is wealthy, and he belongs to the upper social class in Afghanistan. However, a troubled relationship with his father deprives him of the affection he longs for, which he blames on himself. He believes Baba wishes he was more like him, and that Baba holds him responsible for killing his mother, who died during his birth. For example, when Baba tells Rahim Khan that, â€Å"If I hadn’t seen the doctor pull him out of wife with my own eyes, I’d never believe he’s my son† (Hosseini 25). As a result Amir behaves jealously toward anyone receiving Baba’s affection, especially Hassan. This causes Amir to resent bringing Hassan around Baba, even if it’s just for a short time. This is evident when Amir states, â€Å"He asked me to fetch Hassan too, but I lied and told him Hassan had the runs. I wanted Baba all to myself† (Hosseini 14). Although they are best friends, Amir feels that Hassan is beneath him because he is his Hazara servant. For instance, after the rape of Hassan Amir tries to justify his actions by stating that, â€Å"He was just a hazara, wasn’t he?† (Hosseini 82). At the same time, Amir never learns to defend himself or anyone else because Hassan always did it for him. After Hassan’s rape Amir realizes this explaining, â€Å"I ran because I was a coward. I was afraid of Assef and what he would do to me† (Hosseini 82). As Amir departs for America his character can be described as selfish and cowardly. When Baba and Amir arrive in Fremont his character changes considerably.  Amir adapts easier to life in America than Baba and no longer sees him as a legendary father but as a simple man. For example, when Baba becomes angry at a store clerk for asking to see his I.D. Amir is able to calm him down and defuse the situation. Amir explains to the store clerk that, â€Å"My father is still adjusting to life in America† (Hosseini 135). This new life helps Amir forget about Kabul and the sins he committed against Hassan. Amir reveals, â€Å"For me, America was a place to bury my memories† (Hosseini 129). In Fremont, Baba turns his attention to raising Amir, without the distractions of his business or Hassan to interfere with their new special connection. Amir has never been happier, not only from the new bond between him and Baba, but from his new wife as well. The marriage of Soraya and Amir can be seen as another substantial step in Amir’s maturity. Before the marriage Soraya told Amir about her struggle with her past relationship. Amir jealously announces after hearing this, â€Å"I envied her. Her secret was out â€Å"(Hosseini 174). When Soraya tells him this he envies the relief she must feel, which urges him to seek redemption with Hassan. Baba’s death can be seen as the final step in Amir’s journey of becoming a young adult because he understands that he will no longer be defined as Baba’s son. Amir realizes this when he says, â€Å"Baba wouldn’t show me the way anymore; I’d have to find it on my own† (Hosseini 188). Shortly after Baba’s death, his old friend Rahim Khan calls him to come back to Afghanistan to finally make amends. As Amir begins his journey back to Afghanistan, his character can be defined as empathic and loving. Once back in Kabul, Amir takes steps he would never have imagined, which truly define his character. On his venture back to Afghanistan he learns the truth about Hassan’s connection with Baba. After hearing this Amir feels robbed of the truth and is angry at how his own father could hold this back from him. Despite his feelings, Amir realizes he must not only pay for his betrayal of Hassan but for Baba’s betrayal of Ali too. Amir knows he must face his fears and he understands this when he reveals, â€Å"I remembered Baba saying that my problem was that someone had always done my fighting for me† (Hosseini 239). Following this he undertakes a personal mission to find Sohrab and finds the courage to stand up to the Taliban, nearly dying in the process. During his quest Amir comes face to face with the disturbing Assef  and fights him for Sorab, the ultimate sacrifice for his dead half-brother. While he is beaten he begins to laugh, which angers Assef even more. Amir explains that, â€Å"What was so funny was that, for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace† (Hosseini 303). After successfully bringing Sohrab back to California, Amir defends his Hazara nephew when General Taheri insults him. Over the dinner table Amir replies curtly, â€Å"you will never again refer to him as ‘Hazara Boy’ in my presence. He has a name and its Sohrab† (Hosseini 380). In the end, Amir finds himself flying a kite with Sohrab. As they fly the kite together the lifeless, empty look leaves Sohrab’s eyes and a half smile suddenly appears on his face. Amir exclaims, â€Å"The glassy vacant look in his eyes was gone. His face was a little flushed, his eyes suddenly alert† (Hosseini 389). Amir can now smile at his not so perfect past because he feels he has redeemed himself and his father. As the novel ends, Amir’s character can be characterized as selfless, brave, and compassionate. Amir’s character changes remarkably from when he is a young boy to a grown man. In Kabul, Amir’s character is damaged and he can be seen as a villain after incidents with Hassan. Once in Fremont, he is able to step away from these old sins and re-shape his character into a more loving one. Finally, when Amir returns to Kabul, he is able to seek redemption and become the perfect version of himself. In The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, noticeable changes can be seen in Amir’s character as he transitions from a young boy to a grown man between Kabul and Fremont.

Marcus Garvey Research Paper Essay

Post-Civil war America exercised the segregation of Whites and Blacks. Originally, the aim of this division was to keep everything separate but equal. By the late 1800’s into the 1900’s, the â€Å"separate but equal† motive adapted into the superiority of Whites, leaving much racial tension and limitation for the freed slaves and their ancestors. Marcus Garvey, like many social activists, had many goals to either remove this separation, or to completely relocate America’s blacks to a new place of their own. Marcus Garvey’s ideas of black nationalism and fighting oppression helped shape the identity of African Americans in the United States during the 1920’s. Marcus Garvey was born on August 17, 1887 in St. Ann’s Bay, Jamaica. He began his career as a magazine editor by traveling and residing in Costa Rica, Panama, Jamaica, and London. He eventually began studying Law and Philosophy at Birkbeck College in London. While living in London, he founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA), which was dedicated to black racial pride, economic self-sufficiency, and the formation of an independent black nation in Africa. He also became the editor of Negro World, a magazine dedicated to black nationalism, including poetry and articles about African pride and ancestry. In June 1919, Garvey founded the Black Star Line of Delaware, a shipping line for the transportation of goods and to later aid his campaign for his â€Å"Back to Africa† movement. After a year of success, the shipping line went bankrupt. His immediate business failure led him to being accused of mail fraud. Investigator Edwin P. Kilroe attempted to arrest Garvey of his fraud and UNIA associations, although he had not found enough evidence to do so. After back and forth tension between Kilroe and Garvey, on October 1919 a man named George Tyler arrived to Garvey’s office stating â€Å"Kilroe sent me†. Tyler then proceeded to shoot him 4 times with a . 38-caliber revolver. Garvey was then wounded in the right leg and scalp. On August 1, 1920, Garvey proposed his Liberia Program to 25,000 people. This program was to strive for the building of colleges, industry, and railroads to create a permanent homeland for the African Americans in Liberia, Africa. In June 1923, Garvey was finally convicted of mail fraud and sentenced to five years in prison. In 1927 he was released by President Coolige, but deported back to Jamaica. Garvey finished out his years in London, creating the Edelweiss Amusement Company which helped exposed talented but financially unstable musicians and artists. He continued to expose his ideas to future UNIA leaders by setting up an African philosophy school in Toronto. In 1940, Garvey had a stroke, but survived until he read a false obituary of himself stating he had died â€Å"broke, alone, and unpopular†, thus leading to his fatal second stroke. Marcus Garvey died on June 10, 1940. Garvey’s main ideas were closely distinguished with the Pan-African movement in England, where he lived most of his life. His goals were â€Å"to unify people of color against imperialism all over the world† (McKissack 79) Works Cited McKissack, Patricia and Frederick. W. E. B Dubois. New York: Franklin Watt, 1990. â€Å"Universal Negro Improvement Association (UNIA)†. Encyclop? dia Britannica. Encyclop? dia Britannica Online. Encyclop? dia Britannica Inc. , 2013. Web. 14 Apr. 2013 .

Explain how Blacks disagreed amongst themselves in the 1960’s about the best way to try to gain more civil rights

Although people had been campaigning for equal rights for a long time, it wasn't until the mid 1950's that the civil rights movement began to gain popularity and support. Rosa Parks was a 42-year-old black protestor who had organised a kind of experiment on the 1st December in Montgomery, Alabama. Rosa Parks was on her way home from work on the bus. When the bus became full, she was asked to give up her seat, for a white man, and to stand up at the rear of the bus, as the law stated. Rosa refused to move. She was arrested and fined $10. After this, the black civil rights campaigners and her family and friends organised a 24 bus boycott, which was so successful they decided to carry on boycotting the bus companies until they agreed to seat all passengers on a ‘first-come' basis. Since 75% of the bus' business came from black passengers, the buses eventually gave in, but not without resistance. The victory over the bus companies was mainly due to a campaign with the slogan â€Å"Don't ride it for freedom†. It was this protest that saw the emergence of one of the most influential figures in the black civil rights campaign, Martin Luther King. He helped to lead this campaign. Dr Martin Luther King was a black minister who believed that mass non-violent protest was the best way to resist injustice. He took examples of direct action from Mahatma Gandhi, who fought against the British troops in India using, what he called â€Å"non-violent non-co-operation† campaigns. King was a pacifist, so did not believe that violence was the right way to get what they wanted but he knew that going through the courts to change the law would also not have been very successful, as all the people involved in the legal system and courts were usually white and some were members of the KKK. In 1957, he formed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) with other clergy from Southern States to fight against racial segregation. They organised non-violent protests such as sit-ins, Freedom rides and marches. In 1960, four black students asked to be served at a Woolworths lunch counter in Greensboro, reserved for white customers only. The black waitress refused to serve them so they staged a sit-in demonstration. Two days later, 85 civil rights campaigners staged another sit-in protest. 70,000 people in the next 18 months took part in similar sit-ins across the South. During these sit-ins, people poured drinks and sauces over them and even sprayed them with paint. 3,000 civil rights workers were arrested. All this attracted the media and drew attention other injustices endured by black people. The freedom rides tool place on interstate travel buses. The Supreme Court had ordered that these and the waiting stations for the buses should be desegregated in 1960. In 1961, CORE (Congress of Racial Equality) decided to put these ignored laws to the test. Thy found that although the coaches were desegregated, the services in the bus stations were not. They organised a group of civil rights campaigners to travel on the buses and, at the stations, use opposite facilities to those they were supposed to (black campaigners used the white facilities and white campaigners used the black facilities, including toilets and waiting areas. ). Many freedom rides were organised to try and force the coach companies to abide by the law and desegregate their stations. Unfortunately, anti civil rights, such as the KKK, got involved and violence broke out at many of the freedom rides. Bombs were even planted on some of the buses. One example of a protest that ended with violence took place in Birmingham, Alabama in May 1963. Alabama had the highest amount of members in the KKK and the Governor and police department were both against desegregation. Martin Luther King was arrested before the demonstration began. When the demonstration starts, it is led by children. Bill Connor, head of the police department, arrested protestors, including the children, some of them as young as six. On the second day, the police used fire hoses, horses and dogs to attack the protestors, again, including the young children at the front of the demonstration. After that, Martin Luther King began to doubt whether or not the demonstration was a good idea because of the violence created. Soon, a deal was struck with the state authorities that all the public facilities would be desegregated within 90 days if the protestors called off the demonstration. Again, this caused a backlash from the KKK, who started riots fires and bombings. The demonstration got a lot of attention from the national media and pictures of young children being mauled by dogs set on them by the police caused outrage in the rest of America. But King knew that the police and public would use violence against demonstrators and that this would attract the media. He also knew that it would attract more attention if the children were at the front of the demonstration and therefore the first to be caught up in the violence. This caused some followers to doubt Martin Luther King's methods. Others began to think that the non-violent protesting was not getting them very far. In the mid 60's, the civil rights movement began to split. Different groups began to gain popularity. The emergence of the Black Power movement began, which were groups who were against working with white people and expelled white people from their campaigner groups. They encouraged blacks to set up their own business so they depended on white people as little as possible. Only the NAACP and SCLC continued to support the ideas of non-violent direct action and co-operation with whites. One of the groups associated with ‘Black Power' was the Nation of Islam, or Black Muslims. Their most well known leader was Malcolm X. He, with the Nation of Islam, believed that getting racial equality in white society was impossible because whites were racist and would never change. They campaigned for a black state inside the US that would be ruled by black people, for black people, without white people. They also rejected the civil rights movement, as they didn't want to have any part in white society and believed that Blacks should use violence to protect themselves, if necessary. But even the Nation of Islam had disagreements among its members about the best way to get what they wanted. In 1964, Malcolm X began to change his mind about the civil rights movement and began to accept that white people could play a useful role in helping black people achieve justice. The Nation of Islam split and Malcolm X led a breakaway group. In 1965, he was assassinated by 3 members of the Nation of Islam. In 1975, the leader of the Nation of Islam died and his son changed the policy on the organisation on accepting white Muslims as members. This caused another split in the Nation of Islam. Another group associated with ‘Black Power' were the Black Panthers. They were quite a small group but attracted a lot of attention because of the way they looked their revolutionary ideas and their use of armed violence. They had the most violent reputation and used armed patrols in the black areas to protect black communities from ‘police terrorism'. Although the blacks may have disagreed with policies to gain civil rights, most would recognise the effects of Martin Luther king as the most powerful influence over civil rights.

Conflict Between Reality and Illusion as a Major Theme of ‘the Glass Menagerie’ Essay

Over the past century discoveries in physics have revealed a whole new paradigm for life – one that you can apply to your life right now to get extraordinary insights, intuitions and results. I believe knowing these principles is crucial for your ability to be ‘tapped in’ to the unseen world that surrounds you. To me quantum physics has always interested me. Since a child, I wanted to know what this world was about, and if I could go deep into understanding the nature of matter that makes up our world, and know what is it made of, then I could understand my own essence and the purpose of life itself. So I set off on an exploration into the area of science known as quantum physics. It is the branch of science that explores the universe at the very tiniest and the very largest of scales. What I found was science is really the new religion. For instance, no one has ever seen an atom even though scientists tell us that’s what all things are made of. Since we cannot see an atom, then we have to accept it from the scientific community based on faith. To me, when you involve faith, even an experimentally confirmed version, you also imply a new religion in a sense. In the past, the masses of people got their meaning of life from religious teachers who taught well-understood spiritual laws. The teachers of religion along with ancient myth tellers were the storytellers giving people the ultimate truth of reality. At some point in history, religion became political and was used more for state control of the masses rather than for providing the truth of reality. When Science was discovered all that changed. Over the past 300 years or so science has made an attempt to start from scratch and rebuild what is true. From Galileo to Darwin these rebels sought the truth yet paid the price for going against the inherent worldview. Inspired by these great leaders more and more people joined the scientific exploration for truth, which led to the forming of institutions and organizations. As with any good intention, when it becomes institutionalized, it can lose sight of it’s main objective and eventually become biased as well. In this case, our modern scientists have focused on what can be seen in the material world and have forgotten or downright ignored other unseen forces such as mind or consciousness as factors in the laws of nature. Most scientists have bought into a materialistic and lifeless universe. Even though there is evidence to the contrary, modern scientists do not want to acknowledge such a paradigm – despite what quantum physics shows. This may be because, if scientists go against the inherent worldview, they create the real potential of losing their reputation along with their university-funded careers, which has been know to happen all too often. Only a handful of open-minded scientists, who are willing to put their reputations and careers on the line, have pursued the truth of reality in spite of the consequences. â€Å"At present, of all the stories, it is the scientific ones that most define us,† writes Lynne Mctaggart, author of her book entitled â€Å"The Field†. She continues, â€Å"Our current scientific story is more than three hundred years old, a construction largely based on the discoveries by Isaac Newton – a universe in which all matter moves within three-dimensional space and time according to certain fixed laws. The Newtonian vision describes a reliable place inhabited by well-behaved and easily identifiable matter. The worldview arising from these discoveries is also bolstered by the philosophical implications of Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution, with its suggestion that survival is available only to the genetically rugged individual. These, in their essence, are stories that idealize separateness. From the moment we are born, we are told that for every winner there must be a loser. From that constricted vision we have fashioned our world. † The current scientific worldview is simple: We are all separate beings being influenced by random events, surviving from cradle to grave, and that’s pretty much it. There is no before life or after life for us. This reality is all we have, and it is based on random, or cause and affect relationships along an ongoing flow of time. â€Å"Although we perceive science as an ultimate truth, science is finally just a story, told in installments† writes Mctaggart. But the latest installment is quantum physics, which reveals a whole different paradigm. We are all not separate but rather interconnected – called non-local entanglement by these physicists. Unfortunately, quantum physics is considered an anomaly in the scientific community. Because it is such a variant to long held beliefs, most scientists have not incorporated these new-found principles into their respective areas of science let alone their own personal lives. If they did, we would have an updated version of biology, physiology, geology, medicine, psychology, sociology and even theology. We would have a whole new paradigm for life, thus impacting our worldview in every way. Instead, these principles stay isolated into the lonely branch of physics that explores the very tiniest of particles. This whole new view of life would say we are not separate at all, not from each other, not from the solar system we are part of, or the universe we belong to. We are all interconnected at the most fundamental aspect of our nature. We may appear as physical things, but we are more than that, we are processes intimately connected to our environment and to each other. Without awareness of these principles, things look random in our lives, but according to quantum physics they are not. If you would like to learn more about the principles of quantum physics and how to apply them to your life, then you may want to enquire about our monthly gatherings we have in Richmond Hill. This group aims to be the leading think tank for gathering answers to life’s most interesting questions, from the meaning of your life, to exploring hidden forces that heal the body and mind, to discovering answers to the riddles of ancient civilizations. Each gathering will be a special event consisting of a professional presentation followed by a short discussion on various topics of interest in order to explore the answers to life’s mysteries, learn the underlying unseen laws governing your everyday existence, and how to apply this wisdom to transform your life. Each event will enhance your sense of wonder and appreciation for you and the world in which you live. No previous knowledge is necessary and everyone is welcome.